#also because i was trying to think of the worst sandwich possible to indicate what a monster aizen is

[gallusrostromegalus]

AEIWAM: WHY does Aizen eat mayo on white bread?!!

There's a lot of things wrong with that guy.

#also because i was trying to think of the worst sandwich possible to indicate what a monster aizen is #came up with absolutely the worst sandwich #and then i remembered Aizen is a weenie who doesn't go quite hard enough to achieve his goals #so i backed up two steps to the second-and-a-half worst sandwich #untoasted whitebread with an incorrect amount of mayonnaise #that's his go-to snack #and nit just because he put Gin #a corn snake in a business suit #in charge of stocking the pantry at Las Noches #though Orihime's ability to make nutritional meals out of clown menu nonsense is extremely helpful #AEIWAM #An elephant is warm and mushy #bleach #bleach fanfic #sosuke aizen

[moonflowerlesbians]

Jamie is trying to ignore the new au pair. She doesn't need to fall for this beautiful and straight girl. But then Flora asks her to clean the pool after months without using it because "it's a perfectly hot and beautiful day and we need to have a pool party. And you're invited too".

Dani. The pool. Bikini. Jamie doesn't know how to react to this, so she decides to keep ignoring her. But she can bet Dani is looking at her... A bit too much.

took me a second but I offer you almost 3000 words as penance. also I sort of extended it because it's apparently impossible for me to write pure fluff.

AO3 link in reblog if that's your preference :)

~~~

“Ah, yeah, it’ll be perfectly splendid,” Jamie grumbles between pants, yanking the tie of the pool cover over one shoulder with a huff. “Sure, perfectly splendid to swim in. Have t’ get it clean first. Can’t just jump in.”

At half eight in the evening, she’d been trying to beat the bizarre heatwave that had befallen the English countryside, but she’s failing rather spectacularly if the moisture gathering at her hairline is any indication. She swipes an arm across her forehead and listens to the faint chatter from the open sitting-room window, where the other grown members of the household bask in the glorious company of electric fans. Meanwhile, Jamie swelters away the evening spraying down pool filters and vacuuming leaves from the tile floor because someone had the bright idea to remind an eight-year-old that she has access to a pool.

“Oh, please, Jamie, please!” Flora had pleaded, practically bouncing out of her seat at the dinner table and coming terrifyingly close to tipping several drinks onto Hannah’s pristine tablecloth. “It’s dreadfully hot and a beautiful day, and we simply must have a pool party.” She had gasped so abruptly that Dani nearly dropped her fork, Jamie noted with a subtle grin. “We’ll all have a pool party! And Owen can make sandwiches, and Mrs. Grose can bring picnic blankets, and you must come, too, Jamie, won’t you please?”

Then Jamie had made the poor decision to lock eyes with Dani from across the table. The desperation plainly written across her face had been enough to convince Jamie to concede with a faux exhale of annoyance.

Thus, the weary gaze of a haggard au pair run ragged by herding two children indoors is the reason Jamie finds herself skimming the pool’s surface for any leaves and algae that managed to weasel beneath the cover when she should be driving home.

“Sorry,” a voice comes from behind her, “I’m the one who planted the idea in her head.”

Jamie turns to find Dani, a glass in either hand, peering at her with the expression of a woman who is half-tempted to change places and take up the skimmer herself simply to have a moment to herself.

“S’alright, needed to be done anyway. Won’t be ready until at least tomorrow,” Jamie sighs, accepting the proffered glass with a grateful nod. “Kids tired of being cooped up?”

Dani puffs out a laugh that says, you don’t know the half of it. “You’d think they don’t have a house the size of my old school to explore.”

“Bet they haven’t even found half the secret passages,” remarks Jamie over the smooth rim of her glass. Dani sips from hers, and Jamie endeavors to ignore the bob of her throat as she swallows.

“The what?” The wrinkles that appear on Dani’s forehead are surprisingly charming. Too charming. Jamie shoos the thought away before it can land.

“C’mon, Poppins. House this size? This old? There at least have to be servants’ tunnels.”

“Have… have you found any?”

Jamie hums noncommittally, noting the way Dani shifts her weight on her heels as if she cannot bear the thought of standing still. “Did you come out here just for this?”

“Partly, yes, but,” she lowers her voice, “I really just needed to get away from the kids for a few minutes. Owen’s got them playing a board game, thank God, and after that, I can put them to bed. I adore them, but sometimes…” she shrugs.

“We all need space,” Jamie finishes, a bit more brusque than she intended, which she chalks up to the evening hour and the heat, and Dani takes a step back. Shit. “Meant to say,” Jamie salvages with a wince, “it’s nice to be alone sometimes.” She grimaces, doing her best to focus on the cool glass in her hand rather than the heat in her face and the flutter low in her belly.

“I know what you meant,” Dani says softly. Then, after a moment’s pause spent glancing from Jamie to the pool and back again, “You need any help out here?”

Jamie raises an eyebrow. “Lookin’ for excuses to avoid work, are we?”

“No, no, I, um… No?”

“Relax, Dani,” Jamie chuckles, setting her empty water cup down in the grass. Dani visibly settles. “If you’d like to drag the garden hose over, we’ll need to rinse the filters.”

“Got it,” Dani says seriously, and she practically marches to the nearest hose rack as Jamie watches with a quirk of the lips. The au pair completes tasks as if the world will fall apart if they remain incomplete a moment longer. It’s a quality Jamie admires in her, the passion and fervor with which she undertakes the seemingly mundane tasks in her life. Jamie also finds herself mildly amused by the way Dani stalks across the property like she might break into a run at any moment, always on high alert. Always tense.

Might be nice to see her take a full breath for the first time in her life.

Might be nice to see her at ease.

Might be nice to see her relax.

Very nice, indeed, it turns out.

Almost too nice, two days later, the way Dani lounges on a patio chair she’d dragged to the poolside, with a book in her hand and one leg propped on the seat.

Too nice, the way her hair looks beneath a sun hat, casting dappled shadows over the tip of a tongue poking out between pursed lips as she turns a page.

Too nice, the way she lowers her sunglasses over her nose to keep an eye on the children splashing and shrieking in the water.

Too nice, in fact, far too nice for Jamie, who tries and repeatedly fails to keep her gaze off pale, freckled skin and eyes as blue and clear as the water. She can’t sit still. Can’t seem to cease the bouncing of a leg or the rote twirling of hair between twitching fingers. Can’t seem to stop flitting from superfluous task to superfluous task long enough to catch her breath, stolen against her will each and every time she catches a flash of exposed skin dancing in the midday sun.

But the worst part, by far, is when she looks at Dani… Dani is looking back. Four times now, Jamie has cast a fleeting glance at the lazing au pair only to find her peering at Jamie with equal intensity.

Odd, Jamie thinks, fiddling with the stem of a bush a few meters away from the pool, to catch Dani staring so often. But coincidences have been stranger, she decides, chalking it up to amicable concern. She can’t allow herself to dwell on the occurrence. Too many possibilities that open doors to too much trouble. Far more trouble than Dani is worth.

But what if… a niggling voice at the back of her head chides.

No, Jamie reminds herself with a mental kick and an outward shake of her head. She had a fiancé.

Hannah sits with her trousers rolled to her knees, ever one for modesty, with her legs dangling in the shallow end of the pool, while Owen and the kids do everything short of pulling the poor housekeeper in the water to utterly drench her. Hannah, to her credit, is taking their antics in stride, no doubt due to the mustachioed mastermind currently huddled with two overeager children.

The promise to Flora had been a pool party, and, never one to give up on her goals once they were set in her mind, the girl had hounded the adults with unrelenting chipperness until, one by one, they had been worn down. Which is surely the only reason Jamie hovers at the edge of the pool deck in an oversized t-shirt tied at the waist and old running shorts--the only sort of swimsuit she could throw together on short notice.

“Thought I might get in. Care to join me?”

Slender legs enter Jamie’s field of vision, then Dani is only paces away, a hand resting on one hip. She’s removed her hat, left to save her empty seat, and her sunglasses rest atop her forehead, pushing her hair out of her face and onto her shoulders. Her cornflower-blue swimsuit hugs her figure, and Jamie forces her eyes up, her throat terribly dry. She swallows thickly.

“May as well.”

Dani leads the way to the water’s edge, dipping one painted toenail into the water and producing a satisfied noise. She turns to Jamie standing a few feet behind and sweeps the sunglasses from her head, shaking her hair out. “Hold these for me?”

Wordlessly, Jamie delicately grasps one temple of the white plastic frame as Dani steps forward, her arms over her head, hands meeting in a V-shape. The hidden muscles in her back ripple, and she executes an elegant plunge into the pool, emerging with a gasp and a whoop of elated laughter. A smattering of applause rises from the opposite end of the pool, the others having apparently stopped their scheming long enough to watch Dani’s flawless--at least in Jamie’s opinion--swan dive.

“Oh, Miss Clayton, that was splendid!” Flora’s shrill voice chirps.

Hannah remarks, clearly impressed, “I had no idea we had a professional in our midst."

“I’d hardly say professional,” Dani says with a modest roll of her eyes. The water swirls where she treads. She pushes water-darkened hair from her eyes. Then, to Jamie, she explains, “I was on the community pool swim and dive team for a few summers before I could get a job.”

“Could’ve fooled me,” Jamie replies. She passes the sunglasses to Dani’s outstretched hand and takes a seat on the sun-warm grey concrete at the edge of the pool. Dani swims up and places crossed arms beside Jamie on the deck, resting her chin on the intersection and looking up at Jamie. Lean legs kick out behind her into crystalline depths, and golden sunlight refracts in the water, bathing beneath the surface in an ethereal glow.

“You’re not getting in?” Dani asks.

“Not the biggest fan of water, if I’m honest,” Jamie confesses nonchalantly, as if by some miracle this admission will end the conversation.

No, Dani’s desire to learn, to understand, is far too intense for that. It’s another quality of hers Jamie admires, even if it feels as though she’s laying herself bare by sharing the tiniest details under her scrutiny.

“I knew plenty of kids afraid of the water back in the day,” Dani says easily, tracing lines in the small puddle that has formed from the droplets on her skin, “it’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

“‘S not that. I just,” Jamie searches, somewhat defensively, struggling to convey the message without saying the words that reveal a weakness she is loath to expose. Her silence evidently speaks volumes.

“Jamie,” Dani says quietly, a furrow forming between her brows, “can you swim?”

Damn those observant eyes, that sharp mind.

Jamie looks away, shrinks just a little, scoffs with false bravado, “‘Course I can swim.” Then, “Can paddle… float….” Heat rises in her already flushed cheeks, and she picks at the skin surrounding the cuticle on her thumb.

“It’s… You know it’s okay if you can’t, right?” And Dani’s voice is soft, so soft, a murmur really, a whisper that makes Jamie’s heart ache. It keeps the sound from carrying across the pool as it does hold Jamie in her destitution.

She thinks back to a childhood of coal dust and dirty sofa beds and scavenging for food. Thinks of summers spent doing odd jobs to pay the rent, of sleeping on the porch because it was cooler out there than in the house. Thinks of covering herself with as much clothing as she could despite the rising temperatures to fend off roving eyes, to appear a larger threat than a scrawny eleven-year-old girl actually was. Thinks of boiling pots and scalding showers spent scrubbing her skin clean, as though maybe if she rubbed hard enough, the memories would wash away with the grime. Circle the drain once, twice, and disappear forever.

“Never really learned, I s’pose,” Jamie forces a weak laugh. “Didn’t have anyone really keen on teachin’ me.”

Dani is quiet for a moment. “I could.”

“Could what? Teach me? ‘S not your problem to worry about, Poppins.” The thought nearly sends her mind into overdrive. Nescience of an essential life skill is ignominious enough, but to have Dani bear witness to the reality is unthinkable.

“Well, sure it is,” Dani shakes her head, affronted at the mere notion. “What would we do if you fell in and drowned? Someone needs to keep Owen in line.”

Jamie notes the ‘we’ in her statement. We need you. Not I. Distinctly not I, Jamie repeats to herself. She fidgets with the knot in her t-shirt.

“Already told you I can paddle. I’d be fine.”

“Still.” Dani is staring up at her with a pointed look. She has the glint in her eye that Jamie recognizes from the instances Dani deems it necessary to hold her ground with Miles or persuade Flora to clean up her dolls at the end of a long day. She will not give in.

“You’re not going to let this go, are you?” Jamie raises an eyebrow, approaching Dani’s determination as one might a chest of buried treasure, hesitant, disbelieving, a bit curious.

Dani shakes her head again, the ghost of a smirk upturning the corner of her lips.

A beat, during which Jamie’s thoughts wage war amongst themselves. One team screams at her to take the opportunity to spend time with the woman that another batch reminds her is not interested in the least. Another group acknowledges the practical benefits of developing a skill beyond aimless paddling, while another still acknowledges the persistent flutter in her stomach.

At last, “Reckon you’ll be putting that fancy teaching degree to use again,” Jamie acquiesces with a sigh. “Doubt this is what you signed up for, though.”

“I know exactly what I signed up for.” There’s a mischievous lilt to Dani’s words that sends a bolt of feverish perplexion through her. Dani pulls back from the side of the pool and holds out her hands. “We can get started right now.”

Jamie must look as if she’d rather snip off a finger with her garden shears than get in the water because Dani laughs.

“Or not,” she says with a sincere smile, and she ducks back under the water before popping up at Jamie’s feet, wiping the water from her eyes.

“I’d rather not embarrass myself in front of the kids,” Jamie says with a chuckle. “Lord knows I’ve never done that before, and I don’t intend on starting now.” It’s a half-truth. The real issue stems from the moderately disconcerting realization that breathing on land is hard enough with Dani so close, and Jamie really isn’t keen on finding out what will happen if she tries to slip underwater.

A brief flash of her sputtering to the surface, limbs flailing in all directions, crosses her mind, and she shakes it away.

A whooping from the opposite end of the pool catches her attention, and she looks up.

It seems whatever Owen and the children plotted had worked. Hannah is, much to her presumed consternation, sopping wet from head to toe, though she merely wrings out her blouse and kicks a lighthearted splash back at the children, who, having completed their mission, slink out of the pool and wrap themselves in paisley towels.

“Finished already?” Dani calls, and Flora nods from the deck, a yawn splitting her face despite the clock only reading three in the afternoon. “I’ll be right there!” She turns back to Jamie, says softly, “Another time?”

Jamie nods. “Another time.”

Then, Dani is off, gathering her things and herding the children back across the stretch of grass and into the house, leaving Jamie to watch in delirious bewilderment as her heart pounds far faster than it ought to, given the situation. And yet, Jamie cannot fault it, nor can she calm her racing pulse, though she tries.

Dani is the cause, she knows. Dani is always the cause, and no amount of fervent internal reminders seem to dull her effect. No incalculable quantity of mutterings about ex-fiancés will stop Jamie’s breath from catching when Dani settles down for dinner. No collection of whispered slim chanceswill convince a weak heart to cease its clamant pattering at the sight of a column of silky skin. No platitudes can dissuade Jamie’s longing soul from going against her better judgment, from going against her learned experiences that say this will only lead to heartbreak.

Love is sink or swim, she has learned, and Jamie has been treading water, head just barely above the surface, for far, far too long. Dani has offered to hold her hand, quite literally, to guide her through the risk, if only Jamie will make a move to reach out. Perhaps… Perhaps, Dani can guide her to shore to rest among sand beaches and good company. Perhaps, Dani will not let go along the way.

Another time, then.

Another time, yes. But soon. Soon, because Jamie is rapidly growing weary of condemning her wayward heart to fruitless excitement, of shutting a thing down before it can even begin, like cutting down a sapling before it emerges from a seed.

It’s sink or swim, and, at last, Jamie chooses to swim.

#no beta we die like dani #the ending is questionable because fuck it why not #vibes only #i did spend too long looking up appropriate chemical balances for pools in England in the late 80s #and then scrapped it altogether so #also dont imagine jamie swimming to the middle of the lake to find danis body knowing dani taught her in the first place #also I love not being able to come up with titles for shit #fic #ficlet #my writing #the haunting of bly manor #damie #dani clayton #jamie #jamie taylor #jamie x dani #dani x jamie #damie fanfic #thobm

[agustdef]

Tiptoeing: Around You | m.

✰ Pairing: Christian Yu/Reader 

› Genres: Smut, Fluff, Mildest of Angst

✰ Rating: 18+ 

› Warnings: Language

✰ Status: Oneshot 

› In Collaboration: With @shadowsremedy​ who altered my plans a little, but I don’t mind it. Here is his fic, they’re both in the same universe: Tiptoeing: Around Love.

✰ Beta Read: @suhdays​ and @ppersonna​

›  Banner: @shadowsremedy​

✰ Summary: YN has pined after Christian for a while, but after one more kick in the butt by her best friend and an evening in the same room she finally acts on those feelings.

›  A/N: This fic was written for the sweet and mildly chaotic @dee-ehn​ for her birthday. You deserve the world, but since I cannot give you that we’re going to have to settle for some fictional content starring the ever handsome and rude Christian Yu. I hope you enjoy it love and I hope your day was great!

“Pft, you’re no better than me,” YN whispered into her phone.

There was a loud chuckle on the other side and then it stopped abruptly.

“Yeah, but at least I have a girlfriend. You’re out here acting like a lovesick puppy for a guy who is clearly into you. I don’t know how much sadder this can get at this point. It’s been months, YN,” Yoongi said.

Naturally, she rolled his eyes at his words. The fact that all of that was true mattered not. Or at least most of it was true, she wasn’t quite sure if Christian was into her. Everyone said he was and there were some signs, like flirting and being touchy but he was like that with a few of his close friends. That alone couldn’t be the indicator for his feelings. If they were feelings at all. For all she knew she and everyone else were seeing the signs of lust and not romantic feelings that led to a monogamous relationship.

At least that’s what the voice in her head told her when she got up the courage to think he actually liked her and planned to act on it. The pesky ass voice couldn’t let her have nice things.

Despite her clear acknowledgement of the factualness of what he said she couldn’t let him have the last word. It just wasn’t a true testament to their friendship if she didn’t try to gain the upper hand.

“Well, at least I’m not using fuckboy antics to get out of telling the person I’m dating I love them. You can’t use that psycho bitch, who tried to kill me might I add, as an excuse for why you don’t say it forever, Yoon. Especially since you know Jamie isn’t like that. But you gotta take the plunge and talk to her before too much time has passed and she won’t want to listen anymore.”

There was a brief silence before a dramatic sigh left his lips. YN could imagine the look on his face as he did it too. A mix of sadness, resignation, and annoyance at the fact that she was right. They wouldn’t be such close friends if they both didn’t hate being proven wrong while also understanding the other enough to know when it was the right moment to push it.

“Okay,” he whispered.

“What was that?”

“Okay! You’re right. But you need to stop tiptoeing around the subject and just tell him already. He likes you, let him know you feel the same way,” he said.

That got YN to sigh with about as much feeling as Yoongi had. Her body felt tired as she thought of having to speak those words, but she realized she really needed to get it over with. Even if she threw up in the process, it had to happen.

“Okay,” she mumbled.

“Hm? What was that?” he mocked her.

“Okay, damn. I’ll do it. So annoying.”

Again, he laughed and it made her happy to hear him not so down like he’d been for days. Of course, the laughter could only help so much, but it was better than nothing.

Biting her lower lip her head turned so she looked at the studio door where the man who she was losing it over was. He waited for her to bring in snacks and she’d stopped part way to call Yoongi about something unrelated to the conversation they had. One that she was so lost in that she didn’t realize twenty minutes more than needed had gone by.

“Shit, I have to go. I should have been back already. I’ll call you later. Love you. Bye.” she said.

Yoongi laughed. “Love you too.”

With that she hung up the call and took a deep breath before walking towards the studio door. Her hand grasped the knob for a few seconds as she took a deep breath and thought over Yoongi’s words. Maybe the all-nighter they planned was the right place or maybe it was the worst possible place for her to do that since she’d still have work to do if he reacted negatively.

When she finally opened the door and stepped in she’d decided to just see what happened. There would be no forcing herself to say anything about it or actively stopping herself. For once she’d go with the flow, with a bit of hope that she’d randomly get the urge to blurt it out like she sometimes did.

Upon her entry Christian’s head whipped up to look at her. He stared her down as she kicked off her shoes and made her way to her seat. The expression on his face didn’t give way to his thoughts, but she assumed he was confused as to why it took her so long to get back.

“You get lost?” he asked, taking the bag from her.

“Nope. Just had a phone call.”

Christian paused for a second, his brow raised in question.

“Yoongi?”

YN didn’t stop what she was doing for many people, especially when it came to work related things needing to be done. But Yoongi was her oldest friend and she’d hop on a plane without a moment's notice if he needed her. That meant that usually people could guess who she’d been talking to easily.

“Yeah. He wanted to whine some,” she said.

Her attention moved to the computer in front of her, which still held the work she’d left off on. Christian had messed with something a little, but for the most part had seemed to be focused on what went on upon his own screen. Something about what he was doing reminded her of a thing she’d forgotten with the clip was editing and despite the hunger that plagued her she went straight into work. Of course, she felt Christian’s eyes on her the whole time and heard him chewing away at the snacks in the bag but her mind hyper focused so none of that matter.

About fifteen minutes passed before her hands stopped moving and Christian used that to pull her chair for the desk. Her immediate reaction was to tell him off, but he shoved half of a sandwich towards her mouth and she found herself biting it without a thought. That brought a smug expression to his face, but she merely rolled her eyes and snatched the sandwich.

There was some small protest from him, but it stopped as she took another bite of the sandwich. YN was so hungry that she hadn’t really chewed anything or tasted it for that matter. She’d had little to eat throughout the day because they’d needed some last-minute shots and that left her running here and there. Anything consumed was burned off within an hour or two. Which is why Christian had offered they go get dinner first, but she knew a heavy meal would make her focus on editing harder. Food made her sleepy most of the time.

“Slow down,” Christian said, his Australian accent thickening with the worry in his tone.

But his warning was too late because she’d shoved the last piece into her mouth and swallowed it. Her hand reached for the other in his hand, but he gently pushed it away and handed her an opened water instead. She glared at him but drank down the water; though with the way he stared at her she stopped herself from downing half of it in a few seconds. Sips were slow and small until she felt her throat less dry.

“Now can I have the other half?” she asked, her voice sickly sweet and a pout on her lips.

