#what a terrible day to be a kid pirates fan

[mistytearious]

i dreaded the day this would get animated

[tossawary]

Thinking about a "One Piece" AU, where all of the East Blue Strawhats have actually met each other before Luffy starts sailing. Because Nami and Zoro are both wandering pretty far, easily able to meet anyone, and Sanji is on the Baratie, which is also moving around and may dock at various islands.

So, let's say that the Redhair Pirates briefly dock near Syrup Village on their way back to Foosha Village, and young Usopp stows away so that he can go be a brave adventurer like his father. For a couple weeks, little Usopp and little Luffy are rolling all over town together like frolicking puppies, until the Redhair Pirates are ready to head out again and drop Usopp back home along the way (Yasopp is going to be in SUCH shit with his wife). Little Usopp goes back to tell everyone about this kid he saw eat a devil fruit that turned him into a rubber man, such that Usopp could use the other boy's fingers as a makeshift slingshot to fight off crocodiles! They had great fun trying to figure out Luffy's ridiculous new powers together and coming up with silly attack names.

And no one believes this story from Usopp because it's absurd. After a few years, Usopp starts to wonder if he actually made the whole trip up, if he's just lying to himself too, until Luffy finally shows up again and it's like the Spider-Man meme. "YOU," Usopp says, pointing with a trembling finger, until Luffy makes a noise like a squeaky toy and then tackles Usopp for the tightest and happiest hug anyone has ever seen.

Little Usopp meets little Nami at one point because she's just passing through, picking pockets, waiting for her next ship, and she steals from Usopp what she THOUGHT was money but actually turns out to be exploding paint pellets or something. So, a paint-stained little Nami turns on Usopp like, "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS???" because she's so shocked and angry about her cute new outfit being ruined, and he ends up apologizing (just full on sobbing) to HER for not being a good enough pickpocketing mark.

The Baratie docks at Usopp's island at some point to pick up groceries, maybe they got blown off course by a storm, so young Sanji meets young Usopp at a market stand selling spicy peppers. Usopp spins Sanji long and complicated stories about the flavor and rarity of the peppers, how he labored for many days through terrible dangers to pick them, and then someone else gets back to the stall and says, "Thanks for watching it for me, kid." And Sanji is like, "What?" And Usopp has to admit that he doesn't actually work there. He does know a lot about peppers, though! However, he was also lying a bit... maybe a lot...

Zoro meets Usopp and Luffy because he's hunting bounties through their islands. (Luffy falls in love INSTANTLY. I wrote another post about that.) The little Usopp Pirates become convinced that Zoro is a pirate invading their island, so they get Usopp to come "fight" Zoro, which ends up being Usopp guiding a lost Zoro (the kids set up so many fucking traps, he is NOT having a good time) to the nearest bar. They hang out for a bit. Usopp got a little tipsy. Usopp CLAIMS later though that he fought a ferocious, green-haired pirate who had swords instead of hands.

Young Sanji meeting young Nami is just a classic case of "you let that pretty girl have HOW MUCH in free food???" Zoro probably tracked a bounty to the Baratie at some point and got in a fight with the waiter; Zeff won't just ban the fucker because Zoro did actually pay his bill and Sanji HATES it. Zoro and Nami could have met at any point in their travels; they could have even had a navigator & bodyguard setup for a little while, before Nami ran off with all of some pirate bounty's treasure.

The Baratie usually wouldn't dock somewhere like Foosha Island, but they were in the area and Zeff wasn't such a fan of Goa Kingdom. Little Luffy wasn't even allowed in, but Sanji fed him some food out the back anyway, and Luffy decided then and there that Sanji was going to be his cook. Sanji said, "You are fucking crazy," of course, but no one has ever reacted to his All Blue dream like Luffy did. So when Luffy finally comes looking for him, Sanji still immediately says, "Fuck off, I'm not going!!!" but he's also smiling so wide at seeing this crazy kid again. It fools no one.

Nami probably went treasure hunting in the jungles there. She screamed at the top of her lungs when a 15-year-old boy dropped out of the trees and said, "Hey!!! What are you doing? Ohhh, are you treasure hunting? Can I help?!" (Ace has just set sail. Luffy is bored.) Nami could use the help, so she allows it, figuring that she'll find a way to trick Luffy at the end. But after their wacky adventure together, Luffy is like, "That was fun!!! You can take all of the treasure now, I don't need it," and young Nami doesn't say no but it breaks her brain a little bit. What kind of idiot says that the adventure is the best part and actually MEANS it?

So, they're all screwed by the time that Luffy sets sail. He's coming for them! He'll find them all eventually! ♥️

Alternatively: none of the East Blue Strawhats meet each other beforehand but they do all meet Ace when he sets sail. Has anyone in the world ever talked about their little brother this much??? This Luffy kid doesn't sound like a real person. And then two years later, they all run into Luffy and they're like, "Oh, shit, he's real."

[paleoleigh]

hello, what would you say to someone who very much thinks about stepping away from the renewal movement bc our fandom keeps being associated with slavery, racism and zionism? and people just take it at word value and feel morally better that they don't consume that media taika did while probably watching 1665 tv shows from disney and mcu. i do not care to be associated with zionists and racists and be told i ship slave owners, but everyone outside of fandom seems to have made up their mids and i don't need my tweet in supoort of a silly tv show i love to be used in some ofmd guys are dicks bullying campaign

Oh boy. I don't typically delve into this because I'm cautious about saying the right/wrong thing and being misconstrued. But I'll do my best*. Let's break this down:

Slavery - I understand people are uncomfortable with the show depicting characters based on real life pirates who were connected to slavery in the 1700s, and that is incredibly valid. If someone doesn't want to interact with the show because of that, that's fine! It's great! However, the show basically takes the idea of these pirates and makes them into entirely new characters which never themselves touch on the idea of slavery. The show depicts itself as pretty anti-slavery given the immediate violence that occurs against people who are racist to the non-white characters (Officer Whatever getting knifed after calling Frenchie slave, Abshir and the servants helping burn down the French ship and leaving happily with money after one of them called them "my Africans", which, yes EW, but was very pointedly saying he was wrong). I will also say to the slavery point that kids play pirates/love pirate stuff, people don't tell them not to because the real Blackbeard was involved in that? Idk, please take my opinion here with a grain of salt (and I'm very willing to be wrong on this) but it seems a bit...reactionary to say the show is pro-slavery.

Same goes for racism - MOST of the actors and characters are not white in this show, and that I think is portrayed very well through many different backgrounds. And as I just mentioned, every time a character is racist, they almost immediately get their comeuppance. Stede never treats any of his crew in any way which is racist, and the one time he and Pete are racist towards the Indigenous tribe, they're called out on it explicitly and never do that again.

Zionism....sigh. This is unfortunately a loaded argument these days. Yes, Taika signed a letter that said "give the hostages back". Taika is also half-Jewish and describes himself as a Jewish Polynesian man. At the time the letter was making the rounds, October 7th had just happened, and a very real, terrible kidnapping/murder of roughly 1,000 people happened, which is shocking and terrible to see as a Jewish person. It was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. Of course that does not excuse the >20,000 Palestinians who have been killed. Absolutely not.

Taika also gets a lot of unnecessary shit because people just don't like him and want to find some moral high ground to stand on and berate fans of his work with. I'm Taika neutral, but the more hate he gets the more I'm willing to back him because it's waaaaay disproportionate to anything he actually says. Plus, many, MANY actors on the show are openly pro-Palestine, and those people are close with Taika (see: Vico), so I'm very against the idea that OFMD is zionist? At least, I don't see how it can be any worse than any other piece of media those screaming about hating OFMD watch.

So, ending my ramble....I say do it anyway. You can't please everyone. People on the internet are mean. You don't know them, and they don't know you. They probably haven't seen the show and are dogpiling, because that's what people on the internet do. In addition, the renew as a crew movement has raised money for Palestine and for other charities close to the shows themes - LGBTQ+ youth and rights and amputees come to mind from what I've seen over the past few days. All extra money from the renewal campaign is going to charity. Everyone I know who donated and emails Zaslav and Co are also active in the campaign for a ceasefire, calling reps and MPs, being loud on other sources.

I'm sorry if this didn't make much sense and if anything I said was wrong. Again, very willing to listen and dialouge on any of it. As always, my DMs are open.

*Please note that I am a white American who lives in Canada and was raised Catholic (although in a very Jewish area with many Jewish friends so I do have a lot of background on Judaism, but again am not Jewish so), therefore I don't want to speak over anyone more qualified on any of these matters.

[mysticstarlightduck]

I have an oc prompt/ask: It's family game night! What game(s) do(es) your ocs play and what hilarities ensue?

Thanks for the tag, @gummybugg!

Oooh this is such a cool question! Since most of my WIPs are set in medieval times, video games are out of the equation, but there are still plenty of cool (more "historic") games my characters play/used to play that fit the criteria for game night! I chose only some of my characters for this, and it was a great ask to answer!

In The Last Wrath:

The Ashiren siblings -

When Raelen and Azra were little kids they used to play pretend a lot, creating whole worlds and stories where they could be anyone (Raelen's favorite was the one where they pretended to be pirates). Sometimes, they'd get Julyan to play along with them - something both Raelen and Azra adored, because "his stories are always the best" according to them.

There was also a mageborn variation of hide and seek, which is actually very difficult compared to the one we know. It consisted of one of the siblings using magic to turn invisible, and the others trying to find them by sensing the presence of their magic, rather than seeing them, and catching them before the invisible one could sneak up on them. Azra lost often in this game and was a very sore loser lmao.

Raelen was also very good at street games, especially Deadly Bones (a dart game that was very popular in Agrannor, which involves throwing a card in the air and trying to hit it with a bone-carved dart before the card falls to the ground). Julyan has a terrible aim but insists that he will catch at least one card during their game session - he does not, lol.

House Renfelli -

Maeryn Renfelli often played chess with his daughter, Innara Renfelli, something that was not only a way for them, the Royal Family, to have fun and spend time together, but also to teach her strategy.

Innara's cousins and her often used to partake in common archery tournaments and festival games back in their home kingdom. Nefeli, Innara's oldest cousin, despite being the most lady-like of the family, loves chariot races. They're all very competitive, and Innara often figured out sneaky ways to outsmart them.

Fabian & Luciya Anynth, and their friends -

Fabian and Luciya (and by extension their friends, Willen, Sybil, and Kaden) were thieves and cons, and oftentimes, this meant they made their living by cheating on street games. Knucklebones, Betting Dice, Cups, drinking games, and knife throwing were their specialties. Fabian taught Luciya how to expertly cheat on all of those. For the thieving siblings, this was something they enjoyed a lot. One time, they got brave enough to cheat a knight of the royal guard, who was drinking in a tavern, out of 100 gold in a game of dice - the town talked about it for weeks (and never found out who did it), and Luciya still laughs about it to this day.

