#i’m rereading again btw….. expect posting

[omgpoindexter]

if i don’t get to see this interaction play out in a tv show before i die then i WILL be doing something drastic. btw.

[desi2go]

Christmas Scavenger Hunt

pairing: Jisung x reader

words: 4,3k

warnings: fluff, christmas

summary: You and Jisung share a magical holiday experience when Jisung plans a scavenger hunt filled with clues tied to your most cherished memories.

author's note: Hey guys! It's been a while since I posted something. Anyways, I'm back! I had so much fun writing this and btw it's for the StayblrHolidayEvent. I hope you enjoy it <3 Merry Christmas to yall!

-> @stayblrofficial

The first snow of December had come earlier than expected this year, layering the little town in a soft, powdery white. Everything felt quieter, more magical – the world had slowed down just enough to let her breathe. As you walked briskly through the streets towards Parchment Palace, the small independent bookstore where you worked. Your breath was foggy in the frosty air, twinkling lights lined the lampposts and wreaths decorated the storefronts with pops of red ribbon. You absolutely loved Christmas. It had always been your favourite time of year with hot chocolate, the smell of pine and cinnamon as well as Christmas movies you had watched a hundred times without getting bored. By now, you could quote every Christmas related movie that was ever produced. This year, though, felt different. There was something – or rather, someone – that made your cheeks warm even in the winter chill.

Jisung.

It had been only four months since you and Jisung started seeing each other. Four months of easy laughter, long conversations and quiet meaningful moments. He wasn’t the most outgoing guy due to his social anxieties, but he had this gentle, thoughtful way about him. Like he always noticed things others didn’t. You liked that about him, you liked a lot about him, actually.

The bell above Parchment Palace jingled as you stepped inside, the familiar smell of paper and vanilla candles greeted you. Sofia, your cheerful coworker and oldest friend, looked up from the counter and grinned widely. “Morning Y/n” she said, brushing her curly hair out of her face. “Someone’s looking extra giddy today” You rolled your eyes, a smile still spreading over your lips. “I’m just excited about Christmas”

She smirked, wiggling with her eyebrows. “You mean you’re excited about Christmas with Jisung” At her suggestion, you fought the blush that crept up your cheeks. “Maybe”

Sofia chuckled, holding up a small envelope that she waved through the air. “Speaking of, this was mysteriously dropped off for you earlier. No return address, no name. Just To Y/n. Care to explain?” You reached out after hanging up your jacket. “It’s from Jisung, isn’t it?” you murmured while Sofia urged you to find it out, observing the letter behind your back. Your heart skipped as your fingers brushed over the neatly folded paper. As you opened it, you immediately recognised Jisung’s handwriting, slightly messy but unmistakably his.

A little clue to start your day: Find where we first sat with coffee for two. There’s something there only for you to see.

Your lips parted in disbelief, rereading the few lines over and over again. “He’s sending me on a scavenger hunt?” Sofia clapped her hands together in excitement. “He is such a keeper. Honestly, he is making all the other boys look bad” You could hardly contain your joy as you shoved the note securely into your bag. “I can’t believe he actually did this” Sofia laughed, pushing you towards the door and holding your jacket in the other. “I will manage alone here. Go, you have got a mystery to solve”

❄❄❄❄❄

You stepped out of the bookstore into the crisp, snow-kissed morning. The streets were still bustling with holiday shoppers, their arms full of bags, red and green scarves tight against the cold. You tugged your own scarf closer around the neck, the note Jisung had left still snug in your bag. You couldn’t stop smiling. A scavenger hunt. He really planned a scavenger hunt. Jisung wasn’t the flashy or over-the-top like the romantic leads in Christmas movies you loved so dearly, but he had his own charm and this? This was exactly the kind of thing that would melt your heart. Thoughtful and so personal. It already felt like the best Christmas you had ever had, and it hadn’t even arrived yet.

The Blissful Brews was just around the corner, nestled between an old record store and a boutique that sold handmade jewellery. In that old record store worked Jisung. There, you had crossed paths for the first time as you bought your favourite albums and accidentally ran into him. You still remembered how his coffee had drenched your blouse and his deep apologies. The Blissful Brews was the kind of coffee shop that locals loved – warm and small enough that you could find someone you knew sitting in the corner with a steaming mug. The windows were fogged over from the warmth inside and the soft music spilled out as you pushed through the door. Rich espresso mingled with the sweetness of cinnamon and sugar – one of your favourite smells in the world, second only to fresh books and old paper. You paused for a moment near the entrance to take it all in. Everything about this place reminded you of Jisung. The first time you really met (well, if you don’t consider the little accident) and you were so nervous. He had invited you to a coffee as an apology. At that time, you didn’t know that he soon will cross the line between friendship and love.

Now, standing in the familiar warmth of the café, you couldn’t help but laugh at the memory. They both had been incredibly nervous, and the first few minutes were awkward as you had ordered. But this issue was overcome pretty quickly, and you were engaged in a deep conversation for hours. “Can I help you?” the young barista asked, leaning on the counter and eyeing her with an amused expression. You turned to observe the man that had dyed his hair in an unusual pinkish colour. You greeted him, telling him that you searched for an envelope. Of course, he knew you. He was the one that took your orders. Raising his eyebrows, he smiled. “A scavenger hunt clue, maybe?” You blinked, surprised. “Jisung told you?” The barista smirked sheepishly. “He may have come in last night and left something for you. That boy is so sweet” He gestured towards the back of the shop. Of course, why didn’t you think about it earlier? It was obvious that Jisung would have hidden at your table – the small two-seater tucked near the huge window where you had sat on your first unofficial date.

Your boots clicked softly against the wooden floor as you made your way to it, the hum of conversation and the faint clatter of cups filling the air. Your heart did a little flip when you saw a piece of paper carefully taped to the back of one of the chairs. He really did plan this whole thing, you thought. The handwriting was unmistakably Jisung’s, looking like he had been scribbling quickly.

Clue Two: Remember the big storm where you got soaked? You laughed at me ‘til you nearly choked. Go where we took cover and found some cheer, You will find your next clue there.

You couldn’t help but laugh at that memory. It had been one of your earlier dates, back in late September. The weather had been cold but clear when you walked around the town. Jisung, as always, had insisted on walking you back home after the successful date – even though it was a good twenty-minute trip, and his own apartment was on the other side of the town. Halfway through, the first droplets of rain started to fall that had been signalized by the dark clouds and the stormy wind. Small and cold, the water absorbed by your thin jacket. “Oh no” you had muttered, looking up at the ominous grey clouds overhead. Jisung, always the optimist, had grinned. “Maybe it will just be a drizzle” he commented.

Well, it wasn’t. Within moments, the rain had come down in buckets, soaking both of you to the bone, clothes clinging to your wet skin. You remembered standing there in the middle of the street, your hair plastered to your face, water running down your jacket in rivulets. And Jisung stared at you helplessly like he was trying to think of something heroic to do. “Umbrella?” he had stammered. “Too late for that” you said, giggling while you brushed your hair out of your face. Jisung had looked at you like you were slightly insane but the smile permanent on his lips. He had tugged you to a small shop, taking shelter there. The quirky little clothing shop near your apartment where he had bought you a fluffy, deep blue hoodie with a funny picture on it to keep you warm. So far, it was one of your favourite hoodies, creating a great memento of your date.

Now standing in that same clothing store, the second clue clutched in your hand, you searched through the cozy, cluttered shop filled with all different kinds and seizes of clothes in multiple colours. The old shopkeeper, looked up with a knowing smile. The smile of the grey-haired lady was kind and warm. “Ah Y/n” she greeted you, folding new clothes and putting them away on of the racks. “Jisung mentioned you would be coming by” You blinked. “He told you about this?”

Her laughter spread the whole shop. “Of course. That lovesick boy spent nearly an hour here yesterday, making sure that everything was perfect” You followed her to the counter as she pulled out a big paper bag. As soon as you opened it, your gaze locked on a red hoodie, decorated with small white snowflakes. You chuckled at the parallel to your past date. On top sat another note.

Here, my love, is clue three: Our bench in the park, Where we shared our first kiss. A memory I hold, sweet and kind, Go back there now and you will find the next clue.

❄❄❄❄❄

As you stepped back out into the cold, the snowflakes drifting lazily from the sky, you couldn’t stop the giddy excitement bubbling inside you. Every little detail Jisung had included so far – the places, the memories, the clues – was so perfectly. Your boots crunched against the freshly fallen snow as you walked quickly towards the park. The streets were busier now, families wandering hand-in-hand, and the shop windows glowing warmly in the gathering dusk. You pulled your scarf tighter around your neck, your breath misting in the cold air. The park wasn’t far from the clothing shop and soon, you found yourself standing at the entrance, the large trees stood brave in the falling snow, their branches dusted with snow.

The benches – especially the one you were looking for – were a small island in the white. You scanned the park, looking for the familiar sight. There it was, your bench. The bench where Jisung finally made you, his girlfriend. It was tucked beneath an old oak tree, the powdery snow gathering slowly on the wooden slats. The tree’s branches stretched overhead, and you could almost hear your memories of your past visits. The easy conversations, the quiet moments where you had leaned your head against his shoulder. And then, the kiss happened and symbolised the beginning of your relationship. He had seemed so nervous, his gaze wandering over your face, from time to time locking on your lips, not sure if he was allowed to lean in and capture them. You didn’t act differently.

Honestly, he had won your heart over at your fist unofficial date. As you told him about your day, your own eyes travelled over his soft, pillowy lips, imagining how it would be to kiss him. Eventually, he took all his courage and pressed his lips firmly on yours. Before you could even react, your mind still trying to understand what happened, he retracted. As he brushed through his hair in panic, stuttering apologies, you shook yourself out of your trance and grabbed the collar of his jacket. Swiftly, you pulled him towards you again, his voice was overflowing while you silenced him skilfully. This time, you lead the kiss and quickly, he recovered from the shock and reciprocated the tender gesture.

You reached the bench, smiling to yourself as you saw the small package, wrapped simply in brown paper and a beautiful red bow. Bending down, you brushed the thin layer of snow from the package and untied the bow as well as the paper. A big mug caught your eye, pulling it out from underneath the carefully wrapped papers to ensure that it won’t break.

