#which to me means i find it very likely there could be research gone into it. esp esp since the party members knew about. Some island that
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radioroxx · 9 months ago
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What do you think Odile does for a living? She feels teacher like to me. What do you think she would do post canon?
HMMMM THIS IS GOOD QUESTION…
ive seen a lot of people hc her as a teacher / professor so i!! think that suits her pretty well. specifically as someone who studies + specializes in different types of craft (that would be why shes so proficient in multiple craft spells. also how she was able to figure out the loops stuff, AND to find something that could prevent siffrin from looping back).
post canon i am not sure… i am always torn between how the party would handle things post canon. obviously they would keep travelling for a bit, odile alongside her family without the stress of. constant sadness encounters + a king to kill lol. i think maybe she would get to take her time, reeaally get to know vauguardian culture when not within. a crisis. as was her original intention.
eventually. EVENTUALLY. when the family settles down somewhere (i am a “they all get a big house together” believer lol) she would get back into craft stuff. maybe go back into teaching too—surely people would be eager to hire a saviour. especially though i think it would be neat of her to try looking into wish craft etc, as a long forgotten form of craft. to satisfy her own curiosity, for siffrins sake, or just as a way of preserving the countries culture in whatever ways possible.
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avelera · 5 months ago
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One of your posts mentioned something about viktor not truly acknowledging Jayce's workload when it came to him being a Councillor. Could you please elaborate on that?
Sure. I mean, maybe if I went back through and did an exhaustive rewatch, I'd find something to contradict the point, but as far as I can recall, the closest Viktor ever comes to saying that Jayce might be overworked is when he calls his time going over the shipping manifests for the Hexgates a waste of time because they should be working on innovations to help people in need (ie, Viktor obfuscating once again that he is dying and wants Jayce's urgent help but framing it in such a way that it sounds like a long-term societal problem instead of a short term personal one, so it goes right over Jayce's head).
And look, let me preface this by saying Viktor is actively dying at this point. He's sick, and in pain, and terrified, and he feels abandoned by the most important person in his life. I'm not saying it was wrong of him to not acknowledge Jayce's workload, or bad, or in any way not understandable. Jayce is an adult too and Viktor was definitely suffering more at that point than him.
But on one of many rewatches, I did note that when Jayce says, "Sorry, I have a lot on my plate lately." it is objectively true. And Viktor doesn't even acknowledge it. Being a full time councilor and promoting Hextech and working in the lab and trying to help Viktor and dealing with a civic crisis that could lead to outright civil war, etc etc everything else happening in S1, it's no wonder Jayce is snippy and on edge at the bridge, the guy should be on the edge of collapse quite frankly.
And Viktor doesn't care. He thinks Jayce's time on the Council is a waste of time, so he doesn't acknowledge the burden of it. That includes not acknowledging the fact that the Hexcore would have been destroyed and Viktor's one hope for a cure gone with it if not for Jayce's power and influence now. Jayce only became a Councilor to advance their research and help Viktor, but Viktor doesn't once acknowledge this and seems actively angry and jealous about it.
By the way, this isn't a case of one of them is right and the other is wrong, it's just a case of two very human people being human. It's very well written. But Viktor's lack of empathy for the challenges Jayce is facing means he's also not seeing how much of what Jayce is doing is for his benefit, how many burdens Jayce is taking on for Viktor's sake.
Viktor's emotional arc at the end of S1 includes a lot of feelings of abandonment by Jayce which are objectively not true. If he acknowledged Jayce's workload, he might also come to the realization that he's not abandoned, that Jayce is entirely focused on him just in different arenas. Maybe it would give Viktor the impetus to say "Hey, I don't want your help as a Councilor, I want your help in the lab because I'm scared and alone and dying and I'm about to make some very rash decisions because of all those feelings." Instead of just sucking it up and going it alone, which eventually leads to Sky's death and Viktor's collapse into utter hopelessness and resignation towards his own death.
And by the way, this isn't conjecture that Viktor is bad at seeing how much people around him care for him. Sky is another example of this. Viktor is so focused on extending his own life that, to paraphrase Heimerdinger in 2.07, he's not using the time he has to be with the ones he loves.
Later he will weep and rage at how he completely missed out on knowing Sky as a person, he completely missed out on knowing she cares for him. He'll craft an entire specter of her to keep him company as a result of this guilt in S2, because he can't live with the guilt of the fact he objectively missed out on spending time with the real woman when she was alive. And that is another version of what he's doing to Jayce in S1, by not seeing that Jayce isn't ignoring him, he's desperately trying to help in every way he can and the workload is burying him.
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acosmicbee · 5 days ago
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can you write about Yandere Lamia (snake lady) and a child reader who gets lost in the woods and thinks they're about to be eaten by the Lamia, but she's just happy to have another baby after her children left her nest
Off Limit Island
(Kinda followed your idea, kinda did my own thing - hope you like it!)
"I hate hiking. I hate hiking. It's the worst. Please kill me." You sang under your breath, to the tune of frere jacques, yelping when your foot hit a patch of mud and you almost lost your balance.
At first, accompanying your father on one of his journeys had seemed fun. While he explored some super dangerous, top secret island that almost no one got to go to, researching all the snake species, you got to chill on the beach and swim and say you had been there. Win win.
However, everything seemed to go downhill rather quickly. The currents in the water were way too strong for even a good swimmer, and in seconds you could be pulled out to sea. There was also no civilization, due to the top secret stuff, meaning no running water or electricity.
You only had a tiny tent to sleep in and a small backpack full of clothes and necessities. You couldn't afford to lose anything when you were already working with so little.
Then the rain storm had hit. It had been dusk and you'd just started the fire to heat up some food because your dad still wasn't back. It was bland and premade stuff, very similar to military rations. You hadn't even started boiling the water when the sky opened up and drenched you.
You got even wetter dragging tarps over yours and your dad's tents to keep as much water out as possible. It didn't work perfectly which sucked because your only means of communication, a walkie talkie, got some water in it.
You'd tried reaching your dad but either he was out of range or his walkie was even more soaked than yours, so much for boasting 'waterproof' on the box.
You hadn't eaten that night, the rain still pouring down and eliminating any possibility of a fire. You'd laid at the entrance to your tent, staring out across the sandy beach at the forest that your father was still in. You hoped he was okay.
You woke up later that night to the rumble of thunder. You peeked out the entrance to your tent and in a brief flash of lightning you saw several reflective eyes peering at you from the dense foliage. You froze in horror, but they were gone by the time the next strike of lightning illuminated the area. You had trouble falling back asleep, not managing until hours later.
The next morning either your dad still wasn't back or he'd already come and left while you slept. It wasn't uncommon, especially with how late you'd slept in due to your fitful sleep the prior night. You spent the rest of the day tipping water out of anything remotely bowl-like and trying to find any kind of dry wood and tinder to use for fire.
It was useless and you went to bed hungry again, marking a full day and a half without eating. It hurt and you had trouble sleeping, trying not to cry as you curled up in your tent, debating whether the stomach problems from eating uncooked food would be worse than the pain of hunger.
You woke up to a bird outside your tent. It was dead with two pin prick marks on it's obviously broken neck. You didn't know who had left it there, and even if you trusted it you had no idea how to cook a bird from scratch.
It was sheer luck you were finally able to find some dry wood. You practically cried as you rushed to start a fire, fumbling with the matches as you lit some dry, dead grass alight. You ate two whole rations, finally satiated as you lethargically poked at the fire with a stick.
You were about to enter a food coma when you heard a crackle from your, surprisingly, not fully broken walkie. Instantly you snatched it up hearing as your dad's voice trickled through in broken, static-y bursts.
"Y/N...? Can... hear me...? Come in..." You fumbled for the right buttons, answering quickly.
"Dad? Dad are you alright? I haven't seen you in ages and I was getting worried!" You listened impatiently to the static, waiting for a reply.
"I... mistake... find me... cave... need you... careful..." You couldn't even hear a full sentence of what he'd said due to the water damage but you got the gist. He needed your help and he was in a cave... except you weren't the explorer, he was.
"You need help? Is there some sort of map I can use to find you?" You asked, grabbing some clothes you wouldn't mind getting ruined hiking through the forest.
"Y/N... coast... give... journal... big... handle..." Fewer and fewer words were getting through as your walkie gave into the damage, but you knew what you had to do.
You entered your dad's tent, easily finding the spare journal he kept. In the middle was a rough map he'd started sketching of the island and in it a few caves were labeled as well as their relative size.
With newfound determination you set out with nothing but your dad's journal, and the clothes on your back. You were oblivious to what the full message you were actually supposed to get was.
"I made a mistake Y/N. Don't try and find me, avoid any caves and stay on the beach. I need you to be extra careful."
"Y/N, I said don't try and find me! Please call the coast guard- the military!- and give them my journal! This is too big and dangerous for you! Let them handle it!"
* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 。🐍* 。° 。* 。 • ˚
That led you to now, trekking through the humid forest singing a song about how much you hated hiking. But you could do this, you were going to save your dad like he had asked.
You frowned at the map, studying the rough map that had been drawn and squinting at the forest all around you. Why couldn't your dad have been an artist instead of a snake researcher?
Eventually, you found a weird rock he'd added on the map as a landmark. Peering right, you spotted a small opening in the base of a large rocky cliff. You didn't plan to go deep into it as you squeezed inside, it wasn't like you had a flashlight or anything.
This time when your foot hit a slippery patch of rock you slipped, you couldn't even scream as you slid down something, flying onto the dry floor of a large chamber. The walls were lined with torches and there was an open hallway in front of you.
Nervously you grabbed one of the torches from its mount, gripping the base as you nervously walked deeper.
This looked like a whole developed civilization, and you would've thought it was ancient if the torches weren't all lit and the hall didn't smell like a strong incense.
It wasn't until you heard some approaching noises did you finally realize just how stupid of an idea this was. You placed the torch in an open holder before ducking into an alcove.
You held back a scream as two figures walked- no, slithered- past your hiding spot. They were human, at least from the torso and up. Below that they had long, powerful-looking snake tails. You couldn't understand them but they seemed to be in a good mood, light hissy laughter echoing through the stone hallway long after they were out of sight.
You grabbed the torch off the wall, going as fast as you dared to while peeking into any hallway you passed. You once again had to hide when you heard someone coming down the hallway.
It was a woman-snake thing. She looked ecstatic and regal compared to the others and she was happily hissing to the others accompanying her. The second they had past you ducked into the room she had just come from.
You set the torch in one of the open holders, seeing as the room was well-lit. It was filled with large plush pillows of varying sizes as well as some fur blankets. In the middle of it all was your dad, who looked just as confused as you.
"Y/N? What are you doing here?" He asked, standing up.
"Rescuing you? Like you said?"
"I told you to stay on the beach!" He hissed, looking around frantically. "I explicitly told you not to come!"
"My walkie is destroyed, be happy I could understand anything at all!" You said back, crossing your arms. "So you were just chilling here with the snake people while I was fighting for my life? I had to hunt a bear!"
"No, you didn't." He said, sounding more exhausted than you'd ever heard him.
"I basically had to hunt a bear." You said, crossing your arms and eyeing the bowl of what looked to be dried meat beside him. "So, you coming or not? Let's go."
"Y/N, I really can't. You need to leave before-!" The door to the room slammed open and you turned, now face to face with the snake woman from earlier.
She seemed a bit confused for a second before her face lit up in pure joy. In an instant, you were being wrapped in a hug and coiled by her tail while your dad let out a pained-sounding sigh. "You need to leave before she finds you."
The woman hissed something, holding your face as she inspected you. Upon seeing your lack of reaction she blinked before switching languages. "My ssscoutsss didn't tell me just how absssolutely adorable your hatchling wasss! You ssshould've mentioned it!"
"Dad?!" You nervously called, trying to squirm out of her grasp. "Dad, she's touching me! I wanna go home now!"
"You are home, sssilly little one. I'm so happy! Not only did I find a sssquishy new mate but my nessst is full again! I've been ssso lonely sssince my last hatchlingsss moved into their own nessstsss with their mates, but now I have you two!"
"Yeah, now you see why I told you to stay on the beach." Your dad said, watching you get smothered by a loving snake-mom.
"Well, I'm sorry while you were all dry and pampered down here I was fighting for my life! It rained for like 3 days!"
"One and a half daysss, dear. And my ssscoutsss were watching over you." The snake woman hummed, before picking you up.
"Come on dear, you too sssquishy mate. I'll ssshow you the bathing chambersss ssso you can wash all this mud off!" She giggled, already carrying you away. "Perfect way to begin your new life, little one! Let usss ssscrub away the old ssso we can welcome the new."
Your dad just shrugged, following along behind her. "Well... at least I don't have to worry about how you're faring all alone."
"I am going to get my revenge." You vowed sulkily, whining when the snake woman began brushing her fingers through your tangled hair. "Who are you and what is this place anyway?"
"Ah, where are my mannersss? My name is Adhya, ruler of the sssnakefolk. Thisss, asss well asss the isssland above, isss my kingdom. My home. And now, it isss yoursss asss well!" She smiled as she entered a large chamber filled with steam. "Now, it'sss time to get you cleaned up, yesss?"
You can now say you knew exactly why this island was off limits to the general public. Because it hosted a population of cuddly snake people who would never let you go once they had you in their coils. At least you were taken in by their queen and you weren't alone. With how attached she was, you'd likely never be alone again. But hey, at least your dad is suffering with you.
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mgu-h · 3 months ago
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a bookkeeper for the people, thank you for your services 🫡
aww im just glad other people are crazy about them too!! i also keep track of things i heard repeatedly from both max and lando, or representative phrases, in order to make their dialogue sound better. if anyone is interested in some nortrell vocabulary quirks (and additional nortrell research and analysis):
phrases they both use:
That’s mint
You muppet
Let’s go!!!!
Waffling
[Anything], mate
Cheers, bro
We’ve sussed it
You idiot
Fuck off
Knob, knobhead
Bloke, brev/bruv
~Very good very nice~
Scavs (Tarkov)
Fluked it (golf)
GGs, chat
lando specifically:
‘Cause
[something], baby
C’mon Maxy boy
Oh my godt
Mega
It smells to / tastes to
Frickin’, freaking (less so now, he says fuck these days, but in the past he tended to avoid it)
[Indeterminate happy Lando noises]
[Annoying tapping or leg bouncing]
Nugget
Numpty
Joker
That's naughty
Why? (demanding)
Moron
Twat
[Criticizes himself sarcastically in the 3rd person]
max specifically:
Horrendous
Look at the state of you
Fucking hell, mate
For fuck’s sake
Jesus Christ
[repeats himself until Lando acknowledges what he said]
Shut the fuck up, I’m done
That is good, I'll give you that
Normal, normally
Don’t pull that face, none of that
Pal, buddy
Brilliant
No chance
We’ll fall out
That’s crap
What is wrong with you
All right!
It’s doing my fucking head in  
An absolute fucking shocker 
Are you mental
Fair play
Good lad
Honestly
other references (longer quotes, an argument transcript, relative bio of teen years, lando analysis):
Lando, mouth full, trying to communicate through just noises “mmm… mhhph mmmf” Max replies “I normally understand those to a degree, but that was another level” 
Max loses his patience “Stop, like why are you tapping so loud. You know what you’re really good at? Finding a fucking annoying noise to make, and then just constantly doing it.”
Lando said, “I don’t have it, Max.” Max replied, “The fact that you said my name there means you’re trying to lie or something, that’s weird, you don’t normally say that”
Lando said, “One of the things I hate the most is being bad at something.” 
[If you in any way question Max’s fashion or make a comment about his hair he will spiral and say] “Wha’ d’you mean?”