For a moment Christian just stared his eyes focused on something on her face. At first, she wondered if she’d gotten anything on it while eating, but then she watched him bite his lower lip and his eyes flicker up to her’s and then down again. She thought that he had to be looking at her lips and her heart did a thing, though her mind wasn’t sure if it was him wanting to kiss her or something being on them. In a moment of uncertainty, she wiped at the lip and came up with nothing, but that seemed to be enough to snap Christian out of whatever trance he’d been in.

Without a word he passed her the other half of the sandwich and then got busy unwrapping his own. Silence followed with a few words spoken here and there when one of them stared at either screen long enough to have a question rise up. It was a good little break from YN’s thoughts about what happened minutes before and also got her mind ready for what she was going to do for the next several hours. Dread filled her, but knew it wasn’t impossible by any means.

“Ready?” Christian asked after finishing off his tea.

YN nodded and just like that they got to work.

Christian was to focus on piecing together a visual that would encompass the entire comeback the Dabin planned, while YN was focused on getting through the main music video. There were some others she had to do, but they were all shorter and didn’t need some of the magic that the main one did. Part of her cursed the team for being so damn ambitious, but it kept her on her toes so she couldn’t complain. Well, wouldn’t complain until she felt the urge to pull out her hair because something wasn’t working.

But for once she went through her edits without any real roadblocks. She navigated the things that they’d talked about adding and her own ideas for things to flow seamlessly. There were a few snags here and there, but they were nothing that she couldn’t fix in a few minutes or that Christian couldn’t help her with.

They’d long learned to work together fluidly so all of it came easily.

A few hours in YN pulled her headphones off and pushed her chair away from the desk. Carefully, she stood up and stretched her body since it got a little stiff from sitting in one position for so long. Once she’d properly given them the movement they needed a yawn ripped free from her lips and she felt a wave of tiredness hit her. Of course, she wasn’t done by any means.

“I’m going to get something hot and something with caffeine from the kitchen, you want anything?” she asked.

Christian didn’t respond so she poked him hard and repeated herself, he shook his head no without ever glancing her way. She knew he’d complain later, but she didn’t have it in her to pester him, so she slipped on a pair of slides near the door and ventured out.

The kitchen in the building DPR was set up in wasn’t too far from Christian’s studio, in fact she walked back fifteen feet to get to it. Something she was thankful about because despite being in motion she felt her body grow more tired as each second passed. It’s why she was quick to grab an energy drink from the fridge and down that thing. It was followed by the consumption of red ginseng because it always helped her in some way. Or at least she placebo effected herself into that thought. After she moved to make herself some hot chocolate. Thankfully, they had a Keurig, so she didn’t have to worry about heating water herself. By the time it was done she’d gotten a few large marshmallows from her hidden stash and happily deposited on top of the hot, chocolatey liquid.

With her energy drinks consumed and her hot beverage ready she made her way back to the room. She took care not to spill any of the drink and sat it down on the small table that Christian kept over on her side. It was where she sat all her drinks or food out of fear that she would knock it over if it were on the desk with all the equipment.

The moment her butt hit the chair there was a frustrated grunt and Christian all but threw his headphones down. His right hand moved to card through his hair and his eyes closed as he let out a harsh breath.

“What’s wrong?” she asked as she moved closer.

There was no response, but she waited for him to get his bearings. Sometimes editing made you so annoyed that words failed to come together right away. There had been many instances where someone asked her questions and all they got in return was grunts or her starting a word only to scream halfway through.

A minute or two went by before he opened his eyes and spoke up.

“I just can’t get it to transition like I want. I’ve been trying different methods for the last hour and assumed I wanted to try out all the options, but they just fuckin’ suck. I don’t want it to suck. It needs to not suck.”

“I doubt it sucks, let me see,” she said as she moved even closer.

However, Christian was having none of it and knocked his chair into hers so she’d go back onto her side. He was stubborn as hell when in a mindset of defeat, so she had to be persistent. She knocked chairs with him a few more times before getting up. Before he could steady himself she pushed it back and it rolled almost to the door. Standing she leaned over and looked at what he had. Nothing sucked per se, but she could see what his issue was.

She got several clicks in before he protested again.

“I’ll just choose one and come back to it tomorrow or something. It’s fine, you have your own stuff to work on.”

“Shh.”

“Did you just shh me?” he asked incredulously.

Rolling her eyes she turned around to glare at him but froze up when she realized he was standing and doing it awfully close to her. His head was tilted down as he stared at her and with the way she’d held her head up high their faces where maybe an inch apart.

In an instant the atmosphere changed and YN did not know what to do. Part of her screamed to back away quickly and the other part of her wanted her to close the gap. The voices in her head were at war and then she noticed his eyes on her lips again and threw out all fear.

As she leaned closer Christian did too and soon enough their lips were pressed against each other. The initial kiss was chastise, something to test the waters, but once they got comfortable with it the intensity grew. Their heads tilted and their bodies pressed closer together. Soon enough YN’s fingers were threaded in his hair and his hands caressed her hips and ass.

With her lips on his all thoughts kind of left her, besides how soft they were and how she wished she’d kissed him sooner. And how she didn’t want to stop doing it.

Christian squeezed her ass a little too hard though and in retaliation she slowed the kiss and bit his lower lip. When he stilled she worried about if he didn’t like that, but then he released a sound akin to a growl. His lips were on hers again in seconds and she got so wrapped up in the kiss that she didn’t realize that he’d started lowering onto his chair and bringing her with him. She didn’t start to pay attention until he had her straddle one of his thighs.

He wasted no time with subtlety bouncing that thigh causing a bit of friction between her legs. It was bearable for a while but then he pressed a little hard and her lips parted as a gasp escaped them. Christian took that as a chance to slip his tongue into her mouth, swirling around hers. Though compliant with all his actions YN did try to gain control of the kiss, but all it took was another firm grazing of her crotch to have her moaning out. One bounce in particular had her pulling away from his lips.

But just because she stopped didn’t mean that Christian did, his lips went to kiss along her collarbone which was readily exposed in the off the shoulder top she wore. The feeling of them on her skin sent a shiver up her spine and inadvertently had her grinding down on his thigh, which only got her even more excited.

Her pleasure must have been apparent because once again Christian’s hands were on her hips. Unlike before though he used that leverage to move her along his thigh. With his lips still kissing across her shoulder and neck he moved her back and forth, ensuring he was pressing down enough that she could feel the friction despite her shorts.

The pace was slow at first, but it was enough to ensure that YN was growing wetter by the second. Her body felt on fire and it didn’t help when Christian began to suckle hickies onto her. She felt very stimulated and that’s what caused her to cry out in pleasure when he began to speed up the pace.

“Fuck,” she said.

“Oh, we’ll definitely get to that, but why don’t you take over and ride my thigh, baby? Get yourself worked up for me,” he whispered in her ear, slowly pulling away but not before biting gently on the lobe.

YN did not need to be told twice. Her hands moved to his shoulders and she sat firmly on his thigh before dragging herself back and forth. At first, she was frustrated because she couldn’t find the right amount of pressure to feel anything worthwhile, but before she could give up Christian started guiding her.

“Just like that. Yeah, you’re doing so good for me. Keep going and you can pick up the pace. Make yourself feel good,” he said.

There was no verbal response from YN besides the moans she released when the friction truly started up. Goosebumps covered her skin the more she got into, her body tingled and she wanted more. Craved more.

But the look in Christian’s eyes as he watched her get herself off was too good a sight. His eyes had darkened a bit and she could see the lust in them. It didn’t help that he was biting his lower lip as his eyes remained firmly on the thigh she was on. He was enjoying the show and she wanted to give him more, so she kept going and her pace quickened again.

Though her pace change was also out of desperation. She’d gotten worked up quickly and despite how good his thigh felt her orgasm felt out of reach. Getting closer to it was all she wanted, so she moved with a vigor that could get her there.

That didn’t fly with Christian though, his hands held her still.

“No, no. You are not cumming on my thigh. You’re doing that with me inside of you,” he said.

YN groaned. “Then get inside of me.”

That elicited a laugh from him and made YN finally look directly into his eyes. He appeared very amused by how she’d responded.

“I should have known you’d be just as bossy like this.”

Naturally, that ended with her lightly slapping his shoulder which brought on more laughter from him. She was ready to get off his lap after that but yet again he held her in place.

The thing was that unlike before the expression on his face was softer and less like that of a man who said she would only cum on his dick.

“I know this is ruining the moment, but before I bend you over this desk and fuck you until you can’t walk I want to be very clear with you. I want to be with you. This is not me just fucking you because I find you attractive as hell. Got it?” he said.

Though she wanted to roll her eyes at his delivery she couldn’t help but smile as happiness filled her. Hearing him say it made her night and she would stay like she was or cuddled up to him for the rest of the evening, but there was a persistent problem still between her legs.

She leaned forward and leaned towards his ear to whisper, “And I want to be with you, but we can discuss that later. For now you have a problem to fix and a lot to prove if you think you’re going to put me on bedrest tomorrow.”

It didn’t take long for him to get her off his lap. He barked orders about getting off her shorts and panties while he ran out of the room for a moment. By the time he returned she was undressed on her lower half and bent over on the desk. Her legs were spread slightly and it gave him the view of her glistening pussy, just like she wanted.

“Shit,” he mumbled.

YN tried to keep the laughter from escaping her at his reaction knowing he’d probably tease her if she did. There was no time for all that, she needed him inside her as soon as possible.

Once she heard the sound of pants unzipping and dropping she felt herself perk up. Her ass rose up a little more and that seemed to pull another groan from Christian who sounded like he was fumbling with something behind her. She was going to ask if he needed help but then she felt the head of his dick press against her slit and she moaned.

Slowly he moved it between the lips of her pussy causing her to push back wanting more. The feeling was so good, but she still needed him to go further. Thankfully, he didn’t keep her waiting for long. Before she could fully process it he’d pushed inside of her completely. There was some discomfort from the sudden intrusion–one that was the first of its kind in a year–but he didn’t move and she adjusted fast. The stretch still felt a bit odd, but not something she hated. In fact, she loved the feeling of being full of him.

“You can move,” she said.

He didn’t need to be told twice because in the next second he was moving at a moderate pace. His hips moved back and forth, while one hand on her back kept him balanced.

YN’s eyes fluttered closed as she focused on the feeling of him. She’d been worked up enough that she was more than prepared for him, but also enough that she was sensitive. It wasn’t the same level as if she’d orgasmed, but it was enough to have her feeling extra with every stroke.

After several thrusts at that speed Christian suddenly sped up out of nowhere. It was enough that her hips moved away from the desk and hit against it every time he slammed back into her. It was a little painful, but the feeling of his dick pushing into her and hitting just the right spot made up for it. Her moans had been soft before, but with each thrust she grew louder.

At some point she was almost screaming out because of the brutal pace, but that didn’t mean that he slowed down. In all honesty it felt like he went harder and she loved every second of it. Wanted him to never stop.

And because she was so focused on how he felt she didn’t notice the tightening in her stomach and the way she was close to the edge until she was over it. Her eyes opened wide as her orgasm crashed through her.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she said.

Despite the clear indication that she’d come Christian didn’t stop. His pace slowed down some, but he kept pistoning into her. As she finished the last moment of her high the sensitivity set in, but she found herself building up again. Her pussy wanted a break, but she wanted him to keep going.

While she was ready to stay bent over for him until he came, Christian had other plans. Using his right arm he wrapped it around her torso and pulled her up so her back was against his chest. That hand moved down to rub her clit, something that had hips bucking because it felt like too much. She squirmed a lot, but then his left hand came around to wrap around her throat and she stilled.

“You’re going to give me another one, right?” he asked, though she knew it wasn’t up for discussion.

“Yes.”

“Good girl.”

Without another word spoken by either of them he kept her how she was and continued to thrust into her, but his intense pace from before returned. His hand continued to rub and pinch her clit, which caused her to vibrate in pleasure. Plus, his hand remained around her throat squeezing every so often and she loved it more than she cared to admit. So much that her next orgasm came a little quicker than the last.

There was a weird feeling in her stomach though, but she had no time to assess it before she came. Her pussy spasmed and then she felt an intense pressure before she felt her thigh grow wet.

She’d squirted all over his dick and herself.

“Fuck, definitely going to have to do that again some other time,” he murmured.

YN didn’t even have it in her to respond to him, she just relaxed against her body as he continued fucking her. It took a minute or two before his precision slipped and she heard him moan out. He didn’t stop until he finished cumming and then he just stood there, his chest rising and falling heavily against her.

Three minutes passed with them like that before YN said something.

“We can’t stand here all night. Also, I’m so tired from this and working, we gotta rap this up.”

Christian laughed, but pulled out. From there YN leaned against the desk trying to orient herself. In that time Christian had discarded the condom and pulled his pants back up. He helped her do the same, though he didn’t bother fixing her pants completely. H

Carefully he turned her around to face him and smiled at her clearly exhausted, but happy face.

“How about we take showers, get changed, and call it a night? If you want you can stay at mine and we can start first thing in the morning,” he said.

Not one second was wasted debating it, YN just nodded in agreement.

“If I can shower and sleep I’ll be happy.”

That made Christian smile wider and then he leaned down to press a quick kiss to her lips. He moved away to lead the way out, but YN took one step before reaching out to grip his arm. Worry colored his expression and then when he noticed the way her legs seemed to shake a little a smirk made its way onto his face.

“What was that about me having to prove something?” he asked.

“Fuck you.”

#danicaday #kwritersworldnet #christian yu x reader #christian x reader #christian yu smut #christian yu fluff #dpr ian x reader #christian yu #dpr ian #yu barom #khh fanfic #krnb fanfic #kpop fanfic #kpop fanfiction #fanfic #fan fiction

[sepublic]

From what I’ve seen from the owl house fandom a lot of people seem to disregard Luz and Camilia’s relationship in favor of Luz and Eda’s relationship. I personally think that’s a shame, as, Luz and her mom clearly have a loving and supportive, albeit the two clearly aren’t on the same page.

           Yeah, I feel part of the issue is indeed that Luz is rightfully in favor of people being able to express themselves as individuals, and not having to conform to a certain standard! With Luz in particular, her weirdness and quirks are part of what make her so dang lovable and relatable, she feels like an ACTUAL nerd… So to see someone like her upset at the idea of Reality Camp, and to have that sort of spirit quashed does not gel well with many fans, relatably. Given how Camila expressed interest in Luz being less herself and more ‘fitting in the box’, amidst her calling Luz out on not having real friends –which, OUCH- and it’s not much of a positive impression we’ve had of her.

           The fact is, we haven’t gotten to see much of Camila at all; Enchanting Grom Fright was her second appearance, but we only ever saw her speak through text, and when she DID talk it was actually Grometheus playing out Luz’s worst fear of being rejected by Camila. Combined with being distracted by actual queer rep; And it’s not a surprise that with how little we have, having not seen that much good… Well, some people tend to forget her, or even outright vouch for Eda completely replacing Camila.

           Which, yikes, because of a certain dilemma called Fandom Racism, which I’m not nearly as well-versed nor literate in as OTHERS on this website… Personally, I’m of the mind that Camila AND Eda should get along as Luz’s mutual mothers, and maybe even marry. I won’t deny it’s a bit uncomfortable to see some people even write Camila as being homophobic, or NB-phobic, which is DEFINITELY going too far.

           Obviously, Camila is a bit complicit in Luz’s low self-esteem and wanting to see her become ‘normal’… But it’s pretty obvious with how she affectionately kisses her kid, and texts her by the end of the day, that Camila enjoys Luz? That she wants the best? Like, she’s a single mom who’s working as a nurse, she’s no doubt incredibly busy and wishes she could hang out with her kid more! Coupled with the stress of her occupation, and Luz getting into trouble… It’s like, I’m sure Camila would WANT Luz to be herself; But she also has to keep in mind how the rest of the world would react, and as a loving parent she’s of course afraid of seeing her child being ostracized.

          It’s a matter of deciding if you want your kid to be safe, versus letting them grow as a person… In this scenario, does Camila have Luz conform, thus allowing her to fit in and no longer be hurt by ostracization? Or does she permit Luz to be herself, at the cost of being an outcast and becoming alone- And possibly being alone, because what if something happens to Camila? She wants Luz to have friends, after all- Which is a valid concern because she didn’t have friends back home and obviously a solution was needed, although the Reality Check camp isn’t exactly the one Luz needs. And Camila’s already dealing with other adults telling her that Luz needs to be taught conformity.

          Camila’s in a thankless position. And while she could stand to be braver and vouching more for her kid, it stands to reason that even if her approach isn’t the best; She DOES love Luz as her child, that she doesn’t dislike Luz and is more concerned with how Luz will be treated in the future than actively thinking of Luz as, like, a freak. I imagine that Camila’s never been too much of a wild kid herself, so she’s completely out of her element here. She’s not perfect, but she’s still GOOD, you know?

          I mean, she texts Luz a lot and is clearly excited in keeping in touch with her kid! She alludes to her and Luz often hanging out a place that sells Chimichurri Sandwiches, every day after school! She just looks happy to see Luz’s texts and letters… Like, this is a woman who wants her kid to be happy, and is only trying to change her because she’s afraid she won’t be happy otherwise! Camila isn’t one of the Blight Parents, who sees her child as a symbol of status and reputation, as someone to control and a kid to be actively dissatisfied with for not being good enough. If left to her own devices, if given the resources the Blight Parents have, Camila would fully support Luz; But alas, she’s not privileged. Even then, she still tries.

          And it IS concerning that Luz’s worst fear is her mom finding out about the Boiling Isles, and disapproving- But we haven’t really seen anything to indicate that Luz is afraid of Camila, simply her disapproval! She happily texts her back and doesn’t seem uncomfortable around her, just with the situation at hand. Luz clearly doesn’t want to lose her parent’s approval, because she DOES like her parent; And sure, Amity is also afraid of losing her parents’ approval and they’re awful.

          But you can’t tell me Camila’s bad if someone like Luz was allowed to come into being underneath her care! She clearly let Luz be who she wanted to be, it’s just as societal pressure increases, she might be afraid that she wasn’t as responsible a parent as she could’ve been. Coupled again with Luz not having friends, and Camila, who’s already got a lot on her mind and is being told things by other adults, is wondering if she’s made a mistake somewhere down the line, and how to amend it.

           I think Luz just doesn’t want to feel like she’s hurt someone she loves; She hates hurting people, after all! Sometimes kids feel like their parents’ love is more conditional than it actually is, and while some parents may admittedly have allowed some confusion to fester; By the end of the day, ideally, those fears are irrational, and that those parents will always support their kid! I feel like Luz has associated Camila with her old life back home of being rejected, and having your own mom agree to send you to that summer camp was probably the worst feeling and felt like a betrayal. I think Luz is afraid that maybe Camila is ‘sick’ of her, that even her own mom is tired of Luz’s antics; And back home, Camila was who Luz valued and loved most! Luz just feels like her mother already has so much to deal with and doesn’t want to burden her even more.

           So even if Luz has a support network in the Boiling Isles, she still has emotional stakes back in the human world. To her, the human world is where she was rejected and ostracized, and her mother is the last human bastion of acceptance truly connecting her back there… Luz doesn’t want to lose someone she’s been close to for so long, she doesn’t like lying to people in general, and she’s already afraid of losing her mother’s support after getting signed up for summer camp. Plus, she may still feel somewhat beholden to her mother’s authority, under the impression that if Camila says she can’t stay with Eda, she HAS to go; Plus Luz seems intent on going home, so obviously she doesn’t want to get rejected by Camila there.

           I’m not sure if Luz has genuinely considered the possibility of staying on the Boiling Isles for the rest of her life… It’d be a really complicated issue, amidst all of her thoughts about her mother, her genuine love, the inevitable connection between a parent and their child… Honestly, give both Camila AND Luz a break, I say! Sure, Eda and Luz definitely have a better relationship, as-is... But that doesn’t mean Luz’s relationship with Camila is non-existent, bad, nor does it mean it can’t improve in the future!

           (Personally I’d love to see Eda and Camila get together, for obvious reasons… I can see Eda helping teach Camila to be braver for her own kid’s behalf, and make a point about how much happier Luz is as a ‘weirdo’ than she is as somebody who has to conform. Plus I think Camila is also a milf, there I said it.)

#the owl house #owl house #the owl house camila #camila noceda #the owl house luz #luz noceda #ask

[the-uninformed-zennial]

Series: Dick’s Apartment

Chapter 1: Jason

Warnings: Mild swearing (because, you know, it’s Jason Todd)

Preface/introduction:

The first family member to stay the night at Dick’s apartment was Jason Todd, the new Robin. The new Dick. Or so the former protege had felt upon discovering that Batman’s sidekick was still active on the streets of Gotham and Bruce Wayne had gained a new ward. He didn’t speak to Bruce for about six months after that, and even after they finally had a conversation about what happened, it took him a while to be able to show his face around the manor. But once he got over himself, he found that Jason was actually a pretty cool kid. So, when Bruce found himself called off world for some league business while Alfred was sick, Dick didn’t entirely mind watching the little punk for the weekend...

Now the actual story...

Bruce dropped him off on the sidewalk in the late afternoon, barely giving the kid enough time to grab his backpack and cell phone before speeding off towards the nearest Zeta tube. Typical. Why bother waiting for your babysitter when the world was at stake? Whatever. Jason could take care of himself just fine, better than fine. I mean, he was fucking Robin. He took care of Batman when the situation called for it. Screw Bruce for even thinking he needed to be watched. Screw Dick for agreeing. He unzipped his backpack just enough to reach inside and touch the hem of his Robin suit. He was going on patrol, and he would just love to see Nightwing try and stop him. He slung his worn red backpack onto his shoulder and turned his phone’s location off, but just as he was about to bolt, he felt a warm hand grab his shoulder.

“Hey man, I was just on my way out.” Dick’s knowing smile just made Jason want to punch him in the face, “Looks like you were too. Wanna grab some pizza before you get both of us in trouble?”

“Fuck you man.” Jason spat.

Dick tightened his grip on Jason’s shoulder and pulled him into the doorway of the apartment building, away from the street and prying ears.

“Look, I get the whole tough guy act and needing to prove yourself to Bruce thing, okay? Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. But if you take to the streets before I’ve even had the chance to put some food in you I have a feeling Batman’s no-kill rule will be temporarily suspended. So, we can either do this the easy way, or we can break out in a brawl in the middle of the street, which do you prefer?”

As much as Jason would love to see if he could beat Dick in combat, he did have a point. Bruce would be pissed if Jason ran off before even giving Dick a chance, and pizza before patrol didn’t sound like the worst thing he could think of.

“Fine.”

“Great,” Dick’s smile returned to his face almost as quickly as it had disappeared, “just let me get my coat and we'll be on our way.”

