#which is actually a cool thing cause it opened us up for so much more content tbh

[arolesbianism]

I’ve been having a rough few days, but I’ve been feeling a bit better so I decided to make some lil thingies for some spiraling upwards kitties :3

[the-kipsabian]

How did you get into wrestling?

in a very non-traditional way compared to most fans im sure lmao

i think i was like. maybe 10 or 11? my brother got a ps1 from one of his friends and with that a bunch of video games - including smackdown 2. us being tiny beings living somewhere faaaaaaar away from americas reach we hadnt heard of this before, so we assumed it was another fighting game. a little bit of research and playing later we discovered oh my god its actually like. a real thing?? like an actual sport??

somehow, at the time, around here they were showing the weekly shows of wwe on satellite - something we didnt have cause lol it was a luxury back then and internet was a small circle for us (mind you this was in like 2005) so we didnt really have an access to much of anything yet. BUT it turned out my best friend of the time/my half cousin had satellite at her house. as some of our other relatives. so we begged and pleaded to get somewhere to watch stuff at some point (cause honestly we were just fucking intrigued like how is this real and what the fuck does any of this mean especially since sd2 wasnt a regular fighting game so it was. an experience) and i think it was that summer of 2005 when at some relatives house late at night we finally were able to watch an episode of raw (and i think also smackdown, they played the cut episodes back to back on friday nights which is. my beloved <3)

and honestly? a life changing moment

so like yeah i havent been able to let go in about 18 years since then lol. like said its not a very traditional way, most ppl just stumbled upon it or have friends introduce them (ive done this a few times tbf) or it runs in the family etc, but honestly i havent heard anyone else so far getting into this as a child through the games. its usually first the show, then the games, but yeah we did it backwards lol

[k0yaz]

shackled.

Pairings: arlecchino x fem!reader

CW: sfw, female reader, arranged marriage, arle referred to as your husband, use of her real name, idk if this is angst so I’ll tag it as angst and fluff, wlw, I actually fucking hate arranged marriages irl but it’s interesting to write about, fun when it’s the character you like and not a 10 year old girl getting married to an ugly ass 60 year old man who gets no bitches, uhm anyway not proofread.

A/N: nobody gonna request arrange marriage? I’ll do it myself with my husband/husbwife arlecchino 🕯️

Uneven beats of your heart pulsed in your eardrums continuously as you stared out the open window, a cool breeze caressing your downcast face gently. Your pupils flickered down to your extended left hand, dilating smaller out of disdain upon catching sight of the cold silver ring encircling your ring finger.

You dreaded it. This arranged marriage parted an endless uncomfortable pit in your stomach, which you had felt would remain as long as you were trapped in a bind you didn’t want. Gazing down at ring once more, you couldn’t help but find it difficult to swallow the choked feeling in your throat whenever you laid eyes upon the ruby, nausea enveloping every possible sense you had in the moment. Rather than a promise ring that bound you to someone you loved, the one on your finger felt like a tiny silver collar clamped around your flesh. An irking feeling that forced you to love a stranger.

Yet, you couldn’t bring yourself to hate Arlecchino. The woman had actively attempted to respect your personal space, being able to tell how much you loathed the inescapable grasp of your arranged marriage. You could tell that she opposed even the thought of this, especially from the way her eyes would stare down at her own ring with an empty and unfeeling expression.

Sighing deeply, you reached an arm up to grasp the satin curtains, before tugging your arms inward in a single dynamic motion. As you turned your back to walk away from the now closed up windows, you felt a gust of light air brush against your nape, causing you to spin around and lower your eyes from slight annoyance. Right. You forgot to shut the windows first. You just went over to shut the windows, still harboring a hint of irritation. Ever since that marriage, you always tended to feel unwilling to do anything anymore. Frequently always irritated by the smallest of actions as you’d always think to yourself—what’s the point?

Upon closing up the windows completely, you fell back onto the intricately decorated sofa set situated in the corner of your shared bedroom, your mind still a cluttered mess from all your thoughts being scrambled rather than neatly arranged in an array. You began to ponder once more. How things could’ve been different. Ran away, or disobeyed your parents to a full extent.

There wasn’t anything you could do. You didn’t see a point in even trying to keep a happy front anymore. All of your aspirations that you had, every little dream, was now out of your reach as you were shackled into this marriage. The warm air of the heater hit your skin as you rested your cheek into your palm. A small smile made its way onto your lips as you mused at the possible scenarios that could’ve happened if you were free. Perhaps if you were wallowing in your delusion, you could smile atleast once.

“I’m home.”

You blinked from sudden surprise, jolting as the bedroom door creaked open—albeit a bit roughly. Arlecchino’s emotionless voice rang in your ears, had she called out upon entering before? She often enters the living room first, and doesn’t enter the bedroom until nightfall. Then again, you tend to reside in the living room to await your husband’s return, so maybe she simply wondered where you were.

Stray specks of blood decorated her cheek, scattering small splatters ranging in a variety of spots across her face. Right. She was the fourth harbinger after all. You folded your arms as Arlecchino towered over you, still standing upright while her x-marked eyes pierced into you. Shifting uncomfortably, you decided to clear your throat, gesturing towards your own cheek in an attempt to break the thick fog of tension between you two from the lack of words.

“You got some-“

“I’m aware.” Arlecchino replied coldly, making you bite back a scoff at the harbinger’s dismissive response. Well, excuse you for trying to make this shitty marriage more bearable.

Still, it didn’t seem intentionally rude although it did come off that way. You only looked away from her, eyes fixating on a random painting hung over the flower pot on one of the shelves. Hunching your shoulders, you bit down on your quivering lip subtly so that Arlecchino wouldn’t notice. Although you were the one that distanced yourself from her. Although you were the one who only focused on despising this marriage, rather than even trying to get closer to Arlecchino in the slightest for atleast a small hint of peace. It still hurt seeing your husband brush you off like this.

Her seemingly exhausted expression remained glued to her face as she dragged the folded white washcloth along her cheek, eyes staring at the ground aimlessly as she continued to clean her stained face. The weight of all of this had clearly taken a toll on her as well, yet she had to keep a sturdy front for the sake of her profession as a Fatui harbinger. Yet her actions regarding you had always been courteous and respectful. Consistently respecting your boundaries and trying her best to avoid making you feel uncomfortable must have taken a toll on her, especially knowing full well that your resentment for this marriage could have set you off at any given moment.

A sudden wave of sympathy flooded you upon seeing Arlecchino’s tired eyes, dark linings shaded below her eyes as well. Just maybe, you could try to repay her for having your comfort in mind throughout the course of this resented relationship. This relationship wasn’t her fault, and you knew that. She hated this just as much as you did.

Deciding to swallow your pride, you rose to your feet, standing before her as you awkwardly shifted for a couple moments while remaining standing there. Arlecchino paused her movements, raising an eyebrow at your sudden motion of getting up off the couch. She simply stared at you with a puzzled gaze, trying to figure out your sudden want to interact with her.

Hesitantly, you reached out a shaky hand, lining it up with her cheek and gesturing her to lean in. Arlecchino on the other hand, wasn’t expecting you to switch up suddenly like this, only keeping her skeptical gaze locked onto your own eyes. It felt like a trap to lean in to someone who was so hesitant to even look at her. No matter how badly she wanted to lean into the soft skin of your palm, her hesitance seemed to uphold her rationality despite her exhaustion.

“Arle…it’s okay, you can lean in…”

She needn’t be told twice as you felt her hand grab ahold of your wrist to keep it in place, her head nearly collapsing against your hand. Deep breaths echoed within the vicinity, her breaths cancelling every other noise around you two as Arlecchino slowly composed herself from your touch. She pulled back after a couple moments, her cold front faltering for a moment with a flash of tenderness, before immediately snapping back to her calm demeanor.

However, you didn’t stop there. You don’t know what flipped that switch in you, but you just felt the urge to grow closer to Arlecchino. Perhaps it was the realization that you weren’t alone in the hellhole of a marriage, and that you two may be suffering together. Knowing she hated this as much as you was comforting, it remedied your internal turmoil slightly, and made you detest the idea of anyone else going through what you were. Or maybe, it was the fact that Arlecchino didn’t push anything in this marriage, and respected you, preventing your mental state from growing worse. It could even be both.

Regardless, you wanted to atleast provide a sort of ease to her. Cupping her cheek once more, you pulled the washcloth from her hand, rubbing it against her cheek in circular motions as stains of blood began to soak up onto the cloth and coloring it red. Arlecchino didn’t seem to protest your attempt at soothing her, face pressing further into your shaky palm as it seemed to be working. The quiet buzz of the heater reverberating through the silence, and the general tidy atmosphere of the neatly arranged bed made everything feel so right. As if this marriage wasn’t so awful after all.

Arlecchino exhaled a swift sigh as you finished washing up her face, remaining silent. The two of you awkwardly awaited for the other to speak up, the crickets outside chirping louder than the two of you by this point. You finally decided to say something, face tinged a light pink from moderate embarrassment

“You didn’t want this either did you?”

Arlecchino shook her head in affirmation, her eyes still avoiding yours—as if she was afraid that your vulnerability would shift over to her, and shatter her calm self at this moment.

“I’m well aware of this situation. Your parents are already closely associated with the Fatui, and want wanted you to marry a harbinger in order to elevate their own status for the sake of the family.” She replied. A sour taste seeped onto your tongue at the mention of the reason why you were forced into this in the first place, unpleasant memories beginning to race through your mind for a few moments.

“Why did you accept the offer then? You could’ve easily declined if you didn’t want to be in this marriage either. There’s multiple other harbingers my parents would’ve auctioned me off to.” You said bitterly, strangely hating the idea of getting married to anyone who wasn’t Arlecchino at this point. Arlecchino merely shrugged in response, raising her shoulders to remove the white fur coat cloaking her and draping it neatly over the coat hanger drilled into the wall.

“I’m not sure.” She paused, taking some time to think over another answer to compensate for her vague response. “I believe I just felt it was necessary in that moment.”

You sighed back collapsing onto the mattress. Suddenly, you felt an arm circle your waist, pulling you closer as you felt Arlecchino push her torso flush against your back. Your face burned from the sudden intimate action, the warmth of her body only serving to make you lean into her further as her sharp nails raked along your stomach lightly. Arlecchino whispered out against you, visibly less uptight than when she came in. She was a bit more relaxed and clingy with you simply with a mere touch against her cheek, it was sweet honestly.

“I still care about you, (Name).” She muttered against your neck, voice muffled as she was evidently quite tired. Pale rays of the moonlight illuminated Arlecchino’s now eased expression, watching her eyes lowered shut as her exhaustion began to catch up with her. Surprisingly, you found yourself relishing in the comfort of her arms as you flipped onto your side facing her to examine her rested features.

“…I’m starting to care about you too, Peruere.”

Your hand drew down along her arm, all the way from the skin of her shoulder down to the black faded enveloping her arms from her curse. Maybe, just maybe, this could work. You found solace in the fact that you could make the best out of this marriage with a woman who kept you in mind and tried her best to care about your interests.

Maybe, you could warm up to her.

A/N: im screaming idk if this turned out good guys pls asaaawaabshshs but yayyyyy arlecchino MY CONTENT WARNINGS WERE ASS ON THIS ONE WHY ARE THEY SO BORING AND SAD ‼️

[ambrosiagoldfish]

Lucifer, Charlie, and alastor with a Kitsune reader ? :0

Hazbin Hotel x Kitsune! Reader

(Lucifer, Charlie, and Alastor)

Safe for all Audiences!

Warnings: None! Gn! Reader! Reader being a mischievous Little Kitsune, chaos ensues.

Request Box: Open

Word count: 1101

A/n: Hi! thank you for the request! This isn’t terribly long so I hopes that’s ok!

Now, I wasn’t entirely sure if you want this to be Romantic or Platonic so I kept it pretty vague so it could be interpreted as either! I hope that’s ok, if not just send another request and I’ll fix it!!

But either way I hope you enjoy it because i enjoyed writing it!! <3

Proofread once soooo… if there are any errors please ignore them/inform me 😭

Lucifer

When you first arrived in hell, he wasnt the most impressed by you. Not in a mean way or anything, just that he’s lived for a long time and has met a plethora of different types of beings so he’s pretty used to meeting interesting looking people.

But even he has to admit that he was intrigued with you. Your 9 well-groomed and lush tails that quietly followed you with every step and the fur of your fox ears looked soft to the touch. The thing that he seemed to notice most though was the whole eloquent aura you had with every movement you did. Smooth, almost tranquil.

You being a Kitsune did cause you to stir up a bit of… let's say trouble. Your fox nature of course caused you to have a personality that leaned a bit mischievously. You weren’t malicious by any means, you judt had a very… unique taste in humor and how you wish to spend your time. Pranks, stealing random objects that interest you, and going places that you probably should be. This gets you in trouble with many a folk but it’s really not something you can’t handle.

On one of these occasions. you took interest in his custom made duckys. First off, it was something new to you, 2nd, you had never seen someone be this interested in ducks as him, so when you randomly stumbled into the big man of hell’s workspace that’s filled to the brim of them, each with unique features and colorful designs, needless to say you were quite interested.

He was a bit embarrassed at first when you found it but seeing that you genuinely were into them he literally couldnt stop showing them off. Going into almost ecrusiating detail of each one's design choices. (This man is so autistic-coded. I love him so much)

He even made a custom one for you which he gave you when both met again. It was a basic duck design, except it had 9 tail feathers and wore fox ears that clearly mimicked your own, including your fur pattern. He then spent an hour going through each of its features with you. To say you were grateful would be an understatement.

“And if you pull this feather back… Bubbles! Oh-ho, and that's not all! If you take this and-”

Charlie

Definitely more impressed than her father would be. Of course she has been in hell literally all her life and has seen some weird, wacky, hot and cool people but it still doesnt not surprise her when she finds interesting people. When you first met her she was really interested in you, asking a bunch of questions and It was almost scary how enthusuatsic about it she got.

She then started talking about her brand new “Hazbin Hotel.” It was something to reform sinners so that they had a chance at redemption. Charlie seemed so excited to tell you about it that you honestly did have the heart to tell her that you didn’t exactly believe a soul could be redeemed.

Now depending on if you’re hellborn or a sinner, things can go a bit differently. If youre hellborn she’ll offer you a job at the hotel, well to say a job would be a lie, you didn’t really have 1 given task to do, you just helped out when needed. if you’re a sinner, you of course get to stay in a room at the hotel. Whether you actually go along and try to get better is up to you. It was a free place to sleep, so hey? Might as well. Either way though, Charlie always sees the good in people, hellborn or not. So she would obviously want to help you grow as a person even if you are hellborn.

The michevues aspects of your personality tends to cause some problems for the hotel at times. Fights happen, lessons have ended prematurely, and you may have accidentally caused a bar fight between Angel and Sir Pentious. It really was an accident, how was you supposed to know “borrowing” one of Pentious’ shiny tools would cause such a ruckus?

Charlie lectored you about taking others' stuff and made you apologize.

As much as Charlie doesn’t want to admit it (at least before episode 5) she’s a lot like her dad. That also expands to their likeness for your fur. She really can’t take her eyes away from it, it just looks so soft and neat… and soft… eventually you catch her staring at your tails and you just laugh and ask her if she wants to touch them.

