#like the conclusion of the first game? heartbreaking

[average-mako-enjoyer]

So, I've seen some interesting posts about Spacer Shepard and Colonist Shepard and the struggles they had to face, so I just want to ramble about my favorite Earthborn, why I think it's such a powerful background and what makes it especially heartbreaking.

It's easy to guess why both the Colonist and the Spacer chose to become soldiers. For the Spacer it was the most obvious choice available (and we see a lot of these "dynasties" in the game: Ashley, Kaidan, Tali, Jacob…), for the Colonist it was revenge, but what about the street kid, the Earthborn? What kind of hell was the Earthborn living in that the only way out was to join the fucking military? Were they even 18 when they enlisted? Shepard calls the place they grew up a "war zone," so you can draw your own conclusions.

We kind of get the inside scoop on Shepard's gang days thanks to Finch, and this whole quest really got me thinking: what kind of stuff was the teenage Shepard involved in that Finch (and I don't think he's a stupid guy) really thought he could blackmail the first human Spectre?

Also, how did gang life affect Shepard? Military training must have been hell for them, because it's based on trusting your squadmates, your commanding officer, the whole chain of command, and gang life is pretty much the opposite: trust someone and you're likely to get fucked.

And what about the whole "Take Earth back" thing? There was a very interesting thought in the post about the Colonist, asking why Shepard should care about Earth at all when their own home was destroyed and their parents were killed? And it got me thinking about the Earthborn: why should they care? They saw the absolute worst that this planet can be: they were an orphan in a war zone, forced into the gang just to survive. Someone like Kaidan is fighting for his family, for his orchard and the view over English Bay, and what is Shepard fighting for? For the slums where they grew up?

What I love about this background is how well it fits the Paragade route and how well it explains some of the moments in the game.

Shepard charming the Citadel shopkeepers into giving them a discount? Street kid moment.

Shepard getting really excited about finding the credit chit between the couch cushions? Street kid moment.

Shepard fleecing their own engineers in the sci-fi poker game (after telling said engineers not to be so hard on the rookie)? Street kid moment!

Shepard getting all sarcastic around C-Sec officers and scolding mercs? Street kid moment!

And you know exactly why Shep is so good at hacking and lockpicking, and why it takes some devilish concoction to finally get them drunk.

It's also the reason Shepard can't dance, hums rather than laughs, and smirks rather than smiles.

I honestly have so many heascanons about the Earthborn that I could ramble on all day. Also, following this topic, there's a point to be made about how Bioware handles the issue of sexism in their own games, but that's definitely for another time. Bye.

#mass effect #commander shepard #my thoughts

[martelldoran]

look i know i've said it before but sony's ps peter parker truly is the best peter parker. he's such a sweetheart and his game really balances the scrungy little guy and genius aspects of his character perfectly. the dude spends most of the game couch surfing because he gets evicted from his apartment. he leaves tony stark on read. he has zero dollars to his name because he works for doc oc pursuing projects that have the chance of making a real difference to people's lives and not working for oscorp even tho he could get a job there in a heart beat. he's subscribed to j. jonah jamison's podcast and has his suit autoplay each episode. he gets miles a job at f.e.a.s.t after his dad dies because he knows the grief of losing a parent so acutely and knows he needs something to channel that into. and i'm not very far into the miles morales game but even tho he's not even there for most of it, you can tell he's loving having miles as a partner in spider crimes. he's been spider-man alone for 8 years and has clearly just jumped into having someone to mentor. he gives him a suit with knee and elbow pads which is the cutest thing ever. he sets up training sims while he's away to keep up with miles' training and fills them with puns and does silly vulture impressions during the final stage. like how can you not love him? he is the superior peter parker and that's a hill i'll die on.

my beloved 💖

#og face supremacy #justice for john bubniak #and like yes #i know that games and movies and two fundamentally different mediums but i dont care #this version of peter/spidey is the best adaptation #i've seen all the movies and played the games and this is my conclusion #like the conclusion of the first game? heartbreaking #seeing him cry over octavius' betrayal broke me #his final few lines about how he was everything he wanted to be and how he worshipped him? end me #peak storytelling #yuri lowenthal does such an incredible performance #and like looking at just miles morales you could argue pete's been reduced to quips but like that's how he clearly is from miles' pov yk? #of course he's going to be unerringly positive and upbeat as a mentor #plus we've already seen his serious and heartfelt moments so we know it's there #i just have so many thoughts about these games and the details in them #.txt #marvel #sony ps spider man

[daisynik7]

Give You Blue Masterlist

When your sky is grey, I will give you blue.

Pairing: Eren x f!reader, Reiner x f!reader (past relationship)

Rating: Explicit - MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

Genre: college au

cw: explicit sexual content, language, angst, hurt/comfort, comedy, fluff - specific content warnings will be provided for each chapter

Summary: You and Reiner, childhood friends and high-school sweethearts, break-up in your sophomore year of college. This is the story about how you pick up the pieces of your heartbreak, with the help of your friends and especially your new RA, Eren Jaeger. A story where there are no villains or heroes, just normal people navigating through life and love, one day at a time.  

Author's Notes: Another college au series, yay! I hope you all like this one! All characters are college aged (19-22 years old). Likes, reblogs, and/or comments are always appreciated, thank you for reading!

Give You Blue Taglist | Give You Blue Playlist

Chapter Title and Summary (spoiler-free):

Chapter 1: How It Ends - Reiner breaks up with you the night before the new semester begins. With his car packed with both of your belongings, the hour long ride to campus the next day offers some clarity.

Chapter 2: First Impressions - You move into your new dorm with your best friend and roommate, Annie, where you update her on your current relationship status. That night, you meet Eren Jaeger, your new Resident Assistant.

Chapter 3: Umbrella - With your classes as a distraction, you manage to survive a month into your breakup. However, you hit a wall when you run into your ex for the first time since the start of the semester. And, as if it couldn't get any worse, you forget to bring an umbrella on a day with heavy rainfall. Luckily, someone comes to your rescue.

Chapter 4: Alone Together - You and Annie attend a dinner at the Mu Phi sorority house on campus. Reiner, on his way out of Delta Delta, ambushes you on the walk back to your dorm for a less than pleasant conversation. Later that week, RA Eren hosts a game-night for his fellow residents. But, with it being on a Friday right after midterms, he's disappointed when it flops. Fortunately, someone comes to his rescue.

Chapter 5: Dreams - Your friendship with Eren is taken to the next level. You have a sweet dream that turns into a nightmare. Eren tells his parents that he is considering changing his major.

Chapter 6: Gravity - You attend a party with Annie, only to run into Reiner unexpectedly. Mistakes are made and Eren is once again to the rescue, more than ever before.

Chapter 7: Electric - You and Eren share an intimate moment together, one that the both of you wish could last forever. 

Chapter 8: How It Begins - The conclusion of the series Give You Blue.

Epilogue: A little bonus chapter for our couple.

#eren jaeger #eren smut #reiner braun #reiner smut #eren x you #eren x reader #eren x y/n #eren fluff #reiner x reader #reiner x you #reiner x y/n #eren jaeger smut #series #give you blue #attack on titan #attack on titan smut #aot smut #aot fanfiction

[geemyfirstluvstory]

hey boy, listen…

“my first love story…my angel…and my girls…my sunshine. hey, hey, lets go!”

fem reader. matching halloween costumes with bllk characters. bllk x reader. fluff. characters (separate): michael kaiser, oliver aiku, bachira meguru, hiori yo, chigiri hyoma, kunigami rensuke, itoshi sae+rin, isagi yoichi, shidou ryuusei, nagi seishiro, mikage reo

#

michael kaiser - joker x harley quinn

• this man is certified bonkers so of course he’s the joker and as his loyal worshipper you’re harley quinn

• perhaps a prophecy of the status of your relationship perhaps you just look stylish (ITS THE SECOND ONE PLEASE PICK THE SECOND ONE)

• such a softie for you but would never admit it, you chose the costume and he made sure to get the finest ones money could buy though the pictures you took…he’d rather not see himself dressed as a clown criminal mastermind.

#

oliver aiku - nick & judy (zootopia)

• this was his idea, y’know damn well this man is a party animal so you just have to trust he’s not cheating

• so he decides to make you feel better, he’ll bring you along and do matching costumes. • i just know this man likes putting on animal ears and kids movies thats why y’all are nick and judy

#

bachira meguru - thing 1 & 2

• remember how he got called a weirdo as a kid? he’s definitely a weirdo. eats toothpaste, drinks milk from the carton, milk before cereal. a total goof ball

• he loves children’s books and even as at his big age of 17 he still makes you read them to him and pretends he’s a kid going to bed (IN A WHOLESOME WAY)

• so when the halloween party came up he wanted to go as his favourite book characters, thing 1 & 2. and of course you agreed

#

hiori yo - kuromi and my melody

• of course he’s my melody and you’re kuromi. this was his idea so he gets first dibs

• being the gamer he is he enjoys playing with you, you two are always the cringe couple in the lobby with matching usernames and avatars and he does all the carrying but he also enjoys playing those silly little retro girls games like ‘hamham heartbreak’ and the old cardcaptor sakura games.

• in conclusion he’s a total nerd thats a total sucker for the female gaze

#

chigiri hyoma - team rocket

• this man is a total princess and every year you guys dress as a cartoon couple only to do the same costume the next year but switch the roles so one year he might be james and the next jesse

• this year he’s james, he even did a temporary dye on his hair for accuracy but of course no cutting.

• he loves doing hair with you and for this year’s costume you were the one washing and dyeing his hair

#

kunigami rensuke - raven and beast boy

• you like cartoons, he likes superheroes, you both need a cute matching costume, easy compromise. you both came up with this together while brainstorming

• this man is a lovesick loser so beast boy was very easy to pull off and the most perfect costume for the two of you. the only real inaccuracy is that he’s pretty big

• homemade costumes for the win, of course you’ll buy bits and pieces but overall a homely look because rensuke will do anything to bond with you

#

itoshi sae - light and misa

• sae canonically likes chibi maruko san, who’s to say he isn’t a big weeb? in fact this was his idea. he’s really convincing when it comes to halloween

• he’s a lot like light, cold, calculating, smart so it suited him and besides since light dresses similarly it only fit and since you’re so hopelessly in love with him, it was destiny

• sae isn’t the type to work with his hands but he also didn’t like the quality of pre made costumes. living in europe gave him refined taste so you two went on a designer shopping spree for individual pieces to make your costumes.

#

itoshi rin - coraline’s parents

• you’re probably a total wuss, even if you’re not, rin still can consume more horror, gore, and other gross things than anyone. accumulating in him wanting to do a matching costume with you only if it was some horror character.

• you agreed and settled on coraline since it’d be fun and easy, to match you dressed as coraline’s parents, specifically the other parents with the button eyes

• your favourite part was doing his hair and makeup, rin is like a cat taking a bath you really had to pin him to his office chair or on the bed to do his makeup properly, and yeah theres plenty of kisses

#

isagi yoichi - alice and the cheshire cat

• he’s so bland, (im kidding pls dont come for me) but he loves you so, so he’ll sacrifice the main character spot for you just this once. you’re alice and he’s the cat, of course this was completely your idea

• yoichi doesn’t care too much for this kind of thing, he originally intended to spend halloween cuddling and watching movies with you, perhaps invite some friends over or have some fun without them if you know what i mean….

• but he enjoyed being your cute kitty for a night, you dragged him out and about to take pictures and being blue lock’s hero there was no short of attention

#

shidou ryusei - cleo denile and deuce

• ryusei is very eccentric, kind of weird, in a hot way not in a cute way like meguru. and as you made him watch boo york with you he took one look at cleo and was like “yeah” so in away it was your idea but not really

• you’re his princess and he’s the douche looking boyfriend, i’m not sure about you but it most definitely suits him.

• as you guys went out and about this halloween you know he’s already thinking about next year, perhaps raven queen and derick charming. maybe barbie and ken?

#

nagi seishiro - veggie tales

• let me tell you i’ve actually done this costume irl, seishiro is a lazy fellow he doesn’t like putting in much effort but he’s a cutie patootie and he does adore his pookie

• matching costumes was your idea, to dress as the cucumbers from veggie tales however was his idea as all he had to do was buy the costumes and look cute

• fan reactions and his friends; they found it so stupid it was hilarious, compared to all the other celebrity couples costumes you two chose….children’s cartoons.

#

mikage reo - the adam’s parents

• he’s rich so it’s gotta be classy, you two were going to some gala held by his family company, the mikage corporation, cute and classy lets go

• reo really isn’t one for movies so this was your idea, he’s a total simp for you, absolutely floored all the time with no exception. kissing you up and grovelling at your feet like his morticia adams

• in the end your costume really did suit the occasion made for the best pictures. you guys are now pinterest king and queen every halloween

___

School’s been kicking my ass so i had to do this quickly, anyway what are you guys dressing up as this year?

