#you may call it stage fear people

[akkivee]

For the next BAT audio drama I kinda hope they put Kuukou through the horrors, I love Kuukou and all but I want to know what the absolute fuck is his problem. I really hope we get to finally find out what happened to Mama Harai. What I think happened to Mama Harai is something involving the ocean, I always found it ironic that Kuukou dislikes the ocean considering where he lives so I thought maybe that has to do with Mama Harai not being around.

all i want is for kuukou to have fun and live life but yeah, we have reached the point where it’ll be straight bizarre if we don’t get his backstory lol. kuukou enjoying nature to the point he takes solace in it but dislikes the ocean is soooo telling

and so i hope it’s mama harai too lol!!!!! whether the drama is she gave kuukou a reason to hate the ocean, or is the reason he hates smoking and alcohol, or is the reason he naturally turns to self sacrifice, or all of the above!!!!! i would like to know lol!!!!!

[twihs-blog]

Guilt and Shame:

A few months ago I wrote the below post on my journey of sobriety. Making my sobriety public was never what I had envisioned when I went crawling into AA defeated. I’ve been thinking a lot recently on my journey as a human being on this planet. It’s a beautiful thing. I’ve been thinking a lot on guilt and shame surrounding my slip up and I suppose I wanted to share with you more on that.

I have been invited to a recovery house in America to help them raise awareness and money for their charity. I of course jumped at the chance, after all, giving back is what we are lead to do. I would be lying though if I said I wasn’t terrified. 

The fear of admitting fault of feeling like I let down those around me. Writing this is terrifying but I’m trying to push myself out of my comfort zone and become more attune with me and what my higher power want’s me to do.

I suppose ultimately I want to share this with you as I’ve already opened the door to this part of my life and it seems vital that I continue to do so.

Fear is at the root cause of so many issues regarding addiction in my experience. 

I still have anxiety, yesterday I took the tube to see some friends and had to leave half way through my journey due to the overwhelming feeling that I may at any second pass out. Even at dinner this feeling was hard to shake. It’s hard to describe. I walk out on to a stage to talk with you all or play music or act and I feel little of this, however in daily life it can creep in so quickly. 

Whilst my consumption of marajuana wasn’t what I would call habitual I recognize that it was a poor attempt at controlling my own feelings, anxiety’s and stressors. Which is backwards because it wasn’t exactly helping with those things either as they still were there regardless.

Living the life I am fortunate enough to live now I recognize those things and how I respond to them now is with choice. 

I suppose writing this is an exercise in digging in, in recognizing the feelings of guilt and shame, in owning up to myself and to my world. 

The last thing I ever want to be doing is walking out in to my world with a lie. 

It’s hard to know how to end this post. I suppose a thank you would be appropriate, I have a deep love for the world and for people in it. I have a love for my world and my higher power and I was very much moved to write this.

With love.

Jamie

[rpclefairy]

𝐁𝐆𝟑 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬.

a selection of lines from the various companions' banter quotes (not cut scene dialogues!) from baldur's gate 3. these are generally spoiler free and non context specific so they can apply to different settings and dynamics! feel free to change names and the like to customize the prompts.

“Death can't have me. Not yet…”

“Calm yourself. There is plenty of me to go around.”

“Realmspace is vast. Countless worlds to be mapped, kingdoms to be conquered.”

“I have missed this. The adventure. The danger. The kicking of butts!

“Let me guess - you need something.”

“Such attention.. I never realised I was so popular.”

“Let's cook with fire, baby.”

“Do you intend to vocalise every thought?. Or just the most obvious ones?”

“Wherever we go, ye gods let there be something green.”

“Careful, or I will take your toy away from you.”

“Watch your elders and learn.”

“Perhaps try attacking the enemy?”

“So much we don't know, lingering in the furthest reaches of existence.”

“All the world's my stage and you're just a player in it.”

“The shadows are my friend.”

“Yes, yes, have your fun. It isn't you they're trying to kill.”

“Feet planted firmly on Faerûn, please.”

“Admirable stamina, yet terrible priorities.”

“Well you certainly have the 'omnipresent' part down, don't you?”

“I am ready, whatever may come.”

“My faith protects me.”

“Need a throat slitting?”

“Death greets us all - but not today.”

“You need my expertise?”

“Can you feel death's cold grip?”

“So many stars, so many mysteries yet to be discovered.”

“Death comes quietly.”

“And I thought we were going to be friends.”

“Locked tight, but there must be some way to open it.”

“No, you can't die. Get up, damn you!

“You had my attention, now you have my fury.”

“From silence to suffering.”

“So many worlds out there. You'd need a thousand lifetimes to see them all - more.”

“I hope this is important. For your sake.”

“Let them gaze deep into their own abyss, and wonder just what it is they are trying to achieve.”

“I ought to just burn this whole thing down.”

“We have slightly more pressing matters to attend to.”

“You have still have time to surrender.”

“Every kicked buttock, another step on the path.”

“Weave save me. I can't take much more…

“You are right to fear me.”

“Let me look around. Might be something that'll help me crack this thing.”

“Incredible, to think how many worlds exist beyond this tiny speck within a speck I call home.”

“I really wish I could cast a Hold spell on you.”

“I can fawn over my face later.”

“Ready for another round?”

“Keep your blade close.”

“I can't unlock it from here, but there must be a switch or a button somewhere…”

“No, that's not moving. There must be a way to open it somewhere.”

“Battle favours the fearless.”

“Sleep with one eye open, evil. Maybe both.”

“Gotta be something around here to unlock this thing.”

“Why do beautiful people taste better?. It hardly seems fair on the ugly - they have such wonderful personalities.”

“Oh, calm down. I'm happy to see you too.”

“Just go for the Magic Missile and fire away. Never fails.”

“Still standing, no matter what you heard.”

“Enough waiting. I crave blood.”

“Hang on - I won't allow this. You aren't dead, go it?”

“GODS, it's HOT in here!”

“No rest for the wicked, I see.”

“Better to hide than fight, sometimes.”

“Would that I could hide from you, too.”

“Are you feeling lonely, perhaps?”

“There is no right or wrong, only truth.”

“Battle is afoot - you can poke me once we are safe.”

“What good all this ethereal eladrin blood if I can still get pimples?”

“I should've been a drow. They have such stylish armour.”

“I am armed! Armoured! And entirely sick of your foolishness.”

“Let's have some fun.”

“War is an old woman's game.”

“No rest, be you wicked or wise.”

“I'm getting too old for this nonsense.”

“I would poke you back, but I fear that's what you want.”

“You have my attention - now do something with it.”

“You are insistent, are you not?”

“Do what must be done.”

“Your suffering will be spectacular.”

“Lest I sit down for a rest and not rise again.”

“Better to look evil in the eye. Even if it be very small.”

“I'm not built to crouch.”

“I think I could go another round.”

“Always the same old song.”

“Is perfection too much to ask?”

“Eyes on victory, tummy on dinner.”

“So many places to be.. and I chose Baldur's Gate.”

“I'm not opening that. Not from here, at any rate.”

“What is the point, if not victory?”

“Won't last much longer like this.”

“Let's hope the locals are friendly.”

“Let us show them how it's done.”

“Weapons high. Standards higher.”

“Must everyone be so exhausting?”

“What I would not give for a chunk of fresh honeycomb…”

“Which way to the nearest library?”

“Now this is my happy place.”

“Who shall I silence?”

“Stop, or die.”

“Wear your scars proudly.”

[walpu]

hey, hey, I don't know how many times I've read your post "pre-relationship" especially aventurine part (omg i love how you write abt him 😭). I wonder how it will be once they are in a relationship and the kissing part please :3 thank u and have a nice day!

THANK YOUUUUU

Hope you'll enjoy this post too💛💛💛

being in a relationship with Aventurine

characters - Aventurine notes - gn!reader, fluff, hurt/comfort (do I even write something other that hurt/comfort for him lmao), no beta

can be seen as a part 2 of this post but it can stan on it's own as well

Aventurine

It would take quite some time for Aventurine to move from the pre-relationship stage with you. Will dance around the subject, throwing hints and flirty remarks but as for making an actual move? Oof.

Would cling to your side and shamelessly say something like "aww, can't get enough of me? people may think we're dating <З unless that's what you want them to think haha"

Pathetic. /affectionally.

But seriously, he really wants to be sure that you like him before making a move. That you like him, not his money, not the idea of him. At least that's what he tells himself. And while this is part of the reason, the actual thing is that he's simply... confused. He's already more vulnerable around you than he ever was around anyone else. And dating means being even more vulnerable.

While he yearns for this genuine connection he's also a scared of it. Tim Kreider wrote the line "If we want the rewards of being loved we have to submit to the mortifying ordeal of being known" about him actually.

It would take some time for him to get used to being in relationship. In the previous post I've mentioned that he, most likely, had some short flings in the past. I seriously doubt that he ever had any serious relationship before you though. It's so new to him. At first it would seem like nothing has changed between the two of you at all. Surprisingly, it looks like he even became a bit more distant.

Aventurine doesn't want to attract any unwanted attention to your relationship since it will only endanger you. Plus he doesn't want to overwhelm you. Plus he doesn't want to overwhelm himself. Plus he is scared shitless.

He can't help but feel that he looses everything he holds dear. After all, it's been like that for all of his life. And he simply can't loose you.

Mini spoiler for his leaked character story, but there is a moment there when he looks at the aventurine stone Diamond gave him and he realizes that despite the fact that he worked so hard for it, now that he has it, it holds no real value since it doesn't fill the emptiness inside of him. Logically, he knows that this won't happen with you. He loves you too much. But there's this subconscious fear inside of him that he's just so messed up inside that he simply would not be able to love you like you deserve.

Be patient with him, this mans doesn't know what he's doing. Don't give up on him and he'll crawl to your side, holding onto you for dear life.

Once he will calm down a bit, he'll make it up for all those times when you were the one reaching out to him. Texts you, calls you, arranges spontaneous dates.

In the beginning of relationship would spoil you with expensive gifts. He knows what it's like to have nothing so he doesn't want you to ever feel this way. And the best way to prevent it? To make sure that you will have anything and everything. Maybe it's a subconscious way to bribe you. Maybe. Not like he realizes it himself.

Once he'll feel more stable and more confident, his gift giving tendencies will get less overwhelming. He still like giving you gifts but now he picks and chooses. His sugar darling deserves only the best, after all.

Acts all clingy, playful and unserious but actually listens to your every word and is ready to fulfil your every need.

Is actually very caring. Shows his care by pestering you and easing you tho.

If you feel down, will sit stay by your side. May randomly start tickling you, if you're ticklish. If not, will find another way to touch you in a playful and somewhat annoying way. After you cheer up a bit, Aven will put his chin on your shoulder and hugs your waist, softly asking what happen and why is his dearest darling seems sad.

As for kisses. Aven will loooove covering your face with butterfly kisses. And not only your face. Will randomly grab your hand and kiss your knuckles and fingertips. If you've made a mistake of exposing your shoulder then be ready for it to be kissed endlessly.

Adores kissing those parts of your body that are usually covered with clothes. It feels fore intimate for him.

And if you have freckles or/and beauty marks. Oh well. Will trace them with his fingertips, connecting them with some invisible lines and sometimes gasp playfully, saying that he found his constellation. Just a silly little guy being a silly little guy.

So touch-starved it's unreal.

Has very mixed feeling about his tattoo being kissed. Would feel... weirs if you would kiss it during your casual cuddling session. He exposes it for the world to see, yes. But still, when it attracts attention of someone who knows the meaning behind it... Makes him a bit tense, it catches him off-guard. However, if you kiss it after a lovemaking session or when he shares some painful memories with you, he will feel reassured.

Will slowly start crawling out of his shell when he's with you. Before he only shared some brief memories of his past with you, now he'll start slowly opening up about other, much more painful stuff.

It still happens randomly and out of the blue. He remembers something, he tenses up. But now, instead of repressing this feelings, he shares them with you.

Don't push him too talk, he'll slowly open up on his own.

Loves waking up next to you. Especially if you're still asleep. Seeing the sun shining on your face fills him with love and tenderness. Only with you by his side he feels truly safe.

[sleepyangelkami]

pls do more of carl grimes😭🙏🙏 (can be smut or fluff idrc🤭)

TROUBLE ADJUSTING c.grimes

𝜗𝜚 WORD COUNT - 2.1K

CARL GIMES X FEM!READER

 𝜗𝜚 SUMMARY - there was a heavy difference between travelling the roads filled with dead people walking and alexandria, a place that you fear is too much like the old world. you have some trouble adjusting, luckily your boyfriend carl doesn't mind you using him as a human shield.

 𝜗𝜚 WARNINGS - anxiety, social anxiety, obvious attachment issues, aged up characters, (2) use of y/n, petnames, intended lower case, nothing i write is ever proofread 🩷

the roads were unlike anything you'd ever experienced in your entire life.

the prison wasn't exactly the best option but it was safe and it was secure. it kept the dead out and the living in. when you were at the prison, you were never told to leave the grounds. perhaps that was why the road had been such a shock to you and not the others.

you thought when you and the others got off the roads and found a new place to settle down, things would mellow out.

and by things, i mean the elephant in the room between you and carl.

you and carl had been dating for quite some time now. you'd always been close, you supposed. but on the roads? he was your safe haven. you slowly began isolating yourself into just you and him.

though he never minded, of course.

if anything, it put carl a little at ease, knowing you were always so close to him. during the prison, he worried tremendously about you, where you were during the night, what you were doing. you two weren't permitted to sleep in a cell together, at that stage.

but rick's rules began to disappear when death began to slap him in the face over and over. if anything were to happen to any of you, he'd like to think you lived doing what you wanted, what made you happy.

besides, you didn't really have anyone other than the grimes' family.

michonne and you had moved into the large grimes' house in alexandria. rick and michonne were at one end of the hall, judith's room somewhere in between and then it was carl's room. you didn't like to call it your room seeing as it wasn't your house. but the grimes' let you know that it was as much your house as it was theres.

"you wanna go for a walk or something?" carl questioned causing your head to move from his shoulder.

you and carl had this sort of ritual of reading comic books together since the beginning of the breakout. you were thankful that at least that didn't change now that you were in alexandria. "do you want to?"

carl shrugged, debating. sure, he wanted to. at the same time, he worried for you. it was evident that the change hadn't been good for you. once so bubbly and outgoing, you'd sort of shrunk into yourself. now, you didn't even feel all that comfortable talking to rick. "why not? the place is huge."

that much was true.

you'd never seen a place as huge as this, even before the breakout. you only worried that you may run into someone on the way.

"what's going on up there, baby?" his finger tapped against your head, bringing you back.

with a bitten lip, you tried your best to conceal the obvious anxiety bubbling in your chest. "i don' know... i jus' don't wanna see anyone."

"we don't have to." he shrugged his shoulders. "we'll just keep reading the comic." before relaxing back into the pillows of his bed.

but you couldn't leave it at that. "but you want to. you should go without me." feeling bad that you were restricting him from doing the things he wanted.

he could only chuckle lowly. "don't be silly, angel. wouldn't go nowhere without you." he didn't realise it, but truthfully, it had been the most comforting thing you'd heard all week.

you'd had so much worry caught in your throat about going out and meeting people that you began to think you were weighing the others down, too. "but i feel bad." you mumbled, voicing your feelings to the only person you felt like you could.

carl was quick to shush you. "i was just suggesting, maybe another day. y'know, now that i think about it, i'm kind of in the mood for hot coco and a movie, what d'you say?" though he was already getting up from the bed.

you sat criss-cross legged on the bed, practically pouting at him. "you don't like hot coco." you informed him, knowing what he was getting at.

"why can't you just let me do something nice for my pretty girl, hm?" lifting out his hand to you and letting you take it.

carl would never force you to talk to anyone.

a couple more days in the new community passed and rick was beginning to get worried. of course, he knew you and carl weren't normal teenagers, you never would be after the things you'd experienced in your lives. but he wanted you to be as normal as could be, and that included at least trying to make friends.

obviously, the man hadn't picked up on the obvious anxiety that followed you like a dark cloud over your head. so, he made arrangements with the blonde woman who lived down the street who had a son about your guy's age. who had a girlfriend and another guy friend. rick thought there would be no harm in at least meeting them. and if you came back to the house, not liking them, then he wouldn't force you guys to go back.

simple.

or at least it should have been.

you were sure you were shaking like a leaf by the time you made your way to the white door from across the street. worried you'd be looked at oddly, you didn't hold carl's hand, though you stayed silent, behind him.

the woman, jessie anderson, let you in with a smile on her face.

then you met her son, ron. "so mikey and enid are upstairs waiting for us, got some cool games if you play."

"uh, sure." as much as carl wasn't the awkward type, he still felt sort of odd in someone else's house. perhaps that was because he never experienced the whole 'teenager sleepover' thing.

you followed carl up the stairs, staying eerily close to him. you heard ron talk, even crack a joke. carl laughed and made a joke back. but truthfully, their words fell on deaf ears for you. your eyes travelled around the house, glancing to the family portraits hanging and so on.

you didn't look back until ron opened his bedroom door, allowing you both in and shutting it again. "hey guys." a boy with black hair whipped around and the girl who was sat on the bed, comic in hand, didn't bother looking up.

"oh, hey." the boy didn't exactly say hi to ron, more so to carl and you.

"hi." the girl spoke, not so much as looking away from the pretty coloured pages.

"so, this is mikey." pointing to the black haired boy who nodded swiftly before turning back to the gaming console he'd been playing on. "and enid." the girl who finally glanced up, eyeing the two of you before nodding. "and guys, this is carl and... sorry, what was your name again?"

three pairs of oggling eyes on you. you felt your own eyes widen and your mouth part, a little dry. suddenly, your own name was caught in your throat.

"y/n." carl responded for you, loud and proud as if he'd wanted to boast about you. "her name's y/n." instinctively, you found yourself shuffling closer to the boy, trying to make yourself as unseen as possible.

you swore you didn't leave his side the entire time you spent there. he got comfortable on the ground, back against the bed while ron sat above you two, at the edge, mikey on the desktop chair and enid, now on her second comic.

"so, how long you two been together?" you glanced up at the sound of mikey's voice. he was a well put together boy, expensive sweater and a collared shirt beneath. you were suddenly thankful for carl's dirty boots, cowboy hat and loose flannels. "been third wheeling these two for like forever. i know a couple when i see one."

carl and ron both huffed out a laugh, you did not. "yeah, we've been together for like forever too." carl's head turned to give you a graceful smile, one that had your cheeks turning a light pink before smiling back ever so softly. "hey, where's the, uh, where's the bathroom?"

you were almost tempted to grasp his arm and tell him you were coming with.

"just out the hall, first door to the right." ron answered, without taking his eyes off the screen.

"thanks, man." carl's baby blue's turned back to your nervous face. "i'll be back in a second, okay?"

you nodded, though you could feel the colour drain from your face without even looking in a mirror. carl left as quickly as he could, deciding that the quicker he left, the quicker he would be back. "so..." ron voiced again. you suddenly wondered how much he liked the sound of his voice, seeing as he wouldn't stay quiet for longer than a full minute. "not much of a talker?" you nodded your head softly before hearing the loud crash on the video game, jumping a little. "jumpy too huh?" you breathed out a sigh, shying in on yourself.

"don't worry." enid voiced, only now choosing to speak. "you get used to the noise again."

this caused your head to spin, what was she talking about. and without even having to ask, ron answered your question. "enid was on the roads too. i heard your group was on the road for a while, how was it?"

how was it?

"scary." you answered shortly, turning backwards and feeling your hands become clammy.

if there was one thing you wanted to forget, it was the roads. every day, it seemed as though you were loosing someone else. every day, you faced death and it stared you back right in the eyes. panic would come over you, wheeze it's way through your lungs.

carl would always hold you back, close to him as he stabbed his way through walkers with the others. but even that was a comfort to none.

every day, you were living, wondering if it'd be your last.

"i'll bet. i couldn't imagine living without my xbox." he snorted before pressing the shooting button again and letting bullets fly. it was now that you wished carl was next to you again, at least then you could squeeze his hand 'til it turned purple.

you wondered if everyone here was that shallow. if everyone only worried about their xbox or their stupid assets that in the long run, meant nothing.

