#you logically go and buy one in every colour

[seud-luachmhor]

1993/1994/2019/2023/2023

[scrollonso]

First Kiss (Race 7)

A strollonso AU where 18 year old rookie Lance Stroll falls helplessly in love with the notoriously mean world champion. (1.2k words, no warnings) [@v3lnys @biancathecool] {This is short, sorry 😭 I'm seeing a pattern of me ending chapters with Strollonso hugging so if u get sick of it uhhhh idc i love it theyre so soft}

last part - masterlist - next part

Lance was in a great mood, coming into the paddock with Nico but quickly being taken away by Fernando.

They'd talked a lot since the older mans home Grand Prix, texting almost constantly and calling so Fernando could ramble about anything and everything (coming close to disclosing undisclosed renault information a few times)

"How are you?" He asked, turning to look at Lance while dragging him away from the paddock

"We were just texting, Nando" Lance laughed, shaking his head at Fernando as they came to a stop

"I missed your voice" The Spaniard hummed, looking up at Lance

"Yeah, yeah. You were just on the phone complaining to me about how Renault is changing their colour scheme next year." Lance didn't mind it, he liked talking to Fernando. It seemed like ever since Fernando won in Spain they'd just been getting closer every day

"That's besides the point!" Fernando laughed, waving his hand as he brushed it off "Do you feel good about today? First time in monaco for Racing Point"

"I do, I've raced here a few times so I know I'll be quick to get a hang of it in a Formula One car" Their conversations just seemed to flow, both of them listening closely to the other

"Planning to look pretty in pink on the podium?" The shorter man teased, elbowing Lance slightly as their hands fell apart

"On that highest step, yeah" Lance flashed Fernando a grin, playfully challenging the Spaniard

"The day I lose to you I will buy the moon in your honour"

They both laughed, Lance taking it as a joke but Fernando was seriously wondering if he could do that

Qualifying went by quick, as soon as he got to the pitlane Fernando ran up to him

"Lancito, what was your time?"

"Uh, 1:14:08"

"De veras?" His eyes lit up, Lance not understanding but going along "Lancito, you're p2"

Now he understood, this time he was the one to hug Fernando, practically smothering the shorter man

"Wait-" He pulled back, hands on Fernandos shoulders "You're-"

"Am p1, of course"

Lance smiled widely, his teeth exposed as he became excited for both him and Fernando

Lance was sat in the Racing Point garage, worrying about whethet or not he'd actually be able to keep his spot.

"Lancito!" A voice called, getting Lance's attention straight away. Fernando had just finished speaking with people from his team so now he could talk to Lance "Nervous?" He asked, Lance making his way to the Spaniard

"Of course not, you should be" Lance smiled, nudging the older man

"Am horrified" Fernando said, a serious look on his face that quickly turned into a small smile as the two looked at eachother, a laugh escaping his lips

Lance hit his shoulder lightly "Hey! This is no joke, I might make a crazy comeback and win the championship"

"Ah, yes, of course, Lancito" Fernando nodded, both of them knowing it wasn't possible but neither caring enough to be logical, they hadn't thought the two of them having a front row start was possible either but here they are

"Don't run into my car to sabotage me, okay? I need my rookie year championship"

"Of course, I'll let you have a head start, mi sol"

"Good!"

They were all lined up, Lances eyes glued to the lights in front of him, watching as they turned on one by one then stepping on the gas as they shut off.

Fernando kept the lead, not to anyones surprise. Lance managed to defend against Kimi who was trying to pass, building a 2 second gap between them and just over a second between him and Fernando.

On lap 23 he managed to pass Fernando, his hands shaking as he gripped his steering wheel, pushing his car as far as it could go. He led for a little over a lap before Fernando took it back, he wasn't too worried since there were still over 50 laps for him to take it back.

On lap 50 he started having problems.

"Brad, what's going on? Something feels off." He radioed in, having to shout over the noise of the track

"We aren't sure, Lance, just keep pushing. Fernando is .8 seconds ahead."

Lance nodded, knowing Brad couldn't see him but too determined to be in first again to think. The only thing on his mind was a podium.

Four laps later his hopes were squashed, his engine practically exploding behind him as he was forced to pull off to the side, half is car still on the track as they called out a safety car

"FUCK" He shouted, slamming his hands on the wheel. He felt his heart beating, he could hear it in his ears, how fast it was going, how much hope he had just a lap prior and now he was pulled off to the side with black smoke engulfing his car.

He got out quickly, moving closer to the barrier as he waited to be picked up. He felt as if he could cry. He had another great chance and it was ruined again. He felt like he couldn't win, like no matter what he was destined to just never get a podium. Every time he even thought about it his car would decide he didn't deserve it.

He was stuck in the garage debriefing for what felt like hours, Brad unsure why this kept happening, all he knew was Lance was sick of it. The teenager was getting restless, he wanted to show his skill, show people he's not just a billionares son but a brilliant driver. It didn't seem possible with the car he was given.

"I just- I'm so sick of it, I keep having any chance of succeeding torn away from me, I just want to do good. Why can't I just do good? Why can't i succeed?" He spoke quick, nails digging into his palm as he felt himself get more and more worked up over it, he wasn't sure why the DNF's were getting to him more, he knew he could do good, he'd done good, but the car would always give up before he could solidify his results.

Fernando left the podium, walking past the Renault garage and straight to Racing Point where he saw the Canadian sitting on a counter towards the side.

As soon as he saw Fernando he got up, going to him quickly. He didn't say anything, the Spaniard just opened his arms and Lance sunk into them, somehow always managing to feel small in the older mans embrace.

"You did good, am so proud, Lancito." He whispered, a hand finding its way to the boys head, stroking his long hair as he tried to make him feel better

Lance didn't speak, he just inhaled, taking in the scent of the world champion as he hid his face in his neck, not bothering to care about the crowds eyes and cameras on them. All that mattered was Fernando was there, his Fernando was there.

[sleepy-vix]

How to annotate your books like i do

i'm writing this because i am bored :)

📰🪶

what you will need:

- a bunch of annotation tabs in a variety of colours (you can buy these on amazon)

- a pencil (preferably tiny so it's not always in your way, but that's up to you.)

- no pens. too permanent and they bleed

- no eraser

- no ruler

- no highlighters, colour pens, or colour pencils

- a pencil hook holder thing that you attach to the plastic flat thing that your annotation tabs are on and put your pencil through. compact. keeps all your stuff together when you're not using the pencil

- a book. obviously

- a drink: optional, and unrelated.

How i make the key:

choose colours that match your book. I usually pick out 5 based on intuition. This is how i make my key:

- the darkest colour is for sad/ horrifying/ basically wtf moments

- i always have one for quotes

- i sometimes have one for fun fact; depends on the book

- i like to have a tab that i label as "hm" which basically means "ooh interesting idea proposed here" (not all books will let me have this tab. like a fantasy book wouldnt have this tab, but a dystopian book would. i love it when books allow me to add this tab ^^)

- sometimes i have one for beautiful descriptions and writing

- i have one for cool protagonist moments

- i have another for 'cool character moments: side characters' (i only give side characters their own tab if i find that i am very attached to them. like i was reading the poppy war, and i was bookmarking kitay moments alot so i decided to give him his own colour)

honestly, i do alot of this based on my intuition, and i like to adapt it as i go along

also here are some more general facts abt my annotation habits:

- i usually leave space in my annotation key because half way through the story i will probably add more to the key

- i don't believe in having a tab for plot points. i'd much rather write my thoughts on foreshadowing and plot theories in the margins of the book with my pencil. i see no need to give it a tab

- my pencil is everything. i try to use pencil to express my thoughts whenever i can. i only tab when i really loved a scene or line and feel that my future self would want to easily flip to it

- i don't force myself to be articulate in my written annotations cus there's no space to be. most of the time i just wrote lol, aw, draw a skull, draw a straight lined face, or draw a crying face so that my future self can see what i was feeling when reading it

- i don't like underlining a whole paragraph, i feel like it looks clunky. so instead i draw a bracket like this [ in the margine so it draws my attention to that entire paragraph and future me will know that i found that entire paragraph to be interesting

- my lines are messy, and i love it. it breaks my reading rhythm to bust out a ruler and meticulously rule my lines, i just wing it and move on

- usually, in my annotation key, to start with, there are no tabs for ships. i usually add that in later on if there is any that i care about. if there is romance that i don't care about then i simply won't add a tab.

my annotation experience is very personal and it's done for my future self, or anyone that would like to see my personal thoughts on the story.

i don't care to annotate in a logical way. i won't make tabs for every main character or every plot device or every romance ship. that makes me feel like i'm shallowly categorizing the scenes in the book... ykwim?

- ooh also, by the end of the book, if i find that i am head over heels in love with it, i'll usually go back and draw on any blank space i can find (i try to draw the scene that is happening)

btw none of these photos are mine

thanks for coming to my ted talk

[redditreceipts]

https://www.reddit.com/r/196/s/Qr3rxB9mw1

Jesus fucking CHRIST why do they always talk about their straw man as if it's so matter of fact??? WHICH radfems are they even talking to? God it's so hard to try and be open minded about how genderists think when they get literally everything wrong about radfems.

It's like all they do is watch Contrapoints or Lily Alexandre etc. talk about radfems instead of actually engaging with radfems and radfem theory.

Okay, so let’s go through this bit by bit: 

okay, what nuances are these? 

so this is the claim that radical feminists don’t understand intersectionality. Which is just not true. I also have never heard anyone say that??? I mean, maybe there are radical feminists who don’t believe that white women participate in a system of racism, but I haven’t met a single one yet?? Who is saying that white women don’t benefit from systems of racial oppression? (genuine question) 

Okay so this might be a hot take but I actually do think that a member of a marginalised demographic is allowed to not be as nuanced while talking about their oppressor. To stay with the racism analogy: If a person of colour said things like “I’m fucking done with white people and I don’t want to be friends with any of them because I don’t want to go through the tedious process of finding out who is racist and who isn’t”, I wouldn’t be offended or anything, because they are probably right. I as an autistic person personally also wouldn’t want to date a neurotypical person again, because in the past, there have been considerable difficulties in communication. And now imagine how a survivor of rape or abuse or sex trafficking would feel like! 

So is hating men a solid political theory? No. But is hating men a way of life that makes the life of many women safer and happier? Definitely. 

FOR THE THOUSANDTH TIME: WE DON’T WANT TO BAN SEX WORK! WE WANT TO BAN PEOPLE BUYING THEIR WAY INTO NON-CONSENSUAL SEX!!! This can’t be true. How often has it been said that radfems want to criminalise prostitution or throw every prostituted person in jail 😭

Who the fuck thinks that men are inherently predatory 😭 I can’t anymore.

No, men are not inherently predatory. Men are socialised into being predatory, or at least to a large degree. Which is why we want to change that socialisation process. Have you ever listened to any feminist ever in your entire life? 

Also, saying that a movement is cultish and people are being manipulated into joining is not patronisation. By that logic, you also wouldn’t be able to criticise Jehova’s Witnesses because you saying that they manipulate people into joining would be patronising the people who did join. 

I mean it’s possible that some feminists agree with the takes presented here, but acting as if it was some sort of foundational belief to radical feminism is just stupid 

[minimarvelh]

oh, to be loved and comforted (words: 3,447)

One amazingly cold autumn day, after another very boring meeting with equally boring directors, Tony, returning to his penthouse, caught one detail that maybe and a quite possibly changed his life. This bug-

(«Mr. Stark: spiders are NOT bugs, WE are arachnids») flew into his eye like a small specific spider and until he stopped and came to his senses, carefully releasing the spider, this arachnid would not leave him alone. A bug he tried his best to ignore- “Although no,” he stopped the narrator in his head.

He did quite the opposite, he never ignored this arachnid, he never ignored all the spider’s requests to bring him hot cocoa or to buy new sets of Lego. So, in the conclusion: he tried to ignore the reason for such feelings about the spider and what it meant, because no way he started to love this clumsy bug.

He hated introspection and analysing what is going on in his own head. Freud has long been out of trends, so why dis he need to use psychoanalysis?

