#my bug army grows....

[leitmotif]

NEW BUGS. SHAKING THE BARS OF MY MINECRAFT PRISON. NEW INSECT CAFE BUGSSSSSS

[galacticnova3]

Gotta submit via tag since asks don’t allow pictures and I’m getting the bugged submissions page, but! @onenicebugperday

Found a unique little guy and now it gets to join my other unique little guys!

Here’s the new lad and its roommates. I assume they’re all Armadillidium vulgare; one that looks like the usual wild type(if not on the lighter end of the spectrum), a T- albino(I actually found two of them a few days apart, but sadly one unexpectedly kicked the bucket several weeks ago), and then the mystery morph that I’m not entirely sure about. Possibly a T+ albino since I found it under the same rock the other two had been vibing under, but I don’t know enough about pillbugs to be sure. I just know Oat Milk is the color of their namesake when not full of food. (Names pending for the other two)

Here the pale fellas are, being friends! Alas the other one was uninterested in joining them and wanted back on the punk wood asap

Oh, and a few months ago there was this absolute unit that had a lot of yellow on it compared to the ones I usually find. Very pretty!

In the past I never used to pay much attention to these little guys, but I’ve since seen the error in my ways and now keep an eye out for any that look different from the norm. I’m hoping to start a colony and get more of these particularly neat fellas for my terrariums! And to maybe get folks irl to appreciate them as more than just the weird little gray balls that get stuck in the house.

One final thing: I’ve been keeping one of Ipoaf’s babies, and they are getting so big and strong! On their way to being habituated to handling too, we haven’t had a jumping on to carpet incident in several weeks now.

Striking the “do you have games on your phone” pose just like their mom already!

I haven’t thought of a name yet, but it’ll definitely be easier to explain than Ipoaf’s, and also ideally not make me seem ridiculous.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Podcasting “Capitalists Hate Capitalism”

I'm touring my new, nationally bestselling novel The Bezzle! Catch me in Torino (Apr 21) Marin County (Apr 27), Winnipeg (May 2), Calgary (May 3), Vancouver (May 4), and beyond!

This week on my podcast, I read "Capitalists Hate Capitalism," my latest column for Locus Magazine:

https://locusmag.com/2024/03/cory-doctorow-capitalists-hate-capitalism/

What do I mean by "capitalists hate capitalism?" It all comes down to the difference between "profits" and "rents." A capitalist takes capital (money, or the things you can buy with it) and combines it with employees' labor, and generates profits (the capitalist's share) and wages (the workers' share).

Rents, meanwhile, come from owning an asset that capitalists need to generate profits. For example, a landlord who rents a storefront to a coffee shop extracts rent from the capitalist who owns the coffee shop. Meanwhile, the capitalist who owns the cafe extracts profits from the baristas' labor.

Capitalists' founding philosophers like Adam Smith hated rents. Worse: rents were the most important source of income at the time of capitalism's founding. Feudal lords owned great swathes of land, and there were armies of serfs who were bound to that land – it was illegal for them to leave it. The serfs owed rent to lords, and so they worked the land in order grow crops and raise livestock that they handed over the to lord as rent for the land they weren't allowed to leave.

Capitalists, meanwhile, wanted to turn that land into grazing territory for sheep as a source of wool for the "dark, Satanic mills" of the industrial revolution. They wanted the serfs to be kicked off their land so that they would become "free labor" that could be hired to work in those factories.

For the founders of capitalism, a "free market" wasn't free from regulation, it was free from rents, and "free labor" came from workers who were free to leave the estates where they were born – but also free to starve unless they took a job with the capitalists.

For capitalism's philosophers, free markets and free labor weren't just a source of profits, they were also a source of virtue. Capitalists – unlike lords – had to worry about competition from one another. They had to make better goods at lower prices, lest their customers take their business elsewhere; and they had to offer higher pay and better conditions, lest their "free labor" take a job elsewhere.

This means that capitalists are haunted by the fear of losing everything, and that fear acts as a goad, driving them to find ways to make everything better for everyone: better, cheaper products that benefit shoppers; and better-paid, safer jobs that benefit workers. For Smith, capitalism is alchemy, a philosopher's stone that transforms the base metal of greed into the gold of public spiritedness.

By contrast, rentiers are insulated from competition. Their workers are bound to the land, and must toil to pay the rent no matter whether they are treated well or abused. The rent rolls in reliably, without the lord having to invest in new, better ways to bring in the harvest. It's a good life (for the lord).

Think of that coffee-shop again: if a better cafe opens across the street, the owner can lose it all, as their customers and workers switch allegiance. But for the landlord, the failure of his capitalist tenant is a feature, not a bug. Once the cafe goes bust, the landlord gets a newly vacant storefront on the same block as the hot new coffee shop that can be rented out at even higher rates to another capitalist who tries his luck.

