#would be cool if they let me do 2 weeks instead of 4 I hate that with nursing

[longlegsnamjoon420]

Doc took me off my antidepressant to prep me to start a new one and I already feel fucking withdrawal and weirdness this is exactly why I wanted to be inpatient this is dangerously to do when someone is already having suicidal thoughts. Now I get to deal with this on top of trying to figure out my job situation I fuckin cannot handle all this

[lostdreamr-blog1]

Pinky Promise 4

Word count: 1.7K

Pairings: Jake Seresin X Reader

A/N: Round 4 of Pink Promise! Part 5 is in the works now! Thanks for reading!

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

When Jake received the text, “Want to get drunk tonight?” on a Wednesday, a heavy feeling settled in his stomach. Something must have happened. He leaned against the cool countertop of his kitchen, weighing his options. The last time he saw you, time had slipped away unnoticed, and now it had been over a week. He fired back a quick reply, “Name the place and I’ll be there.”

He showered and changed out of his work clothes, heart racing as he waited for your next message. He hoped he could talk you down from whatever ledge you were teetering on and still make it home at a reasonable hour.

Jake drove to the small bar on the outskirts of town, a spot you chose to avoid running into other pilots. You didn’t dislike them; you just didn’t want to put on a show for Bradley’s sake. As he stepped inside, he spotted you immediately, alone at the bar. Your profile told a story that made him stop in his tracks. The dark circles under your eyes and the way your hair lost its usual shine spoke volumes. But it was your defeated posture that cut him the deepest—your shoulders hunched as if you were trying to disappear.

A sigh escaped his lips as he chastised himself for not checking on you sooner. He slid onto the stool next to you. “Hey, darlin’. Sorry if I made you wait.”

You looked up, a flicker of light returning to your eyes. “I haven’t been here long. How was work?”

“Same as always. Your brother has been more moody than usual,” he replied, signaling the bartender for a water.

You chuckled softly. “Natasha turned him down. He’s not taking it too well.”

Jake raised an eyebrow, surprised. He hadn’t known Bradley was interested. “Did he say why?”

“She gave him some excuse about not wanting to mix work with pleasure or some bullshit like that. He deserves better anyway.”

A comfortable silence settled between you for a few moments before you broke it with an unexpected question. “You ever think, ‘Man, I suck’?” You took a long sip of your drink, completely unfazed by Jake’s water.

He smirked. “Not particularly. I know I’m one of the best, so there’s not much room for doubt.”

You rolled your eyes. “That was such a bagman answer.”

Jake chuckled, but his expression turned serious. “I do have days I question why I’m still doing this. I love flying, but the risks are starting to feel bigger than the rewards.” He leaned back, hoping his honesty would coax you into sharing what was weighing you down.

When you finished your drink, he leaned closer. “What’s going on? It’s been a while since you’ve been out during the week.”

You turned your gaze to the empty glass, avoiding his eyes. “You’d be surprised how many times I drink during the week. But I think I’ve realized recently that I’m not built for med school.”

Alarm bells rang in Jake’s mind. “We’ll talk about the drinking in a minute. What’s happening with school? I thought things were going well.”

You signaled the bartender for another drink, and Jake slid his water toward you. “It’s not what I thought it would be. I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s just… not something I enjoy.”

Before you could reach for your new drink, Jake intercepted it. “Let me guess: instead of asking for help, you decided drinking was the better option?”

You nodded, your defenses slipping away. Why be responsible when it was easier to forget?

He sighed, “Did I ever tell you how much I hated flight school?” you shook your head, prompting him to continue. “I was excited to be a pilot. It’s been my dream for as long as I can remember. But when I got into the schooling side of it, I was crushed. I nearly quit a few times, but I told myself to push through. I kept thinking the freedom to enjoy what I love would be waiting on the other side.”

You slowly nodded your head at his admission. “I made the mistake of telling Bradley I hated it a few weeks back. He didn’t give me any fuzzy words of encouragement.” Jake clenched his fists, anger simmering at Bradley’s judgment. He knew how much your brother’s words affected you, no matter how much you tried to brush them off.

“Listen, sweetheart. I know you love your brother, but when stuff like this comes up, you need to reach out to me. I will never be too busy for you. I pinky promise.” He extended his pinky, a hopeful smile breaking through your somber expression.

“One of my greatest achievements will be having a big bad Top Gun pilot pinky-promise me,” you said, hooking your pinky with his and squeezing it lightly.

For another half-hour, you both sat at the bar, laughter mingling with the bittersweet confessions. When Jake finally stood to leave, he insisted, “I’m driving you home. It’s dark out, and I’d rather not take any chances.”

You opened your mouth to argue but quickly realized it was futile. With a resigned nod, you followed him outside. The night air was cool, but Jake’s presence felt like a warm shield against the world.

He opened the truck door for you, a small gesture that sent a ripple of warmth through your chest. As he gently closed it once you were inside, the moment felt almost too perfect, like a scene from one of those old movies that made you cringe. And that’s when your thoughts began to spiral.

You wanted to convince yourself that your troubles began and ended with school, but deep down, another darkness gnawed at you. It all felt so blissfully normal during your last study session at Jake’s apartment. The aroma of his homemade pasta mingled with the faint sound of an old movie playing in the background—one you secretly loathed, but you couldn’t bring yourself to care. You sat there on the couch, sharing bites and laughter, and thought, “Damn. If only I could have this every day.”

That’s when the drinks had returned, and the recluse lifestyle set back in.

Falling for Jake wasn’t supposed to be on your radar. He was everything your brother loathed—everything you thought you shouldn’t want. With his polished career and a social life that sparkled with ease, he seemed to glide through life. You, on the other hand, felt like you were sinking, caught in a riptide of your own insecurities.

As Jake parked and walked you to your door, you couldn’t help but admire yet another annoyingly perfect trait of his—how he always walked you to the door, like it was the most natural thing in the world.

“You’ve been awfully quiet this whole ride here. You sure you’re okay?” His voice was low and laced with concern. He glanced down, catching the way your fingers nervously toyed with the hem of your shirt.

You hesitated, torn between the urge to unload the weight of your heart and the instinct to keep it all bottled up. “Just… a lot on my mind,” you finally admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

“Want to talk about it?” His eyes searched yours, and in that moment, you felt the walls you’d built around yourself begin to crack, revealing the tangled mess of emotions you’d been trying so hard to suppress.

You looked away, the cool night air brushing against your skin, and realized that perhaps, just maybe, letting him in could be the first step toward something beautiful—or the beginning of yet another spiral.

The mature thing to do would be to lay it all out there, to let him in on the storm brewing inside your head. But maturity had never been your strong suit. “I think it’s a conversation for another night,” you said, forcing the words out as you unlocked the door and stepped inside. You turned to find Jake’s gaze heavy with concern, and your heart sank a little.

“I promise I’m fine, and it’s nothing.” You flashed a small smile, but it faltered under the weight of his skepticism.

“And when I leave here, are you just going to ignore me and slip back into that shell you’ve been hiding in?” He crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe, exuding a mix of frustration and genuine worry.

You felt the familiar urge to run, to dodge the uncomfortable truth. You’d always sidestepped conflicts, always preferred to sweep emotions under the rug. But before you could catch yourself, the words spilled out. “I think I’m falling for you.”

It was the kind of confession that felt like a punch to the gut, and before you could process the fallout, you slammed the door in his face.

Silence filled the space, thick and suffocating. You leaned against the door, heart racing, half-expecting him to knock again or shout something—anything. But the only sound was your own breathing, rapid and shallow. What had you just done?

You were spiraling again, your mind racing through all the ways this could end badly. You pictured Jake standing there, processing your words, his expression shifting from surprise to hurt.

Why did you always have to make things so complicated?

After a moment, you heard a soft knock. Your heart thudded in your chest. “Hey,” Jake’s voice came through the wood, calm but tinged with confusion. “Can we talk about this? Please?”

You hesitated, grappling with the tumult of emotions. Part of you wanted to open the door and let him in, to unravel everything you’d kept bottled up. But another part, the one that had always chosen the path of least resistance, screamed at you to keep it shut.

What if you had just ruined everything?

A/N: Somehow this turned into a mini series...thoughts? Do we think Jake will feel the same? Part 5 in the works :) Thanks for reading!!

Tag List: @rosiahills22 @sunlitsunflowers @dempy @mamaskillerqueen @luckyladycreator2 @atarmychick007 @my-soulmate-is-mycroft @topguncultleader @alilstressyandlotdepressy @avengers-fixation @chaoticcassidy @alldaysdreamers, @hotch-meeeeeuppppp, @mrsevans90, @spidey-d00d, @rororo06, @lilstarfish88, @jasmine-in-the-night,

[chishiyasleftnut]

Oh my god this took longer than I expected, I am so sorry (｡•́︿•̀｡)

As requested by a few people in the comments on PART 3, here is part 4 to the phase 2 Chishiya fic I've been working on!

It includes everything from angst to fluff to smut at the end. What's not to like? (•̀ᴗ•́ )و I hope you'll all enjoy it!

Stuck With You (part 4)

(Read part 1, part 2, and part 3 here)

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤 Genre: Smut, angst AND fluff. (look at me go)

Warnings: smut and gun violence. Includes penetration (female receiving), unprotected sex.

Pairing: Chishiya x fem!reader

Plot: After sleeping together twice, Chishiya began ignoring fem!reader, making her mad with worry. Does he hate her? Did she do someting wrong? Or perhaps something else was going on, something she had completely missed?

3349 words. 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

The discussion of what you were never came. Out of fear of making your cramped living conditions more awkward than necessary, you decided not to push it and just live in the unknown. You didn’t need to define the relationship, you told yourself. You were soooo cool with keeping it casual and undefined.

With that mindset, you both continued your life at the camp as if nothing had happened. A part of you had expected there to be more touching but no, Chishiya’s behaviour seemingly completely reverted back to how he was before that fateful stormy night, never letting down his guard and showing even a sliver of vulnerability.

Every night you went to bed next to each other, crammed into a two-man-tent and your bodies somehow not connecting anywhere at all. Every morning you woke up to the tent empty as Chishiya would leave the shared space as soon as his eyes were open.

You rarely spoke much either, which wouldn’t have affected you if you hadn’t slept together twice. Although you had no intentions of confronting Chishiya with this, it did hurt you that he by all appearances felt as if nothing special happened - as if you were just a sex doll he could use when he needed to get off.

A part of you tried to defend Chishiya. Maybe he had little experience with romance - or even friendship? You had never seen him interact deeply with anyone before so that could be an explanation. He didn’t exactly seem like the lovey-dovey type either. Yeah, it wasn’t personal, you said to yourself to calm your anxiety. This was just how he was.