Stupid waste of time.

He considers it too complicated, long, again boring and unnecessary, because the more a person thinks, the more they remember, the more they understand, the more they suffer. Simply. A logical consequential chain of life. Even the reason why he has been drinking for the past 20 years is trying not to think. Therefore, it was funny when literally everyone who was not lazy and not scared of him, tried to make him think about something other than technology and saving the world. Like feelings. Especially when Peter appeared in his life, everyone made it their mission to reveal something to him. Literally everyone hinted at something. Happy, Pepper, Rhodey….Attention, even freaking (he says it lovingly) Dum-e.

So every time Tony felt anything resembling warmth or any vanilla thoughts, he immediately pushed them away.

Like when he unconsciously was starting laughing at the memory of something the kid has once said. And suddenly he was stopping himself, looking in the mirror, dramatically, silently asking “what's going on, Stark? What.the.hell?” The reflection in the mirror was always silent, refusing to answer.

«Of course you're not Snow White, Stark. Even if the mirror could talk, it would rather talk to Pepper than to you.»

Stark himself did not notice that he has long been thinking that Peter is the smartest child, that when someone was showing him photos of other people's kids, he rolled his eyes thinking "meh Peter has bigger curls and bigger eyes", "my child is waayyy funnier than all of yours" etc. From what time did such thoughts begin to appear in Tony’s complicated head, he didn’t know.

When exactly he started to have a soft spot for this kid?

For this kid, with his such childish naivety, spidery recklessness, love to his lego figures and the kindness of which would be enough for the whole world.

When he-suddenly the world lost all of his colour when the crushing glass sound was heard around the whole hall.

Tony began to look around, a burning pain pierced his forehead and he started frantically rubbing his head as he sat on the floor or rather fell on the floor.

Yeah, that’s why he is not doing this thing called thinking.

Although he wonders what would Peter say to this? He is always the way to tell the teen to be more careful and kindly laughing at his clumsiness.

now the score is 1:705

Okay, if that incident with peanut butter also counts as his clumsiness- although Tony would argue that it’s more Rhodey’s clumsiness-nevertheless it would be 2:705.

Way to go!

******************

Evenings in the Tower were something special. For Peter, these evenings were extra special. He has almost no memory of family evenings with Ben and May, which makes him incredibly sad and guilty (not counting thoughts about feeling like a worthless, terrible person for not saving the most precious memories in his stupid head). And also incredibly lonely. No matter how terrible it sounds, he envied his classmates who so casually threw "I have to go home, my parents are waiting for me for dinner" how does it feels when your parents are waiting for you at home?

With the Avengers, with Tony and often May by his side, he finally begins to remember how it feels. Safely, comforting. He has people, a family, who loves him and is waiting for him. And it feels...unbelievable.

This time the tower was surprisingly quiet though. Days like this have been rare lately, but Clint and Nat are off to their families, Bruce is in Switzerland working on one secret research that only one person knows about (and that person is…PETER!! Yes!! He is!!).

The silence lasted 23 minutes, in which he started reading another amazing fanfiction, waiting for Tony to end with his team of directors.

And then thunder cut through the sky. Peter cried, jumping up on his bed and flailing his arms, with panick in his eyes looking from side to side. His tingle or how Ned calls it „the spider feeling” was pounding, along with his heart, which was ready to fly out of his chest.

Fortunately, he didn't knock over the cup that was on the dresser and the coffee didn't spill all over the carpet. Thank you, because he was the clumsiest human alive and already today he had to catch 4 cups in flight.

Peter hated thunder. It was in his top 3 things he hated the most. Also it was the most unreasonable one. Even when he was wearing the noise-cancelling headphones, he still felt the vibrations and his imagination painted the loudest and most terrifying thunder the Earth has ever witness and it made his heart beat even wildly, if it was possible.

And how can he wear headphones around Mr.Stark? They were planning to watch something together and if he would tell him that he has a sensory overload they would not be able to spend time together because he would need to pretend to fell asleep or just be silent + he will make Tony worried + Pepper (who is in Miami right now. Working. A lot. Like always. He doesn’t want to give her another reason to worry.)

Grabbing a blanket and a cup, Peter nonchalantly ran into the living room, hoping that Friday wouldn't alert Tony about Peter's increased heart rate. After the alien sprayed Peter with some sticky poison, which for the first few hours had on effect on him other than an increased heart rate, (but then Peter fell into a small coma), Tony reprogrammed Friday and now she was signaling at the smallest things that were happening with his body.

On more than one occasion, Tony bursted into the room after receiving a signal from Friday, only to see a terrified Peter buried in legos next to him. On all those occasions, Tony was so scared that he was simply forgetting to ask Friday what was going on and just bursted into teen’s room. Therefore, Peter has already embarrassed himself at least 5 times and now his mentor knows that Peter does not just collect Legos, but also plays with them. Wow, when can he die? Please? Can someone kill him?

Although he doesn't think he can ever die, even if he tries, Tony will invent a machine that will resurrect him and he will have to face every embarrassing thing he did again. And also Peter doesn’t want to worry Pepper with his death, so right now dying is cancelled from his plans.

"Friday, where's Tony?", Peter asked, stopping in the middle of the corridor, realizing that he did not know where his mentor was. Maybe he still has his meeting?

"Mr. Stark is currently in the kitchen, making coffee. Should I notify him that you’re coming?" Friday asked sweetly. Tony still couldn't understand how this AI became attached to this child, "also Peter, I noticed that your heartbeat—"

"No, thank you, Friday and NO, DON’T notify Mr. Stark about anything, I’m alright, I promise", Peter quickly thanked her, picking up his speed again, already heading to the living room. Knowing that Tony is next to him will make him way calmer. And he can lie on the couch and talk to Tony at the same time.

He can kill two people with one stone. Or whatever they say? Two birds with one stone? No, that’s sounds cruel. That means two people with one stone was the right one.

Peter slowed down as he walked into the living room, placing the mug on the table and literally running onto the sofa, wrapping himself in a cocoon of blankets.

"Tea, coffee, hot chocolate?" Tony simply asked, sensing Peter's presence. (Dad’s instincts - Happy loved saying) But it wasn’t some mysterious instincts, it was simply having a good hearing and being able to hear the big boom that was followed after Peter jumped on the sofa.

"Coffee, please?" Peter asked, looking around at the couch and finding his Nintendo Switch on it.

Another thunder and he tried to calm himself down by opening Minecraft.

"Wrong, the answer is tea", Tony just smirked to himself, taking out another mug.

"It's not fair!!" growled Peter weakly, looking for the remote control next to him.

"You have had enough coffee for today kiddo. Spiders aren't supposed to drink coffee at all, as far as I know", Tony mused theatrically.

"Okay, then what kind of tea", Peter accepted his fate.

"Green?" suggested Tony, opening the box with teas and turning to the side where Peter was sitting.

"The one that Pepper brought?" Peter asked more cheerfully. This tea was from France and it was incredibly delicious.

"Yeah", Tony was already making tea.

"Okay, then", answered Peter weakly, looking scarily at the window as thunder growled once more, catching Peter by surprise. The teenager jumped up and barely stifled a squeal.

"Well, such an awful weather today", Tony threw towards the window, amused, "I hope Clint has already got to his family, he hates this kind of weather".

With two cups of green tea, Tony sat down next to Peter, who was already building house for a cow in a desperate attempt to distract himself and suppress his panic.

"What are we watching this time? I remember you wanted to finish Avatar-"

"Bob's burgers, please," Peter said quickly.

"Okay, okay, jeez," Tony jokingly said, loving how excited is Peter when someone mentions Bob’s Burgers, petting his curls.

It’s the most comfortable series in this Universe. Just the best thing for such terrible weather.

Thunder banged roaring furiously outside the window. Peter shuddered again at the surprise, not so pleasing surprise, might he add, barely restraining himself from covering his ears.

" Is everything alright, kiddo?" Tony asked, trying not to show his worry, looking at the boy questioningly. He knew that Peter didn't like when Tony worried too much about him, so he tried his best to sound like he cares but not too much. He thinks he does a really good job. Happy doesn’t think so.

Tony just hummed as he turned into the series. If the kid does not want to talk about it right now, he will leave it, for now. He gives him 2 hours.

" Season, episode?" asked Tony, clicking the buttons of the remote control.

"I don’t care, but something from the 5-10 season",muttered Peter, looking out the window and putting his console aside.

Tony pretended not to notice.

"It's vague, there are literally 100 episodes," Tony smiled, looking at the child.

He decided to randomly choose season 9, episode 10.

When everything was arranged and they were sitting comfortably drinking tea, Tony pressed the start button.

Peter, as always, thought that he could easily hide his dislike of something and Tony would still be completely sure that Peter is not afraid of anything (except stop-motion animation. When Tony showed him „cute” video with stop-motion animation, Peter literally screamed at his face.).

But every time the lighting cracked, Peter could not control himself and physically shuddered harder, curling up on the couch and pressing his shoulder to Tony, seeking warmth of his body.

"Oh my god I love Louise so much! Yes, Louise, PUNCH THIS STUPID BOY," Tony shouted at the screen as it could hear him.

"Yeah, Louise you’re a-OH MY GOD" another boom of thunder hit them.

"What is wrong kiddo?" Tony immediately looked at him with the concern in his eyes.

"N-nothing, I just wasn’t expecting thi-this", he weakly showed something started as happening at the screen.

"You didn’t expect this skeddle?" Tony skeptically looked at him, still anxiously looking if Peter is hurt and covers the injury.

"Uhh yeah? I expected that but when it actually happened I didn’t know that it would be, like, right now."

"Okay, are you sure you’re alright, kiddo? If you don’t like this series, I can turn something else".

"No!! I love them! Just wasn’t expecting." his explanation was weakly unconvincing.

"Okay," of course, Tony wasn't convinced, but he dropped his suspicions. Kid will tell when he’s ready. Maybe he was really not expecting this?

"Oh my god, how I love this episode. Logan deserved it." said Tony, laughing and turning another episode.

"Yeah, i really love what Louise did but he deserved everything that cam-", he stopped himself waiting for another thunder to be over.

But Tony didn’t wait, during this evening he noticed enough warning signs that something was deeply wrong with the kid.

"Peter, what's wrong?" Peter did not have time to understand anything, as Tony had already stopped the episode and carefully looked into his face.

"Everything is fine, Mr. Stark", Peter tried to answer as casually as possible.

"And if you will try to tell truth this time?" Tony raised an eyebrow, taking his cup and sipping it, giving Peter space, "come on, you know that you can tell me everything and I mean it. Everything."

Peter signed. He really wants to tell someone and he’s really tired and scared, so there is not so many options.

"I-I'm afraid of thunder," Peter let it out in one breath, nervously crumplinghis hoodie in his hands.

Tony looked at him in silence, then nodded and got off the couch.

"Oh my God, Mr. Stark, I'm sorry," Peter began to apologize, but Tony didn't listen.

"Friday, turn on the soundproofing protocole."

"Done", Friday immediately answered, following the Tony’s order.

"Do you have your headphones here?" Tony asked worriedly, "how is your sensory overload?"

"um yes?" whispered Peter, squeezing into the sofa.

"Then why aren't you wearing them?" Tony froze, looking at Peter questioningly.

The question made Peter stiffen while he was attempting to shrink down where he was sat.

"They uhh, they are.." Peter did not know how to say.

Tony waited patiently for an answer.

"They don't help with all sounds and I still hear thunder" answered Peter. Enough mumbling, Peter, Mr.Stark will soon turn gray by the time you finish explaining.

"And of course you didn’t tell me that," he sounded very unamused, staying silent for a second.

And then it looked like he remembered something and went down to the workshop.

"Okay, maybe I made him angry somehow?" Peter tried to scroll through the whole conversation in his head.

If Tony went to his workshop it means he will not come in 20 hours at least. And he probably blocked Peter from entering it. Or maybe he thought that Peter has sensory overload and he decided to give him space??