The industrial revolution wasn't just the triumph of automation over craft processes, nor the triumph of factory owners over weavers. It was also the triumph of profits over rents. The transformation of hereditary estates worked by serfs into part of the supply chain for textile mills was attended by – and contributed to – the political ascendancy of capitalists over rentiers.

Now, obviously, capitalism didn't end rents – just as feudalism didn't require the total absence of profits. Under feudalism, capitalists still extracted profits from capital and labor; and under capitalism, rentiers still extracted rents from assets that capitalists and workers paid them to use.

The difference comes in the way that conflicts between profits and rents were resolved. Feudalism is a system where rents triumph over profits, and capitalism is a system where profits triumph over rents.

It's conflict that tells you what really matters. You love your family, but they drive you crazy. If you side with your family over your friends – even when your friends might be right and your family's probably wrong – then you value your family more than your friends. That doesn't mean you don't value your friends – it means that you value them less than your family.

Conflict is a reliable way to know whether or not you're a leftist. As Steven Brust says, the way to distinguish a leftist is to ask "What's more important, human rights, or property rights?" If you answer "Property rights are human right," you're not a leftist. Leftists don't necessarily oppose all property rights – they just think they're less important than human rights.

Think of conflicts between property rights and human rights: the grocer who deliberately renders leftover food inedible before putting it in the dumpster to ensure that hungry people can't eat it, or the landlord who keeps an apartment empty while a homeless person freezes to death on its doorstep. You don't have to say "No one can own food or a home" to say, "in these cases, property rights are interfering with human rights, so they should be overridden." For leftists property rights can be a means to human rights (like revolutionary land reformers who give peasants title to the lands they work), but where property rights interfere with human rights, they are set aside.

In his 2023 book Technofeudalism, Yanis Varoufakis claims that capitalism has given way to a new feudalism – that capitalism was a transitional phase between feudalism…and feudalism:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/28/cloudalists/#cloud-capital

Varoufakis's point isn't that capitalists have gone extinct. Rather, it's that today, conflicts between capital and assets – between rents and profits – reliably end with a victory of rent over profit.

Think of Amazon: the "everything store" appears to be a vast bazaar, a flea-market whose stalls are all operated by independent capitalists who decide what to sell, how to price it, and then compete to tempt shoppers. In reality, though, the whole system is owned by a single feudalist, who extracts 51% from every dollar those merchants take in, and decides who can sell, and what they can sell, and at what price, and whether anyone can even see it:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/01/managerial-discretion/#junk-fees

Or consider the patent trolls of the Eastern District of Texas. These "companies" are invisible and produce nothing. They consist solely of a serviced mailbox in a dusty, uninhabited office-building, and an overbroad patent (say, a patent on "tapping on a screen with your finger") issued by the US Patent and Trademark Office. These companies extract hundreds of millions of dollars from Apple, Google, Samsung for violating these patents. In other words, the government steps in and takes vast profits generated through productive activity by companies that make phones, and turns that money over as rent paid to unproductive companies whose sole "product" is lawsuits. It's the triumph of rent over profit.

Capitalists hate capitalism. All capitalists would rather extract rents than profits, because rents are insulated from competition. The merchants who sell on Jeff Bezos's Amazon (or open a cafe in a landlord's storefront, or license a foolish smartphone patent) bear all the risk. The landlords – of Amazon, the storefront, or the patent – get paid whether or not that risk pays off.

This is why Google, Apple and Samsung also have vast digital estates that they rent out to capitalists – everything from app stores to patent portfolios. They would much rather be in the business of renting things out to capitalists than competing with capitalists.

Hence that famous Adam Smith quote: "People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices." This is literally what Google and Meta do:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jedi_Blue

And it's what Apple and Google do:

https://www.theverge.com/2023/10/27/23934961/google-antitrust-trial-defaults-search-deal-26-3-billion

Why compete with one another when you can collude, like feudal lords with adjacent estates who trust one another to return any serf they catch trying to sneak away in the dead of night?

Because of course, it's not just "free markets" that have been captured by rents ("Competition is for losers" -P. Thiel) – it's also "free labor." For years, the largest tech and entertainment companies in America illegally colluded on a "no poach" agreement not to hire one-anothers' employees:

https://techcrunch.com/2015/09/03/apple-google-other-silicon-valley-tech-giants-ordered-to-pay-415m-in-no-poaching-suit/

These companies were bitter competitors – as were these sectors. Even as Big Content was lobbying for farcical copyright law expansions and vowing to capture Big Tech, all these companies on both sides were able to set aside their differences and collude to bind their free workers to their estates and end the "wasteful competition" to secure their labor.