In Tales of Wilted Flowers:

Eiralis Coren and Kaellel Nevarth:

Eiralis was a human raised by dryads, who in Ravaryn also happen to be, for lack of a better description, avian-like faeries. This means most of Eiralis' childhood was centered around the trees of the Whispering Forests, and most of her games too.

Dryad youths often race each other in the depths of the Whispering Forests until they reach the Olden Peak (the highest area of the forest just out of the forbidden lands), but some prefer a more high-stakes version of this game, which involves collecting pouches of pollen from the thorny "laugh-roses" of the forest and trying to hit other players with them with a slingshot (like a game of paintball, but with a small fuzzy ball of pollen that'll make you laugh for three minutes). The one who reaches the peak without being hit wins. But this was a game Kaellel did not play for many years now.

Eiralis' and Kaellel's parents weren't big fans of game nights, though they did like a good match of charades and riddles.

The closest thing Eiralis and Kaellel had to "game nights", once he became Anwireh (a fae "commander" of sorts) - and became much more distant/estranged from her - was their sparring sessions, which he used to train her in sword fighting and archery.

Xarian Argyris and his mothers -

Xarian's mothers were busy merchants, but they always made sure they had time to have some game nights. Aware that Xarian had a knack for inventions, they bought many puzzles, which they would build together, and as he got older, they helped him build his own inventions as well.

The Fenrith Siblings -

Niven Fenrith was always too busy with his duties for the nobility of their kingdom - especially after becoming assistant to one of the main Councilors of the royal court. But Rylisan did have a knack for playing pranks on his other siblings, especially the younger ones, something that often escalated to chaotic prank wars, much to Niven's exasperation and their godfather's disgust. Rylisan also loved strategy games and was incredibly good at chess. The one "game" that Niven did play with them when they were younger and to this day, was on their birthdays - he would hide whatever gift it was that he got for them, and the one receiving the gift had to try and find it before midnight.

When Rylisan's parents were alive, his mother taught him how to play all kinds of card games and his father taught him runic magic through challenges and tricks.

[beforethepoison]

No I get it I feel like the people who are still fans of JD are ignoring reality in a way and this goes for stans Of other male celebrities who have been accused of abuse like Danny Masterson or other things like racism homophobia and transphobia. They don’t see at the end of the day their faves will be fine they’re in an industry where wealthy white guys are mostly at the top and will mostly be welcomed back with open arms. Except for Danny Masterson possibly

absolutely. You know anon I think it's a very interesting topic to talk about because, I find myself thinking alot on that when it comes to be a "fan" and having male idols. Because you know, we love to fan girl at something and I have male idols as well. I keep wondering myself what I am gonna do if I find out that some male idol that I have did something shitty... Will I stop listening to their stuff? Will I stop to post things about them? It actually happen recently with Josh Homme which is a guy who I thought was a badass, great musician, very talented man...But you know, he did abuse his children, he sued Brody Dalle to keep the kids away from her. And I find repulsive but there is still part of me that aches because of this reality.

Getting even MORE PERSONAL: Once I was in love with this beautiful blonde guy who had blue eyes and he has a mod style, he used to listen to rock and roll, he dressed like a grandfather he was absolutely a babe. But he used to have a difficult personality. He treated everyone with disdain, with bad tasteful jokes, and I would ask myself: why am I in love with this human if I HATE the way he treats people? Then I realize that, I was in love with the IDEA I had for him. Even if reality kept hitting me in the face with the rough truth, what was beautiful about him was the "eyes" that I had for him, the "idea", it was not who he was.

After I understood that, things got easier for me to separate the feeling of love, the eyes of love that I had and what this person actually is.

And that's how I believe that some depp stans find themselves,deep down, they know that depp is an abuser. They know. But they just keep lying to themselves because life is already terrible. If they found out that their idol, that scissor hands dude so naive or that pirate so funny is a monster, their floor would drop, their beliefs would be full of question marks... And I think people should know its ok to be like "I was an ex Depp fan". "Yeah, sometimes I do watch his movies still" " I wish he wasn't like that" because you know, we don't. We don't wanna people to be mean. These stans should know that in the end of their lives no one is gonna care about their love about their idols, how they "save" you....Thats not important. Just like a legacy is not important. A material legacy is not important. What really matters is how you learned, how you left people feelings, what joy you brought to people.

The Depp Stans should know that just because you are not defending him anymore that the love you felt long ago when you watched his movies wasn't real. It was real. Yeah, you loved that guy. You loved that idea that this actor was. But now he has proof he is a dirty old abuser and an addicted who is not seeking help. It doesn't mean you abandoned him. It means that you will not take shit from people you love. And that's love.

To be honest, If I find out that Paul McCartney was an abuser, or shot children I would be VERY VERY VERY DEPRESSED. I would delete his stuff of social media, maybe I would still listen his music but I wouldn't mention this guy ever again. But I would be depressed.

I don't feel that depressed with JD because I don't feel conected with this work anymore, or the way he has been living (doing drugs, hanging out with MM, chasing 15 year old girls) its not a life that I admire.

[argumentalist]

My local Target has this weird "fan" section that seems to stock whatever they think kids these days are in to. There's usually a bunk of Funkos and action figures... Typically a bunch of anime stuff...

And, when my wife was last there, this Bandai Thousand Sunny model kit.

I'm not actually a big fan of One Piece. I've caught one or two episodes here or there... But that first season didn't grab me. And it's an imposingly long-running show. I wasn't willing to sit through hundreds of episodes waiting for it to get good.

Still, it's a Bandai kit. And pirates are cool. So what's not to like?

It's a very simple kit - just four runners of plastic. And one of those runners is dedicated to translucent blue water effects.

The color accuracy is pretty terrible. There's a huge sheet of foil stickers... Though I'm a little hesitant to just call them "color correcting" - they add a lot of details like doors, windows, and rivets. The kit would be very, very dull without those stickers.

The build is really about what I'd expect from a Bandai press-fit kit. Very well-engineered. Everything fits together nicely. The instructions are clear and easy to follow even though there's no English in them.

The end result is a very nice little pirate ship.

I had a very fun time building this model. I'm not familiar with the line and I'm not sure what else is available... But I'd absolutely build more of these kits. Good stuff.

[melsdreamweaving]

The day I made it "snow" in my bedroom

(a humorous creative non fictional essay)

When I was a kid, I made the executive decision to creatively upgrade my playtime using whatever things made sense to me—think of it as going from freemium to the full deluxe edition, with all the DLCs in a flawlessly pirated way.

Being the youngest in the household, with an elder brother who was practically a decade into living ahead of me and adults who could move but choose not to, I was an unstoppable energetic ball of joy with care-bear DNA. I had so much vitality that if you could have plugged me into the grid, I would've powered a small country. While my brother was busy studying for a huge exam and my mom was in a state of trying to catch up with sleep, I saw my opportunity.

It was time to shine and bring innovation into the realm of playtime. I was like the Thomas Edison of innovation, minus the electrifying elephant and terrible management skills, of course. I was going to make it snow indoors!

Mom and Uncle G had installed a bunk bed for me that year. I only fell off it once but kept it a secret because I wanted to preserve my perilous penthouse.

This bunk bed was central to my scheme. Without it, I'd have been forced to cobble together some ground-level snow-dispensing device or sneak the ladder in from the backyard—both guaranteed to blow my cover.

Now, all I needed was fake snow. Recalling the stash of baby powder in the bathroom, I made a stealthy excursion from my room. Clad in an oversized sweater to ward off the cold, I decided to smuggle out the Johnson & Johnson goods, ensuring I wouldn't spark any suspicion.

This tactic proved invaluable, not just for this operation, but also for past missions involving the covert transport of off-limits cookies from the kitchen and sour Warheads from my brother's stash. He thought he could deter me by developing a taste for them, not anticipating my bizarrely adaptable taste buds.

Sneaking back to my room was a breeze since everyone was preoccupied. At last, I was back in my fortress, armed with the bottle of white powder. I gathered my eclectic assembly of dolls - Aladdin, the Ninja Turtles, and Tenko (a peculiar doll that resembled a Latin American exotic dancer, gifted to me the previous Christmas).

The stage was set for magic. Climbing atop my bunk bed, I meticulously dusted each ceiling fan blade with the powder, ready to conjure a dazzling winter wonderland.

I lost myself in play, orchestrating an epic saga where my dolls formed an unlikely alliance to rescue Santa from the clutches of Darth Vader - the perennial antagonist in my childhood narratives, a fixture in the fan fictional universes I crafted with glee.

Tenko was poised to invoke the snow with a sacred dance when my name shattered the air, called out in the most piercing tone possible. Maria, my grandmother, the formidable matriarch, was far from pleased with what I considered a masterpiece; to her, it was merely a mess. Among my critics, she was the most stringent, and the staunch enforcer of the cookie embargo.

Unsurprisingly, she enlisted my help to clean the mess, assigning me towel-folding duties as a meditation on my missteps.

Brooding over the abrupt halt of my grand spectacle while folding towels, I was suddenly jolted by a furious tirade in Spanish. The commotion roused my mom and piqued my brother's curiosity. We converged in my bedroom just in time to witness the ceiling fan, forgotten in the cleanup, shower my room and my beet-red grandmother in baby powder. We all froze, bracing for the worst, until laughter from my mom broke the tension. My brother and I were initially petrified, anticipating a cataclysm.

To our astonishment, laughter bubbled up from my grandmother too, and soon, embraces were shared. As mom fell over saying nonsensical things in Spanish.

Years later, I discovered my penchant for havoc mirrored traits seen in my inventive uncle and grandfather. Their own youthful escapades had put the family through a whirlwind of creative mischief and trouble from time to time.

They were actually eager to see where my life's adventures would lead, and happy that a girl had grandfather's penchant for trouble (My house had the weirdest gender war dynamic and my older brother and I were not there for it). Looking back, that day brings a smile to my face, knowing how my artistic endeavors now craft joy and thankfully I'm much better at cleaning up than I used to be. No hidden "booby trapped" ceiling fans.

[bellaphomet3]

1. Kid Icarus Uprising - my brother had this game on the 3DS and I constantly stole it and played it myself because we both loved it so much despite how terrible the controls are (literally just put it on the switch having 2 joysticks would fix everything you don’t even need to upscale it’s graphics I don’t care if on the big screen the polygons look like shit I just wanna play the game with 2 sticks). The twist after defeating Medusa shocked me as much as the twist in DDLC. It along with Percy Jackson made me and my brother love mythology enough that we took Latin as as our foreign language and my brother spent 3 years in college trying to major in classics (before his program was shut down by the school and he had to switch to history). My mom sold the game to game stop for 3 dollars without telling either of us. I’m still trying to find a version online that’s affordable so I can play it again or get a laptop strong enough to pirate it because my current laptop lags playing snes games, much less 3DS games.

