#next spring should be 4 again and then next summer should only be one i think

[wildemaven]

fall apart, again : chapter one | joel miller

Pairing: Post Outbreak! Joel Miller x OFC!Genevieve

WC: 5k

Warnings: 18+ Blog; Heavy on the Angst, post-outbreak world, no specific age mentioned but reader is close in age to Joel, minor character death, Ellie and her smart mouth, leaving the rest to read at your own risk to not spoil things, reader has a name but there are zero references to her appearance/she’s a blank slate character, 2nd POV, this is way AU so can be read as Game Joel or TV Joel

A/N: I’ve been so excited and nervous for this series. I don’t have a timeline for posting with this one, just going to take my time with it. Big thank you to @gnpwdrnwhiskey for listening to me wrack my brain over this series and for being my second set of eyes!! Please go check out her new Dieter Series!!!

Series Masterlist / Playlist / Inspo Board

Next

Spring was slowly transitioning into the next season. 

Bright fragrant blooms wilting away into the dry soil from where they were born— a poetic reminder of the time. 

21 Summers. 

21 years of surviving. 

Enduring. 

Remembering—  the normal life before the outbreak that you mourn daily. 

A giant Bur Oak lends itself to you, branches providing ample shade as you sit resting against its sturdy trunk, the ground cool beneath where you sit. 

The harsh sunlight filters through the tree’s canopy, a warm dapple light speckled all around you. 

There’s a gentle flicker to your left that catches your attention, a single light-ray hits the small diamond on your dainty gold band where it sits heavy on your ring finger. You hold your hand up, remembering back to when you both had found it, he had immediately dropped to his knee— it wasn’t much, but it was perfect. 

“I give you this ring as a reminder that we face this world together. We’re an unbreakable team.”

Even after all these years and the circumstances of the world around you, it’s a vow you stand by. 

Branches above rustle and crack as a breeze sweeps through, the edges of the paper that is resting on a book in your lap fold over with each small gust, drawing your attention back to the words you’ve written. 

…We passed what looked like it was a small farm at one point. It made me yearn for normalcy. Where we could settle into the small farmhouse, drink our morning coffee on the wraparound porch while we watch the sun rise. Have all the animals that would give a homestead atmosphere. A coup of chickens where we would gather eggs daily, a flock of sheep and goats for milk, and a small herd of cows— because what’s a farm without some cows I can give silly names to. 

We’d raise a family in that farmhouse— lots of babies running around to wrangle. Breakfast of pancakes and fresh eggs, all of us together around our table, then tucking them all in at night after we’ve read them several stories. 

We’d lay in each other’s arms as the crickets sing their chirping songs. A breeze washing over us through the open windows, the evening air lighter and crisp as the night fades and our worn bodies succumb to sleep. 

There wouldn’t be heartache or sadness. No fighting or stressing over jobs. We’d be happy. We’d be together… 

“Eve! Let’s get goin’— we only got a few more hours of light left. Should be at the cabin before sundown.” The thick Texas twang breaks through your thoughts. 

Steve standing off in the distance, his blonde hair disheveled and wind blown as he looks back to where you’re tucked under the tree. 

He’s handsome in his own right, not someone you would have ever found yourself with in different circumstances, but now you wouldn’t know how to function without him. 

A chance meeting the day of the outbreak had brought the two of you together. 

You were working as a traveling nurse at a hospital 4 hours from where you lived, instantly going into crisis mode as lead of the trauma response team, the ER quickly overwhelmed with patients seeking treatment for bites or flu-like symptoms— it was unlike anything you had ever seen before in all your years as a nurse. 

Steve, a retired detective, was on vacation with his wife visiting a friend before the initial outbreak happened. The morning of, he’d gone on a duck hunting trip, while his wife went to breakfast with some girlfriends at a local Waffle House. He had brought her into your ER when he noticed she was acting strangely, similar to the symptoms the news was reporting as a widespread epidemic. Her outcome was not hopeful as you did your best to administer vials of antibiotics and fluids, the infection moving through her was beyond anything you could treat. 

It was Steve who made the call to abandon his wife and the hospital and the realization hit fairly quickly that there was less you could actually do to help others. 

Fleeing the area, seeking solace in one another as you both navigated through quarantine zones— searching for familiarity in your former hometown, only to be met with decimation and nothingness. 

Steve’s way around a gun helped keep you safe when evading FEDRA, the nursing kit you put together came in handy when stitching him up between shootouts and fighting off the infected— this was now your new normal. 

As the years progressed, you both found contentment with each other. Security gave way to a sense of comfort and revival, falling into a deeper connection beyond two people surviving a post outbreak apocalypse— if you were going to be in each other’s lives, you might as well be fully committed. 

“Eve! Pack your shit up— let’s go!” He spits out a little harsher, no real malice behind his tone— he likes to stick to his schedule. 

You don't respond, folding your letter carefully then tucking all of  your items into your canvas pack.  Standing to your full height, you give your legs a minute to let the blood reacquaint fully, your hands brushing the bits of dust and weeds from your pants. 

You hear Steve continue his huffing, as you make your way closer to where he’s standing. 

“I thought I told you to knock it off with those pointless letters!” He gruffs, hands secure at his hips and his head cocked to the side, hoping to catch your gaze. 

Your letters. They had become a loose journal, your stream of thoughts you needed to get out so you were not plagued by the pain and anxiety that came with them whirling around your brain. 

Letters to your past, letters to a new life that awaits you and sometimes to no one at all— you wrote about your travels, things you missed or longed for now, hope for the future. 

They were too much to keep, pages and pages filled with your words and stories, some containing memories too painful to read or share, a weight you didn’t want to carry, so you scattered them throughout your travels. In the last 21 years, you’ve written hundreds of them, dropping them in abandoned mailboxes, or tucked away in the abandoned spaces you’d settled into in passing, as if to send them to whomever you were writing to— leaving a trail of your life across cities and states. 

“And I thought I told you to stop calling me Eve— guess we don’t always get what we want?” You had asked him multiple times over the years to not call you Eve, that was your former life and you hated the reminder, but you know he doesn’t do it out of spite. 

The gravel crunches under your boots as you walk past, not looking to argue with him in the heat of the sun. 

Steve’s hand reaches out clasping around yours, halting your movements, his eyes fixed on you, furrowed brows as if he wants to say something. 

“Hey— Ya know I love you, right?” He sighs, his fingers toying with the gold band on your ring finger. 

You look to where your hands are joined, the twisting of the gold band a small gesture of his when things get tough or tense, you smile when you meet his gaze again. 

“I know.” You do know, and you feel it too. “Come on, we’ve only got a few hours of light left.” He shakes his head, but gives you a smile at the way you throw his comment back at him. 

*

It had been close to 2 hours of walking, nearly dark, by the time you both made it to the cabin, nestled among dozens of other abandoned cabins on the hillside of an old ski resort. 

You imagine it was a popular spot in its prime, filled with families taking their kids on their first snow trips, friends racing each other down the slopes, non-skiers enjoying warm beverages in the lodge while everyone else enjoyed the snowy weather. 

Now desolate and forgotten, a stop for raiders on the hunt for supplies and hostages or survivors seeking refuge in search of a town just north of here, Jackson. 

Steve had managed to trade for a hand-held CB radio early on, he kept tabs on chatter that happened among FEDRA, staying one step ahead of their whereabouts. At some point he had stumbled upon private channels used by other survivors, he didn’t talk much about what they discussed with you, it was his realm of expertise and a small thing that was just his, so you didn’t push him to share more than what he was willing to. 

It was a year ago he had connected with someone and heard about Jackson. There was an offer for a place for a fresh start, a community of other survivors, somewhere to feel safe and comfortable without fear of being attacked, placed in solitary confinement, killed— or infected. Steve decided it was where you both were meant to be, hashing out a plan and specific route on his tattered map, making sure to stay in constant contact with this person in Jackson as you both traveled. 

Venturing further into the resort, you both settled on the lesser marred of the dilapidated cabins.

“I’m gonna check the perimeter, you go on inside— check each room first, I’ll be right in. But remember, if I’m not back in ten minutes, you don’t come looking for me— you wait until morning and you head over that mountain, under no circumstances do you leave that cabin before sunrise.” Steve instructed, his hands on your shoulders reassuring the doubt he can see written all over your face. 

“Steve— W-what if, there’s something inside—“ Your voice is barely a whisper, nervousness creeping in as your hands grip onto Steve’s wrists that have moved to cup your face, his thumbs smoothing across the apples of your cheeks. 

“We’ve done this a million times before, I know you can do it— I wouldn’t send you in there if I didn’t think you were capable, you’ll be fine. Just think, this is the last time we have to do this. Then it’s you and me, in Jackson, together and safe— ‘kay?” His direct eye contact really drives home the message— together and safe.

“Okay.”

“I love you, go be brave.” Romantic and encouraging as he presses a kiss to your forehead. 

“I love you— be safe, please.” 

“Always.” He shoots a wink with his mustached smile, a few slow steps backwards then turning to make his way up the backside of the cabin, pulling the butt of his rifle close to his chest, hunched and scanning every inch of the surrounding area. 

The cabin would seem warm and inviting if the possibility of a Clicker behind the door wasn’t a high probability. 

Armed with the knife Steve insisted you keep on you at all times, your refusal at his request for you to carry a gun, you make your way up the front steps. 

Each move was slow and calculated, the wood beneath your boots wobbled and creaked the closer you got to the front door. The handle is cold to the touch as you twist it open, pushing the door with a little extra effort to unstick it from the doorframe. 

It’s dark and musty, uninhabited by the living and anything beyond that at first glance. Dust and cobwebs cover every surface, pictures still mounted on the walls slightly hanging uneven. A floral couch with two side chairs still arranged in an inviting way, waiting to be enjoyed during a long conversation. The kitchen was small but large enough that it still would have been possible to whip up a hearty meal over the stove, then gather at the tiny table to enjoy the meal and dessert. 

You’re grateful the floor plan is an open space, no immediate threat to you upon entering. 

There’s only two doors, which you assume hide a bathroom and a bedroom. 

The first door reveals nothing but a sink, toilet and shower-tub combo— you’re looking forward to a hot shower when you get to Jackson. 

You stare at the closed remaining door, the handle of the knife twisting in your hand as you prepare yourself, not really feeling like you have it in you to take out anything that might be waiting for you on the other side. 

A deep breath in, reaching for the the handle you give it a quick jiggle announcing your presence, twist and a quick swing open— a queen size bed draped in outdated sheets, bedside tables with lamps covered in a layer of dust, a dresser opposite the bed with a giant mirror hanging above it. 

Empty. 

Relief washing away the dread. 

Stepping into the room, you toss your pack and knife onto the dresser before finding a seat at the end of the bed, the mattress shifting under you, the springs groan as you settle into a comfortable spot. 

You’re not sure how much time has passed since you entered the house, noting it’s been a while since you had heard or seen anything from Steve, but knowing he likes to be thorough, you’re hoping he makes his way through the front door soon. 

The moon has crept into the night sky, shining through the small bedroom window, illuminating the reflection staring back at you. 

Sometimes you forget how long it’s been since you’ve seen what you really look like. While it’s you that you’re staring at in the mirror, you feel slightly unrecognizable to yourself— aged by 21 years in every sense, tired and worn down by the state of the world and lack of sleep. 

Your fingers lightly trace over your skin, taking in every detail, rediscovering every angle of your appearance— the old characteristics blending into the new ones. 

A yawn escapes you, remembering what Steve had said about not leaving, you decide to get yourself comfortable in bed and wait for him. 

Kicking your boots off, you crawl up the length of the bed, plopping your head down onto the stack of lumpy pillows, your mind wandering as you run through all the scenarios as to why Steve hasn’t returned yet, debating whether you should go take a look outside or listen and wait for morning— scared of what you might find waiting for you. 

Your eyelids begin a heavy blink, struggling to remain open and alert, your breathing evening out as your body relaxes into the mattress, sleep consuming your mind. 

Warmth surrounds you, the bed dipping and creaking pulls you from your sleep, immediate panic bursts in your chest as your eyes shoot open, your vision blurred as you seek out the movement of a shadowy figure behind you. 

“Hey, hey it’s okay— it’s just me.” 

“Steve?!” Turning your body to lay facing him, your hands fisting his shirt, scanning his face for any sign of distress or discomfort. “What took you so long?”

“I’m fine.” Placing a hand over one of yours that’s settled on his chest. “Decided to wait a bit, just to be sure nothin’ was out there— I’m sorry.” His hand moves to the base of your neck, his forehead resting against yours.

“S’okay.”

“No— I’m sorry for callin’ your letters pointless earlier. I know how much they mean to you.  I just—“ He releases a heavy sigh, voice quivering as he avoids eye contact with you. 

“What— what’s the matter?” You sense there’s something Steve’s not telling you. 

“Nothin’s the matter. I just worry about what’s goin’ on in that pretty little head of yours— you shut down on me and I just wish you’d let me help you carry the burden.” His gaze moves back to yours. “Promise me, when we get to Jackson, you don’t let your thoughts weigh you down any longer— promise me you’ll let yourself be happy there.”

“I p-promise.” You say, brushing the blonde strands of hair off of his forehead. “I’m sorry for snapping at you earlier.”

“Nah, I was pushin’ your buttons— I deserved it.” You both laugh at his response. 

Steve leans into your space, his lips slotting over yours, it’s angled and slow, his grip on your neck still steady as the kiss begins to deepen. Throwing your leg over his hip, canting against the sturdiness of his thigh, seeking out some sort of friction to relieve the building ache between your legs. 

But before things are about progress, Steve’s pulling away from your mouth, slowing the roll of your hips with his hand. 

“We should get some sleep— we’ve got close to a 3, maybe 4 hour walk tomorrow, we need to get all the rest we can get.”

“Y-yeah, of course.” Your response is breathy, a slight pang in your chest at his soft rejection, questioning whether you had been too harsh towards him earlier in the day— but your body could use the rest. 

Adjusting yourself, you turn away from Steve, his large arm wrapping around and pulling you closer to him. Your back now against his firm chest, each one of your tense muscles slowly relaxing into him and his warmth. 

