#Really Explored as much as i think it could have.

[jonnywaistcoat]

What’s your opinion on the contrast between “silly” and “serious” spaces? Do you think people can have very serious interpretations about a genuine piece of media and also be goofy about it? I’m asking this particularly because I’ve seen people in the Magnus podcast fandoms fight about people “misinterpreting” characters you, Alex, and the many other authors have written. Are you okay with the blorbofication or do you really wish the media you’ve written would be “taken seriously” 100% of the time?

And follow up question, what do you think about the whole “it’s up to the reader (or in some cases, listener) to make their own conclusions and interpretations and that does not make them wrong”, versus the “it was written this way because the author intended it this way, and we should respect that” argument?

This is a question I've given a lot of thought over the years, to the point where I don't know how much I can respond without it becoming a literal essay. But I'll try.

My main principle for this stuff boils roughly down to: "The only incorrect way to respond to art is to try and police the responses of others." Art is an intensely subjective, personal thing, and I think a lot of online spaces that engage with media are somewhat antithetical to what is, to me, a key part of it, which is sitting alone with your response to a story, a character, a scene or an image and allowing yourself to explore it's effect on you. To feel your feelings and think about them in relation to the text.

Now, this is not to say that jokes and goofiness about a piece of art aren't fucking great. I love to watch The Thing and drink in the vibes or arctic desolation and paranoia, or think about the picture it paints of masculinity as a sublimely lonely thing where the most terrible threat is that of an imposed, alien intimacy. And that actually makes me laugh even more the jokey shitpost "Do you think the guys in The Thing ever explored each other's bodies? Yeah but watch out". Silly and serious don't have to be in opposition, and I often find the best jokes about a piece of media come from those who have really engaged with it.

And in terms of interpreting characters? Interpreting and responding to fictional characters is one of the key functions of stories. They're not real people, there is no objective truth to who they are or what they do or why they do it. They are artificial constructs and the life they are given is given by you, the reader/listener/viewer, etc. Your interpetation of them can't be wrong, because your interpretation of them is all that there is, they have no existence outside of that.

And obviously your interpretation will be different to other people's, because your brain, your life, your associations - the building blocks from which the voices you hear on a podcast become realised people in your mind - are entirely your own. Thus you cannot say anyone else's is wrong. You can say "That's not how it came across to me" or "I have a very different reading of that character", but that's it. I suppose if someone is fundamentally missing something (like saying "x character would never use violence" when x character strangles a man to death in chapter 4) you could say "I think that's a significant misreading of the text", but that's only to be reserved for if you have the evidence to back it up and are feeling really savage.

I think this is one of the things that saddens me a bit about some aspects of fandom culture - it has a tendency to police or standardise responses or interpretations, turning them from personal experiences to be explored into public takes to be argued over. It also has the occasional moralistic strain, and if there's one thing I wish I could carve in stone on every fan space it's that Your Responses to a Piece of Art Carry No Intrinsic Moral Weight.

As for authorial intention, that's a simpler one: who gives a shit? Even the author doesn't know their own intentions half the time. There is intentionality there, of course, but often it's a chaotic and shifting mix of theme and story and character which rarely sticks in the mind in the exact form it had during writing. If you ask me what my intention was in a scene from five years ago, I'll give you an answer, but it will be my own current interpretation of a half-remembered thing, altered and warped by my own changing relationship to the work and five years of consideration and change within myself. Or I might not remember at all and just have a guess. And I'm a best case scenario because I'm still alive. Thinking about a writers possible or stated intentions is interesting and can often lead to some compelling discussion or examination, but to try and hold it up as any sort of "truth" is, to my mind, deeply misguided.

Authorial statements can provide interesting context to a work, or suggest possible readings, but they have no actual transformative effect on the text. If an author says of a book that they always imagined y character being black, despite it never being mentioned in the text, that's interesting - what happens if we read that character as black? How does it change our responses to the that character actions and position? How does it affect the wider themes and story? It doesn't, however, actually make y character black because in the text itself their race remains nonspecific. The author lost the ability to make that change the moment it was published. It's not solely theirs anymore.

So yeah, that was a fuckin essay. In conclusion, serious and silly are both good, but serious does not mean yelling at other people about "misinterpretations", it means sitting with your personal explorations of a piece of art. All interpretations are valid unless they've legitimately missed a major part of the text (and even then they're still valid interpretations of whatever incomplete or odd version of the text exists inside that person's brain). Authorial intent is interesting to think about but ultimately unknowable, untrustworthy and certainly not a source of truth. Phew.

Oh, and blorbofication is fine, though it does to my mind sometimes pair with a certain shallowness to one's exploration of the work in question.

#Big thoughts #Big rambles #These are my current thoughts at least #They will likely change #As all things do

[fkinavocado]

a very indulgent exploration of what could've, should've been...

Don't Worry Darling (SPIN-OFF) - Masterlist, Author’s Notes & Warnings / alternatively, read on wattpad

Part One (word count: 6.2k)

“... Jack? Excuse me, Jack? Is that really you?”

The man reluctantly stopped in his tracks and turned around, recognizing the woman but having forgotten her name. “Oh… hi there, uhm…?”

“Emma. It’s Emma. You remember me, right?”

“Yeah, you’re, uhm… you used to work at the hospital…”

Emma approached him, noting he wasn’t keen on breaching the gap himself. Poor fellow, she thought. He looked a mess. She was surprised she’d even recognized him. “Oh, I’m still at the hospital! How are you, Jack? You know, we’re all worried about you. Why didn’t you take us up on our offer, hm? We’d have loved to help you any way we could… It can’t have been easy. Gloria told us she came over once with a home cooked casserole but no one answered the door. She assumed you’d moved. Which is good, we thought. But we couldn’t get a hold of you, you must’ve also changed your number…”

Jack wasn’t really making eye contact. His gaze downcast, a hoodie atop of a beanie on his head and an oversized, worn out puffer jacket that almost swallowed him up. He looked very poorly even hidden behind all that. His facial hair unkempt, as was his hair tucked underneath his beanie, seemingly longer strands of it all messy and straw-like peeking out. His glasses loose at his temples. His face was hollow cheeked and she really feared he wasn’t looking after himself properly at all. But what really stood out to her was the bouquet of flowers he was carrying.

“Yeah… I moved out of there. Too many memories.”

“Those were her favourite… pink roses,” she mused. “You miss her so, don’t you, Jack? You can’t even bear talking to me about her, you poor man, even after all this time… What must you be going through… do you– agh. This is so insensible of me to even ask. Forgive me. But if it’s any consolation, us at the hospital haven’t given up hope. We still think she’s out there, somewhere, our Alice…”

Jack cleared his throat and took a step back. “I should get going…”

“Of course. Do take care of yourself, Jack. And if you ever want to reach out, you know where to find us. Take all the time you need.”

“Thank you,...” he stammered a bit, not knowing what else to say. He walked for a while in the wrong direction, just in case the nosy woman decided to follow him. 

He hadn’t moved. That would’ve been near impossible, and since he managed to dodge the bullet while the police were sniffing around for the longest time, he figured there wasn’t any reason to do so anymore. But he couldn’t have her know that, which is why he never answered the door to the other woman with the casserole either. 

After making sure she wasn’t following him, he resumed his walk home. He wished he could find some type of work from home. He’d be saving so much time and money on the commute, plus he’d always be there, which was quite imperative, all things considered.

What if there was a power outage? The one time that’d happened, there’d been dire consequences. Consequences he hadn’t had to endure. And he simply couldn’t allow that to happen again.

There were so many things that could go wrong while he wasn’t home.

Plus, if he worked remote he could take on a full shift. As it was, he had to work part-time, which wasn’t nearly enough to make ends meet. But the commute and all the prep he had to do were taking up too much time, time he didn’t want to waste here.

Finally arriving home, he made sure to secure the front door- the lock and all 3 of the bolts. 

Checking the computer screen, he only had 40 minutes left. The woman had made him late, what with all the detours he had to make to be sure she wasn’t following him.

Canned tuna it was, then. Again. No time for cooking. Not that he had much in the fridge anyway. 

He always felt antsy between the time he got back home and logging in. He wanted to get everything done and out of the way as soon as possible- cooking, laundry, cleaning (more like tidying up, the apartment was far from clean even by his standards), everything on autopilot, peeking at the computer screen every now and then to make sure he didn’t miss his log-in window.

With 20 minutes to spare, that was his que. 

“Oh!” He rushed back to the kitchen to retrieve the flowers, then using the keys that he wore on a chain around his neck for safekeeping, he unbolted yet another set of locks on the bedroom door. 

There she was. 

His heart always swelled in his chest seeing her there, safe and sound. Everyday day, without fail, a sigh of relief escaped his lips once he entered the bedroom. He’d probably never stop worrying while he was away for work.

“Darling, I… miss you all the time…” he hummed the lyrics to a song he used to sing to her often, placing the flowers in a vase by the bed. “Got you flowers, your favourite! Even that pesky Emma from the hospital remembers they’re your favourite. You’re so loved, hm? My precious girl.” He sat on the edge of the bed and reached to caress her supple cheek. “But I love you the most.”

Jack knew he did. Who else would do all this for her? Nobody! He tended after her, emptied out her waste bags as well as checked the respective connecting catheters were secure in place, cleaned her up, all without so much as wrinkling his nose. He replaced the IV, taking note that there was some bruising on that arm so he made sure to switch, he removed her compressive socks and massaged her limbs thoroughly before putting them back on, even made sure to hydrate her lips though she was getting all her nutrients through her IV, hell- he thought of everything. He did it all for her happily, and would do much more if needed. 

She’d done so much for them, too. 

She still did!

But long gone were the days where he’d see her come home from back to back shifts at the hospital, with barely any time to get some sleep in before she had to head back, all because she had to support the both of them all while paying off her student loans. 

Medschool was so expensive. Had he met her before he’d have talked her out of that career path. He’d have talked her out of any career! No. That was his job. He was the caretaker. He was the breadwinner. It’d been like that since the beginning of time. It was only natural for the man to provide. The fact that she’d had to for all that time had been killing him, every day that he had to sit at home and wait for her to get back from the hospital only to see her defeated, exhausted, drained beyond belief. 

Resident doctors were paid shit but strung out to the max. Especially surgeons. 

Meanwhile, Jack had struggled to find a job for the longest time. Unlike her, he hadn’t gone to college, let alone university. His parents couldn’t afford it at the time and he knew better than to tie himself up in student loans. He’d had odd jobs but nothing really ever stuck. He had no real skills, and every entry job demanded some form of higher education nowadays.

Plus, someone had to do house chores, cook and clean. And they couldn’t afford help. 

It’d been eating him up inside. It was all backwards! 

All up until he’d met someone online and got to talking over a game of World of Warcraft. This guy swore up and down about this dark web programme he’d found, but it was all very hush-hush, and Jack had to put in some serious gameplay time until he managed to extricate the info out of him.

The guy was very paranoid about telling him and even used a code system for what to look up. Jack took the lead and before long, he fell down the rabbit hole of what he now knew to be the Victory Project.

He got so immersed trying to digest all this new info being thrown his way all of a sudden that he nearly got caught listening to one of the podcasts when she’d gotten home from the hospital one day. He’d even forgotten to call the plumber. Boy- had that pissed her off.

She was already on edge all the time. Never had any time for him anyway- but if she got upset over silly little things she shut him out completely. 

He felt emasculated. Rejected. Reduced to a housewife.

Jack smirked to himself, as he tended to her whilst pondering all that. Securing the straps back around her wrists he mused at how things had changed. “I fixed it for us, I told you I would. Now you’re the one who’s waiting for me just as we speak. And I don’t even come home to you in scrubs, do I? No, I come home to you all handsome, suit and tie and ready to get my fill of you. Never too tired for you, am I darling? You’re such a great cook, god knows my mouth waters just thinking of all you’ve slaved over for us to feast on, but all I wanna do is feast on you instead. Aren’t you lucky?”

Jack watched her expressionless eyes for a moment as if waiting for her to answer him back, and promptly remembered to apply her eye drops, noticing they looked extra blood-shot than normal. He then finally got comfy in bed next to her. He couldn’t wait a moment longer. He was hard already just in anticipation of the way she’d excitedly open the door for him. The door to their lavish home, and their extravagant life together that he’d earned for the two of them. Him. 

He fixed the device around his own eyes and turned it on, taking her hand in his. 

“Welcome to the Victory Project. There are currently 72 active users.”

Nothing beat this. The pleasant, warm afternoon air sweeping through his perfectly coiffed hair as he rushed to get home to her from the Victory Headquarters. Here, the weather was always perfect… whereas, in the apartment, he had to keep the heating on a lower setting, the bill was ridiculous during the colder months. He always had to wear layers and layers, but not in the bedroom- no, he kept a radiator in there. All for her. He had to switch it off for safety reasons while he was away at work but it wasn’t like she was aware of her surroundings anyway! All the more reasons why he had to find something remote so he could work from home and clear up all these little things that bugged him about the whole arrangement. 

But he didn’t want to think about all that, not while he was here. No, here, those problems didn’t exist. This was his preferred reality, this was what he chose to believe was real. All the rest was just a means to an end.

He could feel all his exhaustment leave his body the closer he got to the house. He seldom wondered why she couldn’t have done the same for him coming back from the hospital. Why she couldn’t just leave all that baggage at the door and be glad to be home, back to him, where he waited for her like a lovesick puppy with separation anxiety.

He knew the answer to that now, of course, and that was all Frank’s merit- the brain behind this whole thing. He’d listened to his podcasts for a long while before he enrolled into the program. There was no way she could ever respect him within their given dynamic at the time. The roles were reversed and she couldn’t allow herself to be a woman to her man.

He’d fixed it, though, and boy, had Frank been right.

Every day, without fail, he knocked on the door coming home from work and there she was- all smiles and carefree and so eager to please him, in any way he saw fit. All because she respected him now. He was the man of the house, he was the breadwinner, he put a roof over her head, he got her all her little heart desired and kept her satisfied and happy. 

Which is why when nobody answered the door he was a bit taken aback.

Using his key that he’d rarely ever had to use himself to unlock the door, he let himself in and carefully inspected the silent house.

He knew, realistically, that there was no way something could’ve gone wrong- there was no crime in Victory. No one had broken into their home. But still, he searched the house tentatively. “Alice?”

Everything was spotless, and most striking of all, he couldn’t smell a trace of the homecooked meal he’d so been looking forward to. That tuna was enough to sustain his physical body, but not his large appetite.

Reaching the bedroom, he furrowed his brows with worry upon finding her… sleeping. Passed out on the bed, clad in her street clothes. She’d seemingly come back home from town exhausted and must’ve stretched her bones a bit by the looks of it. 

