#you know i'm on board 101% of the time

[sugucidal]

# HOW TO SEDUCE YOUR NEIGHBOR 101 !!

CHAPTER ii. [9.1k words]

୨୧‬┊pairing: toji fushiguro x fem! reader

୨୧‬┊synopsis: the shopping trip you were forced to go on with Toji doesn't go exactly as planned.

୨୧‬┊warnings: taboo cw! + semi-smut + age difference (reader is 19 and toji is 34 ) + slow burn + one-sided pining + attempt at humor + slice of life + reader takes multiple L's + megumi is mentioned + reader gets objectified (not by toji) + toji is a serial hoe

୨୧‬┊a/n: make sure to check out my main post! ive included a pinterest board for everything described + a playlist ♡

MAIN POST | part i. > part ii. > part ii.

You didn't know if it was a blessing in disguise, or a curse. Perhaps a cruel joke the world was playing on you like it always did. Yet here you were again, your knee high fluffy socks skidding across the oakwood flooring of your room, scouring through your closet like a deranged cat looking for something to wear on today's decor run.

"Shoes, shoes…I'm missing shoes," digging through the furthest corner in the enclosed space of your closet, you spotted an unopened box on one of the shelves. It was a simple pair of heeled, white mary janes with a heart buckle. You got it 2 birthdays ago but never saw an opportunity to wear them, until now.

Your mother told you that Toji was picking you up at 10:30 am despite you telling her that you would go after lunch.

'He's a busy man. He said this is the only time he's free today.'

"Yeah, of course he is. Always busy doing God knows what." Sighing, you decided on your ensemble for this morning. It was rushed and unplanned, but it would have to do.

Looking at the time on your phone, you saw that it was 10:15. You've still got 15 more minutes left till Toji arrives to pick you up. Letting out a breath, you sat on your bed, shoe cladded toes tapping the floor as your knee bounced, restlessly waiting.

Going over to your floor length mirror, you checked over your choice of outfit once more. It wasn't too cold of a day, so you opted for a knitted long sleeved, off-the-shoulder, cream toned sweater dress that hugged your curves. With its hem stopping just right underneath your ass.

You were debating between thigh highs or leg warmers, but decided leg warmers looked better scrunched down on your ankles with the shoes you opted to wear. You didn’t do much with your hair last night since you were only at home, but since you were going out in public today, you felt like doing something with it. Something cute specifically, as you opened your vanity drawer deciding which accessory to wear today. Picking some silk ribbon you saw laying about, you braided it into your hair, sealing it with a rubber band and tying an extra ribbon into a bow to conceal it. And finally, you had your bag. Well, more like bear. The teddy bear backpack you had on matched well with the neutral color scheme. So, you went for it. Honestly, you reminded yourself of a doll. A doll with a pretty face, and a whole lot of problems.

Taking a deep breath, you puffed out your chest. Your confident expression stared back at you, but on the other side of that mirror you felt nothing but anxiety simmering the longer you stood there in silence.

"I might as well wait for Toji outside then." It was no use standing around in your room. The bed looked way too inviting as it only made you think of excuses not to go. You wouldn't let your bed get the best of you this time.

Walking down the stairs, you headed towards the entrance, petting your cat's furry head along the way. Upon opening the door, you were met with the sight of freshly layered snow. It was thin, barely half an inch thick, but it already had you feeling a little better with the anticipation of making a snowman with it once the days got colder. You remember there was a time when you used to do that with Toji.

God, you can't even reminisce about the past without Toji having some part in it.

You desperately needed to figure out how you were going to do this.

Last night was a bust. Not much progress was made besides the fact that Toji actually spoke to you for the first time in years. Not that he had much chance to do so sooner even if he wanted to, with you a couple hours away from home and all. But it was the bare minimum. Right now you needed a plan, and you needed to think of one fast.

Standing against the railing of your porch, you sorted through your thoughts. You're going to get picked up by Toji in less than 10 minutes. You'll ride in his car, pretend that everything's okay because it is, you'll buy whatever this party needs, and if it goes well you'll confront him on the ride back home. And that'll be the end of that.

Easy.

But when is anything ever easy when it comes to that man. Nothing. The answer has always been nothing.

This line of thought has you so deep into your own frustration that you don't even realize you've been ranting to your teddy bear backpack. Murmuring to it harshly, and rolling your eyes like you're gossiping with a friend about the latest dumb thing that happened on Twitter today.

And it's only when you see a black pickup truck from your peripheral vision pulling up, that you stare back at the bear in horror. Mind being snapped back to the present, and feeling embarrassed that you were seen like this. A man was causing you this much turmoil, that you've been complaining to a damn backpack about it.

Quickly putting your bag back on, you smoothed out your sweater dress. You really fucking hope he didn't see that.

Facing towards the driveway you paused. Your eyes widened, already in awe at the vehicle as you saw it more clearly up close.

The last car you saw Toji with was an old, red Toyota truck. It did it’s job, but definitely not without a couple repairs here and there every so often (that you may or may not have checked him out while he was doing so.) So seeing this new, shiny, black Chevy parked right outside the driveway was definitely an exciting upgrade. The wheels were lifted, making the body higher than its original design, and the windows were tinted midnight black, making it nearly impossible to see who was inside unless you stuck a cheek to the glass.

Overall it was big, and intimidating.

Just like him.

'Guess those freelancing jobs paid off then.’

*BEEP BEEP*

Jesus. You didn't even notice Toji had already parked. How long were you just staring at it for? If he started to honk at you, it must’ve been more than what society deemed normal.

Running up to the passenger side of the truck, albeit meekly, you stopped right in front of the door just as the tinted windows were being pulled down giving you a better view of the inside. There sat Toji on the other side, upper body turned and facing towards you with one hand still on the wheel.

Toji’s eyes almost popped out of his sockets at your appearance but it was quickly masked by a look of amusement.

"You busy daydreaming or what?"

Ignoring his remark, you placed your hands on the edge of the cold glass, peering up at him and around the interior.

“So, new truck huh?”

"Oh this? Yeah, got it not too long ago after receiving my payment for….from work."

You squinted your eyes in suspicion, noticing that he caught his words, but you weren't going to question it. No, you were going to let it go. You knew he wouldn’t tell you anything anyway, most likely just brushing it off as suddenly being hit with a stutter. He never spoke about his “overseas” jobs that he apparently racked up stacks of cash from, and despite him saying it was only freelancing work, you had a hunch it was something a lot shadier than that. You weren’t that dumb. Which is exactly why you weren’t going to ask.

Choosing to stay oblivious, you gave a compliment instead. "It's nice, Toji. Really."

You were about to open the door to get in and cut the small talk short (and because you’d rather bask in the in-system heating than out in the cold) but it wouldn’t budge. It was still locked. Why isn’t he unlocking the door?

Instead of unlocking the door for you like normal people do when picking up a person with their car, Toji isn't exactly someone you'd consider normal. Instead, Toji looked you up and down slowly as an awkward silence took over. You stood there rigid, allowing him to unashamedly undress you with his eyes. At least you think that's what he was doing. He’s being really bold today…does he seriously not plan to open this door?!

Your mind was running a mile per minute. You felt exposed, vulnerable, but you kind of liked the attention he was giving you right now. Especially since he hadn’t bothered to give you any last night. Not that you blame him. Looks like the effort you had put in, despite being rushed, was working, leaving him dumbstruck. You felt proud that you managed to have him speechless.

Unfortunately, your sudden boost in ego was quickly shut down.

"What the hell are you wearing?" Oh. Talk about anticlimactic.

"Huh? W-what do you mean?"

"I mean," He stood there, a single eyebrow raised, and vaguely gesturing to your form with his hand, "This."

Looking around to see if anyone else was witnessing this, you quirked your head in question. "What about it?"

"I know ya didn't just decide to go out looking like that when it's freezing out here. Go back upstairs and put some real clothes on." He looked at you sternly with a scowl etching onto the scarred side of his lip, arms crossing in front of his chest.

Was Toji actually scolding you right now? The nerve of this guy!

You hadn’t seen it right away, but after staring back at him in disbelief at what you were hearing, you noticed his own personal ensemble.

There’s no damn way…

Looking up and down at him as he had done to you just moments prior, you saw that he was wearing an unzipped puffer jacket with a hoodie underneath which was fine, you had no issues regarding that. The problem was what he was wearing below.

This man, who was condemning you on your sweater dress because it was apparently unfit for “freezing” temperatures, was wearing shorts and slides. At least he wore socks with it, if he hadn’t you think you may have actually gone back home and let him do the shopping himself.

You couldn’t help but let out a short laugh, but quickly shut up after seeing Toji wasn’t finding this as amusing as you were.

This was crazy.

Tilting your head to the side, you scrunch your nose in disbelief. “You’re telling me to put warmer clothes on, when you’ve got shorts and slides on?”

Toji was quick to counter. “It’s not the same, don’t compare it.”

“Yeah it is!”

“Look kid, I’m not gonna argue with ya. Either change your clothes, or stay home.”

That’s exactly what you want to do. But you know deep down you can’t, you already told yourself you had to sort things out with him. And the first step to that, is sorting this out.

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After a couple pleading looks and adamant convincing of, 'I'm not cold!' 'I swear I'm fine. It doesn't even feel like winter out here!'

Toji relented. Letting out a sigh, shaking his head as he told you, 'Fine, whatever. But don’t come cryin’ at my feet when your stubborn ass gets sick and your mom gets mad at you.'

Now here you were, seated on the heated, brand new black leather seats of his Chevy after he finally gave in and unlocked the door, letting you in. You spent the trip with your head resting against the palm of your hand somberly, as you watched the scenery of snowy trees and other cars pass by.

The awkwardness throughout the entire car ride was at an all-time high. Higher than what it'd started out with earlier. You were both quiet; your brain a little less. Toji's disappointment regarding your attire was a total blow to your ego. You were just trying to look cute.

Not like it was meant for him anyway.

Is what you wanted to try convincing yourself in order to feel better, but really, you knew it was a lie.

As for Toji, that thought you had earlier about him ogling you? It was right on the money.

But he had to quickly save face by instead acting like a concerned adult worrying about the wellbeing of his innocent, young neighbor. If he was being honest, he didn’t give two shits about what you chose to wear. As long as it was for his eyes only.

Yes, he knew he’d hurt your feelings for telling you to go change. He understood that he was being overbearing and unreasonable especially after you brought up his own attire, but you had to understand. He physically couldn’t accept seeing you wearing an outfit that barely covered your ass like that in public when he should be the only one to see you looking like that. Yes, he was sick for looking at you that way and he knew that which is exactly why he needed you to cover up. Both so that no other creepy assholes (except himself) could see you that way, and because he doesn’t think he could control his thoughts about you for the next couple hours you have alone together. It’s why he had to shift in his seat a couple times. Though, you didn’t notice that.

This game you were playing with him? This seducing thing? With little skirts and shit, yeah it was doing something to him.

Maybe you haven’t changed as much as he thought. As they say, old habits die hard.

After about 15 more minutes of unspoken thoughts, you finally arrived at the store.

Why did you agree to do this again? Oh yeah, you didn't.

Unbuckling your seatbelt, you took a deep breath to try and regain your composure. Just focus on the task. Opening the door, you hopped down and out onto the recently snow-shoveled pavement with Toji following suit as he turned off the truck, taking the keys from the ignition and shutting the door behind him.

You could feel Toji’s burning gaze boring into your back as he walked behind you, keeping a slight distance between you and him but still enough that people could tell that you two came together. Entering into the store, you whipped out your phone, unlocking it and clicking on the notes app filled with a list of things you needed to get that your mom instructed you two to buy. You crossed your fingers hoping you could get all this done quickly and smoothly.

Obviously, life loves to humor you because things did not go smoothly.

Everything was going well at first, you scoured the aisles looking for streamers, fairy lights, pretty napkins, silver and white balloons, and whatever else was needed; putting it all into the basket that Toji was holding, still following you like a sort of puppy—or more like a guard dog with the menacing aura he carried around himself with every step he took.

Walking around you’d occasionally find something that caught your eye, tinkering around with the item for a couple seconds before putting it back down and walking over to the next intriguing thing—like a snow globe you found of a character you recognized filled with pink and white sparkly snow. You bet your ass you added that one to the basket. That hello kitty snow globe was a need, not a want. How something like that even found its way to a store like this was beyond you, but hey, you weren’t complaining.

You even found cute little hats while looking around and managed to get Toji to wear a pair of elf ears while you wore a Santa hat, telling him a silly joke about how he was Santa’s jolliest helper. That only earned you a huff, and roll of his eyes as he took off the ears and pulled the hat you wore down over your face, chuckling as he watched you make dramatics about how you were being suffocated despite being able to breathe perfectly fine.

Interacting like this with him gave you butterflies. You’d let him ruin your perfectly styled hair if it meant things were going back to the way they used to be between you both.

Everything was going fine.

You were actually having…fun. Which you hadn’t anticipated. You were so caught up about feeling like you were on thin ice with Toji, and though you still sort of felt that way, you felt ecstatic that things were beginning to feel normal. Like nothing even happened.

“Hmm, looks like the last thing on this list are more scented candles. Thought we already had some? Oh well.” You shrugged your shoulders. You think your own obsession with candles might have stemmed from your mom now that you think about it.

Toji leaned his body over your shoulder, looking down over your list himself at the check marked boxes except for one. You immediately stiffened up, not expecting him to get so close to you, and especially not for him to make body contact with you. You wish you didn’t have all these layers in the way. You internally shook the thought off before it could escalate. Now was not the time to be having these touched starved thoughts!

Pulling away from you, but still keeping close enough that you could feel the warmth radiating from his body, he put the basket down next to your feet. “Yeah, I saw a couple of those on the other aisle we passed by.”

“Oh good! One of us can get it. Stay here and I’ll quickly-“ Your suggestion didn’t even have a chance to reach the other end of Tojis ears before it got shut down.

“Nah, you stay here, and stay put while I grab it. And don’t go straying off you understand, kid?” Toji looked down at you, waiting for your answer. He’d rather not leave your side, especially since he didn’t trust that you wouldn’t get distracted by something and walk off like a lost mouse-but he tried to reason out in his head that it was only one item. He’d quickly get it and come back, and you’d still be there.

You weren’t going anywhere.

So why did he find it so hard to walk away from you? Must be some type of trauma he thinks.