“What!? Pfft, noooo, no no no. hehe…he…unless you’re offering…”

Alastor

Considering Alastor died in the 20’s I don’t think he knows what a Kitsune is exactly. Which is probably why he’s the most interesting in you at first glance (you could have also met when he first manifested in hell, which would only further his intrigue)

Either way, your personalities seemed to mesh well for the most part. You both stir up trouble wherever you go (Alastor a bit more… maliciously than you but still)

Whether you’re hellborn or a sinner is irrelevant to how he treats you, though he has tried making a deal with you every once and a while. You always decline but he thinks it’s always worth a shot to ask.

Alastor is aware of your devious behavior and knows the best way to handle it if it ever happens to come his way. He knows that you’re harmless and not a threat which is exactly why he has taken a liking to you. You’re someone who can only really help his cause and nothing bad can really come out of you being around.

Pranks though, are the one thing that Alastor can’t seem to sway you out of doing. He can’t even begin to count the amount of times he’s been at the front end of them. Of course he always sees through them and they’ve never once worked, but boy are you sure determined to one day get him.

This was one such case where you attempted to steal and hide his radio cane while he was asleep, only for him to sneak up shadow form and scare you half to double death

“You’re going to have to try harder than that to pull one past me, my, oh-so dear, exquisitely fluffy friend”

[woodland-gremlin]

Lemons? Pt. 2 (Adoption AU)

Here's the first part:

Dick took another deep breath while leaning against the cool metal that made up most of the watchtower. As much as he appreciates puns and how much easier it will be to track down these kids' villain relatives with a last name he still feels a bit weak in the knees with these revelations being thrown out one after another. They talk about it so casually and that makes him sick to his stomach. Potential villain grandparents, their terrifying weapons that disregard ethics, and apparently weapons that make the one they mentioned seem tame in their eyes. All of that speaks of those kids going through something they shouldn’t have had to.

“Is that how Dad got his terrible naming sense?” the first voice asked, dragging Dick out of his depressing thoughts.

“Huh,” Ellie huffed out, “Never thought of that.”

“Tt. It is likely that it is a biological disposition if you consider the naming sense of those that share his species alongside the Fenton genes. Now cease this needless drivel and assist me with returning home.”

The more words that come out of these kids' mouths, the more Dick just wants to disregard any stealth and poke his head through the door’s opening so he can bundle them up in a bunch of blankets. Maybe ask a few questions about their dad and ask them how they would feel about being adopted by a billionaire. He is sure Bruce wouldn’t mind, even if they, or even just their dad, weren’t fully human from what they have said.

“Alright Dami,” said the first voice with the sound of something being shuffled in the background. “Though-” before they could continue the sound of something tearing cut them off.

“Wulf!” one of the kids cried with joy.

Before Dick could begin to panic and do something about a wolf of all things somehow getting into the watchtower the kids began to speak again.

“Wulf, it is a pleasure to see you again,” Dami said softly as if he was looking at a cute puppy.

“Yeah, and you have perfect timing too!” The first voice cheered.

“Just don’t tell Dad, okay?” Ellie asked.

A gruff voice replied in a language Dick has neither understood nor ever heard before.

“Oh come on,” Ellie groused, “It’s no big deal. No one even saw us.”

The new person just replied in the same strange language.

“All right, all right.” Dick could practically hear Elle roll her eyes while she continued to grumble, something about causing a prison riot and breaking out?!?

The sound of feet shuffling and zipping was all he heard before it became silent.

After a minute of silence Dick peeked into the meeting room which he previously heard the kids in only to find it devoid of anyone. A lemon lying on the floor being the only evidence that he didn’t hallucinate the whole thing.

Note: Dick later checks out the security footage of where the kids were only for the footage to be full of static for the whole encounter.

[yesimwriting]

I feel like the reader in best friend!Felix is actually really smart, heck, let's say genius even, but is really oblivious when it comes to sentiment. The reader gives off nerd vibes, but they're so smart to the point it's a cool kinda thing. And if this was before Felix met Oliver, I feel like reader, like Farleigh, would get bad vibes from Ollie too but would be too shy? I guess, to say anything cause hey, they're new and stuff. I like the fic:) It's nice to read something like that, without the explicit content, I mean:D

A/n: omg love this,, definitely doing a bestfriend!felix blurb on this concept later, i just wanted to explore character dynamics for a second lol

fun fact: i originally pictured bestfriend!reader as a literal genius with -3 street smarts, it's just info that didn't make it into the fic!!

also i could see reader as being so smart they skipped a grade (if we want to add to the power/social imbalance by making reader a little younger, but not like weirdly younger) open to thoughts on this !

i picture bestfriend!reader as having an elle woods quality to their intelligence in terms of awareness (and maybe aesthetic, it is the early 2000's lol),, reiterating the most complicated parts of a lecture perfectly during a study session while half focused on applying lip gloss, aces exams while hungover (bc felix insisted on going out), and never registers how impressive all of it is

very much "what? like it's hard" but as literal as that statement could be

which could add to reader's shyness/uncertainty bc she forgets she's a little intimidating

okay but the potential of reader getting bad vibes from oliver if she became close friends with felix a little after oliver did?? too good

reader doesn't want to alienate oliver, he's the only one around felix that's also an outsider, that should make it easier to bond

but!! because reader is that smart, she has this gut feeling that tells her to keep him at arm's length,, but bc she's not the best at picking up on feelings, it's basically just that 6th sense thing that girls have that tells them when a guy has weird/unsafe intentions

bc reader can't articulate their concern, or understand it, they try to be nice, but oliver can tell that there's this distrust there

it drives him crazy

first of all, reader should be the easiest one to win over bc she's not one of the elites and she's a little awkward from time to time, it's frustrating that there doesn't seem to be a crux for him to use to weasel his way into reader's heart

oliver's aware that he can get close to felix without the others liking him as long as they tolerate him enough in public, but with reader, oliver knows more about felix's real feelings for them than felix does

that adds this timing element to the situation that’s stressful, because as soon as felix realizes how he feels about the reader, that will be that

meanwhile, reader is a little worried about being dropped bc of the tension between her and oliver, but oliver doesn’t fully notice that, he’s too distracted by his feelings

it's not fair, oliver "had" felix first, but oliver's perfectly capable of adapting to the situation, so he accepts it and looks at it practically

oliver knows that there is no fully "in" with felix unless you like him, so despite any resentment and jealousy he feels towards you, he decides that he'll do whatever it takes to get it

[batbabydamian]

The Boy Wonder #3 by Juni Ba rambling about how cool this series would be to read in a single sitting...it's all so connected!!

rambles for issue #1 and issue #2!

i don't have as much personal interpretation for this cover besides it being a solid piece of art in shapes and silhouette! ALSO. bi bg lighting lol. Damian's "X" posing of his cape and swords parallels with Tim's "X" chest straps + the Robin emblem in the center. Tim's closed Red Robin wings frames Robin's own outstretched cape wings; and on top of that, the shadows cast inside the wings nicely frames Damian's demon mask.

Joe and Merle's dynamic has been so fun, especially with the mutual enthusiasm over the storytelling 🥺 Joe also opens up about his circumstances that led him to this moment, which perfectly sets up the setting of this issue! Even his very first introduction becomes a relevant detail when a fancy rich couple drops a champagne glass, uncaring of the people literally below them, saying “some poor sap down there’ll appreciate it” when it bonks Joe’s head.

it all comes around!! and tbh this issue proves how much this series would slap to read in a single sitting (GET THE COLLECTED EDITION)

Going beyond first impressions seems to apply to the color palette in this series. From #1 in the first page of Gotham, we see the gold of upper society to the blue of the downtrodden → from issues #2 and #3, it’s the warm gold of inner Gotham to the cold blue of the rich. there’s a sense of community displayed among the poor - even part of Jason’s intro avenging Bill, a generous man mourned on panel by many. The rich gives off a sense of individualism, celebrating themselves and their excess.

With the change in scenery, this issue steps into the more civilian side of things through a spy theme - fancy suits and lil gadget intros! Going down the civilian route with Tim feels very fitting since it's what makes Tim's run as Robin so charming!

i love that Talia’s taught Damian to be conscious of the rich’s effects on society, especially in the following page of small panels zoning in on the details of wealth and overindulgence. but also LIL DAMIAN. HIS LIL ROUND EYES AND HANDS 🥺

Damian’s aware of the facts, and his disgust is clearer after having just been through lower Gotham and seeing firsthand the poverty directly caused by the wealthy (also not sure if that old lady is the same one from #1 with similar hair and clothes, but pls she can't a break…)

i mentioned Damian’s “inciting incident” for this journey to be the intro of a demon for Damian to prove his worth but i’m correcting the use of that term!! the intro of the demon is more the beginning of plot, whereas the actual inciting incident is beheading the thief!! it’s the main reason he’s in this situation where he felt the need to prove himself, and atone. Most notably is that the beheaded thief is a consistent character that quite literally haunts Damian every step of the way.

The statue of Batman’s head being popped off becomes a significant visual, because while Damian started this journey to prove something to Bruce, the only one that really seems to have (quite literal) eyes for Damian’s journey is the thief. Why does he make more of an appearance than the actual Bat? Even his statue’s head doesn’t make a figurative presence; whereas the only one looming over Damian is the thief. Guilt over killing him may be driving him just as much as his desire to be worthy. Alternatively, it could be that Damian needs to reexamine his motivations since the thief is really getting in Damian's face now.

Damian is proud to be a positive influence on Tim, but the moment is short-lived. It’s an ironic moment to me because Damian doesn't even know the impact he's had on Jason just in the previous issue!! 😭

Damian's so desperate to prove his worth, yet he's been making choices in every issue to help others!! Helping the old woman up in #1, being vulnerable with Jason in #2, and now sacrificing himself for Tim!

The Ra’s "Weakness" panel has been reoccurring since #1, but it's the first time Talia has been included. Being great figures in his life and mind, their silhouettes consume Damian's, similar to a few of Batman's appearances below. This latest disappointment was such a blow to Damian, that Talia (who he might have the most respect for) becomes an added voice in his head.

Final thoughts!!

Like Rok, does the thief actually have a connection to the al Ghuls or is this beard just in fashion at the moment.

Lex is clearly referencing one of the Underwell warehouses that Joe and Merle are presently, so wondering if whatever he and Tim discuss here will be affecting them later.

Ending with Talia’s cover for extra hype!! i’ll probably go back to this for the next ramble, but i’m already gearing myself up to wail about Talia just based on this cover. The Mary and Jesus imagery (more prominent with Damian’s lil crown as a “prince”) but most importantly Talia weathering the flames for Damian…her own shroud/shawl wrapped around Damian and burning… oh boy

[big-box-of-kinda-silly-fop-ideas]

Just wanted to make like a proper way bio thing for peri (irep coming soon probably if i bother)

I would write fanfiction but uh idk if i could so these are more like characters notes

real long post below

Peri is a highly independent adult, he doesn’t like being coddled or touched without any warning and isnt the type to ask for help at all even if he really needs it. He’s an extremely closed off person using the suave act as a way to personally seperate himself to others which he developed due to his celebrity status, the suave personality also acts as a way to keep face as he never knows where could be camera. He pretends this cool collected guy, that can worm his way to getting anything (which is true) that has everything under control but in reality he’s this kinda dorky dude, that always anxious on how people perceive him and his grades. He’s an overachiever, after the initial first baby born hype died down he’s mostly known as the really smart youngest fairy in existence, he’s was an academic weapon throughout spellementary school and hs (im basing his education system off mine which is only two schools no middle 4-12 and 12-18) and came to uni with overconfidence in his educational abilities. Theres one thing thats consistent between his suave act and his actual self which is he’s petty as hell and very snarky, you can try talking him down but he’ll roast you back or give you a vaguely threatening threat. As well as being a bit prideful and vain, like he knows he’s pretty and smart and cares a lot about his appearance.

In this uni au he’ll be a bit of a static character he doesnt grow much, and struggles with demonstrating his affection or his struggles. (Which is why dev and peri dont exactly work much cause peri is overcompensating on how much coddling he got, and show affection in a more subtle way that dev doesn’t need as he need a more direct way (and heres a thought i dont think peri wouldve ever said he cared for dev unless delirious) ) . But he’s more openly affectionate with his parents cause he loves them. What he mainly goes through is humbling, he starts fairly prideful and overconfident but starts to slowly crumble from the pressure and anxiety. As in he doesnt say no to anything, hes somehow always busy or doing something, he also studies not enough and too much (crams shit in) and he also got his celebrity things to do. Another arc will be opening up to Goldie and Irep (but they'll be his only friends) cause he doesnt learn shit about how to socialise without depending on the act. He’s also easily frustrated, if things dont go in the way he wants he gets frustrated at himself, like he really put his self worth on his abilities to do things and less on who he is as a person. Like everyone praised him for his intelligence, charm, talent, magic and appearance, like he hates being coddled but he likes being praised, while irep doesnt get praised and seeks getting praised. But that doesnt change the fact he is a genuinely nice-ish person he just doesn’t like disappointing people, especially those close to him but he’s got a bit of an ego but not in a narcissistic way but in a young adult way where he doesnt exactly think for others first but for himself because he doesnt want to disappoint people. (Which is seen in battle of dimmsonian where hes more worried about being seen by his parents and his career choices then dev). Which is also why he’s a stickler to the rules, like he doesnt want people to think he’s bad person but also jorgen literally drilled it into him that breaking the rules is bad. Like he’s the type to do it right by the books, that comes from him being a bit of a people pleaser, and genuine concern of him messing up his perfect facade.

Speaking of Goldie, i would describe their relationship as fairly close. It takes a while for the either of them to open up to anything personal but they start off as friends of mutual benefits. They use eachother as study buddies, people to hang out with and to talk about their slightly weird interests. And the more they go through uni the more they will confide with each other. Like i imagine a tipping off point for their friendship is when peri finally breaks and gets like a panic attack, Goldie will be there to boost him up. Irep is also their friend but he’s in it more to best Peri or to piss him off. Irep is one of few to see through his act and knows how to break it.

Like genuinely i do think hazel and peri may be counterparts to each other like they both lost their sibling figure, both overthinks scenarios and both want to be appear more mature then they actually are. Like i want anw to be where he grows the most because he’s more challenged to question his behaviours and habits, especially with how these traits affect his and dev’s relationship for the worse.

[swimmingelectron]

And firebenders can tweak the electric signals in someone's body-

But this made me think. Waterbenders can control water molecules and can bend anything the water will bring along. That is why they can bend blood. But waterbenders are also capable of NOT picking up objects that the water is carrying. So they can also dehydrate people, flood their lungs, flood their bladder, flood their digestive track, in turn giving someone diarrhoea, they can give someone a cough and a cold by increasing the volume of their mucus.

This means waterbenders would make great medics, btw. Any water is potable water. Everything is a water container. The most powerful water bender should be able to turn water into ice or steam, access groundwater in the deserts, and be able to make canals and streams.

The earth bender can bend a select range of minerals, but if they work really hard on it, they can bend any of them. Like toph did.

Strong earthbenders should be able to manipulate the very structure of molecules of the minerals so that they can sit on top of one another in a way that makes them pliable, malleable, strong, springy, etc to form the right shape and the right type of earth.

Like the water benders, they have the ability to add pressure and also control the movement of the rocks. Boomi and Toph already demonstrated what crazy fighters earthbenders can make. But i also think about how easily they can poison someone, oversalt them (dehydration 2.0), and calcify organs while the person is alive. They can cause bone cancer, they can break teeth, crush bones to powder, and puncture the internal organs. Manipulate bones did not even cover it.