After Max ends the unhinged “golden cock” Sergei/Alexander banter, Lando tries to get back to the game, his voice returned to normal, and Max is incredulous. “Don’t just come in here like "what’s next?" all normal, like nothing happened.”
Max told Lando he would be “back in 27 seconds” because "i needed him to know i'd thought about exactly how long i would be gone before i left, instead of saying 30 seconds, which could mean anything,"
Max saw Lando before he knew him, he doesn’t remember why he was at the karting track, Lando was driving around in a little kart, he was “just tiny, mate,“ nine years old. Max even remembers the black and orange helmet Lando’d been wearing, and he just watched him for a few laps. (“You were just watching?” / “Yeah someone said, that kid won, or something.” / “I never won a race in cadets” / “They must have just said you were fast”) bankai asked: “have you been following bob around since he was nine” and max says “original fanboy”
Max talking about watching an unboxed with Lando, “I like watching them, but it is weird seeing you in them.” “Why?” “I dunno… just, I don’t know. Just don’t see you as that ‘F1 Driver,’ it’s weird. It’s just different for me.”—[Lando laughs]—“They are cool.”
Max taking too long to come back to the game, Lando sounded mad. “Stop fucking kissing her, Max, and hurry the fuck up.”
Monaco argument >> In a Dec 2021 stream, (chat called Max Lando's dog and his wag, he refuted both claims), they had an argument about max moving to monaco, lando insisting he's protecting max from being lonely and max telling him HE'LL get lonely. max claiming being alone in monaco wouldn't even bother him if he's streaming and offering to take care of the house. lando denying him, saying he's taking care of max and max's slightly sullen "thanks mate" and his Jokes like "chat, he doesn't want me there. he's ditched me. it's over. relationship's over. it's done." like the energy of the entire conversation is that they've had it many times before and max is not easy and compliant with lando leaving him behind, but lando is not listening because he's sure he knows better
Lando yelling at Max to kill a scav, Max did, but not fast enough, Lando was muttering under his breath and Max paused to take out an earbud, "Are you giving me attitude?" and then when Lando continued to bitch, mimed throwing the water from Lando's waterbottle on him
Lando ranting on iRacing in Sept 2024 that "people in racing think you never have to back out, no matter what, like that's somehow become a rule" (in iracing? he was asked) "no, in real life as well. Somehow it's become a Thing that you never have to back out, you're somehow always in the right."
Max saying "I don't want to be alone again" about getting into a different heat on iRacing and Lando singing back "story of my life..."
Lando will say things like "Look at my perfection, look at how well I do or did, I was unstoppable," other bragging just to piss Max off
Yes / No / Yes / No arguments (they just say the same statements with different and more pointed inflection each time as if to make the other person accept by force of will without any actual convincing or argument, just emphasis, as if the one who is more certain will win and the more unsure one will yield the point and pivot to a new one or end the argument. one of them always yields and pivots after a few back-and-forths)
Lando says Max is "struggling be cause he's not been kissed in the last five minutes" and that in his group chat "I record every time they kiss in public" (Max protests that he just makes the number up, like the time he said they'd kissed 44 times before 10am and Lando said "I swear it's true") and that he "can't describe how awkward it is going around with Max because he's freaking kissing" and like Lando will be driving the car in the front and all he can hear is wet kissing sounds from behind him.
Lando said about Max kissing "He just goes in so fast, you know like all the nerds you see on the movies where they kind of shut their eyes and like" he mimicked both Max sticking out his tongue and making exaggerated Mwah sounds
Max said Lando often struggles at golf but "every two months or so he'll have a blinder, and then he'll be in absolute turmoil again"
the whole recurring bit with them sharing a wardrobe, the Quadrant video with the "whose shoes are those?" "whose joggers are those? "whose hoodie is that?" bit, something the fact that it kept going even after they moved apart like in singapore 2022 lando claims max is wearing his pants, shoes, and top, and max denies it
Lando listens to the voice notes he gets in DMs and goes through them, sometimes with his mates, to laugh. He says sometimes they're very weird, that "Some people are up to no good in their lives and need to focus on.... other things... but they are funny, they are just weird. The voice notes always make me laugh."
Lando interview with Tom Daley->"I am a competitive guy and I hate losing. So you put that all together and I love being in control. I hate being out of control, so like I hate being a passenger in a car. I really hate it unless I'm like backseat you know headphones on watching a movie. I'm a terrible terrible passenger cuz I don't feel in control of of what's happening."
Max in July 2021 checking to make sure Lando wasn't watching his stream before saying "I gotta give my hats off to Lando for helping me, obviously with streaming, Quadrant, giving me a bit of purpose this year, you know, something to do and enjoy doing while I'm not racing, keep my mind off things, so yeah thanks to him... he's looked after me. I appreciate that."
Random Facts
By April 2023, Max had never seen Star Wars. By April 2025, Max had never seen any of the Harry Potter moves. He's seen a couple of Lord of the Rings though
Lando wears size 9 shoes or 8.5, he said his feet were a tiny bit bigger than Max's, but who knows if he's telling the truth about that as they can share shoes
When asked what animal he would reincarnate as, Lando said hippopotamus and Max said sea urchin (so he can he in the ocean and stab people when they step on you) or plankton 
Lando always tries to get off the plane fast, impatient, walking quickly, doesn’t like getting stuck behind people
Lando said Mcdonalds chicken nuggets may be the best things ever made
Lando used to play around with a lighter
Max drinks tea quite strong
There were periods when Lando was younger where he’d play games for 36 hours straight
Max's eyes are green, Lando's are blue gray (when he built his VR character he gave it blue eyes) but have some golden brown threads in the middle that I think can make them seem greenish in some lights
Lando likes to travel with a book to look smart but he never reads it just carries it around or puts it on the table.
Lando snores loudly and people have complained about it
Max likes cats despite being allergic, Lando likes dogs more
Lando's brother's dog is named Uno. Max had a cats named Lala growing up. His family has a cat named Bobby (not after Lando, allegedly).
Lando likes to wear hoodies because they make his long neck less noticeable
Lando travels heavy with every possible bag, shoe bag, rucksack, all his computer stuff (“Im such a nerd”). He's got a tablet for movies and some games, work emails but he rarely checks those 
Lando smells like Sure deodorant, and a mix of Louis Vuitton L'Immensite, Tom Ford Ombré Leather, and Dior Sauvage. He likes the smell of all of them so he puts them all on.
Lando works harder on strengthening his neck compared to some other drivers, as others can rest their head against the side while turning to deal with the G-forces, but if Lando tries that and gets his eyes off-level, he can't drive. His brain doesn't like it.
Lando will nap and his neck will be at a 90 degree angle
Max's birthday is July 29 and Lando's is November 13, both 1999
Here's the link to the bios of people who show up in Max's chat
When Lando was around 13-14yo he would spend days on designs for stickers for people's phones or visors, and would go around the paddock in karting trying to sell them to earn a little money.
Lando's favorite gifts are really big paintings people have done that he can put on his walls
When asked what kind of dad he wanted to be, he said "strict" in terms of manners and having good respectful values
In 2024 Max could check Lando's sleep stats because they're in a group with their whoop bands
Max is fine with chopsticks for everything but rice
On stream Max said that when he was at peak fitness as a driver, when he was so strong and also so light, at max he did a plank for up to 6min
Relative Biographies
So Lando’s dad’s British and his mom is from Belgium, not that it matters but I think he was raised somewhere in the country near Glastonbury in Somerset. He has an older brother and two younger sisters. Max’s parents are also from the UK but he spent his youngest years in Singapore and Malaysia, his dad’s in finance. He has a younger brother.
Max started karting in Asia, and started winning everything there, just like crazy talented and obsessed with racing. His parents decided to move back to the UK largely to let him get on the European karting track (the only one that really matters to get to the highest tiers of motorsport). He moved back to the UK when he was like 9 or 10 to kart.  I think I saw that he was homeschooled, so basically all in on karting.
While Max and Lando started karting together in 2010 with Ricky Flynn Motorsport, Max said he remembers seeing Lando practicing before they met, so back in 2009 soon after moving to the UK. They spent a lot of those formative years of 10-13 together, traveling all over for races and competing against each other. Lando became the youngest karting world champion in 2013, and Max was not, but he was competitive and they were on the podium together at that time.
Lando moved up to car racing in 2014, but Max did not. It took until 2015 for him. Lando was younger than him, but already ahead. It’s hard to overstate just how fast Lando shot up through the lower ranks to the very highest tier of motorsport by the time he was 18, with McLaren putting him on teams with Fernando Alonso and things. He won everything he tried on the first attempt and moved up. Max’s career was respectable, but it wasn’t like that. 
In 2015 Max started racing single-seaters, and Lando won British F4, and started going abroad and started winning there too, in Italy, in New Zealand. Max wasn’t there yet. In 2016 Max did British F4 with Carlin, a good team, winning the championship at the final race at Brands Hatch. Lando won Formula Renault, among other things. He won a couple awards at Motorsport Awards.
In 2017 Max’s first year of Formula Renault was mixed, winning the rookies’ title but was not super high in the championship, meanwhile Lando won F3.
The next year Max switched to a more successful team and did win the Eurocup in 2018, and got into the Renault driver academy. Lando got second in F2, despite leading most of the season, because of some unfortunate DNFs later in the season, George won. He was also on reserve for McLaren and drove in a F1 practice session.
In 2019 Max drove in F3, got a couple of podium finishes, but got 10th overall. 2019 of course was Lando’s first season in F1 and the birth of the Carlando juggernaut, he was a very successful rookie and rising star. He was streaming on Twitch more regularly, and got Max to set up his own Twitch channel in September 2019, to as few as like 15 viewers, playing games and hanging out with chat and Lando’s building a platform there too,
In 2020 Max raced in F3 again, but he dropped out before the end of the season, and has said that he struggled with depression. He moved back in with his parents. Lando got first F1 podium and had a great year, got huge on twitch, and he founded quadrant, became CEO of his little brand media company thing. I think he was living alone in his house in Woking. 
2021 Lando’s career continues to do well, podiums and things. He almost wins at Sochi but misjudged the wet tires and slid in a really heartbreaking final laps thing. I don’t know what Max was up to early in the year, I suspect kind of aimless playing golf and streaming on Twitch and figuring things out, but by the middle of the year, Lando announced him as part of quadrant and had Max move in with him. 
They streamed together and were stupid domestic, sharing clothes sometimes. I think they were both single at the beginning but had girlfriends by the end of their time together. Living together ended at the end of the year before Lando moved to Monaco and refused to bring Max along because he didn’t want to be lonely even though Max obviously really wanted to come and even offered to like take care of the house etc. Just a wild convo they had on stream in Dec 2021. 
Lando Analysis
SO on one hand, lando's a simple guy in his mid-twenties with ordinary human needs, like he needs to eat, sleep, be active, play games, socialize, race, etc. he travels and stays fit, drives the car, parties and rests. most of the time he's not in distress. he enjoys life and gets to do lots of cool things. on the other hand, he’s a seething mess of ego and insecurities with complex emotional needs.
his ego is pretty big, like despite being humble about it, he knows he’s one of the best in the world at an incredibly strenuous and glamorous activity. he has the confidence it requires to get behind the wheel of an F1 car and risk all that danger to defeat legendary champions. he didn't win for a long time, but he bought into the mclaren project and stuck it out there for long enough to win.
he also has the confidence (and money) to start a company, the insight and experience about the internet to build a brand, all his years online taught him a great deal, and he has a large team of smart people around him helping him succeed. he's very young, but has quite a lot of power and authority and attention.
his ego is a bit brittle though, naturally, and there are ways in which he is vulnerable to spiraling. there are lots of reasons for that. he feels inferiority and anxiety about making people happy, and he turns inward and is intensely self-critical.
he definitely used to be small, with a big, cool older brother, in the middle with younger sisters. he has very loving and supportive parents who helped him do what he wanted to do, giving him a bedrock belief that he’s loved and special. while he gained some close friends through karting, but he was kind of a loner as a teen, a gamer, introverted and a little bit weird, until he got older and more social, getting with girls etc.
i think he's said he’s dyslexic, not interested in school, but not at all stupid, which must've been frustrating. he hates being bad at things and will try very hard to avoid it. he wants people to be happy, to please them and be accepted by them. i think he probably learned to be annoying to beg for attention, but he doesn’t want too much attention now he’s famous, or he only wants attention from a small number of people he holds close.
he just didn’t win while for a long time when he was very small, and that was formative. he didn’t really believe he could, but he did the work without having the expectation of success, because he enjoyed it yes but also i suspect as if openly wanting it would make it disappear, almost walking backward into success. even now he doesn't think of the end result, but just about what he has to do next and tries to make that as good as possible.
[analysis of lando's size kink here]
Example Argument Transcript (from here):
Max reads chat question, “Who’s better at golf?”
Lando brags. “I absolutely dominated today on the golf course.”
“But, would you say, like—”
Lando talks over him. “And, as they say in life, you’re only good, as good, as your last game.” 
Max rolls his eyes and Lando shrugs like the point he made was obvious and he won.
“You done?” Max asks.
“I mean, I have no more… that was like a mic drop moment, mate. That’s like my mic just dropped. There’s nothing else to say.”
There's a long pause. Lando grins like he knows he’s being annoying. 
Max can't let it lie. “But you said I am actually better than you.” 
“Yeah, well you were. Until today.” 
Max smiles with his mouth not his eyes. Lando grins too. 
“I love how you’re actually going to commit to saying ‘Yeah, you are,’ and then you realize—”
“I AM better.” 
“You’re not!” Max slaps his waterbottle against his hand for emphasis. 
“Today, I was better, mate.”
“Today, yes.” 
“If today was the world championship, I won.”
“No, but overall, I win more.”
“Well it doesn’t matter though, ‘cause you’re only as good as your last game.” 
“Yeah, ok, you’re going to be that—”
“I’ve made improvements!”
“Are you going to be that stubborn?”
“I’ve made improvements… I’ve just overtaken you in the game of golf.” 
A pause, but Max just can't let that go. “Well I won yesterday.” 
“That’s yesterday. No one cares about yesterday.”
“We didn’t play yesterday, the day before.” 
“No one cares about that.”
“Yeah, but I, like, if we play ten games, I’ll win seven.” 
“No.”
“Yes.”
“No?”
“Yes!”
“Not with how well I’ve been playing la-today.”
“No.”
“Exactly.”
“No—”
“No, you won’t win.” 
“—I’ll win seven.”
“No, you won’t.”
“Yeah, I will!”
“No, you won’t.”
“I will!”
“No, you sliced every single one of your drivers.” 
Max turns his body to face him, looking at him directly. “No, I didn’t.” 
Lando seems gleeful to have gotten the reaction, crowing, “Yes, you did.” And laughing as he said “not one driver! I think you wouldn’t’ve ended up on a fairway!” 
“Yeah I did!”
“When?” 
Max turns back forward with arms crossed, thinking. “On the…”
“Ok, let’s go, let’s do this, chat. First one? No. Second one? No. Third one? Water. Fourth one?”
Max interrupts his rhythm. “Where were you on the third one?”
Lando ignores him. “Where’d your fourth one go?” 
Max repeats himself. “Where were you on the third one?”
Lando concedes. “I also went into the water.”
“There you go, yeah.”
“Once!”
Max affects a deeply sarcastic accent “Acting like Tiger Woods out here.”
“Once! What about all the rest of my drives? That wasn’t even a driver!” 
“No—”
“That wasn’t even a drive, all good.” 
“You were good, you were good with the drive today, I’ll give you that, but you’re not like that normally.”
“That’s what I said. I’ve improved.” 
“Yeah no, you were shocked.” 
“But I have! Improved!”