Nodding your head, with a ‘Mhm! Promise. Not going anywhere. Nope, staying put.’ Toji searched your face to see if you were lying but decided you weren’t, and began jogging off towards another aisle in a different section of the store.

He couldn’t help but have a bad feeling about this as he looked over at all the scented candles, picking up the most expensive looking ones.

“S’not my money anyway..”

Maybe he should’ve just taken you along with him. It’s not like it would’ve caused the both of you any more hassle than going alone would. Shit. Something was gnawing at Toji to hurry the hell up and get back to you. As he briskly walked to the aisle where he had left you, he was met with something far worse than overpriced décor, and it had him seething.

There you were, face scrunched up, and looking highly uncomfortable as some random guy, around your age it seemed, was trying to flirt with you.

Keyword: Trying.

Toji didn’t know who this guy was but he knew damn well what was happening, and he wasn't going to let it slide. Not on his watch. That he wasn't even wearing. 

You hadn't noticed Toji's arrival yet. Still preoccupied with keeping calm and trying to ignore this random man that thought it would be chivalrous of himself to make comments about your body. Saying things about how he doesn't know why your man let you out like that, and if you were his bitch he wouldn't let you out his sight.

It's a good thing Toji wasn't there to hear any of that.

What Toji did hear as he was silently coming up behind the both of you, that almost made him run up and deck the guy in the nuts was when he leaned his body down exaggeratedly to look at your ass and said, "DAMN. That's more ass than…. I've seen….in a while!"

This prick didn't even know where the hell he was going with that line, but Toji sure knew where that guy was gonna end up if he tried it again.

At this point, you were more than ready to kick this guy in the balls, but you didn't want to anger him. Who knows what this guy has got going on in his head? He's harassing you at a decor store for fucks sake!

Before you were thinking about making a run for it to the direction of where Toji had gone, deeming your situation helpless without him; it seemed like someone finally answered your prayers because the moment you looked back, there he was standing right behind the both of you.

'How did I not notice him?? He's wearing slides for god sake! I should've heard the 'plip' 'plaps'!'

"The fuck are you doing?"

The guy was still leaning down when Toji spoke up. He was about to cuss out whoever this other guy was for interrupting his daily "I objectify women for fun" hobby, until he looked up. There Toji stood, 6'2, built like he was made for war, in his shorts and slides, holding candles, and a look so threatening etched onto his face, you think this guy may have almost shit his pants. If the audible gulp meant anything.

"O-oh fuck. Look sir, I was just admiring your hard work, very beautiful daughter you have here. Didn't realize…Sorry." The way he ran away was almost pitiful. Almost. But none of you had any pity for trash.

'Well that was quick', Toji thought. He assumed he might've had to light up this candle he was holding and choke him with it but it seems that wouldn't be happening today.

That's one less crime the authorities could pinpoint on him.

Turning his attention towards you, he asked if you were alright.

"Sort of…not really. Being objectified isn't exactly the greatest feeling…" Toji noticed the way you hugged your hands around yourself, most likely trying to cover up. Suddenly feeling too exposed for comfort despite attempting to brush the interaction off.

Maybe you should've listened to Toji earlier and changed your clothes to something more fitting for winter weather. Screw looking cute.

Though, the regret didn't have a chance to get very far because suddenly you were being brought back to the present.

"Lift your arms up."

Huh? "Wh- why?" The next thing he did nearly had your heart leaping out of your chest. Taking off his puffer jacket, he nudged your arms to lift up so he could help put it through the holes of the sleeves. After checking to make sure it was on properly, he zipped it up a bit more than halfway and patted you down in an effort to make you look a little bit less like the emo version of the Michelin Man.

"You gonna be okay?" You were still a little surprised at the gesture, especially since it was coming from him of all people, but you answered, "..Yeah. Yeah, I'll be okay."

"Good. Lemme finish paying for all this crap and I'll drop you off at your place."

Leading the way towards the cashier, he placed his large palm over your lower back and kept it there until your goods were paid for, and you were out the door.

Situating yourself on the seats of Toji's car, you couldn't help but feel a smile creep up on you, desperately trying to bite it back. You're wearing his coat.

He put his coat on you.

You think you could die of happiness right now. But, you'll save that for later. That whole fiasco that happened at the store still had your mood all sour. You really didn't want to go home yet. And as Toji began to pull out of the parking lot, you spoke up.

"Toji? I don't really feel like going home yet.."

"Yeah? Aight. We'll stop somewhere, I know a place."

Nodding your head, you mumbled a 'thanks', grateful that he took the hint and didn't try to argue with you or ask any questions. Toji can be empathetic when he wants to be sometimes.

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Apparently, when Toji said he 'knew a place', you didn't expect it to be…this.

"Cinnabon? Really?"

"What? You don't like their cinnamon buns? We can go someplace else if you don't want em.” 

You paused. Well, now that you were thinking about it…"Okay. Yeah. Yeah, I do like those."

“Besides,” Walking over to the counter to order, Toji got into line, “I remember ya telling me one time that you liked this place." 

He still remembers something like that? 

You didn’t answer. Instead you followed the nod of Toji’s head telling you to leave the ordering to him and to go find a table to sit at. Looking around, you saw that all the tables were already preoccupied. Damn. Walking back to Toji, you suggested ordering it to go and just finding some place else to sit at like that wooden bench you saw just outside the establishment, which he seemed to favor far more.

Leaving him to his vices, you exited the shop and went to sit outside on the storefront bench, patiently waiting for Toji to get back with your food. Looking around there was still a thin sheet of snow covering some areas of the pavement, most having melted throughout the day or driven over by now. Yet it seemed as though the temperature had no plans of rising as you breathed out a puff of steam, remaining at its crisp, nearly frosty condition. It felt peaceful.

The few minutes of alone time you had to yourself was the most silence your brain has allowed itself to be in within the 24 hours of Tojis reintroduction into your life. 

The oversized puffer jacket you still had on made those hours feel shorter by reminding you of just how much "excitement" had managed to happen—you bet you looked silly as hell with it engulfing your frame, but you couldn't find it in you to care about that at this moment. Especially since it was serving its purpose of protecting you against the cold that you found yourself surrounded by as you sat there waiting.

Leaning back against the wood, you felt something hindering you from going all the way. Your teddy bear backpack. You forgot you even had it on as it was hidden underneath the coat Toji had quickly put on you. Yeah, you must've looked really stupid. Fighting back a grimace and ignoring the fact for your own peace of mind, you went to remove the coat. Leaving it piled behind you on the bench as you took off your bag, placing it onto your lap. 

Reaching into your bag, you took out your trusty emergency makeup kit. Wouldn't hurt to do a quick touch up… Looking over in the direction of the sudden sound of a bell being rung, you peered over to your left to see that it was just someone stepping foot out the shop with a cup of what looked to be hot chocolate. 

'Hopefully Toji get's back soon.'

Focusing back on the task at hand, you clicked open a compact inspecting the state of the way you looked with the mirror. The sight that greeted you brought out a breath of relief. Not a single thing out of place. But just in case, you patted on a little bit of powder for good measure, and reapplied your clear lipgloss so the cold air could struggle to nip at your lips. 

After assessing what needed to be assessed, you put your pouch back into your bag and immediately piped up at the sound of the door chiming again. You couldn't help but do a small cheer as you saw that it was finally Toji approaching you, carrying a bag containing your icing drenched cinnamon bun, a hot drink of some sort, and a bottle of water. 

Handing you your food and drink, you thanked him and immediately dug in once it was within your grasp. Taking a bite, a bit of steam emitted from the warm and gooey bun melting on your tongue, flooding your taste buds with a mix of sweet and nutty spice. Damn, you were a lot hungrier than you thought. But you suppose that's due to having skipped breakfast in the morning. Stuffing more into your mouth, your eyes met Toji's to see him already sitting beside you and looking down at you, snickering.

"Hwat?" The question came out muffled from your cheeks being stuffed like a squirrel.

He looked off to the side for a second, still snickering before he answered, "Nothin." 

Swallowing your food down harshly, you pouted with your brows scrunched together and took notice that you were the only one eating. 

"How come you didn't get yourself one?"

He deadpanned. "I don't want diabetes." 

"Right…of course not…" Such a Toji answer, you thought.

It felt a little weird to be the only one eating, but he kept refusing everytime you asked if he was absolutely sure he didn’t at least want a bite. It was silent between you two except for the occasional slurp of your drink, and you think Toji noticed it too because suddenly he started conversing with you, catching up a little bit on how the both of you have been.

"So kid, how's the university life been treatin' ya?"

"Hm? Oh uhm, it's been alright I guess." You shrugged, fork still in hand.

"Just alright? Sounds pretty lackluster to me."

"It is." You sighed. 

"You tellin' me you don't, what- party? Or done those weird cultist initiations you kids do at sororities." 

"Yeah…no. I'm too busy actually studying most of the time. I've been to like 2-ish? parties, but that's about it. And sororities? You couldn't possibly pay me to join one of those.” You’ve heard one too many stories of premature deaths being caused by sororities. You didn’t particularly feel like gambling your chances. Plus, you weren’t really into the whole sisterhood-brotherhood thing, too weird.

As the conversation progressed between your frankly unexciting school life, Toji recalled some neighborhood fiasco that happened while you were away. 

"...Then this kid's boyfriend starts beating up the guy that tried to take her purse."

"No way! This really happened in our neighborhood? Where like.. nothing ever happens?" To think that a crime had actually happened in the most safest, suburban of neighborhoods that you lived in for your whole life and you weren't there to witness it.

"I'm tellin' ya it was set up to make himself look good. A robbery in broad daylight? In this neighborhood? Bullshit."

"Why does all the exciting shit always happen when I'm not around?" You whined, sighing out your disappointment.

Closing the box to your nearly finished cinnamon bun and placing it beside you on the bench, you suddenly remembered something. 

"By the way! My mom told me you have a son? How come you never mentioned him to me before?"

And just like that, Tojis brows immediately furrowed as if the question was one he hadn't expected to be asked, especially not coming from you. Leaning forward with a grunt, he rested an elbow on his knee, propping a palm under his chin as he proceeded to look at you with the most dramatically bored expression you’ve ever seen on someone's face- one that rivaled even yours.

It screamed, ‘let's get this shit over with.’

"You never asked. Besides, why you askin' about him now?" 

You noticed the way his mood instantly changed after mentioning him but...it was probably nothing right?

Regardless, he didn't seem to be exactly… excited at the mention of his son, so you treated lightly with your next words. “Well, my mom is telling me that I should start looking for a good boy to date and she mentioned your son.” 

He laughed out in disbelief. “Gumi? That boy? Ha, good luck with that. He wouldn’t know the first thing on how to treat a girl.” 

He couldn’t treat you the way I could. Is what he wanted to say. 

Awkwardly you answered, “Well… anyway, I don't think he even goes to my Uni…I think. So it wouldn't really be an option.” 

Toji stayed silent. 

The sudden uncomfortable silence that took over had you overthinking all over again. 

What's wrong? Does he have a bad relationship with his son? Is that why he looks irritated? Should I ask? No. He might get more irritated. Shit. Okay, subject change.

Slamming your hands onto your thighs a little too hard in an attempt to calm your nerves, the sound seemed to catch Tojis attention. Snapping him out of whatever trance he was in, and back to his usual demeanor.

You rubbed your arms out of awkwardness. “Sooo, yeah. Sucks, I wasn't there to witness a fraudulent act of chivalry right in my own neighborhood."

Toji was thankful you moved on from the topic of his son, he didn’t want to think of that little squirt right now. 

But then it got him wondering…

"You ever had a boyfriend before?" 

The question surprised you a little. Okay maybe a lot. You didn't think he'd be even remotely interested in your love life. 

"No… I've never had one." While there was no shame in not having had a significant other at your age, still you couldn't help but feel embarrassed admitting it to Toji.

Toji raised a brow in suspicion. "You sure you're staying clear of boys?" 

This behavior he was exhibiting was starting to confuse the hell out of you. First he scolds you on your attire this morning, and now he's interrogating you on your love life? He was being way overprotective, almost acting as a parent, and it was seriously beginning to make you feel hopeless. 

You nodded. "Yes, Toji. I'm not interested in college guys. They don't know what they're doing,"

That answer seemed to be good enough for Toji, but to both his and your utter surprise you continued, "But I've done other things."

Straightening his back up against the wooden bench in interest, Toji beckoned you to continue on. Truth be told, he didn't want to hear you talking about boys. Just the thought of you with some dumbass little boy made him irrationally bothered. But there was one thing itching at him to ask. 

One thing he simply had to know.

"Oh yeah?"

"Just casual stuff. Nothing serious.."

Toji hummed. It was cute how you were beating around the bush about whatever 'things' you've done. He'll humor you this time around.

"We talkin' the 'clothes on' type of stuff?"

"Well…not exactly.." 

Your lack of elaboration following your answer made Toji egg you on further.

"Don't start gettin' all shy on me now. Let me take a guess, this has somethin' to do with how you mentioned that college boy's don't know what they're doing, yeah?

And like clockwork, the words proceeded to flow past the tip of your tongue without a second thought.

"Remember how I also mentioned earlier that I've gone to only a few parties? Well at one of those parties, I got left alone by my friends in favor of hooking up with some guys they thought were hot." 

"Sounds like some shitty friends." 

You grunted. "Tell me about it. Anyways, here I am, sitting alone on this couch that's thankfully only mildly sticky from whatever wasted student had spilled their drink on top of it, and this guy sits right next to me. We talk, things happen, and we find an empty room."

Toji hums, signaling to you that he's still listening.

Immediately, irritation is apparent on your face by the way your eyes narrow as you recall the memory. "He puts his hands in my pants and this dumbass can't for the life of him find where my clit is and is just rubbing around. Then he has the nerve to ask if I came yet!? Bitch I'm not even moaning!"

Toji nods, intently listening to your rant. Biting back his amusement at your outburst.

"And the same fuckin thing happens again except with a different guy I had been seeing for less than a week. Except—get this, he asks me what a clit is. Like are you for real!?"

Taking a deep breath, you tried channeling your nerves. "So that's that. College boy's don't know where the clit is—hell, they don't even know of its existence." 

Slumping your shoulders, you kicked at the tiny stones on the cement with your shoe. 

"It's why I've never gone further than that." 

If you were being honest, even if those guys did know their way around a woman's body, you don't think you could find it within yourself to stick around for it. You already knew what your mind was banging against your skull to say. Deep down, somewhere in the backrooms of your brain, you know it's because of Toji. It's always been him; the man you're still holding out for. Hoping he'd be the one to take your virginity. 