Of course, this is even more pronounced at the bottom of the labor market, where noncompete "agreements" are the norm. The median American worker bound by a noncompete is a fast-food worker whose employer can wield the power of the state to prevent that worker from leaving behind the Wendy's cash-register to make $0.25/hour more at the McDonald's fry trap across the street:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/02/02/its-the-economy-stupid/#neofeudal

Employers defend this as necessary to secure their investment in training their workers and to ensure the integrity of their trade secrets. But why should their investments be protected? Capitalism is about risk, and the fear that accompanies risk – fear that drives capitalists to innovate, which creates the public benefit that is the moral justification for capitalism.

Capitalists hate capitalism. They don't want free labor – they want labor bound to the land. Capitalists benefit from free labor: if you have a better company, you can tempt away the best workers and cause your inferior rival to fail. But feudalists benefit from un-free labor, from tricks like "bondage fees" that force workers to pay in order to quit their jobs:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/21/bondage-fees/#doorman-building

Companies like Petsmart use "training repayment agreement provisions" (TRAPs) to keep low-waged workers from leaving for better employers. Petsmart says it costs $5,500 to train a pet-groomer, and if that worker is fired, laid off, or quits less than two years, they have to pay that amount to Petsmart:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/08/04/its-a-trap/#a-little-on-the-nose

Now, Petsmart is full of shit here. The "four-week training course" Petsmart claims is worth $5,500 actually only lasts for three weeks. What's more, the "training" consists of sweeping the floor and doing other low-level chores for three weeks, without pay.

But even if Petsmart were to give $5,500 worth of training to every pet-groomer, this would still be bullshit. Why should the worker bear the risk of Petsmart making a bad investment in their training? Under capitalism, risks justify rewards. Petsmart's argument for charging $50 to groom your dog and paying the groomer $15 for the job is that they took $35 worth of risk. But some of that risk is being borne by the worker – they're the ones footing the bill for the training.

For Petsmart – as for all feudalists – a worker (with all the attendant risks) can be turned into an asset, something that isn't subject to competition. Petsmart doesn't have to retain workers through superior pay and conditions – they can use the state's contract-enforcement mechanism instead.

Capitalists hate capitalism, but they love feudalism. Sure, they dress this up by claiming that governmental de-risking spurs investment: "Who would pay to train a pet-groomer if that worker could walk out the next day and shave dogs for some competing shop?"

But this is obvious nonsense. Think of Silicon Valley: high tech is the most "IP-intensive" of all industries, the sector that has had to compete most fiercely for skilled labor. And yet, Silicon Valley is in California, where noncompetes are illegal. Every single successful Silicon Valley company has thrived in an environment in which their skilled workers can walk out the door at any time and take a job with a rival company.

There's no indication that the risk of free labor prevents investment. Think of AI, the biggest investment bubble in human history. All the major AI companies are in jurisdictions where noncompetes are illegal. Anthropic – OpenAI's most serious competitor – was founded by a sister/brother team who quit senior roles at OpenAI and founded a direct competitor. No one can claim with a straight face that OpenAI is now unable to raise capital on favorable terms.

What's more, when OpenAI founder Sam Altman was forced out by his board, Microsoft offered to hire him – and 700 other OpenAI personnel – to found an OpenAI competitor. When Altman returned to the company, Microsoft invested more money in OpenAI, despite their intimate understanding that anyone could hire away the company's founder and all of its top technical staff at any time.

The idea that the departure of the Burger King trade secrets locked up in its workers' heads constitute more of a risk to the ability to operate a hamburger restaurant than the departure of the entire technical staff of OpenAI is obvious nonsense. Noncompetes aren't a way to make it possible to run a business – they're a way to make it easy to run a business, by eliminating competition and pushing the risk onto employees.

Because capitalists hate capitalism. And who can blame them? Who wouldn't prefer a life with less risk to one where you have to constantly look over your shoulder for competitors who've found a way to make a superior offer to your customers and workers?

This is why businesses are so excited about securing "IP" – that is, a government-backed right to control your workers, customers, competitors or critics:

https://locusmag.com/2020/09/cory-doctorow-ip/

The argument for every IP right expansion is the same: "Who would invest in creating something new without the assurance that some­one else wouldn’t copy and improve on it and put them out of business?"

