#class of 2068

[flowerful-doodles]

Guys I’m so excited, it’s almost my favorite not holiday but kinda holiday!! The Ides of March is almost here!

[crios31]

Chapter 3: Childhood friends

Story building and fluff

Length 2068 words

“Sana, I think you can release him, others also want to say hello.” says her father looking at the two girls waiting in the room.

“No! It’s been too long since the last time we saw each other!”

“You’re not the only one who misses him, Sana.” retorts one of the girls before pointing to the other, “Look, even Mina hurried to see him.”

“Alright, sorry Momoring.” She ends the hug and takes a step to the side to let the two other girls pass. You notice her cheeks are puffed, it seems she is sulking.

Momo is the first to approach, giving you a strong hug, “Three years, smartass.”

“Yeah, it’s been too long, airhead.” You both stay like this for a minute before letting Mina have her turn, she lightly hugs you and you just have enough time to put your arms around her that she steps back.

“Shy as always.” You pat her head making Mina look down but you can see a small smile while her cheeks get a pinkish hue. “So girls, this is Wendy, she is working for me. Wendy, those are Momo, Sana and Mina, my childhood friends.”

“Pleasure to meet all of you.” says Wendy in English.

The three of them greet her back with Mina asking, “If you are following him as he moves, do you speak Korean?”

“Yes, I was born there.”

Mina smiles and to your surprise switches to Korean. “Good, then it will be easier to communicate with each other.”

“We won’t have to bother Mina to do the translation because the three of us learned Korean” Rejoices Sana as she hugs Mina from the back.

“I knew you wanted to learn it before I left Japan but I didn’t expect both of you to do it too.” You say looking at Momo and Mina.

“Sana convinced me to learn Korean with her and Mina joined us saying it was interesting.”

The presentations now done, everyone follows Sana’s father to the patio where the family of the Japanese trio is waiting.

You greet everyone, starting with Sana’s mother, then Momo’s and Mina’s parents finishing with their siblings. The girls start talking with each other as Kai gets beside you.

“Do you want one?” Asks Kai bottles of beer in his hands.

“Yeah, thanks.” You take a sip. “How is medical school going?”

“It’s going well, I’m finishing general study so the real deal will begin next year.”

“Do you have a specialty in perspective?”

“I may follow dad’s footstep in orthopedics but I still have time to make a decision.”

“Still playing American Football?”

“Yes, I joined my university’s team and it’s a lot of fun. Play something on your side? I see you have a good build now.”

“I mostly played rugby and some basketball. Also started weightlifting recently, and I intend to continue in Korea.”

You continue talking with Kai until you hear Sana's voice. “Guys come here, Wendy has a question and you're both involved in it.”

You join them. “So what’s it about?”

“I wanted to know how all of you became friends? Because from what I understand your families don’t live in the same city.”

“The first ones I met were Momo and Hana. When I was in elementary school, we moved to Japan for my dad's work. Momo's family was my neighbor and the three of us were going to the same school.”

“For the first year he was in my class so we were going and returning from school with him. Furthermore, we played a lot together outside of school so we became fast friends. Then he began to skip some grades, and he ended up in the same class as nee-chan for some time. They got along well before but really became close following this.” Momo says. “ Wendy, I have some funny photos of him as a kid, do you want to see them?”

“Oh yes! I would love too.”

“Careful Momo, I also have some of you.”

“Really you take your photo album with you? I don’t think so, aunty most likely keeps it.” She then sticks her tongue out at you. You can only grumble in response because she is right about that.

“My turn now! So Dad worked under his father and they got along really fast.” speaks Sana. “We regularly meet each other when our parents invite the others for meals or during company events. Thanks to this, when his mother was working to open her first school in Japan, my mom joined the project because she is a teacher. Now Mom is the Headmistress of the private school of Osaka. Also, she got to meet and work alongside Mina's mother. I’ll let you explain this part Mina.”

“Alright, Mom is a lawyer, she was hired by his parents for all of their matters in Japan, for example, she is involved with his mother’s schools from the start. So Mom befriended his mother and later Sana’s, therefore we all got to see each other regularly.”

“At first, Mina was mainly close to Sana and Kai to me. As for Momo and Hana, they met the others when my parents organized a party with their friends and their families. So that's the story of how our little group was formed.”

With Wendy's question being answered, the group continues to chat during the afternoon. The parents join you for a time retelling stories about their kids, some were funny, others somewhat shameful depending on your role in it. When the sun began to set, they went into the house asking you to follow them.

Arriving in the living room, everyone takes a seat with Momo’s parents on your left, Mina’s on your right and Sana’s in front of you.

Mina’s mother begins to talk, “Seeing that this girl, Wendy is following you, should be the one your parents personally handpicked for you. Finally, they decided to explain the hidden side of the scholarship program?”

“Yes, they explained the basics when I met her and I learned the rest from a file Mom gave me before I left. But it lacked information on a specific point, the people running the program for her. I was expecting aunty to be involved with the program because she is in charge of one of the schools.” You say turning briefly toward Sana’s mother. “In your case, your firm treats every legal related topic for my parents in this country, so I was not entirely sure if you would have been in it or if it would have been someone working for you. So are you the only ones related to the program here?”

“Yes, the other only knows about it, nothing more.”

“Then, could you both explain your role in it, please?”

“My role in the program? Well my main task is to write the contract for each recipient of the scholarship when they join but only for those in Japan. I am also involved in the background check of candidates for the scholarship and sometimes to resolve some legal issues that come up.” Answers Mina’s mom.

“In my case, I became the head of the program in Japan when your family moved out. More specifically, I oversee the people in charge of different areas of Japan and the area of Osaka and Kyoto is under my direct supervision. Finally, I am part of the evaluation council in Japan and sometimes the one in Korea.” Explains Sana’s mother. “Do you want to know something?”