Although your little camp at the outskirts of Tokyo seemed like a perfect, isolated place right after the Beach’ end, the two of you had noticed more and more people in the vicinity of your tent over the past week. It started off with the occasional sound of rustling bushes and glimpses of people appearing far away, but lately you had had actual run-ins with strangers. To your luck, none of them were an immediate threat. Still, the camp didn’t feel safe anymore.

“Come with me,” Chishiya one day said during breakfast.

His words took you by surprise, mostly because you were embarrassingly deep into your thoughts about your relationship (or lack thereof) and had completely zoned him out. You quickly began chewing the big bite of protein bar that you seconds prior had mindlessly stuffed into your mouth so you could reply, but Chishiya continued before you had a chance to clear your mouth.

“Come on. We’re doing a supply run.”

The request was unusual, as Chishiya always did supply runs on his own. His usual reasoning was that you were too slow and that it would be safer if he could quickly be in and out of the city instead of having to wait around for you.

“I thought you liked doing that on your own?” you questioned once you had finally swallowed the lump of chocolatey protein bar.

“I do,” he said while gathering his things. “But not today. Hurry up, I don’t want to wait all day.”

You wanted to pry for an actual answer, but knew it was fruitless. Instead, you quickly finished your breakfast and picked up your bag so you could accompany him into Tokyo.

As expected, your walk to the nearest convenience store was both silent and uneventful. Even though you had a million questions running through your mind, you had no way of articulating them in a way that wouldn’t make you seem desperate. As much as you craved closure, you also didn’t want to scare him away. Hence, you decided silence was best.

When you arrived at the rundown and almost empty 7/11, Chishiya held the door open for you. As you walked in you paused in the doorway with wide eyes. Instantly, you felt bad for complaining about the type of supplies he brought back. In your mind, convenience stores were always filled to the brim with food 24/7, but it seemed as if the situation in the borderlands were way different than in normal life. This convenience store looked at if it had been raided consistently for months, the shelves nearly empty and the floor covered in broken glass.

“Is there even any food left?” you asked while staying in the door-opening, completely overwhelmed by the chaotic emptiness of it all - an oxymoron you until now had never experienced before.

Chishiya pushed past you with a gentle hand on your lower back, ushering you inside. The sudden physical contact sent goosebumps all over your body, making every single small hair on your arms and legs stand up straight. God, you had missed being touched more than you knew.

“I’m sure there’s some left. Help me look.”

Once you recovered, you assisted Chishiya in finding any food that wasn’t rotten. To protect your sensitive nose, you decided to completely avoid the open refrigerator section that in the normal world housed delicious tuna-mayo onigiris and microwave-heatable freshly made meals, all of which you knew wouldn’t have lasted even a week without spoiling.

With quiet steps, you walked up and down the aisles, looking for anything edible. The little, orange shopping basket that you were carrying slowly got filled with various types of instant noodles. Once you were very dead-set on which brands and flavours were worth eating, but you had to throw that all to the side now. The selection was limited, and it was not time to be picky.

With the basket now housing a decent selection of instant noodles in all shapes, colours, and sizes, you turned the corner and stumbled into the candy aisle where Chishiya’s eyes were expertly scanning over the sparse selection. He never brought back too much food out of fear of attracting the wildlife that had slowly taken over Tokyo together with the greenery.

You watched as his hand reached out for a pack of strawberry gummies - his favourite, as you had come to learn from the many times that he had exclusively brought back strawberry flavoured candy instead of the superior tasting grape. However, instead of grabbing the strawberry flavour, he instead picked up two packs of the remaining neighbouring grape variant, quickly putting it into his own shopping basket. As he went to walk away, presumably to find food that wasn’t just candy, he turned in your direction and caught you looking.

“Is something wrong?” he questioned with a raised eyebrow. You gestured down to the grape flavoured candy in his basket.

“I thought you liked strawberry,” you pointed out. “Why get grape?”

“I wanted to try something new,” he eventually said in a casual manner, causing you to roll your eyes out of annoyance.

“I’ve complained about the lack of grape candy for weeks and suddenly you’re willing to try it?”

Chishiya had just opened his mouth to presumably give a flippant reply, when he was interrupted by the deafening sound of gunshots from the street outside the store. Instinctively, Chishiya put an arm in front of you, using his own body to shield you from the far-away shooter. You both stood still as statues, using every sense to figure out how close you were to danger. As the gunshots came to a halt, you let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding.

“Okay, I think that- AHH!”

A loud, high-pitched scream left your mouth before you had a chance to stop it, as a much closer round of shots completely took you by surprise. Chishiya quickly pulled you with him on the floor behind the cash register, hugging your back tightly against his front and covering your mouth with his hand to keep you quiet.

“Shhh,” he hushed lowly into your ear, his warm breath tickling your skin. “Be quiet.”

The next few minutes were tense, as neither of you had any visuals of the shooter due to your sheltering behind the cash register. You therefore used the only sense available to you to find any auditory signs that would indicate the location of the shooter. Much to your dismay, you before long heard the store bell chime as the door got opened. The shrill of the bell was followed by the sound of a pair of hefty military boots crushing the many glass shards scattered on the floor.

You were shaking in Chishiya’s arm, trembling with fear as you inaudibly prayed that whoever was now in the store with you would just leave you alone. Chishiya hugged you so tightly against him that you were almost suffocating, his hand surely leaving a red imprint on your face. Despite the physical discomfort, his firm embrace also worked to ground you, calming you down and keeping you quiet.

It didn’t take long for the stranger to leave the store again, possibly disappointed by the lack of victims to shoot down. You both waited a few extra minutes just to be safe, before Chishiya finally let his hand fall away from your mouth, allowing you to take a deep breath, fully filling up your oxygen deprived lungs.

“I should never have taken you with me,” he mumbled while standing up, visibly distraught in a way you hadn’t seen before. Long gone was his usual nonchalant demeanour, his normal indifference replaced by panicky eyes and shallow breaths.

Still sitting on the floor, your shaken mind attempted to connect the many jumbled up puzzle pieces. Chishiya was scared. You had never seen him scared before, so that alone was adding to the confusion. It had gotten to the point where you didn’t even know if he cared about his life. And then it finally clicked: He wasn’t scared for his own safety; he was scared for yours.

“Wait, you asked me to join you to protect me?” you asked while he with a strong hand helped you up on your feet.

“I thought it would be safer than leaving you at the camp, but clearly it was not.” Chishiya walked back around the counter and picked up the dropped shopping baskets with food, neatly packing the content into his bag with uncharacteristically shaky hands. “The camp didn’t feel safe anymore. Too many people around. What if the wrong person saw you all alone? I couldn’t risk it.”

You were in shock, unsure of how to take that in. You had spent the past week worrying over Chishiya’s sudden indifference to you, and here he was admitting he cared? No scratch that, he didn’t just care, he was worried about you. This changed everything.

“I thought you hated me,” you stuttered out, still completely overwhelmed by this new revelation. “I thought I had done something wrong and that you hated me for it.”

“I could never hate you.”

Your eyes met in what felt like a tender embrace, Chishiya’s deep brown orbs showing softness and sincerity in a way you had never could have imagined. He meant it, you were absolutely sure of it.

Calmed by his newfound gentleness, you slowly helped him pack up the supplies gathered from the convenience store, your mind gradually making sense of the past week. You were pulled back to reality when your hands picked up the little plastic bag of grape flavoured candy.

“You got these for me, didn’t you?” you asked, feeling the final puzzle piece clicking into place.

“I did. I should have gotten them earlier.”

“You should have,” you declared amusedly, suddenly finding humour in his previous stubbornness. “I’ve been begging for a while, you know.”

Your remark made Chishiya smile, but for once it didn’t seem like he was laughing at your expense. Instead, he seemed fondly entertained by you, a dynamic switch you hadn’t seen coming.

Together, you walked back to the camp. The walk was silent, but this time it wasn’t an awkward silence. Instead, you both enjoyed the other’s company, using the quiet time to mentally and physically decompress from the intense past 30 minutes you had shared. Eventually you reached the camp again, flopping down in front of the unlit fireplace and immediately going in on the treasured grape candy. Chishiya didn’t comment on it, but just observed how you practically swallowed one purple gummy after the other.

As day turned to night, you both climbed back into the tent with your bellies full of a variety of instant noodles, ready for the best sleep of your life after an emotionally exhausting day. You followed Chishiya, as he laid down on the sleeping mat, sighing when you finally allowed yourself to feel the body aches that were a near constant lately. Chishiya noticed your little sigh, and gently pulled you in closer to him in an attempt to soothe you.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice barely more than a whisper.

“Yeah. Just tired,” you replied, matching his low tone. It felt like the right volume to speak at in the darkness of the tent.

Chishiya ran his hand up and down your arm, attempting to lull you to sleep. It was tempting to allow yourself to drift off, and yet you stayed awake, not wanting to miss out on this side of Chishiya. 

“I haven’t done this before,” Chishiya finally said, turning his head to look at you. His words confused you.

“We’ve cuddled before.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?” you asked, the confusion apparent in your voice.

Chishiya gestured broadly to the two of you. “This.”

You hummed in acknowledgment, finally understanding his vague remark. You had been right in assuming that he had little experience with anything deeper than sex.

“Do you like it?” you finally asked, holding your breath as you awaited the answer.

Chishiya took his sweet time to reply, leaving you suddenly feeling worried that you had somehow managed to completely misinterpret everything that had happened that day. Luckily, he eventually opened his mouth again.

“I do.”

And with that, you let out a sigh of relief. Thank God. Without thinking, you placed your lips firmly against his and initiated a kiss. He reciprocated, although somewhat hesitantly at first.

“I thought you were tired?” he asked in between kisses, his hands slowly gaining courage as they began exploring your body.

“Not that tired,” you said as you rolled on top of him, straddling him and pushing his body firmly down on the sleeping mat without your lips leaving his.

Chishiya didn’t need any more convincing. He quickly flipped you back around, your body thumping hard against the mat as he forcibly pinned you down under him. His hands got rougher as they ventured all over your body, exploring every curve and soft patch of skin that he could reach.

A moan slipped out of your mouth and into his when his right hand snaked down your body and into your pants, his fingers connecting with your already sensitive clit. He didn’t slow down, instead creating a consistent rhythm as he circled around the needy bud. Your hips instinctively moved against his hand, only further prompting him to continue.

“You like that?” he mumbled possessively into your ear, his fingers pressing harder down on you. “D’you like how I make you feel?”

Unable to use your words, you instead moaned louder. Quickly, Chishiya used his left hand to cover your mouth, suppressing any sound that came from you.

“So eager already?” he asked smugly. “I need you to quiet down, princess. We don’t want the entire forest to hear us, no?”

Once you were subdued, his hand left your mouth and instead journeyed down south to assist his other hand in freeing you of your pants. Once unzipped and unbuttoned, you helped him slide your jeans off by lifting your hips off from the floor, watching as he threw the pants to the side before sitting in between your spread legs.