He contemplated waking her up. Maybe crawling between her thighs and having her gasp awake at the feel of him lapping languidly at her folds. He loved waking her up like that, and she did too. She loved being loved on, and Jack absolutely loved pleasuring her. She was so much more responsive, so much more sensitive to his touch, he could pleasure her over and over for hours on end. Probably ‘cause of all the practice he was having on a regular basis. And maybe he adjusted some settings regarding his stamina while creating his profile too, but at the end of the day, why not? He did it for her. All of this was for her!

Jack grunted to himself before closing the door to the bedroom so he wouldn’t perturb her sleep, deciding last minute to forgo his initial plans. Funny he’d been reminiscing about how things used to be just in time for this to happen all of a sudden.

It must’ve been a glitch in the system or something. This wasn’t in line with what he’d designed for themselves. Here, they were never tired, ill or imperfect in any way. Jack made a mental note to look into this after he logged out.

In the meanwhile- he’d never tried his hand at cooking here, where presumably he’d be a lot better at it than he was in reality. 

Just like with everything else.

*

Alice blinked her eyes awake. She took in her surroundings and hesitantly stood up on the bed in the dark room, letting her sight adjust. 

How did she get back here? Not here, here. She had an inkling of how she’d managed that- but back to the house, from the Headquarters. She couldn’t remember making the trek back.

Maybe she didn’t have to.

Maybe this was the default setting she woke up to everytime after entering… the simulation. Because, what else was this if not that?!

How long was she out of it? Judging by the darkness surrounding her, a good few hours. Perking her ears up, she could hear music- so Jack was home too.

She cradled her knees to her chest, trying to let it all sink in. She hadn’t had time to properly digest what had happened, in her unconscious state.

Hell, she was surprised she could even remember.

But this explained it… explained all the fuzzy deja vu-like flashbacks she kept having. Explained her brain fog and all the things she just couldn’t follow through in her train of thought. Explained why she sometimes couldn’t account for most of her day until Jack came home from work, almost as if she’d been on auto-pilot. 

Explained all the vivid “dreams”. 

They weren’t fanciful dreams, idealistic wishes of a progressive feminist world for which she’d gotten shock therapy at the Victory’s doctor’s orders.

They were her memories.

Waking up tied down to that bed… her own bed, from another life, had been traumatic, but she clearly was still in shock to be so calm about it. 

She hadn’t been calm initially of course- not when she couldn’t move her arms or blink her eyes shut. 

She’d managed to slip out of the confines, her wrists weak and frail and barely recognizable, yanking her IV out of her vein by accident- she hadn’t even known it was there!, all in an effort to get those things that forced her eyes open off of her face.

She’d been hysteric. Tried to muffle her own screams, because she didn’t know who was around to hear them. Tried to calm herself down, but the more she noticed, the more she hyperventilated. Like the fact that had both urinary and rectal catheters sticking out of her. Then she noticed how emaciated she looked, almost like she couldn’t even recognize her own body. She couldn’t feel her limbs, she felt numb and achy all over, bruises all across her skin from sitting still for so long. Her throat was hoarse, she couldn’t really scream that loud even if she wanted to.

She’d fumbled out of bed and immediately collapsed to the floor. She was too weak to stand, and she prayed she hadn’t broken any bones in her fall. She sat there crying in a fetal position for god knows how long, thinking of all the fractures she’d fixed in the OR, and all her knowledge that had gone to waste. 

All her life that had gone to waste!

This room, this bedroom- her old life came back to her in a flash, flooding all her senses. It felt like everything was finally clicking into place, and despite how miserable and utterly devastated she felt, it was a relief to finally figure it out. 

With the way nobody came rushing into the bedroom, she knew she was alone. Unless Jack was at this computer, headphones on– oh god. She felt her mind split into two trying to reconcile the fact that these two very different men were one and the same!

She was alone strapped to the bed- which could only mean one thing. He wasn’t constrained like she was. He hadn’t been forced into this. Unless they were being kept separate… both victims of this sick mindfuck. 

Because… surely– surely Jack couldn’t be behind this.

… Could he?

Scrambling for the door, determined to get some answers, she reached for the doorknob.

When she couldn’t get it to open, she mustered up all her strength to stand up- but still- it was no use. It was locked. And with the way it felt it looked like the door had been tampered with, bolted shut from the outside, not just locked. 

She was trapped. A prisoner in her own home. She eyed the windows next and even if by some miracle they weren’t bolted shut too- she knew she was too weak to try and use the fire escape. She’d surely succumb to her death trying to evade. She needed a plan- a better plan.

Her brain was scurrying to come up with something-anything, all the while dry heaving at the sight of her waste bags still attached to her by those catheters and the overall stale smell of the room, but she knew that with how dehydrated she was, vomiting would take her out completely at that point. She head to keep it together, had to–

She’d heard what she recognized to be the front door. Her blood froze in her veins. She didn’t know who it was, she had no idea who was behind all this. She had no clue where Jack was, if he even was part of this– her heart told her no, he couldn’t have, but at this point she had no way of knowing what was real or not, let alone what this all meant.

She couldn’t risk being found conscious. She was clearly being kept in a comatose state, treated as one such patient at least, and the fact that she’d woken up from that induced state was definitely not intended to happen.

She remembered what had happened before she woke up like this- she’d reached the infamous, off limits Victory Headquarters. Because a plane had crashed in that direction, and the trolley driver didn’t believe her nor wanted to take her there!

She’d made the trek all the way there… it’d taken her ages, in the scorching sun- and finally, finally, she’d reached the imposing building, in hopes of finding some help or at least some answers at that point!

Next thing she knew, she’d woken up strapped to this bed. Her bed, in her old bedroom, from her old life that had been stolen away from her!

She needed to gather as much information as possible, and the only way she could do that was to get back into that bed and pretend she never came to.

There was no other way.

She hurried as best she could, barely making it back to the bed, made sure she was laid out in the same outstretched position. By some miracle, the catheters were still in place, their respective bags on the floor by the foot of the bed. The hardest part was fixing whatever that contraption was over her face and around her eyes. It dug deep into her flesh and she remembered to wipe any traces of tears from her face when new ones began rolling down her face. She was surprised her body could even produce them with how parched she felt. She then inserted the needle back into her bruised vein– which was sure to get infected at this rate, whoever was doing this to her was amateur at best, or they didn’t much care to keep her alive. She didn’t know which prospect was worse. She slipped her wrists back through the strap loops, hoping it wouldn’t be obvious she’d gotten them a bit loose when she struggled her way out of them. 

And then she’d waited. And waited. And waited. All the while a bright red light scanned her eyeballs systematically, no doubt whatever was used to induce her into that trance or whatever it was that created the optimal parameters for the alternate reality to take place. She couldn’t even wrap her mind around it. She couldn’t even begin to understand how it worked- all she knew was that it was all too real to be just a dream. No. That was a controlled environment. The world simulation came to her again.

Her whole body froze as she’d heard the lock, then what she counted to be 3 other bolts on the bedroom door. She could only see directly above her, and that barely- but she could hear him when he came in. 

Smell him, even. 

And it wasn’t the smell of expensive cologne she’d grown used to, but a more familiar smell. A smell that felt more real, more ingrained in her subconscious- that of clothes he’d dug out of the laundry hamper to wear a few more times when everything else was too dirty even for his own standards, mixed with canned tuna and the faintest amount of deodorant that did nothing to mask the fact that he’d skipped showering for a day or two.

Her heart sank when she heard him hum to himself the song that had been stuck in her mind for ages- the one she’d been humming herself but couldn’t remember where she knew it from. This is where she knew it from. It’d been their song, in a way, a song he’d made up just for her.

“Darling, I… miss you all the time… Got you flowers, your favourite! Even that pesky Emma from the hospital remembers they’re your favourite. You’re so loved, hm? My precious girl.” She felt him sit on the edge of the bed and tried her best not to flinch when he leaned in to caress her cheek. “But I love you the most.”

She could feel her eyes well up with tears. Tears she couldn’t even blink away. 

He then started tending to her and she mustered up all of her willpower not to lurch at him when he’d gotten her out of her restraints- she knew she was no match for him, not in her weakened state by any means.

He was doing this to her. It was him! All while declaring his love for her. She felt her heart break into a million pieces, all the while forcing herself not to make any movements and break her cover. Not even when he cleaned her with wet wipes up and checked the catheters, emptying the waste bags. God- she wished she was dead. For a while she zoned out completely, much like rape victims. She just let it happen to her, dissociating from her body completely, mentally checking out.

He’d eventually poured what must’ve been eyedrops into her sockets and that brought her back to reality. Whatever reality was anymore…

And then… to her utter shock, she felt him get in bed next to her. The familiar clank of the device she’d placed back onto herself could be heard and she realized he was putting on the same headgear. 

He was… joining her? He was willingly putting himself through this? Sure, he wasn’t forced into it against his will, there was nobody strapping himself to the bed, nobody feeding him through an IV and treating him like a comatose patient.

But he was entering the simulation the same way she was. Through that headgear.

Is this what he did everyday while he was “at work”? Was this the infamously secret Victory Project that she couldn’t even ask him about- exiting that alternate reality and coming back here?

She heard him switch it on and then the whole room went dark before a projector of sorts played a familiar black and white scene on the ceiling, above the bed. She felt him interlace his fingers with hers and she was done for- she couldn’t fight it. Whatever this was, it was working fast, making her slip into unconsciousness almost immediately.

Followed directly after by her waking up in her other bedroom. Unrestrained. Nothing to force her eyes open. Clean. Rejuvenated even.

But scared shitless.

Traumatised.

Heartbroken.

She didn’t know how long she stood there, trying to make sense of it all in the darkness. Thankful to be able to move freely, thankful to feel like her old self, but well aware that it was all an illusion, that her real self was held hostage somewhere god knows where. Helpless, frail and alone.

She felt conflicted. Why was he doing this?! Why had he done this to her? She’d heard him say he loved her most. Heard he’d brought her flowers, even though she couldn’t even see them. Felt him tend to her, he was doing a lousy job at it but was keeping her alive and she could tell he was trying his best, being gentle, careful, thoughtful even when the reality was he didn’t have to. Not when, for all he knew, she was unconscious. 

This was insanity. 

There was no other explanation. No other justification. She understood the nuances- could see why this was- on paper- a better life. But it was fake! And most of all, it wasn’t her choice!

She’d been forced into it, against her will, without her even being aware of it! Her life had been robbed away from her. Her family, her friends, her hard work. The only common denominator… was Jack.

She didn’t know how to go about it, but if there was any chance of her escaping, she had to play dumb and pretend she knew nothing.

She wasn’t sure how she could face him knowing what she did, but she had to. She had to buy time, enough time until she could put her plan into motion. 

She didn’t know if she’d succeed, but she had to try. She had to. She had to escape, claim her life back, good or bad.

She got off the bed, marvelling at how strong and healthy she felt, as opposed to how she’d collapsed on the floor in her real body. That alone emboldened her, she had to go face the music.

And face the music she did. Jack had put a record on, blasting it at high volume with little consideration to her being asleep. No surprises there.

But as she approached the kitchen, she took in the sight of him… cooking. Or, trying to cook. 

Apparently, you couldn’t tweak everything in this alternate reality. Or maybe he didn’t care to fumble with his cooking skills. Because he’d definitely perfected some of his other skills–

“You’re awake!... I didn’t have time to set the table.”

“What’s going on?” She watched him scurry around the kitchen, trying to do a dozen things at once and failing. 

“Well, I’m making you dinner. Now, we were supposed to have five courses. Unfortunately, I think we’re down to about three.” 

She took note of the mess, especially the way something was about to catch on fire on the stove.

“That– don’t look at that. That course is officially off the menu.”

That’s when it clicked in her brain– the fucker had switched up his accent! He had a British accent here! Oh, she could laugh if she didn’t feel like murdering him. She reminded herself it wouldn’t be the real him she’d be murdering, though. No, for all she knew if she harmed him in any way here, she might end up trapped inside this simulation forever if her plan failed. Or until her real body died, with no one to tend for it, even as poorly as he was, in the real world.

She had to thread carefully. “What happened?”

“I got a little aggressive with the seasoning.”

“How long have you been home?”

“Uh, a few hours.” He proceeded to make even more of a mess in his attempt to jump from one dish to the next. “Okaaay. Nope. Don’t look at that. That’s– Okay, so I’m making that roast, you know the one you made for my birthday? Only with a few changes…”

“I was here when you got here?” 

“Yeah. Asleep in the bedroom. Do you put carrots in a roast?”

“How did I get home?” That was a reasonable question. Last thing she knew of this reality was she’d reached the Headquarters. She needed to know if anyone knew about it.

“Trolley, I think.”

“Wait, so he came out and got me?!”

“Who are you talking about?”

“Jack, I got off the trolley. I saw a plane crash.”

“Alice, I think I would’ve heard if there was a plane crash.”

“No, Jack, I saw it…”

“They tend to be rather loud…”

“... and I started walking–”

“–and hard to miss.”

It was dawning on her that she wasn’t going to milk any info on this out of him. He was going to pretend the plane never crashed, of course, whatever that even meant for this simulation. Or maybe the plane crashing was only visible to her version of this altered reality. She couldn’t know for sure. But he seemed unconcerned otherwise. She didn’t think he knew she’d gone there. She really must’ve re-entered right back into the bedroom, after all, she, along with all the other women, were never meant to go up there, the Headquarters were off-limits.

Meaning that was probably from where the men entered. Since they were the only ones who came and left. The women were probably all bound to their own respective beds back in the real world, they were never meant to leave the simulation. It made sense why she’d found herself back in the house- where she belonged. And it made sense if that was where the man entered and exited since that’s where they all allegedly went everyday for “work”.

Her heart sank at the realization that it was highly probable that all the other women were victims, just like her. Unless everything and everyone else was a simulation around them.

“Hey. Are you okay?”

She tried not to flinch when Jack finally noticed she’d zoned out whilst trying to process all of this, and touched her shoulder, taking a better look at her.

“No…I don’t know–I’m not…”

Before she could react, he pulled her into his arms. That smell of expensive cologne hit her again, overriding the smell of stale clothes and canned tuna from her recent memory. And his embrace felt so familiar, so comforting, that for a moment she allowed herself to pretend like this was the person she knew to love her. The person she couldn’t wait to come back home from work everyday. The person that made her smile and laugh and moan and cry tears of happiness. She knew him well, she loved him with all her heart. And she was reluctant to accept that this man was the same that was keeping her strapped against the bed. Because that was the reality of it. 

But this version of Jack that was holding her felt so real as well…

“I had a really weird dream. A really weird dream…”

“I’m sorry.”