“Thanks for the explanation. I’m wondering if any of your kids are aware of this side of the program?”

“Well my daughter knows about it. One day, she read some of the documents I took with me at home. She was very interested in it, in particular the fact that it’s for you.” Sana’s mom gives you an amused smile before continuing. “I decided it was better to explain everything to her. Sana was still interested in my work and the program, so I decided to sometimes include her in my work. Well it’s only limited to asking for her opinion concerning girls of the program because she has a similar age as them, the goal being to avoid or resolve issues for them. And for the other kids…”, she strokes her chin in ponder. “If one of them knows, it would most likely be Mina.”

Hearing that you agree, Mina is the smartest of the group and she has always been very curious since childhood. From this combination results that whenever she wants to know about something, she will always find a way to get the information. Concerning Kai, he is very considerate of his parents' works and the privacy that comes with them. In Hana's case, she is unlikely to know anything because her parents, while aware of the program, are not involved in it. As for Momo, you're not sure because with Sana and Mina they share everything together, so she could have learned about it from them. 

“Alright if one of them learns about it, we’ll just explain it like in Sana’s case. Aunty, do you intend to involve more Sana in your work?”

“I’ll continue as it is for now considering the program. But for the rest of my work, yes it will give more practical experience as she’ll enter university to begin her teaching degree next spring.”

You continue to talk with everyone's parents about the running of the program in Japan, they then ask about how your student life was since the last time you talked to them. You answer their questions until someone puts its hand on your shoulders and rests its head on top of yours from behind the couch.

“So are you done with him? Can we have him back?” Asks Hina.

“Yes, yes. Take him with you, we'll have time to talk during the upcoming days.” Answers her father.

You stand just as you arrive before Hana grabs your arm and begins to drag you outside of the living room under the laughter of the parents watching a familiar scene. In the hallway Hina turns to you.

“It was easier to drag you before you got heavier.” She complains

“I build more muscle following my growth spurts.”

“Well yeah you’ve become quite big.” She traces the muscles along your arm up to your chest while looking in your eyes. “And very nice to look at.”

“Thanks, but I’m not the only one who got bigger and nice to look at.” You reply as you lower your eyes to glance at her ample breasts.

“Oh them, they may be bigger than you think.” She says, lifting up one of her boobs with her hand. “You’d like to find out, aren’t you?” She takes a step toward you.

“I would love that and more.” You also get closer to her making you feel each other breath with your noses almost touching.

“Is that so?” She puts a hand on your cheeks and pushes your head to the side. “Too bad it won’t happen and stay as a dream for you.” She then turns and walks toward the end of the hallway. “Let’s return to the other, now.”

“A dream? I like challenges Hina! We’ll see if it’ll stay as a dream or not

She chuckles,“Well if you want to lose your time, suit yourself!”

You both join back the group enjoying your evening. You only return to your hotel  far in the night.

For the rest of your stay in Japan, you go out multiple times with your friends. Doing sports with Kai or Momo with their friends, some that you already know. Visiting places you used to frequent in Osaka and Kyoto after a long time, like your old school. You also make the mistake of following the girls for shopping, well it was mostly carrying their bags but at least they were happy. You get to have dinner with the Hirai, the Minatozaki and the Myoui on multiple occasions where you had time to discuss with your aunties and uncles.

But every good thing has to end at some point because it was time for Wendy and you to leave Japan for Korea. Everyone took time to accompany you to the train station in the morning. And hours later, the plane lands at Incheon airport and both of you finally set foot in Korea.

[wlw-webcomic-bracket]

Trans Webcomic Character Tournament: Group Stage

It's taken... uh... we won't talk about how long it's taken, but the Trans Webcomic Character Tournament is ready to begin!

This tournament will be broken into two stages: a round-robin group stage followed by a sixteen-character single-elimination bracket.

For the group stage, characters are divided into ten groups of four* and members of each group will face each other in a round-robin format. The group winner will be the character who wins the most matches in the group (an exact tie counts as a win for both characters). If two or more characters win the same number of matches, then the total number of votes each character received will be used as a tiebreaker.

That gets us to ten characters advancing to the elimination stage, but we still have six more slots in the bracket. Those slots will be filled by the six characters who received the most total votes* without winning their group. Seeding for the elimination bracket will also be done by total number of votes received in the group stage.

This means that (for example) being in the same group as an extremely popular character won't automatically doom your favorite. It also means that collecting as many votes as possible matters, even if a character gets a bunch of those votes while losing.

Polls will last one week and will happen when they happen; I can't promise any particular schedule but I'll try not to post an overwhelming number at once or go too long without posting any. Groups are listed under the cut.

*Since 41 characters qualified for the tournament, Group A has five characters instead of four, and each character will be in four head-to-head matches instead of three. When comparing the total number of votes received, I'll adjust the Group A totals to take that into account. (Functionally, I'll be comparing the average number of votes per match, but total votes sounds more impressive.)