They could manipulate armour to move to fight wars for the country. They could set flintstone fires without being there. They could weave metal into fabric. So many possibilities. I'm not even mentioning the industrial use, i believe LoK covered that?

Air benders and fire benders are different. Fire bending is easier to cover on an atomic level.

So they can bend heat, basically, right? But also, for some reason, they can channel electricity. The conclusion i am coming to is that they have command over the kinetic energy of individual electrons. That is why it is hard to master.

But this opens possibiliti3s. So i joked that they could modify the electric signals in the brain, but they literally could. But they can do so much more. Because this isn't atomic, it is subatomic. Yes, they can heat (and cool) things. Yes, they can use electricity. But if they can move electrons? So much more. They can change the properties of things. I can't even begin to list them. They can cut things, they can mend things seamlessly, and they can perform alchemy, changing the very structure of the atom. But that means it is an extremely volatile ability. Even the strongest bender would have to work these things one at a time or risk radiation.

Lastly, we have airbenders. There's two things that could be manipulating just air. One, they can move only free atoms. Which actually fits in with the heirarchy of molecular bonds of earth bender, molecules of water benders, airbenders with free atoms, and firebenders with subatomic electrons.

The other one would be the ability to create vacuums in space, and the air follows the small vacuums. Seeing how rigorously airbenders train, that seems the likely option despite the harmony from the other one. And then, the air bicycle is not possible. Which means. The airbenders just were into aesthetics and acting like a cult. Oh well, that's ok.

Aang has proven that airbenders can lift things with air. Heavy, dense things. They can probably aerosolise any atoms. Basically, they could pick atoms to put next to each other and let them form molecules. Airbending air out of lungs is probably the easiest thing. They can literally travel to space and make their own space suit. Out of air. Their scuba diving gas tank can be made out of literal air.

[weebsinstash]

I was cleaning my room and I developed a hyper specific thirst for "your red string of fate soulmate uses The String to basically track you down and invite themselves into your apartment and start going through all your things"

I've just, been having my mind run amok with different ideas for Hazbin characters 💀 Vox wants to go through all your tech and your video games, Velvette and Valentino poke through your closet and your skincare, Alastor... he's just fucking judgy about almost everything lmao

They go to open a specific drawer without asking and you're all but BLOCKING THAT SHIT WITH YOUR BODY because Oh My God They Absolutelt Cannot Find Out That That's Your Sex Toy Drawer. And they find out anyways. Just. mortifying. That's too personal man I would die 💀 like I'm sorry can you imagine something just real uh large rolls out and like you've got VALENTINO just looming at you like "giiiiiiiiiiiiiirl---" cause like. Ok guess that solves the question of if you can fit him djggnjffkffjfjf

But it could also be cute! They see so many things around your room that they do enjoy!! Alastor sees that despite being modern, you listen to music that's from all genres including big bands and old jazz and, even your tastes in more modern music tend to be things similar from your childhood. Vox sees that you have like, figurines and anime merch and games he plays too! Velvette sees that you might dress in a way she considers uh ugly maybe just because you're broke as fuck and have been paying for all of your bills but maybe just maybe you like to draw and she can't help but notice the clothing in your drawings are nice and stylish. Valentino.... I dunno man he's kind of a jerk but I think he'd think it's cute when you get happy and excitedly show him things and maybe he even, idk,the yandereness turns him into a semi decent person and he's actually listening to everything you say even if he doesn't understand it because you're just so cute

Also regarding these guys going through your room I feel like it depends on what kind of story you're going for but if they're not being bullying and sadistic they're probably being nosey and infantilizing so like. You would think it would be horrible for Valentino to find your sex toys or lingerie right? Right! But he'll also notice a LACK of those things so there's no winning!!!! He'll tease you for keeping a vibrator wand in your bedside table and if he DOESNT find any fake dicks he'll tease you about being pent up and ask if "Daddy needs to take you to his favorite toy shop" or something 💀💀💀💀

I'm just saying like. Any which way, it's a scenario for a yandere to come into your life and react with either "oh cool, look how much we have in common! This is just further proof we belong together :)" OR "oh wow, you're not what I expected at all, but I love you so don't worry, I promise I'm not gonna abandon you and I'll just put in the work to change you until you better suit my own personal tastes but trust me you being a brat and resisting is also extremely adorable and I love that too :)"

[ihavethedreamies]

Heat | Wonwoo

Jeon Wonwoo - Seventeen

Rating: M (18+) MDNI

Word Count: ~8.7k

Pairing: Wonwoo x AFAB!Reader

Genre: Sci-Fi AU!, Reader-Insert, Fluff, Smut, Acquaintances-to-Lovers, This One Actually Has Plot

!!This is smut…if that much isn't clear you should probably leave now!! MDNI!

Warnings: She/Her Pronouns used, Minor Background Character Gets Shot (Wow! Plot), Pet Names (Pretty, Pretty Girl, Princess, etc.), Daddy Kink (oops), Swearing, Kissing, Oral (F! Receiving), Wall Sex, Marking/Biting, Unprotected Sex (Use a condom!)

Author's Note: This one has way more actual story than Hoshi's and Woozi's. Wonwoo tends to need time to warm up to people, so I didn't feel like I should do a quick one-night stand deal with him. So, I wrote in some story so he and the reader weren't total strangers.

-> Series Hub <-

-> Hoshi's <-

-> Woozi's <-

-> S.Coup's <-

I am cross-posting this on Archive. Please reblog! If you know anyone that would like this or future fics but they aren't on here my name and icon are exactly the same on the other site. Happy reading!

"You have GOT to be kidding me…" You grumbled, huffing a few harsh breaths, and trying again. There was something stuck under the sand, and you really wanted to see if it was worth anything. However, every time you got close to brushing enough sand from the surface to see the logo, a gust of wind would cover it back up again. Adjusting your head covering over your mouth again so you got no sand in your mouth, you also brushed off your goggles of the fine particles sticking to it. You were starting to work up a sweat, the blowing dust and sand mixed with the perspiration and was coating you in a horribly scratchy paste. Whatever was under the sand was big, and that was what you were looking for. However, you really needed to determine the make and model of the crashed ship to determine if it was worth reporting for salvage.

"Finally!" You groaned, getting the metal brushed clean. You quickly snapped a photo with your holo-tracker, the blue paint still relatively solid, enough to identify. The device spun, trying to connect to the extranet and you clicked your tongue as it took for seemingly forever.

"What?!" You swore multiple times when the device flashed, 'no results found'. Maybe you could show it to someone at the Assembly office that would know something. You already had a few pictures and coordinates of a few smaller wrecks you could report, but they probably wouldn't grant very many credits. This thing was huge though, so at least the scrap metal would be worth something. Another blast of wind nearly knocked you over as you stood back up, trying to climb out of the small crater to get back to your rover. The crappy thing about wrecks on Sierra-Vector-Tango, since the entire planet was a desert, is that they were quickly covered by sand; even if they created massive craters when they fell to the surface. However, that meant more money for finding salvage than some other planets. Bad thing? Sand worms. Their saliva got into the particles and could make it acidic, which made digging through the sand more dangerous. This, once again, caused the number of credits to be higher.

"Let’s go back for now." You jerked back with your whole body weight as you pulled the handle for the door of your rover. It finally opened and you huffed, throwing the end of your head scarf aggressively to wrap it around your neck better. Crawling up and into your rover, you rested back in the seat, trying to catch your breath.  Pressing the button to start the vehicle it roared to life and the air conditioning flared to life and you just sat in the cooling air for a few minutes.

"Water!" You gasped dramatically, grabbing your canteen from the passenger seat, and drinking so aggressively the liquid spilled out of your mouth some.

"For fuck's sake…" You groaned hard, the water mixing with the layer of sand on your skin, thickening it.

"I need a real shower, with water." Shifting the gear of the rover, you started to drive back to the main road so you could start heading to the nearest Assembly office. It would be about an hour to Drent, and a little under two for Jaron, but you really didn't like going to Drent. Not only did it have the name of some dude-bro fuck boy, but it was also full of them too. Drent had one of the biggest…adult establishments in that quadrant. Not only did they have sexy blue alien ladies dancing on tables, but it also allowed you to sleep with them. Last time you went you nearly got mugged, and the guy just wanted your underwear. No thank you. Jaron was farther away, but a much nicer place and had a very old-style diner reminiscent of Terra from the 1950s. It was cool to go somewhere that was reminiscent of a time over two-hundred years in the past. Plus, they had a hotel with real water showers instead of the air-blasting kind that was more common. It would be more expensive, but worth it.

"This time I wanna rock with you~" You sang along to the song playing over the speakers, drumming your hands on the steering wheel of your rover as you got back to the main road. Turning right to go north toward Jaron, you set the auto-pilot on and plugged in the town, sitting back to watch the view as your rover drove itself. When you could start to see the sign for the town, you shut the auto-drive off and took control again. Large vehicles like yours weren't allowed in the city proper, so when you reached the entry checkpoint, you pulled off to the side and got out. The sun was setting, nearly below the horizon, stars starting to twinkle in the night sky. Getting out of the rover, you slammed the door as hard as you could to get it to shut and went around to the back. Grabbing your big pack and smaller bag, you also had a make-shift safe that you kept smaller salvage pieces in. You let it fall to the sandy ground with a thud and jumped back out. Keying in the code on the side, the rover beeped as it locked, and you headed to the entry booth.

"How old is your rover?" The kid at the booth was at the most eighteen, and his condescending tone was completely unnecessary.

"Doesn't matter." You tried not to steer, slapping your credit chit on the counter and he slotted it into the console. He really had no room to talk, his setup was just as old if not more so than you rover. Sliding the chit back out, he grabbed a small holo-disc and let the machine stamp it with the time and date.

"Thank you." You emphasized with fake kindness, and he rolled his eyes as he let you into the town. You let the parking disc fall into your bag along with your credit chit and started to head down the road. Your 'safe' was basically a suitcase that you made more secure and added a few locks to, so you could roll it behind you. The wheels thunked over the creases of the pavement and you wondered why the town was so dead. At that time, most people would be milling about after supper and going to bars and such. As you passed a store, you saw a sign blinking on the glass advertising some kind of political rally, must be where everyone was at. At least the hotel was still being manned, though you weren't sure the old man behind the counter was even still alive.

"Hello, dearie." He smiled up at you, wrinkles so prominent his eyes nearly disappeared.

"Hello, sir. Can I get a single room for…" You thought, sucking air through the side of your mouth in thought, "how much is four nights?"

"At 250 credits a night, that would be about a thousand…If you stay one more night, I will keep it that price?"

"Sweet! Thanks!" You smiled back, digging through your bag to look for the chit once again. It was a bit pricier than you normally liked, but it was worth it to get a shower with water.

"A single bed, yes?"

"Yes, sir."

"I think we only have two-bed rooms…this one is two singles, does that work?"

"Sure!"

"Water shower?"

"Please~" You groaned, and he chuckled.

"It is quite slow today for the rally, so I do not think any restaurants are delivering…" The old man worked faster than you thought he would and when he slid the chit back to you, he included the room key. It looked like a glass playing card and had the room 24H-13 on it.

"It will be the second floor, take a right to the fourth hall, then its room thirteen." The old man smiled, and you thanked him, heading for the elevator, the wheels whirling on the tile floor. Once you got to the room and inside, you put everything in the room hastily before dashing into the bathroom. After relieving yourself, you shed the extremely sandy clothes and you noticed what looked like an old-style clothes dryer in the corner. It only had two settings, one of which was covered with a piece of tape and the handwritten words, ‘FOR SAND,' on it.

"Perfect." You shrugged and shoved all of your clothes in the drum, shutting the door, and letting it spin and get rid of the dust and grit.

"Oh~" You hummed in delight when you saw the water heating panel on the wall. You plugged in the best temperature and the water immediately came out perfect. Standing under the spray, you stood for nearly ten minutes just letting the water flow over your tired body. Glancing up at the shower head, you clicked your tongue in annoyance, it was fixed on the wall without a hose…

"Need to find a guy…" you grumbled and then proceeded to actually wash up. The soaps and cleansers all smelled of Terra fruits and you wondered what they might taste like. Getting out of the shower nearly an hour later, you wrapped a towel around yourself and your hair, heading back to the main room of the hotel. Flopping onto the bed, your stomach rumbled loudly, and you sighed dramatically. No delivery…The only place that was probably open was the diner and luckily it was right next door to the Assembly office in the strip mall. It was always open since the employees of the Assembly would eat there most of the time, but they never delivered anyway. When your skin finally no longer felt wet or sticky, you put on your set of spare clothes and grabbed your smaller bag.

"Sandy." you mumbled, going back to the bathroom, taking your now sand-free clothes out. Taking everything out of your bag and setting it on top of the machine, you put your bag in to get the sand off and while you waited, put your boots back on. As it continued, you brushed your hair out and braided it again. Looking at your face, you had a slight tan line from your goggles, but it was nearly unnoticeable thanks to your head scarf covering most of the rest of your face. The machine dinged and you retrieved the satchel, putting everything back and making sure you had your chit and keycard, you left the hotel room to go get supper. Waving to the old man at the desk, you dashed out to the street and jogged down the sidewalk. The rally was still going, you could hear the shouting and cheers in the distance. Must have been a more local election or campaign because you didn't recognize the politician on the flyer. Most of the store fronts were closed, even as you turned the corner to get to the main street. In the distance, you saw the light pouring out of the windows of the Assembly office and the diner, shining like a beacon among the darkened stores surrounding it. Like a good child, you looked both ways before you crossed the road, despite there not being anything or anyone nearby. The doors slid open when you approached the office and the guy behind the counter looked up lazily from where he was counting something at the desk.

"Can I help you?" He sounded very tired. You dug in your bag once again and pulled out your credit chit as well as your ID so he could see you were a legit scavenger, but also a freelancer. Freelancers actually tended to get more money than their own employees because they didn't have to pay benefits and all that other stuff.

"I'll let the Salvage Officer know you're here." The guy handed you your stuff back and you went to sit in the empty waiting area. Tapping your toe on the floor, you could look into the entrance of the diner through the windows and door inside the office. There was only one or two customers inside and just one waitress. There was a guy sitting in the back corner, thin glasses perched on the end of his nose as he read. A paper book? Who had physical books anymore?

"(Y/N)." Your name was called by a familiar voice, and you smiled at the owner.

"Junmyeon!" He motioned with his head, and you followed him into his personal office.

"Didn't know you were working here now." You sat in front of his desk, and he chuckled, relaxing back into his office chair.

"I just transferred. What have you found?" He took the holo-tracker from you when you handed it over and plugged it into his console.

"Most of them are small…" You dimpled the corner of your mouth, looking at the monitor the best you could from your angle. He shifted the screen so you could see better, and you pointed to different marks and gave more details.

"What one is this?" He was looking at the blue logo and you shrugged.

"I have no idea; it was huge though. Looked like a Meteor-class size ship, maybe bigger. It was totally covered and left a huge crater." You emphasized with hand motions, and he panned the picture out to get the measurements before he tapped the logo so the computer could analyze it. As it spun you dug through your bag, looking to see if you had lip balm or something. You didn't notice your business friend simply watching you, more like staring. His eyes flashed to your lips as you painted the balm on your lips with your ring finger. When the console dinged, it brought both of your attention back to the machine.

