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#anyway i just had to get this out of my system
maxwellatoms · 11 hours
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Hello Mr. Atoms, I'm an animation student in college and fan of your work. I got this assignment in which I need to ask questions to a professional in the area. Could you pretty please answer them? It'd mean a lot to me.
1- Are you happy with your career? How it's going.
2- What are your opinions, expectations and hopes about the independent animation industry that's developing?
3- What do you think about the advent of artificial intelligence? Do you fear for the future of animators?
4- If money wasn't a problem, would you still do what you do?
5- Any animators you admire and would like to mention?
Okey dokey.
1- Are you happy with your career? How it's going.
Not really, in that there seems to be no career left.
The animation industry swelled its numbers greatly before 2020. Almost immediately after that, corporate greed synergized with a pandemic to reduce animated programs and the number of people working on them to almost zero. It takes almost a year from beginning to end to make a single episode of an animated show (by the modern standard). There was nothing being made in 2020 and four years later, we''re not in a much better spot. It's going to be a long drought for (especially) Kid's TV Animation.
Recently, many of my former co-workers have hit the financial wall and can't continue, moving away after (sometimes) 20 years in the industry. I begin to wonder if I'm very far behind.
A "bounce back" a year from now would need to start today. There are still some animated shows being made now, but those are almost universally "library" properties. That means it's an existing I.P. (Intellectual Properties like Garfield/Mario/Batman/Star Wars) so as an artist you're immediately in that box. Depending on the property and the studio, it can be an unpleasantly tight box. I grew used to holding and maintaining the vision for a show, but it's less fun when it's not my vision. It's even less fun when you can't inspire someone to follow your vision because they've been so ruthlessly abused.
I'm pretty sick of how big media corporations treat their employees. If I inherit one more burnt out crew due to mismanagement, I'm gonna lose it.
Over a decade ago I fought hard to get board artists story credit for the episodes they were actually writing, and felt like I'd won a big victory for everyone. The second my back was turned, it all reverted.
Mostly... what is the point now? My career is/was developing ideas, crafting those ideas into a workable show, then managing teams of thirty to seventy people to produce a couple of dozen episodes per year. Studios actively do not want new ideas right now, and are actively searching for ways to eliminate what artists from the process. I'm not sure what my job would be under this new system, but it feels like they decided to hang onto the anxiety-inducing deadlines while removing anything remotely pleasurable from the experience.
2- What are your opinions, expectations and hopes about the independent animation industry that's developing?
It's the only way to get anything done, currently.
The current state of the industry is not sustainable. I (along with a lot of other animators I know) are trying to decide what's next, and pretty much everyone agrees that "you just have to make something".
It is (in that very specific way) a great time to be a young animator. The system was never going to treat you well anyway. If you can get something like a Hazbin Hotel happening without studio help, you can currently write your own ticket. I'm super proud of Vivsie, because that's a LOT of stuff to handle. I never had to handle my own marketing or drum up money to make Billy & Mandy happen.
There are opportunities there, but it's definitely "Hard Mode". The best idea is probably to team up with a few other people you like and like to work with.
Hopes? I hope that the young animators take over and make something new on top of the bones of the old industry, rather than just allowing that industry to patch its rotting hide with their collected works.
3- What do you think about the advent of artificial intelligence? Do you fear for the future of animators?
I suspect true AI might just peace-out like ScarJo in "Her", but we're not there yet. What we have now isn't Artificial Intelligence at all (though I do believe it may be the underpinnings of the Artificial Suconscious of what may one day become an actual Artificial Intelligence.)
The LLMs and "Generative AI" are (so far) a big dumb waste. They consume tons of energy and aren't great for doing anything creative. If you've sat down with Chat GPT for a creative writing session, you've probably run into the "out of the box" limitations which prevent it from talking about sex or violence-- which happen to be a major component of most stories.
Still, the technology has come incredibly far in an incredibly short amount of time. I imagine we're going to hit the point where we're being hazed by artificially generated political ads way before Generative AI can produce a consistent and usable character turnaround, so that'll be the test. Whatever the legal fallout is from this stuff over the next few years will set the tone.
Still, studios have a vested interest in pleasing their shareholders. Generative AI potentially has the capability of not only replacing swaths of money-eating artists, but handing that control directly to the billionaire studio heads. Mark my words: We're headed straight for billionaire-generated content.
I don't think the public at large will want to watch Elon Musk's fever dreams, so there's that. So law and general distaste might stave it off for a while, but I think there's just too much impetus for studios to continue to try to please their investors. "AI Art" is here to stay.
Eventually that will lead to millions and millions of bots generating millions and millions of songs and paintings and movies all day every day. Most of it will be utter trash. Right now (so I'm told) viewers are already burnt out, and will generally only click on what they already know. On Netflix, where there are twenty things you've never heard of and one you have, you're more likely to pick the thing that gives you comfort and gives you a guarantee you're not wasting your time. With exponentially more A.I. trash, how would you even begin to filter it out?
You'd need absolute control of an already existing distribution system. We currently have a few of those, and all of the media companies are desperately trying to merge with them to insure their own survival.
To me, the post-Gen-AI landscape looks a lot like old-school Cable, but with endless I.P. and fewer masters.
4- If money wasn't a problem, would you still do what you do?
The real question is, maybe, "What am I even doing?" These days I try to do a lot of gardening. I'm trying to learn new art skills, because suddenly twenty five years of experience managing, drawing, and writing isn't worth much. I recently worked on Jellystone until Zaslav lost 2.5 billion in the wash and had to find justification for his new yacht. The show before that? Also culled midway through to save money. The days of multi-year gigs seem to be over, and if I'm going to scrape by doing freelance, maybe I can do that somewhere else.
I'll always make art. I can't seem to help it. Ideas aren't my problem-- it's executing those ideas without the help of a structured pre-existing system. I honestly don't know if I'll ever be able to pull that off. My strengths are great, but were always supported by friends I worked with.
Can I start an indie cartoon with all of these cool friends? Sure, maybe. Most of those people have gone on to have other careers of their own and got used to being paid. Now nobody is getting paid and no one can pay anyone else. My immediate circle are all now middle-aged people with families and no jobs. Convincing them to give up a large chunk of their day for an idea that's not guaranteed to pay off is going to take some real effort.
I technically have fifteen years until I can claim my "retirement", assuming that still exists by then. That's a pretty big hole to fill with... I don't know what.
The difficult "What comes next" discussions at home are really just starting.
5- Any animators you admire and would like to mention?
There are a lot of cool animation people out there. I already mentioned I was proud of Vivsie. I was also reminded recently just how great C.H. Greenblatt and Mr. Warburton are. I know they're my friends. They're both just really upstanding, creative people who take good care of their crews.
The treatment of animation industry professionals by the studio system has been one of the most demoralizing and heartbreaking parts of this demoralizing and heartbreaking time.
---
So there ya go. If you want to look for someone whose attitude is a little more upbeat, I won't blame you a bit.
Wherever you are, I wish you the best of luck. For me, just climb up there and crush it. I would very much like to add you to #5 someday.
