#if not then the sitting function might have to be axed

[bunnieswithknives]

WORKING MOVING CAR IN MINECRAFT I AM SO FUKCING SMART!!!

#minecraft #minecraft command blocks #minecraft creation #command block are hard man #minecraft commands #minecraft community #dhmis #don't hug me i'm scared #this took me forever #obviously the final version wont force you to input a command for every block you wanna move #but I was too excited not to share #currently theres a problem where if you try to sit down while the car is moving you fall through the floor and get stuck lol #so ill have to see if I can fix that lol #if not then the sitting function might have to be axed #which would suck but oh well

[zzzzombieboy]

what do you think about that idea?

Resident Evil 4, but instead of saving the president's daughter, Leon has to save the president's son.

You could add that it isn’t the first time that Leon was sent to save reader because he just does not give a shit about the fact that as the president's son, he’s an obvious target for people who want to harm the country. And secretly he likes that Leon is always chasing after him. But this time is different, it’s more brutal and he actually realizes that he might not make it out alive. Leon saves him but the journey through the village is far from over and they have a lot more time together than the last few times.

Reader is clearly interested in Leon and doesn’t really keep it a secret much to Leon’s displease because a relationship or even the slightest rumor about them having a relationship or something else than a professional one could ruin his job and cause a whole scandal. Plus the president would never allow it, but now they’re in this village with no one who can control what they do and it takes a while before they get out of there. Reader is being held hostage in the village's church. But instead of waiting to be saved, he frees himself, grabs something that could function as a weapon, and tries to fight his way through. And he actually manages to take down a few people (could impress Leon) but soon gets captured again and taken back to the church. Then Leon comes in and saves him - they make a run for it and explore the village together. At some point reader gets pushed into the water with the big fish and after Leon helps him out they need to find a place to rest and to warm reader up.

sweet yes i do like this

Leon Kennedy x M!Reader

It was cold, dark, and empty. Y/N had been through his fair share of captivity situations, but this was just plain cruel. He was locked in this barren room, a few guards muttering on the outside. As much as he loved playing damsel in distress, this was getting boring. Wasn’t much else to do then lie around and hope the next footsteps were going to be a knight in shining armor. He wanted to take it into his own hands.

Y/N wasn’t restrained whatsoever. He was free to walk around, to scream, whatever he liked. He got up off of the floor he was sitting on and began to wander. Looking around, Y/N could see some things that he could use to his advantage. There were very few things, but he did see a very dull axe hooked into a barrel in the far corner. He thought it was stupid of them to leave a weapon to his disposal, but he wasn’t complaining. He stood up and gripped his hands around the wooden handle. He had to give it a few tugs, but eventually it fell out. He grinned.

It was heavy, but he could handle it. He was a pretty strong man, despite the fact that it seems he can be lifted up and carried to whatever captor of the month. He held the axe in his grasp before looking around the room for more things that could be to his benefit.

A window. It was covered by wooden boards, but that’s nothing. He walked over to it, the floorboards under him creaking with each step. He lifted his axe up and plunged it into the panels. He swung over and over until they finally cracked. He had an escape.

He bent the boards to the sides so he could at least fit himself through, looking out over the horizon. He was at least two stories high up and there were shards of glass on the ground from the window he just broke. He could live with a sprained ankle, as long as he could get out of here. He took in a deep breath, backing up away from the window and prepping his stance.

“Y/N?!”

He heard a call. It was familiar. It came from outside the window, to which he was immediately going to check. Nobody here had called him by his name yet, so this was a surprise. He leaned back out the window, looking all around the paths and into the graveyard. Standing in a compression shirt and pounds of gear at his waist was his actual knight in shining armor.

Leon Kennedy. Oh, Leon. To say that Y/N had a crush on him was an understatement. He was absolutely head over heels for this guy. It was unfortunate that it would be taboo for them to be together. He thinks about that every single night. Leon was assigned to Y/N’s detail not too long ago, after it keeps coming out that Y/N is completely reckless and doesn’t have any regard for his status.

“Leon?” Y/N yelled back, leaning back through the window with a slight smile twinging on the side of his face. “Shit man, how’s it going?” he joked, Leon continuing to approach the church cautiously. He had wiped out most of the villagers that would hear him yelling at the top of his lungs, but he still needed to be careful of the people inside.

He let out a little huff through his nose, hand over his gun. “It’s going.” he replied. “Alright, uh,” He looked around again before holding out his arms. “Think you can make it down here?”

Y/N squinted. “Like jump?” he asked. He peered over the windowsill, taking another look at how high the fall would be. It seemed like it was a lot deeper than before. He took in a sharp breath and held it in his cheeks. “I don’t-“

A board creaked behind him. His entire body flipped itself around as he looked for the noise. In front of him were two men in cloaks, the same guys that put him here in the first place. He let out a loud yelp as they continued to walk closer. He wasn’t going to sit there this time.

He plunged his arm down and grabbed back onto his axe. He cranked his arm back, throwing it forward and sticking one of them in the chest. The man collapsed to the floor, and slowly bubbled up into this weird looking tar-substance. It made Y/N want to barf.

His axe laying on the floor again, just as he was about to get grabbed by one of the cloaked men, he dodged. The man tumbled over his feet a little bit, which gave him the chance to grab the weapon. He reached down and tracked around the man, watching as he began to find his balance again. Once he had found his footing, Y/N took his shot. He swung his axe by the side and left it halfway through the man’s neck. Blood splattered across his face, letting out a shocked choke. He watched the man collapse, falling back down to the floor. Y/N looked down, all he could see was the tar. He gagged, the smell being completely overtaking. He turned back to the window.

Leon was slightly worried, hearing the hacking noises, but was relieved to see Y/N still standing. “Catch me.” he called, sliding his legs over the windowsill. He wasn’t going to make a huge leap for it like Leon, he was going to slip down and pray to god that his legs won’t be broken by the time he reaches the ground. Leon let a small smile creep at the side of his mouth, leaning his arms out.

Y/N swallowed tightly, feeling his chest tighten. He always had a big fear of heights, but he trusted Leon. He pushed himself off the wood, feeling a sudden sinking feeling as he started to fall through the air. He let out a small yell, but soon enough found himself in Leon’s arms. It was comfy.

Leon let out a soft grunt while catching Y/N, his knees somewhat buckling before he set him down. Y/N dusted off his legs, making sure that his clothes were in order. He was a man of status, after all. “Thanks for saving me.” he uttered, looking back up to Leon with a meek smile. He felt a little bad that had to come all the way out into nowhere just to save him, and the fact that both of them could die at a given point. Leon shrugged it off.

“I don’t mind. It’s become a weekly thing, might as well enjoy it.” He joked, letting out a small huff from his nose as he looked around for a path they could make their getaway with. Y/N rolled his eyes playfully, stretching out his arms. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever.” he looked away.

Leon glanced back at Y/N. “It kinda seems like you’re trying to get caught just so I can save you.” He offered, intending it to be ironic, but he was pretty close to the truth. Y/N didn’t outwardly try to get kidnapped obviously, but he didn’t fight back as hard as he could, and he knows it. Leon began to step down a rocky path, Y/N following close behind him like a dog. He snickered. “What can I say, I like getting rescued by a handsome man with arms bigger than my head.” he replied. Leon looked back at Y/N with a slight sigh.

“Y/N..” He began, bringing his hand up to his face. He wasn’t exactly against the whole flirty thing that they have, but Leon has gotten a more than stern talking to from his boss, who is the president. He wasn’t gonna risk that again. Y/N shoved his hands into his pockets. “Sorry, sorry. I just, we’re in the middle of nowhere, y’know? I didn’t see the harm.” he answered, trying to apologize but also defend himself. Leon shook it off.

He brushed his hair out of his face. “It’s alright. But I still got this thing,” he pointed to the chip in his ear. “Listening in.” he explained. Y/N stepped up closer and stared at it. It was blinking red on and off. He squinted at it before turning back to Leon. “It looks dead.” he mumbled. Leon furrowed his brows. “What?” He asked, pulling out the black plastic chunk. He also noticed that light. He threw his head back, letting out a loud grunt. “God damn it.” he muttered. Y/N gave him a slight smile. “Seems like nobody can hear us now.” he nudged Leon.

Leon felt his heart falter a little bit, looking back to Y/N. He knew he couldn’t go against his orders. “Yeah, but I also can’t get any orders now.” he said, dismissing Y/N’s comment. Y/N let his shoulders relax, taking his hands out of his pockets. “Oh no, looks like you’re stuck with me forever.” he spat, his tone slightly snide as a smile spread back across his face. Leon rolled his eyes. “I’ll have to go across that lake, they might have something I could use to communicate there.” he uttered, talking to himself. Y/N furrowed his brows, one hand being placed on his upper arm. “What lake?” he asked.

The two turned a corner, in almost perfect timing. They had made their way out of the brush and were standing in front of a wide view of the body of water, the sun shining off of it almost blinding. “That one.” replied Leon. Y/N laughed softly. The dirt that they were walking on had slowly turned into wooden ply, creaking every time they took a step on it. Y/N was not a big fan of it.

He could feel his heart beat rise every single time his foot hit the floor. He had to swallow his pride for a little bit. “Can I hold onto you? This is freaking me out.” He blurted, looking to Leon with a nervous expression. Leon looked back at him with a brow perked up. He first thought that it was just a ploy so that Y/N could hold onto him, but he looked genuinely anxious. He would’ve said yes either way, though.

Leon offered his arm out, which Y/N was quick to cling to. They were close together now, close enough that they could feel each others body heat. Leon flickered his eyes back and forth between where he was walking and Y/N’s face, seeming to be occupied by both. Y/N kept his eyes at the ground, trying his best not to look over the edge of the boards, where you could see how steep a fall it was.

It was mainly silent as they found their way around the walkway, Y/N occasionally mumbling some comment about how close they were, Leon dismissing it but going insane over it internally. He didn’t mind the comments all that much, Y/N was a pretty good looking guy, and charming, but he wanted to keep his job, so he had to make some tough choices. He just had to ignore Y/N’s advances, no matter how badly he wanted to give in.

Once they had found their way back to land, they were stood in front of a dock with a boat. A lamp swung above it hanging on a pole, and the boat was big enough to fit the two of them, thank god. Y/N smiled, still holding onto Leon’s arm. “Wanna go for a swim?” he asked, his brows bouncing. Leon breathed from his nose, slithering his arm out of Y/N’s grasp.

“With the zombie fish? No thank you.” Leon replied, stepping towards the boat. It had a key in it already, which he was thankful for. He didn’t give it more than a second before he hopped in, looking at Y/N, waiting for him to follow suit.

He followed reluctantly. “There’s zombie fish?” asked Y/N, sitting down on the seat across from Leon. Leon shrugged, giving the keys a turn. “Who knows. I’m not planning on finding out.” he turned it again. With that, the engine roared, practically shaking the whole boat. Y/N let out a small yelp and grabbed onto the bench, watching Leon as he grabbed onto the steer.

The boat began to move, creating mesmerizing waves in its wake. Y/N stared at it. He loved oceans and lakes, he loved swimming and all that. It was too bad that he couldn’t go swimming now. He had noticed though, the waves were getting much bigger in an irregular pattern. At first he brushed it off as just nature doing it’s thing, but he began to see a silhouette form behind the boat. It was so incredibly large, he couldn’t tell what it was.

“Leon,” he began, watching as the shadow began to near the surface. “What the hell is that?” he asked, looking back to the blonde in hopes of answers. Leon furrowed his brows at Y/N, looking over the side of the boat to see what he was talking about.

“Jesus christ!” he yelled out, making a sharp turn. A giant eel looking creature had rose from the water, beginning to tower over the measly little boat menacingly. It was stark black, it’s mouth wide open, showing off its many rows of teeth. The sudden turn away from the creature had rocked the boat, along with the huge wave this giant sea monster had made.