"Oh, wow." He leaned in to read the information.

"I need to make some calls, can you come back in a few hours?" He looked at you and you nodded, standing.

"I can grab something to eat in the meantime!" You waved goodbye and didn't even notice when he tried to call after you. Heading back to the front of the office, you went to the door leading to the diner and the door slid open with a ding.

"Just you, girlie?" The older waitress called from behind the counter, and you nodded, going to sit at said counter.

"What can I get for you?" she asked, sassily chewing her gum. You looked over the menu and made your choice, pulling out your holo-tracker to play a game as you waited for your food. You glanced over to the back corner over your shoulder, looking at the guy reading.

"Who is that?" you asked the waitress when she came back with your drink.

"He's been hanging around here for a few days. I'm not sure what he's doing, but I know he's waiting for something. The secretary in the office might know." She nodded back to where you had been, and you told her you would be right back. Leaving your bag on your stool to save your spot, you jogged back into the office and the guy at the desk cast you a tired glance.

"Who is that guy?" You pointed toward the back corner, leaning your elbows on the ledge of the front desk.

"He's a bounty hunter of some sort I believe. He is looking for someone for some reason, is waiting there for leads. He's offering money for any information." He shrugged and you nodded in acknowledgement and headed back to the eatery. Your food was ready by the time you got back, and the waitress chuckled at how fast you shoveled it in. When you were done, you handed her your chit and meandered on over to the guy.

"I heard you're looking for someone?" You started casually and he looked up at you over his glasses and your eyes widened. He was freaking gorgeous. His left eye was highlighted red, it seemed he had some kind of hologram-like contact in it or something. His black hair was styled half up, his bangs resting over his brow. He had a few ear piercings, his left nostril had a simple loop ring, and a matching one in the middle of his bottom lip. A chain hung around his neck with a pendant on the end that was some kind of upside-down triangle design. He simply hummed in response and put a slip of paper in his book and shut it, taking his glasses off. You sat on the end of the booth, a big gap between the two of you since he was sitting in the corner of the circular seat. He slid his holo-tracker across the table showing you a blurry image from some kind of security feed. It was a person, that was about all you could tell, and they had a hood up over their head and only the bottom part of their face was visible.

"This it?" You looked back at him, and he was sitting there stiffly, just looking at you. He was really hot, actually. He had on a tan, old-style button up with the top few buttons undone. His pants were a brown leather of some kind, and he had a belt on with an attached thigh-holster that held a pistol blaster.

"They stole some schematics. I need them back more than to find the person." He tapped the screen as he looked at it upside down and it showed a second image. The person had a cylinder with a strap hung over their back.

"It’s a set of old maps, they were stolen from the archives at the museum in the Capital." he explained and you slid your finger over the full image, zooming out to see the area.

"You a bounty hunter?" You slid the holo-tracker back to him and he put it back in his pocket.

"Not really. I'm a Ranger."

"You're a Ranger!?" You perked up and he seemed taken aback by your sudden excitement. Rangers were a small and elite group, they were essentially vigilantes, freelancers. They tended to do more things like rescues or arrests, or other odd jobs. They had a pretty strict rule of not killing.

"So, you want the maps but don't need the thief?"

"Yes. I would be nice to get both, though."

"Hm. I'll ask around and see, I travel quite a bit-"

"Scavenger?"

"Y-yeah." You chuckled nervously under his intense gaze.

"Be careful out there, if you get a lead, message me." He got his tracker back out and you scanned his with yours to save his ID.

"What's your name?" you asked.

"Wonwoo…"

"(Y/N)." You smiled and got up from the booth, going to retrieve your chit.

"I'll let you know!" You grinned and waved goodbye, heading back in. Your timing was perfect because Junmyeon was finished and he told you the first wrecks weren't worth a whole lot, but the last one was.

"Two million credits?!" You balked at the number.

"Yeah. Seems it was some kind of cargo vessel, and they think it might still have all of the packages on it still. You could get even more depending on what's inside." He smiled at your gawk, and you finally shut your mouth.

"Woah."

"I can get you the two million now-"

"Really!?"

"Yes." He chuckled and you dug your chit back out and he slid it into the console so he could transfer the credits.

"Shit…" you whispered, your hand shaking a bit as you took the chit back.

"Are…you staying in a hotel tonight?" Junmyeon asked as you scrolled on your holo-tracker, admiring the giant number registered in your account.

"Yeah! I might upgrade my room~" You giggled, and he took a breath, trying to psych himself up, but no words came out before you stood to leave.

"Thanks, Myeon! I'll make sure to come here when I can, kay?" You waved goodbye and he sighed as you dashed out of his office. As you left to head back to your hotel, you saw that Wonwoo had left his booth and you wondered why. Getting outside, you realized the rally had gotten out, floods of people now walking the streets, a big crowd heading toward the diner.

"Ew." You sneered at the globs of people and dashed back to the hotel. When you got in the lobby, you skipped up to the front counter, ready to ding the bell and call the nice old man out for assistance.

"Oh?" Someone was sitting in the lobby, a book in his hand.

"Ran away from all the people?" You spoke a bit louder so he could hear you and he glanced up over his glasses again. His face wasn't quite so cold as before, but he wasn't smiling either.

"Yes." His tone was also lighter.

"There's about to be a bunch more. The campaign team is staying here and will be back soon." The old man had come out of the office, and you sneered as he laughed.

"Are you staying here too?" you asked Wonwoo who had put his book away and was taking his glasses off.

"I hadn't checked in yet."

"We do not have any more rooms available, sir. We just had an influx of online reservations since the rally got out so late…" The old man sighed, and you hummed.

"I have a second single bed in my room…?" You suggested, not meeting his eye as he came to stand by you. He had a small duffle over his shoulder. His eyes finally met yours, and he seemed a little nervous, but you could only see it in his eyes, past that red glowing contact.

"Is that alright with you?"

"Yes? I wouldn't have offered otherwise…" You huffed and the old man hummed.

"Here, I will get you a key as well." You both waited and when Wonwoo received the clear keycard, you both scurried to elevator, people starting to enter the lobby. Neither of you said anything till you had shut the door to the hotel room.

"Are you sure this is okay?" you asked him, he was even stiffer than before.

"Y-yes." He cleared his throat, and he went further into the room, taking the bed near the window since your stuff was on the other one. He told you he was going to shower, and you nodded as he dashed past you. Sighing, you shook away some very impure thoughts, and went to your safe, rolling it over to the bench under the clothing rack and hauling it up onto it with a grunt. It took two physical keys as well as two padlocks and a dial lock. It clicked each one open and then you were able to open it. The air seal 'shunked' as you opened it, and you carefully rested the lid on the wall so it wouldn't scratch it. Looking over your objects, you had some small crystal-like artifacts that you worried were just fakes from some kind of gift shop. You also had some intact parts for ship consoles and even jewelry. There had been just a random case you found washed up on the shore of an oasis once that had gold and silver necklaces and rings inside. It was never reported missing, so you just kept them. Other bits and pieces were inside as well, and your mind went back to the image Wonwoo had showed you. The hood was what caught your eye. The person was experienced, knowing how to hide their face from all angles, so they were probably an experienced thief. Who would want ancient maps though? Especially from Terra.

"What is all that?" His deep voice startled you; you hadn't even heard the bathroom door open. Glancing up, you swallowed hard at the sight. He had put most of his clothes back on, but his shirt was still unbuttoned, allowing you to see his toned torso. He had flopped a towel onto his head to dry his hair and was putting his glasses back on. Trying to ignore how freaking sexy he was, you cleared your throat and started to point things out. When you got to the crystals, you let him put up the one that was shaped like a pyramid.

"I don’t know if they are worth anything, they might be fakes.”

"Have you shone light through them?" he asked, and you hadn't even thought of it.

"No?" He handed it back and you dug through your bag and found your flashlight, holding it to the crystal.

"Woah!" You gasped as a map of the stars shone on the ceiling as the light passed through the crystal.

"Is it worth anything?" you asked him. It was cool but could still theoretically be from a gift shop.

"The fakes have a button to turn on the light, that's the real deal. Where did you find them?" He was buttoning his shirt up, unfortunately, picking up the three other crystals and coming to sit on his bead across from you. There was a sphere, one that looked like a big diamond and an obelisk. You handed him the flashlight and he shined it through the other ones. The sphere showed a projection of a globe, but it wasn't S.V.T or even Terra.

"Mars." he muttered, and you looked closer, recognizing the small dots over the surface as the towers that held the barrier around the planet. The diamond one lit up a bright aqua blue, but that seemed to be all it did. The obelisk projected the time and date, but it seemed to be from Mars as well.

"I found them in some cave. How the heck did they get all the way out here?"

"Were these the only things in the cave?"

"Yeah…So even though they are legit, are they worth anything?

"Hm. Maybe to a collector. I can take them to the museum when I go back-" he halted, "If you're okay with it, I'll pay you back." If he wasn't a Ranger, you would be more hesitant to allow it, because he could just pocket the money. You didn't think he would though, not with the reputation of his group at stake otherwise.

"Sure." You shrugged and he took them and put them in his own pack, and you went back to your safe and locked it up.

"Thank you for letting me stay here." He called suddenly as you tried to figure out how the holo-screen worked and what channels there were.

"Sure. I'm not a fan of big groups of people and this is the best hotel in town." You smiled at him, going to hand him the remote.

"Oh, no, you can choose. I'll just read." You nodded and didn't press to continue the conversation. While it was quiet between you two, it was companionable and before you knew it, you had drifted off the sleep, listening to some show and the flipping of his book pages. When you awoke, he was gone, but it was like ten in the morning, and there was an unread message on your holo-tracker.

Sorry I left without saying goodbye. Thank you for letting me stay in your room for the night. I am heading back to the capital for now and will get your crystal projectors estimated. Please let me know if you get any leads on the map thief.  -Wonwoo

You sighed, a little disappointed he just left, but he seemed quite shy and closed off. Whatever. For the rest of the day and the next few you lazed about and did some fun things to spoil yourself after your big payout, enjoying your little vacation. Over the week afterwards you were having trouble finding anything significant and had stopped at a small tavern set up near a small oasis. You sat at the bar, laying on it dramatically. The bartender had moved the fan closer to you so it could blow straight on you as you lazily sipped from the straw in your fruity drink. You glanced casually at the entrance when another person entered, and you zeroed in on their face. They had a hood on, but that didn't mean it was for sure the person Wonwoo had been looking for. After he had gotten the money from the crystals, more than you thought but not a huge amount, he had sent you more information. It was a woman, presumably, and she was pretty tall and even always wore heeled boots. Your gaze shifted to their feet but couldn't see for sure and you couldn't even tell it was a woman. You and Wonwoo had actually been messaging some even past leads on the thief. You didn't have many friends and while he had the other rangers, he said it was nice to talk to someone new. As you sat at the bar, you watched her, pretending you weren't. You casually took out your holo-tracker and took a picture of the person as discreetly as you could, then headed out. You continued to wait and watch in your rover, ready to take a  picture of their vehicle when they left. You thought you knew which one it was, but didn't know for sure, so you waited till they came back out. They got in the one you had been eyeing, and so once they headed off, you sent the two pictures and a few more details to Wonwoo. He thanked you for the update, then asked where you were. He then told you to meet him in the next town of Falko, and since you were headed there anyway…

The town was much smaller than Jaron, so there was only one small motel, so it was easy to find where he was and get to his room. He was on the first floor in room three. You knocked and barely waited before he opened it. He was…smiling. You didn't know he could do that. You forgot how gorgeous he was.

"T-thanks." You smiled bashfully and followed him inside. It seemed he had been there awhile based on everything spread out across the room. There were a few consoles set up as well as tablets and other tech.

"What's going on in here?" You motioned around the room.

"While I'm looking for the map thief, I'm also trying to get the Ranger's new communication array set up. I'm making the program myself so it can't be hacked by outside sources." Wonwoo shrugged, moving various tablets from one of the beds so you could sit down. He sat at the small desk and turned to face you. He asked a few questions about the person you saw, and you gave him more details from the pictures. It wasn't a whole lot to go on, but if it was them, then he now had their vehicle information. Before you could talk past leads on the thief, his holo-tracker went off and he read the message. He sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"My partner is coming back. It might be better if you leave." He stood to lead you out and you grimaced.

"I-It's not…I just don't want him to meet you…" He mumbled and you wanted to press the issue. His cheeks were slightly red, and he flashed another genuine smile as you left the motel room.

"I'll let you know if the lead pans out." You nodded and before you could turn and leave, he had held something out for you.

"What's this?" You took the little holo-card.

"Um…it's my address. If you are ever in Ratalla…I won't be back home for a few more days, but I should be working from there after…" Wonwoo rubbed his hands on his pants, then shoved his hands in his pockets when you noticed.

"Thanks." You gave him your own smile, then left giddily.

Nearly another month passed before you saw him in person again, but you messaged back and forth quite a lot. There was once you were near his hometown, but he wasn't there, so you missed the chance of seeing him again.

You had been meeting with a repair man in a city called Guro; your rover hadn’t been driving straight. It seemed he would need it for a few days to even determine the issue, let alone what to do after. At least you were in a place with lots of activities. You had actually gotten another half a million credits from the giant wreck you found and had more funds than you knew what to do with. As you left the shop, looking up on the extranet for the nicest hotel, someone caught your eye. Despite the heat of the desert and the midday sun, there was someone slinking around with a hood on. You watched them, eyes glancing at their feet. Heeled boots. It was also a woman, and her height matched the parameters. There was even a cylinder vessel hung over her shoulder. It was her. The area had most warehouses, and she might have been meeting a buyer, so you decided to follow her. You sent Wonwoo a message with your coordinates to see if he could send someone by as well, or better yet, call some Guards. You trotted behind her, trying to stay out of sight and remain quiet. Hiding quickly around the corner, you watched her go into an unmarked warehouse after looking around for followers. Not well enough. The thief had gone in through a large open garage door, so it made it easy for you to follow. Crouching against the wall right near the edge of the door you peered around the corner and saw she was alone, probably waiting for someone. She glanced at her holo-tracker, then went further in, toward the garage door on the opposite side that opened to a scrap yard. Looking for another hiding place, you dashed forward and hid behind a column. When you peered around though, she was gone.

"Why are you following me?" A voice called from behind you, and you spun to see the thief, holding a pistol blaster aimed at you. Your heart fell and sweat broke out on your brow. Those maps must be really valuable if this person was willing to shoot you to prevent the interruption of the hand-off.

"I-I was just trying to figure out who-" The woman pulled back the hammer on the weapon and your stomach dropped.

"Shit!" You scrambled up and tried to at least get around the column when you saw her finger going to the trigger.

"Fuck!" You slammed your back against the column, seeing a smoking scorch mark on the ground.

"(Y/N)!" a familiar voice shouted, and you were shocked by Wonwoo's presence, distracting you.

"Stupid bitch!" The thief was back behind you, and you spun to see the gun nearly at your head. You yelped when something yanked you back and you fell into a hard body. Leaning into him, you watched in terror as the woman fell back onto the ground, a hole in her head. Then you noticed not only were you breathing hard, but so was he. He spun you around to look over you, his hands on your shoulders, one going to your jaw to adjust your head so he could look you over.

"Are you okay?" He was nearly frantic, his face and tone filled with panic.