That was the argument raised five years ago, during the (mercifully brief) mania for genre writers seeking trademarks on common tropes. There was the romance writer who got a trademark on the word "cocky" in book titles:

https://www.theverge.com/2018/7/16/17566276/cockygate-amazon-kindle-unlimited-algorithm-self-published-romance-novel-cabal

And the fantasy writer who wanted a trademark on "dragon slayer" in fantasy novel titles:

https://memex.craphound.com/2018/06/14/son-of-cocky-a-writer-is-trying-to-trademark-dragon-slayer-for-fantasy-novels/

Who subsequently sought a trademark on any book cover featuring a person holding a weapon:

https://memex.craphound.com/2018/07/19/trademark-troll-who-claims-to-own-dragon-slayer-now-wants-exclusive-rights-to-book-covers-where-someone-is-holding-a-weapon/

For these would-be rentiers, the logic was the same: "Why would I write a book about a dragon-slayer if I could lose readers to someone else who writes a book about dragon-slayers?"

In these cases, the USPTO denied or rescinded its trademarks. Profits triumphed over rents. But increasingly, rents are triumphing over profits, and rent-extraction is celebrated as "smart business," while profits are for suckers, only slightly preferable to "wages" (the worst way to get paid under both capitalism and feudalism).

That's what's behind all the talk about "passive income" – that's just a euphemism for "rent." It's what Douglas Rushkoff is referring to in Survival of the Richest when he talks about the wealthy wanting to "go meta":

https://pluralistic.net/2022/09/13/collapse-porn/#collapse-porn

Don't drive a cab – go meta and buy a medallion. Don't buy a medallion, go meta and found Uber. Don't found Uber, go meta and invest in Uber. Don't invest in Uber, go meta and buy options on Uber stock. Don't buy Uber stock options, go meta and buy derivatives of options on Uber stock.

"Going meta" means distancing yourself from capitalism – from income derived from profits, from competition, from risk – and cozying up to feudalism.

Capitalists have always hated capitalism. The owners of the dark Satanic mills wanted peasants turned off the land and converted into "free labor" – but they also kidnapped Napoleonic war-orphans and indentured them to ten-year terms of service, which was all you could get out of a child's body before it was ruined for further work:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/26/enochs-hammer/#thats-fronkonsteen

When Varoufakis says we've entered a new feudal age, he doesn't mean that we've abolished capitalism. He means that – for the first time in centuries – when rents go to war against profits – the rents almost always emerge victorious.

Here's the podcast episode:

https://craphound.com/news/2024/04/14/capitalists-hate-capitalism/

Here's a direct link to the MP3 (hosting courtesy of the Internet Archive; they'll host your stuff for free, forever):

https://archive.org/download/Cory_Doctorow_Podcast_465/Cory_Doctorow_Podcast_465_-_Capitalists_Hate_Capitalism.mp3

And here's the RSS feed for my podcast:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/doctorow_podcast

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/18/in-extremis-veritas/#the-winnah

[willowve01]

Of course they can!

Just started the gator series by obsidian lantern

Annnd

Can my bug join the colony?

@rozeliyawashereyall

[daisymerollingg]

Arachnophobia | One Punch Man

Synopsis; How One Punch Men would react to you calling them to get rid of a spider in your house.

Characters; Saitama, Genos, Zombieman, speed-o’-sound sonic, Flashy flash, Child emperor(platonic)

Genre; Crack, fluff

A/N: I was just daydreaming abt zombieman cuz I love him so much and thought of this scenario so why not have it with the rest of these guys (and boy)

this can be viewed both platonically and romantically, except child emperor, he’s purely platonic ofc

SAITAMA

When you first call him, and you hesitate a bit while trying to explain you situation since it’s slightly embarrassing for you, he rushes you then gets a bit worried thinking it might be something serious

he then proceeds to say “seriously…?” When you finally tell him why you’re calling: there was a spider in your house and you were too scared to do anything but stand on top of your table, keeping a wary eye out incase the soider tries to approach.

At first he was about to decline and tell you to just squish it with a shoe, or trap it under a cup and throw it out your window, but when he hears the actual fear in your voice, he sighs and puts on his slippers. He’s supposed to save people and stuff after all…

Surprisingly, when Saitama arrives to kill the creature… he sucks at it. It keeps just escaping from him, no matter how fast or strong he was.

Saitama started to grow mad with every passing second, trashing your house as he jumped from spot to spot trying to catch the thing, with you pointing and yelling frantically from your safe-zone on the table.

”IT’S RIGHT THERE, NO- NO- WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU AIMING AT, SAITAMA?! YOU SUCK AT THIS- OH MY- ITS RIGHT THERE, KILL IT!!!” -You “STOP YELLING YOU’RE MAKING ME LOSE FOCUS.” -Saitama

Your house quickly becomes almost like a war-zone with both of you yelling at eachother from the top of your lungs, you out of panic and him out of frustration.

Saitama eventually squishes the spider…. Then an army of tiny spiders erupts from it.

Saitama tries to deal with them quickly, throwing punches at all of them.

when he’s done, he turns to you with a fulfilled expression on his face but deadpans once he catches you lying passed out on the table and foaming at the mouth.