Thoughts of a new start in Jackson flood your mind as you drift off into a deep sleep. A chance at a better life, where Steve and you can settle into normalcy together. Retire from the constant fear and panic of daily survival out in the open. The taste of prosperity and the sense of peace, an almost tangible reality for the two of you. 

Steve senses sleep has set in for you, the ease of your regulated breathing paired with your gentle snores. He nestles himself into the crook of your neck, his fingers instinctively migrate to your ring smoothing over the cool metal, his thick whiskers tickle lightly at your skin as he whispers reserved confessions into the balmy. A gentle kiss to your shoulder before allowing himself to fully breathe easy, deciding to keep a watchful eye throughout the night. 

“You’ll be happier Genevieve, I promise.”

*

The sun is in its full glory once you both set out on the last stretch of your journey over the mountain.

Steve had been rather short with you all morning, you chalked it up to his tossing and turning all night, his eyes bloodshot, evident in lacking sleep— he had promised everything was fine, so you believed him. 

“How much longer do you think we have?” Not really knowing what to talk about with the uneasiness that’s been going on all morning. 

“I don’t know, Eve— they guy said it was about a 3 hour walk from the resort. We’ve been walking close to 2 and a half, so we’re probably close.”

“Please don’t call me—“

“Jesus Christ Genevieve! I’m fucking sorry! But you don’t make it easy for me sometimes— I feel like I’m always at a fucking arms length away from you even after 21 fucking years.” Anger shoots from his mouth like bullets, you’re not sure you’ve ever seen him like this, at least never towards you. “It’s a goddamn name! Gen, Eve, Genevieve— they’re all the fucking same!” 

“I-I’m sorry.” Tears prick at your eyes, you try your best to not let them fall— you’ll save them for when you’re alone in the safety of your new home. 

“Fuck! No, I’m sorry— shit! C’mere.”

Steve pulls you into him, his face hot against your cheek as he holds you close, the button down he’s wearing is drenched in sweat, there’s a slight tremble to the grip he has on you. 

“Are you okay?” You pull back to get a better look at him, beads of sweat glisten across his forehead, his cheeks flushed a bright red. 

“Yeah, just really fucking tired.” 

*CLICK*

“Hands where we can see them! Slowly, no fast movements!” A woman’s voice echoes through the air. 

Steve releases you from his arms, both of you slowly turning, arms raised up as you were told. 

There’s 5 of them, all on horses with their guns drawn in your direction. The woman seems to be in charge of the group, her horse placed a few feet in front of the others.

“We don’t mean no harm, we’re just trying to get to the settlement just over this mountain. You must be Maria? I was told you might greet us before we got there.” Steve says, keeping his tone even as explains himself. 

“Am I supposed to know who you are?” She asks, her expression still unreadable as she waits for Steve to respond. 

“No— you don’t, but I was told you would bring us the rest of the way in.” 

Maria takes a minute to decide whether she wants to believe Steve or not. 

“Scan them.” Looking back at one of the men behind her, nodding to where Steve and you are still standing with your arms raised. “I don’t care who you talked to, you get scanned before you come in.” 

The man grabs a device from his saddle pack, then makes his way towards you, the other 3 men’s guns still aimed, fingers hovering over their triggers. 

“Lady’s first.” The man states, placing the device on your neck, there’s a small zap to your skin when the scan is administered. 

“Green!” He shouts, holding the device up to show the green screen in Maria’s direction. 

You breathe a sigh of relief, even though you knew you were fine. 

Turning towards Steve, the man places the scanner on Steve’s neck, Steve’s eyes locking with yours as the man presses the designated button to conduct the virus scan. 

The man steps back quickly, a flash of red catches your attention. 

“RED!” He holds the device up. 

The other men direct their aim to Steve, his head hanging low and no sign of resistance to finding out he’s infected. 

“Steve! No— Tell them you’re not infected!” Insisting he speak up. “He’s not infected! Scan him again! Please!” You scream at the group, your voice straining as you plead with them to scan Steve again, convinced it was a bad read. 

“Please!! Scan him—“

“Genevieve— it’s not wrong.” Steve says. 

You turn to him, chest heaving and your throat burning from yelling, confused by what he’s saying.

“What? What do you mean it’s not wrong? You’re not infected Steve— you’re just tired, they need to scan you again!”

“I was bit.” 

You can feel the blood drain from your face as the words leave his mouth. Your brain takes a moment to register what he had said. 

Bit. 

Infected. 

“No— no! No, no no!”

“Genevieve—“

“W-when?”

“Last night, there was a runner that came out of one of the other cabins—“

Steve’s confession hits you like a ton of bricks in slow motion. You hate it and don’t want to believe a single thing he’s saying, because the reality is that this is where it ends for him— for you. 

The tears burn as they begin to stream down your face. 

“You didn’t say anything though—“

“I needed to get you here— I needed you to be safe.”

Your chest heaves as you try to catch your breath, throwing yourself at him, anchoring your arms around his neck. 

“No! I can’t do this without you— I can’t lose you too!” 

“Yes, you can. You’re the bravest person I’ve known in a long time. You’re going to get there and you’re going to meet new people and you will be able to help out because that’s what you love— you love helping people and I love that about you. This is your chance to start over, to be happy— do that for me?” His hands cup your face so he can look at you, his eyes filled with tears as well. “Do me a favor, write me one of your letters— I want to know everything.”

You nod, unable to speak, the lump in your throat growing as your remaining time together dwindles away. 

“I love you, Genevieve.” His words muffled against your skin, leaving one last kiss on your forehead. 

“I love you, too.” You breathe out, your eyes closed savoring his soft touch one last time. 

“How long?” Maria asks Steve.

“Probably ‘nother hour left, give or take.”

“Alright Genevieve— you’re riding with me, hand your pack to one of my men. Andrew, you hang back with Steve— you know what to do.” Maria orders everyone. 

Wiping your tears before placing a kiss to Steve’s cheek, then turning to where Maria is waiting for you, handing your pack to one of her men. Maria leans down to grab onto your arm, as you hoist yourself up onto the backside of the horse. 

“Let’s head back.” Maria says, pulling the reins up and to one side to signal the horse to turn around, a click of her tongue has the horse moving forward in the direction of the settlement. 

You can’t bear to look back in Steve’s direction, not trusting yourself to not run back to him. 

Leaving him and knowing his fate is like reliving the same pain you endured 21 years ago. The outbreak takes everything from you for a second time. 

Your world shatters, crumbling as the horse carries you further and further from him. 

*BANG*

The sound ricochets out over the valley, your heart sinks as a new wave of tears silently fall. 

*

You don’t remember the entire ride to the settlement or how you ended up on the porch of a two story house. 

Maria had mentioned putting you up in her brother-in-law's converted garage, a small studio bedroom where those new to the settlement would stay while their permanent residence were being cleaned and prepped. She said it wasn’t anything special and you’d have to use the main houses kitchen and bathroom, but you’d have your own space in a few days— so interacting with a few strangers was the least you could do for the hospitality. 

You honestly didn’t care where she put you for the time being, the stables would have been enough, you just wanted to be alone. 

Glancing over your shoulder you see others moving about freely, children running about in the open, a stark contrast between what you had been so used to. 

There’s rows and rows of homes, a small town-like area, a community garden— this place was everything that Steve had described to you, he would have loved it. 

The opening of the front door pulls you back to the front porch where you’re standing with Maria. 

“We’ve got a newcomer, she’s going to stay here until we get a room ready down the street.” Maria explained to the young girl who is glaring at you. 

“Why do you keep bringing them here? This isn’t a shelter— can’t she stay somewhere else?”

“No, she can’t. This is Ellie, her bark is worse than her bite— she’ll grow on you. Ellie, this is Genevieve let’s let her get comfortable and situated— she just lost whom I’m assuming was her husband, so please make her feel welcomed.” Maria coerses Ellie into letting you stay, but you don’t miss the eye rolling throw your way. 

The home is spacious and inviting, you decide it’s far more comfortable than the stables would have been. 

“Ellie, can you grab Genevieve a glass of water please.” It’s more of a demand than an ask. “Here Genevieve, have a seat here at the table. I’m sure Ellie can make you something to eat if you’re hungry too.”

“So now we’re a shelter and we have room service? Her legs don’t seem broken to me—.” 

“Ellie, glass of water!”

The girl grunts something under her breath as she follows through with getting you water, you settle into a chair and try to not let the unwelcome feeling that’s been looming over you since you set foot in the house add to the pain that is still radiating through you. 

You wipe a few tears you hadn’t realized had fallen, a new wave of emotions hitting you, another moment of realization of Steve not being here with you like you had both talked about. 

“Is there anything else I can get you Genevieve?” Maria cautiously places a hand on your shoulder, you take it as her way of apologizing for your loss. 

“Umm, just my bag would be great and a shower would be nice.” You sniffle, ready to lock yourself away for the day, not wanting to be forced to have unwanted conversations with a teenager who already hates your new presence. 

“I’ll go grab your bag from the stables, then you can start getting settled.” She gives your shoulder a light squeeze before turning for the front door. “Ellie, be nice.”

A glass of water is placed in front of you, a few cubes of ice float around the clear liquid. You don’t even remember the last time you had enjoyed an ice cold drink. 

Ellie situates herself in the chair across from you, looking as if she wants to say something. 

“So— your husband is dead?” 14 years old and a great conversationalist. 

“No— y-yes.” Your chest aches at the mention of ‘your husband.’

“Well, that’s not confusing. So, did you watch him die?”

“Hmm?” 

“Your husband, did you watch your husband die?” She asks again. 

“N-no.”

“I’m all out of questions then.” She slinks back into her chair. 

You stare at the ice, almost half the size it was when it was placed in front of you. Wishing you could slowly melt away, become the nothingness you feel like. 

The front door swings open and closes with a gentle click, the clunking sound of boots makes the presence of whoever stepped into the house known. 

“Hey kid, sorry I’m late. Tommy wanted to get drinks after our patrol.” 

A deep husky voice permeates the room, its thick syrupy tone seeps into every little crevice of your memory, its familiarity prompting the goosebumps to form across your body. 

“I didn’t know we were having guests— this a new friend of yours?” He asks, his foot step getting closer to where you're still seated at the table, your back turned to him. 

“Fuck no! It’s one of Maria’s strays. Said she has to stay here until her room is available— which is bullshit if you ask me!” She spouts off, her annoyance very apparent. 

“Ellie, manners!” He grits out. 

You lift yourself from the chair, steadying your weak state on the table and chair as you turn in his direction. 

Your heart nearly stops the moment your eyes land on him— a ruggedness to him, his soft brown eyes filled with a darkness that comes with loss and sorrow, his dark locks and beard sprinkled with tuffs of gray, an overall hardness about him that hides his true self. 

“Joel?” Your eyes wide and filled with more tears, the name is barely a whisper as it falls into the air. 

“Eve?” A name he never thought he would say again. 

#fall apart again series #joel miller tlou #joel miller #joel miller x you #joel miller x ofc #Joel Miller x ofc!genevieve #the last of us #tlou #the last of us au #the last of us game #the last of us hbo #pedro pascal #wildemaven writes

[ampresandian]

I know Rick is like master of creating and ignoring plot holes but like I had serious questions about the botl timeline so I sat down and tried to map it out:

Percy's orientation is on "Monday morning, the first week of June." This is the day he arrives at camp, and the day of Grover's hearing where the council gives him one more week to find Pan. This is probably also the longest day ever??? Percy goes to orientation, takes a taxi to camp, and then the council meeting, cabin inspection, the forges, canoeing, and sword practice all before dinner? I've worked at summer camp that's insane. That night, he gets his first IM about Nico.

Day 2, they have the conversation about the labyrinth, Percy goes to see Blackjack, and they have the war game where Percy and Annabeth find the labyrinth entrance.

Chiron sends them to get sleep. In the morning, they discuss the quest and Annabeth gets her prophecy. They agree to enter the labyrinth tomorrow. Percy gets his second Nico IM that night.

Day 4 they enter the labyrinth. This is at least 3 days into Grover's week already, depending on when the council chooses to start counting from.

At the ranch, Grover sees on TV that "It's June thirteenth. Seven days since we left camp." (This is ten days since the first day of the book, so it must have started on the third of June.) They then go to see Hephaestus and get sent to Mount St Helens, splitting up on the way but still traveling through the labyrinth (so while they feel like it's only a few hours, it's probably closer to a full day).

Percy blows up Mount St Helens and lands himself on Calypso's island, where he stays to recover until Hephaestus comes to visit. He then sails back to camp.

Walking into his funeral, Percy has been gone for "two weeks," which isn't necessarily an exact time but since that's what we're given we'll assume another 14 days, so my guess would be that it's around June 28th now?

They spend that day on camp, and leave for NYC in the morning (June 29th) to get Rachel, stopping to talk to Percy's mom on the way. They reenter the labyrinth, and enter Antaeus' gladiator arena, where they are briefly held up before escaping and making camp for the night.

In the morning, they make it to Deadalus's workshop, where they fight and escape into Colorado Springs. They reenter the labyrinth, stop by San Francisco to see Kronos take over Luke's body, and then go find Grover and Tyson to witness Pan's death in Carlsbad Caverns. They make it back to New York and Blackjack & co pick them up to take them back to camp. Immediately, the Battle of the Labyrinth occurs. Grover lets out the call of panic and Daedalus dies. That night, they hold the funeral for those lost in the battle.

The next day, the council meets to hear Grover's story. Briares leaves for the cyclopes forges, and Nico leaves camp too.

My best guess would be that time moves about twice as fast in the labyrinth, but there's a lot that goes on when they're back in with Rachel--I feel like between Deadalus's workshop and getting back to camp it should be at least a full day? So anyway my guess is that the actual Battle of the Labyrinth happens on like July 1st?

Which I guess fits with "July passed, with fireworks on the beach on the Fourth." But that's like two-three days later, so it seems very very fast to me that they would be prepared with celebratory fireworks? I don't know. But also (again, I've worked at a summer camp) sometimes camp is just like that, and chaos happens and you have to keep going and trying to keep it normal for the campers.

Anyway so technically it works but like it feels awkward to me.