GROUP A: Rain Flaherty (Rain) Kylie Coven (Rain) Elle Argent (Heartstopper) Lucas (High Class Homos) Luck (Tiger, Tiger)

GROUP B: Eddie Kaspbrak (Out of the Blue) Lucy Marlowe (Never Satisfied) Fenic (Goodbye to Halos) Johnny Summer (Lavender Jack)

GROUP C: Space Dread (Val and Isaac) Max Owen (Magical Boy) Knife (Feast for a King) Claire Augustus (Questionable Content)

GROUP D: Zoe Blecher (Sleepless Domain) Rosemaster (Cucumber Quest) Bacon (Cucumber Quest) Julie (Charity Case)

GROUP E: Cheryl (I Want to Be a Cute Anime Girl) Maggie (Clover & Cutlass) Eliza Swift (Widdershins) Sulla Pinsky (O Human Star)

GROUP F: Penny Spender (Paranatural) Vermillion Gacutan (Earth 2068) Gaueko (Nasty Red Dogs) Xada (LoveBot)

GROUP G: Tedd Verres (El Goonish Shive) Ellen Dunkel (El Goonish Shive) Merlow the Rose (Court of Roses) Chau Le (Shootaround)

GROUP H: Dainix (Aurora) Zhusen (Experience Boost) White Chain (Kill Six Billion Demons) Lupe Jara (Four Leaf)

GROUP I: Teige Carroll (White Noise) Yoshi (White Noise) Vaarsuvius (The Order of the Stick) Eri McCure (Friends With Benefits)

GROUP J: Carla Rutten (Dumbing of Age) Davepeta (Homestuck) Fleet (Rectify) Magpie (Sister Claire)

[stahl-tier]

@eject91 tumblr replies are a pain in the ass for people like me who like to infodump and be unnecessarily verbose so lemme answer like this:

Basically the buffers are generally a length that means if they touch without extra pressure, the coupler should be screwed tight enough to be horizontal (+ varying number of extra spins depending on the type of train). that way it canno move too much and will keep the coupling mostly rigid but not too tense. it still needs to be able to move a little to the left and right and still needs to be able to withstand pulling and pushing without snapping.

so when you use a screwlink coupler it should look kinda like this:

since the buffers touch and are spring-loaded/dampened, the shackle doesn't jump out as its both pulled downwards by its own weight and not loose enough to really jump in the first place (and there's a little protrusion in the back of the hook too that will keep it further "trapped").

it's really almost impossible to uncouple the cars when they're coupled like that.

but shunting is a wholly different story. you're not dealing with trains and you're dealing with different forces. you'll be driving slowly for the most part and deal with MUCH less weight in general. the average freight train here has around 1200 to 1800 tons and anywhere between 15 and 30 cars, with one to three locomotives pulling it. the initial pull when it starts moving and the braking whenever it needs to stop moving or slow down puts the main strain on the buffers and couplers. when you're shunting, you will have at most 15 cars usually, but often only between 1 and 4, with one locomotive. since they move them around and assemble the trains piece by piece. you'd have to unscrew the coupler everytime you need to add another car or rearrange the cars, and this will only work if you're on a straight track as on a bent track, the coupler could be too short even when fully unscrewed to allow you to lift it out of the hook.

so we leave them slack for that (usually) and don't even connect the air hoses either (as we don't use the cars' brakes during shunting usually). that way you can even just stick a long pole in between the cars and disconnect them with it if you need to (which is something they have to do when assembling trains by rolling the cars down hills as they have to uncouple them while the whole thing is moving, and they can't just climb inside to do it by hand).

this is the main coupler type used in europe like i said, but there's also some vehicle types with knuckle couplers - mainly newer railcars. with those there's no need for buffers as the coupler handles both the pushing and pulling force, and that's useful but comes with some disadvantages too. mainly you're running into compatibility problems as the different types of knuckle coupler won't work together.

knuckle couplers also don't work with screwlink couplers. so to answer your question about how those would be connected, you basically take an auxiliary coupler and connect them that way. those are massive and heavy devices and everyone hates having to use them. you need two people to lift them into position.

i looked up some photos of the locomotive type you mentioned, and while it's totally possible that it's using a normal knuckle coupler like you'd see with american rail vehicles, i think it may simply be a different type of the shunting coupler that you still see often today on shunting locomotives.

this is a RK900, the most widely used shunting coupler currently. it's raised as that's how they "tuck it away" while it's not in use. you can see a hook poke out underneath, and that's how they can be connected to regular screwlink couplers (we use class 2068 shunting engines that have this exact same setup at my yard, and when we do shunting for the workshop we just treat them like a normal car that's missing its shackle).

not all of the shunting engines that have the RK900 have a hook underneath, tho.

when the RK900 is in use, it's lowered:

it then works similar to a knuckle coupler - when it's smashed into the hook of a screwlink coupler, the "pincers" grab the hook and it locks itself so that it can only be released again manually or via an air-controlled release mechanism. the purpose is to speed up the coupling and decoupling process, but it's only useful if you're dealing with already connected cars, not when you're doing shunting where you have to connect and disconnect the couplers between the cars a lot.

so, i'm not 100% certain that the locomotives you saw used a (possibly more ancient) variant of this type of coupler as i'd have to actually look them up more thoroughly than just googling images of them but i'd assume that's what's going on with them!

hope that answers your questions and if you still have more feel free to give me more excuse to infodump

[deadmountaindaughter]

Hi! I’m Emi! I’m an 18 19-year-old transfem who cracked at least 30% because of tumblr and therefore naturally was obligated to inflict myself on y'all.

Tags:

-funny things from my life #emi irl

-writing/oc ideas, tagged with my project names(see below) or just #emi writes

-#the council of moms

-#AK47 and #borb for my non tumblr bff and gf respectively

and here's some fandoms *deep inhale*:

Paranatural, The Locked Tomb, Homestuck, The Legend of Eli Monpress, Rolling with Difficulty, corru.observer, School Bus Graveyard, Aurora, El Goonish Shive, xkcd, Castoff, Cosmere, Lumberjanes, Earth 2068, Minecraft, Dark Matter, MTMTE/Lost Light, SCP, Owl House, Gravity Falls, Alan Becker, Greenglass House, and probably more I'm forgetting

My oc writing projects:

Aberrant: A three-ish part series(as in, there are three full series within this universe) about a bunch of queer magic teenagers doing their best to fix the world. So far the parts are Acclimation, Antiques, and Apocalypse, but those names might change. Aberrant is my biggest/main project. Literally begging you to ask me about this so I can infodump about my gay superhero babies.