"Y-yes." You weren't sure to be more surprised by his sudden appearance or the clear worry he had for you. It made your heart thud but for a much different reason. When he had finished looking over you and determined himself you were okay, Wonwoo pulled you into a hug. You returned the embrace, more trying to comfort him than anything.

"Fuck, I was worried." He sighed right in your ear, his deep voice rumbling through you.

"You were?" He pulled back enough so he could meet your eye and huffed.

"Of course. You didn't reply when I messaged you to stay away…" His hand went back to your jaw, his thumb brushing over the skin of your cheek, which was rapidly getting warm and red. When you met his eyes again your widened, he got close again and pressed a soft kiss to your forehead.

"Are you okay?" You chuckled a bit, kind of worried. He had never shown this level of emotion before.

"Yeah." Wonwoo pulled way, petting your hair then went to the body of the woman. You tried to avoid looking at her as he took the map holder from her and soon the Guard showed up. It was another good hour or maybe two before you both were finally allowed to leave after giving statements and answering questions.

"Do you have a place to stay tonight?" he asked you as you left the warehouse district.

"Not yet. I was just about to find a hotel when I saw her…" You drifted off, pointing with your thumb in the general direction of where you just were.

"I got a crap ton of money from a wreck I found so I was going to go somewhere fancy." You smiled wide and he gave you a smaller one. Wonwoo took a step closer, looking a bit nervous, his voice had a slight waver when he spoke.

"Wanna get a room together?"

From everything after he asked that question, till your back hit the door of your hotel room, it was a blur. As soon as the door closed, he had you pressed against it, his lips swallowing yours. His big hand was at the back of your head, making sure it didn't hit the wood of the door. You had gotten one of the deluxe suites of the nice hotel, so the bedroom was separate from the living area, and there was a small kitchen even. When your lungs started to burn for more air, he finally pulled his mouth from yours. As you caught your breath, just looking at each other, Wonwoo leaned into whisper in your ear, "I'm going to fuck you on every surface in this place." He promised. Your head swam at the statement and whined.

"Please~" As soon as he got permission, he grabbed turned you around, your front pressed to the door and his nose nuzzled behind your ear. You let him do as he wished, running his hands under your thin top, starting to suck on the skin in the crook of your neck. You were a bit worried about him having to stoop over so far since he was so much taller, but if he wasn't complaining, neither would you. You could tell he was marking your skin as he licked, sucked, and nibbled over your neck and shoulders. His hands quickly got your shirt off and as his hands danced over the skin of your stomach, you toed your boots off, shoving them to the side. Before he completely removed it, Wonwoo slipped his hands under your breast band, palming the flesh, making you shiver. Undoing the latch, he took the wrap off and it fell to the floor as well. Not turning around to see for sure, you heard more fabric rustling and assumed he was removing his own top. You sighed when his arms wrapped around you, holding your back to his bare chest, the right hand cupping your left breast, and his other hand skating over your stomach. He smiled at the whining moan you let out when his hand finally went into your pants, long fingers stroking the wet patch on your panties.

"So wet, pretty girl." He kissed behind your ear, fingers tweaking your nipple.

"Wonwoo~" You whimpered when his bare fingers finally met your folds and he groaned.

"Let's see how tight you are." Every time he rumbled words in your ear, it made your whole body shiver. Sighing when his finger slid inside, he huffed, his hips twitching as your gummy walls sucked his finger in. You could feel his hardening cock through his pants, pressing into your back side. When Wonwoo added a second finger, crooking them up and pressing hard into your back wall, your legs buckled, and the only reason you didn't fall was his arms around you.

"Need to get your pussy ready for me, pretty." He smiled against your neck when your groan faded into a whine.

"Fuck~" You practically cried as his palm dug into your clit and you were already close.

"No!" You gasped when his fingers left right as you were getting to the edge.

"Wonwoo?" He had pulled away entirely, you only knew he was still behind you because his hands were on the waist band of your pants. He pulled them along with your underwear down and kneeled behind you, helping you get them off without falling over.

"Hold on, pretty girl." While you weren’t sure what he was about to do, your fingers dug futilely into the wood of the door. Your breath escaped you when he, without real warning, shoved his tongue into your cunt, his thumb flicking your clit. Your legs immediately began to shake, a mewl escaping with each rapid breath. You were done for when his lips sealed around your clit, barely flicking with his tongue, and your nails dug into the wood as you released on his tongue. He chuckled, your cunt dripping release onto the floor.

"Gonna have to clean this place good…" You joked, breathless and he laughed harder. Wonwoo hummed, standing back up. There was more shuffling as you rested against the door panting. You sighed when his arms came back to you, pulling you back into his now completely naked body. His cock was wedged in the crook of your ass, and you swore under your breath, why was he so freaking big? He was tall and his shoulders were broad, and apparently had to have a fat cock as well.

"Fuck!" You groaned when the head of his cock went to the entrance of your core. One of his arms wrapped around your ribs, the hand resting under your breast, and the other was at your hip.

"Ready?" His tone had shifted, it was playful and cocky, a slight laugh accompanied the word.

"Please!" You gasped as he started to push in, your legs shook as his dick stretched you open. You hadn't been fucked in a long time, and longer still fucked good. You panted out little whines as he kept filling you, and it seemed like he was going to end up in your throat. Your whole body was trembling when he finally bottomed out, his strong hips pressed against your ass.

"God, your cunt feels so good, princess." His groan rumbled through both of you. You couldn't see, but his head was thrown back, adam's apple bobbing as he tried to get used to how tight you were. When he realized you were on your tip toes trying to compensate for the height difference, he shifted to ease the strain. He backed up so you could lean forward more, and he angled his hips down. Your feet were no longer burning, and his new angle seemed to get him even deeper somehow. Your cunt was burning too, trying to accommodate his size, slick walls fluttering from the stimulation. He had still barely moved, letting you adjust, but you were growing close again.

"Move…" Your request was so quiet. You were trying not to moan like a bitch in heat even though that was exactly how you felt.

"Slow? Fast?"

"Fuck- Wonwoo, just-" He pulled out about halfway and thrust back in, the head of his cock kissing your cervix. You both moaned, his hands left their original positions to grip the flesh of your ass and he chuckled when you nearly sobbed as he started. Only pulling out part of the way, he would fuck back into you hard, grinding his pubic bone into you each time.

"Fucking hell, Wonwoo~" You ended up back on your toes just from the pleasure and you hoped they wouldn't fine you too bad for the scratches your nails were carving into the wood. All your breath got fucked out of you when he finally gave a full thrust, your orgasm slamming into you.

"Shit-" Wonwoo grunted when your already tight cunt squeezed him even more, he had to slow down just to keep himself from cumming as well. He smirked, watching your fingers twitch as you clawed the door, your head flopped forward between your shoulders.

"No, no, no!" You babbled as he pulled out all the way, huffing in amusement at your whining.

"Come here, pretty." Wonwoo easily lifted you, somewhere between like a sack of potatoes and a princess. Your head was still swimming from your orgasm, so the move to the next location was a bit blurry. You shivered and mewled when he set you on the counter that was in the mini kitchen of the suite, the marble very cold on your bare thighs and pussy. He laughed at your yelp when he pulled you, so your butt was right at the end of the counter, and didn't hesitate to bury himself back into you. The thrust was harsher and faster than the first and your hands flew to his shoulders to steady yourself as he restarted the brutal rhythm that he was fucking you against the door with. The man groaned when your nails dug into his skin instead of the wood, so he decided to mark you himself.

"Wonwoo~" Your voice wavered, eyes starting to tear up at the feeling of him fucking your brains out. His mouth went to your own shoulder, at the base of your neck. He started with open mouth kisses, then sucked the skin before lightly sinking his teeth in. He could feel your whimper against your throat, and you felt his responding hum from his lips. Wonwoo tightened his grip as well, wanting to leave bruises shaped like his hands on your skin. He was struggling to hold you upright enough, so you didn't bang your head against the counter, and his knees kept knocking into the cabinet.

"Hold on…" He grunted, and you squeaked when, without withdrawing, picked you up, holding your legs around his waist. Not going far, one hand held your butt and the other went to hitch your leg over his elbow as he pinned you to the wall. Luckily the paint on the wall wasn't textured, your back rubbing over the surface as you bounced on his cock. Wonwoo looked even more gorgeous than normal like that, naked, sweat covering his brow, pupils blown wide. The red, dancing hologram of his eye contact contracted and spun, and you wondered what it did, if anything. With hazy thoughts, you glanced down at his body, whining at the sight of his abs, clenched to work his hips and hold you up.

"Fuck, pretty girl-" He exhaled harshly, his thrusts getting less regular as he grew closer to his orgasm.

"Inside, please, fuck!" You pleaded and he had no desire to argue. His forehead landed on your shoulder, and he moaned higher than you thought he could go as he pumped his cum into you. In the silence, cutting through both of your panting breaths, your combined release dripped onto the tile floor. Your head was so empty you nearly didn't realize you had came again as well. You tried hard not to slump like a rag doll since he was completely holding you up, but you had nearly no strength.

"Let's get to the bed." Wonwoo stood up straight, staying inside, his cock still rock-hard and he carried you to the separate bedroom of the suite. While he meant to set you down on the bed gently, you flopped onto it, letting yourself finally go boneless, your muscles and mind were mush. You weren't sure if you could go any longer, but despite a bit of sweat on him, he was unaffected.

"I've been waiting to fuck you since you came to my motel room in Falko." He admitted, shifting you higher on the bed, following suit, his hard cock covered in both of yours cum resting between the folds of your cunt. You barely registered the confession before your back arched, his cock finding its home inside of you again. It was hard to fully catch your breath, he was battering his cock into your dripping cunt without any mercy. As he rolled his hips just right to hit every single good spot inside of you, his hands gripped your thighs, maneuvering your weakly shaking thighs so they were pressed to your chest, knees at your ears.

"D-daddy, go slower!" You keened and his hips immediately stopped. You were too far gone to feel anything but a bit of respite, head flopping so your cheek rested on the pillow.

"Fucking hell, princess." Somehow his voice had gotten deeper, and he started the brutal pace back up, snapping his hips even harder than before. If you had the strength to scream you would, but your throat was hoarse, so you just mewled and squeaked, drool pooling from the corners of your mouth, tears down your cheeks.

"You love daddy's cock ruining your sweet little cunt, huh?" He huffed when your glassy eyes met his. The red hologram spun and danced, and while you couldn't see, through the lens he had a much different view. Little numbers and labels shown in the air around your body, telling him how and where your brain was firing, your heart rate, body temperature, blood pressure. He could even highlight where blood pooled to the bruises his hands had made.

"Yes~!" You gasped as his thrusts slowed down, but just as hard, he barely pulled out before grinding down into you. Different sensors from his lens flashed on and he could tell you were getting close already. Even without it, he could feel your walls pulsing, more of your wet dripping from where your bodies met.

"You wanna cum, pretty?" You nodded rapidly, whimpering positively.

"Cum for daddy, then." And with one more thrust you fell over the edge. Not just from his words, but also the rough friction of his pelvic bone meeting your clit. Wonwoo chuckled as he felt your pussy spasm, more of your cum squirting from your quivering folds, coating his skin as well. He had a feeling you were spent even though he knew he could keep going. He had stilled inside of you, so he didn't overstimulate you too much, and he wasn't for sure you were still conscious. Your eyes were closed, arms resting on the bed up by your head. He smiled warmly, cooing at your fucked out state, letting your legs go so they could rest onto the bed as well. When he pulled out you shuddered, a long shaky keen floating from your parted lips. He was shocked at the globs of thick, white cum that dripped out of your swollen cunt and he was still unfortunately still very hard. After feeling your core milk him dry, he wasn't sure even a cold shower would calm him down. Though, seeing you laying there, he felt a little bad he had caused you to become so worn out and didn't want to be selfish.

"Oh, princess." Wonwoo leaned back over you, kissing your cheek, the corner of your mouth, then softly pressed his lips to yours. You sighed and it made him grin, you were at least conscious.

"You're still hard." Your voice was quiet, higher than normal, almost whiny.

"It's okay, pretty, you're tired." Wonwoo nuzzled the side of your neck under your ear, lightly sucking on your ear lobe. If he wasn't careful, he would not be able to resist sliding back inside you. With the little strength you had return to you, you pushed him back just enough that you could flop over onto your stomach.

"(Y/N), we don't-" You didn't let him finish, grabbing a pillow to shove under your hips, lifting your butt a bit higher.

"Please, daddy~" You looked at him with shining eyes over your shoulder, and who was he to resist?

"Oh, fuck, princess. If you insist…"

-> Series Hub <-

Master-Master List

Seventeen Master List

Taglist: @gaslysainz

[utilitycaster]

Do you think part of the D20 journalistic bias comes from D20 being edited? It gives the appearance of much more effortless play and lets them control the pacing in a way unedited play like CR simply can't do. They get to (potentially) hide a lot of stuff people would jump on as flaws while CR has no choice but to let it all play out. I greatly prefer CR's approach, despite it biting them in the ass a bit through no fault of their own.

Answering these both together to group cause and my opinions, and I do want to note this is specifically about journalism/press coverage, not their respective fandoms even though there's obviously some overlap.

I think there's a couple things, but I do want to note this was actually prompted by Daggerheart, not Critical Role. The response from several prominent voices in the Actual Play journalism community, whom I will not name here but whom I do not respect intellectually, really was, within hours of the open beta (which as far as I know they didn't have early access to - more on that later) "um it could be better, I don't like xyz and also it's sooooooo important to have criticism" and again, it is important to have criticism, but also you act like D20 has never had a mediocre moment and that Kollok is brilliant, so.

This...got away from me a bit. I'd say I'm sorry but actually I adore writing thousands of words about actual play and it will happen again but I'm putting the detailed answer below a cut. The short answer is I think a lot of Actual Play journalists actually sort of fell into their jobs through being vaguely involved in nerd spaces and aren't actually equipped to talk intelligently about TTRPGs and actual play as a medium that should, at its best, be a perfect fusion of narrative and mechanics. So instead they're distracted by flashy edits and bright lights and cool noises and some abstract concept of "novelty" and write only about that. Also Critical Role is the 700 lb gorilla in the AP space (though not, actually, the TTRPG space) and doesn't give them early access and that's meaaaaaan. Indeed, for all I think a lot of their coverage of D20 and Worlds Beyond Number is obsessively fawning, I also think it's extremely surface level, frequently factually wrong, and fails to get at what's truly excellent about those shows either.

I think, honestly, the biggest one is that I don't actually think a lot of Actual Play journalists watch series in full. I was looking for Polygon coverage of Fantasy High Junior Year and they have one glowing article but it's more about Fantasy High as setting and institution and D20 "changing the game" (also more on this later) to the point of outright contradicting the pull quotes they used from interviewing Brennan Lee Mulligan (also more on this later). So I started looking through their coverage and actually, quite a number of their write-ups are based on only one episode, or half a season. Clearly, they haven't read the full open beta (nor have I, but I think their complaints about the character build process belie a profound misunderstanding of what TTRPGs are, also more on this later). So editing is certainly part of it because it's really easy to see cool special effects and sound design within one episode and shit out a hacky article about it, whereas actually getting to the substance - character relationships, cohesive narrative, storytelling - requires work that I do not think they're doing. And on the one hand I do kind of get it, because yeah, if journalism is your livelihood then you perhaps do not have the time to watch 4 hours of D&D a week for 2-3 years if you're only going to get one article every six months out of it. But I don't think the answer is "focus intently on Microsoft Powerpoint-esque scene transition tricks while ignoring that nothing occurring at the table is actually fun to watch." For more on this, see this post.