2. Fnaf - my first introduction to horror, also met some friends through it, got a lot closer to other friends through it. Genuinely an integral part of my journey from homophobic to trans lesbian. Only one on this list I still actively participate in the community of.

3. DDLC - what actually made me into a fan of horror (yuri why I have a terrible fear of knives). I’m biased because I watched it before it got really popular so I didn’t know the scares were coming. Also a pretty big part of my journey from homophobic to trans lesbian for reasons to long to get into.

4. Super Smash Bros Ultimate - met a lot of friends through this game. I still remember the day after Steve came out when everyone in my high school’s super smash bros club was playing Steve except for one guy who just wanted to keep playing Wolf and got pissed everyone else was just playing the new guy, and because I played a zoner (King Dedede rhe funny penguin) I was able to figure out rough basics of how to use Steve better than others, and so I just started repeatedly kicking his ass no matter how many times he rematched me. He was definitively better than me, and especially is now because I never cared about competitive and stopped playing 3 years ago while he is still active in the local competitive scene, but we still hold it over his head. Every time anyone other than him complains about how broken Steve is they get sympathy, when he does we just say he’s still butthurt from when I kicked his ass. Also made me watch Alpharad who was also a pretty big part in my journey from homophobic to trans lesbian, and most of the friends I made playing it wound up being gay/trans. This is a weird pattern I’m just now noticing.

5. Super Mario Galaxy 2 - first video game I ever “played” (me and my brother traded being player 2 while we forced our dad to play for us because we were so young)

Honorable Mentions

Celeste - I, a trans woman, played this game incredibly early in my transition if not before (I don’t quite remember). I also played it again later on in my transition. I felt fucking nothing. Everyone else talks about how much the game means to them and I was just like “yeah, really fun, tough platformer, don’t get anything else you’re saying.” Somehow between of Five Nights at Freddy’s, Doki Doki Literature Club, Celeste, and Super Smash Bros Ultimate, the game about self acceptance staring a trans woman as its main character is the one that had zero affect on me being trans whatsoever. I don’t fucking get it. Great Game tho

Minecraft, DDLC, Yandere Sim, FNAF, and Animal Jam 🫡

[myowngametales]

Life is Strange: Just a Photo Fan Fiction

Warning ⚠️ spoilers for the first game ahead.

There I was Max Caulfield standing next to her parents at the funeral of Chloe. Joyce comforts me saying, “I know you two were close as kids.”

Little did she know, we were more than close. Every time I look around at the funeral, I have to remember I saved all those people from a terrible storm. A storm that I hope won’t come now. How could I sacrifice my best friend for the chance of protecting a place with no guarantee of success? I hope Chloe’s theory about the storm was true. That my powers caused the storm to manifest. It was a true butterfly effect that started the day I saved her.

Days pass and there are no signs of the storm. The storm had many signs like snowfall on a hot autumn day and whales coming ashore. October 11th is the day the storm is supposed to hit. So far, Chloe was right, but I stared at the photo of the butterfly. Why was Chaos Theory correct? Why did my powers dictate this anomaly? The storm could have wiped out everything, but I would have drove with Chloe away from this place safely.

Some nights, I think of going back and finding another way. Maybe, save only the people we like from the storm and let the rest go to Hell.

I only say this, because for me, this is Hell. Living without the love of my life, I have memories that can’t be taken away. I have powers that I cannot use anymore.

This is what Chloe must have felt without Rachel. I wish I could have saved her, too. For Chole’s sake, we could have been a family.

I wonder about a life I could have had. I take the photo out sometimes and focus on the photo, but I cannot become the hero. Chole was the true hero of Arcadia Bay. I ended up being the sidekick. If only she was here, then I could become Super Max again.

Maybe, Super Max is cursed. Like the time I saved Chloe’s dad. She would never forgive me if I had helped her die. I couldn’t Chloe allow you to die in vain. I find comfort knowing you sacrifice yourself for the greater good.

I just have survivor’s guilt. Why did I live when you could have lived, too? I stare at this silly butterfly. As you float in Heaven, I feel like Hell stung me like a bee. I told myself to avoid temptation I would tear this photo and never look back. I put on headphones, and of course, “My Girl” by the Temptations play. How poetic? Chloe will kill me if I finally give in and save her.

I wish my powers didn’t allow me to remember all the good moments we had together. The moment she dared me to kiss her for the first time, that time we took a swim in the pool, and when we went to the lighthouse flooded my mind. I changed so much to be with her that day. I gave up the photo contest. I had to face Jefferson again.

David and Joyce broke up after Chloe’s death. It was too much to bear. I remember how brave David was when he saved me from Jefferson. I remember how much Chloe hated that “Step-douche” as she would call him. She should have known how much he loved her. I think her death affected him more than she would have known.

I looked at the photo one last time. I study every detail without focusing too much and going back in time. I go to the lighthouse alone. The night the storm was supposed to happen. It never came. I talked to Chloe to let her know she didn’t die in vain. The sun sets on the water. I took a new photo. This is a backup if I ever need to stop myself from doing what I am about to do. I tear the butterfly photo into pieces.

As I throw the pieces into the Bay, the new picture or the sunset slips out of my bag. It is blown by the wind. I no longer have the backup. I cry as this means Chloe is really gone. I don’t know what to say other than fate, karma, or whatever you want to call it sealed itself.

We were pirates in our childhood. But I would have given up all the gold in the world to see Chloe back. That is why I took the picture of the sunset. Because I needed to know there was a way, even though I would not take it.

I still take photos. Years pass, and my art is being shared around the Bay. I wonder if I will ever find a girl like Chloe. Something tells me the Bay may not be the best place for a girl whose life was changed by her soulmate. I lost everything the day I let Nathan take away her life. It’s true that life is strange. And maybe I would do anything to have just a photo of that day.

[lonely-lost-soul]