Her heart sank. Was he, sorry? She buried her face deeper into his chest and held her breath, stifling a sob as tears flooded her eyes immediately. She wanted to break down in his arms and ask him why he’d done this. She wanted to give him a chance to explain himself. Wanted for him to somehow, magically, make it all better.

But she knew there was no way for him to do it. There was nothing he could say or do to justify what he’d done to her, even if his intentions didn’t seem as evil as they truly were to him.

Because she knew Jack. She knew he’d probably convinced himself somehow that this was the only way out of the miserable life they were living- and be it as it were, it was her life! He’d had no right to steal it from her like that. 

“Do you know what weird dreams make me? Hungry.” He fed her a carrot he was holding jokingly then turned her around as she chewed absentmindedly, her mind racing, still taking in the reality of what her life was. Or the alternate reality, more like it.

Jack cupped her face, searching her eyes and declared solemnly, “Alice, I want to be honest with you about something.”

She almost choked on the carrot she was chewing on. Was he–

“I don’t think these mashed potatoes are gonna work.”

She swallowed, a bitter taste in her mouth at her naivete. “That’s because you need to boil them first, baby…”

“I knew it… I knew there was a step missing. Such an idiot,” he smiled bashfully.

She laughed at that. A manic laugh, but he didn’t seem to notice. Not at how incompetent he was at such a basic life skill- who the hell tries to mash raw potatoes?!- but at how hopeful she’d been for a moment there, believing he was about to confess everything just like that, out of the blue.

“Let me put a pot on…”

“No, no, no–”

“Come on, let me–”

“Make us some drinks. Relax.” He pulled her out of the kitchen and into the lounge, declaring “I am your chef tonight!”

Lord knew she desperately needed a drink at this point, so she sighed heavily, getting to it, when he stopped her in her tracks, “hey!”

“Hm?”

“You love me?”

She swallowed the lump in her throat. She replied like she used to, back in the real world. Something she didn’t remember ever doing here, but it just came to her by reflex now that her memory of her past life had come back to her fully. And for some reason that she couldn’t explain, she meant it, still. “The most.”

Jack seemed pleased with her answer, and resumed his ‘cooking’. Alice turned to the whiskey bottle and downed two doubles, one after the other. 

How was she ever going to get free when her stupid heart had meant what she said?

She couldn’t allow herself to be fooled by this false reality any longer. Couldn’t allow to slip into his arms again and pretend he loved her when this was anything but love. 

So she waited. Waited until he fell asleep that night (thankfully all the “cooking” had seemingly tired him out and he didn’t try anything)- praying this meant he was truly asleep.

Got dressed, tiptoed out of the house and geared up for a long journey to the Headquarters. She couldn’t risk taking the car and waking him or the neighbours up, alerting them with this unusual behaviour. There weren't any trolleys late at night by any means- everyone was sound asleep.

Everyone but her.

She was no longer asleep.

A/N: i've been meaning to get to this for the longest while! hopefully it scratches some itches we've been left with. i had fun writing this first part. more to come 👀

💕 like & reblog if you enjoyed this, lovelies, and most importantly, please come share your thoughts on it here 💌

🦋follow me on wattpad to get notified whenever i post something new/update!🦋

#dwd #don't worry darling #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fic #harry styles writing #harry styles smut #jack chambers #florence pugh

[minty364]

DPXDC Prompt #58 Part 4

The living room and kitchen were deserted, neither Danny nor Jazz expected anyone as it was normal for their parents to essentially live in the basement only coming up for meals once or twice a month to ‘eat as a family’, these would consist mostly of fast food as no one trusted anything cooked in their kitchen.

They shared a glance as they opened the basement door and headed down. The dimly lit basement held the giant hole in the wall, the so-called portal, a massive metal spectacle with wires and interconnected circuitry met together to create an unholy abomination of science. Or at least that’s what Jazz called it once when they were in her room venting about the situation. 

“JAZZ!! DANNY!!” their overzealous father yelled as he bounded over.

Their mom walked over too, seeming to be happy for their return, “your father and I could barely contain our excitement all day!! Go on put on your hazmat suits.” their mom gestured over to the lockers that held the suits. Both of their parents' lockers tended to be quite empty since they practically lived in them, to the point where they had several copies of the same suits that they’d wash and reuse. Danny and Jazz only had the ones, Jazz had a nice dark violet color with black gloves and boots. Danny had black gloves and boots too but his was white to make it look like he was an astronaut, something that he had mixed feelings on. Both of these used to have a giant picture of Jack’s head on it but it was quickly removed by both siblings. 

They quickly put the suits on over their uniforms and joined their parents behind some glass near the portal. It wasn’t closed off or anything and Danny didn’t think it would be able to prevent something like an explosion from charing all of them but it’s hard to have faith in parents who've missed so much because of the stupid portal, or at least that’s how Danny felt. 

Jazz and Danny huddled together behind their parents as their mom did some final checks on a clipboard, “alrighty we should be all good, Hun you ready to throw the switch?” their mom asked their dad. “As ready as I’ll ever be!” Jack yelled as he threw down the switch.

…

A few sparks erupted from the portal but other than that nothing happened. 

Their dad, frustrated at this angrily tried turning it off and on again but nothing but another smaller spark and then truly nothing. 

Another low frustrated growl left their dad as he and mom walked back up the steps, “alright I’m taking a break.” Jack said, almost defeated, sounding, “I’m sorry but I really thought we had it this time.”

“Oh come on, Jack, let’s go out, I’m sure the kids were probably going over to the Wayne’s again anyways. Let’s go out and have a fun night then sleep on it.” their mom said, patting dad on the shoulder. They shared a fond look and then went upstairs probably to get ready. 

Danny and Jazz stood at the bottom of the stairs and shared a look.

“They gave up too fast again…” Jazz noted.

“I guess, what do we do now?” Danny asked.

“I’m still a little curious about the portal but I don’t want to keep Damian, Tim or Alfred waiting,” Jazz said with a hand on her cheek.

“We could invite them in, I know we haven’t before but maybe Tim would know how to get it working, he is pretty good with technology.” Danny reasoned. Neither of them really wanted to involve the Wayne’s in their family’s shenanigans but at this point they were all friends and Damian and Tim were bound to find out how weird their family was at some point anyways.

Jazz stood there seeming to think things over before she nodded, “alright I trust your judgment but we’ll have to be careful okay?” 

Danny smiled at her, “of course, what’s the worst that could happen?” 

This is what led to the four of them standing at the bottom of the stairs. Their parents had left about an hour ago. Danny and Jazz were still in their suits with Tim without one and made to sit with Jazz behind the glass and Damian and Danny planning to explore the actual tube.

“I don’t want to chance you getting hurt,” he said to her as he made her stand next to Tim.

Damian and Danny shared a look and nodded before heading into the tube. 

They looked around for a while but didn’t see much besides the interconnected wires on the floor of the lab. Damian took the right side while Danny took the left. They worked their way up and down the tube. Damian was a little ahead of Danny on their way out. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary.

When they were almost out Danny lost his footing, his hand flying out in front of him. A soft click was heard and time seemed to crawl to a stand still.

Danny couldn’t stand the thought of his friend getting hurt because of him and he felt a rush of adrenaline. He ran as he felt a swirl of energy and electricity surround his body. 

“DANNY!! DAMIAN!!” he heard both Tim and Jazz shout as he reached Damian who was at the mouth of the portal.

A quick shove was all it took to get Damian, who had turned towards him at the sound of the shout, out of the portal. 

“DANIEL!!” he heard Damian shout as the portal activated on top of him, surrounding his body with swirling green.

Blinding pain shot through Danny, feeling as if he was being torn apart and put back together again and again.

He figured he was dying but at least he could protect those he cared about. He was able to shove Damian out of the portal in time, and Tim and Jazz were safely behind the blast glass.

He wouldn’t ever be able to fly among the stars as an astronaut but he was able to protect. His family and friends were safe and that’s all that mattered. 

He could allow himself to succumb to the darkness as the electricity and pain consumed him whole.

#dp x dc prompt #danny fenton #danny phantom #dp x dc #dc x dp #poor danny #Main character death #Danny died #Jazz Fenton is traumatized #Tim Drake is traumatized #Damian Wayne is traumatized #Everyone gets traumatized #Danny himself gets majorly traumatized #Character Trauma #Depictions of death #Described death scene #Everyone is going to struggle with this #I bought a new chromebook and it's easier to type so I should be getting these out sooner #It'll probably get worse for Danny before it get's better but that's how these things go #Tim was thinking it was safe to let them search in the tube because Damian was with Danny #Damian thought it was safe because he's an ex-assassin and robin #Jazz trusted his brother to know how to be careful #Whoops Danny tripped and now he's dead #my asks are open #all my prompts are free to use #no beta we die like Danny #Google Docs is my beta

[mclzandaya]

My Candy Love New Gen - Episode 3 Guide

This episode cost me 1411 APs on Roy's (+Jason) route with jokers, without Archibald. 1212 on Amanda's route (didn't meet Jason), with jokers, with Archibald. 1431 on Devon's (+Jason) route with jokers, with Archibald.

Key:

Negative affinity result: - Neutral affinity result: = Positive affinity result: + Needs to be checked: *

Illustrations: 5 (See at the end.) None of them are automatic, you can get 2 of them in one playthrough if you're on Roy/Devon's route.

Archibald: You can find him at the west end of the shopping mall once you're done shopping. You have to ask him if he wants to come as well. (details at the shopping mall with Amanda.)

Outfits: The yellow jacket one is for Roy/Devon/Jason, the purple skirt one is for Amanda/Thomas.

The answers for Devon and Thomas are translated from French, Thomas' answers may be incomplete. Amanda, Devon, Jason and Roy's guide are complete! Idk if I'll update Thomas' answers as I won't be playing his route anytime soon, if you have his exact answers (with personality) don't hesitate to message me/leave an ask!

------------------------------------------------

DIALOGUE 1: (Everyone looked at me and applauded again.)

(I stared at the table, a bit embarrassed by all the attention.) 40 + Amanda and Elenda (I modestly nodded as a sign of thanks.) 40 + Thomas and Brune*(I joined in the applause, a smile on my face.) 40 + Roy, Devon and Elenda DIALOGUE 2: (choose the person you want to get the illu with) Devon: You can go with one of us, there will be enough of us to finish things up here...

Roy, how about a walk around the mall? 80 = Amanda, do you want to come with me? 80 = I'll admit that if you accompanied me, l'd feel more legitimate using this card... 80 = Thomas, do you want to go for a walk? 80 =

DIALOGUE 2 (bis): if you choose to go with Thomas You won't let yourself be surprised?* I wouldn't be able to function like that. I'd feel limited.* That's not a bad idea. I might try that. +*

Go to the mall to do the shopping.

OUTFIT CHOICE: Yellow for Roy/Devon/Jason. Purple for Thomas/Amanda.

A little window shopping before you go shopping can't hurt!

IF YOU GO WITH AMANDA:

DIALOGUE 3 Amanda: With little cups, and everything... It's too cute, don't you think?

Sweet: It is pretty cute! 56 + Energetic: It is cute, but it's really expensive! 53 = Rebel: Funny, I wouldn't have thought that was your thing. 49 -

DIALOGUE 4: Amanda: And you? Is there anything you like?

I could definitely see myself wearing those overalls! = I like that little dress. It's elegant, and simple... = How do you think I'd look in those shorts? =

DIALOGUE 5: [...]

The drinks. That way, we'll have the heavy stuff at the bottom of the bag. = TRIGGER JASON'S ROUTE (see roy's route dialogue 6) The food. That way, we'll choose the rest in accordance. = Things to snack on. It's no use to carry heavy things around with us. =

To meet Archibald, you need to go to the west area of the shopping mall once you bought everything that you need, but before going back to the office! DIALOGUE 6: You aren't going to follow me there, right? 40 Oh, actually... do you want to come? 40 TAKI'S OUTFIT I can't be late. 40

IF YOU GO WITH DEVON:

DIALOGUE 3: [...]

Rebel: I'd say children's clothing store? 53 - Sweet: The game store, or the DVD one... 60 = Energetic: I'd say... None. It's the first time you''ve stepped a feet in here. 46 +

DIALOGUE 4: Devon: I mean, in general. I imagine that you haven't had the time to completely explore the shopping mall... 

I like home decor shops! =* Libraries. No shops fascinates me as much. = Any clothing store, I love it. =*

DIALOGUE 4: [...]

The drinks. That way, we'll have the heavy stuff at the bottom of the bag. = TRIGGER JASON'S ROUTE (see roy's route dialogue 6) The food. That way, we'll choose the rest in accordance. = Things to snack on. It's no use to carry heavy things around with us. =

IF YOU GO WITH THOMAS:

DIALOGUE 3 I know Thomas offers you an ice cream I think?

I think I'm part of those people... * I don't mind at all. Here you go. = Is there a third option? idk*

DIALOGUE 4: [...]

The drinks. That way, we'll have the heavy stuff at the bottom of the bag. = TRIGGER JASON'S ROUTE (see roy's route dialogue 6) The food. That way, we'll choose the rest in accordance. = Things to snack on. It's no use to carry heavy things around with us. =

IF YOU GO WITH ROY:

DIALOGUE 3 Roy: Everything looks good.

Energetic: Plus you can afford it! 53 =* Sweet: Yes, it's always a dilemma... 56 + Rebel: It's funny, I thought that great athletes paid attention to their diet... 49 -*

DIALOGUE 4: Hey! Can't you watch where you're going?!

Energetic: And you?! Can't you be polite?!* Sweet: I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention... = (Roy defends you) Rebel: Why don't you watch where you're going?! *

DIALOGUE 5: Roy: Well, it looks to be out of harms way.

Energetic: We make a good team! = Rebel: Thanks, but I could have handled that just fine on my own.* Sweet: Thanks. It's rather practical to be accompanied by a tall and strapping man like you. =

DIALOGUE 6: [...]

The drinks. That way, we'll have the heavy stuff at the bottom of the bag. = TRIGGER JASON'S ROUTE The food. That way, we'll choose the rest in accordance. = Things to snack on. It's no use to carry heavy things around with us. =

DIALOGUE 6 (bis): Jason: What am I going to do with my evening..? Certainly bore this poor gentleman until who knows when. 80 = I don't want to know. 80 = You, Sir, can come, if you want. 80 = JASON'S ILLUSTRATION

DIALOGUE 7: (this dialogue is slightly different on Amanda's route but it's the same outcome, idk about Thomas.) [...]

(Pizzas and mini-quiches to share.) = (We decided to take various pre-cooked dishes directly from a deli.) = (A whole assortment of little things to nibble on for an appetizer buffet.) =

Go back to the offices to drop off what you bought. (See Amanda's Dialogue 6 above for Taki's outfit before going back.)