“Better, but you don’t, you won’t, if we play again tomorrow, you won’t do that.”
“Yes, I will.” 
“No, you won’t.” 
“Yes!”
“No chance.” 
“Yes, mate.”
“I’m going to video your first drive tomorrow. Guarantee it’s right.” 
“No.”
“Yes.”
“I’ll try to hook it so badly—”
Max talks over him saying something else. “It’s not going to be straight. It’s not going to do that.” Max mimes a ball flying straight ahead.
“It will.”
“No chance.” 
“It will!”
“You were even like… oh my god, woah.” 
“Yeah, ‘cause I unlocked something.” 
Intense eye contact. Max smiles, almost predatory. “Yeah? What was that? What’ve you done? Do you remember?”
“Yes, I do!”
“What was it?”
“I’m not going to tell you, ‘cause I don’t want you to get better!”
Max sits up incredulously. “It’s not going to work for my swing. It’s totally different!”
“Well it is!”
“How?”
Lando throws his arm up miming a ball curving in the air. “‘Cause you’re slicing as well!” 
Max sits back and crosses his arms, looking away. 
“This is Max’s shot shape.” Lando mimes a ball shooting forward and curving in front of Max’s face, almost touching him, twice, laughing between and making a loud, adolescent rocket sound, generally being extremely annoying.
“If you do that again, I’m going to draw my hand left across your fuckin face.” 
“You can just do this.” Lando mimes a smacking motion on himself.
“Bosh.” Max pretends to hit him. 
Lando makes a few more rocket sounds.
Max is unable to let it lie. “Normally, you’re not that good.” 
“Yeah, but…”
“Today you were!”
“People improve, Max! People improve! And today, I was unstoppable.” Lando pulls out his cell phone around now, keeping it hidden, and turns on the keyboard clicking sound to prepare to annoy Max a different way.
Max rolls his eyes and repeats the word unstoppable with utmost derision. “Unstoppable… fucking hell, it’s like you’re acting like you hit nine under.” 
“I was unstoppable,” Lando insists. 
“Beat me by like four shots and I played horrendous. Four shots only!”
Lando begins typing and looks up at Max to watch his face, waiting to see him get irritated.
Max glowers straight ahead. “Is that loud enough?”
It does not stop. Max turns to face him again and glares and Lando gives him an impish smile. 
Max says “Stop!” repressively. He reaches for the phone and Lando pulls it back, smiling widely and in an indescribable tone of voice, all the lower registers gone, sounding like he did when he was younger. “I wasn’t even typing anything for the whole thing I was just trying to annoy you.”
They look at each other. Lando said something coy and inaudible.
Max smacks him. “Don’t. Don’t do that!”
Lando cackles.
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augustjoy · 3 months ago
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My Valentines
Based on the following ask: @lucreziaq2001  Thanks🙂. Here's the new request: It is inspired by this video= https://youtube.com/shorts/DveJG0lXFQM?si=HAU2VM0SkjIf8O3H . It would be a One Shot in which Spencer and a female reader have twin daughters aged 5 and on Valentine's Day, Spencer takes the day off work to make sure he is not away on a case and takes the girls out. He brings them flowers and basically shows them how he'd like their future boyfriends to treat them. I think it would be very cute. If you'll write it, thank you💜. You pick the twins' names. – Hi gorgeous, I love this fic idea, also Reid is 10000000000% a girl dad – you won’t convince me otherwise. I hope you love it
Spencer Reid x Wife! Fem Reader Fluff Word count: 1716
REQUESTS ARE OPEN - not edited - please be kind. Requests are open and feedback is welcome if it's constructive!
Warnings: My blog is 18+, minors DNI, mom! reader, mentions of pregnant reader and pregnancy, mention of valentine’s day, dates, mentions of food, promoting positive relationships, implications of Spencer having a tough upbringing, let me know if I missed anything.
I do not consent to having my work translated or reposted to any other site. That being said I do not own the characters portrayed in this story.
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When you found out you were pregnant, Spencer was over the moon. He couldn’t have been more excited to expand your family and become a dad. Here’s the thing about Spencer though, he liked to do research…too much research. You had to tell him to stop giving you statistics about pregnancies and things that could happen to the baby.
Finding out it was twins, that only made things worse. Spencer didn’t let you do anything, always making sure you didn’t do any lifting and that you weren’t on your feet for too long. He needed to ensure that you were okay at all times, not wanting to risk the health of you or your unborn twins.
Four weeks after the discovery of it being twins, you’d gone in to find out the sex of the babies. You’d been hoping for a boy and a girl…but you knew Spencer only wanted girls. He’d told you time and time again that he wasn’t super masculine, and he was scared of having a son…he felt like he’d fail him. Of course you had reassured him, telling him that he’d give your child, regardless of gender, all the love in the world.
He jumped for joy when the doctor confirmed it was fraternal twin girls.
--
Spencer had gone through hundreds of thousands of potential names for your girls, and after vetoing the majority of them, you’d agreed on two names:
Audrina: An English name that means "noble strength".
Iliana: A Spanish name meaning ray of light.
He’d wanted their names to hold meaning, he wanted them to know that their names, their souls, their existence brought the two of you strength and light. And when Audrina and Iliana were born, the names fit perfectly. You’d been worried that you’d see them and it wouldn’t feel right, but in that moment, nothing had ever felt more right.
--
He’d been the most attentive father, explaining to you that he wasn’t spoiling your girls, he was simply setting the bar as high as they deserved it to be. In the four years of fatherhood, Spencer had made sure to prioritize his girls (including you of course). You’d take the girls on mother-daughter dates, going to the zoo, the children’s museum, the park, lunch, the list goes on. Spencer had also adopted this tradition; he’d wanted to go and spend time with them 1:1 too.
This year, he’d decided to start a new tradition. The day before Valentine’s Day, he was going to take the girls out for a date. You were going to get the girls dressed and done up and he’d pick them up and take them to a “fancy” dinner. February 14th was reserved for you.
--
Spencer let you know that the girls would need to be in semi-formal attire, and he’d be picking them up at 6:00 pm. He had started their day off by giving them a gift certificate to your nail salon, so you could take them to get their nails done.
You’d taken them right after lunch, Audrina went with a glittery pink, while Iliana chose a neon purple, you’d gone a little simpler, a French tip.
Once you got home, you let the girls play for a little bit before curling their hair and styling it. The girls had matching outfits, light pink sweaters covered in lip prints, paired with a light pink tutu-style skirt. Their shoes are where they differed, Audrina wore these red cowgirl boots (she’d been exclusively wearing them lately) and Iliana wore her high-top converse – wanting to match her dad.
By the time the girls were completely ready, Spencer was just arriving home. He’d prompted the girls this morning, informing them that he’d be taking them out on a real father-daughter date. They replied with squeals, thrilled to be going out with daddy…while you were excited for a night off and a date with the bottle of wine you’d been saving and your bathtub.
--
A knock on the door had the girls running, tripping over one another to answer it.
“Girls slow down! The last thing we need is scraped up knees to go with your outfits.” You shook your head.
Opening the door you were met with three bouquets of roses, each a different shade. You couldn’t help the smile that took over your features, even though this night wasn’t about you, he’d gone out of his way to make sure you felt acknowledged as well.
“Hi baby.” You greeted.
“Hello, my gorgeous girls.” He handed each of you your flowers, happily taking in the sight of your adorably matching daughters.
“Daddy! Daddy! Are we going now?” Audrina shouted.
“Well babygirl, are you both ready? I don’t want to rush either of you.”
“We’re ready!” Iliana said grabbing her tiny toy purse.
Spencer leaned in, pressing a kiss to your lips as goodbye, before leaning down and placing a big smooch on each of the girls cheeks. You lent down and followed suit.
“I love you guys, have fun!” You called as they made their way to his car.
--
Spencer took the time to open the door for both girls, assisting them into their car seats, letting them choose the music they listened to on the way to the restaurant. He’d chosen a nice steakhouse; one you had frequented on special occasions, he knew the girls liked the food there and would actually eat something.
He helped them out of the car and held each of their hands as they headed up to the entrance, once again holding the door for them.
“Reservation for Reid.” He told the maître d.
Once the three of them were led to their table, already accommodated with booster seats for the girls, he lifted them one by one into their chairs. They were all smiles, enjoying the attention they were getting. Though the girls don’t really notice…it truly kills Spencer that he still has to work so much. He’s done a lot to lessen his workload with the BAU, taking a few months of the year to teach at the university so he doesn’t have to travel with the team. Needless to say, nights like these were his favorite.
--
“Alright girls, what would you guys like to drink?” He asked
“Juice please.” Iliana replied.
“Can I have sprite?” Audrina asked.
“I will tell you what, if you both want a sprite, you can have one…after that, how about we switch to juice or water?” Spencer negotiated.
“Okay!” Audrina replied.
“I want a sprite too!” Iliana changed her mind.
“Sounds good.”
--
The night was continuing on wonderfully, Spencer had ordered the food, steak and French fries for the table, promptly cutting the steak into bite size pieces for the girls. Conversation flowed easily, the girls told Spencer about what they learned in preschool this week, they talked to him about getting their nails done, showing him their now-greasy fingers.
He had been listening intently when Iliana asked him a question.
“Hey daddy, why did you bring us here?”
“Well sweetheart, one day when you are much, much older, you will have a Valentine of your own…” He began.
“Like you and mommy?” Audrina interrupted.
“Yes, just like mommy and me. You’ll each have a special person, and I want to make sure that you understand how important it is to make sure someone is treating you right.” He explained.
“Like you did?” Iliana inquired.
“Yeah baby, like I did today. But I also want you guys to know that not only does someone need to treat you well, but you need to treat them well in return. Like mommy and I are always doing things for one another, trying to meet one another where we’re at.” He finished.
Both girls nodded, clearly not old enough to really understand the weight behind the words Spencer had shared. He just knew that he’d have to continue this tradition of showing the girls what love looked like, not only through these little dates, but also through his interactions with you.
 --
When they arrived home, he had a teddy bear on each of the girls beds waiting for them (you’d been so kind as to place them there after they left). They’d been so excited, giving Spencer no trouble when he put them to bed.
He found you soaking in a bubble bath once he made his way to your shared room. He was so happy to be with you after a long day.
“Hey sweetheart.” He leaned in and pressed a kiss to your temple.
“Hi baby, did you guys have a good time? I got your picture!” You smiled recalling the adorable photo of Spencer sandwiched between your daughters, each of them pressing a kiss to his cheeks.
“We did. I will say, I am glad to be home though. Can I join you?” He asked
“Of course.”
--
Spencer had gently slid in behind you, holding you close to him. The two of you just relaxing after a long day. You leaned back, nuzzling further into his grasp, releasing a deep breath.
“You alright?” Spencer questioned.
“Yeah, he’s just especially active today.” You said, letting your hands run over your prominent bump.
Spencer reached his hands up and ran them along the expanse of your belly, feeling the kicks of your unborn son. His chin coming to rest on your shoulder. Spencer let out the quietest of sighs, and if you hadn’t been paying close attention, you’re sure you’d have missed it.
“You okay?”
‘“Yeah, I’m okay.”
“Spence, you’re going to be a great boy dad. Just like you are with the girls. I know you’re worried, but if anything, your experiences will allow you to teach our son compassion and the ability to express his emotions. He will be capable of making someone incredibly happy, because he has a daddy that makes me so happy.” You gushed.
Spencer sniffled lightly before pressing his lips to the side of your neck. You could feel his lips turn up into a smile, bringing one of your own to your lips. You truly loved him, and you knew from the moment you met him that he’d be an incredible husband and father, and he continues to prove that every passing day.
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prdx-invdr · 1 year ago
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୨୧⸝⸝﹕it’s salty in the middle of those sweet moments.
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SUMMARY! for reasons unknown to him, you seem to absolutely hate lee anton. on several occasions, he’s tried to hate you right back, but found that it can be difficult to dislike someone when you’re completely infatuated with them.
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PAIRING! lee anton x fem!reader
GENRE! college!au, slice of life, swim team!au idk what to call it actually but anton and reader are both captains, fluff, angst (kinda), (one-sided) enemies to lovers WC 6.6k
WARNING! swearing, reader is mean to anton for a while, miscommunication, i have no knowledge of swimming as a sport and had to do a lot of research for this one so sorry if this contains some inaccuracies, not proofread
NOTE! when anon requested this i jumped out of my seat bc rivals to lovers with anton was my very first wip on this acc but i scrapped it and this gave me an excuse to write abt it again
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anton thinks the world of you while you think nothing of him. he’s unsure of how someone he thinks of so highly could hate him so much, and he’s even more unsure of how he could still be so enamored by you despite knowing that you feel the exact opposite way about him.
he gave up on trying to understand the root of your hatred towards him long ago.
at first, he assumed that you were just jealous of the fact that the boy’s swim team had a bigger budget than the girl’s. this wasn’t anton’s fault by any means, but he thought that you might’ve been taking your anger out on him due to his position as team captain. the school administration seemed to simply favor the boy’s swim team over yours, and even anton knew that it wasn’t fair. the favoritism meant that anton’s team received better funding, which inevitably meant better… everything.
anton vividly remembers the glare that you’re always giving him only growing in intensity the day he and his team stepped into the pool area wearing their brand new goggles and swim trunks. he recalls the way the other girls on your team looked down at their own worn out swimsuits upon seeing anton’s team’s new attire, and he felt terrible. if it were up to him, he would’ve entered the room wearing the same faded blue swim jammers he and his teammates were forced to wear at the start of the semester if it meant you’d stop looking at him with such disdain in your eyes.
if this had been the reason behind your distaste for the boy, he would’ve understood. but the hatred you held for him extended beyond swimming, too.
“your hair looks stupid like that,” he hears you mutter from behind him. he turns around, an indifferent expression adorning his features to mask his nervousness.
the fact that you still manage to get the boy’s heart racing and his palms sweating despite your cruel words is baffling to him.
anton’s teeth sink into his bottom lip, wanting to retaliate but not having the slightest idea what to say. “my hair looks like this everyday,” is all he can pathetically exhale.
you’re still staring at him with a furrowed brow and he stares back at you, perplexed. he wonders if you have anything else to say to him or if you were insulting his hair for the pure fun of it. he thinks he’d be fine with either, because at least you’re talking to him.
he feels like slapping himself in the forehead at his own lovesickness.
after a few moments of silence, you scoff, signaling with your hand that you want him to move out of your way.
wordlessly, anton obliges, stepping aside and watching as you continue on your way to whatever class you have next. he notices merely seconds afterwards that the hallway he’s currently standing in isn’t narrow in the slightest, meaning you could’ve easily gone around him and still insisted on making him move. he wishes he could dislike you— he really does.
anton turns around to find sohee and seunghan now leaning against the wall, having observed the entire interaction between you and their love-struck friend. sohee looks at him pitifully while seunghan claps, slowly and sarcastically.
“don’t,” is all anton says to them, hanging his head. he knows that they’d like to drill another lesson into his mind about how he needs to stop letting you push him around like that, and he’s not in the mood for it.