The second, which is very relevant to Daggerheart but also is actually a big gap in D20 and WBN coverage in my opinion, and which I put in the tags, is that I actually don't think a lot of journalists have a solid understanding of TTRPGs nor of most genres. And I think Critical Role has a particularly good understanding of both these things, actually, if one skewed towards collaborative storytelling that is not rules-light. I think one really big example is that one person within the space is mad at the Daggerheart questions for the character archetypes because what if your character doesn't fit these. I think this is dumb as shit. I actually think that a common criticism of D&D - that you can't play ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING - is not valid, or rather, it's a valid opinion to hold but if you want to play a character who doesn't fit into the available archetypes perhaps you need to find another game. We all inherently understand that Blades in the Dark characters will be members of a criminal organization in a relatively low-magic setting, correct? That you can't show up to BitD and play a lawful good wizard prince because that's not the story being told? Or like, how in Honey Heist, you are a bear and you are trying to get honey, and you cannot play a human child investigating the old abandoned house at the edge of town, but there's a cool game called Kids on Bikes that will let you do that? Great! Why is this suddenly so hard to understand in the realm of heroic fantasy, that you will fit into specific archetypes? Why do people's brains, if they have them to begin with, vanish suddenly? I know I just did a big old rant that included this within it but genuinely I think a lot of people are deeply ignorant of heroic fantasy, or don't like it, and either is fine, but then they get mad at the heroic fantasy game for having heroic fantasy archetypes when the answer is "maybe this will never make you happy because it's not for you." (Frankly, I think this is also why they love D20, because it doesn't really do straight-up heroic fantasy, and that's fine, but they do keep acting like doing a Game of Thrones pastiche is equivalent to the invention of the wheel.) Like...I remember in the Midst Q&A that Xen said they tend to not like playing typical D&D classes, but their solution was to, you know, create Midst instead of sitting around going "actually, because D&D doesn't support cyberpunk narrative and the character archetypes within very well it is an utter failure." (I could go on forever about how actually TTRPGs are not a showcase for your already extant OCs to prance around but that's a totally separate post).

Mechanics and story are inherently intertwined, is what I'm trying to get at (sorry I'm really tired and have a lot to do but I'm passionate about this answer, it will be rambly, she says like 3 pages in) and I really don't think most actual play journalists get this. At all. And I do think that CR, and Daggerheart, and the people working for it, and especially Spenser Starke, Rowan Hall, Matt Mercer, and Travis Willingham, get this more than almost anyone else in the field. I also think Brennan Lee Mulligan and Aabria Iyengar get this, and the thing is, for all the praise showered upon them, much of which I think is deserved and most of what I think is undeserved is not because they are lacking but because the person writing about them is an idiot crediting them for things they (Brennan and Aabria) would never claim to have invented, their mechanical prowess is rarely if ever written about well. Fantasy High Junior Year's downtime mechanics actually fill in a famous gap in D&D, namely, downtime, and provide an excellent marriage of story and mechanics in my opinion, and I haven't really seen any discussion, because that would require watching the part of the TTRPG show where they play the TTRPG, and knowing the vague word on the street about D&D criticism that isn't just "*nods sagely* capitalism is the BBEG."

And finally: related a bit to the edit but Critical Role used to not be able to provide any early access to press, because it was literally a live show, and I suspect they never broke the habit, and I think that is for the best. As discussed a lot of D20 coverage actually feels like they watched the press screener and then never returned to the show. And I do not know the politics about them, but given that several of these publications (notably Polygon, but some others) have been shitting on Critical Role for several years, and just generally given the way CR's leadership vs. how D20's leadership respond to fandom pressure, I suspect Critical Role does not give these journalists a ton of early or increased, if any. Honestly, why should you, if you're getting interviewed in Variety? And I think the journalists are mad, because they think they're special and should get treated as such.

I do want to wrap something up, and I want to thank @captainofthetidesbreath for talking a little about this in game design/ttrpgs and giving me the idea, but in story, you should be challenging your audience, expanding their horizons, and being new and interesting. In the actual playing of TTRPGs, especially a new one, it is vital to be inclusive and easy to understand and patient and provide points of reference. I really feel like many Actual Play journalists and some TTRPG ones as well have this equation flipped and are looking for challenging concepts that most people will never be able to get a group to be willing to play, and bells and whistles in production, but leave story as an afterthought. Critical Role designs games to actually be played and to be used specifically to tell good stories, and puts story before production, and I think that undercuts those journalists' whole deal.

[cultofdixon]

Ray of Fucking Sunshine

Negan Smith • She/Her Pronouns • Mess with the little pregnant lady, you mess with so much more • SFW/ANGST/NSFW - Implied Sex / Hickeys • TW: Pregnancy & Birth / Nausea & Vomiting / Over-Protectiveness / Injuries / Mentions of Canon Violence • Pre-Savior Arc

Requested by: Anon

“Wait. Run that back to me, darling?” Negan was confused with what his partner Y/N had just told him.

“It ain’t rocket science understanding that I’m pregnant, baby” Y/N frowns leaning against the counter to the room the two claimed when they found their new home. “This is gonna be one hell of a journey unless you want me to get rid of it. Though I can’t think of a healthy way of doing it. Think they’ve got any coat hangers still lying around?”

“Well aren’t you funny” Negan scoffs followed by a semi annoyed laugh toward her words. He lifted himself up from the bed bringing himself close to Y/N as she started to avoid his gaze. “Hey, don’t hide those gorgeous eyes from me” he gently lifts her chin so her eyes locked with his. “This is a good thing alright? I want to have this baby and if yea don’t…well, I think they’ve got them metal coat hangers around” he jokes making her laugh and bring back that smile of hers followed by his.

“We’re gonna be parents”

“Yeah we are” Negan smiles kissing her lovingly resting his hands on her hips bringing her close as she brought her arms around his neck even if he was much taller than her and had to be on her tippy toes.

When they parted, Negan couldn’t help but picture their future and that brought a sense of warmth to the man.

Their baby is the future of their new community; The Sanctuary

First Trimester

“So you’re replacing me”

“Hey, don’t put words in my mouth” Negan kept his cool when talking to his partner. “You’re pregnant. Can’t handle the heavy shit and it’ll be good to have another right hand. Plus Simon shows promise”

“Simon is a pain in the ass!”

“Alright yea only say that because the man got in your way for just a second”

“I HAD TO PEE DUMBASS. I WOULDVE FUCKING THROWN HIM IF I HAD THE STRENGTH TO” Y/N snapped noticing Negan taking it which led to tears forming in her eyes. “He better not replace me”

“Darling…no one can replace you” Negan reassures gently wiping away her tears taking note that he’ll have to get used to the mood changes.

A knock was heard before the door opened revealing the man they were talking about and Y/N immediately shifted her attention to him.

“I CANT HAVE A SECOND WITH MY PARTNER?! WHO THE FUCK LET YOU COME IN?!”

“I knocked first” Simon laughs which only enraged Y/N more as she approaches him about to say something when her face went pale. Causing his expression to fall. “Uh, you alri—-“ then the vomit instantly spilled from her mouth and onto his shoes. “Oh wow what the actual fuck”

Negan was about to check on her when she slowly stood straight wiping the puke off her mouth with the back of her hand. She suddenly flipped him off to back off before mumbling and walking out of the room leaving the two.

“The fuck just happen?”

“Morning sickness. That might happen more than yea think” Negan sat on the edge of the conference table crossing his arms. “So, about the community yea found while scouting? The Hilltop?”

The next couple days Negan stuck close in the Sanctuary when it came to Y/N and her morning sickness. She still tried to do a few things around the joint when her stomach didn’t want to hold everything. Simon has met the short end of the stick a few times when it came to her not reaching a bucket or the bathroom but he can’t say anything if he wants to get on Negan’s good side.

“Get the new group situated and for the new prisoner? Have Eric break him like he broke the last one. Need more Negans if yea get me”Negan tells Laura one of his trusted soldiers as she nods soon exiting the room letting both Simon and Y/N in. Simon came in with a mockup map made of the Hilltop community while Y/N came in for other reasons but she kept quiet so Negan can talk business first. “We are aiming at Oceanside in the next few days. Laura and David are joining me while I’m trusting you to scout out the Hilltop more to get an insight on. Take that Jared guy or at least another body. Take note on any weak points”

“You got it boss. This is the most recent mock up. Apparently, Y/N over here…snuck into the car I took and took pictures with the camera we’ve got”

“This bitch just had to be a snitch!” Y/N hissed as again, Negan stayed in their community to keep an eye on her but she of course snuck past him. “He was going to give you fucking blobs on a piece of paper! At least I—-“

“I ain’t mad darling. Next time just tell me or who knows who would have to die because of your disappearance” Negan trails his eyes onto Simon indicating he will meet his end if anything happened to his partner. “Anyway, you both did good work. Simon, if yea find their weaknesses…you’ll help with the lineup”

The man light up when he heard that while as for Y/N she only knew that brought blood shed and that didn’t sit well with her…in the physical sense. She quickly shoved Simon with an unexpected strength expelling from her causing him to fall over as they both knew why.

“I’m gonna go check on her. You better have a plan for your further scouting when I get back” Negan states heading out of the conference room to go through the entire sanctuary to reach the private rooms including his and Y/N’s.

It was all coming together if you asked the big man. Their prisoner system with psychological breaking was working, their walker yard was being perfected, their living quarters for more of the “civilian” saviors took up most of the first floor, and they’ve gotten a few things to help this place in a medical sense.

The more graphic horrors didn’t become more noticeable until later.

“Y/N?” Negan calls out pushing the door open to their living quarters finding his partner seated on the floor looking through a box. “You feelin’ better? One of the guys found a case of ginger ale that went untouched. Could get one of’em to….” He stopped rambling bringing himself to sit with her seeing the pictures she was going through that she found.

“Do you miss her?” The sadness in her tone spoke through catching Negan off guard. He doesn’t like the mood swings, or what triggers them.

“Why?” Nice.

“She was your wife…who died of cancer” Negan didn’t keep his past a secret from Y/N and Y/N only. “Now you have me and we’re about to have a baby. I just…makes me wonder if you wish you had this with her”

“Y/N. Look at me” Negan waited for her to do so before getting into it. “I’ll always love my wife and what we had. But that’s the past, and you’re my future”

Y/N wanted to say more but she couldn’t help the soft laugh that escaped her lips as she brought her hand to rest on his cheek.

“That was cheesy…but I loved it” She continues to smile warmly bringing her hand to rest on his cheek feeling the smallest scratch of his beard on her palm.

Negan remained beside her for the rest of the day and only sneaking off when nightfall came. He was quiet about it and surprised himself a tad when it came to not waking his partner. But that didn’t matter when he reached the loading docks to find the trucks ready along with Simon holding Lucille for him.

“Doesn’t she know what you do in the dark, Negan?”

“For the most part. But this? No she doesn’t” Negan brushed past Simon to get to his car. “And if you tell her anything, it’ll be your brain matter on the ground this time”

Second Trimester

“I’ll cut your fucking hand off” Y/N threatens the doctor that Simon brought from one of the communities when he tried to get a blood pressure cuff on her. “I don’t believe you when you say Negan called for you”

“When he said you were feisty. I didn’t believe him. Now I wish I was killed on that wretched day instead of who he did kill” The doc’s words didn’t get a reaction out of the woman which only surprised him slightly but given this was Negan’s partner, the surprise didn’t last. “I’m not an OBGYN. I am trained in a few things but for the most part I am not. But I do know that high blood pressure can cause complications or something even worse”

Of course scarring her was going to get her to cooperate. Even if everyone witnessed Y/N trip the doctor in the common area a couple hours later.

“Yea done with the big man’s wife or what?”

“Yes” The doc informed Simon while the confusion grew on his features. “Why do you want to know? Negan is usually the one to come and meet up with her”

“Yeah well he’s busy and I gotta ask her somethin’. Move” Simon stated pushing the doctor aside not letting him have a moment to process.

Y/N quickly brought her attention onto the man that barged in. Her immediate glare made Simon take a step back.

“You’re not here to escort me anywhere are you? Negan said it was fine for me to take a walk outside after my “appointment” like I fucking needed one”

“Boss man said you haven’t been sleepin’ and that’s mainly why you had to get checked. Plus the new ultrasound machine we got from one of our communities”

“Okay…you sound much calmer than usual when talking to me. Fucking spit it out” Y/N leaned against the exam table with her arms crossed becoming more impatient by the second even if he just got in there. It’s Simon, he annoys her just by breathing and by taking her duties as right hand.

“I need yea to distract him for the night so I can pay a visit to Gregory. Get him to put out more than we’ve been asking from the Hilltop”

“Thought Negan only wanted certain items on a monthly basis”

“Things are changing. I wanna prove to him I am much more useful as a right hand than just a messenger”

“What’s in it for me?” Y/N tilted her head curious as to what Simon is willing to do for her.

Then a few hours passed, Y/N tripped the doc in the common area on her way to her and Negan’s shared room. To her surprise he was already there waiting for her.

“Darling, how was the—-“

“Believe me when I say I’m fine next time. Don’t need that old man checking on me”

“It eases my anxiety, beautiful” Negan laughs rising from the chair to strut over to his woman bringing her into his embrace and kissing her lovingly.

But it only took a second for Y/N to bring more heat to the kiss that Negan instantly matched. He felt her tug at his shirt making him pull away to take his shirt off and before he could kiss her again, Y/N pressed her hand firmly on his chest.

“Lock the door pretty boy” Y/N smirks watching the excitement write itself on his face as he quickly went to the door while she got ready at her speed.

“Fucking love the hormones” Negan whispers to himself while locking the door.

After their fun, the two laid naked under the covers enjoying the quiet as Negan gently rubs his finger tips up and down her bicep while Y/N listens to his heartbeat lying on his chest.

“Baby?”

“Hm?”

“Simon and I were talking…”

“Damn. A full ass conversation with the man that annoys yea? Should I be worried?” Negan teases only for Y/N to side eye him.

“Don’t be funny. I’m trying to be serious here”

“Okay okay, you and Simon talked. About what?”

“What we could do to improve the Sanctuary a bit more than what we’ve already been doing and as much as I fucking hate it, Simon can take initiative” Y/N shifted a bit to get more comfortable on Negan as she brought her hand to rest on her belly. “I’ve been told I gotta take it easy. Even if I really want to check out our outposts”

“Mmm…I’ll hear Simon out, but if he don’t pitch it right—-“

“Thats on his bitchass. But it can work. Amongst other things. Like a goddamn garden would be nice” Y/N started to trail as her mind tended to do that more during the pregnancy, trail before inevitably blank. Which happened then before she remembered as she carefully sat up letting her man enjoy the naked view for a moment while she left the bed.

Negan sat up watching her go to her pile of clothes on the ground carefully crouching to grab her jeans. “Yea sure I can fully trust Simon with this?”