Leon had been able to stay on, but the rocking was too much. Y/N had turned around in time to see the freakish animal, letting go of his seat in shock. The boat had tipped, knocking him over to the side. His hip had slammed against the edge of the boat, which had left him thrown over the edge of the vehicle. A large splash followed him as he fell head first into the water. It was cold. So, so cold. He had fallen far beneath the surface before processing what was going on. He didn’t know which way to swim, he had started to panic.

He opened his eyes, seeing bubbles lead up from his mouth to the surface. He started to follow them, but he could see in the corner of his eye the giant monster that had gotten fresh bait. His pushes through the water became much more urgent, reaching his hands higher and higher until they broke the layer of water he was submerged in. His head followed close after, taking in a deep breath before crying out Leon’s name. The boat was thankfully close to where he had fallen in.

Leon reached his hand for Y/N, grabbing onto his arm and pulling his hardest to get him out of the water. He was slipping, the water being to hard to keep a good hold on. He kept trying. The eel was getting closer. “Use your other arm!” called Leon, trying to get Y/N to grab onto the boat while he was thrashing his legs around. Y/N followed the order, his left hand slamming down on the wood. Leon had a much easier way to get him up with the new balance, and gave it another tug.

Leon had pulled Y/N back into the boat, rocking it back and forth. Just as Y/N had gotten back in, the monster slid past them. “Go!” yelled Y/N, keeping an eye for the water. Leon did just that, revving the boat back up and blasting it down the water. The monster was following close behind them, but still just far enough where it wouldn’t be able to get them. Both their hearts were hammering, trying to escape the grasp of death.

Soon enough they had done just that. They reached waters that were nowhere deep enough for the monster to continue chase, so they had a moment to catch their breath. Leon looked back to Y/N with a sympathetic gaze, seeing as he was completely soaked and shivering.

Y/N took steep and heavy breaths, looking down at his lap with a frown. “God.” he muttered under his breath. “It’s so cold.” he blurted, looking back up at Leon. Leon pursed his lips, remaining silent until they had reached the dock. He slowed it down to a stop once they had arrived at the post.

Leon swallowed hesitantly. He was debating on wether he should just be dismissive, or if he should go full out against his employer. Y/N was right, it’s not like anyone would find out about it. He might as well. He looked around for a short second before meeting eyes with Y/N. “We should probably find you a change of clothes. And, just take a breather.” he offered, standing up out of his seat.

Y/N squinted his eyes, a slight smile spreading across his face. “Take a breather? Never thought that Agent Leon S. Kennedy would turn into a slacker.” he joked, stepping out of the boat. Leon turned his head slightly, his fingers folding up into a fist as he continued to walk. “I’m just trying to help you out. If you wanna keep going, we can.” he replied. He knew how Y/N was going to answer, though.

“No,” Y/N muttered. “I wanna take a break. I’ve just never seen you stop a mission in it’s tracks. Fascinating.” Y/N jogged a little, just to catch up to Leon. “Where would I even find a change of clothes?” he questioned. Leon didn’t respond, instead pointing to the shack that was ahead of them.

It was this cute little wooden cabin, surrounded by trees and brush. It was completely secluded, giving them total privacy. “Look at that.” Y/N uttered, feeling beads of water drip down his body. Leon continued to lead the two until they had arrived at the door. It was propped open, swinging back and forth from the wind that was hitting it. Leon took a step in, giving it a quick look around.

It looked the same as all the other wooden houses in the village he had just been exploring. He walked into the kitchen with a small dining table, and then saw a doorway that led into the bedroom. That was the best bet. He walked through the kitchen and into the room, Y/N following behind him.

The bed was in the center of the room, a small vanity on the floor, broken. The closet and dresser were both against the same wall, which is where Y/N found himself looking. It was the same garbage that everyone in this hellscape was wearing, but he needed some new things to wear. He found something that was about his size and threw it onto the bed. Leon watched carefully as Y/N grabbed all of the new clothes he was going to put on. He faced away from Leon, looking at the half shattered mirror.

Leon looked Y/N up and down. He swallowed, seeing that Y/N had reached for the top of his shirt. He unbuttoned it slowly, the fabric creasing slowly until it had been brought apart. He slipped the shirt off of his arms and onto the floor, leaving his back completely exposed. Leon felt a little guilty, but he couldn’t take his eyes away. Y/N had little scars all over his back, and was surprisingly muscular. He always wore somewhat baggy clothes, at the very least nothing form fitting. Leon bit down on the inside of his cheek.

Y/N could feel eyes on him. He always had an innate sense when it came to states, and he felt it. He turned his head slightly, looking to Leon with a raised eyebrow. Leon’s face was slightly tinted pink, his eyes fluttering before locking with Y/N’s. “What?” Y/N asked, fully turning around, his chest facing Leon. Leon didn’t really know how to respond. He just shrugged, trying to dismiss it again.

“Nothing. Just zoning out.” he replied, his eyes drifting away from Y/N and to the window. Y/N rolled his eyes, letting out a soft laugh. “Yeah right.” he uttered, turning back around. He took a second to look around his body, checking to see if there was any injuries. And look at that, there was a big fat cut along the side of his rib cage. It didn’t sting, it just throbbed. He let out a short sigh. “God damn it.” he blurted.

Leon looked back to him. “What?” he asked, stepping towards him. Y/N ran his finger against the wound, trailing around the skin. He stepped back away from the mirror, now standing by Leon’s side. “Must’ve been sliced or something.” he mumbled, looking down to the right. Leon looked at the wound as well, and raising his hand up to it. “Shit.” he spat. It wasn’t very deep, but it still could get infected. That could be a pain.

“I can try to find something to fix it.” Leon offered, looking back up to Y/N’s face. Y/N shook his head, his hand dropping back down to the side and covering up the would. “It’s alright.” Y/N waved him off, pushing his hair back slightly. Leon continued to watch him.

“Seriously man, is there something wrong with me?” asked Y/N, looking down at Leon with a slight frown spreading across his face. Leon furrowed his brows. “No.” he replied. “Then why are you looking at me like that? Is there a giant bug on my face or something?” he asked, somewhat joking. He wasn’t uncomfortable with Leon staring at him, it was just the way he was doing it. Never had he seen Leon be completely locked onto something, especially a person.

Leon shook his head. “It’s nothing.” he answered. Y/N squinted at him, folding his arms over his chest. He shifted his hips to the right, almost touching against Leon’s. “You’re a bad liar, just tell me what’s wrong.” he started. “You’re a brooding government agent, you don’t ‘zone out.’”

Leon took in a sharp breath. He wasn’t a big fan of how testy Y/N was being. He didn’t want to keep lying, because obviously it wasn’t working, but he also didn’t want to tell the truth. He could get in huge trouble for it, and god knows what would happen if Y/N found out that Leon was checking him out. But then again, they were in a cabin, completely devoid of communication with others.

The longer Leon’s eyes lingered on Y/N’s face, the faster his heart ran. This staring contest went on for a good 5 seconds before either of them made a move. Leon was clearly harboring something, and Y/N could tell soon enough what it was. His face was still growing a deeper shade of pink, his eyes flickering around Y/N’s face frantically.

Y/N took another step closer to Leon, his arms once again falling back to his sides. Leon felt a pressure build up in his body, feeling how close Y/N was without touching. Leon was fighting so many battles against himself in his head, he really didn’t know what to do. He knew what he wanted to do, though. His breath started to become heavy, the silence becoming deafening. “You gonna answer me?” asked Y/N, raising a brow.

Leon swallowed again, his hands balling up into fists. He remained silent, giving the slightest head shake. Y/N let out a soft laugh through his nose. “Do you want me to do it?” he asked, his eyes locking onto Leon’s thin, pink lips. Leon felt his heart spike. He knew what was going to happen. It was out of his hands now, so he couldn’t get in trouble for it. He gave a nod.

Y/N smiled coyly. It wasn’t like Leon to be so meek, but he thought it was cute. He brought his hand up to the side of Leon’s face, thumb on the base of his jaw. The tension was killing Leon. Y/N’s hands were freezing, but the sudden warmth of Leon’s face had heated them up. It felt nice. Y/N didn’t waste much more time, with his go ahead, he had finally been able to do the thing he’s been aching to do for years now.

He leaned in, gently pressing his lips against Leon’s. His eyes fluttered closed along with the other man, beginning to move their mouths in sync. Leon let out a shaky breath, his hand planted down on Y/N’s waist. The two felt this odd feeling, something that they hadn’t experienced before. It might have been the tension of the situation, or the fact that this was so taboo, it didn’t matter that much. They both liked it, this sudden weight feeling like it had been lifted off their shoulders.

Leon’s hand moved slowly from Y/N’s waist to his back, trailing small circles on the skin. It was soothing. Y/N let out a small laugh into the kiss at the motion, his hips hurting forward out of slight shock. They were pressed against each other now, stomachs touching.

Leon was so warm, Y/N didn’t want to let go. It was better than wearing clothes, he just wanted to hold onto him. He loved the thought of always being with Leon, having him next to him. He brought up his hand and ran it through the back of the blondes hair, deepening the kiss by bringing his head closer. Y/N could feel his knees wobble a little bit.

This had gone on for a little while now, long enough that the two were completely out of breath. Y/N, however reluctantly, pulled away, a slight trail of spit leading from their mouths before it fell. Y/N laughed to himself softly, biting down on the side of his tongue. Leon’s face was red now, his cheeks being highlighted with the tint. Their chests heaved in unison as Y/N’s hand trailed down to Leon’s arm.

“I take it you feel the same way about me as I do with you, right?” asked Y/N, his small smile spreading back across his lips. Leon let out a small chuckle. He felt his head cloud with thoughts of nothing, only being able to look at the man in front of him.

He ducked his head down to the side. “Sure. Whatever you say.”

#fanfic #fanfiction #leon kennedy #male reader #resident evil #x male reader #leon s kennedy #asks #leon s kennedy x reader #leon s kennedy x m!reader #leon s kennedy x male reader #leon kennedy x m!reader #leon kennedy x reader #leon kennedy x male reader #resident evil leon #resident evil 4 #re4 leon #re4make #re 4 leon #re 4 #gay #gay love #gay fanfic #gay fanfiction

[quiet-compassion]

OFMD Fluffvember Day 10: Holiday

https://archiveofourown.org/works/51648301

As a general rule, Ed tries not to spend too much time pondering Stede’s old life. It’s not that he’s not curious. He’s extremely curious actually. It’s just that there are a lot of painful feelings and insecurities wrapped up for him in that Before. And he knows that Stede loves him. He knows there’s a reason Stede left all that behind. He knows that he and Mary weren’t happy together. But that doesn’t stop the thoughts that nag at him sounding like “He’s from my world, not yours” and “You left me for Mary”. He’s not proud of it; he’s working on it.

But, if he were going to ponder it, he’d imagine Stede’s old life was pretty boring for him. After all, Stede’s so full of whimsy and drama, he must have outshone everyone around him. Ed can see in his mind’s eye a placid and simpering wife, mild-mannered children, a straight-laced community that could never hope to keep up the explosion of chaos and creativity that is Stede. He almost feels bad for them, having to live the rest of their lives without Stede, but not bad enough to give him back.

They’re sitting together in their cabin, winding down after a long day. Ed’s head is in Stede’s lap, eyes closed as he listens to Stede recount his theories about the island’s local bird population.

“I’ve seen a few warblers, of course, and there was that Antillean bullfinch the other day. But I swear, Ed, the call I heard today sounded exactly like a yellow-shouldered blackbird! What it could be doing here, I can’t imagine, but I’m pretty confident that’s what I heard. We’ve definitely got to keep our eyes peeled for it. That’d be a sight, wouldn’t it?”

Comfortable and relaxed, Ed gives a languid hum of agreement. “For sure, mate.”

He waits for Stede to continue his avian oration but is met only with silence. Cracking one eye open, he finds Stede looking down at him wearing an expression of embarrassment and guilt.

“Sorry,” he says with an apologetic smile, “I’ve been rambling on and on. You don’t want to hear about this.”