"Well, in any case you'll have to watch this series yourself, then." sighed Peter, reaching for the remote control and turning on the series.

"Hey, you can't watch it without me!!" said an indignant voice from behind, and a second later Tony entered the living room with headphones in his hands.

Peter couldn't help the mischievous giggle that escaped him. Yeah, he was villain in this story. Also, he was so relieved that Tony came.

"Um, I just thought you went to work in the workshop?" Peter nervously smiled, sipping his tea.

"What a wrong assumption, kiddo, if I went to work I would take you with me", simply answered Tony, "I went down only to get headphones. I haven't finished them yet, but we'll see what they can do".

He helped Peter put on them.

"Well what?" Tony asked expectantly, worry still didn’t leave his face.

Peter listened. He felt a very slight vibration, which was similar to the silent mode on the phone. With a sigh of relief, he looked at the man and smiled.

"Thank you Mr. Stark", he said gratefully.

After that there was silence and then there was sign.

"I'm sorry, Pete, I completely forgot that you have sensory problems and of course you would have them when there is literally thunder outside. I should have thought about that", he sounded so guilty, and the guilt himself flashed through Peter.

He just should have tell him, instead he chose to be drama queen. You always try to make everyone not to worry about you but with that you make them worry even more. There is no escaping.

"These are not sensory problems", Peter said, sounding a little miserable.

"Hmm? Tony asked, sounding a little anxiously.

(Ps. you can literally see they are dad and son)

Peter scrunched up his nose.

"Um, it's..it's not related to sensory issues, although it's a little related, but not completely. It's just that I'm stupidly afraid of thunder", Peter explained.

"I don’t have a lot of sensory problems, I’m just..scared"

"Hey, kiddo, there is nothing wrong with being scared", Tony started slowly, "we all afraid of something and it’s not stupid" he carefully moved closer to the kid.

"C’mere" simply. He pulls Peter into his arms. simple hug. He murmurs soothingly.

It was minutes and Peter wanted them to be hours so bad.

"What else can I do?" whispered Tony.

"Thank you Mr.Stark, but you have already made so much for me".

"Come on, kid, give me something to work with. There is have to be something" asked Tony again.

"Okay..maybe we can sit next to each other?"

Tony stared at him blankly.

"I think Mr. Marker is saying that he would like to be comforted by your hugs-"

Peter blushed and waved his hands dismissively.

"Friday, no no no I don't-", for the first time, he got a little angry at Friday. Well, he wasn't exactly angry, because it's not her fault that Peter got his tongue stuck in his ass and he was embarrassed by simply existing, but she's his friend, how could she leave him like that??

" Kiddo, if hugs will help you, I'm all for it", Tony just shrugged his shoulders like it's not a big deal.

Peter fell silent.

"If it doesn't bother you, sir, I'll be very grateful," whispered Peter quietly, looking anywhere but at the mentor.

Tony raised an eyebrow at him in surprise as he sat closer on the sofa.

" If you call me Mister again, next time we'll only watch Desperate Housewives till your thirties".

"Oh no, no, please, Mr.-", Peter began to beg theatrically, but he was interrupted.

"Ahh, the choice is yours", a smile crept on his face while he twirled his finger in front of Peter’s nose.

"Please, you don't need to-Tony," Peter laughed softly, looking at the mentor with a smile in his eyes.

A hand ruffled his hair, making teen sheepishly smile.

"Okay, okay, sit down, little boy, because I can already feel myself falling asleep," he yawned expressively.

Peter carefully sat closer as large arms wrapped around him and pulled him closer. Peter nuzzled into Mr. Stark's shoulder, inhaling the scent of Stark's t-shirt.

Thunder crackled again, making Peter a miserable again. Okay, maybe they work better than his headphones but still not the best. Tony’s hand apologetically moved from his head to rub at his back, while he sweared. Peter leaned on Tony.

Knowing that Peter likes to hear Tony tell something, he decided to test this theory.

"Do you know an interesting fact? When they started the production, it's Linda Belcher who-", yes, he did a little research about this show, it's his kid’s favourite show. oh..he meant his intern’s favourite show.

Peter listened with deep interest to what Tony was saying, barely flinching when the vibrations caught him by surprise. But at such moments, Tony always squeezed him a little harder and he was calming down, burying into his side, smiling when Tony told something especially funny.

Soothing by the cartoon that Tony put just for the background, Tony’s interesting facts and stories and his warm hugs, Peter's eyes began to slowly close as he blissfully fell asleep.

The storm was over.

[vulturesrottencorpse]

what do people have against closed fantribes??

i see lots of hate for closed fantribes and I honestly don't get it. Actually, I do, sort of, but I also don't.

I used to be one of those people who hated closed fantribes and would rant about them for ages until I found one really amazing one (won't be naming and less "popular" tribes BC I know someone's gonna go out of their way to harass them.) that switched my perspective completely

The main thing people have against them is that they are from an already existing piece of media (wings of fire) which hey that's actually true, that was my reason for hating them, however if you take that logic and apply it to any other thing like adopts, p2u bases, commission art, ect ect, then shouldn't everyone hate that too?

The second, and biggest reason is the prices I guess. People will rant about some certain poptribes (dewwings seem to be the main target) because they're expensive. I have some news for you. The artists who create drawing designs, or any designs from other fantribes, are all INCREDIBLY talented, and artists have the right to price their art how THEY think is fair. I thought everyone knew this but no, apparently not when it comes to this specific thing. Yes, dews can go for over 200$, but that's from auctions where people are actively choosing what they use their money on. You are not forced to buy a dewwing, or any closed fantribe. Me for example, I'm too young for a job or a bank account, yet I own a few, and several other closed fantribe characters, because more often than not there are alternative ways to get them!! I got my rare dewwing for FREE. completely free, through character trading. Some people also take art as payment!! What I'm saying is, 1, artists don't have to cater their prices to how YOU think is fair, they are the artist, they decide how they price. 2, said artists are super talented! Heartspark? WOW, absolutely stunning designs every single time! Honeybee st? GORGEOUS, genuinely makes the best designs I've ever seen (imo), eldragonis? IMMACULATE use of colour and anatomy, WOW. and that's just to name the most populous ones! Guys, they are popular for a reason! Their art is amazing, they spend their time creating these gorgeous pieces, just for people to attack them and tell them their prices are too high and not worth it? 3, you do not HAVE to pay money! There will always be ways to get characters from closed species for those who may not have the money to spend, if they didn't, let's be honest, they would fail as a community. Nobody is grabbing you by the throat and screaming at you to spend 200$ on this legendary trait dragon character! So then, why should you care if people who do have that money to spend use it on that? It's their money they can spend it however they want.

Instead of veiwing closed fantribe owners as scummy money hungry evil overlords, and start viewing them as they are, artists making a living by doing what they love!

(psssst, this post isn't an invitation to start drama, if U wanna share it opinion plz do it respectfully 😭 <3)

[beardisable]

OH MY GOD OH MY GOD okay.

so i watched the 8 hour jack stream(jesus) aka watched genloss top to bottom again and listened to his theories and stuff(i really vibe with the "kidnapped as kids" angle more now) and started thinking about some theories he and chat mentioned and.

now im thinking with like. ok its probably a pretty common theory, this post was what prompted this additional idea of mine actually, but ill explain it a bit: the theory that, since sneeg and charlie can come back over and over again, and they have referenced like, refusing to do the cooking challenge in ep 1, and how charlie was playing the mouse trap but ate the cage, they have obviously done the same kind of scenes we saw ranboo do, right. and then in the Announcement video we see the same kind of "missing poster" type headshots of them, with the caption "Found them!"

i dont remember exactly where it was confirmed that showfall made the missing person posters, but like. yeah. these images are for missing posters like ranboo had. and with sneeg being caught by the security in ep 3, he had tried to escape, just like ranboo and charlie. and i feel like this wasnt the first or last time they have tried this!

also, during that screenshot the announcer says "our hero will meet a cast of crazy characters, who you may recognize", aka the audience has seen these "actors" before in other things! this is their first live show but what have they made before...?

then, with one of the Very first lines Ranboo says in the first episode, "it wasn't supposed to be like this"... showfall/hetch made it seem like this is ranboos first show and he's being tested for how well he does as The Hero.

I dont think what we saw is Ranboos first time starring in a showfall production.

its the first live thing like the announcement video said but i think hetch lied when he talked about how its a test, i think Ranboo's been here at least a few go arounds, if not tens/hundreds/thousands of times. WHICH MEANS in the end when he gets his memories back... theres an infinite amount of possibility of things they could remember for what they have been made to do in the past :) Bc remember, while this is comedy->horror, it was still relatively tame and non-explicit (at least by my personal standards?) so it is quite possible they have been in more R rated horror stuff, slashers, gore, actual saw, some kind of even worse psychological horror things, but also that they might have had incredibly good experiences like love and joy and community and anything positive too, and to remember all that in a rush... oh boy so i believe it is a circular reproduction, maybe they run through scenes repeatedly over and over while perfecting every little detail and getting different takes of genuine emotion but every time Real and a First experience... some kind of purgatory(omg christian hell reference) or endless torture or such...

ok that got really maybe unneccessarily angsty so heres my other thought:

i love me a fucking colour theory and colour symbolism! it bothered me a bit how like. in the promo game we get ranboo, then green friend/the villain(obviously charlie, tho the villain part still confuses me a Bit since its not quite true?), the blue friend/the taken(obvs sneeg) and then the red stranger/the saviour. and like it would logically follow that the red is hetch right?

jack when theorising said the titles are self descriptive, which i buy into, at least for the first episode context, charlie is the villain role, sneeg was taken(put in a cage and later snatched by the sharkciclester), and hetch was trying to help and save ranboo from this situation! but then in the second ep we also have red puzzler, and red niki? i WISH niki had. any kind of bigger role to build a Saviour type off of her but i dont think she does :( the puzzler is an option, since they make it seem like the puzzler tries to save ranboo? and thats actually a whole other thought like. since we know hetch was not actually helping ranboo, was the puzzler Genuinely helping them, and somehow showfall found out and killed him?? idk ANYWAYS that colour coding falling apart a bit made me think about how ranboo is also red!! rgb trio yknow??

if the titles are self descriptive... well i dont think Ranboo really felt like The Hero much, especcially not in the end...

I think Ranboo is actually meant to be the Saviour.

Esp with the jesus coding! I believe this kind of thing has happened many times before, with sneeg/charlie/ranboo/others realizing that shits fucked, and trying to escape, only to be caught and put back in the production. I think Ranboo(main character syndrome) was in a previous iteration the Saviour, who tried to help sneeg and charlie and others get out of there, to save them, save everyone. but they failed. got captured. once again waking up again with a "it wasn't supposed to be like this..."

and so the cycle continues, and the content wheel keeps spinning.

(ive only been in tumblr tags so feel free to link me any other ppl who arrived at the same conclusion)

[sam-glade]

Find the Words Tag

Tagged by @outpost51 here and @card-queen here. Thank you💜

I'll gently tag: @tabswrites @zestymimblo @worldsfromhoney @squarebracket-trick @chauceryfairytales - your words are: honey, fruit, tea, bread.

I don't have enough of The Prince's Shadow written to find half of the words, so back to Gifts of Fate it is for the time being:

From @outpost51: pitch, aid, brother, relief, ceiling

PITCH (Erya and Varré talking)

“I still need to know what exactly you were thinking, pitching Gullin against whatever that kid is.” “I had a hunch.” “A hunch!?” “Yes, a hunch, Erya, that’s how I operate. And it was a damn good hunch at that; that single bout gave us a whole load of information on the demon. Of course I’m assuming it isn’t the only one in existence. We need to know more to prepare.”

AID

They spent the day going through the manor, cleaning the servants’ quarters, and taking stock of their supplies — the officers had brought full packs of long-lasting provisions, as well as spare woollen blankets and small equipment; tinderboxes, first aid kits, and such. They still needed cooking utensils, warm clothes, and more blankets to survive the winter, which they decided to buy the next day in the nearest town that didn’t have an Army outpost.