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keekity · 1 day
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rainn, rainn, go away, that's what all my haters say
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spamgyu · 1 day
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hell n back // vernon drabble
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it was rare for him to have a day off, even rare for it to fall on the same as yours.
the two of you had decided that the best way to make use of this once in blue moon event was to lounge about in your shared apartment – enjoying one another's company before he is forced to go back to his tireless schedule.
you watched as your boyfriend fiddled with the sound system at the corner of the living room – mumbling something about wanting to play you his new favorite song. you always did admire his love for music, the two of you using this shared interest to naturally govern most of your conversations.
there was evidence of this throughout your apartment; the main one being a wall of vinyl record covers from both past and present hip-hop artists you two enjoyed listening to. right below this display was a large mid-century modern wooden console; holding your boyfriend's prized possessions.
a turn table and radio system.
it wasn't long before the sound of the artist whistling blared through the speakers; vernon turning to you with a large grin on his face.
"come here." he held his hand out for you to take.
laughing, you set your phone down to accept his offer – allowing for him to take lead and sway along with the beat.
"could you tell where my head was at when you found me? me and you went to hell and back just to find peace" he sang along with the artist, bouncing to the trumpet that played. "the lyrics– it reminds me of us."
you listened closely to the words being played, allowing it to transport you back in time to when you had first met him. both of you weren't at your lowest, but you two were definitely not at your best – simply cruising through life with the intent to survive.
before him, you had gone through a list of men who had broken your heart – giving up on love itself.
and he was the same.
people did say that the best kind of love was found when you weren't searching for it – scoffing at the idea until you met him.
it came so naturally; meeting vernon had possibly been one of the best things to happen to your life and he could say the same.
he had no intentions of starting a relationship when he had been introduced to you through a mutual friend, but by the end of the night, vernon couldn't get enough.
hell, half way through hearing you rant talk about pharrell's influence in the music industry – he had been sold.
vernon wasn't the type to ask someone on a date the same day he had met them; it was as if you had put him under a spell and he hadn't been able to shake it off since.
if soulmates were real, vernon had found his – you.
"oh, but I'm here now baby. no life been lifin' lately, so I save you if you save me. i was over love, I had enough, then I found you." now it was your turn to sing along, catching him by surprise.
"so you know the song?" he gasped.
"i was the one that showed it to you." you laughed.
"hm..." his bottom lip jutted out, as he tried to sift through his memories.
"four months ago– i sent it to you."
he was overseas at the time, attending some award show; if you recalled correctly.
"baby give this song a listen [spotify link]"
halting your movements, vernon slapped his hand on his forehead – he remembers. "ah shit..."
"it's okay." you shrugged, walking over to the couch as the song wrapped up.
"brain fog has been so bad lately." he sighed, plopping down next to you. "i hate it."
with his nonstop work schedule, it was no surprise that he had seemed to be forgetting quite a few things – but you paid no mind to it. it came with the title of being the girlfriend of one of the members of one of the most popular k-pop group.
it was minor details anyways, and he's human after all.
"do you at least remember me?" you teased.
squinting, vernon played along with the bit – tilting his head to the side. "looking like my future girlfriend."
you pursed your lips. "that's crazy, because i'm taken."
"leave him." vernon leaned closer.
"nah," you shook your head before leaning in as well, allowing for your lips to brush against his briefly. "he's a catch."
"doubt it." vernon snorted.
"he is! he's got this stupid smile, always tells the dumbest jokes, makes the best burnt grilled cheese–" you listed.
"ah! you said you liked it crispy!" he cried, earning a laugh from you.
"that's called softening the blow."
"can't catch a fucking break." he groaned, slouching in his position.
to anyone, this sense of domestication would be boring, but such mundane acts couldn't help but warm your heart.
he wasn't the performer you would watch from your seat, the guy who you watched on your phone screen – he was your boyfriend, the man who you swore you would spend the rest of your life with.
he was a silly boy, making silly jokes – letting you in on the personality that he hid away from many.
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PERMANENT TAGLIST
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misc-obeyme · 2 days
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i've been.. sick.. auhrgh. (its a simple cold but my body can'teven),, if you still take tiny drabble requests can I request Barb helping mc when they got a cold.. just tooth rotting fluff.. (if you dont/aren't comfortable thats fine :0b)
Oh noooo I hope you're feeling better!! Being sick is the worst...
And I am still doing drabbles, yes! So I may have written a little more than what I consider drabble length but uh... well I can't help myself when it comes to Barb, so.
Anyway, here's a bunch of fluff!
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You were sick. You knew it and even though you were trying to hide it, you were sure everybody else knew it, too. You kept your sneezes as quiet as possible, burying your face in your elbow to muffle their sound. You refused to sniffle unless you absolutely had to. And you went into the bathroom to blow your nose in private. You tried everything you could to suppress the shivers that ran through your aching body, even while you kept wiping the sweat off of your forehead.
All day at RAD, you felt like despite the obvious signs, you were doing a decent job of powering through it. If anyone noticed, they didn't say anything.
Until you got home, that is.
You were surprised to find Barbatos already in your room.
He smiled at you, but there was a sternness behind it, too. "MC. You are in no condition to continue pushing yourself the way you have been. I have changed your bedsheets and washed your favorite pair of pajamas. Now I must insist that you get changed and get into bed so you can rest."
You frowned and folded your arms. "I don't need to get into bed, I'm fine," you said.
Barbatos walked over to you, removed his glove carefully, and put his hand on your forehead. You shivered a little, partly because you knew he would feel your fever and partly because his touch awakened a burst of butterflies in your stomach.
Barbatos let his hand descend to cup your cheek. "You cannot hide the evidence of your illness from me," he said. His voice was soft, the firmness of moments ago melting away into indulgence. "I know you feel that it is minor, but you will recover quicker if you rest now. If you will allow me to, I will take care of you until you are well again."
The tinge of heat that rose up in your cheeks wasn't something you could blame on your fever. You nodded.
When you were in your pajamas and snug beneath the covers, Barbatos brought you a tray of soup and tea. He sat beside your bed while you ate. On your bedside table he had already placed a supply of tissues and water.
"This is delicious," you said when you were halfway through the soup.
"It is a recipe of my own design," Barbatos said. "It incorporates all of the best nutrients a human would need to fight off a cold. The tea is also a special blend of Devildom herbs. They are safe for human consumption, of course, but they contain just enough magical properties to boost your immune system and speed your recovery."
You smiled at him. It was just like him to be so meticulous in what he served you.
"Isn't it a bad idea for you to be this close to me?" you asked. "What if I'm contagious? I don't want you to get sick, too."
"You needn't worry about me, MC," Barbatos said. "I am not capable of contracting an illness of this nature."
You didn't have the clarity of mind to question that statement further.
When you had finished eating, Barbatos cleared away the tray, then positioned himself back in his chair.
"Are you really just going to sit there all night?" you asked.
"I wish to be here should you need me," he said.
You sighed. You were feeling sleepy. The warmth of the food made you heavy and the softness of your mattress caused your body to relax. Your senses were dulled by the fever still running through you. Your eyelids were slowly descending, but you kept them open. You reached out a hand toward Barbatos and murmured his name.