Ofc he takes you to the hospital though.

GENOS

Unlike Saitama, he takes it very seriously when you call him and tell him the predicament you're in.

He doesn’t quite understand the big issue, it's just a bug… but he can detect when someone is in distress, and either way, he would do anything you ask of him.

When he arrives at your home, he’s already gathered enough information on how to safely deal with spiders to take the best approach he can to this.

he grabs a glass container and a piece of paper, proceeds to efficiently trap the spider, and throws it outside.

He does listen to your instructions though and releases it at least a kilometer away from your home.

He then comes back to check on you and gives you a small, almost pitiful, pat on the back.

”Don’t worry about it, you did good.” -Genos, with his very stoic expression

ZOMBIEMAN

MY MUSEEEE I LOVE HIM SO MUCH

Sorry, anyhow, when you call him, your voice is obviously on edge, and you tell him what’s wrong. The first he does is reassure you over the phone, telling you everything will be fine and he’ll be right there.

And as he said, he was right there.

He checks up on you when he first enters the house, then goes to search for the spider.

When he finds it, he ALMOST stomps on it with his shoe out of surprise but quickly remembers how it’ll probably cause a bigger problem, and like genos he uses the good old glass container and paper method and throws it out.

After that, he helps you get down from the table, with his hands firmly holding you from your sides.

If you’re still uneasy even after he gets rid of the spider, he’ll give you a reassuring embrace, with his large build basically consuming you.

He then takes you out somewhere nice to eat.

SPEED-O’-SOUND SONIC

Ahhh, speed of the sounds

Calls you stupid at first, and tells you to just kill it or leave it be, its more scared of you than you are of it.

But not a second later he’s at your door and asking where the spider is.

He REALLY doesn’t get what the big deal is, it’s just a spider. Nonetheless, he doesn’t really question it much and helps out anyway.

He grabs the spider gently with his hands and throws it out the window, then flashes you an unamused look.

Again, he calls you weak but then tells you not to worry so much when you have someone like him around.

FLASHY FLASH

Sassy flash

He’s irked by your call, then hangs up on you

….

He then calls you again not a second later and asks if you’re actually panicking, and when you say yes, suddenly he busts down your door.

He HATES spiders. But that doesn’t mean he can’t deal with them

thanks to a previous encounter he had with the creature, he learned killing them is a bad idea.

So he hesitantly kept trying to get the spider under the damn cup, but every time he did and it would move, he’d dash to the other side of the room instinctively, releasing the spider once more.

It takes him about 10 tries to finally get the spider out of the house.

After making sure that you’re ok, he then tells you to never waste his time on such ridiculous things ever again

he doesn't mean it though, don’t worry, he’d do it again for you

CHILD EMPORER

He is scared of spiders too

Reluctantly he shows up at your house.

He tries to act tough but you can clearly see the sweat running down his face as he uses his robotic equipment to slowly look under the couch for the spider.

When he finally catches it, he screams, prompting you to scream, and blasts the area of the spider with a laser beam.

the both of you stare intently at the area of the blast and let out a sigh simultaneously as the ash clears and the arachnid has been successfully vaporized.

You both give each other a pat on the back for being so brave

Then you offer to take child emperor to a nearby store and get some ice cream together

he happily obliges and you both skip out of the destroyed apartment with your hands intertwined.

[sleeplessdreamer14]

𝔚𝔢𝔯𝔢𝔫’𝔱 𝔚𝔢 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔖𝔱𝔞𝔯𝔰 ℑ𝔫 ℌ𝔢𝔞𝔳𝔢𝔫 𝔄𝔘: 𝔙𝔞𝔤𝔤𝔦𝔢 𝔙𝔢𝔯𝔬𝔫𝔦𝔠𝔞 ℜ𝔢𝔦𝔪𝔞𝔤𝔦𝔫𝔢𝔡

I was super excited for this one :] @cosmiiwrites

First things first, LORE AND BACKGROUND

As per usual, I’ll go over the differences between Ronnie and her canon counterpart. First and foremost, I changed her name because her name being Vaggie never sat right with me.

She was an exorcist for a long time, one of the best, and although it could be a bit much for her at times, she ultimately could rest easy knowing she was protecting heaven.

However, five years before the events of the show, she had a moment of weakness during an extermination where she had cornered a young cannibal in an alley. Seeing the young soul cowering in fear from her stayed her hand for just a moment too long, and she got jumped. It was a struggle, and she killed her attackers, but did sustain injury including losing her wings and partial vision in her left eye.

Weakened from the blood loss and weighed down by shame of her failure, she faded in and out of consciousness in that alley for a while before Charlie found her. The exterminations had ended by that time, meaning the army had returned to heaven without her.