Whatever. It was a pipe dream anyway. And you definitely weren't going to tell him that.

Speaking of telling him…

‘Why did you tell him all that!? Why did you have to run your mouth!!’

You stammered out an apology. The gravity of what you just up and confessed dawned on you, leaving you a cringing mess from within.

"I-I'm sorry…I don't even know why im telling you all this-"

Toji is quick to dismiss the apology. Truth be told, he was delighted to hear that you were still a virgin.

“Don't worry bout it’. It's nothing to be embarrassed of.

“I mean yeah…but still…”

Turning to face you, Toji placed his hand gingerly upon your thigh, giving it a light squeeze in what you assumed to be an attempt at reassurance or maybe it was comfort? You couldn't really tell, you just knew that the warmth of it felt nice.

“Listen, if I’m tellin’ you that being a virgin is nothin’ to be ashamed of, then its not. Look at it this way, you ain’t a teen mom, something not many can say nowadays.” He shrugged.

He kind of had a point. Though his comforting skills were kind of ass.

“Yeah..okay. Thanks for listening then.”

“No problem.” 

You thought after your little rant the atmosphere would return to its awkward state as it seems that's how it had been every time you spoke with Toji—yet oddly enough, it felt like you had somehow managed to get closer to him by opening up about your struggles. 

Suddenly feeling a spout of hunger befall you once more, you took the last remaining bite of your cinnamon bun, slowly licking off the icing that had gotten smeared onto your lips. 

Toji eyed the action intently, internally shaking a head at himself. 

‘This little minx..’  but before you could make eye contact he abruptly withdrew his hand, fishing a phone out his pocket and checking the time. Huh, you hadn't even noticed his hand had still been on you.

“It's already almost 4, think it's time to call it a day.”

With a sound of surprise, you rose up from your seat, closing the box once more as you watched Toji stand up from his own spot, already patting on his pockets for the car keys. 

You hadn't even noticed that much time had gone by.

“Thanks again for the cinnamon buns and of course, for listening.” 

Toji only hummed in acknowledgement.

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The ride home was spent surrounded by the sounds of muffled radio chatter, ever so slightly noticeable with the engine of the truck at a constant thrum. The sun surprisingly hadn't gone down yet as it typically would have on any other winter day and you made sure to thank your lucky stars for those few more minutes of sunlight.

On the other hand, you couldn't help but feel sad. You didn't want the day to end yet, especially not when progress had been made between the two of you. Then it hit you, progress had been made. While you didn't actually confront him about what had transpired on that faithless day, it was still worth celebrating. 

Baby steps are still steps after all. 

And the more you thought about it, it began to occur to you that today…today kinda felt like a date. In a messed up sense. To others this would've been a failure of a day, but to you? You were elated.

‘Maybe now's my chance to talk to him about what happened back then.’

Sitting up just a little bit straighter in your seat, you turned your head to face Toji, contemplating on the right words to say to him. Just when you were on the verge of starting your sentence, Toji’s phone suddenly began to ring, vibrating atop the center console. 

Without bothering to check who was calling him, Toji answered the phone, putting it on speaker. Nothing to be worried about anyway, probably some scammer giving Toji his routine call.

“Yo, what’s up?”

Without a second to waste, a feminine voice practically cried from the other end.

“Tojiiii, baby it’s been so long, when are you coming over?? You know I miss you-” 

Before this unknown lady could hope to finish her sentence, she was abruptly hung up on–courtesy of Tojis hand flying to take the call off speaker, fumbling for a good second only to ultimately end the call for good measure.

Clearing his throat, Toji continued to keep his eyes focused on the road ahead. Can't be having you both end up in a car crash right? 

“Sorry about that, that was… just one of my old close friends.”

“Uh huh. Ya’ll must've been real close.”

Toji ignored the snark.

“Anyways, go ahead, what were you saying?” 

“I…wasn’t saying anything.”

Thankfully the call was received just minutes short of arriving at your home. Pulling into the driveway, the truck on neutral, you waited a few seconds to see if Toji would say anything more. He didn’t.

Holding back a shaky sigh, you unbuckle your seatbelt and exited the vehicle, opening the passenger side to pick up the bags of decor that you went to buy in the first place.

“Wait, let me help ya out-” Toji last minutely interjected as he turned his body over in his seat to face you.

“No need. I already got it.” Picking up the last bag (thankfully they weren’t very heavy), you slammed the passenger door shut. You contemplated giving Toji a proper farewell bidding but with the way you were feeling right now? You didn’t want him to see the ache painted in your eyes. Instead, you continued walking down the shoveled path and up the steps to your house, fishing the keys out from your keychain and unlocking the door, closing it behind you.

Kicking your shoes off and slipping some slippers onto your feet, you laid the bags over the kitchen counter letting whoever discovered them first deal with the contents inside as you made your way up the stairs to your room, plopping onto your bed face first.

You nearly teared up at your own naivety.

Holy shit. ‘I’m so stupid.’ Was all you could think of as the booty call Toji had received replayed in your mind. This wasn’t any new information on Toji that you hadn’t already known about yet it hurt so bad. 

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On the other hand, Toji couldn’t help but feel the same way. When he saw you safely get back into your home, he shifted gears to reverse, pulling out the driveway and driving back to his own place. 

Closing his eyes for a moment, he pulled out his phone from the cup holder it fell into amidst his struggle to end the call earlier and proceeded to call them back.

One ring was all it took for them to answer, and one second was all it took for Toji to cut them off before they could say anything more.

“Don’t fuckin’ call me again, understand? Good. Now, fuck off.” Hanging up before she could respond or attempt to call back like an idiot, he blocked her.

Letting out a rather loud groan of irritation, he gripped the steering wheel with both hands in indignation, letting his head fall as he could feel a headache coming on.

“Fuck.”

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Laying on your bed disappointed, you curled up thinking about the events that transpired earlier. The whole trip felt like an actual date—up until that call anyway. It was probably the worst way the day could have ended. Your bad luck was unimaginable.

“I need to find myself a four leaf clover or something at this point…”

Honestly, you didn't want to get out of bed. You wanted to lay down and wilt like a flower that never gets any sunlight. Stuffing your face into your arm, it occured to you that you were still wearing Toji’s jacket. 

“Maybe I should stop trying to go after someone who’ll never like me back…” You mumbled to yourself, sitting up and throwing the coat towards the nearest chair it could land on.

Were you really this delusional? You saw the way he was looking at you—you shook your head, trying not to overthink it. 

‘I guess I had the wrong idea.’

Feeling defeated, you knew if you wanted to continue moping about this, you’d have to do it after a shower; lest you end up skipping your skincare routine leaving you with another thing to sulk about.

‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎- - - - - - - - - - ୨♡୧ - - - - - - - - - -

You couldn’t sleep.

Restless, you tossed and turned trying to find that sweet spot that would have you suddenly waking up to the birds singing. Come the fuck on..! I just want to sleep, dammit!

Grunting, it seemed no matter where you tried to place yourself within the comfort of your sheets and plethora of pillows engulfing you, you just couldn’t seem to knock yourself out.

Only one option left.

Slipping a hand underneath the blanket, you let your fingers wander across your skin. Giving each of your tits a soft squeeze under your shirt as you slowly began to relax, sighing in content at a teasing roll of your bud, slowly hardening at your touch. 

Growing tired of the teasing and beginning to feel heavy with need, you ran a finger down your panties, keeping it firmly pressed against your slit as you slowly raised your hips up and down in tandem with your middle finger, rubbing yourself over the cotton material. You could feel yourself getting hotter, wetter. A small, sticky patch of your own arousal seeping through the garment as you finally had enough, moving your panties to the side and making contact with your sickened clit. You wasted no time in parting your lips with your pinky and index, and letting both your middle and ring finger draw tight circles over your bundle of nerves. Immediately settling into a steady rhythm that was sure to have you quickly coming undone. 

As your breathing picked up, so did the small whimpers escaping through your lips. You tried your best to stay as quiet as possible, but fuck was it hard when all you wanted to do was mewl out a certain someones name, imagining it was him playing with your pussy like this. 

Toji. 

Even just sounding his name out in your head had you bucking your hips against the friction you were creating. His large, warm hand stuffed down your panties, and cupping your pussy from behind while rubbing at the entire expanse of your puffy cunt messily. Fast. Drenching his palm in your juices. Wondering what it'd feel like to have his long, fat fingers plunge into you as your own currently probes at your clenching hole, dipping in slightly only to take it back out. It didn't feel—wouldn't feel nearly as good unless it were his. 

You felt so close. Your fingers were starting to ache as you exerted them, moving it against your swollen clit quicker than before. It started to hurt, but the feeling of adrenaline rushing through you to finish made your brain block it out, replacing it with the endorphins of white hot pleasure that you anticipated to burst at any minute now. 

You clamped your legs around your hand, curling into your side like a ball. You wanted to stop, it was too much. But you were so fucking close. Your shaky whines were no longer being held back, eyes squeezed shut and the side of your face pressed against your pillow muffling it as best you could to prevent it from being heard outside. 

Just a little more…

Come on come on come on..! Your hand wouldn't stop unless your body reached its peak, only increasing in its pace. Holding your breath, the sound of your palpating heart was deafening as you continued letting out harsh pants.

You felt the familiar feeling of your lower abdomen tightening, coiling up and finally bursting like a dam. Your toes curled up as you threw your head back further into the pillow, unable to stop the sudden cry of Toji’s name that accidentally slipped out from your parched mouth at the pressure of your orgasm rushing over you like a tidal wave.

Before you could bask in your post orgasmic bliss, Toji bursts through your door. The fucking man himself. In the flesh..?

In a panic, you pull your stiff hand away from between your legs as if it were scalding hot oil, grasping the blanket up towards your chin to cover what you’d just been essentially caught doing.

“Heard you screamin’ my name out, sweetheart.” 

You’d think any normal reaction to being intruded on by the person you were just fantasizing about would be to first ask some questions—yet there you laid calm as a cucumber, watching as he inched closer to you.

Toji smirked. “Don’t start gettin’ all shy on me now. Let me hear you scream my name again for me.”  

You don’t know how he got to you so quickly but Toji was already slipping his hand under the covers towards your pussy, finding it slick and sticky from your high, smearing it all over as he ran his fingers up and down your sensitive slit. 

Retracting his hand back from underneath, he relished in the way your arousal stuck to his fingers like a spider's web as he spread them out, glistening against the soft lighting of your suddenly oddly hazy looking room.

Fueled with newfound urgency, Toji threw the covers off of you, yanking your body up to stand on the floor as you both made your way towards your vanity, back hitting the edge of it as you steadied yourself against Toji's chest. It was all moving too quickly. Too fast. Before you could stop to process your surroundings properly, Toji’s large hand hastily groped your tits as his other fingers that were touching on your pussy earlier prodded at your mouth to open. Without a word, you wrapped your lips around them like a good girl, sucking—tasting yourself before he removed them in order to turn you around. 

Just then, you realized you both were naked as Toji lifted one of your legs up onto the vanity, dragging his wet fingers over his cock as he moved to align it with your dripping hole. You couldn't form a thought. As if on autopilot. Only the unbridled, desperate need to have Toji in you remained.  

No. Scratch that. You felt your own thoughts before you could form them, as if it weren’t your own. It definitely was though. You don’t think anyone could too how fucking badly you wanted this man. Now he was finally about to fuck you? You may as well have been the luckiest woman on planet earth.

And as you begin to feel the sensation of Toji's cock about to enter you—confirming that notion, the door to your room bursts open again.

Wait.

“Wake up.”

What?  

“Wake up!”

Is that my fucking cat talking!?

“WAKE UP!”

Groggily opening your eyes, you're met with early winter sun seeping through your thin curtains, casting a hazy glow into your room. You hear birds singing.

“What the hell was that…” Stretching the sleep out of your limbs, you noticed your hand was still situated inside your panties. 

You closed your eyes, trying to recall your dream. “So half of that was real?” Well, up until Toji bursted into your room, you suppose. And when your cat spoke up telling you to wake the fuck up. 

Ugh.

Sitting up, you rubbed your eyes, leaning over the bedside to pull your diary sitting on your nightstand towards your lap. You had to write this shit down. 

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After jotting down as much as you could recall from the dream without mixing it up with what you were actually getting up to in real life, you left the diary on the same vanity dream version Toji almost dicked you down on. 

Throughout the day, you couldn’t stop thinking about Toji. Hell, your feelings for him increased tenfold just from that measly dream alone. You don't know if it's solely your dreams doing that made you feel like you suddenly had a genuine chance with him but fuck it. 

You thought about the events of yesterday and recalled when he grasped your thigh. That couldn’t have just been nothing right? The way he eyed your lips too as you licked icing off them. He didn't think you noticed, but you did. Of course you did. It was on purpose after all. 

And the icing on the cake? When you brought up his son, Megumi. You didn't want to assume anything but you could've sworn you sensed jealousy swimming in those green eyes of his. How ironic.

Shit, maybe you do have a chance with Toji after all. All he needs is a little push.

With all the evidence stacked up in your favor, you knew you had to devise a plan.

A plan on how to seduce your neighbor.

You giggled to yourself. 

“Mama chose a thought daughter.”

© SUGUCIDAL 2024 — All rights reserved. Do not copy, modify, or redistribute my work without permission.

[yikesharringrove]

steve and billy teaching in the same school!! there's these teachers in my school and they work right across the hall from each other. they're always yelling into each others classrooms.

she teaches english lit 101 and he teaches gov 102

"Harrington!"

Some of the kids snickered quietly when Mr. Harrington jumped at the shout from across the hall.

He stared blankly at the last word he had written on the board, the black Expo mark wiggles from where he had jumped at the yell of his name.

He turned around, sighing exaggeratedly at Mr. Hargrove standing in the doorway.

"Kids, excuse my coworker here." He crossed his arms around his chest. "Can I help you?"

"Yeah, you can Mr. H."

Steve rolled his eyes as his husband swaggered into his classroom, leading a line of ninth graders with him.

It's not the first time Billy's interrupted his class with a question about some inane bullshit that launched Steve into an over-excited rant for the rest of class.

Steve's tenth and eleventh graders were already closing their textbooks, knowing their teacher was just about to be insanely distracted for the rest of class.

"The birds n' I are reading The Crucible."

Fuck.

Steve's pretty sure Billy's kids pay him to bring them across the hall for these impromptu lectures.

"Witch hunts. I get it."