A Pirate's Life for Me

Cover Art Done By: @fridaydev-draws and @friday-dsv (Dreamsmp x reader) Pirate Au! Love Interests: C!Wilbur, C!Techno, C!Dream, C!Sapnap, C!Quackity, and C!Schlatt

~~~

Salt burned your lungs as you tossed open your window with a loud bang, the seagulls perching on your flower boxes screeched in protest and flew from your window. “Fucking sky rats get the fuck out of here you heathens!” You snarled out the window shaking your fist at the bothersome birds, the sounds of the ocean crashing on the shore filled your ears as well as the chatter of the dock workers. You let the breeze blow back your hair and you heard someone calling your name from down below.

“Good morning (Y/n)!” You glanced below you and grinned,

“Morning Eret!” They waved back enthusiastically their dress spilling around their ankles, a basket of fruit was balanced on his hip. “Opening early today? I'm sure your patrons would be happy to start their drunken stupor early,” She held a hand to his mouth snickering and you shot them a look.

“If that gets more money in my pocket then so be it, I won't complain too much.” You shrugged, “Will I still see you later tonight?”

“Always do dove, how can I resist a drink from my favorite bartender.”

“You can’t it’s my charm.”

“Will the both of you shut the fuck up!” Another man’s voice growled from another open window, “It’s too early for your bullshit.” You saw Eret click his tongue but smiled up at you despite the man's protests,

“I’m heading to the market anyway. These fruits won’t sell themselves, I'll see you later.”

“See you soon!” You closed your windows once more, but not before urging your daisies to grow one last time. You tossed open the curtains allowing light to spill into your cozy home, a small carpet was in the middle of your room. It was a deep red and the pattern was made of gold yarn, aside from that everything in your residency was made of dark wood. Your shelves were littered with books and empty cups, and your old worn journal sat open on your desk. It was filled with childhood memories and you continued to write in it to this day, it was easier then, things were simple and everything was innocent and new to you. Now your days were filled with sea fairing idiots who liked to drink themselves stupid, but you could handle yourself, you always kept your father's dagger on your thigh at all times. Those who were frequent customers knew not to mess with you and those who were new learned their lesson within the first ten minutes of meeting you. You inherited the bar from your father, a kindhearted man who died a few years before today, leaving you with the bar and the dagger you had on your hip. You fished through your closet pulling out your clothes for the day, your dress was a gorgeous light coffee color and came down to your ankles. The bottom was flared and had dark brown panels on the sides, it faded inward to a light green then back to the coffee color. The corset around your waist was a dark brown with light green trim, you tied it tight with a small huff making sure your waist was sinched perfectly. The sleeves came down to your elbows allowing you to move your arms freely while making drinks. The top of the dress ended just below your collarbone, you strapped your dagger to your thigh before lacing up your knee-high black boots.

You thought back to your tavern downstairs, you were fortunate enough that you weren’t running this entire operation yourself. You ended up hiring help and they were like family and you knew they saw you as such as well. Most of the girls didn’t have a family of their own so you gave them room and board, also money, of course, you weren’t a terrible boss! You opened the door to your room, you watched Cecil, the tavern’s mascot trot out of Juniper’s room. The border collie liked to switch up which rooms he stayed in protecting every one of your girls when you couldn’t be there for them.

The first of your girls was Adelaide or Addie, she was one of the first to fall under your care. She was around your age, a motherly type, sheep hybrid, who cared for the girls, and always gave the drunk patrons with mommy issues a shoulder to cry on. Her long brown hair always hung down her back, she typically worked tables, served food and drinks, and always got a generous tip from patrons.

The next girl was Judas, a squid-enderman hybrid who was taller than you could ever wish to be, although intimidating you couldn’t meet a kinder woman. A jack of all trades the woman helped out wherever she could, black-ish purple hair curled around her shoulders and some people came specifically to hear her sing. Her voice was like rich velvet and lured men and women in like a siren.

Juniper was after Judas, a demon hybrid who was naive but you’d be a fool to underestimate her. She worked beside you at the bar, she can make some mean fruity drinks, Eret always preferred her drinks over yours. Freckles adorned her face and shoulders, her light brown hair curled down to her middle back, purple horns sprouted from the top of her head. You wanted to adorn it with gold jewelry and you were saving up to gift some to her.

Yeti was a human woman like yourself, she didn’t bother with those who were rude or obnoxious. She kept to herself only really talking when she was spoken to or when there was an opportunity to crack a rare joke. She typically stayed on the sidelines, out of the scenes and Yeti liked to help Judas decorate her sets.

Zig was a kind young adult, they got along with everyone who came inside the tavern. Soft emerald eyes drew people in, and they tried to make sure tensions within the bar didn’t rise and start a fight. There would always be one or two that’s just natural, but one look at Zig and his magic words and they seemed to disperse, not wanting to hurt the kid’s feelings.

Vendetta was the tallest member of the group you had taken in, she was stunningly beautiful and didn't take shit from anybody. She was a guard dog if you will, making sure no one fucked with any of the girls in your tavern. While Zig did their best to keep people under control sometimes they couldn’t win. That’s when Ven would step in and ‘kindly’ escort them off the premises with or without force.

The youngest member here was Luvena. She was a moo-bloom hybrid with soft brown hair that sprouted flowers, her cow ears would twitch when she was excited and followed Addie around like she was her daughter. Addie took her under her wing and was training her to be a perfect little waitress, absolutely warming customers’ hearts. Luvena also loved to give out flowers, she was a fan favorite bringing new life into the tavern.

Cecil barked seeing his mama and scampered over to you, you poured food into his bowl as Juniper wandered into the hallway. Her head rested on the doorframe as she gave you a tried wave, “Morning (Y/n).”

“Morning Juni, We’re opening a little early today. Take your time I’m not expecting a big rush of bar patrons this early.” You assured her and she gave a sleepy nod,

“I’ll be down as soon as Ven’s out of the shower.” She yawned, “This beauty doesn’t come naturally.”

“Hardly darling you’re gorgeous just the way you are.” You reassured with a wink, Juniper flushed a little, happily laughing beside you.

“Just go wake the others will you, you flirt!”

Tossing your head back you gave a happy laugh heading down the hallway to make sure everyone was awake and ready to go for later. Addie and Luvena shared a room so she was in charge of waking up the youngest member of the tavern. Judas was already awake making breakfast for everyone when you headed downstairs, Zig was sitting on the counter beside her, they were the designated taste tester.

“Good morning Miss (Y/n)!” Zig chirped, the young adult hummed fondly, “Sleep okay?”

“Absolutely. What about you both? Thank you for making breakfast Judas.” You hummed fondly and Judas had a shy smile on her face.

“I slept well thank you.” Judas hummed softly, “Also it’s my pleasure. Want to make sure everyone’s healthy and alright.” She let out a little squeak as you wrapped your arms around her body, you barely came up to her chest,

“Judas please marry me,” You complained, “Your breakfast is always heavenly and you care for everyone. Please be my wife.”

“(Y/n)! Please.” She sputtered face turning a dark purple, Zig made a noise of protest and held his hand in the air.

“If she won’t marry you I will!”

“Zig! I’d be honored!”

Their entire face lit up with excitement and they hopped off the table to hug you tightly, you hugged them back and pressed a fond kiss to the top of their head. “I got to open up the tavern, you mind setting the table for me Zig?”

“Sure Miss!”

You sent Judas a kiss in the air which her face burned at, quickly going back to her cooking. You smiled eagerly and unlocked the door to the tavern, you shoved a bucket in front of the door to keep it open. The salty ocean air wafted through your nostrils and your eyes sparkled wondrously.

Today is going to be a good day.

Almost immediately a particular bastard caught your eye,

“You’re here early.” You mused raising an eyebrow,

“Heard you were opening early today sweetcheeks,” His voice was a low baritone, rough from years of smoking and drinking. Horns curled around his fluffy ears that stood out against his gruff exterior, he was a ram hybrid at its finest. “Figured I’d take the opportunity to get a special drink from my special girl,” He mused looking you up and down drinking in your figure. You scoffed at the retired man, he dressed like he was cosplaying captain jack sparrow, the gun’s in his belt just added to his costume and so did his large ruffled shirt, he was never one to forget his gold jewelry.

“Where’s Quackity?” You ignored him sitting him at his usual table, he frowned but you knew he was taking it as an opportunity to stare at your ass. He slid into the stool and put his feet up on the table, his boots were muddy but you could only control him so much. He was too much of a regular to get scared off by your threats and scolding.

“He’ll be in at his normal time. He’s not much of a day drinker, although can’t say I’m complaining. Having all your attention on me and all, considering I’m the only one in here. That being said, I’ll have my usual sweetcheeks.��

“Stop calling me that,” You scolded with a certain fondness that was reserved for the man. “You’re lucky you’re my favorite regular Schlatt,” you gave his ears a fond pinch and he bleated. He sent you a scalding look as you walked away, although the look soon fell as he got a good look at your ass once again.

“I’m your only regular sugar tits!”

“Schlatt feet off the table.” Addie criticized whacking his boots with a rolled-up menu, he rolled his eyes but dropped his feet to the floor. “You should know this by now, we go through this every day.”

“Yeah, yeah little lamb I’m on it. Judas here?”

“She’s always here,” She huffed spreading the menu down on the table. “Do you want your usual or something different? Should I get Quackity’s drink ready too?”

“Nah just stick with mine, for now, tell Judas I’d like to see her.”

Addie clicked her tongue and placed her hand on her hip, “fine. But if you’re just going to grossly flirt with her as you do with (y/n), then keep it to yourself.”

“You’re not the boss of me. Just because you look like an old hag-” The way she glared at him sent a chill down his spine, “shit babe take a joke will you.”

Eventually, people began to file into the tavern, as the morning faded into the afternoon and then into the evening. The tavern was bustling with life, Judas’s elegant voice traveled through the crowds and her voices seemed to float above the voices. Quackity joined Schlatt by his side seemingly irritated by a conversation they were having, Schlatt was about five drinks in at this point, which was much less than his usual, and Quackity on his second.

“What are they talking about?” Luvena asked swinging her legs as she sat on the bar beside you. Her moobloom ears twitching every so often as she tried to eavesdrop on their conversation,

“Vena it’s impolite to eavesdrop.” You scolded bopping her on the head lightly, she whined and rubbed the top of her head.

“I wasn’t!” She argued as you rolled your eyes, you looked over at the two men to find Quackity looking over at you. His hand was raised in the air, one finger was up summoning you to get him another drink.

“I’ll be back, why don’t you talk to Ven while I’m gone. She’ll keep an eye on you.”

“I don’t need a babysitter!”

“Good thing she doesn’t want to babysit your ass either, now shoo.” You motioned her to hop off the bar and she did so with a long, dramatic sigh. You looked over at Ven who gave you a silent nod, letting you know she’d watch out for the youngest member of your band of misfits. Meanwhile, you grabbed Quackity another drink and walked over to the two men at the table, “Someone order a drink?”

“Aye! Mamacita! Fancy seeing you here.” Quackity purred a bright smile spreading across his face seeing that you were the one to deliver his drink,

“Hey Big Q,” You greeted placing the drink in front of him, “You doing okay?”

“Better now that an angel walked into my sight,” He flirted and you rolled your eyes. “What? It’s true! You always brighten my day you know? Ow!” Schlatt hit his ex-first mate over the head,

“Take a breath lover boy. Thanks for the drink sugar tits.”

“You’re welcome, what were the both of you talking about if I may ask.” You hummed grabbing some of Schlatt’s empty glasses, an uncharacteristic frown came over both their faces. “Oh? Touchy subject?”

“Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. Just dishing out some old problems, most of which are better left unsaid.” He aimed that statement at Quackity, his jaw seemed clenched and Quackity’s brow furrowed in annoyance.