BROTHER (Marta talking)

“What have you been doing with my brother over the last four months!? You take him away, you force him to live in this hole.” She raised her voice. Lissan stirred, but she didn’t let anyone get a word in edgewise. Gullin watched her warily. She didn’t pose a direct risk to the Swords, but Lissan— “And that… that thing was put in his head by you, by the Army. No, I don’t care that whoever did it went rogue, that they weren’t officially told to do it. It’s wrong! It’s your mess to tidy up, so get on with it!”

RELIEF

“I’d rather you weren’t involved,” he said quietly. Ianim gaped. “I promised your sister that I’d keep you as safe as I can.” Ianim squeezed his eyes shut, so that the betrayal he felt wouldn’t show in them. He controlled his breathing and prepared an argument — a logical argument that he’d also present to his prince, if he weren’t such a coward — that his abilities were only going to waste when— “But, I can’t stop you from coming with us,” Lissan said, before Ianim opened his mouth. “So just… remember that, please?” Ianim smiled as relief welled in him.

CEILING

He’d thought about it constantly for the six hours he’d been locked up — he’d estimated the passage of time by the sky’s colour changing; a little rectangle of it was visible through a barred window right below the arched ceiling. He’d gone over every word he’d said and heard that day — from the Usurper, and from the Generals. The Nameless’s incessant commentary had made him lose the thread of thoughts many times, but the demon had pointed out one thing: the Usurper didn’t use his Sword on Lissan even once, and Lissan had good reasons to believe it.

~*~

From @card-queen: shuffle, entrance and satisfying

SHUFFLE

“I always knew you can be reasonable,” the Usurper said with approval. “Do take a seat.” Lissan kept looking at the Sword. The Stork flexed its fingers, and more ice crept up the spikes, encasing the Weapon further, although not bending it. Yet. Lissan shuffled to the nearest settee that offered him a clear view of both the Sword and the Usurper. He perched on the edge of the seat, and grimaced when he sank into the plush cushion. “Make yourself comfortable, please. Would you like some refreshments?”

ENTRANCE

The cottage atop the hill was tiny, huddled under a blanket of thatch, peeking from behind an almost bare dogwood tree to the side of the entrance — Dad had planted it there forty-five ago, when he bought this little rocky plot of land. Partially hidden behind the house, stood the woodshed, the chicken coop, and Dad’s wood workshop. Marta was waiting for them in the doorway.

SATISFYING (CW: creepy intrusive thoughts)

Ianim demonstrated the movements with infinite patience, and corrected Lissan’s position and the way he held the dull practice sword, arranging Lissan’s limbs with gentle nudges and inevitably making his cheeks flush. You’d want his hands on other parts of you, wouldn’t you, the demon hissed, and Lissan winced away from Ianim. Ianim looked at him in a silent question, but didn’t press. From then on, he avoided physical contact without a word or even an odd look, and Lissan had to accept that it was for the best. It let him focus on the training. It wasn’t an enthralling activity, to repeat the same movement over and over, dozens upon dozens of times, but there was something satisfying about getting it to feel right.

[tracybirds]

Hello!

Overworked and headachy as I am, I couldn't resist sending an ask for the Little Whump List.

2 numbers, 2 brothers - you choose how to combine them!

30. Unfortunate choice of clothing (or however it was worded!) 4. Tummy ache

Gordon and John

:)

*hugs you lots* I'm sorry you're under the grind right now, I hope this small offering help brighten your evening <33 I def want to do the other one soon too but I am rapidly running out of evening!!!

Prompts are from @gumnut-logic's Little Whump List which hey, if you like it, I'm still open for ahaha just might take a day or two!

30. Unfortunate choice of clothing

"Come on, John, you've got to experiment a bit. Spice of life, remember?"

"I don't think that that's meant for clothing," retorted John. "Besides, Grandma says I look good in blue."

"Are you kidding?" demanded Gordon. "Clothing's the perfect place to start. Totally low stakes. Come on, what screams you in this shop?"

John held up the familiar button-down that matched the one he was wearing, the deep blue reminiscent of the boundary where the atmosphere gave way to the universe beyond.

"This one."

Gordon groaned.

"Okay, fine, you're the most boring person alive, we get it."

"I'm not boring!"

"You have literally bought the exact same shirt every three years since you were 11."

"It's not the exact same," said John disdainfully. "I've grown taller. And they changed the shape of the pocket."

"Right, yes, sorry," said Gordon, rolling his eyes. "The pocket shape changes everything."

"Why would I buy a different shirt anyway?" asked John, as though the idea had never occurred to him. "I like this one; the sleeves sit right, the fabric's not all clingy, and it's soft."

"We can find you another soft shirt," said Gordon impatiently. "But come on, John, shake things up a bit. You can buy your favourite one too if you must."

Sensing that Gordon wasn't going to give in, John sighed irritably and folded the new, blue shirt neatly and placed it in the basket.

"Fine," he said with a grumble. "Lead the way."

Shirt after shirt was bundled into John's arms and summarily rejected. This one was too long and that one was scratchy and "for the last time Gordon, I'm not getting anything with short sleeves."

Gordon scowled as he looked around the store.

"There's got to be something here for you."

John shrugged and reached out to flip through the clearance rack, hands trailing down the material as he considered each shirt carefully.

"I mean, come on, John," continued Gordon. "This is the biggest department store in New York City, there's got to be something that you like."

John paused, the material of a shirt falling smoothly through his hands. His fingers plucked at the piping with interest, the soft edge feeling almost metallic against his skin. He pulled it out, carefully examining the inside for any sign of poor construction that might irritate him on the hard nights that followed his training on Thunderbird Five.

"This one," he said firmly, and dove back into the changing room before Gordon could turn to ask what he had found.

He stepped back out moments later with a small, satisfied smile.

Gordon gaped.

The shirt was a hideous brown sat completely wrong with his hair colour, some kind of drunk plaid, lined with gold piping. The effect was startling, but even more incredibly, thought Gordon, John actually seemed to like it.

"Uh, are you sure?"

"I know it's a bit 'experimental' and all," said John, emphasising the term Gordon had himself been advocating for. "New colour and all. But green's not meant to be a bad look on redheads, right?"

In a flash, Gordon knew what had happened.

John's colour blindness had caused him to muddle the pale brown for a soft green that ought to have complemented his eyes, but instead clashed horribly to normal vision.

He had a split second to decide on his response.

Be a good brother? Or....

"Oh, yeah, that'll be an experiment for you alright!" he said cheerfully. "Looks good!" Was that piping? he wondered, smile fixing in place as he took in the view. "Maybe they'll let you wear it out?"

John twisted to stare at the mirror, eyes peering critically at his image. The frown cleared and he smiled shyly at Gordon.

"Yeah, maybe" he said. "Thanks Gordon, I guess I needed that push... this could become a new favourite of mine."

Gordon smiled, wide and bright and full of delight as to the months ahead.

"I really hope so, Johnny!"

[knockyasocksoff2022]

Take My Hand, Let Me Save You Like You Save Me | Soukoku

Based on Heaven and Back by Chase Atlantic. 

Angst but then fluff. I'm not that familiar with Corruption and how it works so please correct me if I get anything wrong. This is set before Soukoku start dating.

Words: 4,194

⚠️TW: drugs, drug use, and almost drug overdose | Dazai typical suicidal thoughts, attempted suicide, and depression.

NOT PROOFREAD (no beta we die like Oda)

(A/N: This is way more angsty than I intended but there is more fluff in later chapters. Under the cut due to length. This has been edited for grammar. At the point I was writing this I didn’t know that No Longer Human is always active so we’re just going to ignore that little fact. Also, the logic behind Corruption is nowhere to be found. I was a very new fan when I wrote this.)

Dazai’s Perspective

Mori's office is filled with every kind of lethal pill imaginable, and I just had to grab a non-lethal one, a hallucinogenic one, I think. I was crying at the time, my eyes blurring at the edges until the fog spread and the tears spilled over.

Now my eyes blur for a different reason, visions of bright, flashing colours and mangled corpses dance in and out of my view. I can't take this, it's not working, I need more.

I dump a few more pills into my palm (3 maybe 7, I can't tell) and swallow them with the stolen whiskey. It tastes bitter, an acidic burn, fire, but I'm flying and I love it. The pain distracts me from everything else and the light feeling is a bliss I never thought I'd ever get to feel.

I stand up (fall down? I can't tell which direction is which.) and notice for the first time, the fluorescents of the warehouse. Gosh, they're beautiful. They should be in a museum not in this dingy warehouse. Who would bother buying lights this nice for a place like this? Then again Mori is like super crazy rich. I tilt my head and they move with me, incredible! I spin, and so do they, making swirls across the grey beams. I wish Chuuya were here to see this. Chuuya makes everything better. He'll be so upset that he missed this.

Suddenly the swirls are taking over my thoughts, I can only think in spirals and my brain feels like it's being rolled up into the spirals. It doesn't feel . . . bad? Anything's better than the pain, I guess? My stomach lurches, being pulled into the spiral as well, and I vomit neon green and pink onto the warehouse floor. It's beautiful and then gone. Then back again, then gone, taking the floor with it. I hear a distant thud and the lights feel farther away.

Pain pounds in my head as the lights come back. This time they're blurred, black eating at the edges. I watch, entranced, as the black and the lights fight. I can't decide who I want to win, they're both so beautiful. The black is winning and I am falling, falling, falling (but wasn't I already down), slipping deeper. Does it feel bad? I don't know. I can't feel anything. Is that a bad thing? Isn't this what I wanted?

Yes. I've always wanted this. Even numbness is better than the pain, and if this is how I get it then I'd gladly do it again. This is what I've been looking for, something I'm not even sure I could get from death: the feeling of already being gone, like I'm no longer human, a machine, a monster. It's not nearly death but I'll take it.

I hear a voice drifting in and out but it sinks to the bottom of my black ocean, along with any remaining fight I had left in me.

Chuuya’s Perspective

Where is he? Where is that shitty bastard? He said he would be home tonight. But that look on his face. I knew he was lying.

"Why the fuck did you let him go, dumbass!" I think to myself. I thought privacy would be a good idea but now it doesn't matter, I have to get to him before he hurts himself.

When I turn the corner, I hear soft sobbing and heavy breathing coming from the warehouse. I know it's him and I dash inside.

He lies curled up in a corner, eyes rolled back in his head, not himself, like when I use Corruption.

"Dazai! Wake up!" no answer, "Wake up, shitty Dazai, wake up."

His corpse-like person stays the same but he's still breathing, he has to be.

"Dammit!!!" He still doesn't stir, panic, turning to pure terror as it claws up my throat, combined with hot anger I feel like I'm about to combust. "No, fuck you! How could you do this?" I ask the unresponsive boy, the words turn to please as they leave my mouth. Desperation now joins the swirl of emotions, "I loved you, I love you! And you go and leave me like this! What about me? What about me, huh? Are you just gonna leave me like this?" I punch him, "Answer me, asshole, I said answer me!"

But at this point, I can see it's useless. His corpse is still, with no breath rising or falling from his still-warm body. The tears come suddenly and I let myself lay over my dead partner, friend (more than friend?). I cry for him, and his situation, and his death, and for what we could've been. I wanted it, oh how I wanted him to return my feelings but it all feels so stupid now, now I just want him alive.

I don't care if they find me like this, draped over the boy I love (and will love until the day I die, even after), I hope they do. Someone deserves to pay. The anger pulses back again, stronger. White hot rage, blacking out my vision. Arahabaki. The Rage only lasts for a second then I'm back, the feeling gone again.

I feel something inside me break.

If Corruption is activating while I'm touching Dazai, then he really is dead. It hits me in the stomach, worse than any punch from an enemy. I should be worried but I don't care if I destroy everything. I don't care if I destroy myself. I don't want to live without Dazai Osamu and I deserve whatever I get for leaving him alone like this. I promised I promised he wouldn't die alone, and yet here I am, doing too little too late as I guess we always knew I would. The one mistake I can't take back.