You turned it to inspect the motif, heart fluttering in your chest as soon as your gaze fell on the photo printed on it. It wasn’t just any photo, no, it showed you two, his cheeks squished against yours tightly. You took it right here on the bench a few weeks prior on a date. Both of your smiles were bright, eyes sparkling with joy and adoration. Your chest tightened, touched by the thoughtful gesture as you pulled the mug close to your heart. This would be your favourite mug from now on. Inside, folded carefully, was the next clue. You pulled it out with a mixture of excitement and curiosity, unfolding it gently as if it were something fragile. Jisung’s handwriting filled the page.

Clue Four: It’s time for the final stop on our trip, Come warm up your hand and take a sip, Come Home where the heart will be, Find me, my love, and you will see.

Your heart leapt. Home. It was a simple word, but it meant so much to you. Your home had always been your apartment – your cozy little space filled with tons of books where you had lived since you moved into this town. But with Jisung, it had started to feel like more than just an apartment. As the weather was colder and rainy, you had spent much time there together, arguing over which Christmas movie to watch, cooking dinner side by side and wrapping presents for family and friends.

Slowly, over the last few months, it had become a place where you could imagine a future, a future with him. With this scavenger hunt, he wasn’t trying to be someone he wasn’t. He wasn’t flashy and didn’t plan some over-the-top romantic gesture straight out of a movie. What he had done was so much better – he had paid attention to the small, quiet moments you had shared. The memories that felt uniquely yours.

You read the note again, realizing what the clue actually meant. Jisung was waiting for you. “Home” you murmured to yourself, your breath fogging in the cold air. You felt a flutter of anticipation deep in your chest as you made your way back down the snowy path toward the street, eager to reach your apartment, to see what Jisung had planned next. The walk was quick, but it felt like an eternity. Each step seemed to pull your closer to something that had always been just out of reach – a feeling of belonging. With Jisung.

❄❄❄❄❄

When you reached your apartment building, it felt like the final puzzle piece was clicking into place. The familiar steps that led to the entrance, the little lobby with its mismatched furniture and the clattering sounds of neighbours going about their daily routines – all of it was comforting. It was home. Now, there was the promise of something even more special waiting inside. You climbed the stairs to the floor, your boots clicking softly on the old wooden steps. The snow outside created a thin layer of frost now thick enough to blanket everything in white. But inside, the warmth from her apartment was waiting – just like Jisung. When you reached the door, something was different.

The dim hallway light flickered above your head, casting soft shadows on the walls. But what really caught her attention was the way the hallway smelled. It wasn’t the usual scent of fresh air or coffee from the neighbours down the hall. This time, there was something warmer, sweeter in the air. Curious, you approached your door and paused, your hand resting lightly on the doorknob. The faintest glow of light slipped through the crack beneath the door, casting a soft, inviting warmth into the otherwise dark hallway.

You opened the door slowly, a smile tugging at the corners of your lips as you stepped inside, observing your apartment in search of Jisung. There, in the middle of the living room, was the most unexpected sight – a blanket fort. An actual blanket fort. You stood frozen for a moment, unsure whether to laugh or cry at how utterly this was. Soft blankets and throws were draped over every available surface, creating a small cozy cocoon in the centre of your living room. Christmas lights twinkled across the top, casting a soft glow. There were pillows scattered everywhere, some piled high inside the fort, others lining the floor like a cushiony path. It was like a childhood dream, but somehow even better – because this time, you had Jisung.

The small Christmas tree you two had bought together last week (well, he helped you with finding the perfect one since you couldn’t decide which one to get and brought it to your apartment since the tree was too heavy for you to lift). Despite your bickering that he should let you help at least with holding it up too, he wanted to do it alone, claiming that it was his job as your boyfriend. You had decorated the Christmas tree together, in the background played your favourite playlist to which you both sang loudly, hanging the handmade ornaments and paper snowflakes on the twigs.

Your heart swelled with pride as you took it all in, trying to figure out how you could get so lucky to have such a thoughtful boyfriend. And then, you heard him in the kitchen, he seemed to be preparing something but as he realised you were home, he stalked into the living area. Two steaming mugs in his hand, your favourites you recognised, His eyes displayed fondness when he observed you, smiling brightly.

“Hey, my love” he greeted you, placing the mugs onto the small couch table before turning to you again. You stepped closer, your feet light on the carpet as you walked towards him, his smile got playful. Hands on your hips, you tried to suppress the grin threatening to spread across your face. “So, this is the big finale? A blanket fort? You had me running all over town for this?” A mischievous smile appeared on his lips. “Hey now, this is a masterpiece. I spent hour building and rebuilding it until we both can fit inside. It’s the crown jewel of the scavenger hunt” he exclaimed, fully convinced with his grand idea. You raised your eyebrows, judging his so-called masterpiece. You must say that he did a really good job at building it.

“I must admit, it looks nice” you told him your decision, smiling fondly. “Did you plan all of this?” He nodded proudly, pulling you inside and placed a mug into your hands. As you analysed it further, you realised it was a hot chocolate topped with whipped cream, marshmallows and colourful sprinkles. Just how you liked it. The interior of the fort was cozy and intimate, pillows scattered across the floor, and the twinkling lights above gave the space a dreamy glow. You let out a breath you didn’t knew you were holding. “This is … incredible. This whole journey was wonderful.” you whispered. Jisung shifted, his comfortable scent wafting surrounded you, he smelled like home – your home.

“No need to thank me. Even though we are only four months into our relationship, I wanted to do something special. Because in this short time, my life has changed drastically. You became the centre of my life, my love.” he explained, pulling your hand into his, heating your cold fingers as he caressed the skin lightly. His gaze was soft, full of love when he continued.

“And I wanted you to feel how much everything I experienced with you means to me, every single memory we made together. How much you mean to me” You looked at him, your eyes shining while the weight of his words sank in. “I noticed” you stated quietly. “The café where we had our ‘unofficial’ date. The clothing store when we were surprised by the sudden rain. The bench where we shared so many memories, our first kiss included. You didn’t just send me running around town, Ji. You sent me through us”. Your boyfriend leaned back on his elbows, his gaze softening.

“That was the idea” he admitted. “Sometimes we get caught up in the present, in everything happening around us. And I just wanted to take you back – to remind us of all the moments that brought us here”. Your other hand traced the edge of one of the blankets as you took a deep breath, your voice trembling slightly. “It worked. Every step of the way, I felt it – how much thought, how much love you put into this. I’ve never had anything like this before, Jisung. It’s overwhelming, in the best way” The tears you fought to keep in, slowly escaped and rolled over your cheeks as you sobbed because of how much you adored this man next to you and the weight of not only his words but also his actions.

He cooed at you fondly, cupping your face with his hands, brushing the tears away while placing a sweet peck on your forehead. “Don’t cry. You know I can’t stand it when you cry” Soothingly he rocked you, humming to help you calm down. You smiled at him, puffy eyes but you promised that this were happy tears. “This” you said finally “is more than I ever could ask for” You leaned into him, resting your head against Jisung’s shoulder.

“I know that it’s not Christmas Day. But I have another gift for you” he stated, reaching into his hoodie pocket and pulling out a small, wrapped package. “I thought the fort was the grand finale?” You asked, narrowing your eyes suspiciously. He placed it gracefully into your open palm, his expression playful but tinges with something deeper. “You could describe it as an addition. Go on, open it”

You tore into the wrapping carefully, your fingers grazing the brown paper and the simple red ribbon. Inside was a small wooden box, its surface smooth and polished. Your breath caught as you opened it, revealing an assortment of trinkets nestled inside. There was a ticket stub from your first movie date, the corner slightly torn where he had fidgeted with it nervously. A pressed leave from the time you had from the time you spent in the park with a picnic as the weather wasn’t that bad, even for autumn. Several other things from past dates were laying in the box. The memories flooded back in vivid detail. “You kept all of this?” your voice broke again as tears welled up. He chuckled, his gaze steady. “Of course. I wanted to remember it all – the moments that made me realize how much you mean to me”

You swallowed hard, fighting the lump in your throat that made it difficult to speak. “I don’t even know what to say. This … This is the most thoughtful thing anyone’s ever done for me”. He smiled widely, pecking your forehead once again. “Thank you so much, Ji” “I’m glad, because you mean the world to me, Y/n. And I think there’s one more thing we’re missing to make this moment perfect” He brushed a hair strand out of your face, his touch lingering for a memory before his gaze dropped to your lips. “What’s that?” You smiled widely, already knowing what he is up to. After four months, you had figured out what he meant with that but you tagged along.

“This” The fondness in his eyes made your heart stutter and you couldn’t help but lean closer to him, capturing his lips with your own in a passionate kiss. His lips were soft, pillowy even, and you could even taste the chocolate from the hot chocolate that he had sipped on before. The kiss was filled with promises that only love could carry, the rest of the world melting away, leaving only the two of you and the quiet certainty that this was exactly where you were meant to be. When you finally pulled apart, you rested your forehead against Jisung’s, your eyes shining with joy while your boyfriend tightened his arms around you in a protective manner.

Comfortably, you leaned back and cuddled further into his embrace and the blankets that were like a fuzzy cocoon, enveloping you in warmth. You wouldn’t want to be anywhere else for the rest of your life. “We have got so much more to add to this box”.

[rafeysvenicebitch]

‿‿‿‿Celebrity Crush Realized‿‿‿‿

•Chapter 2•

It was nearly midnight, and you were in bed half-heartedly working on a discussion post for your online class when your phone buzzed. You expected another TikTok from Sam or Ari sending you a cursed meme, but instead, Drew’s name lit up your screen.

💗Drew💗(Hollywood’s Finest Man): What are you doing right now?

Your brain short-circuited for a moment. Was this real? You blinked at the message, rereading it twice to make sure you weren’t imagining things. Then your phone buzzed again.

Ari 💣(3 Bad Bitches): Y/N, You’ve been silent for 3 hours. U good?

Sam💜: she’s dead from all that flirting last night. Btw, Y/N, u texting him or not?

Ari💣: If u don’t text him, I will. Don’t test me.

You couldn’t help but laugh at your overzealous friends.

Y/N (3 Bad Bitches): Not dead. Just got a text from… Drew.

Ari💣: NO. WAY.

Sam💜: Proof or it didn’t happen.

Y/N: I’m serious. He just asked what I’m doing rn.

Ari💣: WHAT DID U SAY?!

Y/N: Nothing yet. I was about to ask y’all for advice…

Sam💜: Girl. It’s Drew Starkey. U just say ‘yes’ to wtv.

Ari💣: Unless it’s illegal. Then ask us first.