DIALOGUE 8: [...]

I really want to have the party at my place. 80 TOWARDS DEVON OR ROY'S ILLU Let's go to the park! 80 TOWARDS AMANDA OR THOMAS' ILLU

Go take a shower.

Just go to your bedroom.

IF YOU HAVE YOUR PARTY AT THE PARK:

Go to your welcome party at the park!

DIALOGUE 9: Brune: Did you choose the park to avoid upsetting Amanda?

Sweet: Yeah, I thought it'd be best. 56 = Energetic: I found her idea of a neutral space a pretty good idea. 53 - Rebel: That's not really why I did it... 50 +

DIALOGUE 10: [...]

I'm one of the ninety percent of people who loves mini-quiches! = I confess that I am intrigued by the asparagus toasts... = I think I'm going to try your tapas, Brune... = I'll take some raw veggies! I want to save room for the cake. = towards amanda's illu?*

DIALOGUE 11: Brune: Let's say I'm in between... And you, Candy?

It's not really my passion either. = I love to cook! = I'm like you, Brune. =

DIALOGUE 12: [...]

So, Thomas, you have a motorcycle? TOWARDS THOMAS' ILLU Wouldn't it be time for dessert? TOWARDS AMANDA'S ILLU

IF YOU CHOSE THOMAS ANSWER:

DIALOGUE ???: thomas dialogue [...]

No, I think it's scary... * It never really tempted me. * I've never had the chance before, but I'd be curious to try! THOMAS ILLUSTRATION

IF YOU CHOSE AMANDA'S ANSWER:

DIALOGUE 13: [...]

What, it's not prestigious enough for you? 80 AMANDA'S ILLUSTRATION Come on! It's no fun alone! 80  Well, I'm going... If you don't come with me, it'll be even more ridiculous. 80

DIALOGUE 14: Amanda: The good times. When everything was easier...

Because things are complicated now? 40 = My mother was the one who took me to the park. 40 = It's true that everything seemed simpler when we were children. 40 =

IF YOU HAVE THE PARTY AT YOUR PLACE:

It's time to party!

DIALOGUE 9: [...]

What do you think of Roy? =* And you..? Well, I mean... tell me a bit about yourself...? = And you, do you get along well with Devon? =* What do you think of Thomas? =*

And you, you seem to get along very well with Brune... = Do you get along well with Amanda? =*

Show Elenda, Roy and Devon around your house.

DIALOGUE 10: [...]

Energetic: I think I'd start by taking revenge on my ex. = Rebel: It's obvious: Id rob a bank. = Sweet: Maybe I could become an investigative journalist? =

DIALOGUE 11: Elenda: No, no, I'm kidding: I don't really want to know more.

Energetic: I wouldn't mind a few more details... 53 + Roy, - Devon Rebel: Me neither, l'm not sure I'm very interested... 50 + Devon and Elenda, - Roy Sweet: (I was careful not to share my opinion.) 55 =

DIALOGUE 12: [...]

I hope that the card is for Devon... 80 TOWARDS DEVON'S ILLUSTRATION (I wonder what this card'll have in store for me...) 40 (I hope that the card is for Roy...) 80 TOWARDS ROY'S ILLUSTRATION

IF YOU CHOSE DEVON'S ANSWER:

DIALOGUE 13: [...]

You mentioned a wildcard a few seconds ago..? 80 (Delighted, I smiled at Devon from ear to ear.) 80 DEVON'S ILLUSTRATION Isn't it a little... inappropriate? 80

IF YOU CHOSE ROY'S ANSWER:

DIALOGUE 13: [...]

You mentioned a wildcard, didn't you..? 80 "Kiss", it can be on the cheek! 80 (After all, it's the game... Roy is attractive, here I go!) 80 ROY'S ILLUSTRATION

#otome #beemoov #my candy love #amour sucré #mcl #my candy love new gen #my candy love new gen guide #my candy love new gen jason #my candy love new gen roy #my candy love new gen devon #my candy love new gen amanda #my candy love new gen thomas #my candy love illustration #amour sucré illustration #amour sucré new gen #corazon de melon #amour sucré new gen jason #amour sucré new gen roy #amour sucré new gen devon #amour sucré new gen amanda #amour sucré new gen thomas

[yan-lorkai]

Hi! I was wondering how you think the octa trio would react to a darling who was studying to be a marine biologist? Like I can image that before darling was taken by the mirror they were studying, have an absolute love of the ocean, and even go deep sea diving regularly. I could also see them absolutely gushing over the trios mer-forms, being curious, making treats/dishes based on what their fish equivalent like to eat in our world.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ "Zuzu, it's true that octopus have three hearts?" You asked out of blue. You always asked such strange questions whenever you could corner him or the tweels but he couldn't deny you and your curiosity. You had this hopeful glimmer in your eyes that was so precious to see. "Oh and why do some octopuses like to lead an isolated life? It's, uh, because they don't have a mate or just something innate? And if I can ask more, how do this whole visual communication between octopuses work?"

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ At first, when you still haven't picked his interest, he wouldn't answer you. Not without a contract, that is. But after that, when you became someone dear to him, Azul genuinely feels very happy that you take so much interest on him though he is a little overwhelmed by how many questions you ask per second. Even so, he do his best at answering you when he note your interest on marine life.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ You two has long conversations about the life beneath water. You match his enthusiasm talking about fish, crustaceans and molluscs, about corals and the littles things you love. He might share some fun facts with you about octopuses and answers your questions as best as he can. Though he do gets a little shy sometimes. Like, wow, you really want to know all this? If he was in his mer form, you would see his tentacles moving in a very distinct way, almost like a dance and how his skin changed its color.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ He gets even more shy if you ask to see his mer form, which he is still a little insecure about. He knows you won't laugh at him but he can't help so this might take a while. Till then, he is more than happy to this little routine of yours. Plus he like when you cook some crustaceans for him. Octopus loves to eat it. Your knowledge is cute in his eyes so he, in turn, study human customs to understand more of you. If you compliment on his human form, he'll blush. But if you compliment him on his mer form, he'll without notice release ink, blush and stutter a little.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ Azul makes a potion for you to be able to breathe beneath water each and every time you go diving. Isn't he so generous, just as the Sea Witch herself? Though there's a trick to it. You love the sea so much and you want to know so much and there's so many things you haven't seen yet, it's just fair for him (and for the tweels, he suppose) to show you all. The price? Your legs. Yes, your legs. When you drink it you won't be able to go back to your human form.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ Though that's only when you guys graduate from NRC. So you still have some time on your hands, use wisely.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ "Jadeeee, why do eels like to migrate so much? What yawming mean you want to mate with someone?" You ask him one day, watching him pause and offer that same sweet, mysterious smile. You then look at Floyd who is using your shoulder as a pillow. "And is it true that you live to be 100? And my main question is about electric eels, how do they use electricity to communicate?"

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ So many questions. Jade teases you a lot because of how many questions you ask, it's all good fun and he knows when to stop to not make you feel like you're intruding. He gets a little softer answering it, feeling a little nostalgic himself. He felt the same way when he got his legs, he wanted to explore the world, sightsee everything, eat different dishes and hear different songs.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ Everything was new though he had to learn everything alone, as his brother and Azul were busy doing their own thing. You don't need to be alone learning about marine life, he can answer your questions, go diving with you, it's a little dangerous but he is there to protect you.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ He likes feeling your gaze boring into his form and you little anxious hands touching his long tail and fins. It's cute. Feels intimate. Even more when he curl his tail around you and cuddle you, staying like that for various minutes or even hours.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ On the other hand, Floyd may or may not answer your doubts based on his mood. He likes to hear your questions, they're so diverse and they make him think about home. So far, he already told you how crabs have a strong exoskeleton, or that crustaceans adapt quickly or how eels sometimes migrate to live in salt water then on fresh water. There are so many things he could tell you about it. So many creatures who he fought against. Ah, the good times <3

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ Most times than not Floyd likes to take you diving instead of answering you. It's just more fun, plus he like to have you pay such close attention to his mer form. He displays his tail and gills proudly, letting his bioluminescence leave you in awe.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ You and Floyd usually cook together on mostro's kitchen and he show you just how he like to eat molluscs, fish, algae and octopus. He even let you spoonfed him and he'll do the same for you, giggling happily, telling you how cute you are where you're eating. Though he knows humans may find eel food a little strange so he often cook your favorite dish as well.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ The Octotrio work together to trap and isolate you in their care. They are the only one worth enough to have you asking your little questions and they'll hate (they totally don't) to hurt someone, if you choose to be ask someone else about marine life. Thus the other octavinelle students are a little afraid of interacting with you.

.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ But that's ok, right? After all you have your beloved friends to keep you company.

#yandere twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland #yandere octavinelle #yandere azul ashengrotto #yandere jade leech #yandere floyd leech #tw yandere #.⁠｡⁠*⁠♡ creativecupcake #azul x mc #azul x yuu #azul x reader #floyd x mc #floyd x yuu #floyd x reader #jade x yuu #jade x reader #jade x mc #yandere azul #yandere jade #yandere floyd

[yaut-jaknowit]

Could you write Male reader x male yautja maybe even Vic'tao and Uihoy where they had really limited human contact and even less knowledge about dating. I love the concept of Yautja trying to court someone but ultimately just freaking the human out more and then changing their ways. This exactly, pls. Where they try to court the reader, maybe even kidnap him to show him that they are very strong etc. bring him skulls and at first they don't understand why he keeps rejecting them and fighting back until one day when they finally give him some device to understand each other and he just tells them what absolute monsters they are etc. And then obviously some fluff where they slowly win back the reader's trust and eventually the reader falls in love

You can obviously chose which yautja actually shows up I just like the two but you can definitely choose someone else, i would just like a male yautja

Lost in Translation

Pairings: Vic'tao (Male Yautja) x Male!Reader x Uihoy (Male Yautja)

Word Count: 4462

Summary: On their first trip to earth, Vic'tao and Uihoy were excited! New creatures to hunt, a new planet to explore. Vic'tao spots you. There's something about you that interests him. He can't shake it. So, he does what any sensible Yautja does: courts you. Hey! Why are you screaming?

Author Note: I love this classic idea. Because in all reality, if any Yautja came up to the average person and offered a skull, you would sprint away screaming. I also love the fact I'm getting so many male reader asks! I didn't know their was so many of you out there.

Masterlist

Ao3

For centuries, Yautjas and oomans have interacted in more way than one. Yet, it all boils down to prey and predator. Vic’tao and Uihoy come strictly for the hunt. Oomans are prey. There’s nothing much else to them.

Not until they saw you.

In a dense city, filled to the brim with oomans that meander to one place to the next, there was you. Vic’tao didn’t understand what is was about you that caught his attention. In all honesty, you looked just any of the other prey that traveled in your city. But, he stopped stalking to sit upon the roof of a build across the street to watch you.

Uihoy paused as well when he noticed his mate no longer was trailing behind him. The older male huffed and shook his head. Youngsters and their short attention span. He headed back towards the mustard yellow and blue male and crouched besides him. The two of them invisible to the naked eye.

They watched as you did your oomanly duties of trading credit for a colorful drink. Uihoy nudged at Vic’tao with his shoulder. “What is it? I don’t think that ooman is much of a worthy kill,” Uihoy questioned and settled down on his haunches. The random ooman strolled out of the building and got into their vehicle.

Before you could escape from Vic’tao easily, the younger of the two threw a tiny puck. The device attached itself to the outside paneling of your vehicle. Then, you were off.

On Vic’tao’s forearm gauntlet, he checked to make sure it was tracking you. A small yellow dot followed the exact pathing on the holoscreen pulled up. He chittered to himself then turned to Uihoy. “We may go now,” he brushed off and jerked his large head in the direction they were originally heading.

The other male quirked a brow from underneath his biomask at his mate’s strange interest in that specific ooman. Uihoy didn’t get an answer. So, he started off the same path they were taking through the city.

Their hunt was about to get more interesting.

On a hot summer morning, a book in hand, you laxed on your balcony. The weekend weather is wonderful to sit outside and enjoy it. A small fan sat off of a round coffee table, blowing air up towards your face. You turned to the next page only to tense up at the feeling of being watched. All of your focus on the book was lost. You placed the book off onto the coffee table and sat up. The feeling followed like a stormy cloud. A shutter ran down the length of your spine. You finally turn on your heel and head back inside to break free.

Once the curtains were shut, the tension that filled your body fell off of you in one huge wave. Strange. You shrugged it off and headed into the kitchen for some water. Hopefully, the water could clear your head about that strange occurrence.

The refreshing water rushed down your throat and helped down your heating body. The outdoors nearly a sweltering heat during the summertime. Your gaze glanced back over to the closed curtains and tilted your head. Whoever was watching you? Your apartment’s balcony faces a tree line. So, it couldn’t be others from another apartment.

A frown broke across your features. You refilled the empty cup of water and head back towards closed curtains. With a deep breath to calm down your rising heartbeat, you pulled them back.

Nothing raised the hairs on the back of your neck.

You shrugged then reentered the tiny balcony. The eyes didn’t return. As you go to sit down back on your comfortable chair, you paused. An animal’s skull sat upon the railing.

Instead of freaking out, you were completely confused. That wasn’t there a moment ago. The glass was set down by your book. Carefully, you stepped up the random skull and peered at it closely.

It was a predator by the looks of the teeth. A canine as well. If you had to guess, it was a wolf’s skull. Amazed by the fact there was a wolf’s skull in front of you yet completely puzzled on how it got here in the span of five minutes tops. You’re on the second story. It’s not like it could fall from the sky or someone just randomly set it there.

This was purposefully.

As much as you wanted to walk away from it, you didn’t want it to fall and break. Or someone else to have it. You glanced around the tree line to possibly search for the owner or a reason to why it was here. You came up empty handed. A sigh left your lips when nothing was in sight. You carefully picked it up and brought it inside with you.

A look around the interior brought upon a place to set it on. One of the shelves in the living room. All you had to do was shift a couple of books and other décor out of the way. Once it sat upon the shelf, you stood back and admired the skull in its new home.

What was someone else’s garbage is your new treasure.

While standing there, you felt the watchful gaze of someone again. Your head snapped back over to the open balcony door only to find nothing there, eyes narrowing. You marched over to the sliding glass door then stopped.

Something was… off.

A shiver ran down your spine the longer you stood there. It took a moment for your senses to finally feel the presence of someone in front of you. Your entire body tensed up before you ripped the glass door closed. So hard, you were surprised it didn’t shatter before you. The lock was thrown. You stumbled away from the closed door, eyes wide as you stared in terror.