#percy jackson #percy jackon and the olympians #pjo #pjo spoilers #percy jackson spoilers #battle of the labyrinth #percy series #annabeth chase #tyson #grover underwood #nico di angelo #percy jackson timeline #rick riordan #&thoughts #summer camp

[swabian-princess]

Appearance goals until summer

Hey girlies,

since I got promoted to a stay at home girlfriend a big part of my „job“ is to look my absolute best for myself and my man.

We have an event in the beginning of June and my birthday is in July, so I have set myself a deadline – I will be the best version of myself in the summer!

perfect skin – face: I won’t need a new skincare routine because I’m happy with my routine and with the results I’m getting. My pores are almost invisible and I only get pimples right before my period starts. The only thing I will start doing is using retinol again, however, I think two times a week should be enough for me.

perfect skin – body: shame on me – I seriously neglected my body skincare for the last couple of months but that’s gonna change now. I am shaving every second day and do a peeling beforehand when I’m already in the shower. I have a few dark spots and little red spots on my thighs and legs and since I am very pale they are super visible. I’ll start using a chemical exfoliant on those spots to brighten them up. I’ll also start mixing vitamin C and retinol in my bodylotion a few times a week.

Reduce the appearance of cellulite: I only have cellulite on top of the back of my thighs and minimal on my butt – so it’s not really visible in any clothing. Still, I want to look my best in swimsuits. I’ll try out thigh wraps with ground coffee once a week, focus on building muscles in those areas and I’ll be upping my water intake!

super white teeth: I brush my teeth two times a day, obviously, but I’ll start flossing in the morning too! I am also gonna use a mouth wash after every brushing session and I will book one teeth whitening appointment.

fresh nails: I’ll visit the nail salon every 3-4 weeks and get my my toes and hands done. Always in a natural pinkish color or with french tips. I’m also gonna start using hand lotion at home way more often.

perfect hair: my hair got pretty long in the last few months and goes below my shoulder blades. I have an hair appointment coming up and I want to go almost platinum. I want to be really light blonde for spring and in the summer. To maintain the color, I’ll go back every 6-8 weeks to get my roots retouched. At home I’m oiling my scalp and my hair once a week with argan oil. I am also going to use heat protection every time I style my hair.

perfect lips: I already have 1ml hyaluron in my lips but I want them just a little bit more jucy. Maybe 0,5ml will be enough – we’ll see!

appointment with my injector: she's amazing. She’s always honest and never did me or any of my girlfriends wrong. I want her opinion on maybe jaw/cheek or chin filler to make my face more symmetrical. I also want to talk about baby botox and a botox brow lift.

working out: duh. I workout 3-5x times a week and I want to tone up just a little bit more before summer starts. I’ll also try starting to incorperate daily walks into my routine.

new wardrobe: I am gonna clean out my closet in the next few weeks and either donate or throw out anything that doesn’t fit my aesthetic anymore. After that, I’m slowly gonna start building my dream wardrobe.

Selene

#hypergamyblr #hypergamous woman #hyperfemininity #hyper feminine #hypergamy #high class #baby heaux #heaux #heaux tips #high maintenance heaux #high maintenance #hypergamous mindset #highsociety #stay at home girlfriend #leveled up mindset #leveling up journey #leveling up tips #level up journey #leveling up #happy sugar life #sugarbaby #sugar bowl #spoiled heaux #spoiled gf #spoiled girlfriend #stay at home wife

[euphoricimagination]

Summary: A few weeks pass repeating the same routine, school, Japanese classes, manager duties. The twins and Suna often drop by at your house and either teach your brother volleyball; help your mom; or what happened most of the times, force you to cuddle them by laying on top of you, Atsumu and Osamu heads in each of your shoulders while Suna was in your lap. Your family was way too fond of them, but admittedly, so were you.

Suna x reader; Miya twins x reader (platonic)

[Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4] -> Second Year

Now it’s August, and you are a day away from the “golden week”, a fancier name for a small vacation. However, instead of resting, the team  will use this time to practice for the Spring Interhigh in Hyōgo, so you have to be with them.

“So, by the end of the week we have a practice match with other school, right?” you ask during dinner during your first day, receiving a nod from Atsumu “What was the name of the school again? I keep forgetting it”

“It’s fukdnhjai” Atsumu tries to answer with his mouth full.

“Can you eat first and then talk? Manners kid, manners” you say while hitting his arm playfully 

“Sorry. It’s Fukurodani, a school from Tokyo”

“Apparently, they have one of the top 5 aces in the whole Japan. They are really good” adds Osamu

“Damn, that sounds cool” you say while writing down the school’s name “like this, right?” you whisper to Suna, who was sitting next to you. He looks at it, takes your pen and corrects a symbol. 

In these past weeks you and Suna had become really close since he always leaves you in front of your house after practice. He became much more affectionate, at least with you. “Close” he answers while flickering your forehead slightly before kissing the same place. 

The golden week passes fast, the boys practicing so much that you genuinely ask yourself how nobody hasn’t passed out yet. One of your duties as a manager was to cook for them, and despite telling them that you could figure it out alone, Osamu insisted in helping you despite being tired himself; which not only turn into teaching you how to cook traditional Japanese food, but also you two became closer than before. . 

Today it’s Friday morning, the last day of the golden week and the day of the practice match with Fukurodani. Admittedly, you were really curious about the top 5 ace, the only picture that came to your mind was a big, intimidating dude. 

The boys are inside the gym preparing it for the match while you were in charge of receiving the school. If you have notice something about the Inarizaki volleyball team throughout the other practice matches is that the schools are very intimidated by them. Not only they are crazy good, but they don’t look the nicest from afar.

“Ehh excuse me? This is Inarizaki High right?”

“Eh? Yes, yes. I’m sorry, I was talking to my family. I’m Yl Yn, Inarizaki’s volleyball team manager” you say after regaining some composure, you were so busy calling your mom that didn’t hear the bus arriving 

“It’s fine, don’t worry. Nice to meet you, I’m Fukurodani’s coach; this is my assistant. Guys! You can go out now!”

“Welcome, and thanks for coming from so far. Our coach should be over there if you want to talk to him first. I can help your team to set up”

“I’ll take the offer, thank you” With that they go looking for the coach. You turn around at the sound of loud voices, a dude with greyish hair coming out stretching with the rest of the team behind.

“HEY, HEY, HEY! Who are you? Are you…In-arizaki… m-manager...?” the gray hair dude asks, stuttering in the middle as his eyes go down. You look at him confused, following where his eyes are looking, making you remember what you were wearing.

Japan it’s a really humid country, and that makes the summer unbelievable hot. The guys saw how uncomfortable you were when summer began, so they told you it was okay to wear shorts if that helped you. The first time they saw you with it they were flustered, all of them were barely able to look you in the eyes, but by now they’re used to it. However, Fukurodani clearly wasn’t used to it considering that the grey hair dude was looking at your legs with a flustered expression.

“Bokuto-san, be respectful and don’t look at her legs” a black hair dude says, trying to hide his blush when looking at you “I’m sorry for the inconvenience. I’m Akaashi Keiji. He’s-”

“I’m Bokuto, the ace of Fukurodani! Sorry for staring, it was rude” interrupts him the owlish dude enthusiastically

“Hi, nice to meet you. I’m Yl Yn, Inarizaki’s manager. And don’t worry, it was my fault anyways, I forgot that you guys aren’t used to it. So, I’m sorry”

“Yn? Sounds foreigner! Nice to meet you too!” says Bokuto

“I am foreigner, I arrived early this year. I’m still not used to such a hot summer, but I can change though, I don’t want to make you guys uncomfortable”

“I’m sure we can survive, don’t worry. And welcome to Japan” tells you Akaashi with a little smile. Are all volleyball players this handsome? 

“Anyways, let me walk you to the gym, the guys are already there” you say while turning around. You can hear some whispers behind that sounded like woman, but before you could turn to check there was an arm around your shoulder. 

“So Yn-chan, how did you end up in Japan? When did you arrived here? From where are you? In what grade are you? How long-”

“Bokuto-san take your arm off her, you can't just hug people without them telling you it's okay. Also, don't bombard her with so many questions”

“It's okay, it's okay” you quickly say when you see Bokuto's eyes widen with full worry “One of my boys acts pretty similar so I'm kind of used to sudden hugs, and you don't look like a creep, which is good. Don't go over there line though”

“I will never! Promise!”

“I heard that you are in the top 5, is it true?” you tried to answer Bokuto’s question

“YES! I am! I'm number 4!”

“That just means he couldn't get into the top 3” 

“Akaashi! You shouldn't say that! I'll show good I am, Yn, I promise!”

“I would love to see that, I’m sure you’re amazing. Anyways, here’s the gym” you take Bokuto's arm of your shoulder “you can use the lockers to change if you want to. Kita-san! Can you help them with that?”

“Of course. Hi guys, please come with me…”

The boys from Fukurodani leave following Kita, who's now dealing with the questions of Bokuto. Turning around, you finally were able to see the voices that you heard earlier, coming from two girls who were holding some water bottles and other things.

“Hi I'm Shirofuku Yukie, just call me Yukie though, and she is Suzumeda Kaori. We manage those owls. You're Yn, right?”

“Yep, I’m the manager of the foxes here. It’s nice to meet you”

“Same here. How can you wear shorts with them around? I could never” asks Yuki

“Well, they just got used to it. I guess they try harder because I'm a foreigner?”

“Perhaps, I'm from first year too by the way” adds Kaori making you raise your hand for a Hi-5, which she happily gives

“It's so nice seeing other women after spending a week with a bunch of boys. Thank God I got Kaori with me, I don’t know how you did it”

“It’s been hard, but I love these idiots; plus, I always try to talk with some of my female friends”

“Your team looks really scary in comparison to ours. Bokuto-san...He is really something” says Kaori

“They do look scary, they're idiots though. Is Bokuto-san always that cheerful?”

“He is, he is really the definition of extrovert. But ever since Akaashi joined our school, he is a bit more...thoughtful” answers Yuki

“I see. Do you have everything ready? Need any help?”

“We have everything, don't worry. We going to get ready for out team”

“Alright, I'm going to my foxes. Let's talk later!”

“Yeah, lets”

You go back to the guys, who were stretching and warming up while you were talking with the girls when the Fukurodani boys go out of the locker room and start doing the same on their side. You go to Suna and plop onto his back, since he was on the floor finishing his legs stretches, and sigh.

“Too much people” you say burying your face on the crock of his neck

“Ya did great chibi-chan, like always” you feel a hand ruffling your hair

“Thanks Samu”

“Aw how cute. Now get out of my back, I need to get up” says Suna poking you playfully before delicately put you in the floor. 

You whine making them chuckle, Atsumu helping you get up before kissing your temple; you start walking towards the bench with the boys following you so they could strategize something with the coach. 

The match starts right after, Fukurodani serving first for being the guests. The guys were able to receive the serve easily, Atsumu choosing his twin to do the final hit; however, Fukurodani is able to receive it as well. Akaashi, whose is the setter of his team, chooses Bokuto and before anyone notice, the ball is on the floor with a loud sound, right by the end of the court. You’ve never seen such a strong hit, making it clear why Bokuto was on the top 5.

“HEY, HEY, HEY!” Screams Bokuto “YN! You saw it?! Did you saw that hit?!”

“That... was awesome. How do you...? Damn, that was so cool”

“I told you I will show you! Look at the next one too!”

You feel the eyes of the boys on you after the  interaction with Bokuto. Were they confused? Maybe annoyed? Whatever it was, it felt like something click into them, suddenly looking more concentrated than ever. They manage to get the point back right after, Atsumu serving now. The first few points go hand-in-hand, neither team wanting to lose.

“Bokuto is really good, don't you think Yn?” Asks you the coach

“Yeah, he's awesome. The rest of the team is also really good”

“True. Bokuto takes all the attention which helps the others attack by surprise since all the eyes are on the Ace. It's clear why they are a top school”

“Yes. Also...it's weird, but despite Bokuto-san being our opponent...I kind of want to cheer for him. Is that normal?”

“It is, not only he's on a higher level, but Bokuto also is an easy-to-love boy. Not a lot of people can dislike him”

You look in Bokuto's direction, who was saying something to Akaashi; despite being so muscular and tall, all that came to your mind when looking at him was the word ‘adorable’. You shake your head and look back at the score, Inarizaki being behind by 1 point.

The score hit 16 by Fukurodani first, so the coach asked for a time-out.  You hand the bottles to the boys while they listen to the coach, who is telling them to keep calm and continue doing what they were doing. When he finished Atsumu looks at you, annoyed expression on. 

“Since when ya and Bokuto-san are friends?” says with a jealous tone 

“Why are you cheering for him? WE are your team” scoffs Suna

“I don't think we’re friends yet, I just ask him if he really was in the top 5 and he said he will show me. And he's awesome, you can't deny that”

“...True” Answers Suna

“I will always cheer for you; no matter what you will always be my favorites, you should know that. I have never seen him play that's why I'm a bit more amazed now”

“Fine. I'll trust ya. Let's win this, guys!”

They go back to the court all fire up, ready to fight back, and you could tell that Fukurodani noticed their energy, but instead of being intimidated they seemed more energized, specially Bokuto. The match continues to be really close, neither team being able to break for more than 2 points; both teams were giving their absolutely best.

+++

It's was already late in the afternoon when the practice finished. The teams played 7 sets, Fukurodani winning 4 while Inarizaki 3. Both of them were exhausted after so many intense sets, half of them on the floor trying to gain their breath. The coaches tell them to stretch and relax while the girls and you pass them their bottles and towels. 

“This were some good matches. Both teams were on fire” says the Fukurodani coach to yours.

“I couldn't agree more. It's hard to find teams to have a good practice”

“Completely true. I’m glad we came here”

“It’s sad that you have to go so fast” you mutter unconsciously when you went back at the bench, more to yourself than anything else.

“I’m sorry?”