You switched back to Drew’s text, typing nervously.

Y/N: Not much, just catching up on homework. Wsp?

His response was almost instant.

💗Drew💗(Hollywood’s Finest Man): You wanna go for a ride? I’ll pick you up in 40 minutes so You can get all pretty for me.

Your jaw dropped. You scrambled to screenshot the exchange and send it to the group chat.

Y/N (3 Bad Bitches): HELP.

Ari💣: “YOURE GONNA RIDE DREW STARKEY?!

Sam💜: AS U SHOULD. But pics or it didn’t happen.

Y/N: NOT LIKE THAT. He has a motorcycle.

Ari💣: Lame. But also HOT. Go. Now.

Sam💜: Do not flake. I repeat: DO. NOT. FLAKE.

Forty minutes later, you were outside your apartment, fidgeting with your rings then switching to your necklace. You wore a simple Navy Blue sports shirt and black sports leggings. Drew rolled up on a sleek black motorcycle, looking like he’d stepped out of a movie. His black leather jacket gleamed under the streetlights, and his smile was enough to make your knees weak.

“Hey,” he said, pulling off his helmet. He whistled,”Damn, you look amazing” he got off the motorcycle and approached you,”You ready?”

You swallowed your nerves and nodded. “I guess so. But, uh, this is my first time on a motorcycle, so… if I fall off, that’s on you.” You giggle nervously.

He laughed, handing you a helmet. “You won’t. I’ve got you.”

You climbed on behind him, your arms awkwardly hovering until he said over his shoulder, “You’re gonna wanna hold on tighter than that.”

You wrapped your arms around his waist, and before you could second-guess yourself, he revved the engine and took off.

The ride was exhilarating. The cool night air rushed past you, and the city blurred into streaks of light. Drew navigated through the streets with ease, his confidence making you feel safe despite the speed. He didn’t say where you were going, and you didn’t ask.

Eventually, he slowed down and turned onto a quiet, winding road that led to an overlook. When he finally stopped, the view took your breath away. The city stretched out below you, sparkling under the night sky.

“You okay?” Drew asked, helping you off the bike.

“Okay?” you said, laughing. “That was insane. I can’t believe people do this all the time.”

He leaned against the bike, watching you with a soft smile. “It’s my favorite way to clear my head. I figured you might like it.”

You sat on a nearby bench, and the two of you fell into easy conversation. He asked about your favorite late-night snacks, debated whether or not pineapple belonged on pizza, and even admitted his For You Page was mostly filled with dog videos.

When the conversation drifted to music, Drew pulled out his phone. “What’s your playlist like?”

“Please don’t judge,” you said, taking his phone to cue up your favorite songs.

“I can’t promise that, Angel,” he teased, but when Intergalactic Janet (A/N:GO LISTEN) started playing, he nodded approvingly. “Okay, you’ve got taste.”

By the time he dropped you back at your apartment, it was well past 2 a.m.

“I had fun tonight,” you said, pulling off the helmet and handing it back.

“Me too,” Drew replied, his voice soft. “Let’s do it again sometime.”

As you climbed the stairs, your phone buzzed.

Ari💣 (3 Bad Bitches): SO??

Sam💜: Did you survive? Are you still on the bike? Is he shirtless??

Y/N:

Ari💣: LIVING UR BEST LIFE.

Sam💜: No thirst trap. I’m disappointed.

Y/N: Shut up. It was perfect.

Sliding into bed, you replayed the night in your head, a smile tugging at your lips.

Taglist: @strawberries-and-lots-of-kisses @rafesheaven @blackynsupremacy @httpsdrewstarkey @drewstarkeybroughtmehere @drewstarkeyswife622 @esquivelbianca @klauslovemepls @kundaquarius @memoirofasparklemuff1n @p45510n4f4shi0n @rafesheaven @whinyangel @

[mad-not-disappointed]

so i was rereading the transcript to Launch (the episode where the princesses are trying to locate glimmer) and i want to talk about two things i hated about this episode (apart from.. the obvious):

1. i don’t like that the crew’s idea of an autistic person is “has a special interest” and “doesn’t value human life”.

now i get it. neurodivergent people can have trouble reading the room or responding in a way that people expect us to. but we can still recognize a serious situation (especially one where someone is hurt or in need of help) when we see it.

entrapta has always been kind of absentminded, but i feel like in this episode, they made her act like too much of an airhead. she seems to be on the high-functioning end of the spectrum, so i don’t understand the point of making it seem like she can never take anything seriously. she’s rambling about science and space, she’s climbing over tents, knocking shit over, it’s just strange to add in “comedic” bits like this in an episode that’s supposed to be serious. in general, this episode was far too lighthearted than it had any right to be, but entrapta was the worst part of it.

i just feel like she’s portrayed as more of a silly caricature of an autistic person, rather than an actual autistic person. a lot of this is played for laughs as well like “haha look at entrapta, she’s such an idiot, she only cares about science!” and it just feels insulting. we’ve seen entrapta show concern and compassion before, albeit in her own way, like when hordak wasn’t feeling well. so why would she act like this in a situation where someone’s life is at stake?

my problem lies with the writers and not entrapta herself, because it seems like they pick and choose when to make entrapta more empathetic and relatable, and when to make her act like a robot who doesn’t value human life. it’s just weird.

(this is all based on my general knowledge about neurodivergent people and my own personal experience with autism, so if i said something wrong here, feel free to correct me!)

2. the princesses aren’t mad at entrapta because she joined the horde and built weapons that were used to hurt thousands of innocent people, no no no, they were mad that she betrayed them specifically.

it’s all about “us”. not “our people” or “innocent civilians”, just.. “us”. because they’re the only ones affected by the ongoing war, right? everyone else on etheria is completely safe and sound, the princesses suffered the most because their ego was a bit damaged by what entrapta did. sure.

and let’s not forget this:

fucking rich of perfuma to say that they’re supposed to be entrapta’s friends, when SHE’S the one who leashed entrapta and dehumanized her.

and this is the first and only time they mention the kingdoms. which, btw, i may be nitpicking but “destroyed kingdoms” is a very light way to put it. it makes it seem like the horde was just destroying lands and buildings and not, you know, killing or grievously harming very real people. and again, this is all about THEM in the end, they’re acting like the kingdoms were their property, and not a civilisation of real people with real lives.

it’s a subtle way to avoid addressing the real impact of war, because how would we redeem our beloved catra if we acknowledge that she probably slaughtered hundreds of innocent civilians who were just trying to live their lives?

(also i find it funny that the 12 year old is the only one who even attempts to acknowledge the civilians, while the “adults” of the group whine about themselves.)

i’ve said this a million times before but i just don’t understand the idea of writing about war, and then acting like it only affects the people who are fighting it. this was a show written by adults, right? i’m seriously beginning to question it.

and like i said in a previous post, they did not have to make a she-ra reboot. they did not have to write about war. no one forced them to. if you’re choosing to write about a specific topic in a show that is marketed to the general public, especially children, it is your duty to do your research on it and address it accordingly. you don’t even have to do research to understand that war impacts everyone, not just the oppressors and the royalty. that’s just common knowledge. or did these people skip their history classes?

[spampai]

Talk Your Way Out! (Cancelled…)

Well, not exactly…

Prologue Part 4: Queen’s Pursuivants.

Well yeah I knew this was coming-NUH UH THAT AIN’T MY PLAN-

Yeah so I realized that this project ain’t going well, considering the fact that:

1. The script is very messy. YEAH I placed so much good ideas for the upcoming chapters but it feels like it was smooshed in and not well explained. The timeline isn’t explained as well, seeing that people didn’t notice the timeskip between Part 1 and Part 2.

2. The characters are not well put out. I didn’t really explain why they were acting out of character and the readers can’t symphatize well with these characters as they don’t know what the purpose of the scenes are for. Characters are out of character for no reason as I didn’t delve into that until further chapters, which in this case will still make people confused. They can act like they are, but I gotta give an explanation for it, which I failed to do in the current prologue.

3. Many people find it confusing rather than enjoyable. I’ve received lots of feedback on how it was ordered or how the story flows. Basically responding to the feedback and thinking about it more; ya, it is confusing the more I reread it. So yeah, that’s one of the reasons.

4. The execution isn’t as great as I thought I did. People got confused between chapters ‘cause the thought bubble wasn’t really recognizable (my indescribable art is pouring towards the story plotline ☠️). Some scenes are also not portrayed well as I lack the ability to show their positions on where they’re at or what situation they’re in (still kinda bad with that atm, will change soon). Expression and dialogue-wise it’s fine, but I didn’t like how I was using similar formats for the panels or some expressions seemed repetitive. Same goes for the speech bubbles. I still like the dialogues tho.

5. Not much recognition. Ya okay this is probably the least important part of what I want from this project. Yeah okay I admit it that’s also a reason I stopped this project. From the first part to the two other parts, it stopped getting that much attention and I felt like there’s something that’s making people lose interest. I spam reblog as a result, which I regret doing. This is why I even thought about ‘cancelling’ the project.

6. Wrong timing. Always posting it on dead hours, or when the fandom ain’t active. Too impatient, pretty sure. I promote it way too much with spam reblogs, which I still regret.

I changed my reasoning from ‘likes and reblogs will make me famous’ to ‘I need this community to provide feedback so I can improve myself as I grow and eventually get accepted in the ‘big artists’ community from now on.

I’m learning from my mistakes, and basically something for me to experience so I wouldn’t repeat again. So at the moment, it is cancelled…

BUT.

I never said it was cancelled with a period ;)

Stay tuned for my next few posts as it’ll revolve around this situation :))

While waiting, have some scenes of the aforementioned Part 4. I specifically like this part ‘cause I think it potrays these two a lot better, I just didn’t explain why Toadster was acting the way he is, which is repulsive and mean. I’ll be explaining that in my next few posts (No, I don’t ship them btw, I rarely ship characters unless it’s canon in the lore).

As for the deleted posts this morning, I figured it wasn’t the best time to post it, so expect it when the fandom is active again. See ya!