There was something you couldn’t see. You felt it. A heat rolling off that invisible thing. What was that?! You trembled in the middle of your living room like scared prey. What you couldn’t see terrified you. Eyes blown wide.

Whatever there moved. The thing moved. You watched as the air rippled, distorted before your eyes as it unrooted from its spot. The figure stepped up to the railing then leaped over it. Then, it was gone. You rushed forward and swiftly shut your curtains before it could return to watch you again.

To calm your racing heart, you leaned against the curtains and placed a hand on your chest. Your heart on the verge of beating out. The feeling it gave you… You felt like prey amidst a hunter.

Once you calmed down enough, you pulled away from the glass door about to head to your bedroom when you remembered something. “Fuck,” you cursed. Your book was still laying on the coffee table! And, you were in a good spot as well.

A stupid, stupid idea came to mind. You peered around the curtains and saw the coast was still clear. When your gaze snapped to the coffee table… the book was gone! Your jaw dropped. Anger flared inside of you.

“You motherfucker! Stealing my book. I was in a good spot,” you screamed, hopefully whatever that thing was could hear you. Not only did it scare you but it stole your book. Oh, you were furious now. No one steels your books.

From the outside, the Yautja could still hear your shouts after the terror Vic’tao caused you. Neither of them expected less. Uihoy was entertaining Vic’tao’s fascination. What would have a Yautja interested like this. Even Uihoy himself was curious.

“Looks like the ooman took it well,” Uihoy teased his mate and patted the mustard yellow Yautja on the shoulder. The two of them still had their cloaks activated. They didn’t want their presence known to anyone besides their intended target. Vic’tao huffed and shook off Uihoy’s grip with a unseen glare thrown his way.

“Oh shush. I knew this was to happen. Oomans are prey.” Then, he lifted up the book he snatched from their target. “Look at what I got. We can learn more about the ooman.”

A deadpanned fell upon the older Yautja behind his biomask. “You stole a book.”

Vic’tao gave a scoff and purposefully shook his tresses to make them rattle. “This ooman. I want to learn more about him. Like some of things they teach you on the mothership. Oh, wait, you weren’t born on a mothership,” Vic’tao teased. All jester between the two male Yautjas

Their beginning may have started off rocky with disgust of the other, here they are.

Then, the yellow male wapped Uihoy with the book. “Learn about your target, yes? They should’ve at least taught you that.” Despite a hateful start to their relationship, they now can joke about their cultural differences. “You never know. Maybe this book has information about our target.”

Uihoy groaned and lulled his head backwards. “Dumbass, you can’t even read any of the ooman languages,” he grunted then tilted his head back to look at him.

Vic’tao raised a finger to tell the purple Yautja off, sucking in a breath before falling flat. He glanced down at the paper book in his hand and slumped on his shoulders. “I hate it when you’re right,” he mumbled, ready to throw the book when an idea struck him. “Wait! We can translate it back on the ship.” Their ship, more like Uihoy’s, had the capabilities to translate any known language into Yautja.

Another deadpanned look was thrown at Vic’tao who couldn’t see it. “Or, you can use your gauntlet,” he offered instead and tapped at the mentioned device. “This wonderful technology that be entirely versatile or did they only teach you basic hunting skills at the moment.” Vic’tao scoffed then stood up on the branch they each shared. Uihoy followed suit.

In one moment, Uihoy was free. The very next, Vic’tao pinned his into the trunk of the tree. A tight grasp wrapped around the purple Yautja’s throat and trapped him to the tree. Though, the Yautja was short, he wasn’t one to be messed with.

“I’ve got you stuck here, don’t I?” he rumbled into his ear, eyes gleaming behind his biomask.

The ground left Vic’tao’s feet. His back met the rough texture of bark, biting into his scales. Above him, Uihoy had him pinned instead. “Checkmate.”

A few days have passed since that incident occurred. Your book was long gone at this point. Another had been ordered and should be arriving in the next day or two. Despite your apprehension to leave home to go to work, you’ve pushed through and left the very next day for a stupid paycheck.

Nothing happened. No eyes. No feelings of being watched. Nor the next day. It too was free from that torment. Even on the fourth day, today, nothing has happened.

That caused you to question if it happened at all. If it wasn’t for the skull and missing book, you would’ve believed it was a fluke. A nightmare that you don’t remember waking from. Only it happening and now haunting you. The book, you could brush off as miss placing it someone stealing it from work. Besides that, the skull was your hard evidence.

Never had have you ever seen a wolf, let alone its own skull. The whole thing mystified you. All you could do in the end of scratch your head about it. How in the world does this happen to you?

Thousands upon thousands upon thousands of people in your town and this thing targets you.

Now wasn’t the time to maul over your misfortune of the situation. With a sigh, you stepped out into the hallway. Your foot knocked into something on the ground. A brow quirked up as you glanced down only to find a box on the doormat. Confused, you picked it up off the ground.

It wasn’t a package. It looked like someone just randomly dropped off a box. The box itself wasn’t big. At most a foot wide and long barely even three inches tall. You checked the time on your phone really quickly before spinning on your heel and going back into your apartment. The closed behind you. You walked over to the dining table and set it down.

A short list of people who could’ve dropped it off listed off inside of your head. Yet, you felt like any of them would’ve notified you of the package. With your lips pressed tightly in a line, you carefully pulled the top of the box off.

The lid fell from your grasp before falling to the ground with a light tap.

Bones filled the small box. Horror flashed over your features. What the fuck?! You stumbled back and knocked into the kitchen counter behind you. Bones. But from what? Animal or-or human? A full body tremble raked your body.

The first thought to enter your frenzy brain was to call the police. Then rational thinking rose to the surface. They would think it was you or they may think you as crazy if these aren’t human. What were you suppose to do now? You’ve got work in less than thirty minutes and some crazy person dr-was it that thing you saw a couple of days ago?

A cold sweat rolled down your back. You had hoped it was only a one-time issue… not a recurring stalker. Wait. Do you have a stalker? Is this considered stalking?

You took a deep breath then quickly threw the box into the garbage. The bones rattled as they fell into their new and forever home. You shuttered at the sound, praying they weren’t human and damning yourself to throwing away evidence. Evidence that could paint you as the killer if they were. You ran your fingers through your hair before marching out of the door for work. Not another second to be wasted.

From his corner inside the ooman’s dwelling, Vic’tao bristled when they threw away the gift he graciously offered. He hunted down dangerous beasts for those bones and presented them to you. Then, you cast them aside.

Strange enough, you accepted the skull but refused the rib bones and femur packaged away in that box. It stumped the yellow Yautja as he meandered over to where you carelessly discarded the bones. The skull was set upon a shelve in the main room of your small dwelling. He moved over to it and peered at it. What made it different to be accepted rather than the other bones he offered to you?

He tasted your fear in the air and shrugged it off. Not that he was expecting less from a weaker creature such as yourself. Yet, there was something about you that caught his attention. Vic’tao had to try and win your hand and favor.

When you returned home, you set your keys and bag down on the kitchen counter. A peak into the garbage revealed the box was still there. Another tremble racked your body.

All day, you had hoped it was just a strange daydream or some hallucination. Clearly, that wasn’t the case.

When you’re about to enter your bedroom, something out of the corner of your eye caught your attention. You screeched to a halt, head whipping to find the balcony curtains opened. Just wide enough to reveal another white, shiny skull sitting on the small coffee table. Long, sharp canines veered from its mouth. Empty, eyeless sockets staring at you.

Your feet froze to the spot, refusing to move. All you could do was stare in terror at the sight.

This was purposeful. Someone was doing this on purpose. Tormenting you.

After you gained function of your limbs, you raced into your bedroom and slammed it shut behind you. The door rattling on the hinges from the force you exerted. Your back is pressed to it to ensure it stays in that same position. Your chest heaved with lungful breaths.

Vic’tao tilted his head at your reaction and huffed. Oomans are completely bewildering. Last time, you liked and accepted the last skull. So, he pulled another from his collection and even set it out in perfect sight for you. Then, you go ahead and act terrified of it.

The younger Yautja grunted and marched outside to retrieve it. This time, he held it in his hands and stood in front of the door you closed. His cloak revealing himself to the empty room. Like a patient hunter, he waited for the time to strike.

Inside of your bedroom, you heard a noise come from your living room and tensed up. What was that? You gnawed on your bottom lip then slowly pulled open the door. With it being dark, it was hard to peer through the darkness. Yet, from what you could tell, nothing had changed. You released a sigh of relief and took a step out of your room.

Only to freeze when you heard clicking. Not mechanical. As if something or someone was making the sound. Then, your eyes adjusted even to spot a figure towering in front of you.

A scream ripped at your lips. Immediately, you threw your fist at what looked to its head only to be met with metal. Your hand throbbed immensely afterwards. You screamed again then spun on your heel and began to run away. Only to smack yourself into the doorframe. All you could see was darkness fill your vision… then nothing.

In a span of less than minute, you had somehow knocked yourself out cold after trying to attack him. He chittered to himself under his mask with an amused smirk. The yellow Yautja peered down at your lifeless body then glanced over to Uihoy. “Well, that went well,” he snarked before reaching down and scooping you up. It seems like you weren’t getting the message. So, Vic’tao would have to force you to understand.

Uihoy came over and grasped your limp chin then picked up your head. His other hand ran his thumb across your cheek bone. “They’re not bad looking,” he muttered mostly to himself then let you fall limb against Vic’tao again. He looked up at Vic’tao. “What’s your plan with him?”

“Since he doesn’t get the hint, I’m going to straight up tell him. If he accepts, he accepts. If he doesn’t, we’ll let him ago,” Vic’tao answered before securing the skull to his belt. Once that was settled, the younger male left through the sliding glass door and climbing to the room of these small, compact dwellings. Uihoy’s ship was at least three times the space inside than just your dwelling alone. If you were to accept their advantages, you would get a huge upgrade. Plus, two Yautjas to protect you from any harm.

A snort came from Uihoy as he shook his head. His short, greying tresses swayed with the movement. “This is a ooman you’re talking about. They aren’t the most knowledgeable nor wise,” Uihoy chuckled and followed Vic’tao through the back door. Said door was slid shut after him.

The two of them got on top of the apartments and entered their ship that was hovering just a few feet above the roof. No one was none the wiser to this.

Vic’tao took you to the common area and let you rest on the longest couch there. Uihoy took to the helm of their ship and flew it higher into the sky. Neither of them could risk any ooman seeing them or else… death to that ooman. You are a special case as they try to woo your hand.

A pounding in your head had you grasping it, blocking out the light shining down on you. A groan voiced from your throat as you strained to sit up and held your head in two hands.

Man, you must have start a wild night of drinking to have a headache like this. No wonder why you woke up with a raging migraine.

When you finally fight off the first wave of pain to hit you, you opened your eyes and glanced around. Confusion filled your head. What in the world? This isn’t place you’ve ever been to. Fuck, you must still be asleep… yet that pain felt so real.

A mechanical whooshing caught your attention. You whipped your head around. A grave mistake but pushed through the pain that flared up.

An imposing figure stood in the doorframe. Its height easily dwarfed yours. Your jaw dropped, ready to start screamed when a massive head covered your mouth. That only caused you to freak out more.

Harsh clicking entered the air. You stared wide up at the figure leaning over you from behind, spiting out growls at the other one. The lone form before you rolled its bright orange eyes and let’s its crossed arms fall. Then, it began to stalk closer towards you. You shouted from behind the hand and scrambled backwards, only to knock into the figure.

The purple one advancing one you stopped when the yellow one spat something at it. Then, yellow tilted its head down at you.

Four sharp fangs were all you could notice on its alien face. This wasn’t something on earth. You got kidnapped by aliens! The top two raised in some sort of grin. It clicked something at you but its alien tongue went straight over its head. The purple one made a snide comment to its friend who snarl, hand tensing around your mouth.

For a moment, you fear it would accidently snap your neck. Until its hand fully fell away. Yet, it stayed behind you. Now, you were trapped between the two of them, unable to move.

The creature behind you raised a finger, as if telling to wait a moment then moved over to a wall. Its fingers pressed against a hidden button. A hiss entered the air.

Before your very eyes, the wall started to retract panels. In sort of a strange transformation, the panels revealed a hidden compartment you were shocked to see. Before you grew nervous and disgusted. Skulls and bones lined the space in the wall… like a trophy wall. Were they showing the place they would soon put your skull? Are they going to kill you?!

You gasped and launched off of the couch. The purple one reacted quicker than you could even blink. It was upon you in a moment and shoved you back down on the oversized couch. You choked on air and stared up at the imposing figure. All it did was return the gaze in a lazy fashion. Like it was bored.

“What do you want?” you finally find your voice and asked them an important question. The purple creature tilted its head then pressed a button on its strange gauntlet. It held out the device towards you again and made a motion to go again. “What do you want?”

The only thing you could think of was a translator or something of the sort. You waited impatiently for the device to do its thing and repeat what you had said.

Yellow made its way over to the two of you leaned over the couch, entering your personal space a little too much. Instead of purple answer, the other one took the time to speak towards the gauntlet.

“We are trying to court you,” an automated voice repeated to you in English. Your brain blanked at the response, jaw dropping in shock.

“Court?! Like-like dating? What the fuck?” you practically screeched at the top of your lungs and sat up higher on the couch only to accidently knock into yellow. “You guys are monsters!”

Another pause as your words are translated to them. At first, you froze at the realization of your insulting words. They could possible still kill you if they felt like it. Specially, talking like that to them. You sat there, fretting if you just signed your death notice.

Instead, the beasts tilted their heads. “Not monsters. Yautja. We are Yautja. Yes, we like to court you. We are proud hunters who if you accept us, will protect and provide for you.” Yautja? Strange name for a species. That thought was kept to yourself before you damned yourself further.

Protect and provide. That actually for you thinking for the moment. Your eyes scanned the open area around you. Wherever they’ve taken you is spacious just in this spot alone. At least twice the size of your living room alone. They called themselves hunter which is evident by the many skulls adorning the nearby wall. There was even a skull that was about the size of you.

If they could take down something of that size… you swallowed down the lump in your throat. “Can I have time to think about this? Learn about you guys? Humans don’t just walk into relationships without learning about the other people first,” you questioned, nervously fretting with the hem of your shirt.

Yellow’s eyes brightened. The figure began to purr by the sounds of it and chuffed at its partner in crime.

Purple gave a thinking face. “I did not realize human customs were different than ours. We hadn’t thought of that." This came from yellow this time. It moved from around the couch then got down on its hunched and offered the skull you saw before.