Jason slumped up against the side of the building and whipped out his phone in response. By the time Dick came back downstairs he had already beat a new level in the stupid numbers game Bruce made him download to “build his deductive reasoning skills” or whatever. Dick was such a priss, sauntering down the staircase in a leather jacket that looked like it had just come off the manufacturers belt, while still having the audacity to refute Jason’s whispered taunt of “spoiled brat” with a, “then what does that make you?” in reply.

The pair decided to use a shortcut Dick had recently discovered that supposedly made the trip take half as long as usual. It cut through a couple of alleys, but what was the harm, I mean, they were Nightwing and Robin, afterall. Just as the thought crossed Jason's mind, he heard the click of a gun hammer pulled back.

“Stop.” came the growl from a voice behind them.

Dick quickly gave Jason a look that said to just play along. They reluctantly stopped.

“Turn around.” Man this guy was cocky. “Empty your pockets.” Jason almost felt bad for him.

But just as he was about to show this punk who was boss, Dick grabbed his arm, and he noticed that he had all his valuables laying out in front of him. Was he serious? Dick could take this guy down in his sleep, and yet he was just gonna roll over and give him whatever he wanted. No way. Then he caught a look at the guy. He wasn’t so much of a guy as a kid, a kid who didn’t look much older than Jason was when Batman found him trying to lift the tires off the batmobile. Not much older than Jason was when… no, he wouldn’t go there. Suffice it to say, life on the streets was hard enough. This kid didn’t need to be ruffed up by two literal superheroes, he needed a sandwich. Maybe two. So, reluctantly, Jason unbuckled his watch and took his phone out of his back pocket. There really wasn’t anything else of value he had brought with him.

The kid peered around the barrel of his gun, inspecting the pile, then motioned at Jason, “Backpack too.”

Shit. The backpack, the backpack with his Robin suit inside. Which, if found, would totally ruin the whole secret identity thing. Did Dick know? He glanced up at him, and yeah, he knew. Fuck, mental note, find a better way to sneak the Robin suit in and out of the cave. Jason subconsciously gripped the backpack more tensely.

“Uh,” Dick spoke up, thank god, “I don’t think you actually want that. See, my brother here was going to spend the night at my house so it’s just filled with an extra change of clothes and a toothbrush. Nothing valuable there.”

Jason could have facepalmed, right then and there. Dick obviously knew nothing about what was and was not valuable to a kid on the streets, because honestly, two years ago Jason would’ve killed to find a backpack filled with an extra pair of clothes and a toothbrush. Those things were hard to come by. And also, did he seriously just call him his brother?

Sure enough the kid motioned with his free hand, “Hand it over.”

Jason tried to hide the panic that was slowly spreading across his face, but Dick was too perceptive and he knew it. Fuck him. He was not handing the bag over, no matter what the little punk threatened. Somehow, Dick seemed to know that because before Jason could make a move, Dick had already done some crazy ass acrobatic flip that simultaneously knocked the kid out and disarmed him.

“How the hell--?” The words just kinda slipped out before Jason even realized what he was saying, “...Bruce is seriously holding out on me.”

Dick just smiled while he picked the gun up off the ground and put a twenty in the kid’s half opened hand.

As they began to pick up their valuables, he leaned over and whispered, “You know I was in the circus right?”

“Yeah?”

“And I was Robin for about a decade”

“Where are you going with this?”

The smile somehow glinted in his eyes, “Batman didn’t teach me that one. I created it myself.”

It took all Jason’s willpower to not drop his mouth wide open. How was that even possible? I mean, the mechanics of the move, how Dick had to launch his body upward just the right amount so that he could come down on the attacker’s hands and face with just enough force to cause them to release the weapon before firing, it was insane! Jason had to learn it. Just as he opened his mouth to ask, Dick raised his hand in silence.

“After pizza.”

So that’s what they did. They must’ve spent a good three hours at the local park just trying to get Jason to launch himself high enough in the air. As much as he hated to admit it, Dick was a lot more agile and Jason was quickly tiring out. After about the 500th failure, Jason lost it. He didn’t know what came over him, but the next thing he knew he was picking up the pieces of his broken phone off the sidewalk. Shit. Shit, Bruce was gonna be so pissed.

“Hey man,” Dick started.

God his cheerful attitude was starting to get really fucking old. Dick Grayson. The first Robin. The prodigal son. The dude who started beating up bad guys before he had even shaved for the first time. Dick Grayson who could fling himself in the air all day long and barely break a sweat. Dick Grayson, the guy he was just subbing in for.

Before Jason even realized what was happening, he felt his curled fist impact the side of Dick face. Dick stepped back a few paces, and instinctively hunched into his fighting stance while inspecting his face for blood. Jason was proud to say there were a few drops, thanks to a ring on his middle finger.

“What the fuck?” He asked, clearly confused.

“Just stay the hell away from me, okay?” Jason said quite a bit louder than he had intended, “I don’t need your help. I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”

“I never said that you weren’t.” Dick dropped his stance. “Look, maybe we should take a break.”

A break. Yeah, right. Jason Todd, the kid who couldn’t even make it through an afternoon of training without having a complete meltdown. No way was Bruce not going to hear about this. With the way things were going, he’d probably be taken off patrol for at least a week. No. He wouldn’t let that happen. All he had to do was convince Dick that he was fine, he was better than fine, he was the real Robin.

Jason took another swing, and this time, Dick was expecting it. He grabbed Jason’s outstretched arm and twisted it behind his back. But before he could get the hold fully secured, Jason took his free arm and elbowed him right in the stomach, the diaphragm, if Dick’s sudden fit of coughing was any indication. This gave Jason enough time to yank his hand free of Dick’s grasp and try to land another blow. He decided to go for a kick to the right knee, a weak spot of Batman’s former protege he had learned about while reviewing old video tapes for training. But Dick saw it coming. Before Jason even had time to think, Dick had already grabbed his outstretched leg and knocked him off balance, causing him to fall into the soft dirt around them. Jason kicked and flailed, trying to get his leg free, but it didn’t work, and soon Dick was on top of him, pinning him to the ground.

Jason knew if he tried he could get free eventually, but after a while he just stopped. What was the point anyway? Surely Dick was going to call Batman as soon as he was back on world and tell him everything. He’d recommend Jason give back the Robin suit and retire from the vigilante business because he couldn’t handle the stress of learning a new trick. Then he’d be back on the streets, because what use would Bruce Wayne have for him if he couldn’t fight crime? At least this time he’d know how to defend himself.

Jason didn’t even realize he had started to cry until he was being held in Dick’s arms. It was strange and incredibly uncomfortable to be held by someone that was nearly his own size, but Dick was soft and warm and would not let go. So Jason just sat there frozen, tears silently running down his face as he tried desperately to hide the fact that he was terrified of what was going to happen to him now.

The two boys stayed there like that for a few minutes, until Jason had softened enough to meld into Dick’s arms a little, and the latest wave of tears had come and gone. When Dick finally did let go, Jason scrambled back up onto his feet, and wiped away any trace that he had cried in the first place. Then turned a stony gaze at Dick.

“Don’t tell Bruce.” He glared.

“Tell him what?” Dick asked innocently.

There he was, being a prick again. Jason glanced around the park that was now well covered in darkness looking for a space to stare at that wasn’t Dick. Anywhere but Dick.

“That I failed.”

“Excuse me?” Dick’s tone was sarcastic and somewhat offended. “Did you just say you failed?”

Jason nodded ever so slightly.

“Okay, no.” He sighed in a manner eerily similar to Bruce. “Jace, it takes time to master a move like this, like an insane amount of time, like years. You had three hours in a playground and you’ve already got the basic motor functions of the move down. I don’t know about you, but I call that impressive.”

Jason looked cautiously into Dick’s eyes, could he really mean what he was saying? “But then why did you say I should take a break?”

“Because I could see you were getting to the end of your rope. I mean, you threw your phone on the ground and punched me in the face. If that’s not a clear indication someone needs a break, then I don’t know what is.” He smiled reassuringly.

“So you aren’t going to tell Bruce what happened?”

“I mean, I don’t really think there’s anything he needs to know about, do you?”

Jason allowed the phantom of a smile to creep up on his face, “Not unless you can’t handle being punched in the face by your little brother.”

“Brother, huh?”

“Your words, not mine.”

Dick laughed, “Okay then, brother, what do you say we go get a movie and eat some popcorn? I’ve had enough training tonight.”

Jason narrowed his eyes, “Fine. But only if it’s horror.”

Dick just smiled and put his arm around his little brother’s shoulder as they walked out of the park and back to the apartment.

The boys stayed up well into the night, mostly mocking the movie they chose for it’s subpar acting and special effects quality. It was one of those “classic” horror movies that everyone has to see at least once in their lives, so of course it sucked. Still, Jason could honestly say it was the most fun he’d had in years. Dick was definitely an asshole, but despite his better judgement, he couldn’t help thinking that maybe, just maybe, Dick wasn’t as big a dick as he thought.

#jason todd #dick grayson #robin #nightwing #red hood #dc #dc universe #dc comics #dc fanfic #batman #batman and robin #bruce wayne #babysitter #baby jason #ao3fic #archive of our own #crosspost #batfam #batbros #batbrats #no beta read #on this one #more to come #staytuned #brotherly moments #brotherly bonding

[illfoandillfie]

Can I get a general career reading? With the art nouveau deck and the archetype oracle please.

of course darl! 

tarot: ace of cups, page of cups, justice, queen of cups,3 of swords, the fool, the tower, the hanged man, the world

okay!! we have some interesting cards here! something that drew my attention immediately was the first and last cards. we open with an ace which is the start of the minor arcana and all of the aces are related to new starts or new opportunities. And then we end on the world which is the last card of the major arcana and symbolises completion and fulfilment. so this seems to be a self-contained cycle you’re entering. 

I’d also like to just acknowledge how many cups cards there are here. The cups as a suit is related to emotions and the heart so this may be a highly emotional time or you may find yourself being driven by your emotions rather than logic or reason. There’s also a lot of major arcana cards which isn’t necessarily good or bad but it’s worth noting because the major arcana are generally related to Big life events or milestones whereas the minor arcana are more sort of every day things. so this seems like it’ll be a significant period for you. but lets have a closer look at it all. 

So like i said, the aces are related to new opportunities and the suit of cups is tied to emotions and the heart. So the ace of cups is related to new things or new situations that are cause for strong emotions. A lot of the time it’s connected to romance but in this career reading it’s probably more likely some sort of new opportunity, particularly related to creativity. There’s a lot of potential here, all you have to do is reach out and take the cup. But it’s not all happiness. The ace is being clarified by the three of swords which is a card of heartbreak and suffering, It can be through delays or absences, unrest or confusion. Any sort of disruption or incompatibility. This could indicate something going wrong at work. A worst case scenario could be being fired/retrenched but it could also be related to people you work with or just a tough work environment that you struggle with. Something here isn’t looking good though. The ace of cups can relate to intuition or spirituality as well so it might be that you’ve had a gut feeling something is coming or you might have noticed changes happening around the work place and if that’s the case I would definitely listen to your gut and prepare yourself for bad news. But there is definitely a silver lining here. The 3 of swords isnt the main card, the ace of cups is and that says to me that while something will go wrong it will open you up to finding something new which is a better fit for you. It might even be that the bad thing happens to someone else and consequently you take over their roll or something like that. But if you’ve been thinking about starting up some sort of creative endeavour, like an etsy store or writing a novel, this is the time to push forward with it. 

Then we have the page of cups and the fool. There are two court cards who appear in this reading so one may be someone you’ll associate or work with but it’s entirely possible that both of them represent you. The page is imaginative and sensitive. He’s a bit of a dreamer and often has his head in the clouds. This definitely fits in if you’ve been considering a new side hustle or if you’ve been thinking about making a change in your career path. the fool as a similar sort of energy but he’s less dreamy and more of a free spirit. he isnt worried about where he’s putting his feet, far more concerned with what he’s experiencing in each moment. He’s innocent, sometimes naive, but also courageous and more concerned with having fun. In relation to career and finances he’s definitely a symbol to take the leap - whether it’s selling art or putting your hand up for a promotion or leaving a job and finding a new one. The fool says go for it, especially if it’s something you’ve been dreaming about doing. There’s a very fresh and energized feeling in these cards and it seems you’ll soon be presented with an opportunity to follow through with your dreams. 

next is three major arcana. Justice is about doing things in the right way without cutting corners. The fool might be impulsive but justice is reminding you to do things right the first time so you don’t make a huge mistake that ruins all your plans. The tower is interesting in this position. I won’t sugar coat it, usually the tower is about a drastic, dramatic change. The kind of thing that shatters your world, sends everything crashing down around you. Together with Justice it could be a sign that some sort of truth is going to come out that turns things upside down for you. If you’ve been stealing office supplies or embezzling money (hopefully not) it is going to come out. On the flip side it could be about someone else’s lies being found out. If you’ve been involved with any workplace disputes recently the justice card is a sign that things will go in your favour as long as you’ve been honest and fair. And this could relate to that big change that’s going to open the new opportunity of the ace of cups. 

But I don’t feel like that’s exactly it. If the tower had shown up next to the 3 of swords i would say yeah that’s it. But with it being sandwich between justice and the hanged man  i feel like it’s something else. So let’s look at that hanged man. It’s a card related to sacrifice, release, and changing perspective. In relation to career it could symbolise feeling stuck or uncertain about where you’re headed. So together these three cards could be advice for you or a warning of sorts. They’re saying that the big change and taking that leap of faith the fool asks you to take, won’t be easy. There will be times when you feel like you made a mistake, like you’re in over your head and you’ve gotten yourself into a tower situation that is so much worse than whatever the 3 of swords you left behind was. You will think about throwing in the towel. you will think about giving up. But don’t listen to those voices. Justice is on your side and the scales will rebalance for you. It might take some readjustments, it might take rebuilding parts of your plan, it might take a fresh perspective. But you will be vindicated in your choice to try something new and things will clear up.  

Finally we have the queen of cups and the world. The queen of cups is a bit of an upgrade to the page from earlier. Of course, the queen may be someone you’ll turn to for advice or help. But I think she could also be you, closer to reaching your goal and the end of the cycle. The queen of cups is compassionate. She is calm and comforting. She symbolises devotion, pleasure, success. Where the page dreams and imagines, the queen creates and acts. She’s also a reminder that whatever you do as a job should help you feel emotionally fulfilled and not just financially. Especially since she’s being clarified by the world which is related to fulfilment as well as harmony and completion. The world comes at the end of a journey. It represents assured success and is associated with getting that job you want as well as graduations and celebrations. It’s a sign that if you take this opportunity that will present itself soon you can turn it into something you love and which can offer finance stability. The World is also about the start of a new cycle though. As one thing draws to an end, or one goal is reached, you see there is still further to climb and more to accomplish. 

I drew you 4 of the archetype cards as well as a few numerology and elemental cards. 

So the archetypes first. Thanks for requesting this deck by the way! I don’t often use it so it was nice to bring it out again! The thought behind these cards is that everyone’s personalities and psyche is made up of a number of different archetypes, some more evident than others. And these archetypes may change as you grow and also depending on the situation you’re in - you might act one way at work and another with your friends. I think traditionally these cards would be used to describe people but I’m hoping they can give us some insight on traits you can use in relation to your career as well as general sort of knowledge about the situation presented in the tarot cards. Each archetype as a light side and a shadow side which reflect both positive and negative aspects. 

The first archetype is the Alchemist. Light - transformation of base motives and goals into golden wisdom. Shadow: Misuse of power and knowledge that come through spiritual practice. - to me this really fits with the tarot cards. The main message of the tarot was to seriously consider whatever dreams or fantasies you’ve been thinking about in relation to your career to to go after them and i think thats what the light attribute is really getting at here. You have the power within yourself to turn you little goal into something big and beautiful. 

Prince. light - romantic charm and potential for power. shadow - using power for self-aggrandizement. This is interesting considering the number of cups cards we had and how often they’re linked to romances. The prince may be someone you come across, maybe someone involved in whatever the 3 of swords situation is. However, the prince is also seen as a ruler in training and if you’re appearing as the page of cups to start and gradually becoming the queen, then it’s also quite possibly related to your journey. 

Trickster. light - transcending convention, stuffiness, and predictable behaviour. shadow - manipulating others through duplicity. This card could be linked with the fool perhaps, unpredictable and kind of wild. It also reminds me a bit of that justice card, especially if you’re taking it from an angle of “someone did something wrong and they’re being caught out”.  

Child: Magical. So, according to the guidebook there are 4 archetypes that everyone will have one of but each of them have multiple versions. The child is one of those and here we’ve drawn the magical version. light - seeing the potential for sacred beauty in all things. The belief that everything is possible. shadow - pessimism, depression, and disbelief in miracles. believing that energy and action are not required for growth. this definitely feels like its related to the ace of cups and the 3 of swords, believing that something wonderful can come from something painful. It may also relate to the page who spends his time dreaming rather than acting, like the shadow attriubte. 

From the numerology deck we got personal growth, effort, and pride. personal growth indicates a time of significant growth and improvement and that is absolutely reflected in the tarot cards above. theres a lot of potential here and a lof of cards that suggest this will be a turning point for you. Effort is a sign that things coming will require some hard work from you, extra effort to overcome obsticles and challenges. but when the going gets tough the tough get going and you are definitely tough enough to handle it. And Pride to me represents that you will be proud of what you can accomplish through this hard work. 

Finally, the element cards: magnetism (attraction) and rock (endurance). there are magnetic forces that are pulling you towards this change and this opportunity. this could tie in with the intuitive message of the ace of cups, if you’ve been able to sense things shifting. rock is another card that points to things being difficult at times and it’s saying you have what it takes to get through them and to find success and happiness. 

#woof #this was a bit of a long one. #i dont think i can get through the last couple of readings tonight #since i have work tomorrow #but i will answer them asap #i might try and get them written up over lunch tomorrow even if i cant get onto tumblr to post them until after i get home #i'll defs try to have them up by this time tomorrow though! #i'd say i'd post them on wednesday when i normally have a scheduled day off #but this week i'm covering for someone and actually working weds and thurs #but dw! they are coming! #card readings

[lesbianlovelanguage]

Harringrove, 10, 31

Hi anon!! Hope you enjoy a lil post season 3 fem!Harringrove action 💕💕

10. After Near Death Experience + 31. “I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

-

Being brought back to life after having a giant meat monster shishkebab you really took a lot out of you, especially if said meat monster had been playing you like a puppet for weeks. Billie had been left in a daze for the entirety of her two week stay at Hawkins General Hospital. She had been really out of it, she even agreed to live with that bitch Harrington. 

At least that’s what she told herself as she was moving her two boxes from Nelly’s house to the Harrington house, which was basically a mansion to a girl like Billie, who considered a luxury vacation to be anywhere you could get a free breakfast. 

Because, of course not only was Harrington a bitch, she was a rich bitch. It made Billie gag how much the little Hawkins Princess reminded her of the snobby cunts in Beverly Hills, who all came to Billie’s side of town to rough it up, only to scamper away when things got a little rough or a little dirty, and then they took their prada bags and yappy dogs back to live in daddy’s pocket. Typical. 

So, Billie was moving her meager possessions into one of the Harrington's guest rooms and trying to think of how she could avoid Steph as much as possible. Of course, what she hadn’t factored into her plan of night showers and stashed meal bars, was that she would be exhausted all the time. Doing almost anything required at least a fifteen minute rest afterwards. Activities like making her own meals left her tired enough to pass out on the couch. It became almost routine for Billie to wake up after Steph was long gone for her morning shift at the video store, and then make lunch and pass out on the couch while watching daytime television. 

There weren’t any blankets, or any other forms of personal affects, in the pristine catalogue-worthy living room, but around a week after Billie started falling asleep on the couch, she started waking up with a soft crocheted blanket that had clearly been hommade draped carefully over her and a still-warm mug of perfectly brewed darjeeling tea. The only person who knew Billie liked darjeeling tea was Steph, and only because Billie wasn’t cleared to leave the house, so Steph had to do all of the grocery shopping.

It became routine, their only interaction beyond passing each other in the hallway sometimes, and they never talked about it. Until one day when Steph’s manager let her off early, unbeknownst to Billie.

It started off like every other day, Billie had built up enough stamina that she was able to get through her entire morning routine and make a quick lunch before she needed to inevitably crash on the couch. She sat down with her grilled cheese and apple slices, turning on The Price Is Right and settling in. She finished her sandwich quickly, and was lazily munching on apple slices when she heard the front door begin to open. Panicking because she didn’t want to have to exchange pleasantries with Steph Harrington, Billie quickly set down the plate of slices and laid down on the couch like she was sleeping. Soft footsteps padded into the living room before stopping right next to Billie’s head. She heard a soft sigh and then the footsteps walked towards the hall closet. Some shuffling informed Billie that Steph had been the one to tuck her in every afternoon, and just as expected, Billie felt the familiar softness of the garish blanket fall over her body. What she didn’t expect, never would have expected, was for Steph to lean over and press an equally soft kiss to her forehead. It seared into her skin, and took everything Billie had to not break the illusion of sleep. But just as quickly as it appeared, Steph’s lips left her forehead and the following clatter indicated that she had moved on to cleaning up Billie’s leftover lunch. She moved on as if she hadn’t just shifted Billie’s entire world on its axis. 

It was the first afternoon that Billie didn’t nap. The kiss left her whole body feeling like a live wire and she kept replaying the kiss, analyzing every moment of it and committing the feel of Steph’s lips to memory. Billie had known she was a lesbian for a long time, ever since some asshole in sixth grade tried to have sex with her and she almost puked at the sight of his dick, because jesus they’re weird and gross. 

She knew she was gay with every fiber of her being, but between Nelly and living in bumfuck nowhere, Indiana she also knew she could never act on her feelings, locked them in a box and never thought about them.

Especially for a certain princess that reminded Billie so much of Jessica from Beverly Hills, the reason the Hargrove/Mayfield left California and Max was no longer her brother. But with one innocent forehead kiss, Billie’s longing rose up with avengence, settling in the pit of her stomach like a heavy weight. What was she supposed to do now? What did it mean that it seemed so natural to Steph? How many times had she planted such a kiss on Billy’s forehead before? 

With all of these unanswerable questions circling her head, Billie fell into an uneasy sleep. 

The next morning was an unprecedented occurrence. Steph had the entire day off of work. Of course it came after yesterday’s revelations. Now Billie was stuck in a house with a person she was desperately trying to ignore, and Steph didn’t like to be ignored. Around noon, there was a knock at Billie’s door, and Steph called through it that she made her lunch too big and there were extras if Billie wanted to join her? She sounded to timid and shy that Billie couldn’t have said no and felt good about her choice, so of course she called back that she would be out in a minute and threw on some pants. She also quickly threw her blonde locks in a sloppy ponytail before sauntering out to the living room. 