“Eh? Oh, I just think it’s sad that you travel this far for just a day of practice. Don’t get me wrong, it was a good practice, but you know…” you felt your cheeks starting to get red

“Hahaha I get you. It’s a rare opportunity to practice against an extremely strong opponent. Will it be hard to find a hotel now? If we find one, we can probably stay for tomorrow too” the Fukurodani coach asks

“We are staying on a house near here, it’s quite big I’m sure we can fit the boys and their managers” answers your coach

“We can sleep with Yn!” exclaims Yuki excited, hugging your shoulders

“That should be enough then, let’s call the guys. Everyone come here!” calls your coach, both teams coming right after “so, we were talking with the coach and the managers, all of us agreed that this is the best we have seen you play so far. So Fukurodani, you guys are okay with spending another day here?”

“Can we? I thought that it was only for today” Akaashi asks confused looking at his coach

“We thought too, but like Yn-kun here told us, it would be a waste travelling so far for just a day of practice. So, you guys agree?”

“If the coach thinks it’s okay, I don’t see why not. It was a good practice, Bokuto-san did better than normal”

“Okay, then go to the house and clean yourself up. Girls, can you prepare dinner in the meantime?” the coach look at you three

“Sure thing!” says Kaori

You leave the gym in different groups. The teams forgetting about their rivalry and talking to each other like they were old friends. You excuse yourself to the girls to go over Suna and the twins, since you haven’t been able to talk a lot today. You arrived behind Osamu, who was the closest, and back-hug him squeezing your face in his back. He tenses up a little, but soon relaxes when he noticed your arms.

“Hi chibi-chan” he whispers, making the others two boys look back 

“You guys did really good today. It was awesome”

“But we lost anyway” pouts Atsumu 

“You can't always win Tsumu” you say going to hug him. He instantly opens his arms for you, hugging you tightly “Besides it was a good practice. You won 3 sets against a top 5 ace, isn't that good?”

“But still, I wanted to win”

“Well now you have an extra day to do that. You were close today” you tell him while untangle yourself from his arms. 

“By the way, how come you convinced their coach to do that? And why?” asks Suna right before taking your arm to pull you into his embrace. He really must be tired considering he usually doesn't hug you outside. 

“What the coach said was literally how it happened, I just said that it was sad that they came from so far for a day”

“Sad they came from far away or sad that Bokuto-san had to leave?” Osamu asked, small smirk on his face knowing how his twin would react

“About the travel? And your practice? Why would I be sad about...”

“YN! Wait!” you hear from the owlish boy, making Suna untangle himself “I'm so happy we get to spend another day here! Thank you for convincing the coach!” with that he grabs you and gives you a hug, your face going straight into his chest while moving his body side to side from excitement.

“Bokuto-san, let her go, you’re sweaty” Akaashi appears. 

“But she's cute! And she said it was okay to hug her! Plus, she was hugging her team despite being sweaty too” says Bokuto letting you go. He ruffles your hair playfully. 

“That doesn't give you the right to just hug her though, and she knows them for longer, I’m sure she’s used to it” adds Akaashi. Before Bokuto could say anything you can hear a scoff while a hand throws you back

“Hell yeah! Don't touch our friend. What do ya even want from her?” Atsumu screams squinting his eyes

“I just want to be her friend, she's nice” 

“Well, ya can't. I won't let ya” Atsumu moves you a away 

“Excuse me? You don’t get to decide with who I can or cannot be friends with” you asked

“That's not the point”

“Then what is the point, Atsumu? Stop being so childish, I can be friends with them and I will if I want to” you say

“Agh! forget it. Stay with yer new besties or whatever, ya didn't want them to leave after all! Maybe ya can convince their coach to take ya with them since yer're so comfortable with him!”

“Ok, now you are just being ridiculous Tsumu. Out of everyone here you shouldn't be the one saying anything, you were basically the same when she arrived to school” Suna steps in

“Yeah, stop being insecure and let her have friends outside of us” Adds Osamy, hitting his twin in the head “Now let’s go, our Chibi has more important things to do than deal with yer insecurities” Osamu pushes Atsumu forcing him to walk to the house, the blonde clearly not happy.

“I don't know what's gotten into him, but let us talk to the idiot first” Suna says ruffling your hair. He bows a little to Akaashi and Bokuto before going behind the twins.

“Sorry for that. I'm not sure what happened” you apologize to the two boys, who were clearly uncomfortable by the situation.

“It's fine. Not really something you could control” Akaashi looks subtly at Bokuto “You are related to them or...?”

“No, but the twins treat me as their lost twin or whatever. Don't mind them, while I love them, I'm not going to let him tell me what to do”

“That's good, I'm sure he cares for you a lot, but that isn't an excuse” Akaashi says while opening the door of the house.

“Soo... can we be friends?” asks Bokuto, hope in his eyes

“Of course we can. Go and take a shower, I will go with the girls to make dinner”

“YAY! Let's go Akaashi!”

Akaashi gives you a little nod while following Bokuto. You shake your head at the weirdness of the whole thing and go to the kitchen, where the girls were cutting some veggies. After a lot of hours with men, it surely felt nice having other girls around. About 2 hours later the food was ready, so you go to look for the teams.

“Guys, food is ready, let's go!”

The door opens and they start to go out. You walked with Kita and Aran, who are talking about some movie that the latter watch. Entering the cafeteria, the two of them asked you if you want to join them in their table, but before you could answer a voice sounds loudly

“YN! Sit with us” you look at the table where Bokuto is waving his hand, making you chuckle, before looking at the two boys that were with you, a silent understanding between the three. You sat next to Akaashi, who handles you a plate with a little smile.

“Since we are friends now, we should get to know each other more, don't you think?” tells you Bokuto

“Yeah, sounds nice. I'm not a good talker though, sorry”

“Don't worry! I got this”

With that he starts telling you about how he and Akaashi met, with Akaashi adding or correcting some details. A few minutes later you feel a tap on your shoulder; turning around you see Atsumu with a sad look on his face, with Osamu and Suna behind him, arms crossed and bored expressions.

“Need something Atsumu?”

“I'm sorry for reacting that way, Chibi. I...I got insecure and thought that ya would leave us for them; which was dumb, because I know that ya love us. I'm sorry”

“It's fine. Don't do it again though” you sigh taking his hand to squeeze it, making him relax “I'm not the only one who deserves an apology, you know?” 

“I know” Atsumu now looks at Bokuto and Akaashi “Sorry for treating ya like that, Bokuto-san, I shouldn't have reacted that way towards ya either. Sorry for making the situation awkward, Akaashi-san” 

“It's fine dude! Let's forget it!” exclaims Bokuto

“Good, can we sit and eat now? I’m starving” adds Osamu, who just sits besides Bokuto.

“Please, making this idiot understand may be more exhausting than volleyball” says Suna while sitting next to you, dropping his head on your shoulder. You play with his hair a little knowing how tired he has to be.

“Hey! It wasn't that bad” Atsumu fights back sitting on the other side of Bokuto

“What even made you insecure Tsumu? You know that I wouldn't just leave you” you asked putting some rice into yours and Suna’s plate, whose head was still on your shoulder.

“I don't want to-”

“He didn't have frie-”

“Samu! Shut up!” 

The twins started to fight with each other, everything coming back to normal, Bokuto and Akaashi joining the chaos. At some point of the meal Atsumu, Suna and Bokuto started talking about volleyball; while Akaashi, Osamu and you where talking about some books and movies. By the end of the meal, nobody remembered what had happened.

You go back to the respective rooms, the two teams sharing the first floor while the managers have the second. Before doing anything else, you and the girls went to take a bath. 

“You had the whole floor for yourself? Wasn’t it scary?” ask you Kaori

“Yeah, a little, but it was better than any of the boys watching me”

“Talking about the boys…How do you do it? How are you soo relaxed when there are so many handsome dudes around you?” Yuki asks

“I could ask you the same, probably our answers are similar. Because let’s not lie here, your team is handsome too, Akaashi has to be the prettiest player I have seen”

“You’ve got a point there… Wait Akaashi? You like him?”

“He’s handsome, I can’t deny that. That doesn’t mean I like him though. Like I think Tsumu and Samu are hot. Would I date them? No at all”

“Yeah, we definitely think the same about our teams”

After that talk you go to the room and put pajamas. The girls go straight into bed, tired, but you just lay on the futon unable to close your eyes, while your body was tired, for some reason you couldn’t sleep. You decided to go outside to breath some fresh air, hoping it would help.

“Why aren’t you sleeping? Weren’t you tired?”

“I could ask you the same, chibi-chan”

“Couldn’t sleep”

“Same, come here” says Suna, looking at you 

You go and sit next to Suna, laying your head on his shoulder and falling in a comfortable silence. After some hesitation from his part, he puts his arm around you, hugging you. You stayed like that for a few minutes, looking at the sky with tired eyes.

“It has been a really tiring week, don't you think?” Suna breaks the silence first.

“Yes, it has been a lot. If I'm tired, I can't imagine how you guys are, you have been practicing a lot”

“Yes, but at least now I can spike better, I have more control. How's your family doing?”

“They're fine. They went to Kobe Harbor throughout the week. It looked pretty”

“Oh yeah, you haven't seen everything around, between classes and all. Sorry, I guess; if you weren't our manager, you probably would have more time to enjoy Japan or just relax”

“Don’t say that, you idiot” you hit him in the chest since you were still hugging each other “If I wasn't your manager, I wouldn't have been this close to any of you. Yes, it would have been fun going around the city or have more time to do nothing, but it would have been boring without you guys. I would choose this again if I could”

“The night really makes us cheesy, huh?” adds Suna with a little laugh “I'm glad you chose us or whatever…You know, I was a bit jealous of how you act with Bokuto-san and Akaashi-san, you just met them and already look so comfortable with them, it took longer for us”

“Not much longer either, Bokuto-san is just as persistent as Tsumu was. I think it is because I react different now compare to when I just arrived”

“How come?”

“Before I barely talk to people, but the more time I spend with you I become more...talkative, I guess. I still don't like people, but it's easier to talk to them”

“If you become as annoying as Tsumu, I'll drop you”

“Yeah, that's not happening. It's too much”

You continue talking for a while, sleep slowly getting into you as Suna’s warmth made you relax. He of course noticed, forcing you to go to bed; but before parting ways to your respective rooms, Suna grabs your arm and brings you close, giving you a kiss on your cheek. He turns around right away and leaves to hide his blush face. 

+++

The next morning starts early for the managers, since you had to go and make breakfast for the teams. Taking your phone out, you decided to film, since this week was full of practices it was hard to do it. 

“Ahh we’re so lucky to have our chibi-chan with us, what would we do without ya?” says Atsumu when you serve him his portion, squishing your cheek playfully. 

“Don’t be so dramatic Tsumu, it’s part of my job.”

“Tsumu is right, Yn-chan, I don’t think we thank you enough for all the work you do” adds Aran now

“What made you so cheesy all of the sudden?” you questioned. First it was Suna, then Atsumu and now Aran? “Don't worry about it. Go and eat, you have a long day today too”

“Thanks, we'll save ya a seat”

“HEY, HEY, HEY! Yn Hey!” You hear Bokuto scream while entering the cafeteria “You made breakfast for us too!”

“Good morning Yn-chan”

“WE made breakfast, your managers helped too. Good morning Akaashi”

“I know, I know, but this is the first time I eat your breakfast, it's different” Bokuto says

“Are you sitting with us today too?” Akaashi ask

“Tsumu save me a seat, I’m sure you guys can sit there too if you want”

“We'll see you there then” says before going straight to the guys table. 

When you finished serving the boys, it was finally time for you to eat. You go to the table were the boys at, Atsumu pointing at the empty space that was in between Suna and Bokuto. You put the food down and take out your phone to film a little.

“Filming a video, Yn-chan?” asks me Akaashi

“Yep, I wanted to do it yesterday too, but I didn't know if you were cool with it”

“She has a lot of videos on Youtube, they’re cool” adds Osamu with a hint of proudness 

“You have a youtube channel!?! That's so cool! I know someone who has one too!! I will subscribe right away!”

“Bokuto-san relax”

Breakfast past fast thanks to the two talkative boys, who connected way faster than anyone expected. While talking you feel a hand taking yours, slightly playing rubbing circles on it; looking at Suna, the owner of the hand, you noticed that he was talking with Osamu like nothing happened. 

The new match starts with a powerful serve from Atsumu, marking the first point of the game. A few points pass and once again neither team can get a break point, however Inarizaki was able to reach 16 points first. Both teams once again gave their all in the sets, but this time the final winner was Inarizaki, taking 5 sets out of 9; despite how tired they were, you can see the satisfaction on the faces of your foxes. After giving them their water bottles and towels, the boys go to do their final stretches, in the meantime, the girls and you go to buy them some dinner since there wasn’t enough time to cook something for all of them. Even though you were supposed to buy food only for your team, you secretly bought two extra onigiris for Bokuto and Akaashi.

Once everyone was done it was time for Fukurodani to leave. The girls and you already exchange numbers, so you just hugged each other tightly before partying ways. Immediately after you go to Bokuto and Akaashi, who were also saying goodbye to the rest of your team. 

“Chibii! I'll miss you!” says Bokuto while pulling you into a really tight hug 

“I'll miss you too Bokuto-san”

“It was nice to meet you Yn-chan, I hope we can see each other in the future”

“It was so nice to meet you too Akaashi. Can I give you a hug?” you ask receiving a nod as an answer, so you moved to give him the hug which he received happily 

“Chibi, give us your number so we can talk too, we already added the twins and Suna” Bokuto says passing you his phone so you can add yourself 

“There, by the way, I bought you this. Don't let anyone else see it because you were the only ones that I bought something”

“Aww chibi-chan you're so cute!!” squeals Bokuto squishing your cheek 

“GUYS! LET'S GO!” the Fukurodani coach screams

“Let’s go Bokuto-san. Bye guys. Thank you for the onigiris Yn-chan. Let's talk later” says Akaashi before entering the bus alongside Bokuto

“BYE-BYE!!” You wave at the bus saying bye to them, Fukurodani leaving the school.

++++

It’s the first week of October, before you knew it you were a few days away from the Spring Interhigh Qualifier, which started on October 7th. These past weeks the boys have been practicing so much, everyone getting ready to go to the Nationals. Today is October 4th, and despite having been practicing for so long, the twins didn’t seem to want to leave; out of all the first years those two were the most excited and nervous. 