“Well I just want to remind the both of you,” You passed the tray of empty glasses over to Addie as she walked by, she took them swiftly. You grabbed the side of both their heads and pressed them against your chest, not that you knew but both men’s flushed to the tips of their ears. “No physical fights are allowed in this tavern. If one starts I won’t hesitate to kick your fucking asses. Got it?” They looked over your chest and locked eyes with one another, after years on the sea they could read one another’s facial expressions rather easily and at that moment they shared the same thought,

‘They should fight more often.’

“I said, got it?”

“Yes ma’am,” The repeated simultaneously as you pulled away,

“That’s what I like to hear-”

“(Y/n)!” Vendetta’s velvety voice called out from behind you, you turned and saw a group of newcomers file into your bar. Your body tensed momentarily,

Pirates.

Schlatt turned his head to follow your gaze and he tensed from behind you, “fuck me.” He growled and Quackity raised an eyebrow at his captain, he turned to look over his shoulder and his face lit up.

“Sapnap!”

The pirate who had a white bandana tied around his forehead glanced over at him and a smile lit up across his features. “Quackity? Is that you?”

“My man!” He stood up from his chair heading over to wrap the man in a hug, “I haven’t seen you in years, man.” You zoned out of their conversation eyes locking with a few of the other pirates who walked into the tavern. Vendetta and Addie both greeted them, but everyone who was under your care knew to keep their guard up around pirates. From what you could gather there seemed to be two crews, a crew of what only seemed to be two, Sapnap was included. The fire demon was still talking with Quackity, while the other man took in the view of the tavern, he had shaggy blonde hair, and had a few scars across his face. A porcelain mask sat on top of his head, a forest green cloak was around his shoulders, his hood was lowered around his neck. A sword was strapped tight against his hip and there was another dagger that seemed to be tucked against his side. His eyes gazed towards you and he winked teasingly with a coy smile, you scoffed looking over at Addie.

“Seat those two gentlemen yeah? Be careful, I’ll tell Ven and Yeti to keep an eye.” Addie looked at you, concern written on her soft features but she nodded. While Addie departed, you noticed Ven talking with the other group. Luvena was hiding behind Vendetta’s long legs, although a tall blonde boy seemed very keen on talking to her. You smoothed out your dress and moved towards the group of three, you eyed them up casually. The blonde looked to be around Luvena’s age, he had a shit-eating grin on his face and his uniform matched that of the second tallest in the group. The second tallest was clad in a light blue jacket with large golden buttons on the red collar. He had a cream-frilled shirt underneath and a black belt holding up his brown slacks, those were tucked into black boots. On his back seemed to be a guitar and was the only one of them not holding a weapon, but you knew better than to assume with pirates. His curly brown hair seemed to bounce every time he talked, he seemed to be the ringleader but there was no doubt that the real ringleader was the hybrid standing beside him. He was taller, on par with Vendetta in height, he had long pink hair that was tied in a ponytail on top of his head. A few pieces framed his face elegantly, there was no doubt he was the captain of the little crew that was in your tavern. He had a white shirt on with a deep low cut ‘V’ it showed off a good portion of his scared chest, around his shoulders sat a deep red jacket but his arms were outside of it and crossed over his chest. He seemed content on letting his second in command do all the talking, his red eyes were the only ones to meet yours. His head tilted upwards and before Vendetta could stop him he walked over towards you,

“You own the tavern?” His voice was a low monotone and it sent an array of pleasant chills up your spine.

“I do,” You raised an eyebrow crossing your arms over your chest, “Names (Y/n). You are?”

“Captain Technoblade of the ship Odyssey, I was hoping you had a few rooms and a table available. My brothers and I are pretty exhausted, we’ve been sailing all night.”

Brothers, they certainly didn’t all look alike, but then again you certainly had a mix of girls in your care. Your tongue swiped against the top row of your teeth, “Why don’t you and your brothers take a seat at the bar for now. Juniper will be happy to serve you, I’ll see if we have some free rooms available.”

“Thank you, once you return I’ll introduce them to you if you’d like,” Technoblade bowed his head before turning back to get his brother’s attention.

“I’d like that thank you.” You gave a nod motioning for Vendetta to follow you as you slid behind the bar with Juniper, Judas had also taken a spot sitting on the bar. You figured you’d let her know as well, considering she was another adult figure in the group. You knew either Juniper or Judas would fill in Addie considering the three were close. “Ven, can they be trusted?”

“Not too sure about the masked man, the one Quackity seems to be familiar with seems decent enough. He’s a fire demon though, could smell him from miles away, we all just need to be cautious.”

“Agreed,” Juniper added tapping her finger on her chin. “We should just try to curb all fighting if at all possible, what did the captain of the other group ask you?”

“They want a room, I’m about to check to see if we have availability. Thoughts on that?”

Judas let out a low hum her eyes followed both sets of pirate groups around the tavern, “I say if we have availability let them stay. They seem harmless so long as we don’t mess with them, which we’d never do.”

“Plus I can always stay awake to keep an eye on them.” Vendetta tapped her nails against the table,

“You sure.”

“As if I’d let anything happen to any of you, you’re my family.”

You all smiled softly, and you noticed Judas’s eyes widen, “Zig! Get that out of your mouth this instant!” She shot up from her spot and over to the person in question. The three of you laughed fondly at the nonsense, meanwhile, Juniper saw the three brothers sit at her bar. She moved away from you to greet them, you immediately could tell she was taken with the second eldest brother.

He seemed to be an absolute lady killer.

Vendetta ruffled your hair before going back to stand at her place by the door to keep the peace. You headed up the stairs to the rafters to check on the extra rooms you had, “Excuse me?” You tensed visibly turning around to face the man in all green. His eyes were mesmerizing, a fierce jade green to contrast his cloak, “Do you happen to have two rooms available?” The man held up two fingers to clarify his request,

“Do you usually start introductions with a blatant request like that?”

He chuckled a smile spreading across his lips, “I’m Dream and you gorgeous?”

“(Y/n), it’s your lucky day I’m about to check and see if any are available. My tavern is a hot commodity tonight.”

“Well, I can see why,” he spoke and you raised an eyebrow and tilted your head to the side.

“Oh?”

“It has the hottest owner around. Word spreads fast.”

You couldn’t believe this man was making your cheeks burn, he chuckled softly taking a step towards your figure. “Oh really, word spreads that fast on the open sea, Captian?” It was his turn to turn light pink, but he covered it up quickly with a chuckle.

“Touché.”

“I’ll get on that room for you and your friend. Take a seat, for now, this part is for guests and staff only you know?”

“So I have you all to myself?” He cheekily mused, he stepped towards you and before you knew it you were pinned against a wall. His hand suddenly brushed against your cheek, it was cold in comparison to your warm cheek. You felt Dream’s thumb brush against your cheek slowly, “You know...being on the open sea alone does something to a person.”

“Oh, I’m sure.” You mused pushing your forehead back against Dream’s, “All alone with only your crew with you.” Taking his other hand within your own you slid it up to your hip, you saw his entire face turn red as he stared down at your chest. “You’re probably missing a little love in your life, aren’t you Dreamy?” He nodded dumbly, his eyes still not leaving your chest,

Perfect. You weren’t going to let some pirate boy get the better of you.

He let out a grunt of pain as you spun him around and pressed his head into the wall with your elbow, your other hand has his pinned behind his back. “This hallway is for staff and guests only,” You purred in his ear before letting him go and swinging your hips before heading up the stairs fully. From behind you, Dream’s face was a deep, dark red and he had to clear his throat. Dream wasn’t going to let you go after that, I mean look at you, tough and able to hold your own, it awakened something inside him.

After checking up on the rooms you headed back down into the main hall, three-room keys in your hand. Glancing over at the scene in front of you, you saw Juniper dancing in the middle of the tavern the flirtatious brother at her side. Judas was sitting beside Schatt and Quackity at the bar, Addie was tending to Technoblade and the blonde at their little table. Dream and Sapnap were whispering to one another in the corner but still seemed to be enjoying the show. Vendetta was smiling softly by the door, beside her were Luvena and Zig both playing various instruments. You noticed Eret was also amongst the crowd, she had a brilliant grin on his face, it was flushed pink with alcohol and you smiled to yourself.

It was peaceful, and for a moment you forget half the patrons were scoundrels or pirates.

That was until the man dancing with Juniper locked eyes with you, his eyes lit up and he spun Juniper off into Addie’s arms. She giggled snuggling into the mother sheep’s arms, you heard a distressed “Juni! I’m holding glasses!” Before your vision was overtaken by the handsome flirt.

“Hello love,” He hummed, “May I offer you a dance?”

You were about to refuse but you saw Yeti, who finally made her appearance as it was getting closer to Judas’s set, giving you a big thumbs up “I’d be honored.” You responded taking his hand within your own, he pulled you out onto the dance floor and you felt his other hand politely hover on the small of your back. He allowed you to lean into his touch as he began to elegantly spin you around the dance floor, you were almost embarrassed to say felt like a princess. “Maybe I could get your name?” You asked above the music, “Since it seems you’re my dance partner this evening?”

“Wilbur Soot my love.” He hummed proudly, “The first mate of the ship Odysseus at your service. Plus I play music on the side.”

“Well now you need to play for us,” Wilbur twirled you around in a circle,

“Maybe one day. If you give me your name?”

“(Y/n) (L/n).”

“Beautiful name for a beautiful woman.”

“I was right.” You commented biting the bottom of your lip trying not to smile,

“About what?”

“You.”

“Ah? Already talking about me I see? Is my manliness and gentlemanly qualities that renowned?”

“Not exactly.” He picked you up slightly and pulled you into a low dip, “I was right in thinking you a nothing but a flirty playboy.” Wilbur almost dropped you, you squawked grabbing onto his neck. He began to laugh as you clung to his chest,

“Alright love. You caught me red-handed.”

Wilbur set you on your feet hands on your lower back, you were pulled close to his chest. “Can I buy you a drink?”

“I get them for free hon. I own the place.”

“Oh...oh.” He paled a little, “I didn’t fuck up our chances of getting a room did I?”

“Nah lucky for you and your brothers, I have you covered, same with your buddies over there.” You motioned to Dream and Quackity’s friend, Wilbur’s face paled as he felt the chilled room key get placed in his palm. “What’s your little brother’s name?”

“Tommy.”

“Tell them both we serve breakfast free from 7 am to 10 am.” He nodded as you walked past, Wilbur meanwhile turned to look at Technoblade. It seemed he had his red eyes on the couple the entire time they were dancing. He held up a room key, it was labeled 205; Technoblade nodded his head before leaning back and talking to Addie once more. “Dream!” You called throwing a hand up into the air, instead of Dream, Sapnap looked up he nudged Dream with his elbow. The man was now wearing his mask, but at least you could tell he was looking at you,

“Well hello, darlin’ you must be (Y/n). Name's Sapnap. Dream told me about you, so you have good news for us I hope?”

“Pleasure, I'm sure he told you all about me,” He nodded, his eyes taking in your body especially your ass. “Got you both a room key, your neighbors. Across from the other crew of pirates. Just don’t fight and we won’t have any problems.”

“You mean those jackasses are staying?” Sapnap complained loudly, looking over your shoulder at the other crew members.

“You both didn’t think you were the only patrons, did you? This is a business after all.” You, tossed the keys their way, Dream caught it with ease and Sapnap fumbled it only a little bit. After they were in their hands, you waved them off with a flutter of your palm you turned around to go speak with Judas about her set but before you could take a step you saw Schlatt stumbling up from his seat. “Ah shit,” You knew what was about to happen, you weren’t paying attention to the ram hybrid so who knew how many drinks in he was. You felt responsible, for a while you and Judas had been trying to help Schlatt with his addiction. You couldn’t help but wonder what exactly set him off for him to get this drunk, Quackity caught him in his arms with a grumble. The man was a drunken mess, and as you approached you could hear his slurred speech and could practically smell the alcohol on his breath. “Schlatt,” You spoke carefully and as soon as you got close Schlatt detached himself from Quackity and lunged at you. His head was buried in his chest, he almost purred like he was very happy to be there, you rolled your eyes and ran your fingers through his hair. You were mindful of his horns but he seemed pretty eager for you to touch them,