“anton, my man,” seunghan sighs, putting an arm around his shoulders. “i get that you like her, i really do, and that she’s pretty and all,” he feels anton’s shoulders momentarily tense at his words, “but i don’t think she’s into you. like, at all.”
anton shrugs the older boy’s arm off, shaking his head. “i don’t like her,” he lies through gritted teeth. sohee and seunghan share an unamused look.
in actuality, the two of them were there to witness anton fall for you firsthand. when their younger friend first saw you and two of your friends walking through the quad area of campus, they watched the way his eyes widened and the way the oxygen left his lungs. they recall thinking that anton’s heart would burst out of his chest and fall right onto the grass below the three of them. his friends were in disbelief that anton was currently standing in front of them and denying his feelings for you when they quite literally saw him develop said feelings in real time.
when anton found out that you were captain of the girl’s swim team, it only solidified the way he felt about you. being captain of the boy’s swim team himself, he thought it was the perfect setup. he was too shy to nonchalantly walk up to you and initiate conversation, but he had the notion that swimming would make good enough of an excuse.
his hopes of becoming acquainted with you through your shared interest in the sport were crushed almost immediately. when he first tried to strike up a conversation with you, you sent him a scowl that intimidated him into walking the other way. on a separate occasion, he attempted to talk to you again, only for you to turn your head and pretend that you hadn’t heard him. he hasn’t tried to initiate anything ever since, the only time the two of you ever interact being whenever you glare at him or make a remark about him in passing.
he never found out what your problem was when it came to him, and he doesn’t think he ever will.
anton sees sohee and seunghan’s solemn faces and scoffs. “i’m serious, guys!” he complains, “you’ve seen the way she acts towards me. why would i like somebody like that? that’s like setting myself up for failure.” his chest tightens as the words leave his mouth. he only said that so his friends would drop the subject, but he knows that there’s truth behind his statement. the two boys only exhale disappointedly.
sohee purses his lips. “if she didn’t absolutely hate you for no reason, you guys would probably look good together,” he comments. seunghan nods, “too bad she’s got a stick up her ass.”
for whatever reason, anton wants to defend you and tell his friend that there is no stick up your ass— you’re only hostile when it comes to him. he realizes how pitiful that sentence would sound to sohee and seunghan and decides against saying it out loud.
“stop being hung up on that girl, anton,” sohee chimes, putting a hand on his friend’s arm, “there’s plenty of fish in the sea. you would know all about that, right? since you’re a swimmer and all.”
seunghan hits sohee in the arm jokingly. “he’s on the swim team, not a fucking merman.”
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“he’s so cute, are you kidding me?” you hear rei practically squeal as you step into the locker room. she and jiwon are both already wearing their swimsuits, and the latter looks up upon hearing you enter the room.
“who are we talking about?” you smile, setting down your backpack. it’s late in the afternoon and you’re relieved to be done with your classes for the day, finally able to do what you love most.
“um,” jiwon begins, “no one in particular. right, rei?” your friend sounds a bit on edge as she turns to the girl sitting on the bench beside her, who shrugs. “we’re talking about anton,” she replies, earning a slap on the arm from jiwon. “ow! what the hell?”
jiwon watches as you halt your process of taking off your shirt, about to change into your swimsuit. she knew that your mood would turn sour at the mention of the boy; it’s a known fact amongst the members of your team that you hate lee anton.
“you think anton is cute?” you turn to rei, frowning. the girl lets out a huff of air, her bangs moving in the process. “i don’t see how you don’t,” she mutters, “and i don’t get why you hate his guts either. he’s super nice.”
you continue changing, the two girls looking away from you as you do so out of respect. “you wouldn’t understand,” is all you say in response. jiwon bites her lip, feeling bad for the boy. she’s seen it all— the fleeting, longing glances anton sends your way, and the scornful looks you send him in return. she doesn’t comment on it, not wanting to upset you, but a minuscule, intrusive part of her desperately wants to know what’s going on between you and the captain of the boy’s team.
rei, however, seems to know no boundaries. “would you be mad if i dated him, then?” she chortles, giddily kicking her legs. not facing you, she doesn’t see the way you grow tense at her question. you open your mouth to respond when a knock at the locker room door startles the three of you.
the door opens a fraction and you turn to see yujin pop her head inside. “are you guys almost ready?” she asks, scanning the room before her eyes land on you. “oh, hey, captain,” she smiles, eyes forming crescents. you wave, and the older girl continues. “coach wanted me to remind you guys that we have a joint training session today,” she clenches her teeth for a second, eyes moving to jiwon and rei who are wearing matching nervous expressions at the reminder. “you know, with the boys team,” yujin finishes, not daring to look you in the eye in fear of how you might react.
as captain of the team, you were curious as to why your coach would want to remind you of that, seeing as you were often the first person to obtain this information. upon deeper thought, you realize it was probably because even your coach knew about your hatred towards anton and wanted you to stay focused this time around rather than glaring at him every few minutes. you almost let out a laugh at the thought.
“you hear that, captain?” rei teases, “prepare yourself! don’t let anton distract you this time.”
you throw a towel in her direction, earning a grunt from her. “i should be telling you that,” you scold, “seeing as you’re obsessed with him all of a sudden.”
rei laughs, and you’re unsure of how to feel when you come to the realization that she didn’t disagree with your statement.
once you finally leave the locker room, you come face to face with your sworn enemy himself.
anton doesn’t look in your direction for as long as he normally does, memories of your interaction from earlier in the day flooding his mind. no matter how small of a gesture it is, your teammates take notice of it. “he’s not staring at you today,” gaeul whispers, shocked.
you only shake your head. “like i care,” you spit, crossing your arms, “i prefer it that way, actually. he should focus on his own team.”
wonyoung puts her hands on your shoulders from behind, lightly shaking you. “loosen up, okay?” she advises, her own eyes drifting over to anton’s team. as if on cue, anton looks over at you for a moment, watching as you joke around with your teammate. he wishes that you were even half as nice to him as you are to your team, wondering what it would be like to laugh with you the same way wonyoung is right now.
noticing anton’s preoccupied state, one of his teammates calls out to him. “captain!” anton turns his head away from you, looking his teammate in the eye. “yeah, taesan? you need something?” he inquires, getting back into his leader headspace. taesan looks over anton’s shoulder at your team, making the inference that he had been distracted by you. like always, taesan thinks to himself.
“do some stretches with me, yeah?” he says, wanting anton to fully dedicate himself to practicing instead of letting you pose as an obstacle.
anton is a good team captain— any of his teammates can attest. but it feels like anytime you’re in his presence, he’s only able to give 80% as opposed to his usual hundred, the other 20% being spent completely fixated on you.
he walks over to his dark haired teammate with a nod, agreeing to help him warm up. he thinks it serves as a more productive way to pass time than staring at you like a lovesick idiot.
“i was thinking,” taesan starts, copying the way anton does shoulder stretches to loosen his joints, “well, me and leehan were talking about it, actually. we should do a bonfire later, at the beach,” he tells the older boy.
anton licks his lips, nodding absentmindedly. “just you and leehan?” he asks, looking around the room for the boy in question. he sees leehan standing in the corner looking disinterested and waves him over. with an inaudible sigh, leehan reluctantly joins the two boys who are now doing tricep stretches. taesan shakes his head in response to the question anton had posed, “no, i meant, like, the whole team,” he corrects. “tell him, leehan,” taesan nudges his teammate.
“i hate stretching,” leehan murmurs, gaze aimed towards the white tiles beneath him. “about the bonfire, dumbass,” taesan deadpans. leehan perks up at the mention of something that he actually cares about. “oh, yeah! we’re gonna invite the whole team,” he grins, “it’ll be a blast, anton. you’ve gotta go.”
anton thinks it over, biting the inside of his cheek. “it’s already kind of late though, no?” he points out, causing the two boys on either side of him to groan. “bonfires are literally supposed to happen at night,” taesan comments at the same time leehan says, “don’t be such a buzzkill.”
“is the girls team invited?” anton can’t stop himself from asking, earning more groans from the two boys. “i don’t want to go through the trouble of inviting them,” leehan complains. “yeah,” his friend nods, “plus, he’s only asking because he wants their captain to be there.”
taesan’s comment makes anton come to a halt, and he’s now the only one out of the three of them no longer stretching. “that’s not true,” he defends himself, “i just feel kind of bad. i mean, we already have a bigger budget than them, and stuff.”
“keep telling yourself that, champ,” leehan grumbles. “we see right through you.” anton steps forward, looking at both of them simultaneously. “guys, seriously,” he says lowly, “i feel bad.”
taesan lets out a laugh, “right, you feel bad that you won’t be able to make heart eyes at y/n tonight.”
anton rubs his palm across his face, frustrated. “here’s an offer for you. you either invite the girls team, or…” he pauses, attempting to appear intimidating, “you’re not allowed to have the bonfire at all.”
the two boys scoff in unison. “you can’t just do that,” taesan snorts, “you’re our captain, not our mom.” anton scratches his head at that, disorientated. “look, i— okay,” he tries again, “i don’t know. i’ll buy you guys food, or something.”
it’s now taesan and leehan’s turn freeze in their places. “why didn’t you start with that?”
practice ends faster than you wish it had and you hoist your bag over your shoulder. you turn to jiwon and rei, about to ask if they’re ready to leave when you’re interrupted by two loud voices. “girls! hey!” you turn your head to see two members of the boys swim team— who’s names you never bothered to learn— running up to you and your friends.
“hey,” one of them pants, “don’t leave yet.” you look at your friends once more, studying their expressions that look just as confused as yours. “anton wanted— ouch!” the boy is interrupted by his friend slapping him on the arm harshly, as if he had said something wrong. “all of us, i mean, wanted to know if you girls would like to join us tonight,” the boy finishes, rubbing his arm while sending a subtle glare in his friend’s direction.
“join you.. in doing what, exactly?” you inquire, serious as ever. the two boys seemingly grow smaller under your intimidating gaze as if they hadn’t anticipated your somber attitude. “we’re doing a bonfire,” the other boy replies, pointing his thumb in the direction of the rest of his team. you look over the boy’s shoulder, your eyes landing upon anton, who is already looking at you. upon seeing your eyes scan over him, he looks away.
rei claps her hands together a few times, “we’ll be there! thank you for inviting us.” her words startle you and you open your mouth to protest. you had just been seconds away from telling the boys in front of you that you weren’t interested.
“yeah, count us in!” jiwon chimes, and you want the tiled floor below to swallow you whole. “you guys have fun, then,” you tell them, eyes swimming with boredom, “i’m going home.”
“no!” the boys in front of you shout in unison, startling you and your team. “you have to come. especially,” one of them pleads. “and why is that?” you put one hand on your hip, intimidating them further.
everyone already seems to know the answer to your question before the boys can even formulate the words to say it. “our captain wants you to.”
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your teammates all but drag you to the beach against your will, uttering complaints about how you “need to learn how to have fun” and how they’ve “been waiting for something exciting like this to happen”.
within the first 5 minutes of your arrival, you’ve already tried to escape more times than your friends are able to count. wonyoung had to keep a tight grip on your wrist to ensure that you wouldn’t go anywhere, and you swear at the girl in your head for being stronger than she appears.
“i can’t believe anton himself told his friends to invite us just so he could see y/n,” rei mutters, astonished, “do you have any idea how lucky you are?”
“that’s definitely not the reason,” you deny, already wanting to drop the topic, “they probably just thought it would be funny because everybody on the planet knows that i hate him.”
and while taesan and leehan are most definitely aware of your hatred towards their captain, their reasoning for inviting you and your team really was because anton wanted to see you.
“invite the girls team!” leehan mocks, intentionally making his voice sound higher, “i feel sooo bad for them!” anton pays no mind to the way he’s being blatantly teased, his eyes trained on you. “feel bad for them my ass,” taesan comments under his breath, “he’s already making heart eyes at her, just like i said.”
“you’re a real masochist, you know that?” leehan adds, waving a hand in front of anton’s line of sight. the taller boy blinks in response as if he had broken out of whatever trance you had him under. “that girl doesn’t even try to hide the fact that she hates you, and you’re still, like, obsessed with her.”
anton sharply exhales through his nose, not needing another reminder of the fact that you dislike him and that he’s stupid for helplessly pining after you.
“i’ve heard that a million times,” he retorts, “and i’m not obsessed with her. in fact, i’m starting to hate her, too.”
he thinks that lying to his teammates is just as difficult as lying to sohee and seunghan, only receiving humorless looks in response to his statement. “right,” taesan scoffs, “you hate her so much that you forced me and leehan to invite the entire girls swim team just so you could see her.” anton lightly hits him with the back of his hand, muttering, “i told you that’s not the reason.”
all three boys turn to look at you, arms crossed and unamused. “oh, man,” leehan laughs, “she’s bored out of her fucking mind.” anton watches you carefully, your eyes burning a hole in the sand beneath your shoes. “why don’t you go talk to her, captain?” taesan teases, slapping his friend on the back boyishly. anton staggers forward about a centimeter due to the impact, looking back at the boy. “or anyone on the girls team, for that matter. since you made us invite every single one of them,” leehan quips.
but anton thinks that talking to you would only dampen your mood even further, and he doesn’t want the glare that you’re currently directing towards the sand to be aimed at him. “try talking to her, right there,” leehan points to someone in your general direction and anton follows his finger with his gaze, “naoi rei. she’s one of y/n’s closest friends, i think.”
taesan lets out another scoff, “yeah, but she’s not y/n. anton wants y/n, not the next best thing.”
jiwon and rei stand next to the bonfire, and you overhear one of them comment on how it isn’t as big as they were expecting it to be. you see wonyoung and yujin sitting on some large rocks a short distance away from the shore. you quickly scan the perimeter looking for gaeul, who you find sitting on the sand and looking up at the stars. your friends are all enjoying themselves— why aren’t you?
as per usual, you want to blame your discomfort on the fact that anton is in your vicinity. but how exactly could you do that when he hasn’t interacted with you all night?
come to think of it, your last interaction with the boy in question was earlier today when you told him that his hair looked stupid. you shake your head at the memory— you hadn’t even meant it. you actually liked his hair, but you’d rather drop dead than admit that to him. you hate lee anton with a burning passion, and you hate that you like his hair.
you hate that you’re currently sitting here wishing that he would come up to you and say something. after all, your friends dragged you here and his teammates made it seem as though your attendance was obligatory. the way you see it, the least anton could do after subjecting you to all of that is talk to you. you suppose that you can’t really blame him for not wanting to, though. you kick the sand beneath you at the realization.
you’re not sure how much time you spend thinking about the boy you swear to hate with every fiber of your being, but you conclude that a few long minutes must’ve gone by, because suddenly you look up and find that both your team and anton’s team are gathered around the fire. you watch them carefully, eyes wandering from individual to individual.
you see yujin laughing with some guy from the other team. you see the two boys that invited you and your friends to this very event. finally, your eyes land on anton, and you regret it almost immediately.
he’s nervously scratching the back of his neck the way you often catch him doing. he’s got a bashful smile on his lips as he looks down at whoever he’s currently talking to. you crane your neck to see who that may be, and find that it’s none other than your own teammate and friend— naoi rei.
you make a face of disgust that no one sees, and only then do you realize that you’re still standing a good distance away from the large group. “oh my god,” you scowl. you run a hand over your face, conflicted. you already hated being here, and seeing anton converse with one of your closest friends might’ve just made your attitude towards this whole situation a million times worse. you know that rei is probably over the moon right now, looking up at him with a twinkle in her eye and a girlish smile.
you want to be happy for her— you think that any good friend would jump at the sight of their teammate getting along with the person they find attractive— and you swear that you would be if the person she was talking to was anyone but him. you tell yourself that it’s because rei deserves better than him, ignoring the way your heart plummets. he was only going to chase after you for so long.
you shake your head rapidly as if it would rid your mind of the thought, not knowing where it came from in the first place.
you need to get out of here— asap.
you hate lee anton and you hate that you like his hair and you hate that you spent a decent amount of time tonight wishing that he’d speak to you.
you hate that you even care in the slightest that he’s currently flirting with your best friend and you hate that almost everyone here managed to convince you that he and his teammates invited you simply because he wanted you here.
you discreetly make your way around the group, advancing towards the shore. you don’t think anyone sees you as you do so, hearing the sound of their laughter grow more distant with each step you take towards the sea. as you continue moving forward absentmindedly, you don’t realize that you’re already knees deep in the water until a salty wave crashes into you, reaching the area below your thigh.