"Yeah, you know. Anyway, I'm giving some context to the publishing of the book. The Red Scare in the United States, well, the second Red Scare, as well as the rise of McCarthyism coincided with the publishing of the play."

Goddammit.

Steve's fucking master's thesis was on all about McCarthyism (more specifically, how the second Red Scare was directly linked to the Lavender Scare.) He cited the stupid play in his research.

Billy knows that. They were already engaged by the time Steve began his master's program.

Fuck this guy, for real.

Steve quietly closed his power point presentation on interest groups in America.

"Fine. Mr. Hargrove's class, find a seat. My class, your packet is still due Friday. I'll post the slides after class." He glared at Billy.

Billy grinned right back, his tongue poking out in that frustrating way it has since high school.

"1950s United States. What do you know?"

A few hands went up.

Even Billy raised his stupid hand. Steve ignored him.

-

"Which brings us to the end of the decade. With the early 1960s, we have the reformation in the Catholic Church, known as Vatican ll-"

The bell cut him off mid-sentence, and there was a mad scramble as the students all tried to pack up as quickly as possible, before Steve could keep going.

"My class," he nearly shouted over the scraping of chairs against linoleum. "Your packets are still due Friday! I don't care that Mr. Hargrove interrupted our time."

"And birds! The rubric is posted on the class page! I want outlines handed in on Tuesday."

The classroom door closed behind the final kid.

"You're a dick."

Billy laughed.

"Nah, you just teach that shit so much better than I do."

Steve rolled his eyes. He sat behind his desk, yanking over a stack of twelfth grade research assignments to begin grading. Billy perched on the other side of his desk.

"Y'know, you could just ask me to come in and lecture. You don't have to interrupt my own class."

"Yeah, but it's fun to wind you up and watch you go. And I think the birds like it when they see that you're passionate about something. Why do you think I always start with The Joy Luck Club?"

"Because you have mommy issues."

"No. Because Ying-ying's story makes me sob like a bitch, and the birds get to realize that I'm a real-life human."

Steve scrubbed his face with his hands, collecting himself before facing his dumbass husband again.

"Wait, you said they had an essay due. What's the essay?"

"Oh, comparing the Salem Witch Trials and the goings on of the U.S. government in the mid 1950s. You know."

"So, you created an assignment, knowing that I would infodump all that shit to your kids?"

"Yes."

"I want a divorce."

Billy laughed, leaning over Steve's desk to kiss his forehead.

"No, you don't."

"No, I don't. I love you. But also you suck."

The bell sounded to indicate the end of passing period.

Billy got off the desk, stretching with a groan.

"Would you be mad if I brought my senior class in?"

Steve glared at him in the doorway.

"What's the assignment?"

"They're presenting on the parallels between 1984 and the current political climate."

Goddammit.

"Bring 'em in."

[cloudcountry]

attention twisted wonderland fans! ortho has tasked you with an important mission—give his brother the best summer imaginable!

welcome to the introduction post for my new event! i am your host, auburn! you probably know me as azulashengrottospiano, but i've changed urls ^^;

this time, i'm attempting to bring people together instead of doing an event all by myself. you'll have to forgive me if it's confusing, i've never hosted something like this before but i'll do my best and i hope you guys will have fun!

both writers and artists are encouraged to participate!

RUN TIME: this event will run from may 27th to june 10th! but you are more than welcome to post your pieces before then if you are finished or after if something came up! we understand <3

TO SIGN UP: please comment or reblog this post with your name and what you're going to be making! you don't need to have a specific idea yet, you can just whether you're an author or an artist!

when finished, please tag your works with sweet shroud summer 2024 so people can have an overview of the event's wonderful talent!

the event rules . . .

no nsfw content, i want minors to be able to participate as well if they want to.

any content is welcome aside from that! it can be romantic, familial, platonic, it can include yuu or not!

just as long as idia is getting out of his room and having a good time C: make sure you treat him well or ortho will get upset!

the company policy is open to be modified if a customer brings up a question!!

contributors and their pieces will be listed under the cut.

OUR LOVELY CONTRIBUTORS!

auburn / cloudcountry - writer.

if you let me.

dove / da-birb-writes-sometimes - writer.

mess in chat >w^. mess at con.

edie / edith-is-a-cat - artist (mainly.)

art piece. written work. kitty. platinum jacket. idia & tsum. rainbow idia.

cookie / cookiesandbiscuits - artist.

at the beach art piece. hot day.

irene / officialdaydreamer00 - writer & artist.

flowers of a summer day. part 1.5. aimless outing. marionette on a string. board game club shenanigans.

cyath / cyath - artist.

identity / identity-theft-101 - artist.

he dropped his ice cream :( art piece.

mochimus / thatsadguymochi - artist.

at the lake art piece.

phrog / phrowog - artist.

gamer touches the ocean art piece.

sapphy / shinysparklesapphires - artist.

gamer touches grass art piece.

em / musicalhistorical - writer.

zell / z3llous - artist.

getting milkshakes. catching pokemon.

silver / rxttenbxnes - artist.

sosa / miraculous-pacer55 - artist.

monimich / monimichbeingsilly - artist.

pop up cafe.

kei / keii-starz - writer.

garden.

fruity / fruity-arts - artist.

moon / moon-mage - artist.

rubia / twistedchatterbox - writer & artist.

emily / walkingoneliner37 - artist.

idia and ortho at disneyworld!

ryker / ryker-writes - writer.

firefly.

mayuu / justyoureverydaytwstsimp - writer.

dani / xol-io - writer & artist.

arius / ariusthething - writer & artist.

a short visit!

daffodil / chocodaffodil - artist.

idia at the beach.

loser / loser-jpg - artist.

getting boba.

manoo / pop-sparkle - artist.

tropical idia!

yourfbiagen1 - artist.

idia meets hatsune miku

octahyde - artist.

she just got to the prince mush boss...

comingyourlugubriousness / artist.

fireflies.

[ventique18]

Book 7, Chapter 7, Episode 101:

So the DiaRamshackle squad landed in Ignihyde, where they meet the completely aware Idia. They had thought they got out of a dream into the "real world", but it turns out they're just outside of Lilia's dream but still within Malleus' magical domain expansion-- which is Idia's "dream" now. Proof of this is because Sebek's still wearing his armor.

At this point in time, apparently they haven't really conversed with Idia yet. Sebek barely remembers that Idia's the Ignihyde housewarden LOL.

Sebek: "... That's right! I knew I've seen that face before. You're Ignihyde's housewarden! Back at the entrance ceremony, you attended in some sort of board-like thing. This might be the first time I've seen you in proper form."

Sebek: "I am from Diasomnia, First Year, Class D, Seat 33, Sebek Zigvolt!!" WHY IS HE SO ENTHUSIASTIC LMAO

Sebek: "This dopey man right here is Silver. Second Year, from the same dormitory!!" (DOPEY DSJKNDAS HE'S BASICALLY SAYING HE LOOKS HIGH LMAO)

Idia: "Are Malleus and co.'s ears still fine from being blasted by this boombox everyday at close-range..."

Silver: "Everyone, on alert! Idia-senpai, Grim, prefect, get behind me and Sebek!"

AND SO SUDDENLY THEY'RE GETTING ATTACKED??

Idia: "Wuh?! What's this all of a sudden?! Ow, ow! I'm getting crushed between hard muscles and hard armor!"

IDIA????? IS THIS THE RIGHT TIME AND PLACE TO BE COMMENTING ON MUSCLES OMFG LMAO

So the "darkness" have come for Idia because they sensed that someone needs to be lulled back to sleep lol.

Grim: "Malleus might pop up again to say "You're awake?"..!"

Sebek: "The "darkness" are fine, though I do not know if we can win against Lord Malleus without Sir Lilia..."

"No, we are ready!"

Sebek: "Whether it be the darkness, or Lord Malleus... We will definitely strike back!!!"

Idia: "Uogh... Wai-- too close... Can't... breathe..!"

HE'S LITERALLY SHAKING BACK AND FORTH HELP

AND THEN SUDDENLY SOMEONE SPEAKS!

???: "About Malleus and the dark shadows... You don't need to worry about them for a while. I think he's spending considerable "resources" trying to get Lilia Vanrouge back to sleep."

Ortho: "Hehe, sorry for making you worry."

Apparently, Ortho's appearing in monitor mode for now because trying to appear as his usual form in Idia's dreams causes some serious errors.

Ortho: "Anyway... Everyone, brother's face is already turning blue from asphyxiation. Can you let him go now?"

So the two let go of him and Idia let's in a HUGE GASP FOR AIR

Idia: "ohh I almost descended to the underworld... Tha-thanks for the save, Ortho..."

So anyway, Sebek starts questioning the two what they mean by Malleus using up resources to put Lilia to sleep. Ortho starts the explanation by recounting events. That during Lilia's farewell party, Malleus put everyone to sleep-- no, froze time and space itself. But Ortho in particular managed to escape from the island through communications satellite. Everyone was shocked because Ortho could do something like that?! Ortho just laughs and says his "peculiarity" was helpful, because while he's not a mage and therefore cannot have a unique magic, he can transmit his "soul" through radio waves.

Sebek: "Loathe as I am to admit... but human advancement in machinery is amazing."

Silver chimes in and praises that Ortho's uniqueness is something they can never attain no matter how hard they train. Ortho moves on, explaining that he went to STYX headquarters and there, they hatched the plan for Ortho to infiltrate Sage Island in order to analyze Malleus' unique magic, Fae of Maleficence.

[ihopesocomic]

You said that I Hope So is not a "My Pride but better", it's an original story of yours. Fair. I don't disagree. But do you really think you're SUCH a better writer than tribble? 😭 Because every time someone PMs you in a way that isn't negative, you start to completely shit on it, and compare it to how you decided to do it differently in your own story and how it's so much better. Hold on there. I just think artists/writers should be careful when they worship and praise their own works too much while shitting on others works that often were born from a similar idea. But I'm not hating, it's just funny tho.

It's not about us "thinking we're SUCH better writers than Tribble", it's more that's your interpretation of what we're saying. I'm willing to bet that if we didn't have this comic, the argument would be more along the lines of 'well, I'd like to see you do better!' instead. This is just the flip side of the coin, I feel.

I say this because you seem to have this idea that she and her writing are untouchable to criticism vs. something like Warrior Cats, (which is where a lot of MP's narrative structure is inspired from), which even the self-admitted fans can find fault in. Still doesn't mean they can't find the potential in those books and make their own AUs or w/e without also suggesting they're better writers than the Erins. (Either way, certain expectations come with being a professional writer.)

Even without the badly-handled topics, her show just isn't written well. Dialogue is clunky and non-conversational, things get mentioned but never get followed through on, character motivations are all over the place. We have a whole three hour video talking about this if you'd care to watch it. But there are other things that I feel make Tribble an objectively bad writer. This isn't us "shitting on her". These are just fundamental factors that go against How to be a Good Writer 101:

Tribble never listened to criticism and she used serious issues as entertainment value. No one can argue that even highly-rated writers can produce incredibly sloppy work when 1) they feel they don't have to listen to criticism and 2) they feel they don't have to do proper research with a topic they want to cover in their work while knowing next to nothing about it.

As well as being a professional in her field, Tribble also had resources at her disposal that most indie creators cannot access. She had an editor and beta script readers helping her. In short, she had plenty of opportunities and guidance to stop and look back on what she had produced and make improvements. She did not and, what's more: she put on a show of doing so via asking for criticism but not taking it on board.

We know this because I tried to give her advice on several occasions, only to be shot down. For example, Tribble was very much aware of some of the underlying issues within the show (i.e. how bad it looked that Hover allowed Nothing to be assaulted by Quickmane in Episode 5 with zero reaction) because we brought it to her attention, she proceeded to not take our suggestions on how to improve things on board for one reason or another.

And I don't think I need to go into how it feels very backhanded that an able-bodied creator is producing a "pro-disability" show and yet refused to take on criticism by disabled viewers. (I would say that thinking so highly of oneself to the point where advice goes ignored even when asked for does not a good writer make.)

I also don't know if you're under the impression that we're tearing into some hobbyist's passion project but that's not what this is. My Pride was a professional production, made by a team and it had a budget of around 140-150k CAD, which was funded by Canadian taxpayers. We've had to repeatedly point this out because Tribble has failed to gone out of her way to make this clear. Presumably so people like you feel bad for her.

So, I'm sorry but it's perfectly fair game to criticise MP and how Tribble went about producing it. She had plenty of opportunities to improve what many deemed to be shortcomings. She did not. She thought she knew better, even better than those who have experienced the actual oppression she sought to depict in an edgy, disrespectful manner.

And that's why we feel she's bad writer. Her fans are free to disagree with us, but I've yet to come across any real argument outside of 'y'all r just mean!', even though we've been courteous enough to not get personal when criticizing her as a writer/director.

Our writing isn't perfect. We've always consistently made that clear. We have had several instances throughout the process of making this comic where readers have made good points that we have brought on to improve the writing. Hell, I've discovered things I didn't even know about my own conditions via some of the readers of this comic. The overreaching lesson is that you should listen to your readers, because they just want you to produce a better narrative. Unfortunately, I feel Tribble did not feel the same way about her audience, and I'm also getting the same vibes from you, anon. Purely by your notion that criticism of a show or not scolding our fans when they say they have a preference like the MP fans do = "shitting on MP". Which is fine but I'm going to have to say I disagree. It's not mean or problematic for me or any of my disabled readers to have strong opinions about a show that misappropriates our oppression.

Or that I think my writing is amazing when it's more that I'm improving what I personally feel needs to be improved. Such as how the disabled are always depicted in mainstream media. And I'll continue to do so. You can come at me with the reductive gatekeeping that is that I - as a disabled person - do not have the right to have an opinion on an able-bodied creator writing ableism badly and how it can be improved all you want, but I think that's ultimately more of a commentary on you than me. c: - RJ

[angel-of-the-moons]

Didn't Plan On It (AKA, Your Friends Are Assholes)

Khonshu x Fem!Reader

TW/CW: NSFW, forced marriage (kinda??? You SORT OF consented to it???), hints at sexual stuff, groping, my shitty sense of humor

MINORS DNI I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR CONTENT YOU CONSUME

A/N: Based on this post I got tagged in asdfghjkl (I loosely based Max off a friend of mine 💀)

You loved your friends, but hated them at the same time.

Loved them because they were quirky and weird and matched your energy...

...Hated them because they matched your energy.