Barbatos knew what you wanted without you needing to say it. You were still sitting up in bed and after removing his shoes, Barbatos sat beside you. Instead of laying back on your pillows, you rested your head on his chest. His arms enclosed you and your breathing synced with his. You fell asleep listening to the beating of his heart.
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masterlist | Thank you for reading!
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goosewithtwoos · 9 hours
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TOO SWEET
pairing: bob x reader
summary: bobs just too sweet
“You’re just,” you struggle to find the right words. “too sweet.”
Bob furrows his brow. “Too sweet?” He asks, placing down his tea.
“Yeah, that’s you’re problem. You’re too sweet. You let people walk over you. You need to have a bit of a backbone if you want to be respected.” You explain.
The two of you were sitting in his living room, having just come back from a morning run. You hated cardio - weight lifting was a much better workout in your opinion - but Bob was a runner and had wanted you to join him for a run for so long you finally gave in.
His Naval Academy shirt was faded in stark contrast to his blue PT shorts. You’d never be caught dead in PT uniform outside of the work day but somehow he made it work.
During the run, he had been explaining how this new command was trying to keep him from hops and began training him as an unmanned aircraft system operator. Of course, it was nice to have this extra knowledge but he was a WSO and should be treated as such. He talked for most of the run, mainly because you couldn’t speak for more than three sentences without getting winded, so now was your time to offer advice.
“There’s nothing wrong with being firm.” You sip your now lukewarm coffee, making a flippant gesture with your hand.
Bob shifted in his seat. “I don’t want to seem belligerent. It is a good opportunity.”
“But it’s keeping you from your primary job.” You roll your eyes. “Come on, Bobby, you don’t actually want to be some drone operator, do you?”
His eyes dipped. “No.”
“There you go!” You exclaim. “Tell them that. Exactly like that. You want to be a WSO. You’re amazing at your job anyways, they’d be stupid to keep you from it.”
A light dust of pink began to cover Bobs’ cheeks. You knew he had a hard time receiving compliments and always tried to brush them off. Your current attempts at getting him to accept compliments was exposure therapy and you tried to interject as many as possible during your conversations.
“I’m not that good…” He mumbles into his tea as he takes another sip.
You snap your fingers at him, shaking your head. “This is what I mean. You’re letting people get into your head. Take the compliment.” He dipped his head lower, taking another lengthy sip to avoid speaking. “This is where you say, ‘You’re right’ and ‘Thank you, I know I’m amazing’.”
“I can’t say that if it’s not true.”
You couldn’t tell if you wanted to kill him or squish him. He was so adorable and yet made you want to pull your hair out. It was quite a confusing mix.
“Robert. For once, if you’ve ever loved me, take the compliment.” You say, placing down your cup.
He shrugs a little which makes you gasp in mock horror before he smiles. “Of course I love you but it’s just hard to accept.”
You shrink back in your seat, crossing your legs. “Who hurt you?” You mumble more to yourself than to him. “Have you ever taken a compliment?”
“Of course!” He cries.
You raise a brow. “Three examples, now.”
“One, when I received my acceptance to the Academy and had my college counselor beaming with pride. She told me I had done well.” He looked proud of himself remembering that one. “Two, when I graduated and my grandmother came to see me, she said that I was the smartest in the family. And three, when I-“ His voice cut off and his ears went red.
“When?” You press, leaning forward ever so slightly.
He waves you off. “Let me think of something else. It was a bad example.”
“No, no, no,” you push. “Tell me.”
He turned away, unable to meet your eyes. “When I…I went…” his voice was growing smaller by the second. He covers his mouth with the back of his hand ever so slightly before finishing the statement. “on a girl and she called me a good boy.”
You couldn’t stop the laughter that came out of you. You’d never assumed Bob would have a praise kink, and especially not one that consisted of him being called a good boy.
“I’m sorry.” You weren’t. “I just wasn’t expecting that.”
Bob was completely red by this point, opting to drink his tea rather than respond.
“I mean, were you being a good boy?” He chokes.
Sputtering, he looks at you, eyes full of panic. “I can’t answer that!”
“Oh, come on, you can tell me. I told you about my…incidents.” Incidents was a polite way to put it. Bob was the first person you’d go to whenever something had gone awry during on of your hookups due to his understanding and nonjudgmental nature. No matter what you’d say, he’d listen and nod, telling you it was always the mans fault and even though you might have called him someone else’s name, it was his problem for not having a more memorable name.
“I think I was.” He says quietly, shrugging ever so slightly.
“I bet you were.” You hum, finishing off your coffee.
Bob just stares, eyes wide and lips slightly apart. His breath hitched as he tried to form a coherent sentence. A sound that slightly resembles “Huh?” come from him and you roll your eyes.
“You’re always such a good boy, Bobby.” You mean it as a joke. You were saying it in a slightly mocking tone. So why did the words feel so right? Why were they so smooth on your lips? And why - God, why - did they seem to have such an impact on both you and him?
Something changed in his eyes. They glossed over with a feeling you didn’t think you’d ever see in him. Desire. Need.
“Say it again.” It wasn’t a question, he was demanding. Damn his pretty blue eyes.
You swallow hard. This had implications. You could tell how badly he needed it and what it was doing to him. You didn’t want to just fuck with his emotions. But you did mean it. He was a good boy. He’d always helped you with reports and post-flight write ups. He always went out of his way to make sure you were okay. He was such a good boy.
“You’re a good boy.”
His breath was coming out a bit harder now, and his hands had curled into fists like he was trying to keep himself from reaching out and touching you. Not like that would have been a bad thing.
“Can…” His voice failed him. He tried again. “Can I show you?”
“Show me how you’re a good boy?” You ask. Your heart was starting to race. You’d never seen this side of him before. He nods fervently. “Okay.”
It was barely a whisper. You weren’t even sure if a sound came out or you’d just mouthed the words but once you’d said them, that was all he needed.
He grabs you by the back of the head, tangling his fingers through your hair, and pulls you into a lip bruising kiss. This was definitely not sweet. This was needy, urgent, like he wanted to devour you. You kissed back, allowing yourself to melt into him. He was taking and you’d give him everything.
He leaned farther into you, pressing you backwards until you were laying on the couch. He was over you, pressing all his body weight down, and you could feel what suspiciously felt like him grinding against your thigh.
Your arms wrap around the back of his neck, pulling him closer. Your hips buck up, desperately trying to chase the friction against him.
His glasses felt cold against your skin and you smiled ever so slightly.
He moans into your mouth and pulls a hand from your hair down to your chest. Your hands grip into his shirt as he paws at you, feeling your ribs, waist, hips, anything he can get his hands on.
“Need to taste you.” He groans out, like it was paining him not to be nose deep within you. “Bet you taste so good.”
You’d never seen a man so worked up before. Bob was panting like he was in heat. And it was the hottest thing you’ve ever seen.
“I’m still sweaty.” You say between a laugh. He moved down to your neck, nipping at the soft skin, finding any open area and leaving a mark. He groans, pressing himself down against your thigh again.
“Bet it just makes you taste better.”
Your mind was short circuiting. Was this really the same Bob who once cried while watching a nature documentary because a penguin carried around a rock instead of an egg? The same Bob who called you when he got drunk to confess that he’d once stolen a phone charger from some gas station during a cross country trip when he’d lost his wallet at a Waffle House? Somehow, it was.