[weirdmageddon]

ur davejade posting has me Remembering and goddddd. theyre so good. thank u

i want to make a davejade analysis masterpost but the funniest thing with these asks is that theyre the ones that really prompt me to put my thoughts together in some direction and i ALWAYS find a new implication or connection to talk about. like while i’m writing the connections will just make themselves known. if i made a masterpost i’d have to update it every time i think of something new which defeats the purpose of a masterpost because it’d never be finished. so i just like to spitball into separate posts and just shove them in my davejade tag. i was NOT expecting to get back into homestuck with davejade at the forefront but i can see things now i didnt then

im gonna go off again because it’s so obvious to me on this jumpy scrambled “reread” that dave has a fat fucking heart-on / affection erection for jade. hes tryin soo hard to be cool but hes like this with jade actually behind the screen and she knows it

words and deeds of a court jester dude who totally has a crush on his childhood internet friend and doesnt acknowledge it (btw this is woefully incomplete for the sake of brevity but i could elaborate in another post. i actually have a draft (edit: posted) with a shit ton of more analysis stuff in it on why he acts differently with her than other characters):

the next day (chronologically) when jade messages him:

hussie commentary: “Dave's one-pixel-smile there means that there are literally more than ten thousand drawings on the internet of Dave and Jade kissing. That pixel literally made that happen.”

i mean … it sure is easy to assume how he feels about jade based on the way he talks to her and when his sprite only ever smiles one other time in the entire fucking comic and the reality of that other one was arguable since it was during [S] Karkat: Mental breakdown and its likely karkat was hallucinating it based on the content and context of the flash

nah this one was real. and it was from the first conversation we saw between dave and jade in the comic and thus set the standard for their dynamic. and remember old school 2009 dave was kind of a menace so it says a lot

this girl was special enough to him to warrant that pixel

jade calling dave a “huge baby” for him getting nervous about a piss while she’s his server player. he makes such a big deal about it while shes like oh my god just go:

and the absurdity of the situation being one of his favorite memories

i know pesterquest isn’t “canon” canon but it passes my character essence check and still contributes something of substance to my argument. like i can say this is not at all out of place if these characters were plopped into these scenarios. remember this takes place on the same day as the above, 4/13/2009. theyre the same age as above and have the same relationship as they did above, just in a different scenario that wasn’t possible in canon wherein they didn’t play sburb

Jade wanders away from that window and toward another one, whose view is exclusively centered on the rolling blue. She presses a hand against the misty pane and sighs. JADE: you know, dave talks a lot about coming to visit me here. i mean, all of my friends do but dave especially JADE: in his usual davey way of course, which means making lots of jokes and not sounding very serious about it JADE: "yeah im itching to put on my safari hat and come traipsing down to doomdeath archipelago to get my ass murdered by infinidog the eldritch retriever," stuff like that JADE: i know he really means it though! he wants to see me, just like i want to see him JADE: but its just wishful thinking

anyway daves reaction to seeing his isolated online friend for the first time irl cry because she has guests. its even better with the character sprites

JADE: we can play with all my toys and jam out to some music and stay up all night chatting with each other and oh my god oh my god youre here youre all here this is really happening!!!!! Jade's next laugh verges on hysterical and she's got tears streaked down her cheeks. Dave looks a little perturbed. DAVE: wow holy shit uh DAVE: its cool jade no need to get so DAVE: like this DAVE: kind of fucks me up seeing you cry DAVE: not that im trying to make this all about me DAVE: i mean uh

and so after mspa reader’s intervention, who do we see with jade the next time we see her?

dave. and hes goofing with her squiddles while grinning

DAVE: okay so lets see what we got here Jade's room is bright and cheery, fresh flowers in the hanging pots, curtains pulled open wide to let in the afternoon sunlight. Jade sits on her bed while Dave paces in front of a line of squiddle toys, carefully assembled in neat ranks. DAVE: this blue one is clearly in charge look at his dominant posture DAVE: also hes the only motherfucker not tentacle deep in his homie DAVE: hes an untangled buddy that is some shit really cuts to the core of like DAVE: DAVE: emotions JADE: its actually because the magnets in him are messed up, and always have been!! DAVE: harley you are ruining the magic come on

basically what im putting together is that dave was REALLY fixin to spend some time with jade. extending into her sphere of interests that he doesnt express much with anyone else; you can tell he really wanted to engage with her in a less irony poisoned way. he’s softer with her than his other friends and god forbid the trolls, he is much less skeptical about things when talking to her (he even questions why he just seems to go along with her eccentric precognitive statements but he doesnt change his attitude about it), he showers her with his music and raps to the point where jade is expectant of getting poetry from him. rap IS poetry. please realize that dave is sending her his poetry, regardless of how goofy it may be. this is the level on which im viewing this at and once you realize this theres no going back. there comes a time in every homestuck’s life where they have to see how dave interacted jade and conclude that he had a cute little puppy crush on her unbeknownst to either of them. and it was adorable. and now, in the year 2023, it’s your time to realize this too. no going back.

and btw it all came back around…………………nimblest son of a bitch who had the gumption to glue a nasty pair of latex cat lips to his face

for a reason that wasnt a joke anymore

don’t think ive seen anyone talk about this parallel at the end to one of their first conversations in the comic. maybe somebody did back in the day but i never saw it

[nebulacollege]

Replies

I procrastinated enough to get a couple of asks, so now I have to make another post where I compile your questions together. I’m very sorry! orz

Anonymous asked:

Who would be more likely to pull the “if I can’t have you then no one can” card on Edmund and murder him in a jealous rage or even for another sick reason?

This ask has been in my box for a month, and the reason why is because I couldn’t figure out how to answer it without spoiling the fuck out of the game lol You’ll get your answer I finish it, I promise. Still, I’ll answer it partially because you’ve been waiting for so long and I feel awkward.

(The more I thought about it, the more I came up with jealousy scenarios that would technically work despite what I write below...)

Niall doesn’t consider Edmund his e- is this a spoiler? Nvm. Niall doesn’t view Edmund as a very important person in his life, so he wouldn’t kill him because he saw Edmund with someone else. In fact, that’s a great argument to bully Edmund even more! He’d do it for other reasons~

Ned would never hurt Edmund on purpose even if he’s dying from jealousy. He’ll probably kill everyone else who looks at Edmund the wrong way, so they’ll be two people left on Earth.

Liam isn’t jealous by nature and he doesn’t really consider Edmund his lover, but he likes him a lot. Edmund’s relationship with any other guy is irrelevant, so, other reasons as well~

My replies are somewhat specific, but I hope not too revealing. Thank you for asking and sorry for keeping you waiting this long!

Anonymous asked:

I read cunningness as something else entirely and I was so confused I had to reread the entire thing again before I realized my mistake

I loved your ask the moment I read it. In fact, I do not consider it a mistake at all. Niall does use his cuntiness because he’s a total cunt. You didn’t read that.

Anonymous asked:

Would you mind if we were to draw your characters with ocs?

That’s... an unusual question that I did not expect to get during such early stages of the Nebula’s development! lol I’ll share my thoughts, if you don’t mind.

I think it’s a little impossible to do this right now in terms of characters being just my vague descriptions from replies and based solely on a handful of sketches that I posted. They don’t have personalities in a proper way, and I haven’t even written them yet in a dialogue once as of today, so it’s hard for me to imagine anyone wanting to draw them when there’s not really much to do with them. Ofc it’s possible to do physically, but I’d hate to see someone being disappointed because my character turned out to be disappointing and not what they imagined after they already wasted their time and effort to draw their OC with them simply due to the lack of knowledge. I’d love people to have the entire image of the characters and the context in which they exist at first. Anyone can draw it even right now, of course, I can’t really stop it, but damn it’s going to be awkward if personalities of someone imagining who Niall is, for example, and who he turns out to be in my writing would be too different. I don’t doubt anyone’s judgment of being able to understand my descriptions, btw, and in addition, I’m not that deep or good with it, but what I plan on writing and what I’ll actually end up writing might be contradicting.

That being said, if and after I finish Nebula at least in some way and it comes out and people can experience it, I don’t really mind whether it’s just an OC or an OC who was created solely as a student for Nebula College. I’d be happy to know that the setting of it was fun enough for people to create their own students and have them interact with the main cast and/or other characters. I see the game closer to a Nitro Chiral experience (in a "harem around a main character" sense), so it feels unusual, but the setting makes it totally plausible. Not to assume that everyone would start dating these douchbags lol

Overall, I guess I don't really mind? It's hard to predict my reaction, tbh.

[i-kai]

OMGGG I DIDNT EXPECT U TO ACTUALLY RESPOND I SRSLY MISSED UR ACC THOUGH i acc just came back from a rlly long hiatus of my own lol

no worries !!!! i completely understand if u dont want to continue the smaus :) ngl im not a big enha stan anymore more of a gg stan rn but i rlly loved ur acc + do reread often bc ur literally so funny ^^

would love to see more of u on here even if not posting for enha !!

love, a moot of urs <3

OFC I LOVE TALKING TO YOU GUYSSSS welcome back btw!!

i’m glad you understand 😕😕 i got less interested in kpop for a while then found myself into kpop again after going to tds3 (for both days WOOHOO) now i’m HOOKEDDDD again

thank you for loving my smaus!! i’m glad they can make ppl smile 💗 its the main reason i started making them

lmk what you guys wanna see on here!!!