"so, what do you think about alexandria?" this time it was mikey who'd asked the question.

"scary." you huffed out again. "but a different kind of scary."

"intimidating." enid answered for you. "it'll be like that for a while but you get used to it, just like the noise." you could tell that she was one of the good ones. the ones who don't care about silly things like objects. you could tell she'd seen the horrors you had, too.

"thanks." you mumbled, sheepishly glancing down to your fingers.

soon enough, carl returned from the bathroom, catching onto your face full of anxiety. he excused you both, stating that his dad needed help rearranging furniture or something or other. stupidly enough, the others believed you and soon bid a goodbye.

when you left, it felt like you could finally breathe again. you let out a breath of relief, fluttering your eyes shut and opening them again. carl was careful to peer at your face. "what'd you think?"

"the girl's nice." you mumbled.

"yeah? think so?" you could only nod in response. "well that's good, maybe you guys'll become friends. and the guys?"

you shrugged. "ron talks a lot." this caused carl to grin, a laugh puffing out from his cheeks causing you to do the same. it was much easier to laugh when it was just you and carl, even after everything you two had been through. "did you like 'em?"

"i guess." he gently nudged his nose against your cheek. "nothing compared to you, though." you couldn't help but roll your eyes, pretty smile dancing on your cheeks.

you huffed out again, noticing the way your chest suddenly felt clear of knots. "that was scary." you spoke honestly.

carl nodded his head, understanding that it wasn't exactly your thing. "it'll get better, though. just takes some getting used to." you couldn't agree more. "you're just having a little trouble adjusting, that's all. but you got me, right?"

the boy's elbow nudged you causing you to giggle softly and lean against his shoulder. "yeah, i got you."

he pressed a chaste kiss to the crown of your hair. "c'mon, let's go pick out another comic."

now that sounded like fun.

main masterlist/carl's masterlist

[muntitled]

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐬 𝐄𝐏. 𝐈 : 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐦𝐚𝐧

❝ 𝘾𝙖𝙣'𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙚𝙚, 𝙄'𝙢 𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣? ❞

Pairings: Park Seonghwa x Fem!Reader

Synopsis: Being begrudgingly seduced by the anarchist

Warnings: Language, Enemies to Lovers, Cop!Reader, Revolutionary!Seonghwa, Implied Violence, Crazy Form!Au, Seduction, Smut (+18, minors dni) Corruption Kink, Innocence Kink, Masochism, Humping, Fingering, pet names, Rough Sex, Massive Degradation Kink, Dom!Seonghwa, Sub!Reader, Squirting, Humiliation, Unprotected Sex, Hate Sex

A/n: I might turn this into a series featuring all the Pirates with their own smutty little parts because I cannot help re-watching the Crazy Form mv. It's too good

The very sight of the undulating mosh pit has your stomach rolling with nausea as you enter the dimly lit warehouse. The corrugated walls are illuminated only by various splotches of neon paint, and you suddenly feel the uncanny need to pray as you enter the crowd.

You begin to grow fearful, not onky because this crowd might birth a fresh panic attack, but because you fear for your focus as well.

That you may not be swayed from your mission.

The Intel that led you and your police partner here had been incredibly difficult to come by because every one of their little followers were so terribly loyal.

So naturally, upon receiving a tip off about a show being hosted on the seedier outskirts of town, you had no choice but to attend.

In this unpredictable field of law enforcement, of one thing you are completely certain: There will always be a clear distinction between the good and the bad and they are as bad as they come.

They are common criminals, and there is nothing else to it.

In fact, referring to them as anything but, feels like a gross display of exaltation. Exaltation, which is, evidently, what they are used to.

Disgust is smeared across your face as you and your police partner sieve your way through drunken bodies swaying to the sound of Seonghwa's voice. Although you're shoving roughly past people, all in an attempt to get to the front of the stage, you can not help but marvel at the crowd, undulating to the beat of a bandit.

His face, along with the faces of 7 of his fellow delinquents were smeared across every wanted poster in the city, and yet here he is, raging into a microphone while the crowd cheers his name.

“If I hear ‘Seonghwa’ one more time I fear I might shoot myself in the foot,” you call out, to your partner not far behind, “Keep a tight grip on your weapons, please,” you say, craning your neck back as you palm cradles your back pocket with the Glock 14 nestled inside, “We don't know what any of these idiots are on and I dont think we want to find out.”

Your civilian attire is successful in keeping the attention off of you and your partner as you break out of the heat and anxiety of the moshpit, right in front of center stage.

Seonghwa is right above you, cradling a microphone as if it were the Holy grail while his accomplice, a very inebriated San, bounds across the stage, stirring up the crowd like Seonghwa's personal hypeman.

You could almost feel your vexation increasing to ungodly heights.

Everything about this egregious display of egomania makes your blood boil raging hot, and although these are only 2, you find your hands clenching in anticipation of being one step closer to putting all 8 behind bars.

Your hatred seems to be oozing out of your pores because soon, you catch his attention. Perched on a stage elevated amongst the masses, he is looking at you now. You. Instead of any of the other drunken groupies in the crowd begging to get even a sliver of attention.

With both hands cuffed around the mic, he peers down at you and winks before belting out the final words of the song.

How badly you itched to bind his wrists with your silver cuffs.

How badly you wished to get him and his insolent underlings off the streets.

"They do know how to capture an audience… we can at least give them that," Your head snaps sideways as the words of your partner rouses what little patience you're already working with.

You tap lightly at his badge. The sound of your nail hitting the metal is drowned out by the raucaus applaud but your police partner watches you intently as you cooly say, “Don't forget why we're here, Sergeant,” your voice holds caution as the noise of the crowd trickles down.

The set ends, and the man on stage drenched in flamboyant white linen bids the crowd a ‘Very good night’. He strolls off stage, not without giving you one last, knowing glance.

‘If you catch me, it's because I let you catch me,’ is what those eyes seem to be saying.

So much for blending into an unsuspecting crowd.

“These are not your friends. They're common criminals.” Your voice is louder now, with the absence of that Seonghwa's cacophony. “Stay here, make sure none of these degenerates kill themselves.” You're hellbent om following Seonghwa off the stage, but your partner's light snickers have you pausing slightly. You raise your eyebrows in questioning.

“You speak about them like they're not just fans," Your partner shakes his graying head, "Like they're complicit,”

“They are." You almost immediately reply with a narrowed gaze. "As far as I'm concerned, their fans are just as bad as them.”

With those parting words you make your way towards the part of the warehouse sectioned off from the rest of the crowd, where Seonghwa and his accomplice disappeared off to in the wake of their applause.

You reach what appears to be a backroom hidden behind the makeshift stage. It is far quieter than the rest of the warehouse pulsating with cacophony. You do not miss the slight apprehension that swallows you whole when your feet stop you from venturing over the threshold.

“It doesn't look like you have a backstage pass,” San sits beside Seonghwa on a couch positioned in the focal point of the small room. You recognize hid face as another one of the men whose visage was stamped in a very large police docket on your desk.

“Apologies,” you murmer to San, “I only have one of these,” you raise your police ID to the side of your face and San rises from his seat in mild curiosity. He sinks closer to you while Seonghwa, the man who held most of your attention, sits reclined, with his legs spread on the wide sectional.

He sits lazily, almost kingly under a giant white sheet. A flag plastered to the wall, with a giant, obnoxious, A carelessly spray painted in black.

“I thought we said no fans allowed backstage." San says in a sing-song voice, blatantly ignoring your badge with his giant shoulders now bending down to your height. The circumference of his hat casts a wide shadow over you, all in a clear display of intimidation. "That counts for pigs, too.”

His steely gaze never wavers from your face, and you fight valiantly to keep your emotions tamed under a calm, nonchalant reserve. "If you're a cop, where's your uniform?" San does an obnoxious display of racking his eyes over your body.

"Your dad's place," you whisper cooly, "I couldn't put it on in time."

Your words have an unmistakable smile cracking on the sides of San's face. "I enjoyed that very much."

"I thought a degenerate like you might." Despite your words, San is still smiling. In fact, you fear yourself at risk of slipping right into that enchanting gaze of his were it not for the interception of the third voice in the room.

“How interesting,” Seonghwa's voice cuts through the tension blistering between you and San like a white, hot knife.

“Leave us.” San's head snaps backward towards his accomplice, and all Seonghwa does is smile as they communicate, quite literally without words right in front of you. Seonghwa evidently 'says' what is needed in order to get San slyly leaving room. Not before tipping his hat in parting.

With your attention now focused solely on the man ok the couch, drenched in the white linen, whose arms are outstretched and resting on the headrest, you suddenly find yourself completely and unfortunately unsure.

You had met plenty of prisoners. Dined with manner delinquents and questioned many criminals, it is only in his presence when you feel your usually tough reserve quaking at the smallest fraction. In the face of what is apparently true rebellion.

“Why don't you have a seat,” he snickers when he finds you already stepping over the threshold, making yourself all too comfortable in an evil space. Nothing good existed beyond this point.

“I hope you enjoyed the show,” There is a depth to his voice that is regrettably tickling down the edge of your spine, dousing every bit of pateince you had.

“You call it a show… I call it inciting a riot,” you shrug, finally choosing to sit beside him on the wide sectional. Far too close beside him and his outstretched arms.

Despite the warning bells, you refuse to exhibit any fear.

“Is that why you're here?” His voice remains steady as he focuses it on tracing the tips of his fingers against your shoulder. He wants to see how quickly his touch could elicit a valley of goosebumps.

He is all too pleased to find you shivering in protest.

“You're here to arrest me?” In all honesty, Seonghwa enjoyed watching you try to push him away for the sake of your precious morals. Call it masochism, but there is something enticing about a woman who so very clearly abhors everything he stands for. Seonghwa cannot help but find it almost irresistible. His captain always remarked on Seonghwa's enjoyment for not only fixing broken things but also obsessing over them.

You did not know that the frown plastered across your face only accelerated his racing heart more. Desire plunged through his arteries as he immediately recognized you as a challenge.

Something to perhaps break.

It would be so incredibly satisfying, especially because you represented everything he despised in this wretched world.

Order.

“Actually, no.” You say, staving off another shivsr as you evade Seonghwa’s steadily heavy growing eyelids. “We received a call that someone was disturbing the peace.”

“In an abandoned warehouse?” He asks, voice airy and tone almost dismissive because he is much closer to you now, leaning towards you, as if enchanted by your very scent. You watch him with apprehension as you begin to feel the very first signs of what you regrettably realize to be attraction.

However, you can not move off the couch now because you can not control any of your motor functions in your concrete bones. Every one of your morals howl for you to get away from this man. To cuff him, send him down to the precinct and convict him for... something…

but that 'something' does not come quick enough, and he's leaning closer to you, with both arms still resting on the couch behind you. Before you can blow up your entire career, and close the distance, you wrangle some bit of sense to turn your head sideways, evading his half lidded eyes and slightly parted lips.

Your blatant rejection rouses him slightly, and he readjusts himself in his seat. Seonghwa brings his legs together to better manage the heat rushing to his cock in the wake of your rejection and apparent attraction (and immense frustration) as he shifts even closer beside you.

“You will find no disturbance here,” he says, “Only music.”

His words release the floodgates of your vexation, and your head snaps as you fire off. “Music that you weaponize to spew your delinquency.”

“Ah. Ah.” Seonghwa dips his head down to your ear as he whispers, “Delinquency, or rebellion?”

You're laughing humorlessly into the air, effectively causing Seonghwa’s smile to widen and his cock to stiffen completely in the confies of his pitch black dress pants. You are oblivious to his eyes, watching you as if you hung the very moon.

“You and your… freaks preach your vitriol and call it ‘rebellion’ when all you're actually doing is polluting our city with riots and crime.”

“You don't wish to be liberated from an oppressive world order?” He adjusts himself again, getting far too excited with the way this conversation is flowing. Your wide eyes and high vibrato do little to calm his restlessness.

“What oppression!?”

His voice is quick and monotonous, “Capitalism. Classism. Racism.” His fingers clench and unclench before swiping against the back of your neck, “Why do you willingly submit to a system that is simply un-winnable? We want you to free yourselves from the hierarchy. Fucking wreck the system-”

“You're fucking Pirates,” you spit the word out, unwokowungly snapping the very last of your reserve before Seonghwa is pulling you into a heady, heavy kiss by the nape of your neck.

"Fuck yes," He whispers before pulling you in as if you weighed absolutely nothing and you let him. You let his lips move languidly against yours as your hands fall against his chains and the white linen frills spilling from his collar. His hand is still positioned on the nape of your neck and he squeezes, forcing you to kiss him back. He groans into your mouth when you begin to work with him instead of against him. You mouth falling open as his tongue collides with yours.

Vaguely, in the background, outside these four walls, you can hear the crowd beginning to cheer once again as raucous music spills from unseen speakers. You can hear San beginning to sing into a mic, and your hand on Seonghwa's shirt curls imperceptibly.

“You're so beautiful…” You hate how easily his words affect you. You hate what a slave to desire you seem to be as he leans back to immediately push his hands in between your legs.

“Tell me to stop,” he challenges, keeping his feline eyes trained on you as he unclips the buttons of your jeans with one hand. “Tell me you don't want this disgusting delinquent to make you cum over and over again.”

Your lips are pursed painfully, and you throw your head back with your eyes clenched shut as you lift your hips. All the better for him to wriggle your jeans down to your ankles.

As he brings your legs up to his lap to pull off your jeans completely, Seonghwa's movements become all the more reckless and all the more urgent.

“All the same,” he murmurs before kneeling on the floor in front of you, “You conformists are all the fucking same.” Your eyes flutter open, along with your mouth, and the very moment your gaze locks onto the spray painted flag, hanging above you, Seongwha pushes aside your underwear, immediately spearing your dripping cunt with his long fingers. You release a broken moan into the air and his smile has blossomed into a full-on lopsided, evil grin as he brings your knees up to frame his face.

“2 seconds,” he taunts, in between your chorus of broken moans going head-to-head with the sound of San’s sensational belting, “it took me 2 seconds to have you humping my hand like a pretty fucking slut-”

Despite the pleasure coursing through your body, you still manage to keep your teeth clenched as you murmur, “You're the one… fuck… you're the one kneeling in front of me like my personal whore-”

Seonghwa's eyebrows raise, and his eyes glint in excitement at your taunting. He prided himself on being someone who could take as much as he gave out, and you're doing a terrific job at holding his attention when so many other people fell short.

You were interesting, of that, Seonghwa was sure.

“You make me want you so bad, Dove,” he admits before swiping his other hand over his stiffening bulge to the rhythm of his hand pushing in and out of your cunt.

“You drive me fucking crazy-”

“You're already crazy- fuck, just like that! Please don't stop-” your clenching around his fingers, eyes locked on his wide, excited eyes and his close lipped smile as brings his other hand to swipe over your clit.

The very second his calluses make contact with your swollen, puffy clit, you're cumming around his fingers. San’s vocal rages and your screams pour out as you fight to keep your eyes open. Seonghwa's fingers are still pushing into you relentlessly, and your heart sinks when you realise the seat underneath you is drenched with your arousal.

Seonghwa's mind is flooded with the image of you squirting so shamelessly around his fingers. Seeing you give yourself over to him so seamlessly made him feel absolutely restless with arousal, and he's pushing you down onto the couch before you're able to fill the air with idle protests.

His clothes suddenly feel too constricting and he curses the black corset as he wrestles with the buttons of his collar. He does not care that the buttons are flying onto the floor because he is clambouring onto the couch and hovering over you as he slots his hips in between your open legs.

“I need you to make a mess for me,” he whispers, before pulling his collar open, showcasing a patch of his tanned chest to your wide eyes. You unbuttoned your own shirt at the very same time that Seonghwa pulls down the zip of his pants, and he nearly whines at the sight of your breasts spilling out of your top. You are using him just as much as he is using you.

“Just like that, baby,” He nods, forcing his cock deep inside you as you begin to tweak your own nipples to stave off the discomfort of being stretched open so completely.

“F-Fuck- Seonghwa…” He is still nodding as he bends down towards you. Strands of his black hair tickle your face as he positions his hands on the side of your head and ruts into you with urgency. “I don't think I can take it-”

“You're already taking it so well, Baby.” He coos, as he forces his cock deeper and deeper into your clenching walls.

“You're taking everything I have to give and you're doing it flawlessly,” his praises are like that fashioned from a poet and the sheer artistry behind mere words have your head flying backwards as you release a torrid moan into the air.

“Where are you going?” He asks with a breathless laugh as he brings your head back by the grip of your throat. He is driving his cock inside you, his own frills spilling over your skin as he chokes you relentlessly.

Seonghwa is the very sight of violent beauty: hair mussed with his collar completely undone. His corset is still fashioned around his waist but it succeeds in tightening his abdomen, bringing him closer to the edge as the torrid sounds of your fucking fills the air.

"Fuck I'm close,” He grunts with his eyes nearly rolling to the back of his skull. "Tell me you hate me-" he whispers.

"I hate you," you moan out. "I hate you so fucking much-" It fell from your lips so easily because it is the God honest truth. Despite the spell he currently has you under, in the eyes of your aspirations, and everything you've ever worked hard for, you hated him and people like him. People who threatened to dismantle the progress lawmakers have strived to protect. And so, with your orgasm crwsting and your toes clenching, you whisper those words over and over to him. And every time to tell him you hate him, he chokes you harder and fucks you deeper.

"F-Fuck- 'Hwa I'm-" he nods, eyes now incredibly pained as he drives his cock into you with no chance of stopping.

"Cum for me," His whisper has you reading a broken moan into the air and Seonghwa watches as you descend into the depths of your euphoria.

"Gorgeous-" He exclaims through clenched teeth as his own hips begin to stutter, "You're so fucking gorgeous-" He whimpers before spilling inside you.

You're both moaning into the air, at the very same time that Choi San appears at the threshold.

"You work fast," San says languidly. He shifts his gaze from your horror-stricken gaze to Seonghwa who stares at his accomplice with a smirk on his face.

"I work smarter," Seonghwa says, "not harder." You're very much aware that he is still very much inside of you in front of a complete stranger but that panic dissipates when you realize Seonghwa, himself, is nothing but a stranger...

"The police is not gonna be a problem for us anymore, right?" He asks sweetly before dipping his head down in between the crook of your neck. You are starkly aware that your silence is answer enough...

[huffelpuff210]

Ours Soft Dark Stucky x Omega Reader

Soft Dark Alpha Stucky x Omega Reader

Warning: Stalking, kidnapping, drugging, confinement, dark themes, Non Con, man handling, threats, mentions of past abuse, 

Summary: Day by Day Both Bucky and Steve feel like something is missing in their lives that is until they meet you. 

You work as a RN at the nearby hospital, you were just leaving an agonizing fourteen hour shift, dead tired, 

You were walking past a store, where there were TV’s you could watch from outside of the window,

The news was on, 

“This is Becky reporting from Stark tower where in a few minutes Alpha Tony Stark is going to make his big announcement.” The news lady says, 

You stand there with your arms crossed, a lot of people on the street were crowding around as well, 

The Alpha’s in Stark tower are a big deal to everyone so when they make an announcement it’s normally a big uproar 

Tony walks out to the stage, 

“Good afternoon everyone, as everyone may have been aware, the decrease in Omega’s in the past decade have declined drastically.” He says 

It was no secret that Omega’s appear less and less each year, in fact you read in the paper that there is 1 out of 5% that anyone would come across one, You were in fact one, but you take suppressants and wear a special perfume to mask the smell, 

“So as of today, I have signed a bill passing that if you are an Omega you must register, due to the decrease in our species this law is in effect as of today.” Tony says 

You eyes widen, 

“We also have a stations in each clinic to ensure you can find a place to register.” He says 

This made your blood boil, You didn’t like Alpha’s to begin with, Your father and brother’s made sure of that, always talking down to you like you were nothing compared to them, abusing you any chance they got, telling you, that you were nothing but a tool a mutt that your only purpose in life was to breed, 

And here is another example of how much you hate and yet fear alpha’s they think they can control Omega’s, 

“If any Omega’s fail to comply we will have no choice but to place you in a special program.” Tony says 

“That will be all thank you.” He says walking off stage, 

You shake your head and make your way to your apartment, but you couldn’t help this feeling that someone was watching you, You stop in your tracks, to look around listening, smelling, but there were too many scents, you brush it off as fatigue and paranoia. 