“(Y/n).” He whined although it was muffled against your ample chest, “Why do pirates have to fuck everything up?”

“What are you on about Schlatt? No one likes pirates.”

“They’re gonna take you away from me, sugar. You’re my safe space, this tavern is my safe space.” You sighed listening to his drunken ramblings, you grabbed his horns and pulled him away from your chest.

“This is my life Schlatt, I’m not going anywhere trust me. Plus my family is here, they need me. So try not to worry okay?” You slicked back the hair on his forehead before planting a fond kiss there, everyone in the tavern narrowed their eyes at the scene. Even your girls were green with envy, at the sight of their lovely boss kissing someone who wasn’t them. He leaned against your lips eyes fluttering closed,

“Well, well, well if it isn’t Captian Schlatt? Or ex-captain if I remember correctly.”

“What?”

You turned your head and felt Schlatt’s arms wrap around your waist and held you close to his chest. The touch was protective and you felt your heart skip a beat, why was he protecting you, and why did you actually feel protected?

“Has the drinking finally caught up to you? Or was it the fact that you lost your so-”

Was that Dream's voice?

“Shut the fuck up.” He snarled and you were shoved behind him into Quackity’s arms, you felt less protected. “I’m not that person anymore and you fucking know that,” Vendetta came to stand beside the both of you a hand was placed on your shoulder protectively. You knew she was desperately wanted to step in and you held up a hand to stop her.

“This isn’t good…” Quackity murmured, “They’re going to fight. Schlatt’s going to get himself fucking killed.”

“Calm yourself. We won’t let it get that far.” Ven grumbled eyeing you waiting for your signal. But you were lost in the conversation or argument, the two were having, you couldn’t believe Schlatt was a pirate. He was so...he just didn’t...he was a drunk okay? That didn’t exactly shout feared pirate to you!

“Oh, are you sure? I remember that look, that’s the look you’d get before you stomped someone’s lights out. No wonder your son disappeared under mysterious circumstances-” Dream was shoved against one of the poles holding up the building. He grunted and Schlatt’s arm was pulled back ready to punch, but his arm was stopped by smaller hands,

“Pardon me Mr. Schlatt but you know how we feel about fighting in our tavern.” Addie bubbled, she had a smile on her face but it wasn’t kind, it was full of warning.

“Get the fuck off me, sheepie. This doesn’t fucking concern you.” Schlatt shoved her away and as soon as his skin made contact with her body he made a sound of distress.

“(Y/n)...” Addie murmured quietly, your father’s dagger was embedded in Schlatt’s arm,

“Fucking hell you bitch!” He snarled baring his teeth, you glared at him twisting the dagger he yelled in agony.

“Touch one of my girls again and next time this dagger is going right into your back.” You ripped the dagger out, splattering the floor with blood. He grabbed his arm tightly and looked at you with slight betrayal in his yellow eyes. “I mean it Schlatt, Quackity take him home.” The man nodded looking at you longingly, he muttered a quiet ‘Sorry’ before escorting him out of your tavern. “You,” You glared harshly over at Dream, “Go to your room.”

“You’re not my mother.”

“Then find another play to stay.” You spat, he turned away and you looked over at Addie, “Are you alright?” Your voice turned tender as you cupped her cheeks. She nuzzled against your palms and nodded her head,

“I’m fine. You didn’t need to-”

“Yes, I did. No one messes with you. With any of you on my watch.”

The sheep hybrid made a little sound as her bottom lip trembled, she wrapped you in a tight hug which you accepted without hesitance. Judas walked over next and wrapped you both in her arms, pretty soon you were surrounded by your girls and Zig.

All of them had the same mindset: comforting both you and Addie.

It was good to be loved.

Wilbur watched the scene curiously and glanced over at Technoblade who stood up from his chair.

“I think that’s our cue to leave for the night.” He looked over at his first mate, Wilbur nodded in agreement grabbing his guitar from the chair beside Technoblade.

“They...Techno were they talking about Tubbo.” Tommy whispered to his brother, his brow furrowing in concern as they all climbed the steps up to their room, “You don’t think-”

“It just might be Tommy.” Technoblade tilted his head to the side, “Guess that’ll be something we ask him when we get back to the ship tomorrow.”

“Well, this trip is going to be way more fun than I thought.” Wilbur snickered lighting a cigarette, taking a long drag, before letting the smoke curl out of his mouth and up into the rafters. ~~~

Tag List: @v01dw4lk3rz, @jam-bombs, @abovenyx, @glitterydigitalart, @phoenixaesthetic19, @luluwinchester, @boiled-onionrings, @pastelmoonwitche, @roxy3457, @alovestruck-fool, @victory-is-here, @mack4676, @fiorenc, @theoneandonlyyeti, @bloodrose0723, @sandyy-woo,

[tragcdysewn]

starter/plotting call for the event! no caps, just tell me who you want to interact!! truly go crazy go stupid im hyped for this! linked here is my pinboard!

abi mckinnon - marina mckinnon

abi is loving this, she’ll be dressed up and playing games, trying her hand at pretty much every challenge she can find even if she’s terrible at it

ahsoka tano - isabelle lightwood, obi wan kenobi, beauregard lionett, kirei monsula, anakin skywalker, leia organa

honestly tempted to pick up a sword and see if her skills translate, but she’ll be drinking, playing games, just having a good time for once

allana solo - leia organa, jaina solo

she honestly has never seen anything like this and she’s excited? but any excuse to dress up and try new things is good for her. she’ll be dragging strangers into every random activity she can 

anastasia romanova

anya is always one to try new things when they roll around, so she will be trying a bit of everything, but most definitely will be fully dressed up and throwing axes and knives because she is a mess

ariana dumbledore

ari will be screwing around playing games and watching the entertainment, will probably also be somewhat dressed up because she wears long flowy dress 99% of the time anyways. will be dragging her fiance and everyone to dance with her

bellatrix black - narcissa black, voldemort, rabastan lestrange

she is not a fan girl is too bitchy to enjoy some silly muggle faire

cassie lang - peter parker

will be doing her best to pull out excalibur without being obnoxious about her super strength, could also be convinced very easily to go watch sword swallowers

clary fray - stefan salvatore, sophie hatter, isabelle lightwood

will be doing face painting for little kids in full renn faire regalia, she’s having an absolute blast about this whole thing

darcy lewis - pippin took, reed richards, loki laufeyson

darcy is absolutely following the pirates around and hanging out by the mermaid cove, this entire thing is a blast for her

davina claire - landon kirby

will probably be painting portraits, and trying her hand at a few games, definitely listening to the music most of the day

elphaba thropp

is only here for the same reason she goes to literally anything, but honestly will probably enjoy herself a lot? might even be convinced to do some fun casual magic to entertain kids

feyre archeron - omega archeron, rhysand, tech, hunter

she’s just wearing her own clothes but will definitely be trying a bit of everything. the whole thing reminds her of the night court so you’ll find her in taverns and dancing in the middle of the grounds

hallie parker - jack skellington

she’s wearing a gopro but is in full costume, probably has acquired a sword and will be challenging people to duels. if you actually know how to duel pls go easy on her

howl jenkins pendragon - chihiro ogino, sophie hatter, asmodeous alice

is working at the potions booth, but beware that anything he gets his hands on will actually work. he dresses like a renn faire half the time anyways so he’s chilling

jaime lannister - myrcella baratheon

look this man is canonically annoying about his dueling skills, will dig out widow’s wail and his armor and be obnoxious the entire time

james potter - remus lupin

he thinks the whole thing is pretty fun honestly? he’ll probably try a little bit of everything and see what happens

jeyne westerling

will also be wearing her own clothes, she comes from westeros the style is v similar, and she may try to learn to duel because why not, right?

jin zixuan - wei wuxian, lan jingyi

another one who is canonically annoying about his own skills, he has finally gotten a new bow and arrow and will be showing off literally the entire day

korra - orpheus

will be juggling fire for entertainment, no one has to know she cheats at it. honestly is going to be trying literally everything out that she can

lan wangji - wei wuxian, lan jingyi

honestly is not sure what the point of this is but it’s socially acceptable to carry bichen out in the open so he’s okay with this. is really only here because the five people he likes are around

lumine - amber

another obnoxious show off! she’s got her sword ready to go and will absolutely be dueling the entire day just for fun

luna lovegood - hermione granger, fred weasley, eddie munson

luna is very into this whole thing, she’s dressing as a fairy and truly just flitting around from booth to booth, probably a little bit tipsy and trying to make strangers dance

lyanna stark - rhaegar targaryen

this is her vibe honestly she’s having a blast. she’ll probably try some knife throwing and be all dressed up

marinette dupain-cheng

honestly loves the idea of this? she’s never been to one of these before but she loves carnivals and this is a carnival she gets to dress up for? a dream please run around with her

mj jones

not super into it but will be in some pieces more than a whole costume, and will probably explore the artsy stuff a bit, maybe even some of the weapons booths

mya stone

throwing axes and knives literally for hours, mya is having an absolute blast. she will be spending too much time being an absolute menace in taverns

nie mingjue - liu qingge, nie huaisang

baxia is out to play baby! he hasn’t gotten to duel in a hot minute this is great! he will also absolutely be teaching people some moves he lives to pass on his violent tendencies

renesmee cullen - bree tanner

she’s honestly loving this? it’s like an actual fairytale she’s obsessed. she’ll be hanging out by the mermaids and doing crafts

rose weasley - victoire weasley, molly weasley

is dressed like a fairy and is being a menace with her magic, also will be dancing around with every stranger she can grab

sheev palpatine

he’s probably not going lmao he may drop in briefly to look around but that’s it

shen qingqiu - luo binghe

honestly might just put his cultivator robes back on and pretend it’s a costume. will 100% be dueling and enjoying the performances

thanatos

this is the closest he’s come to familiar territory since getting here, and he’ll admittedly be enjoying some of the performances because swallowing a sword is impressive when you aren’t an immortal god

ty lee - katara, jem carstairs, vax’ildan vassar, mai

she’s definitely performing with her dance troupe, and will be probably dancing even when not onstage, because being able to just twirl around in a pretty dress sounds fucking incredible

wanda maximoff - eurydice, sersi, scott lang

she’ll probably dress up, this is a good distraction for her honestly, just some harmless fun, she’ll most likely be watching magic shows and just wandering

wen qing - wen ning

dressing up and carrying her sword because literally why not!! you only live once (except she had to die to gain that philosophy but shh) and she’ll be doing everything simply because she can

[sleketon666]

Thank you for the tag @beardedladyqueen!

Do you make your bed?

Mostly no, I don't bother with that

Favourite number?

13. As a kid, I decided to make this number my favourite to be original. And also bc since it is considered to be an unlucky number I felt bad for it x) ever since that 13 just sticked with me

What's your job?

Unemployed student✌️

If you could go back to school, would you?

Absolutely not. Those were definitely the most depressing and terrible years of my life

Can you parallel park?

I can't even drive a car, so nope

Do you think aliens are real?

Yes!! Been a firm believer my whole life

Can you drive a manual car?

Nope

What's your guilty pleasure?

At some points of my life, when I had no hyperfixation (= was absolutely desperate and bored) I kept reading and searching for content that criticised some old fandoms that I used to follow (mostly out of spite). Such were Miraculous Ladybug and Lore Olympus. But I don't really care about either of them now so uh... I suppose there's no guilty pleasure that I have at the moment??

Tattoos?

None, unfortunately. Hopefully, one day I'll fix that

Favourite color?

Green!! And black is on the 2nd place

Favourite type of music?

Heavy metal and alternative rock

Do you like puzzles?

Hell yeah! Most games that I have on my phone are some sorts of puzzles

Any phobias?