And this same Bob was pushing your shirt up and pulling your shorts down.
He looks up at you and it was a sight to behold. His mouth was slightly ajar, and his pupils blown completely wide.
“Hold these?” He asks, taking off his glasses and passing them up to you. You put them on, more as a joke than anything, but the moment he saw you wearing them, he surges forwards and kisses you again.
“So pretty.” He moans. “God, you’re gorgeous.”
You would normally feel self conscious but something about him made you feel so safe and secure. You trusted him with everything. He really was -
“Such a good boy.” You murmur as he began sliding down your body again. He stops, dropping his head so his forehead presses against your lower abdomen.
“Again.” He whispers. You could feel his breath tickling ever so slightly.
“Fuck, Robert, you’re such a good boy.” Your hand runs through his hair, pulling slightly before letting go.
He lets out a whimper before getting back to the task at hand, removing your shorts entirely, leaving you in just your underwear with your shirt pushed all the way up. He finds his place between your thighs, throwing your legs over his shoulders. It probably wasn’t the most comfortable position for him but in that moment, you were sure he couldn’t care less.
He licks you through your panties, moaning when your legs tense around his head.
“Please.” You moan when his tongue presses especially well against your clit. “Need you so bad.”
He eyes flit up to yours again, his glasses having fallen partially down your face so you could see just over the rims, and it was a miracle you didn’t come right then and there.
Feral, a man possessed.
He doesn’t even bother taking them off properly, he just pulls your panties to the side and dives in.
It was good. God, it was so fucking good. Your hand finds his hair again, pulling him impossibly closer to you. It was like he knew your body better than you did, the way he could alternate between fucking you with his tongue to sucking on your clit.
“Fuck, Robert,” you cry out. “You’re such a good boy. Oh my God, so good. Such a good boy, holy shit.” You were babbling at this point, the words didn’t make much sense in your mind but your mouth just kept moving. “My sweet boy, my good boy, fuck honey, you’re amazing.”
He pulls away and you want to cry. He presses kisses against your thigh while you try to remember how to breath properly.
“You taste so good. Wanna keep you here forever so I can have this forever.” He says.
You nod in agreement. “Please. You can. Anytime you want.”
His groan sends vibrations through you. You’re mind is a daze. Your hand cups his cheek, gently rubbing the side of his face. His stubble feels rough under your skin but the coarseness only makes your heart swell more.
“Gonna make me come like a good boy?” You ask, voice barely a whisper.
He responds by diving back in, tongue licking up your slit, collecting your wetness on his lips. Your back arches again, hips bucking. His glasses begin to slip off but your mind can’t care about anything other than the man who’s head is currently between your legs, showing you more pleasure than any man has shown you before.
He wraps his arm around so that his hands are free and you can feel his biceps tensing under your legs. The thought of his muscles had never turned you on before but suddenly, it caused a rush of heat to shoot through you.
His thumb comes down to play with your clit while his mouth still works your slit. The light teasing circles from his finger was such a different feeling from how his relentless and eager tongue was bringing you closer and closer to the edge.
You could feel that cool in your stomach tightening. Your hips were bucking more frequently and when you felt his index finger run across your folds, you knew you were a goner.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck, Robert, please.” You moan.
“You don’t gotta beg.” He tells you, resting his head on your thigh for a moment, taking you in. His fingers were still working you, keeping you right on the edge. “I’ll give you everything you need.” His accent was thicker than normal and you wanted to see just how deep it could get. Another time though, you didn’t want any distractions from this current event.
When his mouth connects with your clit, you swear it was a religious experience, and you were coming before you even realized it.
“Good boy, good boy, good boy.” You keep repeating as he works you down from your high. Finally, once he deems you to be clean enough, he lifts his head, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Do you uh…do you want anything for yourself?”
He looks to the side sheepishly. “I’m…good.” You sit up quickly and look at him. A wet spot stains his crotch just barely visible in his PT shorts. The thought of him coming just from eating you out sends another wave through you.
Perhaps a five minute intermission before round two wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
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crow-hoards-things · 23 hours
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The Bad Batch Series Finale
FULL DISCLOSURE: This is a vent post. I’m angry and hurt. After I get this out of my system I’ll be more open to discussing the positives of the episode.
Warnings: Ranting, Spoilers
Hooo boy. Okay. I am… less than satisfied?
Quick rundown since I haven’t posted much of anything Bad Batch related: Tech is my favorite Batch member, immediately followed by Crosshair. I’m also a HUGE Republic Commando Nerd (read all the books, played the game, despised Bad Batch as a whole initially because I felt the commandos were being unfairly ignored, can sing + translate Vode An, etc.) and Scorch was my favorite Delta. The Bad Batch grew on me shortly after Season 1 finished up, and I immediately latched onto Tech when I began watching. He’s the reason I watched the first two seasons. (Crosshair + delusions about Tech were the combined force behind watching the final season)
NOW, onto my actual thoughts on the episode, in no semblance of order because my brain is still trying to process, Ft. Cry count:
• Wish Tech was here. He would’ve loved the Zillo being freed.
• “‘Cause I’d do the same thing” no you wouldn’t. Fives would’ve. The you I fell in love with would’ve yelled at Fives about it being a terrible idea and then promptly gone along with it anyway. That said it was a really cute moment and I loved his nonchalant little “come on” afterwards.
• C: “Echo or Omega?” W&H: “Omega” THEY KNOW THEIR GIRL SO WELL
• When Hemlock went to get the operatives I got excited thinking maybe, just maybe we’d get Tech back.
• CROSSHAIR LOST HIS FREAKING HAND!?!? WHAT THE HECK!?! I will never stop being salty about this. He’s been through enough. [Near Tears]
• Rampart sucks
• Nala Se got to blow stuff up and I appreciate that even if I don’t really like her
• I’m glad Wrecker’s okay. He had me scared for a bit. Hunter, conversely, never really did? He’s Omega’s Dad, he had to survive.
• Did anybody else see that one operative whose helmet seemingly had goggles built into it? We had a lingering shot on his helmet for a few seconds and they looked like a red version of Tech’s goggles.
• SCORCH IS DEAD AND YOU’D BETTER BELIEVE I’M MAD ABOUT IT! [First shedding of tears]
• HECK YEAH, HEMLOCK IS DEAD!!! [Tears of relief combined with grief over Scorch]
• I’m so glad Omega hugged Crosshair first. I fully expected her to just run to Hunter, and Crosshair needed that hug.
• Echo’s goodbye was disrespectful. 0/10. He’s family and they don’t even care that he’s leaving???
• SOMEONE IS MISSING FROM OUR NICE LITTLE GROUP SHOT!
• I never really got super invested in the dynamic between Omega and Hunter, but the ending between them was cute I guess.
• We were robbed. We could’ve gotten Crosshair and Wrecker as old men and we were robbed.
• Tech is dead. Like, seriously, really and truly, dead. As a delusional “Tech’s alive guys, trust me” fan, it feels like he just died all over again. I’ll talk more about this later because I’m not over it. [Que sob-fest]
alright, circling back around to my main gripes, in order of appearance:
#1. Scorch.