His fingers traced teasingly along the trim of your panties, carefully avoiding the places that were desperate to be touched. After minutes that felt like hours, he finally trailed down from your belly button to your core, noticing how wet the fabric was.

“Desperate, are we?” he asked amusedly.

“Hurry up,” you mewed, closing your eyes to focus on the faint sensation of Chishiya’s fingers tickling your most sensitive area.

“Desperate and commanding. I better get going, huh?”

To your luck, Chishiya promptly helped you out of your underwear, throwing them over to your pants before immediately delving his long, slender fingers into your core. You moaned, quickly covering your own mouth as you remembered his warning minutes prior.

In a manner that was simultaneously careful and eager, he made sure you were adequately warmed up and stretched out, before pulling off his own sweatpants and boxer briefs in one go. Your eyes connected with his hard length, your mouth almost salivating at what was to come.

Chishiya didn’t waste any more time, his collectiveness wavering as carnal desires took over his mind. He climbed on top of you, spreading your legs to each side of him before lining his hardness up at your entrance and pushing himself in right away.

You both gasped as you got used to the sudden change of sensation. Your walls tightened up around his dick, hugging it tightly in a hungry embrace. Chishiya buried his face in your neck, fighting against his animalistic urges to remain at least somewhat in control. Once at least moderately grounded, his hips began moving against yours, his cock pumping in and out of you rhythmically and filling you both up with continuously building layers of pleasure.

Without realising it, your legs tightened around his body as you slowly but steadily felt yourself get closer to the edge - closer to the release you so desperately needed after the rather hectic day you had just experienced.

You didn’t even notice when Chishiya bit down on your shoulder in an attempt to keep himself from finishing, his body continuing working towards its goal of getting you closer, and closer, and….

“Fuck, I’m coming!” you eventually moaned, your vision fading to black as you felt pleasure rushing through your body, all your senses focused elsewhere leaving you completely oblivious to what was going on in the real world.

As the wonderful sensation sadly came to an end, you felt Chishiya collapse down on top of you, his deep voice grunting into your ear as he too came, filling your core up with his cum. For a while, you stayed in this position, both recovering from the short but intense escapade you had just shared. Eventually, Chishiya rolled off you, landing on the hard mat with a thud.

A part of you feared what would happen next. The last time you slept together, Chishiya spent the entire week after on ignoring you. You weren’t sure if you could survive that treatment again. However, to your delight, Chishiya gently pulled you back in close to him, hugging your tired body firmly against his.

“I needed that,” he mumbled, his voice already sounding calm and sleepy. You chuckled a bit, but nonetheless nodded to show agreement.

“Me too.”

Chishiya yawned and pulled you even tighter against him, hugging you like a child would hug its favourite plushie. Just as he was about to fall asleep, you decided to ask the question that was weighing heavily on your mind.

“You won’t ignore me again, right?”

He opened his eyes, looking a bit confused before he understood where you came from.

“No,” he said, grazing your forehead with his lips before closing his eyes again. “I’ll never ignore you again.”

That were the last words you remembered before you gently lulled to sleep, his reassuring words calming the last few anxious thoughts running through your mind and finally allowing you to succumb to your exhaustion.

I’ll never ignore you again.

The phrase played over and over again in your mind as you slept, even appearing in your dream. And you believed him. You really did. This was the start of something new.

[sunsetsandsunshine]

An issue I need to address:

TW: Drama, cussing…yk all that jazz. I apologize that this post is what you all are receiving from me today. But I need to talk about this before it get’s worse.

Okay, I just want to clarify that there should be no hate being sent towards @osctwordfan for this. Hate and hurtful comments will not and cannot fix what has been done. But that does not I am not angry about it. I am mad. I am livid. Only two people on this site has been able to make me this genuinely upset and it’s frustrating that making a PUBLIC POST is the only way to get this person’s attention. 

4 days ago, May 16th, @osctwordfan started following me. Which, I greatley appreciated because HELLO??? Who wouldn’t, right? A new follower is just an awesome feeling to have. So, I checked their blog to see what they liked and we shared SO many similar interests it was almost scary. And I followed back. 

If you know me for a while, you know my whole ���Hi new mutual 💝” message I send to my new mutuals. Because 1: I love talking to people and 2: I just want others to feel like they’re welcome. (If you haven’t received one yet it’s either bc you’re a little older than me or idk how to send the message. BUT YOU WILL GET ONE TRUST 💞💓💘💖💝)

And you all know how you can SEE when someone is online? Well, they were online when I texted this. And I got no response. I just assumed it was nervousness or shyness so I didn’t really question it. Until a few minuetes later they reblogged my “You can always ask” fic. 

Which, woo-hoo I guess. But my message was still not answered. But I didn’t think it was THAT deep. 

The next day, May 17th, I noticed they were online. I sent a quick “Hi” again, awaiting a response. About 5 minutes later I was met with one, except it wasn’t the one I was expecting or hoping for. 

It was a request. For a fanfiction. Okay okay cool. Coolio. You…ignore my two messages of me just simply saying a quick “hello” and you don’t answer…instead you ask for a tickle fanfiction of some turtles? 

I get people are shy. I get that. I do. But me and one of my best friends were talking about it on Insta and it made no damn sense. Following, reblogging and requesting things from an individual that’s been trying to speak with you for the past few days and you not responding and then ASKING something of them is just…weird. 

Me and one of my best friend’s convo:

So, on May 18th I saw they were online again, and so I texted the following: 

Which I felt was fine. It was straight to the point. But where my anger really emegred was when I got notifications of my fics being reblogged by the same person. AGAIN. NOT EVEN 3 MINUTES LATER.

And then May 19th they liked another post of mine. Although it was a post that you would have to DIG DEEP FOR. Because I made it a year ago and only 4 people liked it (INCLUDING ME.). So you would have to LOOK LOOK to find it. 

Then yesterday, May 20th, was just my breaking point. I was chilling, having a nice evening, talking with my fellow mutuals, writing a fic (AND FINISHING WOO-HOO) until I get a notification. And guess what? It’s just another reblog by the same person. 

Did I get any responses of my pervious texts? Nope. Not at ALL. 

I am sick and hurt of being treated as if I’m just a computer that makes fanfictions.

I am a PERSON. A human being that for the past week has been trying to talk with you. And you at fucking 16 should understand that. 

You are one whole year older than me and you think you have the right to treat me this way. Who the absolute hell do you think you are? 

Because let me get this through your head: I live in an African and Jamaican  household, and one thing that we let each other know day in and day out is to never ever let someone make you feel like you’re less. 

So when you see this @osctwordfan I am hoping you have a good explanation regarding to last week. 

@ ing mutual’s in this because this is INSANE and I am LIVID rn: 

@itzsana-kiddingmenow @veryblushyswitch

@skyloladoodles @saturnzskyzz @backy-san

@creativecutie @savemeafruitjuice

@mythica0 @leosmasktails @someone1348 @vxlepop

@anxious-lee @charismakat

@sunny-117 @odder-outlet @jamiesgotchu @ziipzeepzop-eez

@danineedshelp @pocky-dragon

@my-l0v3r-v3rse @rice-cake-teen10

[hivefleet-hellbender]

Out in the desert, no one can find you... (Hex Tiles 1)

A sharp wind whistles through the desert dunes, bringing no reprieve to the travelers following the thin paths left out in the sand. Don't drink from the river — the plants that grow along its shores contain toxins that could leave a grown man coughing up blood, and chemical spills float through the current. A faraway road carries the rare drone-tank, long abandoned from any sort of human use.

My newest hobby, to distract myself on months when the purse is a bit too tight to be buying plastic crack from Games Workshop, is to build modular hex tiles! It's super easy — I pick up a hundred of these wooden MDF tiles from Amazon for $10 (they're advertised as 2", but they're 1.75" from tip to tip, and each side is 1"), grab any spare craft supplies I have lying around, and get to work! They're super quick (this first batch of one hundred took me around a week) and they open the door to a lot of cool experimentation. A lot of this is inspired by the work of u/Marcus_Machiavelli over on Reddit, who makes these fantastic modular hive city components that I hope to someday be able to emulate. 

I'm making these for two purposes, neither of which I've put in practice yet but I'm hoping to get to do at some point. They're for:

Any mass-battle games played at 6mm. This could also work for Adeptus Titanicus or the upcoming Epic reboot that Games Workshop is working on. 

Tactical TTRPGs like Lancer that are played with large beings, who can operate on a 6mm scale.

Once I get some games in with them, I'm sure I'll encounter future problems and reassess how I approach them. But for now, this is what I've got!

I Hate Sand

The first set of tiles I made, to serve as the backdrop for the rest of them, are these sand tiles. I chose to make this a desert (and thus make a bunch of sand tiles) because I already had some sand lying around, and because it's really cheap and easy to work with. Be careful though! Anakin was right; sand sucks. Try and pick up a finer grain than what I went with, apply the sand in a more-controlled location than I did, and secure it better than I did too. But here's how I did them:

Coat the surface of the hex with a mix of PVA glue and water.

Sprinkle on a light dusting of gravel or small rocks.

Apply a thick coat of sand on top of the gravel.

Knock off excess sand and recycle it for next time.

Spray with 1-2 layers of varnish. (I would recommend a sealant instead, but I didn't have any at the time)

For the ones with little paths on them, I painted the path on with White before applying the gravel or sand, and it shows through well enough! The paths are unnecessary — they're a fun experiment, but I don't think I'll be making more of them in the future.

The Gurgling Creek

Making the river tiles was a bit more involved, but still pretty easy. The method I came up with I think looks a lot better than just painting on water, and is a lot easier to work with than resin or water effects. 

Use some kind of texture gel to build up the riverbanks, trying to have them end around 1/4" on the sides of the tiles where you want your river to connect.

Paint a strip Black where you want the river to flow, running from one edge to another.

Apply sand as before, everywhere except where you painted the black. (If you're worried about fucking this up, you can swap the order)

Varnish (or use sealant) as before. 

Take some gloss mod podge and mix it with a light blue paint, and apply in large goopy quantities everywhere you want water to be. Leave overnight to dry. (If you want the river to be less cloudy, apply many thin coats of mod podge instead, letting each layer dry before applying the next)

As an extra, stipple green along the edges of the water and use a dark green wash to create patches of vegetation.

The river pieces are my favorites, and I'm the most proud of them. The tiny bridge was a thin strip of balsa wood, painted white and then washed black. It turned out fine.

I did a solid mix of straight river pieces and curving river pieces. If I was going to do it again I'd make more curving pieces than straight river pieces, because the curving ones make more sense for how rivers work.

The Road To Nowhere

These road tiles turned out really well, perfect for a run-down highway in the middle of nowhere. Here's how I made them:

Take a piece of corkboard and cut it down to be 1.75" long and 1" wide.

Glue it on a hex with the two edges of the corkboard touching two sides of the hex.

Go at the edges with a knife, making it all worn down and busted up.