“Pft, um yeah I do,” Ed insists. “I don’t know much about birds, beyond gulls, but sounds like this yellow-shouldered guy is pretty rare! It’d be annoying to miss out on seeing the little shit just because I didn’t know what it looked like.”

Stede’s eyebrows raise in surprise, searching Ed’s expression for any hint of insincerity.

“Really? I’m not…boring you?”

“Fuck off, of course not! Now come on, describe the bird so we can both be on the lookout.”

It takes another moment; Stede keeps staring at him in shock, though Ed can’t fathom why. Eventually though, with a timid smile, he goes on. 

“Well, it’s the wing you want to pay attention to…”

…

Ed puts the incident (but not the bird) out of his mind, until a few days later. They’ve been working on building some kind of structure capable of housing animals. A barn would be too generous a term for what they’ve managed. It’s a kind of pen, empty as of now, but the hope is to find a cow or chickens or something on the island to fill it. If they’re gonna be living here long term, they’ll need a more dependable food supply.

They’re securing the door to the pen (with a fully functioning latch, courtesy of Ed) dreaming about the types of recipes they might cook once they have regular access to a protein source other than fish.

“Could make meat pies,” Ed suggests. “I always loved those as a kid. And we can vary it to fit whatever we end up finding.”

“Love that idea! God, I’d kill for a simple roast chicken.” Stede frowns. “Or, I assume it’s simple. I’ve never made one before. Not much of a chef really.”

“That’s okay, babe. I’ll cook for us. I’ll make you a roast chicken—can’t be much harder than roasting a snake.”

Ed grabs their rusty axe, swinging it down to divide another bit of wood into pieces that can serve as fence posts. Stede tracks the movement, flinching a bit when the blade hits its mark. “I suppose we ought to build a butchering station out here too,” he says in a quiet voice.

“Sure,” Ed nods. “We can do that.”

Stede swallows, eyes still transfixed on the axe. “If you’re going to be making food for us, I guess I should handle preparing the meat for you.” He looks like might be sick.

Ed shrugs. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“No no. It’s only fair. We’ll divvy up the work between us, and since you have a knack for cooking, I’ll have to handle this. Make myself useful.” 

The words come out of Stede’s mouth but they don’t sound like his. Ed drops what he’s doing to really look at him. 

“Stede,” he says slowly. “You do plenty around here. You’re hardly dead weight. I’m fine handling the butchering. Because, to be honest, mate, it seems like just the thought of it is making you queasy. So, don’t worry about it, I’ve got it.”

Stede is staring at him again, wearing that same look from the other night—wide-eyed like he can’t quite believe what he’s hearing. “You would do that for me?” he whispers.

Ed smiles. “Of course. I’d do a hell of a lot more than that for you. Listen, you protect me from spiders, I can kill a few chickens to put food on the table.”

Stede looks like he might cry, stepping forward to envelop Ed in a tight hug.

“Thank you.”

Ed puts his arms around him, feeling like there’s a puzzle before him he hasn’t solved yet.

…

It’s another month before it happens again. The whole place is coming along. There are no holes in the roof anymore for one thing. For another, they’ve got a respectable herd of goats and a moderate flock of chickens. They’ve patched up the floors, dug a well, set up fishing traps, planted a garden. It’s been a productive few weeks.

It’s also been a fuck ton of work. 

“We need a holiday,” Stede says rubbing Ed’s knee after a particularly grueling day.

Ed laughs. “Aren’t we where people are supposed to come for their holidays? You know, being an inn and all?”

“Eventually. But also that doesn’t prevent us from taking a break of our own,” Stede says.

His fingers dig into a particularly tense spot and Ed groans. “Ah, shit! Yeah, you’re right. Could do with a vacation.”

Stede smiles up at him. “The crew said they’d check back in on us after 3 months. Only a few weeks left till then. Perhaps we can ask them to drop us somewhere for a week or two and bring us back again after.”

Ed’s sure the crew will be less than enthusiastic about being their ferry service but, for now, he keeps the thought to himself.

“Sounds nice. Alright then, where should we go? What kind of a holiday would you like?”

Seeming surprised by the question, Stede gives a dismissive shrug. “Oh, I’m not picky.”

“Well, that’s a lie,” Ed quips with a snort.

Stede gives his thigh a playful smack. “What would you like to do?” he asks.

Ed pauses, giving Stede a quizzical look. “I asked you first.”

“I’m sure you’d find my idea of a vacation incredibly tedious. And really, I’m happy to go along for the ride, so long as we’re together. So, you pick.”

He gives Ed a polite smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes and Ed decides that’s it. That’s the final straw. Pushing himself upright from his reclined position on their bed, he levels Stede with a bemused gaze.

“Okay, what’s the deal, man?”

Stede looks confusedly up at him, hands still massaging Ed’s knee.

“Huh? What’s what deal?”

“Why do you keep assuming I don’t care about what you care about? First it was the birds, and then the slaughtering chickens thing, now this. You keep acting like you expect me to be annoyed. So, what’s the deal? Why is the me in your head such a dick to you?”

He’s rendered Stede speechless, which is kinda a feat. He just sits there, open-mouthed, staring at Ed for a moment. Finally, crimson-faced, he clears his throat and says, not meeting Ed’s eye, “I’m sorry. I—I don’t think you’re a dick. It’s just. No one has ever cared about what I care about before. I would talk about something I found fascinating and everyone’s eyes would glaze over, or they’d find a way to escape my company.”

Ed doesn’t understand. “But why? That’s pretty rude! Maybe if they actually listened they’d see why you found the thing so fascinating!”

Grimacing, Stede doesn’t say anything in response. Another detail of his confession makes its way to the forefront of Ed’s mind.

“It can’t have been that way with everyone, right? I mean, your family? Mary—”

“Ha! Mary. Bless her,” Stede chuckles joylessly, “she had no patience for my special interests. I’d imagine not having to listen to me ramble on was one of the things she enjoyed most about me being gone! The kids too, I’m afraid.”

Ed sees the mental picture he tries so hard not to imagine shift before his eyes. The insipid fawning family alters into a cold and austere household. A past life that is not so much boring as it is lonely. The very idea makes his blood boil, but he wrestles to tamp down his indignation. The last thing this moment needs is for Stede to perceive Ed as angry.

Taking a deep breath, Stede continues on. “To tell the truth, I’ve always felt like I was getting things wrong. I talk too much, or about the wrong things. The things I ought to have the stomach for make me squeamish. My idea of fun, of adventure, doesn’t seem to be anyone else’s.” 

He turns at last to meet Ed’s eyes. “I know you love me. And I know that we have a lot in common, that we are frequently on the same page even when that page is completely wild. It’s one of the things that made you such a breath of fresh air when we met. But…after spending so long being an annoyance to everyone I met, sometimes it’s hard not to assume I’m irritating you too.”

Ed takes a deep breath, running a hand over his beard as he thinks through what he wants to say. “When you sail as long as I have, everything starts to feel very grey. The whole world kinda loses color, all just hazy sky and murky water. Gets to be that nothing can surprise you, not the crew, or the routine of the day, or even the fucking weather. And then here you come,”

he smiles, raising a hand to hold Stede’s face.

“Here you come and suddenly there’s color again. Like literally, because you dressed like a goddamn rainbow, but also there were surprises again. Every day was different. Things that seemed set in stone were now fluid and malleable. Even now, here, in the rhythms we’ve created for ourselves, babe, I am never bored.”

He wipes a tear off of Stede’s cheek with his thumb. Stede turns his face just enough to kiss Ed’s palm.

“You drive me crazy, in multiple senses,” Ed laughs. “But you’re not an irritant, not an annoyance, or ordeal to be endured. I wanna hear all your silly thoughts and ideas. I wanna know what you like so I can give you more of it and I wanna know what you dislike so I can keep it the hell away.”

He could go on. God knows that when he gets to talking, he can carry on for hours. But then Stede’s kissing him and it seems like perhaps he’s said enough. Well, almost…

“I also wanna know,” he breathes, lips scant inches from Stede’s, “what kind of holiday you would like to go on so we can plan the fun and relaxing trip we both need.”

Stede laughs. “Oh, alright! I was thinking, it might be nice to go somewhere with a variety of shopping opportunities. We could pick out some creature comforts we’ve been craving, maybe get a jumpstart on inn decorations. Perhaps we could even track down a bookstore!”

“A retail vacation, love that,” Ed says.

“We could even use it as a marketing opportunity for this place! You know, get word of mouth going.” 

Fuck, Ed loves him. They who came before might not have appreciated Stede for the insane wonder that he is, but he always will. As Stede goes on with talk of informational brochures, eyes alight, one thought echos in Ed’s mind: their fucking loss. 

#ofmd #ofmd fluffvember #blackbonnet #gentlebeard #stuff i write

[im-fckn-threaded]

Hey, I know this blog is about knitting and the people following me would like to see knitting stuff, or so I guess. But I'm also a transportation engineer and urban planner by day and there is a lot of cool stuff out there that I thought some of you might want to see.

Therefore, HIGH LOOP be upon ye (image is clickable and takes you to the project website):

This is the Puji Road Bridge in Shanghai, that is supposed to be transformed into an elevated park "offering a unique urban journey". It connects the districts of Zhabei and Jing’an. From an architectural point of view, this walkway is fun, creative and has a unique and interesting aesthetic. The different colors are supposed to indicate different functionalities. Yellow indicates social activities like sitting and chatting or gastronomy. Magenta areas are supposed to invite the pedestrians to meander and enjoy the view of the river and cityscape. Green is a fast lane for scooters and bikes. And blue is just the background color and space for pop-up stores or event space. Cool cool....

I had to do a bit of digging around on google maps, but this is what it currently looks like and on the other side what it is supposed look like one day:

Except, from a transportation engineering perpective this thing is a nightmare!!! You wanna know why? Safety and order! Three things are just going to cause lots of issues and that are the colors, the road markings and the assigned spaces for the different groups of road users and the way they mingle.

The following is not supposed to be bashing cool new concepts for the fun of it, but is based on serious knowledge and experience from a professional and practical point of view.

We know from experience and recent research, how pedestrians decide where to walk. For example by sending them through a virtual reality environment or using eye tracking technology in the real world. Generally they are the ones most sensitive to detours, because they are the slowest group of road users. So, red is for pedestrians? Imagine being the wheelchair user or their companion in the lower right corner of the picture, having to walk the red line:

First of all, noone in their right mind is going to do that, not even when taking a walk and taking in the scenery. That's going to take forever.

Secondly, we know that pedestrians as well as any other participant in traffic need some kind of visual aid to know, what their designated space to use is, where does other participants' space begin and end etc. Even on streets dedicated to cars only, we need a division in lanes, as soon as a certain width is reached. That creates a feeling of safety and also gives people a general sense of order (which is what the brain wants in almost all kinds of situations in life). Usually in urban and transportation planning we try to work with axes. This bridge, I don't even know where to place this in terms of axes. There is not a single axis. You have to change direction all the time or you bump into something. Everything is all over the place. Look how many times the different paths cross. And then they want to let city scooters drive there? And what is that green line in the middle of the road? The murder lane? Dissecting the entire space into three parts, so you have to cross even more times, from left to right, from the yellow sun loungers on the right to the yellow sitting area on the left (which is probably catering or a pop-up store or whatever), from one view point to the sitting area? There are these flower pots (seemingly random), sometimes round, sometimes oblong. And people walking on the blue parts???? Which are dedicated to what exactly?? Just think of how annoying it is to walk somewhere and having to bypass even the smallest obstacle, inconveniently placed.

Lastly, no road marking on the entire thing looks like established standards. Most people don't even know the meaning of road markings, they don't see very often. Let alone something they have never seen before. What is the difference between the red and the white dashed line? Why is the white one left and then right on the fast lane? Why does it stop and start again in the middle of nowhere? Does it make a difference for me and my scooter, where the white stripes are? Where do the bikes go, whre the scooters? What if you are faster and have to overtake? And why do the stripes suddenly stop and the regular doted line divides the lanes?

I dream of this design at night and wake up crying. But it's fun to look at.