#michael kaiser x reader #oliver aiku x reader #bachira meguru x reader #hiori x reader #chigiri hyoma x reader #kunigami rensuke x reader #itoshi sae #itoshi rin #isagi yoichi #shidou ryuusei #nagi seishiro #mikage reo

[seospicybin]

MAKE A WISH.

Changbin x reader. (s,f)

A chapter of Pied Piper.

Synopsis: It's his first serious relationship but Changbin fears that he likes you more than you like him. (8,1k words)

Author's note: Happy birthday to my Leo king, the Seo fine, Seo hot, Seo Changbin!

Changbin knows that his time as a university student is about to end soon.

Tonight, he wanted to soak himself once again in the experience of being one by attending a party and this would probably be the last one he had before the stressful time of university life.

The house is crowded with people, a few of them greeted him as he makes his way to grab a drink. It's not hard to navigate through a party like this, the waterhole is always located in the kitchen.

He mixes various alcohol into his cup when a girl approaches him, "Hi, I haven't seen you in a minute!" She says, with a hand on his shoulder.

Changbin only needs to see her once to know she's one he had a flirt with but he remembers she was dating someone at that time.

"Hey, yeah, nice to see you!" He nicely replies.

She eyes the drink he's making, "can you make that two?"

"Sure!" He answers, he planned on going to make a double for himself though.

He makes the drinks as fast as he can and hands her a cup, "Here you go!"

She holds his hand instead of wrapping her hand around the cup, forcing Changbin to hand it right to her hand.

"Do you want to—"

"I'm going back to my friends," Changbin cuts her off and brings his drink with him.

If that girl talked to the old Changbin, he wouldn't pass the chance on talking to a girl, probably taking her to his room to get some privacy and taking things further from there.

He's a changed man now. He's dating a girl and has been dating her for almost a year now. In conclusion, Changbin's time as a campus' heartbreaker is over.

He makes his way back to the living room where all of his friends are gathered. They're shouting at his return with whistles and excessive cheers.

"There goes our retired player!" One of them says.

Confused, Changbin thinks he missed a few things or two while he grabbed his drink.

He ignores him and sits on the sofa, taking the joystick from his friend, "Is it my turn to play?"

He plays a round of video games while the others are talking about this guy who is the new campus' heartbreaker. Funny that he used to try so hard to sustain this image and now he just doesn't care at all.

"So who's this new player?"

"Some guy from film major."

"I still think Bin is the most attractive," his friend teases, going for a kiss at him.

Changbin immediately pushes him away and continues playing video games.

Another one of his friends joined the circle and eggs into the conversation, "Are we talking about the new pretty boy?"

"No, I told you Bin is prettier!" The other friend insists, aggressively supporting him by patting his muscular arms with both hands.

He shrugs him off, "Get lost!"

"I just came back from the film screening thing and I thought it was I saw with your girlfriend," his friend says while munching on a bag of chips.

That makes his ears perked up at the mention of you and a film screening, you said you're going to that thing since you helped them with the posters.

"What do you mean?" He snaps at him, giving the joystick away to the friend sitting next to him.

"I thought the guy she was with is you but he's prettier so..." he continues laughing instead of explaining the details.

"What do you mean by seeing her with someone else?" Changbin gets a little impatient so he grabs the bag of chips so he can properly answer his question. He's not offended by their comments on his look, he's more concerned about you being seen with someone else.

"Whoa, chill!" He says with both hands up in defeat.

"I saw them leaving the screening together so..."

The thought of you going home with someone that is not him makes his blood boils and he wastes no time to grab his car key.

He couldn't drive faster and skipped taking the elevator, climbing the stairs instead to get to your floor. By the time he's standing by the door of your apartment, he's panting and his neck is covered in a sheen of sweat.

He's way past knocking, he's banging on your door, losing senses the longer the door is left unanswered.

Not long after, he hears you faintly complaining from behind the door.

"...coming! Oh, God!"

The second he hears the door clicks and unlocked, Changbin comes barging inside without greeting you first.

"What is it? A sudden inspection?" You joke while locking the door behind you.

Yet Changbin keeps walking further inside and going into every room, searching for something.

You trudge back to your room and sit on the edge of the bed, watching him go into the bathroom.

"Where is he?" He asks as he returns to your room.

"Where is who?" You innocently ask back.

He stands in front of you with his arms crossed in front of him, all serious with a crease formed between his eyebrows.

"I don't know," he slightly shrugs.

"Perhaps, some guy you picked up from the film screening thing," he answers with anger woven under those words.

You lowly chuckle and lean back on the bed, "you mean Lee?"

He doesn't get why you are so calm on admitting that some guy drove you home. Instead of answering you, he shrugs again.

"He left," you simply answer.

Again, he's not seeing any sense of guilt in you and it infuriates him.

"He only gave me a lift home. Nothing else," you assure him.

However, your answer is not quite put him at ease.

You scoot forward on the bed to reach for him, pulling him close by hooking your fingers on the belt loops of his jeans, "Can you relax?"

He uncrosses his arms, then takes your hands in his, "Why didn't you call if you need a ride home?"

You look up at him and softly smile, "You said you want to hang out with your friends so why should I bother you?"

"What's the point of me being your boyfriend if you can't even call me to give you a ride home?" He argues.

You look away and let his hands go, climbing onto the bed and making space next to you for him on the small bed.

"Get in here!"

Usually, Changbin would easily soften around you but not tonight.

Seeing that he decides not to obey you, you heavily sigh and look at him, "I'm having like... excruciating period cramp right now and that's why I asked Lee to give me a ride home so I can take an Advil or two then get some rest. When I was about to sleep, my boyfriend came, banging on the door, and barged inside, thinking that I hide some guy in here."

You laid out all the facts right to his face that he got speechless, feeling bad for every second that passed in silence after you stopped talking.

You let out another big sigh and angrily brush your hair to the back, "Now, he's trying to pick a fight with me instead of getting on the bed like I told him to and giving me back rubs to make me feel better."

Changbin certainly picks the worst time to pick a fight with you if he chooses to continue but what he said earlier are coming back to him. What's the point of being your boyfriend when he can't comfort you?

He takes off his shoes without his feet then climbs onto the bed, tucking into the space next to you on the bed that is too small for two people.

"Now that's my good boy!" You say with a smile as you snug into him, putting his hand on the arch of your back.

Changbin puts his arm around you and rests his other hand on your back, "you want back rubs?" He softly asks, in contrast to the loud and stern voice he used earlier.

You nod as you place his hand lower on the arch of your back, "there."

He slips his hand under your tanktop to start giving you slow, back rubs with his big, warm hand, "like that?"

You nod and put your hand across his chest, nuzzling your head further into his neck.

A short fuse, that's what you've said about him once and Changbin admits that he easily loses himself to his temper. Thankfully, he got you, you know how to defuse him before he gets to explode and obliterate everything around him.

Now he sees how the two are compatible with each other, you're the water that could tame his wildfire.

"I'm sorry," he mutters.

"For what?" You ask without looking at him.

"For being a jealous boyfriend," he answers without a beat. It's not his first time and surely not will be his last, you get used to this situation at this point.

"An overly jealous boyfriend," you correct.

"Yeah, that," he agrees with a low chuckle and plants his mouth on the top of your head.

You tilt your head and hold his jaw to briefly peck his lips, "Why are you so jealous, mmh?" You ask after with a gentle swipe of your thumb over his lips.

This question has come up more than a dozen times during the year-long relationship and he can list the reasons why.

Firstly, because it's you and he can't find anyone else like you, someone who can tolerate him and all of his shortcomings.

Secondly, because this is his first serious relationship. Changbin used to jump from one girl to another without any sort of attachment but now, he's committed to one girl and he hopes you are just as committed.

Thirdly, it's not much about jealousy. Yes, he's a jealous person but lately, Changbin feels like his love is not being reciprocated well. He worries about you a lot, he clings to you more, he cares for your well-being more than he cares for himself and he's not being presumptuous, his friends often said the same thing, that Changbin seems to be the one who loves you more than you do to him.

He's been keeping that to himself because maybe he's overthinking it but maybe after what happened earlier, you'll get it why.

"Do you still like me?"

You let out a chuckle, "all of a sudden?"

He lowly groans at you, "Just answer it!"

"Of course, yes."

"Yes, what?"

"I like you," you mutter without looking at him.

"Do it right!" He fusses and forces you to look at him.

You lift your head and properly look him in the eyes as you say again, "I like you so much," you emphasize the words to convince him.

He holds the back of your neck and stares back into your eyes, "how much?"

You stifle a laugh and place your hand on his neck, "are you suddenly doubting my feelings for you?"

There's no use in lying when you can see right through him and he looks away, ashamed of himself.

"I mean..." he stops rubbing your back, "you never even cared where I am or what I'm doing."

You turn his head toward you and raise an eyebrow at him, "Yeah...?"

"Have you ever gotten jealous at all?"

"Jealous of you?"

"Yes."

"Doing what exactly?"

Changbin doesn't want to sound so full of himself but you force him to explain himself, "Just because I'm dating you, doesn't mean that the girls would stop coming at me."

You lean in close at him, "Which means...?"

He licks his lips in annoyance, "At any day, a girl can come and snags me from you."

You snort and chuckle into his neck, making Changbin more annoyed than before.

"Are you sure you would be laughing when you see me with another girl?" He asks with a frustrated sigh.

You kiss his neck and laugh again, "You want me to keep you on a leash is that what you're saying?"

He laughs because that sounds like what he's truly asking you to do, "yeah, I'd like that than nothing at all," he half-heartedly says.

You close your eyes and put your leg over his, rubbing your foot against his shin, he likes it whenever you do that.

"I already put you on a leash, Bin," you say.

Now he gets confused. What leash? Because all these times, you've been letting him run free and do whatever he pleases.

"But it's invisible," you add.

You open your eyes and chuckle looking at his confounded expression, "It's called trust."

Overlapping his body with yours, you put half of your body over his and plant your chin on his chest, "I trust you that your head won't turn to any girls."

That makes him feel like an idiot for not doing the same thing to you, he guesses it's his insecurities and that now he's no longer the campus' heartbreaker, he doesn't have anything to sustain his ego.

"I'm always worried that your head will turn," he meekly says.

You hover over his face and peck his lips, "that's because you don't trust me."

"I trust you," he hastily replies.

"It's the men whose heads turned at you that I don't trust," he says in defense of his remark.

You look into his eyes without saying anything and he believes you have something to say to him but chooses not to tell him, you shake your head and rest your head on his chest again.

"Come on, say it!" He dares you by nudging you with his shoulder.

You take a breath and look up at him, "that sounds like you need constant validation."

When you put it like that, then yes, that's what he asks of you, a constant validation that you indeed like him and Changbin doesn't care if that makes him sound pathetic.

"You don't want to do that for me?"

You laugh because you thought that he was joking but when he doesn't laugh along, your laughter fades.

"You want me to tell you how much I like you... what? Like every hour every day?" You ask with eyes widened in disbelief.

Changbin chuckles because it makes him seem like he's asking a lot from you, "you don't have to tell me," he's starting to run out of words to explain what he wanted from you.

"It's the way you treat me. I want you to treat me like how much you like me," he blurts out.

You process his words for a moment and Changbin instantly regretted the way he harshly delivered his answer, even to himself.

Slipping your hand into his hair, you softly smile at him and ask, "Is that what you want?"

It scares him how you calmly handle the situation and it makes him feel bad for being such a demanding boyfriend.

"Yes," he replies.

"Okay," you simply answer.

You are always so calm and composed like a still water, at times, he's afraid to even dip his fingers and makes ripples.

"Okay," he meekly says back.

Flashing him another smile, you lower your mouth on his and kiss him, slowly yet deeply. He would never get tired of the taste of your lips, it's like honey, pure and divinely sweet.

"Can you please rub my back again, baby?" You nicely ask after.

Those magic words are enough to put him under a spell, as of this moment, he'll do anything you ask of him. What can he say? He's a fool for you.

One thing is Changbin needs to know how much of a fool are you for him.

-

From the past relationships you had before Changbin, you learned that men don't like to be smothered with attention.

You get used to letting them freely run around the place as long as you knew they'll be back to you. They're grown men, after all, you're not obligated to take care of them 24/7.

However, Changbin is a whole different case. He mistook your complete trust as ignorance, when in fact, you care for him, you miss him when he's not around and with his past as a player, it's hard not to worry that he'll hop back on his old, bad habits.

That's not his fault and it's entirely yours for not showing it through actions or maybe you're just bad at it.

You do like Changbin, you like him very much that you think it's not just 'like' anymore.

Just like this morning, you get panicked not finding him sleeping next to you. You force yourself to open your eyes even though they're still heavy with sleep, you grope around the bedside table for your phone and call him.

Changbin doesn't pick up so you hang up and try again, it's very unusual for him to leave without telling you. The fear that he might be still angry from last night starts to creep in.