Next thing Ronnie knew, she was laid up in one of the spare rooms in Charlie’s home, wounds being tended to with a surprising amount of care. Honestly, she wondered for a few hours if the whole thing was a hallucination of some sort.

Thanks to Charlie and the palace staff, Ronnie made a steady recovery over the course of several months. However the longer she spent healing, the more time she spent sinking deeper into her guilt for failing her sisters. By the time she could walk around on her own again, she didn’t believe she could ever face them again.

But not all was doom and gloom, because Charlie quickly became her new best friend.

oh my gosh they were roommates

Kiki’s her therapy cat.

Ronnie fell first and Charlie fell harder, but she didn’t fall right away. Her feelings began to develop around the time Charlie decided that Ronnie would stay with her full time. Again, they were roommates.

Creamsicle Cat x Black Cat Sapphics

It was certainly an adjustment for Ronnie to not only not be able to fly anymore and have impaired vision, but also not have to train for the exterminations anymore. But living with Charlie, she fell into a new routine and settled into her new lifestyle.

Despite Charlie constantly reassuring her it wasn’t necessary, Ronnie would constantly help out with chores around the place, mostly because it gave her something to do to feel helpful, like she was earning her keep.

She can make a meeeaaan Ropa Vieja 👌🏽

With all her newfound free time, she got into a bunch of new interests and discovered her love for Tim Burton movies (despite the controversy)

As long as you can read a face, you never really have to guess what she’s thinking. She’s got Martin Freeman™️ levels of facial expressiveness.

Ronnie isn’t as agro as Vaggie, but has perfected the “I’m not mad I’m just disappointed” vibe.

Actually gives really good relationship advice despite having never dated before. Coaches don’t play.

Now on the design itself

Her exorcist uniform is much more like actual armor. I also just changed her halo to white just because.

I was partly inspired by @catboymoments to make her skin a bit more purple-ish pink instead of just grey. Also her little beauty mark <3

Her hair did grow out over the time she’s been living with Charlie, but not as long as it is in canon. The way she always sat down on her hair just bugged me for some reason. Also when it’s down it’s feathered.

As cool as her canon bow sometimes resembling horns, I wanted to lean a little more towards the moth motif she had in the earlier concepts so I gave her a simpler one that looks like a butterfly.

And again with all the red. Similarly to how I designed Emma, I wanted to compliment her orange eyes with more purple/wine colors in her work clothes.

I was particularly excited about the striped pants, they just seemed more practical and modest compared to the shirt skirt she wears in the show. (seriously that thing always seemed to be like an inch away from exposing her business) that plus her skull earnings helped lean more into a sort of pirate aesthetic.

The skull earrings were gifts from Charlie for Ronnie’s one year anniversary of them living together.

Now for her causal wear, I wanted to give her a sort of gothic dork type of style so I designed her causal fit partly after my own wardrobe (mostly the shorts and gothic lace tights)

The butterfly on her choker is meant to symbolize her recovery and hope after surviving the attack and her new beginnings with Charlie, as well as be an homage to Encanto.

[willowve01]

Join us.

An enlistment in the bug army.

She/her

19 y/o

The single blue spot on her face is a nose stud.

The scar on her face is from an accident with a trap.

The necklace was her brother’s, he gave it to her when she became a hunter.

Backstory: She grew up on a farm, around one of the larger city’s. And all her life she beloved halfbloods where the monsters everyone said they are. So she became a hunter to capture/get rid of these “monsters”. But then she met the boys and obviously she realized that humans had been lying.

[jrswritings]

Tingles and Giggles - Chapter Twenty-Six - Tyler Owens x Reader

Get caught up with Chapters 1-25 on the Masterlist! :)

Chapter Twenty-Six - God's Country

Once Tyler had dried off and was dressed in jeans and a white shirt, he put on his cowboy hat and grabbed his phone. You were in a white tank top, light pink light-weight denim jacket, blue jeans, and one of Tyler’s not-so-gross ball caps.

“Ready to head out, princess?” He asked, admiring the beautiful you look. 

“I think so,” you said, putting some chapstick on and grabbing your smaller over-the-shoulder purse. 

“So it’s 2:45 now. What time do you want to head to your folks?” Tyler asked, holding the door open for you. 

“Probably a little before 4, that way I can show you my old room and my parents house,” you said, putting your sunglasses on. 

“Works for me,” he said, grabbing your hand and heading to the elevator.

  “There really isn’t much to do here now though, there’s bars but most don’t have much going on during the day. They only really start getting going around 6pm or later,” you said, “There’s a park a couple of blocks away we can go sit at though. They have swings next to a pond.” 

“Anywhere with you sounds good to me,” he said, pulling you close and wrapping his arm around your shoulders. 