Steph was sat on the very far left of the couch, The Price Is Right already turned on, with a plate of what appeared to be nachos on the coffee table. All Billie had to do was silently walk over and sit on the opposite side, make sure they never touched, and after the nachos were finished, she could go hide in her room like a little pussy again. Easy, right?

Unfortunately, Steph had other plans. As soon as Billie sat down, Steph turned to her and began incessantly rattling off stories from work, her weird coworker named Rob and the horde of gremlins that followed her like baby ducks apparently pulling her into all sorts of ridiculous stunts. The best and worst thing was that Steph put no pressure on Billie to participate in the conversation, pausing when it was natural to give her an opening but otherwise going on and on, as if she just needed to fill the silence with something, anything. Some time between Steph talking about the benefits of organizing movies alphabetically over release year and a bizarre story about Rob somehow accidently eating a pot brownie for breakfast and showing up to work blazed beyond belief, the nachos were finished. But rather than fleeing immediately, Billie instead felt more relaxed than she had since… Since California. The steady cadence of Steph’s voice replaced lapping waves. Before she realized what was happening, she felt her eyes begin to close and slowly slipping into unconscious. She was momentarily knocked out of it by a soft whisper.

“Billie, you okay?” Steph’s question bounced around Billie’s head for a minute before she could formulate a response, and when she finally spoke it was lackluster at best.

“Just peachy, dollface. Just tired.” Despite how unimpressive the answer was, Steph just nodded her head and yet again surprised Billie. Instead of telling her to go back and take a nap in her room, Steph pushed the beaded decorative pillow off of her lap and sat up straighter. She even went so far as to pat her thigh in invitation, silently communicating that she wanted Billie to rest her head on Steph’s lap.

“Go to sleep then, it’s okay Bill.” Steph patted her lap once more before Billie gave in and gently shifted around so that her head was carefully resting on Steph’s thigh, face turned towards the TV so Steph didn’t have the opportunity to notice the blush sitting high and bright in her cheekbones. 

Ever so slowly, Steph pulled Billie’s hair out of the sloppy ponytail and began running her fingers through the tangled blonde locks, lulling Billie even further into unconsciousness. 

Just before Billie completely gave in though, she heard one more whisper than made her heart do cartwheels. Steph stopped her ministrations in Billie’s hair and leaned down. 

“I won’t let anyone hurt you anymore Billie. I swear it.” Steph’s breath grazed Billie’s cheek and set the blush racing down her chest so quickly, it felt as if it burned her. Maybe she didn’t have all of the answers, but suddenly Billie realized she was right where she needed to be.

And Steph was nothing like Jessica.

-

Thank you again for the prompt! I hope you liked it 💖🥺 Fic tag list: @a-magey @trashmouth-hargrove @catharrington @gideongrace @stevefuckingharrington (Feel free to lmk if you would like to be added/removed from the list!) 

#harringrove #tay writes #finally lol #finals are gonna kill me #but there's only a week left! #and then bc corona I have no summer job so... #ALL the writing time lol

[strangelyokay]

Everything's Fine, Slumps happen, Here's what to do.

Sometimes slumps happen, everything is moving, everything is not exactly going right, but also not bad, but everything still sucks. The days are quick, long, everything is just not worth doing, what’s the point, and if there is a point, the point is too far away to actually matter at the moment. Everyone has slumps, depression periods, everything sucks kind of vibes, and getting out of them can be a pain in the butt.

I’ve noticed a week ago that I was suffering from this annoying occurrence, I’m not doing much, but somehow, I can’t feel relax and refresh, instead, this super “ugh” mood is hanging over my head. However, this isn’t my first time in a slump, and I have mastered a couple of tips for anybody in school who has realized that they have too much time on their hands and are losing it or life just sucks. Don’t get me wrong, classes are hard and the homework piles on, but I’ve noticed that sometimes depression periods occur, all on their own and usually the school stuff suffers. Sometimes these periods occur while maintaining a job and school, that’s a nightmare, it's like the day ends too quickly and nothing productive seems to ever get done, all you want is the break time, the “me” time.

So, based on my experience alone, I have a list that might help indicate that you are in a slump. These are my personal tells, everyone is different, but I’m sure that someone else has had these specifically.

Here are some signs that you might be in a slump:

You overdo it on sleep, you stay up all night, then sleep all day, constantly.

So personally, I sleep late, I won’t say I have insomnia, because I know I can sleep, I just choose not to. Sleeping will get me closer to waking up and starting my stressful day, so I stay up, it's like running away. Also, if I have a lot to do, and I feel like I don’t have enough time for myself, I’ll stay up because I feel less guilty like I’m not wasting time doing things I actually want to do.

You eat once a day. I mean you eat properly one meal and then snack all day.

Honestly, if I have the money, I’ll buy nothing else but fast-food, I won’t cook. I’ll overeat in one sitting then have snacks for the rest of the day. If I don’t have money for quick junk food, I’ll cook one meal, and again snacks, sometimes I’ll make a late-night sandwich if snacks aren’t filling me up. Personally, the snacks are always sweet, and bread-like.

You have seen too much T.V.

I usually watch too much tv, it gets to the point where I start seeing things that I would never consider, just because I can’t find anything, I haven’t seen. I get so sick of it that I can feel my mind is melting and I start to think that if life is worth living, it can’t be to do this. I’m usually broke, and TV is free, and it’s too much work to do anything else. When you do try to do anything else, you feel like it’s too uncomfortable, and it was such a stretch to come up with something else to do that you just don’t want to do anything else.

You clean or maybe you don’t, but when you do clean, not often enough to keep the “house” tidy.

Suddenly your home is a pigpen, and you hate it, but its overwhelming to actually start picking things up. I feel great when my home is clean, it helps me feel on top of things, however in these slumps, I clean, but it gets dirtier.

You hate how you look, but working out seems pointless, you’ll quit anyway and then you’ll feel worst.

So, this one might be specific to me, but most of the time if I am in these slumps, I don’t feel great about myself. I focus too much on appearance and it really hits my self-esteem. I try to work out but feel so disheartened, even if the exercise made me feel great, I just “know” I’ll quit and find myself feeling silly for even trying or like a failure.

Here’s the worst about the whole thing, it’s a f****** cycle, everything connects and it’s impossible to actually get off the suck train, without actually constantly trying. If you stay up all night and then wake up at 3:00 pm you’re not really thinking about eating property, so you eat one meal, because you’re starving and then snack all day. You just woke up, you watch tv, its 5 pm and the day is gone, you don’t clean, or exercise by default, because it’s too late. When you decide to actually do better, you notice it’s hard to sleep early, you’re not tired, and since you have nowhere to be, you don’t find the urgency.  It's honestly annoying because you want to do better, but its SOOO hard and there’s absolutely no motivation. When there is urgency it's even worse, you start feeling the guilt.

So, I wouldn’t just talk about the terrible side-effects of a slump, without offering some sort of solutions. I will remind the reader that getting out of a slump is way harder, I mean it is so annoyingly more difficult, that it makes you not want to do it. That is ignoring the fact that in these slumps you already aren’t motivated to do anything.

Here are some solutions:

Go for a walk, preferably with a friend, but by yourself with music works well too.

So, this is the first one for a major reason, it sounds like the dumbest, but trust me it works. The reason is that in a slump you get sad, depress even. Someone told me once that a walk a day gives you the same effects as taking depression medication. Plus, the walk helps, you breathe in air, it forces you to actually think, instead of numbing yourself, and the scenery is different. I will say this one is just annoying to start though, especially if you become a hermit in the midst of the slump.

Exercise.

Yeah, this one is generic and in sucks, but there is a reason for it. Working out makes you tired, and it relaxes you, it honestly makes you feel good about yourself. You don’t have to be a pro on this, even 30 minutes helps, just do it more than once a week.

Clean one section at a time.

Even if the house is a mess, clean five dishes, then stop or maybe do one load of laundry, do small amounts, make it possible. It pushes you to progress, and eventually, doing all the dishes is possible.  You can use this method to finish your homework.

Wake up earlier than usual.

This one can be hard, hopefully exercising can get you tired enough to start sleeping earlier, but the waking up is the main goal. Like with the cleaning, you don’t have to be extreme, if you’re waking up at 3:00 PM, try 11:00 AM, then keep going. You will wake up less tried, less in a bad mood, and more likely to feel like a better person if you’re rested and alive in the morning (aim for 8 hours).

Find anything else to do besides T.V.

Read, paint, do puzzles, do anything that isn’t watching the screen, its easy to fall into a trap of technology, and it is numbing. You don’t want to keep numbing yourself with tv, it really makes you stay addicted to the cycle. If it’s a relaxing pass time, sure, but if you’re watching, just to watch, to not think, then do something else.

Basically…

It's not easy to actually get out of the everything sucks period, you’re basically changing your mentality, and that is the hardest to do. You have to stay positive, even when you’re not, and when you’re by yourself it's daunting and it seems impossible. However, even though it’s easier with someone’s help, sometimes they hinder the change and you make them your crutch. This change can be tricky, you have to be aware, but don’t pressure yourself, its hard already without making yourself feel like a failure.

As I said, I am basing all of this on my experience alone, so I’m not an expert, sometimes the slump has no rules, and self-help isn’t actually curing anything. Obviously, at that point go see someone professionally, it doesn’t make you weak. If you think it does, don’t tell anyone, just make sure to go anyway, try something once especially if what you were doing wasn’t helping.

Stay positive, acknowledge the small accomplishments and tell everyone to f*** off if they want to judge, everyone struggles at one point, just keep moving. You can do it, and if no one else does I believe in you.

Here are some links to articles on the benefits of exercising:

Exercise is an all-natural treatment to fight depression  

Running From the Pain

Comment Below!

#first try #first post #first blog #slump #alittledown #notdepressbutsad #everything sucks #everything suuuuuuucks #everythingisokay #youcandoit #dontstress #don't worry #stepbystep #everyonestruggles #staypositive #self help #steven universe #friends #notalone #keepgoing #youcan #i believe in you #i can do this

[taiblogcomics]

Not Harpering on About Roy’s Death

Hey there, hardcore skyblock map. So, we've had a good run of Suicide Squad. Quite enjoyed that, really. So let's see what the other series that we weren't enjoying so much is up to, eh? Red Hood had been building in a stupid new direction, so let's drop in on that, shall we~?

Here's the very shiny cover:

Yep, DC's infatuation with '90s cover gimmicks continues, though this was always an actually cool one. Since it doesn't come across in the scan, here's the thing. All the red parts on this cover? They're holofoil. It's very metallic, and honestly looks quite striking. It's a gimmick, but unlike those lenticular 3D covers from a couple years ago, this is one that works. Also, despite what the wiki (and the issue number) indicates, the title has officially changed to Red Hood: Outlaw. I thought it was just a fun gimmick on the previous cover, but no. According to the copyinfo in the back of the issue, this is its actual title. There’s probably an irony in Jason of all people using a crowbar as a weapon, but he’d never pick up on it himself~

Once again, the comic starts by informing us that this is "'Merica", thus not filling us with any hope regarding the depiction of the individuals within. Indeed, we start at a small-town diner, where a large man in a beige jacket is harassing the youthful waitress for her phone number. To her credit, she is plainly telling him no forcefully. Jason Todd enters the diner, sits with the man, and orders a coffee, which the waitress is glad to take as an excuse to get away. The large man is grumpy that Jason is here, as is the reader, and asks if he can find somewhere else to sit. Jason retorts that he has a particular question for him--one regarding his involvement with Underlife (the shadowy cabal organisation that Jason's tracking).

Surprisingly, Jason turns out to be dead-on that this redneck is part of Underlife, because he immediately starts going for his gun. Jason decides this guy's not sweet enough, and so hits him in the face with the sugar dispenser. This is just as the waitress returns with his coffee, so Jason throws it in the face of his next assailant. For indeed, the entire diner has decided to attack him as well. And of course, someone goes out through the diner's front window. The brawl is largely in Jason's favour until an extremely large man comes out and hits him from behind. And of course this guy is wearing a trucker hat, a blue jacket over a pink button-down shirt with rolled-up sleeves, and blue boots with a red-and-white stars-and-stripes pattern across them. His jacket says "Tiny", but I'm going to call him Cap'n 'Murrica.

So Cap'n 'Murrica tells Jason that they ain't jus' backwoods hicks out here, son. (Yeah, if you're not down with phonetic rural American accents, this comic will drive you up the wall.) See, they're all united under Underlife here. And Underlife is bigger than anything he can imagine. Y'know, how do these shadowy cabal organisations recruit these hundreds of thousands of members without anyone ever finding out about them? He's about to squash Jason flat when suddenly his eyes roll back in his head and he collapses. Cap'n 'Murrica falls over to reveal Bruce Wayne standing behind him.

So with the rest of the diner deserted because of the fight, Bruce and Jason sit down to have a chat. Jason even passes Bruce what's left of his coffee. Bruce has two pieces of news for Jason. The first is that Penguin didn't actually die from the gunshot to the face. But it wasn't for lack of trying, so Bruce still forbids Jason from ever returning to Gotham. The second is the badness we all knew is coming. Bruce tells Jason that, due to the events of Heroes in Crisis, his best friend Roy Harper is dead. We've ranted about this before, but here is where Jason actually receives the news.

Surprisingly, both Bruce and Jason agree that Jason doesn't need to be there. There's a lot of people going to be looking for revenge (Roy wasn't the only death, you see), and they don't need him around screwing with that. Bruce offers him a supportive hand on his shoulder, and Jason replies that death is a revolving door in their business. He's died, Bruce has died, Damian's died. Everyone who puts on a mask is living on borrowed time. So of course he's going to miss Roy. He's even going to grieve for Roy. But he's not going to sit around moping, because that's not what Roy would want. Bruce offers to drop Jason off somewhere, and he says he's fine. He does, however, accept a hug from Bruce.

Jason thanks Bruce for telling him in person, which must be hard since he hates him and all. Bruce replies that even on the worst days, he's never hated Jason. Sure, he thinks he's an ass who needs kicking sometimes, but at the end of the day, the both of them have each other's backs and they know it. The pair of them part, and Jason walks off down the road. He stops and leans against a fence, and pulls out his phone. He calls up Roy and leaves him a message, presumably on his voicemail or something. The gist of it is some gentle ribbing at Roy's superhero credentials, but full credit for being his best friend. He then deletes the contact and moves on.

Well, tarnation. Jason's wanderin' seems to have led him to the little ol' town of Appleton. This place is downright the epitome of small-town America. The people always stop and say hi on the street, and even the local sherrif stops Jason on his way into town. Since Jason's just passing through, the cop points him to a local bed-and-breakfast to sleep at. Jason takes his advice, and soon he's checking in. He pointedly declines to let the owner take his bag for him, and excused himself to go have a bite at the diner. He thinks it seems like a nice place, and it'll be a shame when he has to dismantle it brick by brick. And as he heads out, the view switches to a noticably mechanical view that scans all his biometrics and even x-rays his bag, declaring that they have a problem...

You can refer to my previous reviews if you’d like more ranting on Heroes in Crisis (or if you send me the whole miniseries, I’ll rant about the whole thing~), but this being the moment Jason actually learns of Roy’s death... This is well-written. He’s not in denial about Roy’s death because of how superheroes come back (I can point you to an X-Factor story involving that concept, if you like), but he accepts both possibilities: his best friend is dead. But superheroes don’t always stay dead. If he sees his friend again someday, that’s great. If he doesn’t, he’ll keep kicking bad guy ass in his name, because that’s what he’d want.

And again: here’s a great Batman. He never once raises his voice or acts upset with Jason. Not even over the “you intended to murder the Penguin, and the fact that he survived doesn’t absolve your intent” thing. Bruce is sympathetic and almost downright friendly. He offers Jason the time he needs, and even mentions Alfred telling him not to bottle it up. And when Jason wants space instead, he gives him that too. I like this whole thing. The fact that Jason is kind of the screw-up and black sheep of the Bat family doesn’t mean Bruce hates him. It’s just really good. Shame it’s sandwiched between some goofy smalltown crime empire antics~

#comics #reviews #Red Hood and the Outlaws #Red Hood: Outlaw #Taiblog

[thestupidhelmet]

I just read a wonderful short fic "Mother Listen to My Heart" by portions_for_fox which was about Hyde's terrible childhood, and it got me thinking about the Eric and Hyde friendship and the way both were there for each other on many occasions. Since I love your meta pieces, would you care to write one about the Eric and Hyde relationship on the show and how you feel about it?

Sure!

First, I’ll talk briefly about Eric/Donna/Hyde non-triangle triangle. That storyline was used to illustrate how great Eric is by using Hyde as his villainous foil, and it seems like a non-sequitur to the rest of the show. The aftermath isn’t treated with any depth or consideration for Donna, who is the main injured party in this scenario, not Eric.

In “Halloween” (2x05) and “Eric’s Stash” (2x12), however, Hyde’s betrayal of Eric is the show’s focus. Donna’s experience of having her wishes and boundaries ignored and violated repeatedly by Hyde is never discussed or explored. It needed to be, and Hyde needed to demonstrate true remorse for his treatment of Donna. But That ‘70s Show’s characters and storylines were written inconsistently, so one has to find consistency where one can.

With that part of the show out of the way…

The deeper, more private dynamic of Hyde and Eric’s friendship is first revealed in “Career Day” (1x18). Hyde seeks out Eric at the Formans’ after his mom both invalidates her abuse of him and criticizes him by saying he’s just like the man who abandoned them both: his dad. Hyde is visibly upset , close to tears,when he finds Red in the garage, and asks if “Forman is around”.

When Red says Eric isn’t home, Hyde slides down the side of the Vista Cruiser to the ground, another visible sign of his emotional distress. He admits to Red, “Edna’s riding me again about being just like my dad, so I just took off.”

As we learn very shortly, in the season’s following episodes, “ Hyde rarely expresses his pain to others directly, but this scene in “Career Day” indicates that Hyde probably did share his feelings with Eric when they got too intense. I’d go so far as to say that Eric is the only one who knew just how bad Edna and Bud’s abuse and neglect of him was during his childhood.

In “Hyde Moves In” (1x24), Eric walks in on Hyde when Edna tells Hyde, over the phone, that she’s left for good. Hyde tries to deny it to Eric, to himself, but Eric persists, and Hyde admits that Edna’s not coming back. During a circle, Eric tells their friends about this, and they’re too high to care. Eric is high, too, but he keeps trying to get their friends to focus on Hyde’s predicament.

Later in the episode, Eric tells his parents what happened.

KITTY: Eric, I’m sure she’s not abandoning Steven.She’s his mother!ERIC: Mom, her exact words were, “I know I’m your mother,but I’m abandoning you, Steven.”

We don’t see Hyde telling Eric this bit of information in the earlier scene where they talk in Hyde’s house. But either Eric made up that info to stir his mom into action or, more likely, Hyde told Eric what Edna said over the phone. This is consistent with Hyde seeking Eric out in “Career Day”.

Further, in “Punk Chick” (1x22), the following scene happens:

HYDE: It is, too, my suitcase!EDNA: Nothing in this house is yours!HYDE: Shut up!

[On the porch outside]HYDE: Bitch.ERIC: So your mom’s taking it pretty hard [that you’re leaving], huh?HYDE: Oh, I haven’t told her yet. ERIC: So Hyde, you’re, like, really going through with this.HYDE: Yeah, man. I mean, you know, I know people spit on you [in New York City] and the rats are as big as your head or whatever, but this might be my only chance to escape, Forman.

Eric is the only person Hyde speaks to this way about himself until much later in the series. He eventually trusts Red, Kitty, and Jackie with his feelings, but Eric clearly has that trust long before That ‘70s Show begins. Hyde will share parts of his pain with others to help or comfort them, as he does with Donna in “Red’s Birthday” (2x10), but seeking out or accepting help and comfort from other people? That isn’t his way – except with Eric.

During “Hyde Moves In,” before Edna tells Hyde she’s not coming back, the following scene happens:

ERIC: Hey, Dad, can I talk to you for a second? Do you think that Hyde could stay for dinner?RED: Oh, Eric, again? I can’t afford to feed your friends!I can’t even afford to feed you, but the law requires me to.ERIC: Look, his mom’s out of town.RED: All right. [To Hyde] But you have to fill up on bread! And the two of youare splitting a pork chop!

[Red leaves.]

HYDE: Thanks, man!ERIC: Oh, no problem!” HYDE [playfully]: So, you do know you’re not getting any of that porkchop, right?ERIC [also playfully]: Is that so?

Hyde must have been going hungry for days; otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked Eric if he could stay for dinner. This happens at least twice, and Eric seems very happy he can help, even if it means he gets less food himself. Their banter at the end also demonstrates their closeness. It’s a playfully intimate moment between friends, which is repeated at the end of the episode once Hyde moves into the Formans’ house.

Hyde acts angry that Eric interfered in his life: “This blows, man! When I was living at home, I didn’t have to answer anybody! I made my own rules! You screwed me, Forman! I told you this is none of your business,” but Eric smiles, as if amused, the whole time Hyde rants. He knows Hyde well enough to see through Hyde’s bluster. He’s not put off by Hyde’s seeming ingratitude because he understands that this is Hyde’s defense mechanism. Earlier in the episode, when Eric learns Edna abandoned Hyde:

ERIC: I’m serious here! You need help my friend.HYDE: No, Forman, you would need help. I’ll be fine.

Hyde has had to fend for himself so long that admitting his vulnerability is hard for him. Eric, being the good friend that he is, doesn’t push it. He gives Hyde his help – in the above scene, it’s a sandwich, which Hyde eats as if he’s been starving –  without comment.

In the later scene, after Hyde moves in, Eric sees Hyde’s true face when Mrs. Forman treats Eric and Hyde with equal amounts of love and affection. She gives both of them cocoa, cookies, and kisses to the top of their head. Hyde is visibly happy, but once Kitty leaves, he returns to his angry facade. He’s likely afraid of being seen as weak, which was dangerous in his home with Edna, and this is another part of Hyde that Eric understands. But when Hyde says, “You’re lucky I don’t kick your ass! Are you gonna eat your cookies?” Eric gives Hyde his cookies with an amused smile. He knows his friend and doesn’t take Hyde’s self-protection/survival mechanism personally.

In this episode, we see how much Eric will do to protect Hyde. In the next episode, “The Good Son” (1x25), we see how much Hyde will sacrifice to protect Eric. Throughout the episode, Hyde demonstrates his gratitude to the Formans by doing chores not only willingly but cheerfully. Eric grows jealous and insecure, and this leads him to doing a reckless deed: bouncing a bowling ball from the top of the living room couch.