I try to summon it back, the Rage. I want to hit something, I want to hit myself until I can't anymore. But a noise distracts me, wheezing, then choked breaths. Dazai struggles to sit. A gasp leaves my lips. He's alive, undeniably so, but how. It's been at least 5 minutes.

I can feel his heartbeat, slightly too fast but strong, in his chest, and his breathing the same. Did I . . . bring him back? No, Arahabaki did. For the first time, real gratitude for the god surges in me but I have to focus on Dazai now.

He opens his brown eyes, they're wide with surprise and wet with tears. But not the deep and curious look that only I know, dull and sad. I'll take anything.

He gets up, seemingly perfectly fine, just sad. He sits back down, head between his knees, hands covering his eyes but I can see his shoulder skating with the silent sobs. Distraught. I can't take him in pain like this. My body moves before I can think about what I'm doing.

I hold out my hand.

He doesn't take it.

"Please." it comes out too desperate, "please" I try again softer. He lifts his arms and nods, grasping my hand. The connection makes me feel safer than I ever have. "Let me help you," He's still looking down. "Like you've helped me so many times."

"You don't owe me." is all he says

"I do, but that's not why I'm doing this. I'm doing it because I'm human and so are you, I want to help you and . . ." I swallow the lump in my throat, "I care about you, more than you'll ever know."

This makes him look up, our eyes lock, a thousand words unspoken. "Now please, let me save you like, you save me"

He stands up and I don't really know what to do so I put my hands around his waist, an awkward kind of hug, my palms feel hot. Soon we're fully embracing each other. Dazai letting me support his weight, support him. I want him to see things how I do so faster than I can talk myself out of it I hold him tighter and let myself float a metre above the ground.

We stay there for a while.

Then Dazai whispers something into my chest, the words a soft vibration, like a cat's purr.

"Hmm?"

"I said, the city looks beautiful from up here."

The words leave my mouth without my permission, "Most deadly things look pretty."

He smiles an actual smile. It hides itself beneath a neutral expression quickly but I know it was there and I'd do anything to see it again.

"You look beautiful up here," he whispers, I don't think he meant for me to hear but I'm so close to him that it's impossible not to, the quieter. "Chuuya always looks beautiful"

I feel myself blushing, my heart skipping a beat and picking up again in double time.

All of a sudden the warehouse feels too small so I fly up to the roof. Dazai's eyes widen in surprise and he holds me tighter, bandaged arms snugly around my waist. I try to ignore the feeling in my stomach and focus on the roof.

It's different. I've never flown with someone else before and I thought I would have to remind myself to be gentle but adjusting and softening my movements for Dazai comes easily to me, an unconscious action.

I touch down on the roof and the wind swirls around us, playing with Dazai's hair in a beautiful way. I watch it tangle around for a moment before snapping out of it. I could stare longer if I wanted to. Dazai has his back to me, staring out at the city. Almost on the edge.

I follow his gaze to an empty green lot, overgrown with only a small warehouse.

"That lot has been empty forever," he says in a monotone

"Yeah, I don't think it's Mori's."

"They tried to sell it a while ago," the slightest tint of emotion enters his voice, but I can't identify it, "but no one wanted to buy it."

"I can see why. I'd probably be more trouble to fix up than it's worth."

"I think it's a nice place." The emotion is unmistakable now: longing. "Private, nobody pays attention to it, no super close neighbors, quiet, but you can see the whole city from the roof." Longing for a home, a place to settle, a place to be his answer when someone asks where he's from, where he belongs. I know because I want these things too.

"You've been there?"

"I used to hide out there."

There's silence, we're still speaking, just not with words. He tells me with the way he steps closer to the ledge.

"Yeah, it could be pretty nice. I bet someone will buy it, some super-rich real estate person, and then sell it." I feel Dazai's shoulders slump as I finish the sentence. I want to say sorry but I'm not sure what for, or what to start with because I have so many things to say sorry for.

"Before I joined, it was my place, the closest thing to a home that I had. Now I live here of course but I–"

"I get it. You don't want it going to just anyone." He gives me a small smile for my understanding, but he's almost off the ledge now. I won't let him go again. I won't.

I grab his waist and pull him away from the ledge, back to me. Close, close, closer until we can feel each other's heartbeats.

Music echoes from the distance, a street party. It seems to grow louder, and so does my heartbeat. The first move is mine, the next is his and before we know it we're moving to it together, gliding, spinning, twisting, not in synchronisation, but the movements seem to all fit together. Dancing. I'm dancing with Dazai Osamu and my heart soars.

It feels like I'm floating and then I realise, we are. I've taken us up, just above the floor of the roof. We dance up here uncaring free, the feelings running wild even if only for one night. I let myself go higher, the feeling in my chest unravelling and releasing the tension as we move together.

This feeling: raw, pure, intense, and wholly human. Puts me on a high, grounding me at the same time. And maybe humans don't feel this passionately, maybe I'm not human, but if being inhuman allows me to feel like this if it allowed me to save the love of my life, it can't be so bad.

Dazai’s Perspective

It's a habit at this point. Constantly pushing further even after I've gone way past way too far just because fuck it. Stepping closer to the ledge, farther from life until all I can see is the ground below. It wouldn't even be jumping, just falling. The smallest shift of my body weight forward, a motion nobody would even notice until it's already too late. Another step.

You might wonder, Wouldn't I miss Chuuya? If I'm dead I can't miss anyone. If I could miss him though, I would, but it doesn't matter. He'll be fine. He might have saved me but I know he doesn't care about me the way I would like him to. It's obvious, he hates me but I still can't let him go. It'd be better for all of us if I just fell.

He'll find another partner, move on, and forget all about me, be the youngest living Port Mafia executive. He'd like that. I start to lean forward a bit. Arms grab my waist, strong, warm, and secure. He pulls me closer, and closer and closer until there's no space left. I still want to be closer.

Pop music begins to blast from a few streets over, loud and clear from up here. The lights of the city seem to dance in time to the music and Chuuya looks as stunning as ever, wind tousled red hair and blue eyes bright with emotion . . . humanity.

He's everything I don't want, everything I know I'll never have. And that just makes me want him all the more. I don't want his humanity or his emotion for myself, I want him to want me with all of himself. I want him to love me with all of his searing passion until I burn from the inside out.

I said Chuuya would be the death of me but I didn't say it with malice. I would love for him to end. For him to take my life away with the sheer force of our contradicting personalities. Death by his hand would be . . . perfect.

The brutal conclusion to a brutal life.

Suddenly I'm knocked off my feet, or not knocked, but rather the ground disappears from under me, but I'm not falling, I'm floating.

Chuuya.

It's my instinct to hold on tighter to Chuuya but that would only make things more awkward so I let go. I expect to fall but I don't stay where I am. Ah, Chuuya must be controlling my gravity field. I don't mind, not at all.

He catches my hand, a look of pure exhilaration on his face, and I use the rebound to spin him away, catching him again. His touch cancels out everything else as if he's the one with the nulling ability. This is better than any drug, the pain is no more. All I can feel is Chuuya. He feels good, better than. I know I may never get to do this again so tonight I dance with Chuuya. I allow myself to get as close as I want to. He doesn't protest.

He may not love me in that way (but he must have at least some affection for me or he would never be letting me do this), but I know that as long as I have Chuuya I can live with myself.

Chuuya’s Perspective

It feels like we could've danced forever but eventually, we end up on the edge of the roof. Not like last time, nothing like last time. This time Dazai sits in my lap, (which I'll admit is a bit awkward because of the um *cough* height difference *cough* Hey, shut up, inner Dazai voice!), and shockingly he makes an effort to curl up smaller to fit better. My heartbeat accelerates, sending warm tremors through my chest. His touch does to me, the opposite of what his ability does to me. I wish he knew what he does to me.

I feel him shift closer. What the hell is happening? Who is this and where's shitty-bastard Dazai?

Dazai’s Perspective 

Dancing with Chuuya fills me with a feeling I don't recognise, but it burns, and I like it. The burn is different from the acid burn that the whiskey provided, it's slower and deeper, starting from the points where Chuuya touches me but then consuming me from the inside out. This burn isn't acid, it's a pure holy fire, like Chuuya himself. I'm sure I could manage without it, but why would I want to, it wouldn't really be living. I'm tired of this half-living I've been doing and I wish I'd realised sooner but now that I have this I know there's no chance I'm ever letting him go again.

It's difficult because Chuuya's just so small but I manoeuvre myself even closer, soaking up his fiery warmth and leaning in until the city noise disappears and his heartbeat and breathing are the only things I hear.

I can feel my shoulders tensing, waiting, wanting. Wanting him to lean down and kiss me. His fire gives me a nervous feeling and the heat is so distracting that I can't form the words.

Instead, I tilt my head up pathetically and hope he notices me for once.

Chuuya’s Perspective

I’m sure the Yokohama skyline is beautiful tonight but I can’t take my eyes off Dazai, I don’t really want to either. The wind picks up and ruffles his soft brown hair, giving me the irresistible urge to pull my finger through it. With how close we are it’s probably okay. Then he looks up.

I close my eyes.

I wish he didn’t. It makes me want to punch him sometimes (that’s usually why I do punch him), the way he flirts so shamelessly with everyone, no matter the gender, he just loves to flirt (and then break hopeful hearts), so much so that anyone could tell it’s an act, not even to mock them but just for his own amusement. Damn him! I usually would punch him right about now but I could never hurt him when he’s like this.

I open my eyes, accepting my fate, willing myself to resist.

His eyes are full of something deep and mysterious, yes, but it’s his lips that hold my attention. The way they’re slightly parted, if I didn’t know better I’d say he was doing this on purpose but I do know better and this oblivious idiot has no idea what he’s doing. If I didn’t know better I’d say the look in his eyes is want.

His lips look so soft, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve dreamt of kissing them. And now he wants me to. I’m not sure. But I can’t stop myself.

I have to lean down to him for once as I press my lips to his. Immediately a tingling sensation hits me, scalding at first then pleasantly warm. And, oh. I was right, his lips are soft and warm.

Then panic shoots through me. I open my eyes to see Dazai's own eyes wide in surprise, I know the horror will come next. Have I just ruined everything? What should I say, how can I even explain this?  The dread wells inside me, turning me to stone.

“I—” My throat is the first to go and the words die on my tongue.

And then he’s kissing me back.

It’s different now that he’s kissing me as well. His lips are still soft but more solid and forceful. This time he presses his body into mine until we’re held together so tightly it feels like we’re one now, instead of two.

The hardest thing about kissing Dazai is stopping, but at last, we do.

“Dazai . . .” There are no words that adequately describe the experience.

He sighs, “Please, use my given name.” I freeze, “Call me Osamu.”

“Osamu,” I whisper into the night, testing out the word. It feels right, leaving a pleasant sensation on my lips. The memory of where his own lips had just touched mine. Pulsing desire.

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do this,” I say to the night around us. It feels good to get the words out.

His smile is brighter than any of the lights around, “That goes for me as well.”

The music from the street below is still playing, but quieter now as if everything has faded out leaving only Osamu and I.

It’s so nice that we let the confessions and feelings hang in the air for a while as the sky slips from dark blue to black and the feelings get brighter . . . hotter.

It happens so easily, as if we’ve been doing this for years (we should have been), our lips are connected again pressing feverishly, hungrily against each other. Osamu’s hands are in my hair, pulling, but not so hard it hurts.

When we stop for breath I tug away the bandages covering Osamu’s neck and begin to explore.

——————————

We lay on the roof, the music long quieted, staring up at the full moon. The bandages on Osamu’s neck hang loosely like a necklace, both of our hair sticks up and Osamu is using my coat as a blanket against the nighttime chill.

—

When the moon finally begins to slip away I ask, “Are we going to talk about this?”

“About what?” Osamu asks. I look at him confused. He smiles, “We’ve been in love all this time, what will change now that the words have been said. It isn’t like we’ll be able to be affectionate at work.” He explains all this matter of factory then smirks, “After work on the other hand . . .” He lets the implications fill my mind. I shove my hat over his eyes.

“Perv!”