After a while, you hear the faint sound of his phone ring tone getting louder and then someone unlocks the front door.

Changbin comes into the room not long after with both hands full, "can't answer the phone," he concisely explains.

You sit up on the bed and scoot to the side, clearing a space for him to sit.

"What did you buy for breakfast?" You're eyeing the brown paper bag in his hand.

He takes a seat next to you and excitedly shows you what's inside, the smell of something freshly baked wafting around the place.

It's a big cookie from the bakery across the street, he surely knows that you like it very much that he woke up early to get it for you.

You gasp as you get ahold of it, "and it's still warm."

Taking a bite of the cookie, you chew with a smile on your face as the sweetness fills your mouth and lifts your mood in an instant.

You break a piece and feed it to him which he eagerly eats. He hands you your usual iced coffee but you take the one in his other hand, "Can I have the hot one?"

"Sure," he simply answers, "but I already have a few sips."

"Even better," you say and do not hesitate to take a small sip of the hot coffee.

Both of you take turns taking a bite of the cookie even though there's another piece inside the bag. He gladly eats from your hand while sipping his coffee and put it away after.

"Feeling better now?" He asks, putting an arm around your shoulder.

You nod and shove the last of the cookie into your mouth, washing it down with a big gulp of coffee. You look down and gently dust the crumbs on your tanktop, catching Changbin looking at your clothed mounds.

"Glorious aren't they?"

It's as if you snapped him out of his daze, "Huh?"

"Period boobs," you take his hand and make him feel your breast through your white tank top.

Changbin accidentally nudges your other breast and makes you wince in pain.

"Oh? Why?" He asks in horror.

"They're so tender, very sensitive," you share and move his hand to slowly rub it around your clothed nipple, showing him to touch you.

You let his hand go and let him touch you however he wants, you rest your head on his shoulder, looking down at his body with your hand touching his toned body against his black t-shirt.

You've never been that big on muscles but seeing his body with all those muscles contracting whenever he does certain things, oh... it's enough to make you salivate.

You glide your hand up to wrap it around his neck and tilt his head so you can kiss him. Didn't mean to get things on but you find yourself kissing him so hard with you desperately bringing his face closer and closer to deepen the kiss.

Changbin is only answering to your need when he wraps his arms around you and pulls your body close. However, the condition you are in wouldn't let this happen.

Reluctantly, you pull away from the kiss.

"Ugh!" You groan in frustration.

He pecks your lips and holds your face close with his fingers under your chin, "what?"

"I'm so horny right now," you bluntly admit with a pout, "but we can't do anything about it."

He glides his hand down the curve of your body and squeezes the flesh on your waist, "why not?"

You giggle as he glides his hand lower to your ass and kneads on it, "It's like a murder scene down there, you don't want—" You stop yourself from continuing.

You kiss him again in the hope to suppress the urge to rip his clothes off, it's a wrong decision but too late to stop doing it. What do you have to lose but a little sanity as he kisses you down the pillow?

You push him away and giggle as you dodge away from him going for another kiss.

"Oh, man!" You groan again, even more frustrated than before.

"You have to go, mmh?"

He checks the time on his phone and nods, "I have class in an hour."

You pout at him, fisting the front of his shirt in your hand, "Well, I have nothing to stop you from going."

There's the disappointment drawn on his face, you don't have to be a genius to know that he wants you to make him stay, beg if you have to.

You pull him close by the front of his shirt and hastily kiss him, "I'll let you go," you say between kisses, "after a few more of these."

No matter how much he wanted to, he has to go with time passed and he has not much left to get ready for class, "I'll see you later, mmh?"

You place a long peck on his lips and smile, "Okay. See you later, Changbin's lips," you playfully say.

You peck him again and gently squeeze his biceps, "and Changbin's muscles," you add.

It's only 8 in the morning, but you know your day is already made as his infectious laughs are filling the room that you can't help but laugh along with him.

"Thank you for breakfast," you mutter before forgetting to tell him your gratitude.

Changbin presses another kiss on your lips before leaving the door. You continue eating the cookie on your bed and continue working on your plan for his birthday next week, texting some of his friends to help you with a few things.

There's so much to do but thankfully, now you know what to gift Changbin on his birthday.

-

"I have to finish the painting today."

Changbin wouldn't bother you if it wasn't his birthday today. These past few days, you've been so distant, always busy painting or doing other art projects you take part in.

"But it's my—"

"I know," you cut him off.

"I'll finish this and be there as soon as possible," you explain without any hint of regret in your voice.

No apologies, no birthday wishes whatsoever, you don't even try to make excuses.

It seems like his birthday doesn't mean anything to you but another day where Changbin has to ask for your affection. He hears his friends calling for him and telling him to come hurry since they've been waiting in his car.

"Don't make your friends wait, Bin," you tell him.

He sighs in defeat, knowing that he can't keep forcing you to do what he wants. You are your own person and there's nothing he can do about it but... accept the fact that maybe he likes you more than you like him.

He swallows air as if he has just taken a big pill of truth.

"Okay," he simply answers.

"Have fun, okay?"

"Yeah."

His friends don't talk much during the drive to the bowling alley knowing that Changbin is not in a fine mood despite most people usually are when it's their birthday.

"Just because it's your birthday, doesn't mean we'll let you win," his friend tries to light up the mood.

The joke turns sour with a glare shot at the backseat through the rearview mirror.

It's not working to elicit his competitiveness when it comes to his favorite sport, bowling.

As they enter the alley, it's weirdly empty that Changbin thought they entered the wrong place. It's quiet and dim with a dull, blue light lighting the room.

"Is this right? Why—"

His friends push him further inside before he can continue speaking and in a second, neon lights are flooding the room, blinding him in the process.

Changbin has to squint to see a group of people coming at him with a birthday cake and candles lit on top. He doesn't recognize it at first until he can see close enough, the person carrying the cake is you.

"Happy birthday!"

A wide grin plastered on your face, knowing that you've successfully fooled him into thinking that you missed his birthday.

He gets so overjoyed that you're indeed remembered and here to celebrate his birthday together, not to mention, got all of his friends involved in it too.

"My hands are getting tired," you whine, holding out the cake closer to him so he can hurry and blow the candles.

Instead of focusing on the cake, he's looking at you with the glow of candles cast upon your face.

"Don't forget to make a wish!" You remind him.

Once he closes his eyes, everything becomes clear to him, his wishes and what he needs to do to make it come true.

He opens his eyes to see you still looking at him with a smile on your face.

"Come on! The candles are melting!" You grumble.

He hurriedly blows all the candles off and gets the cake away from you to hand it to someone else.

You throw your arms around him, let him whisk you, and give you a spin as you squeal in excitement.

"Happy birthday!" You wish him again with a long kiss.

"You got me good!" He says as you wipe your lipstick off his lips.

"Well, it's a surprise!" You answer with a triumphant smile.

The celebration continues with a few rounds of bowling where you refuse to go against him, and insist on being in one team with him.

It's you and him against a group of his friends, you both lead with a few points. It's Changbin's turn to bowl, you kiss him good luck.

"Let's win this!" You mutter.

He confidently smirks, "It's a win already!"

This is his game, this is what he's good at and it's his birthday, he doesn't need to look to know it's you cheering for him.

He can feel the victory within his reach and he knows he'll become it, he confidently throws, earning doubles.

You come running and jump at him, lucky that Changbin is quick and strong enough to catch you, holding your body against him.

"We won!" You squeal before lowering your lips on him.

There's excitement but Changbin feels another thing too, it makes his heart beat faster and heavy, and he feels the need to let something off his chest.

As you pull away from the kiss, he decides that it's time.

"I love you," Changbin blurts out.

You giggle in response, probably thinking he said those words out of sheer excitement of winning the bowling game.

"I love you too," you say back with a long peck on his lips.

Here he thought that saying them is hard but he didn't know that getting those three words said back to him would be this easy.

But then why this doesn't feel like a victory at all?

-

The party was a huge success.

You're sitting on the passenger's side with a heart so full even though you're not the one having a birthday today. It's also possible that it's because of something else.

Although, it's weird that he stayed quiet the whole ride to your place. You don't want to ruin this just because something is gnawing inside you.

There are plenty of things to do for the rest of the night. Pushing the button to your floor on the panel of the elevator, you corner him to the side and put your arms around his neck, clinging to him just like he wanted you to.

"Did you like it?"

He rests a hand on the arch of your back, "what?"

You lean in closer, leaning an inch of space between your lips and his.

"The birthday party I threw for you?"

He slyly smiles as he glides his hand lower to the curve of your ass, slightly hoists you against him, then kisses you so deep that you almost lose your footing.

You laugh against his lips, "So? How was the birthday party?"

He pecks your lips before answering, "I like it," he shortly answers.

Not the kind of response you expected but again, you don't want to ruin such a good night. You lean in close to his ear and seductively whisper, "You're so hot."

"You've only realized it now?" He asks that signature half-smirk of his.

You grab at the collar of his shirt, "Want you to throw like that bowling ball," you playfully share.

You both burst into laughter in unison and not realizing that the elevator door slides open and a couple of people enter the shared space.

It's your luck that it only forces you to corner him more, pushes you to get closer to him. Mischievous, you whisper into his ear again, "Can't wait to rip your clothes off."

Seeing his uneasy eyes glancing around, afraid people might hear what you said to him makes you want to tease him more.

With your body shielding your hand gliding down the front of his body, you silently stroke his crotch while looking at him through your lashes.

You stand on your tiptoe and purr into his ear, "I want you, baby."

His Adam's apple bobbing in his throat as he looks down at you, "we're almost here," he lowly says, taking your hand away from him to hold hands with him.

Changbin steers your body out of the elevator the second it chimes open, wrapping his arms tight around you.

"You bad girl!" He mutters into your ear as he pushes you up the door of your apartment, kissing you so hard to stop you from laughing out of satisfaction.

"It's your fault for being so hot," you playfully respond.

The plan was you're showing him his birthday present first but with this much desire due to the lack of sexual interactions for these past few days makes you crave each other that there's no need for words when your bodies know what they want.

Your hands freely roam around his body, touching and feeling all of his muscles against his shirt, smooth and firm under your touch.

His hand slips under the hem of your dress to knead on your ass with your leg resting on his knee, an arm holding the nape of your neck as he kisses you hard.

"Gosh! I want you so much," you sigh against his lips.

Lowering your hand from the opening of his shirt to the waistband of his jeans.

"Can I?" You ask with a sultry voice.

Usually, you would go for what you want and you bet he knows it too. Tonight is an exception, you want him to make you work a little for it so you can show him how far you'll go for him.

It seems to be a surprise for him too that you ask for his permission. He shot a smirk at you and asks, "Do you want it?"

You eagerly nod, "Yes."

"Yes, what?" He raises an eyebrow at you.

"Yes, please?" You correct your former answer.

You slip your hand under the waistband but stop yourself from going further, setting the limits yourself.

"I want it, Bin," you sigh with a hint of desperation in your voice.

He squeezes your thigh as he presses a haste kiss on your lips, "how much do you want it?"

You keep gazing into his eyes with his face merely inches away from yours, "very much."

"Yeah?" He puts your hand inside his jeans and lets you wrap your hand around his hardening length.

"I can show you much I want it," you tell him with your thumb circles the tip of his cock.

You press a kiss on his neck then drag your mouth close to his ear, "with my mouth."

Changbin likes being the one giving than receiving, tonight, you want him to be on the receiving end. He never asks for it but you know how much he likes it when you get down on your knees with your mouth open for him.

You sit with your legs folded under you close to the end of the bed where Changbin is sitting with his legs open. You take your time working open his jeans, building the already heavy tension in the room.

There's no better way to show how much you want him than by offering yourself to please him, or in this case, your mouth.

You take his hand and let it glide around your face, neck, and chest. You draw it close to your mouth to take his index finger in your mouth, giving him a taste of what's coming for him.

"Is this your new trick?"

"New and improved," you answer with a sly grin.

Before you start, you unbutton his shirt and part it open to reveal his muscular upper body, you raise your body to kiss him and from there, continue the kisses down his body.

You kiss his magnificent pecs and down his abs.

Slowly wrapping your hand around his cock, you lower your mouth to take him little by little. The last time you took all of him, you found yourself gagging non-stop that it's embarrassing to even remember it.

You remind yourself to take it slowly, taking him as much as you can and using your hand to compensate for the rest you can't take.

How to give a good blow job? First, you have to enjoy giving it and that's what Changbin is seeing. You tangle his hand in your hair to let him tug at it and maintain eye contact with him.

"Taking me so well," he coos with a tender caress on your cheek.

You manage to put on a smile with your mouth full of him.

"Is this how much you want me?" He asks with his hand resting on the top of your head.