[onlyjaeyun]

DADDDYYYSSSS HOMEEEE 🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️ greetings my beloved angel zadie <3 🤲 i have returned ☝️ as i had been spending my time the past few days attempting to collect my thoughts and opinions on CH in order to serve a full complete rant 🙏🏼😁 anywho so i might not be able to cover all the events for the past 3 or so chapters but hello 😀 hoon fist fuck event🧍‍♀️. see now i’m all about obsessive men and all that but what the actual FUCK. wdym jakyung begged him to be vocal but he couldn’t and bro was whimpering moaning AND panting her (yn) name while he was masturbating HELLOOOOOOOOOO 🏃‍♀️ the GRIP i had on my phone while reading that chapter what the hell help me ya allah what the HELLLLLL🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️ im still losing my mind over it cuz not only is hoon hitting them beyoncè notes in the room when he thinks about yn bro ALSO can’t cum WITHOUT the thought of her😀 pussy so good left his dick non-functional 🤕 (i’m losing my sanity btw cuz now i know when hoon finally gets to hit it again 1) bros gonna be cumming the MOMENT he bottoms out and 2) bros gonna turn INTO beyoncè HERSELF.)

there’s just smth about the way that u wrote hoon being so pathetic and desperate for yn it’s just OOOOOO like it HITS THE SPOT MA’AM 🙏🏼 IT DO IT REALLY DO 🙏🏼 💯that whole chapter had me gripping my sheets. and the moment i finished it i started to literally feel earth’s rotation on heeseung i started seeing frequencies on niki i started hearing shapes like that shit altered my brain’s chemistry i’m telling u bro fr fr wallahi 🙏🏼 ANYWHO going back to the hoon fist fuck event (not really just pathetic hoon himself) i know his ass is gonna be dramatically sliding down the wall while gripping his hair and listening to needy by ariana grande when the gc brings up yn’s hook up with fuma 😭 like i know damn well bros gonna film 3 different sad music videos istg. looking at the camera all sad and shit. “you & i” by one direction but make it park sunghoon version. (also yn posting a very revealing sexy bad bitch hot girl summer ahh story with needed me by rihanna after she knows hoon is down bad diabolically expeditious for her When.) (i NEED sunghoon to rip his hair out at that like it’s not a want it’s a need i need him to lose his mind as payback for him being a sassy mf 😒) (u rlly think u the shit bitch. U NAWT EVEN THE FART 🥱) (i literally have no clue why i have beef with sunghoon rn don’t ask 😭) sunghoon u really fumbled the bag dawg 🤣🫵 pathetic ahh. look where your “snowflakes” and “ur parents never loved yous” got you sunghoon. IN MISERY FOR GOOD PUSSY 🤣🤣🤣🤣🫵🫵🫵 (ik he’s gonna win the bag again soon but let me have my moment) anyways sPEAKING OF FUMA 🙈 now when i tell u… that was so embarrassing. fuma why r u like this like r u not embarrassed. r u not ashamed of urself. do u have no dignity. what’s ur phone number. what’s ur address. what’s ur fav type of flower baby? white chocolate or milk chocolate angel boy? (do they make men like fuma anymore 💔) i’m so so so glad yn has a man like fuma in her life. (he did the bare minimum but he better be the fucking standard especially after that aftercare i’m LOOKING AT YOU BITCHASS SUNGHOON 🫵WITH YOUR BIGASS EGO DAMN😟) i can’t wait to see more fuma & yn (and sunghoon’s desperate jealous ass) like im so seated for all the upcoming events with fuma 🫶🏼🫶🏼 anyways so now let me ask u a serious question haha … 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂how do i become tsuki pls i need heeseung so bad this is not a joke😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂like bro i totally wasn’t punching air at all the tsuki & hee references😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂ion even like hee like that it’s coo😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂(typing this shit with tears in my eyes while looking at my heeseung lockscreen💔) idk what i was expecting when i became a heeseung stan hes a PLAYAAAA🗣️ always whoring around ☹️#Hee4DaStreets ❗️ANYWAYS let’s move on i can always reread poison (masterpiece sent from above) anytime which i will be doing very soon bcs i miss my man 🤕🤕

alright now that that’s out of the way idk what to say other than i love the triplets (the older ones) with yn sm 💔 especially jaeyun bcs him & yn r like this 🤞 fr. and hEESEUNG GOT HIS DICK BITTEN 🤣🤣🫵🫵🫵🫵 that’s what your ass gets for whoring around😒😒😒😒(i’m jk don’t jump me) but anywho jaeyun is just like me. idk how to act around hot Women 🙏🏼 (can’t spell women without W!!) he’s so real he represents me in the story so well. anyways thoughts & prayers for jongseong’s nonexistent dry ahh sex life🙏🏼 (side note: jay baby i’m always just a call away🫶🏼) (and to think that i was calling hee a whore i’m sorry *looks away* 😕)

anywho sending u so so so much love babyyyy !! thank u sm for the consistent updates (and i’m really happy u like my asks as much as i like taking over ur inbox with my yapping 😔🫶🏼) sending u so many hugs & kisses take care of urself angel !!! <333

-⁉️

THERES MY BABY GET YOURSELVES COMFY BC WE ARE IN FOR A RIDE LETS GO 🤭🤭🤭🤍

IM SO HAPPY YOU ENJOYED ALL THE RECENT CHAPS AND AS USUAL YOUR REVIEW WILL NEVER NOT MAKE ME GIGGLE AND KICK MY FEET I LOVE AND APPRECIAGE YOU SO MUCH 😭😭😭🤍

1.) hoon's fist fuck event was a rollercoaster for us all and i love how i can tell you went from oh... to oh?? to WHAT THE FUCK?? bc that represents most of us very well im aftaid 🤕 and yk i gotta ghallenge that cocky fucker by twking away his ability to last long bc he's gonna cum the SECOND he gets another taste, we're talking face buried in her cunt hands free just humping the air and shit 🥰🥰

2.) AAAH PLS I LOVE HOW YOU NEVER NOT CLOWN CH!HOONIE BC HE DESERVES IT AND YOU ALWAYS EAT 🤥🤥 not the mvs and pathetic crying i love you sm ngl i was a little worried when i got to the fuma part bc i was like wHAT DID I WRITE ??? but then i realised youre just as down bad as we are 🤕 AND IM SORRY FOR GIVING TSUKI A GF THIS TIME I HAD TO MAKE HIM TAKE ONE FOR THE TEAM AND YOU STAN A FLIRTY LIBRA WHORE SO THIS ISNT MY FAULT AT ALL 🤕🤕🤕

3.) i am SO relieved you guys sre enjoying their dynamics and actually know how close jaeyun and y/n are because their bond will be super important for future chaps!!!!

thank you so so so much for this baby, i hope you're taking good care of yourself and know how much i love and appreciate you 🥺🥺🥺 youre the best, my idol and role model ilysm 🤍💓💗💕💞

[starryjkoo]

have u seen the new Weverse article? The stark difference between how they praised jk and how they trashed jimin in that other article is hilarious. I think it’s time we accept that BTS is basically over. We might get a reunion and couple of songs from them in 25/26 but it’s very clear that the long term plan here is to focus on JK and JK alone. They want him to be the breakout star no matter what. So many comments were made by him and the company hinting at it since the start but the fandom keeps ignoring and excusing everything. Ppl acting dumb whenever JK says things like “ i want to be the one and only” “the biggest “ as if he isn’t a part of BTS. I’m very disappointed in how things turned out in ch2. Everything went to shit after jimin’s debut and we all know why, he really did ruin their plan and as a consequence he got neglected. These Weverse articles are an example of how hype wanted to downplay what jimin did in order to glorify the golden boy. I have zero hope and zero expectations from them when it comes to jimin’s next project, i know they won’t support him if he manages to succeed beyond their expectations, they wouldn’t want any members to surpass JK and they will make sure of that. It’s unfair to all the members not just jm btw but he’s the one who had the most potential with face. I hope JK knows what he’s doing. I won’t be supporting him anymore but i wish him the best of luck.

Yeah, the JK Weverse article is pretty terrible. I think they’re just very aggressively trying to advertise their whole A&R thing with SB. They’ve been doing this consistently and it’s kind of wild how many times SB and these producers and collaborators have been brought up every single time they talk about Jungkook and his success. They’re acknowledging (and sometimes exaggerating) Jungkook’s success but only so they can take credit for it. If you read it again, you’ll notice that every time they praise Jungkook they’re connecting that praise to their system. Like this is their concluding statement -

“Thanks to that, Jung Kook’s been able to collaborate with world-class international pop creatives, to sing songs entirely in English for the whole world, and, in the end, become a pop star who can show off his musical tastes without fear of hitting writer’s block”

So they’re attributing his success to being able to collaborate with western creatives, singing in English, and not having to deal with writers block (which is all thanks to them) and that's what this article is actually about. And they’re again taking credit for his success 😭 The whole article is honestly kind of shady towards Jungkook imo, and it’s weird how they keep bringing up he has no writing or producing credits when that’s not out of the norm. It’s a propaganda piece trying to boost their whole A&R system and it’s why I said in an earlier post I was so frustrated they were making Jungkook’s whole debut not about him, but about SB’s stupid A&R thing.

But concerning Jimin actually, if you don’t remember it, please go and reread the album review they did for FACE. It’s excellent (sounds like it was written by a hardcore JM stan lmao)

Seriously compare this to what they wrote for Jungkook and tell me who you think got the better album review here? If you have time, you should look up the album review they did for Layover too. It was also really good. Compared to those, the JK article is absolutely terrible and a huge disservice to him imo. But it shows you that Golden (to HYBE, not to JK) is just a vehicle for the company to push their agenda - and that’s exactly why they were willing to invest so much into it (and I mean, they're a corporation so I expect it).

The thing with FACE was that it was a personal passion project for Jimin and it was never supposed to be his big commercial breakthrough. Jimin seems to be very aware of the things fans want from him because he just listed them out (blonde hair, conceptual like filter, sexy and showing skin, his signature dance style). When he releases something like that I’ll be curious how they push it because I don’t think he ever planned to promote FACE all that much or for it to have such a massively positive reception, especially in the US where he barely promoted. All the other solo albums have been similarly kind of niche and more like passion projects so I'm waiting to see how they treat a release by another member that's more commercial and targeting GP (and if they're forced to work with SB's team). JK is the only one who went for a big commercial release so far (maybe YG but k hip-hop is not a mainstream genre - but he did do some interesting stuff like w/ the NBA. Actually Le Sserafim also did something with the NBA recently, so I’m guessing HYBE has an in there now).

The whole Justin Timberlake thing was super shady though because most people should know that by saying that it severely shades the rest of the group. And the Morgan Wallen article was trash, not only because it shaded Jimin, but because they were uplifting such a nasty racist white man who is a hugely controversial figure in the US that the academy won’t even acknowledge, so that goes to show you how out of touch some of those writers are. IIRC that article was also mainly talking about the importance of radio, but I’m not going to go back and give it clicks.

And I do believe JK when he says BTS is his priority. Sure he said he wanted to be a big pop star, but he also said that the group is more important to him than solo work and that he’s going to focus on that before another solo album and made all sorts of similar comments. If he really enlists with the other guys when he could easily stay around to ride the momentum and keep building his solo career I think it makes it pretty clear where his priorities lie (not saying I would blame any of them for not enlisting right away either btw). I just really hope that SB is not going to keep being personally involved with him because it’s clear none of these people actually care about JK or his artistry or whatever, they just want to use him and take credit for everything he achieves. But I also don’t blame JK for agreeing to Golden because he loves that kind of music and was probably a fan of those producers, and it was brought to him by BangPD, someone who he trusts and who even Jimin went to for advice for FACE.