In some of these spots, I fucked up and glued the corkboard on wrong. To fix that, break off a chunk and reposition it so it'll connect correctly. This will look like a big fat crack in the middle of the road, which is perfect.

Coat in a layer of mod podge or PVA glue. Leave to dry.

Once dry, paint the cork entirely Gray.

Drybrush White onto the corkboard, focusing on the edges and exposed spots.

Paint two thin yellow lines along the middle of the road. (These are optional, but they do a lot to make the 6mm scale convincing)

Apply sand, as before, onto the ground and up the sides of the road, so it looks like the road is emerging from the sand. Maybe apply some sand in a couple spots in the cracks to make it look like the sand has gotten in there.

Varnish and/or sealant, as before.

Apply a Black wash to the road. (There's a lot of tricks here! If you want the yellow stripes to be more vibrant, you can only paint them on after the first black wash. You can also target spots of sand on the road to make it look like it's asphalt runoff, soaking black into the cracks.)

Apply a second Black wash to the road. 

The bridge was a bit more complicated, and took some finicky positioning and a trip to Kung-Fu Tea.

Take a boba tea straw and cut it into 1" segments, then cut them in half, gluing them to the middle of the hex as culverts.

Take corkboard and glue it over the culverts, bending it so it meets the two edges you want the bridge to run along. If it breaks, that's okay — this is a crumbling, middle-of-nowhere bridge.

Use texture gel and spare corkboard to fill in the gaps.

Use texture gel to define the steep edges of the river. Apply a little bit in between the culverts.

Do all the road steps to the road part of the bridge, and all the river steps to the river part of the bridge.

I'm exceedingly proud of the bridge hex. It turned out perfectly, and feels very emblematic of what I want this project to be like.

Why You, Too, Should Make 6mm Terrain

6mm terrain is amazing to make. Mistakes look like part of the landscape or the brain smudges them over due to the small size, and small changes look like fascinating little details. It really opens the imaginative space and I absolutely adore working at this scale. Plus I'm developing a ton of experience with various materials I've never worked with before, so I get to enjoy the triumph of carving foam or corkboard. It rules! I might even try to make a 28mm bridge after the success I had making a 6mm one.

My future plans for this project include cliffs, craters, 3D-printed shantytowns, and overpasses. But all that is for a later date — for now I'm gonna rest on my laurels, and spend the rest of the evening reconfiguring various tile combinations and cackling like a mad scientist.

[ladykailitha]

Star Child Part 12

Yeah...it’s really looking like this story is coming to a close. And I hate it. I love this story, but my muse has me careening toward the finish line like a star falling to earth. Far, far too quickly. If my muse had any sense at all, it would drag out the plot with Creel and the label, but it doesn’t want to. It wants the boys to be happy ever after NOW not in five weeks (as was the original ending with Corroded Coffin’s final concert in LA and Steve confessing his feelings on stage).

Also there is a cliffhanger but I have written most of the next chapter so Monday you should get the resolution. And just remember, I promised a happy ending.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11

*

Steve made a couple of calls himself. The first to Erica to make sure that being in litigation would prevent him from leaving the state. It didn’t, so his next call was to Jane. Between the two of them they crafted the perfect coming out plan. Complete with statements and interviews. His final phone call was to Robin.

“I’m giving you the heads up,” Steve said once she answered. “I’m going burn the label to the ground. Erica and Jane are all for it.”

“What made you decide to do it now?” she asked. “Instead of a week from now or even a month?”

“Because it’s better to be honest and open now,” he explained, pacing in his office, “then to have to do damage control. Let people know what I was forced into and how dangerous the music industry still is for the LGBTQ+ community. I’m tired of hiding, Robin.”

She sighed. “I know. I’m proud of you.”

“I almost came out at Love Loud...” he whispered into the phone.

There was silence on the line for a moment before Robin said, “Wow.”

He took a deep breath. “I got talked out of it by the record label. They told me to wait until after the last album was complete.”

“Something they thought was years off,” Robin said. “Those bastards!”

Steve hummed in agreement. “Pretty much.”

“You need me to come over?” she asked.

“No,” Steve murmured. “I’m going to fly out to Salt Lake City and do a couple of radio shows and be seen with Eddie.”

Robin huffed out a laugh. “And I can guess who’s idea that was.”

“Dustin is going to be insufferable,” he said with a sigh.

Robin cackled until Steve hung up the phone.

*

“In a released statement from Steve Harrington’s management and PR firm the pop star, formally of the boy band The Kings came out as bisexual. The statement went on to say that his parents and the label conspired to keep his attraction to men a secret, going as far as conversion therapy, threat of commitment to a mental institution, and even blackmail.

“Steve Harrington was seen at LAX this afternoon and our sources say that he went off to go into hiding until this all cools down. Further sources say that he is holed up in a hotel in Salt Lake City. Sources couldn’t confirm, however whether or not he was with Corroded Coffin who will be playing at the Vivint Arena tomorrow night to a sold out crowd.

We will keep you to date on all the latest news surrounding the sudden coming out of Steve Harrington...”

Eddie turned off the TV and turned to Steve. “That was quite the coming out story, sweetheart.”

Steve was with the band and their manager, Chrissy Cunningham in Eddie’s hotel suite.

“I just hope it gets the hounds of hell off my heels,” Steve murmured.

Chrissy pursed her lips. “I’m not sure I like this plan.”

Jeff nodded. “There are so many things that could go wrong, but if it goes right all of us will be able to sleep better at night, and you know it.”

Chrissy sighed. “I do like the guards outside the door, though. That’s a nice touch.”

Steve grinned. “Aren’t they fantastic?”

“We’re smuggling you out to LA,” Brian told her. “We don’t want you caught in the crossfire if this goes south.”

Chrissy’s eyes went wide.

“Which it won’t,” Eddie growled, glaring at Brian.

“You’ll be staying with my manager, Robin Buckley at my place,” Steve said. “Janice already has people there to protect you both if Creel decides he wants hostages.”

They all sobered up at that. Steve coming out was only a part of the puzzle and if all went well, they would have one creepy ass dude behind bars.

*

Steve had lunch with Eddie and they both made sure they had their location turned on so that they would be seen together.

“I think of all the parts of this plan I hate the most,” Steve said when he spotted the third paparazzo snapping their picture, “is that this is a setup. I wish it was something we were just out doing.”

Eddie’s heart ached even as the butterflies took off in his stomach.

“You telling me you want to go out with me, Stevie?”

Steve chewed his bottom lip and looked down shyly at his half eaten sandwich, “And if I did?”

Eddie cocked his head and smiled, “And were you just going ‘keep doing what you were doing and hope it was enough’, sweetheart?”

Steve blushed. “You caught me. It was about you all this time.”

Eddie lift Steve’s chin gently with a single finger. “I don’t do low key, babe. I’m very loud about who and what I like. I came up with the plan, because I wanted to be seen with you.”

Steve’s eyes went wide as Eddie pressed their lips together and he sighed into the kiss.

“I’m sorry,” Eddie murmured.

“For what?” Steve breathed out like a sigh.

Eddie kissed him again. “For not remembering our first kiss. For not running away with you when I had the chance.”

Steve brought his chair closer to Eddie’s to lean into the man’s shoulder. “I think I like it this way. Who knows what might have happened if we had, maybe we became a duo like the White Stripes or maybe would have struggled for years and never became anyone. But I do know that the Kings wouldn’t have been famous. Corroded Coffin wouldn’t have been a band. And I hate that thought.”

Eddie put his arms around Steve’s shoulder. “I love you so much. I think I always have. I just buried it deep. Twisted it until it was unrecognizable. But then you turned back up in my life and I wanted to write love songs about you in a week.”

Steve chuckled. “I’ve already written love songs about you.”

Eddie laughed. It wasn’t malicious or cruel, it was bright and clear. Like of course he did. “You record any of those sappy love songs about me?”

Steve pursed lips and looked up.

“Oh god,” Eddie said with a chuckle. “Can I guess which one? Unless there is more than one?”

Steve shook his head. “I think the label recognized it as being about a boy and carefully vetted each song before I could record it. It was then I realized I was never going to give them my best songs. Because all my best songs were always about you.”

Eddie blushed. “So it would have be off your first solo album...” Steve nodded. “Oh god...”

Steve laughed. “Yup.”

“Oh no,” Eddie moaned. “God that is super cheesy, darlin’.”

“Oh yeah,” Steve said.

“‘Drowning in Your Brown Eyes’, really?”

“In my defense I was eighteen when I wrote it, and just swapped out the pronouns when I went into the recording studio. But yeah, it’s about you, sunshine.”

“Are you going to tell people it’s about a boy?” Eddie asked, pressing his lips to the top of Steve’s head. “That it’s about me?”

Steve lifted his head. “Do you want me to? I mean it is pretty cheesy pop clap trap. I would rather write songs about you and then release it with the knowledge that it’s about you. With everyone knowing it’s about you.”

Eddie’s expression turned fond. “Okay, babe. We could write a duet. Like the Love Loud concert, only our song.”

“I did promise that I would let you write a song on my first non-pop album. I would be happy to have you, love.”

Eddie couldn’t resist pressing his lips to Steve’s. In that moment, everything faded away. The world in which cruel labels, psychopathic mob figures, and disappointing parents just vanished in the midst of their love.

*

They stumbled gleefully into Eddie’s hotel room, kissing and laughing at how happy they were now that they realized how much they love each other.

Someone cleared their throat and they froze. They turned slowly to see Henry Creel sitting in an arm chair. He was devastatingly beautiful as he always was. He wore a white suit with matching loafers and the jacket draped over his shoulders like a cape. The light blue button shirt was the exact color of his eyes. His blond hair flopped lazily over one eye.

Behind him were Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum.

“So you do only have two minions,” Eddie huffed. “Mike was right, you are stupid.”

Creel’s face twisted into a snarl. “I didn’t get to where I am by being dumb, Eddie.”

Eddie raised a questioning eyebrow.

“This room has been swept for electronic devices,” Creel continued. “So if you think that your precious federal officers are going to be coming to your rescue, do think again, won’t you?”

Steve looked him up and down. “Christ.”

Creel smirked. “Close enough. I get everything I want. And I want Eddie Munson.”

Steve scratched his cheek and cocked his head. “I don’t know if you realize this, but Eddie is a person, not a thing, not a possession. You can’t have him.”

Eddie took his hand and gave it a squeeze. “I told you when we first met, I don’t heel. I’m not a lap dog. You can’t bring me to my knees.”

Creel stood up and he was eye to eye with Eddie. “I can and I will.”

Eddie huffed out a laugh. “My bandmates already know not to trust anything that didn’t come directly from my mouth, thanks to that little stunt in Austin.”

Creel’s answering smile was cruel. “You forget one small detail, Eddie dear.”

“What’s that?”

“You would do anything to not see him harmed,” Creel said with a smug grin.