You respond by heartily taking him more, sucking him harder, and delightfully humming as you enjoy pleasing him. His head is thrown back as a raw groan spilled out of his mouth and his hand tugs at your hair, a little too hard but that only tells you that you've been doing things right.

Although your mouth is getting tired and sloppy, you refuse to stop when you know he's close to his release.

As if he hears your mind, he tugs harder at your hair and repeatedly mutters, "So close, baby, so close."

You keep going, closing your eyes while reminding yourself to breathe. You put your hand away and take him as much as you can, knowing that he's close.

A while later, you feel his warm bodily fluid filling your mouth, shooting the back of your throat so that you almost choke.

Slowly, you pull him out of your mouth and open your mouth wide, sticking out your tongue to show him the white of his seed inside.

You stare into his eyes before swallowing it all down and putting on your brightest smile for him after.

"How did I do?" You softly ask him, resting your head on his thick thigh.

Changbin crashes his mouth against yours, taking whatever is left in your mouth to taste himself on you. His tongue slithers in to deepen the kiss and by the time he lets go, you gasp for air.

He lets you rest your head on his thigh and that way, he can endearingly brush your hair to the side as he finally, "So good!"

-

There's something different about you tonight.

Changbin meant it in the best way. You're so needy, so clingy, always asking his permission for everything when you would just do anything you want because whatever it is, he would like it.

Probably it's the talk you both had a few days ago that caused this change and he did want this but he also wants you to feel free to do as you please.

Nothing good ever came out of force and Changbin realized that he can't force you to do things you don't want, things that go against your nature.

So what if he likes you more than you like him? Changbin should feel lucky that he finds you, someone who can tolerate his nature of short-temper and stubbornness, who can accept his past and patiently handle him in both good and bad times, on top of all that, you reciprocate his feelings in your own way.

"Bin? Baby?" You softly call.

It snaps him out of his head as his eyes land on the sight of your naked body laying on the bed. That soft skin invites him to touch you all over while that smile calls for his lips to kiss.

"How do you want me, baby?" You ask, crawling on the bed and sitting facing him.

There are so many things crossed his head the second that question was asked, he can't settle on one.

You slowly lower your body on the back, lying on your back, and put your hands around your head.

"Like this?"

Changbin stands at the end of the bed, still unable to choose one out of the many options.

Then you turn over on the bed, getting on all fours and exposing your rear to him.

"Or like this?"

He's at a loss of words as you look over your shoulder with your hair curtained the frame of your beautiful face, smiling at him while moving your body back and forth on the bed, enticing him with the sight of your wet cunt.

Changbin settles with the simplest option which is to be with you, it doesn't matter whether he gets that physical satisfaction or not, he wants to be with you, wholeheartedly.

He climbs onto the bed and crawls over your body, carefully, settling his body on top of you.

"Of course, you choose to take me from behind like you always do," you lowly giggle as you look at him.

"A man of principle," you mutter before letting him kiss you.

He kisses you deep with one arm propped against the bed to prevent him from putting all of his weight on you. From there, he makes a long trail of kisses down your body.

You let out a soft moan for every kiss he planted, on your neck, shoulder, down your spine, on the back of your thighs. You start to fist the sheet as he uses his mouth to dive into your wetness, making you even more drenched than before.

"Want you so much, baby," you mutter as he stacks his body on top of you again.

Changbin is more than eager to make that happen for you. Putting his hands on each side of your waist, he slowly pushes his cock inside you from behind as you quietly whimper in both pain and pleasure.

"Do I feel good, baby?" You ask as he lowers himself on you again.

His arms make two pillars on each side of you and gently kisses you before answering, "Always."

You're about to say something when he lowers his mouth on you again.

"You feel good inside me too, baby," you tell him.

He starts thrusting into you, slow yet intensely deep. He curves an arm around your neck to angle your head, tilting it upward so he can place a long peck on your lips.

You moan against his mouth as he steadily pulsates his hips into you at a steady pace.

"So deep inside me, baby."

He looks at your blissful face with your eyes closed, humming in pleasure.

"Mmh... so good!" You murmur again as you pull him for a kiss.

The sexual chemistry you have for each other is unparalleled but this, being one with you, connecting and bonding, is nothing like he ever felt before.

It's like a newfound pleasure that he knows he'll rarely get in life, it's special.

You turn your head to look him in the eyes, "You're going to cum for me, right, Bin baby?"

He grabs your chin and slightly parts your mouth open before kissing it.

"I'm going to make you cum first before doing that," he says with a smirk.

"Hot and a gentleman too. What are the odds?" you say with a seductive smile.

Changbin picks up the pace and launches himself deeper into you. The skin-slapping sounds grow louder in the room. You can't contain your moans anymore, you let them spill out of your mouth as your hands claw at the sheet under you.

He looks at your face basked in unadulterated pleasure with your eyes locked in a gaze with his and a soft smile that doesn't waver even for a second.

"I'm so close, baby," you tell him.

He hastily kisses your lips, leaving them wet when he pulls away.

"You can let go," he mutters with another haste kiss.

You turn your head to the side, clutching at it as you're getting closer to your high. He can feel it from the way you keep clenching around him, sucking him deeper into you that he can sense his release is coming closer as well.

You plant your mouth on his big arm to muffle your moan as waves of pleasure wash over you, whining as Changbin keeps riding past your high.

Using his forearm as a pillow to rest your head on, your body slouching on the bed while you're relishing your high.

"Cum for me, baby," you tell him, in case he's wondering if he's allowed to continue or not.

Your hand finds his on the bed and clasped it together as he thrusts you at a restless pace, drowning himself in the way your walls flutter, tightly wrapped around him.

"Please, baby, please?"

As if he needs you to plead to make him cum when you always know how to make him aroused with your seductive words and lewd noises you make.

"Please, cum inside me," you whine with eyes screwed shut, jutting your ass for him to provide him more depth.

He groans as his cock buries to the hilt inside you and it only takes him a few more thrusts to finally cum.

He collapses on top of you, spooning your body with his big arms wrapped around your neck. He tilts your head to kiss you, your face, and the nape of your neck.

"I love you," he silently mutters under his breath and hurriedly kisses you, pouring all of his heart out through the kiss.

Changbin doesn't care if you don't say it back.

He loves you and that's all you needed to know.

-

The sound of you scrambling off the bed can be hard.

The sounds of you running out of the bedroom is even harder to miss. He opens his eyes to find you returning and grinning as you notice he's awake.

"Where are you going?" He asks while rubbing the sleep of his eyes.

You come back to bed and crawl over to him, "I was thinking of waking you up with your birthday present."

That gets him intrigued but confused him as well because he counted the birthday party you threw for him as a present already.

And for the sex, Changbin counted it as a heavenly sent.

"You have a birthday present for me?" He asks.

You sit on his lap and lean your back against his chest, "yes, but it's so heavy to take it here," you share.

He raises an eyebrow, forming a puzzled look on his face.

"It's a bowling ball," you tell him with a wide grin.

Changbin presses a kiss on your cheek, "Thank you, baby!"

You turn your head and put his arms around you, "you don't sound excited," you pout.

He rests his head on the crook of your neck, catching the scent of yours and his mixed together in the fabric of the shirt you're wearing.

"Because I'm more excited about being a loving boyfriend to you," he answers.

You coo as you softly scratch his bedhead, "look at you! A heartbreaker turned a committed boyfriend," you say with an impressed smile.

Changbin captures your lips in a closed-mouth kiss considering that he's just woken up.

You tighten the arms around you and put your hands on top, "and I'm going to be a super caring and clingy girlfriend," you jokingly say.

"That's what you want, right baby?"

He jerks his head away to glare at you and purses his lips, "That's not what I meant. I—"

"Oh? You changed your mind again?" You hastily conclude even though he hasn't finished talking yet.

He tickles your sides, making you jolt on his lap, laughing. Once you calm down, he continues speaking with a rather soft tone.

"I was wrong to say that you didn't treat me right and I'm sorry," he sincerely delivers his apology.

You smile at him and nod, "Apology accepted."

He leans in to kiss you and not letting you break the kiss with his hand steadily angles your head his way.

"What was that?" You ask out of the blue.

Changbin immediately thinks that he did something wrong or bad. With a panicked voice, he tries to calmly ask, "What is what?"

"Last night."

So that means the sex? The one where he thinks it's heavenly sent?

His first thought always goes to his performance.

"Was it bad?" He slightly stutters.

You softly kiss his hand "No, it's oh... so good," you answer with a dreamy sigh.

That, he agrees. He can let out a breath of relief at that.

"But..." you add and his heart stops, afraid that it's going to be the worse part of it all.

You look at him and say, "It was so sweet."

Changbin smiles at your words, that means he's successfully delivered his profound feelings for you. He places a long, lingering kiss and his heart quakes inside his chest.

The more he trusts his feelings, the less afraid he is to say it.

"I love you."

You put your hand in his soft curls, "what did I do to deserve hearing those words twice in less than 24 hours?"

Here he thought that you didn't catch the first one or more like, he feared that you take it as a joke. It takes him aback that you did take them as they are, a confession deep from within him, from the bottom of his heart.

"It's supposed to be your birthday but why you're the one giving me a special present, mmh?" You ask while softly scratching his head with your fingers.

You rest your head on his shoulder and softly kiss his cheek, "I love you, Bin."

It's like a dream to hear you say those words back to him that he takes quite a long time to convince himself that he's alive and awake.

"I want to be with you as long as..." you stop yourself from continuing and decide to leave it for the future to finish the sentence for you.

You gently nuzzle your nose in his neck and decide to end it with those three words again, saying them in utmost sincerity and steadfast conviction.

"I love you."

Hearing that still feels like a dream, but the way his heart shrank whenever he hears it is prove that this is real. That somehow makes him feel like you love him more than he loves you.

Good thing that Changbin is a competitive person.

He shakes his head in disagreement and confidently remarks, "No, I love you more."

-

Support my blog by kindly reblog, comment or tip me on my ko-fi!

taglist: @svintsandghosts @abiaswreck @septicrebel @cursed-mars-bars @ppiri-bahng @drhsthl @tangylemonade @bluenights1899 @thisisnotstraight88 @elizalabs3 @avyskai @is2cb97 @simeonswhore @marvelous-llama @linovely @jisungsleftcheek @hanjisbeloved @luvsskzs @knowleeknow @army-stay-noel @djeniryuu @bigsobs4skz @toplinehyunjin @channies-luv @foxinnie8 @biribarabiribbaem @dalamjisung @moasworld @sherryblossom @fawnpeaks @lukeys-giggle @obeythemasters @primoppang @devilsmatches @skz-streamer @freckleboilix

#stray kids smut #skz smut #changbin smut #changbin x reader #skz x reader #stray kids imagines #skz imagines #stray kids scenarios #skz scenarios #skz fic #skz fanfics #kpop smut #kpop fics #kpop fanfics #seospicy smut

[sergeantsporks]

Empty

Hunter had thought that physical pain and Belos’ disappointment were the worst things that could happen to him. He’d thought the most awful experiences were the ones where he ended up bleeding or bruised or, in the worst-case scenarios, with broken bones that he’d be working with for months until they healed.

He’d been wrong.

Hunter had thought that betrayal was the worst thing that could happen to him. His life, a lie. The man he’d been nothing but loyal to turning on him in an instant. It had hurt worse than a hundred broken ribs, and made it just as hard for him to breathe.

He’d been wrong again.

Hunter had thought that the worst thing that could happen to him was the loss of control over his body. At the failure of mind games and emotional manipulation, the man he’d once trusted paraded his body around like a sick toy, had worn and discarded his skin like a cheap costume.

He’d been wrong.

Hunter had come to the conclusion that the worst possible feeling, the most terrible experience, was loss. Soul-crushing, terrifying, aching loss. The moment when he knew Flapjack was gone forever was the worst moment of his life—and until he lost someone again, nothing else could possibly top that.

But somehow, he still hadn’t gotten it right.

Worse than the injuries, worse than the betrayal, worse than the possession, and worse than the loss was the emptiness that had replaced it. The conflict was over, Belos was gone; there was no more danger. No more heartbreak. There was just… nothing. Hunter had no more tears left to cry. No more screams left to tear out of his lungs. Just a blanket of numb quiet, like someone had put him inside Camila’s TV and turned it to a static channel. At first, the quiet felt better than all the pain and heartbreak, but slowly, it seemed to sap the strength from him.

He still went through the motions. He smiled, he laughed, he talked to his friends. Meaningless conversation, silly small talk that he forgot almost instantly because the weird color Gus’ socks had somehow turned in the dryer was fun to talk about in the moment, made him laugh in the moment, but certainly wasn’t something that needed to be committed to long-term memory.

But once they were gone, once it was Hunter, alone, he was left again with the bone-weary exhaustion that didn’t seem to be in his body. He’d felt this way in the coven sometimes, sure, when he’d been overworked and overstressed, or when he’d had to spend just a little too long trying to convince other coven heads to listen to him and was sick of being around other people, but things were supposed to be different now. These were people he loved, people whose company he enjoyed, so why was he still left feeling so empty? At least before, he’d been able to track the source. Now, it was just… numbness for no reason.