“what are you doing?” your head quickly turns to find the source of the voice and you scowl once you realize who it is.
of course, anton chooses now to finally talk to you.
you turn back around, ignoring him, because that’s how you are— you think about him more than you’d ever like to admit and act indifferent towards him once he’s in your presence. anton watches as you turn your back to him, unsure of why he assumed that this interaction with you would be any different from your interactions in the past.
nonetheless, with bravery that he didn’t even know he had, anton continues talking. “you could get sick if you go any further,” he blurts out.
in truth, anton had been watching you through his peripheral vision as he was conversing with rei, and saw as you treaded through the sand and into the water. he excused himself— he had been looking for a way to escape the conversation anyway— and followed your silhouette that was now standing in the ocean, letting waves collide with your legs.
in retrospect, he should’ve thought of something to say to you beforehand, because if the mere act of him talking to you wasn’t enough to piss you off, anton was sure that lecturing you about how you could get sick from swimming at night would definitely cause you to flip your lid.
his suspicions appear to have been correct, because you whip your head back around and give him an angry look. “what are you doing here?” you spit, expecting him to flinch and avoid your gaze the same way that he always does.
“why can’t i be here?” he presses, furrowing his brow, and you’re the one that flinches. “do you own the ocean?”
you’re sure that steam would be coming out of your ears right now if you were living in an old cartoon. you clench your fist, taken aback.
“why do you hate me so much, y/n?” anton pleads, unable to prevent the million dollar question from leaving his lips. this is a position he never thought he’d find himself in; confronting you about your unadulterated hatred towards him while your entire bottom half is almost completely submerged in the ocean.
your lip quivers and you clench your teeth as you feel your resilient facade start to crack. neither you nor anton are sure where his daring attitude came from, but it seems to be catching both of you by surprise, because even the boy in question moves to wipe his palms against his jeans to rid them of their clamminess. “answer me,” he demands, his voice as soft as it normally is and yet it still intimidates you.
you turn around for the forth and final time, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of discovering the root of your distaste towards him. anton shakes his head, although you’re unable to see it, and sharply inhales in preparation for what he’s about to do.
he cautiously takes a step forward, letting the water dampen the cuffs of his jeans. he cringes, but proceeds nevertheless, mimicking the strides that you had taken minutes prior.
before you’re able to prevent it from happening, anton is standing directly beside you, jeans darkening as the water seeps into them, and you nearly jump out of your skin.
the tall boy leans forward, and you lean back. “answer me,” he repeats his previous words in a hushed voice.
you’re looking down at the water that the two of you are standing in and anton thinks it’s funny, for a moment, how the roles seem to be reversed— you’re tense and apprehensive while he’s bold and collected, trying to crane his neck to meet your downward pointed gaze.
“you should know the reason why,” he hears you speak under your breath. you finally look at him, eyes narrowed. “you’re making fun of me, aren’t you?” you question, and he recoils.
“i’m not— what? why would— why do you think i’m making fun of you?” anton sputters, genuinely appalled at the accusation. he’s unable to wrap his head around what kind of thoughts might be running through your mind right now.
“because there’s no way in hell that you don’t know why i hate you, lee anton,” you say, words flying from your mouth hurriedly. “there’s no way you just let me push you around and stare at you like you’re the scum of the earth if you don’t know the reason why. you have to know,” you look into his eyes in search of an answer but you’re only met with confusion.
anton shakes his head. “i don’t know, y/n,” he begins, “i really don’t know, and i’m sorry if you think i’m playing a prank on you right now, but i’ve never been more serious about anything in my life.”
he looks down momentarily, his eyes landing on his wet jeans. when he looks back up, he’s zoned in on the way the moon makes your eyes look as though they’re sparkling, and he thinks it’s beautiful. “you may know this already,” he starts speaking again, “but i’m in love with you.”
he makes sure not to stutter or appear anxious in the slightest, afraid that if he made the slightest mistake, he’d try to prevent the words from leaving his mouth. and he needs you to know.
your lips part, his words shocking you more than anything else that has taken place tonight. “i’m always lying to my teammates and my friends, saying that i don’t like you because they think i’m insane for chasing after someone who wishes i didn’t even exist,” anton continues, his tone becoming sorrowful, “but i can’t lie anymore. especially not to you.”
by now, both of your hearts are pounding, and you’re sure that they would be audible if it weren’t for the sounds of the waves crashing. “so, no,” he says, “the reason i let you push me around isn’t because i know why you hate me. it’s because i’m in love with you, and no matter how hard i try, i can’t stop.”
he waits for you to respond, eyes trained on yours. you finally start speaking, lowly and carefully. “there was this guy,” you tell him, “you used to hang out with him last year. i would see you and him laughing together all the time, with two other friends of yours.”
taking in your words, anton ponders who you could be referring to before his eyes widen slightly. “wonbin?” he asks, although he has no doubt in his mind that you’re talking about his older friend. wonbin, seunghan, sohee and anton were practically attached at the hip during the latter’s freshman year of college, and when wonbin made the decision to drop out in order to pursue a career in music, the other three were left to fend for themselves.
you scoff, despite wanting to contain your hostility towards the boy after his confession. “i don’t know his name,” you mumble, “but yeah, that’s probably him.”
anton nods, urging you to continue. he’s finally going to find out why you’ve disliked him for as long as he can remember and he doesn’t want to waste a second. “he told me that you liked me,” you say, watching as the boy flinches in your peripheral at your words. “and i was so happy at the time because i liked you, too.”
it’s anton’s turn to be stunned by your confession, not believing the words that are coming out of your mouth. “i would always look at you, but you’d never look at me back. when your friend— wonbin, i guess— told me that you liked me, i thought that meant you would talk to me,” you shake your head at the memory, “but you never did. it was like i didn’t even exist to you.”
you keep talking, quietly, “every single person who knew me knew that i liked you. one day, i saw you guys laughing together like you always did, and then it clicked in my brain.” you’re silent for a moment before you continue. “i figured that you must’ve known that i liked you, too, and told your friend to say that to me as some sort of cruel joke.”
anton is yet again appalled at your words. “you only seemed to start caring about my existence at the beginning of last semester. you tried to come up to me a few times, and i always assumed it was because you were finally feeling bad about the whole wonbin thing and wanted to apologize, and i didn’t want to hear it. it was around that time that i started hating you.”
you scratch the back of your neck, not having thought that you’d ever admit any of this to the boy standing beside you. anton swallows before he thinks over his next words. “i didn’t know about any of that,” he assures you, and he can sense that you doubt his words momentarily because he starts talking faster. “i’m not sure what prompted wonbin to say that to you, but i can tell you this,” he whispers, “i’ve been in love with you from the very first time i saw you, and no amount of insults or glares from you is ever going to change that.” for a moment, even the waves of the ocean seem to still, leaving only the sound of anton’s voice ringing in your ears.
you’re not used to feeling this vulnerable, and the fact that you’re sharing a moment like this with lee anton— the man you (no longer) hate— sends a shiver down your spine. you find yourself searching for a sense of familiarity, even if it comes in the form of playful banter rather than the usual insult.
“say that again,” you tell him, and he’s unsure if you’re being serious at first. when silence lingers in the air, he finally begins speaking. “i’ve… been in love with you since the first time i saw you,” anton says, unsure. you shake your head, displeased.
“put it in the present tense,” you purse your lips, crossing your arms. anton lets out a curt laugh, now realizing that you’re actually joking with him. so this, he thinks, is what it feels like to laugh with you. “i’m in love with you, y/n,” by now, he’s adorning a smile that reaches his eyes, head slightly tilted towards the ground bashfully.
“wanna know something, lee anton? i think i might be, too.”
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weeks later, you’re swinging open the doors to the pool area, the smell of chlorine crashing into you as you step inside.
the boys team is in the middle of practicing, leehan and taesan— who’s names you finally learned after enduring weeks of their relentless teasing, always having to hear a complaint from them about how their team captain is even less focused than before since the two of you started dating— spotting you almost immediately. they let out exaggerated groans, knowing they now have to witness you and anton grossly interact.
“captain!” taesan calls out with dread lacing his tone, “your girlfriend is here.” upon hearing that, anton, who is currently in the pool, whips his head around so quickly that you’re almost positive he could’ve gotten whiplash. you wave, and rather than exiting the water, he swims over to where you stand on the poolside. looking up at you, he smiles, slightly out of breath. “hey, lovely,” he says, removing the goggles from around his head so he can study you better.
he pays no mind to the sounds of his teammates gagging in the background, not looking anywhere but at you.
to say that both your team and anton’s team were surprised upon hearing about your blossoming relationship with the boy would be an understatement. not only did both teams have to grow accustomed to the fact that you no longer hated anton, but they also needed to get used to the mere concept of you two dating each other. it wasn’t as though you two no longer served as distractions to the other, however— if anything, you both stared at each other even more than you had previously, the difference being that now you looked at anton with adoration in your eyes rather than resentment.
“i don’t know if seeing you two together makes my heart want to explode with joy, or if it makes me wanna throw up,” you recall rei telling you during practice one day. anton has shared similar stories, stating that although both taesan and leehan are happy to see their captain in a relationship with the girl he’s been pining after, they hate the way anton apparently never shuts up about you during training.
you look down at the boy, flashing him a smile of your own. droplets of water threaten to fall into his eyes, but he doesn’t seem to mind. “hey,” you hum, “i won’t bother you long. just checking in.” anton shakes his head, water spraying the floor beneath you in the process. “you never bother me,” he says.
“oh, hush,” you wave your hand dismissively. “i’m serious. hey, can you come down here for a sec?” anton asks, gesturing for you to crouch next to the pool. you give him a suspicious look, morphing your lips into a tight line. “anton, i’m not letting you pull me in there.”
he shakes his head again, letting out a laugh. “i’m not gonna pull you in,” he tells you, and you still aren’t convinced. “y/n!” he whines, stretching the final syllable. you look to the ceiling for a moment, letting out a scoff before kneeling down next to the pool.
in a swift motion, anton grabs your shoulders and lands a kiss on your lips. it’s wet from the water of the pool and you pull away, wiping your mouth with your sleeve. anton is laughing as you swat at his arm, muttering something about how he got your shirt wet.
anton sees an opportunity in the fact that you haven’t stood up yet, fully wrapping his arms around your shoulders, nearly causing you to fall into the chlorinated water. his laughter only increases in volume, and his teammates don’t think they’ve ever heard him laugh that hard. you let out a yelp, feeling the water continue to seep through the fabric of your shirt. you struggle against his embrace, and he shows no signs of releasing you. “lee anton! oh my god— i hate you!”
you both know that you’re lying.
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AUTHOR’S NOTE! this is my 30th time trying to post this but we move
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aishangotome · 5 months ago
Text
Azel Radwan: Dramatic Ending Epilogue
Dramatic Ending Ch. 25 His Side Story
Thank you @passthechloroform for providing the video for this chapter!
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Tanzanite, with its god gone, did not change overnight.
People still revered Azel, and the markets were lined with commemorative coins and statues of him.
But to say that nothing had changed would also be untrue.
Before, every three steps you took in the city would lead you to a divination shop, but now their numbers had dwindled.
Instead, you could stumble upon bookstores, which had been impossible to find before, no matter how much you wandered around.
(Just as the letter said…)
(Tanzanite now presents a golden opportunity for booksellers to expand their market.)
*flashback*
Akatsuki: You want to do business in Tanzanite?
Emma: Yes. I thought that if we open a sales channel now, we might be able to establish a Tanzanite branch eventually.
Emma: Wouldn’t it be easier for the Owner, who travels to every country on the continent, to operate with several bases?
Akatsuki: …That makes sense.
Emma: Right? Actually, it seems Tanzanite is making a national effort to attract booksellers…
Emma: I think it’s a good opportunity to make a lot of money.
Akatsuki: Do you want to go?
Emma: If you’ll allow it.
Akatsuki: I’ll allow the business.
Emma: …!
Akatsuki: But, I won’t allow any unhealthy relationships before marriage.
Emma: Wh-What do you mean?
Akatsuki: Your objective is the dead god.
Akatsuki: He even sends you letters every time. How unsightly.
Emma: …Then, would you allow a healthy relationship?
Akatsuki: …
Akatsuki: If anything happens to you, I’ll kill that god.
*flashback over*
(I can’t tell the Owner about that night, not even if my mouth is torn apart.)
Just remembering it made me blush, and I shook my head as if to dispel those thoughts.
My objective today was market research –– to assess the demand and see what kind of books were needed. That was my job.
(Huh? There’s a crowd over there.)
(It doesn’t seem to be related to bookstores, but this is also part of market research.)
(I might be able to learn about the current trends in Tanzanite, so let’s go.)
I never imagined that my casual decision to join the crowd out of curiosity would ––
––lead to a tragedy later on.
-
Azel: …And?
Emma: …It was a soap shop.
Emma: They sell soap made by a famous perfumer, and it seems to have a reputation for smelling very good.
Emma: I thought I’d like to try it too… so I reached for it.
Azel: There must have been other selling points besides it smelling good.
Emma: ………… That it can captivate the person you’re interested in.
Azel: Sigh… Why do you fall for such obvious traps?
Emma: Because I wouldn’t think something like that would be sold openly in the city!
(This sense of déjà vu… I remember this.)
When I used the soap I bought at the market in the bath, my body started to feel strange by the time I got out.
The enchantingly pleasant scent gradually induced a feverish heat, making my skin unbearably sensitive.
The mere rubbing of my negligee against my skin made my stomach tingle strangely, and my heart pounded like a drum.
I felt like I could faint from shame at any moment.
Azel: Listen, Tanzanite is famous for its songs, dances, and harem.
Azel: It’s not uncommon for people from the harem to sell shady goods in the city to earn some extra money.
Emma: …I didn’t know that.
Azel: Think of “captivating the person you’re interested in” as a catchphrase for aphrodisiacs. It was a good lesson, wasn’t it?
(I never thought I’d experience this feeling again.)
The effects of this aphrodisiac seemed to be even stronger than the perfume mixed with the aphrodisiac ingredients from last time, and if I let my guard down, indecent sounds would escape my lips.
(…I want to cry…)
Azel: Hey, don't make that face like you're about to cry.
Azel: The quickest way to get rid of an aphrodisiac is–
*flashback*
Azel: In reality, an aphrodisiac will naturally leave your system with time.
Azel: All you can do is sleep or distract yourself, those are your two options.
*flashback over*
(I’ll just hide in the kitchen like last time, that’s what I’ll do.)
(I can’t let Azel see my unsightly behavior.)
In the middle of his lecture, I turned my back on him and reached for the door as if to escape.
Azel: Where are you going?
Emma: To cook.
Azel: Huh?
Emma: I’m going to cool my head, so please don’t mind me and go to sleep, Prince Azel.
Emma: Good night!
-
Emma: …Why are you following me!?
Azel: …I’m not following you. I’m thirsty.
Azel, who had followed me to the kitchen without a care in the world, poured water into a ceramic cup, just as he had said.
Even after taking a sip and wetting his throat, he showed no sign of leaving.
Azel: Do you want some too?
Emma: …
(Last time, you confined me here and left on your own.)
(…Thinking about it now, that was probably an act of mercy to prevent anyone from seeing my embarrassing behavior.)
(I’d like you to show me the same mercy this time…)
Azel: What is it? You’ve been staring at me.
Emma: You know what I want to say, right?
Azel: Not at all.
Emma: Leave me alone.
Azel: This is my castle.