“You’re threatening to what?” Steve asked, with an eye roll. “To kill me? Hurt me? Throw me back to the wolves who are my parents? Let the record label win, so I’m controlled forever? What could you do to me that I haven���t done or tried to do to myself?”

Eddie heart shattered. “Sweetheart...”

Steve lifted his chin. “I went through hell, Creel. You are just another demon barking at my heels.”

“Castor, Pollock, take Stevie here to the other room and kill him,” Creel said over his shoulder. “Make it look like suicide, won’t you?”

Steve closed his eyes as they grabbed him roughly. Eddie moved to stop them, but he felt sharp pain in his side. He looked down to see Creel was holding a switchblade to him.

“Please don’t move,” Creel said sweetly. “I would hate to get blood on this suit.”

“It’s okay, Eddie,” Steve murmured. “He hasn’t won.”

Eddie jaw began to quiver.

Steve stopped just before the door and turned around to face him. “Make him pay.”

Eddie nodded.

The door closed and a few moments later...

BANG!

***

Part 13 Part 14 Part 15  Part 16

Tag List: @bejeweledbaby @eboyawstenn @moonshadows-13 @ohlook-afrog @goodolefashionedloverboi @linkydinky06 @livelaughlexa @spectrum-spectre @cutepumpkin4 @whatthemeepever @gleek4twd @anything-thats-rock-and-roll @novelnovella @celtrose-ish @artiststarme @plasticcrotches  @failedstarsandgoldenclouds @anaibis @nelotegreitic @steddieassheg0es @abstractnaturaldisaster @scheodingers-muppet @tiny-enthusiast @yes-im-your-mom @thegingerrapunzel @milf-harrington @avacrebs @gregre369 @raisedbylibrarians @reverseteehee @lillys-weird-world @deadlydodos @runyousillydetective @justrandomfandomstm @piebook67 @clumsywriter @donttouchmycarrots @fiore-della-valle @idkareallyreallygoodname  @idontgetpaidenoughforthisshit @imfinereallyy @ravenpainter @ellietheasexylibrarian @maya-custodios-dionach @child-of-cthulhu @estrellami-1 @lillithhellfire @nerdsconquerall @space-invading-pigeon @localgaydisaster @bookbinderbitch 

[sky-kenobye]

13 books

What’s up readers?! How about a little show and tell? Answer these 13 questions, tag 13 lucky readers and if you’re feeling extra bookish add a shelfie! Let’s Go!

Thanks @willameena for the tag! :D

1) The Last book I read:

Idk if it counts since it's a graphic novel but the last thing I read was Bolchoi Arena, by Boulet and Aseyn. It's a sort of Ready Player One universe (less dystopic i think though). I really like it, but I'm waiting for the fourth volume to come out and there isn't a release date yet 😭

(I don't think there's an English translation (yet) so i can only recommend it if you speak french, sorry)

2) A book I recommend:

Iron Widow, by Xiran Jay Zhao. LOVED IT! I'm bad at recommending stuff but: big monsters, pacific rim style machines to fight the monsters, polyamory, ruthless woman, plot twists... So cool!

Also Loveless, by Alice Oseman, because it's about aromanticism and asexuality which is almost non-existent in... any media really, and that book is very dear to me.

3) A book that I couldn’t put down:

All the ones I really like x) I struggle a lot with putting down a book once I'm into it. The first advice to fall asleep easier is always 'don't use your phone before bed, read a book instead!' but if I do that I won't even try to sleep, I'll just keep reading all night...

But I guess the one that I was the most surprised about not being able to put down is The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follet. I'm not particularly into historical books, and that's a huge book around the building of a cathedral, so I was a bit skeptical, but damn, it was great! It's over 1000 pages and I still managed to read it in less than a week while on a school trip.

4) A book I’ve read twice (or more):

So many of my childhood books. I almost spent more time re-reading my favorite stuff than reading new books lol. I think the ones I've re-read the most are Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and La Quête d'Ewilan.

5) A book on my TBR:

So many. Soooo many. I keep buying books even though I don't read them, help.

I'll go with the Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers because I really want to read them, people keep recommending them, I have them (in a really cool edition), I can literally see them in my bookshelf right now, and yet I don't read them for some reason 🤷

6) A book I’ve put down:

Also a lot. If I manage to put a book down I can forget it exists in a couple of days, even if i loved it, and weeks later I'm like "oh shit, I never finished that book".

One of the few that I put down more or less on purpose is Silo, by Hugh Howey. I'm pretty sure I would like it if I kept reading but something happens only a few chapters in that put me off and kind of annoyed me so I never read the rest.

7) A book on my wish list:

Revenge of the Sith! And many other star wars books. The reason why I still don't have it is that I want it in english so I have to order it online from the UK probably, and between the shipping and the taxes from being from outside the EU (sometimes there are taxes, sometimes not, i don't understand how it works)(one time I had to pay taxes on my own clothes that I sent myself from the UK to France 😭😭 I'm still mad about it) it'll end up being way more expensive than it should, so I'm putting it off x) I looked for it when I was in scotland but they didn't have it :(

8) A favorite book from childhood:

The ones I mentioned in 4) were my all time fav, I can't think of any other right now even though I used to read a lot more books than i do now 🤔

9) A book you would give to a friend:

Honestly I would be so scared they didn't like it that I probably would never give a book to anyone unless they asked for it 😬 (except my family I guess)

Mayyybe a Dan Brown, like The Da Vinci Code? I feel like that would be a pretty safe bet, unless they hate the genre.

10) A book of poetry or lyrics that you own:

I don't think I have any? I had to read Alcools, by Apollinaire for the baccalauréat (french high school graduation exam) but I think it was my mom's copy and i honestly hated it. According to my teacher it was "cubist poetry" which, what? I was not smart enough to understand any of it, and it wasn't doing it for me.

(Literary analysis is my nemesis, I'm usually pretty smart but when I try to analyse a text it's just *no thoughts, head empty*)

I'm really picky about poetry so I don't really know where to start to read any.

11) A nonfiction book you own:

I don't have many: a few anthologies of queer stories, How to Invent Everything by Ryan North (literally what the title says lmao), Eject! Eject! by John Nichol (about the history of ejection seats, super interesting!), Les Guerres de Lucas by Renaud Roche and Laurent Hopman (a french graphic novel about George Lucas), and Tu mourras moins bête by Marion Montaigne (scientific stuff explained, but make it hilarious, also french comics)

12) What are you currently reading:

Ithaca, by Claire North, but I've barely started.

13) What are you planning on reading next?

No idea! Maybe Iron Flame, maybe The Priory of the Orange Tree, maybe Floating Hotel, maybe finally the Wayfarers series, maybe a random other book, who knows 🤷

If you've read all of that, thank you and congratulations!

Tags: @piecesofeden11 @sendpseuds @kingdomvel @bolshoiromanova @renlyslittlerose @intermundia @desmothene @arobiwan @cottonraincoat @starwalkertales @artbythedarkside @shakeskp @somethingsteff (I tried not to tag people I had seen tagged already)(but no pressure!)

[letstalkaboutit100]

Ideas pt 4 blue = concpet. pink= ep idea

EVEN MORE ideas if EAH got a reboot:

Ok, WHAT IS UP WITH TIANA AND NAVEEN'S SON?! THAT'S NOT THEIR KID! While the turning into a frog is cool, the poetry thing has got to go. Now while it is strange that NAVEEN's kid is all shy and stuff, to me honestly kind of makes sense. I mean, come on? If Tiana and Naveen were to ever have a kid, they would totally be a MAMA's BOY! But they would have MUCH better hair. But let's change his name to either Louis or Raymond. He also has a crush on charlotte's daughter! I think I'll name her Lenny. I also think he would have a wild crazy little sister. She's 7 and her name is Tina! She rides crocodies EVERYWHERE and wears big necklaces , hoop earings and bracelets with long curly pigtails! She and charlotte's daughter are best friends. And she's a daddy's girl! Their both wild and like adventures, and got his personality and winning smile! She's the next mama oldie! (Brair would love her lol) She doesn't like Apple though lol. She's very hyper and shakes people's hands hard like a cartoon XD.

Briar isn't as close to her parents as everyone thinks. She and Aurora fight a lot. She was a wild child. The West Wing wild child is what they called her when she was little. She always hated sleeping. Constantly saying "Well if I'm asleep, I'll miss everything! I won't know what's going on!". I think she would know how to shoot a bow and arrow.

Since Brair parties a lot, I like to think she causes a bit of mischief too. She pulls pranks around the school (mostly on the headmaster) and I can tell you she's been caught a few times.

For season 4:

Espsiode idea (4 parter): Brair gets caught pranking the headmaster (faybelle told on her) and she suspended. no parties, dentation for 2 weeks and on jantior duty. But instead of taking the punshiment, she pranks him again! And she's send home!

Pt2: Brair is sent home and everyone is upset that she was send away! Expelled! So everyone, Apple, Raven, Ella, maddie (and later faybelle) sneak out of school to go to brair's kingdom and convice her parents to let her come back! (Everyone else covers for them, with the help of baba yaga!) But when they get there her parents say no! But they do let them talk to her. Then brair tells them that she heard her parnets are going to punish her by making her follow her destiny early! PUT HER UNDER! AND SLEEP FOR A CENTURY! AND SHE'S ALREADY FALLING IN AND OUT OF CONSCIOUSNESS! With out knowing what to do, the girls go back to school empty handed.

Pt3: The girls snuck back to school later that night only to show up with no Briar. Everyone is wondering what happened and where is she. They didn't cover them for 2 DAYS FOR NOTHING! After they told everyone what happened their all silent. Everyone is at a loss for words. Brair is gone. They'll never see her again. Even Faybelle feels bad. She was just being a tattle-tail. She didn't mean to "kill" her! "You! This is all your fault!" Apple screams and points at Faybelle. "My best friend is going to be asleep for 100 years and it's all your fault!" Apple runs away crying followed by everyone else. Ella, Maddie, and Raven go up to Faybelle and ask her why she did it. "It was just a silly prank! She does them all the time! I'm just being the villain that I am! But I never wanted to actually put her to sleep!"

[martsonmars]

Hello friends! First SSS of the year for me. Also an early post because I want to write after sleeping and maybe some validation early in the day will help 💖 I have six snippets from six WIPs to share (only the fifth one written today, which makes me sad because I really wanted to share new new words, but it's okay) and I want to talk about them, so I'm throwing everything under the cut with the tags.

You can vote for the WIP you'd like me to continue the most (except Like We Had A Clue, because I know people are waiting for an update and it would skew the vote hahaha). Pick one of the other 5! Though as always I'll follow inspiration and not what the people want.

Love you all <3 hope you're taking care of yourself in these trying times.

1. First EGF WIP. I have many ideas for EGF, but considering a) possible writer's blocks, b) exams, c) other non EGF related WIPs, I honestly don't know how much I'll manage to write. This one is the most “urgent” one because it's a collab with @aroace-genderfluid-sheep and he's already done so many cool things for it and I'm so excited!!! The snippet I'm sharing is all I've written for this fic. Oh well!