I hate how they handled him. At first when he showed up I got super excited. That was my boy! In the Bad Batch show!! He’s making an appearance!!! Maybe they’ll do something with the Delta boys!!
Even as the episodes went on and I started to suspect where his path was leading, I consistently would go “Scorch!!! <3” every episode, because that is my boy and I love him dearly.
The levels of offended I am on Scorch’s behalf are not within my ability to express with words. The complete and utter disrespect he was shown over his time on the show is appalling. Why bring him in if you’re going to drain him of all his personality, make him have zero plot relevance, and then murder him?! They could easily have made a new clone for that, as seen by the number of operatives who exist and got 0.5 minutes of screen time.
But no. They brought in a beloved character with 10 seconds of canonical screen time prior, stripped him of everything that made him lovable, didn’t even have him DO ANYTHING, and then murdered him. It feels like a spit in the face and a kick to the gut all at once.
I will mourn. I’ve already cried and I’ll probably cry again. But right now I’m angry and I think Scorch deserves to have people be angry about how he was treated.
#2. Tech
Yes. I admit to having been a “trust me guys, Tech’s alive” person. I will also admit that at the end of episode 13 I wanted him to stay dead because I had zero faith they could satisfactorily bring him back.
My gripe is not with him staying dead. Yes, it feels like losing him all over again. Yes, I will mourn him again. Yes. That sucks. It’s not what’s making me mad.
What makes me mad is how his death was handled.
• It served ZERO purpose narratively other than to up the stakes and make us worry about whether anyone else would die (Spoiler alert: They didn’t. Tech was the only one who died) • Nobody mourned him. No one seemed affected by his death at all. No one cared. I don’t care what anyone says, that will NEVER be okay. • The first actual mention of Tech *dying* was in the finale. Sure, we’ve had name drops and goggle appearances, but actually talking about what happened? One line. One. Freaking. Line.
I feel like I’ve been slapped in the face, you know? He deserved better and so did we. He was a part of that family and they couldn’t even be bothered to address the responses to his death. He was beloved by many of us and they couldn’t even respect him or his fans enough to treat his death like something to be mourned.
That’s wrong, no matter how you look at it.
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knight-a3 · 2 days
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Now we're getting into the realm of OCs. To preface, I was strongly inspired by THIS COMIC. I was also playing with an alternate face design for Random in a couple of these.
Anyway, this is Smokestack!
More below.
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I started drawing @mfdragon 's OC, then kept making my own alterations until he became mine. I researched steam-powered locomotives for this y'all. I'll explain in a minute.
Final tidbit of context: I was playing with an alternate design for the Random face, just so it matched the other two a bit more. How I feel about it goes back and forth. I like Random's OG design, but it's just so different from the others that is doesn't quite fit in.
Okay, ramblings and train info dump under the cut. Get ready to learn stuff you never cared about.
So basically, the idea is that an allspark fragment brought some old abandoned steam engine to life. Like in the comic, it used Blitzwing as a blueprint, so Smokestack is the first naturally occurring triple changer. Which also means he doesn't suffer the same mental instability as the previous triple changers, he's just naive in a similar way that Wreck-Gar is. He is neither Decepticon nor Autobot. He's too sweet to be a Con, but he's too loyal to his "Dad" to be an Autobot. He's also full of train facts.
Time for trains info dump! Disclaimer, I'm not at all an expert and I am simplifying.
In the steam era, each locomotive was custom-made, so there weren't any industrial standard models or anything. Different companies had different classing systems at different times. I tried to figure it out once and gave up. Instead, steam engines are categorized by their wheel arrangements. There are leading wheels, driving wheels, and trailing wheels. The driving wheels are the only required ones cuz those are the ones that move it. The leading and trailing wheels are for stabilization and weight distribution. Different arrangements were better for different things, such as freight vs passenger. I don't know the science behind which ones were good at what.
The kind of trains that built the transcontinental railroad were 4-4-0 configurations, commonly called "American Standard" due to their prevalence during the westward expansion. They had two sets(four total) of leading wheels, two sets of driving wheels, and no trailing wheels. Like: <••⊙⊙]▣□□□ They're little guys.
The single most produced type of steam engine was the 2-8-0 "Consolidation". <••⊙⊙⊙⊙]▣□□□□ It was a good multi-purpose design. So I chose to make Smokestack 2-8-0 because it gave me the most wiggle room for when and where I wanted him to originally be manufactured and in service. By making him a random abandoned one, I didn't have to think about what museum pieces could be in the Detroit area (Nobody but me would care, but I got hung up on that for some reason).
Anyway, when he only has one vehicle mode, Smokestack is his original 2-8-0. Once he upgrades to having two alts, he becomes a 4-8-8-4 "Big Boy" <••⊙⊙⊙⊙-⊙⊙⊙⊙••]▣□□□□, which is LARGE. 16 driving wheels, which are at least as tall as a person! The purpose was to have enough power to handle the steep grades in the Rocky Mountains and similarly difficult terrain with heavy loads. These days, rail companies will just hook up multiple diesel engines to the train to get the needed power. There is only one currently functional Big Boy type train, which occasionally does tours. It came by my place on the anniversary of the transcontinental railroad in 2019, but I didn't understand trains enough to properly appreciate it.
Next, I'll be getting into drawing other characters, and making human designs.
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ragingadhd · 16 hours
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Will and Alyss are trans here’s my essay
We talk a lot about how funny it is that Flanagan unintentionally wrote the gayest love story between Halt and Crowley in TEY, but holy shit we don’t talk enough about how he also managed to accidentally write the two most trans characters ever.
Alyss and Will being trans is a semi-popular headcanon that’s been in the fandom for ages now, but I haven’t seen many people really dive into why this headcanon is so prevalent. I think that partially has to do with the fact that, like any lgbtq+ identity, it’s pretty difficult to clock someone as trans without relying on trans stereotypes. Really, any character in the RA series could be trans if you chose to believe it since being trans doesn’t look any certain way. That being said, I do think there are some pretty clear qualities and experiences that Will and Alyss have that feel very close to my own experience with being transgender.
Physical appearance is usually the first thing people point out/notice when talking about this headcanon. Will is short, more so than one might expect from a cis man. Alyss is taller than most men and also has a deep voice. I have mixed feelings about people pointing to this as the only reason they think they’re trans. I mean, it makes enough sense for it to be the only reason since one part of being trans is the fact that one’s body doesn’t match their gender identity. What I don’t like about that being the only reason is that there’s so much more to the trans identity and experience than “body don’t match :(“
But that’s the cool thing about Will and Alyss, their physical appearance effects their perception of themselves the same way it does for a trans person (or a cis person really, but it feels much more prevalent in trans people). In the first book, Will is clearly uncomfortable with his height; almost any time it’s brought up, he replies with “I haven’t had my growth spurt yet”, almost defensively. Then, as Will becomes more comfortable with who he is, you can see it bother him less and less. I love this bc it’s exactly what happened with my dysphoria as I transitioned. The more I got to know myself and discover myself, the less my dysphoria bothered me.