Insectophobia. I'm scared shitless of those nasty little creatures, even butterflies and worms disturb me. I like the way some beetles look but I'd rather watch them from afar

Favourite childhood sport?

Badminton, and it is still my favourite! Although, considering that I am not a fan of sports, it's the only sport I actually like and enjoy

Do you talk to yourself?

Sometimes, but I mostly sing to myself (even though I can't sing lol)

What movie(s) do you adore?

Amélie is definitely my most favourite. The first 3 movies of Pirates of the Caribbean are sharing the 2nd place. And the last, but definitely not least is Pride And Prejudice

Coffee or tea?

Definitely tea! Especially if it's kinda bitter, I don't like it when it's sweet. I also never liked coffee and tbh I can't even stand the smell of it. I tried it multiple times hoping that I'd trick myself into liking it. But it never worked :/

First thing you wanted to be growing up?

A nun, even though I was never a religious person and knew nothing of Christianity💀 I just thought that it'd be cool to live with other girls and women and be unbothered by the outside world. At least that's how I imagined it

No pressure tags:

@lostinforestbound @lemonsrosesandlavender @marbobar @reverieblondie @kimberbohwrites @dutifullylazybread @toads-treasures

Tagged by @zaegreus thanks bestie ✨💜

Do you make your bed?

I often make the bed when I leave for a couple of days, or for a night over, so when I come back home I feel comfy and all hehe.

What’s your favourite number?

Yub, 3

But why? Eh.. The shape? The 'color'? The vibe? Occurrences in my life liked to the three? Idk, just 3 and all the 3 related numbers (33, 333 etc)

What is your job?

Student is not a job, because I am the one losing money, but yeah

If you could go back to school would you?

Probably, I'd like pre-school/middle-school, when I could learn new but easy things lol and I loved the smell and things at my school back then. I'd like to go back in whatever you call that period between 15-18 yo school time, but not for all aspect, let's say I was in a school specialized in art and it was a lot of fun to have a class like that. And for some reason too (but definitely NOT ALL ASPECTS) I'd like to be back to study literature, a part of it...

Can you parallel park?

Yub kinda but I don't like it, and I think it is easier to park on the left part of the road than the right (note: my country drives with wheel on left and road on right)

A job you had that would surprise people?

I didn't had any real job, but maybe the fact I study English literature... Because when I was a kid, until hmm 13/14? I had a deep hatred for English language xD don't ask me why, it is just a fact... This, and me studying literature to begin with, when I barely ever read.. (note: I love to read, but due to other reasons I have a very, very hard time to read even things I really really wanna read :( sed)

Do you think aliens are real?

Sure, but not in the sci-fi kind of way. I think it is absurd to think Earth is the only planet in the infinity of space that met the right conditions for life to develop. But I doubt these forms looks like... humanoid-green/grey skin beings or that they look anything as we know on Earth. I don't even know if there's any 'developed' (in human's terms) form of life, but definitely things that feed and live. (Once again, I doubt they come on Earth with super technology and such... if they do, I really hope they see their mistakes before making first contact and go far far away, before getting involved with the toxic humanity...)

Can you drive a manual car?

Lol of course I can (this question sounds very American oriented question(?) but in my country, manual car is base, we have many non-manuel, but majority is manual) but yeah, I can drive it

What’s your guilty pleasure?

Uh... I don't really know... Some shows? Some I don't even 'like' but more because it reminds me of my youth? (Glee, Ugly Betty, Bones, etc) Idk if it is count as guilty pleasure... If anything else... uh I have unspeakable kinks (only in fictional/role play dimensions, nothing sicko irl), collecting PopMarts figurines? Fried chicken with spicy sauce?? Chocolate biscuit with chips??? I DONT KNOW

Tattoos?

Not yet, I wish to have some one day, but first I need to find *the one* I have many artists/kind of tattoos I like, but eh

Favourite colour?

Green and Purple (mostly all the hues) but also: pale mint, pale yellow, pale peach, pale pink, pale bleu, pale lavender, black, white and orange...)

Favourite type of music?

I literally can enjoy anything, from rock, pop, electronic, classical, ethnic/traditional, etc... I have some issues sometimes with some form of Jazz or RnB, but I still enjoy songs from these genres, so I can't say I hate it... I would say rock is always a go-to?

Do you like puzzles?

Most of the time yeah, if it is like puzzle board game 🧩 or puzzle video games 🎮 or riddle games ❓I love it all (Im not saying I am good at it, I say I like it)

Any phobias?

Won't say it is phobia? But I feel grossed at any .. milling bugs? Like colonies of ants or when baby spiders get out of mother spider 🤢 This and I'd say it is more anxiety, but I have a hard time being in crowded place/windowless places (a bit agoraphobic/ claustrophobic but since I can manage to deal with these situations sometimes, I won't call it phobia)

Favourite childhood sport?

Maybe archery🏹 ? Or hmm basketball 🏀 and badminton🏸 ... And I kinda like to play football ⚽ but the toxicity around that sport is making it annoying and boring

Do you talk to yourself?

Rarely out loud, but pretty often in my own head. I feel dumb when I hear my own voice/sometimes it is even stressful because I grow aware of silence around me after I spoke....

What movie(s) do you adore?

Hmm tough question... Many for many different reasons.. But let's say: Legally Blonde (the vibe and the topic, go girls, can be barbie and have a brain), Princess Mononoke (base), FFVII: Advent Children (thirst), Nanny McPhee (chiiill), Crazy Kung Fu (top tier), Ne Zha (2019) (bery nice), ... That's it for TODAY's pick, what about tomorrow..?

Coffee or tea?

Both but ✨☕C O F F E E☕✨(even if Earl Grey Yin Zhen is honestly DOPE)

First thing you wanted to be growing up?

🤔 Idk which come first, but I remember I had the mad project to do "all my dream jobs at once", so I'd have been: a painter, going around the world with a circus where I'd be acrobat and magician, and yet, using the world-travelling to heal any animals I find on my way 😂🤣

I tag... *go through mutuals*

@beardedladyqueen @kales09 @chinchilla-7 @astraluxe @general-kalani @alladeline @chromium-siren

PLEASE LEMME KNOW IF I AM PESTERING YOU! I WILL STOP!

[mizgnomer]

Hi!

I found u through your very great gifs & u seem like the best person to ask this. so my younger sibling has decided that david is the best after watching good omens (I skipped the newt and anethema bed scenes) ducktales and with me. And I don’t blame them lol Is there anything else I can show them that’s pg 13/ ok for 10 year olds to watch?

(We’re also watching doctor who series one and they wanted to skip it the first few episodes but now we’re towards the end, they love it)

I’ve been been checking the commonsense media site for ratings but I thought it’d be easier to ask someone who’s seen a lot of his stuff

Hi Anon! Apologies for the delay in responding, it's been a busy week

I'm glad your sibling is enjoying Doctor Who so far, because that would definitely be at the top of my recommendations list. My kiddos also grew up listening to the How To Train Your Dragon audiobooks, at least in part because David does such an excellent job narrating them. He's also in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (but not very much, and as a baddie) so I don't know if that gets to count or not.

If they end up really getting into Doctor Who, I'm also a big fan of the "Doctor Who Confidential" series, which gives a behind-the-scenes look at the making of each Doctor Who episode. I've always loved being able to look behind the curtain and see how tv is made, plus you get to see how much fun David was having on that set.

I'm really looking forward to Around the World in 80 Days, which will hopefully be out around in December, and should be appropriate (I think).

That being said, most of his other stuff is fairly adult-themed and probably not terribly appropriate for a 10 year old. David has done lots of great voice work for animation, including things that go over well with older kids (you mentioned DuckTales, so maybe they would also like Amazon's Eden, Aardman's The Pirates in an Adventure with Scientists, and David's episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

The movie What We Did on Our Holiday is rated pg-13, and The Decoy Bride (a rom com) is PG. Your mileage may vary on how much a 10 year old would like those though. Also, if they ever get into Shakespeare, David & Catherine Tate's Much Ado About Nothing is all kinds of excellent (as is his Hamlet & Richard II).

I'm not sure that I helped very much (hopefully people can add comments/replies if they think of things I've neglected to mention), but I wish you and your sibling all the best while bonding over David Tennant content!

[kitkatopinions]

It's hard NOT to speak up when something you used to love and had so much potential gradually turns to shit. I know some former fans just dropped the show and discourse (mostly as a result of V6 and V8) but there are those of us who have to step up and point out WHY this happens!

Not gonna lie, it's hard for me because I hyperfixate, and it's really hard to stop talking and thinking about things that I hyperfixate on. Before I made this blog partially as a way to vent, I felt like I was annoying and driving away my sisters because I kept talking about RWBY - even though that wasn't the case, since both of them also had major problems with RWBY and we've all always enjoyed dissecting and bashing media. Still, that's how I felt, and when I'd make myself not talk about it, I'd just sit there thinking through everything I would say over and over again in my brain.

I don't think RWBY simps really understand how hard it is for some people to just drop things. Ever since I was a kid, I've latched onto things and made them part of my personality and have felt unable to detach myself from them, and have struggled to not talk about it frequently. My siblings would pick fun at me for having randomly latched onto and become 'obsessed' with C-3PO. I became so wrapped up in the Superhero world my siblings and friends and I invented at the age of eight or nine that the characters I invented for it still live rent free in my head now in my mid twenties. I was so obsessed with the book The Thief Lord that I checked it out of the library so much over the course of two years that the copy was basically mine and barely touched the library shelves. I got so invested in Harry Potter and specifically the character of Snape (I can't control who I latch onto, don't @ me) that I read through almost every non-romance driven Snape-centered fic that had existed on fanfiction.net during my fifteen year old days. Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, Sonic the Hedgehog, Spider-Man, Loki, the fricking Office... Seriously my siblings once invented a song about the things I wouldn't stfu about when we were all very young that included McDonalds and Linus from the Peanuts. (This was all in good humor, don't worry.)

Once I started hyperfixating on RWBY, it became really hard for me to just not talk about it, not think about it, not pay attention to what's going on with it. On top of that, I'm a stubborn bastard, and the single fastest way to get me to dig my heels in on something is to give me an order or tell me I can't do something (of course, unless that thing is literally immoral.) So yeah, I was never going to stop doing something that helps me vent about the hyperfixations I can't just stop myself from having (believe me, I've tried) just because some people don't want to filter tags.

Even more than that, I fully believe that there's no such thing as perfect media or media that's above criticism and bashing. Even my absolute favorite movies and TV shows and video games that I love and adore get dragged, because it's fun. But, of course it's harder to watch something you love become something terrible, even if it was always deeply flawed. It's frustrating and it's tiring and it's a little confusing. And on top of that, if a series has harmful messages or racist, ableist, homophobic, transphobic, anti-Semitic, or sexist jokes, narratives, or choices, of course no one should have to stop talking about that! Whether or not it was intentional by the writers or not, no one should feel obligated to not talk about the ways that a piece of media hurt or angered them with their portrayals or messages, and the members of the groups affected should be listened to with sympathy and understanding.

The idea that if someone has a problem with this piece of media that the writers are trying to sell to us, that they just need to A. never watch the show again, and B. shut up and never talk about it just in case someone gets the show 'ruined' for them by seeing criticism or bashing... That's just... So highkey ridiculous.

[stormiepassions]

(almost) A Year Later

Almost a year ago, one of the most significant adult friendships I ever had ended and to this day, I still think about them. I wonder how they’re doing, what they are up to. If I remember correctly, their local Apple Festival should be happening soon or it’s already passed. Last year, we had chatted about Kennie and me going up for the festival, even made a plan for where we’d stay. We’d laugh about fandom stuff and talk about our kids. We were trying to set up a DnD game but some of my issues (Depressive episode and ADHD) were getting in the way of us actually playing. I did manage to get my character created though. We spoke everyday for almost a year and if we didn’t talk, we texted or emailed. Nothing was better than hearing from my best friend… and they truly were my first adult friend. 