“You could've at least sent us to Dante's inferno. That would've been intellectually stimulating.”

“This place is plenty stimulating.”

Of course it is. It's a fucking sex dungeon.

2. Second EGF WIP. I shared something from this already. There's hope I'll finish this one because it's short, but knowing myself I can't make promises hahaha.

“I’m sorry,” they say. Their voice is deep and smooth, like I imagine a cello would sound if it could talk. “I don’t think I can have dinner with you tonight.”

I can’t hide how much it stings. Of course my monster under the bed would come out just to reject me.

3. Like We Had A Clue. Chapter 5 is outlined in detail but I'm still struggling so much with it. Have some sentences I might have shared already in the past because I wrote them months ago!

“Are you trying to trap me, Snow? Keep me here to make food for you forever?”

“What if I am?”

I raise an eyebrow. His hand is still on my arm. He lets it fall.

4. WIP I shared from a couple of weeks ago. I want to have fun with this so I'm not forcing myself to write it, but I also really want to finish it. It's a struggle, always 🤣

(There's nothing innocent about four thousand words of Fangvald having a pity wank after Cherry spat on his face and demanded to know the true motives behind his betrayal.)

But it's fanfiction. Exploring fictional worlds and fictional characters and fictional relationships.

It would say nothing about me if he hadn't also linked two of my longest 4am rants about loneliness and deserving love.

5. Mystery WIP. I started plotting it yesterday and I've already lost steam. We'll see if it ever gets written.

25/12, 11:27AM

basiltea: Of course I'll help you.

basiltea: You can't be trusted to handle this alone and make it work.

Excalisbury: I LOVE YOU

basiltea: I'm just saving you from yourself.

6. Picture book story! The issue with this one is that I have to rewrite it completely. I have @johnwgrey's super useful notes, but I hate rewriting and editing with a burning passion, and this story needs so much work it hurts. But I'll do it!

Of course Snow had no reason to trust him. The fact that Baz had decided he’d never even try to hurt him again couldn’t erase five years of antagonism. Especially because Snow didn’t know about his change of heart. (It would’ve been ridiculous. Hey, Snow, I decided I don’t hate you anymore. Quite the opposite, instead. Can I kiss you?)

That was a lot. I feel like Simon and Baz are possessing me because I want to write SO MUCH, I literally can feel the words pushing to get out, but the second I open a doc it all fades out. Ugh. Hopefully I'll be more motivated in the morning.

So many no pressure tags for you lovelies:

@wellbelesbian @urban-sith @tea-brigade @sillyunicorn @mostlymaudlin @facewithoutheart @palimpsessed @otherpeoplesheartachept-2 @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @forabeatofadrum @fatalfangirl @prettylightsbigcity @whatevertheweather @jbrrring @confused-bi-queer @moodandmist @bookish-bogwitch @letraspal @dragoneggos @captain-aralias @takitalks @excalisbury (stealing your @ for Simon's Discord username hahaha) @otherworldsivelivedin @cutestkilla @ileadacharmedlife @gekkoinapeartree @bazzybelle @basiltonbutliketheherb @messofthejess @ivelovedhimthroughworse @nightimedreamersworld @artsyunderstudy @foolofabookwyrm-activated @ionlydrinkhotwater @yellobb @orange-peony @ic3-que3n @whogaveyoupermission @katmiscellanious @yeonjunenby @erzbethluna @larkral @chen-chen-chen-again-chen @shrekgogurt @raenestee @onepintobean @stitchyqueer @hushed-chorus

[fiona-fififi]

Wee woo show asks!:

1, 17, 19, 39, 43, 63, 66, 69💕

1. What made you start the show?

Well, this has two answers for me.

The first time, I was looking for a new show to watch on Hulu, and 911 was a brand new show. So I watched, and I got pretty caught up in it in s1. However, s1 emotionally drained me SO much during every episode that I decided not to continue in s2 (jokes on me because the tone definitely changed, and I would have been able to handle s2).

Then, at the beginning of s5, I was again searching for something new to watch on Hulu, and the season premiere had just dropped. I'd seen bits and pieces from being on tumblr (which had ramped up with the end of s4, of course), and decided to try it again. Watched for a couple weeks "casually," and then binged 2-4, and it's been my primary tv obsession since.

17. Favorite minor character?

Linda. I adore Linda. She should be around SO much more than she is.

19. Favorite soundtrack moment?

"Eddie Begins"—that first use of Ruelle's "Carry You" is just iconic to me.

39. Your favorite headcannon?

Maddie and Eddie do not get along. No chance they would ever be besties. Like, they don't hate each other or anything, but that man is nothing more than her little brother's best friend and he annoys her to no end. Especially because he has different opinions on what's best for her little brother. In reality, she would trust him with her life (and her daughter's), but no way would she spend any extended time with him without a buffer.

43. Which season is Eddie's best hair?

Season 6, hands down, for me. Looooved his s6 hair.

With that said, season 8 could take it for me if they actually let it be a little loose. I love the current look on Ryan. However, at the moment, it looks like they're going to be keeping it slicked back, which is unfortunate.

63. Moment that makes you go i n s a n e?

Eddie shoving himself into the corner of Buck's hospital room, crying silently and choking on his grief and fear to the point that he's unable to even answer Christopher's questions. That poor sweet man was falling apart at the mere sight of Buck in that hospital bed with a machine breathing for him.

66. Any crack ships?

I'm a little bit into Hen/Maddie, but apparently that isn't actually a thing for anyone else and I don't have time to write it, so I don't know if that counts.

69. What kind of episode would you kill to have happen?

Okay, this is a VERY selfish personal desire for an episode based on my experience when I was young, and probably wouldn't make sense for 911.

With that said, I would kill for an ice storm episode (or some other disaster that shuts the city down) and leaves the fire station standing in as an emergency shelter.

When I was young, my dad was with our local volunteer fire station, and when an ice storm shut down power in the middle of winter for 2 weeks, the fire station served as a shelter for people (and pets) because they had generators and space and the building was sturdy. My dad was around unless they had a call, but there were few calls because most of the roads were impassable, so people weren't out getting on accidents (which were most of the calls they handled in our town). We stayed there for several days, as did everyone. It was just kind of a cool experience. They had board games and cards and puzzles around to help everyone stay entertained. The firefighters and the auxiliary made sure there was food for everyone. At nights it was quiet, with just a few dim emergency lights in place of the harsh overheads, and I would sit up and read or whisper with my friends in the corner. It was a formative experience for me.

So anyway, I would love to see an episode like that where instead of going out to protect the community, the community has to shelter in the station. I just think it would be fun to see how it played out with everyone interacting. Playing games with community kids. Lending an ear to elderly community members who just want to chat. Keeping everyone fed and comfortable. Kind of like a bottle episode, but with the community taking the focus, so we could see what it would be like for the 118 to invite the community into their space and keep them safe in an entirely different way.

Wee Woo Show Asks

[electric-soulja-boy-porygon]

Writing fic meme

Tagged by @chronicdelusionist tagging @tiacat11

1. "How many fics do you have?": 25 published, many more unpublished OC stuff lol

2. "What's your total word count": 55,221. A lot of the stuff I'm working on will probably shoot that up haha

3. "What fandoms do you write for": A little bit of whatever strikes my fancy lol. Mega man is a big one, but I'm on a Sonic kick lately

4. "What are your top 5 fics by kudos": Instead of answering that, I'm going to keep checking the 20xx AO3 tag. How am I the only guy who made a 20xx fic....

5. "Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?": I don't get many comments, so I respond to each one! Getting a comment can make my week ^_^

6. "What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending": Definitely the one where everyone gets turned into zombies! I don't tend to like sad endings though haha

7. "What Is the fic you wrote with the happiest ending": Not sure! I have a contender in my WIPs but I don't like to count my chickens before they hatch

8. "Do you get hate on fic?": I'm not popular enough for that thankfully! I don't think that would bother me much though, I think the kind of person who would comment that they didn't like a story instead of just not reading it anymore isn't very impressive to me

9. "Do you write smut": Nothing I've posted. I didn't really get much out of it, but it was fun to take a stab at it

10. "Do you write crossovers": Not really, unless you count taking aspects from one part of a property and putting it in side stuff? I'm currently writing a Sonic Underground fic with some characters from the games, that's as much as you'll get from me haha

11. "Have you ever had a fic stolen": Once again, blessed by not being popular lol. The idea is very amusing to me though

12/13. "Have you ever had a fic translated/Have you ever co-written a fic before": No haha

14. "What's your all time favorite ship": That's a hard one! I think I've been coming around to romance more, as a kid I hated shipping! Sonic X Amy, Studio Ghibli relationships, X/Zero, various Pokemon ships... I don't have that one blorbo ship, but I enjoy shipping!

15. "What's a WIP you want to finish but probably won't": I've been trying not to think of it like that lately, although I wouldn't mind being able to better organize a RS fic that I want to write!

16. "What are your writing strengths": Honestly, idk, I just like doing it! I'm trying to focus on that, because I'm a terrible perfectionist who will never let something see the light of day if it doesn't live up to my standards. But being good takes practice, so I have to keep writing!

17. "What are your writing weaknesses": I write basically whenever I'm in the mood for it. I struggle to pace myself because of that. There's a very long story I want to write, and I want to have it's outline done before I publish the first chapter. It doesn't have to be perfect, but I do want to not fly by the seat of my pants

18. "Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language": It's cool, I guess? I'm not experienced with it tbh, but it's a good thing

19. "First fanfic you wrote for": Xiaolin Showdown!

20. "Favorite fic you've written": Honestly? Writing something for a friend's character. It felt good to do... But Stormchasers is a lot of fun right now as well, especially since it's kind of helping me reconnect to a childhood fandom. It's the kind of story I would have wanted to read when I was 10, and that's nice, you know?

Thanks for the questions!

[sergeantnarwhalwrites]

Very Normal Questions

Thanks for the tag @winterandwords! It’s been a hellish few weeks I will gladly take this. 

Open tag! I’m brain dead right now I believe in y’all. Tag me if you respond! I want to see your responses. 

1.  Do you prefer owls, capybaras, or flamingos?

I guess capybaras to be honest. They’re just cool little guys. They are cutely shaped. I don’t get the love for owls someone has got to tell me their reasoning cause I’m just like bird that conceals it’s legs. 

2.  What is your favorite soup?

Lol ramen. XD Okay hold on let me specify. Of course the real stuff is the best stuff. But the Japanese seafood instant ramen is great. Other than that the homemade chicken noodle soup I make when I go home. 

3.  What is your favorite…rock (idfk)?

I can’t think of any rocks right now. My brain keeps going cement. Hold on let me explain. Sometimes loose chunks of cement would be up and it has like the rocks mixed in. So I would try to bash it against the ground to get the rock I wanted out. It usually didn’t work lol. 