I think we just have to wait and see what happens but all the members are extremely ambitious, they’re seriously monsters, and there’s no way they’re going to be okay falling off or behind JK. But none of them as soloists are ever going to be as big as BTS either imo and I think HYBE knows that too. This is all just media play to fluff up the value of their whole HYBE US thing that they’re using JK as the poster boy for. ARMYs are even getting antsy and wanting the rest of the members to enlist - the BTS brand is just way too massive at this point.

Also as long the members are able to keep getting all the resources they need to release whatever kind of music they want I’m happy. It was cool Jimin was able to work for almost a year with literally the highest paid producer in SK for a project he was thinking about releasing as a free mixtape. That creative freedom is seriously priceless. It’s way more valuable to me than a place on TTH’s and I would think Jimin would probably think similarly too. Jimin also hasn’t really released anything proper since FACE, so I’m just going to wait and see what happens. He did renew so that gives me hope that he has a solid amount of power there. I get why some people are done but I still think it's going to be okay personally, just occasionally very frustrating.

[cha1cedony]

Okay fine I’ll do one of these (because I like to talk about myself hehehe). Thanks @roboobin for tagging me B)

A very long ‘get to know me’ post below…

Last song: Apparently it was ‘Two Time’ - Jack Stauber, according to Spotify? I’ve also been relistening to a few tracks from Falsettos all day, for some reason. ‘I’m Breaking Down’ got stuck in my head somehow. I’m not super big on musical theater, but I LOOOOVE Falsettos and especially Trina :) You can probably tell I have a certain type of favorite characters/media lol.

Favorite color: Light greyish blue (or white, grey, silver, orrrr light greyish green?)

Last movie: I actually have no idea. Maybe Nimona with my IRLs a few months ago? I almost NEVER watch movies in full because I get bored of them easily. Sorry I know that’s so lame lololol

Currently watching: A commentary YouTube video to use as background noise while I do my writing assignments lol. Like I said, I don’t really watch a lot of movies or TV :/

Currently reading: Nothing, unfortunately! I haven’t read any books/stories in an embarrassingly long time :( I am so ridiculously busy and haven’t had the time/motivation to read and get invested in new characters. I have a bunch of series I want to reread for nostalgia purposes, though. I’m also strangely tempted to read the Animorphs series? LOL. I looked it up on AO3 for the first time a few months ago while in the kids’ section of the library with my IRLS and we were assessing the popularity of kids’ books based on the amount of AO3/Wattpad fics (btw, there are a shockingly low amount of Geronimo Stilton fics in the world). I wasn’t expecting there to be an Animorphs fandom, but there IS? And the fics are really GOOD even though I don’t know the source material? Anyway. Tempted to read it because I like putting teens in situations /lh. Also I want to read more short stories! Send me recommendations, if you have any.

Last thing I googled: This is so embarrassing. ‘Bathroom cruising’ LMAOOOO. I was just writing a funny bit, but I wanted to make sure it was accurate, okay? T_T Other recent searches include my voice lesson Lieder, various areas I’ve felt pain recently (because I’m a hypochondriac /lh), and a vlog I had to watch for my job… I was writing an article about it.

Sweet/spicy/savory: Savory. Every time. I love savory foods, and they’re basically the only types of food I ever crave. Then I would go with spicy, but only if it’s spicy in a flavorful way (and not just a painful way). I don’t like sweet foods except for chocolate—and, even then, I am infamous among my friends and acquaintances for only liking SUPER dark chocolate… like 70% cocoa or more. I would say my favorite flavor profile is bitter! :)

Current obsession: I think y’all already know :^) I am incapable of having more than one strong interest at once, soooo DnDads has quite literally been occupying my brain since liiiike October 2022… almost a year ago now! o_o Holy shit. I’ve been really busy with work and school in the past month or so, so I haven’t done basically anything else in my free time. I’d like to start cross stitching again because I have some projects to finish, and I got some of my late grandmother’s jewelry-making supplies recently, so I’ll toy around with that, too.

Currently working on: Like, right this second? Discussion post replies for my Writing in Digital Environments course :p In general? As far as hobbies go, the beginnings of my next longfic chapter! As far as work goes, I’m working on article about a mural. I have to drive like 30 mins to get a features image for it tomorrow ugh. At least I get to kill time on the clock :’)

I don’t want to tag anyone in particular, but, obviously, if you want to do this, you can just say I tagged you. Shhh I won’t tell ;) hehehe

[emoticonheart]

Hiii I’m the person who’s ask you recently answered!! Thank you so much!!! Your words mean so much to me as well!!! ❤️

I’d read your works on ao3 for a long time, without noticing you had a tumblr somehow (LMAO) and when I found your account literally I felt blessed from the heavens above. Your account introduced me to this tumblr community and I’ve been (awkwardly) lurking around it since!! Seriously I’m so happy to see you replying to my ask, I’ve loved your works for a long time!!!

Please never ever feel bad about not posting a lot! I totally get not using your account a lot I don’t really use my tumblr as frequently as other apps (tbh I really only open it to look at burping stuff lol)! Also obviously your life doesn’t revolve around your account LOL it’s perfectly understandable to not have to post all the time! I would never be able to maintain a steady stream of posting that’s for sure!! I only really mentioned Flexsteel so much because it’s my absolute favourite fic of yours literally it checks off all the boxes for things I adore in a burp fic!! (Seriously I struck gold finding it I swear) I of course love all your other writing and posts as well. I promise you I literally devour WHATEVER you post! I’ve read all your fics over countless times!! I’m eager and excited to see anything new you make!

Anyways, thank you for all the amazing work! Please take however much time you need to make your posts/fics, seriously I don’t mind!! I’m ecstatic to know I’ll always be in your thoughts when writing! ❤️

I talked too much again oops (We both do that I guess lol!!) but thank you again!! (Also I forgot to say this earlier but your posts are legitimately soooo hot omg 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫 I feel like a feral animal after reading anything u make LMAO)

ALSO HI HELLO I OPENED UR AO3 ACCOUNT YESTERDAY EXPECTING UR NORMAL AMOUNT OF WORKS I WAS DEFINITELY NOT EXPECTING A NEW ONE???? IM SO HAPPY THANK YOU SO MUCH🙏🙏🙏🙏 literally when I tell you I GASPED so loud!! Thank you soooo much for feeding me (and everyone else in this community)!! (I’ve already read it all btw, it was ABSOLUTELY amazing, will probably reread it like 100 times like all your other stories!! Emery and Drew are absolutely adorable!!) ❤️❤️❤️ I’m so happy to have accidentally stumbled upon your new fic! What a coincidence!

in response to this post!!

omg you are just the sweetest 😭 thank you so much for your kind words and feedback, it truly does mean the world to me!!

i really appreciate your understanding when it comes to the frequency of my posts/updates. i think the burnout is usually the biggest factor for my inactivity, but i also think that the... horniness levels? for lack of a better word hahaha but that plays into it as well. for example, one week i could be like SUPER horny and like consume burp content constantly, and then two weeks later i'm like eh i could go without it for a bit. i can't explain why this happens hahaha but it's pretty common for me tbh.

and i totally get how you feel about flexsteel; it has a special place in my heart, too!! (am i allowed to say that? well, too late i guess i already did hahaha). but do you wanna hear something funny? i actually had no plans on writing anything like flexsteel.

so basically after i posted pride, or lack of it, someone commented that they loved it and wanted to see more of ashley. i let them know that i had been playing with the idea of rewriting the same story but just in ashley's pov (i've actually been playing around with that same idea with at your worst, where it's the same story but in zoe's pov... but we'll see hahaha) but they said that it might be best to just continue ashley's story. so i decided fuck it yk? so i started writing and then just like INSTANTLY fell in love with ashely and lily. so yeah i'm not normally responsive with people being pushy with their requests but in this case it seems it was for the best hahaha

and about that new story, i guess the timing just worked out really well!! like i mentioned before, i waited until i was completely done with it before i posted it, so i'm glad it found you when it did and that you were able to enjoy without being starved for updates hahaha

but yes i'll shut up now. thank you so much again for this ask!!!!

[kaz3313]

Hey, I know you used to be a writer. What do you do when your beta reader is angry at you for writing a scene they were looking forward to differently from what they expected? And how to rebuild confidence after receiving feedback so scathing it makes you want to never write again, crawl into a hole and die?

Woah! So first off, I’m so sorry this is happening to you. I don’t know how you know your beta/how close you were before this- If you were close before maybe tell them the truth of how it hurt you. (I fully understand btw if you just don’t want to talk to them at all, but this is just an outside perspective of “maybe they didn’t realize how harsh it is”). If you feel comfortable telling them, maybe even tell them you don’t think the feedback was very fair too.

On the other hand, building up confidence can be difficult but I may have better advice for that. I don’t know where you post/if you post your work but rereading comments always brings me a smile and gives me some motivation. Finding a small community of cheerleaders also helps- Cheerleaders are a little like betas but more of “you got (blank) done today! Wooo!!” Etc etc. They’re like little hype men. I find writing/small fandom discords are nice (tho, ofc, sometimes there’s drama in those🥲).

I find another thing that helps, is instead of bigger projects. Is to make a few Drabble/oneshots/smaller writing work. One setting or idea at a time (or an AU of your characters/fandom). I’m not sure if you write fic or OG work.

I actually am quite active still on ao3- I just haven’t been posting too much on tumblr recently. <3 If you need a writing buddy or cheerleader feel free to DM here Or on Discord Kaz5588.

Im sending you lots of good wishes Anon 💕💕 Please keep writing and I’m very sorry about the trouble with your beta 🫂

[hard-core-super-star]

do you have any Kate fics that make you feel exactly like this? melting from so much cuteness and giggling and stuff like that. oh okay, so this happens more when you reread it than when you write it down, noted, it's just that it seems hard to keep a straight face while writing things like this mostly smut or maybe the cutest life-changing, heart-warming thing in the world. lmao, I think you can steal this. I mean, give it a try???jshakksks. yes, it does. 🫠

I don't know if it would be fair for me to say it since you didn't say some things either- yeahhh I won't get over it. I'm here to see what would happen. It wasn’t a good surprise tho😭😭

SEE?? how can this be a problem? this is something cool. you can literally claim 19 as your lucky number. you still remember what she replied??