Driftless: what if we put eldritch gods in Mean Girls and they were lesbians about it. In other words, the four de facto queens of their public school(who all hate each other) are abruptly given the powers and godly forms of four (mostly) dead eldritch deities, and it goes from there. Only two arcs plotted so far but I have a feeling tumblr will like this one so maybe you can bully me into writing more of it(please)

Mayview Middle and the Three-Body Problem(working title): my Paranatural fanfiction. Basically covering "what if the other two major clubs/groups at MM, the Journalism Club and Johnny's gang, ended up as spectrals as well". So far I have one arc, thirteen chapters(around 1k-2k each), fully written, and incredibly vague plans for three more arcs maybe? For some reason I can literally only write this while not taking notes during chem class, which is why I haven't written more. Now on AO3!

Untitled OC Collection: less an actual writing project and more a collection of OCs. They're a small dorm/polycule made up of various supers who can't quite be considered human, or alive, or both, anymore. They're fun.

Orbit: Not much to this one yet. Basically just a high fantasy setting I'll eventually figure out something to do with.

[earth2068]

I ASKED A QUESTION ABOUT THE COLOR NAMES ONLY TO SEE IT ANSWERED ON THE NEXT PAGE. LOVE THE EXPLANATION.

this delights me thank you so much

and my main inspirations for the comic were portal, homestuck, frankenstein, and kurzgesagt videos i watched in middle school! i also learned a lot about comic-making from other webcomics, mainly paranatural and every other webcomic listed as a recommendation on that website, which were instrumental to my development as an artist in my early teens, which is when the bulk of earth 2068s designs and plot was conceptualized on scratch paper during my classes when i was bored

[suiseisyojo]

in a meteor shower, let's find the truth.

「sakasaki natsume x akiyama reine // natsurei + platonic eccentrics」  ↳ commission for @kunehori ! wc: 2068 a/n: thank you so much for supporting me! *i squish you in a hug*

With a clipboard in hand, Reine tucked a strand of hair behind her ear that flowed from her pigtails—her eyes carefully observing the trio dancing in front of her. “Tsumugi-senpai, you’re supposed to take an extra step to your left in this segment, because Sora-kun is struggling with the power in his hops.”

Like a baby chick that just hatched from his shell, full of vivacity yet bungling at times. Sora was truly precious, Reine thought.

“Oh, that’s right. Thank you, Reine-chan,” Tsumugi expressed his gratitude for the pointer with a lighthearted remark.

“They just because our producer and you’re already giving her extra work, Senpai,” Natsume spat with derision in his voice, giving him a biting look, “What are you going to do to make it up to little bunny?”

“M-Make it up to her?” Tsumugi reiterated that statement with discombobulation in his own tone, peeking between Natsume and Reine as the practice cursorily halted, “Does Reine-chan like lettuce? I could probably get my hands on some vegetables from the students who take care of the gardens⋯”

The cogitation emitting from Tsumugi only made Natsume’s eyebrow twitch in even more umbrage. Tsumugi taking this so thoughtfully vexed him. “Why are you treating her like a rabbit? Should I set out bear traps in the garden for you?” he started, golden hues darkening, “Did you forget I help take care of the plants around here?”

“Eep! D-Don’t say such scary things~ The plants will wither if you put traps out!”

“HiHi, they’re fighting again~” Sora twittered animatedly as he spun on his heel, seemingly impervious to the banter now resounding throughout the practice room. Rather, he was curious on how Reine would react to their antics—she had only just recently become Switch’s sole producer, devoting herself to their growth.

Sora was ambivalent on how he felt about that, about everything; but if his master liked her, he would give her a chance. After all, Natsume wouldn’t do anything to put him in danger. “Reine-chan-senpai, what should we do?”

What is there to do? They’re not seriously fighting. Besides, it’s over something so inane—she couldn’t help but let go of a sigh teetering on the edges of her lips.

“It’s okay, Sora-kun, don’t worry about it⋯” Reine trailed off, yet just as she did so, the doors popped open behind her with a discordant reverberation.

Leaping in discomfit, Reine wasn’t even bestowed the leisure of turning around before she felt herself being pulled.

“The vampire bastard wants to see ya,” Koga’s familiar, steely voice pulsated through the air, his fangs bared as he looked at poor Reine with an intense scrutiny, “Ya ain’t got a choice.”

“Rei-niisan does?” 

From behind Koga, Adonis’ imposing silhouette appeared—solemn countenance riveted onto Reine before scooping her up into his arms. “Mhm,” he monotonously began, albeit there was an unmistakable tenderness in the notes, “It’s across campus, and you look pretty weak to make the fast trek over, so I’ll carry you.”

Reine was ensnared in a stupor of flummox, the panicked beats of her heart distant against her entity as her head spun. “H-Huh—?”

The last thing Reine could discern before being forcibly removed from the training room was Natsume’s perplexed, ruffled mien as he yelled, “Wait?!”

Where was she even being taken?

——If one thing was for certain, this Adonis carried her effortlessly; so much so, that even when he was hastening down the stairs, her petite body barely rocked. It was a strangely pleasant ride, and she wasn’t quite sure how to feel about that.

Now that she thought about it, wasn’t Adonis in the same class as Natsume? Part of the popular, impious unit UNDEAD⋯ oh, it clicked! That’s who Rei was, the leader.

But why did he of all people want to see her? Didn’t Natsume call him ‘Rei-niisan’? And why go through all this trouble to abduct her?