As for Alyss, she is so clearly so confident with her appearance. She never tries to hide her height or voice. Although we don’t get to see her journey with those qualities, the way she’s so confident feels like something the earned. It’s something she maybe used to feel insecure about, then decided she gets to decide what femininity means to her. Her height and voice contribute to her elegance and femininity rather than contradict them.
Another thing about Will is his name and how it relates to his identity. I know Flanagan didn’t intend for any of this to be some trans allegory, but goddamn can I relate my trans experience to it. Will grew up without a last name, and you can see how deeply that effects him. It wasn’t just that he was “Will no-name”, he was missing a part of his identity. Hell, he said verbatim “at least you know who you are” to a fucking owl because he felt so confused and unheard (which btw is the most edgy teen thing he ever did).
Though you can see this missing part of his identity bother him less as he gained a support system, it’s still clear that he felt like something was missing. If he didn’t feel like something was missing, he wouldn’t have been so incredibly happy when he became “Will Treaty”. And when he got his last name, you can tell he’s proud, not because he finally has an identity, but because he finally has a name to match the identity he’s spent so long discovering and cultivating. He no longer expresses any sadness or grief that he doesn’t have his father’s last name, because he doesn’t need it to know who he is. He’s Will Treaty, and he’s perfectly happy with being exactly that. This is the most trans-coded naming experience holy shit.
Anyway that’s all I have to say about this (for now at least). Go give your local trans friend a kiss.
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bettertwin1 · 2 days
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Hi, old follower here from before you had 100 followers. I've got a semi serious question for you.
When I first followed you, I got the impression that you were a RP blog, in the case where you would RP with your "brother" (bettertwin9000), so I followed the rules as such. But later on it seems that this blog is your persona? In terms of everything said to this blog is a personal question to you? It's a weird situation where people asking those intrusive questions make sense for a RP blog, but in a normal blog situation it makes it intrusive.
Tldr, I think many are confused if this is an RP blog or you having Leo as your persona, so can you confirm what this blog actually is?
OMG HI LONG TIME FOLLOWER!!
And, for the sake of things making a little bit of sense, as much as sense as we can manage, keep in mind that we have OSDD, we're a system-
PUTTING IT UNDER CUT CAUSE IT'S LONG 😅
At the start of the blog <- in which we were advertising it as a roleplay blog, it was being run by our host and partially by me though I had no clue what I was doing at the time and bettertwin9000 was being run by our partner <- (which btw, made for some strange asks)
We continued advertising it as a roleplay even when we began suspecting and having full breakdowns over the idea of being a system due to some little things and some big things and lots of research and therapy and blah blah BUT we kept going back on it cause tbh DID is a hard thing to accept and we didn't want it <- still don't
SO now I was trying to run the blog more all the while trying to keep us grounded, IGNORING the possibility of DID and thinking, nah, this is just a really bad cause of delusions and we NEED to get reality checked NOW.
But I ALREADY KNEW i'm not REALLY Leo from rottmnt, but I am him, I was formed from that guy, created? Idk. He made me in his own image type reference audio. WOW IM NOT EXPLAINING ANYTHING 😭😭 did I mention we have a tendency to overexplain <- but specifically for me in the case of explaining things that are hard to explain, ANYWHIZZLE.
We kept going back and forth, confirming and denying the conclusion "we have osdd" cause that's terrifying and while this was happening I was still trying to force us to post and interact and involve ourself in arcs for the sake of distraction from EVERYTHING happening irl and the blog kind of made it worse but in a light hearted way cause suddenly the asks became really gross, and I felt really gross.
Sure, maybe someone who was roleplaying Leonardo would have no trouble answering asks about dead relatives or near death experiences or villains that have physically harmed you and your 'siblings' or about my crippling inability to speak about feelings and whatever else people diagnosed me with on here but I was having trouble answering it, I was getting uncomfortable and I was feeling genuinely overwhelmed because everything that definitely would be great material for a roleplay account was making me just feel, bad. <- which wasn't great considering at the time, feeling bad was not something i could have been affording to do
SO at some point, I started putting boundaries, didn't explain why, just continued under the guise of hey, roleplay guy here, the intruvsive invasive asks about my family and my mental health and my anatomy is making me want to die so please stop andbonly ask fun stuff like idk, if i put salt in donnie's coffee sometimes and everyone was like, yes leonardo in unison.
Then I slowly started getting more adamant on pushing the narrative that I am LITERALLY Leo from the show cause pushing that seemed to really help with the questions, and then the roleplay blog became more like. A personal blog for some dude who happened to be a ninja turtle alter and it'd unfortunately gotten so out of hand that explaining this now kind of made us even more exhausted cause oh man, we might get fake claimed huh <- we had worse things to deal with, internet drama didn't need to be added to this.
Anyway, if you read through all that junk, i'm sorry 😭, but i think it helps explain why the impression of the blog is so confusing cause it was being run by two ppl, a host and an alter who were constantly trying NOT to be those things until pretty recently when we started accepting the fact that we have Osdd
SO TIMELINE.
The blog starts off as an rp blog by our host and I unbeknownst to us both
The blog is fun and we start gaining traction
We also start gaining more mental health problems and have a full breakdown multiple times on many different social medias
We push through to cope
We talk to the other blog runners who are systems <- (Mikey, Raph and at the time when their account was apart of this, April) and they kindly answer and guide us through some things
We start adding boundaries for my sake
We talk to other systems on other social media and they help us with more stuff
We talk to our therapist
We do a ton of research on top of old research we'd apparently already done before <- suddenly we have a long document with so much information
We tell no one about the discovery when we start accepting the possibility
More funny stuff ensue and personal life things happen <- #ONLYTHEREALONESKNOW!
The only announcement I ever make that i'm an alter are one off comments in tags or answers that I never address again until I make an intro post that says I'm an alter in a system
The blog is what now?
The blog is still a roleplay account. Sometimes, canceled arcs that we would have done would have been considered roleplay <- a canceled christmas arc. But usually, this is just a blog. Like, this is just a blog I use to entertain people and to get some of my thoughts out like a singlet would. It's both i guess, it's whatever I want it to be and whatever you guys consider it to be.
The blog is just, my blog, I don't know how else to explain it 😅😅
Also, Bettertwin9000 was pretty much going through the same thing at the time and fun fact, he is actually my "brother" cause he's a Donnie alter <- (yay!)
Shoutout to the host who has their own blogs that they never really post on! couldn't have done it without you! <- and the many kind individuals who gave us their research material and links and answered our questions and stuck w/ us through the most confusing part of OUR LIFE
Srry again if this didn't answer your question like at all by the way, i THINK it at least explained some things but you know 😭 SORRY IDK
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vodika-vibes · 2 days
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„What’s your ideal type?“ „you“ + Prudii pretty please with a cherry on top 🥹🙏🏻
Come With Me
Summary: You’ve been crushing on Prudii for an embarrassingly long time. And you’ve finally decided to do something about it.
Pairing: Prudii Skirata x Reader
Word Count: 1261
Warnings: None
Tagging: @trixie2023 @n0vqni @imabeautifulbutterfly
A/N: This is another request that's been sitting in my inbox since before christmas! I'm so sorry it took me so long to get to, and I hope you're still around, nonny!