“One more!” screams Atsumu to Osamu, who gets ready to spike.

“Guys, you're overworking, go to rest” says Kita, but the twins just brush it away.

“Hey, you two! Stop. You can injure yourself. What's the point of practicing so much if you can't play after?” you call them now

“....”

“See how dumb that is? Go to stretch and then clean yourself so we can go”

“Yes madam!”

“Thank you, Yn-chan, you are one of the only ones that can stop them” thanks you Kita

“It’s alright, you can leave now, I'll wait for them to close the gym”

“It's late though, will you be okay?”

“Kita-san, it offends me that you think so lowly of me” says Suna coming out of the dressing rooms “I'll wait with her and walk her home like always”

“Thank you Suna, that makes me feel better. Then we’ll see you tomorrow Yn-chan” Kita pats your head, leaving with Aran right after. Suna grabs your hand and pulls you outside, making you sit on the bench.

“What time is it Rin?”

“8:34 pm, those idiots practiced longer than normal”

“They did. I'm sure it's because they're nervous, the tournament is on Thursday after all”

“I know, but man I'm tired” says Suna pressing his finger on his temples “they also made you stay here longer, you should be angrier at them, you know?”

“Nah, they’re working hard, I'm only going to get angry if they injure themselves or if they do something incredibly stupid”

“You are too soft, specially with those two” Suna pokes your cheek

“You talk like I don't treat you the same”

“Shut up”

“We're done, let's go” says Osamu walking out of the gym with Atsumu “Sorry for making ya wait for so long chibi-chan”

You close the gym and start walking to the subway, talking about the tournament, the teams that they would have to fight against, and about finally going to Tokyo. Before parting ways in the subway Suna puts his hands on your ears, successfully muffling the sounds of the station as he whisper towards the twins; you couldn’t make up what he was telling them, but whatever it was made them grin and nod. Both of them kiss your head before walking away, Suna in front of you as always. 

“What was that about?” you ask

“What?”

“You covering my ears and talking to the twins, willingly, you okay? Have a fever or what?” you put your hand on his forehead jokingly. He rolls his eyes and takes it, putting it down without letting go

“Haha so funny Chibi” says with an annoyed tone, but breaks into a soft smile right after “Nothing important, sunshine, don’t think too much about it”

“But I wa-”

“Sunshine” he warns you

“Fine, I'll let it go”

“Good girl” he smirks you while squishing your hand, making you blush. He doesn’t let go of tour hand throughout the whole way, however he just acts like his normal self. 

After showering you lay on your bed watching some videos, not tired enough to fall asleep. Suddenly you started to receive a bunch of messages. It´s 0:01, who on earth is messaging you at this hour? 

You continue chatting with the boys while checking your group chat with Bokuto and Akaashi and the girls, all of them wishing you a happy birthday. 

The next morning you see Suna waiting for you in the subway, which almost never happen since his morning practice is much early. You approach him making him smile the moment he sees you, handing you a bag. When you open it, the first thing that you notice is a birthday card, with a photo that you took with the Fukurodani boys and them printed; it also had a hoodie almost, if not the same, as one of your favorite hoodies of his. 

“You know, you shouldn't have got me anything” you say hugging him tightly

“That's a terrible way of saying thank you” he wraps his arms around you, putting his chin on the top of your head 

“Thanks Rin. You're awesome”

“I know”

“So humble”

“Shut up, chibi-chan. I gave you a matching hoodie and this is what I get. Unbelievable”

“Thanks, Rinie, you’re the best” you say bringing him down and giving him a kiss on the cheek. He blushes hard and just takes your hand to walk towards the train. When you arrived to school, you went to buy a drink at the vending machine, but before you could pay Suna pushes you lightly and pays for you “like I would let you pay anything today”

After that you go to the classroom, and as soon as you enter you got tackle into a hug, someone lifting you from the ground and shaking you side to side.

“TSUMU!!” you scream in shock, laughing right after

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHIBI-CHAN!” Atsumu says while also laughing. He puts you down still hugging you before giving you kiss on the top of your head. You open your backpack, taking Atsumu gift out with a smile.

“Happy birthday to you too Tsumu. Hope you like it” 

“Don’t worry, I’ll love it” he says with watery eyes

“Samuu! Happy Birthday too! Here, I got this for you” you look at Osamu, who also hugs you

“Thank you chibi! I’ll give you my gift on lunch break” says while opening the gift. 

As promised, Osamu gives you your gift on lunch break, a beautiful bento box full of your favorite foods. After the afternoon classes ended, you go to the gym; you find all the lights off when you enter, something weird considering that the second years are usually the ones arriving first. When you turn on the lights, instead of finding the empty gym you see a table full of snacks, a birthday cake and lots of decorations around with the rest of the team screaming a happy birthday and starting singing, while the four of you just stood there.

“We were talking with the team about your birthday, since three of us share a birthday now” Kita starts saying

“At the beginning we weren’t going to do anything special, just like for everyone’s else. However, then we remember that this is Yn's first birthday away from her home and thought how hard that may be. So, we ended up doing all this” says the captain

“Thank you so much. Oh fuck, I think I’m going to cry” you blink as fast as you could to stop the tears from falling

“Thank ya and all but… this was just for our Chibi?! Ya didn’t think of us at all?!”

“I told ya Tsumu, ya are annoying and because I’m yer twin it affects me too”

“Don’t fight for today, okay. Let’s enjoy the food and then go home” says Aran to the twins 

“But practice…” asks Atsumu

“It’s good to have a break sometimes, Tsumu. Let it go now and eat” you tell him, making him sigh before agreeing. You all start to dig in while talking to each other, receiving lots of hugs from everyone in the team. 

The afternoon pass quickly, so fast that you are already near your house along Suna without you even notice. Before partying ways at the front of your house you made sure to hug him extra tight, giving him another kiss on the check, which makes him blush hard. What an amazing birthday you had this year.

#haikyuu x reader #haikyu x reader #haikyuu fluff #hq x reader #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu scenarios #hq imagines #suna x reader #suna rintaro #suna headcanons #suna x y/n #suna x you #suna fluff #suna imagines #suna rintaro x reader #suna rintaro headcanons #atsumu imagines #atsumu x reader #atsumu scenarios #atsumu fluff #atsumu x you #bokuto headcanons #bokuto fluff #bokuto x reader #osamu scenarios #osamu x reader #osamu fluff

[fatherentropy]

Because my tES roster has gotten large and complicated I thought I should make this and ramble a bit. And then tumblr ate my post so let's try to do this AGAIN but quicker because I started writing this at midnight and it's now 6 am SO!!

warning for child endangerment/death

Winter, Summer, Autumn and Spring are names given to girls kidnapped by this one man. There have been multiples of them but the last four are here. Winter was murdered before she could reclaim her name, Summer forgot hers and Spring...I just haven't named her. She's not that important outside Lily's story aah.

Lily is not coping well with anything going on in her life but is doing remarkably well for a girl who was orphaned at 11 and raised herself on the road. Largely because she's being personally supported by Sheogorath because she's his "Grand niece." Dedicated her life on Nirn to hunting Thalmor and Stormcloaks, blaming them for her parents' death.

Lulueith was raised by her mom in Valenwood but left to look for her dad after she passed from illness out of curiosity and nothing holding her where she grew up. She was disappointed because he's largely just a drunk content to drinking himself to death in peace. Just here to vibe now.

Part of Lulu's dad's angst is from Summer trying to kill him before abandoning him altogether. She was a very bad mom but she tried because she tries a lot of things seeing if it'll make her feel anything significant since growing up in constant fear has kind of fucked her brain up. She meant to destroy Tuveri's life specifically but her plan was foiled by Martin's kindness giving Tuveri the power to push her away. Fled Cyrodiil after Martin died because part of that seperation was Tuveri warning her that the next time he saw her he was going to kill her.

(I also drew Summer's line too dark but I think I'll keep this. I like it more than what I've been rolling with.)

Tuveri!! Is an Ashlander actually. His dad got sick and died and Tuveri was in the middle of making him a cairn when he got too close to the road and was pinched by the man and brought to Cyrodiil. Would have returned to Morrowind after escaping with the other two surviving girls but he kept dreaming of Cyrodiil and took that as a sign he had to stay. Thus him becoming HoK and then Sheogorath after that.

I have a lot of thoughts about Tuveri as Sheogorath but that's another rambly essay. To put it simply he's kind and caring to those who are "his" and malicious to those who aren't because that's typically the role they cast him and his in. Thus him targeting Ulfric and his scheme resulting in his son named both Martin (by Tuveri) and Yngve (by Ulfric).

Have a lot on Yngve's emotional state but not a lot of anything else just 'cause Todd willing I might plop him in the next game whenever tf that happens. (Y'know providing we don't go back the timeline/they don't add a super specific opening ala Fallout 4.)

detour to talk about Laury

He's named after the witch his parents managed to take down before they were murdered by the other three while trying to protect him. He was then raised by them to be Hermaeus' champion. Though large parts of that time is lost because his memory is swiss cheese between the alchemical shit he was forced to imbibe (Fun fact! Laury has taste only in one small part of his mouth) and depression.

There's math somewhere in the blank space of me trying to figure out Winter/Autumn's ages during Morrowind because I realized I could go the full nine yards and pull Laury into this weird mix above by doing this:

Nerevarine as dad or grandad? I dunno yet but next time I try and play that game... yeehaw. That man is gonna have a bad time.

Also think it's very tragic of Winter's mom to look to Hermaeus for answers and become one of his biggest shill holes when he sponsored her daughter's kidnapper.

(technically still thinking about whether I should but I'll probably do it. You've heard rule of cool, have you heard of rule of sad?)

I have other ESO alts besides Yorick and Illya but I tend to delete them on a whim so! Hypothetically, Yorick is actually like 50ish% human so a(n indirect) descendant of his could be the man but that's a lot of centuries between. Do you know how many bretons you could fit in there? At what point does it stop mattering.

Illya is just a dragon priest that saw the writing on the wall and fucked off. Kept the mask and became a vampire because can you imagine dying? Couldn't be him. He is my Miraak expy and I love him even if I do nothing with him ever.

#the elder scrolls #dunmer #altmer #bosmer #argonian #CWart #Laury #Autumn tbn #Summer tbn #Laughing Lily #Lulueith #Yngve Stormcloak #tES Illya Voss #tES Yorick #Lily's face looks ridiculous. she's just stressed and tired from acting scary all the time

[sakura-code]

Yakou’s wife was an amatarasu researcher right has Yuma ever met her during the experiments. I had an idea where she would look after Yuma and wanted to help him by exposing there treatment of Yuma casing her murder. I particularly thought of Yomi tormenting Yuma with the thought that her death was on his hands and he would be torn by guilt especially when he starts spending time with her husband.

Ohohoho, I won’t lie, I may have contemplated on that idea as well, mostly for a self-indulgent what-if, but this is actually really good. I can already think of some ideas already.

Okay, with the Yakou DLC out, it gave me enough content to really help me get a more clearer picture of how the backstory could go. Also, that’s why I waited to answer the question (though it was originally because I wanted to wait to see Yakou’s wife canon name would be reveal—it did not—but I ended up with more content than I expected).

Ayame is a researcher in medical research, and was assigned to research the childrens’ immune systems to find a way to improve them (in reality, they want to improve it to make the Homunculus stronger). One of the children that peaks her interest is a quiet teen named Yuma, who was moved into Kanai Ward due to the loss of his mother, and has a disdain towards Amaterasu and Kanai Ward. She tries to help Yuma heal from the terrible experience and learn to appreciate Kanai Ward a bit more to the best of her abilities (as Amaterasu wants to keep a close leash on Yuma, and Yuma didn’t really trust Ayame in the beginning). From there, she learns more about the corruption of Amaterasu, like having a possible hand in Yuma’s mom’s death and the experiments Yuma is being subjected to for his Forte. This inspires Ayame to make a stand against Amaterasu’s corruption, starting with Dr. Huesca like in-game.

Unfortunately, Ayame will still die, which would devastate Yuma that another person he cared for died by Amaterasu’s hands. Even more so as he feels personally responsible for her death since he helped spark the desire to expose Amaterasu’s darkness, and Yomi would absolutely not help the matter by putting him down for telling informations he should not have shared (and maybe try to guilt-trip him that their experiments were actually helping the world). And do so again in the future when Yuma and the detectives tries to investigate Ayame’s death in the Chapter 4 remake (Yakou will not be happy about it—towards Yomi I mean, he does not blame Yuma at all for Ayame’s death).

However, Ayame would leave an impact on Yuma to give Kanai Ward a chance, and now desires to expose Amaterasu’s corruption, like his mom and Ayame has. But he will be more careful in doing so, as the women died before they could expose Amaterasu, and even if he risks dying, he wants to make sure his death isn’t in vain this time.

Also, to put in a timeline for the events, Ayame and Yakou reunited in the Spring (since it means new beginnings like Yakou’s life and their relationship), which they spent time together over the summer and a bit of Fall. Yuma would then meet Ayame in the Fall a while after he was moved into Kanai Ward, and would interact a couple of times (like once a week or something—I’m not sure but it’s like a limited times where the two establish a bond that would impact Yuma’s life, but not enough that the memories would become faded overtime in four years). And Ayame dies in the Winter-Spring next year, like the end of Quarter 1 or beginning of Quarter 2.

And to explain why Yakou wouldn’t have met Yuma with Ayame, or the two realize they both knew Ayame was because Yakou would have major restrictions in Amaterasu and would not want him around the children because, being a detective, he would realize there was more going on. And Ayame would be vague towards the two men: Yuma only knowing that Ayame has a husband who is a Detective, and to Yakou she mentions a patient she’s researching on his immune system and who recently moved into Kanai Ward at the time. And with it being four years and suppressing the emotional pains recalling her, it would only take a specific trigger to recall the memories (though I don’t want the secret to be too long since it is a fictional story not limited by game-player perspective, but I also want the emotional impact to hit in the Chapter 4 remake).