#urban planning #urban design #transportation engineering #pedestrian walkway #not knitting

[sillovn]

Build Journal: Mind and Soul

Ive been messing with Golden Order incantations and want to talk about them. Contains some spoilers.

~Background~

Int+Fth hybrids suffer from a lack of weapon options. For this particular stat combination, only 1 weapon exists - Sword of Night & Flame. As a fix, I tried to use Frost status and Sacred Blade weapon skills to force damage out of single stat weapons. This cold/holy combo then inspired the character's lore.

Idea was 'Snowfield Cartographer' - Zealot of Miquella who fell in the snowfields searching for a place to plant the Haligtree. Revered for his deeds and returned as a Tarnished in the present.

Went for a light+ragged look with weapons and armour - it fits the character (but also hybrid stats are rough, so minimal END investment). Spells are Golden Order + generic support incants - the theme rules out "dualcaster" type character (staff+seal).

Right now, the character sits at Farum Azula, exact spells/weapon will finalize later. But enough; lets get to the point of this journal - what can you do with Golden Order incantations?

~The Golden Order~

On paper, this Int-Fth school looks versatile - offensive spells for long range and wide area situations, status defense spells, equipment buffs and undead slaying. In practice, some parts work much better than others.

Rings of Light

3 damage spells, rare source of offensive holy magic. These may look like standard projectiles with a boomerang gimmick. In practice, they have a distinct niche of coverage over accuracy.

These are clumsy spells - initial cast time is long, projectiles travel slowly and tend to get caught on obstacles. Also sensitive to elevation, difficult to free-aim and will commonly miss on slopes. Really about creating hazardous areas with quantity; throw many rings - they might miss or get caught on terrain. But in the chaos, someone will likely get hit.

1.Discus of Light

Throw 1 small ring. Your basic long range button, costs just 3 fp.

Clumsiness + small projectile = poor accuracy vs moving targets. More usable vs immobile targets (giant bosses, unaware enemies etc.) Its surprisingly difficult to hit during combat, so don't despair if most rings miss. If every cast hits, it is the most efficient damage per. fp spell (~150 base x2 hits/3 fp)

Returns after a fixed delay - If stuck on obstacles; will simply hang in their air until its time to return.

Disc is thrown at ~head level but returns at waist level. It also starts slightly off-center to the left/right due to character's hand.

2.Triple Rings of Light

Spread of 3 large rings. Bigger + more rings = easier to land than Discus, downside is higher fp cost.

Damage wise, 3x ring is functionally identical to Discus (155 vs. 150). Essentially, this is a comparison of fp efficiency vs getting consistent hits. All that to say; use Discus vs. big PVE bosses, use 3x Ring in PvP. If you fought Gideon - then you know the mental threat of trying to avoid this move.

3.Radagon's Rings of Light

1 large omnidirectional ring. This is 'the big one', the most flashy and stat intensive spell the Golden Order asks of you (31 int/31 fth). Unlike many high investment spells - this one is good.

There's nothing quite like Radagon's Rings in combining impact, coverage and cost. Base damage = 310 (395 charged). Among holy spells, only Wrath of Gold hits harder, but has much less area. In fact, you can hit a lot of things from outside their effective melee reach (bosses and players included).

Hunter of the Dead

2 spells with an 'undead slayer' effect (+damage, no revive). Learned from D, these are the earliest spells you can encounter in this school. I found them to be "bad but usable", with 3 issues.

Inconsistent undead classification - Deathbirds? yes. Tibia Mariners? no.

Most undead are not dangerous enough to need a specific counter - Deathbirds and the Axe Skeletons are the only real threats.

Alternatives exist - 'undead slayer' effect can be found on weapon arts and throwing bombs

4.Litany of Proper Death

Holy explosion that deals *very little damage* to non-undead foes. This spell is kinda 'ER in a nutshell' - extremely specific tool that fails at its intended use. Sure, you can explode a room full of skeletons with 1 cast, but what else?

Litany is slow and costly. Even with '10x damage to undead' bonus, its generally worse than using holy weapons, spells and throwing bombs. These options give better character control (reach, speed etc.) in a fight - which you probably want when facing Deathbirds.

5.Order's Blade

The only weapon enchant spell that adds holy damage, also has weird scaling (only takes Faith into account). Like many weapon buff spells, it gets outclassed by similar ashes of war.

If you want a weapon buff with the 'undead slayer' effect, there are 2 ash of war alternatives. 1) Sacred Blade, which doubles as a ranged attack and is found at the very start of the game. 2) Sacred Order, which also buffs all damage sources (spells etc.) These options are also faster, cheaper and are compatible with elemental weapons.

Status Defense

2 spells for status-effect defense.

6. Immutable Shield

Enchant shield to fully block elemental damage and status effects. This does *not* make your guard harder to break, it simply removes the chip effect.

Ideal scenario is; greatshield + this = casually block comets. In practice, that calls for a very unreasonable (or at least very odd) stat spread. The buff also doesn't last very long (~30 secs). Exemplifies Golden Order spells: interesting applications, even when impractical.

7.Order Healing

Deathblight cure spell.

Deathblight is neither strong nor common, so a specific counter isn't needed. One of those things that's obligated to exist; as every status has an associated cure spell.

Laws

2 incantations that require pure-Int, theme here is more based on lore than game function.

8. Law of Regression

Removes all buffs in a large area, only way to remove an enemy's buffs.

One of those spells where an *extremely powerful* effect is limited by cost/situation/speed. At 50+ fp, its unreasonable as a 'general use' status cure. With Law of Regression - its a question of how many/what buffs would an enemy use to justify the cost? also how often do these situations occur? Though sure, in a dream scenario - you could purge all enemy buffs and cure every status from friends with 1 button.

9. Law of Causality

Buff spell that explodes after you are hit a few times. Has the highest base damage of any holy spell (~400+).

Explosion damage doesn't seem to scale with spell damage stat. It also requires that you receive the hit, so blocking doesn't work. In other words, its a late-game spell that's quite useless by the time you get it (by normal means). However, there is at least 1 use for this spell - low level PvP.

~Final Thoughts~

Golden Order incants really grew on me over time. They are a very unique set of spells, where even the bad ones have a distinct niche. Radagon's Ring was the standout move for me, very solid AOE spell. The other 2 light rings; also great at their specific niche.

So, why isn't Golden Order caster more commonly seen? My guess would be; extremely limited weapon selection + high stat requirements - this is a 'true' hybrid school; you *must* be Int+Fth.

#elden ring #build journal #elden ring builds #kin's cheatsheet

[nagirambles]

Okay, so I wanna go on for a bit here.

In the Dragon cry sketches, we actually saw Mashima draw a suit as Capricorn's SD which was actually perfect for his taste and clothing choice. AND his own personality. But Mashima also drew another SD, which was most probably a Draco constellation dress, not sure. And I'm most definitely sure he merged the two designs to come up with the current one.

Personally, as a dress I love the design of the current one but as a SD of a spirit like Capricorn, it is awful and doesn't make sense at all. Like I agree that the dresses are to reflect the personalities and choices of the spirits themselves. Capricorn choosing a outfit like that doesn't sit right with me.

Ofc Leo's would be a gorgeous gown, Aries' would be a cute and soft and fluffy dress, Taurus' would be a sexy one(tho I'd have loved if Lucy got a jacket with the bikini top), Saguttarius' would be a beautiful green shooter-type(I actually love how the anime added extra black leggings), Virgo's would be a maid costume, the Aquarius one being bikini makes sense, Cancer's is the most amazing with Lucy having twin blades to counter the enemies(and I'd have loved to see Cancer wield big scissors instead of the small ones). AND then the Gemini and Scorpio designs are my most fav ones (as SDs). A badass hairtyle like Scorpio and a red scorpion tail to top it off. The Gemini one actually goes with their magic type since it's actually a lot like real magic, how they copy people and transform. So the magician-ish dress is perfect!

But did you see the AxS design, I hate it even more than the AxG one. The design makes even less sense than the recent one. It looks like a nonsensical costume that seems like can do heavy lifting but actually can't. Lucy has literally no use of those robot-ish parts of the mix. It was used as a way of adding some unwanted fanservice. And with the recent mix, I have lost hope of getting proper outfits. At this point I don't want any, literally any SD to merge with Aquarius. It'll inevitably ruin the dress.

The most modest ones like Scorpio's and Gemini's unique outfits turned into a sturdy bikini and the other one a glittering bikini made me give up hope. I don't even look at outfits now, only consider her achievements. I've talked about it many times how ridiculous it seems for Lucy to suddenly loose her clothes in a battle. I'm tired of it now.

But I've seen many people say, "Lucy did nothing except get naked" or "Laxus did all the work" or "she's JUST fanservice and no might" and I do think they're the vocal Lucy haters. But in general, people complaining about the dress mix aren't them. And I share the same feelings.

Oh dear, you are so right on all this. 

Capricorn’s SD is really sad to see. I begrudgingly admit it’s kinda cool as it is, not going to lie, love the glasses and the braids and the sexy mature cut on the dress, it manages to set itself apart from Loke’s despite both being off-shoudler dresses, but it just... why, Mashima? Why? Capricorn would never approve of this! Where is the super serious butler that respected Layla? Layla (and Anna, now that I think about it) are some of the most modestly-dressed women in the show, so I definitely believe Capricorn would want Lucy to dress like them simply because he knows she’ll look good in it. 

Yes! the base star dresses all look beautiful. I do think some of them could be better or more developed to the spirits (Cancer and Sagittarius are a bit strange because they don’t match the spirit appearances at all, but eh, that’s details), but as single designs, they are all wonderful for what they are, Capricorn aside. I love Aquarius’ the most because it’s a bikini, but it’s at least more functional and comfortable than panties and a bra. It’s a really good balance between fanservice and genuinely something I’d want to wear if I had the assets to pull it off. I love that some of them gave Lucy more combat abilities as well (Cancer, for example). I do kind of wish Loke’s was a bit more functional though, since his main thing is close combat. But it makes sense for him, so it’s fine. The concept of the dresses is just so fun. I could talk about them, both positively and negatively, forever. 

Oh dear I agree. AxS is awful. There was way too much robot against the stupid swimsuit and it just looked bad. But I at least appreciated the creativity, you know? Honestly, I feel we could have found a balance with a thinner tail or shorter glove/boots, Mashima just didn’t try too hard since it only showed for a panel or two. It needs to be reworked so badly. 

AxG was just a swimsuit. Just a swimsuit. They couldn’t even retain any of the magician/clown parts of Gemini, that seriously annoys me! And Aquarius’ contribution is even worse, does Mashima know that mermaid-cut dresses exist? MERMAID? Aquarius can be something other than a typical swimsuit, geez! And they can be ASYMMETRICAL and layered, too! It’s perfect for a Gemini fusion! 

I think it’d have been great if the fusions weren’t literally mixing them together, but the product of “what would both spirits give Lucy?” Honestly, I think among the spirits, Aquarius and Scorpio are totally the type to give you crap about your fashion sense. Aquarius is a very girly girl, and Scorpio is a rockstar! Choosing what to give Lucy as a fusion star dress would be like, a funny way to actually give these two depth in their relationship. Like, their first time ever having a disagreement. 

...I wish the spirits still got personality exploration... I’m sad now...

As for your final point-- you know what? You’re right. Haters gonna hate on that regard. Love to see Lucy finishing a battle on her own, and it’s sad that even after coming this far and going as far as using the spirits’ powers, her achievements are still credited to the damn guys around her. People who think that way are never going to change their minds, they’ve already decided what they think about it. 

#it's an ask #just a ramble #the menace celestials #fairy tail #it's a headcanon

[mitchelldailygames]

Heroes of Song Devlog Part 7: Moves

The heroes are cute.

Kindness matters.

The world is weird.

Sometimes you don’t fight. Sometimes you do.

Health is hearts.

I honestly don’t know how we got this far without talking about moves.