Instead of being canine this time, you realized this must be feline or something close to it. You timidly reached out and accepted it from yellow. You were thankful it didn’t outright kill you at first and took that as a good sign. “Thank you.” Yellow lifted those upper two mandibles again at you. “Um, do-do you guys have names?”

This time, purple let his arm fall to not catch his next words. “Uihoy.” He pointed towards himself. Your eyes bulged out of your head. What in the world? Not a name from this world.

“Vic’tao.” Yellow joined in and motioned towards himself. How do they expect you to form those kind of names?

Embarrassed, you scratched the back of your neck. “Can you try that again?” you asked, hoping not the offend them any way possible.

For the next few moments, they helped your learned how to pronounce their alien names. In that moment, you learned quickly they meant no harm to you. They weren’t going to hurt you.

You waved goodbye after they dropped you off on the balcony of your apartment. Feeling a little giddy, you walked back inside and head towards your bedroom with a new skull. Despite all the fear you endured from them, they weren’t bad to hang around with. Maybe, once you grew to know them, you would allow for this to continued.

#yautja #predator #yautja x reader #yautja x you #alien vs predator #yautja x human #predator x reader #predator x you #predator x human #x reader

[jordosprout]

I Need To Know TBB Headcanons (S3 SPOILERS POSSIBLE PLEASE BE WARRY)

What do you think the batch spends their time doing on Pabu? What occupies their time now that they are retired? I have only pieces of ideas but I have been tryna find some other folks thoughts. But to get er' rollin' I'll share my ideas.

Wrecker

• He's definitely a community man from what we saw so

- Maybe he babysits

-Maybe he helps fish like we saw in the past

- Or perhaps he carries heavy equipment for repairs/building

Hunter

- Maybe he helps figure out the best fishing spot for every passing day

- Maybe he builds boats or surfboards? Definitely got old surfer vibes from him at the end of Bad Batch (I am so sorry but I could not get Barbie's dad(?) from that one surfer movie out of my head)

Crosshair

• Cross was the hardest to figure out for me due to how little of what he is skilled at outside of being a soldier. But once I thought about it I couldn't stop LMAO

- I think for a long time he struggles with figuring out what he wants to do now that he's free to be whoever he wants to be. He's used being told what to do, and now that he doesn't have someone controlling him he's having a difficult time adjusting. He probably asks Hunter to give him tasks frequently, and after a while he's given the task of taking care of himself. Learning what he wants.

- I definitely imagine him trying multiple things such as: fishing, farming, all the good stuff

- I see him landing on something creatively driven like tattoos and painting. But I do think it takes a lot of time and soul searching before he gets to that point.

- Probably really distant for awhile, he wants to be around the others but feels he doesn't deserve it

- Reluctant on getting a prosthetic, I can see him choosing not to have one

Omega

• Omega wasn't too difficult for me, seeing what she ends up going off to do at the end of the last episode.

- After using pieces of the Marauder to fix up her own ship with Phee (and Tech depending on your thoughts on it), I see her convincing Phee (again, and Tech depending on your opinion) to give her flight lessons.

- She practices the Tech Turn often, doing her best to perfect it. (If you think Tech should stay dead then let's say she does this late at night on her own and has gotten in trouble for it a plethora of times. She can never quite do it as he does. But if you're like me and he lives, then of course he'll help teach her.)

- Omega probably sneaks off a lot, wanting to explore her new home

- Then I think she eventually gets into contact with Herra, and that she's the one who convinces her to become a rebel pilot

Tech

• In my perfect Bad Batch, Tech is alive. He will always be here in my mind; even if I'll have to mourn him as a character in canon alive and well.

- Tech spends much of his time recording and noting down the things he learns about the new island he lives on. Likely going off with Omega.

- I think Tech and Phee try a relationship at one point or another, personally I see them deciding to break up but I can see them staying together. His calm nature mixing with her unpredictable one perhaps. Though I think their personalities might be too different for an intimate relationship.

- Tech probably has his own repair shop, or maybe he creates his own inventions.

More Group Stuff

- Definitely live together at least for a long while

- I think Hunter would get into a relationship before anyone else, then Wrecker getting into one kinda on accident? He'd be super oblivious and go on dates without realizing that's what they are. I think Cross n Tech would be last if they were to get into relationships (personally I see them on the aromantic spectrum, specifically Tech being demi and Cross being recip-romantic or Grey-romantic)

- They do a lot of stuff together, swimming, getting tattoos from Cross, therapy, family dinner all the lovely stuff

And I Think That's All I Got

Thanks for letting me ramble in your feed :)

#clone force 99 #tbb tech #crosshair tbb #tbb crosshair #tech tbb #tbb wrecker #wrecker tbb #hunter tbb #tbb hunter #tbb thoughts #tbb theory #tbb season 3 #the bad bad spoilers #tbb s3 #the bad batch #sw the bad batch #tbb spoilers #the bad batch spoilers #I'm going silly #this is my roman empire #tech lives #i just figured out how to put my own tags how did it take so long its so easy

[torialefay]

Hi! I always love the way you ellaborate things in detail. Can you also describe how lee know is like when he get jealous? Will he get extremely possesive when it comes to his lover?

thank you so much for your kind words!!! ❤️ that means the world to me.

here's the thing about lee know: i think deeeep down, he has a need for his freedom. he UNDERSTANDS freedom and he values freedom. but in relationships, he just can't fucking do it (at it's probably hell for him).

i say this because:

#1 his moon in sag. it's all about freedom and being able to be adventurous and explore. it's tied to who he is emotionally. at his core, he understands this and HE needs this. he needs his freedoms, and he doesn't alwayssss want to feel like he's being tied down. but that doesn't necessarily mean that's what he wants for you... even if he does understand HOW you could be like that, it doesn't mean he's okay with it.

#2 his mars in virgo. he knows how to be direct and get shit done. he is going to be practical in the way that he does things. so it's not like he's lost in his head about all of this. he is fully aware of what he's doing. what is he doing exactly? well.....

his sun, mercury, AND venus in scorpio. we first have to look at the characteristics of scorp. obviously known to be deep and emotional. they have desires that they often lock away, but can open up for the right person. and in the end, that's all they want. someone who can be there to UNDERSTAND them. but since scorpio knows what it's like to feel so deeply, it can lead them to hide things for others. it can also lead them to manipulate others. they will want to know every little thing about you. and you can bet your ass they will use that to their advantage. they know how you'll react, and that makes it 10x better.... and the fact that they "know you so well" makes them extremely possessive of you. to the point that they can definitely become jealous if they think you are getting too close to anyone else.

sun: it's gonna shine through in his personality. at least he doesn't outright hide it... well, most of it, at least. you just don't know how deep it goes. but he will very much make it known in everyday life that he wants you to only be his by his everyday actions.

mercury: he will tell you exactly what you want to hear (when he wants you to do something) OR he will tell you something that he knows will completely devastate you (to basically use it against you to do what he wants). and the thing is, he may not even be cognizant in the fact that he's doing this. it's just inherent.

venus: he's a lovesick lover boy who can get possessive and obsessive under the right corcumstances. if he knows the most intimate parts of you, he can feel like he has some sort of "claim" to you. he literally feeds into these delusions bc deep down, scorpios really want that deeeeep emotional connection, but they dont necessarily feel comfortable offerring up their own selves... that's why they need you to fulfil it.

long story short, in relationships, lee know is very much possessive in relationships. but it is inherent in him. he quite literally doesn't know any other way. BUT there is conflict with his moon, so it does try to put it at a hault sometimes and keep him in check. but at the end of the day, actions beat out intentions.

"you are not going there dressed like that baby. wear it for me instead."

"i didn't think you'd be the type to want to do that... i mean, i didn't think you'd be into that scene."

"you're meant for me. only me. do you understand that?"

"see baby, that's why you need to stay with me. nothing bad will happen to you as long as i'm around, okay?"

#lee know skz #lee know angst #lee know x you #lee know imagines #lee know x reader #lee know #skz minho #skz imagines #stray kids x reader #stray kids imagines #stray kids angst #skz astrology #skz x reader #lee minho angst #lee minho x reader

[orionsangel86]

I’m not sure how much sense this will make since it’s almost midnight, but am I crazy for thinking how insane it is for Charles to go “I can’t say that I’m in love with you back or anything” and then immediately follow up with “but there’s no one else who I’d go to Hell for”? Cause like, my brain doesn’t know how to not interpret that as Charles reciprocating Edwin’s specific type of love, but not realizing it. Maybe it’s because I grew up in a super religious household so I already have some predispositions about Heaven and Hell, but my point of view for that is just thinking that someone better be pretty damn special for me to go to Hell for them. Like a wife or kid kind of special.

I don't think its crazy to interpret it that way at all. I think its rare to find that level of devotion among two people and when used as a trope it is usually related to extreme romantic love - see the OG Orpheus and Euridice as the prime example. Charles comparing himself to Orpheus in that moment (however naively because he didn't know how the story ended) is far more telling than he seems to realise.

That's not to say that only people with romantic/passionate feelings for someone can experience that level of devotion. Familial and forms of queer platonic love can also certainly be that devoted, and I have seen a lot of people talking about how they view the boys relationship as a queer platonic one, where Charles in particular, doesn't need to feel romantic love in order to be completely devoted to Edwin. I think that's a really great form of representation and can go someway to explaining how much of a deep and profound bond the two have (as a SPN fan I do not use that term lightly lol).

Though I think throughout the series we see Charles display forms of jealousy towards Edwin's connection with Monty and the Cat King, and he does also confirm he likes Crystal because she reminds him of Edwin - even he was joking at the time. I also think it was lovely that in the confession he doesn't once say that he isn't into guys, or that he doesn't think he could ever feel something more romantic for Edwin. He just says he isn't in love with him at that point. Whether or not that particular statement was the whole truth or just Charles' own form of denial and inability to properly process the confession since they were literally running away from a horrible giant spider doll demon from Hell at that point in time remains to be seen.

I think enough hints have also been dropped during cast and writer interviews that if they get a season two, it will go some way to explore Charles' own feelings and build on the aftermath of that confession. Whatever the situation between them is, it is the primary relationship of the show and it is quite clearly built on love and devotion regardless of what forms they or we interpret that as. They have literally forever to figure it out, and I really hope we get to watch at least some of that!

#dead boy detectives #payneland #charles rowland #edwin payne #asks

[ac1-t3ars]

.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓵𝓲𝓮 𝓦𝓪𝓵𝓴𝓮𝓻 𝓝𝓼𝓯𝔀 𝓐𝓵𝓹𝓱𝓪𝓫𝓮𝓽✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺

hes honestly too pretty ^^^

word count: 1,629

contents: 18+

A = After care (What they’re like after sex)

 Charlie is the sweetest boy after sex, he runs a warm bubble bath for you and cleans up the mess on the bed as well. He dries you off after your bath and puts you in some of his clothes and once you’re dressed he holds you and cuddles you until you’ve fallen asleep. 

B = Body part (Their favorite Body part of yours) 

 Fem! He absolutely adores your tits. He gets caught staring a lot especially when you wear low-cut tops. It makes you giggle when you catch him because he turns bright red and fumbles over his words. 

Masc! He loves your arms, and he loves the way he can feel your muscles when you wrap your arms around him tightly. It makes him become a dorky mess when he sees your arms straining against your shirt sleeves.

C = Cum (Anything to do with cum)

 Fem! Charlie absolutely loves to cum inside of you and tell you he’s gonna get you pregnant. It makes you smile thinking about having a mini Charlie on your hip even though you’re both so young.

Masc! Charlie loves filling your ass with his cum and then slowly fucking it back into as you become a whimpering mess underneath him.

D = Dirty Secret

 He hasn’t really figured out how to tell you that he’s ghostface… He figured he wouldn’t have to bring it up ever, until you started getting suspicious about him disappearing late at night. When he told you he isn’t in fact cheating that he’s instead a murderous psycho at night you took the news about the same way…

E = Experience (How experienced they are)

 You’re the first person Charlie has ever kissed so needless to say he’s a bit nervous when you bring up having sex. When the time comes and you’re both ready he fumbles around a bit at first but grows more comfortable as you talk him through it.  

F = Favorite position 

 Charlie is a sweet simple man who honestly just loves missionary. You and him tried other positions but he just loves looking into your eyes as his cock slides in and out of you. While he whispers sweet things in your ear.

G = Goofy (Are they serious or silly during the moment?)

 He’d be a little nervous so he might laugh a bit but I think he’d take it pretty seriously trying to make it the best he can do for you. He’d keep asking for reassurance and keep making sure you’re comfortable.

H = Hair (How well groomed they are, and how do they want you)

 Before you guys met Charlie would shave every couple weeks but wouldn’t care too much about it. After you guys start dating though he’s making sure he’s cleanly shaved for you even though you told him you don’t care. He just wants to look his best for you!

I = Intimacy (How romantic they are in the moment)

Your first time together Charlie puts an effort in to make it romantic to the point it’s almost corny. He lights candles and makes sure he’s perfectly shaven before bringing you over. Charlie doesn’t do this set up every time but he still feels that giddy, almost childlike happiness when you bring him to your room.

J = Jerking off 

Charlie loves to jerk off when he’s not with you. When you can’t be with him he’ll call you on the phone and touch himself to the sound of your voice. 

K = Kinks 

Charlie would never hurt you but he loves to choke you during sex. He loves the way it makes your eyes roll back in your head as he fucks you while squeezing your throat. 

L = Locations

Charlie’s favorite location is his bed, but he likes to explore places with you whether that be in an empty classroom, a park, or even a bathroom at a crowded party. He just wants to be inside of you as much as possible. He’s easily flustered if you both are caught though making him blush a deep red and not be able to make eye contact with anyone.

M = Motivation (What turns them on?)

Anything you do can turn him on. If you hug him a little too tight he has to excuse himself because of the tightness in his pants. You could simply smile at him and he would get hard as a rock.

N = No (Something they would NEVER do)

Charlie would never hurt you. It doesn’t matter that he’s the most brutal ghostface. Even if you found out his secret and reacted poorly he could never hurt you.

O = Oral (Preference giving and receiving) 

 Charlie likes watching you struggle to take him in your mouth as you look up at him with teary eyes. Charlie holds the back of your head as he helps you take him while whispering sweet things to you. He always cums down your throat. He loves knowing that his cum is inside of you as you swallow it.

Fem! Charlie loves to bury his face between your thighs as he holds your hips down as he laps at your wet folds. He loves looking up at you as he makes you fall apart around his tongue. You eventually have to pry his head away as he keeps going till you’re a crying and whimpering mess.

Masc! Charlie loves to get on his knees in front of you and look up at you with his big blue eyes before wrapping his lips around your cock. He always seemed to choke a bit but even with teary eyes he takes as much as he can into his mouth as whimpers and gags slip from his lips. 