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“Long day?” You ask as you peek around Prudii’s shoulder with a small grin on your face, “You look exhausted.”
Prudii flashes a small smile as he leans back against the bench, “It has been a long day. So many things to do. So much paperwork.” He shakes his head and pats the bench next to him, to invite you to sit down, “How about you? I haven’t seen you in a couple of days.”
“Oh, well. You know how it is.” You shrug as you drop onto the bench next to him, “I had to make all of the arrangements for my grandparents to get moved into that new Nursing Home, because you know my parents weren’t going to do it-”
“Ah, so that’s where you’ve been.”
You hold you hands out to the side as you shake your head, “Honestly, I had to go through the court system to get power of attorney for them, good thing that my family hasn’t been subtle in how they’ve been taking advantage of my grandparents.”
“I still think that you should have just thrown me and my brothers at the problem.”
“Honestly, you and your brothers do so much for me already, I couldn’t put this on you. Besides, my family, my responsibility.” You grin at him, “At this point, I’m pretty sure I already owe Kal my first born for all the help he’s given me in dealing with this.”
Prudii laughs, “Kal-Buir has been a great help to you, hasn’t he?”
“That lawyer he got for me is a shark. I’ve never been so impressed in my life.”
Prudii laughs again, and a small smile lifts your lips. It’s nice to talk to him, after all of the stress of the last couple of months. “Anyway,” You say after a moment, before you do something foolish like confess your love for him, “What are you up to today?”
“Well, I was thinking of hitting the hiking trail.” Prudii admits, “but hiking alone is no fun, and none of my brothers are available.”
“I’m free.” You offer, probably too quickly, given the fact that you hate hiking and nature.
Prudii shifts and throws his arm over the back of the bench as he turns to look at you, “You?”
“Yeah.”
“You hate hiking. And nature. And being outside.”
“Maybe I’ve grown as a person.”
“Uh-huh.” He replies doubtfully.
“I could have!”
“You’re going to be miserable. It’s hot, and there are spiders-”
“Well….well, I’m wearing shorts,” You counter defensively, “And you can protect me from the spiders.”
A sly smile crosses his face and he leans in so that his face is a lot closer to yours, pulling a startled squeak from your lips, “You know, you can just say that you want to spend time with me. I won’t judge you.”
You narrow your eyes at him, “That’s very arrogant of you, Prudii Skirata.”
He smirks, “I’m waiting~” Prudii says in a sing-song voice.
A huff falls from your lips and you fold your arms, “Fine. I would like to spent time with you, Prudii.”
“There we go, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”
“It was as painful as pulling teeth.” You sniff.
He laughs and tosses his arm over your shoulder, tugging you into his side, “You’re so dramatic.”
“Dramatic? Me? I would never-”
“Sure, sure.” He grins down at your face, “So, since we’re going to be spending time together, I got a question for you.”
“Oh?”
He pauses, “Eh, I’ll ask you later.”
You sputter at him, “I...you...You’re impossible! You can’t just say that and then change your mind!”
“Can and did! Come on, angel. We’re going hiking! With spiders. And Wasps! Isn’t that exciting?” He gets to his feet, dragging you with him.
“See, now I think you’re doing this on purpose.”
“Oh, absolutely.” He keeps his arm thrown over your shoulder, “But, you already agreed. So, no take-backs.”
“Ugh, what are you, five?”
“Thirteen, actually.”
You sigh, “That joke is never funny.”
“That joke is hilarious.” Prudii corrects as he starts walking you away from the park and towards the hiking trail, “You just don’t have a sense of humor.”
“I have a sense of humor, you just aren’t funny.”
“Ooh. Ouch. You’re not pulling your punches today, are you angel?” He looks amused though.
“Do you need me to?”
“Nah, I can take whatever you can dish.”
You glance at him for a moment, and then avert your gaze. Damn him and his stupid charm and his even more stupid smile-
“Well that’s good. I’d hate to hurt your feelings.” You murmur lightly.
“Ah, you could never.” His arm tightens around your shoulders, as he brings you to the sign board that indicates the various trails. “Lets see...we want...Ah, this one.”
“That hiking trail is 10 miles long.” You say flatly.
“It’s good exercise.”
“There isn’t even a path for half of it!”
“Don’t worry, angel. I won’t let you get hurt. And I won’t let us get lost.” Prudii downloads the map to his comm, and then tugs you to the start of the path, “Trust me.” He adds with a grin.
“I do trust you. Just, this is going to take forever.”
“It’ll be great. There’s a stop about a mile in where we can buy water and food, so you won’t have to worry about that.” He flashes a small grin at you, “Regretting your decision yet?
You scowl at him, “No.”
“Good.”
It’s about an hour later, when the pair of you are well on the path that Prudii picked, that he picks up the line of conversation that he started well before you started the hike, “So, angel,” He says as he helps you down off a large rock, “Got a boyfriend yet?”
“Please. As if I had the time for that.” You set your hands on his shoulders as he lifts you down from the rock and sets you on your feet next to him, “Besides, I’m undatable, remember?”
“Yeah, the opinions of assholes are worthless, angel.” Prudii counters with a roll of his eyes, “You definitely shouldn’t take the words of your ex as fact.”
“It’s not like I have a line of potential suitors, Prudii.” You say with your own eye roll.
“Well then, what’s your ideal type?”
You hesitate, just for a moment, before you throw all caution to the wind, “You.” Your answer is a little hesitant, not sure that he’d appreciate your answer.
Prudii blinks at you. Once, twice, three times. “Me?”
“Please don’t make this a thing-” You start, but you’re not able to finish as his lips crash against yours. His kiss is so forceful that you nearly topple backwards, though his arms settle securely around you.
“Oh thank Kriff, I thought you had a thing for Ordo.” Prudii breathes out against your lips, “And I was planning on telling you all of the horrible things I know about him-”
You blink at him, “I...were you jealous?” You ask, incredulously.
“Yes. Kriff yes. So kriffing jealous.” He kisses you again, and again.
“...and now?” You ask softly.
“Now, I’m so happy I think I might burst…and I owe Ordo an apology for blackening his eye.”
“You...what?”
He smiles sheepishly, “I was a lot jealous. I’ll talk to him about it.”
“He’s going to break your nose.”
“...yeah. Oh well, worth it! Because I can do this now.” His lips are on yours again in a matter of moments, and you melt against him. This is all you’ve ever wanted, after all.
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tellnotalespod · 16 hours
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TNT S1 E1 - Not For Long came out on 2nd May 2022, which means Tell No Tales turns two today!
(and if we're being honest, TNT being in the terrible twos explains a lot about how emotionally fraught it's been recently)
Going ahead with this show is the best decision I've ever made, and it changed my life for the better. I'm so incredibly grateful for this community for welcoming me in 💜
I got a little nostalgic and found an old voice note (from almost three years ago!) that's posted under the cut. I sent this to Michaela (one of our ghostie VAs) almost immediately after having the idea for the show. It's edited a lil to keep it down to a reasonable length, because much like Leo Quinn, I sure can Yap.