Before long, Reine found herself being gently set down in front of the theatre room. “This is as far as we go,” Koga abruptly said, scratching the back of his head, “Good luck, uh, little miss.” (He can’t remember her name.)

Adonis simply nodded, hushed and quiet as ever. Between the pair, Reine liked him a lot better⋯ but nevermind that.

“Rei-senpai wants to see me? In here?” Reine asked, pointing towards the door with a bewildered look in her eyes.

“Hah? Yeah, something’ about a meeting,” was all the information Koga could offer her before he gestured for Adonis to follow him—which he did; but not before bowing his head in Reine’s direction—and the two of them were ambling off without anything else said.

What the heck⋯ wasn’t this just like the start of a horror story? A kidnapping followed by a subsequent, clandestine killing.

Swallowing trepidatiously in congruence with prying open the doors, Reine was met with total darkness; a single spotlight pouring out onto the stage. Nope, she was not doing this.

Reine gyrated on her foot to leave, heart pounding in her chest rapidly and eroding her sense of control over the situation, but it wouldn’t ever be that easy, would it?

“Don’t be frightened, Usagi-chan! Even though your scared form is utterly adorable too☆” Boisterous laughter pealed in the capacious room and she recognized that voice as belonging to Hibiki Wataru.

“It’s okay~ Come onto the stage, sea bunny~” a different, mellifluous voice crooned. It felt refreshing, like a rush of water pooling over her body.

Judging by the way these people talked, their forms still obscured from the eclipsed lights, they all knew of her.

“Hurry up and stand on stage. I don’t have time to be sitting around like this,” another voice, sententious and stern, said, adding, “You’re Switch’s new producer, are you not? Then stop cowering and come down.”

It was one thing after another in this school—no one liked to inform her or allow her time to process what was happening before dragging her into the mayhem. Her pulse quickened, and yet she still climbed down the long stairs, each step accentuated with a breath of inquietude, and gawkily made her way onto the stage.

Beads of sweat accumulated on the nape of Reine’s neck as her fingers gripped the hem of her blazer, trying not to appear too spineless. Being in the spotlight like this was daunting—this is why she preferred the sidelines.

Ahh, how many people are in the audience? She was beginning to feel woozy, complexion blanching as a myriad of egregious thoughts and feelings circled in her head and body.

This was a terrible idea, and she needs to run away. It was reminding her far too much of that ghost story she overheard Noeri telling once.

In a trice, someone snapped their fingers and the rest of the theatre was enveloped in illumination; revealing four figures all settled in divergent seats, spread out across the room.

“Kufu, apologies for spooking you, little miss,” Rei, who Reine was able to perceive straight away from his loose black tresses, smiled towards her with a knowing, almost enigmatic look, “but we wanted to talk to you.”

“Aren’t you all part of the Three Eccentrics?”

Reine had vaguely heard of them; truthfully, she wasn’t too well-versed in Yumenosaki Academy’s lore from previous years yet. That doesn’t explain the fourth person, though.

“Mhm~ I’m Shinkai Kanata,” the blue-haired one introduced himself softly, and Reine noticed how droplets of water clung to the ends of his hair.

“Itsuki Shu of Valkyrie,” Shu huffed, cradling a beauteous doll in his lap. “You should already know that. I’m no longer associated with the Eccentrics, but I stand by my comrades.”

“Of course, considering the look on your face, you know of me. Sakuma Rei.”

Nodding her head awkwardly as she finally got acquainted with the two figures she didn’t recognize, Reine still felt disorientated. “I-It’s nice to meet you all! I’m Akiyama Reine⋯”

She hated having all their eyes on her like this; she felt on display, and that was a feeling she loathed and abhorred.

“Yes, it’s a pleasure,” Rei was insouciant and equally cordial, as if trying to placate her conspicuous anxieties.

“Um! Why did you call me out here⋯?” Reine questioned as her fingers unremittingly fiddled with the hedges of her blazer, overburdened. “You said you wanted to talk, but what about?”

“Your status as Switch’s producer!” Wataru was the first one to answer, although inexplicably, lips curved into a jaunty grin. “You just recently submitted your application for it, didn’t you~?”

“Y-Yes, I did⋯ I’m already accepted?”

“That was fast~ I bet Nacchan is happy about that~♪” Kanata piped in.

“Humph! At least you’re capable enough for the academy to recognize you,” Shu gave his opinion with a pompous sulk.

In the first place, why are the Three Eccentrics interrogating her about this? The way their gazes were riveted onto her, gauging each of her reactions⋯ Reine was simply growing uneasy again.

Rei chortled once more, before his eyes squinted, mouth punctuating his words with what felt like a taunt, “Now, just what exactly do you think of Sakasaki-kun?”

“What do I think about him?”

“Yes, yes! What’s your relationship with him like?” Wataru probed even more, braid swishing with a tilt of his head.

“M-My relationship?!”

Natsume was the one who asked her to apply to become Switch’s producer; and it was a big decision she had to make. But she wasn’t only doing this to help Natsume out—it was for Tsumugi, for Sora, for Switch altogether.

Parting her lips to answer, Reine squeaked as the door suddenly slammed open and Natsume came running down the steps.

Cheeks flushed from exertion, and perhaps mortification, Natsume heaved a relieved exhale as soon as he espied Reine safe-and-sound. “Made it⋯!” he whispered under his breath as he hopped on stage, rushing to Reine’s side.

“You four! What are you doing?!” Natsume began chiding them, the heat in his complexion exacerbating as he wrapped two arms around Reine, “They didn’t do anything weird to you, did they?”

Natsume truly looked like a little brother who just got embarrassed by his older ones, his expression mirroring that sense of perturbation.