YEP LMAO, it's okay, I didn't expect superman tho, if that's any use. tumblr is the social media you use most? It literally has nothing to do with the subject of tiktok but I was curious. “I feel so old” — said a 19 year old. I feel like that too hdkska. sometimes it's strange to feel like a grandma, but not just anyone... those with conservative beliefs, this is the peak of rock bottom.

yeah, you can call that a win. now I don't know how to create a context to let this person know, and my brain can't work right now lmao.

poor rubix's brain, besides melting and freak out almost all the time, it works all the time- I don't think I've ever heard of 8 Ocean 🤔 stop, that shouldn't sound that funny skehwjkak. NO???? I MEAN, SAYING THEY'RE NOT IMPORTANT DOESN'T HELP AT ALL!! mhmm, I just did it 🙃

– 🌟

ask me again in the morning and i might be able to pull enough braincells together to give you a list of fics that aren't just my own lmao. weirdly enough, writing smut can sometimes be easier than writing fluff 😶 it’s definitely hard to keep a straight face with both and, if i’m at home, i usually have to take breaks and walk away before i start giggling at my own lines. it’s easier to appreciate what i write when i don’t wait until the last minute to write it. great, it’s halfway to going on my wall 👍 it sounds both hilarious and awful lmao.

i think it would be extremely fair. and in return i’ll spill some more of my very obvious thoughts. you just love to cause chaos and make my heart stop every few sentences, don't you?

i don't know, i’m still not convinced but i’m glad you find it entertaining and not weird. and yeah, of course i remember, i think it's going to be engrained in my brain forever. i basically just sent something saying how cool the music videos for the Crybaby singles had been so far and she thanked me [and called me by my name which was quite the experience] and talked about how fun the music videos had been to shoot. it's nothing like super significant but it was unexpected and i still think about it to this day because…well, it’s tegan. i don't think i have to say anything else.

it certainly does help me feel a little better so i’ll take it. a win is a win. yeah, Tumblr is mainly it, i still use Instagram but the things i post are random af and basically just for my self and my before mentioned only friend. i know i’m technically not old but damn, people my age are annoying af. with a few exceptions of course but 🙃 is thinking kids shouldn't be allowed to have phones at such a young age really a slightly conservative belief? i think it's just common sense tbh.

something tells me the person will know so you don't have to worry too much about it 👀

not this again akskdjdjsjsj yeah, my brain is quite overwhelmed all the time, it's not as fun as it sounds. i can't recommend it enough, fuck the critics. here are two reasons to watch it, ready? sandra bullock and cate blanchett. what more do you need??? if you need gay subtext, it's definitely there, btw. I ALREADY APOLOGIZED FOR THE MISUNDERSTANDING, WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT FROM ME??? thank you for this, i’ll be thinking about it until i fall asleep.

[amethysttheanarchist]

Hey there! I just read your post about liking Bobs Burgers and your feelings being hurt because of how the situation was handled (I totally agree with you btw). I noticed that at the bottom of the post you had some autism hashtags. I’m not trying to be rude, I’m just curious: were the tags related to the show or related to you? Meaning, are you autistic? Again, I’m not trying to be rude, my 3 year old son has moderate autism and I was intrigued by your post as (although he’s nonverbal), things like that bother him too.

So I am autistic and bobs burger is my special interest which I why I tagged it.

Thank you for asking though :D

On an unrelated note, I absolutely wanna say thank you for everyone's really nice messages on that post, I did not expect it to blow up the way It did. I keep going back and rereading all the comments on it and I get all excited and happy so thank you for turning my shitty day into a really good day :)

[dressycobra7]

This is just a little thought dump again cuz omgggg I loved this chapter!!! And no worries about it taking longer! Take ur time and I can’t wait to see what you’ll do 💜

this is out of order again btw cuz I wrote part of it while rereading

““I’d say breakfast is ready, but it's way past time for lunch,” he jokes, his smile slowly disappearing when you don't respond.” Awww him trying to lighten Readers mood 🥺

“The sincerity with which he delivers his answer comes up against everything, and you, for the first time, believe him wholeheartedly.” please excuse me while I go ball my eyes out like a baby 😭😭 he’s being so sweeeet 😭 ugh I’ve been loving so much how u write this man!

I really loved the whole Zeke trying to bond/maybe comfort (idk what the right word is to use here) with Reader through playing catch. I thought it was really sweet and touching.

Also I do gotta say you’ve been making me love this man way too much 😂😭 like I gotta keep on reminding myself that he was also an asshole in canon. Like of course he had his sweet moments in canon like with Eren and the warriors but he was also… definitely a jerk. (Then again he was in a war but whatever) I do love seeing u write this side of his character though cause I haven’t really seen people write him that way before.

I loved too them having that discussion of Reader going to Paradis which I do gotta say I was kinda surprised at reader bringing that up and her bringing up Tom Ksaver. Like obviously I knew she had already talked with Zeke a bit about it (in the 2nd chapter) but I definitely wasn’t expecting her to bring Tom up. I’m very curious to know what exactly Reader has told Zeke so far within the past two weeks when it comes to the story of aot

I’m also very curious to see what will be happening next chapter since u brought up Reiner in that last post of yours. I’m excited to see how u write my man 🤭

oooo ok also quick thing cause I noticed this and wasn’t sure if this was just a mistake or not but I noticed that when Reader said “Give me a break, old man, I started learning it only a few months ago.” She said months??? When she’s only been there 2 weeks timeline wise so far? So I was just curious about that

also loved reader giving Zeke a hug at the end there. I thought it was really cute! Overall it was definitely a very good chapter and I love the amount of info u gave and everything! Can’t wait for the next one 💜

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐤𝐞𝐲 | eren jaeger chapter 5

⊱𖣂⊰ | In which you fall into a fictional world with the key to Pandora's box.

⊱𖣂⊰ | masterlist

⊰– prev   next–⊱

𝟎𝟓 | 𝐧𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

chapter word count: 3.1 k

content warnings: mild dissociation, blanket warnings

a/n: So! Chapters may be more spaced out from now on. I've got six halfway written and seven and eight outlined, but I'm swamped in schoolwork rn, so the updates will have to take a backseat. I swear I wont abandon this though, I already got way too attached to it. Anyway, I offer you this plot-continuing chapter. I hope it answers some of your questions and leaves you with some more.

Thanks for reading!

𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐖𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐔𝐏 𝐓𝐇𝐄 next day with a bitter taste on your tongue. You lay unmoving, in a similar way to your first morning. The only difference is, there is nothing in your mind. No anxieties, no thoughts, no nothing. The you two weeks ago would be embarrassed, but now you just feel numb. 

You vaguely remember snapshots of yesterday, although you still can't recall specific sounds or sensations. Everything —the past, present, and future— is stuck in a haze. Even nature seems to be aware of this, as you can’t hear the soft coos of birds outside your window, or the rustling of leaves as wind passes through them. 

Time ticks by, and the shadows in your room morph as the sun traces its revolution in the sky. They get longer, fuzzier, and they move around the space as if chasing some unobtainable treasure. 

You can relate, you think.

Your fingers reach out to them, before your hand falls limply to the floor. You graze the wooden floor with the tips of your fingers, the coldness to the touch diverging with the warm blankets. When they collide with something solid below your bed, you sigh, closing your eyes. 

You stand up and kneel before it, gently taking the small box you had stashed under there. The latch clicks when you open it, and your old clothes, the ones from home, greet you. You run your hands across the cushy fabric, softened after many trips to the washing machine. 

A chuckle spills from your lips at the sight. If you’d known you'd be whisked away when dressing up that morning, you would have chosen something comfier, maybe more nondescript. It turns into a sob when you bring it towards your face and you discover that it barely smells of home anymore. 

Unlike yesterday, no tears begin to fall from your puffy eyes. You are too tired to spiral again, your tear ducts too dry to spill over. You simply stay on your knees, caressing the fabrics over and over again. 

Your door creaks open, and Zeke’s head pops in, zeroing on you. 

“Hey, kid,” he says after a beat. “How are you feeling?”

You pay him no mind, not even turning to look at him. His boots fall heavily to the floor as he walks towards you, and it is only when he kneels next to you that you shift your gaze to him. You swallow, nothing coming out of your mouth as you open it to answer.

“...Hungry,” you finally croak.

He nods, helping you up. 

“I’d say breakfast is ready, but it's way past time for lunch,” he jokes, his smile slowly disappearing when you don't respond. 

Zeke looks down at the box in your arms, noting its presence. He hesitates for a moment, and delicately takes it from you to place it on your desk. You let him, watching as he closes the box, but leaves the latch open.

He guides you downstairs, where a steaming bowl of something is waiting for you in the kitchen. 

You robotically take the cutlery and begin eating, scooping up spoonfuls of thick soup. The warmth returns the color to your skin, and your complexion begins to look less gray. Your thoughts start to flow once more, and you eat with newfound energy.

“Didn’t you have a meeting today?” you ask softly, putting down your empty bowl. 

“I got off early.”

He shrugs, like it's no big deal that the War Chief got off early on a meeting about a developing war. You look at him, skeptical, and you're tempted to once again start over analyzing his actions. Your attempt falls flat with his explanation, though. 

“You were sick, kid,” he says, as if it is the most obvious thing in the world. “I couldn’t leave you alone all day.”

You want to cry again, You turn his statement, tone, words, everything, over and over, trying to find a second, secret motive for it. The sincerity with which he delivers his answer comes up against everything, and you, for the first time, believe him wholeheartedly. 

You look down, furiously blinking away a new wave of tears. You're not quite sure why they threaten to fall; it could be the residue emotions from yesterday, your conflicted feelings about your world, or Zeke’s genuine confession. Maybe you don't want to know. 

Silence settles over the room again, only this time it’s reassuring, not constricting. Zeke doesn’t ask about the stray tears that you fail to contain, instead choosing to return to his lunch. You’re grateful you don't have to offer an explanation, knowing still that he would listen to you if you wanted to give him one. 

Zeke takes your plate after he finishes his, making a beeline towards the sink. You let the sound of flowing water fill the atmosphere, while you contemplate the day before you. As you glance out the window, you notice that the sun is already past halfway through the sky, streaking it with stripes of gold and orange. 

Your cheek rests on your palm, and you trace over the lines of the wooden table with your other hand. Maybe you could work on your written vocabulary. 

You hum, as you think about the book you are one third through decoding. You don’t like the prospect of being alone in your room, but there are limited options as to what you can do now. 

A thud interrupts your musings, and you tilt your head up to see what Zeke had dropped at the table. Your breath hitches when a white baseball rolls over to you. 

“Want to play?” Zeke asks. 