“Yeah. I’m sure. Trust me, baby…I would rather be your right hand and taking care of business. But things be changing. Especially with this” Y/N returned to the bed handing Negan a series of photos. The printing option in the ultrasound machine was old but it still got a few good pictures of their bean. “All that matters is that we’re safe for him”

“Him? Huh?!” Negan smiles wide before instantly wrapping his arms around his girl listening to her laugh as she tried to get comfortable. “We’re having a boy?! How can yea even tell on this damn thing?!”

His excitement eased her worries about her pregnancy as it all hit her realizing she’s about to have a baby in the apocalypse. Anything could happen.

Simon was called into the conference room the next day to discuss his plan with Negan and a few others to help his proceed with such. All while Y/N stood in an empty room close to the room she shared with Negan as she was given it to make into the nursery. It’s not Simon’s fault that Negan is busy…he’s been doing a lot for the Sanctuary. He has three communities to look after, he’s taken out the others. There’s the few outposts needing monitoring every now and then. Then of course the meet ups, the collection, and the prisoner system.

Leaving her alone to take care of getting it prepared. Amongst dealing with the mentality as the time gets closer…

Third Trimester

Simon quickly dodged the glass thrown at his head when he went to check on Y/N as a request from Negan who was currently busy.

“You’re a crazy bitch”

“And you’re a bald one. What do you want?”

“Negan asked—-“

“Nope. Get the fuck out” Y/N frowns looking away from the door knowing he’s most likely still there which led her to grabbing her canteen and tossing it in his direction. “If he asked why doesn’t—-

“I’m here! I’m here. Clearly sending Simon to yea wasn’t gonna work” Negan laughs patting Simon on the shoulder before giving him a glare for the man to leave immediately as his features relaxed turning back to his wife. “So, how are yea feeling?”

“How am I feeling? I’m stuck on bedrest and everything still hurts”

“You fell not that long ago. Makes sense that shit still hurts” Negan brought himself to her side of the bed sitting on the edge. “And you shouldn’t throw shit at Simon for checking on yea for me——“

“No! I’ll do what I want. Even if that means almost hurting the fucking moron helping the other moron for not checking on his damn wife himself.“ Y/N scoffs turning away from Negan as the later she was in the pregnancy the more prone to tears she was compared to the other way around.

“Yknow what, give me five” Negan got up leaving the room as Y/N grabbed another thing to throw at Simon if he comes in his place.

But right before Y/N could launch the book she grabbed, Negan was the one to come back with his hands up.

“Jesus Christ woman”

“Why’d you leave?!”

“To hand off my duties to fucking Simon. Just until everything is situated. Alright?” Situated meaning…til the baby is out and a few months.

It was a lot to give to Simon. Not that he minded, not that it was gonna matter.

“This room is small”

“What do you mean? It’s the biggest room in the facility?”

“Okay well I’m a huge ugly monster that takes up most the room. So if you don’t move, I will push you over”

“For the record, I think you’re beautiful” Negan smiles kissing Y/N’s cheek as she was trying to leave the room after being given the ok to walk. She smacked him in the chest in a more playful manner even with the intense force behind it. “You shouldn’t do anythin’ crazy. I’m not helicoptering around you for you to end up falling again”

“I fell without you around so whose fault is that?” Y/N suddenly stops in her tracks, blankly staring as Negan quickly moved over the bed bringing himself in front of her.

“What is it? What’s wrong? Is it the baby? Are you—-“

“Jesus” Y/N patted his cheek before continuing onto what she was doing. “Just forgot what else I was gonna say”

“Holy shit woman. You’re gonna be the death of me”

“Good!” She shouted already have left the bedroom that it just now registered to Negan that she did. He quickly—-not by much—caught up to Y/N as she continues down the hall to the next room.

“Where are yea taking me, darling?”

“To something we should’ve done together but I gave up that thought halfway through doing it. You found everything I just had to organize it” Y/N stated as she pushes open the door to the nursery moving out of her partner’s way to check the place out himself.

Negan stood there for a while, stuck in his own thought as Y/N gave him a concerned look when he hasn’t said anything.

“I uh. Missed out on too much didn’t I?” Negan questions, not being given an immediate answer as he brought himself to hold her face carefully in his hands. “I promise yea darling. I won’t miss anymore of this life we’re making”

“You better, Smith.” Y/N instantly jabbed his side making him laugh along with her as she grabs at his leather jacket pulling him down to her level kissing him. “Goddamnit” she gasped when parting from her partner as he gently lifted her chin to look at him but she instantly smacked his hand away. “Fuck me”

“Well not in here but—-“ Negan’s smirk instantly fell when Y/N pushed him back. “Okay. What’s happening??”

“I’m fucking popping” Y/N frowns as the discomfort grew on her face resulting in the panic to finally set in for her man.

“Holy SHIT. FUCK! IM GONNA BE A DAD” Negan screams pulling away to get into the hallway to yell at a Savior to get the doctor while Y/N smacks him on the back on her way past him, wobbling her way back to their room. “We should go to—-“

“I won’t make it to the fucking infirmary”

“Alright well let me carry yea—-“

“YOU TOUCH ME NOW AND I BITE YOUR FUCKING DICK OFF” Y/N snapped, obviously not wanting to be touched at the moment as she continued on her way with Negan following quickly.

This was going to be a long couple hours

Or so she thought

“You’re doing so great hun” Negan reassures brushing the hair sticking to her face from the sweat as her whole body fought against her with the contractions. Making everything hotter was one thing.

“Fuck off” Y/N groans throwing her head back against his chest as he rubs smoothly strokes up and down her arm even if she couldn’t focus on the feeling.

A fucking human was ripping her in half and that was all she focused on. Until—-

“I see the head” the doctor informed also meaning it was getting close but Y/N wasn’t having it.

“I can’t…Please I just can’t” Y/N sobbed in pain as her body shook from all the agony her body was enduring. “I can’t anymore”

“Darling…the pain will pass once our son is here. Just breathe and hold onto me” Negan reassures feeling her hands grip onto his hands on either side of her as she took a few deep breaths.

“I would be careful with the next push so you don’t tea—-“

“SHUT THE FUCK UP AND HELP GET THIS BABY OUT OF ME” Y/N hissed at the doc one last time as she felt a contraction come on leading her to finally push.

The pain will pass once our son is here

And it did.

Y/N never seen the man cry as much as he did right then and there while his son was gently placed in her arms. Oh he’s so perfect she thought as the sobs filled the room which was left to them once everything was okay again.

She didn’t want to let go of their baby boy even when Negan argued that she carried him for nine months. She held him close and protectively until the exhaustion finally got to her, leading her to finally let her son be held by his father.

“He’s so perfect” Y/N smiles tiredly resting her eyes as Negan gently kisses her forehead letting her sleep.

Negan was still feeling every overwhelmed feeling in his chest as the tears kept falling when he looked at his son.

“I won’t let anything happen to you…ever, Max”

[fitnessgeekandcoffeefreak]

📍 Half Dome (Mist trail up, John Muir Trail down)

19 miles -- 5,400 ft elevation gain

What a wild ride this trip was, you guys. I did so much better on this trail than Upper Falls. We had a 2:30 am wake-up (so dumb 😆) in order to start the trail before the heat got so intense. There were other hikers ahead of us, and plenty of people behind.

The Mist Trail had construction from 7-3 so we need to get past that point by 7. This portion of the trail is so cool. You climb granite stairs for forever to the top of the falls. The spray was a welcomed cool down after putting in so much work right off the bat.

After the waterfall portion we continued our trek to the Subdome. My friend was feeling awful (similar to how I felt on Tuesday's hike) and her sugars were all over the place (she's diabetic) We just took our time trudging along and chatting with other hikers. It really was the nicest group of hikers I've been around, so that was pretty awesome.

All three of us had entered the lottery for three days in a row for the cable portion of Half Dome and NONE OF US GOT PERMITS. So ridiculous. We decided to just do the hike hoping there would be other group(s) with available spots on their permits once we reached the check in. We got to the check in and there was no Ranger! We hurried passyed the check in spot and rested a little bit before tackling the steps at the Subdome. We had had a decent amount of shade throughout the beginning of the hike, but the Subdome and the cable portion are just open and you are there for the baking.

(Call me out for not having a permit and going anyway, but I'll completely take blame for it even though it's naughty.)

Linda was convinced she wasn't gonna be able to complete the cables because she felt so awful but we just rested some and kept cheering her on.

We brought gloves just in case we were able to actually get on the cables. You can see the slope in the pictures above, which is pretty insane. My shoes had just tread so they stuck well to the side of the granite. Man, it was so cool! You use so much upper body strength to pull yourself up to the top, but it's definitely worth it. And the view from the top is breathtaking. 360* turnaround to see for miles!! I should have taken more pictures but I was just trying to soak it all in.

I went down the cables backwards and basically repelled down each section. It was just so much faster and used less energy. We put Linda in the middle of us just in case she needed help, but she didn't.

There are some things you complete in life that, not only cause you to reevaluate your life, but also shift your mind in a way to see things the way that they should actually be seen.

Facts: People are important. Relationships are important. How you treat your body with your brain is important. Living your life in such a way that you attempt to soak every small experience and the importance it has, is important.

I'm so thankful that I was able to do this trip with some of my most cherished friends ❤️

[sukiipjs]

˗ˏˋ ꒰ BF!NICK HEADCANONS

°:. *₊ ° . ☆ °:. *₊ ° . ° .•°:. *₊ ° . ☆ °:. *₊ ° . ° .•°:. *₊ ° .

౨ৎ more shy and reserved at the beginning of the relationship but once he gets more comfortable around you and trusts you more you’ll wish he was still shy and reserved 💀

౨ৎ you two constantly share drama and shit talk everyone, and almost always ends the conversation with “no hate though!” or “but people can do whatever”

౨ৎ when he has to finish editing videos you like to sit next/on his lap just waiting for him to be done

౨ৎ if your sleeping over at his and him and his brothers go out to film, he’ll come back and see you sleeping in his bed and slip in next to you trying not to wake you

౨ৎ not really a big fan of PDA but likes to always play with your fingers or hair or clothes or something else to be close to you

౨ৎ you stay out of it when he argues with his brothers but loves to watch and enjoy the show as you try not to laugh at it

౨ৎ when he’s mad at you, his go to is honestly the silent treatment but he’ll break out of it really easy and make up super fast. or y’all would just yell at each other and talk until it dies down and you two make up

౨ৎ he would try to go to bed mad at you but you’d bug him over and over so he can’t sleep until you two actually talk it out

౨ৎ and when y’all argue, he always holds his point and stays very stubborn, like always

౨ৎ would definitely soft launch all the time, like pictures with an extra hand in it or your shadows, small things

౨ৎ he’d use spacecamp to hard launch for sure, like announcing a new flavor or wtv and he puts on a coat of it then walks over to you and ends it with a kiss of the cheek like AWWWHH

౨ৎ if he had a long or stressful day he’d definitely call you up just to cuddle and be with to forget about the day

౨ৎ would definitely stand in a parking lot while you show off your truck and then do donuts and then y’all would make out 🥰 (this one is a joke)

౨ৎ always asks your opinion of his outfit and gives you very unfiltered “advice” about yours 💀 he’d help you style things though fs

౨ৎ both a listener and speaker as you are, like when your telling him something it’s both y’all talking over each other on accident, conversations flow into random topics very easily

౨ৎ when your in a video with them and matt or chris try to speak over you or smth, even on accident, nick will yell at them to shut up so you can speak even more than he already does LMAO

౨ৎ you would both spoil each other so much, like you’d give him random gifts all the time and like if you two are out and you’re like “this is cool” or wtv he’d definitely get it for you without you asking

౨ৎ he wouldn’t really use pet names and when you do he’d pretend to hate it and cringe but secretly just loves it when you call him baby

౨ৎ in the start he tends to not be that good at communication but you push him until he opens up about whatever that was bothering him and eventually when something is bothering him, he’ll run to you and go on and on about it and how he feels

౨ৎ you always hold onto him when you two sleep together and he loves it, he loves to be close to you all the time

౨ৎ texts you all the time non stop even about small things. his brothers are being annoying? text. saw something that reminded him of you? text. good morning/good night? text. almost tripped over a rock? text.

౨ৎ isn’t always the jealous type, like if another guys flirting with you or smth he doesn’t really care cause he knows you love him

౨ৎ you love to sneak and take pictures of him, you think he looks amazing but he always bitches about how he looks terrible and begs for you to delete them (which you never do)

౨ৎ you two love to do matching nails when he gets his done

౨ৎ he loves it when you tease or flirt with him in public and you love seeing him blush and get all embarrassed

°:. *₊ ° . ☆ °:. *₊ ° . ° .•°:. *₊ ° . ☆ °:. *₊ ° . ° .•°:. *₊ ° .

taglist : @slutforchriss @mattsleftnipple03 @mattsdinosweater @ccolleenn @mixvchelle @leah-loves-lilies @sturn-wrld @redz0nez9 @cheriematt @freshloveforthefit @nickuniversity @whore4matt @txssvx @teenagetrash00 @matty-bear @venusbabysblog @m0r94n @junnniiieee07

[robinsegghead]

Danny's Daycare Part 9

[Master List]

“That doesn’t make any sense! You don’t even know what you’re talking about!”

Danny sighed, attempting to regulate his emotions while Miguel continued to yell about the English homework they’d been working on. They both knew Miguel wasn’t good at English and that he didn’t like it, but apparently something about today’s work had really set him off- he didn’t raise his voice often. 

“Miguel-”

“No! I’m sick of this! I don’t even want to go to school! Why should I put so much effort into something you want!?” The boy huffed, shoving the schoolbooks away from himself.

Danny licked his lips. “Miguel, school is for your own benefit-”

“Tha’s what you keep saying- but we both know I’ll never graduate! Even if I did, I'd never get into a college!” The boy shot up and moved towards the entryway. “‘M not smart enough for this shit and I never will be! I’m gonna die in a ditch somewhere cause ‘m not good for nothin!”

Before Danny could refute Miguel’s completely absurd explanation for his future, the boy stormed out, slamming the door behind him. Danny cringed as the sound reverberated through the apartment and sent the cats running for shelter.

“I’m… uh… I’m gonna go after ‘im.” Santiago said quietly, closing his books and standing uncomfortably. 

Danny sighed, waiting for his own emotions to calm down before figuring out what to do. Spectre climbed into his lap, nudging his hand in demand for attention. “Hey spooks… Sorry about all that shouting…” He continued to pet the snowy cat while she got comfortable and fell asleep on his lap. 

He’d give Miguel some time to cool down before going next door and talking to him about it- one thing was for sure though, Danny could not teach him English anymore. He barely understood it himself and every time he tried to answer Miguel’s questions or explain something he ended up confusing them both because he wasn’t actually sure if he was right.

Then and there he made a decision.

Danny: Hi Jason, this is Danny. If you’re still interested in tutoring I’d like to hire you.

Setting his phone aside, Danny decided it was time to clean up. Luckily Spectre liked being held while he moved around and did other things, so he held her in one arm close to his chest while stacking the boys’ books in an orderly manner before moving to the dining room that they’d left a bit of a mess.

They’d eaten another of Red Hood’s dishes which he’d taken to dropping off anywhere from two to five times a week- seriously how did the man have time for that? It had been two weeks since Hood had shown up at the daycare to make sure he actually ate and ever since then Danny had found more and more containers of food left in his fridge while he was at work. Interestingly enough, the containers had grown in size, as if Hood knew he now took care of two teenage boys.

While moving some dishes to the kitchen sink, Danny felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out a moment later to see who it was.