P = Pace (Are they rough or are they gentle and caring?)

 Charlie can do both; he prefers to set a slow deep pace. He likes watching your reactions to his movements and he loves telling you sweet things as his hips slowly pound against yours. Now if he’s had a rough night he’d show no mercy on you. He’d tell you to “have your clothes off before he even got there” and as soon as he reached you he’d pin you down on your bed and slam his cock inside of you, setting a brutal pace as he called you filthy names. 

Q = Quickie

 Charlie isn’t a huge fan of quickies; he likes to take his time working you open on his fingers or making you crumble as he gets you off with his tongue. If you both were horny enough though he’d bend you over a desk or pin you against the nearest wall before slamming his cock inside of you. 

R = Risk (Would they experiment?) 

 Charlie may be a little reluctant to experiment but would eventually cave in for you. He would let you use more toys during sex and would be a little more open to sex in public. 

S = Stamina

 Charlie can only go a few rounds before he’s a whimpering mess. If you were still horny though he’d try to go one more round but would end up cumming too fast making him embarrassed.

T = Toys (Do they use toys on you or themselves?)

 Charlie might be a little hesitant at letting you use toys on him but he was more than eager to use toys on you. He loved using a vibrator on you till you were an absolute mess. The first time he saw you with a strap-on in your hands he was intrigued; the first time you used it on him he was a sobbing mess, but now he begs you to use it on him. 

U = Unfair (How much they tease you)

He likes to tease you until you’re writhing under him. He likes to watch your tears roll down your cheeks as he tells you how good you’re being for him. He’d kiss your tears away as he continued to overstimulate you. 

V = Volume (How loud are they?)

Charlie is very vocal, no matter how hard he tries to stay quiet as soon as his cock slides inside of you he lets out soft groans and whimpers. If your parents are home you’d have to cover his mouth to keep him quiet but his moans would still slip out.

W = Wild Card (Random head canon)

Charlie absolutely loves when you cock-warm him. He loves when you two are watching a horror movie and you’re in his lap with his cock buried deep inside you. His favorite time is when you sleep skin to skin with him inside of you. He feels like it’s the closest he can possibly get to you and he never wants it to end.

X = X-ray (How big are they?)

 Given his nerdy scrawny appearance people assume that he may be small, but he’s definitely the biggest you’ve ever seen. His cock has thick veins running up and down his shaft which you absolutely love. The head of his cock is a soft shade of pink which is a soft contrast to his pale skin.

Y = Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)

 Charlie is ready for you at any time of the day. Even if he’s had a long day or just gotten back from killing someone he’d find the energy to make you scream his name. 

Zzz = (How quickly do they fall asleep after?)

 After Charlie’s cleaned you off and gotten you taken care of he just curls up in bed with you and falls asleep. If you’re taking care of him after though he’s probably already fallen asleep before he’s completely cleaned off.

#charlie walker #scream #scream 4 #rory culkin #culkin cult #ns/fw #alphabet #billy loomis #stu macher #scream 1996 #scream franchise #I love Rory culkin #rory culkin smut #rory culkin x reader #culkin brothers

[kismet-cat]

Something I’ve been thinking about a lot is how Jowd and Yomiel are parallel to each other. They’re both so stuck in worldviews that are blatantly wrong- Jowd thinking everything is his fault, and Yomiel thinking everything is the fault of everyone BUT him. To an outside observer, both these views are totally stupid, but the two of them feel like they HAVE to believe it or else everything they’re doing will be for nothing. If jowd is wrong, that means kamila did it, and he can’t let himself believe his kid could do that, it would destroy him. He’s so willing to take on the guilt because he feels responsible for not stopping the tragedy- even when it was literally impossible for him to foresee or stop. If Yomiel is wrong, then it means that literally everything he’s been doing since dying is useless and he’s the one responsible for the deaths of both Sissels, and he can’t believe that or he’ll sink even further down. So the two of them both push on, warping the truth until it suits their narratives, both of which are steeped in self-hatred. It’s a good thing they never met up before their respective character developments- like Yomiel said, Jowd would have loved to be executed by his own daughter. Sorry for talking so much I just think they’re fascinating!!! I love ghost trick!!!

No need to apologize, I love hearing other people's Ghost Trick takes/analysis! Especially along these lines!

This specific parallel is def one I've thought about too, and you put it very well! For me, it all comes back to the set of questions I posed in this post as being at the core of Ghost Trick's story:

1. When something terrible happens to you, what do you do with that trauma? 2. When you do something terrible, when you make a terrible mistake, what do you do with that guilt?

Like you said, Jowd is a person who, in response to both questions, internalizes all the blame; whereas Yomiel, in response to both (pre Chapter 17), externalizes all his hatred. And yes, from an outside perspective they're kind of ridiculous — just look at how many chatters in the secret sleepover society streams (and other lps I've watched) have been reacting to Jowd as a character.

But one of the things fiction arguably exists for is to present characters that take such ideas to such extremes for the sake of exploring those questions and making a greater point; it's the premise "What if there was guy who ___? Wouldn't that be fucked up or what?". And for me (and a lot of people, clearly) Ghost Trick succeeds in getting you to take those characters seriously, because they and the people around them take their own stakes seriously, while ultimately making it clear that their responses were irrational.

...And hey, while I'm here:

Cabanela's answer to the second question is to bury all evidence of it, to Not Think About It, to become (or at least project the image of) a person who would never make that kind of mistake. Meanwhile, his answer to the first question, if we say the terrible thing in question is his best friend confessing to killing his wife and asking to be executed, is to dedicate himself to trying to undo it, to set things right, everything else in his life be damned.

These answers are "better" than Jowd's and Yomiel's — they certainly cause less extreme collateral damage — but they still aren't ideal. After all, Ghost Trick is a game that highly values the forging/maintaining of bonds with others and being honest/open with them as the key to both parties' success. It's what saves the day in the end. Without Sissel, all Cabanela's efforts to save Jowd and protect Lynne would have amounted to nothing.

No, the person with the "correct" answer is Lynne. She doesn't really have to grapple with the second question (which is maybe my personal biggest disappointment with her character), but her answer to the first question is clear: Become the kind of person who prevents such things from happening to others, or who can be the one to help them when it does. Always believe in people, and in the ability of things to turn out right.

Now, it must be said: the reason she comes to this answer is not because she was born a perfect idealist. It's because, in that worst moment of her life, someone was there to save and then reassure her; to inspire her. Jowd.

It's her truth, but it's not, say, Yomiel's.

But. It's a truth that inspires the rest of the cast (Sissel and Jowd primarily). And, because of her insistence in it, they're able to go back, defy fate, and make it The Truth of the narrative.

(Sissel similarly only has to really deal with the first question because Reasons, and his answer evolves over the course of the game, from "focus on the wrong that was done to you and what you can do to make yourself feel better about it above everything and everyone else" (doesn't that sound familiar?) to be more aligned with Lynne: "use what you learned/gained from that unfortunate occurrence to help others". And Missile is basically on the "right" wavelength the whole time, which is why everyone agrees he's the Bestest Boy.)

#ghost trick #ghost trick: phantom detective #ghost trick spoilers #yomiel #jowd #cabanela #lynne #sissel #missile #ask time! #analysis #tl;dr all the main characters in ghost trick have a unique perspective on (at least one of) these 2 questions that make up the game's core #and their answers illuminate the Game's perspective from different angles #it's so cool! and so good!

[the16thtower]

Wyll Ravengard fucking undoes me because while a lot of fans and the BG3 writers do him dirty, there's so much going on with his character that just isn't explored or elaborated on that is so fascinating.

I have a parent who functions as a pillar of the community in my hometown, who is incredibly competent and admirable, and who judges me harshly for supposedly making choices that ruined my life. It's really difficult trying to wrap your head around all the different layers of that kind of relationship and Wyll never gets to really address it properly.

If we think about what happens after he gets kicked out of home:

What does he get to take with him? Does he even get a chance to pack any belongings? He looks like a normal human for the most part when we first met him, so what did Ulder tell people? We don't know about his mother's side but is there any family or family friends he could stay with? Did Ulder poison the well with everyone Wyll knew by being upfront about the pact or did he lie and make up another equally damning excuse for exile? God, just the idea that Ulder looked his son in the face (freshly injured) and immediately threw him out is devastating. Wyll is so certain about the prudence of his father's decision when we met him but either:

This is a perspective he's eventually made peace with

His conviction in his father never waned

which both suck! Either his idol, his father, screwed up massively or he has so little concern for himself that it never occurred to him that Ulder's justification was shit. Ulder is the Duke of Baldur's Gate, with all the resources that grants him, and he didn't even try to contact an expert on demons to try and get more info on his son's situation? What the fuck! There's the whole bit with the Trials of Balduran about appropriate punishment that Wyll agrees with that he doesn't even think to apply to his own situation. It can really fuck you up having your hero, who you admire for the good they do for others, decide you're not worthy of that same good.

Wyll tries so hard to be a good person and to lead by example but never seems to see himself as an acceptable recipient of the grace and kindness he shows others.

Does Mizora just immediately whisk him off to different parts of the Sword Coast to start acting the part of the Blade of Frontiers? He's seventeen, homeless, no support network, and fighting monsters - I'm going to lose my fucking mind. That's ridiculous. That kid was already dealing with his father's intense expectations (from what Wyll describes, Ulder was raising Wyll to follow in his footsteps, which is a steep ask). He then suddenly loses everything, on top of the stigma of demon association - Wyll's mental health must have tanked at some point. Depression, anxiety, and PTSD are definitely on the table (plus phantom pains from the prosthetic eye).

Just thinking of this teenager learning how to drink properly with no one looking out for him, trying to numb things a bit, and just becoming a sad wreck every time. Just... there's so much there with Wyll having to grow up very quickly in very lonely circumstances. We know he has some acquaintances, like the tieflings, but who actually knows what's going on with him? Is he still shouldering his burdens alone? Is MIzora around bothering him or does she flit in and out of his life? He's in exile for seven years.

And he's still a romantic and an idealist! Unflinchingly, genuinely, with his chest! He endures! He becomes a hero. It's beautiful. He survives and cultivates his best qualities in the face of awful circumstances. Wyll has this intense sense of morality and will (pardon the joke) that never permits him to sway from the right thing, even with everything stacked against him. And it routinely costs him! It's so, so hard to do the right thing and he still does it because he simply can't see another outcome worth living through.

It upsets me a little that Wyll ends up doubling down on what a good person his dad is when they reunite - as if Wyll hasn't demonstrated infinitely more empathy and compassion for other people, even when it actively impedes him. He's good because he chooses to be good and seeks to understand, not because he's able to follow the standards set by other men.

This is not a particularly organised discussion but fuck, I love Wyll Ravengard.

(UPDATE: I've just made some edits for clarification since I didn't express myself well. Also, this is a game that requires hundreds of hours of gameplay so be kind if I don't know everything.)

#bg3 #wyll ravengard #wyll blade of frontiers #baldur's gate 3

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

reading roundup: April 2024

oh my god you guys I've read SO MUCH this month!!! I got BIG into reread N.K. Jemisin's tremendous Broken Earth trilogy and it's been jaw-dropping, and I have been reading a HEAP of comics and manga a

on the extremely off chance there's anyone following me who doesn't think comics, manga, graphic novels, etc don't count as "real reading" lmao lol get out of here??? you're on the Reading 1000s of Pages of Old Batman Comics blog. go feel the whimsy of reading a whole graphic novel in one afternoon and maybe you'll calm down.

ANYWAY!!! what have we been reading?

Earthdivers Vol. 1: Kill Columbus (Stephen Graham Jones, Davide Gianfelice, Joana Lafuente, 2023) - Stephen Graham Jones is one of my all-time favorite authors, and I was super excited to check out his first comic series. Earthdivers takes place in the wasteland of the 22nd century, where four Native survivors have hatched a plan to try to stop the disasters that are killing the world: use a time-travelling cave to send one of their number back in time to kill Columbus before he can launch the colonization of North America. it's a one-way trip, and the time traveler will have to be ruthless to achieve their goal. beyond the attention-grabbing hook of killing Columbus, this story dives (you see what I did there) deep into an exploration of what it means to sacrifice everything for a cause and find the will to be ruthless in pursuit of the greater good. I'm not 100% sure I tracked all of the twisting threads of time travel in this first volume, but the hook is compelling and Gianfelice's art is beautiful, so I'm really looking forward to seeing the series progress!

Spoiler Alert (Olivia Dade, 2020) - at this point I've written 8000+ words about this book on my patreon and it's becoming difficult to figure out what else to say or how to say it briefly. this book ties itself up in knots with its contrivances and makes both of its protagonists look dumb in the process. I don't like either of these people but - spoiler alert! - I still think April can and should do better. Olivia Dade please call me I just want to talk.

Delicious in Dungeon Vol. 1-3 (Ryoko Kui, trans. Yen Press, 2017) - I don't need to explain Dungeon Meshi. surely you've seen the gifs of Dungeon Meshi. all that matters is that I fucking love Dungeon Meshi, this shit rules and it's going to be so hard to hold off on reading Volume 4 while I try to prioritize some other books first. this world is great, the characters are a delight and a joy, and the way that Kui is so fascinated by the food and biology and exploration of adventurer fantasy tropes in her world makes my brain go wheeeeeeeeee!!! I'm having so much fun.

The Fifth Season (N.K. Jemisin, 2015) - historically I've very seldom reread books, but I'm starting to think that I need to change my stance on that. revisiting the Fifth Season years after I first read it, with the time to really enjoy it and also the maturity and perspective to actually appreciate what Jemisin is cooking, has enhanced the experience immeasurably. a thing that really struck me this time was how artfully Jemisin depicts the way orogenes are conditioned and groomed from the jump to be subservient and scared and willing to settle for life at the margins of society; it's not something that I could totally understand the nuances of when I read this book fresh out of my first year of college. this novel and its sequels are so brilliantly devastating, I cannot say enough great things about them.

My Pancreas Broke, But My Life Got Better (Nagata Kabi, trans. Jocelyne Allen 2022) - I did it, I'm officially caught up on all of Nagata's works that have been translated into English! and man, I'm still worried about her. the experience of reading My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness hasn't quite been replicated for me; I think that was a once in a lifetime event, although I've certainly found a lot that I relate to in Nagata's subsequent struggles to sort of out anxiety, independence, art, and figuring out what kind of relationships she event wants to have in her life. at this point I feel like I'm just reading the illustrated life updates from a friend I haven't seen in a long time who stresses me out because her life is a mess. which is still interesting! but god I hope something good happens to this woman soon.