You tentatively grasp the object in your hands, bringing it from one palm to the other. To anyone else, this offer would be seen as what it plainly was; an invitation to play catch. To you, however, it reads like an olive branch. Zeke was offering you the one part of his past he looked back fondly to. 

“...Yeah.”

Only three people had interacted both with the ball and with Zeke in the original series. Ksaver, his mentor; Colt, his successor; and Eren, his brother. A new category opened up in the list– you, his ward. 

The white baseball flies through the breeze, parting the air around it with a whizz. You catch it in the leather glove in your hand, before grabbing it and lightly throwing it back to Zeke. He stands across a small patch of grass behind the house, the space being deemed as the current ballpark.

You had been at it for some time, and both pink and purple joined the array of colors above. Baseball was never a thing that popped into your head as a pastime, school work and other hobbies taking the priority of your free time. 

It is, however, great to keep your mind occupied. The mindless duality of throwing and catching –as well as the repetitive nature of it– gives you something easy to do, with no risk of overthinking the action. 

On the other hand, you needed to be sharp to catch the ball and then measure how much energy you would push into it. This helped you concentrate on it, instead of letting it blend in with your environment. 

The cool wind blows across your neck’s nape, bringing some relief in the afternoon sun. Your mind is too occupied with the game to linger on your breakdown yesterday, and you let your emotions flow through you, catching them and releasing them just like the ball. 

Emotions are a fickle thing. They are the reason for the titans, for the connections between people, for the conflicts that ruled the world. They are the very thing that drove the story, and the very thing that ended it. Feelings are as impulsive as they are irrational. And so, on an impulse, you take a very, very, rash decision. 

“I want to go to Paradis,” you say, throwing the ball back at him. 

Zeke freezes as the weight of your statement settles in. The ball lays still in his baseball glove and he makes no move to toss it in your direction. After a beat, Zeke speaks up. 

“You want to go to Paradis…?”

You nod, swallowing 

He throws the ball back, and it lands in your glove with a thump. 

“Is there a reason you’ve decided to tell me this?”

“I know the timeline of your plan.” Your heartbeat quickens and you look down. “This isn't where I’m meant to be, and I- '' you hesitate for a moment, hoping the vulnerability of your request aids you in its acceptance. “I want to go home. As soon as I can.”

The ball flies again towards Zeke. You throw it with more force than normal, and your downturned gaze means you don't see exactly where you toss it, going off purely of muscle reflex. 

And still, you hear the telling thump that indicates that Zeke has caught it. 

“And what exactly do you plan to do?” he asks. “The timeline can’t move up, no matter how much we wish it to.”

In a sense, Zeke is right. The original plan went like it went simply because of the time it took to bring Paradis’ technology somewhat close to that of the rest of the world. And that is without mentioning the allies that would be introduced later on. The Azumabitos and the Tyburs all had their role to play, if things continue on as they were fated to. 

And if things continued like they were fated to, and you still found yourself with no way home, then at least you'd be spared of the rumbling. You don't want to take your chances with the rest of the Eldians and Marleyans at Fort Salta. 

“I can help you,” you offer. It is a Hail Mary, one you aren’t sure Zeke believes a hundred percent. “Besides, the other Volunteers will be there too, won't they? Yelena can keep an eye on me for all I care.”

You catch the ball as it is flung to you, tossing it once, twice up in the air before pitching it to Zeke. 

“I know you have no reason to trust me on this. But all I want is to go home.” 

Zeke examines the sphere in his glove, and you know he is considering your offer. You suppose the proposal is tempting; you are a wildcard that could, at the very least, be a thorn on the road to achieve his goal. And yet, you could also make it easier.

“If I did decide to send you,” he starts slowly, “–and it’s not definite, just a hypothetical– I need to know that we are on the same page. About everything.”

You nod. The imaginary page in question had been scribbled all over with the details discussing the small-scale version of the Rumbling as well as the (not so) fun bonus of the sterilization plan. Half truths with a dose of lies; that’s how you and Zeke operated with each other. Now, he was asking for honesty. 

“I want out the moment you enter the paths.”

“And you're well within your right to demand so,” Zeke concedes. “After all, there's nothing more tragic than being dragged into a fight that is not one’s own.”

Fight. 

You could very well be fighting not only other people, but fate itself. Has this already been decided? You want to argue that no, that your presence here was a new variable, that you could argue with Eren that this was proof that the future could change. 

And if you failed… then maybe at least you could have the small comfort that you tried. And you would be in Paradis, unaffected by the Rumbling.  

“Okay,” you breathe out, catching once more the ball Zeke throws at you. 

A small lifetime ago Tom Ksaver and Zeke Jaeger stood in the very same positions you both stand in now, the mentee becoming the mentor, the new apprentice once again having more answers than the teacher. The euthanasia plan comes to light anew, along with the name of Zeke’s old mentor. 

“So. Ksaver’s plan?”

Thump

“Just how far does that story cover?”

Thump

You shrug, drawing back your arm with the glove. “It's just snapshots. I couldn’t tell you his favorite color, for example.”

Thump

“Fascinating,” Zeke responds. “Do you know how it came to be?”

Thump

“Something about not being born equals no misery?”

The ball flies off to Zeke, who keeps it. He turns it in his palm, throwing it up in the air and catching it again. His eyes trace the path the ball takes above his outstretched hand, and you see how his gaze turns reminiscent, his words heavy and his sentences anchoring to the reality Ksaver presented to him a little over a decade ago.

“All of our grief, all our suffering, it has no place in this world. It exists in us, perpetuated by the fear we instill in the people. And so, if we had never existed in the first place, neither would our torment nor the fright titans cause.”

You nod, your gaze a tad distant, as the ball soars towards you. 

Tom Ksaver had been enthralled when Zeke had proposed the eradication of all Eldians, via the elimination of their ability to reproduce. Both men were governed by their trauma, its invisible hands molding the clay of their stories. 

Ksaver’s dead wife and son pushed him to seek a grandiose way to end his life. He looked for the son who never got the chance to grow up in Zeke, and was comforted when their views intersected. He died with Zeke as his successor in titan, research, and objectives.

Zeke’s trauma had defined his goals. Always going against what Grisha had traced in his future, and yet still being so cosmically intertwined with the man. He had gained solace when he believed he had found someone similar in his younger brother. 

Through the same circular glasses, their point of view was equally clouded by their experiences. 

“I am… very sorry it had to come to this.”

Zeke shrugs. “It's not your responsibility to apologize, kid. You weren’t even born into this world–how could you possibly bear its burden?”

You suppose he is right. Zeke’s point of view hung on the divine burden the sins of their forefathers had placed at their backs, and you, without a drop of Eldian blood in your veins to damn you, were guiltless before the slaughter. 

You double up on the commendation for his cause, hoping to secure a ticket to Paradis Island among the Volunteers.

“Still. I find it honorable how you chose to shoulder this responsibility.”

The statement deals in half truths. 

You truly are in awe of Zeke’s determination and conviction in his own plan, regardless of the abhorrent nature of it. But he doesn’t need to know of your disagreement, just of your admiration. 

You swear you see his eyes get misty before he turns his head to the side, effectively blocking you from confirming it. Soft coos in the trees rise in nature’s harmony, and you watch as Zeke adjusts his glasses, discreetly wiping away stray teardrops before they become apparent. 

You and Zeke talk well into dusk, only retiring inside when the sun dips beneath the horizon, giving way to the first stars in the sky. No agreement is reached, and Zeke skitters around the subject for the remainder of the conversation. 

The fire crackles beneath the stove as Zeke whips together a small dinner, and the smell of toasted bread fills the kitchen’s air.

“ –and I’m just saying,” you continue with your side of the argument, “who do you think your brother would have an easier time trusting? A bunch of adults who he views as enemies? Or someone his age, who can pose as a victim from Marley?” 

“That’s true,” Zeke acknowledges, most likely remembering the single time they met, along with Reiner’s account. “He is rather… brash.”

You don’t tell him that it was Eren who originally sought out Yelena, to then pretrend to be on board with Zeke’s plan. Trust was a minor detail in the equation, and Eren simply relied on his future memories and carefully built facade to get him through. In the end, he didn’t need to trust them, just manipulate them enough so they could be useful.

“So I can go? Please?”

“Eat your dinner.”

“But-”

“You were sick yesterday, eat your dinner.”

Like a moody teenager, you huff at Zeke’s reply, shoveling a slice of bread into your mouth. The jam in it was delicious, but you weren't about to compliment the cooking of the chef when the chef in question was being a jerk and avoiding the topic. 

“Whatever,” you mumble between bites. 

One would think you were arguing about some party you didn't have permission to go to, or some unjust punishment caused by failing grades. Certainly not a world-altering conspiracy and a trip to the dubbed Devil’s Island. 

Zeke stands up with a sigh, and you look at him questioningly as he walks out the kitchen. Damn, you think. Had your pleading finally annoyed him into an early bedtime?

You don't wait alone for long, though, and Zeke once again enters the kitchen after the sound of rummaging in the adjacent room ceases. His hands hold a sheet of paper and a pencil, you notice, as he walks towards you.

The chair Zeke pulls screeches against the floor, and he sits down next to you. A pencil and paper are placed in front of you, the writing utensil rolling towards your hand. You take it before it falls, and your eyes dart between the paper and Zeke. 

There, in scribbled writing, lies another twenty six symbol alphabet, different from the Marleyan one you’ve been learning. The unfamiliar runes stare back at you, and you tilt your head with furrowed brows, trying to decipher the meaning of Zeke’s offering. 

“What is this?” you ask, pointing at the sheet with the pencil in your hand. 

“The Eldian alphabet,” Zeke answers. 

Your eyes widen, and your gaze flits between them both. 

“Wait. So I'm…?”

“Yes.” Zeke nods as he takes a seat again. “I’ll have to talk to Yelena, rework some points of the plan. But you are going to Paradis.”

Your sudden hug catches Zeke by surprise, and you squeeze him tightly, wanting to transmit the depths of your gratitude. Finally, finally some of your anxieties about your fate in this world will be quelled.

“Thank you,” you mumble against his shoulder. 

“Of course.” He pats your back comfortingly. “And you better not slack off on Marleyan either, Gabi told me you still struggle with fluent reading.”

The sentimental atmosphere shatters. That snitch. 

“Give me a break, old man, I started learning it only a few months ago.”

“Sure.”

You pull away from the hug, rolling your eyes at his comments. Zeke chuckles, and his gray eyes find yours again.

“I’ll get you home, kid. I promise.”

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