The bowling ball breaks the TV. Red is furious when he finds out, but Hyde – out of gratitude for all Eric has done for him – tries to take the fall. Even though it possibly means becoming homeless. At worst, Eric would get grounded and have to pay to replace the TV, but Hyde’s consequences would potentially be life-threatening. Hyde doesn’t care, though. His friendship and loyalty to Eric come first.

This dynamic is paralleled in “Reefer Madness” (3x01). Hyde takes the fall for Jackie’s pot and stays quiet about the truth, despite that Red kicks him out of the house because of it. Hyde puts his own physical safety and future last on his list, valuing Jackie’s safety ahead of his own, regardless that the consequences to her would probably be less dire. But Eric can’t let his best friend become homeless.

ERIC [to Hyde]: Man, this is so wrong! Look, I’m not gonna let you get kicked out for something we all do.KELSO: Hey, hey, don’t go dragging me into this.ERIC: You know what? I’m gonna tell Red that I do it, too.HYDE, KELSO, DONNA, FEZ: No!

[…]

ERIC: This can work. If I tell Red, then he’s gonna be a hypocrite for kicking you out – and not making me go with [you]. Because, I mean, he can’t kick me out. Because, deep down, he loves me.HYDE: Look, Forman. I appreciate what you’re trying to do, you know? But you getting into trouble is not going to help me get out of trouble, okay? … Okay?

Eric is the only one out of all their friends who is willing to put himself in danger for Hyde, and Hyde is adamant that Eric not do this. Their friendship, their love, for each other is obvious in this scene.

Eric doesn’t listen to Hyde and does tell Red that he smokes pot, too. Of course, by then, Donna has revealed the truth to Red and Kitty that the pot was Jackie’s. This is Donna’s way of helping Hyde and Eric. She does what Hyde refused to do: rat out Jackie, who doesn’t get into any trouble as we know.

In “Eric’s Depression” (4x02), Eric’s friends want to take him to Funland to cheer him up. Eric says he doesn’t want to go. Hyde and Kelso physically drag Eric out of his bed, but Eric crawls back into it, and Hyde teases him about losing Donna. That seems insensitive, and it is, but joking and sarcasm are two of Hyde’s defense mechanisms when he’s emotionally uncomfortable.

Almost right after this moment, however, the following exchange takes place:

ERIC: Guys, I don’t want to talk about Donna … and I don’t want to go toFunland.HYDE: Fine. If you’re not going with us, we’ll stay here with you.

Hyde sits on the edge of Eric’s bed, willing to stay there in silence, to listen, to talk, or do all of the above for hours. Kelso doesn’t want to do this. Fez’s input isn’t given, but Eric makes clear he doesn’t want company, and Hyde obliges.

Hyde does all he’s capable of doing in that moment to try to help Eric. Even though Eric couldn’t be helped by him, needing his dad instead, that doesn’t invalidate the friendship Hyde shows Eric in this episode – and throughout season 4 as Eric deals with his breakup with Donna. 

In “The Third Wheel” (4x11), Hyde breaks up with his girlfriend / fling of the week (i.e. Jill) so that he can be supportive of Eric (through spending time with him). Jill and Eric don’t get along. They treat each other disrespectfully, and Hyde chooses his friendship with Eric over potential of having sex with Jill.

In “Eric’s False Alarm” (4x25), Hyde stays up all night, pulling the fire alarm at the Le Motel so that Donna and Casey won’t have sex the first time. Granted, Hyde probably does this out of trying to protect Donna as much as Eric; and though earlier Hyde is rather sarcastic toward Eric when Eric expresses his dismay at Donna and Casey’s night together, Hyde’s support of Eric is evident through his actions.

“Class Picture” (4x20) is an episode whose flashbacks I don’t treat as canon, except for how Hyde, Eric, and Kelso meet Fez the first time. They contradict too much of what we’d long been told about the characters’ relationships. I do believe that Hyde protected Eric from bullies at school but without needing to be paid. Hyde is shown since “Prom Night” (1x19) to be protective of the vulnerable, whether they’re strangers, people he generally can’t stand, or friends. No way he wouldn’t protect Eric, his closest friend, from harm at school.

Eric and Hyde’s bond is one of my favorites on the show. I enjoy exploring their bond in fanfic. The events of Hyde’s Long Way Home happen, in large part, because of Eric’s absence in Hyde’s life. Eric is a guiding star for Hyde. Without him, Hyde becomes lost.

I see them as viewing each other as brothers, ones who’d go to the ends of the Earth to protect each other, as in my fic Beneath a Shattered Sky.

They need each other in their lives, and they might just be platonic soulmates. Two of the new fanfics I’m writing will explore different aspects of their friendship (and, fate willing, I will finish and post those stories).

#That 70s Show #That '70s Show #Eric Forman #Steven Hyde #Eric and Hyde #Meta #Essay #My Meta #My Essay #Fanfic #Ask #luscious2

[melodyofgraves]

Road Trip (Chambers  x Konevi modern AU) - part one

A/N: I know it took me a long time to finish this (for a few reasons) but it’s here. This was really fun to write but I don’t know if it will be as fun to read. So please let me know if I should post future parts of this mess when I’m done with them.

The whole idea is just a bunch of little stories with an introduction (this part) and an end. And a lot of tropes and cliches. Hope you'll still enjoy!

Words: 1776

Tagging: @hellospunkiebrewster @queerchoicesblog @brightpinkpeppercorn @pixieferry @akrenich @itsbrindleybinch @thehonorarybeaumont @robbiessutcliffe @the-writerly-night-owl @inkandfables @choicesbyvera

“Please tell me you have ice cream.” weren’t exactly the words Annabelle was expecting to hear when she opened her door on a Friday night.

So after almost thirty minutes of watching her friend trying to pretend he “just wanted to hang out” while emptying her freezer of anything that contained enough sugar, she began to lose patience.

“What’s going on, Bart?” she asked, loudly enough to get his attention over the tv.

“I already told you…”

“Bullshit.” she cut him off before taking a deep breath and smiling gently. “You know I don’t have anything against you hanging out at my place. But I know that’s not the reason you’re here. So talk.”

He bit his lip and looked into the ice cream bucket in his hand as if it was the perfect place to find his answer. Then he just sighed, muting the show they were just watching.

“I saw Yusuf today.”

“Oh.” Parsons tilted her head. “How is he?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? You didn’t talk?”

“No.” Chambers pointed towards rack in the hallway he could barely see from his spot. “I also kinda stole his jacket.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The green one. Well, technically I didn’t steal it. He gave it to me so I could chase my bus and yelled that I can give it back later.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“I think he changed his number last year and probably forgot I don’t have a new one. So if I don’t find him myself, this stolen jacket is staying with me.”

“It’s not stolen.”

“Yeah. And it’s a nice jacket.”

“It is. So why do you have it again?” Annabelle would be lying if she said she wasn’t a little confused.

“Long story. In short, it was pouring rain earlier today and I was hiding under this tunnel with a bunch of people when I saw my bus. And I had two options – I wait however long it takes for the weather to calm down or I run for it to the nearest bus stop. Which would be far enough if there wasn’t a flood coming from the sky.”

“Why do I feel like you're being a little dramatic?"

“Hey, I didn’t have an umbrella. Or even a coat. Only this t-shirt.”

“Coward.”

“Shush. So I’m trying to make the decision when I feel someone tap me on the shoulder.”

“And by someone you mean Yusuf?”

“Yes, I mean Yusuf. I’m trying to add a little suspense to the story but since you don’t appreciate it then I give up.” he glared at his friend getting a chuckle in return. “He gave me his jacket and told me to run because he can wait. And then I caught the bus and came here. The end.”

“What do you mean the end? Why didn’t you stay there and talk to him? Ask when did he come back?”

“Yeah, I thought about it myself. Already sitting in the bus.” he sighed. ”Everything was happening so fast.”

“Kinda sounds like a plot of a bad fanfiction.” she joked, earning another glare.

“Glad you find my life funny.”

“Wait. I mean, you know he’s in town. So finding him shouldn't be that much of a problem.”

“I don’t know if he’s back for good. And we’re leaving tomorrow so he might be gone before we go back.”

“And if he isn’t, I’ll help you find him. Come on, you can’t be moping around at Lucy’s wedding.”

“I have a whole week before the actual ceremony.” he smiled slightly, feeling a little better. The groom was grumpy enough for the whole group so maybe he should focus on balancing it out. “Luke’s driving, right?”

Annabelle furrowed her brows at him.

“Wait, you mean they didn’t tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

“Briar asked if we could add Edmund to our car and he was supposed to call you and ask if you two could switch…”

“Oh.”

“Shit. We can kick him out tomorrow, Briar can live without…”

“No, no, it’s fine. I don’t mind,” he assured. No need to make a fuss about something so petty. “So who’s in the other car?”

-

Sitting in the backseat and being squeezed in between Theresa and Felicity wasn’t his best Saturday morning but it certainly wasn’t the worst one either. After all, he could’ve ended up like Arthur, gripping the steering wheel while trying to answer to Mr Westonly’s attempted conversations as politely and loudly as possible.

“Why are we even going all the way to Grovershire for this? Like the couldn't have chosen anything closer to home.” the blonde muttered, tapping her nails against her purse.

“But Lucy always wanted to get married in the same church as her parents did,” the grin appeared on Theresa's face as she was almost jumping in her seat. “It’s just so romantic when you think about it.”

“And cliche. I’m surprised Ernest even agreed to that nonsense.” a hint of a smile tugged on the corners of Holloway's lips, indicating she was starting an argument more out of boredom than anything else.

“I’m sure he thought it was a great idea…”

The ladies continued their banter so Bart just sighed and focused on the road. They left early enough to avoid too much traffic and he was thankful for that. Everything seemed so calm outside. On the inside, however…

“Young man, would you stop at the gas station? I need to stretch out these old legs.” Mr Westonly asked suddenly. Bart was initially pretty surprised that the old man was going with them but he was one of the very few family members Ernest had left so he decided to not even question it. Whatever made his friend happy.

“I was hoping we could go a little more without stopping so we could…” Arthur began to explain but was cut off by Felicity.

“Oh, come on, they can wait. I will not spend another hour in this car.”

"But..."

"Now."

So they stopped. A ten-minute break on the gas station before hitting the road again. That’s what they agreed on.

So imagine Bartholomew’s surprise when after returning from the bathroom, the car was gone. Nowhere in sight. Its previous spot completely empty.

They left him.

But that’s okay. He can just call them and ask what the hell happened, right?

He grabbed his phone from his pocket so quickly it almost dropped. Good thing he at least kept it in his jacket because his backpack and all of his other things were still in Wood’s car. But that’s okay, he was just going to call them and…

… and his phone was dead. Fantastic.

He kicked a nearby pebble in frustration. How the hell did they not notice he was gone? And should he just stand there in the hope they’d come back or find another transport?

He decided to wait for a few moments. It’s not like he had anything better to do.

-

Chambers sat on the sidewalk, watching the passing cars and getting more annoyed with each second. That was getting ridiculous. He always wanted to believe in people’s best intentions but how do you just forget about a person like that?

The gas station was pretty much in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by the woods. Aside from the store and small parking with barely any cars, there wasn’t really much for him to do or go to.

Going for a walk, while tempting, was out of the question. Even if his friends didn’t come back for him, he would probably get lost in the unknown forest and that was the last thing he wanted that day.

He finally stood up. Moping around won’t get him anywhere. Asking around for directions to the nearest form of transportation was probably a better option.

Turning around towards the store, he suddenly heard his name.

“Bart?” a black car stopped right next to him and a familiar face peeked through the window. “What are you doing here?”

“Hi!” he waved, trying to look as casual as possible. Almost three years without him and now they’re running into each other every day. “I’m just looking around. How about you?”

“Just getting gas.” Yusuf smiled at him and his heart fluttered just like years ago when they first met. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah. Not really.”

“Do you want to talk about this?”

“No, it’s fine. You’re driving somewhere and I don’t want to stop you.”

“I’ve got time. Just give me a minute to park.”

-

“How the hell could they forget about you?”

“I have no idea.” Chambers mumbled, sitting next to him on the sidewalk and munching on one of the ice cream sandwiches they've just bought. “And right now I’m left with nothing because all of my things are in the car."

“You don’t have anything?”

“I have some cash in my pocket but it’s not much. And my phone but it’s useless because the charger is in my backpack. Next to your jacket, actually.” he sighed. “Thank you for that, by the way. And sorry I can’t give it back to you yet.”

"Don't mention it. It's not your fault that you were abandoned." Yusuf nudged him lightly. "Why did you even brought it with you?"

Because it's yours and I wasn't going to just leave it at home for so long.

"I was thinking maybe you were going to the wedding too."

"Oh, I just found out about it from you." Konevi laughed and Bart could feel his cheeks get a little bit warmer. "I haven't really had a chance to talk to anyone yet so they probably don't even know I'm back."

"I'm sure they'd be happy to see you."

"I wouldn't want to show up uninvited." he stood up, dusting off his jeans and throwing the wrapper into the bin. "I could make sure you get there though."

“Really?”

“Of course. I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I just left you here alone. And I'm going in the same direction anyway.” he grinned and extended his hand, helping Chambers stand up as well. "If you don't mind spending so much time with me, that is."

"That sounds... perfect."

Yusuf grinned again and got into the car, quickly joined by the other man.

"Are you sure you don't mind? The ride to the Grovershire is pretty long." Chambers asked, just to be sure, though he couldn't stop the hopeful smile from appearing on his face.

"I have time and good company. Everything I need." he chuckled, starting the car. “Besides, I really want that jacket back.”

#chanevi #desire and decorum #bartholomew chambers #mr chambers #yusuf konevi #mr konevi #modern chanevi #theres some attempted funny moments #im not a funny person so sorry about that #there going to be more chanevi later on #this one was kind of an introduction to the general idea i had #also sorry for any mistakes #long post #my fics

[tisfan]

Why Do you Have to Go (And Make Things So Complicated)

Title:  Why Do You Have to Go (And Make things So Complicated) Collaborators: @27dragons and @tisfan AO3 Link Square Filled: N1 - Character is a Femme Fatale Ship: winterironwidow Rating: E Major Tags: threesome, anal, oral, vaginal Summary:  He could see the headlines now: Stiff with a stiffie. Or He died happy. Or Stark monument already erected. Word Count: 4963 Created for @mcukinkbingo

A/n: This continues from Something Truly Shocking which was a little sarcasm prompt. All you have to know is that Tony was pretending not to notice how Sexy Nat and Bucky are.

Tony was going to die. Specifically, he was going to be murdered, right here in his own workshop. Either Natasha was going to give him a heart attack, or Bucky was going to clue in and come after him with a knife.

Pepper’s worst nightmare was going to come true: Tony was going to die with an erection, and she was going to be stuck trying to keep that out of the news cycle.

He could see the headlines now: Stiff with a stiffie. Or He died happy. Or Stark monument already erected.

Jesus. Natasha had always, since the first day Tony had met her, been a femme fatale, but even when she’d been trying to seduce her way into his company under Fury’s orders, she had never been quite so determined about it. And the femme was a lot closer to fatale, these days, because she had a boyfriend now. An impressively sexy, resting-murder-face, not-quite-ex-assassin of a boyfriend, who would absolutely come after Tony’s balls if he realized that Tony was thinking about his girlfriend that way.

Even if it wasn’t his fault. He was trying not to, but Natasha did not make it easy on a guy, with her barely-there bikini, asking him to put sunscreen on her, for pity’s sake, because the stuff gummed up Bucky’s arm.

Why couldn’t Bucky just use his other hand to lube up his girlfriend? Why did it have to be Tony’s job?

Christ on a cracker, and the draping herself seductively over the furniture all the time! Logically, Tony was pretty sure that was just a habit for her, left over from the days when she was earning her codename much more literally, seducing marks into her deadly web. Damn it, Tony was only human! And since he and Pepper had split a year or so back, he hadn’t exactly been on the dating scene, so he had a lot of pent-up urges floating around.

This last episode had been far too close; Tony had actually found himself staring down into her cleavage, trying to decide if he was actually seeing a bit of nipple or just imagining it, when he’d glanced up and caught Bucky staring at him. He’d nearly died on the spot.

Possibly literally.

(more under the count)

Not that Tony wouldn’t have deserved it, even though he and Bucky were on pretty decent terms these days. It had been a rocky path to start, but now Bucky came to Tony for trouble with the arm, then stuck around and watched old episodes of Star Trek with him. Sometimes Bucky brought Tony snacks when Tony was working late, and let Tony ramble on to him about whatever the latest project was. (Tony had actually worked through several knotty issues simply using Bucky as a sounding board.) Also, Tony would never admit it, but Bucky had long since ousted Steve in Tony Stark’s Avengers Sexiness Rankings. All the same supersoldier muscle topped off with a bad-boy cherry? It was like goddamn catnip.

Still, their hard-won friendship was probably not up to the pressure of Tony leering at Bucky’s girlfriend.

Tony slumped onto his stool and put his head in his hands. Maybe he could hide in the workshop until they’d finished swimming and then put clothes on again. Lots of clothes.

That didn’t seem very likely, as there was a rap on the glass door of the workshop and there were two bathing-suit-clad not-quite-Russian superspies right outside. Natasha had Bucky by the strings of his shorts, and the way she was tugging on them was not disguising at all that Bucky had a rather impressive package just underneath the nylon-spandex material.

Yep, he was going to die with an erection. Iron Man’s hard end.

“Got a minute?” Natasha mouthed, waving her free hand around to indicate-- something. Her, her boobs, maybe. Tony wasn’t quite sure, but the gesture made her body wriggle impressively.

And because he’d never been able to resist either one of them for very long, he waved back, signaling FRIDAY to open the door. “Thought you two would be splashing it up by now,” he said as they came in.

“We had a question,” Natasha said. She walked over to one of the workshop tables, still dragging Bucky, which was both hilarious and very distracting, because there was an awful lot of Winter Skin on display. He turned, just a little, and Tony got a really good look at Bucky’s shapely ass. He lifted Nat up so she was seated on the work table, and then practically lounged between her pale thighs.

“She’s been going about this all wrong,” Bucky said, and Natasha smacked him on the shoulder.

“Shut up, you said I could ask,” she said.

“No, I said you could just open your mouth like you were an actual grown up and everything,” Bucky retorted. “She could, really. I’m not sure if she will, however.” He gave Tony a look, like he was expecting some sort of male solidarity sympathy or something.

Which Tony was absolutely not going to give him while Natasha was watching, because Tony liked all his body parts right where they were, unskewered. “What’s the question?” He picked up the nearest tool to fiddle with, because he needed something to do with his hands that was not touching all the gorgeous skin in front of him.

“It’s complicat--”

“It’s not complicated. What’s so hard about ‘would you like to have sex’?” Bucky demanded. “It’s not that complicated, is it?”

DOES NOT COMPUTE. Tony opened his mouth, closed it. Considered some sort of hard-reboot option for brains. “I’m sorry, what?”

“That-- that’s why it’s complicated,” Natasha said. “Look, you broke him. What good is he to either of us if his brain leaks right out?”

Bucky leered. “I can think of a few things-- Ow, stop hitting me, woman.”

“You’re going to have to back up a few lines,” Tony said. He felt like someone had kicked him in the head, only without the pain. “Someone forgot to give me a script.”

“We’ll start with the softball questions,” Natasha said. “You like both women, and men. Bi-- or pansexual. If we’re wrong about that, obviously, the whole question is off the table, but you don’t have a particular objection to… men. Or women. As partners, dating, bed or otherwise?”

Tony had to snort at that. “You researched me, Romanov,” he pointed out. “You’ve seen my sex tapes. All of which were, if somewhat ill-advised, entirely consensual and enthusiastic.”

“See, I told you. If he’s got a problem, it’s not with the gender. So, you want to, or no?” Bucky leaned back against Nat’s thigh, spreading her legs even further to accommodate that impressive body.

“This is where you lose me,” Tony said. “Am I hallucinating? FRIDAY, you’d tell me if I were hallucinating, right?”

“You bet, boss.”

“Forgive him, he has no sense,” Natasha said. “Comes from being frozen so long. His brain, it’s all… freezer burned. See? You don’t do any better than I do. We try-- looking pretty, flirting. You ignore us, both together, or separate. You look, and then look away.”

“See, doll, we think you’re pretty swell,” Bucky said. “And, spending so many years -- both of us -- not gettin’ what we want, we aren’t hung up on… stuff. It’s a indecent proposal, maybe, but we’d like you-- to get with us.” Bucky pointed, like Tony might not know which you he was talking about, or which us.

“It’s all right, if you are not interested,” Natasha said, but there was the slightest pout to those perfect lips. “We have each other, and that is enough. But I’m greedy. I want it all.”

“Fri?” Tony couldn’t quite take his eyes off them.

“Still not hallucinating, boss.”

“The Black Widow and the Winter Soldier want me in a three-way,” Tony summarized, testing the surreality of that statement, tasting its flavor.

“Tony sandwich, extra mayo,” Bucky added, directing that leer at Tony again.

Tony blinked at him. “What is the mayo in this metaphor?” he wondered. “Because I can think of a couple of different-- Wait, never mind, wrong focus. That’s what all the... this has been about?” He demanded, waving a hand at Natasha’s unfairly skimpy bikini.

“He is crude, but to the point, yes,” Natasha said. “We like you. If you like either of us-- together is best, but if only me, then Bucky will content himself with watching, or hearing about it later.”

“Bucky will, will he?” Bucky wondered. “I don’t recall agreeing with being content about that.”

Tony watched them bickering for a moment. “This is for real? You’re not pranking me, or got dared, or something?”

“Why the hell would I do that? I mean I get why Tasha would, she sometimes does things just because someone tells her no--” Bucky reached a hand out. “We like you. There's nothin’ objectionable about me, is there? I mean… look you don't gotta let me down easy or nothin’. If you ain't interested, just say so. We can be, you know, adult about it.”

“Speak for yourself,” Natasha said. “I reserve the right to cry and eat way too much ice cream and drown myself in vodka.”

“I-- Yes. I’m in.” He couldn’t think of a single reason that he’d want to say no to two of the most gorgeous, amazing people he knew.

“Heh, too bad for you,” Bucky said, and for a moment Tony's heart absolutely stopped, here it came, the punchline. Maybe even literally. “No excuse to eat too much ice cream.”

Holy shit, this was real. “Ice cream is its own excuse,” Tony said, talking on autopilot through the spinning daze of his brain. “Uh. Logistics?”

“Tony sandwich,” Bucky said with enthusiasm. “Seems only fair to let you get all the reward, at least the first time.”