The Obelisk Gate (N.K. Jemisin, 2016) - The Fifth Season is a book about the end of the world and of one woman's personal apocalypses that happened prior to that. its sequel, the Obelisk Gate, is a book that's extremely preoccupied with the tedium of figuring out how to run a halfway-functioning society in the midst of the apocalypse, which is genuinely fascinating stuff. and it's also a book about the fear and desperation and sheer levels of exhaustion that might drive someone to decide that, fuck it, maybe the world should end and we should be done with all of this, actually. it's also a book about devotion and dependence and destruction and devouring people you love in a VERY literal way, which it must be said is pretty sexy. the stuff that pops off between Essun and Hoa in this book makes me think of Octavia Butler in the best way; I think she would have adored them. I'm so excited to get to the final book and see how this all pays off, because the first time I read it I barely understood a single goddamn thing that was happening.

I Hate This Place Vol. 1-2 (Kyle Starks, Artyom Toplin, Lee Loughridge, 2022-2023) - a short and spooky comic series that wraps up in two tight little volumes. I have some gripes with the pacing, but it makes for a fun afternoon read. a mid-tier streaming service is going to adapt this into a live action series within a couple of years, mark my worms. personally I'm fancasting Mackenzie Davis as Gabby and Samira Wiley as Trudy.

#bookblr #reading updates

[acotar-taylorsversion]

Another Rant

I think its funny how people will say that Sarah has had this series planned since 2015/2017 and convince themselves that this means elucien is endgame because they are already mates on page because she said "not much has changed" and that this must mean that gwynriel is real, too.

Like I'm pretty sure it only started out as the first 3 acotar books and the novella anyways. "Not much has changed" means that she didn't go with mor/az and elucien. You can literally see the moments in acowar where she changed this. And please don't forget about acofas. The one where Sarah said that we would have an idea about what Elain would do with her bond. And then in acosf when she literally made Elain and Lucien's only moment together so incredibly awkward. That moment was so telling. And do I really have to go into detail about all of Elain and Az's moments? By the end of acofas I was convinced of elriel and acosf only confirmed it for me. That bonus chapter confirmed that both Elain and Az are attracted to each other and were willing to explore that.

Like first Lucien was meant to be with Nesta and then she realized that wouldn't work out cause Nesta would have destroyed him if he ran up to her after she was turned and told her he was her mate, so she stuck him with Elain. I believe she did this to keep Lucien in the story for one little part of the koschei plot and she has done absolutely nothing to prove that Elain will ever be happy with him. Like I don't honestly see anymore how Lucien could be important anymore. I used to think that he would be this vital thing for the koschei plot but when you think about it, they really don't need him. The only thing he could do is realize his spell breaking powers and free Vassa. That's it.

And Gwyn? All signs point to her being a lightsinger and I don't know why people can't realize that. Az AND Nesta both react to her powers in almost the same way. His shadows reacted to her powers, her music or singing. They also danced to the music that was played off of Bryce's phone so I can't believe that his shadows dancing is a sign that Gwyn and Az are mates. I do not see any kind of attraction or hints of gwynriel. If anything, I think Gwyn just wants to prove herself to everyone around her, especially the one who rescued her and seen the horrible thing that she went through.

And whoever thinks that Nesta would not be happy for Elain and Az because it would "leave Gwyn alone and without a love" clearly do not understand Nesta. Elain is her sister, her favorite sister, and Az is quickly becoming her best friend. She supposedly "hated" Feyre and look at what she did for her at the end of acosf. Feyre, Rhys, and Nyx would literally be dead if it wasn't for her. I can only imagine what she would do for Elain. Yes, she has found true friendship with Gwyn and Emerie, but Elain is her sister, her blood. I believe that Nesta would be ecstatic for Elain if being with Az is truly what she wanted. She would support it. The last time we seen Elain on paper was when she was walking basically arm in arm with her sisters on a happy stroll in Velaris. And I want to know why everyone thinks that Gwyn is ready to be in a relationship anyways. She can't even leave the library yet. And I highly doubt that the first man she will be with is the man that saved her, like that would be a constant reminder of that night for me. And what's to say that she is even interested in men? Like why does everyone assume that she just has to be with Az?

And yes, I know these are characters and not real people. Yes, I know Sarah will write whatever she wants. And yes, I know I could be completely wrong, but based on what she talks about, who she talks about, and what/how she has written things, I can only believe that she is going to make elriel endgame.

That's it for my rant this time. I kinda rambled on in this one lol.

And by the way, HAPPY ELRIEL MONTH 💜

#acotar #elain archeron #elriel #pro elriel #anti el*cien #anti e/lucien #anti gw/nriel #anti gw*nriel #azriel acotar #i thought it was obvious

[lurafita]

Malec meet pre-canon divergent

(considering tv-show canon only, as I don't know much about the books) I personally found it a little weird that Alec and his siblings had to be briefed about the High Warlock of their territory, by Hodge. Shouldn't Alec, as the acting head, have been aware of the most prominent downworld leaders in the city his institute is in? Wouldn't Magnus have been in the institute before, for ward maintenance or things like that? Wouldn't they have had to call him to close rifts that demons were popping out of? (Not like those kinds of things were ever shown or discussed in the show, but then again, the show was very stingy where details and backgrounds were concerned.) Anyway, I would like to propose a series re-write, where Alec and Magnus get to know each other pre-canon, and Magnus has the chance to bolster Alec's self-worth and confidence a little. And then exploring what effect this might have, as Alec wouldn't be such a pushover where his siblings are concerned. (I actually just really like re-writes of given plots that explore changes to said given plot, so that personal guilty pleasure might heavily play into this prompt…. 😉 )

possible scene:

They could meet on site for rift closure, and Alec is laying down a plan of attack, because some demons have already gathered. And then Jace is trying to propose another plan (that's less tactical than Alec's was and more of a 'run in head first' kinda deal). And Alec is not confident about his own plan versus Jace's, and he is about to give in, but then Magnus is like: "I agree with the pretty boy." And Jace smirks and goes: "See, the high warlock thinks it will work." And then Magnus goes: "Oh no, I was talking about his plan. Yours sucks."

-

I think, if a relationship between them (platonic heading for romantic) exists for some time, Magnus would probably let slip about Maryse and Robert having been in the circle. Not in a malicious way. I think Magnus assumed that Alec knew. So maybe one day Magnus offers to check over the wards, and Alec accepts and wonders loudly about why his parents didn’t commission check ups for two years,

and Magnus just "Well, they have tried to limit their business with downworlders as much as possible. Which isn't surprising, seeing as many of us feel that they haven't been sufficiently punished for their crimes while they were in the circle. But it's not as if I would have refused the job. I might have overcharged them, … Alexander? You look pale, is something wrong?"

-

I just see them having lots of little conversations that help build Alec up, while not just being simple compliments. Like, when Alec doubts his leadership qualities and asks Magnus about his opinion, as Magnus has fought in a few wars and known a few figureheads. "I believe being a good leader comes down to knowing and trusting in yourself." "Shouldn’t that be 'knowing and trusting my people'?" "That, too. But it's important to know your own strengths and weaknesses. For example, I'm one of the most powerful warlocks out there with a deep and varied understanding of my craft, and I look dashing in silk. I'm also impatient, occasionally vain, and I can be quite petty. Now what about you? Let me start you off. You are afraid." "Wow, didn’t think you would start with a weakness." "I didn’t. Well, maybe a little bit. Fear can be both. But in this case, I meant it as a strength." "How?" "Think back to our first meeting. The fear of not knowing what the situation was we were walking into, made you come up with a strategy that allowed us to assess what was going on, while also ensuring minimal collateral damage. What do you think would have happened had you been as cocky as your parabatai, and stormed right in?" "… We wouldn’t have known about the circle members, or the back entrance. The perimeter wouldn’t have been secured. The teen warlock might have become a victim to a shadowhunter blade, had you not had the chance to see the enslavement collar on her." "See? You have good instincts, Alexander, and a great mind for tactical manouvers. That is something you should trust in more."

#magnus bane #alec lightwood #malec #shadowhunters tv #malec prompt #series rewrite prompt where malec meet pre-canon #canon would change due to this #butterfly effect my precious #all the change

[frogs00]

"I still hate your guts."

Warning: Smut, pure smut, and cursing! Pairing: Regina x Janis Summary: Regina and Janis have a very intense encounter in the locker room showers.

Janis stretched as she felt the warm water wash down her back, humming to herself. She had just finished gym and was showering, having to run the mile, which she had always dreaded, but she did fine regardless. She wrung out her hair and wrapped a towel around herself, the locker room was already empty. Strange, she thought. She heard the sound of a curtain opening and turned and yelped when Regina was standing there in her own towel. Regina looked her up and down, "Hey there." She said casually, a smirk playing on her still perfectly pink lips, despite having no make-up on, all of it washed away from her shower. Janis couldn't help but wonder how she didn't notice someone showering in the stall beside her. "Hey," Janis rasped, her gaze trailing her; Regina had come out as lesbian a while ago, and she had apologized but didn't change the fact they were beyond sour towards each other and had been for a few months. But seeing her in nothing but a towel awoken something in her. Regina's gaze trailed her with a mischievous glint in her blue eyes, "You're short." She commented, and Janis scoffed. "And you're infuriating," She sniped back, "I guess neither of us can change certain things about ourselves then." Her tone was teasing and light, but her heart was racing. Regina let out a laugh, shaking her head, "So pissy, it's a shame," She said and took a step forward and ran a finger down her jawline with her free hand, "you really are adorable."

Janis clutched her towel and glared up at her, "Oh fuck me." the brunette said and rolled her eyes, backing up a bit.

"Is that figure of speech or a request?" Regina smirked and leaned closer to the smaller girl. What is with her?! Janis thought, her face reddening. "That is not what I meant!" She basically growled. Regina seemed unfazed by this biting her lip, "Oh really? Because you seem kind of bothered Jan. I could always take you up on that offer. " Janis's blushed deepened at this.

Janis was weighing something in her mind, backing back into the shower, biting her lower lip, "You get on my nerves." She said in a near flirtatious, suggestive, tone voice, adjusting her towel, a bit nervous.

Regina smirked, and followed her into the shower, closing the shower curtain behind her, "I'm sure I do." she agreed with a shrug. "You talk too much, you know that?" Janis said, and with her free hand, grabbed Regina's chin and pulled her into an angry kiss. Regina didn't hesitate to return the kiss, her tongue tracing the seams of her lips demanding access. Janis parted her lips, the blonde's tongue exploring her mouth, and Regina's hands her finger wrapped around her wrist and pulled away, pining it to the wall behind her, her towel falling to the wet shower floor. "Ah, fuck," Janis murmured against her lips and undid Regina's towel after getting a nod of confirmation. Regina chuckled and pressed against her, her finger running down her skin. She slipped her leg in between Janis's thighs, ran one hand up into her hair, and tugged her head back roughly, leaving kisses and nips down it. "Don't you dare fucking mark me," Janis warned, Regina only snickered. Her fingers dug into Janis's soft flesh slightly. One hand slipped around to cup her ass, giving it a soft squeeze, "Shut up." Regina said, before Janis could respond she pressed her lips against her again, and the brunette melted into the kiss.

Regina's lips curved into a smirk as she felt her melt into the kiss, her free hand roaming down her stomach and towards her now aching cunt. She nibbled on her lower lip before pulling back slightly, her breath hot against her neck as she spoke, "I think you're enjoying this much more than you should Jan." She teased.

"I'd like you to shut up and fuck me," Janis said and pulled her into another sloppy kiss.

That seemed to have been what the tall girl needed to hear, as she chuckled, "You're pathetic." Regina mumbled, one hand rubbing at the girl's clit.

"You're one to talk-" she was cut off with a sharp exhale as she felt a finger dip down, teasing her entrance.

With one hand still rubbing her clit, she used the other to push her legs apart. "Be a good girl and spread your legs for me," Regina ordered the brunette. Janis rolled her eyes, and obeyed, but not before mumbling something along the line of 'fuck you'.

As she spread your legs, Regina took advantage of the situation and slipped two fingers inside of her easily, slowly, and steadily, feeling the tightness around her fingers, "Easy." she tsked.

Janis opened her mouth to object, but instead, a breathless moan spaced her lips, and she tightened her grip on the girl's shoulders as they curled inside her, "Fuck you." Janis whimpered.

Regina laughed and increased the pace of her fingers. Janis could already feel her edge approaching, but suddenly she slowed, making Janis huff in frustration, "What the fuck?" She almost whined.

"Watch it," Regina teased, her voice holding a slightly dangerous edge, still slowing till she came to a complete stop, just to pick up the pace again She repeated this over twice, with some, but little argument from the brunette.

Janis's back arched against the wall, and she ran her hand up the blonde's sides, feebly muffling the noises that slipped from her by biting her bottom lip. She squeezed her breast, eliciting a small moan from the blonde as she massaged them.

Janis fluttered her eyes closed, her climax growing again, until she shuddered with pleasure letting out soft moans. Her legs shaking, almost giving out simply from being edged, but the blonde held her in place, panting. "You're...good." She admitted, dizzy.

Regina smirked down at her, and Janis pushed her back by her shoulders after she found her footing and caught her breathe, "Well, well-" she was cut off by Janis flipping her around, then slinking to her knees in front of her, to Regina's confusion.

She pushed the blonde against the wall by her hips, "Not a word about this, you hear?" Regina smirked down at her.

"Like I'd tell anyone." She said smugly.

"Don't even," She teased, her tone lighter and more playful than she had meant it to be, "I'm just returning the favor."

"Oh, proceed," She willed her, and Janis did just that. She licked a stripe up her slit, and Regina gasped.

Her tongue was suspiciously skillful, delving deeper, gently sucking on her cilt. Regina gripped her hair, and pulled her back, making her look at her roughly, "Don't try anything." Janis rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to respond, but her face was pushed back down.

She continued to eat her out, her nose brushing against her cilt. The grip on her hair brought her both pain and pleasure. She brought her to her climax quickly and kissed her thighs as she came down.

"I still hate your guts," Janis said after a second, wiping her mouth.

"Says the girl who just went down on me." Regina retorted, smirking. Janis scoffed and stood up.

"Fuck you, and now I need to shower again." She said, and looked down at her naked form, she rubbed her neck.

"My bad," Regina purred and wrapped a towel around herself. She left the stall with a kiss on the corner of Janis's mouth.

Janis leaned against the wall, her legs sore, "I'm stupid." She muttered, but couldn't help the small smile playing on her lips.

She turned around, and turned on the water, thanking god this was her last period of the day.

Please enjoy! I said I would @ you when I finished so here: @reneeswif3

#janis imi'ike #regina george #rejanis #rejanis fanfiction #regina x janis #mean girls 2024 #janis x regina