#master detective archives: rain code #rain code #master detective archives spoilers #rain code spoilers #rain code au #misfit au #yuma kokohead #Yakou furio #Ayame furio #Yakou’s wife #master detective archives chapter four spoilers #also with Yakou’s dlc out it also gave me a reason for why Yuma and Yakou do not realize the other knew Ayame #Yakou and his wife were confirmed/implied to have been together for at most a year #and she probably wouldn’t tell Yakou about the children experiments until it was too late #while Yuma has only ever heard about her lover and that he was Kanai Ward’s only detective #when Yakou refers himself to that in his story Yuma is going to have an oh 💩 moment #Yakou dlc spoilers #plus there is a lot going on for the two that it doesn’t really connect the dots for the two for a while #ask answered #sakura code asks #this was a lot bigger than I expected #I might have missed information #you can ask in either the comments or in asks

[theflyingfeeling]

thoughts that kept me awake last night (writing them down now so maybe I'll be able to sleep tonight)

1

I know I'm unemployed against my own will and that it's not my fault there haven't been many job openings related to my degree+experience in the area where I live and that the whole recruitment shit works a bit differently in my field, but I still can't help but feel guilty about not having done enough, and because I haven't done enough, I don't deserve to have a nice, relaxing summer. I'm a teacher, so I wouldn't be working during the summer anyway (which made me guilty enough last summer; how come some people only get about 4 weeks off during the summer months, but I get to have two whole-ass months? not fair, not deserved, guilt guilt guilt), but now that I haven't been working all winter/spring safe for some random substitution gigs (2½ weels being the longest one), it feels so wrong to spend the summer doing shit-all. I don't deserve to sit in the sun enjoying myself, I don't deserve to go out and about, I don't deserve to do nice summery things, and I most definitely don't deserve to travel abroad.

My friend and I have plans to go to Paris late July, but it’s gonna be pricey (the flights in particular), so I'm hesitant about going through with the plan. It's not like I couldn't afford it - I have lived rather economically over the years and have a bit of money saved up for various purposes, travelling being one of them - but I feel like I shouldn't be spending money on such inessentials, because I haven't been doing anything to deserve it. I haven't been working hard enough to find a job, I'm not ready to move elsewhere because of a job, I haven't been looking for job opportunities that are outside my specific field, I haven’t contributed to society in any way, therefore I don't deserve to do anything this summer except sit inside and pretend I don't exist, because if I'm not beneficial to society, I should not be exploiting its services. I don't deserve it, but I really, really, really wanna go to Paris 😭

My life's been more or less the same for the past 10 years; who's to say it won't continue this way for the next 10 years, and the next 10 years after that? I know someone with a more positive mindset might say but what if it does change, but if my life hasn't changed for the past 10 years, what are the chances of it changing in the future? Like, do you get what I'm saying? 😩 Again, I understand certain experiences don't have a due date, but I feel like if those things were to happen at all, they would've happened by now? I want to believe I deserve more from life than this, but what if this is all I deserve? An empty, quiet, meaningless life.

2

Somewhat unrelated but bothering me just as much: I so happy for all my mutuals embracing their identities during pride month, but at the same time I feel like a bit of an outsider because the only thing I identify as is 'failure', and instead of pride I feel extreme shame about what I am, that is to say... nothing? I know everyone has their own path in life and that there is no set schedule to certain life experiences, but it doesn't erase the fact that I'm nowhere near where I always thought I'd be by now. And I know I'm still relatively young and that I still have time to achieve all those things and have those experiences and blabla, but I feel like the more time passes, the harder it gets to get any closer to those things. I know I have time now, but I won't always have time.

I have nothing, I am nothing. I don't belong anywhere.

#tl;dr - local girl being unreasonably mean to herself #writing helps a little when my head gets too heavy #i'm alright now and last night i was just lying awake in my bed tossing and turning #but you should've seen me on tuesday 😂 that creature was inconsolable #sending my love to anyone struggling whether it's bc of similar stuff or something else entirely 💖

[teawinx]

first of all I totally love your Winx rewrite dear .Like so many awesome ones on here (tumblr) I like how you decided to make latter three seasons 4-6) Roxy’s journey to being a full fledged fairy .It’s really cool

ok so questions

what’s the deal with the terrestrial fairies? (Are they different from the other fairies from the magic dimension,and if so how ?) I kinda feel there would some differences (some minor,some major)since they’ve been cut off from magic for a long time(due to the black circle,plus waning belief in magic as a whole) and then it suddenly begins to appear again as magic returns back to earth?

so how are Morgan’s and her generals in your reinterpretation (what with the whole war against humans ,trying to take back the earth from humans and the way their court is set up

.Kinda feels like since their from earth , maybe Each of the major fairies could correspond with a different season?( like Diana for summer,Aurora for winter,etc) and elemental power (same as before,but earth/water,etc) and how the fairies under them go about their journey to being fairies (is it similar to Winx-charmix-enchantix or is it a different system entirely?)

sorry if it’s a lot . I just really like your Winx rewrite so far and I can’t wait to see what you do next with it 😊

Hi hi! Thank you dear you're so sweet!!! I really feel that Roxy's journey should have been the natural continuation of the series. Passing the torch if you will.

So for the terrestrial fairies, I haven't got that much figured out yet. So this is all subject to change and revisions. But I'm trying to keep as much from canon as possible, or at least canon inspired. And unfortunately canon hasn't given me much to work with.

I'm going with the idea that the Black Circle absorbed all of Earth's magic, and so at the end of Season 4 said magic is released. And Earth's going through a lot of growing pains to get used to this new development. In terms of how Terrestrial Fairy/Witch magic works, I wanted it to differ from the Magical Universe equivalent. Best example being my version of Roxy. Instead of just having spells, she has to earn each one by engaging with animals. Once she forms a strong bond with an animal, she gains spells based on that animal's abilities. So she starts out the story with only tracking spells, that came from Artu. And it's the same for the others. You have to engage with the source of your magic to become truly powerful.

I stan Morgana and the Major Fairies, I love them. But maaaaannn were they underused! And I agree that their powers feel kinda random for a major court. Nature, Ice, Justice and War/Peace. Having them be Seasonal would make a lot more sense, plus the aesthetic would be on point. Diana: Spring Nebula: Summer Sybilla: Autumn Aurora: Winter

But it still needs a lot of work. Like a loooooot.

I have the Terrestrial Fairy Enchantix work a little differently. Yes there's still the sacrificial requirement, but it has to be for someone you hold resentment for. To prove you're willing to put aside your grudges and biases to become a fully fledged fairy. But Charmix works the same.

Also no no it's not a lot! I'm honestly flattered that you've taken such an interest in my stuff!

[claudiajcregg]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by both @mihrsuri and @unseenacademic 💜💜💜 Thank you so much! I actually wrote up most of the answers the day I was tagged, and then forgot to post them. For over 10 days, probably. Me bad.

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 23! (One of them is a 'collection' of short ficlets, and has 6 chapters. So 28 stories in 23 works so far. Probably about to be more stories in still 23 works.)

2. What's your total Ao3 word count? 156,597 words. For now.

3. What fandoms do you write for? Currently? Just TWW. Who knows in the future!

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

They have about 35% of my total kudos, but the first two are ~21% alone. (The first one is the only fic that has over 100 kudos. Then again, any of them getting above 30 is a miracle.)

maybe everything's just turning out how it should be (Big Block of Cheese 2008; CJ & Josh. Posted Feb 2021) [121]

say it's here where our pieces fall in place (Vignettes, 1998-2008. Posted Jan 2022.) [66]

just your smile lit a sixty-watt bulb in my house that was darkened for days (Thanksgiving 2006. Posted Dec 2022.) [55]

nobody knows how to get back home (Missing scene from ITSOTG. Posted April 2023) (wait what. top 4?!) [50]

we could be the way forward and I know I'll pay for it (B4A Campaign Fic, spring 1998. Posted May 2021) [47]

5. Do you respond to comments?

YES. I don't take them for granted, and I like interacting with my readers. Sharing is nerve-wracking and makes me feel so exposed, so any comment makes it worth it. I like to thank peeps for their time! As of late, it's taking me weeks to get back to comments for Brain/spoons reasons (and because I try to do so in order, though not always). I sometimes feel bad I have fallen behind on leaving my own comments, so replying to what I get makes me feel bad. I love getting the rare, long, thoughtful comments, because I love seeing what people pick up on (had to restrain myself from commenting on everything), so if that one's up next… It'll delay everything. I have a harder time letting go of those.

I know replying or not is a hot topic, and I fall on the side of 'whatever the author does is fine' (I see them as being voluntary gifts to the author, kinda, but I understand why some authors can't or won't reply! Especially those who get dozens.). It does feel weird(ly demoralizing) when you see that yours is one of a couple of comments they haven't replied to, though. (Selfishly, as someone who tries to write medium-long comments, lack of anything can sting. It's irrational, it's not what I'm after, but it'd be nice to know whether that hour plus of my time was worth it. It's not transactional and I hate that c4c idea or whatever. Just. weird feelings.)

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

As we've established in previous similar memes (lol, I think I've answered these questions before), my fics don't really have angsty endings! For the most part. I think I said don't want you to go but I'll be okay then, and I can still buy that/definitely popped into my brain. I think some of my late S7 fics have an ominous feel to them, with some references/buildup to the angsty parts of IM, but I wouldn't call them angsty endings.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Um. The opposite is true! still you never took your hand from mine was my first thought, but I feel like oh, and I will be with you to feel the California sun is pretty darn happy. I could have picked almost any of them and I could make a case for them!

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I luckily do not. I have gotten a couple of comments that have messed with my brain, and made me second-guess things, but they were not hate.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes, but not regularly and not that well. It's usually short, mild scenes at most, but I did challenge myself to write a more explicit one last summer, especially after I got those 'one bed' tropes in the Wheel but didn't go there in the 500-word limit. Streets say it's hot. IDK. I also wrote a smutty continuation to the exchange fic. Best if we forget parts of that one happened. I also started writing one that would be in my S5 pregnancy universe but 🤐

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I don't. But this question confirms to me I have answered this before because I know I've joked about how TV has already done that for me, lmao. See: Bones/Sleepy Hollow.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? (I had to track down this question because it wasn't anywhere.) I don't think so!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope! I'm having déjà vu here. I know I have answered this before: I could do it myself! But I have a feeling it wouldn't be as easy as one might think, but I'd be honored.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I don't think so…? If I have, it was years ago, in my forum/LJ days. I've been trying to make it happen for a while now, but who knows if it'll ever happen. WE HAVE IDEAS. We want to make it happen. (Wink wink, nudge nudge. You know who.)

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Spaceships are so cool. Atlantis was the first space shuttle I saw in person (and also the one I've seen the most) and it and its exhibit are awesome. I'm only missing Discovery out of the four space shuttles, because I didn't go to the second National Air and Space Museum location in Virginia back in 2015. And once the new exhibit center is completed, I'd love to see Endeavour again.

(In all seriousness, I don't have one. Booth and Brennan will forever and always hold a special place in my heart, but I love CJ and Danny so much, writing for them, their journey. Pls don't make me pick.)

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I am a big 'never say never' person, because I end up picking stuff up (and maybe rewriting it to fit my current style/ability) if I remember an idea… But I'm guessing many of them won't get finished. Probably some of those that are deep in my notes app or on the drive.

16. What are your writing strengths? I (try to) dig into the emotion of a scene as best as I can.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Everything else? I know it sounds like an excuse (at least to my ears), but writing in your second language is hard. I know my writing sounds limited because of it – my descriptions will never be as evocative as I wish they were, my dialogue won't be there. I am not the most imaginative person, either.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

If it makes sense, and won't take the reader out of the story, go for it! (A few words, or a line or two, might work if there's appropriate context.)

But also, as a non-native speaker, I'll always recommend using pals who might be fluent in that language and checking with them! I know that, throughout my many years in fandom, I've read quick things in Spanish within English fics that weren't entirely correct in the context they were being used (i.e. character's fluency, smaller details), and they took me out for a second. (I know, I know – pot, meet kettle. If anyone has read an unedited story of mine, they've found me making up English phrases.)

19. First fandom you wrote for? Bones. In Spanish. (I also think I wrote some ficlets in English that are probably hidden in some random LJ comm I created for my writing. They're probably 14-15 years old.)

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

I honestly cannot pick! And maybe it's yet to come. But basically, if I've gone through the embarrassment of having someone edit/beta a fic and catch all the avoidable mistakes, it's because it genuinely has something I like about it and that I think others will like, too. (Perceived quality aside.)

Off the top of my head, and out of the posted fics (obvious recency bias, sorry). I have a story for all 23… Also, let's consider I've mostly not read them since they were posted so I might be off. (Would love to hear what everyone's favorite is, if you've read any and are reading this!) Obviously, that top 5 by kudos has great ones. There's a reason

don't want you to go but I'll be okay: I just remember finishing it and knowing it was something special. Felt like many things coming together. I wanted to write angstier, a break from the endgame of the IM AU I've yet to post, and I think it works. I had had that quote as inspo for a while, and I think the trip to Berlin put it back on my mind. (The first haunted by the notion draft is from around this time, too!)

your love is a secret I'm hoping, dreaming, dying to keep: the structure is likely a tad repetitive, maybe (but also, the point of 3+1s, sort of?) but I love writing in that s7 period, and there should be more fic with the press corps. I think the stuff I wrote while editing (which included an overhaul of the +1) is even better than what was there.

oh, and I will be with you to feel the California sun: recency bias, yes. I love a good early Cali story, and even if this was nowhere the story I sat down to write originally, I love how it turned out. It's silly but fun, and so sunny.

still you never took your hand from mine: I will always have all the soft spots for my memoir stories, even if two of them have yet to be posted. This one doubled its size a year and a half after “finishing” it because I realized what it was missing. It's sappy, probably unrealistic re: the publishing industry, but damn it if it's not one of those that have made me cry while editing them.

we could be the way forward and I know I'll pay for it: I had to include an oldie but goodie from my first year, and this one is so special to me. (Along with BBC 2008, which I also absolutely adore. That was the fic I always wanted to post. Hilarious it was third. But it's also my most popular fic by a huge margin.) Seeing it recommended on Tumblr? God. I love campaign stories and all their potential. I love that I took a random line from some unposted story and it evolved into this fic.

nobody knows how to get back home: I almost added the most recent one because of how fun it was to write (or, as I mentioned above, Big Block of Cheese) but I like how bittersweet this missing scene one is. I find CJ's internal struggle so interesting to explore, and this is one of her most vulnerable moments. I also wanted to see a hug so badly.