I took the ideas of feats, abilities, and traits found in other games and just lumped them all in a category called moves. The type of folk you choose comes with a move attached, there are a couple of moves attached to each calling, and each weapon (plus the shield) comes with a move attached. Even runes, rituals, and songs are just another flavor of moves, and I hope to use formatting in a way that makes that mechanical connection clear.

So, what do moves do?

Certainly, some moves are about doing cool things in a fight: shields can be used to perform a shield parry, the Guardian can take an attack meant for an ally, and a sword can be swung in a wide arc that hits multiple targets. Each type of weapon comes with its own unique move attached, which will make an axe clearly do something different than a dagger.

Remember, “Sometimes you don’t fight.” I wanted these non-fighting aspects to be mechanically emphasized through moves too. One way I plan on doing this is writing some moves to be flexible enough to have utility in and out of combat. Take the Guardian calling’s move of taking an attack meant for another. Here it is in its current state:

(Text from the picture) Under Your Wing (1 Effort): Become the target of an attack (physical, emotional, social, etc.) meant for a nearby ally.

"Under Your Wing" hopefully makes it clear that this could include emotional attacks or attacks on reputation; Guardian has the means of jumping on to protect friends from all sorts of things.

A note on formatting, the Effort (or Effort symbol) after the name of the move is the cost of using the move.

Another type of move is a skill move. As of right now, rather than having a list of single-word skills on character sheets, I have a "skill" (Sk) class of moves. These describe situations in which characters shine, often not needing to roll and being inspired if they do. For example, the Scout has the move Wilderness Survival (Sk). I could of course have "Wilderness Survival" just show up on a skill list, and it would probably often function the same way, but by making it a move I both prevent the power creep of getting a bunch of skills through advancement or the opposite issue where players feel like they should have access to certain skills for their archetype that are locked to them. I can also very clearly described how the skill move is used. In this case, Wilderness Survival makes you skilled at finding direction and taking care of yourself and others when off of well-established roads and trails. It's not a catch-all for tracking, identifying plants, and not falling off cliffs, but if the goal is taking care of yourself and others, it can apply to these kinds of scenarios. It also won't step on the toes of a "Botany" or "Knowledge Nature" skill move should those find their way into the game.

What I haven't quite cracked yet (but hope to) is a way to put agency in the hands of Hero Players to seek out secrets and explore the hidden corners of the world, which is a very significant part of the Legend of Zelda and Tunic inspirations. I think some kind of "Find a Secret" move is the right way to go here. This might be a specific exploration/discovery move for each Calling (such as Scamps finding hidden doors in dungeons and Scouts finding hidden caves in the "overworld"). I can see this getting bogged down, though, especially as the Calling list expands beyond the initial six. I think a better solution is going to be a move that is universal to all players, but on some kind of limiter.

I'm thinking about having two dice sitting on the table, each starting at 6. These could represent the "Discover a Secret" difficulty. As heroes search for secrets but don't find any, they can shift the dice down to smaller faces, reducing the difficulty of finding a secret. I might say each hero must attempt to discover a secret before someone can try again. I might have Hero Players elect one of their heroes to check for secrets each time they enter a new dungeon room or mini-region. Maybe the Songkeeper rolls for the total number of discoverable secrets in a location in the first place. Skills could totally apply to the searching process, granting inspiration in specific scenarios.

I obviously don't have it worked out yet, but I think there are the bones of something there. I also don't think this precludes including secrets and optional puzzles in the dungeon design and Songkeeper prep, but I didn't want all of the burden of this pretty essential gameplay aspect to fall entirely on the Songkeepers. I want this idea to be represented in the mechanics.

That's all for this post. I'm hoping to make a test version of the game available sometime soon so I can start getting some early feedback (and to facilitate my personal sessions). I don't know if the next post will be about that, but I think there is a good chance it will be.

The world is weird; kindness matters.

--Daily

#heroes of song #indie ttrpg #ttrpg #ttrpg dev #ttrpg design #tunic #legend of zelda

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

Investigating the contribution of gamma-ray blazar flares to neutrino flux

Blazars belong to the family of active galactic nuclei called quasars. What differentiates them from quasars is that the flares ejected out of these active galactic nuclei are pointed toward the Earth. These flares contain high-energy cosmic rays which are released from the core of these galaxies as jets spanning many light years. Such cosmic rays can interact with photons to produce subatomic particles called neutrinos.

Gamma-ray flares from blazars are thought to be the primary events behind neutrino detection in the sky. In 2017, the South Pole neutrino detector "IceCube" detected a high-energy neutrino event whose timings and positioning in the night sky coincided with the flare of a blazar called TXS 0506+056. Some scientists suggest that there could be a population of blazars whose flares are accompanied by high-energy neutrino emission. However, the relationship between blazar flaring activity and neutrino flux is yet to be properly understood.

In this regard, an international research team, led by Professor Kenji Yoshida from the Department of Electronic Information Systems at Shibaura Institute of Technology, Japan, has recently performed a comprehensive statistical analysis to understand the contribution of gamma-ray flares to neutrino emission.

The team included Maria Petropoulou from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Kohta Murase from The Pennsylvania State University, and Foteini Oikonomou from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Their paper was published in The Astrophysical Journal.

The researchers analyzed 145 blazars, 144 taken from the Fermi Large Area Telescope Monitored Source List and including TXS 0506+056, in this study. They first calculated a weekly average of the gamma-ray flux of the blazars and plotted their light curves. The team then derived the flare duty cycle (fraction of time spent in a flaring state) and the corresponding energy fraction from these curves using a Bayesian blocks algorithm, a statistical method used to identify changes in a time series.

"We find that blazars with lower flare duty cycles and energy fractions are more numerous among our sample. Their flare duty cycles and energy fractions represent power law-like distributions, correlating strongly with each other. We found a significant difference between blazar subclasses for the flare duty cycles at the 5% significant level," says Prof. Yoshida, highlighting the major results of their analysis.

The researchers evaluated the neutrino energy flux of each gamma-ray flare, using a general scaling relation for the neutrino and gamma-ray luminosities with a power law's weighting exponent of 1.0–2.0, normalized to the quiescent gamma-ray or X-ray flux of each blazar. They also found that the gamma-ray flare distribution indicates that blazar neutrino emission may be dominated by flares for the weighting exponent >1.5.

Furthermore, by comparing their neutrino predictions for each blazar for one-week and 10-year periods to the time-integrated IceCube sensitivity, the team placed upper limits on the contributions of the flares to the isotropic diffuse neutrino flux.

Prof. Yoshida remarks, "We hope that this study helps improve our understanding of the contribution of blazars to astrophysical neutrinos. Application of the present method to further observations might have the potential to contribute to the advancement of scientific knowledge of the origin of astrophysical neutrinos."

IMAGE....The data is for 129 blazars (97 FSRQs, 26 BL Lac objects, and 6 BCUs) for a 1-week bin (left) and a 10 yr bin (right) of scenario (2) with AX = 1.0, and γ = 1.5 as a function of the sin(δ) with decl. δ. Credit: Kenji Yoshida, SIT, Japan

#science #space #astronomy #physics #news #esa #astrophysics #nasa

[the-ravens-requiem]

Plague-Tober #5 - Lock

Very few, if any, knew of Doctor's vault.

In it, Doctor held their most valuable and powerful possessions.

It was an old habit to break, really.

Others might have described it as a hoard, though Doctor would be aghast to hear such a thing. Keeping it under lock and key beneath the shop was just a function of space, and anyone trustworthy who wanted to see the wonders they'd collected over the long years was but a simple request away.

Of course, few were privvy to the existence of the vault in the first place. A few of the possessions were old and powerful relics, and Doctor thought it was best that they remained in their own hands. And that is why the vault was a secret, for the most part.

Doctor was mistrustful of other academics. The elves to the north would attempt to reverse engineer the magic items in order to reproduce them for the upper class. The dwarves in the Mountainhome would simply break them in order to find out how they worked. Even still, there were other factions who coveted such items for their own purposes, weather to destroy them or use them against others.

No. No. It simply wouldn't do. Perhaps it was presumptuous of Doctor, given their history, but they felt as if the best person to keep and study such items was themself. Not for use, but for safe keeping. A collection, if you will.

Sometimes Doctor just liked to look at all the things, sit amongst them. Memories of how each one had been procured suddenly filling their mind, waves of nostalgia overcoming them. Sadness sometimes -- but there had been joy, too.

A book here and there, a sword or two. Axes, daggers. Enchanted weapons among seemingly innocuous every-day items that held curses or other such magics. There was a few pieces of jewelry -- some that Doctor had worn in the past, even. Amulets, necklaces, earrings, rings, bracelets, circlets. A cursed stave, a magical tea cup. There was even an ink well and quill.

More objects, even still. Displayed neatly, organized and well maintained. No signs of rust or rot, perfectly preserved.

The vault itself was enchanted, metal floors on metal walls, free from dirt except by the door, cleverly disguised as a root cellar. Magic was harder to will here, and all would be protected in case of fire or frost. To keep things in, and to keep things from coming out, too.

Like a prison, really.

#plaguetober #plaguetober 2023 #filled

[htpowlaserenraver]

Analysis and evaluation of LONGER RAY5 10W laser engraver

There are many ways to celebrate a special occasion or promote your brand. T-shirts and coffee mugs are always a favorite. If you want something a little more professional, a custom pen or notebook might be a good idea. But T-shirts are a dime a dozen.

For a truly special occasion or an impressive branding campaign, you might want to step up the pace. As for mugs, pens and notebooks, we must have too many. They make great gifts, but no one thinks they're really special.

Printmaking, on the other hand, has a greater appeal to it. It has a timeless aura that nothing like a T-shirt can bring to the dinner table. An engraved plaque, badge or tumbler feels important while a simple print doesn't. As for branding, engraving is great for long-term signage. Sturdy engraved signs will last for decades without any noticeable degradation.

When most people think of engraving, they think of metal. But the truth is that you can engrave a wide variety of materials. With the right laser, you can engrave wood, plastic, rubber, acrylic, and other materials. You can also use a laser to make intricate custom cutouts for crafts. But to get high-quality engraving, you need a well-designed engraving machine.

LONGER RAY5 10W Laser Engraving Machine It's a powerful 10-watt laser that can etch almost any material, even cutting wood boards in one go. It also works very fast at speeds of up to 10,000 mm per minute. Coupled with a large work area, it was clear we were interested.

That said, a laser engraver is a complex machine with many different functions. To really get our hands on this device, we're going to have to dig a little deeper.

We'll discuss the physical design, and how the engraver is built. We'll discuss the laser module itself and how to operate the controls. Also, we'll look at the different ways you can print, as well as any noteworthy extras. After we've discussed all of these things, we'll have enough information to make a fair verdict. let's start!

Frames and Gantry Like most laser engravers, the Longer RAY5 10W laser engraver has a rectangular metal frame. It's made of matte black aluminum, which is both lightweight and durable. The frame sits on a set of metal feet a few inches off the ground. Overall dimensions are 23.07 inches wide, 22.95 inches deep, and 6.95 inches high, including laser module.

A gantry spans the top of the frame, extending from side to side. It rides on a set of sturdy wheels that clip into slots in the side rails. This allows it to move freely back and forth in the work area. There is a small motor at one end of the gantry that powers its movement.

The laser module is also housed in a motorized housing that sits on top of the gantry. It moves side to side on the gantry, while auxiliary rods below the gantry keep it stable. Between the gantry and the module housing, there are two axes of motion. The laser module can be easily moved to any position within the working area.

When sculpting, placement is key. If you're carving something off center, that's a problem. Luckily, the LONGER RAY5 router has some white markings on the side of the frame in centimeters and millimeters. There are additional markings on top of the gantry so you can precisely place whatever you want to carve.

Laser and Control When you use your LONGER RAY5 engraving machine, you must first calibrate it. This means adjusting the laser module so that it is just the right distance from the target. This may mean moving it up or down, depending on the thickness of your work material.

Place your circuit board under the head and find the small metal cylinder in the kit. This is your focusing post, and it fits in a small slot in the laser module. Unscrew the module and adjust it so it rests lightly on the focusing post. Then, retighten the screws. This is easy to do, but you have to do it every time you switch between materials. We do have some concerns about the tuning mechanic, as it might fail if you keep tuning it.