This last year a lot has happened, too much to really list but anyone in the Good Omens fandom would know the big stuff like Good Omens season two wrapped up filming. We got Sandman on Netflix. We got a weird pirate show on HBO Max that a lot of Good Omen fans have started shipping. For me, up until just now, I haven't written anything for me since January. During the last nine months, I was focused solely on finishing my associates degree, which I did August 15th. I have made friends across the country while studying for my degree and tutored more. I made close friends with people in the fandom I didn't think I ever would (it’s funny now how I had thought some of the prolific writers were untouchable. Now, I consider two writers who were affected by all this in one way or another, very close friends and they are just as human and beautifully imperfect as the rest of us) and they have been a rock for me as I dealt with the nuclear fallout of first losing an important friendship and then learning about things I didn’t know about my old best friend and what was being told to others about myself. Learning those details broke my heart. I don’t know how I kept myself together during the first few months. Other people came into the fold and I felt supported while being so terribly alone. I don’t keep up with everyone like those first few months, but I wish everyone the best. 

I think I have gotten some healing done too, this last year, and it’s been hard some days while easy on others. I still haven’t found a connection to someone like my old friend, I think on the hard days I am wary of connecting with someone like that again. At one point, I had thought that I may have made a friend that would fill that spot but I learned, rather recently, that connection has to flow both ways and it’s actually a rarity. I also learned that I am worth more than trying to buy someone’s affection and I am worth more than just to put up with sly remarks and sweep things that aren’t right under a rug for the sake of keeping someone happy… which also means, keeping them in my life. I think I am stronger now, if still terribly lonely. There is still something to be said about feeling wanted and cherished even if it’s a slow drip of venom in your vein. I hope that someday, I can feel that I am wanted and cherished without being gaslit and manipulated. I have to hope.

Speaking of being gaslit. I read my first open letter before writing this and all I can say is, I was misled. I have apologized to everyone affected by that Open Letter but almost a year later, I apologize again. It was cruel and I didn’t know a damn thing about ANYTHING I was talking about. The lessons I’ve learned from all of this, we never really know what’s happening and make sure you DO know before voicing an opinion.

I am looking forward to the future within this fandom and in my life. I still think about my old friend and miss what I had with them, I sincerely hope they are well, happy, and living their life to the fullest. For me, I hope to get my writing bug back. I've decided to remove Reunion from AO3, that time in my life is over and there’s no point in trying to get it back. I do have two WIPs that I will be trying to get reacquainted with, Only in my Dreams only has two chapters left and Confession is still a baby, no idea how long that one is going to be. 

I wish you all the love and peace in the world. Stay safe.

-Stormie

[mostlymovieswithmax]

Movies I watched in March

Thought I’d chronicle the films I’ve been watching over the March period, from the 1st to the 31st, and how I’d rate them. If you’re looking for something to watch, perhaps this will help. A lot of these movies are available on streaming services also.

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) - 10/10

I hadn’t watched this in a couple of years but I was blown away. Peak Scorsese.

Rushmore (1998) - 7/10

Not the best Wes Anderson movie for me but still fun.

Lion (2016) - 8/10

I discussed this at length on my podcast: The Sunday Movie Marathon. Great movie!

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) - 10/10

Now this is one of the best Wes Anderson movies. I discuss this more on The Sunday Movie Marathon. Fantastic, funny and I watched it twice because it’s so much fun.

Inception (2010) - 10/10

Discussed on The Sunday Movie Marathon. Best Christopher Nolan movie for me, Inception is just breathtaking.

The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou (2004) - 5/10

This might be Anderson’s weakest film (at least from what I’ve seen) but it’s still not as bad as a lot of directors at their worst.

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) - 10/10

I was really on an Anderson binge in March. The Royal Tenenbaums is one of the most wholesome movies I’ve seen and certainly one of his best films.

Rome, Open City (1945) - 4/10

This was filmed in Nazi-occupied Italy and from that premise, the film enticed me. Despite having some interesting qualities, I do feel that initial pull is most of what the movie has going for it.

The Prestige (2006) - 7/10

I showed this to my brother and for what it’s worth, he enjoyed it. I do think this is one of Nolan’s weaker efforts but considering how much I like it, that speaks a lot to Nolan’s filmography as a whole.

Nostalgia (1983) - 10/10

I watched Nostalgia three times in the space of a week and reviewed it on The Sunday Movie Marathon. It’s phenomenal.

Kangaroo Jack (2003) - 1/10

Another one I watched for the podcast. Kangaroo Jack is truly terrible and it upset me a great deal. Avoid this movie.

Stalker (1979) - 10/10

Another Andrei Tarkovsky movie (director of Nostalgia). I watched this again during the day before my second watch of Nostalgia and while it’s hard to compare such different movies, I enjoy Stalker more. It’s a staple of Russian cinema for a reason.

Four Lions (2010) - 5/10

Watched for the podcast. I didn’t really gel with this comedy but it would certainly appeal to someone who enjoys the humour, as my co-hosts did.

Revolutionary Road (2008) - 6/10

This Sam Mendes joint was a tad too melodramatic but still boasted some great performances from Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.

Metropolis (1927) - 6/10

This silent film is a staple in cinematic history. Its themes are as painfully relevant today as they were in the 20’s, yet despite that I found a lot of it to be intensely boring. After it hit the hour mark, I started playing it at 1.5x speed.

Crimson Peak (2015) - 4/10

A lot of great set design and costumes and colours, yet the story itself was madly uninteresting.

Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind (2004) - 10/10

Who doesn’t love a good movie written by Charlie Kaufman? I reviewed this on The Sunday Movie Marathon and after a third watch, it is as fascinating as it is gut-wrenching.

Godzilla (2014) - 3/10

If you wanted to see Godzilla fight a bunch of monsters for two hours, then this is not the movie for you. There’s maybe about ten minutes total of on-screen Godzilla action and considering that’s really all anyone’s watching this for, it’s amazing the titular sea lizard occupies so little of the movie.

Prisoners (2013) - 10/10

Brilliant mystery thriller by my favourite director, Denis Villeneuve. Discussed on the podcast.

Eraserhead (1977) - 7/10

David Lynch’s debut feature film went down in my estimations this time around. You can listen to why on The Sunday Movie Marathon. Still, Eraserhead is a very good movie.

Raiders of The Lost Ark (1981) - 6/10

The first Indiana Jones movie proved to be a fun romp and Harrison Ford plays the character beautifully. I’m just not a big fan of Spielberg and his average verging on pretty good but rarely ever great movies. Perhaps on a second watch, I may enjoy this more.

The Seventh Seal (1957) - 9/10

Watching this movie again was so much fun. So far, it’s my favourite Ingmar Bergman film. It’s a celebration of life and love, with an underlying sense of dread as death looms ever-present.

Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom (1984) - 5/10

I can tell why this generally looked on as the weakest in the trilogy. Harrison Ford is still great but the movie dragged a lot and felt more like a bunch of things happening for the sake of it rather than a fun action/adventure.

Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (1989) - 7/10

The Last Crusade was a lot of fun and maybe it was Sean Connery’s inclusion, or perhaps the bottle of wine I drank through the movie elevated my enjoyment. But alcohol aside, I still believe this to be the best in the series.

Justice League (2017) - 2/10

People really weren’t kidding when they said this was bad. I watched this in preparation for the Snyder cut and I was not happy. This took years off my life.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021) - 3/10

Barely any better and double the run-time of the original. I discussed this on The Sunday Movie Marathon and I was certainly not impressed. Better luck next time, Zack!

The Truman Show (1998) - 10/10

Brilliant movie and one I would highly recommend for a stellar Jim Carrey performance. This was another recommendation for the podcast.

Eighth Grade (2018) - 7/10

I was impressed with Bo Burnham’s debut feature. This is a coming of age story centred around a young girl growing up in the modern world and how it can affect the youth of today. Burnham shows a deep understanding of youth culture and a real knack for filmmaking.

Bad Education (2019) - 8/10

A real “yikes!” movie. If you want to learn a bit about the embezzlement that took place in an American school back in the early 2000’s, you need not look further than this tight drama with fantastic performances from Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney.

Twelve Monkeys (1995) - 8/10

One of the only movies where the time travel makes sense. I recommended this for The Sunday Movie Marathon and it’s pretty great.

Ready Or Not (2019) - 7/10

Despite a premise that is not wholly original and a super goofy third act, Ready Or Not is gory, violent fun with a lot of stylish art direction.

Dead Man (1995) - 3/10

Recommended on the podcast. I really did not get a lot out of Dead Man. It’s a very slow movie about Johnny Depp going through the woods and killing some people on the way, but it’s two hours long and hugely metaphorical and sadly it just didn’t connect.

Misbehaviour (2020) - 6/10

A big draw for me in Misbehaviour is Keira Knightley; I think she’s a great actor and I’m basically on board with anything she does. I’d been wanting to see this for a while and I was shocked to see just how relevant it is (being set in 1970) to the world we find ourselves in today, where women are still fighting to be heard and to be treated equally. While the film is not spectacular, I still got a lot from its themes, so recently after the murder of Sarah Everard and how women are being treated in their protest.

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love The Bomb (1964) - 7/10

I was surprised at just how hilarious this early Kubrick movie is. While I can’t say it floored me or took any top spots, it’s still a great examination of the military and how they respond to threats or try to solve problems and the side of war we don’t often see in films: the people in the background sitting in a room making crucial decisions.

Taxi Driver (1976) - 10/10

Wow! I can’t believe I’d never seen this before but I’d never really had access to it. Taxi Driver is a beautifully made movie with so much colour and vibrancy. De Niro puts on perhaps his best performance and Paul Schrader’s timeless script works miracles.

Sleepy Hollow (1999) - 5/10

Classic Tim Burton aesthetics in a pretty by the numbers, almost Supernatural-esque story eked out over an hour and forty minutes.

Seaspiracy (2021) - 6/10

Everyone’s going crazy over this documentary and I agree it tackles important issues we’re facing today surrounding the commercialization of the fishing industry, but a lot of what’s presented here is information already available to the public. The editing feels misplaced at times and the tone is all over the place. Nonetheless, it’s still quite fascinating to see good journalism being done in a way that exposes this side of the industry.

Pirates of The Carribean: The Curse of The Black Pearl (2003) - 8/10

Super fun and a great first instalment in a franchise that sadly seems to have peaked at the first hurdle.

My Octopus Teacher (2020) - 8/10

Great cinematography and a lovely premise, this documentary has garnered an Oscar nomination and I can see why.

The Sisters Brothers (2018) - 8/10

A really solid western I was happy to watch again. It’s a shame no one really talks about this movie because it is excellent with stunning visuals and great performances.

Pirates of The Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006) - 5/10

A strangely massive drop in quality from the original. If I didn’t like the whole concept of this franchise so much, I might have had a worse time.

Reservoir Dogs (1992) - 8/10

On a second watch, Tarantino’s first feature is still wildly impressive.

Life of Brian (1979) - 7/10

This is perhaps my third time watching Monty Python’s Life of Brian and it’s still incredibly funny, however it never manages to measure up to its predecessor (and one of my all time favourites), Monty Python and The Holy Grail.