Emma: Are you okay with being attacked by me?
I tried to push Azel out of the kitchen, but–
(H-He won’t budge…!)
He looked at me with a mixture of amusement and pity.
Azel: What are you doing?
Emma: You wicked god– Ah, no, you’re not a god anymore.
Emma: Um… Wicked person!
Azel: Congratulations on increasing your debt through insults.
Emma: …I understand. You don’t want tomorrow’s meal, then. It was going to be a special dish with meat.
Azel: If that’s what you wish, I’ll obediently return to my room. Goodbye.
(This tactic was the most effective after all.)
Azel briskly headed for the exit, but he turned around before leaving the kitchen.
Azel: However, you should know what an aphrodisiac is.
Azel: It’s actually easier to let it out than to endure it.
(…I know.)
My body, forcibly heated by the aphrodisiac, was aching to the point that I wanted to scratch it, and I unconsciously followed Azel's hand with my eyes.
(If I could just have his hand touch me…)
I slapped my cheeks with both hands as if to resist the temptation and shook my head.
Emma: Thank you for your concern. But I’m fine.
Azel: Why are you so stubborn?
Azel: We’ve already crossed the line.
Emma: …That’s true, but…
Emma: If you touch me like that night, I’ll probably become a mess.
Azel: It might be a good lesson.
Emma: …If Prince Azel were to hate me, I wouldn’t be able to recover.
Azel: Why would that happen?
(Because…)
Emma: You don’t have good memories of aphrodisiacs, do you?
*flashback*
Emma: In the first place, I’ve never used or even seen an aphrodisiac, so I don’t know what it’s like…
Azel: Huh? You’ve never seen one in your life?
Emma: Of course not!
Azel: There are people like that?
*flashback over*
(Because of his position as God, people around Azel-sama tried every trick in the book to get him interested in women.)
(I’ve never asked for details, but I’m sure he’s been tormented by unwanted aphrodisiacs.)
Azel: …Indeed, as you said, I’ve been through a lot with aphrodisiacs.
Azel: I have nothing but unpleasant memories of being forced to watch women lose control in front of me.
Emma: Then–
Azel: But you’re not…
Azel: …
Emma: …Prince Azel?
Azel: ..............
Azel: I hate being attacked.
Emma: I think anyone would.
Azel: That’s right. So I came up with a great idea.
(Huh, the atmosphere suddenly became ominous.)
Even though he was supposed to be heading outside, Azel came back to me for some reason.
When I casually tried to move away, he wrapped his arms around my waist.
Emma: Ah…
An unfamiliar sensation set my entire body ablaze with shame, and I reflexively pushed back against his chest.
But instead of moving away, Azel brought his lips to my ear and breathed a sigh.
Azel: It’s fine to attack before you’re attacked, like this.
Emma: That’s not good, not good at all… Mm!
My ear was nibbled, and indecent gasps melted into the kitchen air.
Emma: No… This really… won’t end well… so… Ah.
The hand that had been resting on my waist slid down and slipped between my legs, along with my negligee.
With just a light touch, my vision went white, and my body trembled as my strength gave out.
Azel: How could you say you were fine in this state?
Azel lifted me up as I collapsed on the floor.
Emma: …I could… evaporate from embarrassment right now…
Azel: If you haven’t evaporated yet, you’ll be fine.
Azel carried me outside and headed for his room with quick steps.
Even the wind that enveloped my body brought me slight pleasure, and I felt a sensation of honey dripping from my lower abdomen.
Emma: ………… Prince Azel.
Azel: It’s not unpleasant or uncomfortable.
Azel: …You’re different from other women.
Just as he said, Azel didn’t seem uncomfortable at all. In fact, his slightly unfocused gaze seemed to reveal his true feelings.
Azel: I can stop if you’re seriously against it.
(Honestly, I’m scared… but…)
(…If… Azel… doesn’t mind…)
I grabbed Azel's clothes and exhaled as if to release the intense heat within me.
Emma: …Touch… me… please…
-
As soon as we returned to the room, Azel stripped me of my negligee and sat me on the bed, embracing me from behind.
Emma: Gasp... Ah...
The mere act of his palm cupping my breast sent a jolt through my core, and when he pressed against my hardened nipple, my vision blurred to white.
Each time his lips grazed my ear, a sweet nectar overflowed in response, and my whole body trembled as his finger, coated with it, slipped inside me.
Even after all this, the aphrodisiac still lingered in my body, and my hips moved involuntarily, matching the rhythm of his finger swirling within me.
Emma: Nn... ...Aah...
Azel effortlessly supported me as I slumped against him, limp.
Azel: Are you alive?
Emma: Barely... alive...
Azel: That's good to hear.
Azel: Learn from this and never touch those "captivate your beloved" concoctions again.
Azel: Besides, even without using such things––
Azel: ...
Emma: ...Even without?
Azel: Why are you so focused on that part?
Emma: Nn...! Don't touch me th-there... aaah!
He hooked a finger around the sensitive swell, now slick with nectar, and another burst of wicked pleasure exploded from my core.
My breath hitched, hot and ragged, and my consciousness almost drifted off into a dream.
Azel: You make that kind of face too, huh?
Azel: ...I feel like I'm the one who's been ravished, even though I'm the one who attacked you.
(I'm... too scared to ask what kind of face I'm making... but...)
Azel's expression as he gazed at me was so alluring it made my heart ache.
That unexpected, worldly expression, so far removed from his usual sanctity—
Our eyes met, and our lips found each other as if drawn together by an invisible force.
(I've had enough of aphrodisiacs... )
(But if it means I can see that look on your face when you desire me... maybe it's not all bad.)
---
(Suspicious Solicitation)
※ This letter has been sent to all booksellers ※
In Tanzanite, a city overflowing with tourist attractions, bookstores are opening one after another.
With the decline of divination, once a symbolic industry of the nation, the demand for knowledge is on the rise.
Furthermore, the nation is currently offering generous support to foreign booksellers, allowing you to start your business immediately.
Tanzanite is now a dreamland where anyone with the skills of a bookseller can easily become a business owner – an opportunity no one in the trade would want to miss.
So, what do you think? It's piqued your interest, hasn't it? It would be a shame to let this big-money chance slip away.
We are currently offering passage to Tanzanite at a special price.
If you are interested in visiting, please contact us at the address below.
P.S. This letter has been sent to all booksellers. Don't try to investigate this offer with your colleagues out of suspicion.
Also, we don't particularly need you to come quickly, nor do we necessarily want a reply.
Don't misunderstand... Absolutely do not misunderstand.
Azel Radwan
--
FIN
.
.
.
Both Endings Epilogue
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mournings-stars · 1 year ago
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What's ur take on vox aftercare imagines? :3
tell me why i was so in love with this ask, wrote a whole fic and literally forgot to post it omg ANYWAY i love vox with aftercare cus that television does NOT know what he’s doing
yes he’s used to having to reign in val but convincing someone to not be criminally insane and telling someone they did a good job is a tad bit different yk (LMAO)
i doubt he’s ever actually received aftercare or given it before getting into an actual relation(situation)ship so he fumbles with it at first
he’d definitely get the hang of it tho! like i think in private he’s a very doting s/o (in his own way) like he gives you the princess treatment all day every day (as long as no one else is there to see it)
so i think despite that he kinda lacks in the aftercare department cus he literally doesn’t know it exists until you try to initiate it
anyway for this lil blurb my idea was that reader and vox have been hooking up for a while and have gotten closer (it’s not like vox would let just anyone sleep in his bed) so here u go
Vox would really try to give aftercare. Every time since you started spending the night, he’d clean you up and change the sheets. He’d get you something to wear before he took care of himself, and made sure you had anything you could physically need, but that was it. He wasn’t good at the rest of it. He didn’t think to get you tea (especially because he didn’t even like “leaf water”) or a warm blanket, he didn’t think to tell you how he was feeling or how well you did, and he certainly didn't tell you if he needed anything.
No one, before you, had ever even introduced the idea of aftercare. There was a night where you sleepily told him how well he did, and he told you to “go to sleep if you want to stay here tonight,” but you said, “I have to make sure you’re alright first,” like he was ridiculous, laughing as you kissed his shoulder.
“Of course I’m alright… Are you?” He asked awkwardly, thinking you were trying to hint that he’d done something wrong, maybe hurt you.
“Mhm. Just cold.”
“Then… use your blanket?” He pulled his sheets over you as you groaned, shaking your head at him. “What?”
“Nothing… Nothing.” You tucked the blankets over you, turning away from him as you shut your eyes. “Night.”
And it took him hours to fall asleep. Not only was he utterly confused by you, but he had a very needy feeling in his chest. He had half a mind to check and see if he was hard again, because he certainly didn’t feel it, but that was the only thing that made sense.
That is, until he looked at you, tucked into your blankets and finding himself thinking he would be much warmer than some stupid blanket. Why the fuck were you holding on to a blanket and not him—?
And then he had to pause and collect himself because who the fuck gets jealous over a blanket…?
He gently and reluctantly woke you up, feeling bad for it when he watched you blink your eyes open groggily. He came up with something arbitrary, “you’re pushing me off the bed, pretty.”
“Mmm, sorry,” you mumbled and scooted over. He took the opportunity to scoot closer, gently grabbing your waist to pull you against him. You turned toward him, assuming he wanted something else and sleepily bringing your mouth to his neck.
“As much as I like ‘sleepy sex’,” as you called it, “with you, I just want to — hold you.” You didn’t miss the way his screen glitched when he spoke, and he didn’t miss the smile that came to your face before you went back to sleep.
But of course all the niceties were gone the next day when you left before he woke up, which you always did because that was the agreement you had — but surely that didn’t mean things had to be the same in the bedroom.
So he started researching and apparently, “why the fuck is my… partner… being so nice after sex?” Was a commonly searched question in Hell, as it populated almost immediately after he typed “why.”
That led him to trying, really trying, to give aftercare. The first time, you were shocked, telling him you’d clean up, but he insisted and you relented. You let him do what he wanted, thinking he might just be in a mood, but when he very awkwardly asked if you were alright, you realized what he was doing.
“Why don’t I make us tea?” You suggested, getting up from his bed after he’d given you something to wear. “Is that alright? Or, do you want me to keep you company?”
You were much more attentive, and you always knew what to say. That alone made an error appear on his screen, but you didn’t joke or say anything about it. “That’s fine,” he finally brought himself to say.
“Alright. Be right back.” You gave him a smile, gently squeezing his hand as you passed him by and went to the kitchen.
He wanted to tell you to be quick, as he suddenly felt very lonely when he lost the feeling of your hands on him, but he stopped himself.
As if you read his mind, you came back very quickly, also bringing a bowl of fruit with you (and hot water with lemon and honey for him because, again, leaf water). “Blood sugar,” you said, making him laugh.
“So, you like to eat after…?” He concluded, because “blood sugar” was certainly not a valid justification in Hell. You nodded and he did the same in return. “What else?”
“What else, what?” You asked as you sat next to him in bed after setting the tea and fruit on his nightstand, tucking your legs beneath the covers.
“What else do you like… after?”
This time, you didn’t ignore the error screen, taking it as him pushing for too much. “Don’t worry about that — it’s more about what you need… Like, you like to cuddle,” his screen glitched as he cleared his throat, “because you need a little bit of comfort. I don’t need much; maybe, just, something to wear and sleep — but I’d rather not sleep alone.” He nodded along. “I’ll get everything I like; tea, fruit, whatever.” You gave him a very sweet smile, but he understood you were telling him to not ask any more about what you liked — or, he thought he understood that you didn’t want to get personal. “What do you like?” Then you caught him off guard.
No one had ever prioritized what he liked — or, rather, needed after sex before now, and he certainly never wanted to tell anyone. Who knows how they’d use it against him? But you… you just felt genuine.
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why-animals-do-the-thing · 1 year ago
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Hi! I was wondering if you knew anything in particular about the Lincoln Park Zoo- I think it’s the only zoo I’ve ever been to that’s free/no admission! Especially considering the scale. The only thing that concerned me was that their polar bears seem to have a history of stereotypical behaviors (pacing, primarily) which I saw while I was there, but again, I’m a total outsider to the actual inner workings of the facility. Sorry if this is too vague, haha.
There's a couple city zoos like that with free entrance! It's a cool option, and indicative of the city providing enough funding for the facility to operate without the need for income from tickets. (Sometimes the way things are set up, I think they can be required to stay free). The St. Louis Zoo is another!
I don't know a lot about the Lincoln Park Zoo beyond what I've seen as a guest. I've gone a couple times and haven't seen anything that stood out to me as major red flags, but that's just from a public perspective and not a comprehensive assessment. They're AZA-accredited and have been for a long time, which is an indication of their general ethos and operations. I can't speak to more than that about their quality, unfortunately.
You're right about the polar bear stereotypies - that's a thing I've seen for myself. The thing is, with stereotypies - and especially with polar bears - they're not necessarily an indicator of current welfare or quality of life.
For folk who are new to the blog or unfamiliar with the concept, in animal care, a stereotypy is a "repetitive, invariant behavior pattern with no obvious goal or function." Examples often seen are repetitive pacing, head-bobbing, licking or chewing, and rocking or swaying. (It's important to note that not all repetitive behaviors are stereotypic behaviors - e.g. animals may pace when excited and anticipating the arrival of a keeper). Stereotypies can be an indicator of chronically poor welfare, under-stimulating enrichment, or inappropriate captive environments, but the important thing to know about that is that they often persist after the problem that caused them is resolved. So you can take a polar bear or an elephant that picked up a stereotypic behavior in one zoo and move them to another, much better situation, and they may still continue the stereotypy.
(The fact that stereotypies can be indicators of previous, but not current, welfare problems is a really important nuance that is often left out of discussions. Sometimes they're called "zoochosis", which anti-captivity folk define as "the psychosis induced by captivity"... but that's a very unscientific approach, and doesn't facilitate productive discussion or attempts to identify causes and alleviate the behavior. Zoochosis is nothing but a useless manipulative buzzword, folks.)
Bears in general seem to be prone to stereotypies in captive situations. I've seen some recent research that hypothesizes it's likely due to a lack of ability to engage in normal behavioral sequences, such as foraging. Polar bears seem especially prone to it. One 2013 study found that of the 55 polar bears in North America they assessed, 85% engaged in stereotypical pacing. It might be because they natural cover such a huge range in the wild that older, smaller exhibits haven't allowed them to move as much as they need to; it could also be due to a historical lack of appropriate enrichment. We don't really know, because there's so many potential factors, and the long lifespan of polar bears means longitudinal studies of multiple generations take a very long time.
These are both things the industry is working on fixing: newer polar bear exhibits are built to be much larger and more complex, and there's been a heavy focus in the literature for at least a decade on finding ways to reduce stereotypies by providing engaging enrichment and increasing bears' activity levels. Lincoln Park Zoo's polar bear habitat was renovated in 2016, and - while it looks rather boring to me, as a guest - it was apparently designed to allow for a lot of activity range and polar bear-specific needs.
Their current bears are both about 20 years old, and were transferred to the Lincoln Park Zoo after the new habitat was completed. It's entirely plausible the bears arrived with stereotypies from their previous facilities, given that the emphasis on improving polar bear care is younger than they are. Here's a photo I took there a couple years ago, of Talini (I think), engaging in a repetitive head tossing behavior. It's definitely hard to watch, as a guest, and I don't remember if they had signage up about it.
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That all being said, I wouldn't judge the whole zoo based on the polar bear stereotypies, because there's so much at play there in terms of history and the evolution of care for the species. What's important is how they're handling it, and what they're doing to help encourage more normative behavior from the bears. Given the amount of research and effort the zoo field has put into addressing the topic in polar bears for the last decade, it's highly probable that a lot of staff time goes into helping reduce the amount of time those bears spend engaging in stereotypies.