“You asked, I was just answering!” He laughs and takes off the hat holding up too high for me to reach. I don’t try to reach it, he puts it down over his face.

“You know that’s not what I meant! I just mean like kissing not . . .” I hope he can’t see my blush from this angle.

“I know, of course, teasing Chuuya is just so fun. But we can kiss as much as Chuuya wants.” I don’t miss how he uses my name instead of one of his many nicknames, and he said nothing would change. I don’t mention it.

The truth is we’ve been partners for so long hardly anything needs to be said.

And yet, I want to say it, to hear his answer.

It still feels kind of awkward, the words cumbersome as I try to phrase the question, “So . . . Boyfriends then?”

Osamu doesn’t answer right away, then sighs, “Boyfriends.” He says the word in a bored tone, a smile like gold lights his face, “I don’t want Chuuya to be my boyfriend, I love Chuuya so much more than a boyfriend. Boyfriend is such an impermanent word. There has to be a better one, no?”

His words make me feel cool inside, like how people say love makes them feel warm. Osamu’s love makes me feel cool and refreshed, like the relief when he uses his ability on me, a pleasant tingling sensation. Like Osamu’s own cold touch. It’s distracting and I can’t answer him.

Luckily he has an answer of his own. “Partners.” He says with finality.

“Partners.” I agree.

—

We don’t speak again until the sun appears on the horizon.

“I want you to promise me something, Chuuya.”

I look at him surprised by the suddenness of his request.

“I want to annoy you forever, so . . . promise you’ll remind me to live okay, for you.”

His words make me freeze. Dazai Osamu, the boy obsessed with death, wants to live. The cool feeling washes over me again.

He sits up and moves closer to me until we’re shoulder to shoulder with his hand our my waist. “I want to, I do but sometimes it’s hard. The darkness takes over and I forget everything I have to live for, when that happens, please remind me, okay Chuuya.” He looks at me like a lost puppy, tears brimming over, a little bit happy and a little bit sad, I think. “And I can’t promise that it will work, or that I’ll make it, but with you, I know I can at least try, and I will try, so hard, for you Chuuya, my beloved.”

“Okay, Osamu. I will.”

We seal the pact with a kiss and watch the sunrise together. It isn’t a bad way to spend a night, not bad at all. Now we enter the new day together, as partners.

[somethingimworkingon]

How to save your brain from being eaten by AI (maybe): keep a sketchbook

At the beginning of May I started bookmarking photographers who are using AI in interesting ways, to add to my Instagram collection of digital art references (#artdirectionneversleeps). Later that month I did my own first experiments using NightCafe to visualise ideas for a client. It was entertaining and frustrating, partly because of my lack of prompt skills, and partly because the "styles" you could apply to your "artwork" looked exactly like bad fantasy art from the 1980s.

However, by June, photographers I was working with were using Midjourney to conceptualise setups – still with a bit of that tacky SciFi book cover feel, but it was proving genuinely useful to talk about how sets might be designed, for instance. By July, I was seeing film directors use AI for pitching storyboards, and my lovely students at Condé Nast College of Fashion and Design using it for presentation mock-ups.

That's just three months. From AI being a "what?" to becoming a completely logical, natural part of the image-making process, for at least some parts of the creative industries. The speed of change is head-spinning. And this is just the beginning.

Meanwhile, also in May, I was teaching at CNC on a really fun module about Brand Identity Design. Part of this involved the students keeping a sketchbook, to explore and develop their ideas. One of my lectures was about WHY people keep sketchbooks, and I illustrated several points with quotes from designers, architects and artists, and pages from my own sketchbooks from waaaaay back in the day.

Because WBITD, when I was an art student, I kept sketchbooks constantly. Not only was it a course requirement, for me it was also a way to stave off boredom and depression: it's hard to think negative thoughts when your brain is absorbed in analysing the curves of a hand or a coffee cup or a flower. When my best friend and I used to Interrail around Italy, I would draw our cafe tables and the local streets, and we'd get rewarded with extra drinks and desserts by kindly waiters.

Somewhere around the mid 90s I gave up sketching, partly because life got more hectic, and partly because smartphones got invented. When Emma and I started the BID course this summer, it had been a very long time indeed since I cracked open a sketchbook. And, erm, even though I did buy one – a lovely, spiral-bound, hard covered book with wonderful heavyweight paper, from Seawhite of Brighton – it took me another few months to start using it.

Two things pushed me into finally starting: firstly, it's #drawugst and I thought I should try a drawing a day, every day, during August. I started on Tuesday, August 1st, with a graphite pencil sketch of my aloe plant. I did it in semi-darkness, around 9pm, and my hand-eye coordination felt a but rusty, but following the heavy curves of the plant was satisfying.

On Wednesday I drew fallen agapanthus blossoms, playing with coloured marker pens (of which I have a ridiculously huge collection, almost never used). This was a reminder of the importance of not trying to control the end result while you're sketching. Because you just can't.

Yesterday evening I scribbled our messy after-dinner table. I used the graphite pencil, a Koh-I-Noor Hardtmuth charcoal pencil, and an Edding 1225 calligraphy pen – and blackberries. The fruit, not the redundant communication device. Blackberry juice is a fabulous art material – it gives this beautiful purple inky result, and it's such a pleasure to smear all over the paper. I'd picked the berries earlier this evening on Wormwood Scrubs, just to add to the satisfaction of the whole experience. (And this morning I made almond milk smoothies with the rest of them.)

The other thing which made me finally restart a sketchbook after all this time is AI. I can see that it is just going to get bigger, more powerful, and more indispensable in my industry. I'm not going to worry about losing my job to a bot (I don't have "a job", anyhow), but I am concerned about what it will do to our creativity.

When you use one tool extensively it starts to train your brain, you develop habits and shortcuts. It's one thing to have tricks for making the most of Photoshop, or to have routines when you set up an InDesign document. But when you're trying to generate ideas you need to keep an open mind. To look at things from different angles. To look again, look harder. Try wacky ideas. Draw with your food. Stick things onto the pages. Doodle. Take a line for a walk. Write notes to self. Be creative. Be messy. Be human.

[casabyjj]

Enhance Your Home with Decorative Vases UK and Decorations

When it comes to creating a stylish and inviting home, the right accessories can make all the difference. Whether you are thinking of adding a touch of elegance to your living room, bedroom, or kitchen, Casa UK offers the best range of decorative services, such as vases, luxury velvet cushion covers, and kitchen accessories. These pieces will enhance your home décor to new heights. In this resource, you can explore the beauty and versatility of these products and provide various tips to incorporate them into your home for a stunning transformation.

What is the Charm of Decorative Vases?

Vases are the best house decorations. Vases are a quick and simple home design item that may naturally enhance your room. Vases filled with flowers or plants spread good energy around the house. It creates an ideal atmosphere whether you fill your vase with a seasonal bouquet of fresh fabric flowers.

You can use decorative vases in the UK to draw attention to particular sections of your house. For instance, a pair of matched vases with curtains on either side of an entrance door can bring symmetry and balance to your living room, while a wonderfully designed vase on a dining table can make a stunning centrepiece.

What is the Reason to Explore Unique Vases?

Common vases and vases with unique compositions are both available. Have you ever thought of filling your home with some of the most interesting and motivating ornamental vases, such as ones styled like boots or bags? How about a kettle vase or a wooden vase? For this, you will need to look up decorating supplies online and visit premium handmade stores, flea markets, and exhibits of home design items. There is little doubt you will find something exceptional at one of these places and buy it right away. You might consider buying vases online in India.

How to Transform Your Kitchen with Stylish Accessories?

The kitchen is sometimes referred to as the heart of the house, and you can create a room that is both trendy and useful with the help of chic kitchen accessories. These items, which range from sophisticated salt and pepper shakers to classy utensil holders, are made to keep your kitchen orderly and stylish. 

With matching accessory sets, creating a cohesive look in your kitchen is simple. You should select from a variety of colours and materials to go with your current interior design or come up with a whole new theme. For example, an innovative kitchen can look more modern and logical with a set of copper kitchen tools.

Stylish kitchen accessories and décor are not only about looks. They are also designed to enhance your everyday tasks. High-quality materials and thoughtful designs ensure that these accessories are durable and practical. Just think, a beautifully designed cutting board can make meal preparation a more enjoyable experience while also serving a decorative piece when not in use.

What is the Luxurious Appeal of Velvet Cushions?

In the dynamic world of interior design, cushion covers play an important role in transforming the look of your living room. With the changing style, textures, and shades, these decorations offer an effortless way to infuse personality and warmth into the room. At the forefront of this shift are textured and opulent materials. They enhance interior spaces with a welcoming tactile quality in addition to an air of sophistication. 

Every material has a unique narrative to tell, from the rustic charm of linen to the velvety plush elegance of velvet, and they all contribute layers of depth and interest to home decor. Rich, tactile textiles are making a comeback, which is part of a larger trend in home design that places an emphasis on sensory experiences to create visually attractive but also incredibly pleasing environments.

What are the Other Decorating Options with Comfort and Style?

Velvet cushion covers are a symbol of luxury and comfort. You can explore the collections of velvet cushion covers, which offer rich, vibrant colours that can simply add a touch of sophistication to any room. The unique texture of luxury velvet cushion covers not only looks attractive but also provides a cosy and inviting feel. 

You can consider combining velvet cushion coverings with various materials like silk, linen, or faux fur for an incredibly opulent look. This not only gives your design more depth but also makes a striking contrast that draws the attention of everyone entering the space.

How To Make Decoration as a Simpler Task?

You can enhance your home decoration easily. You can explore things like an executive collection of decorative vases, luxury velvet cushion covers, and other kitchen accessories. You can simply transform your space into a stylish and inviting heaven. Whether you are looking for a bold statement or simply want a touch of elegance, these products offer a lot of possibilities to craft a house that is beautiful and functional.

[thegreymoon]

OH MY FUCKING GOD.

CALL WHATEVER MANNER OF LAW ENFORCEMENT YOU HAVE HERE. TOSS HER ASS IN JAIL FOR A FEW DAYS.

***

I mean, who is even buying her spectacle? Here she is, accusing these people of trying to murder her if she goes inside, and then she goes on to make even more of a scene pleading for their "pity"?

***

I am so done with her garbage, I swear.

DIDN'T YOU JUST ACCUSE HER IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE CITY OF TRYING TO MURDER YOU?

***

OMFG.

If she had come to me with this garbage, my response would have been THEN GO AHEAD AND FUCKING DIE.

***

I am sorry, but this is just ridiculous and this is where this whole farce has lost me.

All this is just such nonsense. I absolutely agree with this statement. Who is Manniang to make all this ruckus at the Imperial Tutor's house? She just does not have the social capital for this, or any random prostitute could do the same at any noble manor! It is unrealistic that she would not have been dragged off and arrested or beaten or something the moment she started wailing at the gate. Instead, here she is, continuing her shenanigans inside the house.

BUT WHY IS MINGLAN THE ONE BUTTING IN HERE?

Yeah, I get that the screenwriters wanted us, the audience, to get the satisfaction of Minglan being the one to put Manniang in her place without having it happen when her own wedding to Gu Tingye is at stake because that would ruin the romance (because, yeah, the whole thing is super gross and any romantic fantasy goes out the window with this entire setup). But the fact that this show is otherwise so realistic in every other aspect ruins it. This was never going to be your typical idealistic rose-coloured romance because it is impossible under the circumstances and they should have embraced it.

Instead, here we have this random 14-year-old from another house who is WHOLLY UNCONNECTED to this family putting another random woman in her place on the account of the FIRST DAUGHTER of this seemingly important, respectable family. IS THERE NO ONE ELSE HERE TO SPEAK UP? SERIOUSLY? In addition to making Yanran and her grandmother look incredibly incompetent, weak and stupid, it undermines this whole family in an effort to give Minglan a moment to take down her rival (I know that she and Gu Tingye are not together here yet but the audience knows that this is where the story is headed, so for all intents and purposes, Manniang is her rival for Gu Tingye's affections), after the storyline has established MULTIPLE TIMES that Minglan herself at this point in time has no power and social capital of her own.