Shaking her head, finding her own chest overflowing with warmth from the lovingkindness in Natsume’s touch around her, she murmured against his ear, “I’m okay⋯”

“Wahaha! We didn’t do anything!” Wataru laughed ebulliently, patently amused.

“We were just talking,” Rei further highlighted Wataru’s words by unfolding his leg over the other one and leaning forward, “She’s quite a shy producer, isn’t she?”

Natsume felt his eyebrow twitch for the second time today, and he snapped, “And? We were in the middle of practice when you interrupted us!”

“Sorry, we couldn’t wait to meet her,” Kanata hummed, a sympathetic gleam in his emerald eyes. He seemed to be the only one who was sincerely apologetic at the moment, and it gave Reine a stream of relief.

Nodding his head, Rei added, “It’s important to us that we know who’s looking after you.”

Ah, all these upperclassmen congregated because they care deeply for Natsume—and that love was conveyed in a manner befitting a group dubbed The Eccentrics.

With a burst of heat in her chest, Reine blurted out amidst all this small arguing and chatter, “I love Natsume-kun!”

Everyone was astonished by the effusive declaration—to them, it was unpredicted and shocking from the conclusion they had formed over her. And Natsume blinked, mind reeling and heart fluttering within the crevice of his chest, “L-Little bunny—”

“I also love Sora-kun! And Tsumugi-senpai!” Reine ceaselessly divulged her adoration on a surge of courage, even if it was flourishing from her anxiety, “I love Switch! So you all don’t need to worry!”

Silence.

A few beats passed—leaving poor Reine trembling on stage and in Natsume’s arms—before everyone (except Natsume and Shu, of course), erupted into their own fits of laughter. Genuine, purehearted laughter.

“Take care of our Natsume, will you, Reine?” Rei requested, sweet tones of esteem oozing from every syllable.

Fervidly nodding her head as embarrassment and exaltation suffused through the fissures of her body, Reine avowed, knowing she had earned their respect for now, “I-I will!”

As for Natsume, who’s head was still endlessly repeating the way Reine had announced ‘I love Natsume-kun!’, he knew he wasn’t going to hear the end of it from his Nii-sans.

[asunsetgrace16]

☀︎ ▴ ｔｈｅ ｋｉｄｄｏｓ ▴ ☀︎

au masterlist ⎥ navigation

I felt it was necessary to more formally introduce you all to the offspring of the Fantilli clan and a little about how I imagine their lives to play out.

ᴛʜᴇᴏ ᴀᴅᴀᴍ ꜰᴀɴᴛɪʟʟɪ

Born: August 6, 2031

he has brown eyes and auburn blond hair

Theo has an easy smile and a kind heart, always wearing his heart on his sleeve

he is a protector, always looking out for his little siblings and standing up for kids. He also was always a natural born leader, even when he was little and playing with his siblings. It translated into his hockey

he inherited his dad and Uncle Adam's hockey skills, in addition to being quite the academic. He thrived in math and the sciences and quickly became a star center on the ice

he was torn between entering the OHL draft and college hockey, but in the end it was entirely his decision to make. he spent his draft year playing for the Saginaw Spirit in the OHL in the 2048-49 season

Theo committed to Boston University to play on the Men's hockey team and entered as a Biology major and a highly touted NHL prospect and played there in his draft +1 season

at BU, he met Lana Thomas-Lu in their freshman year General Chemistry class. Theo's teammates went overboard with the chemistry puns after they got together

Theo went on to get drafted in the 2049 NHL entry draft, 2nd overall to the Calgary Flames, where he spent his entire 20-year career

Theo and Lana stayed together and got married in 2055

Theo and Lana have 3 kids - Lucy, Arabella, and James, and still reside in Calgary where Lana works as a Lab Tech and Theo joined the Flames organization as executive to the GM

ᴄᴏʟᴛᴏɴ ɢɪᴜʟɪᴀɴᴏ ꜰᴀɴᴛɪʟʟɪ

Born: September 19, 2033

he is 4 minutes and 56 seconds older than Caroline

he has light brown hair and his eyes are blue

Colton has the devilishly handsome looks and is more guarded than Theo

he has the most spunk out of his siblings, he thrives on adrenaline and living on the edge

he played hockey early on before transitioning into football, which earned him a scholarship to Yale and he took a Sports Medicine degree

Colton played college football for 5 years and won three consecutive national championships before leaving the team to finish his degree, deciding not to enter the NFL draft. Instead, he turned his sights towards opening a sports medicine clinic

he quickly became known through the sports world, seeing dozens of professional athletes, including his big brother Theo and twin sister Caroline

he met his eventual wife Melanie as a kid, they were thick as thieves until high school when they grew apart. They rekindled their relationship at Yale, coincidentally, and have been together since sophomore year

they got married in 2060, and have made a home and built Colton's business in Toronto. Mel is a high school teacher for biology, chemistry, physics, and English

they have 4 kids - Mack, Jill, Alex, and Poppy

ᴄᴀʀᴏʟɪɴᴇ ɢʀᴀᴄᴇ ꜰᴀɴᴛɪʟʟɪ

Born: September 19, 2033

Caroline had dark brown hair and blue eyes

she has the same personality as Madelyn, but she is all Luca's athleticism

she is quiet, preferring reading to parties. She was a whiz in the classroom, graduating at the top of her class along with Colton, and Theo before them

Caroline is known as the gentle one of her siblings, kind and pure-hearted and sweet, a complete 180 from her on-ice fierceness

Caroline played hockey from the time she could walk, honing her skill with hours of practice with Theo, her dad, and Uncle Adam.