A double edged sword, for certain. But at the same time, there's nobody you'd trust more to come to your aid if some creep got up into your personal space. You'd all grown up together, been through everything through thick and thin, even if some of you moved away at some point.

There was Mari, the oldest one in the group by two years. She was like the aunt of the friend group (you were the group mom) who you all could trust to suggest poisoning an ex who did you wrong.

Then, there was Elizabeth "Lizzy", she was the one in the group that alcohol hit the hardest, the lightweight who got cuddly when she was drunk. She did everyone's taxes for them (you know how to do them, she just does them better). Stabbed her ex boyfriend for cheating on her, didn't get any charges pressed (somehow).

There was the other Elizabeth, whom everyone just called "Eli" to avoid confusing her with Lizzy. (Sometimes you all call them #1 and #2) Eli was the most tomboy of the group, her fashion very much stuck in the "grunge" fashion from back in the 90s. 90% of her fashion choice is band merch, she is the one who drives everyone to concerts and manages check-ins at events to make sure everyone is accounted for.

After Mari, Lizzy, and Eli, there was Zoey. Her contact number in everyone's phone is almost always "Zoey 101". The highest IQ out of you all, she was the one who manages passports, IDs, and luggage checks when you take trips together. Has way too much knowledge on the supernatural and the occult.

After the four of them, was Kayla. Kayla was the one who always knew everything about whatever group projects you were all assigned to in school; ask her an obscure fact and she could spit out an atlas or encyclopedia on the subject. Dresses like she's a model on a runway almost every day. Owns 5,000 pairs of feetie pajamas.

And finally, there was Maxwell "Max". You all likened him to Max, Goofy's son, due to how lanky he was. A beautician by trade, always wore flawless makeup when he dressed in drag. Or, just gorgeous in general. Your team's "Gay Avenger" and he watches your drinks at parties like he is a lone sentry between him, a sniper and a platoon of soldiers in the night. Max was the one you knew the longest, you two were born only a few days apart; your parents being best friends even longer. You all made every single one of his drag shows to support him, screaming and cheering the loudest.

Right now, you were at Kayla's house. She was a successful real estate agent and made serious bank; so hosting the bachelorette party in her honor there just made sense. Cheaper, too.

You all had a private party, getting wasted, eating snacks, dressing each other up, holding Lizzy's hair when she puked into the toilet, watching old shitty rom-coms, and letting Max put his best drag looks on all of you. (That was his favorite part of the night, honestly.)

But somehow, inevitably, the occult was brought up. Not by Zoey, but by Mari. She suggested playing with a ouija board.

Kayla had slammed her hands on the table and said, "Hell. No! Not in my house! I'm white, but I'm not horror movie "let's open a magic door and summon a demon" white!"

"Yeah, let's be real. The demon would probably claim Max first." Lizzy grinned, jerking her thumb to the man in question.

Max dramatically clutched his invisible pearls, the gaudy fake tiara crooked in his poofy curls as he gasped incredulously, "Not on the first date, girl! He'd have to put a ring on it, first. I have standards."

"Oh, he'd probably put a ring on something--" Eli snorted into her drink, earning a loud round of chortling from the rest of you.

As the laughter died down, Zoey had said a loud thoughtfully, "Well... there is something I read in my forums recently. A ritual..."

Kayla squinted at her, pointing her manicured nail into her chubby little cheek. "What did I just say about demons?"

"It's not a demon!" Zoey giggled. "It's a god."

"Oh, so instead of a demon, we're gonna summon something possibly even more dangerous?" Mari sighed, raising an eyebrow. "I d'nno how a god would feel about puny mortals like us summoning him from a plane of existence we can't even fathom just to ask him to strip for us."

"Noooo!" Zoey frowned at her as everyone laughed. "It's kind of like a.... fertility rite? Or well, maybe more like some kinda ceremony that's supposed to gain the favor of the god or something. It was discovered by some sort of archaeologist recently in a scroll!"

"A scroll." You deadpan, setting your empty glass of wine in front of you, leaning back on the couch.

"I think I know the scroll you're talking about." Kayla had piped in. "It was found in some recovered temple out in Egypt, right? By one that one world famous professor and historian?"

"Yes! So you know which god I'm talking about, and how he's not dangerous." Zoey nodded excitedly, growing more and more energized at the possibility of playing with magic with all of you.

Kayla tapped her nails on the tabletop, twisting her mouth as she mulled over her options. Deciding that, fuck it, Zoey had a point... it couldn't hurt to end the night with a bang.

"Okay, okay.... let's do it."

"Yessss!" Zoey said, jumping up and bouncing on her feet. She stopped and awkwardly cleared her throat. "Well, er... we kind of need a subject to be the centerpiece, though... the "anchor" of the spell..."

"Wait.... You said a fertility god?" Max squinted, his eyes glimmering cheekily.

"Well, healing, protection, fertility..." Zoey listed off, her voice trailing away.

"Okay okay, but let's focus on the fertility part." He replied. "So odds are.... the anchor of the spell is going to get laid."

"Well... It's a possibility."

"So, who gets to be the lucky anchor?" You asked, tilting your head.

The silence was so loud a mouse could sneeze and you all would have heard it.

And then.... their heads all turned to you, grins spreading on their faces as they all traded conspiratorial looks with one another.

"Oh fuck you." You snap, shaking your head.

"Well, babygirl..." Max leaned in, his arm over your shoulder. "I know for a fact you haven't been laid in a good long while..."

"I have an active sex life!" You retorted, your voice becoming shrill.

"Battery-operated silicone boyfriends don't count." He deadpanned, earning laughter from everyone in the room.

You slump in your seat, pouting like an angry child. "I don't need help getting laid!"

"Well, it's also..." Lizzy said slowly. "The last guy you were with was Troy... and we all know what happened with him."

Your mood soured further at the mention of your highschool sweetheart, the man of your dreams... or so it had appeared. You'd held out on him for a while, finally giving in on prom night and getting a hotel room and having sex with him.

And one day, you decided to drop by his family's house with an early birthday present. ...Only to have caught him in bed with his best friend's mother. He'd been cheating on you with her for almost the entirety of your relationship.

It was after that break-up that you just... didn't want to date. Even if you were lonely, you wouldn't give in because your sense of trust had been betrayed by the guy you were absolutely besotted with.

Eli cleared her throat, "Oh come on. Nothing's gonna happen... it's not like we're gonna sacrifice you on an altar."

"Ugh! Fine! Leave me alone! And when nothing happens you're all paying for my drinks the next time we go bar hopping!" You shouted, throwing your hands up in the air.

Zoey rubbed her hands together, grinning. "Now, then.... let's make a run to that little shop on Malden Street! They're 24 hours and have everything we need!"

You groaned as you got tugged along, Mari the designated driver because she was the only sober one.

Yeah. You hated and loved your friends.

Zoey had begun setting up the altar around the bed in the guest room, finishing it almost too quickly for your liking. Max and Kayla had dolled you all up for your "date", ensuring you looked your best when that god (never) appeared.

Dressed in one of Kayla's black nightgowns and her silk robe, Max had your hair styled "just right" and your makeup "tastefully minimal"--whatever all that meant.

Eli and Lizzy had killed the lights, while Mari cleared the rest of the bedroom for whatever else would occur.

You laid down on the bed as everyone sat in a semicircle around the bed, Zoey standing with a wax candle in hand as she read the spell screenshotted on her phone aloud as best she could in the language it was written.

You laid against the plush pillows, staring at the ceiling in boredom, listening to Zoey drone on and your other friends giggle in anticipation at the stupid middle-school antics they were perpetrating upon you.

Eventually, the room fell silent as Zoey kneeled like the others staring at you with rapt attention, her eyes glittering in excitement.

Only... nothing happened. Not even... well, you weren't sure what magic would feel like if it was cast on you.

"Hah!" You said, lifting your head to look at Zoey, pointing. "I told you nothing would happen--"

Your six friends all fell backwards with startled shouts and shrieks when, in a blur of light... you vanished.

Right in front of them!

"Oh, oh no.... Um... whoops...?" Zoey said, her voice shell shocked and tiny as a bead of sweat dripped down her brow.

Max grabbed Zoey and shook her, "What did you do! What did you do?!"

The moment that flash of light dissipated you hit whatever soft surface you were on with a gasp, almost feeling your lungs squeezed of all air before sucking in much needed oxygen.

You blinked your eyes open, and when they focused on your surroundings... You realized you weren't at Kayla's house anymore. Your friends weren't sitting in their silly ritualistic circle... Zoey wasn't staring at you like a bug under a microscope.

You were... somewhere. The bed you were on was insanely large and round, the sheets a divinely soft texture, almost like the velvet of a moths's wing. A canopy was above you, wafting in an unknown breeze. Marble pillars with beautiful scenes painted on lined the room that was very sparse, save for a table laden with food in the corner.

You swing your legs over the bed and rub your temples.

You were drunk. You were black out drunk and this is all some kind of horrible dream that will cause you migraines with your inevitable hangover in the morning.

Right?

Yeah. Not so lucky.

When your eyes opened once more, you were still in the strange marble room.

You groaned, standing up and shivering as your feet touched the cold stone floors, polished to a fine sheen that reflected the dim torchlight lit on various oil lamps lining the room.

You looked to your side and noticed some kind of balcony, the night sky just beyond.

You frantically ran for it, hoping that maybe you might be able to call down to the street below for help, but... no luck.

Your hands wrapped around the stone banister and your jaw dropped. You weren't met with the night scenery of some kind of city or town, or even a sprawling estate.

Chalky dust, dented with craters and rocks and boulders stretched out beyond your vision's limits. And hovering in the sky where the moon should be, was...

The Earth. A shiny blue-and-green marble that lazily hung in the void of space, one side dimly lit by the sun while the other was black, lights from the cities below dotting it with a golden hue in the shadow of the--the fucking moon.

You were on the fucking moon?!

"How the hell... what..." You said, your heart thudding in your chest as you walked back into the ornate, pale room you'd exited.

Honestly, you were the darkest thing in there, dressed in all black, the silk hanging from your body and clinging to you in all the right places...

How were you breathing? What were you breathing? How were you even alive--

"Well... this is interesting." A deep voice mused from behind you.

You could feel someone looming over you. An oppressive feeling bearing down on you like whoever this was towered beyond your height.

You spun around, swallowing the lump of fear in your chest; but whoever spoke was no longer behind you.

"It's been some time since anyone has performed that ritual." The voice said again, "Though... uour friend should have worded it more carefully. Her mistranslation may cost you more than intended."

You looked towards the balcony, the thin curtains swaying in the breeze-that-should-not-be, a tall, imposing shadow barely showing through the other side.

An impossibly large man. Or... what looked like a man... if it weren't for the silhouette of the bird skull where his head should be.

Fear spread through your body at every leap of your pulse, dreading it as the figure began walking to the edge of the fine drapery. You anticipated some kind of horror show, but... well. You got the opposite.

A man with impeccably tanned skin, dressed only in a gold bejeweled collar and bracers stepped out, his white shendyt wrapped in some sort of sheer cover, his toned waist disappearing beyond, a thin trail of dark hair trailing up to his navel as his bare feet padded silently across the polished floor. On his chest was a crescent moon that looked like it was painted in some sort of gold across his skin.

His hazel eyes glimmered at you with an inhuman inner light, his mouth quirked up in a cocky smile that stretched his beard; his long, curled black hair striped with wisps of silver as it hung low against his shoulders.

One of his hands held a long staff, topped in a golden crescent moon, like the one tattooed on his chest. His eyes trailed you up and down as he slowly made his way over to you.

You were transfixed.

You were so struck by him that you didn't flinch until his fingers tipped your chin so you would look up at him, your mouth going dry. What the hell was happening?

"Well... at least you are pleasing to look at."

You felt your ego take the punch, and your awe at his beauty was shattered. Oh. So he was a dick.

"You--"

"Do you know why you're here, little dove?" He hummed, tilting his head slightly with a coy--but knowing--smile.

"I... My friend did some stupid magic circle, that's what!" You say, twisting your head free from his grasp, stepping away to wrap the silk robe around you tighter, suddenly feeling very self conscious.

"I asked not what brought you here... but if you knew what your friend's ritual has ordained for you." He chuckled lowly at your sense of modesty.

"I..." You flounder, wishing you had been listening to the details Zoey had been spitting as she set up the circle, earlier as Max and Kayla got you ready. "Something about..."

Your body shivered at the realization.

"... something about fertility?"

The man moved towards you in a blur, suddenly behind you once again; his body heat bleeding into you like the scorching sun on a summer day, his heavy hands circling your waist and toying with the knot in the robe.

"Close." He had whispered, his lips touching the shell of your ear as your body went rigid in his embrace.

"Your friend mistranslated "offering"." The ridiculously gorgeous man hummed deeply. His lips skimmed your bare neck in appreciation; "She said "wife". Imagine my surprise, while I was overseeing my Fist's duties and I heard that incantation over the divine space. I simply had to see who performed such a ritual."

"W-wait you can't be saying that..."

"I am afraid so, little dove." He breathed, his mouth leaving a hot kiss to your leaping pulse, making heat pool low in your belly. His hands slid beneath the robe, touching the soft nightgown that covered you beneath; barely touching the undersides of your breasts.

"You belong to me, now."

You stood ramrod stiff as his hands roamed you, mapping out every dip and curve your body had; every hollow and mark in your skin, driving your body mad with desire despite the shock of your current situation.

"It is human custom to consummate a marriage after a ceremony, yes?" His mouth once again found your ear, his words hot on your skin, one of his hands slipping beneath your robe and gown to brush his thumb over one of your pebbled nipples; his other sliding down to slowly hike up the skirt of your nightwear, his hand groping and squeezing the fat of your thigh.

"It has been... overlong since I have indulged in such pleasures. But I assure you, I have a--very--good memory."

All six of them had been in a constant state of panic, frantically wondering if they should call a priest or the police. The sun was beginning to creep over the horizon, painting the sky in gorgeous colors as clouds lazily danced about the atmosphere.

Max had yanked at his curls, "I'm to gay and gorgeous to go to jail!"

"It was magic not murder, you drama queen!" Mari shouted, shaking Max's arm frantically.

"Who the fuck should we call?!" Lizzy shrieked, waving her arms over her head. "The fuckin' Winchester brothers?! Fucking Constantine?!"