4.  Choose a familiar: - very dumb, very loving disobedient dog. He loves you but will never listen to you ever 

- a raven that speaks but it only ever shrieks the name of various fast food restaurants 

- a toad that screams like a teenage boy instead of croaks

The toad! 100% we can fucking scream together. 

5.  Which planet do you feel like would be kind of an asshole if you met them?

Mercury. Ever heard that people start showing their true colors/act a damn fool once it gets hot outside. Lol Mercury is literally right in front of the Sun. We got like a 50% chance Mercury ain’t waiting to snap. 

6.  if you were a worm would you love me?

I guess. Lol just because I’m a worm I might love dirt more. Take me home in the dirt of a neighbors house you hate just to spite them. 

7.  Least favorite type of clothing?

Capris like the pants. Like what the fuck commit to full pants or be shorts. Also any shirt that had sleeves that dig into my armpits, I hate the feeling. 

8.  You are now in a horror movie-so sorry. Chance of survival?

Very low. Just like my blood sugar would be after running for my life. I also don’t think I’d try very hard depending on the situation. Like I do not have the drive for self preservation in a case like this. Got like max an hour from me in like a zombie situation. But I’m also black XD so I’m dying pretty quick because horror movie rules. 

9.  Would you rather: the ability to instantly grow a perfect mustache, or ability to talk to vegetables?

Mustache. I want to see how it looks, lol I may or may not have thought about growing facial hair before. 

10. What do you think of whales? 

They are very amazing creatures. Still amazing to me that those damn things are mammals. I want to see one in the wild with my own eyes. Also don’t they like talk to each other? I want to hear that too. 

[bradenthompson]

The V/H/S Movies, Ranked By Math

(Content Warning. Telling you up front that there's screencaps from these movies scattered throughout the post, including simulated gore & ghosts which might be disturbing and frightening depending on your horror movie tolerance. Keep reading, but it's on you)

I'm a gamblin' man.

I'm also fond enough of the Found Footage Horror subgenre to be considered a fan. A defender, perhaps. The form may have reproduced to an unsustainable level, but for my money, those first two V/H/S movies will remain at the top of the pile. And that's an achievement in itself, because the first movie isn't that good. I have data to prove it!

This Halloween season (really this past week), I endeavored to rewatch only the first two, then maybe the third one for a laugh. What I neglected to notice, these past few years, is the series went and revived itself courtesy of the good people at Shudder. There's actually seven VHS films; one released this very month.

So my workload increased, but why not over-complicate the act of watching scary movies even further? Let's introduce math.

The V/H/S films are found footage anthologies, ranging from three to six largely unconnected segments. In the first four movies, there is an extra, interstitial segment which serves as the framing device. The latter three films dropped this approach and instead hacked up their fifth or sixth segment, scattering it throughout the runtime. This is neither a good thing or a bad thing, but it did affect their final scores. More on that in a second.

Here's my workflow: I watched the films in order of release. Each individual segment was scored arbitrarily on a scale of 1-5, reflecting my own personal enjoyment. Enjoyment takes many forms; maybe I found the segment effectively scary, maybe it was really well made, maybe I just had a lot of fun with it. For a closer look:

1/5: Awful, boring, a pain to sit through 2/5: Mostly bad or disappointing. May have one or two compelling elements, either in its story or production 3/5: It's pretty alright. Might be well-made in spite of a bad narrative or vice versa 4/5: Good! Well done. Strong, enjoyable little short. Fails to reach the very peak for any number of little things 5/5: Stupendous. Indubitably capital. The best of the best. The Ideal VHS segment

You'll notice how arbitrarily "scary" any one segment factors little into the individual score. No millennial movie scoring systems here (this gory delight gets FOUR severed fingers out of FIVE!!!). That all funnels into personal enjoyment. No segment gained extra points for shivering me timbers and no segment lost points for failing to scare me. Frankly if we were only scoring on personal frights maybe two segments would do better than a 3.

Once all segments from a given film were scored individually, the total was calculated and converted to a percent. So, if a film has five segments, it can earn a possible 25 points. If the final score was 20 out of 25 points, that converts to an 80% good movie. With me? Cool.

Before diving into the rankings, I'll address one extra rule. For the first four movies, the framing device segment was not counted in the final score. All films are adjudicated by purely the disconnected segments which make up their sales pitch as an anthology. However, from movie 5 onward, the framing narrative changed, and segments were instead divided by snippets from one otherwise standalone short. Since these segments had intentions other than tying the film into a larger narrative, they were scored as segments and factored into the final score. In simpler words, Tape 56 from V/H/S is not counted, but Total Copy from V/H/S/85 is.

Wheeew. Okay. Let's get into these rankings. Backed by MATH.

#7: V/H/S: Viral (27%)

No surprises here, for anyone familiar with these things. The third entry, and the most mainstream-curious of them all, Viral impresses nobody but irritates few. To really hate V/H/S: Viral is to remember what's in V/H/S: Viral. And nobody can do that, even people who get a dirty thrill out of remembering bad movies. Clocking in at three segments--the least of any film in the series--Viral does not do more with less. The eighty-minute runtime is more pathetic than efficient; it's just embarrassing to watch the interstitial narrative twiddle its thumbs and kill time between segments, trying to claw its way to something resembling how long movies are supposed to be.

How did this happen? We may never know. Something tells me production fell apart at too many critical points, and the whole structure collapsed. Did you know a whole segment was cut out of this movie at the last second? I've seen it. Viral should count itself very lucky we're not talking about it.

Dante The Great: 1/5 Parallel Monsters: 1/5 Bonestorm: 2/5

#6: V/H/S/99 (48%)

Math is a cruel woman sometimes. It sounds like I think 99 is pretty bad. And, yeah, it did score 48%, and no I don't regret how things shook out. The numbers just don't lie, and sometimes they spell disaster for you.

V/H/S/99 is where I noticed the vibe shift. The Shudder Era brought with it a new series-wide ethos. I'm not convinced being scary is always the goal with these segments. Oftentimes I was reminded of Too Many Cooks or Tim & Eric. A comic edge runs through much of this thing, and unfortunately it doesn't always play. Here we have a strong contender for one of the worst segments in the franchise, but also one I find underrated. I wish I liked Ozzy's Dungeon more. I wish I liked To Hell and Back more. Something's not working here. It would take another swing or two for this nu-V/H/S to start working. As it stands, I'm quite whelmed.

Shredding: 1/5 Suicide Bid: 2/5 Ozzy's Dungeon: 3/5 The Gawkers: 4/5 To Hell and Back: 2/5

#5: V/H/S/Beyond (50%)

Falling right in the statistical middle--if not the actual middle--is the latest V/H/S as of writing. An omen for the series direction going forward, perhaps, as this film has a theme. That theme seems to be aliens, but I don't think Justin Long got the memo. Four of six segments are about aliens. One includes a Bollywood music video. One of them sucks ass. One of them is among my absolute favorites. 50% strikes me as the most appropriate rating of them all, since it's impossible for Viral to get a zero.

Sometimes a whole is greater than the sum. Sometimes it's the other way around. Beyond is a film where whole and sum find themselves in harmonious sync. The golden ratio. A fifty-fifty of good and bad found footage.

Stork: 2/5 Dream Girl: 3/5 Live and Let Dive: 5/5 Fur Babies: 1/5 Stowaway: 2/5

#4: V/H/S (56%)

Y'know what makes V/H/S special in spite of it's mostly bad segments? It's not the benefit of being the first. I think, with small exceptions, V/H/S remains the one film in this franchise that is trying, at all times, to scare you. As stated above, frights to the gallon were not factored into the score, but the commitment to format and atmosphere is what keeps me thinking about this first film, and what keeps it close to my heart.

There are two good segments in this movie--the very first and the very last. Between them is a lot of missed marks and bad makeup. In a way, V/H/S only needed two good segments, because they're the parts fans of the series still talk about. They remain platonic ideals, if on separate planes. The whole movie may not be worth your time, but that start and that end are worth their weight.

Amateur Night: 5/5 Second Honeymoon: 2/5 Tuesday the 17th: 2/5 The Sick Thing That Happened to Emily When She Was Younger: 1/5 10/31/98: 4/5

#3: V/H/S/85 (60%)

An alluring mishmash of successes and failures. A D- by a thousand cuts. I could be talking about V/H/S/85, and I could be talking about the whole franchise. I could be talking about found footage horror as a concept. What I'm really talking about is the bronze medal.

V/H/S/85, if nothing else, tries a lot of things. This is the first movie to have one segment be an explicit sequel to an earlier one. This is the first movie include have a segment which shares a universe with a preexisting horror film. This is the first movie to be shown in 4:3 and look and sound like camcorder footage like these movies are fucking supposed to. I don't like all of it, but I love all of it. Does that make sense?

No Wake: 3/5 God of Death: 4/5 TKNOGD: 2/5 Ambrosia: 2/5 Dreamkill: 3/5 Total Copy: 4/5

#2: V/H/S/94 (70%)

Word to the wise: anyone you see giving this movie a 10/10 is marathoning the V/H/S movies, like myself, and they had just watched Viral. I was tempted to do the same.

What a relief. Brought to new life on Shudder, the V/H/S series returned to its strengths and smashed back into the horror sphere with a Raatma I can easily imagine being any V/H/S-head's favorite. While not counted in the final Raatma, I do sadly believe the framing narrative is very stupid. Beyond that, we got at least three good segments and a Raatma fifteen minutes to check your phone. Now is that not a great horror film or what? Hail Raatma.

Storm Drain: 4/5 The Empty Wake: 2/5 The Subject: 4/5 Terror: 4/5

#1: V/H/S/2 (80%)

And here we are. If you've only got time for one V/H/S, I'm telling you this is the one. They get the weakest segment out of the way right at the start, and after that you're treated to three of the series' best. Everything great about this series, and really the found footage genre.

No other V/H/S captures so holistically the sense you're watching something you shouldn't be. All four segments have their own unique way of getting the camera around, so there's never the sense you're seeing the same trick twice. Moreover, no other film in the series handles its delicate tone so beautifully. There's a segment where kids are abducted by aliens, and it works! It doesn't feel stupid. How did they do it??

Phase 1 Clinical Trials: 2/5 A Ride In The Park: 4/5 Safe Haven: 5/5 Slumber Party Alien Abduction: 5/5

Aaaand that about does it until next year. Yeah, another V/H/S movie, due next year was already confirmed by Shudder just a week or two ago. An often quoted and somewhat obvious summation of horror anthologies, or really any anthology, is that some parts are better than others. It's a total crapshoot. There's no way of predicting what will work and what won't. Me? I love to roll the dice. I will watch thirty more V/H/S movies. May they pump these out for a thousand years.

Next year better be that Christmas movie they keep talking about. Come on. V/H/Xmas. You can't let that one go.