Slowly, the numbness settled in further. It didn’t just creep up when Hunter was alone anymore, it stole into time with his friends. He still smiled, he still laughed, but the Hunter who smiled and laughed was running on autopilot while the real him slipped into that soft, silent numbness. The enjoyment of their company faded into familiarity of a routine. More and more, he talked without realizing, snapped back into a conversation halfway without remembering what had just been said.

He wondered if anyone noticed. He thought he did a good job covering for himself.

On good days, he’d pick up needle and thread and sew, but even the hobby he used to love felt like nothing. A finished product was simply a finished product. Occasionally he still accidentally pricked his finger on the needle, and felt that bright sliver of pain, a blip of emotion in a sea of emptiness. Even more occasionally still, that needle prick sent off a complicated wave of fear and revulsion, his body automatically reacting to the memory of a needle prick that had left him open and defenseless. He’d be left sweating and shaking, sick to his stomach. But at least that felt like something instead of the yawning chasm of nothingness that seemed to be following him everywhere.

Hexside had him up later than he’d been allowed to sleep in the emperor’s coven, but every morning, when Hunter woke up, he already wanted to go back to sleep. To put his body in the same place his mind and heart went, into that calm quiet. Making himself move and care about school was a chore when he fell into that numbness (and now it seemed like he barely climbed out—now, the numbness was the default, with a few bright spots of change). At first he dismissed it as morning sleepiness, but as the day passed on, all he wanted to do was to take a nap, or better yet, just go back to sleep entirely. And on weekends, on blissful, wonderful weekends, he did. He’d sleep and sleep and sleep, until his body wouldn’t let his eyes stay closed any longer, and then he’d lie in bed for another half hour at least before getting up. It didn’t fill him with any more energy to stay asleep that long, it didn’t make the numbness go away, but at least he wasn’t conscious in that cottony nothing. Sleep was the only relief from it.

Darius always looked like he wanted to say something when Hunter finally got up in the midafternoon, his face swimming with concern, but he never did. Hunter got the feeling he was worried about overstepping, or upsetting him. He almost wished Darius would say something, but at the same time, dully thought that it probably wouldn’t help anyway.

So he went through the motions. He scheduled out his day, get up, go to school, play flyer derby, come home, eat dinner, finish homework, hour of allotted time for hobbies or reading, then preparation for bed, and finally slip back into that blissful slumber he’d been looking forward to all day. A strict schedule. If it weren’t for the fact that it would cause worry, and the fact that Hunter felt like he should at least try to enjoy something, he’d skip the allotted hobby time and go right to bed after finishing homework. But some small part of him worried (as much as that numbness would allow him to worry, it was barely even a feeling) that if he slipped and let go of the hobby time, something more important would be next. So he kept the schedule, day after day after static day.

Just one more day

Maybe tomorrow will be better.

#vent fic lmao #toh #the owl house #toh fanfiction #toh hunter #the golden guard #hunter wittebane #hunter deamonne #my writing #minific

[sigmatiqvevo]

The entire Bayonetta charade is fucking hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time, speaking as someone who never played the games and is looking at this thru the lense of "i worked in the gaming industry".

Here's a recap:

OG VA Helena Taylor posted on TWT that she was offered 4k for her to reprise her role as Bayonetta in B3. x

Taylor asked for us to boycott the game (first link) and send money we would've otherwise spent on B3 to charities instead. x

Support from the VA community and scrutiny both ensued

Local xenophobe and deplorable but yet ingenious and beloved Hideki Kamiya posts for the first time (in a long time) in English to call Taylor out for lying. x

His blocking tendencies and general cryptic messaging + the fact he isn't really viewed as the most friendly person on TWT have people siding with Taylor more than before. x/x/x

Hideki's account is suspended/gone from TWT for some time. x/x/x

Taylor is outed as a Blue Lives Matter supporter and TERF x/x

Replacement VA Jennifer Hale makes a statement regarding the situation but it is brief due to NDA x

Suspicions grow due to both Hale and Taylor being union VAs, and the game being union; something doesn't add up

Days after the videos and ridicule Bloomberg releases an article adding more details to the controversy

"Platinum Games sought to hire Taylor for at least five sessions, each paying $3,000 to $4,000 for four hours" contradicts Taylors own telling of voicing the entire of Bayonetta 3 for 4K.

Jennifer Hale is seen liking and retweeting some of the posts regarding the Bloomberg article

Jennifer Hale was allegedly outed as ableist and antivaxx via 5 years old tweets. x

Note about the last one; some people are claiming her apologies are enough, some are saying she's never directly apologized and only claimed she was misunderstood. Come to your own conclusion.

Will be updated when more stuff is known.

Updates 24Oct:

Platinum Games Official Statement.

H Taylor makes an announcement Twitter thread admitting that her initial offer was not 4k but instead 10k, mentioning it was then bumped to 15k.

In the announcement she also mentions that after declining and waiting 11 months in silence, they offered "a flat fee to voice some lines for 4,000 dollars."

"There were not “extensive negotiations.”" is in direct contradiction with P.Games's statement.

People keep asking where she's pulling the 450mil figure regarding the Bayonetta games. x/x/x

Personal Note, take with a grain of Basalt:

She claims "Any other lies, such as 4,000 for 5 sessions are total fabrications."; The 4k for 5 sessions, P.Games claims, was for her initial offer she refused. Seemingly, Taylor conflates and confused details from her own side.

Update 28thOct: It got worse.

Jessrine pointed out a very important note regarding the payment discourse/Bloomberg Article

The Bloomberg article stating "Taylor asked for a six-figure sum as well as residuals on the game" while she specified she never asked for $250.000.

New Twitt Thread from H Taylor claiming her post "hit a nerve with a lot of people." x

Down in the thread she lists charities to which you can donate

These tweets sum up the majority public reaction pretty damn well. x/x/x

Note: It's really funny how a UK Based VA is attempting to call to arm for donations to an anti-abortion/pro-life "Charity" across the pond all the way in the US of A. Because BB4Life is Kentucky Based.

#Bayonetta #Jennifer Hale #hellena taylor #Bayonetta 3 #drama #wolf talk #updated #discourse #bayonetta 3 drama

[peachy-hk]

Late.

Wordcount: 1.1K

Read part one or part two here!

Choosing your best friend (and the person you've had feelings for practically your entire life) over your brother is a troubling thing. But, Miya Atsumu feels little to no regret.

Sure, he feels a little bad when he thinks back to Osamu's defeated face when he left the cafe, and the way it was so evident that Osamu hadn't been sleeping well when he went to go pick up the rest of your things. But, (in his mind at least) this was not nearly enough of a punishment for what Osamu did to you.

Maybe, he's a little biased because he likes you more than a brother-in-law should, but it's only normal when you've been friends for that long...right?

Atsumu is having a dilemma.

The cards have been dealt in an odd way. A way that has never been dealt to him before. Should he fold, and back away from this opportunity? Or should he go all in, and take a chance, while betraying his brother?

How do you tell your best friend of years -who just so happened to break up with your identical brother- that you've been in love with them since you were children?

How, in the nicest way possible, do you tell them that you made a mistake in not confessing sooner and that you believe (know) that they chose the wrong brother?

Now shouldn't be the time for Atsumu to be thinking these things, but as he watches you an Suna play Mario cart together on the couch, legs over each others, throwing playful punches at each other whenever a banana peel or shell is thrown, he can't help but feel like he's going to mess up and miss his chance for a second time.

How is he going to do that though? Standing in the kitchen watching, he wonders if he should even try. Sure, you and him have gotten closer recently but it is most likely because you just sent divorce papers to his brother, and Atsumu is acting as the middleman.

Even if you've been friends for years, at some point, deep down, it has to bother you right? How could you see Atsumu's face and not think of Osamu?

All of these thoughts race through Atsumu's mind, constantly, it feels like he's been thinking about these things for years, but in reality, it's only been a couple months since you've moved in with him and Suna.

Sometime in the future, he'll muster up the courage to ask you to become more than friends, he thinks, as he walks back to his room to pack his bags for an upcoming volleyball trip. He's going to be out of town for the next week, at training camps, press conferences, and friendly games between clubs.

Maybe he'll take you to a nice dinner, or a late-night park trip after getting your favourite convenience store snacks, or perhaps he'll take you to a place you've always wanted to visit around the world.

-

After Atsumu's week-long trip, he feels like he's finally come to a conclusion, a solid way to confess how he's felt about you for the past 2 or so years of your lives.

He thinks, optimistically, that 'today is the day'. The day that fate will play out in his hands, you'll reciprocate how he feels, like it should have been from the start.

Today, however, is not that day. Atsumu comes to a harsh realization that fate will not always be on his side and that some things just really aren't meant to be.

Today is the day that Atsumu thought he would stop stressing about how he feels about you and his brother for the first time in months, finally tell you how he felt, and everything would play out nicely.

Today, Atsumu Miya entered his shared apartment to find Suna Rintarou planting a soft kiss on the top of your head as you fell asleep in his arms.

He feels his heart shatter in his chest, as he watches Suna rub your back, looking down at the way you lay on his chest.

Atsumu feels the same heartbreak that ripped his heart to shreds back when he was 15 and Osamu had just told him that he was taking you on a date.

He feels like time has stopped, as he just stands in the entryway of the apartment, watching, feeling his heart shatter into more and more pieces as the two of you continue to cuddle in the blissful unawareness that Atsumu is facing the second worst heartbreak of his life.

A vibration in his pocket shifts his focus back to reality, distracting him from the aching feeling in his chest. He reaches into his pocket and pulls his phone out, reading the text that was just sent to him.

"Hope you got home safe, rest up and make sure to stretch! Next practice is in two days, at 7 AM. :)" - Captian Meian

With a heavy heart, and a seemingly now even heavier body, Atsumu picks up his bags and begins walking towards his room, exchanging a quick 'hey' with Suna as he walks by.

He lets his eyes fill with tears the second his bedroom door shuts behind him. In the confines of his bedroom, he lets his tears roll down his face, staining his cheeks.

Unpacking his bags, he begins taking out all the gear from his bags and putting clothes he didn't end up wearing back into his closet. He does this mindlessly, feeling numb because of the ache in his chest.

When his hand bumps a white box that was tucked into the side of his bag. The numbness in his body fades, and the overwhelming feeling of heartbreak comes rushing back to him.

He picks up the box and feels over the ribbon that it's wrapped with to keep it closed. He picked your favourite colour to wrap it with when the clerks asked him if he had a preference in which ribbon they used,

He opens the box to reveal a necklace, one with a single simple charm, one that you had been talking about buying for yourself for months now.

With a defeated sigh, he closes the box, pulls open a drawer in his bedside table, and places it inside.

The box sits in his bedside table for months, collecting dust over time, the pristine white box becomes a dull grey. In all honesty, Atsumu had forgotten the box was even there.

That was, until he saw you wearing the same necklace that occupied said box months later.

"You finally got the necklace for yourself?" He asks, leaning against the kitchen wall as you grab glasses to place at the dinner table.

You smile up at him, with the same smile that he fell in love with back when you guys were kids.

"Suna got it for me."

-

taglist! bolded names were unable to be tagged :(

@ly17 , @pluviophilefangirl , @wolffmaiden , @bitchotine , @bunnyperi , @sakusuna , @momoinot , @natriae , @aelrinv , @garousmonster , @karasunoya , @introverbatim , @katsunarii , @iluv-ace , @justsomeonewhoyoudontknow , @carmendanny2, @nsojbbkkm , @dododododooosworld , @bluelesbiann , @sassycheesecake

p.s. I'm sorry for breaking Atsumu's heart too <3

#haikyuu x reader #haikyuu #haikyuu angst #hq angst #miya atsumu #atsumu x reader #suna x reader #atsumu angst

[kaymarie-bell]

I just came up with the saddest theory. What if the reason for Silver's sleepiness is because Lillia doesn't love him enough? I mean the reason he's sleepy is because of the residual magic the guardian fairy casted on him right? Where he'll sleep and only wake up by parental love. Lillia found and raised him but he still has the problem of the sleepiness. So doesn't that mean Lillia doesn't love him enough? And it's heartbreaking. Because Lillia cried when Malleus was born and he considered it his happiest moment. And he seemed nonchalant when he told Silver they're not really related in a flashback.

And I think I just wanna torture myself and others emotionally by writing this.

LISTEN I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THE IMPLICATIONS OF SILVER'S SLEEPINESS CONSTANTLY! You have given me a chance to talk about the DiaFam and I WILL GLADLY DO SO!!! Let me torture you right back.