She committed to the University of Calgary Women's hockey team when she graduated high school, with aspirations of making the PWHL

she played for U of C for her freshman year in 2051-52, before signing with the Minnesota Frost, where she was drafted in 2052. She played for Minnesota for 8 years before being traded to Toronto in 2060 before free agency. She retired in 2068 after a shoulder injury

Caroline met Francisco "Cisco" Hernandez during her time in Minnesota. They met during her rookie year and got together in 2053. Cisco is a sergeant detective. They still live in Toronto

they got married in 2058, opting to elope with Theo and Lana as witnesses, and both of their parents were in attendance. They threw a party after getting back from their honeymoon

Caroline and Cisco decided to not have kids, instead being the doting aunt and uncle

ᴅᴀᴘʜɴᴇ ʜᴏᴘᴇ ꜰᴀɴᴛɪʟʟɪ

Born: July 2, 2037

she got Madelyn's red hair and Luca's brown eyes

Daphne is the most relaxed, go-with-the-flow of her family

she was also an athlete, playing high school volleyball and basketball and she was on the Track team in the 4 x 400m relay, 1500m, triple jump, long jump, and discus. She runs half-marathons regularly and has dreams of running the Boston Marathon

like her siblings, Daphne is a brilliant student, and the most all-around student of the four. She excelled in all her classes and decided to pursue her passion for learning

her primary interests are around history and languages, with the majority of her books being historical fiction

she is a big foodie, always experimenting with fusion flavours and hosting dinner parties

Daphne plays the piano and has a beautiful singing voice

she met Jake in 2055 during her first year at Harvard. He was in his sophomore year of a business degree and they shared a music elective. They got together the following year

Daphne is now an accredited professor with PhD's in three different fields - History, Archeology, and Languages and Linguistics. She teaches 20th Century History at Harvard and Jake is an accountant

they adopted two kids, 3 year old Caleb in 2068 and 4 year old Jamie in 2070

[the-togepi-man]

your boomer rant is a good example of not thinking about class. there are plenty of boomers suffering because of decisions other boomers in the 1% made. it isn't productive to pick fights between other members of the working class when we all have a shared enemy at the top.

If we use some reasoning, and think about the things I say and especially in my last post where I don't agree with gen wars, we will know that I do indeed think about class. But hey, since you wanted to do this on anon- And who is voting for them to stay in power? https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/04/09/the-changing-demographic-composition-of-voters-and-party-coalitions/

And how about them poverty rates https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2023/12/poverty-rate-varies-by-age-groups.html

They also have more homes- "...with boomers owning 38% of homes nationwide despite comprising just over 20% of the U.S. population." https://smdp.com/2024/02/02/baby-boomers-dominate-home-ownership-leaving-little-for-gen-z/ As of three years ago, At 43.4%, the GPI shows that Boomers hold more economic influence than Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z combined. They make up a majority of business leaders in the U.S., and hold 42% of billionaire wealth in America. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranking-u-s-generations-on-their-power-and-influence-over-society/#:~:text=In%20addition%20to%20holding%20the%20most%20Economic%20Power,instance%2C%2068%25%20of%20U.S.%20senators%20are%20Baby%20Boomers.

Here's an article about boomers by a boomer: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/this-is-why-the-baby-boom_b_4441735

Anyways, there are just a few more reasons why we can hold older generations accountable. I'm not getting in to a "not all men" argument with you or anyone else, because the older members of our society that KNOW their generation hordes wealth and resources like dragons also know that they can vote to help society as a whole. In any demographic there will be "good eggs" but nobody needs to white-knight the boomers

[ao3feed-kiribaku]

jumbled feelings

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/iSdZvFj by Slutmonkey1234 “Do you need something?” Kirishima hadn't realised he had trailed his eyes along the blondes body “My seat.” “Sorry? What?” “You’re in my seat.” “Oh! I didn't know seats were assigned in college.. Sorry dude!” Kirishima began to pack his things “They're not. This is just my seat.” Kirishima scanned the room, acknowledging the array of empty seats, before settling back down “Look dude, there's at least 50 other seats in this room, how bout you go pick another, eh?” The unknown man scoffed and unfolded his arms, “I am not in the mood for this today, get out of my seat or I’ll-” “You'll what?” Kirishama mocked “Blow me up?” — Basketball player Kirishima Eijirou starts at a new college mid semester and struggles to fit in. Words: 2068, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English Fandoms: 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia (Anime & Manga) Rating: Not Rated Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: M/M Characters: Bakugou Katsuki, Kirishima Eijirou's Parents, Kirishima Eijirou, Midoriya Izuku, Ashido Mina, Jirou Kyouka, Sero Hanta, Bakusquad - Character, Dekusquad - Character, Class 1-B (My Hero Academia), Class 1-A (My Hero Academia) Relationships: Bakugou Katsuki/Kirishima Eijirou Additional Tags: Bakugou Katsuki is Bad at Feelings, Bakugou Katsuki Swears A Lot, Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff and Angst, Soft Kirishima Eijirou, Idiots in Love, Band Fic, Basketball Player Kirishima Eijirou read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/iSdZvFj