Zoey practically sobbed, emotionally raw and scared. She hadn't expected anything to happen with this! After all, none of her other dabblings caused something like... like this! What if she mistranslated in the wrong language and accidentally sent you to Cthulhu? What if she cursed you to one of the circles of hell? Did she say something wrong?!

"I'm sorry!" She sniffled as Eli rubbed her back, trying desperately to stay calm. "I didn't know!"

"Well, we are not ever doing goddamn magic ever again!" Kayla hyperventilated, fanning herself desperately with her hand, the other holding her long hair up in a bunch to get it off of her sweaty neck. "God damn it, this shit always happens in horror movies! Me and my big mouth--"

They were all almost knocked to the ground again, when, in a bright flash of light... you were dropped onto the plush mattress once again. Only this time, your appearance was far more disheveled.

Your makeup ran down your cheeks, mascara tracking down your face from dried tears, your lipstick smeared and hair messy; your clothes haphazardly askew in several places.

You blinked, your eyes not entirely focused as you sat up and looked at your friends. You zeroed in on Zoey. You didn't seem... hurt? Mad at her?

Instead, your usual coping mechanism kicked in. Humor.

"Scully.... You're not gonna believe this..."

[navree]

The Velaryons siding with Team Black gets even more ridiculous when you consider that Daemon threw a tantrum (shocker) around the time of the Great Council of 101 AC when Rhaenys was even considered as a candidate opposing Viserys. This fool allegedly gathered together enough resources in preparation to rebel against the crown if it looked like Rhaenys would be selected as heir apparent instead of heir presumptive. Why she would ever forget something like that and allow Laena anywhere near Daemon is beyond my understanding.

None of the Velaryons should be on Team Black at all.

Corlys doesn't particularly like Viserys at all and has been routinely disrespected by him, not just in the matter of being purposefully led on with regards to the Laena marriage but even in how he's treated in Council. He's also absolutely got a grudge about Rhaenys not being on the throne and feeling shafted as a result, not to mention Daemon summarily executed a member of his family without trial, and the disrespect shown to his House should be enough to at least want him to remain neutral.

Rhaenys absolutely doesn't like Rhaenyra, she was deeply antagonistic towards her the second she was proclaimed heir (out of jealousy I guess????) and was also convinced that it wouldn't work out. Not to mention, even beyond how she was treated with the Great Council, look at her kids. Daemon kept Laena away from her family for a good number of years and then she died, only to behave like an ass at her funeral and get married well before was considered appropriate. Rhaenyra "disrespected" Laenor with the Harwin Strong affair and their children, which we know Rhaenys was aware of because she brings it up to Corlys. And she thinks Rhaenyra killed Laenor to marry Daemon, because Rhaenyra has deliberately made it look like she had Laenor murdered, which alone gives her every right to hate Rhaenyra until the end of time. There's no way she would agree to betrothing her granddaughters to the Strongs, there's no way she'd go to Rhaenyra's side in the civil war she predicted just because Rhaenyra hadn't burned Dragonstone down in twelve hours, honestly the character they've written likely should have agreed to Alicent's proposals because that whole "we don't rule ourselves but heavily influence those that do and wield power that way" is literally what she already does with Corlys.

Baela, again, shouldn't be on board with Team Black either. Like I said, she was shunted off to Driftmark because Daemon the Targaryen supremacist wanted to devote all his time and energy to his pureblood Targaryen marriage and subsequent pureblood Targaryen children at the expense of his daughters. And while on Driftmark, she watches Rhaenys rule it alone, act as Lord of the Tides herself. And I'm meant to think she never once thought about how Driftmark should have been Laena's by rights, as Corlys's eldest, and thus her's by rights, as Laena's eldest? She's fine being a consort, a position with considerably less power, to Jace, who she does not know at all because she's spent all her time in either Pentos or Driftmark, while her inheritance, her rights, get passed not even to her little sister, but to some kid who isn't even Laenor's? No, why should she be on board with that after her treatment and how she's been raised? Even if she doesn't have any issues with Rhaenyra herself, the disrespect shown to her and her family by Rhaenyra's faction isn't something she should look past.

Rhaena meanwhile has been treated apparently like shit by Daemon her entire life, all because she didn't have a dragon (and because Daemon is a giant flaming asshole). And like her sister, she has to settle for being a consort, but even worse, to someone who, according to the laws of their country, has absolutely no right to the inheritance he's getting, which should be either her sister's or her's. Again, even if there's no issue with Rhaenyra on Rhaena's end, the treatment from Rhaenyra's allies like Viserys and Daemon is bad enough that it should give her pause. Plus, both Rhaena and Baela were dragged to watch their father get immediately remarried to someone else after their mother just died, that doesn't engender much love towards him or his new wife, who they had only met like two days ago.

None of the Velaryons should support Team Black at all, because the treatment they've received from people who were firmly on board with Rhaenyra's succession (or at least came on board eventually) has been atrocious since Rhaenys was first denied the Iron Throne all those years ago. And you might say "but that's petty why can't they just supported Rhaenyra because of feminism", but 1) feminism does not exist in Westeros, the concept of a movement towards female empowerement and equal treatment does not exist in this country or in the minds of its people, everything is on a case by case basis which is why Rhaenyra herself keeps to male dominated primogeniture when dealing with issues of succession 2) yeah it's petty and selfish, but this is a dynastic struggle between one (1) family. None of them are in this for altruistic reasons, everyone's looking out for themselves and are motivated by their emotions and their desires, not any lofty goals or ambitions. Everyone is selfish here, the Velaryons have the right to be selfish too especially to advance their own self interests.

[lou-struck]

Sea Birds

Keigo Takami x reader

Prompt: 🚢 +Vacation

~This is one of the requested prompts for My Emoticon Expression’s Event; check out the Masterlist On my welcome page.

WC: 1.2k

Keigo's wings seem to flap in anticipation as the two of you climb aboard the S.S. Sea Breeze, the luxury cruise ship that will be your home for the next week.

After rescuing the CEO of the cruise line from a villain attack a month ago, the man sent Keigo two tickets to the top-of-the-line cruise liner as a gift of thanks. The two of you were in need of a vacation, so you put in the time off. Feeling more than ready to enjoy all the amenities the ship has to offer.

The highbrow nature of the cruise line means that for this voyage, only the ultra-rich and famous were able to procure tickets. Anyone who is anyone is on board; Retired Pros, actors, models, and even socialites.

Honestly, there are so many well-known faces aboard, you're feeling a bit self-conscious. 

Even though his iconic red wings are tucked neatly behind his back, he still attracts the attention of the beautiful people around him.

They whisper amongst themselves, twirling their glossy hair and flashing their brilliant smiles in his direction in the hope of capturing the attention of the winged hero. But he doesn't seem to notice their attempts.

"Man, I'm beat." He yawns, slinging an arm lazily over your shoulders, "let's ditch these bags in our suite and start relaxin~

He knows you too well; this simple contact is able to soothe the sharp feelings of inadequacy that were gnawing at that sensitive spot in your heart. The one that aches when you think about how Keigo could have just about anyone. But he's with you.

Because he loves you…

And you love him…

You nod, now feeling all too aware of your aching feet. There is nothing that tires one out quite like traveling. Vacations may be relaxing, but getting there can really wipe you out. "Sounds good. I wouldn't mind laying out for a bit, maybe get something cold to drink." 

Keigo smiles, his golden gaze brightening at your response. "There ya go; let's get some drinks with tiny umbrellas, and let's get Cruisin."

"You're getting really excited about this, aren't you, Kei?" you tease 

He sends a little red feather to tickle your side; its soft bristles send you into a fit of giggles that cause a few people to turn their heads In your direction. "Why wouldn't I be? seven days, the open ocean, and…." He grins, leaning in close, "You, of course."

The flattery makes you chuckle as the two of you slip into one of the glamorous glass elevators leading up to the suite decks. 

"What's our room number again?" he asks as the doors part.

"Hmmm, let me check." reaching into your pocket, you pull out the crisp white envelope that contains your golden room keys. "We are in room 101." He takes the envelope from you playfully as the elevator comes to a stop. The doors part slowly, revealing the well-lit hallway.

Unable to contain your excitement, you rush down the empty hall, your suitcase rolling unevenly behind you as you scan the little room plaques.

95…

97…

99…

..101

You stop in front of the door and look at Keigo expectantly. He lets out a little chuckle and tears open the envelope. "Alright, Angel, here's our little nest for the week," he says, swiping one of the keycards and swinging open the doors.

The room is naturally well-lit by the ship's massive upper deck windows. It's much bigger than the room you were looking at online. The massive king-sized bed is uniformly made with some creatively folded towels placed at its foot. 

Stepping further into the room, you set your bag down on top of the linens catching a glimpse at the little coffee corner and mini fridge. It's then you catch a glimpse of the massive gift basket on the countertop. Containing everything from top-shelf liquor, snacks, and suntan lotion, you can tell by the french writing on the bottle you would never be able to afford the brand on your salary. 

"This is incredible." you breathe, digging through the complimentary care package on the countertop in front of you. Little multicolored shreds of paper lining stick to your fingers as you pull out a still-cold bottle of champagne. "They must really want to thank you, Kei."

"A-angel, it's 11 o'clock in the morning." Kiego laughs as your hand fiddle with the neck of the bottle, peeling off the foil around the cork.

"Come on, birdie, we're on vacation." you giggle, wrapping your arms around his neck. The cold glass of the bottle hits his skin, and he shudders.

Giving you a playful roll of his eyes, he grabs two glasses and sets them on the countertop next to you. "I guess a glass or two would be a nice way to get started." he laughs. He sends a red feather flying into the stubborn cork. It twists and pokes at it until it comes flying out of the bottle with a deafening pop*

"Did you like my little party trick?" he winks, pouring a bit of champagne into each flute.

"I did," you smile, taking a glass from his outstretched hand. If you were the one to open the cork, you would no doubt be struggling to pop it off. "How about we take our drinks outside so we can watch the ship leave the port."

Keigo straightens up a bit. "We should get going then." he flashes you a boyish grin, taking your hand and practically pulling you towards the door."

~

Placing your hands on the steel rail at the bow of the ship, you stare out into the seemingly endless ocean. "Oh wow, look at this view, Kei." you beam, the salty mist from the ocean splashing against your face. 

He buries his face into the crook of your neck as his hands sneak around your waist. "It is beautiful." he coos, pressing a little kiss against your pulse point, his stumbling tickling your skin as you squirm a bit. But in the back of your mind, you wonder how much of the sight he is able to see from his spot.

"I can't tell where the sky begins, and the ocean ends. It's all just blue." 

" Wanna find out?" He asks. His wings twitching in anticipation. Each feather seems to be absorbing the sunlight, calling out to the sky longingly.

Nodding, you set your glass on the floor of the deck, Wanting to know what it feels like to touch the sparkling blue water off in the distance. Keigo has a habit of making you act on your curious thoughts. "Promise not to drop me?" you ask, shuddering at the thought of taking an unexpected swim.

"I promise not to drop you this time." he laughs, the sound natural and genuine. His golden eyes squint in the sunlight as he sweeps you off your feet. "Hold on tight. I like having you close like this." 

"W-what do you mean by this time?" you squeak as he launches the two of you over the rail of the ship.

He shoots you a little wink, letting his wings carry you off into the distance so you can indulge in a few more curiosities before your dinner date.

[greenerteacups]

Hi! in regards to Hagrid and his teaching, idk if we are supposed to see it as anything other than racial campaign. I'm not sure that in-universe Hagrid was doing anything beyond "dead poets society" level extra teaching (as much as I don't like dps). Especially since its happening in the third book, where jkr actually raises the question of targeted violence and stigma

Hi! I'm assuming you're talking about the fact that Hagrid's a half-giant, but unfortunately, that isn't established until Goblet of Fire, and I just don't see it reflected in any of his interactions with the Malfoys, Macnair, or the Board of Governors in the third book. I guess you could argue that him being larger than usual is the reason that Malfoy goes after him, but I always figured it was more that he's bumbling and good-natured and has an obvious soft spot for Harry. The most we get on the idea that his size has anything to do with it is this passage in POA:

"God, this place is going to the dogs," said Malfoy loudly. "That oaf teaching classes, my father'll have a fit when I tell him." (pg.91)

Which could be read as a remark on Hagrid's size, but scans to me more like a remark on his intelligence. Then you have these passages, where Rowling spells out in the text (probably for the benefit of the many 11-year-olds reading her book) why Malfoy's hamming up his injury:

"I'm afraid he won't be a teacher much longer," said Malfoy in a tone of mock sorrow. "Father's not very happy about my injury ... and with a lasting injury like this, who knows if my arm will ever be the same again?" (pg. 100)

"So that's why you're putting it on," said Harry, accidentally beheading a dead caterpillar because his hand was shaking in anger. "To try to get Hagrid fired." "Well," said Malfoy, lowering his voice to a whisper, "partly, Potter. But there are other benefits too. Weasley, slice my caterpillars for me." (101)

Meanwhile, when Rita Skeeter reveals that Hagrid is a half-giant in Goblet of Fire, Malfoy immediately starts mocking him for it, with language suggesting this is the first time he's learned of it, and the first time most people would have suspected (half-giants being obviously uncommon):

“Well, I think this should put an end to the oaf’s teaching career,” said Malfoy, his eyes glinting. “Half-giant . . . and there was me thinking he’d just swallowed a bottle of Skele-Gro when he was young. . . . None of the mummies and daddies are going to like this at all. . . . They’ll be worried he’ll eat their kids, ha, ha. . . .” (439)

The thing is — as the above passage reveals — Rowling is not a soft touch when it comes to discrimination and bigotry. When she wants to show a character being a bigot against Group X, her go-to move is having the character loudly announce "God, I hate Group X!" So the idea that Malfoy and his father are engaging in a targeted racial campaign against Hagrid in the third book would require us to believe that Malfoy has developed a sudden vocality about his bigotry in GOF that he's never showed beforehand, despite having known or suspected that Hagrid wasn't fully human all along.

To the real point about "what's this plot doing here?", I think Malfoy and Hagrid's plotline in Prisoner of Azkaban is supposed to be a parallel to Sirius, insofar as both storylines are about innocent creatures being blamed for something because of a coward's lie. (Pettigrew's lie is that Sirius committed the murders; Malfoy's lie is that he was hurt much more seriously than he actually was.) In my reading, Prisoner is less about targeted violence towards specific groups (what groups? what violence?) than it is about how easy it is to judge based on limited information, and the failures of the establishment to deliver justice. Like all Harry Potter novels, it's incredibly suspicious and resentful of bureaucracy in almost any form, and it heavily implies that the people who work for bureaucracy are selfish, cruel, or simply disinterested in the truth.