“Yeah, yeah,” you said, “You say that now, wait until you get sick of me.” 

“Which will be never,” he said, walking outside the inn and putting his sunglasses on. 

“We’ll see about that,” you said, following suit and putting your sunglasses on. 

“Try me, little lady,” he said, kissing your temple. 

“I will,” you said, starting to walk off towards the park. 

“So, are you going to tell me more about Jamie?” He asked. 

“Well, he’s my older brother. He was in the military, had a palomino named Duke,” you said, “Basically the apple of my parents eyes, nothing he did was ever wrong. He would get his heart broken by some chick he met and they’d console him indefinitely until he brought home the next one.” 

“So, their favorite?” He asked. 

“Yes, and now it’s just me and it’s like I’ll never be enough for them.” You groaned, walking over to one of the empty bench swings. 

“I see,” he said, “Does he do rodeos? Or racing?” 

“He did rodeos, Duke passed before he got out of the military,” you said, scooting closer to Tyler once he sat down. 

“What part of the military was he in?” Tyler asked.

“Army, was all he ever dreamed about growing up. Every Halloween it was a soldier,” you laughed, “One year my dad even made him a remote controlled tank to drive on Halloween.” 

“That sounds pretty sweet if you ask me,” he said, wrapping his arm around you. 

“Oh, it was, I’m sure they still have it even,” you said, “Jamie and Caleb were in the same troop and were the best of friends. One of those for life type of friends.” 

“Do you have any of those?” Tyler asked, “I have Boone, we met in high school.” 

“I used to be close with Ivy, Caleb’s sister. After I moved to Oklahoma we grew apart. Then I have Willow, but obviously that probably isn’t going to end well,” you sighed. 

“Kinda became the black sheep, huh?” He asked, “Sounds like me.” 

“Growing up we spent a lot of time with my Uncle Oliver and Aunt Vicky, my parents were always out doing something. Cattle shows, butchering cattle. Cattle usually came before me and even Jamie,” you said, “It’s what they live and breathe practically.” 

“I got the impression that Oliver and Vicky were cooler than your folks,” he chuckled, “Super laid back and supportive.” 

“My uncle calls me doodlebug, since I always would doodle at their house and bug him while in the barn,” you said, “My dad? Doesn’t even call me his baby girl or anything you could call a daughter. Just (Y/n).”

“They’ll come around baby, they’ll realize they have an amazing daughter who they’re missing out on,” he said, kissing your cheek and giving your shoulders a squeeze. 

“I hope so,” you sighed, “Otherwise I was close with my mom’s dad, we called him Poppy but his name was Tom. He died when I was 22 and I was crushed.” 

“My Papa, my dad’s dad, was the person I was close to after my folks passed, I was kind of close to Evan but not really,” Tyler said, “I was 17 when they were killed in a car crash out in Wyoming.”

“What happened?” You asked softly. 

“Drunk semi driver and all those mountains don’t mix well,” he signed, “I was stayin’ with Auntie B at the time as it was their anniversary weekend and they wanted to get away.”

“I’m sorry, Ty,” you whispered, kissing his cheek softly, “Is your papa still around?” 

“Oh yeah, him and my GiGi are retired up in Montana; or as they call it, God’s country,” he said. 

“I’d say Minnesota is God’s country, but we can agree they both are,” you said, “My grandpa and grandma have a cabin up in the Duluth area, so when I was 23 I stayed up there for a few weeks in the summer.” 

“Sounds like we need to do some road tripping to Montana and Minnesota,” he said with a smile. 

“I’d love that, I know those grandparents were going to leave me the cabin when they pass because I’m the only one whe’s ever gone up there and took care of the place,” you said while resting your head on Tyler’s shoulder. 

“Sounds like we’ll have a great place to vacation in the summer,” he said, resting his head on yours. 

“Oh it’s a beautiful place, it butts up to Lake Superior but it’s far enough away from the shore to not get damage from when the ice comes on the shore in the winter,” you said, “Four bedrooms, big campfire area.” 

“Damn, if it didn’t get so cold up there I’d say let’s move, but I don’t think they get many tornadoes?” He asked.

“There’s some, but they’re further south,” you said, “And they’re not ones we are used to chasing, baby.” 

“A tornado is a tornado,” he shrugged, “I hate to ruin our moment, but it’s almost 3:30 and we should head back to the truck to head to your folks.” 

“Yeah, great way to ruin our moment,” you said, sitting up and stretching out your arms. 

“What can I say, I’m good at some things,” he said, getting up and taking your hand. 

The walk back to the truck was quiet as you were mentally preparing yourself for what the next couple of hours could unfold at your parents. Were you finally going to lose your mind? Were they finally going to turn around? Were they going to accept Tyler? Even though you told yourself you didn’t care, you still did. 