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stillnotyourmusebitch · 1 year ago
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Ain't nothing but a shower scene - Hellboy x Afab!Reader
I am reposting my old hellboy fics on tumblr again.
(These are from my old account)
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I had to admit that HB truly had the best shower in the whole of the Colorado B.P.R.D. headquarters. So, when I get the chance to make use of these facilities, you know I will.
But sadly, due to the sheer amount of bloody research I have had to complete over the past eight days, I haven’t been able to see very much of or be anywhere near Hellboy. If it wasn’t for Alice insisting, I really need to take a break and that it wasn’t normal to go so long without sleep, food or the basics of hygiene.
Normally I would flip her off, then go back to my work. Drinking my umpteenth coffee of the day, but I hate to admit it the kid was right. Gods, I could actually smell myself. That is never a good sign.
Marking my place in the old dusty tome I was halfway through reading/translating. I scrape the chair backwards unceremoniously loud along the floor to let people near me know I was in fact leaving the much-needed research table and if anyone messes with my organisation system in my absence, I will ruin them.
Upon standing for longer than needed to walk to the coffee machine and back. Only then did I realise how dog gone tired I really was. Taking my time I slowly and carefully make my way through the facilities many winding corridors. Trying my hardest not to bump into other agents or the walls, until I arrive at Hellboy’s quarters. At the first glance I can see he isn’t there which is both a blessing and a little disappointing.
Yes, I do get the shower and bed to myself for the time being but that also means I missed out on seeing him. We have really become good, close friends.
Now you are probably wondering why I have been mentioning HB a lot. Well that is simple we have been sharing his room ever since a certain someone magically managed to punch a massive hole through my exterior wall and out into the cold mountain air. He claims to have been swatting a fly. Not that there were any in my room at the time. But there was still no need to punch a massive three feet wide hole in my wall with his stone hand at that.
So I am now staying with him for however long it takes to patch the damage up. He insisted on sharing with me as an apology. It’s been over three weeks now and there was still a gaping hole in my quarters wall. I ain’t complaining tho. Hellboy really did have the best rooms in the facility and I’m damn well sure gonna make use of them. Since I had the place to myself I start stripping out of my uniform until I was stark naked and fiddling with the nobs and handles to try and get the water running in the oversized shower exactly how I preferred, amping up the heat to scolding levels that I find great comfort in. Maybe it is because it steams up the entire bathroom area nicely to the point I feel like I’m in a warm, safe cocooned state.
The multiple water jets pummel at my aching back and shoulders. I groan out at the blissfully sensation of my body finally unwinding and relaxing. Oh how I have needed this time to gain back my spark. I grab the bottle body wash that smells just like him. A calming fig and leather scent. I work up the lather in my hands then tackle the layers of dried on sweat and dirt I have accumulated over the past 8 days. Somewhere in between cleaning myself and the warmth of the water. I found that it managed to amplify the scent of the body wash. To the point it felt like he was right there with me. Meer inches behind me.
Maybe I let my imagination get away from me but it was as if his unique stone hand was scratching lazily down my hip. I try to lean back into what would have been his chest only to meet thin air.
“Shit.” I mutter to myself. This is not the time or the place to be thinking such things. Scrubbing the hot water over my face to try and clear my perverted mind of thoughts that were just that. Thoughts.
It isn’t that I don’t find him handsome. Oh I really did I mean that guy can charm the pants off anyone given the chance but we were only friends and nothing more.
“No, get outta your head. Finish your shower and have a damned nap, then back to work you go.” I spoke firmly to myself as I shut off the water.
I left the bathroom grabbing a clean towel and throwing it over my head to begin drying my hair as I wander back into the main part of the bedroom.
Someone clears their throat. I rip the towel off my head to see Hellboy stood there staring at me. His eyes are roaming all the skin available to him and it takes me a second to click I am stood there completely starkers. I try to cover myself but at this point what is the use. He has seen all of me now. I sigh.
“When did you get back?” I try and break the awkward silence as I continue to towel dry my hair.
His duffel bag drops with a thud to bring him back to the question I just asked him.
“Urm, just got back from a mission. Was gonna come looking for you actually.” He was clearly unsure if he was to look away or stare.
“Well you found me Red.” I say as I bend to dry my legs. “What do you want?” I ask casually, unsure where this confidence in my body has come from.
“You.” He breathed out the word in a contented sigh and a goofy smile on his lips.
I definitely heard him correctly trying to hide a creeping smile tugging at the corner of my lips. I stood back up to my full height taking the small grey towel away from my legs and dropped into on the floor.
“I didn’t quite hear that. I must still have water in my ears.”
His gaze drops to the floor
“Well.” I take a step closer to him. “You have me.”
His golden eyes flick up back to mine to see if there was any hint of hesitation or a cruel prank.
“Do I?” His voice low in a sort of warning that if I was messing with him I needed to stop now.
I kept moving slowly closer to him. The warmth of his body begins to radiate into mine from a couple feet away. He could see I wasn’t playing with him and that I really did want this. Whatever this moment was that clung in the warm air left behind by my shower.
As I got close enough to feel his body against mine I turn as take his right hand in mine and pacing it over my hip in the way I imagined only minutes before I had turned the water off. He is hesitant in his touch as all he knows is how to break and destroy with this hand but I want to show him the things he was clearly missing out on.
“You know you do.” Saying these simple words seemed to break the dam in both of us. His left arm winds around me stomach pulling me flush against his chest. His right hand caressing my hip and upper thigh. The contrast of his flesh hand and the stone one is magical. All the while his mouth descends upon my exposed throat kissing and suckling at the flesh marking my skin not that I cared. I grind back against him causing him to break contact and spin me to face him dead on.
“You’re playing with fire (Y/n). Are you sure you want this?” I can see a flicker of concern in his features. His golden eyes are purely molten with lust.
“More than you know big guy. I’m not afraid to get burned.” I scratch my nails down his firm pectorals.
His left hand cradles the back of my neck bringing me in for a kiss that could wake a million princesses, princes, kings, queens. Hell a whole kingdom from a cursed sleep. His lips are so intoxicating and I can’t get enough of him. I leap up as we break for air. His strong arms catch under my thighs and we go back to kissing like the world is going to end. It is bound to happen one day but right now all I need is him. I push at his large brown coat to try and remove the infuriating item of clothing to give me more of him to explore.
Hellboy can feel me pushing at the jacket. Seeing no other way to remove it with me in his arms. He moves us both to the nearest divider wall in his room and pins my body there with the weight and strength of his hips holding me in place as we break apart to gasp in lungful’s of air. I’m sure our lip look kiss swollen from such a fiery kiss that has become one of the best make out sessions I have ever had. He tears away the jacket, letting it drop to the ground, his hands go to my chest and thumbs swiping at my hardening nipples.
I’m chanting in my mind for him to use that mouth on them. He leans back slightly before slamming his hands either side of my head.
“We can stop now if you want. I don’t want to overstep.” I see the genuine concern on his beautiful face.
“I want this Red. I need you.” I rest my forehead against his.
“I could sure get used to this.” He smirks to himself.
“So could I. but unless you fucking touch me I will implode and take the entirety of the mountainside with me..” I grind down on his member that was tenting so wonderfully in his dark trousers.
It was my turn to get him panting beneath me.
“(Y/n), baby. I am trying to have some restraint here as not to hurt you . . . “
“I’m no China doll. You won’t break me. Remember I have advanced genetic healing, anyway I want you to mark me. Let everyone know who it is I belong to.” I say as I stretch my arms up above my head to grasp either side of the thin divider wall and use my legs to pull him back firmly against me possessively.
Hellboy is mulling over my words with a hooded gaze. His left hand grasps my throat squeezing it generously. “Is that right? You belong to me and only me now. You are mine.” His words are almost a low growl as he speaks he moves his lips closer and closer to mine. He speaks the last word with his lips grazing mine.
I mirror the word mine before he descends into another mind blowing kiss. I’m so engrossed in the sensation of our lips moving in perfect rhythm. That I don’t notice he has pried away his right hand from the slight indentation he left on the wall by my head, so he can unbuckle his belt and trousers in a swift movement, freeing his engorged cock to slap up against my ass. He hisses at the skin contact. I feel the stuttering in his hips. He really is trying to stay in control. When his left hand loosens on my throat I break the kiss to grasp that hand and bring the digits to my mouth and suck at them in earnest.
I moan around those fingers as I close my eyes and just being in the moment. I stay like this for as long as either of us could take. When I open my eyes, I pull away his fingers from my mouth with an emphasised pop sound. Then guide them in between our bodies till he feels just how much I truly need him. He easily inserts one digit into me gasping at the wet tightness that greets him. A second digit followed by a third in quick succession are enough to have me moaning his name in an almost scared prayer. He thrusts those fingers so well that the heel of his palm grinds down on my bundle of nerves that sparks lightning through my limbs and curls my toes.
“Ffffffuck (y/n) I’m not gonna last if you keep this up.” He is groaning from the way our bodies are so close to that final embrace we both need.
“Then take me Red. Fuck me and claim me as yours and only yours” I’m so close to falling over that blissful edge of completion when he withdraws his fingers, bringing them to his lips he sees the mess I have become.
“Oh (y/n) Is this all for me? It must be my birthday.” He exaggerates the last sentence by swiping the flat of his tongue up to gather the distinct flavour of my arousal. “Better than I imagined.” He cleans his fingers of my taste.
“Bed now.” I need this man to fuck me and or let me ride him. He chuckles at my enthusiasm but takes my ever so subtle hint to move to the oversized bed. Dropping onto the mattress Hellboy turns at the last moment so I’m straddling those thick muscular thighs of his. “Red, you gotta let me take care of you.”
I push his chest lightly till his back hit the plush covers. I manoeuvre so I am able strip him of trousers and help him kick off those clunky boots to free those cloven feet I rarely get to see.
Crawling up his chest slowly to make sure I still have his full attention, kissing here and there to see if I can hear those wondrous sounds.
“Baby, you’re killing me.” His hands move along my sides to my hips, giving them a firm squeeze. “Please I need more.”
I kiss him once more before positioning body so I can stroke his girthy cock in my palm. He bucks into my palm. I can tell he needs more. Mouth-watering ideas flash into my mind which I lock away for later use.
With is cock still in my palm I move so I can gather up the wetness pooling between my thighs.
“You ready big guy?” I lock eyes with him. He can only nod in agreement.
Slowly I guide him to my entrance. I push down till the head of his cock disappears inside me. I gasp at the feel of him stretching me so sinfully. Inch my inch I lower down onto him until I am completely seating on him.
I watch his face melt into that of awe. Here I am taking his cock so well. Clenching at the thickness of him.
“You okay there (y/n)?” He knows that he is well endowed and some people can’t take him completely the way I just have.
I experiment by rocking my hips gently. We moan out in unison. This urges me to move more and slightly faster.
Hellboy begins to rut up into me, I push down to meet him thrust for thrust. We work up into a pattern that transcends anything my simple fingers could live up to on those late nights alone in my room.
Our left hands interlock as we move as one. The room around us is filled with the wet slap of skin on skin, loud moans of each other’s name and the encouragement to go faster and harder.
“I’m so close Red. Please I need to. . .” I cry out.
“Cum for me (y/n). I got you.” His thrusts are becoming sloppy now. I know he is so close too. I lean forward to kiss him once more. This new angle is all I need to climax harder than anything in my entire life. A few more haphazard thrusts later and he spills inside of me.
I slump against his sweaty chest. Grinning from ear to ear which I know he is mirroring above me. We stay like this till we get our breath back. Shakily I climb off him and lay down by his side completely stated.
“Wow.” He turns his head to look at me. “Are you okay?”
“Mmm, yes I am now.” I try not to yawn but I know I will drift off soon after such a satisfying ‘workout’
He shift on the bed to go and grab something from the direction of the ensuite. He returns seconds later with a damp cool cloth. He takes care of me before climbing back on the bed to pull my against his chest.
“Sleep now. I got you.” I feel him lightly kiss my hairline before sleep takes me.
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nanabansama · 3 months ago
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you mentioned that the cat (tsukitty, im not 100% sure yet but i also believe its tsukasa rather than amane/hanako) shares some speech patterns more with tsukasa than hanako, and that while tsukasa and hanako have similar speech patterns, they also differ in some ways. would you mind elaborating on that or do you have another post about it? i always find characters speech patterns absolutely fascinating and cataloging all the similarities and differences between the twins is one of my favorite past times. have a nice day!! :3
It's a bit hard to explain, especially in a way that separates him from early!Hanako. This is also going to be incredibly informal. But I will try!
Hanako and Tsukasa have a tendency to end their sentences in katakana and just use more katakana than other characters in general, though I feel like that has dwindled in usage as the series has gone on. They will also sometimes extend words in a sing-songy type of way which is shared with the kitty, or just pronounce things improperly in general.
One thing about Tsukasa is he talks more... childishly than Hanako? Which I feel like is pretty obvious in the English version, too. But there's specifically this trend where he tends to end sentences in ね and な a lot that really gave me a Tsukasa feel when reading the kitty's dialogue.
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Compared to kitty:
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I will admit though it's not like Hanako doesn't talk like this either...? Like I said they have similar speech patterns that stick out from the other characters. I wish I could explain this better but ultimately it just sounds more like Tsukasa to me, heh. Anyway,
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Another thing is that in his introduction, he quotes himself from his first appearance. The first time he and Nene meet in the story no less:
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If you look closely you'll notice he says やるじゃん which means something similar to "not bad." He's complimenting her, right off the bat! Coincidence, or...?
For what it's worth I can't remember Hanako ever saying やるじゃん but I will say it definitely sounds like something he could say. The evidence is just stacked more in Tsukasa's favor for this one.
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Regarding the laughter, I will admit, he actually uses a laugh that to my knowledge only Hanako/Amane has used: くひひ. It's a very distinctive laugh which is why I remember this. But there have been canonical instances of the Yugi Twins sharing eerily similar laughter so I feel confident dismissing this. Plus,
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This アハハハ or あははは laugh is just soooo Tsukasa. Amane doesn't laugh like this very often. He isn't as much of an "ah ha ha ha" type of guy as Tsukasa. It's easier to imagine a Tsukasa くひひ than an Amane アハハハ to me. But still, Amane has done an Ahaha type of laugh before:
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...So you can maybe dismiss this too. Just, for what it's worth, Tsukasa certainly goes Ahaha the most.
Honestly I think it does come down more to the cat's personality for me more than anything else. The cat's personality isn't exactly like either of the twins, but the thing that gets me the most about him is the way he treats Nene. I cannot imagine Hanako, in any lucid version of himself, treating Nene like the cat has. But Tsukasa, yes, definitely lol.
Hanako was smitten with Nene from the moment he laid eyes on her, and given the story of TBHK is at least partially about their epic tale of love and romance I find it hard to believe the cat wouldn't be at least somewhat smitten by her? But so far the cat's only felt pity for her and been surprised by her. I think the reason I feel his speech patterns more closely match Tsukasa is because it's more in line with the way Tsukasa treats people than the way Amane/Hanako tends to treat people (specifically Nene.)
Sorry if this answer was somewhat unsatisfactory! But thank you for the question. Someday it would be fun to take a deeper, better-researched dive into the speech patterns of the Yugi Twins, I think!
To end off...
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This little self-intro by the cat reminded me a lot of Tsukasa and Amane's own self-intros. Using the particle さ and explaining his role as a supernatural... it's a cute callback! Just wanted to call attention to it.