It isn't until much later in the series that we see werewolves developed as a kind of stigmatized out-group, and when we do, I kind of doubt that JKR was meaningfully interested in them as a group unfairly afflicted by trauma and suffering; for the most part, her werewolves are cannibalistic child-eating predators, with a few, like Lupin, who are conscious and ashamed of what they are. But that's a very long, very separate post about the problems of making your subjugated class a group of literal deadly monsters.

[separatist-apologist]

What are some of your favorite fanfics? You can only include up to 2 LB fics

I was going to wait to answer this in the morning because it's so daunting an ask. But I have to be in office tomorrow and I know I won't have the time, and then I'll forget about this. It's been a long time since anyone asked me my personal favorites.

I put some of them in yesterday's list of elucien recs, so definitely start here. I have to cross post a little, though. None of these are in order, this is actually not a ranking but the opposite of a ranking in which every one is incredible, and written by very wonderful people worth following.

playgirl, by @damedechance. I love this fic. Lucien has an only fans, Elain moderates his chat. She was the first gwynriel writer I ever read. You know I'm weird about Azriel- I don't really enjoy him, but in bookclub, her fic was being recommended CONSTANTLY and I gave it a shot thinking I'd hate it, and she made me insane. The gwynriel fic is Things You Can't Have, and I suggest reading it, too.

Latch, My Fate is Yours; Latch, My Very Soul is Yours by @labellefleur-sauvage. Elucien mummy au and so beautifully done. The author is also an VERY funny person and I recommend anything she writes (such as her 1920's Neris fic And All That Jazz) on vibes alone.

Our Bodies, Possessed By Light @iftheshoef1tz. Azris at its FINEST. If you like Azriel and Eris as a pairing, and you want something that is both achingly beautiful and well-plotted, this is it. This is the fic. Honestly, even if you don't want that, you should read it anyway. It's sexy, it's funny, it's emotional and it's poetic. I think about this fic (the cabin specifically because I'm slutty) all the time.

Crimson Clover, by @thesistersarcheron. Baby's first elriel fic, I heard the sentence "Elain covered in blood" and dropped everything I was doing to learn more. Elain is, in fact, covered in blood and Azriel is pretty insane about it. This author also has a fic bookclub is obsessed with, Viciousness & Intelligence which is Nesta x Cassian x Azriel in a poly bond and another of my personal favorites, Bejeweled in which Feyre is Night Court fae made entirely of jewels and Rhys is...well...down bad as he always is.

Embers, by @ultadverb is my favorite Morlain fic in the fandom. It's so richly written and such a good exploration of Elain and her feelings. She really does Elain such justice. I have it on VERY good authority she's also working on a little monster elucien, and right after I typed that I saw she's actually posted the first chapter, Seven Tears for the Sea, which is selkie Lucien, coastal Elain, I believe. I will be reading that for sure, just as soon as I finish this list, but everyone else should too!

I Believe the Word You're Looking for is "Friends" by @kingofsummer93. Truly Elucien 101 required reading. It's actually on the made-up syllabus I just created in my mind. If you're wanting to settle into a long fic, canon-compliant, adventure fic, THIS is it. Also, people are always asking for BOE smut, well she has so GRACIOUSLY provided it with The Intimacy of Being Understood

Remember, We're Madly In Love by @velidewrites. Have you ever seen one of those really gorgeous mood boards floating around and asked yourself, is that person also an incredibly sexy writer, too? Well I'm here to answer that question with a resounding YES. This is hunger games Feysand and if you've been thinking about reading it, stop thinking and start doing. I don't know when I became a sales person during this sharing of faves, but here we are I guess.

Vanserra Wildlife Rescue by @headcanonheadcase. In the haze that was elucien week, where everyone was creating and I was trying so hard to see all of it (and failing miserably), this fic was a gem. It's meet cute Elucien- he's a wildlife vet, she finds an injured fox. They're both on their way to a blind date (I wonder who they're meeting), and instead cancel to take care of the fox.

Can't Help It by @moodymelanist. This fic was literally why I decided to answer this anon. Nesta and Cassian are in a very toxic relationship but can't keep away from each other. I LOVE this fic, I love their dynamic and without spoiling it, there is a threesome I am still so deeply unwell about, even to this day.

Wonderland by @c-e-d-dreamer. The premise is SO GOOD. Nesta rejects the mating bond and Cassian rejects society. They reconnect later on, and the angst is SO DELICIOUS.

This list is getting really long- I could do this all day, actually. As for my top two @the-lonelybarricade favorites, which is cruel just fyi.

I'm gonna go with

You Look Like Bad News- Elain's neighbor has an annoying habit of fucking REALLY loudly next door.

And of course,

They Are The Hunters, We Are The Foxes, which is the best thing ever produced in the history of ever. Wonderland WHO? This is the shifter elucien romance we deserved, actually.

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Titans Academy

Fandom: DC Comics, Titans, Arrowfam

Summary: Grant struggles to accept his new reality when Roy takes him in and enrolls him in Titans Academy. He must adjust to life at a boarding school and life with his new foster family (Roy and Lian). Can he learn to trust the people who claim to care about him? Or will he shut himself off from love altogether?

Chapters: 1/?

Characters: Grant Emerson, Roy Harper, Bart Allen, Toni Monetti, Cody Driscoll, Lian Harper, Jade Nguyen, Audrey Spears, Tommy Blake Jr.

Additional Tags: Father-Son Relationship, Boarding School AU, No Powers AU, Found Family, Second Chances, Roy Harper is a Legal Guardian, Roy Harper is a Father, POV First Person, Grant Emerson POV, Autistic Bart Allen

Chapter One: Gravedigger 101

I thought that when this Roy guy kept me from going to jail, I'd get to be some kind of undercover criminal informant or something. I didn't really understand what they said in court. It sounded like he wanted to use me to get information on the illegal operation that resulted in my adoption by my now-deceased parents. I thought it'd be cool, and besides, it was between going with him or going straight to prison. I was just a kid. I wouldn't have made it long in an adult prison. There was no use in pretending to be tough. I was terrified, and I let the courts know it. The guy knew it too. He said something to the judge on my behalf, and the judge folded like a two-dollar bill. I knew the guy had to have some kind of pull. He showed up to the court late, walked in, whispered to the judge, and that was it.

I won't lie. I was kind of scared of the guy at first. The judge remanded me into the custody of Roy Harper in the state of New York. What I didn't know was that that guy was Roy Harper. "Come on, kid. Wanna go get your stuff?" he asked.

"I can't. My house is an active crime scene," I replied.

"Sorry... We'll get you some stuff in between here and New York. Hungry?" he questioned. He walked fast, so I rushed behind him once they released me. At his pace, he got from the courthouse to the parking garage in less than five minutes. He unlocked the car, and I got in the passenger's seat. "You hungry?" he asked a second time. I nodded.

We didn't say much else until he started driving. "What's good here?" he asked before screwing up his face. "I didn't say who I was, huh?"

I shook my head. "You're supposed to drop me off with that Roy Harper guy, right?" I asked.

"I am that Roy Harper guy. Sorry, my mind was on a hundred other things. I promise I wasn't trying to play some weird mind game by not introducing myself," Roy replied. I nodded. "What do you wanna eat? And if you say Burger Queen or Wackdonals, I'm legally obligated to pretend I didn't hear you."

"There's a BBQ place down the street from here," I mumbled. He grinned.

"BBQ's good. I can do BBQ," Roy replied. I gave him the name of the restaurant and directions. We got there in less than fifteen minutes, and we went in and ordered our food. I didn't feel much like eating before going to court, so I was starving.

We got drinks while we waited for the food, and Roy tapped his knuckles on the table. "I'm sorry about all this, Grant... I'm sure you're a good kid and—."

"What's New York like?" I asked. I didn't want to talk about the case or anything like that. I just wanted to pretend that things were normal.

"You won't see much of it for a little bit, but we're going to Manhattan... You don't happen to have a valid driver's license, do you?" Roy asked. I shook my head.

"Learner's permit," I replied.

"Good enough. It's a fourteen-hour drive, so we'll get there in maybe sixteen-seventeen-ish hours," Roy replied, "But I figure we'll split this into two days and get a little sightseeing in."

"If you're from New York, what are you doing in Atlanta?" I asked. I wanted to ask a bunch of other questions, but that's the one that came out.

"I heard about your situation on the news, and I figured you didn't deserve to be tried as an adult," Roy replied.

"So, am I gonna live with you?" I asked.

Roy nodded. "Yeah, it's hard to explain the living situation, but it'll make sense when we get there."

That made me nervous, but before I could ask anything else, the waitress brought our food to the table. I guess he was just as hungry as I was because neither of us said a word until we finished eating. "Good call, Grant," Roy chuckled as he leaned back in his chair.

I took another sip of my coke, and Roy told me to stay put. He left me at the table for a few minutes by myself, and he came back with two pies and another soda. "Sorry, I figured pie would make a nice snack for the ride," Roy replied, "Ready to go?"

I nodded and followed him to the car. I stared out the window while we drove, and Roy turned the radio on. "If this isn't your flavor, you can change the station," Roy whispered.

"It's cool," I whispered. Roy threw his tie in the backseat and got on the freeway. "Do you do this a lot?"

"Take road trips to keep minors out of jail? Or take custody of kids you've never met? Or maybe—."

"All of it... But mostly, do you have a lot of kids?" I asked.

"Yes and no. It'll make sense when we get there," Roy answered. I nodded, but I didn't understand. "And nope, not really. You're a little bit of a unique case. But that's good. Unique cases are good."

"Did your job make you come out here?" I asked.

"Nope. This is on my time, but I made a deal with the school beforehand about your living situation, and they've got no problem with enrolling," Roy explained.

All I got from that was he worked at a school and heard about me on the news. I kind of wish I didn't ask him anything at all. I closed my eyes and listened to the radio. Eventually, I felt okay enough to sleep. It helped that I finally had food on my stomach. I woke up when we stopped at a clothing store in the middle of nowhere, and he dragged me in there, half asleep. He said I had to buy some clothes. Underwear, t-shirts, jeans... That kind of stuff.

I dragged my feet around the store, still half-asleep, but I managed to do what he asked. He paid for everything, and we walked back to the car. The sun looked like it was about to set, so he checked us into a hotel. It was a room with two beds, and I tossed and turned half the night. He settled in quickly and fell asleep almost immediately. "Roy?" I whispered. I wanted to make sure he was asleep.

"Hm?" Roy mumbled.

"Thanks," I replied. I didn't know what else to say.

"Mhm, no problem," Roy mumbled, "Go to bed, Grant."

I think I fell asleep around two in the morning, and Roy slept the whole night. I slept so heavily that I nearly fell asleep in the shower. He was patient through it all, though. We got breakfast in a drive-thru, and I struggled to stay awake. "We'll get coffee in an hour," Roy replied. I nodded.

My head ached too badly to do anything else. "I didn't forget I planned to switch off, but you look half dead, so I'll give you a break," Roy teased. I wasn't in the mood. I turned toward the window and shut my eyes. He nudged me when we got to Sundollar, and I mumbled my order. He chuckled, and when we got to the window, he woke me up so I could drink my coffee. "Not a morning person?"

"Not a travel person," I replied.

"Well, we'll be halfway there in four hours. Think you can bear with me until we get there?" Roy asked. I nodded. The drink perked me up a little bit. "When I was a kid, it was tough adjusting to new places, but as long as you're under my care, I'll try to keep you in the same place... Okay?"

I looked over at him, and he had this sad look. I couldn't look at him like that, so I turned my head. "Thanks," I replied. Maybe he did care. I guess... Dunno. It all seemed so unreal to me. A complete stranger caring about some teenager he just met? Get real.

[windvexer]

Hey, Chicken! Hope you don't mind this ask, as I'm not sure if you know much about this topic (I don't remember seeing you mention it before), but I was just wondering if you have any advice on using a pendulum for divination? I've been told something about "micro movements" affecting the accuracy of readings, but I'm unsure if this is an actual thing that happens or not, and it makes me nervous that my readings are super inaccurate (I don't have a pendulum stand, unfortunately). If you don't have any advice or opinions or whatnot, no worries! Thank you for taking the time to read through my ask regardless. Take care! 🐔

Hi!

I'm not the biggest pendulum reader. For years I couldn't get any level of accuracy out of them. However, in recent years, I've made decent progress.

Idk about the micromovements thing. I don't worry about them. I'm assuming a micromovement is like... tiny little jiggles?

IME, pendulum readings shouldn't be tiny little jiggles. They should be big, active movements.

When it comes to accuracy, we have some problems and some solutions.

Not all divinatory tools can measure the same things, first of all.

If I asked you, right now, to use tarot to determine the charge level and activity status of an enchanted spell vessel, could you do it?

Perhaps! I have no reason to doubt you.

But, like me, perhaps you would need to create a custom oracle system within tarot before you could do such a thing. Because tarot, in and of itself, is not an excellent system for determining the power levels within magical objects.

Now, if I asked you to do the same thing with a pendulum, could you?

Of course you could. That's, like, pendulum 101. That's what a pendulum does, baby!

You just hover that bad boy over an enchanted spell vessel and if it makes a biggo circle, the thing is charged up; but if it makes a small circle, or only does these micromovements you speak of, it's not charged at all.

Using a pendulum, you can obtain in seconds what you'd have to spend hours doing with a tarot deck.

And vice-versa!

Try using a pendulum to obtain a guidance message from a spirit. So tedious.

What this demonstrates (I hope) is that if you apply a pendulum to the incorrect ends, it will be very difficult to wrangle answers from. You can use a power drill to saw through a board, certainly; but the results will be tedious to obtain and awful to behold.

The benefits I've found is that the pendulum makes absolute ease of certain magical needs, but you've got to know what it can do and what it can't do; and if you need it to do something it can't do, you need to be prepared to develop your own custom systems of divination to attach to the pendulum, much like one downloads workshop mods to modify a computer game.

Yes, do confirm with the pendulum what direction is "yes" or "no," either through asking or telling.

Confirm whether or not your readings are accurate by reading on verifiable things. If you would like a test, make a pendulum board like this one (same link as before), and have friends send you photos of objects enchanted with the same categories of energy as your board contains. Use your pendulum to determine the types of enchantment contained therein.