There is a 3.5-inch touchscreen on the front left of the housing. This is used to control laser speed, create manual offsets, or make other adjustments. There's even a small SD card in the slot, where you can access documents and print them directly. No computer or smartphone required!

There are also some security features you should be aware of. In the event of a fire, the fire protection will shut down the laser. If the laser engraving machine is tilted, the anti-tilt protection will be turned off. The motionless protection will turn off the laser if it is frozen in place for more than 15 seconds.

connection and setup There are several ways to print to the LONGER RAY5 10W Laser Engraver. First, as we discussed, you can use an SD card for offline printing. This is perfect for an industrial setting where you can make multiples of the same thing. It's also very useful if you're engraving somewhere without internet. However, this is only an option.

One way to connect is via WiFi. Via WiFi, you can control the printer through a dedicated smartphone app. Print any file to the app and it will be converted into a high-quality engraving.

You can also use your computer's WiFi connection. Using a computer, you can set up multiple RAY5 routers to run in parallel. Print it once and it will be sent to all engravers. This is the easiest way if you want to sculpt a lot of things quickly.

If you don't want to mess with WiFi, you can always use a USB connection. The kit includes a USB Type-A to Type-B cable that can be connected to any PC or Mac. It is even compatible with Linux systems where many engravers are not.

As for software compatibility, you'll have a lot of options. The engraver is compatible with all major engraving software, including LaserGRBL and LightBurn. Considering that over 90% of sculptors use one of these programs, you should be fine.

Plus, you can work with a wide variety of file formats. In addition to older standards like JPG, BMP, PNG, and GIF, you also get support for newer formats. If you need to sculpt SVG, NC or GC files, here you go. You can even engrave images that have been saved as G-code.

engraving performance The working area of the LONGER RAY5 is 400mm x 400mm. That works out to be 15.75 x 15.75 inches, which is quite a large area. You can engrave large plaques or intricate artwork without the limitations of a small frame.

The laser is capable of engraving at 10,000 millimeters per minute, or about 32 feet. The exact speed will vary depending on how dark the image is. The deeper you try to cut, the slower the laser will move. The design is very stable, so you won't get any blemishes from working at maximum speed. Lines will remain smooth without any unexpected jagged edges.

The 0.6mm laser diameter is beautiful and compact, allowing you to create beautiful shadow images. Due to the small diameter, you can engrave fine details and they are practically visible. They won't get lost in the cleaning process like they can with a low-resolution laser engraver.

The 10 watt laser module is surprisingly powerful. A single knife can cut through 8mm thick wood. You can cut thicker materials with multiple passes. When it comes to materials, lasers are great for engraving just about anything. You can engrave wood, metal, acrylic, rubber, and even vinyl or leather.

If you don't need that much power, consider the LONGER RAY5 5W version. It has a similar work area and speed, so you can make large engravings quickly. It's also more affordable than the RAY5. That said, it only has a 5-watt laser.

Accessories and Support In addition to the RAY5 router itself, Longer laser has included some nifty accessories to help you. The most important thing is the second laser module, with a power of only 5 watts. You might think that a weaker laser would be a bad thing, but it's not. The 5 watt laser module is more suitable for engraving fine materials. For example, you can use it to cut complex shapes on paper, which a 10-watt laser wouldn't do.

In addition to that, you also get a 77-piece engraving kit. Most of these pieces are small wooden blocks and small metal tags. They are great for making small carvings. If you've never used an engraver before, they're a great way to gain basic experience. However, there are also some larger wood and metal panels. These can be used to create larger, more complex carvings. If you want a more powerful engraving machine, you can upgrade to Longer RAY5 20W laser.

As you can see, the LONGER RAY5 is one of the better laser engravers on the market. It has a powerful laser and easy-to-use controls, and is even capable of offline printing. It also offers excellent resolution and fast working speeds so you can quickly create detailed engravings.

[allroseshave-their-pricks]

Screaming. My VP and I are engaged in such a weird tension I don't know what to do. I literally made the rule that pres and VP couldn't date bc I've heard horror stories about prev exec teams, but this is almost worse?

For some backstory - I've known this guy since our 1st yr in college (we're both seniors now) and I joined a comp team (of which he's not the captain), we matched on Tinder then and nothing came of it bc we were just swiping (maybe? who's to say). I leave the team bc COVID hits and I'm busy with my other orgs. We don't discuss this again.

Fast forward a couple years, we both join this other org and in February because pres and VP. Previously mentioned rule is made, but we don't think about it bc I've been with my ex for a few months and he's been with his gf for a year. We are immediately thrown into the fire, end up becoming pretty close friends, and I discovered we work really well together! I don't remember the Tinder match until we get put into a Snapchat group together and I realized I already have his snap.

Bringing us to now, November. We both get broken up with at around the same time, both know it's coming but still sucks, and so we're ✨bonding✨ We're talking about how we're rebounding and handling, and I end up making several dating accounts after hearing of his escapades. I mention that I made a Hinge to him via text and he says "and a Tinder? I found you" and I... short circuit. Simply ignore. We continue talking about the potential/failed dates we're going on to each other like normal friends who just got broken up seperately with do. Except for how close he sits while we're chilling in my office. And how he only refers to me by my title. How he only uses my name if we're alone or in a setting where the titles can't be used.

We proceed to not talk about the Tinder thing for a while (I am looking for him, to no avail) until last night when he gets a bit tipsy before one of our org functions so I have to drive him around. On the... much longer than anticipated drive (fuck football traffic) we talk a lot about his prev relationship and some of the weird and shitty things his ex did. As we're taking, he asks "Rose, do you fuck?" which is an Incredibly Odd way to ask if I'm sexually active but really not the point of this story. He ends up bringing up our 1st yr Tinder match (aha! I'm not the only one who remembers), says he's expecting me to find him again, and mentions he's been looking for me on Bumble too. I drop him off around this time.

My brain at this point is so utterly fried. Is he flirting? Is he coping? Am I overthinking? I decide to Simply Not Think About It.

And then this morning we had a meeting with the rest of the team, and afterwords we went to get lunch (which was... yea just really weird. needed an axe for the tension). THEN I finally, finally find him on Tinder. His profile is like half good pictures, half Garfield. Don't ask. We engage in the classic "boy you look really familiar" convo.

I do not know where to go from here, other than just waiting until the new exec rolls in this February. I really wasn't planning on dating another straight engineering man, but I know we work really well together and he do be hot (as the kids say). It wouldn't be super long term since we'll both be graduating next year with our master's and neither of us want strong ties to keep us anywhere.

But also... might just be reading into stuff.

#rrr #this is the same vp from my prev posts #not about work this is an organization I'm on the exec board for. no payment! #also fun fact - when we were joining we both had grandparents die (or almost die in his case) #it's been A Time

[bramsenpaulsen35]

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#Kono Healer Mendokusai

[schrijverr]

The Heart Is Also a Muscle

5 times Sypha and Alucard got distracted by Trevor’s warrior physique + 1 time he noticed and yet completely misunderstands.

Trevor is hot and once Sypha and Alucard have noticed it is hard not to notice. Now they just have to figure out how to confess, before it gets incredibly awkward because he catches on. When he does however, his insecurities completely misconstrue their intentions.

On AO3.