You finally enter your apartment, it wasn’t much given the salary to make, barely scraping by, but it was the only way, the only way to avoid detection not just from Alpha’s but your family that has been on the hunt for you since you ran away when you were sixteen, you are now twenty one, but they still continue to hunt you like an animal, 

All because you are an Omega, 

After taking your suppressant and showering, you are laying in bed when a smell catches your attention, It smelled like pine, and cinnamon, you sit up quickly, it wasn’t your father or brother’s but you don’t notice the smell which causes you to panic, 

You peek through the curtains not seeing a single person, you make sure everything is locked, 

You peek out the peep hole at your door, no one, 

You feel your heart rate slow down hoping you were just imagining it, 

Bucky just couldn’t believe his luck, he was on his way to the tower, when a smell caught his attention, sure it was very faint but his sense of smell is stronger than most Alpha’s it smelled like vanilla with a hint of cedar

“Omega...” He whispers

He finds a small petite woman, with long dark hair and green eyes, she was beautiful, but by the smell she’s definitely on something she shouldn’t be on, 

He opens his phone to call Steve as he follows her from a distance, 

“Steve, Your not going to believe what I found.” He says with a smirk on his lips, 

You didn’t go to work for a few days, you were getting paranoid, the smell kept getting stronger as if someone was in your apartment or on the fire escape at the window, 

But your boss called you today, telling you if you didn’t come in today you were fired, 

So you cautiously leave your apartment, just as you were locking the door an arm wrapped around your neck, with a hand covering your mouth, 

You elbow the attacker causing him to grunt, but he didn’t loosen his grip, 

“Shhh, sweetheart, we’re here now.” You hear a man’s voice whisper in your ear, 

suddenly there was a jab of a needle in your upper arm, you watch as the liquid is injected in your arm, 

“Everything will be alright.” Another voice says 

you feel your limbs give way, and your vision blur slowly slipping into darkness, 

Bucky catches you as you fall, picking you up bridal style, your head against his chest, 

Steve moves your dark hair out of your face, 

“She’s beautiful.” Steve says 

“Told you.” Bucky says 

“She’s light though.” Bucky says again, 

“It’s alright she has us now.” Steve says placing his hand on Bucky’s shoulder, 

Bucky nods, as they both smile down at you

[lilacargent]

As im currently dealing with the loss of a loved one, this is my way of coping.

Grief

Grief is an interstellar concept. Almost every species in the galaxy has its own traditions and practices. Humans are no exception, like with most of their emotions their grief is all encompassing. Traditions vary from one culture to another, even people deal with it in different ways.

Kilare as part of a flocking species wonders about the human crewmates when one is lost in a battle. She knew the passed human Ellie very well. Turns out they grieve like a flock, huddled together weeping, almost giving into the urge to join she turns away, expecting this to last for a long time she leaves them be. When she checks next the little unit is drinking and laughing, she can hardly believe it, carefully stepping into the room “i am sorry, may i ask something?” The humans look up some still blotchy from crying, the human she knows as liz nods “you were all weeping just now, but you seem happy? Im confused…” fluffing her feathers Kilare backpedals “not to be insensitive, im just trying to understand your process.” Evan gets up and walks to her “that is okay, you knew Ellie well right? We are talking about her and how we miss her, laughing comes with the tears.” Motioning for the taller feathered woman to join the little group Moira makes eye contact and starts explaining “i know you are from a species that grieves as a group, if i remember correctly mostly weeping and spread ashes on the wind to join in every flight” impressed by the womans knowledge she nods Moira goes on “humans have many different traditions, but every one grieves their own way and time. Mostly in five stages, denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. No two people go through it the same or even through all of them. There is times we grieve as a collective, sometimes you need time and process as an individual. We are now reminiscing Ellie, but i already know im gonna have a cry later and ill never forget her.” Kamare could understand and respect that so she joined in. It soothed her soul.

It was years before she saw human grief again so up close.

When the Ri’ktil attacked they committed what humans called warcrimes without batting any of their eighteen eyes. The horror of the people quickly turned to fear. It was when they blew up a human colony Kimare saw the unified grief. Human governments trying to bargain with the Ri’ktil, families travelling to the floating remnants of the colony trying to find survivors, denying that what had happened killed everyone man, woman and child. A month passed and humanity had grown silent and passive, the Ri’ktal took this as victory and broad cast it to the rest of the species in the galactic counsel. A warning that they would stop at nothing and break them like they broke the humans. Kimare remembered her conversation all those years ago and realised that anger was still coming, she could almost seeing it brewing under the surface.

A month was what it took. A month for humans to start walking upright again. Not only humans on their planets but everyone, on every world and every ship seemed to have shared in the depression. So when the fog cleared the whispering began, then came the talking, when it turned to yelling the Ri’ktil took notice. It was too late for them though. Because humanity started screaming, unified rage became a spearhead of humans all over the galaxy, noone even considered not helping. The tsunami of humans that could not wait to tear their enemy apart surprised them, no matter their way too many eyes, this they did not see coming.

The counsel joined the humans in their fight, and quick as the Ri’ktil had invaded were they beat back aswell. The defeat of their enemies did not dismiss their grief. But instead of on a specie scale individuals began their own process. Four years later Kimare noticed a change, they had made a monument out of the destroyed colony, it seemed to signify an end point. Humans went there to process and make peace, they had accepted what had happened moved past it. But never forgotten.