If you are anything like me, you'll find that pendulums are excellent at detecting energies, but quite poor at producing sentences and paragraphs like tarot can.

I think of the pendulum as more of a gauge, or meter. It can be activated on a scale of "barely" to "very," and move in either the direction of "this" or "that."

I have never bothered with using a pendulum over a spirit board to slowly spell out answers, when you can draw two tarot cards and get a few sentences at once.

Likewise, why bother with tarot, or casting lots, or energy readings, when you can hold up a pendulum and get a quick, accurate reading of the properties of some object or person, or whatever?

So I'm definitely rambling, but my biggest tip to you, is:

Figure out for yourself what domains are easily read when you and pendulum work together, and strive to discover, modify, or create systems of meaning which make sense for the both of you, and allow the both of you to work as a team to discover certain answers.

Do not see the pendulum as interchangeable with any other system of divination. See it as a skill, in and of itself.

You may find much greater success reading on things which you can interact with, such as objects and photos, as opposed to hypotheticals, such as predicted futures.

[wcrldcfvtlvs]

You have (1) new email.

LOST AT AIRPORT IN NEW ZEALAND WITHOUT PASSPORT

Dear friend,

I am Roberta. I know we haven’t spoken in over ten years and you probably don’t remember me but your email wound up in my list so I am sending you this aid request as well because I’m very desperate and sad and miserable and will cry. tHIS is because during my flight to norway the plane stopped at new zealand for transit and I lost all of my belongings while boarding because they took my luggage to a different plane. My passport was not in my bag and i need the sum of twoo hundred dollars to make a new one and confirm my identity to the local authoritries so theycab ket me go. My paypal is on the same email, i promise to pay you everything back adbif you need proof here is  apicture of the airport. Please, old friend, help me for old time’s sake I love you so much. 

With desperation, 

Roberta from high school

Checking emails was something Rosalie did often since it was part of her job to do so. Making sure VIP clients were taken care of, security patches were put through and so much more. However, she had to double-check the email she just received. Squinting at the screen Rosalie couldn't help but laugh. " Hey Gabe, come look at this. " Rosalie called over her shoulder, within seconds the voltaic knight summoned beside her, a rare occurrence for him to do so but with all the power Rosalie had acquired over the years, Gabriel was able to manifest a physical form.

Leaning over practically at a ninety-degree angle, Gabriel looked towards Rosalie. " You never told me you had a friend named Roberta, shouldn't you help them? " " Oh no Gabe, this is a scam, you tell by the typos, claiming to know me for ten-plus years. You know how my high school experience was, Lockhart hardly allowed me to have friends outside of Natalie and Sloane. My circle was small. Consider this cyber security 101. Typically you don't reply but I'm choosing chaos today. " Rosalie smirked as she placed her hand on the screen. Using her technopath abilities she did her best to trace back the source, hopefully she was able to make direct contact to the sender. If she was able to, they'd see the message:

Make sure the next time you try send a dumbass spam message, make sure you're not fucking around with a CYBER SECURITY MAJOR AND CEO OF A SECURITY COMPANY. GET MILLIE ROCKED IDIOT.😘 - R.A.A

Removing her hand from the screen she crackled her knuckles and turned her chair to finally face Gabriel. If the knight could, he'd raise a brow but she could already tell by the look on his face he was confused. " Don't worry Gabe, I was nice. " " I have a feeling you weren't. " " Yeah you're totally right, I was a bitch and I don't regret it. Maybe next time they won't screw with someone who is basically the queen of cyber security and a technopath. " The knight placed his claw like hands on Rosalie's head and gently ruffled her hair. " As long as you can't be tracked, it won't be a fair fight you choose to summon me, I might scare them, as you say humans says, shitless ."

[sympolite]

3, 41, 43, 58, 101!

[from this ask meme]

3: Do you have a favorite clothing style?

aughhh, this is so hard to define, but it's like... something that straddles the line between the late 60s/early 70s and the early 90s? i could just throw this pinterest board at you, also.

41: Who is someone you would like to see/visit right now?

well!! honestly, all of these people on Lex who keep hitting me up and i'm like "girl you live an hour away from me and my catalytic converter's being fussy! AUGH!!!" but that aside, my girls @spacehunter-m and @faeriebullshit. i am kissing them both right now in spirit.

43: Any piercings you want?

Earlobes!! Deff earlobes!! maybe a helix piercing. maybe even nipple piercings.

58: What does your URL mean?

one upon a time, i was a 14-year-old who discovered 4chan lingo, like "sauce" for the source (of a cropped manga panel). and i was also into the history of the Ottoman Empire. my parents got me Garry's Mod for my birthday, and so my username was OttomanSauce.

eventually i got bored of that and changed it to SaucyAuto. that stuck until i was nineteen and got an ask meme here on tumblr: "what is the opposite of your URL?"

so i reckoned that "polite" was the opposite of "saucy", and "syn-/sym-" (with something else) was the opposite of "auto-" (on its own).* reverse the order and you get sympolite. *this was incorrect: "allo" (other) is the opposite of "auto" (self), but sympolite sounds esoteric to me. allopolite sounds vaguely scatological and I Don't Know Why

101: Favorite type of shoes

as much as I love shoes that have the Chuck Taylor look in my personal fashion, the right pair of strappy, open-toed heels will make me Lose My Shit. they're sexy! i love when people wear them and i would love to own a pair for special nights out.

[chip-and-ironicus]

One Week Left!

There's one week to go on the Kickstarter for the full season of The Disappearances of Lydia Fountayne. Lots more news and information have dropped since my last roundup, so here it is!

There's an update on the campaign regarding the Suspicious Envelope add-on reward. It's an intriguing mix of lore, ARG trailhead, and in-universe artifact. Of all the pledge rewards it's the one I'm most interested in, personally.

Three more of my promotional guest slots have dropped. I'll do a more complete rundown when the final one comes out, but you can get ahead of the game and listen to me on Hardcore Gaming 101 talking about Double Dash, Board the Windows talking about Cabin in the Woods, and Party of One playing a Doom Patrol-inspired game of self-loathing and superpowers.

The show's socials have been very busy. On twitter and Instagram you can see cast and crew bios for many people involved, myself included, with more to come. The Tiktok account is... well I'll be honest I'm not really plugged in there. But Sarah seems to be having a great time with it.

But as always, the most important thing you can do is listen to the first episode, and share it with other people! Everyone I've gotten to listen to the premiere has immediately gone to back the campaign because they just have to know what comes next. Our story has to be made, so we have to be funded. It's that good.

[delicatebluebirdruins]

the Hollow Boy book 3 reactions reading it for the first time

book 1 and 2

finally ready to type this up here we go page numbers are my copies

page 3 "I think it was only at the very end of the Lavender Lodge job, when we were fighting for our lives in that unholy guest house, that I glimpsed Lockwood and Co working together perfectly for the first time" Lmao

page 8 the owners of the Lodge description "If they resembled anything, it was a pair of elderly owls roosting on a branch"

16 we know who you are Lucy

19 "That's real bad. If I were you Lucy I would find a window and jump out." that is not a good thing is it

page 20 "however as the weeks passed and we'd got to know it properly, we'd learned to really despise it too" heartwarming really

Page 27 that is a lot of ghosts (example whatever I'm on this would be great to see this on screen the practicality of it though? nope)

38 "you chucked that bottle like a girl"/ "I am a girl" no comments let it speak for itself

49 "Outside the window a gale was blowing. Portland Row seemed formed of liquid. Trees flexed; rain pattered on the panes. Inside, it was warm; we had the heating on full blast." this is so cosy

57 "so Lockwood's proximity made me happy" 63 Skull being annoying and I love the background on the night taxis

66 insight into the past and the sorry fate of Jessica Lockwood.

72 Poor Lockwood standing there as Lucy and George bickered

74 I love this quote "It was a place of absence, we were in the presence of something that had gone. It was like coming to a valley where someone had once shouted, loud and joyously, and the echo of that shout had resounded between the hills and lasted a long time. But now it had vanished, and you stood on the spot, and it was not the same"

also Lucy thinking about Lockwood opening up to her more is so cute

82 Hi Kipps (lmao this is so funny when you consider how worried Lockwood was at the thought of Lucy leaving for Fittes "Bloody cheek. Lockwood said. He's talking nonsense as usual. Even so, he said little in the taxi, and it was left to me to give renewed directions"

85 "I smiled at him. There was a horror behind that door. I would see it in seconds. Yet my heart sang in my breast, to be standing beside Lockwood in that house. All was as it should be" aw the horrors but united front

86 I wonder why i was thinking of the Woman in Black

91 "My Talent could bypass such anxieties" can it? 100% of the time?

92 the skull is funny but also an jackass

96 testing Lucy's talent time... the skull is so funny

101 "it wasn't the easiest of homecomings" (typing this up I did not notice the Fittes ghost hunting board game which is basically surgery" 105 "I couldn't believe it. They'd actually done it. They'd tidied! they'd tidied up for me" and "Lockwood's favourites - the ones with almond icing that he rarely allowed himself- were on top" and "Portland Row was my home. My real family was here." I need a minute for that last one honestly

118 "her skin looked as smooth and delectable as coffee- coloured marble". interesting word choice (bisexual Lucy)

125 "I'd never thought to sit so close behind Lockwood that I could lean foreward and speak quietly in his ear, or, by virtue of my proximty to the leader, tactily became the second most important person in the room"

133 the tale is so eerie the casual callouseness of Mrs Wintergarden (thought she doesn't mean to be) and the haunting itself 136 "I gulped mine down like an antisocial seabird" also hello lyre brooch

142 Lucy talking and getting cut off by Lockwood.

153 time sickness

162 Ned Shaw dies and it is just go on as usual there'll be time to mourn later. I am really glad we got to see Ned and Lockwood fight together in the show

165 Neighbourhood Protection Leagues. I was hoping for something like this in the world at large

176 Holly wearing Lockwood's old jumper on the one hand makes sense because cold but also was it necessary for Holly to say it still smells like him? like it is really intimate wearing someone else's clothing and smelling them on it and of course the possibilty of her wearing Lucy's spare gloves is so *flails*

186 "there were bloodstained footprints all around my circle" how about? no 188 "or mimicking the sound of breathing" again no

192 "the ghost opened it's mouth. "I need YOU" it said" creepy. three steps at a time is huge (i want a Lockwood POV)

200 "were you feeling particulary abandoned or needy up there?" and Lucy not answering or looking at George. 205 Lockwood and Lucy arguing about Holly (not arguing per say but rumbles of thunder off in the distance)

209 I love this chat with the Skull. 211 "head wounds clearly suit you" the way i sputtered at this

216 I love the vastness of the Chelsea outbreak

219 Bad things happening? let's throw a party! well carnival you get the picture

224 FLO! we're going to see Flo... 228 "Don't worry about Locky. He must like you really. It's been eighteen months and you're still alive" lmao

233 Love Mrs Wintergarden inviting them to the carnival

236 George is protective of Lucy aw

241 hi sir Rupert... 244 they're tossing sources!

247 deadly hair piece NICE ("the band was a crescent- moon- sharp, made of silver. She held it like a knife")

253 "we [Locklyle] were in step together perfectly in sync"

259 I love the pictures of Lockwood in the newspaper

264 "[Luce] You're a star" a bit out of context but who cares? and then she goes into Jessica's room and finds out what she can

266 Lucy finds a necklace "a golden necklace with a dark green stone lay on a sheet of cotton wool" 269 poor little Lockwood

278 world building! finding where things are located! this is cool

281 smarty pants George but also teamwork with Flo

284 "Another point to Lucy. She's good at playing atrocities" now thing of the scene in the show where she and Lockwood roleplay relic men

287 misplaced trust in Barnes

292 Lucy telling Lockwood to join forces with Kipps and I really like the scene

Lucy: "I think we should take Kipps up on his offer. There are people dying out there, Lockwood, and we can't stand back from it. We need to act. We need to engage, even if that does mean making compromises. That department store is massive: even if we're just doing a reconnaissance, we need a proper team. And Kipps's team is good- we know that. If we have faith in George, in all the work he's done, we should do this. We owe it to him. More than that, we owe it to ourselves.

and Lockwood just gazes at her (Lockwood POV) and she gets flustered "I just don't think we have any choice" and I love it so much

and I love the reactions of everyone else

297 FLO! I feel so safe. 299 Flo is plesant to Holly Lucy is annoyed

303 haunting descriptions time "Mornings are all right' the attendant in Meswear said. 'And late afternoons, funnily enough when you get the sunlight streaming through the windows. It's noon I don't like, when the streets outside are bright, and in here it's full of shadow. The air goes thick. Not hot, exactly. Just stuffy."

312 Lucy paired with Holly and neither being very happy about it the skull being funny

317 i like this description from the skull "Because you're [Lucy] unique. You shine like a beacon, attracting the attention of all dark things" 319 "i missed him [Lockwood] at my side"

323 "And i watched that notch of darkness. I watched as something moved into it" how about nope

328 "with a fetch a ghost that makes a psychic bond with the onlooker and takes on the guise on the guise of someone closely connected to them" this would be horrible yeah (I would love to see it in the show)

338 Lucy telling Holly she should have told Lockwood no and Holly goes "like you do?" Lucy yelling at Holly and poor Bobby is injured and having to deal with these two

351 "truth is, it's everywhere. it's right on top of us. It coils around us like a snake. We're all inside it. It's already swallowed us whole." I LOVE THIS LINE

359 why is Lockwood's eyes sparkling at Lucy and then it all goes to shit the chapter ending with "both my mind and body were lost"

365 "rule seven (b), obviously, is to keep your matchbox well stocked."

367 "I looked at it. 'Hello,' I said. 'Sorry' The skeleton said nothing. It couldn't help it's bad manners"

379 Lucy recognising the voice being that of Lockwood. But it not being Lockwood

385 "you know I'd die for you" so Lucy see's the fetch ghost take on Lockwood's form and telling her Lockwod dies for her. Then she hears this from real Lockwood. If it were me the moment i was able i'd sit in the corner and rock. Also this is a crime that we don't get to see this scene and the lead up to it on the screen because Lockwood's actor is great and would knock it out of the park. (also Lockwood pov again)

390 "it's happened to me before. Losing someone dear to me. I can't let it happen again" see above Cameron and Ruby would be stunning.

394 Lockwood's first ghosts were his parents? yikes

413 creepy thought indeed missing mysterious people doing a ritual

417 "take your boyfriend Lockwood" lmao skull

419 and everyone is in shock and the book end.