This is so contrived and illogical, I cannot. I just really, really hate dramatic inserts like this that are so obviously artificial.

***

Seriously.

JUST KICK HER OUT FOR GOD'S SAKE.

***

WHICH IS WHAT I HAVE BEEN SAYING SINCE THIS WHOLE FARCE STARTED.

HER STUPID ASS COULD HAVE BEEN DRAGGED OFF THE MOMENT SHE OPENED HER MOUTH TO WREAK HAVOC IN FRONT OF THE YU HOUSE.

Like, seriously, where is the logic? This is a whole household, apparently full of respectable, powerful adults and they have to have a 14-year-old girl from another household come in and restore the order? And I don't want to hear how the others "weren't at home". They weren't at home at that particular moment, but it wasn't them that would have personally done the dragging out anyway, that would still have been the servants, and all it would have taken was approval from either Granny or Yanran. Or even the head maid if this whole subplot made any sense 🙄

Like... imagine some prostitute coming to your house and demanding that you take her into your house and your future husband's bed with no backing whatsoever and you just stand there wringing your hands and crying. In what universe??

***

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? SHE ISN'T EVEN MARRIED YET!

I am so sick of this brain-dead Yanran plot. All it did was make her look too stupid to live, along with everyone else involved, including the grandmother, the grandfather and the entire Yu family.

***

LMAO

***

LOL

So she was "betrothed" but you wanted a higher status in-law, but now that your granddaughter has shown that she is too incompetent to even breathe air, you've decided that he will do, after all!

***

Bye-bye and good riddance!

And now I can go back to enjoying this show.

***

LMAO, are you fucking kidding me? 🤣🤣

Just when I thought we were done with this whole brain-dead plot, here he comes to blame Minglan for his failed marriage prospects! 🤣🤣

MY DUDE, SHE IS ALL OF 14 YEARS OLD AND NOTHING TO YOU OR THE YU FAMILY, NOR IN ANY WAY AN AUTHORITY IN ANY OF THIS! IT WAS YOUR BITCH OF A GIRLFRIEND WHO RODE UP TO YOUR FIANCE'S HOUSE AND RUINED YOUR PROSPECTS BECAUSE SHE SHOWED YOUR IN-LAWS EXACTLY WHAT THEY WERE SIGNING UP FOR WITH YOU!

Everything leading up to this was ridiculous, but this is just embarrassing.

***

LMAO, do not mess with their mistress because they will take you down!! 💪💪

***

EXACTLY! SO WHY ARE YOU EVEN HERE?

WHY IS SHE EVEN IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS.

THE WAY THIS WHOLE THING MAKES ME RAGE 🤬🤬

***

OMFG

Not only is this man not making it onto the list of my favourite characters, he is coming nowhere near the list.

He can go hang out with Ning Que on the garbage pile of straight men I find entirely gross but whose actors are extremely charismatic.

***

Seriously.

And he had the nerve to come crying to her about how wronged he was because he did not get his way.

***

LOL

Oh, sweetheart 😅 Honestly, though, I too would sooner become a nun than marry him. Who knows where his dick has been, and there were no STD tests in their day and age.

***

YANHONG??

LMAO, oh, yes, please marry Yahnong! She will drown that witch Manniang in the toilet the first day she enters Gu Tingye's house! 🤣🤣

Honestly, I by far prefer Yanhong to Yanran even though the narrative did its utmost best to make her out to be the big mean bully to poor gentle virtuous Yanran *sob, sob* 🥱 At least Yanhong has a personality.

***

LMAO, finally things are moving in a direction I love to see! Get angry, Big Madam!

***

LMAOOOOO, there is a whooooooole lot of space between just dying and being a marchioness 🤣🤣

She's so delusional, godbless.

***

LMAO, I wouldn't count on it.

The Story of Minglan

LMAO, I knew I could count on Imperial Tutor Yu! 😂

***

I am cackling 🤣🤣

Honestly, I think Yanran is too stupid to live and I have no love for this character, but the grandparents are great!

***

Screaming at all these idiotic maids!

If they were in the Qi household, they would all be dead by now.

***

LMAOOOO, the way he jumped up like his ass was on fire 🤣🤣

It seems like she severely miscalculated her odds here.

***

Oh, yes, keep digging your grave 🙄

***

I honestly can't stand her.

All she does is cry and look shocked and bewildered, and then runs to Minglan to solve her problems for her, starting from fixing her shitty embroidery, to reclaiming her dead mother's belongings that she didn't take proper care of to begin with, to advocating for her on huge matters such as that of HER OWN MARRIAGE.

Like, grow a spine. Grow a brain. Learn some life skills (like locking up precious possessions, for example 🙄). And if you can't? THEN SUFFER.

The idea of her with Gu Tingye gives me so much ick and not just because his plan is gross and he is deliberately going after her because she is weak and stupid. The very concept of such a strong, intelligent and capable man with this wet rag of a woman makes me break out in hives.

***

And the way they start playing sad, pitiful music every time she shows up on screen, I cannot 🙄🙄

***

No, you don't understand, Tutor Yu!

It was raining that day, so the ground was slippery! And he just... slipped and fell! Onto Manniang! And his dick just went into her vagina! But like... by accident! Because of the dick-to-vagina homing system that is activated in all young men when they are in the vicinity of a prostitute! It was not his fault at all! And then she was pregnant. And had a baby! And then it happened again! And she had another baby! But it was the circumstances, Tutor Yu! Not his doing at all! Please understand! 🙏🙏

***

Are you not ashamed of speaking such blatant lies?

The only reason you're after this particular woman is because she's too weak to stop you from bringing your mistress and illegitimate kids into your marital home!

***

LMAOOOOOO

WHAT IS SHE DOING??? IS SHE TRYING TO SABOTAGE THIS MARRIAGE? BITCH, HE IS DOING THIS FOR YOU!! YOU WILL NEVER BE A FIRST WIFE, GET REAL.

Because even though the grandparents agreed after his pitiful act, THEY AGREED BECAUSE HE SAID THERE WOULD BE NO SECOND WIFE! With her here making a scene at their house, this match is doomed.

***

LMAO, bitch what.

LOL, I love the response "You're completely alive already." Like, shut up.

***

You fucking moron. You imbecile. You deserve every second of being made a fool of because you have a spine of jelly. SAY NO. JUST SAY FUCKING NO. LET HER FUCKING KNEEL, SHE WILL GET UP AS SOON AS HER KNEES GET TIRED. OR BETTER YET, WHEN YOUR PARENTS GET HOME, HAVE HER DRAGGED AWAY. UGH, THIS MAKES ME ANGRY.

***

Good. You are not fit for life.

***

WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T CHASE HER AWAY?

I'm pretty certain there is some form of law enforcement here that will very much get rid of her for you, especially since she is a literal nobody, making a scene and dragging the reputation of a well-off house. Let her try this at Gu manor and see how it goes! Oh, wait, she did! And it went as well for her there as it could be expected, lol, she almost got her and her daughter's asses sold into slavery, smh.

[ciyapaofficial]

Opinions Of Some Renowned Fashionistas Regarding A White T-Shirt For Men

White is the purest colour. White denotes complete innocence. Whiteness is a property of objects that reflect white light since white light is a colourless mixture of all the visible colours. It ensures that a white t shirt for men will reflect most of the sun's rays, keeping the wearer cool. And the purity of its design makes it deserving of a place in his closet. 

A crisp white t-shirt over jeans or chinos is the best way to welcome summer! India's clean white shirt, khakis, Aviators, and enticing stubble are deadly. Both fashion editors and designers have lauded the "must-have" status of the classic white t-shirt as a reason one should own one. However, tracking the ideal white t-shirt for men is not easy. 

As a result, when you first start playing white t-shirt huntsman, you can find that even before you begin your journey, you have a few questions: What kind of material should it be? What are some ways that I can play around with it? Should I use caution, or can I expect to get folded up? Is it preferable to wear a white shirt every season?

There can be several answers to these questions. This blog shares the answers to some of these questions, especially the suitability of the best white t shirts for men in different seasons. Listening to the advice that famous fashion designers and stylists have to offer is a great way to get started with your aim. 

Opinions Of Designers Regarding A White T-shirt For Men

According to fashion expert Pernia Qureshi, the best thing about a crisp white t-shirt is that it goes well with everything, whether formal corporate wear or denim, for a relaxed, laidback style. It is simple to shape into any desired form to achieve the desired appearance. Most people believe white t-shirts to be a clothing option only for men. 

The designer Rajesh Pratap Singh believes that it is impossible to discern between men and women regarding white t-shirts. Rahul Khanna says, "there's nothing better than white on a woman." While white may not be the most flattering colour, designers believe that bleached t-shirts made from cotton satin can lend grace to one's physique. 

White is a colour that gives off a sense of brightness and makes your face look more awake. Above all else, it is a shade that makes you think about past things and presents you with many opportunities. It is a natural choice for apparel during the summer months because it is a colour that can make us look brighter, keep us cool from the heat, and improve our tan.

It's possible that white isn't the first colour that comes to mind when you think of winter, but fortunately, in recent years, white has emerged as a new winter classic. You can go for the warmer and slightly softer tones typically grouped and referred to as "winter white" for choosing the best white t-shirts for men. 

White is the colour of snow and ice, the soft hair of some animals, and the frigid reflections of light that are so characteristic of the cold season; therefore, it is only logical that people would choose to wear white during the winter. In addition, this is a fail-safe fashion option that, when executed well, can look wonderfully on-trend, particularly during winter.

I hope this blog will help you change your perspective on buying a white t-shirt for men. And if you want to buy the best white t-shirt, visit Ciyapa.com.

Original Source: https://bityl.co/GAZ8

[capygarden]

Sims in Bloom Legacy Challenge for TS3 (◕ᴗ◕✿)

Hello! I really liked playing this legacy challenge in TS4 but found it wasn’t converted to TS3, so I decided to do it myself hehe. Granted I didn’t look that thoroughly (...hehe...) so I do apologise if this has already been converted before! It’s not an exact copy, of course - there are things TS3 doesn’t have that TS4 has and vice versa, but I tried my best to stay true to the original TS4 rules, with a little bit of my own flair sprinkled in hehe. I am play testing this right now, so if there are any problems with this please let me know!

NOTE: As I’m still playtesting this, the rules are subject to change. Obviously if it’s too late to max a skill/complete a rule I added afterwards, you’re not obligated to do it! Sometimes the ideas don’t come to you until way later, and unfortunately I only have one brain cell :’)

Original TS4 rules can be found here. All credits go to @a-sims-garden for the original, I just converted it! ✿

GENERAL RULES

Complete the assigned aspiration and skills for each generation - career is optional if you have completed the aspiration and vice versa, You can complete both if you’re up to it!

There are two colours associated with every generation. These may be used for genetics (berry/banilla), or just clothes and house decor if that isn’t your kinda thing!

This was part of the rules of the original challenge but honestly I’m gonna ignore it, but if you want the extra challenge, here you go: Start each generation with a small house/apartment and 1000 simoleons. If you want to make the challenge harder, you can start each generation on an empty lot with 0 simoleons (rags to riches style!)

Play on any lifespan you wish, but short is not recommended. (I personally play on normal, long if I’m feeling edgy)

For some gens, there are only three to four traits assigned; the rest will be up to you!

I would love to see gameplay of this in TS3! If you want, @ me or use #s3ib or #Sims3InBloom (hehehehe) (◕ ɔ ◕✿)

Gen 1: Daisy (white, yellow)

Gardening has always been your passion. Owning a large, healthy garden is all you’ve ever wanted in life, even if your nails constantly have soil under them and you have so many broken pots you’ve lost count. However, as with many things, gardening also requires a pretty good grasp on the technical, science-y side of things! You find both to be rewarding - best of both worlds, right? You sit and wonder what your family will grow to do, and hope that they will flourish just as beautifully as your garden has. This is the start of your family legacy!