Humans didn’t forget when they grieved, they remember and accept.

~~~~~~

Tadah

[janearts]

Hey, so you got to act 3 in the Astarion romance, right? How did Roisa feel about the romance scene in the graveyard?

I did! I finished the game back in September and played out the epilogue patch more recently. Roisia was happy to bear witness to Astarion mourning his past and celebrating a future of his choosing. However, she did take umbrage at Astarion's phrasing that he would be open to having sex that evening. Knowing his history and his relationship with sex, Roisia was really looking for more clear intent, more barefaced desire. I think his wording, "I could be persuaded", would've really bothered her even though she knew he meant it cheekily (e.g., a stupid easy persuasion check, if you will).

I've included a more thorough analysis of her feelings under the cut.

Ultimately, that night poked and prodded at deeper fears and insecurities. Roisia has been left before at the end of a grand adventure wondering how she could have missed the signs that the person she adored did not quite adore her back with the same ardour. Now, older and believing herself to be wiser, she is wary and this time, she tells herself, she will keep herself in check. She will be rational, level-headed, and even-keeled. She will not let herself get swept away by irrational desire, and her love of Astarion is a very irrational, incompatible, unwise desire.

When Astarion said that he wanted her, that she stood by him through bloodlust and pain and misery, that she had been patient, caring, and trusting, that he felt safe and seen with her, and that he didn't want to lose all of that, Roisia felt a sinking unease. A queasy sort of disquiet in her gut. Because she realised that everything he described, everything about her that he praised or acknowledged or thanked, was nothing particularly special in her eyes. As a [former] Cleric of Kelemvor, as an undertaker, as a professional mourner, she has done all of the above and more with the loved ones of decedents as part of her job. It's her sacred duty to stand by people at a low and loathsome point in their lives, through their pain and misery, with patience, compassion, and an extended hand. Hell, that's just another Tuesday!

Roisia couldn't help but feel that Astarion really only loved the things that she could do for him rather than her as a person outside of those acts of service. And those things he described could have easily been done by any Mortarch worth their salt in her place. So does he truly care for her? Or is he really just thankful for the things she's done for him? Those things that really anyone could do? It does not plant a seed, exactly, but it germinates a seed that was already present in her mind, a nasty little thought that she is not special and, therefore, not truly loved in the way that she so very much wants to be loved. That, sure, Astarion cares about her, but only because she just happened to be there and has assisted people in different stages of grief since she was a child. She is fundamentally, inescapably replaceable and it's only a matter of time until Astarion realises that and does what Eustace did: clap her on the back, thank her for her time, and move on to greener pastures whatever or wherever they may be.

It was hard for Roisia to hear Astarion say things like "I want you" and "I love you" when there is a part of herself that deeply, deeply doubts that. That thinks he is wrong even if he is not yet aware that he is wrong. She is torn between taking his words at face value, the words that her heart wants to hear, or reading between the lines, which is what the parts of herself that she calls Logic and Reason call out for her to do. I think in the moment she yields to the former, but after that night, leans towards the latter.

[ohworm-writes]

「✰」 ━━ CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE CHARACTER FAMILY OUTLINES

RATING PG-13 - Parents strongly cautioned [ Content warnings : references to sex, references to breeding kinks, heavy fluff, children, both pregnancy and adoption scenarios, toxic family relationship dynamics, minimal cursing, brief mention of Ghost and Farah's traumas, brief mention of transphobia and homophobia ]

SYNOPSIS In my opinion, what having a family with an assortment of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare characters would look like, be it how many kids they would have, their reasonings for having kids, their relationships with their kids, et cetera.

WORD COUNT 6.8k

CAPTAIN JOHN PRICE

Three sons and one daughter - ages ten, seven, five, and one

I'm certain we're all more than aware of this man's painfully obvious and present breeding kink, so it's no surprise to anyone that he would want to have a lot of children to call his own. He won't just be satisfied with one or two children - he's always wanted to have a full, bustling home, and he'll be damned if he doesn't try to make that a reality.

Every child of his is planned, both in pregnancy and adoption scenarios. He meticulously calculates and works to space each child out a certain range and number of years apart from one another in an effort to give himself extended experience with each developmental stage - or so he claims.

He wanted kids of his own, he decided, the second he met you, and he just hopes and prays that you'll be open to the concept of having quite a number of them. And, in his favor, you do and indulge him in his little fantasies.

And, in the ingenious words of @ghostlywhiskey , "i said that man has SWIMMERS AND THOSE MFS ARE PRICE BOYS". So, there's a very obvious patten that begins to form as more and more members are added to his little family. But, of course, there's one token daughter added into the mix, who he loves all the same as he does his boys.

In my eyes, the ideal father figure. He's extremely open and honest with his children, listens and talks with them whenever they have an issue or question, is very understanding and accepting overall, and, more than anything, works tirelessly to be a present, positive figure in their lives.

Because of all of the experience that he has with his own children, this results in the members of Task Force 141 and associated parties going to him for help or to have him answer questions they may have around their own children.

He tries to be as present of a father as he can be, given the challenges and distance that comes with his line of work, but always makes an effort, at the very least, call his kids whenever he can to ask about how they're doing, what they're up to, et cetera.

Refuses to talk about his job or entertain his children in the very idea of joining the military - the horrors he's seen is not in the slightest something he wants his children to witness for themselves. He knows the job best, and he will not allow any of his children to join.

Raises his sons right - they're respectful, mind their manners, don't start fights (but finish them, should the need arise) and instills all the necessary core morals and values they'll need to be good people when they grow up. All the same, he teaches his daughter not to take shit from anyone.

LIEUTENANT SIMON "GHOST" RILEY

Three daughters and one child (non-binary) - ages ten, six, three, and nine

Originally, he had never even spent a moment in time thinking about or entertaining the possibility of him having children, much less actively putting effort into reaching that goal. Especially when considering his own history, he can't even begin to see himself as a father, fearing he'll end up like his own.

So, when you get pregnant for the first time on complete accident/enthusiastically bring up the idea to him of adopting a child seemingly out of nowhere to him, he's completely shell-shocked. This is something he's ever put considerable thought into, and now it's being dropped into his lap without a moment to process it or breathe.

So, when he lays eyes on his first little girl for the first time, he's terrified. He's a dad now, whether he wants to or is ready for it or not. And no, it's not like he didn't tell you to get an abortion/refuse to sign the papers, but he isn't fully ready for such a heavy responsibility yet. But when he has her in his arms for the first time, he's done for.

After the first, he's so open and willing - and, quite frankly, pushing for - trying for/adopting another child. Yes, he was scared for his life to become a dad at first, but now that he's one now, he can't help but want another - and best you believe that his children are his absolute world.

Curse of the military. That's it, that's the tweet. He had all girls, plus, of course, his one gender non-conforming, non-binary kid, and all of them have equal ownership over his heart.

He's the perfect girl-dad, letting them do whatever they want with him - their own personal dress-up doll, if you will. Painting his nails, putting make-up on him, styling his hair, making him attend tea-parties and playing make-pretend. Whatever they want him to do, he does it.

When his second-oldest comes out to him (they came to him first before they did you), his heart absolutely melts. To know that his kid trusts him so wholeheartedly and isn't scared to share such a private thing with him lets him know just how good of a dad he is.

He's quick to use the right pronouns, allocates a separate room for them, helps them go shopping for clothes and items they may want, tests out new names for them should they want to, et cetera.

He's not at all a strict parent, as much as one might believe. He's stoic, cold, and cruel, sure - but that's to everyone but his family. For them? He's the biggest pushover in the world. If his children want anything, best believe he's doing everything in his power to fulfill their wishes.

SERGEANT JOHN "SOAP" MACTAVISH

One son and one daughter - ages four and five

He's always wanted children, that mindset and dream having been set long before he ever even joined the military in the first place. He used to take care of and watch his nieces, nephews, and younger cousins a lot when he was younger, so it eventually evolved into him wanting little rascals of his own as time went on - to be able to nurture, care for, and have fun with.

So, when the opportunity arises to actually start a family of his own, something that he's always dreamed of, he's so giddy. In complete honesty, he's practically beaming and bouncing on the balls of his feet, so willing and ready to make this into a reality. He has his own fears and anxieties, yes, but his excitement far outweighs it.

Both of his children are planned, of course, wanting them to be close in age as he can get them, and he's ecstatic that he gets to have both a boy and a girl. He gets the best of both worlds that way! And, when he finally gets to hold each in his arms for the first time, his heart shatters, melts, and crumbles in the best ways possible.

He isn't just a solider, a boyfriend, or a husband anymore - he's a dad now.

He's such a fun dad in general, always joking around with his kids, letting them - safely - do things that they aren't supposed to do, messing with them, taking them out for desert and sweets, et cetera.

But, as much as he's the "fun dad", that doesn't mean that he's any less strict. If his kids mess up or do something bad, he's often the one responsible for determining punishment, telling them off, and teaching them not to make the same mistake again.

His work is demanding, yes, and that often takes him away from you, his partner, and his kids for long periods of time, but he always comes back, ready to be a dad again and put "Soap" on the backburner.

The perfect role model for his kids, in all honesty - the best combination between a best friend and a parental figure. His kids tell him everything and they aren't scared of him to keep secrets from him, always telling him the truth without shame or hesitation.

SERGEANT KYLE "GAZ" GARRICK

One son and one daughter - ages seven

Both of children are twins

Having children wasn't something he had ever planned for, in his mind. Not to say that he never entertained the idea of having children of his own, nor is it to say something that he's against, either. He simply hadn't ever thought about making it a reality before.

But, when the opportunity to have/adopt children comes up into his life, it's welcomed, allowing himself to go with the flow of things and let them play out as is. He thinks about it a lot more now, daydreaming about what his child's personality will be like, what they'll look like, who they'll like more...

And then boom! Twins!

He's starstruck when he first gets the news that he'll be having/adopting twins. It's like a two-for-one deal, or so he says, genuinely shocked and excited at the same time. The way he sees it, his kids will always have a best friend (or, a partner-in-crime) and he's all for it.

Twins are a lot, he knows, but that doesn't mean he isn't up for the challenge. If anything, it only spurs him on to push to be the best dad he could ever possibly be.

For better or for worse, his kids adopt his sarcastic nature as their own and increase it by tenfold. It's his fault, given that whenever his kids are around, he's talking to them as if they'd understand his points and smart comments. They don't, most of the time, but they know their dad's tone, and they're quick to match it.

Takes the most time off out of anyone else in Task Force 141 to spend with his family if and when he can allocate it. He wants to be as present of a dad as possible, and if that means taking work home when he could easily finish it on base and then come home, maybe a day or two later, he's doing it.

Very adamant on having days out with his kids, be it for the purpose of a mental health day or just for fun. Takes them out to get breakfast and lunch, plus going to do another activity. Maybe the park, the playground, watch a movie at the cinema, go to the zoo/aquarium, et cetera.

He's not a super strict parent but that doesn't mean he isn't going to disciple his children if they misbehave or do something wrong. His punishments are lax, focused more towards talking out the issue that giving harsh lessons.

STATION CHIEF KATE LASWELL

One son - aged sixteen

She and her wife decided that they really wanted to have a kid of their own a few years into their marriage and, especially given that neither of them aren't getting any younger and didn't necessarily have the energy, time, or willingness to take on the challenge of pregnancy for themselves, they choose the more sensible option available and adopt.

It's a long, deliberate process that they have to go through in order to be so much as be approved for being able to adopt, but, once that hurdle is overcome, the two of them waste no time and immediately begin their search for the newest member of their own little family, allocating time to meticulously decide who they'll, inevitably, choose.

Their hearts end up settling on a little boy whose four years old, somehow resembling the both of them in different ways - be it personality wise or by appearance.

The two of them decide that they want to be able to escape and skip the issues that come packaged with newborns and toddlers, but also have a hand in the development process of their son, thus explaining the age they chose to adopt him at. This accomplishes both of these "goals" they have in mind, and it works out beautifully in their favor.

No matter their son's ethnic background, the two of them make a conscious effort to try and introduce practices, traditions, holidays, ideals, et cetera from their son's culture into their own as a means to keep him connected with his own past and history.

Although her job is connected with the military and does, to an extent, seperate her from her families for periods of time, that doesn't diminish the relationship she has with her son. He's fascinated with his mom's career, allowing for lengthy, in-depth discussion about what her job actually entails with him.

She and her wife are such good moms in general - always supporting him in everything he wants to do and encouraging him a thousand times over. There isn't a second in his life where he isn't being supported or loved, but it by his moms or the numerous different adult figures in his life.

Laswell gets in a fair bit of trouble with her wife for not disciplining her son in any way, shape, or form. She may have no issue with doing so with the military individuals she works with - she can be scary and intimidating when she wants to be - but with her son? She's absolutely a pushover.

Quits smoking the second she and her wife make plans towards actually adopting. It's a harsh line she draws, and one she abides by without hesitation or question.

VALERIA GARZA

None

Now, this isn't because I want to exclude her from this concept for any reasoning whatsoever, but rather because I can't really see her having or wanting any children in the first place. She's "El Sin Nombre", after all. And, in her defense, the cartel isn't necessarily the best enviroment for a child to grow up or develop in - surprising nobody.

She knows this fact better than anyone, and, having sworn her life to her role in Las Almas and the cartel, she chooses to not have any children. Additionally, she isn't going to be irresponsible and make herself vulnerable like that where, to have someone to love and care fore, only for the possibility of them being used as leverage against her later on hanging over her head, putting them in danger.

And, in any case, she has a breeding kink to make up for it, eh?

But, in all seriousness, as wonderful as I think she could possibly be with children in general, I doubt she plans on having or adopting children of her own unless she actually makes the move to leave the business of the cartel altogether - which, lets face it, with who she is and the role that she plays, is highly unlikely.

To make up for this, let's talk about her relationship with kids in general - be it the children of Las Almas and nieces and nephews that she has and interacts with.

She fits the "cool aunt" persona to a tee, always bringing gifts and/or cash to her younger family members, getting them whichever they desire, playing games with them, talking shit about people and listening to them vent, et cetera.

If the children have a problem with someone and, if aren't family, she has no issue doing something about it, be it using a scare tactic on them or completely removing the other person from the equation in more serious scenarios.

All the kids love her, no matter if they're family or if they know her or not. If she isn't busy and one of her men have a child of their own that they need to tend to while they're on the clock, she'll let the kid stay around in her office, so long as they don't disturb the peace.

VLADIMIR MAKAROV

One son and one daughter - ages eleven and five

Now, as cold, cruel, stoic, and heartless of a character that Makarov is, I personally believe that there would be select factors that would influence him to actually want children. Technical, albeit, and not for the sake of having someone to nurture and care for - at least, in the beginning - but I do believe that, for his own reasons, he would still want children as he progresses on later in his career and plans.

The only reason I could ever see for him to so much as bring up the concept of having children, in a way that makes sense when considering his character, would be due to the result of a close encounter that has him just barely scraping out of whatever altercation with his life to spare and hold onto.

He decides then and there that he wants to have a child - a son, specifically - who will be able to take his place and lead the groups that he controls and reigns over when he, inevitably, passes because, like he stated: "even I'm replaceable". It's a morbid phrase, yes, but it makes sense for him to have this be his reasoning.

He wants his replacement to be his own, too, and not for one of men to simply be promoted after he passes. After all, their ideologies, morals, and values could change over time and alter from his own, and he can't have that. However, if he were to have a child, he could foster and tailor their beliefs to match his own.

And besides, there's a certain charm that comes with saying his son is going to be the next in line. So, to his favor, he gets a first-born son, just as he had wished. His daughter, however, is completely accidental and unplanned/an abrupt decision when she is born/adopted. (In the context of pregnancy, though, its entirely his fault that she's conceived out of nowhere - wear protection, folks.)

For the longest time, his relationship with his son is, for lack of better wording, toxic - but this does change! If only with your intervention. All he wants in the beginning is for his son to be able to take over for him in the future - that being his sole purpose. And, unfortunately, he makes that a known fact.

Brings his son in with him to work on base often, working to teach and show to him the empire that he'll be taking over once his dad is gone. He gets a front-row view to the horrors his father is behind and in control of, be it the planning process for strategized and organized attacks, his cruel methods for dealing with traitors, and otherwise.

As much as he might, at heart, want to be a boy-dad, his relationship with his son is so strained and, frankly, falling apart, even if he refuses to acknowledge it, and so toxic in nature that it's only natural he becomes a girl-dad when his daughter is finally born. It's unfair, yes, but it's the truth of the matter.

He keeps his daughter far away from his work, shielding her completely from the badness of the world - the badness that he himself helps to create. She's his his pride and joy, and she's such a daddy's girl, leaving his son to fall to you, his other parental figure, for comfort and support - that of which his dad fails to provide.

COLONEL KÖNIG

Four daughters - ages two, three, seven, and fourteen

Interestingly enough, he's actually always quietly desired and yearned for a family of his own, though, he's never had any open discussions about it until it came to you. It's almost funny, the way that he's so awkward and tends to shy away from others any chance he's allowed to, and yet, he wants nothing more than a sizeable family for himself.

To have someone to fight for, to come back home to... it's all a soldier ever wants - himself included. And, for him, that includes a family that doesn't just consist of him and you (as content and happy as he is with it for now). The mere prospect of coming home to children of his own who can greet him and adore him is all he could ever ask for.

Though, even given this, he's especially nervous to actually become a father. He overthinks it a lot, wondering if his kids will even like him, going over the multitude of different ways that he could mess up even when he has no reason to. Because after his first, that fear melts away into enthusiasm.

Four children, especially when they're all girls, is a lot, yes, but he handles it with ease. He doesn't let the stress of it get to him, simply taking everything in stride and dealing with it rationally. He wants to preserve the positive relationship he has with his daughters, and approaching things from a logical standpoint is just the way to do it.

The true curse of the military - all girls, and so many of them, too. His younger children are all girly to an extent, too, so he's no stranger at a tea party and getting his make-up and nails done messily by his daughters. His oldest, although she may not be as girly, still has her moments, be it certain musicians maybe that she's forced her dad to listen to the entire discography of.

His girls love use him as a prop and character in their bouts of playing "make pretend". He's played a tree, standing still for them to climb all over, a dragon, protecting them from all of the bugs and critters that threatens to offend the, and even a race car, holding onto one or two of them as tight as he can and breaking into a sprint. It's strange and exhausting, sure, but he loves it.

Teaches his daughters to stick up for themselves - it's one of the first lessons he ever teaches them. Whether it be in terms of don't let people see you as a pushover, don't let anyone tell you what you can or cannot do, or stick up for yourself by any means necessary, he instills those ideals into his kids. Teaches his eldest how to fight, too - per her request - as another measure and precaution.

Although being apart of KorTac and being a colonel in general keep him busy and occupied and away from his family, that doesn't stop him from trying his hardest to be with them. He sends each and every one of his daughters, with the inclusion of yourself, gifts he picks up while he's away that reminds him of you all, just as a means to remind you all that he's here and he loves you.

COMMANDER PHILLIP GRAVES

Two daughters and two children (transgender) - ages seventeen, six, and thirteen

Both of his trans children, female-to-male, are twins

In his daydreams, he's always imagined himself with a family of his own. A nuclear family, the American ideal - married with two and a half kids, a dog, a big house with a white-picket fence, a stable job. The whole lot. That's all he's ever had in mind for himself and he yearns to make it a reality.

So, when the topic of children come up after the married, dog, house, and job things are already figured out, he's eager to speak his mind and give his input on the matter. He's got the biggest, most lopsided grin spread out across his face when he lays eyes on his eldest daughter for the first time, and that only solidifies his dreams.

Though, ironically enough, he always had in his mind that he'd have more boys than girls. He loves his daughters wholeheartedly and without shame, mind you, but... still, the sentiment remains. He always imagined himself with one, maybe two or three boys - someone he could play catch or watch sports with.

He doesn't get that, until he does, and his twins come out to him (albeit, at separate ages) as trans ftm. Of course, the whole "trans" thing is new to him, and while he may be a little clueless, seeing how happy it makes the two of his kids is more than enough to convince him him to put in effort and be the most supportive dad he can be.

I don't want anyone coming to me saying "oh, he's transphobic" because no he's not. He may fit that all-American persona of his to a tee, but I refuse to say that he would go as far to be transphobic or homophobic, especially with his own children. (Also, I'm petty, so you get two of them).

He fights and works hard to be present in his children's lives. He may be the Commander and CEO of Shadow Company, but that doesn't mean his men can't function without him from time to time. His family means everything to him, all of his time off being spent towards treating them.

Not the parent who pushes for his children to each be involved in a million after-school activities, but encourages them to take up something. His oldest plays volleyball, his second-oldest plays baseball, his second-youngest plays the drums, and his youngest dances. Takes them all to practice and helps them however he can.

Genuinely just copy and paste Jeff Sadecki from Yellowjackets and that's him as a parent. Except... with less of the drama. He's dedicated to being involved in his children's lives, making memories and having fun with them, telling horrible dad jokes from time to time, and whatever else.

SERGEANT MAJOR RODOLFO "RUDY" PARRA

One child (agender) - aged sixteen

He never actually planned on or anticipated becoming a father in the first place, more focused on dedicating his efforts towards his career and not spending more than a passing thought on creating a family. Not to say that he doesn't want one, it's just a concept he hasn't spent too much time thinking about or worrying over.

So, this means that you have to be the one to bring it up to him. And, granted, it somewhat catches him off guard - you want to try for a baby/consider adoption with him? Since when? It throws him off, to be honest, and he genuinely has to take some time to reflect and decide if this is actually something that he wants.

And, in your favor, it is.

He's somewhat nonchalant about the whole thing, not really realizing how big of an event it is until you're close to the due date/you're approved for adoption. And then it hits him full force that, yeah - sooner than later, he's actually going to become a dad and deal with the responsibilities of one and have a child of his own.

It's humbling, funnily enough, and he revaluates his priorities when it comes to his career, you, and child-to-be.

Even though he never anticipated or saw himself as someone who could accurately fill the role of a father, he's a good one. More akin to a close friend at times whereas others he can more accurately be described as a mentor, but it's important for fathers to share both of those factors, in a way. Which he absolutely does.

His child comes out to him before they reach double-digits, and its another moment that he has to pause for. Of course he's going to love them unconditionally, no matter if they identify as something else or go by different pronouns or want to use a different name, it's simply something he hadn't expected.

Doesn't really at all punish his child if they do something wrong. He'll have a conversation with them, sure, but it never truly extends to anything beyond that. Simply a "hey, don't do that again, okay?" and moving on with life. All that matters is that they understand and acknowledge their faults, in his eyes.

Involves himself in whatever his child is interested in and tries to understand it as best he can. They have a sport they're really into? He's buying them merch and watching matches or games with them. They're really into a certain video game? Start up a new save file, he'd love to play. Genuinely super supportive.