Unknown: Yeah I’m interested

Relief flooded Danny’s body; he felt like he could cry. 

Danny: Great! Do you want to meet somewhere to discuss the details?

Jason (Asshole from the Library): Yeah works for me. When and where do you want to meet?

Danny: Tomorrow around eleven AM? The coffee shop on Hunt?

Jason (Asshole from the Library): Sounds good

So not much of a texter, huh? That’s fine. Danny needed to figure out the details before showing up tomorrow. With a new goal in mind, Danny set Spectre in one of the various cat beds and pulled out a notebook to create a plan. He’d only been working on it for a half an hour before there was a knock at his door.

He waited a moment and, sure enough, the door opened. Danny left the door unlocked during the day for the boys or Dani to use- he  told them they didn’t have to knock but only Dani listened to him on that matter.

Santiago appeared around the corner, somewhat shy which was- strange. Of the two boys Santi was much more outgoing and he wasn’t very shy or quiet around Danny anymore.

“What can I do for ya, kid?” He asked casually, hoping the boy would pick up that he was no longer upset.

Santi fiddled with his sleeves- he liked buying sweaters that hid his hands and hung low on his body, something Danny could relate to. “Uh- Miguel told me- he told me not to-” Santiago swallowed and Danny got a bad feeling. 

“Santi, what did Miguel tell you not to do?” Danny tried to keep his voice level.

“He- uhm, well he didn’t want me to tell you but well I told him! I told him it was a bad idea but he didn’t listen and he- he told me not to tell you but-” Santiago hiccuped, emotions displayed clearly on his face.

Danny got out of his chair, moved towards the boy, crouched down, and gently grabbed his upper arms. “It’s okay Santiago, you can tell me. What happened?”

“He- he said he’d only be gone a few minutes!” 

“Santiago.”

The boy crossed his arms and shivered slightly. “He went to meet some friends. Some… some bad friends.”

Containing his anger and fear, Danny nodded encouragingly. “Do you know where?”

“He said he wouldn’t be gone long so… somewhere nearby? Probably the corner he- the place where- when he got stabbed he-”

“Okay. Good job Santi. Come with me.” He led Santi across the hall and knocked on Dani’s door. She answered quickly, looking between the two of them, confused. “Can you look after Santi for a bit, he shouldn’t be alone right now. I’ve got to go find Miguel.”

Maybe there was something about the way he said it but Dani didn’t ask any questions, just opened her door wider and gave Danny a nod.

Danny took off after that. Flying back to the alley he’d found Miguel bleeding out in only a few weeks prior, he tried not to think about the state he might find the kid in. When he’d moved in Miguel had agreed to cut off his friends in the gang, he’d said none of them were really friends anyways, just people to keep the boredom at bay.

The alley was empty when Danny arrived but Miguel’s jacket was crumpled up against a wall. 

Whipping out his phone, Danny made a call.

“Hello?”

“Tucker? I need you to hack into some cameras immediately.”

There was a bit of shuffling. “Okay man, one sec… all right, where and when?” He loved that about his friends. Over the years of being friends to partners in crime, his friends had learned to trust each other to the point it was as easy as breathing.

“25th and Mundson, go back starting from now and see how long ago Miguel was here.” He’d finally found the time last week, after Dany’s appearance, to call Tucker and Sam and fill them in on everything he had going on including Miguel and Santiago. They were supportive- more so than Jazz who still had her reservations about it all.

The rapid clicking on the other end told him Tucker was working his magic. “Is the kid in trouble?”

“Let’s hope not.” Danny bit out. “Pray it’s just teenage rebellion or something.” Ancients, he sounded like a father- he was only five years older than Miguel! He needed to chill.

Your anxiety and overprotectiveness is what’s saved you and your friends countless times. He reminded himself, wringing Miguel’s jacket in his hands.

“Got it!” Tucker shouted. “Miguel was grabbed by a group of four men seventeen minutes ago and thrown into the back of a black van- license plate NLE263 registered to one Roger Carlson traveling south.” Danny took off in that direction while Tucker continued. “Pulling up other cameras… they’re headed to the docks…” Tucker drew in a sharp breath. “Danny. Hurry.”

Speeding up, Danny set his sights on the docks.

“Okay Danny, Miguel’s at the docks, he looks… okay.” Tucker paused, still tapping away on his computer. “Although… looks like the kidnappers are being held up by something. I can’t see- the camera angles not good and it’s really dark.”

Spotting his the kid huddled on the ground against some cargo, Danny dropped down quickly, landed behind some equipment and taking a look around. “I’m here, watch my back.”

“I always do.”

Danny hadn’t turned into Phantom- he didn’t see the point really. He’d been invisible while flying so that wasn’t going to out Danny Nightingale as a meta (which is what people would assume since you know, ghost wasn’t really most people’s immediate thought) and now that he was here he’d be taking Miguel, kicking some kidnapper ass, and going home. All easily explained by his background in martial arts (thank you Tucker).

Approaching Miguel, who hadn’t noticed him, Danny looked around. There was a group of four men talking in hushed tones not too far from the kid, a few other men loading up a boat with cargo, and off to his right was definitely a vigilante- he wasn’t sure which one. He didn’t care. 

Casually strolling up to the group of men, who also hadn’t noticed him, Danny felt someone’s eyes on his back. Whichever vigilante was watching was probably losing their mind about a random civilian approaching a group of armed kidnappers. Danny hoped it was Red Hood.

Tapping the closest kidnapper on the shoulder, Danny cleared his throat. The group spun around with shouts, aiming their weapons at him. With a cold smile, Danny tilted his head. “You seem to have kidnapped a friend of mine.”

“This guys crazy!” One of the men laughed, still confident in himself because of his obvious weapon and Danny’s obvious lack of one. His mistake.

Danny’s presence grew. Technically, he wasn’t doing anything. He looked exactly the same as he always did, his height and weight stayed the same, he wasn’t doing anything. Including controlling his aura. He’d been told it could be rather intimidating when it ran wild. And wild it was- ghosts were made through emotions, and Danny was feeling a lot of negative emotions at the moment.

“Next time you decide to hurt my kid, ask yourself, ‘Do I really want to deal with the repercussions?’ Because let me tell you something- no, you don’t.” Grabbing the barrel of the nearest gun, Danny twisted it up until it snapped off.

The three other men began shooting while screaming, clearly terrified. Danny went intangible (after making sure Miguel wasn’t in any danger of getting hit) and let the bullets fly through him, though, pretending to dodge. 

Smashing the first man's gun into his head and knocking him out cold, Danny swiped the second man’s legs out from under him. Taking the other men out was easy and went by quickly. As soon as the fourth man dropped with a groan, Danny dusted his hands off and moved towards Miguel and discovered why he hadn’t seen Danny before.

They’d drugged him.

They were lucky he’d already dealt with them. If he’d known they would have suffered much more. It seemed Danny was going to get his wish, the men loading up the boat had noticed their comrades' battle and were on their way, guns blazing. “Tucker I’m going dark, I’ll let you know when I’m home.”

The shifting of gear behind him alerted Danny to the vigilantes approach. Without looking up, Danny picked up Miguel and moved him to the other side of the cargo- further from where another fight was about to take place.

“Are you crazy!?” 

Ah. Red Robin. Turning to face the vigilante, Danny was taken by surprise to see Red Hood standing next to Red Robin. “Hey Hood,” Danny gave him a chin up. “The Vindaloo was really good, thanks.”

Red Robin’s jaw hung open, looking between the two of them. “What is happening?” He breathed.

“I believe you’re about to yell at me for saving my kid from some kidnappers.” Danny offered.

Nodding, the vigilante opened his mouth to continue. “Right-”

“Unfortunately, I don’t have time for that right now. I’ve gotta take care of this.” He jammed a thumb over his shoulder towards the men who were quickly approaching. “Oh! I’ve got an idea! How about you take Miguel back to my place to keep him safe while I deal with this?”

Hood chuckled. Even modulated it was a nice sound.

“Absolutely not!” Red shouted. “I’m helping Hood salvage destroying this trafficking ring while you, the civilian, get out of here with the kid!”

Danny froze. “Trafficking ring?” The docks grew colder, something both of the vigilantes seemed to notice. “Oh okay. I was going to be nice.” Cracking his neck, Danny turned to face the group of men approaching. There were something like twenty of them- easy. “I mean it Red, might as well make use of knowing where I live and take my kid home. I’ll call us even for that time you broke into my place.”

“You what-” Hood growled but dropped off the moment Danny charged forward. “What the fuck!”

“Danny!” Red shouted after him.

The gunfire was deafening, Danny’s enhanced hearing was a bit of a bitch when dealing with normal bad guys. But he hardly noticed. The moment he’d realized Miguel hadn’t just been kidnapped by some rival gang or some of his old friends who felt betrayed, but rather, a trafficking ring? He’d lost all of his senses.

Every goon he knocked down, every gun he snapped, every bullet he dodged, it was all forgotten the moment it happened. His tunnel vision narrowed with every goon he took out until he could only feel the crack of noses and jaws against his knuckles, could only hear the racing blood in his ears, could only smell the gunpowder in the air.

His senses returned only after the last man dropped. Surrounded by the crumpled and bloody bodies of child traffickers didn’t disturb Danny one bit- which should have worried him- but, well, they were child traffickers. And he was the Ghost King, they’d be going to hell one way or another.

Luckily, he didn’t kill any of them, the only ones that were seriously injured had been shot by their own or Red Hood which- he wanted to say fighting alongside Hood was cool, but he didn’t really remember. Maybe he should see a therapist? Did he have anger issues?

“Holy shit Danny- what the fuck- are you- Jesus Christ!” Red Hood exclaimed, holstering his guns and grabbing Danny by the shoulders to look him over for injuries.

Pushing the vigilante off him (holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit), Danny waved his hand. “I’m fine, didn’t get hit once. Where’s Miguel?”

Hood gave him a long look before sighing. “RR took him back to your place which- apparently he’s been too?”

Danny offered a shrug. “He and Spoiler broke in to interrogate me when I was still pretty new to Gotham. Something about making sure I wasn’t a rogue in the making or a child trafficker or something.” With a glance at the unconscious men at their feet, Danny chuckled. “Pretty sure he can cross that off his list of theories.”

“You’re something else, huh?” Hood sighed. “First the Joker, now a child trafficking ring, what’s next? You wanna be a Robin next too?”

“First of all, Joker was an accident and I thought we were never going to mention that again?” He gave Hood a pointed look. “Second of all, these fuckers messed with a kid- my kid. Third of all- ew no. Being a vigilante? Been there, done that, not interested in rehashing my teenage years.”

“Wait what?”

“And lastly, I think we should check these crates for kids. If they’re really child traffickers then the likelihood of these boxes being full of kids is pretty high.” Danny turned his comms back on. “Hey, I’m back, can you call Santiago and let him know Miguel should be home soon and to go back to my apartment to wait for him?”

“You so owe me one.” Tucker huffed before shutting off the line.

Red Hood was talking to someone on his own comms. “Hey, a couple others are going to be here soon to help so if you don’t want to be a part of that you should get going.”

“Yeah probably.” Danny ran a hand through his hair. “Well, thanks for the help, good luck.”

As Danny turned to leave, Hood called after him. “And Danny? We are definitely talking about what you said a few minutes ago.”

What had he- oh shit.

“Being a vigilante? Been there, done that, not interested in rehashing my teenage years.” 

Why did he say that? Outing himself? Just like that? Ancients, this is why Tucker told him to keep his big mouth shut when he found out Danny’d run into multiple Gotham vigilantes. “Yeah yeah, whatever you say, Hood.” Danny winked confidently before leaving. Once around the corner he turned invisible and intangible and flew home as quickly as he could.

It took a while to calm Santiago down once Danny got home but once the drugs wore off and Miguel woke up, both boys calmed down. The boys asked to stay at his place that night and of course he offered them his bed. 

He didn’t sleep that night.

Leaving a clone behind in case the boys woke up, Danny headed to the realms. He’d been neglecting his work there and if he wasn’t going to get any sleep anyways, he might as well get some things done. His plan had only been to collect some of his work and bring it back to the apartment- he always felt bad when he left a clone with them, which didn’t make any sense, but it was how he felt.

“Great One!” A voice boomed from the doorway.

            Danny sighed, usually grateful to see one of his mentors but a bit busy right now. “Frostbite, come in. I was going to pay you a visit soon but things have been kind of crazy lately..”

            The yeti chuckled. “Of course, Great One. The work never ends.” He stepped into the office space and followed Danny to the sitting area. 

            “To what do I owe the pleasure, Frostbite?” Danny started, stretching before falling backwards into the cushy armchair. It was comfier than he remembered.

            Frostbite sat in the oversized armchair that Danny had brought in specifically for him. “I wanted to speak with you about this ‘Joker Venom’ you mentioned before.” Danny nodded. “I’ve been working on synthesizing a cure for it and I believe I’m close but unfortunately, without subjects to test it on, we won’t know the effectiveness.”

            Danny frowned. “You want guinea pigs?”

            “Not in the way you’re thinking. I’m confident there will be no ill side effects of what I’ve created thus far and am perfectly comfortable giving it to anyone. The problem lies with how effective it will be. Until it’s administered I won’t know if I need to change the formula or if it will work as it is.” The yeti sighed. “What I mean is, it cannot be mass manufactured until it has been used and proven successful.”

            Nodding, Danny went over what he said. “Okay so you just need to test that it will work, right?” His mentor nodded. “Well that’s… easier said than done, but I think I can make it work. If you give me a batch of the cure I think I have a way to get it to the people I need it for.”

            Frostbite stood up. “Very well, I’ve brought a case of it with me,” how had Danny not noticed the small metal case the yeti had been holding? “There are ten doses inside, once administered it should only take a day, two at most, before the patient begins to show signs of improvement. I believe, given the severity of this Joker Venom, they will require multiple doses on a semi-regular basis until the venom is neutralized.”

            “But you think, given enough time and doses, that this really will cure them? I don’t want to give anyone false hope, Frostbite.” The only thing worse than leaving Duke’s parents completely Jokerized would be promising to cure them and then failing- or making it worse.

            “Yes, Great One, I am confident it will work.”

            Good. That was good. Maybe he could help them. Maybe they could be a few more people he could protect. He wouldn’t let them die. He wouldn’t let anyone else die.

“Okay. And- I mean, it’s been… years, Frostbite. You think this will work on people who’ve been…”

The yeti nodded. “I believe, with enough time and doses, they will make a recovery. Until administered I won’t be able to tell just how far their recovery will go but… I do believe they’ll gain back some semblance of themselves.”

Frostbite didn’t stick around and neither did Danny. Paperwork in one hand and Joker Venom Cure in the other, Danny ripped a portal into his apartment and found himself back in his living room only moments later. Setting the paperwork on the living room table, Danny slid the invaluable case into the wall. He hid most of his important things inside the walls- no one thought to look there.

Reabsorbing his clone, Danny remembered what he’d been doing before the entire fiasco. Right. He was meeting with Jason tomorrow to discuss hiring him as an English tutor for the boys and needed to figure out the details before they met.

It’s fine. He wasn’t planning on getting any sleep anyways.

Ghosts needed less sleep than humans so really, this was fine.

With a mug of tea and more weight on his shoulders than he was willing to acknowledge, Danny, once again, got to work.

Prev. Next