But before I get into it, just to be safe: DIASOMNIA BOOK SPOILERS AHEAD

Since I refuse to believe that Lilia simply doesn't love him enough, I'd rather go with the "Silver is the one who thinks being an adopted child means that he doesn't truly deserve his father's love" route.

1. Because that's still such a good angst and 2. Because the game itself tells us that's what he thinks and that *Sebek voice* HE'S WRONG! LILIA DOES LOVE HIM!!!

I do think the trigger for his pseudo-curse coming back was his realization that he's adopted. I might be remembering wrong since I usually binge the entire update as soon as it comes out and it's been months, but in Lilia's memories of raising Silver there's no mention of Silver falling sleep randomly any time before he finds out he's adopted.

And I feel like Lilia telling Silver he's adopted so casually was him just thinking "I'm obviously a fae and he's clearly a human, he should be aware of it already," plus Lilia does accept that he might have kept quiet about it because he subconsciously knew that Silver would be sad about it.

Now, Lilia's thoughts do tells us that his choice to adopt Silver in the first place was due to him wanting to set an example for Malleus. He chose to take this baby in despite knowing who his parents were, because if he wanted Malleus to grow up kind and keep the peace with humans, he should be the one to lead the way.

He still questions his relationship with baby Silver when he calls him "dad" for the first time, and the first one to point out how much he truly cares about Silver is Malleus himself when he tells him that "[Lilia] would be very sad if the baby got sick." Malleus overcame his hatred for humans because Lilia cares about one.

But the point where I feel it finally clicked for Lilia that he truly loves Silver is the acorn bracelet scene. Before this point he still felt the divide between fae and human, but then he is shocked to find out that Silver wants him to live a long happy life with him despite Silver being a human. This is the result of Lilia willingly choosing to try and love a human: the human -his son- loves him back.

And you wanna know what makes me insane? the immediate scene after this is Silver finding out he's adopted. The moment Lilia fully loves Silver is around the time Silver questions his worthiness for the first time. Also, isn't this the moment when Silver stops calling him "papa" and starts calling him "Father"?

So in conclusion: Lilia's love for Silver did not come immediately like it did with Malleus, but rather, he willingly chose to love him. The one who struggled to accept it was Silver himself.

How could he (the son of Lilia's enemies) ever compare to Malleus (the son of the people he loved, the one he shed blood sweat and tears for during hundreds of years just to be able to see him) in Lilia's eyes? And yet, what finally broke the little self-control Malleus had left was Silver's tears...

Edit: I got so caught up in the love they feel for each other that I forgot to clarify: Silver DOES accept Lilia's love as of the recent updates. This is all me rambling about their relationship, we still do not have a clear answer about the reason behind Silver's sleepiness 💔

tbh since the DIasomnia characters seem to be closer to the Maleficent version (not the animated Sleeping Beauty) the fairies probably fucked up the initial spell for Silver

39 notes

#twst spoilers #THEY LOVE EACH OTHER SO MUCH!!! #Lilia loves his sons and his sons love him back #but both of them think they are not worthy of calling Lilia their father #due to their own personal reasons #Sebek is just watching it all unfold #thank god at least he had a somewhat normal family #📫📬📧

[marshvlovestv]

In honor of me having so much video game music downloaded on my phone that I ran out of storage and had to buy a new phone. My favorite track from each video game OST I have!

Bastion: Brusher Patrol (Such a bizarre clash of styles, I can't help but love this one. Shout-out to the part that sounds like Darren quietly scatting in the background.) (Also special shout-out to Build That Wall, probably my favorite vocal track in any Supergiant game)

Celeste: Scattered and Lost (I am such a normie for this choice but face it this track absolutely slaps.)

Chicory: A Colorful Tale: Song of the Wielders (I love how this song has actual lyrics but I still prefer to sing along with the Simlish version that Pizza and Chicory sing.)

The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood: Illusion (First of all I love how every character in this game has their own theme I go feral for that kind of thing. Kurielle is probably one of the characters who stood out to me the least but by god is her theme gorgeous. I love the vocals and how a later track includes a sneaky reprise.)

Cuphead: Dramatic Fanatic (Tap dancing :D)

There are literally thirty of these so I'm doing a read more

Death's Door: The Grey Crow (A heartbreaking boss fight scored with the appropriate amount of anguish)

Deltarune: Cyber Battle (This melody is so underrated and ya know what, so are the characters associated with it. Sweet Cap'n Cakes forever.)

Elsinore: Donne, The Boat Boy (I love this song because it's associated with Lady Guildenstern, aka the best character in gaming full stop, but it's also just a fun little sea shanty that I think they made up for this game so I love that. Also has a lyrical version.)

Evergate: Police (Okay so the level with the police drones is one of the more frustrating ones in the game but the music is hauntingly beautiful so I give it a pass)

Going Under: trust fall (Marv is easily one of the most hateable video game antagonists of all time but damn if his boss theme doesn't slap)

Hades: Last Words (The rolling and the tolling of the bells bells bells bells bells)

Harmony: The Fall of Reverie: Reverie Ascendant (Lena Raine does these medley tracks so good man)

Hollow Knight: Dung Defender (By far the catchiest song about poop on my entire phone)

Ikenfell: Rose Thorns (So the insanely long final boss fight against Oxley overshadowed Aeldra's boss fight in my memory for a long time, but when I watched another playthrough and bought the OST I realized "Oh her theme bops SO much harder than his ever could")

Inscryption: A Final Duel (A hardcore remix of The Scrybe of Magicks, aka one of the only melodic tracks on the album and therefore the one every YouTube video about Inscryption uses in the background. I prefer the epic version just a bit more because honestly that Magnificus setpiece is the best moment in the game)

Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass: Fun, Sunny Day (A fun and silly track as the title suggests, elevated even more by the context in which it plays in the game. The area music alternates between this and the more somber Rainy Sunday to illustrate that Jimmy mother is bipolar [very cute and silly game])

Omori: Bready Steady Go (Like the absolute dipshit I am I actually completely missed the optional Orange Oasis when I played this game myself. Every Let's Player finds it somehow, though, and when they fight the Unbread Twins I invariably stand up and dance along to the boss music.)

One Step from Eden: Perpetual Motion (It's just a good-ass track y'all)

Ori and the Blind Forest: Conundrum (In a soundtrack of sweeping orchestral pieces, this more subdued version of theme that only plays during one small puzzle section might seem a weird choice. But I've always really liked it)

Ori and the Will of the Wisps: Kwolok's Malaise (Kwolok's leitmotif is perfect for a giant frog and the boss remix takes it to it's logical conclusion)

Paradise Killer: Go! Go! Style (This track makes me feel like I'm having a sugar rush. The whole OST does actually but this one especially)

Pyre: Path to Glory (It's just got a really unique vibe to it. I like it)

Scarlet Hollow: Avery (Chill and really beautiful. Avery themself is kind of a sleeper character at this point but I can't wait for Brandon to remix their theme when they get assimilated into a giant plant monster)

Slay the Princess: The Princess (Okay full disclosure I've only played this game once so I don't have the full context for a lot of the tracks on this OST. Maybe hearing them alongside their respective princesses will make me like them more, but for now the title theme is too iconic to beat.)

Sounds of Sympathy (the OST for the game anthology Essays on Empathy): Zen and the Art of Transhumanism (In the Essays on Empathy documentary, fingerspit talked about how she prefers writing obscenely long tracks so the loop doesn't get annoying. Unfortunately for her my favorite track on this album is only three minutes long. It's a lovely little bop.)

Spiritfarer: Mind Palace (I played Spiritfarer before any of the character updates were released, so I didn't get Daria's mind palace sequences in my game. And I mean, they look very platforming-heavy so I'm okay with that, but god this is a gorgeous piece.)

Transistor: Impossible (I think this is Royce Bracket's boss theme? I don't know when any of the tracks on this OST specifically play in game. Regardless of all that this one gets me pumped.)

Unavowed: One Man's Power (I couldn't find a video of this one, but it's gentle saxophone solo that plays when Logan Brown is introduced. I think it fits is character really well and just sounds really nice)

Undertale: Death by Glamour (Best song for best character, enough said)

Wandersong: Moonscape (God knows this game gave me a lot of great options to pick from, but I settled on this one because it's so uplifting.)

#bastion #celeste #chicory: a colorful tale #the cosmic wheel sisterhood #cuphead #death's door #deltarune #elsinore #evergate #going under #hades game #harmony: the fall of reverie #hollow knight #ikenfell #inscryption #jimmy and the pulsating mass #omori #one step from eden #ori and the blind forest #paradise killer #pyre #scarlet hollow #slay the princess #essays on empathy #spiritfarer #transistor #unavowed #undertale #wandersong

[wantonwinnie]

I want to make so many posts about Jedi Survivor (HEAVY spoilers ahead btw) but one of my first thoughts is what a cruel twist of fate the title for the game is.

I mean, by the end of the story of all the current or former Jedi who are major characters (Cal, Bode, Cere, Eno Cordova, Dagan Gera), only Cal survives. Jedi Survivor (singular) in the most literal sense. And each die in their own tragic way.

Eno gets killed just because Bode wanted to be an asshole (there was no reason for Bode under the circumstances to kill Eno when he could've left with the compass) and needed Tanalorr for what ultimately amount to selfish albeit understandable reasons. I don't know what it means but it's especially tragic because there's no time to even think about Eno's death. His death is meaningless. It just happens and not even to Bode's particular benefit. It's a perfectly terrible conclusion for the Jedi Master of the older age, for someone who was able to escape the needless death from a clone trooper's blaster but ended up getting betrayed by a trusted ally anyway.

Cere's death was heroically tragic and quintessentially Jedi. She tried to take down Skyguy and gave herself up to buy time for everyone else to escape. She could've ran but didn't. And this time facing Vader, she didn't use the dark side at all. She was able to put her dark past behind her despite facing a part of it again. There isn't much else to say; it's a dreadful end to someone beloved by Cal as his mentor and beloved by me too.

Bode's end is heartbreaking, almost inevitable, and ominous. He betrayed everyone for what he rationally believed was a worthy cause. He thought that he was doing everything necessary to save his daughter, his one true love left in the world. But in the end he sacrificed what could have been an opportunity for so many others to seek shelter to only give shelter to one person. And his daughter did not at all appear to be on board with his plan. Bode was given chance after chance by Cal to stop, to surrender, but he kept going. He probably told himself he was in too deep, that there was no other option, blinded by attachment. Despite being a former Jedi, he became attached to the point where he killed one Jedi in cold blood and was ready to kill another, all so he could keep Tanalorr for his own family. Cal could've taken his direction; kept Tanalorr all to his own family, sacrificing an opportunity for others in need. But Cal knew that others needed as safest a haven that could be mustered, and Bode was only looking out for himself, so much so that he proactively worked for the Empire.

Dagan's death shows another window in Cal's potential path. Dagan was always obsessed with achieving Tanalorr, blinded by its majesty even after 200 years in bacta. He never stopped to reevaluate, after the Nihil invasion, after Sanatari pleaded with him, after waking up in a new era. He never stopped, always kept going, never thinking, never taking a breath. And that would have ultimately led to Dagan accruing power for its own sake, not for the sake of helping refugees or even really concerned with stopping the Empire. Cal fortunately was self-aware enough to realize that he couldn't afford to be that obsessed with fighting the Empire via Tanalorr to see the bigger picture of who needed help and how. And Cal spent the past 5 years and much of the game never having a chance to stop and think. His contemplation allows him to see that Tanalorr needs to be for refugees, not just as a base of operations.

Like Bode, Dagan is a fallen Jedi seeking Tanalorr, but unlike Bode, Dagan is obsessed with it in the abstract, in concept only. He was stuck in the past (literally so stuck he spent 200 years in a tank!) while The High Republic Jedi moved on to the present. The Order of old recognized that places are meaningful but only to the extent they help people, and if it would put more people in harm's way to stay somewhere, they shouldn't stay. That simple! But Dagan got lost in Tanalorr's potential as an end in itself, and simultaneously forgot its purpose. Extrapolating the lesson, Dagan represents what happens when Jedi get attached to the Force as a source of power for its own sake, instead of it as a means for good.

#there's a lot more to say but that's all I got right now #wow so many people died #great game #jedi survivor #jedi survivor spoilers #star wars

[hurkules]

Baulder’s Gate 3 Thoughts + Mild Spoilers

Bg3 is actually so heartbreaking. The way everyone has been a victim and at the mercy of some higher being.

I knew that DnD was a thing but I had no idea about any characters, lore, or world. I completely didn’t expect the story to be so good and the characters to be so compelling. I saw that there was character creation and romance and that was enough for me to buy it. Everything else was a lovely surprise.

I haven’t done a play through with romancing everyone (just gale and astarion) so maybe that’s where the disconnect is happening. I’ll give my opinion anyway though:

Astarion is clearly the favorite. I feel like he’s the only character that really got the vent and reflect on what’s happened to them.