Does not at all plan on having another child. He's content with the one and, quite frankly, even one can be a lot at times. He can't count how many times he's had to go to those parent support groups just to ensure he's being as good of a dad as he can be.

COLONEL ALEJANDRO VARGAS

Four sons and one daughter - ages twelve, eleven, nine, and eight

His oldest sons are twins

The absolute definition of a family man. He, somewhat akin to Price, always imagined himself with a family of his own later down the line in his life - a large, lively one, too. He grew up in a larger household himself with a number of brothers and sisters, both younger and older, and he always imagined the same for his future family.

He's so enthusiastic about it, too. He isn't scared or worried at all, confident in his own abilities to take care of children, given his own extended experience, so he has little to no fear in what he'll be like as a parent or his own capabilities. He knows what he'll need to do, how to do it, what to buy, what to say, et cetera, so he's confident.

He doesn't really have a plan for what their ages will be, more so allowing everything to flow naturally, but he can't deny the fact that he has his own picture in mind for what he wants his family to look like. Ironically, he always imagined himself with more girls than boys, but it seems like life had... a different plan for him.

He loves it, though. He's extremely good with newborns and toddlers especially, and when he laid eyes on his twins for the first time, holding both of them to him, it was over. Plain and simple. With the first step taken, he can now fully immerse himself in being a father and cultivating the lives of his children, and that's all he could ask for.

His boys are rowdy. Especially his oldest twins and his youngest son, his eleven-year-old acting much tamer and calmer in comparison, but still has his moments. They roughhouse with one another, mess with each other, talk shit - the whole lot. Typical sibling behavior, yes, but they had so much energy.

Takes a lot of time off to be with his family when he can spare it. If he isn't physically out for an operation and instead is at the Los Vaqueros base, he sometimes will bring one or two of his children to stay in his office while he works. That is, if he doesn't up and leave to go home the second the opportunity arises.

Defiantly the one responsible for disciplining his children and dishing out punishment. It's not to say that he's cruel or mean in any sense, but he can be strict. If they do something wrong, he's quick to decide on a punishment that appropriate and relevant, dedicated to correcting that behavior as swiftly as possible.

He's an absolute pushover with his daughter, though. Not to say that he doesn't love his boys, because he does, but he'd do anything for her. Tea parties? Dress up? Make believe? You name it, no matter how embarrassing or emasculating it may be, and he's doing it if his little girl asks.

Messes around with his boys a lot. He has a positive relationship with all of them, one that's open and honest, which leaves room for him to be able to roughhouse and taunt and poke fun at them from time to time. They might have to be smart with their own words and responses, but he's making smartass, cheeky remarks whenever he can with a grin.

OPERATION OFFICER ALEX KEELER

One daughter - aged eleven

He's thought about having children before, yes, but never in a realistic context. For him, in the past, it's always been more of a "let me imagine a scenario of how myself and a future family would look" but never actively taking strides or realistically think about how he would achieve that.

So, when you bring the topic up to him, he kind of stills and... actually thinks about it. There's a difference between putting yourself in a scenario and imagining it, and actually taking steps to make it into a reality. He sort of panics, too, because... would he actually make a good dad?

He's the most apprehensive and anxious person out of anyone when it comes to considering the path of parenthood. Of course, he agrees, more than willing to try for a baby/go through the adoption process with you, but he's endlessly terrified of messing things up.

Even when he actually gets to meet and hold his daughter for the first time - he's a man who has no shame in crying, because he absolutely does when he sees her - that paranoia remains. But even so, it solidifies his goal to become the best father he can be for his little girl.

So clueless at first at how to even approach fatherhood, purchasing so many parents books and listening to an abundance of podcasts and going to classes and everything of the like. He's confident in most aspects, sure, but parenthood is something he's never dealt with in the past - it's no surprise he wants to do everything in his power to be the best dad he can be.

As anxious as he is, though, he, in my opinion, is probably the best father he could possibly ever dream to be. He's attentive to his daughter's wants and needs, can gauge her emotions correctly and acts accordingly, is responsible in terms of taking precautions to keep her safe, and he's present as much as he can be.

Number one cheerleader in everything she does. Whether it be getting a passing grade or an outstanding one on a test, he's hyping her up. If she joins and becomes a part of a particular activity of interest, he's taking her out to a celebratory dinner. All words of encouragement and praise from him.

Is a very active an present parent, too. Takes her out on little father-daughter days whenever he can to wherever she wants to go. The mall to look at the one obscure candle store? Sure, he's down. The zoo to go make up conversations between the animals. Absolutely. He loves hanging out with her, and seeing the way she lights up whenever he offers to take her out is all he could ever dream of.

COMMANDER FARAH AHMED KARIM

Two sons and one daughter - ages seven, four, and eight months

In the beginning, actually, she was very opposed to the concept of having/adopting children. Given her involvement with the ULF and that the current climate in Urzikstan was far from safe to raise any child in, she had no reason to even entertain the thought. Especially considering her own past, she was against it.

For a while, most conversations of having or starting a family were shut down by her - she yearned for it in the back of her mind, sure, but it wasn't a realistic goal. That was until she and Samara had a conversation about the topic, Samara telling her that while, yes, there were dangers to it, there's nothing more fulfilling than family.

So, after long deliberations, she began to consider it more heavily, leading to discussions where she finally agreed. She has her own reservations, fears, and anxieties about it, yes, but considering all the work she's done, she's allowed to have this. To have a child or children, to make her own family that loves her unconditionally.

She keeps her family completely separate and distanced from her work. As much as she's passionate about what she does, there's that lingering fear in the back of her mind that, one day, her family could get hurt or even possibly used against her as leverage if they're discovered. So, there's a clean separation between the two.

But it's all worth it when she meets her first born son for the first time. She's playing such important roles in her life - the Commander of the ULF, a resistance fighter, someone associated with Task Force 141, and one of the few key figures tasked with liberating her country in its entirety. But, now, she's more than that. She's a mom.

Even though she's never had children of her own before, she handles motherhood like a seasoned professional. Even before her other two children, she never got too overwhelmed with the work and responsibilities that come with being a parent, handling everything with a level head and a calm voice, turning out in her favor.

Though, she's somewhat a bit stricter with her children - not in the sense of being overbearing and not trusting them, or even that she has high expectations and standards for them. Rather, she wants to ensure the safety of her children and that their childhoods never turn out like her own, so she takes extra precautions.

She doesn't actually send her children to school, rather taking time to teach them herself - with your aid, of course. It's partially for those same reasons of fear and wanting to protect her children, but she's actually really good at it. She's taught her children how to write, how to read, how to speak two different languages... it's a way that shows how invested she is in her family.

As serious as she can be with her work, she's much more laid back and relaxed when it comes to her family - just another perk and upside, she supposes. With all the stresses she deals with, being able to come home to her sons and daughter, being overwhelmed with love - it's rewarding in a way she's never experienced before.

NIKOLAI

Two daughters - ages eight and three

He's always imagined himself with children, in complete honesty, even when he was younger - to have maybe one to three of his own. To your luck, he's open about it too, so he's actually the one to bring up the idea to you in the beginning, having no shame whatsoever in his willingness to try for/adopt a child... or two or three.

He isn't scared to become a parent, per se, nor does he have many anxieties or worries about becoming one, but there is still that subtle worry in the back of his mind that he won't be the most fit parent.

Everyone jokes about how he can be reckless and unethical, and he enjoys the banter, but it does make him self-conscious and second guess his own ability to be an adequate father.

He doesn't really consider or worry about what ages his children are, simply allowing things to fall into place naturally, as they should. He may have imagined himself with children in his own daydreams, sure, but there was never any clear specifics for age or gender he had in mind.

But once he actually gets to meet his daughters for the first time, those worries fade away partially - they still linger, yes, but for the most part he lets them simmer on the backburner, not allowing them to interfere with him as he directs his focus away from worrying and more towards becoming the father his girls deserve.

His daughters are just as much of a menace as he is. Maybe not in the "I deal with sketchy people on a daily basis and have done some questionable things" kind of way, but they have their own mischievous streaks like their father. Be it orchestrating pranks or smaller acts of the like, sometimes they even outshine the father.

He's playful by nature, yes, and he is with his girls, but you'll also never meet a more protective parent than him. He may be sly and smug and appear all cool and collected outwardly, but when it comes to his daughters, he's doing everything in his power to protect them from anything, be it people... or ants.

Likes to be his daughters' own personal jungle gym, letting the two of them hold onto him and climb all over him without a care in the world. Additionally, that means he makes for the perfect mode of transport for them, too - having them cling onto him as he walks around, moving them from one place to the other.

He can act like a child in his own right, but he's still a good father nonetheless. In line with that protective nature, he does everything he can to both foster a positive relationship and set rules and boundaries. Bed times, chores, punishments, et cetera - he's in charge of those things, and, while he isn't strict, he's responsible.

[novlr]

Do you have any tips of how to write a villain that is a bad person, but is also likeable?

There are several options for writing villains that build the foundation for a reader’s perception of just how evil they really are. The villain is often a story’s antagonist but can also be the story’s main character. But they are not always a pure evil character. So how do we create a villain that our readers will like? 

Sympathy

The strongest way to bridge the gap between your villain and the reader is by appealing to sympathy. A tragic backstory goes a long way in setting the stage for a character’s fall to villainy. Many people can identify with the fear—or knowledge—of how much one bad thing can persuade someone to do bad things. No matter how strong a person appears, there’s an extreme situation that can push anyone to make a bad choice. 

The two common avenues you can pursue within the sympathy track are the impossible situation and desperation. To embody the ‘impossible situation’, your villain’s motivations need to stem from something where the bad choice was the only real choice. In a fantasy world, your villain may be a dark wizard that was an average person before they were abducted by a larger evil force, and forced to become evil or die. They may be indoctrinated into the wrong cause now—thus becoming the villain. In a modern setting, your villain may have grown up in an environment that promoted crime or violence as the only way to live. 

Desperation is a good motivator when the villain needs to gain (or re-gain) something, and there’s a “bad” option that will get the desired results faster. Perhaps your villain had to make a terrible choice to keep their livelihood or significant other, and covering up that choice continues to make their actions antagonistic. More specifically, desperation shows up in a pivotal time of need: where someone could take the high road, but we understand the appeal of the so-called low road. 

So how do we keep the sympathy real?

Your reader needs to see how they, or a loved one, could stoop to the villain’s level. This may be the most difficult part of creating this character because you can’t appeal to every individual member of your audience here. 

I suggest starting with research on whistleblowers (people who report illegal or unethical business practices that are undeniably in the ‘right’ but are certainly the ‘villain’ to the company) and thinking about the perspectives of the business’s employees. Many of them didn’t know about the wrong their company was doing, so now they’re angry with the whistleblower for taking away their jobs or ruining their professional reputations. Then, think about the people who were aware of the acts and were eager to keep profits high at the risk of getting caught. 

Do you need a redemption arc?

Nope. People go too far sometimes, and there’s no saving them. For some people, redemption may only come in their total and utter defeat, whether they’re imprisoned, killed, or otherwise incapacitated. 

If you are considering a redemption arc, you need to stick to the character’s established principles: it was all for nothing if their villainous actions are washed away by regret or the hero’s need to defeat them. We sympathize with conviction — you have to let your villain keep theirs to maintain character integrity.

A villain can realize their actions were wrong (murder often isn’t a good answer!), but they need to still believe in their actions, even if they wouldn’t do it again. A likable villain does the wrong things for the right reason. Stripping them of that reason strips their character of meaning. Who are they, in the end, if they were a monster for no reason at all? 

Perceived injustice and your villain

I want to talk about using perspectives and hidden information to play on the sympathy of your readers. If the circumstance that led to the villain’s actions was a lie from the start, the audience gets to experience the grief of being a monster for no reason at all. They could spend the entire story hating the villain along with the character’s telling the story and have it come crashing down in the denouement.

The burden of realizing their actions were all for nothing, or that they wouldn’t have done it if they’d known the truth, is a powerful emotional appeal. We don’t necessarily need to like the villain from chapter one; we can like them in the epilogue, where they have to deal with the consequences of their actions. 

In the end, the villain is just a character

A villain has just as much opportunity to be likable as the hero does, though it’s trickier to get there in a tale of good versus evil. Anyone short of truly evil can be likable, and I’m sure someone out there still has a soft spot for the truly evil and irredeemable.

People do bad things for good reasons every day. You just get to figure out how to balance those with redeemable qualities or convictions. 

[klxudykai]

the ugly part of reality shifting

as great as shifting is, its really fucking draining. like REALLY draining. its nice that people want to show the fun and positive side of shifting and all, but once new shifters (specifically) hit the stage where they're drained and extremely demotivated, they aren't going to know how to deal with these new overwhelming emotions. reality shifting takes a toll on our mental health even if we don't like to admit it. this may not apply to everything, but I know it applies to the majority.

ive been shifting since 2021 (if you saw my post Abt me starting shifting in 2019 that was wrong lmfao mb yall-). and I still haven't shifted. I used to think I'd shift within 4 years but surprise surprise. I haven't. I'm drained and demotivated. I don't completely believe I wont ever shift, but I don't think I can get what I want by manifesting or affirming or doing any of that. I think the universe will just randomly hand it to me. it sounds dumb but that's the weird luck I have. when I don't expect it, I get what I want. but when I try hard and I expect it, nothing happens or I get smth worse. i don't think that even when I put blood,sweat, and tears into this that I'll shift. I've discovered so much shit about myself yet I am still here with no experience of what its like in another reality let alone my dr. never saw my dr once. only in my dreams and my imagination.

im going to be completely honest when I say that shifting is not for the weak. I'm not saying this to get you to quit because shifting is one of the best things that I found. I just want you to know that its not always going to be perfect. you might feel desperate, you might feel homesick, you might feel exhausted mentally. and sometimes you'll make progress but then find another obstacle. quite frankly, fuck the obstacles because that's not the issue. its how you deal with them that really determine how your growth goes. and no I'm not saying it controls if you'll shift or not because it doesn't. but if you're a person that gives up easily, its going to be hard to overcome those blockages. I say that because I myself give up easily. which is ironic because I don't give up when it comes to certain goals I want to accomplish (one of those goals being shifting), but I refuse to get rid of those so called "blockages" and avoid them even though I know what's the problem. I avoid them because I don't know how to fix them and I just have this fear that's telling me I'll fail.

this post probably doesn't make a lot of sense but that's because I'm writing this in the heat of the moment so I'm not doing a lot of thinking, I'm just typing. what I'm saying is don't be that person that avoids the problems. be transparent with yourself because I'm telling you, the more you avoid it, the more drained youre going to become. it might turn into an endless loop where you think about your Dr daily but you have zero energy to shift. and it fucking sucks.

overall, please take breaks whether they're mental or shifting breaks, if you feel like there is an issue with yourself, fix it. this is a hard journey but it will be a lot easier once you're honest and overcome problems that need to be solved.

(disclaimer that this may not apply to everyone, just the people who are going through a rough patch in their journey. this is mainly just my perspective and what I've heard from a friend of mine since our issues seemed pretty similar. and if anyone needs someone to talk to, my DMS are open. I want my blog to be a safe space and that this is a place where not everything is perfect. I love y'all and please take care and don't stress yourselves <33)

also, fuck that toxic positivity shit that just makes mfs more drained. if you feel demotivated address it don't push it away

[anim-ttrpgs]

Vampire Player Character Rules in Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy

Eureka has six playable "monster" types, and about ten total supernatural character options all together. Each supernatural trait is taken basically as if it is a normal trait like the ones you have been seeing us post. You cannot give a character more than one supernatural trait--and from what you are about to read, you probably wouldn't want to. Playing monsters is recommended for "advanced" players only, people who like a lot of "crunch" in their games, as require you to keep track of a lot more mechanics than playing a normal human.

Here is the Vampire Trait as it appears in its overhauled state in the patreon release. The August itchio beta does not currently have these overhauled monster traits(though, you could just use this post as reference if you wanted to play with the overhauled vampire rules, we don't mind! They're much better rules and we want people to have the most fun possible!)

If you are reading this past about October 24th, then there is a good chance that the itchio beta actually has been updated to include these improved rules, fingers crossed!

Anyway here we go. This is going under a Read More because it's long as hell but we really hope that you will check it out and comment. This is, like, the whole entire ruleset for playing a vampire in Eureka.

Vampire (Monster Trait) 

Vampires have quite a lot of powers, more than twice as many as any other monster, all informed by pre-1900 vampire legends. As a Narrator or a player portraying a vampire, don't fret about remembering all the vampire's powers at all times - they certainly don't. Some effects of these powers and weaknesses are left intentionally somewhat vague so as to leave them partially up to Narrator/player discretion. This is intentional, and is meant to reflect that no two vampires work exactly the same. 

Eureka presents a particular perspective on the legend of the vampire, while still adhering very strictly to real historical vampire folklore. It is a specific interpretation, which sets the stage for specific themes in the lives of vampiric investigators. 

Vampires, and the legends surrounding them, perhaps more so than any other monster present as a playable monster in the Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy rulebook, are inextricably linked to continental Europe and therefore Abrahamic[1] faiths.[2] Some may argue that vampire legends exist all around the world in every time and place, and that may be true, if you think that the only defining feature of a vampire is that they drink blood. What you are calling “vampires” from other cultures are each actually their own concept, with their own rich folkloric history, only overlapping with the European vampire on the Venn diagram in the fact that they drink blood and perhaps are undead. Loss and fear are universal, but the way different historical cultures interpret and portray these things in their stories are not. If you would like to play one of the many creatures that often gets attributed as “[other culture]’s vampire,” we encourage this and invite you to do some research into them, to see how unique and interesting each of these spirits from around the world really are.

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] Predominantly Catholic and Orthodox, but enough of it also applies to other Abrahamic faiths.

[2  off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires are of course not entirely unique in coming from a very specific cultural context, but the authors of this book are writing what they know. If there’s two things that the American South has, it’s vampires and Christianity. The American South is a deeply Christian environment, and we know what that can do to a person (for better or for worse), whereas we have less of a personal connection - and more importantly, less intimate knowledge and access to firsthand accounts - of the cultural heritage of some of the other monsters, so even where a specific cultural background may be additive to the rules thematically, such as the conception of women in historical and modern Greek culture for gorgons, we have chosen not to elaborate. 

Vampiric investigators in Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy are all considered to have been raised in cultures of Abrahamic faith. They may have remained unchanged in their faith or lack thereof, found faith, or lost faith[1] in their transition from life to undeath, but no matter what, Abrahamic faith has strongly influenced their life in some way.[2] This is a prerequisite for an investigator being a vampire.

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] A vampire who never had any faith to begin with would have to be a very, very young vampire.

[2. Off to the side in the final formatting.] If creating a vampiric investigator with a religious upbringing more than a couple centuries ago, bear in mind that the way historical people related to and conceptualized their faith is often very different than the way modern people do. Try to look into what those historical peoples actually believed; pop-history will tell you that medieval Roman Catholicism and modern American Protestantism are the same. They aren’t. The middle ages were the middle ages, not the 1950s.

[2.1. off to the side in the final formatting] Depending on their place of origin, some “vampires” older than a few centuries may prefer to identify themselves as “revenants” or “draugr.” It would be quite rude to try and correct them.

[Snoop: The tall thin vampire snoopette with hat standing on the ceiling right behind a frightened snoop in a dark room, who does not know she is there. Maybe make the background black and the snoops white to show that it is dark? Give the frightened snoop a flashlight with a white beam?]

Superhuman Strength

When not debilitated by a weakness, vampires are considered to have Superhuman Strength, and a +10 Base bonus to Athletics[4] and +1 Base bonus to Close Combat.[1][2][3]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires do not have stamina in the same sense as living beings do, and may appear to have unlimited energy as far as conventional physical exertion goes. Their extreme and unnatural strength does not actually come from their muscles.

[2  off to the side in the final formatting] Despite what the movies say, vampires do not have superhuman speed. Though superhuman strength and seemingly unlimited stamina means they can still move frighteningly fast. 

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] 1 Samuel 16:14.

[4 off to the side in the final formatting] This means that their Athletics bonus will almost always be equal to their current Composure level. 

In Lizard Fashion

When not debilitated by a Weakness, vampires have the ability to walk or climb on any solid surface as if it were a floor.[1][2] Re-orienting to a surface that would be impossible to stand on normally counts as use of a supernatural ability. Additionally, so long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, if they do choose, vampires are immovable. They will never lose their balance or be able to be knocked off their feet.[3] Their bones will break before they budge. Making use of this power is only possible when they are standing still, and counts as use of a supernatural ability. This cannot be used in response to a Stealth Attack, and if the vampire is otherwise not expecting to need it, they must make a Full Success on a Reflexes roll to be able to do so.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] A vampire’s hair and clothes will hang towards whatever surface they are oriented to, rather than the actual ground. 

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Under most environmental conditions, there is no difference in effort between standing and sitting for a vampire. 

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] Great for parties, and Michael Jackson moves. 

Psycho-Social Phenomenon

When not debilitated by a weakness, vampires have a +3 Contextual bonus to Stealth. This bonus increases by +1 for each point of Composure the vampire is missing.[1][4][5] Additionally, vampires do not have saliva, skin oils, or anything else of the sort. If they lose hair, it will disintegrate like any other post body part, and soon reappear on the body.[3] Vampires will never leave fingerprints[2] or any other DNA evidence behind.

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] At 0 Composure, this bonus would be +10.

[2  off to the side in the final formatting] One exception may be if they have something else on their fingers besides skin oils. 

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] This can make shaving very tricky!

[4 off to the side in the final formatting] Even without meaning to, vampires tend to appear “right on top of” people without ever being noticed on the approach. 

[5  off to the side in the final formatting] Sometimes vampires cannot even be seen at all until one looks directly at them. 

The Cave Wall

Any character who makes a Full Success on a Senses roll directed towards a vampire will instantly lose 1 Composure or 1 Morale, with no explanation or description from the Narrator. This is 2 Composure and 2 Morale if the focus of the Senses roll is actually directed to the space behind the vampire, such as looking over their shoulder. Additionally, at times, the motions of the vampire may appear subtly “choppy,” almost as though animated, and at lower frame rate than their surroundings.

Wearing the Evening