#20 questions for fic writers #ask games #god this is so late #hopefully I make up for it with my rambling #tagging whoever wants to do it - everyone I know was tagged in one of the rounds with me #in between writing most of this and posting it I hit 900 kudos woo

[ouranbutworse]

Anime-Manga Comparisons, episode 12.

I don’t know what it is about the anime, but it refuses to mention any holidays or seasons outside of spring or summer, because this episode is specifically set around Valentine’s day in the manga, in the four days leading up to it, but for the anime, it’s just another wednesday (Or whatever days it’s set on, I guess.)

Also, the first scene with Bun-Bun getting dirty and us finding out Honey and Kyoya as AB blood types happens all the way back in volume 1 (we’re onto 4 now) as an extra episode, where we also don’t see Honey presumably kill a bunch of troops for waking him up from his nap. We get to see Haruhi in the bunny outfit in the manga, too. The original fursuit.

In the manga we get a scene with Tamaki wanting chocolate from Haru for the holiday, and she doesn't get the hint and mentions that she gets chocolate for her real dad every year. Harsh! The twins make fun of him, and Kyoya breaks the fourth wall to say Tamaki shouldn’t be surprised Haru wouldn’t give him chocolate because of how the story has developed so far, and that he should go back and reread the volumes.

Renge appears again in the anime to do a voiceover describing Honey’s tepid character. This girl hates him, seriously! And then Honey gets a cavity after Haru jinxes him with it. Renge doesn’t appear here in the manga, so the moe is only noticed by the already established guests. The twins brag about how they get too many gifts for Valentines anyway and upset some male classmates nearby, and Tamaki and Kaoru share a manga exclusive high five, and Kyoya teases him about how his act is only to justify the fact that Haruhi won’t give him any chocolate, and Tamaki mopes. The love letter trio are back to bully Tamaki again!

In the anime Honey asks Haruhi if he’s been bad, but in the manga he asks if he’s offended God. I don’t usually point out every difference in dialogue because it’d take too long, but this one made me laugh. Also, Hikaru catches Haru sneaking Honey a sweet, but doesn’t say anything else when it’s revealed to be a block of kelp. Because a kelp is not a sweet.

One of the twins (They’re both next to each other and the speech bubble is between them, so I’m not sure who) suggests inviting Renge along to witness Honey’s darkside. Again, this somehow means HikaRenge is canon to me. Also Kyoya straight up asks if Honey is a demon. Pot calling kettle, Kyoya.

Honey calls Mori baldy. Made me laugh. Also this is like, the only Mori angst we ever get, which is hilarious. Mori really is the only normal dude with no issues to fix.

Finally, since this was all leading up to Valentine’s day, we get to see it! They say it's too late for their usual celebration, but they still work together to get flowers for all their guests, and Haruhi even makes chocolate for Honey (and not Tamaki, lol.)

Episode 12… over, sweetly.

#ohshc #manga tag #comparisons series

[shiningdesignersreflections]

Chapter 2: Fish Lantern Wish

Narrated by Luming.

Narrator: The usually quiet city is now bustling with New Year just around the corner.

Narrator: Are there more stalls by the riverside than I remember? They must be new. I can't believe the trees by the water are so tall.

Narrator: Even on tiptoe and with antlers atop my head, I still can't reach the flowers hanging on the branches.

Luming: This isn't what I remember seeing in the goldfish's Lantern of Wishes, though...

Narrator: Everything seems blurry in my dream... I don't remember seeing the crowd, these lanterns and brocade.

Cake Shop Owner: Hey, what are you looking for?

Narrator: The cake shop owner, seeing me pacing back and forth, strikes up a conversation with me.

Narrator: Pieces of steaming sugar rice cakes coated with a thick layer of icing sit in front of him.

Narrator: The cakes taste pleasantly cold and aren't as sweet when ripped into pieces and put in water.

Cake Shop Owner: Fancy some cakes? Want to try some "New Year's Tiger" and "Fish Over The Rainbow"? Kids your age all love these two!

Narrator: He passes over two adorable cakes with a smile on his face. I never knew he was so nice because I never spoke to him before.

Luming: Would you like to try some, [Your Name]? People speak highly of their cakes.

Choose "You seem really familiar with this place, though?"

You: You seem really familiar with this place?

Luming: Yes. The plum trees by the shore, the blurry light of the lanterns, the cakes the tourists throw into the water for the fish, and the cake shop owner...

Luming: I saw everything on this street through the goldfish's wish.

Narrator: The flowers in Yue Prefecture City only blossom for a short period of time. The goldfish in the river, however, swim all year long.

Narrator: One day, a goldfish swam under a bridge and befriended a single alga growing on the bank.

Narrator: Spring sprinkled petals gently onto the water. The goldfish wiggled its way up to the surface and picked out a petal for the alga as an accessory.

Narrator: In the scorching summer, they cooled off under a giant lotus leaf with other fish, listening to the chorus of cicadas.

Narrator: Autumn trees by the river stained the river with red and orange. The two best friends blew bubbles at maple leaves and watched them drift away toward the sea.

Narrator: In the winter, the goldfish had to leave for warmer waters. But promises were made between them to reunite when the year begins anew.

Narrator: But the goldfish found something blocking it from returning.

Narrator: There was a newly built lotus pond in the goldfish's home. Faux rocks and bamboo groves blocked the water flow, forever separating the two best friends.

Choose "Are you trying to help them?"

You: So, you're trying to help them see each other again?

Luming: It is a simple and pure wish. The goldfish doesn't have a great memory, but it never forgot its promise with the alga.

Luming: It would be such a shame if they can't have this wish fulfilled.

Narrator: I know most of us should work hard to fulfill wishes. The goldfish's wish is so simple, but hard to realize for itself.

Narrator: If I could help it get back to where it came from, it will be able to see the flowers blossom with its friend next year.

Narrator: But before I arrived, the lanterns had yet to be put up across the sky, and the streets were not as bright.

Narrator: The goldfish's Lantern of Wishes showed me where the goldfish and the alga said they would meet, but I can't seem to find where the goldfish lives now.

Narrator: We need to find the goldfish by New Year.

Chapter 1

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

#luming #shining nikki #chapter 2 #transcript #new year #cloud #cloud empire #ssr designer #fish lantern wish #lantern #goldfish #alga #promise

[abcitycake]

This is something I’d like to share when it comes to ableism. I was diagnosed with autism in my sopmore year. They had to accommodate me in order to graduate, I had difficulty paying attention and understanding my work in classes. Thankfully I was able to leave school. Skip to university, my passion was wanting to learn Japanese, and a dream to get a degree and move to Japan to teach English. But instead my only options there was “office skills” I got it done but didnt use anything with it. That was in 2010-2011. For the next 10 years, I didnt know what to do. My only chance in getting to learn what I wanted was out the window. My dad made me promise if I could handle regular classes without as much accommodations, I could go to the school to learn Japanese. But unfortunately I did fail. The subjects and classes weren’t difficult to understand, it was the homework that needed to be done online, and it was very confusing, so I failed. I am forever disappointed that my passions were disregarded, and forced to do something i wasn’t comfortable with. For the next 5 years- my parents toxicity towards me became worse. I ran away a couple of times in 2017 just to get away from them. I went to a women’s shelter for a week. Risked homelessness just to get away from them. But I finally got my own place, and have been here ever since. I have been here for nearly 5 years this October. I did work. But around 2018, I noticed my energy would slow down and I couldn’t stand on my feet for more than 3 hours. I been working with my dads business since 15, so about a decade. I think this was my first experience with “burnout”. I was luckily given smaller hours and not do tasks such as taking customer orders. I have a processing issue, I either dont understand something right away, or i processed it too quick. In May of 2019, I quit my job of 13 years.

My dad and his coworker that he treated like as a “teacher’s pet” began to micromanage me. That time was when summer vacation was fast approaching, and it would get hot around 9 to 10 am. I WAS GOOD at my cleaning job for the outside, and i was trying to do it as fast and best I could. But they brought me back out, and said I didnt sweep the flower petals right, (We had a tree that would drop flowers in the spring and summer) and my dad took the blower with this tone I always hated; and I started to cry right there. They left, I go back in the bathroom to cry and decided: I’m DONE. I finished washing the dishes for the last time and try to slip away without the coworker knowing, I was going to tell her when I got home. But she caught me, and was FURIOUS.

She said the most vile horrible things- such as along the lines of; “Be lazy, have no job then” “Text your dad that you’re quitting your job, and your name is Tammy, THATS your new name, now!”

She meant, and compared me to my MENTALLY ILL AUNT. Who can’t work because of mental illness. I refuse to associate with her ever since. She of course, pretended nothing happened when i would stop by there- and ofc seems to have forgotten. But I, never will.

Skipping to this past January, 2022. My mom and I were on the way to visit my sister, and celebrate my 30th birthday. She brings up I should “go back to work”. Just her saying that made my blood boil.

“You’re still so young, you should be working”

“Go to (mentions this store) for work”

“You dont have to go back to a restaurant place”

Even when I said I quit working at the job I went to after my dad’s business, because of TOXIC WORK ENVIRONMENT, SHE BRUSHED IT OFF.

One of my only explanations to why she wanted me to work again is simply because “you need a social standing” “you’re young” “Your sisters work, so you can too”

Made me so fucking angry. This woman is AWARE, of my disabilities, or doesn’t seem to know I HAVE LIMITED Time standing around before I shut down after 3-4 hours on a job, and I was treated HORRIBLY, for the last 3 years of my time working.

Oh, and it doesn’t stop there. To hammer the final rusty nail on the coffin, this happens:

On the way home after having my birthday, my mom asks about my niece and if was nice seeing her; and I said

“Yeah just don’t Iike the screaming she does (keep in mind she’s not 2 years old yet)”

I have sensitive hearing, and I cant be around kids often due to that,

SHE RESPONDS AN SAYS “Well you were like that too at that age, and it hurt our ears”

This fucking bitch GASLIGHTS ME FR THINGS I DID AS A CHILD IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, BC IF YOU CONSIDER THAT TIME I WAS AUTISTIC BEFORE GETTING DIAGNOSED, I would only scream and cry to communicate.

SHE CONTINUES TO BERATE ME FOR CALING HER TOXIC IN THE PAST AND AT THAT POINT I PUT ON MY HEADPHONES TO BLOCK OUT HER HURTFUL BULLSHIT.

That’s probably going to the the last time in a long, long time, I will ever go with my family to celebrate my birthday. As of now, I have my YouTube channel. It’s been rough the past few months and I lost my monetization, but when I get it back I’ll plan my own goddamn trips by myself, or in the future with my beloved, sweet girlfriend.

#ableism #fuck ableists #stop being ableist #autism #autism discrimination #toxic parents #gaslighting

[mariacallous]

So here we are, eight months before any votes are cast in the race for the Republican nomination and by most standards—polling, name recognition—Donald Trump is set to win it again.

So why are so many Republicans lining up to challenge the former president? Some of them are longshots with money to burn, but others are well-known elected officials with experience, money, and a reasonable story for why they should be president. Last week, Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) joined the race and soon we expect former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to join along with former Vice President Mike Pence.

A few months ago, I helped create the now conventional wisdom which says that a large field of challengers will help Trump because the Republican winner-take-all or winner-take-most delegate selection rules are tailor made for a candidate who holds a solid base among primary voters and who can wrack up a series of plurality wins.

But the conventional wisdom overlooks an important caveat—for Trump to win, he has to win early, and the field of candidates has to be large and stay large after Super Tuesday 2024.

Here’s why.

The race for a presidential nomination takes place in three stages. We’re in stage one right now: the so-called “invisible primary.” This stage lasts from the spring of 2023 until the first votes are cast. During the invisible primary, a lot of important things happen. Candidates raise money, they build campaign staffs, they hone their appeals to the party faithful. And a lot of early conclusions are drawn–often incorrectly. Frequently, the candidate with widespread name identification is the “winner” of these early polls and goes on to win the nomination.[1] By most measures, Trump is winning the invisible primary, which is good news for him.

However, he is not home free. Trump is not your ordinary front runner. He has been indicted and may face more indictments before the Republican convention next summer. He has doggedly stuck to cultivating his base, which, while intense and loyal, is not likely to carry him in a general election. While he is loved, he is also hated, meaning that he will certainly have problems in the general election.

So, onto stage two of the process—the early primaries. This stage runs from late January or early February 2024 to March 4, 2024, or whenever the day before the Super Tuesday is. In 2024, the early primary stage will (on the Republican side) consist of four states: Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina. These four small states have very few delegates. In fact, out of the approximately 1,234 delegates, someone will need to win the Republican nomination. These states in total account for 138 delegates or only 11% of the total needed to win.[2]

During this short period of time, perhaps only five or six weeks, Trump will be most at risk. In these weeks someone needs to take the nomination away from him. This could happen if he performs below expectations. Many a frontrunner has stumbled in these states. As far back as 1968, President Lyndon Johnson won the New Hampshire primary with 48% of the vote but Sen. Gene McCarthy (D-MN) won a sizeable enough percentage of the vote (42%) that a few weeks later, Johnson decided not to run again. More recently, Hillary Clinton’s supposed juggernaut to the nomination was upset by a young African American senator from Illinois, Barack Obama, whose surprising win in the nearly all-white Iowa Caucuses of 2008 turned the nomination into a long race which Clinton ultimately lost. In these early contests, someone can catch fire, and when they do, they acquire that most valuable of presidential primary assets: momentum. But if Trump wins in the early contests, a few candidates may stick around to split up the anti-Trump vote, as happened in 2016, and that will help him win.