Aspiration: The Perfect Garden

Traits: Eco-Friendly, Clumsy, Loves the Outdoors, Green Thumb, Loner

Career: Gardening

Skills: Gardening, Science (for a PlantSim)

Try not to buy ingredients from the fridge/grocery store often - grow your own produce, go fishing, etc. 

Grow a PlantSim baby

Grow 5 perfect plants

Marry a Sim who shares the ‘Loves the Outdoors’ Trait

Gen 2: Buttercup (yellow, green)

From a young age you’ve always loved animals of all kinds, but you’ve always had a special connection with cats. You spent your childhood playing in your parents’ garden, bonding with stray cats that would wander onto the lot. As a teen you were gifted a laptop for your birthday and you spent most of your time attached to it, always playing video games. As an adult, your love for both video games and cats persisted. While you want to raise a child with love and care like you were, ‘romance’ and ‘marriage’ aren’t things you’re really interested in.

Aspiration: The Cat Herder

Traits: Cat Person, Unflirty, Computer Whiz, Genius

Career: Medicine (pretend you’re a vet)

Skills: Logic, Handiness

Be part of the Nerd social group. Reach the highest level if you can.

Always own at least 3-4 cats - adopting strays is highly recommended!

Never get into a relationship or marry (you can attempt to date for fun but they never work out)

Adopt at least 1 child

Gen 3: Lavender (lilac, dark purple)

You were adopted by your loving parent into a small family, and so you’ve never been much of a people person. Keeping to yourself in your room you discovered your love of inventing, and of course playing your beloved violin. You spend a lot of time on your inventions because every single one has to be perfect!

Aspiration: Monster Maker

Traits: Loner, Perfectionist, Eccentric, Virtuoso

Career: Inventor

Skills: Inventing, Violin (or any instrument you have)

Be part of the Ballet Club as a child and Music Club as a teen, where you pick up violin

Be BFFs with a pet as a child and/or teen

Only have one best friend as a child/teen, and eventually fall in love and marry them

Have a very cluttered house filled with your little inventions - and when you have kids, make all their toys!

Have very high relationships with your entire family and maintain them

 Gen 4: Rose (red, black)

Growing up surrounded by clutter made you crave a brand new scenery, so when you aged up you moved to the big city of Bridgeport to get away from your old home. You crave connection with others, unlike your fairly introverted parent, and so seek to forge many relationships through the wonderful medium of social media!

Aspiration: Super Popular

Traits: Schmoozer, Artistic, Athletic

Career: Blogger (+ any of your choosing bc my dumb ass only just realised this isn’t an actual ts3 career)

Skills: Charisma, Social Networking

Move to Bridgeport (or any city with apartments) and live in an apartment or penthouse for the entirety of your adulthood

Master the social networking skill

Meet your future spouse using the SimFinder app

Have at least 5 best friends (preferably met through online dating/SimFinder)

Gen 5: Forget-me-not (light blue, yellow)

There’s just something satisfying about knowing all eyes are on you. You were born to be in the spotlight; from a young age, you showed great talent in the performing arts! You dream of becoming famous, attending celebrity parties, and owning a large spotless house! But, of course, fame comes at a great cost - if it means you’ll be famous, you’ll even sacrifice the relationship you have with your children...

Aspiration: Superstar Actor

Traits: Commitment Issues, Natural Born Performer, Neat, Perfectionist

Career: Film (Actor Branch)

Skills: Charisma, any music skill 

Be part of the Music Club as a teen

Marry a Shy Sim

When you become a 3-star celebrity, throw a party at least once a week

When you become a 4-star celebrity, divorce your current partner and marry a co-worker

Become a 5-star celebrity

Have a poor relationship with your child/children

 Gen 6: Sakura/cherry blossom (pink, brown)

Witnessing your parents’ troubled marriage, knowing your world could be turned upside down any day…you vowed to never let your children suffer through the same childhood you did, and marry someone you genuinely loved. You spent a lot of time with your pet dog as a child, a distraction from the troubles at home and the constant hovering presence of the paparazzi. You dreamed of a quiet life without fame and fortune, growing old with the one you love.

Aspiration: Surrounded by Family

Traits: Dog Person, Hopeless Romantic, Neurotic, Nurturing

Career: Culinary

Skills: Cooking, Painting

Marry your first love

Always own a dog - have high relationships with all dogs you own

Go on a date at least once a week

Paint a painting for every room of your house

Have a mix of biological and adopted children (your decision to consider adopted children as heir or not!)

Gen 7: Tulip (orange, red)

You’re a wine connoisseur - you love all things nectar, and can tell good wine from bad with just a look. How, at your young age? Uhh… next question! Good nectar begins with good grapes. So you move out into the countryside to live in the middle of nowhere, determined to start a nectar collection all nectar enthusiasts would die for.

Aspiration: Bottomless Nectar Cellar

Traits: Vegetarian, Good, Snob

Career: None

Skills: Nectar Making, Handiness

Join the Scouts as a child

Move to a “rural” town - up to you which one, not really sure if any TS3 EPs comes with a rural town like Henford-on-Bagley lol (I believe Riverview is kind of a rural-ish town?)

Do not get a job

Earn money by selling nectar, and maybe some of your produce!

 Gen 8: Lily (white, green)

As a child you had an overactive imagination and were obsessed with the supernatural. However, even as an adult, this fascination with the arcane hasn’t waned. Determined to prove that your efforts to investigate supernaturals won’t be fruitless, you move to notoriously spooky Moonlight Falls in search of concrete answers.

Aspiration: Mystic Healer

Traits: Bookworm, Insane, Genius, Supernatural Fan

Career: None - sell your elixirs!

Skills: Logic, Alchemy

Be turned into a witch as soon as you move to Moonlight Falls

Earn money by selling your elixirs at the consignment store - you can have part time jobs but they never really work out

Live in Moonlight Falls your whole adult life

Have at least 1 friend of each supernatural species

Marry a werewolf, who helps you find ingredients for alchemy ;)

 Gen 9: Pansy (purple, yellow)

You were surrounded by trees for your entire childhood, and so you’ve always craved a change of scenery. You’ve never seen the ocean, until you spontaneously decide to move to the far off land of Isla Paradiso! Relaxing on the sand, immersed in island culture, partying till the sun comes up - what could be better? 

Aspiration: Grand Explorer

Traits: Lazy, Loves to Swim, Virtuoso, Party Animal

Career: Self-Employed Diver - but don’t work that often!

Skills: Guitar, Diving

Live on a houseboat

Fall in love with a merperson, but wait until you’re an elder to marry them

Host a party (pool party in summer, juice kegger...whatever floats your boat! pun intended) at least once a week

Earn some extra cash by playing for tips

 Gen 10: Hydrangea (dark blue, pink)

While your parent was content with spending all day relaxing on the beach, you’ve always had larger ambitions. The quaint island life is not for you, so as soon as you can you apply for university to build a reputable career for yourself. However, you’ve always found joy in things other people may think are childish, which may distract you from your career from time to time. You dream of living in a large house filled with love and family.

Aspiration: Mansion Baron

Traits: Ambitious, Family Oriented, Childish, Workaholic

Career: Any

Skills: Writing, Charisma 

Graduate University and earn the necessary degree for your career

Marry a sim who also has the Childish trait

Have at least 4 children

Help your children with homework as much as possible (or all the time!) 

[OPTIONAL] Gen 11: Death flower (dark red, white)

You’ve always known you were different from everyone else. Your siblings were always nice to you and had ambitions to do good in the world, but you were born with no such morals. You hear legends of powerful vampires, with inhuman strength and living for multiple lifetimes. You want that power, and will stop at nothing to get it.

Aspiration: Emperor of Evil

Traits: Evil, Kleptomaniac, Snob, Brooding

Career: Criminal

Skills: Mixology

Narrowly escape death twice. Have a loved one (the only one you love and who understands you #emo) revive you using a magic lamp!

After you die the first time, search high and low for a death flower. This can be obtained through various means...

Get turned into a vampire after your second time dying - fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me!

Always drink from sims, never plasma

Turn at least 5 sims into vampires

That’s all folks! Let me know how you go~ ✿

Last Edit: 18 November 2022 (changed gen 6 LTW)

[starshipsofstarlord]

Choking Kink With Klaus;

Klaus Mikaelson Masterlist / Main Masterlist / Navigation

Summary: had no idea what to call this so the title says it all

Fandom: The Vampire Diaries / The Originals

Pairing: Klaus Mikaelson x reader

Warnings: 18+ minors dni, smut, choking kink, unprotected sex, brief penetrative sex, slight mention of death

Word Count -> 913

With prowess his fingers interlocked around your throat, his nails prying into your flesh whilst he ogled down at you as though you were his prey, and logically you were. It made his fangs grow within his mouth as he heard you gasp from the blockade to your airway and so he decided to give a harsher squeeze, so that he could watch your irises roll in the whites of your eyes as though the colour of them was drowning in bleaching waves. His body was steadied above your own, claiming dominance in the position that the two of you outlined upon the mattress, each rapid rush of blood that ran through your veins was sent to his ears, only making him hungrier to claim you as his own as he had done countless times before.

"Look at me love." Klaus softly demanded, and instantly you obeyed, saddened that his grip had loosened however you knew exactly what his wrath was like if you did not follow instruction and it was not something that you were keen to experience every time the pair of you were intimate. It was obvious to anyone that met him that he could be very rough during sex, it was his solution to lessen his thirsty rage, however when he did so your body was always exhausted and before during those times you had passed out from the sheer efforts that your form had undergone. Though whilst the tension lasted your pleasure would be obscene, it often felt as though your soul transcended out from your body, lifting into the air to watch yourself writhe from notions that you could only just cope with. "That's a good one."

His praise sent a swarm of pride to flutter in your chest as your eyes captured the ambience of his own, desperate to see what he was going to do next. The two of you were rid of all clothing and it would be so easy for him to slip inside, from all his toying with you you were already doused in moisture between your legs, prepared for any method of sweet love that he intended to plough you with. A whine slithered out from your lips as he removed his strong hand from your neck, dancing them down your heated flesh to stroke along the tops of your thighs, his head clashed down as he rested his lips against your own, drinking in every breath that you exonerated.

"Please..." if you were to wait any longer there would no doubt be tears being restrained within your eyes, threatening to leak out from their emotional pools, and so you quietly begged up at your lover with your wanting expression, hoping that he would read the signals that you were giving to him. You wanted his hand to return to the previous placement, and as an elegant smile that wasn't quite a smirk fixated onto his mouth, before he did as you so desired, happily coiling his hand around your neck as his wrist lightly twitched, daring him to apply more pressure, and so he did as he watched your face riddle with soft ecstasy and excitement.

At first he had been apprehensive to dare touch your skin in such a threatening manner, you were his solace, his haven from the violence that he excerpted to others, but the more time that the pair of you were together, the vaster the things that you intended to try were. That was how he had discovered that you suffered from having a choking kink and it was his duty to make sure you didn't suffer any longer. He could buy you anything that you wanted in the world, after years of living, if you could call it that, his family had amounted to a grand financial stability and arose beyond the average income that most people in the world did. They could afford anything, but the one thing Klaus couldn't was to not be enough for you.

Money could not buy the one thing that you dreamt about, only physical contact could and as your partner, it was Klaus' duty to make sure that you never had to crave anything as he was willing to fulfil it all before you simply had to have a thought for it. "Harder..." You breathed out in a staggered manner, coercing the hybrid into growling from your wish, but he tackled no argument and instead fell into the palm of your hand, doing exactly what you said. It seemed the roles had reversed as he made himself comfortable between your veil of limbs, allowing his flesh to claim your own with the contact of his, your nipples became even firmer as they brushed with the soft curls on his chest, your senses were practically on overload in the moment.

They only made you stifled to cry out louder when he entered you with his cock that had seen many mounds, splitting into you and causing Klaus himself to huff out a sigh of content. This was all he needed; this love, this comfort. No one had been able to give him this escape, and so whilst he continued to choke you, he didn't allow his eyes to leave how his hand was wrapped around your throat out of fear that he would blink and make an irredeemable mistake. That was his worst fear, and so he was careful as he gave you your best rope of ecstasy.