So long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, vampires are capable of instantly relocating in total or near total darkness.[1] This instant relocation cannot pass through solid objects, and there must be an uninterrupted line of darkness between the start point and end point of this relocation. Additionally, a vampire’s vision is not significantly affected by absence of light until there is literally no light present at all.[2][3]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] This does not require a Composure roll for use of a supernatural ability. Vampires may not even be fully conscious of the fact that they are instantly relocating in total darkness. 

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Time to try out echolocation as a bat!

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] With miniscule sources of light, their vision may still feel somewhat impaired, but not enough to warrant a mechanical penalty modifier. 

[3.1. off to the side in the final formatting] Bright light, however, can cause discomfort, even if it is not sunlight. Many vampires may opt to wear sunglasses even indoors or at night. 

Hovering

Vampires are capable of hovering up to three feet off the ground when manifesting as a human,[1] though actually moving while doing this is no faster than walking. This ability must start from the ground, and cannot be done to save a vampire from a freefall. 

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Another great party trick. 

Teeth and Claws

A vampire’s nails are hard and sharp like claws.[1] This allows them to deal Penetrative Damage instead of Superficial Damage with any unarmed melee attack. When they are not debilitated by a weakness, this damage can be doubled due to Superhuman Strength.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] A steel file is required for filing these nails down, they tear up lesser files.

Vampires also have fangs.

Hibernation

Vampires do not need to sleep, ever.[1] Their closest equivalent is entering a state of suspended animation for months, years, or even decades at a time. No coffin or grave dirt is required. This is useful for laying low while heat dies down, recovering from destruction of the “physical” body, or simply resetting the vampires ever quickening perception of the passage of time.

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] Most vampires will remain awake for decades at a time.

Breathing, or Lack Thereof

Vampires have no need to breathe, except to talk or sniff the air.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] It is easy for vampires to forget to breathe.

Remanifestation

So long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, a vampire may manifest in any of the following five ways.[1] Remanifesting as a different manifestation counts as use of a Supernatural Ability, and counts as taking 1 action if done in combat. A vampire cannot manifest as any manifestation that there is not enough empty space available to contain, even if the solid object taking up that space is paper thin.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Nothing is really changing, just another aspect rising to the surface. 

Human Manifestation

This is the default manifestation. All aspects of the Vampire Trait apply. [maybe add the human-only things like claws here]

Bat Manifestation

As this manifestation, the vampire appears as a small bat with a maximum Superficial and Penetrative HP of 3 and Acceleration of +3. They do *not* have superhuman strength, and are limited to only feats of strength and other actions that a small mammal without opposable thumbs could accomplish. Any attack by this manifestation can deal at most 1 Superficial Damage. Any attack against this manifestation suffers a -2 penalty.[1][2]

[1  off to the side in the final formatting] This manifestation may be considered adorable.

[2  off to the side in the final formatting] Trying to do a whole swarm of bats at once is a great way to give yourself one-hundred concurrent head injuries. 

As this manifestation, the vampire may use echolocation to find their way even in total darkness, and have a +5 Contextual bonus to any Senses roll involving sound.

As this manifestation, the vampire has a +4 Contextual bonus to Stealth.

All other aspects of vampirism apply.

Wolf Manifestation

As this manifestation, the vampire appears as a wolf with a +2 Contextual bonus to Close Combat, a +4 Contextual bonus to Senses rolls involving sound and smell, and +4 Acceleration. They maintain superhuman strength, but are limited to actions which a canine without opposable thumbs could accomplish.

As this manifestation, the vampire’s only means of attack is with their jaws. This is a Grab attack. So long as the target is Grabbed, all other aspects of Grabbing apply, but the target also takes 2 Penetrative Damage on each of the vampire’s turn’s with no roll needed.

As this manifestation, the vampire has a +4 Base bonus to Stealth.

All other aspects of vampirism still apply.

Mist/Smoke Manifestation

As this manifestation, the vampire appears as a cloud of autonomously mobile smoke or mist with a volume of at most 4,000 cubic feet,[2] capable of squeezing through any gap that is not perfectly air-tight.[1] This manifestation has very limited ability to interact with or even perceive the physical world. They can only feel their surroundings, meaning their “vision” is limited to only the vague outlines of what the cloud is touching.[3]

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] Black, grey, or red are common colorations.

[2. Off to the side in the final formatting.] This is a lot smaller than it sounds, a little bigger than a bedroom.

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] Skin and assimilated clothing evaporates, then muscle, then bone. When the vampire takes on a solid manifestation, the sequence will be reversed.

As this manifestation, though the vampire does maintain their Superhuman Strength bonuses, they cannot pick up, assimilate, or otherwise exert their will on physical objects. They cannot be attacked in any way, though they will need to make a Full Success on an Athletics roll to resist powerful suction or other strong air currents.[1]

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] Though remanifesting as smoke properly requires an action, any missed attack against a vampire or other sort of dodge may be described as the vampire spontaneously evaporating for a split second before resolidifying.

This manifestation is not ordinarily heavy enough to suffocate a human being or cause any damage at all, but can be made vicious by spending of Eureka! Points. The cloud becomes oppressive, choking, and even capable of causing very small lacerations on the body, inside and out. The effect is somewhat like being in a sandstorm made of broken glass. Up to the vampire, any number of characters within the cloud may be targeted.[1] For the duration the manifestation is maintained, targets will take 2 Superficial Damage per turn per Eureka! Point spent. Targets forced to take Injury rolls or killed[2] as a result of this damage will be considered to be partially drained of blood by the vampire and restore the vampire’s Composure appropriately.

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] It may be difficult for a vampire to tell friend from foe by their fuzzy, colorless outlines alone.

[2. Off to the side in the final formatting] Hardly anything may remain of targets killed in this way.

All other aspects of vampirism apply.

Monstrous Beast Manifestation

As this manifestation, a vampire appears as a monstrously massive bat-like[2] beast larger than most cars, but maintaining this manifestation in the world requires a near constant intake of fresh human blood. This manifestation has 17 of both types of HP, a +2 Contextual bonus to Close Combat, a +4 Contextual bonus to Senses involving hearing and smell, a +4 Acceleration bonus, and a -10 penalty to Stealth.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Seven is the Biblical number of perfection.

[1.1. Off to the side in the final formatting] Now you are thinking like a vampire.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] It is most common for it to resemble a bat, but the exact shape and size of the monstrous beast varies from vampire to vampire. 

This manifestation is considered to have Superhuman Strength, and the Base bonuses from Superhuman Strength become *Contextual*.

As this manifestation, the vampire loses 6 Composure per round.

This manifestation has two effective means of attack, a Vehicle Attack using their Athletics divided by 2 (rounded up) instead of Driving, and their enormous jaws. The vampire can use their jaw to make Grab attacks. So long as the target is grabbed by the vampire’s jaw, they automatically take 4 Penetrative Damage each time it is the vampire’s turn with no roll needed. The vampire can continue to perform other actions while Grabbing a target with their jaws and movement is unimpeded. Rather than deal the 4 Penetrative Damage, if the vampire is Grabbing a target of human or smaller size with their jaws, they may make a Hold attack using either Athletics or Close Combat to simply swallow them whole.[1] This manifestation can stomach at most two humans at a time.[2] For a target swallowed alive, depending on the context and circumstances, the Narrator may simply declare them as good as dead and not make any rolls, or apply the Drowning/Suffocation rules. The only chance this target would have of damaging the vampire from the inside would be with a small piercing weapon. They may also make an Escape attempt, but attacking or attempting to escape would be considered exertion for the purposes of the Drowning/Suffocation rules. However, the first successful Escape attempt will put them in the beast’s jaws, not totally free. They must also Escape from the beast’s jaws to be totally free. 

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Flesh is blood.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] It is not known what will happen to a person in the beast’s stomach if the vampire remanifests as something much smaller. 

Remanifestation and Items

Small and/or low-density items that have been in contact with a particular manifestation for a long period of time will be “assimilated” by this manifestation. Assimilation by a manifestation means that when a vampire remanifests to a different manifestation, those items will vanish along with the previous manifestation, and reappear along with it.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Maybe someday vampires could be explained by a physicist, but not by a biologist, like the shadows on the cave wall.

For gameplay purposes, this concept is simplified to where certain items will always count as assimilated and others items will never count. Unassimilated items will fall to the ground when the vampire shifts manifestations.[1][3]

Always Counts as Assimilated:

Basic clothing and accessories the vampire is wearing, including hats, cloaks, and shoes.

Wallets and their contents.

Small electronics such as cellphones.

Never Counts as Assimilated:

Any clothing which provides Armor.

Any weaponry.

Larger electronics such as laptops.

Anything made of silver.

Larger accessories such as purses or backpacks.

People and other living things.

Anything that is both recently obtained and narratively important.[2]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Before remanifesting, a vampire should ask a friend to hold her purse, leather jacket, gun, but not worry about her cellphone or the rest of her outfit.

[2. Off to the side in the final formatting.] A vampire may be able to sneak into room as a cloud of smoke, but once they have the documents or other item they’re trying to steal, they will have to find their way out as a manifestation that can actually carry it.

[3. Off to the side in the final formatting] Assimilated objects will lose their vampiric properties if separated from the vampire for long enough.

An Object at Rest Cannot be Stopped

Vampires take half-damage from all damage sources, the only exception being HP that results from loss of Composure. If a vampire wears armor that protects against whatever is dealing the damage, this damage is halved again, for one quarter damage, rounding up. Apply a -2 modifier to attacks against the vampire from 1-damage weapons.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires take half-damage not because their flesh is extraordinarily durable, but because they just don’t need it to ‘live.’ Wolfmen, however, take half-damage because they are extraordinarily dense and durable. 

Decentralized Animation

One round after a body part is severed, a vampire will be able to reassert control over it, even in the event of decapitation. Any Skill check taken by a detached body part will have a -3 penalty applied, unless the vampire can see the body part, in which case it is -2.[1] [Maybe call this or something else “extrinsic animation.”]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] After death, every motion of the body is something which must be entirely relearned, even the act of standing and walking is an entirely different experience. Doing so under the sun’s rays, and around fast-moving water, are similarly distinct forms of animation. 

[1.1. Off to the side in the final formatting] Many say the hardest thing is relearning how to dance. 

Healing

Regular first-aide will work on vampires in most cases within reason, but, so long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, their “physical” bodies return to their basic state over time. Vampires automatically recover 1 point of Superficial and Penetrative HP at the beginning of every game session, and 1 point of Superficial HP at the end of each day, so long as they are not debilitated by a weakness. 

Additionally, so long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, if they took damage to either HP type during an instance of combat, they restore 1 HP of the same type as soon as the combat is resolved.

So long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, a vampire may take 1 action to reattach a severed body part at the stump and have it work again good as new after 1 turn.

So long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, if a vampire’s Penetrative HP is full, instead of recovering Penetrative HP from any of the above rules, they recover from one Grievous Wound, permanent or not.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] If this is a missing body part, the severed body part will disintegrate and reintegrate back where it’s supposed to be.

So long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, a vampire may spend 1 Eureka! Point to instantly recover all Superficial and Penetrative HP, and from all Grievous Wounds. This takes 1 action.

Unkillable

If a vampire is reduced to 0 Penetrative HP, they do “die” instantly, but they will not stay “dead” permanently, barring specific circumstances. (See: How to “Kill” a Vampire p.Xx) It may take weeks, months, or years, but the vampire will eventually return, even if their “physical” body is absolutely obliterated. A “dead” vampire investigator is removed from the current adventure same as a regular dead investigator, but may return and be played in any subsequent adventure.[1][2]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Can the fact that it appears that someone is continuing to live when they should not be considered anything short of a miracle? 

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] The Not Finished Yet Trait increases an investigator’s Penetrative HP dramatically, with the caveat that they will die at the end of the adventure if they take too much damage. Well, unless they’re killed in a very specific way, vampires revive in between adventures, so that kind of negates the entire downside of the Trait, doesn’t it? Well, not exactly. There’s two ways we suggest handling this. The first way is to have it represent a vampire who is on the verge of passing on, whether they know it or not, by reaching certain personal revelations, accomplishing their unfinished business, and that this time it will be permanent - peaceful, even. Alternatively, it could represent that, not unlike a mortal with the same Trait, this vampire is pushing themselves past any remotely sustainable level of bodily damage, and if it goes too far this *will* catch up to them at the end of the adventure. Should they drop below the threshold for Penetrative HP, regardless of Eureka! Points spent to restore their HP or revive them, they will fall into hibernation or fade away and remain “dead” for *decades* or more. Yes, they will eventually return, but it won’t be any time soon. This happened to Yvette Preux in the 1890s and that’s why she slept through most of the 20th century. 

A vampire whom has been reduced to 0 Penetrative HP does not heal from first-aide or any of the other rules mentioned under “Healing.”

Revival

So long as they are not debilitated by a weakness, a vampire that has been reduced to 0 Penetrative HP and “killed” for the adventure may spend 2 Eureka! Points to revive with 1 of both types of HP, but only once a minimum of 5 Scenes have passed. A vampire may instead spend 3 Eureka! Points to revive instantly, so long as they have been “dead” for at least 1 round.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] John 11:1-44.

Threatening Presence

It’s subtle, but something about vampires will always make the hair on the back of people’s necks stand up, or send a chill down their spine, like their body is trying to warn them of what they’re really talking to. Vampires have a +1 Contextual bonus to Threaten rolls and a -1 to Comfort rolls. Any other mortal human investigators, including monsters, take a -1 penalty to all Composure rolls so long as they are sharing a Scene with the vampire.[1][2] 

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] It should not be explained how or why this -1 applies. Even veteran Eureka players will not be able to know for sure whether this -1 is from vampirism or from the Wicked Trait.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Even if you don’t know why, being in a room with a vampire can be like being in a room with a bug that might start flying at any moment, especially when the vampire starts moving suddenly again after standing still.

[2.1. Off to the side in the final formatting] When a vampire stands still, they stand perfectly still. More motions are a conscious decision than not.

The Creeps

If playing with “The Creeps” optional rule, the vampire’s player rolls a hidden D6 at the start of every Scene. On a 6, they will privately message or signal the Narrator, and the Narrator will call for “The Creeps” at the next available opportunity, without revealing that it is the result of having a vampire present. Players and investigators alike will wonder what is so anxiety-inducing about this clean office building or peaceful elevator ride. Add +1 to any The Creeps Composure roll by investigators who are friends with the vampire and are aware of the vampirism.

Bloodthirsty (Vampire True Nature)

[Snoop: That tall skinny lady vampire snoop with the big hat biting into another snoop’s neck. Use a pose where she is holding the other snoop in front of herself. I’ll find or make a reference I don’t know what the pose is called.]

Vampires do not need to eat regular meals,[1][2] nor do they need to sleep, so they suffer no Flat Composure Damage from skipping meals nor from staying up all night. However, they also do not gain any Composure Points from eating normal food or getting sleep. 

Flat Composure Damage from Skipping Meals = No 

Composure restoration from Three Meals a Day  = No 

Flat Composure Damage from Skipping Sleep = No 

Composure restoration from Full Night’s Sleep = No

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Though their sensitivity to spices and their lack of saliva can sometimes prove an obstacle, vampires actually can eat and even enjoy ‘normal food,’ though it provides no nutritional benefit. It is not actually known what happens to ‘normal food’ consumed by vampires, except that it doesn’t seem to come out.  

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires do not have to drink blood with any sort of regularity, only when they need it, which is something that may vary from vampire to vampire, and in the case of vampire investigators, depend on how much Composure they are losing. 

Vampires need to drink fresh, living human blood, and a lot of it, in order to exist in any degree of comfort. Animal blood does nothing for them.[1][2][3]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] If this really needs to be stated, no, menstrual blood isn’t really blood and does not work.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Though they are unlikely to ever “lose control,” at least not more so than a famished mortal, a vampire will almost never feel completely satiated.

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] 2:173. 

Making a Wound

A vampire does not have to use their fangs to make a wound and drink blood, they may use their claws, a knife, or even a phlebotomy needle if the other person would just hold still.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] A vampire is a gaping wound left where a life used to be, and now the world is bleeding out. 

When Grabbing or Holding a target, the vampire can use their fangs, claws, a knife, or whatever else they prefer to open a large blood vessel and press their lips to it to drink blood. These wounds are not magical and will heal like any other wound if allowed to, and do not transform the victim into a vampire or anything else of the sort.

This attack uses Athletics or Close Combat and, regardless of superhuman strength, does 4 damage on a Full Success, 2 damage on a Partial Success, and no damage on a Failure. The type of damage is up to the vampire.

They may choose to do 4 Superficial Damage by making a smaller wound and/or targeting a less critical blood vessel, such as the radial or elbow brachial;[1] or they may choose to do 4 Penetrative Damage by creating a larger wound and/or targeting a more critical vessel, such as the carotid, jugular, shoulder brachial, or femoral.[2]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] All of these blood vessels are critical to the human body. 4 Superficial Damage from attacking a “less critical” vessel can still result in loss of consciousness or even death. 

[2 Off to the side in the final formatting] Arterial blood is oxygenated and relatively free of debris compared to venous blood, and as such it is preferred by most vampires.

In order for the vampire to be considered to have consumed a sufficient amount of blood, the victim must be forced to make an Injury roll as a direct result of the damage from this attack. The success or failure of the victim’s Injury roll is irrelevant.

Drinking copious amounts of blood is not something that can be done as speedily as any regular combat action. It is simply not viable to measure this in Rounds. Once the vampire starts drinking, they will be drinking for the remainder of the combat. The victim gets to make only one Escape attempt for the duration of the blood draining.[1]

Superficial Damage

Time to Injury Roll: 10 minutes

Time to Death: 30 minutes.

Penetrative Damage

Time to Injury Roll: 1 minute.

Time to Death: 2 minutes.

Once the victim expires, their blood is no-longer nutritious.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires are not people who are cursed with vampirism, they are the curse–everyone else who has to deal with them are who’s cursed. The suffering of their prey is part of the feeding process. They are ghosts, dead, the blood they drink is life. The vampire legend largely arises from the grief of losing family members by watching them suffer slow, very painful deaths from illnesses, the vampire is representative of the pain of having to watch a loved one waste away. The blood has to be preferably taken by force and it has to hurt, because what they’re really consuming is the slow and agonizing extraction of life from the living. This is why there can be no substitute for human blood. 

[1.1. off to the side in the final formatting] Why was this allowed to happen to them?

[1.2. off to the side in the final formatting]  Why are they allowed to happen to other people?

[1.3. off to the side in the final formatting] Are they real?

During this process, if they are going for Penetrative damage, the vampire must also make a Reflexes roll to attempt to remain clean while drinking blood. If they just don’t care about manners, however, they can choose to simply Fail and skip the roll.[1]

Full Success: They do not spill a drop, leaving no evidence on their person that they just drank blood.

Partial Success: They are not fast enough to drink from the wound, and blood spirts onto their face and mouth.

Failure: They are not fast enough to drink from the wound, and blood gets everywhere. On the ground, on their face, on their clothes. This will be very hard to explain.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Most vampires’ fangs will take on a slight curve when they are allowed to grow out long enough, perfect for sinking in behind large arteries and pulling them out, where they can then be used like a straw. This is, of course, very efficient, but always fatal. More conscientious vampires may create smaller cuts or puncture marks in major blood vessels from which to drink.

Willing Donors 

If the other person is cooperative, there is no need to roll the Grabs, Holds, bites, etc. The vampire can just deal the damage using their teeth, claws, knife, or even a phlebotomy needle, if they’d just hold still. Choosing to deal Superficial Damage consumes 2 Ticks. Penetrative Damage consumes 1 Tick, and still requires a Reflexes (or Medicine in this case) roll to avoid a mess.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] The vampire is nourished by the suffering of those who care about them the most.

Blood Banks 

There are of course establishments which keep large quantities of human blood in stock. However, this doesn’t provide an easy solution to a vampire’s problem. They are always at least somewhat secure, and their stock is carefully tracked. What’s more, for blood to be any good to a vampire, it has to be fresh, nothing that’s been separated from the body for too long. If it’s near expiry, it’s worthless. A haul of fresh blood bags will restore at most 1 point of Composure.[1]

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] Someone will be liable for that missing inventory, and someone else will go without a vital transfusion. There is always a wound.

Composure Restoration

A vampire recovers 1 point of Composure when they cause a victim to make an Injury roll as a result of the damage dealt by having their blood drained. A vampire can gain at most 1 Composure from the same victim this way within a single Scene, no matter how many subsequent Injury rolls within the same Scene.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Does communion wine count for blood to a vampire? Do you believe in transubstantiation? Is a vampire not equally the person they once were, and something much greater and more terrible at the same time?

Continuing to drain blood until the victim expires will restore 1 additional point of Composure.[1]

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] In the event that the victim dies before they are caused to make an Injury roll, the vampire will still regain 2 Composure.

When a vampire drinks blood, they will also regain 1 additional point of Composure if they do at least 5 Morale damage,[1] or 3 points of Composure damage, to the victim within the same Scene before or during the blood draining.[2][3]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] This is possible even if the victim does not have 5 total Morale to loose, so long as the vampire does enough Morale-lowering things to be equivalent to 5 Morale damage. It is recommended that the vampire’s player keep track of this, to lighten the load on the Narrator. 

[2 off to the side in the final formatting]   This does have the added benefit of getting the victim’s adrenaline going and their heart pumping fast. After all, vampires feed on human suffering as much as the literal blood itself.

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] Terrifying or tormenting a victim alone without actually drinking blood will not restore any of the vampire’s Composure.

Where Does the Blood Go?

When fresh human blood enters a vampire’s stomach, it soon finds its way into the vampire’s own blood vessels through unknown means, their own heart even fluttering back to life to circulate it evenly, filling the vampire with warmth and life again from the inside out. This blood remains in their system for an irregular amount of time before eventually fading away to nothingness. If cut, they will bleed the victim’s blood.[1]

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] Though they have no reason to fear (permanent) death from weapons, when vampires make Composure rolls for being damaged by weapons, it could be considered that that which nourishes them is being drawn from their body. It’s almost like food being taken right out of their stomach.

For gameplay purposes, consider a vampire to have their most recent victim’s blood flowing through their veins so long as they are at 4 Composure or above,[1] with a higher level of realistic human warmth the closer they are to 7 Composure. Below the threshold of 4 Composure, the inside of their body will be dry, starchy, and off-black.

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] Yes, this does mean that some small amount of liveliness can seemingly return to them through other means of Composure restoration.

When that which is not living human flesh and blood enters a vampire’s stomach, it does nothing to nourish the vampire, merely sitting in the stomach until suddenly vanishes after 1 Tick.[1][2][3]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] No one knows where used up blood and other food items end up, least of all the vampire. They don’t seem to come out of either end, and most vampires would be hesitant to search too hard for answers.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires truly give nothing back, not even to the soil.