That brings us to stage three of the nominating process. What makes stage three so critical is that it is a three-month race for delegates and one in which candidates have to be able to compete in 46 states with different types of systems. Momentum is worth more than money as billionaires Tom Steyer and Mike Bloomberg discovered in 2020. Stage three begins in the first week of March and continues on until the first or second week of June. During this period, candidates will trade the retail campaigning of the early states to participate in a mad dash around the country from TV studios and radio stations. If someone other than Trump catches fire, they will amass large sums of money thanks to internet fundraising and the kind of free press—momentum—that is manna from heaven for a campaign. If stage three features a one-on-one race between Trump and some new fresh face, Trump could very well lose the delegate race.

This requires, however, that the candidates that falter in the early states get out of the race. In 2016, that didn’t happen. The current conventional wisdom that says a large field helps Trump is based on a scenario where all candidates stay in the race, thus allowing Trump to be a plurality winner. However, some Republicans are harkening back not to 2016 but to the 2020 Democratic race where, in a fast-paced weekend between the South Carolina primary and Super Tuesday, most of Biden’s opponents dropped out of the race, allowing him a one-on-one contest with Bernie Sanders, which he won handily.

If Trump falters in stage two and finds himself facing one strong opponent, he could be defeated in stage three. In spite of his strong showings in polls of Republican voters, a recent CNN poll found that “…wide swaths of Republican-aligned voters are willing to consider either of the two, [Trump or DeSantis] as well as several other candidates.” A recent Washington Post poll found that Republican voters were not very focused on electability, which would seem to favor Trump. However, “electability” matters in primary elections and many a voter has voted their head over their heart in order to beat the other party. It was the electability issue which catapulted Biden from “dead man walking” to Democratic nominee in just 72 hours in March of 2023.

So, while the safe bet right now is on Trump—what happens in the early primaries will determine whether his path to the nomination will be straightforward or not. In June of 2015, the Republican frontrunner was Florida Governor Jeb Bush, and look what happened to him—he did poorly in the first three contests and never even made it to Super Tuesday.

[simstryingtheirbestok]

Perfect notification timing. Carlos and Undine make a great pair, so I don't think anyone minds that Kai is no longer a friend. I certainly don't! It was apparent from the start that Kai was after more than friendship, but Undine wasn't born to be anyone's side chick.

I keep forgetting to mention it, but I scotched Undine's original LTW of Master Romancer when I realized I didn't want to deal with the hassle of the reputation system. That was fun enough the first time, with Velma. No, wait, it was Yuri! With this legacy, I've gone from never needing The Reputation Trinity rewards

No Jealousy

Above Reproach

Clean Slate

--to needing at least a couple of them for every generation except the first one. (Yes, even dull old Wilona.) And, honestly? Who knows what Zoë would've got up to had I only let her, and not been so anti-plumbot/anti-Colby Texas about it. 🤖

Anyway, I love that for this clan. It's like they're passing down a hidden Ho trait.

So Undine's LTW now is Renaissance Sim. She has already mastered Sculpting (hey, there wasn't much else for her to do while she was single), and although she has also mastered Cooking, I'm not sure that one should count. I'm trying to stick to a theme of love and beauty, so maybe Sculpting, Painting, and... an instrument? How nice, two musicians at home. 🙉

Of course, you can always send them out to play for tips.

Unfortunately, no one else was at the park, so Carlos made no money. A shame, because they could use it. He has reached level 7 Guitar since this shot, so maybe if he learns a couple of new songs, he can try again.

--next summer. Winter's here now. I think my seasons are summer = 20, winter = 4, and spring = 4 days each, and absolutely no snow.

Carlos has been slow to be promoted, and his conversation occasionally includes some griping about work.

Undine is happy to congratulate him whenever he does advance.

I do like that she picked a musician. It's what her mother might have done once.

#ts3 #ts3 legacy #sims 3 #sims 3 legacy #the sims 3 legacy #planetary legacy #generation venus #undine jeffrey #carlos estrada

[tinyshe]

Garden Report & Frugal Living 23.09.27

The geese have been leaving since Sunday; another tug on the heartstrings.

Most of the fruit has been gathered; only the heirloom european pear has some green rusted fruit. Brought in a several handfuls of new potatoes from the potato barrel (just enough to roast for a meal). We love them oven roasted in butter and salt.

Into the dehydrator: nettles, lemon verbena, elderberries, asian pears, rose petals. Next in is making disk of pear and haw (like fruit leather) to dry.

The chickens are almost ready for winter. I need to remove all the fallen leaves and go to the beach for sand (once it dries out). Have a bale of meadow grass at the ready (can't afford straw When it is available). I'm actually thinking about not doing the meadow grass either because the cost is outragious. Thinking about micro chips and harvesting twigs and whips to keep the girls up out of the muck that i will not remove until late Spring after the rains taper down.

My mushroom log is basically a crumbly sponge so I moved it into the seabuckthorn hedgerow. I don't think it will produce much more and can finish its composting out of the narrow walk. I'm not sure I want to do that again. It is easier and more assured to just purchase the mushrooms. I still have plugs but need to look at their viablity (it might be doubly a waste of time).

Getting ready to transplant rose clipping that took earlier this summer. Destination: rose tunnel at the farm (I will be so glad when that will be done; its a long project). I had some blank spots where someone/something made off with about 4 plants. Its been getting colder but not frost/ice yet so perhaps time for them to settle in before that arrives. Hoping the will set and stay.

I'm looking for an old fashion whet stone. Not the huge pedal kind but smaller hand size. The modern stuff don't do it and not thrilled with the local 'deals'. I'd rather hone my own, thank you.

Sourdough update: I think I have a good batch/ nice sponge. I tried making bread but the cold and heavy rain came and I couldn't get it to rise like I wanted using a new recipe so I flopped it in wrap and into the fridge until the next day. Tried getting it to rise again with adding a little more flour and it lifted a little but I was out of time so I stretched it into flat bread and tossed it into a hot oven. It had a nice taste but not enough rise to be good/toothsome (more like a rubbery pancake). Sprinkled it with grated cheese while it was hot to help but still a no. We'll see how the chickens like it. Will try recipe again on drier day. I think it is the recipe at fault but I will give it another go to make sure before I tear up its card.

Frugal tip: Winter time means being prepared for power outages so looking into those goods and checking now to see what is low and should be restocked. I get about to 'half' point and restock because I would rather be frugal in time and money. If wait until winter or at an 'event' the cost is high. One of those 'better prepared than not' = comfort of mind and body.

#catholic gardener #garden #urban homesteading #permaculture #chickens #winter pantry #frugal living #dehydrating food #sourdough #bread #bread making #mushroom log #harvest #herbs #fruit #vegetables #change in season #migrating geese

[mermaidsirennikita]

Alright I’ve been hearing about Lisa Keyplas I think I spelled it wrong everywhere:

What order should I read her books or where do you think I should begin.

I’m a sucker for a good forced proximity enemies to lovers trope or miscommunication so if you have any other books with that I would love to hear

I’m the Polin anon from a few days ago

Oh cool! You’ll have a lot of fun with it. She has a big backlist and has been writing for a long time, so there’s definitely a way to approach her books, for sure.

Generally speaking, I’d recommend starting with her Wallflowers series (I did not, lol). It’s her most popular series and while it’s not her oldest, it does link with her subsequent historical series in a way that the earlier books don’t quite as much.

I highly recommend reading The Wallflowers in order, though I will say that there is a prequel called Again The Magic that basically stands alone, which I haven’t read because I’m saving it for when I Need It. I’ve heard it’s actually a good prequel to read after the series because it centers on the sisters of one of the Wallflower heroes, and you see him in his younger days.

Anyway.

1. Secrets of a Summer Night—Very classic, the hero in this is suuuuuper Kleypas (alpha, self made, daddy daddy daddy). The heroine is a beautiful aristocratic snob whose family has fallen on hard times. She refuses to be his mistress, because she wants to marry a man of her own class. This is also the book when the wallflowers meet each other and become friends and vow to help each other marry well.

2. It Happened One Autumn—This one bleeds directly from the first. Everyone is at the country estate of Marcus Marsden, Earl of Westcliff, who is the friend of book 1’s hero and made a big impression because he’s a snobby snob uptight asshole who haaaaates Lillian, an American heiress who likes to play rounders in her underwear and then he finds her and gets hard about it. It’s very classic enemies to lovers, they’re very snappy to each other, and you meet the hero of the next book, Westcliff’s friend, the sluttiest man in the land, Sebastian St. Vincent. This book famously features a scene that is definitely dubcon in which Lillian has sex with Westcliff while she is most certainly too drunk to consent. From her perspective it’s a totally enjoyable encounter but. Heads up. Later versions of this book have this scene edited out, but if you read an older paperback it will be there.

3. Devil in Winter—A genre classic, maybe the current definitive wallflower/rake romance. Sebastian St. Vincent did a bad bad thing and he is also broke because his dad spent all the family money. Luckily, Evie, the shyest wallflower, has a huge inheritance. Evie has been abused by her mother’s family for years and just wants an out, so she offers to marry Sebastian; he gets cash and she gets freedom. So they run off to Scotland, get married, fuck, and then she’s like and that’s the only time because you’re a horrible slutty person. He gets sad! Thus a sex bargain is made. So so good, one of her hotter books, and very much a challenge to what we let heroes do.

4. Scandal in Spring—Daisy is Lillian’s dreamy little sister, and the last wallflower to be unwed. She’s annoyed when her father’s protégée, Matthew Swift, comes to England. But Matthew is hot now, and he’s pined for Daisy for years. However, he has a Big Secret. A good conclusion, brings everything full circle, the rare English historical with two American leads.

Then you would read The Hathaways as your next series. That series is focused on a family of siblings that basically gets suddenly elevated by the brother unexpectedly becoming a viscount.

1. Mine Till Midnight—Hero was introduced in Devil in Winter. He’s Romani, and I will say that the depiction of Romani people in these books is dated; positive, but dated and as such it can feel fetishy. He’s a rogue, she’s the uptight oldest sister, it’s good.

2. Seduce Me at Sunrise—One of my favorites in the series, the formerly invalid sister and her childhood friend angst angst angst over his refusal to act on his feelings and FUCK HER (he’s afraid she’ll die lmao). Another Romani hero.

3. Tempt Me at Twilight—Forcedish marriage between the quirky sister and the sinister hotel owner man. He’s very alpha, very self made.

4. Married by Morning—ENEMIES TO LOVERS between the formerly SUPER MESSY viscount Hathaway brother and his sister’s governess. He’s a flirtatious rake with a tragic past, she’s a bossy independent type who’s also got a tragic past. They actually kiss for the first time in the previous book, which leads into this one.

5. Love in the Afternoon—The shy sister begins writing to a soldier when her friend stops writing to him and they fall in love through letters. But then he comes back, whoops!

After The Hathaways, you'd read The Ravenels, her most recent series (which I think....? Is done? But I'm not sure--Lisa doesn't have a release out in 2022 as far as I know). It kicks off with Devon becoming a lord and going to the family property and meeting his female cousins and the widow of the man he inherited from, who've been cut off from the world.

Cold-Hearted Rake--A virgin widow/rake romance. This one is kinda controversial amongst Kleypas fans and I actually don't know why...? It's fun and enjoyable. It also is very much linked to the next book, which is probably her most popular "recent" release.

Marrying Winterborne. Self-made DAAAADDY hero and the soft girl he's fallen for. It's straightforward but also DEEEEEEPLY hot.

Devil in Spring--Should only be read after Devil in Winter, as it's about Sebastian and Evie's oldest son. Falls for a Ravenel who he accidentally compromised. She's a BOARD GAME MAVEN.

Hello Stranger--Would not generally recommend? There was originally a passage in this that has since been edited out that did some "I SLEPT WITH A WOMAN WHO LEARNED FROM THE KAMA SUTRA" bullshit, which I hate. It's just kinda boring besides though, and only tangentially connected to the Ravenel family.

Devil's Daughter--Another Devil in Winter spinoff, about the eldest daughter of Evie and Sebastian. She's a single mother widow, and Devon Ravenel's younger brother West romances her. It's not my favorite, but it's fine.

Chasing Cassandra--Not my favorite. Ver much a standard "sweet virgin/bad man" book. But a lot of people enjoy it!

Devil in Disguise--ANOTHER DEVIL IN WINTER SPINOFF LOL I CAN'T STRESS ENOUGH HOW BIG THAT BOOK IS. The heroine is the daughter of Westcliff and Lillian. She's a widow, and falls for a Scottish whiskey distiller guy--they have one hot night, and then he gETS AMNESIA AND SHE HAS TO PRETEND TO BE ENGAGED TO HIM. LIT.

Of course, there are other offshoot books, some of which I haven't read. Outside of these series, I would recommend reading:

The Bow Street Runners. A trilogy that predates the Wallflowers, I've read them in general, especially Lady Sophia's Lover (age gap romance, he's a widower, she's become his serving girl in order to seek revenge on him). This series focuses on Bow Street runners, so it's a bit less about the adventures of the upper classes.

Suddenly You--one of her few true standalones, about an author who begins an affair with a publisher after she assumes he's the sex worker she ordered to divest her of her virginity.

Dreaming of You--technically the second in a duology, though I haven't read the first and I'm okay thus far. Kleypas's other SUPER classic book, very much the dueling banjo to Devil in Winter. It's my favorite of hers. The heroine is a sheltered writer who basically asks to shadow Derek Craven, this super alpha gambling hell owner, for her next project. Derek.... immediately is obsessed with her, and feels unworthy of her and pushes her away and it's GREEEEAT. Just dramatic and angsty and intense and super passionate. Amazing heroine too.

So yeah--generally, I think Dreaming of You is her best book and you could definitely start there because it was published prior to the Wallflowers and is very, very vaguely linked to Devil in Winter... But if you want to get into a SERIES by her, I'd go Wallflowers, then Hathaways, then Ravenels.

Her biggest enemies to lovers books would be It Happened One Autumn (which is kinda close proximity, as they're all trapped on Marcus's country estate lmao) and Married By Morning. I wouldn't say Kleypas writes a ton of true ETL, but she does write a ton of alpha heroes, which leads to heroines being all *UNHAND ME SIR* frequently.

#romance novel blogging #book recs