“Come here and kiss Bucky so his brain will stop glitching,” Natasha told him. “And I will watch and decide if you get to do it again.”

Tony almost asked, Now? but it got caught in his throat, arrested by Natasha’s expectant look. “Right. That’s... Right.” He put the screwdriver down and slid off the stool, moving toward them through what felt like a dream. Toe to toe with Bucky, feeling the heat baking off their skin, Tony thought, well, if it’s an audition, then I’d better nail it.

Heh. Nail it. His lips pulled slightly into a smirk. He reached up with one hand, tangling his fingers in Bucky’s hair and pulling Bucky down. He fell into the kiss, tentative at first as they felt each other out, and then more confident.

Bucky turned until he had his back to his girlfriend, her knees still around his hips, as he moved into the kiss, tongue flicking out to test Tony’s reactions, one hand going around Tony’s waist to draw him in even closer, the other sliding down Tony’s shoulder, to his bicep, then around, until Bucky’s fingers were tracing the line between Tony’s tee and his jeans.

It had been a while since he’d been in a threesome (or foursome, or moresome) but not so long that it was weird when Nat started petting them both, her fingers moving curiously from Bucky’s shoulder to Tony’s hair, and then along the back of his neck, fingernails dragging lightly, eliciting a shiver.

Tony finally had to pull away first, panting for breath. “Those of us who are not supersoldiers need to breathe occasionally.” He grinned at Bucky and then looked past Bucky at Nat. “Verdict?”

“We will take you upstairs and demonstrate the supersoldier’s ability to breathe through his ears,” Natasha told him. “And he has a very long-- tongue.”

“Among other things,” Bucky added, easily enough. “Don’t scare him off, Tasha. At least wait t’ panic him after I get my hands down his jeans.”

Tony shook his head. “I’m not panicking. Confused and surprised, but not panicking.” He backed up a step to make space and held out his hands to both of them. “My bed’s the biggest.”

“You lead, then. I’ll follow with the good view,” Bucky said. “Seriously, can I just--” He made a squeeze-gesture in front of Tony, like he was starring on an old-time Charmin commercial.

Tony smirked a little wider. “Don’t damage the goods, but feel free to test the springs.”

Bucky pulled him back in, hands going straight down Tony’s back to explore Tony’s ass. God, Bucky had huge hands, practically spanning the entire expanse of Tony’s cheek, palming him like a basketball at a Globetrotter’s game. “Perfect,” Bucky purred in Tony’s ear.

“Save some for the rest of us,” Natasha told him, like there was a line queuing up or something. She slid one hand into Tony’s back pocket as she hopped down from the workshop table, which did interesting, bouncy things to her anatomy. And Tony was allowed to look, and admire, which was a relief, because he wasn’t sure he could really, actually do anything but. Bucky crossed his arm over Nat’s, reaching into the other back pocket, so they formed an X; one on either side.

Well, okay then. Tony took a step and they moved with him, in tandem, as if they had rehearsed it. Spies and assassins and their freaky ways. Which, Tony thought, would make for very interesting and athletic sex, he suspected. Jesus, how was he even going to keep up?

Mental breakdown later, he told himself firmly, and continued through the workshop to the elevator. “My floor, Fri. Express route.”

There was a pointed silence before the elevator moved, as if Friday was registering some sort of… artificial judginess. He’d thought JARVIS was the only one who preferred his sexcapades to be tame, but maybe Friday had picked up more from her predecessor than Tony had supposed. It didn’t seem to bother Bucky, who was absentmindedly tugging on Natasha’s bikini strap, threatening to spill her out of it entirely.

There was another pointed little pause before the doors opened again, and Tony made a mental note to have a chat with Friday later. Much later. And then he stopped thinking about anything at all that wasn’t the two perfect specimens in front of him.

He reached for Natasha, hand stopping an inch short of her hair. “Okay?”

Natasha took the outstretched hand, planted a delicate kiss in his palm, and then put that palm directly over her breast, pushing herself into the touch. “Yes?”

“Oh, hell yes.” Tony cupped her breast, delicately exploring, testing, finding the most sensitive places, the pressures and movements that made her eyelashes flutter, her mouth fall open in a gasp. He leaned down to kiss her, flicking his tongue against her lip and then opening to her own explorations.

Bucky moved in behind Tony, giving his ass another squeeze and making an utterly adorable squeal of delight. Tony shouldn’t find that cute, should he? That was undignified, or -- whatever it was was going to have to wait, as Bucky reached all the way around, his fingers hauling Natasha even closer. Tony was starting to feel remarkably overdressed for the party, because when he pulled back a little, Bucky had -- or maybe Natasha had -- undone the strap to her bikini top and she was, in fact, spilling out of the tiny thing.

“Isn’t she lovely?” Bucky murmured in Tony’s ear. He knew exactly what to do, making a vee with his fingers to pinch her nipple erect, and then thumbing lightly over the tip while Natasha juddered and shivered and tried to move closer, going up on her toes and whimpering.

Tony couldn’t resist leaning down to lick over that captive nipple, and then moving to the other side, sucking it in, letting his teeth graze just lightly over the skin as he traced circles around it with his tongue. He wrapped his arm around her waist, wanting to feel every shudder and moan.

Finally, laughing and still shivering with too much stimulation, Natasha pushed them both away, swatting at Bucky’s hand. “You promised a very big bed, Mr. Stark,” she said, batting her eyelashes at him like she was some blushing virgin. The tone was convincing enough, even if her casual ease with nudity gave it the lie.

“Also, someone is wearing too much clothing,” Bucky said.

“Absolutely, you’re completely correct,” Natasha said. The bikini bottom unfastened at the sides and she flicked the little scrap of fabric in Bucky’s face before bouncing off in the direction of the bedroom. She didn’t need directions, because, of course she didn’t.

Tony glanced at Bucky, and gestured. “After you. My turn to ogle.”

Tony half-expected Bucky to shuck his shorts with the same gleeful anticipation that he’d done everything else, but suddenly he was flushing, neck red and ears burning. He fumbled with the strings at his swim trunks before shoving them down and stepping awkwardly out of them. “Yeah?” That glorious blush kept going, crawling down Bucky’s chest as he lifted his chin to let Tony look at him.

And wow, was there a lot to look at. “Yeah,” Tony said, letting his eyes linger, even as he reached back to pull his tee over his head. He dropped it to the floor, then unzipped and dropped his jeans as well. The view wasn’t as nice -- Tony was no supersoldier, and on the wrong side of forty-five, to boot -- but he thought he did okay. Bucky’s eyes certainly seemed to agree. “Ready?”

“I’m waiting--” Natasha called from the other room.

“Bad idea to keep her waiting, she gets inventive,” Bucky said.

And, apparently she did, because as they got to the door, she was posed dramatically on Tony’s bed, the comforter kicked onto the floor. She paused, then sunk until a perfect split, legs going from one side of the bed to the other. She bent forward from the waist, tossing her head back to give them a sultry look.

“I’m failing to see the downside to this inventiveness,” Tony observed.

“What do you like, doll?” Bucky wondered, tracing that metal hand up and down Tony’s spine, inspecting the line of it. “Bottom? Top? Middle? On your knees between Tasha’s thighs while I stroke you from behind?”

“I’m flexible,” Tony said, suppressing the shiver from being touched with that hand. “Not as flexible as Natasha, mind you, but who is? You got something you want to try, lay it on me. Or what you said, that sounds great.”

Bucky made a deep, snarling noise right in Tony’s ear. “I will absolutely lay it on you.”

Natasha rolled over, spread across Tony’s bed like an offering. “I like that idea. I get to lay back and let you two do all the work,” she said.

“Why do I doubt that?” Tony wondered. He climbed onto the bed and knelt between her legs to nuzzle between her breasts, kissing upward toward her neck, dragging teeth along her earlobe. He propped himself up on one arm and let the other roam over her smooth, creamy skin.

“Mmmm,” Natasha hummed, arching into his touch. “His hands aren’t cold.”

Bucky slid that metal hand down Tony’s back, along the curve of his ass. “Do you think my hand is unpleasantly cold?” Slick, cool fingers explored Tony’s thigh, almost frictionless.

“Uh, no,” Tony said, “but I have an unnatural boner for tech, so I might not be the prevailing opinion there.” He made his way back down to Natasha’s breasts, teasing and toying with them and watching in awe as she twisted and arched under him.

“Your boner doesn’t feel unnatural,” Bucky pointed out, keeping that chilly touch very light-- to avoid pinching with the minute plates in his fingers, probably. He swapped out, warm skin replacing cool metal, and the contrast was enough to make Tony wobble. “It’s interesting. The difference, I mean.”

“Ug, he gets like that,” Natasha said, rolling her eyes with affectionate exasperation. “Give him a condom or a pair of gloves and he’ll stick that finger places it’s really not supposed to be.” Tony wasn’t sure if that was supposed to dissuade him or not.

“I am one hundred percent down for that,” Tony admitted. “Though at the moment...” He wriggled and slid further down the bed so he could drag his mouth down Natasha’s stomach, hand stroking the inside of her thigh. He glanced up at her to make sure she was on board, then flicked his tongue along her folds.

Natasha hummed, her hips rocking up to meet Tony’s mouth with approval. Her hands went into Tony’s hair, tugging lightly, and then her thumbs brushed along his ears. She tasted sweet and tangy. Fresh, like she’d actually been planning on swimming and had showered not more than an hour ago.

Tony almost lost the thread for a moment, as Bucky reached around Tony’s middle, teasing at him with one cool hand and one overly warm one. “You have lube? Condom? I didn’t know if you were actually going to say yes, and… well, there aren’t pockets in a swimsuit for a reason.”

Without lifting his head, Tony made a vague gesture toward the nightstand where he kept such supplies. It had been a long time since he’d done this sort of thing, but he remembered that it was best to get his rhythm established before activities at the other end got too far along, because otherwise he’d get distracted and someone would end up irritated. He spread Natasha’s labia with two fingers and went to work, letting her hands in his hair provide hot-and-cold clues.

Natasha’s legs kept shifting, rubbing against Tony’s arms. Her knees would come up for a bit, squeezing at his shoulders, and then flopping back down again, spreading herself wide for him to work.

“For you, if you need them,” Bucky told him, putting two wrapped condoms near Nat’s shoulder. “And for me--” There was a soft snick as Bucky opened the lube. He drizzled a line down Tony’s crack, working it in with his flesh hand, rubbing along Tony’s hole, up his crack, and then down to his balls, teasing as he went. Circling the opening to Tony’s body and inhaling as Tony shifted. “God, your ass is pretty. Like, sorry, Tasha, but Tony’s got ya beat there.”

“He keeps doing what he’s doing, and he can beat me wherever he likes,” Natasha said, her voice spiraling up toward the end as she gasped and then flexed again.

“I don’t usually discuss the heavier kink until the third date,” Tony quipped, and then went back to what he was doing. He’d always liked going down on a woman, but god, she tasted sweet.

“Pretty sure threesomes count as heavy kink, Tony,” Natasha pointed out. “Although, as you say-- aaah! -- I have read your dossier. Hell, I wrote-- mooost of it.”

Tony squeaked as Bucky leaned over and nipped at the curve of his ass, leaving a spark of teeth, and then spread into welcoming heat. “Lovely.” Bucky’s finger slid around Tony’s hole again, and then breached him. “Like that, do you?”

“Mm-hm,” Tony hummed. Which seemed to do interesting things to Natasha, given the way she gasped, so he did it again.

It was easy to lose himself in the push and pull of bodies, the tastes and smells and sensations. He pushed forward into Natasha and back into Bucky and let the rhythm take over the endless whirring of his brain.

Bucky breached him, nice and slow, and dear Tesla, thick as hell. He reached around Tony’s middle to stroke him, keep him hard and eager. It was a little awkward; Bucky was left handed, but Tony supposed that lube in those finger joints would be a bitch to clean up. “Oh, you feel so tight,” Bucky murmured. “You should see this, Tasha--”

“Take -- ah! A picture. It’ll last longer,” Natasha scolded, poking Bucky in the ribs with a long leg. Bucky caught her ankle, which did interesting things to both the way she was positioned, and the way Bucky moved into Tony. When Natasha groaned, and pushed her other leg up, Bucky rocked all three of them together, using his grip on Natasha’s legs to give him leverage.

“Oh my god,” Tony said, because that was definitely different. “You two are going to be the death of me, but at least I’ll die happy.” He reached up and found Bucky’s hair, wrapping his fingers in it and tugging.

“Don’t die,” Bucky told him. “If you die, you’ll miss the good bits.” He rocked slowly, perfectly, in and out of Tony’s body. Under Tony, Natasha could barely move, her legs wide spread and pinned, glorious.

Being held like that seemed to make her more sensitive, every lick and stroke met with desperate, pleading gasps as she twisted and moved. Trying to get closer or squirm away, and neither worked. She let loose a torrent of Russian that Tony didn’t quite catch, but made Bucky laugh, which-- oh, that felt amazing, the way they all vibrated together.

God, Tony wasn’t going to last very much longer if this kept up. He redoubled his efforts, determined to bring Natasha off before he succumbed. Bucky was moving faster now, and for a few moments, they worked together like a well-calibrated machine, every movement serving the greater purpose of the whole. It was beautiful, it was sublime, it was intense, as close to flying as Tony could get with his feet on the ground.

Natasha threw her head back, practically arching off the bed, her whole body going rigid. Air hissed in and out of her lungs, and then she screamed, a strangled, glorious gasp. She kicked one leg loose from Bucky’s hold and-- ow, that was probably going to leave a mark, but it was good, because she was completely out of control, oblivious to everything except the way she shuddered and cried out.

Bucky had gone still while she came, watching intently over Tony’s shoulder at every movement.

When Natasha came back to herself, she grinned at him, pulled her knees up. “Wanna finish off in me?”

Tony shuddered. “Oh, yeah.” He scrabbled for one of the condoms Bucky had tossed up earlier and rolled it on with hands shaking from need. He climbed up, positioning himself, acutely aware of Bucky still pressed against his back, and slid into her. Heat and wet and a perfect tension that crawled down his spine and lodged in his balls. “Oh, fuck.”

Their well-oiled machine lost its rhythm for a bit. “Let me drive,” Bucky growled in Tony’s ear, and he surrendered to Bucky’s grip on his hips, the way they all moved together, instead of tangling up. They got going again, and it was a continuous line of Bucky sliding into him, and he pushed into Natasha, and then out again, perfect harmony, sweet and slick and so, so hot.

“There you go, there you are, my pretty Tony,” Bucky crooned.

Natasha moved with them, hips rising to meet Tony’s strokes. Her hand was on Tony’s waist, and Bucky linked his fingers with hers, a sweetly innocent gesture.

With Bucky’s relentless pace driving them, the heat built quickly. Tony tucked his head down and tried to prolong it, but there was only so much he could do to stave off his climax with so much perfect sensation surrounding him. He gasped, caught his breath, gasped again, and the world went white for a while -- a few seconds, or an hour, or a year. “Oh god, oh god.”

Behind him, Bucky made a sound, some sound, and then he smacked Tony’s ass once, sharply. Not enough to really hurt, but it stung for a second, and then the whole area flooded, hot and perfect. Bucky jerked, once, twice, and then went utterly still, exhaling with a low, shaky moan.

Tony tried to catch his breath. “So that’s a thing we did.” He gave Bucky a minute to breathe, then nudged him gently. “Off. My arms are giving out and Natasha does not want to be crushed.”

Bucky peeled himself off Tony’s back, dropping a kiss between his shoulder blades, before collapsing onto the mattress. “Yeah, that’s a thing we did, all right,” he agreed.

Natasha squirmed out from under Tony, letting him fall face down in between them. “It was a good decision.”

“I need to record that,” Bucky said, and going down to cup Tony’s ass fondly. “She doesn’t credit me with a lot of sense.”

“Two thumbs up, five stars on Yelp,” Tony agreed, not bothering to roll over. He wondered what happened next, but couldn’t quite bring himself to ask.

Natasha rolled over, cuddling against Tony’s side. She reached over his back and linked her hand with Bucky’s again. “We should,” she said, kissing Tony’s ear, his neck, shoulder, “snuggle for a while. Take a nap. And then you will feed us, since we worked so hard. And then, we will figure out what we’re doing next.”

“What’s to figure?” Bucky asked, voice muffled by one of the pillows. “We are dating each other, and we are dating Tony. It’s not complicated. She always makes it complicated.”

“Tony may have opinions of his own, you know,” Natasha said, tart. “That don’t always agree with yours.”

Bucky scoffed, then immediately looked concerned. “I will be needing all that ice cream you were talking about earlier if this is a one and done.”   

Tony thought about it for a moment. “No reason we can’t have ice cream and be dating,” he offered.

“Ice cream as a date?” Natasha suggested. “We can do that. I like this idea, I’m happy to be a part of it.” 

#mcukinkbingo #winterironwidow #tony x bucky x nat #lemon

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #216

“cocaine in a crucifix, say your prayers, take your licks.”