[3. off to the side in the final formatting] Substances which cause altered states of consciousness, such as alcohol and narcotics, will have no effect on a vampire if taken by mouth. However, chemicals in a victim’s blood can affect the vampire, such that drinking from an inebriated victim could inebriate the vampire. If the vampire’s own veins are flowing with blood, substances taken through injection could also affect them. Substances taken by smoke inhalation will likely irritate a vampire due to the smell, but may or may not otherwise affect them.

Smelling Blood

Vampires use their heightened sense of taste and smell to sniff out human blood. A vampire can confirm if there is human blood - inside or outside a person - within the vicinity with a Partial Success on a Senses roll. With a Full Success, they can identify approximate number of individuals, their general direction and proximity, and in some cases may be able to recognize individuals whose blood they have smelled or tasted before.

Scent Tracking 

Vampires are capable of Scent Tracking. (See p.xx “Scent Tracking”.) Apply a -2 penalty to the roll if the scent trail and scent example do not involve the target’s blood in any way.

I Burn Easily (Vampire Weakness)

Vampires have several literally “debilitating” weaknesses, other weaknesses that appear more neurotic, a special method required to kill them permanently, and many noteworthy tells.

Sunlight

Direct sunlight will debilitate a vampire for the duration of their exposure, rendering them unable to use or benefit from powers marked as such above. “Direct” sunlight exposure means being outside during the day, in the sun’s rays pouring through a window, or similar direct exposure.[1] Artificial UV light also counts. Shady areas and clouds will not prevent debilitation, but may help mitigate the worst of the sun’s effects.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Moonlight is not strong enough exposure to debilitate the vampire or impose penalties, though it may still feel like it stings a bit.

In addition to debilitation from their powers, when exposed to direct sunlight vampires suffer a -7 penalty to all rolls, including Composure rolls, representing painful rapid onset sunburn and eventual degradation of the skin as strength is sapped from their body. Sunlight does not do any direct HP damage to vampires, though the Composure damage could dip into HP.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] It is unknown whether this sunburn and degradation of the skin will eventually escalate to disintegration, most vampires are not interested in staying exposed long enough to find out. The earliest depiction of a vampire being killed by sunlight is Nosferatu(1922).

While nothing short of a full-body radiation suit can prevent debilitation, there are a few things a vampire can do or wear to mitigate the worst of the effects. Each of the following will lessen the severity of the sunlight penalty by 1, to a minimum of -0.

High SPF Sunscreen

Sunglasses

Hood or Wide Brimmed Hat

Full Body Coverage Below Neck (including feet but not hands)

Gloves

Umbrella or Parasol

Cloak, Jacket, or Overcoat

Heavy Shade

Overcast or Rainy Day

Once per Scene, upon being exposed to direct sunlight, a vampire must make a +3 Composure roll. This Composure roll is affected by the sunlight penalty as well as the mitigating factors thereof.

Silver

Direct physical contact with silver will debilitate a vampire for the duration of their exposure, rendering them unable to use or benefit from powers marked as such above.

Silver burns a vampire’s body as though it is white hot, and this disruption of their being confers a -4 penalty to all rolls, including Composure rolls, for as long as they are in contact. Silver does not do any direct HP damage to vampires, but being damaged by a silver weapon will apply the -4 penalty to the resulting Composure roll.

Silver Bullets

Silver is a particularly soft metal. A bullet made of silver, or even just plated in silver, when penetrating a target at high velocity is likely to shatter within the body and leave small pieces of silver residue behind.[1] Each time this character is shot with a silver bullet, look at the physical dice that were rolled. If they are both odd numbers or both even numbers, the bullet does leave a bit of silver in the body and the character is considered to be in physical contact with silver for all rules purposes until these pieces are dug out.[2]

[1 off to the side in final formatting] At the time of writing this, a single, fireable, professionally manufactured silver bullet costs $150+Shipping.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] To be perfectly clear, this is not about modifiers or cumulative value of the dice. If you roll the dice and see two odd numbers or two even numbers on the physical dice, that is when there are bits of silver left in the body. For D12s, silver is left in the body if any D12 in the roll shows an 8 or a 9, even if that specific die did not cause a hit–so long as another D12 in the same group did cause a hit. 

Silver Hollow Points

Silver hollow point bullets will always leave what counts as a single piece of silver stuck in the body.

Silver Pellets

Silver shotgun shell pellets, flechettes, or other weapons which hit with numerous pieces of silver at once will always leave silver stuck in or clinging to the body.

Silver Melee Weapons

Silver melee weapons must be stuck in and left in the vampire’s physical body in order to fully debilitate them.

Digging Silver Out

Silver lodged in the vampire’s physical body will obviously be in contact with them and debilitating them indefinitely until it is removed. These can be carefully surgically removed with professional medical aid, or dug out hastily by the vampire (or someone else) on the spot. For a vampire to rip or cut silver out of their body on the spot, they must take an action and cause 1 Penetrative Damage to themselves to remove a single piece, or 2 Penetrative Damage to remove every piece at once in the case of multiple pieces, such as silver shotgun pellets.[1]

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] This damage is not reduced by their innate damage reduction, the values present already account for that.

Nasal Sensitivity

Vampires must have “Nasal Sensitivity" somewhere on their Tiers of Fear. Strong-scented herbs, such as garlic, onions, spices, etc. overwhelm the vampire’s keen sense of smell and they will usually attempt to avoid these scents when possible, though it does not damage them.[1]

One per Scene, upon breathing in or tasting these or similar strong-scented herbs will prompt a Nasal Sensitivity Composure check.[1][2]

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] Remember, vampires only need to breathe for the purposes of smelling and talking.

[2. Off to the side in the final formatting] Having something to put over their nose and mouth when they breathe, such as a handkerchief, may serve as a comforting factor for this Composure roll, or just negate the need for it altogether if the scent is not particularly strong.

Sometimes it is as simple as not breathing, but more aggressive irritants, such as pepper spray or tear gas will be extremely effective against a vampire regardless. Irritant weapons will immediately impose a (Superficial) Injury roll upon vampires, regardless of actual damage done. The result of this Injury roll will always count as one degree of success lower than the actual result.

There is a silver lining to a vampire’s hypersensitivities. They have a Base bonus to any Senses roll involving taste or smell based on the severity of their Nasal Sensitivity. 

The Base modifier for taste and smell based Senses rolls is as follows:

Nasal Sensitivity -3 = +7 Base Bonus 

Nasal Sensitivity -2 = +6 Base Bonus 

Nasal Sensitivity -1 = +5 Base Bonus 

Nasal Sensitivity +0 = +4 Base Bonus 

Nasal Sensitivity +1 = +3 Base Bonus 

Nasal Sensitivity +2 = +2 Base Bonus 

Nasal Sensitivity +3 = +1 Base Bonus 

If the vampire is an NPC, consider them to have a +4 Base bonus. Breathing in or tasting strong-scented herbs or spices will cost them -1 Morale, and being sprayed with irritant weapons will cost them -2 Morale.

Religious Iconography and Holy Grounds

A vampire must have “Religious Iconography” and “Holy Grounds” as separate entries at some rank on their Tiers of Fear.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] This weakness does not necessarily mean they have renounced or turned against their religion, often quite the opposite.

The vampire does not need to make a Composure check just from seeing or touching a holy symbol. However, if someone hides behind a symbol of their faith from the vampire, and the vampire attacks or otherwise physically harms them regardless, then the vampire must make the Religious Iconography Composure check.[1][2][3][4][5] 

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting.] If a vampire attacks someone and only finds the symbol afterwards, this still calls for a Composure check.

[1.1. Off to the side in the final formatting] The holy symbol does not literally have to be brandished for it to make the vampire reconsider harming someone. A visible cross necklace, or a cross hanging on the wall above a potential victim’s bed would also be sufficient.

[1.2.  Off to the side in the final formatting] Audible prayer, or gestures such as the sign of the cross, may also be considered “holy symbols” for the purposes of this rule.

[2. Off to the side in the final formatting.] It is up to the vampire whether the particular culture or religion of the holy symbol counts as a Comforting Factor or not.

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] Some vampires who have just woken up may not be fully up-to-date on their holy symbols. For instance, the Star of David only became a definitive symbol of Judaism during the Holocaust.

[4 off to the side in the final formatting] For defining what does and does not count as a “holy symbol”, simply ask “Would you kneel and pray before it?” Do two yardstick or fireplace pokers laid across each other count as a cross? Would you pray before them? Perhaps the answer lies in how desperate you are. 

[5 off to the side in the final formatting] They have been 'alive' for hundreds of years, and no punishment has come for them, but what kind of a world are they creating if they devour someone who has nothing to protect them but their faith? Don’t they want faith to be an aegis, a safe refuge? 

[5.1. Off to the side in the final formatting] Do they fear the crucifix as they fear punishment from God, or do they fear a world where not even God protects the meek and helpless? 

[5.2. Off to the side in the final formatting] Don’t they want faith to save them? 

If a vampire knowingly intrudes upon holy/consecrated grounds, they must make a Holy Grounds Composure check.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Holy ground that has been desecrated in some way may reduce the penalty on a vampire’s Composure Roll. In other cases, the sight of holy ground being desecrated may be distressing enough to the vampire to negate any “comforting factor.”

If the vampire is an NPC, then seeking protection from a holy symbol is considered to lower Morale by -2. (This only works once per encounter.) A vampire investigator can also make a Social Cues roll to determine if a victim hiding behind a holy symbol really has faith in the symbol to protect them. If the vampire can be confident that they do not, this can count as a “comforting factor” for the purposes of Composure Rolls. If an investigator is hiding behind a holy symbol from an NPC vampire, and they do not have any actual faith in the holy symbol, they must make a Manipulate Roll to at least look like they do. If it is a Failure, the vampire will be able to tell, and the symbol will reduce their morale by one less point.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] A vampire can tell when you are smugly using their own faith against them. 

Intruding

Vampires must have “Intruding” somewhere on their Tiers of Fear. Vampires posses a neurotic, compulsive respect for others’ privacy and the sanctity of their home, a deep-seated feeling of not belonging or being unwanted, a desire to make the sport fair, or all of the above.[1] They will not willingly enter a private residence without a direct invitation from the residents.[2] The vampire knowingly entering a private residence uninvited prompts an Intruding Composure roll. If the vampire is directly told to leave a residence by a resident, failure to do so will also prompt an Intruding Composure roll.[3][4][5]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] It is possible that their centuries of consciousness has given them certain irrational hangups regarding etiquette, or it is possible that they want there to be a space of safe refuge for each person somewhere on Earth. Maybe they’re just accustomed to being the last thing anyone ever wants to see. 

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] In the case of rented private residences, it is up to the vampire’s opinion whether a landlord, renter, or both has the authority to invite them in. In the case of hotel rooms, it is up to the vampire’s opinion if the resident, an employee, and/or the hotel owner has the authority to invite them in. (This only applies to the room, not the hotel lobby or halls.) 

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] A “welcome” mat may serve as a comforting factor for this Composure roll if the vampire is pedantic enough, but not allow it to be bypassed entirely. 

[4  off to the side in the final formatting] Depending on the social awareness of the vampire in question, these invitations and uninvitations will often need to be clear and obvious, such as saying “Come in.” or “Get out!” Merely opening the door will not count as an invitation, and merely acting hostile or rude will rarely, if ever, count as an uninvitation.

[5 off to the side in the final formatting] It takes a very specific kind of person to become a vampire, and many elements of “vampirism” may actually be elements of them.

Running Water

When passing over any significant amount of running water, whether jumping, wading through, crossing a bridge, taking a boat, flying over, etc., a vampire risks becoming dizzy and disoriented. They must make a Reflexes roll.

Full Success: They are able to keep their bearings without issue.

Partial Success: They are affected badly enough to stumble, but not completely lose their bearings. This may lose them a Tick, or a movement action in combat.

Failure: The vampire loses their bearings completely and falls to the ground. This may lose them a Tick, or an entire turn in combat. In the worst case scenario, such as if they are wading through the water or crossing a narrow bridge with no guard rails, this may cause them to fall and become fully submerged in the water.

Crossing over still water, small sources of running water such as indoor plumbing, or walking around in a city that has a sewer system will not affect the vampire. Narrators should only call for this Reflexes roll when success or failure would actually affect or alter the situation.

The ocean will always count as running water.

Submersion in Water

If a vampire becomes completely submerged in water, they will cease to function completely, their body totally paralyzed. The vampire is considered debilitated and cannot take any action under these circumstances. They cannot drown, and will revive as soon as any part of themselves surfaces.

Vampires with a Composure level of 4 or more can move through water normally so long as they do not fully submerge at any point. Vampires with a Composure level of 3 or less are not buoyant, and sink, applying a -2 penalty to any roll to swim or keep themselves afloat.

Arithmomania

Either a result of hundreds of years of consciousness, or because they’re just like that, many vampires possess a compulsive need to know the quantity of large numbers of small objects, such as grains of rice, or even sand in extreme cases.[1] They must have “Ignorance of Quantity” somewhere on their Tiers of Fear. If the vampire is confronted with something like this, ignoring it will prompt an Ignorance of Quantity Composure roll. If they choose to count it, they must make a Paperwork roll. (Particularly large amounts of objects may take longer to count than listed below, up to the Narrator's discretion.)[2][3]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] In extreme cases where knowing the exact quantity isn’t humanly possible, this character is too smart to be stuck counting literally forever. If this character feels they must know the number of grains of sand on a beach, consider a Technology roll instead of a Paperwork roll as they use their phone to Internet search the approximate packing density of sand and the square footage of the beach they’re on.  

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] There is no need to give vampires the Arithmomania mundane Trait. 

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] While numbers are the most documented, any particular vampire may have an entirely different obsessive compulsion. 

Full Success: They count it quickly enough to not disrupt what they were doing. 

Partial Success: They must spend one turn (or one Tick) counting and can do nothing else for the duration. 

Failure They must spend two turns (or two Ticks) counting and can do nothing else for the duration. 

Despite the drawbacks of this compulsion, the vampire has a +2 Contextual bonus to any rolls involving numbers or math (including those induced by their compulsion), such as a Paperwork roll to figure out if numbers in an account book add up or recognizing a pattern in a string of seemingly random numbers. In addition, when this bonus is applied to an Investigative roll, this character gets additional Investigation Points. They get more Investigation Points the more severe their compulsion, as noted below:

Ignorance of Quantity -3 = +6 Investigation Points 

Ignorance of Quantity -2 = +5 Investigation Points

Ignorance of Quantity -1 = +4 Investigation Points

Ignorance of Quantity +0 = +3 Investigation Points

Ignorance of Quantity +1 = +2 Investigation Points

Ignorance of Quantity +2 = +1 Investigation Points

Ignorance of Quantity +3 = +0 Investigation Points

Once per Scene, they also gain 1 Investigation Point each time they make note of the quantity of a set of objects.

If the vampire is an NPC, then consider ignoring countable objects to cost them -1 Morale. If they choose to count them, make them roll at +2.[1]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] In south Louisiana, it is tradition to leave a colander or a cheese grater on your porch over night, so that if a vampire or loup-garou tries to approach, they will get distracted and be stuck counting all the holes until the sun chases them away in the morning.

[1.1 off to the side in the final formatting] but most vampires would think that’s pretty stupid, because they can just count the holes on one edge and then multiply.

Stakes

If any object, wooden or otherwise, is driven completely through and through a vampire’s heart, they will cease to function completely, their body totally paralyzed. The vampire is considered debilitated and cannot take *any* action under these circumstances.[1] This applies even if the heart is not currently in the vampire’s chest.

[1. Off to the side in the final formatting] This does not kill the vampire, turn them to dust, or anything of the sort.

The vampire will revive immediately as soon as the object is removed.

Light Sensitivity

For the purposes of flashbangs, add a +3 Contextual bonus to the resulting Senses roll for vampires.

How to Kill a Vampire For Good

Following these steps in the correct order may be able to permanently get rid of a vampire. 

Drive a long object, wooden or otherwise, through and through the vampire’s heart to paralyze them. 

Decapitate the vampire while they are still paralyzed. 

Incinerate both the severed head and the body in separate fires–careful, if the stake is made of wood, it may burn up before the body does, rendering the vampire able to move again even if they are decapitated. 

Mix the resulting ashes from both fires with blessed water. 

If possible, have blood relatives of the vampire in question drink the ashes with the water. There is still no guarantee that following these steps will permanently prevent a vampire’s return, but following through to the last step will give the best possible chance of destroying them for good. 

To determine if a vampire will return, the Narrator should roll a hidden D6, adding a +1 modifier for each of the above steps that were completed. Subtract -2 if the steps were not done in exactly the sequence listed above. On a result of 8 or more, the vampire will not return. 

Misc. Tells

Spectral

The higher a vampire’s Composure, the more “normal” and biological they will seem, with more flushed and warmer skin, and even often a real heartbeat.

The lower a vampire’s Composure, the more spectral, palled, cold, and sometimes even “fuzzy” they will seem. Touching them may even have the tiniest bit of give, as if one could phase right through them with enough pressure, and may evoke the feeling of touching a CRT screen. The vampire themselves will experience physical numbness.

Vampires are likely to express mild discomfort in colder environments, unless they have recently inundated themselves with warm blood.

Eyes

While normal at first glance, under low-light conditions, a vampire’s eyes reflect red light with a shine not unlike those of an animal.

Vampires also have no need to blink, and will often forget to unless they are consciously thinking to do it.

Fangs

A vampire’s fangs are growing out at a constant rate, and must be filed down to a manageable size every few months or so. Larger fangs are quite easy to spot for anyone looking at the vampire’s mouth, especially when they speak. Vampires will often cover their mouths when they speak directly at someone, disguising it as scratching their nose or some other innocuous action.[2] Of course, they could also easily pass them off as well-made dental prosthetics.[1][3]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] What, did you think they were a real vampire? 

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] The vampire’s player should mention this in descriptions but not draw too much emphasis to it.

[3 off to the side in the final formatting] Some vampires may not have fangs. The question isn’t why they don't, but why others do.

Additionally, the fangs can make it quite hard to pronounce TH and W sounds. 

Reflections and Photography

Neither vampires, nor objects on their person considered assimilated, appear in any sort of reflection nor in analogue photography. Items that are not assimilated will appear to float in mid air in reflections and analogue photography.

Vampires do appear in digital imaging, but facial recognition and other image analysis software will not be able to detect or identify them.

Electromagnetic Field

Vampires seem to produce an exceptionally strong electromagnetic field. It is not enough to severely damage most modern electronics, but it would make an EMF detector go off immediately.[1][2]

[1 off to the side in final formatting] Some experts claim that the vampire in fact is this electromagnetic field, and the person one sees while looking at the vampire is a hallucination brought on by this field’s effect on the human brain.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires often struggle with touch screen devices, and not just because they’re old. They tend to prefer physical buttons.

Shadows

Vampires, and anything they have assimilated, do not cast shadows from most artificial light, such as flashlights and ceiling lights, but do cast shadows from sunlight and moonlight. Sometimes, regardless of their current manifestation, a vampire’s shadow will be that of the Monstrous Beast manifestation. 

Gaunt Appearance

Vampires usually, but not always, appear as a ‘snapshot’ of themselves upon death. Therefore, it is not uncommon for vampires to appear gaunt, emaciated, or otherwise unhealthy, though the degree may be subjective to the viewer.[1] Vampires who were missing body parts for a significant amount of time in life will still be missing them in death.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Vampires are subjective. 

Animals

When a vampire encounters animals of any degree of intelligence, the Narrator will roll a hidden D6. If 1: The animal will react with extreme fear and hostility towards the vampire, though will likely be afraid to outright attack. If 2-5: The animal will not distinguish between the vampire and a normal person. If 6: The animal will be unable to perceive the vampire at all. 

Exact Orientation

When not debilitated by a weakness, vampires may sometimes accidentally “orient” themselves to surfaces that they do not need to, such that they will appear to be standing at a slight angle on slopes surfaces while everyone else is standing directly up. This is often hardly noticeable, and the steeper the slope, the more likely the vampire is to catch themselves and stand “correctly.”

[gayf1hoe]

Risking It All

Scenario - Logan joins a brand new team to Formula 1 and is finally able to showcase his true talent however his new team principal catches his eye in more ways than one. But is his team principal willing to risk it all for his new driver.

“Y/N we have been going over this you need to choose the driver line up” 

“God if I had known it would be this stressful I would never have agreed to invest in this team” 

As Haas is leaving after this season in F1, me and my best friend, which is a term I use quite loosely, decided it would be a good idea to invest in an F1 team. We have always been passionate about F1 and it wasn't until we heard about Gene Haas pulling the Haas F1 Team out of the sport we decided to shoot our shot with the FIA and for some reason they agreed. 

As I have the biggest stake in the team I'm practically in charge of everything and I have been appointed team principal because our budget doesn't extend to the stage where we can employ thousands of staff. I have also been tasked with finding our driver line up and it's harder than it sounds because every driver wants a certain amount of money we don't have or wants to know what car we will have when it hasn't even been finished yet. I currently have a wall full of drivers' faces in my office with loads of red crosses on their faces. It basically looks like a hit list at this point. 

We have one driver confirmed and that's Pietro Fittipladi who was a reserve for Haas and we have decided to give him a chance in a full F1 seat. If he's shit then it doesn't matter because it's our first season so we can all blame the car. 

I'm down to my last 2 options and they are Kevin Magnussen and Logan Sargeant. I can't decide which one I want but they are our only options as they are the only 2 people not trying to bankrupt us with their salary requests. Kevin is a good driver however his fines and penalties he likes to get from the FIA could be a problem but Logan is also a good driver but I fear what he may do to the car. 

“We need a decision,” my friend presses on.

“Listen Jarno I will give you an answer soon don't worry, but the more you press on the more it pisses me off” 

“Oh and by the way the new race engineer contracts are on your desk” 

That's another thing that has been a pain some of these Engineers have been asking for more than the drivers themselves but we eventually managed to get Pierre Hamelin who is Danny Rics engineer at VCARB and Steven Petrik who is Valtteri Bottas' engineer at Sauber. 

I stare Intensely at the photos on my wall of Logan and Kevin and make a decision like the responsible team principal I am going to be, I will make my decision by inputting their names into a random generator and choosing whoever it lands on and when people ask me how I made my decision I will provide them with some professional bullshit lie.

I press generate and look away from the screen and when I spin my chair around I see Logan written in capital letter on my screen so I pick up the phone and dial. 

“Is that Logan's manager” 

“It's Y/N L/N team principal of Apex Racing I was just calling to confirm logan as part of our driver line up for next year” 

We spent about an hour on the phone and when I left the factory it was pouring down with rain. 

Everyone else left to leave me to do the breaking stuff which is no surprise. I feel like it was a bad idea to create an F1 team with an Esports driver. Me and Jarno have been friends for ages but I was always into what I call “proper” racing not racing on the computer but the past year we have grown closer I mean we have had no choice we have been up until 2 am trying to find sponsors because there is no way either of us has the kind of money to spontaneously invest in and start an F1 team unlike some people cough cough Lawrence stroll. 

I go home and collapse on my bed ahead of tomorrow when we announce our driver line up. 

“Y/N maybe you should stand in the centre” 

“Maybe you should hurry up and take the photo” 

Who knew the media could take so long like it's just taking a photo? Why do I have to act like a model and do all these weird stances and things with my face which apparently is called smiling? I haven't done that since I set out to make this team. I mean there's not been a lot to smile about late night meetings, early morning meetings, travelling, emailing. I think I've forgotten how to sit down without doing some form of work.