[ao3feed-erasermic]

son for all

Use the related link post to read son for all on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/51864211 by gotthatbrainrot Aizawa Shota surely did not think his life would turn out this way. He thought his life would be quiet and peaceful (as peaceful as being a pro hero could be, anyways) but here he was watching his twin boys fight over who hid the remote while the real culprit - his daughter - watched innocently from the side with his husband. He may not have expected things to turn out like this but he would absolutely defend his family and their peace with his life if it came down to it. And it just may, if the results of the DNA tests are accurate. Words: 2068, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English Fandoms: 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia (Anime & Manga) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Categories: Gen, M/M, Multi Characters: Midoriya Izuku, Shinsou Hitoshi, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead, Yamada Hizashi | Present Mic, Bakugou Katsuki, Todoroki Shouto, Kaminari Denki, Yagi Toshinori | All Might, Sensei | All For One, Class 1-A (My Hero Academia), League of Villains (My Hero Academia), Eri (My Hero Academia) Relationships: Midoriya Izuku & Shinsou Hitoshi, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead & Midoriya Izuku, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead & Shinsou Hitoshi, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead/Yamada Hizashi | Present Mic, Kaminari Denki/Shinsou Hitoshi, Bakugou Katsuki/Midoriya Izuku/Todoroki Shouto, Eri & Midoriya Izuku, Eri & Shinsou Hitoshi Additional Tags: Parental Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead | Dadzawa, Parental Yamada Hizashi | Present Mic, Married Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead/Yamada Hizashi | Present Mic, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead Adopts Shinsou Hitoshi, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead Adopts Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Izuku Has a Quirk, Dead Midoriya Inko, Sensei | All For One is Midoriya Izuku's Parent, Midoriya Izuku & Shinsou Hitoshi are Best Friends, Angst with a Happy Ending, Betrayal, Family Issues, Soft Bakugou Katsuki, Todoroki Shouto is a Good Significant Other, Kaminari Denki is a Good Significant Other, Shinsou Hitoshi Needs a Hug, Protective Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead, Midoriya Izuku Has One for All Quirk, Brotherly Love, Shinsou Hitoshi is a Little Shit, Sensei | All For One is Midoriya Hisashi, Protective Class 1-A (My Hero Academia), Eri Needs a Hug (My Hero Academia), Other Additional Tags to Be Added Use the related link post to read it on AO3 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/51864211

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

Evolved by NR Walker received 113 votes total. 2.7% of respondents answered YES, they have read it. 97.3% of respondents answered NO, they have not read it.

In 2068, androids are an integrated part of human life. Big Brother no longer just watches from the shadows. It's in every household. Lloyd Salter has OCD issues with noise and mess, and he's uncomfortable with human interaction. When his ex claimed the only thing perfect enough to live up to his standards was an android, Lloyd dismissed it. But two years later, after much self-assessment, he thinks he may have been right. SATinc is the largest manufacturer of androids in Australia, including the Fully Compatible Units known as an A-Class 10. Their latest design is the Synthetic Human Android UNit, otherwise known as SHAUN. Shaun is compatible to Lloyd's every need; the perfect fit on an intellectual and physical basis. But Lloyd soon realises Shaun's not like other A-Class androids. He learns. He adapts. Sure that SATinc is aware Shaun functions outside of his programmed parameters, Lloyd must find a way to keep Shaun safe. No one can know how special Shaun is. No one can know he's evolved.

[bookworm555]

Yet another old napkin doodle set.

[seaquestions]

whose fault is it. mine, for not realising my humanities course is laid out on moodle and that i had a mini quiz & two readings due yesterday, weekly notes due sunday & a writing exercise to be done tomorrow—or my teacher’s, for assigning all this shit on week 2.

[wlw-webcomic-bracket]

Trans and nonbinary webcomic character tournament nominations are closed! The following characters (sorted by webcomic name; links to character introductions added as they go up) received three or more nominations and qualified for the tournament:

Aurora - Dainix

Charity Case - Julie

Clover & Cutlass - Maggie

Court of Roses - Merlow the Rose

Cucumber Quest - Rosemaster and Bacon

Dumbing of Age - Carla Rutten

Earth 2068 - Vermillion Gacutan

El Goonish Shive - Tedd Verres and Ellen Dunkel

Experience Boost - Zhusen

Feast for a King - Knife

Four Leaf - Lupe Jara

Friends With Benefits - Eri McCure

Goodbye to Halos - Fenic

Heartstopper - Elle Argent

High Class Homos - Lucas

Homestuck - Davepeta

I Want to Be a Cute Anime Girl - Cheryl

Kill Six Billion Demons - 82 White Chain Born in Emptiness Returns to Subdue Evil (White Chain)

Lavender Jack - Johnny Summer

LoveBot - Xada

Magical Boy - Max Owen

Nasty Red Dogs - Gaueko

Never Satisfied - Lucy Marlowe

O Human Star - Sulla Pinsky

Out of the Blue - Eddie Kaspbrak

Paranatural - Penny Spender

Questionable Content - Claire Augustus

Rain - Rain Flaherty and Kylie Coven

Rectify - Fleet

Shootaround - Chau Le

Sister Claire - Magpie

Sleepless Domain - Zoe Blecher

The Order of the Stick - Vaarsuvius

Tiger, Tiger - Luck

Val and Isaac - Space Dread

White Noise - Teige Carroll and Yoshi

Widdershins - Eliza Swift

I'll be posting character introductions over the next couple weeks as time permits. If you’d like to suggest an alternate picture/description or if there’s any missing or incorrect information in the introductions, let me know!

Since no comic had three or more characters with at least three nominations, there will be no preliminary rounds, and we'll jump straight into the round robin group stage around the middle of July as soon as character introductions are finished.

[makises]

okay so when i was a freshman in high school (2013-2014) we had the final project for our intro art class, and the prompt was to draw or paint or just create something that a future historian from like 2068 would dig up and find to show how people lived in the current (2013) day. anyway i drew the human notepad, just her that’s it on a big piece of paper, and colored it and everything and submitted that as my final art project. i justified it by saying that youtube shows and memes were popular at the time and the future historian would read all about the dhmis videos and how they were relevant to that time period

anyway. what was wrong with 2013 me

does anyone remember back in like 2013 when don’t hug me i’m scared first came out and everyone was drawing the human versions of the notepad and clock. i have a confession to make