[Image ID: A whatsapp voice note sent by me, followed by another message by me that reads "oh I think I've decided the name of the main character is going to be Leo, bc hell if I'm going to do this completely self-serving project for no other reason than the enjoyment of creating it then I'm damn well gonna use the name I'd use if I ever decide to change to a more masc sounding name." The following messages sent by Michaela on 4 July 2021 are sent in quick succession, "omggggggggg yesssss" "I want to listen to thisss" "I am 100% happy to help" "I love this idea" "so much" "pls do it" /.End ID]
Note: audio quality changes around a lot because I was, I think, dyeing my hair at the time
Voice note transcript:
 I have a… an idea. And it might be really stupid and it will probably never come to anything. However, I'm really excited about it. So... hear me out (LAUGHS). My idea is, uh, I want to write a podcast about an ex-employee of a ghost hunting company, and the- the basis of the podcast is... I literally just had this like half baked thought like five minutes ago, so bear with me while I talk this through. This character works for a quite renowned institute, company, whatever, organization that hunts ghosts. Uh, they destroy the ghosts whenever they're called to it, but the main character is starting to get suspicious of the fact that some of the ghosts that they're called to don't necessarily seem violent, and some of them are completely harmless and they just want to exist and so they have been working on a recording system that can capture the voices of ghosts. And they start off as an assistant to like the head of this company, but they're already starting to feel complicit in what they're becoming kind of more and more aware is potentially a very evil operation. And it's gonna alternate between like their their notes and the recordings of interviews with ghosts that they are sent to hunt, but don't. They sit down and they get their life story instead and then either leave them be or try to help them move on peacefully or whatever. And there's gonna be a bit of a, like a, an overarching plot in that the organization that they work for is corrupt, but not in the way that they think. And I'm thinking the main character is trying to, like, capture enough evidence, basically, before they can quit this organization- t hat's, that's, that's their intention, is they want to make sure that this recording system is completely functional. They want to capture enough evidence of completely harmless ghosts. They want to have like a huge backlog of stuff to use against the head of this company, and to do that, to have access to ghosts and all of that kind of stuff, they have to continue working for it, which they hate, but that's the only way that they see themselves being able to achieve good in the long run. So, the first season is going to be them, like, trying to work on this project in secret while you get glimpses of the boss doing some, like, shady shit. And like... who's to say that I need to finish my novel this month anyway? You know?? But fuck it, this is... I'm really excited about this, so I'm gonna give it a shot.
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Stolas & Loona should have friends
(something I feel would work well for their characters)
I feel like Loona's and Stolas' character would really benefit from giving them friendships. Relationships that could help to humanize them, make them more sympathetic or help to develop/change them as people.
For Loona it makes sense to go into that direction because this huge part of her character is dealing with the fact that she grew up sheltered and never had someone who really cared for her. Blitzø is the first real parental figure she has in her life and she is often pretty cruel to him because she never learned to interact with others who genuinely wanted to be kind to her.
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I think giving her more of a social life and potential friendships like we kinda got to see in the Beelzebub episode is something they are working up to with her character, though I find it weird that we didn't really get to see her in the new s2 trailer (or in any of the last 5 episodes for that matter). It seems like Loona wont have any focus on her which is dissapointing because right now her character is in a state where she is still pretty unlikable and comes off as just rude more often.
The show had three good opportunities to give Loona someone to be friends with. First one was Tex which didn't work out because she had a crush on him and even after meeting his girlfriend being defensive and jealous rather than realizing that maybe they'd be better as just friends. Second one could've been Beelzebub (if you ignore the fact that she's the one organizing the pounds for hellhounds) but she is Tex's girlfriend so Loona immediately doesn't like her. And lastly Loona and Octavia, who they were kinda setting up as having a sister-like bond in "Seeing Stars".
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But Loona and Octavia have never interacted after that as far as we know. Like I said, Loona basically hasn't shown up in a relevant way for 5 episodes now. It could've been small stuff even. Like maybe in "Western energy" instead of having the stupid nursery subplot it could've just been mentioned that Loona and Octavia are hanging out while Stolas is on his meeting with Stella and Andrealphus. Or just see them chilling together in the background of some episodes.
Giving Loona friends would give her someone she could share her feelings with and that could make her less toxic because she can get her emotions out in a non destructive way. She needs someone who isn't Blitzø, someone who is closer to her in age and someone who will understand her and help her with socializing. And in my opinion that someone shouldn't necessarily be a love interest either. We already have so many romantic/sexual relationships in HB and rarely see relevant friendships which I think is a huge missed opportunity, especially in Loonas case.
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And for Stolas, giving him a friend would maybe show more of the sympathetic aspects of his character. Right now I don't like Stolas at all and I don't see a reason to either. He forced Blitzø into a sexual relationship so he can do his job and then starts to whine about Blitzø not loving him back. Knowingly or not, he made great use of hells classist system and basically neglects his daughter as well in the process (though the show will tell you that he actually cares a lot despite us not really seeing that on screen).
What pisses me off most about his character is that they don't acknowledge him being a terrible person. I don't care if he's bad as long as the show doesn't try to woobify him out of nowhere. If they pointed out what he does and he would recieve consequences that aren't treated as unfair or mean i'd like him a lot more because then they could also genuinely show him becoming a better person. A characterization similar to Rex Splode from Invincible would really do wonders for him (I've only watched the show for Invincible so I dont know if/how they move his character forward, but so far I really like it).
Anyways, giving him a friend or something could also help. HB tries to make a big point about people having layers and showing that someone who does harmful stuff can still have sympathetic sides to them. Stolas' problem is, that the only focus he ever gets is in relationships where he is acting bad. I already mentioned how he treats Blitzø and with how hard they're pushing them as a couple they're showing Stolas to be pretty terrible in retrospective. We also don't really get to see how hard he apparently cares for Octavia. Giving him a relationship that shows the sympathetic sides to his character could be done by making his relationship with Octavia be actually good. Like showing them hanging out, actively interacting in positive ways and basically making him a great dad but bad partner sort of guy. Giving him a friend would also work as I said. Maybe Asmodeus could've been that or just a new character. Something that makes him more sympathetic because we get to see a positive side to him with how he cares for this other person.
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I really hope they put some focus on Loona again because I kinda care for her and I think dealing with what she has going on could be nice and cute. And for Stolas idk. It might already be too late to make me not dislike him. He is just way too far into being victimized already for me to assume that i will sympathize with him anytime soon.
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tei-to-tei · 10 months
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if Splinter had found an abandoned April, back when she was just a baby
Short story under cut:
Of all the things he had been expecting to encounter on his way back from scavenging for food and supplies, a human baby was not considered. Not at all. Large, doe-like brown eyes stared back up at him from the bundle of blankets within the wicker basket. The child was unnaturally quiet, as if waiting for him to turn away and leave just as whoever had left her alone had.
For a moment, he debated on walking away.
He barely had enough to care for his four sons, still waiting for him at home.
He barely had enough to care for himself.
But he knew.
Hamato Yoshi knew just how much it hurt to be left alone.
So, although he couldn't promise her much, Splinter would promise to give her a loving home.
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furiouskettle · 7 months
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grabs the monster au and runs
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sensitiveheartless · 8 months
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(The rest is under the readmore!)
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(Next part) ->
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2hoothoots · 2 years
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based (unfortunately) on a true story
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