Logan and Pietro are coming by to the factory later to finish signing their contracts, the current F1 season isn't finished yet and technically a team wouldn't be allowed to start manufacturing their car now but the FIA gave us permission as we have had to make major changes to the factory. We brought it from Red Bull it's one of their old factories and I guess they felt bad for the new guys so gave us a good price, well a good price for an F1 factory I guess, because I have never seen that amount of zeros on a price tag and been told “that's actually reasonable”. 

The first thing I notice about Logan is his smile and calm demeanour. He's had a tough time of late so it surprises me because I have had a tough time and I am probably the last person anyone wants to piss off. As I'm also team principal I will be seeing a lot of the guys at the track so it's imperative we get along, but the two drivers seem to get along. But it's how they get along on track I'm more focused on. 

Just because they are besties off track it doesn't mean they will be like that on track and I don't want any Hamilton Rosberg or Verstappen and Ricciardo situations because it will kill me and my bank account. 

We give the drivers a tour of the garage and I get talking with Logan as up until this point everything has been done through his manager. 

“So are you looking forward to joining the team?” I ask. 

“I am but I must ask how did an Esports champion and a former racing driver start an F1 team so quickly as well”

“It's a long answer and quite painful”

After a tour of the factory we get to singing contracts and doing the media posts and stuff. No one is surprised that Logan is leaving William's given they literally announced Carlos Sainz a week ago but I'm sure everyone thought he was done with F1 given his 2 year stint at williams has been far from extraordinary. 

Pietro I guess is a bit of a shock as well as he's been on the sidelines for a while he only really made an appearance after Romain crashed in Bahrain a few years ago but he's been pretty active in indycar and not been doing too bad.

“I will see you in Melbourne next year” I say closing waving logan off. 

I'm going on a long break and any issues Jarno or someone else can deal with. 

Pre Season testing was nothing to write home about, we had a few minor issues but I would be more concerned if everything was working fine because then we would have done everything right and not even teams like Ferrari can do that. 

Now FP1 is in session I'm looking to see what the two guys can do against the clock. 

We have a pretty decent car and by that I mean we are ahead of Sauber, Alpine, VCARB, William's we are sort of fighting between the Astons and Mercedes cars. 

“Let's do a simulated quali run on logan” I suggest turning to the race performance engineer. 

Logan comes in and puts on a fresh set of tyres and heads back out. I wish I could say I'm not sitting here thinking “please don't crash the car’ but I am. I mean Logan hasn't given me a reason not to think that my opinion of him is based on what he was like at Williams. But I'm not letting him know that as that would ruin his confidence. We have given him our full support and let him know of that. He has been told he will receive upgrades as soon as they are made he will never be sacrificed for his teammates mistakes and its seemed to improve his morale. 

Logan crosses the line and goes up to P4. It's not P1 but I will take it nonetheless and Logan's elation over the radio tells me we are in for a fun year. 

I'm on the pit wall with Sky Sports so after Logan's run I get the joy of talking to Karun Chandhok in the commentary box. 

Karun: Y/N first weekend as a team principal and a team owner of a new team and you have a driver in P4 and P6. It must feel pretty good right?

Y/N: Of course we have worked hard to put ourselves in a strong position and we want to give our drivers a car that can showcase their abilities. 

Karun: Well a question everyone is asking is why logan? His career at Williams surely couldn't have been the reason to choose him. 

Y/N: Well what I told Logan was forget William's ever happened or existed whatever happened or was said at Williams is the past. We have faith in him and we know what he can do with a good car and he showcased that to us on his simulated qualifying run. 

Karun: Lastly Y/N what is the goal for Apex Racing both this weekend and for the end of the year where do you want to be? 

Y/N: Ideally and realistically with the car we have we would like to finish P5 in the constructors with our main rivals being Aston Martin however with Mercedes taking on a rookie driver maybe we could capitalise on the lack of experience at the team as we have two experienced drivers. We haven't told the drivers where we would like them to finish in the standings, it's just go out race and have fun. 

At the chequered flag of FP1 I head up to the engineering office in preparation for the debrief, that's when I hear someone calling my name. I turn around to see Logan doing a light jog over to me. 

“Is everything OK?” I ask. 

“Yes i just wanted to say thank you for giving me such a good car and having faith in me I guess it was really nice to go out and show my full potential to everyone” 

“You're more than welcome Logan” 

He embraces me in a hug and as an automatic response I hug back not contemplating the implications of a team principal being this affectionate with their driver. But surely this won't come too much. Engineering meetings to someone who doesn't understand half of what they are talking about are quite boring. I mean I haven't got the first clue about the brake shape setting into turn 1 but I just nod as if I do. 

Throughout the whole meeting every time I look up I make eye contact with Logan. It's kind of like when you're in school and look at your crush and they are looking right back at you, not that I have a crush on Logan. 

Most of the day is spent doing admin stuff, things are still all over the place and we are just seeing how we function as a team. Most of our team is from Haas and we have taken on a lot of staff from F2 as it seemed the most economical way, as people with less experience don't cost as much. 

Qualifying. 

“OK before we go out I want to just say that this is our first weekend and anything above P20 I will be grateful for but we know what the car and both drivers are capable of so let's work hard and show to everyone we are not a joke” 

Both drivers hop in the cars and we time it so that on both drivers flying laps they get a tow which will gain us a few vital tenths. Logan's first lap puts him in P8 and Pietro’s P6 so they will definitely have to go out again.

We send both out at the same time and by now I have no nails, my eyes are just fixated on the live feed and sector times and as they cross the line Logan shoots up to P4 and Pietro P5. 

I can hear the team cheering behind me as the chequered flag waves on Q1. Q2 was just as successful with both drivers making it to Q3 knocking out the likes of Stroll, Piastri and Antonelli. 

Now the pressures on I can see the live telemetry showing how much Logan is pushing his car and I quite literally can't watch. And I don't look up until I hear the ecstatic cheer from being. 

Pietro P8 and Logan P4. Not bad for a new team I guess and a driver people had written off ages ago. 

We may be the only team happy with not being on pole but this is a great start in comparison to other teams when they first joined. 

In the team meeting later that day I don't have much to say other than “That was fucking exceptional”. I have never seen Logan smile so much. 

We are using Honda engines which are known for being quite powerful and the drivers are constantly praising the amount of power they have. It was a great day and I can't really fathom how any of this is real. 

As I'm sitting in my office writing a press statement about our first day there is a knock on my door. I get up and open the door revealing Logan standing there. I motion for him to come in and he takes a seat at the table so I pull out a chair and sit next to him. 

“What can I do for you?” I ask. 

“I was wondering if it would be possible to go out for dinner one night this week”

“Sure I think that would be a great idea, allow everyone to get to know each other it will be good”

“I sort of meant it as just me and you”

I don't really know what to say. I don't want to ask if it's a date because that makes it weird but then if I don't ask I will be left with this looming question of what does it mean. 

“Why do you look so confused?” Logan asks. 

“I'm just wondering why a driver would want to go out for dinner with their team principal”

“Well because I would like it to be a date” he declares whilst rubbing his hands together.

I stutter for a moment and Logan's face flushes with a pale red colour of embarrassment. 

“Sure I would love to go on a date with you” 

I haven't even been a team principal for one race weekend and I'm going on a date with one of my drivers that surely goes against every professional standard ever. I know that if I end dating Logan I will never hear the end of the fact that I am ‘biassed’. 

I spend ages looking through my limited outfit choices, I mean 85% of my clothes are work clothes and the rest are beach clothes. I eventually settle on a pair of light blue shorts and a white shirt that doesn't look too formal but also looks like I made an effort. 

Apprehensive, I open my hotel room door and make my way down to the car where Logan said he would meet me. It's kind of awkward as I'm just stood by his car whilst everyone looks at me weird or that's what I think they are doing I could just be very paranoid. When he finally turns up he already has an excuse ready. 

“Sorry I got held up by Alex who wanted to show me photos of his new cat” 

Dinner goes well, I mean we don't get spotted and the food is nice, the waiter did refer to Logan as my boyfriend although we booked a table for two at a romantic restaurant it's understable as to why he would make the assumption about us. 

Being on the pit wall before the race is a strange alien feeling. I mean sure I've been sat here for testing, free practice and qualifying but there's a completely different atmosphere today. Both me and Jarno are intently staring at the screens and both drivers know it so the pressure is on. 

Before the start of the race I make sure to give the drivers a few last words of encouragement over the radio and then I sit back and close my eyes for the next 2 hours. 

It's a fairly good start if you minus Lando’s jump start and Ocon nearly taking out Gasly. Logan gently introduces his tyres which will give him the edge on other drivers later. Today I'm not worried about gaining places or getting a podium. I would be happy with P9 and P10. 

There is a brief problem with Logan's car but the engineers give him some sort of code that fixes the issues, how that works I do not know but if I could fix my car with a few numbers I would have saved a lot of money. 

Pietro is first to pit and all attention is on the pit crew for their first Grand Prix pit stop and it goes fairly well being a 2.6 second stop. It's not as good as Red Bull and McLaren but we have to start somewhere. Logan's next and as he's coming down the pit lane William's release Albon way too close to Logan and he enters the box, it's almost as if they are jealous of the unlocked potential Logan has. 

5 Laps to go. I begin to see everyone's faces become more focused in the crucial last laps. Logan is in P6 Pietro P9 if they could just hold on to this I can cancel my meditation class. 

2 Laps to go. Yuki has been lapping on average a 10th faster than Logan each lap and is within attacking distance. 

“Tsunoda 0.8 with DRS” I hear the engineer say and this is when I spin my chair to look in the pit lane. 

Last Lap. Logan manages to fend off Yuki each time and they are approaching the finish line. All the team members are stood up out of their seats and are cheering. 

Anyone who said Logan was talentless must be regretting their words now. 

There's a firm knock on my door. 

“hey” I say looking up to meet a smiling face.

“hey, I just wanted to say thank you for allowing me to prove everyone wrong I never thought I would get P6” 

“You are welcome logan” 

“How about I show you how grateful I am” 

“How will you do that?” 

He pushes me against the fibreglass wall and pulls our faces together. I can still see the shimmering layer of post race sweat on the bridge of his nose. He inches closer making a firm connecting between our lips. Edging his tongue out of his mouth to connect with mine. Then the moment of pure euphoria is disowned by the sound of the team obnoxiously singing in the hallway. 

“I guess we will have to continue this later” I say with a suggestive smile whilst opening the foot to be greeted by the entire team in a small corridor. 

[cepheustarot]

Who is secretly in love with you and wants a relationship?

Attention! This reading is for entertainment purposes only. This tarot reading does not give a 100% guarantee that all the described situations will occur. You build your own life and destiny.

Pick a pile. Choose one or more pictures. Trust your intuition.

Pile 1: as soon as a new period began in your life, a new stage, this person appeared in your environment! Speaking about a person's personality, he tends to easily say goodbye to the past, he is not attached to memories, people and accepts new changes in his life without excitement and fear. He perceives everything that happens inside and outside with absolute peace. He perceives everything that happens inside and outside with absolute peace. By himself, a person is calm, easy to communicate, knows how to find a common language with everyone, you can talk to him about anything. He can also support a person, calm him down, solve a problem. He is not one of those who participates in conflicts, but if it does happen, he tries to find a compromise and does not take the dispute to the extreme. Most often, he can be seen in the company of someone or surrounded by people, because again, a person attracts others with his aura, his charisma, it's nice to be with him, you feel calm and safe next to him. As for his feelings for you, he feels sympathy, we can say that he is trying to learn more about you, so while he is collecting any information about you, he can also ask you questions or ask your mutual friends about you, but he does it carefully, because he does not want to look in your eyes like stalker. But in general, he is looking for how to approach you, how to attract attention to himself. You can also assume that he is attentive not only to you, but also to other people, as if he is looking for a mate among others too, but in fact only you interested him romantically, so you don't have to worry about this. As a partner, he will be devoted, the relationship with him will be stable and strong, since again the person is open to conversations, to discussing and solving problems, disagreements between you. Harmony in relationships and mutual understanding are important to him.

Pile 2: A very sensitive person is in love with you, quite sweet, emotional, with a gentle nature, but he can behave very cautiously and distrustfully at times, afraid to open up and tell about his feelings. Here, in general, the cards say that he is very in love with you, and most likely even in life it is visible, he can be given out by actions or he can use phrases with hints, in general, he is not very good at hiding his love for you. He also tends to close himself in himself often, again, he does not share his feelings and thoughts with others, it is difficult for him. I assume that he does not want to hurt himself and his feelings and is generally afraid to get upset. Therefore, in part he can be called reserved and sometimes taciturn, but in fact he shows his attitude to people through his actions, he is generous and caring. Analyzing in more detail his feelings for you, we can say that he sees in you a caring person who will lend a helping hand if necessary, support, and you are also open with him and share your thoughts, and he admires, attracts such openness in you. He generally feels comfortable with you! But nevertheless, it is better for you to take a step up and clarify all the ambiguous moments, clarify feelings, since he is unlikely to decide on the first step, and so you will push him to talk. And, to be honest, he tends to underestimate himself and he may think that he is unworthy of you and in general is not suitable as a partner, but it's up to you to decide whether to be with him or not.

Pile 3: Here a mature and successful person who has achieved a lot in his life is in love with you, he has a stable income and he is quite successful in his career, holds high positions. He also knows how to save money, and then invest the accumulated amount, and thus, after a while, he receives an amount twice as much as invested. In other words, he is financially literate, perhaps he has his own business, or he is studying in a specialty that is related to the topic of finance and money. He is also a family and caring person, most likely he is not the only child in the family, but he is the eldest and cares a lot about his brothers or sisters. In general, he is kind and generous, you can talk to him about anything, he cannot be called conflicted. But his disadvantage is that he often appears indecisive and cannot make a choice, he delays the moment of making a decision, justifying this by analyzing all available options to solve the problem. And although he thinks a lot, this is not a good sign, because then he can think for others and overthinking himself. As for his feelings for you, he is not in a hurry to tell you about them right away, but does it slowly and gradually, shows caution, because he wants to understand your feelings for him. In general, his feelings are at the nascent stage, he definitely feels interest in you, sympathy and trust in you. As a partner, he is quite caring, does a lot to make you feel comfortable with him, feel loved. In general, in terms of love, he is a mature person, since he has a lot of experience. The relationship with him is harmonious and calm, built on trust.

Thank you for reading! I will be glad of any feedback <3

[claudiafrankie]

Pick a Card: Let me Describe You/What You're Going Through

DISCLAIMER: TAROT IS NOT AN EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE. YOU ARE IN CHARGE OF MAKING YOUR OWN DECISIONS.

Pile 1: The Birds

This pile feels strongly ancestral. I don't know if you connect with your ancestors but they sure as shit want to connect with you lol. I think something in your life is in the process of unfolding and you are doing a really good job of staying objective about it. Not meddling with the outcome, just letting what will be, be. There seems to be a lot of chatter and external opinions flying around you, and your ancestors are like "for the birds" lmao.

For awhile now you have been in a stage of agitation, like when the piece of sand gets caught in an oyster and is transformed into a pearl. I think there's people around you that can sense that this is going on within you, but they might not have the tools to articulate this or approach you in a loving/sincere way about it, with the concern for your well-being/desire to help at the forefront of their intentions.

You could be isolating a lot because you feel this energy. You have become masterful at creating a haze/fog around yourself to conceal and protect yourself. It's like your in the kitchen cooking for company and your guests are breathing down your neck like "When's it going to be ready?? What are you making in there??? Can I see can I see can I see????" Lol I don't think these people have ill intentions they just don't know how to support you right now. I think you might have to take a more direct approach if you want them to lay off, though. I don't see them easing up/giving you your space, so if you want/need that it might be time to say that up front. You are pretty good at evading prying eyes, but you may have to play mama bear for yourself if you need more space than what you're getting.

I think you've been getting a lot of downloads and messages about your path and your healing process. You need to know that to integrate these messages you have to find better ways to rest. Not just literally like sleeping or napping, but things you can do to relax your mind and especially your body. You're kind of in a gestation process. Dealing with that on top of the stress of everyday living (and these birds who can't seem to mind their own business lol) calls for a more serious prioritization of slowing down.

I feel like I need to tell you that meditation doesn't have to be sitting still and breathing. Beach-combing can be meditative, coloring in a coloring book can be meditative, baking brownies can be meditative. I think it would really help you to pick an activity that is simple and slow and just really do it. Feel the pebbles/sand crunch/squeak under your feet, feel the coarse calcium shells, smell the crayons and watch their colors flood a blank page, listen to the egg shells crack on the counter.

I get that you might be dealing with some feelings of fear and/or dread. You aren't really sure what you're transforming into, and what will be left standing in your life once the process is complete. You're not a bad person for changing and leaving things or people behind. I think you are the type to cling to guilt over past relationships and really beat yourself up over mistakes. You are allowed to make mistakes. Once you start giving yourself that grace I think this gestation period will be a lot more bearable. It will still be uncomfortable, but you'll have a greater level of tolerance for discomfort and a stronger skill set for accommodating yourself.

I think you might be called to help guide others who are going through a similar process as well. I think this is not the first time you have moved through a period like this. You have the ability to notice when someone is struggling with changes in their own life and psyche, and the wisdom to be a source of comfort and guidance for them. I think you have encountered unsolicited advice and know how unhelpful and frustrating it can be to be on the receiving end of that, you know how to hold space for people in uncomfortable transition periods and not assert your own opinions/perspectives onto them of what they "should" be doing or what you think would be "good" for them. More than anything you understand how invaluable it is to have someone witness what you're going through and reflect it back to you without judgement. To really see you, and be with you.

Take care pile 1.

Pile 2: The Tower

Woah. This pile feels old old. There is a profoundly detached energy coming through for you guys, very cerebral and heady. It's not cold, but there is a sort of ruthless... neutrality. You see everyone as being on the same level, playing on the same field, fighting for the same things. Just maybe with some different outfits or weapons. This perspective informs your behavior heavily, and I feel like this might be misread by those around you as a disregard for authority, a sense of entitlement, of superiority. When in actuality, you're simply carrying yourself as exactly what you are: a sovereign being with power over your own life. You know that no one gets to tell you who you are, ever.

This kind of self-image and worldview, to many, is radical. Your presence forces people to confront themselves. They see you move through obstacles, pick yourself up, let things bounce right off you, and keep trying. They see your unwavering sense of self, a steady fire burning in a hearth. They are confronted with the reality that they have not cultivated this in themselves, or at least have not attained the level of mastery they perceive in you.

This can go two ways: some look to you as a source of inspiration. Some as competition. This pile is used to people competing with them for no good reason. You may have had people pretend to be friends with you, get close to you, try and siphon off of the glow and warmth of your inner world. You see the pain in people and you easily forgive, you are understanding of the myriad of reasons why people struggle to accept themselves. But you have also learned that, at the end of the day, we either decide to do something about this pain or we don't. And you can't make anyone do anything. There's that radical neutrality. You have faith that everyone is where they are meant to be, and will end up where they are meant to go.

Two of the tarot cards I pulled for you guys were Justice and the Ace of Swords. You guys are both a channel for the truth and the truth itself. The smallest things you do signal to others how you see the world, how you understand your place in it. I forget where I heard this, but there is an idea of "how you do one thing is how you do everything." That's you guys. Your beliefs permeate into everything you do.

I think for a lot of you, your karma could be playing out in the workplace. I think you are supposed to model for people what it means to really do the work, literally and figuratively. You are meticulous and shrewd. I might even say brilliant. You have a sharp mind and the drive to back it up. I get the sense that if you wanted to you could really fuck with people, but you don't. And I think this is for two reasons: I think you have a genuine appreciation and love for people and humanity, and I think you also have a deep understanding of the laws of karma. You understand the seriousness and precariousness of it all. You do not hold this lightly.

Maybe things feel stagnant at work, like they aren't moving, like your efforts go unnoticed or worse, are disregarded. Keep going. Keep trying. Not for anyone but yourself. Because you owe it to yourself to cultivate something that is all yours. Brick by brick, I think you have the potential to build yourself into a seriously successful person. But I don't think you'll be one of those people who has windfalls of luck - unexpected promotions or raises. And if these things do come to you, I see that these speedy promotions will be ultimately reversed. You are here to show people what it means to do it yourself, do it right. And doing it right takes time. But I don't think you need me to tell you that. ;)

Take it easy pile 2.

Pile 3: The Heart

You guys are tired and fed the fuck up is who you are lmao. I think the amount of pressure and frustration you have been encountering in your relationships has been building and building and building. As I'm writing this the time is 5:55, and two of your tarot cards are the five of pentacles and the five of swords. Things are changing for you guys, and it probably feels like, "Finally."

I think you're moving through a period where you have felt powerless when it comes to your relationships. There is a lot of build up of resentment for the people around you. I think you have been trying to stay optimistic, and maybe pushing down the part of you that's like "actually no......... we're not going to be treated like that"

I think there is or was a group of people that made you feel excluded. Your mistakes were magnified and your wins were ignored. You have been made to feel like it's your fault that they don't accept you, framing the dynamics as though you are the one who has to earn their approval. There is a really fucked up weaponizing of abandonment/belonging here. Like the behavior of these people is underhanded and covert, nothing really big happens that you can point to and say "That's what I'm talking about!!! Y'all are giant assholes!" It's all under the surface but it is detectable in so many of your interactions. They have been trying to get you to crack, to contort yourself to meet their expectations, to sacrifice your autonomy and self respect to fit in, just like they have.

I think there is some danger here on your part of swinging to an extreme. With the level of anger and frustration depicted in your cards, I wouldn't be surprised if you are fighting back tooth and nail your impulse to smack a bitch. I would like to tell you that, while honestly this would likely be a valid response in your situation, please do not engage in these types of behavior. Once to retaliate or respond to how you are being treated, it will be twisted. Even though you are the one who has been poked, prodded, and laughed at, if you respond to this - you will be made out to be the bad guy. And I know that that is crazy-making, but it's unfortunately how the world works. Don't give them the satisfaction. Take all that pent up energy and channel it into something for you, don't waste it on these people. They don't deserve it. Let it fuel your work ethic, start a new creative project, learn a new skill, start a side hustle, whip yourself into killer shape. Start your winter arc early, if you will. Let them watch you climb to the top, and then smile at them.

I think yeah you're just in a time of realizing how much of yourself you have set aside to please other people, and how detrimental this is to you and your relationships. You might have been feeling socially "stuck" for a long time. Past hurts have calcified and become like part of your skeletal structure. You've been in so much pain. I'm not sure if you've been keeping what you've been going through to yourself but if you have, it seems like some kind of outlet would be good. Even if you don't have anyone in your life that you feel safe opening up to, or if you can't afford therapy, use your body, journal, scream in a pillow, rage cry, dance it out to bad bitch anthems. This is like heavy and sharp and hot energy and it's just sitting in your solar plexus. You could be lashing out at people who don't deserve it and pushing away potential friends because there's just so much of this pain that you are struggling to express it and move through it. This is human and normal and there is nothing wrong with you!!!!

Best of luck pile 3