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qwanderer · 25 days ago
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closet argument from The Case of the Very Long Stairway as a gift for @shaylogic for the dgd anniversary exchange!
I wrote a little dialog-only ficlet to go with it, which you can read under the cut!
"Fuck, I can't get this door open. Charles. Do you wanna, you know, do the ghost thing and then let me out?"
"Right. Bad news."
"Oh my God, we're stuck? Is that what you're telling me? Are we stuck in this stupid little closet in the Cat King's tacky little boudoir?"
"Might be."
"Ugh, I can't believe you got us both stuck in here."
"Oi, you weren't much help, Crystal!"
"Well you said you had a plan and then didn't tell me about it! How was I supposed to know how to help you make it work?"
"I didn't know we could get trapped like this!"
"How are we even trapped? I mean I get it, I'm a regular person, I can't walk through walls, but you're a ghost. …It's not iron, is it?"
"Nah, it doesn't burn, it's just… I can't seem to do the whole ghost thing right now."
"What does that even mean? You are a ghost."
"I guess ghosts are solid here?"
"Yeah, real helpful arcane knowledge."
"Dunno what to tell you, it's the best I've got!"
"God, is arguing in closets gonna be, like, a whole thing with us?"
"I hope not."
"How long do you think it's gonna be?"
"If it's longer than a couple of hours, Edwin will find us."
"I dunno, he seemed pretty far down the research hole when we left. Not sure he even knows we're gone."
"I'm pretty sure Edwin will find us. Eventually."
"Right. So, tell me about this plan you had."
"It's stupid."
"I think we can all agree on that at this point."
"I wanna make, like, a present for Edwin, and I want it to be a surprise, so I can't ask him for help making it, can I?"
"Okay, but why the Cat King? And why the catnip? And why am I here?"
"Well, if I go off somewhere with you, Edwin's not gonna think it's weird, will he?"
"Which is great, by the way, if we're relying on him to rescue us and meanwhile he doesn't wanna interrupt our date."
"Yeah, yeah, I didn't think it through. Thought the Cat King was a friendly now, or at least close enough. And he got annoyed at us in the first place 'cause Edwin was mean to his cats, so I thought, well, I'll do something nice for 'em instead, won't I?"
"I mean, they did seem to be enjoying it, I'll give you that."
"I hoped it would maybe distract his cats a little, stop 'em from listening in, but I had no idea it would distract him!"
"Yeah, he is fully baked right now."
"Definitely not the plan."
"Where did you even get potted catnip?"
"Grew it."
"You grew that?"
"Yeah, we have kind of a little garden up on the roof of the Agency. Herbs for spells and stuff. Some things we use enough that it's easier to grow our own than trade for it."
"That's really cool, actually."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah, I always kill plants. Anyone who can keep them alive is pretty impressive to me."
"So, uh…"
"What. What is that look."
"Have you ever played seven minutes in heaven?"
"Yeah, a few times."
"Oh, is it a favorite pastime?"
"I wouldn't say that. I regret most of what I've done while playing that game."
"Tell me."
"You didn't bring it up because you wanted to hear about shitty things that happened to me before."
"Maybe not, but if you wanna talk about it…"
"All you really need to know is despite everything that kinda sucks about tonight, I'm enjoying it a lot more than any of those nights."
"Yeah?"
"And despite everything you did to help get us into this mess, I still like you a hell of a lot better than anyone I shared a closet with back then."
"That so?"
"Sweetie. Stop fishing for compliments and kiss me."
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vivziepoparchives · 1 month ago
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You mentioned somewhere that you have a lot of artwork in the queue.
How long do you think it'll take to post all of it? And also, have you considered finding another mod to run this blog, if life stuff happens and you can't update as frequently or something.
Nice effort on the archive though <3
At the current rate of five posts a day, it would take years to post everything. These are just the things I have right now and I know there are lots of things I still need to find and save. That would end up being like 10-ish years.
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So, I do intend to increase the amount of posts per day in the future but I keep it low for now so I'm not too overwhelmed while I'm busy working on other fandom things like zines. I'm in a sort of prep time period at the moment where I'm going through everything all over again to attach sources to images in drafts to make queuing posts faster in the future.
I'll be filling the queue to its limit soon so that if I can't continue posting for some reason, it'll carry on for quite a while without me. And if I feel something is coming up that might cause me to be out of commission for a very long time, I have fandom friends I could probably ask to tap in for me briefly.
But I'm not looking for help with the blog at the moment. I do this in large part because I'm mentally ill, to be quite frank. Once I obtained a certain amount of Viv's old art, my brain decided it wouldn't allow me to stop until it feels like I've collected and sorted it all. I'm glad to share the result of that with others since I'm doing it anyways. But I don't need to subject other people to the weird way my brain works with these things lol
I do share a server with @rainyday-deer that's dedicated to research where we have channels for things like Viv's accounts, the accounts of others who have worked for or with her, information about what cons she's gone to, and other things like that. A sort of giant research notebook. So, I do have some supporting help outside of the blog which is much appreciated. I'm also very grateful for any tips I've received here.
And anyone is free to make their own blog, obviously! I would advise a different enough name that blogs don't start getting confused with each other, but I don't have a monopoly on organizing and posting Viv's old art.
I mostly say this because I know sometimes people can feel like they're being copied when others do similar things to them on social media and might get upset about it. Which might make people nervous to do it themselves. But all this art is out there for anyone to find. I would never take offense if someone wanted to make their own blog organized to their own preferences.
For me, as an archivist type, that would just mean more backups. And more backups are always good!
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just-ornstein · 1 year ago
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WHAT THE FUCK IS THE BEAKER CASTLE EVEN - A SimPE Deep Dive
Alright, so after stumbling upon some of the Beta pics on the Russian TheSims.cc site and this analysis post about the Beaker mansion, I became deeply curious if some of this would be reflected in the lot relationships. After all, some characters like Viola, Kelly, on top of several others could be found when digging through the raw and somewhat encrypted code of lots.
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By now it's pretty clear that the Beaker home once belonged to this dude and his army of girlfriends (definitely check out the post I mentioned earlier). On top of that Loki (and possibly Circe) seems to have gone through at least two iterations before eventually settling on their final forms.
And on top of that whenever you scan the mansion in a completely new game, you will find fingerprints of primarily deceased Sims everywhere!
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Now to get to the Sim relationships on the lot...
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712 freaking Sim Relationships, all of which are unknown. Some of which still have stats set such as married, friends, relationship scores, etc. I tried comparing this to other lots in their neighborhood and NONE even come close. Both Olive and the Smiths have around 400. The other lots have below. And the only lots that are even a tad higher in this number are the Capps and the Summerdreams which makes sense when you realise that hood went through at least one other iteration before turning into Veronaville.
Now I wondered if the encrypted code (despite being very hard to read due to being partially encrypted) had any old Sim remnants left in there. And yep, several even. Many of which even have information such as their gender, hair, clothes and age in there. So lemme go over some of them:
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1. First one, a guy who's name is partially encrypted so it will never fully be visible. It's not Johnny cause Johnny also has his character file on this lot.
A male teen with brown hair who used to wear the "tmbodyhoodedsweatshirtboardshorts" + the "tmhairhatcap" hairstyle.
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2. Second is another teen, this time by the name of Zeeshan. He had black hair, the bucket hat hairstyle and wore the hooded sweatshirt, except with pants this time around (and grey apparently?).
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3. The third was an adult male Sim by the name of Kenneth with black hair. Based on his info he was likely meant to be a Gardener Sim.
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4. The fourth was one named Kana... Possibly a longer name cause once again the code becomes a bit shambled here. She too was meant to be a Gardener as seen by her outfit and hair data. Her hair would have been brown.
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5. Elle, another female Gardener Sim, this one having red hair.
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6. Vasyl, an adult male Sim who wore the busdriver outfit. Sadly his hair data seems to be blocked behind the code. For funsies I like to give the name to Bald Beta Loki, since he gives off that vibe. BUT, I think this was an NPC busdriver due to the outfit.
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7. Joanne, an adult female Sim with an unknown hair colour in corn rows style and the classy afbodyjacketturtlesweaterdressboots. Sadly her ID is hidden behind the encrypted code, so it's hard to fully make out.
All of these Sims appear to be NPC/Townie Sims. None of them match ANYONE in the Beta pictures. And the current Townies/NPCs seem to have replaced them. Interestingly enough, those that were NPCs are still NPCs and those that were Townies are still Townies. Making me wonder if this is a thing that translates to other Sim IDs too. That Sims that were Townies in earlier iterations are still Townies in their new form. Same for NPCs and yep, Playables. This is merely an assumption I'm making on what I'm finding here, but if anyone can help research this further, that would be greatly appreciated, especially as this could mean the Viola ID may not belong to Viola Monty.
Viola is an odd case cause no outfit, hair or other data can be found in the lot file and she's only ever mentioned once in the context of lines filled with "sleep in pyjamas". But for now I cannot say anything with certainty unless more remnants of these old Sims could be found somewhere. OR, if these files could be read in its entirety which is quite difficult.
It's very hard to get a Sim ID attached to a lot (believe me I tried) and often times seems to rather happen accidentally than intentionally. Moving a Sim out or having a Sim die usually removes the data they once held to that lot. Good example is Loki in my current Strangetown who lived on this lot all of his life and when he died he had no remnants left on this lot.
REGARDLESS! The Beaker lot is ancient and seems to have been ground for a ton of testing, Sims and many more things. No wonder the Beakers got this home with its incredibly shady history. Half of the beta town was partying here!
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itsaspectrumcomic · 1 month ago
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Hi, I'm Victor.
Um. So I've been following the autism and ADHD tag lately. I've found my personal problems very relatable with all the other people here. At school, I'm very quiet and the parents have been reported that I'm extremely silent by my teachers to my parents. ( People assume I'm arrogant and reserved, I'm really not). I don't know how to express my self, at all. I have burn outside for no reason, and sometimes I feel like I'm not real or fall apart. I just feel. Detached.
Now, I don't know if I'm mentally disabled. But if I am I want to take steps and try what best for me. I've been trying to get my parents to take me to a counselor or doctor to see if I have... anything. But they are convinced I'm normal, since the doctor at my birth told them I was. They I want to convince them that I'm a retard for attention just like " the other kids do nowadays". I find myself helpless ,and alone. I just don't know what to do.
Any tip?
Hi Victor! I'm sorry your parents aren't being very understanding 😔
If you relate to a lot of autistic or ADHD traits, firstly I want to say you are very welcome to consider yourself part of the community even if you're unable to access a diagnosis right now. Self diagnosis is valid ❤️
Something that helped me when I was first questioning my own neurodivergence was joining discussions online (or just lurking) on places like r/autism on Reddit and discord communities, and following neurodivergent creators on Tumblr and Instagram. It made me feel less alone to know I wasn't the only person feeling that way. Recently I've been watching @candy.courn, @iinsidemyhead_ and @trevorcarroll on Instagram if you're looking for somewhere to start :)
Have you tried showing your parents resources about neurodivergence, or showing them the listed traits and comparing them to your own? Examples from specific events in your life may help them understand. I've found the National Autistic Society website helpful as it has information, articles and videos from the experiences of other autistic people.
You could also try showing them comics you relate to (mine or any others) to help describe your experiences.
Autism has a genetic component, which can often mean if a child is autistic there's a likelihood that at least one of their parents are as well. This can make it extra difficult to convince them since they've likely gone through their whole life undiagnosed and assumed everyone feels the same as them, so when you come to them with your own autistic traits they assume everyone else has them too which means it can't be autism...right?
I've had lots of discussions with my mum about this and although she was resistant at first, she did eventually start to understand and realised that she's probably neurodivergent as well 😊
If convincing your parents isn't possible at the moment, are there any counsellors or teachers at school you feel you can talk to? They may be able to support you themselves or direct you to more local resources without you having to go through your parents.
Just to add, you mentioned sometimes feeling detached or not real, which to me sounds a lot like dissociation. I usually get that in response to being very anxious. When you feel that way, it might help to use grounding techniques - something that helps me is wrapping myself up really tight in a blanket or squeezing a fidget or a toy. There are lots of others as well like doing a body scan or the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding method, but I'll let you research those because I realise this is becoming a bit long 😅
Anyway, I hope I've been able to help a little. You are not alone ❤️
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galaxymagitech · 15 days ago
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1 and 30 for the fic questions!!
Thank you for the ask!!
Fic Writer Ask Game
1. What fic of yours would you recommend to someone who had never read any of your work? (In other words, what do you think is the best introduction to your fics?)
Hmmm. I think it really depends on what you’re there for, because I have two completely different versions of Bruce Wayne living in my head.
fool me thrice is a good introduction to how I write Batfamily dynamics, my characterization of the Batkids, how I develop a plot across scenes, tackle questions in my writing, and write an abusive Bruce Wayne while still maintaining his internal life and not demonizing him. This fic is pretty characteristic of my Bad Parent Bruce Wayne fics, and my writing style in general. If you want to read my Bad Parent Bruce Wayne fics, I’d recommend this as a starting point for how I see things playing out.
Olive Branch, on the other hand, is the introduction I’d recommend for Good/Okay Parent Bruce Wayne. It shows how I deal with misunderstandings, uncertainty, and at least somewhat unreliable narration (which is very common in my fics). Like fool me thrice, it involves extended dialogue and relationship work, but unlike fool me thrice, it is a single scene. In general, the writing style and the way I portray Jason’s internal thoughts vs what he says are a pretty good example of how I normally write.
But honestly, unless it’s in a series, any work is a good starting point I think!
30. Have you ever written something that was out of your comfort zone? If so, what was it, and how did it affect your approach to writing fic thereafter?
I routinely try to push my comfort zone in small ways, such as by trying to write a romance fic or write two characters who I haven’t written interacting before. But I think the second farthest outside my comfort zone I’ve written is actually my most recent multichapter fic, once you cross the line (will you be satisfied?), which is on 2/5 chapters. It’s a TimSteph fic—which is outside my comfort zone due to being romance and not a pairing I’ve read a ton of—but it also contains frank discussions of sex and birth control and on-screen making out. No on-screen sex (I am unwilling to research how people having sex works in practice) but still the only fic that I’ve ever rated M for sexual reasons. I think writing this fic has made me open up a little bit to including more sexual elements in my stories, and it’s also made me think more about tagging practices on AO3.
Surprisingly, the farthest outside my comfort zone I’ve gone was a complete accident. I wrote a fic that was supposed to be dark and kind of messed up, but the first draft fell off the deep end. I decided I couldn’t post it, because I’d unintentionally added subtext. And if I could see that subtext, other people definitively would.
The fic underwent extensive edits. Some of these edits were really, really stupid, such as the Find and Replace incident. In hindsight, I would’ve done it differently, but at the time I was just happy that I brought the fic back into my comfort zone. This story became Graveyard, which doesn’t quite manage to say what I originally intended it to, but at least it doesn’t say anything I didn’t intend it to.
This fic actually did inspire a change in my writing process. Before I write my fics, I now lay out every way I think the fic could be interpreted and decide which interpretation(s) I am okay with and want to explore. And then I develop a plan for how I am going to emphasize the interpretation(s) I intend to emphasize while de-emphasizing alternative ones. Obviously, I can’t control how people view my fics, and people could easily be misinterpreting them. But incorporating this calculus into my writing process at least means I’m not blindsided and can avoid another Graveyard incident that messes up the fic.
This started out in an anxious way, but now it’s more for clarity’s sake. When I write, I have something I want to communicate. Sometimes there’s ambiguity in that, but only specific, intentional ambiguity. But I don’t want to have cracks in my stories (or poems) that lead to validating misinterpretations of my original message. I’m a lot more intentional about what I write now. So overall I think this incident has improved my writing.
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