Mizora gets to hang around my camp. Halsin can sleep with the drow twins ( I realize he’s very mild mannered, kind, and that it was centuries ago but come on. Personally, I just thought it was weird and a little insensitive but that’s me). It’s Act 3 and towards the end of the game and Gale is blissfully reminiscing over Mystra’s pleasure domes. Karlach break dances the whole time and doesn’t really mention how she feels about her heart until you fight gortash. Shadow heart is upset for a day after you spare Dame Aylin and cries after she gives up her parents and that’s it. The only one who’s response to everything kind of makes sense to me is Lae’zel and even then she’s clearly heartbroken, but you don’t get to dwell on it.

I understand that not everyone handles trauma in the same way and that’s okay, but the more I played, realized just how much everyone has suffered, and got attached, the more I was hoping for a little more…care. I also understand that there’s only so much you can put into any creation especially a video game, but those are just my thoughts on that one aspect. This was my first experience with anything DnD related, so maybe that’s why I’m a little taken aback as well.

Again, I haven’t done every character romance option so I might just be jumping to conclusions. I could’ve missed some dialogue options or something. If I’m dramatic and deeping it a little too much please tell me.

#my post #bg3 #bg3 spoilers #gale dekarios #astarion #karlach #lae'zel #wyll ravengard #halsin #baulders gate 3

[thegreenthepeacetheorange]

Everlark (The Hunger Games, Ch. 27)

(this chapter is particularly heart-wrenching when it comes to these two little fools, brace yourselves. it's a long one but there's so much in this chapter to talk about)

katniss expects us to think that she has to work very hard to convince the audience of her love for peeta when this is how she speaks of him: "he looks so clean and healthy and beautiful, i can hardly recognise him. but his smile is the same whether in the mud or in the capitol and when i see it, i take about three steps and fling myself into his arms"

peeta pushing caesar aside whilst kissing katniss without even looking at him. peeta is just so... ugh

again she's letting us know that she's acting all this and it's a whole big performance but when she curls up into peeta on the interview couch and he wraps himself around her and she clutches his hand, it transports her back to the cave, where it was all very natural to her.

"being very free with my kisses" - see, she took part in those kisses, even if she mostly describes them as "peeta kisses me"

throughout the whole night, from the stage to the after party, she doesn't let go of peeta's hand.

again, she's desperate to talk to him, to see him in private

"then peeta's there, looking handsome in red and white" - she's down bad and i feel like she really downplays her emotions in these moments that she sees him. i picture her being completely taken aback by how gorgeous she finds him, like the wind has been knocked out of her.

when peeta mentions that soon they'll be home and haymitch can't watch them all the time, katniss says: "i feel a sort of shiver run through me and there's no time to analyse why" - now this can be taken in two ways. first considering that she's aware she's being watched and it's a sinister shiver. secondly, and what i'm going to go with since peeta is flirting with her again and she says she has no time to analyse why (which is often synonymous with her feeling something big) , is that katniss is a little hor-knee. like the idea of them being alone? thrilling to her! if that's what he kissed me like in front of a screen, what is it going to be like in their absence?! in conclusion, katniss is down bad

i feel like in katniss's nervous answers to caesar, there's a lot of truth. we already know her previous interview strategy was just to tell the truth imagining it's cinna and i really do think what she says in the interviews is the truth because she cannot lie, haymitch knows and peeta knows when she is. this is what she says: "until that point, i just tried not to think about what my feelings might be, honestly, because it was so confusing and it only made things worse if i actually cared about him. but then in the tree everything changed... because for the first time... there was a chance i could keep him" - i don't know about you but i don't think she's lying or embellishing.

later on she says when asked about why she decided to eat the berries, she says "i don't know, i just... couldn't bear the thought of... being without him." again, not a lie because we saw her internal monologues in that chapter, where she literally said that if he died, she'd spend the rest of her life in that arena, trying to think her way out. so yes she thinks she's doing this for the performance but it's all true.

her devastation over him losing his leg. again, an always cool katniss loses her composure. she pulls up his trousers, whispers in horror, shakes her head, and is so worried she's going to cry that she buries her face into peeta's shirt. it takes minutes to coax her back out.

here comes the heartbreak, prepare yourself

when she's on the train going back, she starts to transform back into the old version of herself: katniss, the seam huntress. and she says that as she has this transformation, peeta's arm around her feels alien and she doesn't know how to talk to him. this is where we start to see her associate peeta with the capitol and the games. even though he's the boy with the bread and has been for time.

when peeta picks the wildflowers for her, she reluctantly accepts them and tries to seem pleased. she feels like she's been lying to someone who trusts her, or more accurately two people. clearly she feels like she's betrayed both of them in some ways.

when peeta realises that she's been 'acting' (which again, he prides himself on being able to tell when katniss is lying but he didn't on this whole thing, whatever he felt from her was genuine), he lets go of her hand and she has to take a step, as if to catch her balance. warm steady strong peeta is faltering in the wake of this news and he's let go of her hand and that means she's faltering without him to rely on. what a crazy thing to think so casually.

when he calls her on acting for the games, she says "not all of it [was acting]" and she says this "tightly holding onto my flowers." she is trying to hold onto these flowers he's given her so hard - to stop the feeling of him retreating from her physically and emotionally, to steady herself using something he's given her.

she's so focused on him she can hear every footstep he takes back to the train.

poor heartbroken peeta, who really just loved her so fully he didn't even think it could be an act. my heart hurts for both of them so much in this moment.

her looking out for if she sees him over the next day or two but she doesn't. and when she does, he's expressionless and this hurts her.

i think it's telling that while she's thinking all this she says: "that it's no good loving me because i'm never going to get married anyway and he'd just end up hating me later instead of sooner. that if i do have feelings for him, it doesn't matter because i'll never be able to afford the kind of love that leads to a family, to children. and how can he? how can he after what we've just been through?"

point 1: as someone who's been this person, this screams of katniss distancing herself from something good because she's in her head about it and believes she can't have/doesn't deserve it. this is how that thinking works and once you've done it yourself, you recognise it.

point 2: peeta has never actually said he wants marriage and babies. katniss is just fully imagining this. like she is imagining the possibility of marriage and babies with him and is trying to cut that thought before it blooms.

"i also want to tell him how much i already miss him" i actually felt this in my own chest. she LOVES that boy. capital L love.

when she hears his voice is hollow rather than angry, she's devastated. she can feel the boy with the bread slipping away from her. remember the opposite of love is indifference? she'd rather he hated her. going from love that blooms to hollowness? why don't you just throw her off the cornucopia to the mutts.

"i take his hand, holding on tightly... dreading the moment when i will finally have to let go" ugh. UGH.

#everlark #katniss x peeta #peeta x katniss #katniss and peeta #the hunger games #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark

[athousandbyeol]

discussion #5 (only friends): topmew's different facades of intimacy and mysteriousness [a forcebook acting appreciation post]

i've been looking closely at each topmew frame in the official trailer, trying to point out some interesting key points depicted by their facial expressions. it's a wonderful discovery.

forcebook are kings of subtlety. keenness and thorough observation are needed to appreciate their acting. so many layered nuances in every move they make, every word they say, and i'm always in awe.

hence, this post intends to briefly show forcebook's captivating portrayal of topmew through different facades of intimacy and mysteriousness illustrated by their signature subtleness.

topmew's multiple facades grounded by the core of subtlety

exhibit #1: the eight letters kiss

there's something about this kiss that pushes their buttons. a new level unlocked. mew's surprised reaction— the silent oh moment. top holds the back of mew's neck as he leans in to kiss mew— it's you. claiming ownership— seeking security. beautifully soft. quietly heartbreaking. a point of crossing their fragile threshold— the collision of two different worlds.

exhibit #2: the historical first meeting

a juncture of impending madness. the start to their ending. the sizzling connection surfaces the first time they look at each other. the look of invitation; come in. come into my life. the gentle smile from top, visibly fond— the cute hey smile from mew, a bit seductive, a tad cheeky; a wonderful portrayal of their blooming intimacy and passionate relationship.

exhibit #3: we are even now interchange

there's something in mew's little smile— a silent victory? contentment? it doesn't look that innocent. mew knows he has played his cards well; i'm in his head the way he is in mine.

exhibit #4: open up to me, let me in kiss

top's urgency— mew's openness. a susceptible exchange. a mutual infatuation. the beginning of top's possessiveness. the start of mew's game.

exhibit #5: keep choosing me, a subdued manipulation

mew pushes and hurts top by mentioning love, give and everything. top's goal— i want to make you as happy as possible— a growing lie from their first encounter. guilt eats top from the inside. physical touch; a hug— an act of reconciliation. please forgive me? mew's little smile, no tears in sight— put me above anything else like you always do. make me happy by breaking yourself apart.

conclusion

forcebook tackle the sense of subtlety in their illustration of topmew commendably well. this is the kind of acting method they commonly use (mainly p'book). from the ofts trailer, forcebook showed layers of emotions heightened by applaudable voice control, suitable facial expressions and other fascinating adlibs.

as i've mentioned in this post, we should pay close attention to forcebook's acting and there'll be magic in everything you see. forcebook give an air of maturity, lewdness and craze to topmew. contrary to the gentle, kind and compassionate vibe surrounding akktheo and guncher. i'm so excited to see more of their acting once the series airs next week.

[1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (i) | 4 (ii) | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12]

#ofts #only friends series #only friends the series #only friends #mew only friends #top only friends #topmew #book kasidet #force jiratchapong #forcebook #ofts discussion #discussion #meta #analysis #only friends analysis #only friends discussion #na discusses

[vethbrenatto]

Okay, so I have Thoughts about last night’s fight and I’m on my lunch break so I’m gonna try to get them out. I’m not exactly sure where to start so I’m just going to pick a point and start word-vomiting, a pre-apology if this gets long.

So, I’ve seen some complaining or at least commenting about predetermined outcomes, plot, and railroading and that’s just not the vibe that I got?

I mean, in some sense, sure. Is this plot-related? HEAVILY. But to say that this was only going to go the way Matt wanted with the outcome Matt wanted (Imogen turning) feels... off to me. I could be wrong, this is something I’m not entirely confident in as a theory, but genuinely, that fight did not feel unwinnable to me. It felt stacked, yes, but not impossible. If I had to guess odds, I’d say somewhere between 70-30 and 90-10 in favor of Imogen embracing the storm (Matt’s desired outcome). 

Otohan clearly outmatched the Hells, that isn’t debatable. The legendary actions and resistances made it clear. As Matt said during the fight though, luck was in play. Otohan got the jump on initiative, which immediately took Ashton out of commission and the party never recovered from there. They spent the whole time pretty much after the first couple rounds either attempting to run or healing allies. Imogen, Chet, and Little Mister still did damage, but they were about the only ones- and even with that, Matt said Otohan was kind of rough, which I’m guessing was less than half HP, maybe about a third? If so much of the fight hadn’t been various running around (which again, is the way the Hells had to play it because of unlucky rolls and downings), I think Otohan could’ve been taken down. But she was a great damage-dealer, she rolled well, so I’m not sure the fight was ever completely winnable.

That said, I do think it was runnable. I think they could’ve gotten away and they attempted to- but again, luck came in. Too many people went down and when they got up, others took their place down and no one could run without leaving other party members behind. Heartbreaking? Sure, but also situational. It didn’t have to be this way and I don’t think it felt railroaded. It felt like a fight to me, an interesting one, a captivating one, one where the Hells never stopped fighting, but to me... it never felt like a foregone conclusion.

In this weird, deterministic mindset I’m also seeing a lot of requests for a fix-it from Matt. Imogen’s weird storm magic will bring the dead party members back. Personally, I’m kind of against this notion. I mean, we’ll see how it plays out, but viewing the whole fight from a lens that Matt made the party lose and they never could’ve won or run just to ram forward the Imogen plot and then give a fix-it (because he made an unwinnable fight) feels... weird? Like lacking player agency? Explaining it and looking at it from that light almost feels like the DM playing with a bunch of dolls instead of an interactive, collaborative game. And that’s not the vibe I’ve ever gotten from Matt, in last night’s fight or other fights. As has been stated by many people, the players can fix this themselves- it will be very dependent for things going right for them but if they have the diamonds, FCG can bring up Fearne and Fearne can bring up Orym, and one of the healers or a potion can heal Laudna. It may not be easy but I want a chance to see the player’s take on this challenge themselves, not a magic fix-it.

Additionally, I don’t see why Matt would “force” the plot forward. It’s very not his style, and it’s also unnecessary at this point. In the circumstance the Hells had rolled well enough to run away, Otohan could’ve come back later and tried again. There was nothing that said this had to happen now. VM & M9 ran away from plenty of fights, had plenty of rematches. Unlike the Yasha situation in C2E69 (? ep # may be off), there was no outside force that meant this had to happen to Imogen. Ashley had to leave to film, so Yasha needed to be turned in her fight. Imogen could’ve resisted and had a rematch in a couple of episodes, if circumstances had gone well for Hells. It just so happened they didn’t. 