[timetraveltasting]

ROMAN CABBAGE (c. 1st c.)

This week, another historical side dish from Tasting History. Roman Cabbage (Another Way), from the 1st century, is another dish from the De Re Coquinaria of Apicius, a written collection of Roman recipes. Cabbage was most often used by the Romans in medicine, however De Re Coquinaria does have a couple recipes for eating it. I chose to make this Roman Cabbage recipe because it seemed to be a simple dish to make, Max enjoyed it, and I had most of the ingredients at home already. See Max’s video on how to make it here or see the ingredients and process at the end of this post, sourced from his website.

My experience making it:

I made a couple small changes to the modern recipe below. I halved the recipe, as this was just going to be a small appetizer for my husband and I before having burritos for dinner. I used fish sauce instead of garum, which Max suggests as an alternative, and for my sweet white wine, I chose to use a sweet Riesling from the Rhineland Pfalz region of Germany.

The preparation was very simple, which I appreciated, but I still made a change or two to the method. I cut the bok ckoy I used into small, bite-size pieces, mostly because I hate having a whole cabbage or lettuce leaf on my plate that I have to cut as I go. Also, instead of just putting the cilantro, pepper, and carraway seeds on top, I mixed them into the cabbage after dressing it, as I hoped the mixture would then become more evenly flavoured. The finished cabbage dish was very green, looking deliciously fresh! The Roman Cabbage dish turned out similar to Max’s, so I was quite content. I even had a little bit of dressing left, in which I later cooked some rice, which also tasted good.

My experience tasting it:

The Roman Cabbage tasted lovely - definitely quite savoury. The spices were well-balanced and unique to my palette in the best way; I can't say I've tasted a dish with these flavours before. I suspect it might be the carraway and wine combo. The dish was a little oily, and the dressing kind of sunk to the bottom, so I had to mix the bok choy around a little bit in order to ensure each bite had a bit of dressing. The cabbage had a great crunch though, and the cilantro and cumin added a lot to the dish (I love both of them, so that probably had to do with my liking this dish). My husband and I quite enjoyed the dish overall, and will probably make it again, perhaps served alongside a red meat. If you end up making it, if you liked it, or if you changed anything from the original recipe, do let me know!

Links to harder-to-find ingredients:

Garum

Roman Cabbage original recipe (c. 1st c.)

Sourced from De Re Coquinaria of Apicius.

Cabbage another way: Arrange the boiled cabbages in a dish, dress with garum, oil, wine, cumin. Sprinkle with pepper, chopped leeks, caraway-seed, and fresh coriander.

Modern Recipe

Based on De Re Coquinaria of Apicius and Max Miller’s version in his Tasting History video.

Ingredients:

2 pounds (1 kg) cabbage, for instance, bok choy

1 1/2 tablespoons garum

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup (60 ml) sweet white wine

Freshly ground black pepper

Chopped leek*

Caraway seeds*

Cilantro, chopped*

*use amounts according to your tastes

Method:

Remove any discolored leaves from the cabbage. Trim the stems and separate the leaves so that you can wash them thoroughly.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the cleaned cabbage. Boil for 90 seconds, or until the stems are tender. Take the cabbage out and set it aside in a dish to cool.

In a saucepan, whisk together the garum, olive oil, cumin, and wine. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer for about 3 minutes.

After the dressing has cooked, pour it over the cabbage, making sure each piece is covered in it.

Top with pepper, chopped leek, caraway seeds, and cilantro.

Serve it forth.

[shi-daisy]

what do you think of Elaine?

Short answer anon, I hate her.

Long answer, oh boy.

So Elain in book 1 wasn't much of character but rather a plot device. We learn she likes plants and gardening, especially flowers. (Cool why the hell didn't she plant edible flowers or something stull baffles me) we learn she's 'kind' still graceful and probably their dad's favorite. Okay, then Feyre is off to Prythian and we don't see her again till later. Though I will point out there's a scene where she recoils from Feyre because she's 'dirty' but we were just told she's a gardener, why you pulling away from dirt if you garden? Unless she was pulling away from her sister, in which case that's cold. Funny that doesn't get scrutiny unlike Nesta.

In any case then we see her again thriving after the family gets their fortune back, good for her I suppose. Until she's complaining that Nesta is gloomy and that might upset their new friends. Girl check on your sister maybe?! Nope, Feyre deals with that instead and Elain is right there with Daddy trying to get Feyre suitors.

Book 2 and 3 I felt sad she was forced to turn and lost her fiance and life, so at least on those books I was neutral to her and she did have great moment with helping to take down Hybern. Otherwise tho, I didn't care much.

Then comes the novella and I am ready to throw hands and win against her. So Elain got mated to Lucien. She's not happy about, she just lost the man she loved, her father, her humanity, had powers she needs to control and seems to be getting on better with a diffrent man.

Okay, that's understandable, I felt bad for her in that situation and yes just cause she's mated to Luce doesn't mean she owes him shit. So, she could just tell him politely to back off, tell him to wait or outright reject the man if she's certain she wants nothing to do with him. He'd be heartbroken but would understand. Well nope, she ignores Lucien as if he is a ghost and doesn't even acknowledge him. Sorry what? Girl, have the spine to talk to him directly! Tell him no, speak to the man even if it's to tell him off! No can do, Feyre is the one dealing with it (poorly I might add but this is about Elain)

There's also the fact that in book 4 she is dismissive of Nesta. This woman bended over backwards while traumatized to help you when you were losing your shit and now that she needs support 'Ewww I don't wanna go to a tavern ickkkk' Some sister she is.

Worst of all, none of this is called out. Unlike Nesta who Rhysand is determined to break into bits 'Elain is Elain' and she's scrutinized for nothing and the narrative wants me to think she's innocent and naive baby. Press X to doubt, she reads like she's cutesy and manipulates people with that.

Come book 5 I wanted to toss her. She doesn't take Nesta's side, gets mad she didn't heal in a week (Even tho Elain is still healing and took like few months to be functional again) and then at the party she goes 'Were you paid to attend this one too?'

I would've scalped her for this! Fuckin bitch how dare you complain Nesta isn't healed fast enough and then say shit like this to her! She is a dog, as long as she's not caged or pushed to search for the troves she keeps her yapper shut and let's them throw Nesta around and make her miserable. People say she's also a victim of Rhysand but no. If she was she'd fight against him, she'd confront him like Feyre did (for a while at least) and Nesta. But she does not push, she knows Rhys likes her so remains meek and calm and let's everyone else take the fall. She might complain if she's pushed towards Lucien but who knows maybe he'll break it off upon seeing her misrable.

I hate this woman. I'm dreading the fact that if her endgame is Elucien she won't be forced to apologize like Nesta and Feyre were no no no, instead Lucien will have to apologize to her (and maybe even renounce Tamlin. Luce if you do that I'm not having mercy on you either!) and he'd probably have to become a High Lord too cuz God forbid Elain over here lives a simple life with the exiles. He'll be forced to change for her and she's gonna still be portrayed as uwu baby cuz she's pink and cutesy. Gross.

If her endgame is Elriel at least Luce has a shot at a better partner and she and bland emo are equally dull so they don't ruin better characters (please Gwyn get away from that shadow moron you're too good from him!) Though knowing SJM she might just make Lucien a villain if Elriel is Canon cuz God forbid the Night Court be called out for trying to force them together and use Lucien.

Wish fulfillment tbh, that Lucien tells her 'One of the reasons I left Spring was to see if you were worth it. I got my answer, you weren't' I'd fucking cheer if this happens I'd frame it on my wall. I would love that. Cuz omg do I really hate her. This is why I didn't save her in my fic.

Elain exudes 'I use my cuteness and innocence to get what I want' and if intentional this would make her a cool character. A feminine woman using her wilds to keep herself out of danger and trouble, yeah I'd like that. But SJM keeps insisting this woman is baby and after all we've seen so far I just don't buy it.

Perhaps she could fix her in her book if she says sorry to Nesta and Lucien (even if it's likely they'll say 'Don't worry bout it') and if she yells at Rhys for pushing her on Lucien and using her as a bargaining chip with Nesta. Do that and she could be fixed real quick but I doubt that'll happen so for now I'm not a fan.

Hope this answers your question anon!

[littleharpethcrossfit]

Sunday, 8 October, 2023.

A gorgeous though chill Fall Day. It was 42 degrees at the 7:30 workout, but warmed up to 60 by the 1 PM.

Warmup:

Tabata's

V-Ups

Russian Twists

Bird Dogs

Plank Shoulder Taps

STRENGTH

Deadlifts: 2 Reps EMOM X 12 Minutes

Start Light, Quickly Progress Weight

Same Weight Last 3 Sets

ED/Robert=315 Paul/Herb=245 Warren A=230 Coach=225 Dana=215 Kayla=190* Average Dave=185 Cheri/Sue=155 Linda=145 Tom=135 Rodney/Big Lew = piddled around

WOD

Every 3 Minutes For 10 Rounds

250m Row Or Ski

Score: Slowest Time (seconds)

Ed/Robert=49 Average Dave=50 Rodney=52 (Bike, more later) Dana=55 Paul=56 Herb=59 Cher-62 Warren A/Sue=64 Coach=65 Tom=68 Kayla=73 (Bike, details later) Linda=82 Lew=PJ

Coaching Tips:

Athletes Have Plenty Of Time To Share An ERG.

May Use A BIKE Only If More Than 16 In Class

Cool-Down

Anyhow Dips: 2 / 4 / 6 / 8 / 10 Only Tom and Coach did this.

Notes:

Kayla got a PR on the Deadlift and rang the bell. However, Coach had to negotiate to motivate her. She agreed to go for the P.R. Deadlift only if I let her Bike instead of Row. It's always something with Kayla...

Kayla once again claims (3rd time) that her current S.O. is saving his energy so that he can come to LHCF this coming Thursday. She wants me to program exercises that a tri-athlete can excel at, and we all know what that would be. It is commonly known that Bicycles were invented by people too lazy to go for a walk. I can only hint that the workout will include a "DOUBLE-WOD" which should favor someone who likes to do three things for a very long time. I was hoping to partner him with Robert, but he has an excused absence for the entire week. I'll have to find a good sub; maybe Sammy D ?

Average Dave had to do Deadlifts today for the first time at LHCF. He has always demurred due to "A weak Back" ("spineless"), but now he has so many other hurts that he has to fall back on girlie weight Deadlifts. He is leaving for a weeks vacation which I hope allows him to get some rest.

I hate Fall Break. Elisa and Alicia have already been absent, and now Average Dave and Robert are leaving. It's a mixed blessing. Gotta take the sweet with the sour.

In order to ward off grumbling from various cold natured elderly Surgeons, we are getting the Big Ass Patio Heaters limbered up for immediate use. I'll still hear the grumbling, but at least the Girls will be warm.

Tuesday at 4 PM.