Ships: trephacard

Warnings: insecurities

~~~~~~~~~~

Despite Trevor’s many years on the road, keeping up a less than stellar training regime, he was still a warrior at heart and in body. He had still fought all those years and his frame was bulky to accommodate the muscle needed for that.

Something that was hard to miss.

And Alucard and Sypha didn’t miss it at all. In fact they noticed it a bit too often for their own comfort, now that they were cleaning up Dracula’s castle after their victory over the old vampire.

1.

It wasn’t that Sypha hadn’t noticed that Trevor was fit while they traveled, it was more that they were so many other things to think about, to worry about to keep oneself alive that she hadn’t noticed that sort of stuff. So, it still took her by surprise when she did.

They were clearing out the rubble of one of the many rooms covered by it. It was slow going work, even with Alucard’s supernatural strength. One upside was that Sypha was getting really good at levitation spells.

She took a small break and wiped her forehead. Alucard had just moved a big stone and Trevor was now trying to lift a bigger stone than he had done.

For a moment she rolled her eyes at the childish display, but as she looked she noticed the shirt clinging to his sweaty body as he arms bulged under the effort. His brow was furrowed and his tongue was poking out slightly.

He was a piece of art.

Fuck.

Why hadn’t she noticed before that Trevor was completely ripped? Maybe she had noticed, but never connected that to him being nice to look at. Now, she couldn't look away as he struggled with the too big stone.

No sane human should be able to carry it and she didn’t know why he even tried (well, she did, but she thought it stupid). Until, the asshole actually managed to lift it, proud grin sweeping over his face as he did.

Slowly, he started to walk, careful steps to balance the stone and keep himself upright. Every time he almost lost balance, he flexed his legs, which was equally distracting and Sypha really wanted to know why she had to notice this, because she knew that from that moment on, she wouldn’t stop noticing it.

“Sypha?” the smooth voice next to her made her jump, she hadn’t even realized Alucard had arrived next to her. “Something the matter?” he asked.

She debated with herself if she would admit to Alucard what had distracted her so. It was embarrassing for sure, but she had also seen the fondness in the dhampirs eyes whenever Trevor talked to him, so she might find an ally in her suffering here.

With a decision made she gestured to Trevor, who was taking the final steps to the right pile of stones for rebuilding, before he squatted down to put down the stone. His back muscles rippled and his ass was practically on display.

Beside her, Alucard made a choked off noise.

At that Trevor turned around, somehow an adorable confused pout on his face that should look ridiculous on his large frame, but didn’t. “You both okay?”

“Yeah, just thought we’d wait for you to break your back carrying something too heavy before we laughed at you,” Alucard shot back, saving both their asses from embarrassment as Trevor rolled his eyes and flipped him off, claiming that it wasn’t that heavy anyway.

2.

They were rebuilding some of the pathways in the Belmont Hold. Trevor had insisted on cleaning up most of the castle first, claiming that it was the most livable place out of the two and he wanted a bed, but both had seen the saddened look on his face when faced with what remained of his childhood home in ruins.

So, the moment they had made the kitchen and a few bedrooms presentable, they started on a few passageways across.

However, ever since Sypha had pointed out Trevor’s muscles in a different light to him, he now was ruined forevermore and she was to blame. He couldn't do anything normally anymore. Somehow each activity turned into a distraction with Trevor around.

Right now being an example of how much of a distraction Trevor was.

He was hauling up a beam that Sypha was directing above them, while Alucard was supposed to be sorting the pile of books that were in the language only he could read.

Supposed to, because he most definitely wasn’t.

No, because how could one read when Trevor was coiling a rope around his forearms as he pulled on said thick rope, muscles straining against it as he panted and dug in his heals.

The beam was pretty big and it was frankly short of a miracle that he hadn’t let it drop yet, but then again, he was incredibly muscled as Alucard had found out. So, slowly the beam rose under Trevor’s labor.

Faintly Alucard wondered how Sypha was holding out up there, being forced to watch Trevor so that she could jump in to help when necessary. He found her eyes and saw her bite her lip, face completely red.

Then the beam dropped a few feet as Trevor fumbled with the rope for a moment. It was an interesting tug-a-war. Trevor vs. gravity. Even as he won, regaining his footing and putting in some extra work, both Alucard and Sypha had gasped when it happened.

“Do you need assistance?” Alucard found himself calling out, despite knowing better.

“I am fine, Fangs,” Trevor grunted and that noise wasn’t good for Alucard’s blood pressure. “Just do your job and I’ll do mine.”

Wit spite as final motivator, Trevor pulled the beam the final distance, groaning with relief when Sypha had guided it into place. Before he could turn to see Alucard look, the dhampir turned back to his pile of books.

He had things to do.

3.

Alucard and Sypha had gotten used to Trevor’s muscular frame that truly shone whenever they needed to do construction.

Well, used to was a strong word.

Trevor was still completely distracting, so much that they had started a little talk club in the library in the mornings when Trevor was sleeping in. But they could function almost normally and do their tasks while they worked.

But this? This now, right there? That was different. It was just unfair actually. Unfair and mean, but also very blessed.

Rewinding to that afternoon, when they had decided that they weren’t in the mood for reconstructing the castle or the hold. So, they had lunch, talked a bit, Sypha picked up a book, Alucard as well, while Trevor seemed content to sit by the fire with them, whittling away at a piece of wood.

Then it had happened. Trevor had reached for a bit of firewood, before realizing they were almost out. Throwing the last logs onto the fire, he got up and stretched as he said: “I’m going to chop some more fire wood.”

And then he left and they were alone. For a few moments they both just blinked at the empty space that had just been Trevor, before his words caught up to them.

Sypha moved first. She got up with her book and walked to the seat that had been built in next to the window that looked out over the fields below. They weren’t high up in the castle and had a good view.

“Might I inquire about the sudden move?” Alucard asked after a moment.

She grinned at him mischievously and nodded to something on the other side of the window, before she said: “Why don’t you come here and find out? Promise it’s worth it.”

Alucard didn’t know when he had forgotten she was cruel in her kindness, but looking down to see Trevor chop wood with a big ax was definitely cruel, still he was so very grateful for her that she had invited him to the view.

Because it truly was a view. Trevor was soaking through his shirt as he effortlessly swung the giant ax downwards onto the waiting wood, always splitting it in one or two swings.

“Oh God,” he choked out.

“Hmmhm, I know,” Sypha agreed.

“He just-”

“Jup.”

“Wow.”

It wasn’t the classiest conversation they’d had, but by far not the least classiest conversation about Trevor’s muscle’s they’d had. Still, they could hardly be blamed when the person in question was right in front of them being hot, instead of far away and sleeping.

As they watched they could see the outlines of Trevor’s muscles appear in sweat. Naturally the armpits were first, but then they appeared under his pecs and between his shoulders as well.

Alucard swallowed heavily, Sypha beside him followed suit.

They stood there for a while, just admiring Trevor as the pile next to him grew with chopped up wood. It was a nice spring day and the sun was doing wonder’s for the sweat coating his muscles. Trevor was now only in a tunic, nothing covering his arms. It was a very good look on him.

Then it happened. They were unassuming and powerless when Trevor lifted his tunic to wipe the sweat on his brow, only to pull back and grimace when he found it already soaked. Before they could prepare themselves he had tugged the tunic over his head, continuing his task completely bare-chested.

“Oh,” Sypha moaned miserably, “I don’t know if I want to thank whoever is out there or curse them right now.”

If he could have formed words at that moment, he would have agreed with her. Alas, he was incapacitated by the shirtless sweaty and sexy Trevor below them.

After they had started at the hunter for a few moments – imprinting the view, getting their wits together again, that sort of stuff – Sypha said: “This is truly pathetic. Look at us. This is so sad.” Trevor chopped again, it was a big log and it went down in one swing. “But totally deserved sadness if I get to see this.”

“Do you think he knows what he’s doing?” Alucard asked as Trevor stretched borderline pornographically.

“Oh absolutely not,” replied Sypha. “He’s as oblivious as a brick and I’m torn between calling it cute and frustrating.”

“We should probably say something to him at one point,” Alucard pointed out.

“Yeah, we probably should,” Sypha agreed, taking Alucard’s hand and leaning into him as they enjoyed the view together. They had made a deal not to do anything until they’d gotten Trevor’s rejection or until he was on board. Right now, she would do anything for a kiss though.

She didn’t try. She knew that Alucard cared about doing things proper and she wanted that too. She just also happened to be watching Trevor be hot while knowing that any move would have him running from the hills due to the emotional repressing he had made his personality.

So, she sighed and looked back out, only to see Trevor put the ax away and gather an arm full of newly chopped wood, still no shirt.

Cursing she pulled Alucard back to the chairs they had sat in and turned the book so that it was right side up, before she hissed to Alucard that he had to act natural.

Alucard had just turned back to his book, the look of apathy he had perfected on his face, when Trevor came in and dropped off the firewood, before greeting them and turning to bring another load.

Once he had left the room and would be out of hearing range, Alucard leaned over to her and whispered: “We need to come up with a plan at some point.”

“Yes, I know, okay,” Sypha agreed.

“He’s getting on my nerves both in a good and bad way and I might snap if we don’t do something soon and that’ll make things worse.”

“This is getting ridiculous,” she sighed, “I’m working on it.”

“What are you two gossiping about?” Trevor asked with a grin, as he returned with more wood in his arms. “You could be two old ladies in a market square.”

“Nothing really,” said Alucard, right as Sypha answered: “About how much you stink. Sweat isn’t a good look on you,” the lie came out.

Trevor huffed, but it was good-naturedly, as he rolled his eyes. “I’ll put away the rest of the wood and go bathe, your majesties.” Then he swept out of the room, leaving them without his shirtless pecs to view.

4.

After the wood chopping incident, working together with Trevor had become harder again, so the cleaning of the general grossness that came with an army of night creatures had been divided to be done separately.

To Trevor they had claimed efficiency, and while he had looked suspicious, he had also accepted it without any complaints.

But even that did not save them from him. While there were no bulging muscles soaking in sweat, just general grossness and tiredness when they met up again with each other, it seemed that Trevor was full of surprises, oblivious as he was to them.

Alucard and Sypha had bothcollapsed on the floor in one of the main halls when Trevor joined them, stretching his arms above his head, flexing his muscles slightly.

He sat down with them and groaned: “I don’t think my back will ever recover from this, I don’t get paid enough for this.”

“You do not get paid at all,” said Alucard in confusion.

“Exactly,” Trevor told him, before stretching and groaning again. Then he stretched his legs out in front of him and just dropped his head down onto his knees, bending himself in half as he semi-moaned when his back cracked.

Sypha watched him slack jawed and Alucard didn’t think he looked much better as he ogled the hunter as well. Trevor was not just flexing muscles, but flexible as well. He would become the death of them that was certain.

It took them a few more moments to snap out of their daze, then a few more to realize Trevor had fallen asleep.

He had fallen asleep with his nose between his knees as if he was a pretzel, because apparently the position was so comfortable for him that he could fall asleep.

Fuck.

5.

After the flexible incident, as Sypha was calling it, they had been scrambling for a plan to get Trevor to agree to date them, because seeing that display only to have to deal with the cute sleepy Trevor that came after had been too much for their hearts.

Naturally it couldn't be that way. They had a vague plan about maybe tying Trevor to a chair if he wanted to run away, but nothing concrete yet.

She was currently in the Belmont Hold, looking through their books, hoping that one would spark a plan or maybe just give her something to talk about with the other’s over dinner. A book caught her eye, it was green with golden letters that read: Herbs against poison, for healing and relaxation

But when she reached for it, her arm fell short and not even by a bit. She was even pretty sure Alucard couldn't reach it like that. She would need a ladder, but the ladder system for this part had been destroyed.

A part of her was aware that she was pouting, but she still frowned when Trevor asked: “What are you pouting about?”

“I wasn’t pouting,” she told him instead of answering.

“Okay then, why was your bottom lip protruding in displeasure?” he asked her with a shit-eating grin that was both adorable and annoying.

She gave up with that and gestured to the book as she explained: “I can’t reach it.”

Trevor tried, but he too couldn't reach it, but she appreciated how he stretched out in an attempt to reach it, the flexibility coming to mind again. It truly was a pity they hadn’t been able to come up with anything to exploit that part yet.

Sypha was about to call for Alucard to see if he could when she felt two big hands on her waist before she was effortlessly lifted into the air. She squeaked loudly and floundered for a moment.

“Grab your book, Sypha,” she heard the laughter in Trevor’s voice, but she couldn't find it within herself to be annoyed when Trevor had just lifted her of the ground like it was nothing.

Sure, she wasn’t the heaviest or biggest person around, but she had a lot of muscle for her frame and she wouldn’t describe herself as light. God, what she wouldn’t give to have that strength at her mercy.

No, don’t focus on that now, grab the book. She quickly clutched the book and hoped her cheeks weren’t as red as they felt.

“Hey, you okay?” Trevor was now frowning in that stupidly concerned way that made her heart clench and she deducted that her cheeks must have been as red as she’d feared. “I’m fine,” she squeaked, hoping it would be enough.

Alucard came to her rescue, sort of. He landed gracefully and asked: “What happened? I heard Sypha squeak.”

“Oh, yeah, nothing to worry about. I think I startled her when I lifted her,” Trevor explained casually, “We couldn't reach a book she wanted. So, teamwork.”

“You. You just lifted her up?” Alucard repeated dumbly and Sypha knew that it was the fact that it was hot and he missed it that made him say it like that.

Sadly, Trevor interpreted it differently. “What? You think I couldn't lift her. No offense, Sypha, but you’re hardly a challenge. I mean, I could lift you, you bloodsucking prick. Sure, no super strength, but you don’t have to be a dick about it.”

“That’s not-” before Alucard could ruin everything, Sypha interrupted: “Really?” she tried to sound disbelieving, “I mean, you’re strong, but Alucard? He’s tall and muscled. I don’t think you can.”

“I so can, this is ridiculous,” now it was Trevor, who was pouting and she took a bit of joy out of her manipulation.

“Prove it.”

Trevor looked taken aback by that and glanced at Alucard, who gladly had caught on and send him a cocky raised brow paired with a smirk.

Determination settled on Trevor’s face and he crossed his arms, before saying: “Okay, sure, I will,” before walking to Alucard and hoisting him over his shoulder’s like he was a somewhat heavy sack of potatoes. “See?”