All of this not even to say that I think it was likely the Hells ran away or won the fight- like I said at the start, I think the odds were heavily in Otohan’s favor. But BH put up a hell of a fight, and I think the concept that they never could’ve beaten her is off to me. It’s just not the way I interpreted it.

On top of all that, and this is completely personal preference, last night was my favorite fight of the campaign so far. In fact, I think it’s the only fight I’ve been mentally entirely present for. The fighting this campaign for me has been kind of a drag for me, I can never seem to zone fully in. Maybe it’s the watching week to week thing versus how I binged the fighting for early campaign M9 and VM and could watch on my own time. But I just have been having trouble connecting. Last night’s fight, though, kept me enthralled, I felt there was never a dull moment and on top of all of that, no one ever seemed truly defeated to me on the player side, which is something that can be a downer for me in high-stakes combat. Sure, we got a ton of stressed, “There’s nothing I can do!” moments from various players, but it never felt like they really lost their spirits, they were still all highly hooked by the end of the episode, which allowed me to truly enjoy the intense, life-or-death combat without feeling put off by it. Again, that’s for sure a personal preference, but my god, did I love that fight.

#the last paragraph in particular is vs somehting like the kraken fight which i can never watch again because the player's felt so truly down #but yeah these are my surface thoughts on the fight i guess #i've been musign on these all last night and this morning and this is my current vibe so im glad i got to type it out #critical role #bells hells #cr spoilers #critical role meta #congrats if you read all the way through

[branmuffins22]

3, 6, 13, 22 from this ask game

Oooh, that's a lotta good ones. Thanks for the ask!

3. a snippet that encompasses my style

Now, this one's tough, since I tend to write in 3rd-person limited perspective, so the style changes somewhat with the voice of the focus character. Some characters think almost in staccato, some are long-winded and rambly, some are really observant, some are just there for the ride, etc.

That said, I did find something pretty indicative of my overall style in my ragefic twist on the ending of Thanks to Them:

She finally spared a glance away from the monster, at Hunter, now cradled by Willow and Camila, tears in both their eyes. Hunter, whose mouth was just slightly parted, but whose shallow breaths, hissing through the gap in his teeth, were nowhere to be heard. Hunter, whose hands laid open at his sides, rather than balled into familiar, tense fists. Hunter, whose whole body remained limp, both perfectly lax and perfectly still. …Perhaps not Hunter, then, if she was willing to jump to conclusions. Hunter's corpse. She couldn't help the wet gasp that escaped her at the sight of her lifeless brother, nor the whimpering, growling groan that came out with her next breath. Like pouring a can of soup into an already-hot pan, shock and dread popped, sputtered, sizzled, and spat, loud enough to make her flinch, until the grief finally sunk in, the excess heat ran its course, and a burnt residue was left caked onto the bottom. A crusty, sludgy layer of loss, fear, and indignity now tainted the dish, and Belos just wouldn't stop talking, scraping it up and stirring it in. The heat rose, and the whole pot soon grew dark and acrid, until all that was left was a dubious sludge of smoldering heartbreak, seething rage. Her whole body shook, her mind raced, her defiant expression broke, and her heart hammered away in her chest. She was vaguely aware that she should put out the fire, take the pot off the stove, open a window, plug her nose, just do something about it. Gus looked back and forth, up and down, from the monster to his victim, so quickly he almost seemed to be nodding, the only one still standing who seemed to notice Hunter's current state. Flapjack kept twittering, desperate and pained, trying to tell Luz something only Hunter would've been able to understand. Vee whined at her failing phonecall as Camila shakily stood to get in front of her, between her daughter and the hijo de puta who'd made her, locked her up, and tortured her. Willow muttered stilted apologies under her breath, Amity hissed furious and terrified breaths between clenched teeth, and Belos kept rambling and ranting and raving. Luz, however, parsed none of it, nothing at all, every voice and every sound drowned out by her own blood, thrumming ceaselessly in her ears. But then, clarity. White-hot clarity.

Sentences with more clauses than a legal document? Check! Long-winded, convoluted metaphors/similes? Check! One or more descriptors for almost every noun and verb? Check! Dynamic pacing? Check! A cliffhanger in the snippet? Of course! Can't spoil too much.

6. a snippet that I struggled with, but triumphed over

Here's an easy answer, from earlier in the same fic:

"No, no, no, no—!" Luz tried to tuck Flapjack into her fanny pack, planning to jump into the water to save his witch, but she barely got his legs in before she was unceremoniously shoved aside. "Move." Camila's tone left no room for argument. Without any hesitation, she dove into the surely-icy abyss after the boy who'd come to be her son, a smaller-than-expected splash revealing remarkable skill for the task. Luz let out half of a tense breath. See, he'll be fine! Mamá's got him! The rest of the kids rushed after her, to the side of the bridge, leaning over its frozen precipice. They all strained their eyes to watch as bubbles, barely visible in the dark, broke the surface of the pitch-black gravewater. Amity proved to be more present than the rest, the first and only to cast a witchlight over the bridge, searchlight and lighthouse in one. Still, they couldn't see Camila or Hunter. They'll be fine… right? Seconds passed like hours, and the quiet chorus of bubbles turned from a steady drone into almost-distinct beats. Whatever was happening in the murky depths, Camila had changed her stroke. Was she growing desperate, unable to find Hunter without reliable sight to guide her? Had she finally gotten a hold of him, and was dragging him up to the surface in uneasy strokes? Was Belos fighting her underwater? C'mon, please come back, please be okay… The bubbles changed again, now murmuring in a barely-pulsing rumble. Her stroke may have changed again, or perhaps she was just panicking, running out of air. Please, please, PLEASE! Even if she wasn't panicking, her kids definitely were. Trembling, with bated breath, they desperately waited for some other change, anything more concrete than bubbles to tell them what might be happening. I can't lose them, I CAN'T lose them! Then, moments later, a murky silhouette came into focus. At last, Camila began to surface beside the bridge, and to their enormous relief, she was holding an unconscious Hunter to her chest with one arm. As she finally broke the surface, she took one deep gasp of air, and in the same motion, deftly heaved the boy over and up onto the bridge. Only once he was secure did she let Luz and Vee help her up. Camila once again counted herself lucky to have spent some time in college working as a lifeguard, so that she could at least do this right tonight, if nothing else. But her job wasn't done yet. After taking another deep breath to steady her nerves, she started with some delegation. "Vee, call an ambulance; Willow, set him flat on his back," she ordered, already crawling to be level with his head. Once she was there, she turned her ear just above his mouth, eyes facing his chest to look for any signs of breathing, and reached two fingers to his neck to find his pulse. Unfortunately, she was interrupted before she could feel even a single beat or breath. Hunter twitched once, startling Camila off of him, and then began to convulse, as the black-green rot infesting his body expelled itself in flowing tendrils. His spasms slowly petered out as the goop coalesced at the end of the bridge, into the monstrous, roaring form of the once-emperor; the vial of titan's blood, briefly forgotten, now held in his grotesque claws. Belos then loomed into a kneel before them, pounded his empty fist into the ground, and berated the boy who had been his unwilling host, "CALEB! You would stab me in the back?!"

Hey, it even incorporates a few other common elements of my style: made-up portmanteaus (like "gravewater"), and action or description in place of dialog-claiming verbs such as "said" (like "Camila's tone left no room for argument.")

You might wonder why this one was so hard. It's a pretty straightforward retelling of events that happened on-screen (though not necessarily in the same way they happened), so I didn't exactly have to do much imagining for it. Should've been dead-simple, right?

Nah. The hard part came from the fact that the last paragraph of that snippet was the very first thing I wrote for the whole fic, and that I wrote the whole rest of this snippet backwards, after I had written the rest of the scene (including the first snippet).

It was a massive pain in the ass, lmao. Definitely one of the dumber things I've done.

13. a snippet that helped me understand a character better

Ooooh, I've got a couple of fun ones for under-explored characters, like Masha, Principal Bump, Camila, or Morton, but I think the one that really got me into their head the most was a segment I wrote for The Bat Queen in Something Like a Bible:

The human was strange to The Bat Queen. She was reckless, stubborn, but also caring, empathetic. Completely out of her depth, but still tried and tried until she eventually succeeded. Her magic was familiar, too, yet the Bat Queen couldn't place it. Perhaps something she had known millenia ago, lost to time. The human offered to help her if she wanted to learn about her past again. That is how she had somehow found herself indebted to a human. Or, perhaps the human was indebted to her? Unclear. But the babies liked her, and her dedication to young Owlbert had impressed several of the palismen, so she would be welcomed back into their grove again in time. Perhaps there was no debt at all, between herself and the human, her only loose ends being her forgotten past and what she still owed Eda. Speaking of which, it appeared they were all neighbors, if the human really lived with the Owl Lady. While she was not quite set in her opinion of the human, the youngest Clawthorne was something like a family friend. She hoped to remain on good terms with her, and with all her neighbors in these woods, as they would surely see eachother again in due time, especially with debts involved. Then, as usual, they would meet again, and again, and again, until the generation's close, when the woods would be left empty once more. Or, perhaps, the woods wouldn't become empty this time. The human was young, much younger than the Owl Lady, and seemed to get along quite well with Eda's palisman, despite the lack of a true bond. Perhaps she would inherit the Owl House when Eda passed. Perhaps it would become home to more than just a person, to a family. She would like that. Her own babies would grow up someday as well, though she might never pass to leave her grove behind to them. As for the palismen, their numbers were already dwindling, palistrom becoming critically endangered, and they would all move on or be captured eventually. No doubt the grove would grow lonely, in time. It would be nice to have good neighbors.

She may be odd, and abrasive, and furiously protective of her charges, but beyond all that, the Bat Queen is also very, very old. She holds no inherent malice for others, despite her self-enforced isolation, but she's seen it all before. She knows it's best not to get too attached to the short-lived people around her, but by her nature as a palisman, she simply can't help it. In the events of Escape of the Palisman, Luz and Owlbert even brought out a somewhat wistful side of her.

She's super interesting.

and finally, 22. a snippet that is so blissfully self-indulgent

Now, you could argue that all fanfic is self-indulgent (in fact, I'd argue it should be), but somehow, all my most indulgent ideas either haven't made it to page, were explored in Theseus Who?, or are steeped in spoilers for my other stories.

Finding a balance between self-indulgence and plot irrelevance, I suppose I can reveal some of the premise for Intermission: In the Making, via a segment of Eda's note to Luz:

Hey kiddo. From the moment you popped through my portal door, you've been a wonderful student, a wonderful friend, and just a wonderful kid. It took me less time than I aughtta be comfortable with to start thinking of you as my kid, and the way you brought the rest of us together certainly didn't help. King calls you his sister, Lily calls you her niece, even Mom and Dad have started calling you one of "the grandkids". Dang old people :P Like it or not, you've wormed your way into this family, but with the whole 'Day of Unity' thing being what it is, I've gotta acknowledge the fact that there might not be many of us left after this. You, King, and Lily are gonna be the only ones without sigils, after all, hence the note. I hope to heck that when you find it, you can just ask me about it, instead of having to read it all yourself, and I hope if you can't, that I at least hid it well enough to give you some time to grieve first, but dang if I'm not gonna be thorough about this, for once in my life, so I'm sorry if that isn't the case. We Clawthornes have a few traditions; you may already know we were a long line of palisman carvers by trade, especially before the shortage, but we've also got a few secret family recipes here and there. Some stews that'd probably kill a human, some unique woodstains and such, but the one I'd most like to pass your way is a special potion. You remember the day you pulled my mom out of that phony cure scam, when you mentioned hoping that your hair could one day be big enough to store whole bottles in it? Well, that trick of ours isn't just a matter of having great hair, it's a Clawthorne specialty. Hardly anyone knows it, especially now with the shortage, but palistrom trees are a treasure trove of material magic, good for way more than just carving palismen. Case and point, the bark is a key ingredient for a potion to turn just about anything with enough loose keratin into a hammerspace, and a head of hair works beautifully for that. (Lily's busy writing a footnote encyclopedia about all the other things palistrom trees can be used for, so you can look forward to that.) I got my treatment when I was around your age, King got his before he was talking in complete sentences, and Lily got hers when she went back to live with our folks a few months ago, so now, it's your turn.

Yeah, I'm giving Luz the hair hammerspace. Eventually. Why not? It's got the potential for both fluff and angst, it doesn't change the way her character is written in the vast majority of cases, and it's a fun little character gimmick that ties her to her found family in the Demon Realm! Dang, I really did get immediately defensive about giving a character a non-canon ability, huh? I've gotta work on that. Especially for [SPOILERS] and [SPOILERS]. And probably [SPOILERS] too, now that I think of it.

#thanks for the ask! #ask games #Something Like a Bible #Intermission: In the Making #my writing