How much money is in your wallet right now? Not a lot. Maybe like $10. What’s the last thing you purchased from the store? Me myself? No idea. Have you ever seen the movie Mean Girls? If so, did you think it was funny? Yeah, it's a nice movie. What do you usually get on your sub at Subway? Ham, American cheese, bacon, banana peppers, pickles, and Chipotle sauce. I think that's it. Is your bed made right now? Do you usually make your bed, or does someone make it for you? I'm in my bed. I always am. Have you ever had a crush of one of your friends’ brothers/sisters? No. Do you take naps often? I take one most days. Are you an only child? If not, do you get annoyed by your siblings a lot? No, and they don't annoy me, but then again, I live with none of them. What’s your favorite Disney movie? The Lion King. Does it take you a while to fall asleep? Ugh. Too long. Do you watch TV before you go to sleep? No. Do you listen to music every day? It's very rare I don't. If you could have ANYTHING in the world right now, what would it be? To be satisfied with where I am in life. Do you still watch Spongebob Squarepants? No. I don't not enjoy it, you know I just don't watch television. What kind of bottled water do you drink? Mom buys big jugs of some Great Value-esque or whatever brand. Do you collect stuff someone else would consider junk? If so, then what? No. What's the most your electricity bill has ever reached? Idk, I don't pay it. How much was your tax refund this year or did you pay? N/A How are the kids doing? I don't have any. Do you see a bright light at the end of your tunnel? Just being realistic, not deliberately depressing or anything, I don't know. I could have a very dull and unsuccessful life or a thriving and happy one. What's the most you’ve ever lost gambling? Don't gamble. Have you ever waited in line overnight for something? No. How many concerts have you attended? One. Do you think having an expensive phone is a good investment? To a certain high price, no. So long you can call and text easily and reliably, I don't find it necessary to buy a $500 or whatever phone. Any tattoos? How many do you need or want to cover up? I have six. I'm getting my "ohana" one covered at some point, and I'm going to have "perfectly flawed" tatted over as well; I just want to move it elsewhere, considering I want something else where it already is. How many funerals have you attended? One or two. Have you lost anyone your age to death? No one that I was especially close to, thankfully. Have you ever witnessed a birth in person? Not a human one, thank Christ. I've seen cats give birth many times, and maybe other animals, but I'm not sure. What gender do you identify with? Female. What’s your opinion on astrology? It's total, ridiculous bullshit. Are you more of a science or math person? I'm clueless in math, while science makes sense to me and is far more interesting. What religion/spirituality do you identify with, if any? Theism. I think something made the universe, but I don't pretend to know jackshit about him/her/them/it. What is your opinion on peanut butter & banana sandwiches? I like them every now and again. What is your favorite book that was turned into a movie? The Outsiders, probably. Do you like the movie or the book better? This was so long ago that I honestly don't remember either well... so I really dunno. If you identify as a girl, would you ever consider getting a pixie cut? Yeah. If you identify as a boy, would you ever consider growing your hair out? N/A Are you a metalhead? I guess I mostly fit the definition, but I don't like labeling myself as such considering honestly, the metalhead community tends to have such a "that's not heavy enough" attitude and ridicule anything less than their interests and treat those that like softer metal as outcasts and/or posers. Not even trying to stereotype; befriend or observe people in this category and you'll see what I mean. Do you even listen to metal? Hell yes. Do you watch porn? No. If you don’t, do you have a moral reasoning behind that decision? I just find it... very strange. I don't see the appeal of watching. That's just something I want between me and my partner, you know? Like if you watch it, good for you, so long your s/o (if applicable) is aware and fine with it, but it ain't for me. Do you know anybody who is a Wiccan or Pagan? Yesssss, she's cool as fuck. I need to reconnect with her more. Do/did you ever attend church regularly? I did as a kid. Do you have a godmother/godfather/both? I have no clue. Do you listen to Supertramp? I have no clue who that is. Do you watch Supernatural? Not anymore. I think I stopped at the end of Season 6. What’s your favorite character in your favorite TV show? That '70s Show, probably Hyde. I love and relate to Eric, though. Honestly I love every single character; they're very unique to each other and recognizable with strong personalities. Both Fullmetal Alchemist iterations, most likely Edward. Or possibly one of the Sins, but I don't remember them all well... Oh. I know I loved Envy, for one. Are you wearing any rings right now? Yeah, my Supernatural friendship ring w/ Sara. Calling each other "bitch"/"jerk" between Sam and Dean is a thing in the show, so I have one that says "bitch" on the interior, and Sara has "jerk." Bracelets? Yes, also the one Sara gave me. Necklaces? No. Anklets? No. Chokers/collars? No. Do you go to a firework show every 4th of July? No. Are you diabetic? No. I'm forever proud of that considering it runs heavily in my family, yet even at my worst weight, I didn't develop it. But more importantly, a recent blood test I had for my thyroid or something showed I don't have any indicators of even coming close/being at any risk at this point in time. Are you allergic to gluten? No. Are you lactose intolerant? No. What is your favorite fruit? Strawberries, yum. Your favorite vegetable? Broccoli. Do you live with your parents? I live with my mom. Have you written a formal essay lately? Not in years. How much experience do you have written down on your resume, approximately? I don't have a resume currently, but if I did, it'd only have two months as a sales associate as my other two jobs were so short-lived it'd be stupid to add, especially when you consider the obvious fact that would make me look awful. How long have you had the shirt you’re wearing? A year. What happened last time you got drunk? N/A When’s the last time you straightened your hair? I have zero clue. Do you bite your toe nails? Wtf no. Last time you laughed your head off? Idr. Do you find piercings attractive? Yeah. Did you accept or reject your last friend request? I rejected it. Had no clue who it was, even though we had quite a handful of mutuals. How many cigarettes have you smoked today? N/A Do you have a hard time admitting you’re wrong? It depends on what the subject of the matter is. Do you like potato chips? Is there a human that doesn't???? Do you give out second chances way too easily? Yes. Ever stayed up all night on the phone? Not all night, no. There was one night Jason and I were up a long time talking, but it wasn't all night. What are you excited for? SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Have you ever shoplifted? No. If you have shoplifted, are you afraid of getting in trouble? And are you afraid to go back in that store? N/A Have you ever gotten caught shoplifting? If yes, what happened? N/A Have you ever plotted revenge against someone? No. Are you mad at someone right now? Nah. Have you ever egged someone’s house? Fuck no, because I'm not a dick. If not, have you ever WANTED to egg someone’s house? No. Have you ever wanted to kill someone? I was fucking psychotic when I found out Jason was in a new relationship after we broke up. For a long time I wanted her dead. Are you glad you don’t own a gun, because of what you might do with it? Quite honestly, yes. I'm impulsive on bad days, and I don't entirely cross out the possibility of me shooting myself on an awful day. Do you avoid people when they’ve hurt you? Yes. Do you make the most of every opportunity? No. Are you honestly succeeding at life, or failing? Failing miserably at most things. What does your newest journal look like? I don't remember the last time I got a journal. Is there anything you currently want but can’t have? A lot of things. Do you have no one you can trust? No, thankfully. Do you like meatball subs? No, they're so messy. Are you severely sleep deprived? No. What music are you listening to? "LA Devotee" by P!ATD just came on. If you go to school (HS or college), does your school have a rival? N/A What’s your school’s mascot? N/A If you have a sib, do you call him/her “brother” or “sister” sometimes? No. Do you own a Wii? If not, do you want one? Yes. Are there any songs you could just listen to over and over and over? No. I get tired of a song after around 100 repeats. No, I'm not kidding. Before you could loop YT vids (or anyway, before I was aware), I used a website that repeated the video for you and kept track of the repeats. Do you have a favorite basketball team (NBA or college?) No. Have you been baptized in any religious tradition? Yes. If your best male friend got a mohawk, would he look good or ridiculous? Save Him. What did you have for breakfast? A PopTart. What kind of booze did you last take shots of? I've never taken a shot. Have you slept over at a member of the opposite sex’s house in their bed? Yeah, but we were dating. Who last slept in your bed besides you? Sara. If the last person you had sex with asked you to date them, would you? No. What color is your car? (Or the one you drive most often) White. How long have you been single? (Or dating your current interest) Sara and I have been together a year and ten months. Has someone of the opposite sex ever told you that you were sexy? Yeah. Do you own any books written by musicians? Yeah, Ozzy's autobiography. What is your most interesting invention? Probably some RP characters. Have you ever seen someone sleepwalk? Once. Have you ever thought about getting your tongue pierced? It is pierced. When you’re bored in class, what do you usually do? N/A yet. Do you like your phone? NO. Honestly, are things going the way you planned? Bitch hell no. Who was the last person whose phone number you added to your contacts? The woman who adopted Kaiju. I miss him, damn. Have you ever snuggled with someone you weren’t dating? No. Do you know a James? I knew one years ago. If you had to choose to have a different accent than the one you have now, what accent would you choose and why? British. It sounds sophisticated and just generally attractive to me. Have you ever or do you currently live in a Gated Community? I don't and never have. Do you know how to use a DSLR camera? Yeah. Have you ever owned an Axolotl? No, but they cute. What has been the longest amount of time you’ve spent on a plane? I actually don't know. Probably just around two hours. How often do you use Snapchat? I don't have one/never had. Have you ever adopted an animal from an animal shelter? Yes. Where do you usually find surveys from? Tumblr, and if I'm desperate, LiveJournal. Have you ever missed a flight? Yep. The airport biz took WAY longer than any of us expected. What is your favorite film from your childhood? The Lion King. I think it's always been my fave, honestly, I just never really thought about JUST HOW MUCH I love the film and its story since I was a kid. Do you know anyone who is named after a state? Uhhh I know at least one Caroline, and that's close enough? Jason's mom's name is a state, too. What was the reason for your previous doctor’s visit? I was getting a full blood panel done to check my thyroid. Have you ever been to an outdoor cinema? No. Well, my elementary school and church used to do these "movies on the lawn" type things where they used a huge projector to play a movie outside around late evening, but I don't know if that counts. Have you ever had a “bad trip”? If yes, what happened? N/A How often do you use Instagram? I usually check it once a day or two to follow certain celebs' stories 'n shit. Have you ever smoked a cigarette? If so, do you still smoke? No. Adam Sandler or Jim Carrey? Jim. Do you enjoy learning about conspiracy theories? If so, what is your favorite? Y'all know I love me some conspiracies. My favorite - as in most interesting, not that I seriously believe in it - is the one that our current reality is just a simulation from a "future" civilization for study or just play purposes. It's interesting to think about with alarming evidence. Elon Musk 100% believing in it puts more "hey this might actually be worth considering" into it, but I think I lean more towards it being false. It's not something I think about much though as I have THE most Detroit: Become Human mindset about it ever, lmao. It just doesn't matter to me. Wow, what a ramble. Do you find hand tattoos attractive on your preferred sex? I find tattoos (usually) attractive in general, so like- What is your favorite Netflix original series? I have no clue what's Netflix-exclusive. I don't watch it. Have you ever owned a Tamagotchi? Yep, or at least something similar to it. My sister especially loved those little things. Do you have a favorite “survey blog” on Tumblr? If so, who? Dunno if tagging random people in surveys is annoying, so I'll break the link, but @/thedarkeststarsurveys seems super cool and nice. Would you rather be able to control fire or water? Probably fire for self-defense purposes, and I just like fire. Water seems... overall pretty useless to control, unless you can like, manifest it. Then you could solve a world of problems. Have you ever used your phone in class or at work without anyone knowing? Actually no. Have you ever been to Canada? No. What is your favorite condiment to put on fries? Ketchup. Do any famous people follow you on Twitter or Instagram? Definitely not to my knowledge, but I highly doubt it. Do you usually take the stairs or the elevator? Elevator. Even though I'm scared of them. Stairs and my horrible knees don't mix. What salads do you usually get on your Subway order? None. Have you ever made your own cocktails at home? Not myself. My old friend did. Have you seen all the Star Wars films? I watched the first three disinterestedly with Girt once, and neither of us liked them. I didn't get the appeal at all. Do you own any shirts with funny words or pictures on them? Yeah. Are your eyes the same color they were when you were a baby? They were more blue. Do you take the pickle off your burgers? No. Who do you share your bathroom with? Anyone else in the house. What color is your bed frame? Brown. Have you ever kissed someone you met that day? No. Do you share a bed with anyone? No. Well, excluding Roman and sometimes Teddy. Name all the people you know that you’ve seen today. My mom. When a car cuts you off, is the driver a jerk or is there an explanation? "Most of the time the driver is a jerk." <<< Yep. What are your thoughts on cosmetic surgery? You do you, boo. Has a man/woman ever broke your heart? If so, have you recovered? Yes, and yes as well as a PTSD victim can; your brain is literally changed after trauma, and considering I still have dreams/nightmares about him very regularly and he suddenly crosses my mind literally every single day despite never wanting to think about him, I don't think you could consider me totally recovered. Name a few things that make you really happy. Really happy? Being with Sara, Mark doing so much as blinking, long car rides with my music blaring way too loud, finding a new song and binging it for hours, a mount dropping in WoW goddamn y'all I have over 300, being complimented on my photography (or like... anything), my niece and/or nephew saying they love me or anything along those lines without being prompted (ex. when leaving, that kinda stuff), going to Olive Garden 'cuz breadsticks and spicy shrimp fritas lol, finishing a drawing and actually liking the result, getting Venus out and she acts like a cuddlebug the whole time, uh... other stuff that isn't coming to me. What’s your favorite type of sushi? Never tried it, don't want to. Have you ever read a book about a character in a psych ward? I don't think so. Have you ever been in a mental hospital as a patient? Too many times fuck but those days done fam. Do you take birth control pills? Currently for taming the pain and symptoms of my cycle, but it's hopefully changing to a longer, better solution soon to just totally eliminate it to remove its effects on my mood entirely for mental health tracking purposes. When’s the last time you got a new outfit? I don't buy full outfits. Do you have an imaginary best friend? (i.e., someone you wish was your best friend but currently isn’t) No. Do you like soy sauce? NO. Do you have a good doctor? I haven't had her long, but she's nice and seems knowledgeable. What’s your favorite store to browse around? Whew, Hot Topic my friends. Do you ever meditate on Scripture? No. Do you like poetry? Yeah. What’s the name of the most recent baby a friend had? Dawson. Do you have expensive tastes? Definitely not. What is your dream job? Meerkat biologist or paleontologist. What is your favorite music style currently? I've been digging power metal a lot lately. I like, live off of Powerwolf. I've been wanting to find more symphonic metal I enjoy, too... Are you wearing comfortable clothes right now? Yeah. Is there a bad habit you’re trying to break right now? Yeah, rather just keep it quiet. Is it easy to find a job in your preferred field in your home town? Fuck. No. When is the last time you went to a fun fair? ~August 2015. I remember it because it happened pretty shortly before the breakup. How about an amusement park? I have zero clue. Probably not since I went to Disney World as a child. Ladies: Would you ever consider proposing? If not, why not? If I'm with a woman, yes. I don't really have a proper reason why I wouldn't if I was with a man... I have NO problem with women proposing to men, I just think I'd personally feel weird. Oh, that makes sense; the fact of how I am with men - scared and doubtful - probably says a good deal. I'd want to see "oh wow he actually wants to be with me so much he's asking himself." Gentlemen: How would you feel, if you were proposed to? N/A Have you ever played the original Mass Effect trilogy? No. If so, which Shepard and who do you like romancing the best? N/A Let’s say there’s a person in need. They need money which they can’t make. Would you be more likely to help them out, if a celebrity asked you to? "Tbh right now I’m not really in a position to help anyone out financially. But hypothetically if I had the money to do so, some celebrity’s opinion wouldn’t matter." <<< This. When you go to a restaurant, do you have a go-to dish? Pretty much always. I don't tend to try new foods. Or do you always try out something new? ^ No. Would you rather live next to a kindergarten or an old folks’ home? Holy fuck, the latter. Living next to a school, esp. elementary, might even be a deal-breaker as far as buying a house goes. I'm not dealing with the noise and traffic. What was the last game that you played? I'm "playing" World of Warcraft currently, waiting for a stupid dinosaur to spawn to be denied a mount again. :^) What do you know about Finland? Nothing. Where was the postcard from that traveled the longest way to you? I don't think I've ever gotten a postcard. Have you ever made jewelry? Besides like those bead, "friendship," and plastic bracelets that were popular in the early 2000s, no. Which app do you use the most on your phone? Uhhhh I think Facebook? I don't use apps much. Did you learn to play an instrument as a kid? If so, which one? Recorders in elementary school and then flute in middle school-junior year in high school. What is the best part of your most ordinary day? Mark uploading cries. What’s your dad’s hair color? It's almost entirely gray now, but it's naturally black. Who was the last person you heard sing? Myself, I think. Surprisingly. Do you bite your lips a lot? My bottom one, occasionally. Have you ever dated someone with tattoos? For less than a day. Did you donate to Haiti? No. I've never had a source of stable income. Are your parents rich? BITCH- What’s your mom’s job? She's a pharmacy tech. Have you ever thrown up in public? Yes. In the middle of my 1st grade class lmaaaoooo. Have you ever failed gym in school? No. Are you scared of dogs? Nope. What reality show would you like to be in? None. What TV show makes you laugh? Most consistently, That '70s Show. Doesn't matter that I've seen I think every episode multiple times, I still laugh so easily at it. Family Feud gets me good too, if it's Steve Harvey hosting it. Have you ever heard of Joe Purdy? If so, do you like his music? Never heard of 'im. What is the saddest movie you’ve ever seen? Probably Johnny Got His Gun. Would you ever wear real fur? Fuck no. Who do you envy and why? Successful people. Because I'm the polar opposite. What color is the house you live in? Khaki. Which one of your friends is most likely to be famous one day? Why? Probablyyyy... Shannen. She is phenomenal at photography and already employed in NY with a fashion company for it. I am unbelievably envious of her, too, but also very happy. She deserves it. Do you have a favorite cousin? No. I rarely ever see my cousins, and if I do, it's usually just two. What is the worst present you have ever gotten? I've never gotten a "bad" gift. I appreciate the thought behind anything. Like I've gotten things entirely unrelated to me, but I still appreciate them. Who was it from? N/A Who is your favorite author? Don't have one. Do you shave your arms? No.

#survey #quiz #questions #random #bored

[rynne311]

65 Questions You Aren't Used To

Tagged by @an-all-write-life, thank you lovely!

1. Do you ever doubt the existence of others than you?

I think I may have answered this one before, but basically no.

2. On a scale of 1-5, how afraid of the dark are you?

1, maybe 1.5.  I really don’t mind the dark, but sometimes it’s the unexplained sounds that will get me.

3. The person you would never want to meet?

I don’t know if any of you watched Community, but Troy loved LeVar Burton, he was his favorite celebrity.  Even though Troy loved LeVar Burton, the most he ever wanted was a picture/autograph, he explicitly told Pierce that he never wanted to meet him.  When Pierce brought LeVar Burton in as a way to mess with Troy, he was completely starstruck and could not speak, he just sat there wide eyed and terrified of disappointing his hero, until he ran away from dinner screaming.  Long story short, any sort of media hero I have I wouldn’t want to meet because I’d probably make Troy look like a normal person with how starstruck I got.

4. What is your favorite word?

Oh boy, this is a lot of pressure! I don’t want to offend all the other words.  I’ll go with onomatopoeia because it’s kind of fun!

5. If you were a type of tree, what would you be?

An oak, I guess.  They look pretty as they change, and dropping the acorns can cause mild annoyance, which I seem to be able to do pretty easily for the friends and family around me.

6. When you looked in the mirror this morning what was the first thing you thought?

Why does it have to be Monday??(I answered this when I started working on these yesterday)

7. What shirt are you wearing?

Simple pink and gray stripes.

8. What do you label yourself as?

Nerd

9. Bright room or dark room?

Dark, it just feels kind of relaxing and like it’s time to unwind.

10. What were you doing at midnight last night?

Sleeping - I’m kind of boring and go to bed by 10:30 (usually earlier) every night, so I’m definitely dead asleep at midnight.

11. Favorite age you’ve been so far?

I actually really enjoyed ages 18-20, and 23 was pretty good too.  I’m sure I’ll hit a good stride of ages again, but until I hit that sweet spot, I’m just going to roll with it and have the most fun I can.

12. Who told you they loved you last?

Umm, probably my friend Alex telling me she loves me more after I had sent her a second reminder in a night that I love her. Or my mom.

13. Your worst enemy?

Honestly, I’m probably my own worst enemy.

14. What is your current desktop picture?

It’s the generic blue design that came with the laptop

15. Do you like someone?

In any way other than platonically, no not right now.

16. The last song you listened to?

Either “Rich” by Maren Morris or “Hotel Key” by Old Dominion on my way into work.

17. You can press a button that will make any one person explode. Who would you blow up?

If I dislike someone that much, shouldn’t they just be left to suffer...like forever.

18. Who would you really like to just punch in the face?

It would be too easy to say some of those politicians that I think are awful and spewing hate, but that’s probably who I’d want to hit the most. But then I’m putting hate and violence out there and I aspire to be better than those I wish to punch in the face.

19. If anyone could be your slave for a day, who would it be and what would they have to do?

Yeah, people shouldn’t own people. What I would be more interested

20. What is your best physical attribute? (showing said attribute is optional)

Probably my eyes or smile.

21. If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you look like and what would you do?

Umm, I sure hope that would mean I would be tall! At least considerably taller than 5’2” and then I’d go and reach stuff on the top shelf...without a step-stool.

22. Do you have a secret talent? If yes, what is it?

If I do, it’s news to me.

23. What is one unique thing you’re afraid of?

My fears are pretty run of the mill.

24. You can only have one kind of sandwich. Every sandwich ingredient known to humankind is at your disposal.

I might just be pretty boring and say a really good grilled cheese with like a good kind of cheese like pepperjack or something.

25. You just found $100! How are you going to spend it?

If only that would cover all my loans! I’d probably treat myself to something like a new pair of heels or just save it for a bit and maybe put it towards Christmas presents.

26. You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere in the world, but you have to leave immediately. Where are you going to go?

Probably back to Spain.  I loved the four months I lived in Salamanca and want to go back! Also, my host family was amazing, and I’d love to visit them again.

27. An angel appears out of Heaven and offers you a lifetime supply of the alcoholic beverage of your choice. “Be brand-specific” it says. Man! What are you gonna say about that? Even if you don’t drink booze there’s something you can figure out… so what’s it gonna be?

I’d probably get some Barefoot Pink Bubbly, but I’d be a little suspicious of some greater ulterior motive.

28. You discover a beautiful island upon which you may build your own society. You make the rules. What is the first rule you put into place?

Everybody has to be left-handed lol, actually establishing some sort of guidance for rights and behavior, making sure that all groups are treated equally and fairly.

29. What is your favorite expletive?

Shit. As much as I curse in real life, I try to avoid it in my writing, instead opting to find other words to express the sentiment, although that isn’t always possible.

30. Your house is on fire, holy shit! You have just enough time to run in there and grab ONE inanimate object. Don’t worry, your loved ones and pets have already made it out safely. So what’s the one thing you’re going to save from that blazing inferno?

Probably one of my mom’s jewelry or memory boxes that has mementos from my late grandma in them.  It would mean the world to her and I was close with my grandma too, so I’d still be able to preserve a piece of her.

31. You can erase any horrible experience from your past. What will it be?

As much as I’d love to erase any bouts of poor mental health I’ve had in the past, I’ve learned from them and without that experience, I wouldn’t be prepared to tackle my next big challenge whatever it may be.

32. You got kicked out of the country for being a time-traveling heathen who sleeps with celebrities and has super-powers. But check out this cool shit… you can move to anywhere else in the world!

Just like in question 26, I’d probably move to Spain!

33. The Celestial Gates Of Beyond have opened, much to your surprise because you didn’t think such a thing existed. Death appears. As it turns out, Death is actually a pretty cool entity, and happens to be in a fantastic mood. Death offers to return the friend/family-member/person/etc. of your choice to the living world. Who will you bring back?

As much as I would love to bring my godfather back, it wouldn’t be fair to take him from the afterlife, or to put his wife, kids and the rest of us who love him through that pain again.  If I could open some sort of communication between this life and the next, I would absolutely offer it to him.  At least being able to communicate would probably be able to heal some wounds for a lot of us here, and I’d love for his 10 year old son to get to know him outside of the stories he hears from me and the rest of his family.

34. What was your last dream about?

Selling houses and moving...just all around kind of odd.

35. Are you a good….[insert anything you’d like here]? -  Are you a good listener?

I’d like to think I am, yes.  Recently at my weekend job, I was clocking out for the day and finished one of my purchases and the woman in front of me had a bag that was just a little too heavy for her to carry, so I brought her bag out to the car for her.  I ended up spending another 20 minutes out there with her talking, well she was doing most of the talking, and before we went separate ways she kept thanking me for listening to her.  So if that is any indication, yes I am a good listener, also it broke my heart that she felt the need to thank me for listening to her because it tells me that she really isn’t getting much of that in her life.

36. Have you ever been admitted to the hospital?

I’ve been to the emergency room twice, but never admitted to the actual hospital.  And both of those visits were within three days.

37. Have you ever built a snowman?

Grew up in New England, it’s kind of a mandatory part of childhood here.

38. What is the color of your socks?

Gray and teal

39. What type of music do you like?

Country, plus some pop and rock

40. Do you prefer sunrises or sunsets?

I’m rarely up for sunrises, but when I was in college, I was pulling an all nighter in our computer/printer room and I got the most spectacular view of the sun rising over the mountains in Vermont.  It made up for the severe lack of sleep I was experiencing.

41. What is your favorite milkshake flavor?

Chocolate

42. What football team do you support? (I will answer in terms of American football as well as soccer)

I don’t sport.  As far as American football goes, I suppose the NY Giants, but in reality it’s more of anyone who isn’t the Patriots.

43. Do you have any scars?

A few on my arms from stupid stuff while growing up, like fighting with my sister.

44. What do you want to be when you graduate?

I graduated from college 3 years ago and still don’t know.  Maybe to know and be happy and secure.

45. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Physically - the list is kind of long and pretty personal.  Otherwise, I’d get rid of those nasty things like my anxiety and depression.

46. Are you reliable?

Almost to a fault where some people have tried to take advantage of it so they could slack off.

47. If you could ask your future self one question, what would it be?

Have you found the happy path you want to be on?

48. Do you hold grudges?

Yes, but it’s something I’ve been trying to work on.  I’ll stop and think what did this event/person impact my life and is it still important?  That’s been pretty helpful for letting things go.  I doubt I’ll ever be able to move on from things immediately, but being able to step away after I’ve had some time and choose forgiveness really does help.

49. If you could breed two animals together to defy the laws of nature, what new animal would you create?

CatDog

50. What is the most unusual conversation you’ve ever had?

Probably once when talking about childhoods and one girl brought up how she got sent to water therapy because she would insist that she was a mermaid and didn’t have legs to walk.  If I remember correctly, they thought this was her way of manifesting her fear of water, but really with her red hair, she just wanted to be Ariel from Little Mermaid.  It was definitely a wild ride of a conversation.

51. Are you a good liar?

Yes and no.  I’ve got some tells, but over the past few years, I’ve gotten much better at hiding them.

52. How long could you go without talking?

If I’m not talking because I’m mad, at least a few days.  I love talking, so if there isn’t much of a reason to be silent, I’m probably going to be talking.  There have been a few times I’ve been home alone and will just begin talking to the dogs or the cat as I’m going about my business.

53. What has been you worst haircut/style?

As much as I like them every time I get them, bangs! Within a few months I’m done with wanting to deal with the maintenance and they never looks as good as when I first get them done.  Some folks look absolutely amazing with bangs, but as a long term thing, they are just not for me.

54. Have you ever baked your own cake?

Yes! I love to bake.

55. Can you do any accents other than your own?

A little bit.  With practice I can start to imitate other regions of the US and with enough drinks, I’ve tried an Irish accent.

56. What do you like on your toast?

Butter with a bit of cinnamon sugar.

57. What is the last thing you drew a picture of?

If painting counts, and I’m going to say it does for this, then a nice riverbank landscape I did at a paint and wine studio near me.