“Okay, yeah, but that wasn’t how you carried me,” Sypha pointed out.

“Well, then maybe I can’t do that, but lifting someone by the waist is the hardest way to lift someone,” Trevor protested as he let Alucard down. “I feel like that was still pretty impressive. He’s heavy despite the delicate bone structure.”

Sypha was pretty sure Alucard was out of the running now with that comment, but she wanted to sedate her own curiosity. “I’ll give you the hard lifting part, but I don’t know about impressive. Maybe bridal carry and I’ll be impressed.”

He looked at her inscrutably and for a second she feared he would call her bluff and point out her real motivations. That moment never came, he sighed then set his shoulders– his broad, nice shoulders – stubbornly, before literally swooping Alucard off his feet.

He gave her a look that screamed ‘What now, eh? Didn’t think I’d do it, but I did, so suck it’ and she loved it. She loved that he had done what she told him to do while also showing off those muscles. A win on every front.

His arms, neck and shoulder strained under the weight of the tall, muscled dhampir, but he held out as he gently lowered Alucard back onto his feet. Sypha didn’t know if it was the lifting or the gentleness that made Alucard bashful, but he murmured something inaudible, before hurrying back to what he had bee doing before the interruption.

“Rude,” Trevor noted. “I didn’t even get to bask in my superiority.”

“You can bask to me, it’s okay,” she comforted him. “I am suitably impressed by your dhampir lifting skills, Trevor.”

“Thank you,” he said with extra emphasis to make it into a tease. “You know, as a true hero, both for being epic and awesome as well as getting your book, I feel like I should be rewarded.”

“Oh?” she was curious to see where this went.

“Yeah, I want to borrow the bath soap you’re so protective over after the next time we attempt to clean the goop dungeon,” he made his demand.

She was glad that, with running warm water, they had convinced him that baths were actually nice and she didn’t mind the thought of him smelling like her. Still, she put up a front of indulgence, yet being annoyed as she said: “Fine.”

“Heck yeah,” he cheered before ambling off.

+1.

Trevor wasn’t sure what exactly was going on, but over the past few days he had noticed that both Alucard and Sypha were acting weird. Well, weirder than usual, it was pretty hard to define weird when you lived in Dracula’s old castle near the Belmont Hold with a dhampir and a Speaker, but you get the idea.

The thing was, Trevor had no idea why they were being weird and what had caused it, but he knew they were only weird to him.

It made his chest tighten uncomfortably as he tried to think of something he’d done wrong.

Nothing came to mind, but that just made him question if he really knew them if he couldn't even spot the thing he had done to upset them both. It was all a frustrating mess and Trevor was half waiting for the proverbial other shoe to drop.

He hated feeling like this, feeling like he’d done something wrong and couldn't apologize. It tore him apart in a way he couldn't describe. He just hoped that they wouldn’t kick him to the curb, because that would extra suck. He already liked them too much as it was, getting his heart broken over something he didn’t understand would only make it worse.

So, he kept an eye on them, trying to figure out what they were thinking when they stared at him or whispered among themselves.

He was soon to find out.

It was a decidedly normal day, Trevor was mildly stressed, the weather was nice and they were finally moving the rubble they hadn’t been able to reuse out of the castle. They were making a pile out of it that they would later use to make an obstacle course or something, Trevor wasn’t sure it was mostly Alucard and Sypha doing the planning. Maybe that was it? Maybe the stress of the whole castle thing was catching up with them as well and it wasn’t anything Trevor had done.

They had assigned him to carry rubble, which made him roll his eyes. Alucard had supernatural strength and Sypha had magic, yet here he was carrying the bulk while Sypha ordered him around on where to go while Alucard switched between helping him and rearranging the rubble.

His muscles were straining under the amount of exercise, but it didn’t bother Trevor that much. It was good to keep in shape and he could handle it.

He came back from his umpteenth trip, groaning as he set down his load as he cracked his back by putting his hands on his back and pushing. He looked around and saw Alucard and Sypha on top of one of the piles that Alucard found “artistic.”

With a grin on his face he quickly hopped up the pile to see what they were talking about. They had watching him walk over and smiled at him, before turning to talk among themselves. He was about to call out a greeting and announce his presence when he heard Sypha said: “There must be more chores where we can make him carry stuff.”

Hm, he thought, that was obviously about him, thoughhe had no clue why that of all things would be a conversation topic.

Before he could ask, Alucard replied: “I mean, there are still those chains in the dungeons that we could make him clear out, but I feel that would be bad for us.” This was just making him more confused.

Sypha made a small noise, before agreeing: “Oh, yeah, Trevor with chains will totally be bad for us.”

Trevor choked on his spit.

Two heads whipped around to him, with two pairs of eyes as big as dinner plates, filled with the guilt of being caught saying something they shouldn’t have been saying. They were completely silent, neither explaining or defending themselves.

In the silence Trevor tried to wrap his head around it. How was him carrying stuff bad for them? And why were they thinking up reasons for him to carry stuff anyway? What did they have to gain by watching him carry stuff? It wasn’t as if he was eye candy and-

“Oh my god!” he exclaimed. He was eye candy. They were watching him carry stuff, because they liked it and holy shit did he not know how to even deal with that.

He felt the blood rushing to his head and knew he must look like a fucking beet, but he didn’t care, his mind was a bit preoccupied. He had known that some would classify him as handsome, but he had long since given up on either of them thinking that. They had seen him do too many embarrassing things to even consider him attractive and they had each other. Even dense little him could put that one together. Yet here they were.

Unless, of course, this was some sort of sick joke to them, a little voice in his mind whispered. The dhampir hearing of Alucard could have picked up his footfalls easily and they could have conspired to fuck with him, just for the sake of fucking with him. A cold feeling washed over him and his chest seemed to collapse in on itself at the realization.

God, fucking shit, they had probably caught on to his pathetic feelings for them and had decided to toy with him before telling him to scram for being a fucking weirdo. All the looks made so much more sense now.

It just fucking hurt that they would toy with him like that. That they would be that mean to him instead of just telling him when they’d figured it out.

Much to his embarrassment, he felt tears welling up in his eyes. He swallowed hard and tried to force them down as he choked out: “Well, fuck you too,” before turning away to stomp off and grab his stuff to get out of there.

He didn’t get far.

Alucard appeared in front of him with his stupid dhampir speed that Trevor found very attractive no matter how much he hated it rightnow. The other reached out to him, but stilled his hand before they touched.

Fuck, how badly did he fuck up that they didn’t even want to touch him. And why were they even coming after him. He was doing what they wanted.

“Trevor,” Alucard said and it didn’t sound like someone relieved that the person, who had been crushing after him and his girlfriend was finally going, it sounded like someone, who was very upset.

It stilled Trevor long enough for Sypha to catch up with them too. As she laid her hand on his shoulder. However, he shrugged her off and tried to walk on again, getting stopped by Alucard, who found it within himself to touch the grossness of Trevor.

“Wait, Trevor, hold on,” Sypha called out. “I swear it’s not what you think.”

“Really?” he truly didn’t mean to sound so bitter. He was happy that they had each other, they deserved each other. It just hurt that he wasn’t in their they and that they thought that stupid joke would land well.

“Yes, okay,” she told him. “We’re really sorry about springing it on you like that, but-”

“Yeah, why the fuck did you think that was okay?” he hissed at her, trying not to feel the pangs in his heart at her little flinch. “I don’t care that you’re fucking happy together, but pulling that sick stunt on me is not cool. You can just kick me to the curb like a normal person. You fucking fuckers just had to crush me in the process too? Getting someone’s hope up and then- then… That’s just- just mean!”

He knew he was crying now, he totally was and his voice broke over the last few words, but he couldn't stop it. He had spend the last few weeks pining over them, while knowing he didn’t have a chance, perking up with a slight hope every time they smiled at him. So for them to give him that hope again only to stomp on it, had just been the last straw that broke him. Sue him.

“W- what?” Alucard asked, making him turn around to see absolute confusion written over his face along with hurt.

“Oh, Trevor,” he heard Sypha behind him with that pitying voice he didn’t need from her as he turned around to see hurting compassion written over her entire face. Yeah, now she felt guilty, not when she actually did it.

Still, when she reached for his face and gently cupped his cheek, he couldn't help but lean in to the little bit of comfort that was provided.

She wiped away his tears gently and softly said: “We’re not kicking you to the curb. Never, okay, never, Trevor. I swear. You’ve completely misunderstood. It wasn’t a joke, okay. It never was. We meant it, undignified as our lordship over there might find it.”

Trevor chuckled wetly at that, still not entirely sure if he believed her, but so willing to give in, even if it was a lie. For the lie was so much sweeter.

Alucard appeared behind him and he swayed slightly, the exhaustion of all the emotions in the last couple of minutes catching up to him. He tried to pull away when he accidentally hit Alucard’s chest, but the dhampir just pulled him close, nuzzling his hair as he whispered: “You’re such an idiot.”

That was probably true, both Alucard and Sypha were smarter than him and he was generally an idiot, but his mind wasn’t fully wrapping around where he had misunderstood it all and ruined everything.

The tears that had stopped started up again and he didn’t know how after years of repressing all his emotions this was the thing that broke all his walls. Still, he whimpered: “I’m sorry, for- for fucking it all- all up ag- again.”

“No, no,” Sypha shushed him as she hugged him, “you didn’t fuck up anything.”

He was now completely sandwiched between Sypha and Alucard with no clue how him taking a small break from clearing rubble had ended up like this. Yet here he was and he was going to soak up the attention and care while he had it, so he didn’t protest them holding him silently, just let himself melt softly.

Seconds or eternities could have passed without Trevor’s knowledge until Sypha broke the silence: “I don’t know how you got to the conclusion that our horny conspiring was a joke, but as embarrassing at it is, it most certainly isn’t, Trevor.”

Trevor had half choked, half laughed at the phrase ‘horny conspiring’ as it caught up to him what that meant. Hesitantly, he asked: “So- so you had me carry stuff just to watch me?”

It sounded ridiculous in his own head, because why on earth would anyone look at him when they could look at Alucard and Sypha, but they both tensed slightly around him, before nodding. Alucard going as far as to say: “You have nice muscles.”

Under other circumstances Trevor would totally and completely ruin Alucard by tearing him apart with teases at that remark, but there weren’t other circumstances and right now Trevor felt raw and vulnerable, so he just breathed: “Yeah?” in an unsure voice that he hated immediately.

“Yeah,” Sypha firmly agreed. “I don’t know how to tell you this without never hearing the end of it, but you’re really fucking hot. You literally made me into a person who says fuck just so I could tell you that you’re fucking hot.”

He actually snorted at that, because it was easier to snort at it then to admit that the complement felt nice and made him blush.

“We’ve actually been trying very hard to figure out how to tell you without you running away,” she went on, snorting miserably, “but I guess we messed that up. You are just so bad at accepting nice things for yourself that us telling you that we love you seemed almost impossible.”

“Y- you? You love me?” He was getting really fucking sick of that small weak voice

“Yes,” that was Alucard behind him. “We love you, just like we love each other. We hope you feel the same, but we understand if you don’t.”

“It would be really fucking stupid of me not to love the two most amazing people in the entire world, Alucard. Yes, sadly I am disappointing my entire bloodline by including you in that statement, but it’s true.” Admitting it like this felt better than being touch-y feel-y, he didn’t do touch-y feel-y well.

Luckily it was the right thing to say, because both of them relaxed around him as they snorted before chuckling and a bit of pride coursed through him at making them laugh.

“I’m so lucky you’re our idiot,” Sypha told him, before pulling him into a kiss.

Her lips were soft but firm and completely enticing. He kissed her back and stopped caring about oxygen as a necessity, it was completely overrated in comparison to kissing Sypha. When she finally let him up for air, he was dizzy. Faintly he heard her say something to Alucard about making her wait for so long, but it was lost to him as he tried to refind himself as a human being.

He became aware of Alucard and Sypha kissing each other over his shoulder once he had managed and watched mesmerized for a moment. Fuck, he could definitely get used to this. Still, he whined: “I’m feeling a bit left out here,” without meaning it.

Both their eyes fell on him and swallowing became a challenge. Then Alucard surged his lips and kissed him thoroughly. It was less gentle, while more careful than Sypha’s kiss as Alucard watched out for his fangs to Trevor’s disappointment. Yet, it was equally mind blowing.

Once he had resurfaced again, it took him a moment once more. He was still being wrapped up in both of them and his heart felt so much lighter than it had before.

“I know we should probably talk way more about this, but I do want to note that I have excellent stamina to back up my muscles.”

Both of them groaned and he grinned to his little victory.

Yeah, he could get used to this.

~~

A/N:

Fun fact, my sister once fell asleep with her nose between her knees, because she is slightly insane, I feel personally. So, actually based in fact, lmao

Also, I swear this was supposed to be lighthearted, but then I was writing the last part from Trevor’s POV, because I thought it would be funny and he just wouldn’t allow himself nice things no matter how I tried to push him. So angst it is, very in character, sadly.

Btw, im really proud of that title ngl

#rr writing #trephacard #insecure trevor belmont #trevor belmont #alucard tepes #alucard #sypha belnades #sypha x trevor x alucard #castlevania #netflix castlevania #castlevania cartoon

[kuvvydraws]

The bad sans would all have a cuddle pile with raavi and assure him it's not his fault.

Probably either in nights room or Axes room seeing as they have the largest sleeping arrangements. Axe would also have plenty of snacks and food ready so they can stay locked up in his room for at least a week if needed.

Night would help him sleep.

Killer and cross would try to cheer him up

Axe would get him food and make sure he eats

And dust would make sure he has comfy clothes

<3

That's definitely a sweet thought!

Raavi's bad days are usually spent in isolation and/or silence, all their love for the crowds and the noise gone in exchange for darker thoughts and lack of hunger. They might not interact that actively with the others while feeling down, or eat as much -which is probably going to upset Axe-, or just do much besides sit and frown and pout and feel like garbage.

Given the chance, however, becoming a sad ball and letting others burrito and smother them is a good option, and they'll gratefully accept the cuddles until they can go back to function like normal.

#kuvvytalks #raavi #hc #ht!sans #nightmare #cross #killer #dust!sans #BS castle #horrortale #undertale #dreamtale