58. What would be you dream car?

Jeep Wrangler - like Lorelai’s in Gilmore Girls

59. Do you sing in the shower? Or do anything unusual in the shower? Explain.

Not really, I’m mostly focused on getting what I need to done and getting out.  I might go through an argument in the shower while I’m washing my hair, but that’s about it.

60. Do you believe in aliens?

I guess so, but that’s more of the universe is so expansive and I think it’s a little narcissistic to think that we are the only ones occupying it.  Besides, if there are no aliens, how will Superman exist to come and save us some day??

61. Do you often read your horoscope?

I don’t, and most of the reason is I don’t believe in them. It’ll pop up in other stuff I’ll be reading, but it always frustrates me that pisces are put at the end of the list so I don’t even try.

62. What is your favorite letter of the alphabet?

R! Yes, it is my initial, but I also like doing the sign for it in my sign language class.  The sign is like you’re crossing your fingers, so it’s like R has some mystery and is keeping a secret.

63. Which is cooler: dinosaurs or dragons?

Dinosaurs

64. What do you think about babies?

They are really cute and I like getting to spend some time with them.  It can be really fun to watch someone experience so many things for the first time, especially things we take for granted.

65. Freebie! Ask anything interesting you can think of. - Worst movie you’ve ever watched?

Leprechaun in the Hood without a doubt!

I’ll tag anyone else who wants to do this! :)

#tagged #tag game

[ts-autumns-world]

Episode 6: “If someone can fuck you over once, then they can choose to do it again” - Raffy

Does this idol system have killer clowns walking around? Carnies doing handstands? Haunted Big Bertha’s? Who knows cause I CAN’T EVEN GET ACCESS TO THIS DAMN IDOL SYSTEM AND YALL ARE OUT HERE POCKETING SUPER IDOLS LIKE ITS AN IPOD TOUCH AND WE’RE 12.

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WOW WHAT A VOTE. Raffy immediately having to use a Super Idol is probably ridiculously on brand, but in all honesty, seeing BENJ of all people go, is a shock to my system. I've voted out former finalists, but I thought that Benj was gonna go DEEP in this game. But now I need to focus I have to get Top 3 in this challenge to get these damn tickets. But my final thought on this super idol is that at least a *good* person got the Super Idol

this reward challenge has me so lost i hardly even go here i dont know any monologues i can perform

we're doing basic text dr today because if I talked I'll probably cry and no one wants that sahjahsjajs

so the vote happened and we were successful in voting raffy in majority. we being me Chris and benj BUT then it turned out raffy had something stupid called a superidol HJAHSJJHAS (sorry this is gonna be bitter time get ready) and was able to just basically cancel his elimination after seeing the votes???????? because who cares about strategy and having to make plans and being smart and capable of reading the tribe in successfully using an idol? no no no lets let someone just not talk to anyone and then save themselves and vote out someone who WORKS SO HARD AND IS SO ACTIVE AND PASSIONATE LIKE YEAH OKAY SAJHJSAHHJASASHJAHJSHAJS THAT MAKES SENSE

UGH

I'm sorry I'm so sad. benj was voted out because of this and I feel really empty and hurt about it. he was my best friend on this tribe we talked constantly every day and we were close in timezones and I trusted him and loved him and now we've been robbed of playing with each other in merge. we had so many plans for us too we wanted to pretend to not be that close and purposefully vote opposite and stuff. it's all ruined.

I think raffy deserves praise in FINDING the idol. but the idol itself is a get out of jail free card and requires no strategy when used like that so asjhasjhashjashj and only used in his 2nd tribal. so I'm glad it didn't last any longer and also that he didn't use it in the way survivor players usually do. by making everyone fear them sahjsajh COS THAT WOULD HAVE WORKED ON ME LIKE A CHARM. but instead we were able to flush it and even tho I've lost benj and I'm sad about it, I am very thankful that we got it flushed now and before merge. it's way more dangerous in merge. and like there was no way we could beat that. unless we split vote I guess but that wasn't possible. and also I just did not remember this was a thing BECAUSE NO ONE IN SURVIVOR HISTORY HAS USED A SUPERIDOL THE WAY IT WAS DESIGNED BECAUSE USING IT WOULD CAUSE MORE TROUBLES FOR THE HOLDER SO THEY ARE VERY STRATEGIC ABOUT IT JSAHHJASAHS so I'm actually excited to see how this carries raffy. would like to clarify I'm not anti raffy he's so nice and fun and this was such an exciting tribal thanks to him and I would have loveeeeed it as a viewer I'm just bitter because benj is gone and super idols suck. HASJHASJHASJH raffy if you read this do know I think you're great and congratulations I just think it was an easy way out WHICH IT WAS.

I guess it just made me feel powerless because there's nothing we could have done here to beat a superidol. and even if we did do Blake instead, it wouldn't change anything.

speaking of Blake he is really upset :(( I think making merge will cheer him up tho which is great because I think it's happening after this reward challenge for tickets

SPEAKING OF TICKETS

BENJ GAVE ME ALL HIS TICKETS AFTER DYING???????? AND IDK WHY LIKE do all the eliminated people get to give tickets to someone? and can it be anyone and not just someone on their tribe? much to think about. but this means I have 8 now which is pretty good I think. thank you benj I love u sm <3

it makes me wanna calculate how many tickets everyone had and who they would have given them to....hmmmm will think about it. benj has been the one who had the most upon leaving I think?

also my tarot was right because it gave raffy the tower and benj the hanged man and it all happened today AHHHH it's so sad how I predict things but don't know what it's predicting until it happens. makes me wanna reevaluate everything and see what it all could mean. could be handy.

I trust Chris the most here and I do trust Ricky I just hope they trust me. I do think we're gonna merge soon tho I really do. it makes sense.

I wonder if the tickets are for an auction or if they are the way to enter the outhouse yourself now. like the new idol system? maybe.

I'm excited to merge and get to talk to everyone and be with jinx and captain AND TALK TO JUDE MORE. YEEEE I just wish benj would have been able to join me :(((

stupid showy superidol

IT'S MY DAY 100 OF TUMBLR SURVIVOR OH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDDD ITS ALSO MY 5 YEAR ORG ANNIVERSARY, PLEASE DON'T VOTE ME OUT THIS ROUND.

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A true strategist's dream is a chessboard, and if we being honest, this is just Social Chess, never view anyone as a chess piece, but they're needed for movement. I'm going to be Jinx's favorite chess piece, because they need me too.

I can no longer trust Chris in this game. He chose his side, and he chose against me. If someone can fuck you over once then they can choose to do it again. I am not able to hold it against Mikki because I did not even try to reach out to her for the whole round. So, fair enough. However, Chris just decided that I needed to go because people thought I had an idol. I guess this is the outcome. He never even promised to rebuild the bridge of trust. He just gave me "I just don't want us to lose." He's 100% targeting me again if we go to tribal. I hope I'm sent to the Outhouse as my ass is grass if I remain in this place. Maybe if I have Blake it'll be fine. Right? 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Uo5w98Zm_5ih0fql6dxLjbnYelD7Mn5B_JhZxL18bkY/edit?usp=sharing

HERE is my spreadsheet with trust rankings and dm counts and stuff, I also added notes on all my trust rankings for each round and some of the dm counts so if you look carefully you'll see the black like corner thing that indicates a note and all my comments on that trust ranking or whatever will pop up if you hover shajhjsahjas hopefully that works

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO super duper califragilistically excited to do this reward challenge and hopefully avoid the Double council that I know is coming because I’m pretty sure Autumn is sick of Tua winning which is a weird sentence to type but hey ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The plan really backfired heavy on us....I thought Raffy just had a half idol but nope, he had a SUPER IDOL and we lost Benj. It made for an awkward post tribal, but I'm just going to keep my head up. I am usually good with damage control so lets see what happens boom boom

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Honestly, I liked this idea but I feel like I'm gonna be crippled by the fact that I am getting a little sick, we'll see though. I think I did okay with my damage control, but truth told, I would not blame Raffy or Blake if they wanted me out now. With Ricky back in the picture, I guess there is hope, but I have learned to not give peeps the FULL benefit of the doubt outright so I am going to sit and wait

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I had another disaster and I pray that the one I could semi finish can be taken in, if it is, then I think I've got 4 tickets, but if not then I will forever be sad about what happened!

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How in God's name didn’t I get 11 tickets?? I didn't even know I had more than 2

This twist is legit the worst thing to happen to me. I have no clue who I am going into tribal with. I don't have prior connections that other may have before the game. And my super idol play was super flashy. So, obviously, they would want to come for me as a prime target. I feel so defeated and I haven't even met these people yet. AND I have to go to work tomorrow so I can't even socialize/communicate as much as I would want in order to keep myself safe. I might as well be one foot in the grave at this point.

Ahhhhh I just made the merge!  Also with my pals too? Omg I hope Ricky lives at the vote. I hear Joey has been messy messy but also wants Captain?? We'll see how that goes, especially with Lily C and O Railroad there. I'm just excited for the next step in the game! I also missed Jinx and Jude so much!

Well….well….well. This is not what I anticipated. Good one, Autumn. I had a fantastic call with Jinx earlier today which helped me get a better handle and the game and feel more connected. I believe Raffy and Blake are working together and this is a great opportunity to separate them. Instantly Joey and I agree to call and figure out a plan. We both agree it’s gonna be best to get Ricky on our side. We both talk to Ricky and I suggest to Ricky that we go for Blake and he is down. Such a relief. It’s stressful to be this close to merge and think that it could slip away. I hope Joey lily o and I are on the same page no matter what. I haven’t been able to talk to her yet but I hope she is good to go for Blake. Fingers crossed.

I'LL MAKE VIDEO CONFESSIONALS WHEN ITS MERGE I SWEAR. But this is a really unique twist, I love it, but it also puts me and the Lily sandwich in a precarious position. Immediately, my thought was "go to Ricky and tell them I let them out of the War Room on Night 1", and boom, immediate bonding point, it turns out wonderfully, in talking to Ricky it was quite obvious they felt on the outs, with no power all season(they're either lying or its true, hey you never know), and for me its important to just keep them comfortable. We're voting out Blake for literally one reason: If we don't, Jinx is gonna kill us, cause yanno they're winning this game, its a foregone conclusion at this point.

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God it's going to be brutal, imagine being Blake, not particularly well liked, and always going premerge. Maybe next time you'll finally make merge/jury, but nah you're not taking away my opportunities to shine.

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Even at midnight on a Friday before merge, I still feel nervous, I always feel nervous, even if I'm in an incredible position, being a crucial swing in a pivotal vote to set the pace for the merge, it's absolutely crucial that I make sure Ricky is good with us 3, once again the 2 votes I've been in, I've been a key decision maker, making dreams come true, and making nightmares real too for others. Its a pretty delusional take that I'm seen as a valuable number, and that's what I need to be, the number to make moves possible, while also having the agency to play my cards right in the middle.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I WON FOUR TICKETS IN THE AWARD CHALLENGE!!!!! I wasn't expecting that at all and I'm so delighted. AND THEN it turned out you needed 11 tickets to make it to merge and be immune from the last premiere vote and I had 15!!!! because of winning that and because of benj giving me four tickets when he was voted out. AND NOW IM FINALLY WITH JINX AND CAPTAIN AND JUDE AND AHHHHHH IM SO HAPPY AHHHHHHHHHHH ME AND JINX WERE JUST SCREAMING RIGHT AWAY AND I KNOW JINX AND CHRIS HAVE AN IDOL BETWEEN THEM COS THEY EACH FOUND HALF WOOOOOOO I FINALLY GET TO PLAY WITH THEM I CAN'T TELL YOU ENOUGH HOW HAPPY THIS MAKES ME. but then I was chosen to go to the outhouse so I didn't get to talk for long and still haven't gotten to talk to captain properly or Jude so :(( and I found nothing in the outhouse but this isn't a complete loss. if captain didn't look there then I know Ricky has something and I can use this info and if captain did find whatever is in there then WOOO!!! and also I can potentially use the fear of me having something if I must and that opens up many fun opportunities. nevertheless this experience in the outhouse has given me knowledge and in survivor knowledge is a currency, and I'm gonna buy as much as I can with it. I DO REALLY HOPE I GET A CHANCE TO FAKE SOME KIND OF ADVANTAGE THO THAT WOULD BE SO FUN AND I DEFS HAVE THE MEANS TO DO IT ASHJASHJASHJ but I need a reason to you know asjhashjashjashj any who that's all I have to share for today but I MADE MERGE IN MY FIRST SURVIVOR GAME I CAN'T BELIEVE IT I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD MAKE IT I'M SHOCKED AHHHHHHHH now I get to play with people I love and meet new people and YEEEEE happy dance, I've exceeded my expectations so I'm just happy here on out. I hope I can do some fun things and game planning with jinx, captain and Chris now plssss

I can't believe I was literally half a point away from the ticket requirement. If I had just been a tiny bit higher, I would've made immunity and had the tickets to be safe. It's kinda on me though, I forgot the "pop culture" part of the post and only verified that when it was literally the last day of the challenge (one where I had work no less, so it's a miracle I was even able to submit). But anyway, the vote isnt gonna be the end of the world. The post-swap Tua tribe is sticking together, and we seem to be getting Ricky on our side for an easy Blake vote. First thing that was suggested to me so I'm totally okay with doing that because it's just easy. I just hope that if the other side looks anywhere its not at me

This game literally feels like a Jane Elliott experiment half the time, and it does kinda bother me, maybe I'm just so used to my privilege that its about time it gets switched up on me

https://youtu.be/kmd-HiEeofg

https://photos.app.goo.gl/j8YwvF9eCukGiMQx5

Guys, gals, non binary pals, I think I have done it. Merge, no votes cast against me, being a crucial piece to how plans come together. God, that was the easiest premerge of my life.

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Friend of mine wanted to know about Tumblr Survivor. So we’re talking and she asks me what the hardest situation you’ve been in is and I said “ You’ve clearly never been in a 6 person group with you running a 3-3 split and you need a flip to basically guarantee your merge/jury spot

And you basically have all your friends breathing down your neck if you don't execute the right person, it's like cutting the wrong wire in a bomb scenario”

I think I made bonds very quickly and will just narrowly avoid getting voted out. However, Blake seems to be getting the votes which I do not want to do. But I fear that if I push Ricky to Joey and the Lily's then they will just vote for me. Ugh. This sucks. If I vote with Blake, then the best we could do is tie. However, that puts me in a rough spot at merge because I would have 3 people mad at me. This is a really tough vote to be a part of. I probably won't even know who I am voting for until the last minute. 

https://youtu.be/ewiPRjyvOzk

https://youtu.be/-iPG5SyOCOk blake this is your tape ITS NOT MEAN

#tsaw #episodes

[firecakes-art]

Marker Man Misadventures 11

Okay, where am I now? It looks like some kind of dream world. Everything is purple, there are stars and sleepy clouds in the sky and the background music feels as calm as the last world's background music. Speaking of, this one is the biggest offender in terms of the beat count. You thought the 7 measure loop was bad? The following numbers are my best guess as to what the number of beats in each measure are: 2,4,4,2,4,3,4. That is a total of 23 beats over 7 measures. My head is hurting just listening to this song. Please, make it stop.

It's a long way down, so watch your step. The man eating houses are back, so that's fun. On the one horizontally moving platform, you can make it to the right wall using a momentum jump when the platform is moving right. There is a lot of space to move around here, so try and not to get lost.

Sad Cat

A sad cat that roams around being sad. If you touch it, it will meow and scratch you for 10 damage, given that this is world 10.

I actually cannot believe this. I checked every part of this level multiple times over. I think the developers straight up forgot to add a coin here. There is only one coin in this level as far as I know. I have no idea where the two coin exit takes me. Of course the game doesn't let me have the satisfaction of knowing every route in the game, but I guess if the second coin was never programmed in, then it's technically not even a route. How infuriating.

LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING ABOUT THIS LEVEL. As I just from this one platform to another, all of a sudden a star appears from the top of my screen, smashes down into me, and before I could even process what happened, I died. It killed me instantly. I had to go back and check what in the world happened at that moment. THE ENEMY IS PART OF THE BACKGROUND. PART OF THE BACKGROUND OF HUNDREDS OF OTHER STARS IN THE SKY. It's teaming up with the yellow house and trying to assassinate my progress. Go on. Collect that marker. It's totally not bait. The sound of collecting the marker is also totally not going to take priority over the sound of the star falling completely. Stupid dumb falling star level.

Alright, I feel better now.

Falling Star

These will destroy you. 10 damage per frame, and can seemingly fall from the sky at any time, there is little indication for when one is coming. They are differentiated from the rest of the stars in the background from its frown, and from its occasional blinking. If you hear a stock falling sound effect then that means you better take cover immediately because it's coming to smash your head in. They disappear after a bit.

That's not even the worst part. The worst part is in order to know when they're coming, I have to have the sound on and listen for the falling cue. And that means listening to the horrid background music.

This level is pretty fun to speed run. Just watch out for the stars, as they hang lower to the ground in this one. Go over the holes and enter the hallway where the coin is from the right side to avoid all the spikes.

This one, on the other hand, is not fun to speed run. Almost half of the length of the level involves just running right. Then you have to deal with the mess that is everything above you. Too little to do, followed by too much to do.

One of the stars will happily greet you after you climb up a wall. At this point you have two options. Either run backwards and have a line placed where you will land so you won't take possible fall damage, or quickly draw a line above you so that the star bounces off your head. I'd assume the star would bounce off the line and not kill you. I didn't try it. Just saying, in case you're the one person in the world who has the game and is going through this guide. Oh, that person is me? Great.

Hey it worked. Just thought I'd say that. Okay, moving on.

Raccoons are falling from the sky! The biggest danger is falling enemies. Otherwise, it's a pretty mild level overall. Go left on spawn to get the coin first.

I have a pro tip for myself. The timer that determines when the star disappears continues on pause! This means that you can avoid harm from a star once it jumps out by pausing for about 5 seconds. It will disappear on unpause.

This poor raccoon keeps walking to the right, and the bouncy wall keeps pushing it away. Stop doing that, wall. It's trying to get to work. I was worried that the one exit that is impossible to get to leads to the bonus level, but this one has the exit to the bonus level. It seems like I am able to access every level so far. Maybe that impossible exit goes to a level I already visited. Maybe it doesn't go anywhere! I guess it doesn't matter now.

Bouncy Wall

Even though it looks like this will kill you because it has ridges around all the edges, it's harmless. It's a moving wall that has high restitution. Anything it touches will be bounced away.

I think this is a strong contender for the worst marker man level so far. The majority of the level is simple platforming, and the only enemy type is the spiky wall. The middle section of the level is ridiculous. You have to jump from one moving platform to another moving platform, and the platforms change directions in different frequencies. This means there are times where you can make the jump and there are times where you cannot, and you have to be able to tell the difference, often while the platform to jump to is out of view. The first time this happens is at least systematically manageable, but the second time there is a spiky wall column introduced! That wall has its own movement pattern and can stop marker man from making the jump to the other platform. That specific jump is almost impossible unless you do what I did.

On the stationary platform before the twin moving platforms with the spiky wall in between, pan the camera to the far right until you see the spiky wall. If you place a line just above the ceiling and when the spiky walls are at its highest point, then you can barely get the shape to be sandwiched between the walls and the ceiling, preventing the walls from coming back down for a little while. You have a ten second time frame at this point to make the jump from one moving platform to the other. The last jump in this set is to the stationary platform, which can be blocked yet again by the spiky wall that gets in the way. You have to time your jump so you can land on that safe area before your line disappears, or else you have a good chance of getting hit by the spiky wall that was trapped from earlier. Absolutely insane. Hope that extra life was worth it.

Search. Find. Collect. Dodge. Jump. Exit.

These coins are getting pretty tough to find. However, if you're insane like I am, you can try using the cool shortcut to get the coin instantly. Get on top of the structure you spawn in, and just jump off to the left. You'll have to try to not hit the falling star or miss the platform, and draw something under you so that you won't die from fall damage. It's pretty risky, but it's so much fun. These stars are always inconveniently placed everywhere, and they still scare me when they jump out.

This has been the most difficult world for mapping yet. The platforms are scattered around so there are a ton of paths one can take. I often mess up the scaling of a path when it finally joins with an earlier visited segment. It sucks. Also help me: I'm running out of ideas for level titles.

I can feel my soul draining.

No enemies, and basically no pickups? How many of these levels have even been reviewed? I didn't play this game to appreciate the architecture of the levels. I expect an actual game to be here.

Yep. My soul's gone now.

Beware of the large amount of stars in the beginning segment. Just watch out for stars no matter where you are. Except for this bonus level, of course. Wait, what? Another bonus level? This is the same world, right? Please don't be as bad as the previous bonus level...

I am so relieved. The ending part is slightly tricky because you cannot ramp over the cake because the line you create will just slide off. Just build from the last platform in the air so that the slope is shallow enough not to slip.

Another really annoying level to map out. The middle area has 4 to 5 different layers of platforms, all pretty separate from each other. Just... one more... level... to go.... Get me off this wild ride.

Oh no..... oh noooo..... THERE ARE INVISIBLE WALLS IN THIS LEVEL. THEY ACTUALLY MADE INVISIBLE WALLS A THING. I'M SO SCREWED.

The grey lines indicate invisible walls. As you can imagine, they are SO MUCH HARDER to draw than regular walls because I have to make a ton of checks just to accurately figure out the length of one platform. And that's assuming I can find them. Just imagine a regular player trying to beat this level! First, they have to find the second coin. The only way to find it without blindly jumping to your death is to hold the camera down control while on the moving platform. The coin will be barely visible for a moment. Then they have to get down there to realize that there is an invisible wall in the way. THEN after they figured out that theres a hole in the top that also leads to a spike pit they have to build their way out. Building your way out of that tiny hole is not easy, even if it was all visible.

So how do you build out of the coin hole? You cannot build a line up hugging the wall because it will either fall through the hole or it will be too steep for marker man to not hit the ceiling while climbing up it. You have to build a perfect rectangle. A perfect rectangle is pushed all the way to the left of the hole and has a height that will barely get it touching the ceiling. This makes it so that the rectangle will not move once the line gets built underneath it. A circle is not ideal, but is possible to use as well. There is a huge chance you will accidentally give marker man a power. Honestly, if you have the markers to give marker man a power up, just give it super jump and bounce out of there. Build to the moving platform, minding the invisible ceiling, and escape this monster of a level.

There is a good chance that the next world is the last one. There is also a good chance that this might be the world that breaks me. I have no idea what it has in store, but if this level is any indication then I am in trouble. Wish me luck.

This world is so massive that the developers felt the need to add two bonus levels. Probably. I don't know what they're thinking. I can guess that they were not thinking about how much they enjoy making levels for this game.

#art #drawing #personal #mmm #marker man #marker man misadventures