Taglist: @fanboyswhore9 @faith719 @ummmeg @nerdgirljen @winterassassin1804 @smoothdogsgirl @xbox5angelx @ifilwtmfc @djs8891 @watashiwababy @mackevanstanfan80 @x3zerochanx3

[simplegeneral]

Queen Wasp is probably one of the weakest wof villains imo, side by side with Battlewinner and Morrowseer in terms of pure evil and pure blandness.

In spite of being a teens' book, I do wished Tui made something outwordly with the hivewings, like a society nowhere near the Pyrrhian ones, a truly bug one, as much as I hate the idea of bug dragons, at least go full on the idea or enhance it in some imaginative way.

I thought of Wasp as a hulking giant, bigger than Burn or Oasis, side by side with Battlewinner and Morrowseer, as she is old, and more than that, she is a villain our heroes can not outsmart, for she is all the hivewings. She is a villain of strength, so they better show theirs.

So I present you a bit of my AU idea for Wasp, following my WoF AU where Burn and Blaze run the sand queendom.

The hivewings operate much like a hive, their queens release pheromones that somewhat control the will of their workers to pursue their goals, a trait they gained since the beetlewings (which btw, they are descendents of, but there was no Clearsight bs, they just split naturally).

Since the beetlewings' settlement of Pantala, they knew of a specific plant life of the local, called "breath of evil", after its effects. Long ago, the beetlewings had an ambitious queen, who challenged the status quo of the continent, so far peaceful. She inhaled the breath of evil and spread it over her population, its effects enhanced her pheromones' abilities until almost absolute control of her dragons, creating one gigantic organism that moved like one, a formidable army.

She was eventually defeated, but not before the remaining queens and the LeafWings settled into a sacred treaty to NEVER use such powers again.

History was doomed to be repeated.

As a minor queen of one of the hivewings' hives, Wasp, had broke the sacred treaty, believing the hivewings, considerably the newest inhabitants of Pantala, had no business obeying it. Wasp then conquered all the hivewing hives and proceeded to campaign against the rest of the continent, the Tree Wars.

Much like the last time, the Leafwings, Beetlewings and Silkwings battled Wasp. Although a cowardly queen Monarch accepted to submit, the rest refused. It was a total bloodbath, paranoic as ever, Wasp conducted a massive deforestation campaign by causing mass forest fires through Pantala, while her hivewing masses crashed against the Alliance with never seem brutality.

In the end, the Silkwings submitted, while LeafWings and BeetleWings fled north of the continent. Wasp was satisfied, with near total control of her population, she turned the once backwards little hive she inherented into a continental capital in the turn of 50 years, spreading more hives under her subordinates, enslaving the silkwings and exterminating all that stood in her path.

As of 5012 AS, Wasp is aware of an old continent to the East, her minions work day and night producing armors, weapons and supplies, readying a massive army that shall sweep across the post-war torn continent, until there's nothing left but the Hive.

Still, her control over the continent seemed more fragile than previously thought. As the chrysalis launched a full-blow revolt and burnt the Bloodworm hive, her plans are temporarily on halt. While the success of the rebels seems dim at best, a group of leafwing refugees have fled East to the new continent, bringing horrying news to a young icewing queen, who refuses to believe it, yet, she has grow past her prejudices, for the ice queendom will face the brunt of the Sunset Invasion.

[zolanort]

Hyrule is a fine cook, you guys are just mean.

I will start by pointing out that Wild says the ham water is really tasty. Who is going to be a better judge of the ham water? The one who has eaten nothing but pastries and croissants his whole life?

The lord of pumpkin spice? The army guy who probably lived off of MRE equivalents? The rancher who chugs literal grubs?

Or the one person who is so good with food that he is universally recognized as the cook?

Kudos to you if you chose the grub chugger, nothing wrong with eating bugs, but the correct answer was Wild; Wild is the best choice for judge. Partially because he has 1000x more experience with food variety than the others (statistics taken from my own save files), but mostly because no one else in the group has any significant experience with cooking their own food. Twi did his best helping with that stinky fish for Yeto's soup but it doesn't count.

As the croissant eater points out, the meat looks old.

For it to be old but not have started rotting, it would have to be cured meat (we’ll say ham because what better way to spite Ganon than by eating pig for lunch). Hyrule has probably even upgraded since his first adventure and it’s not just your basic salted ham food (which already costs about the same as a magic shield in game), it’s probably the Hyrulian equivalent of Jamón Ibérico de Bellota from his buddy pal Zelda(s) at the castle. I know I’d give someone a fancy ham for saving my kingdom twice. Hyrule is basically a gourmet at this point. You need quality nutrients to grow healthy hair, as our traveler pointed out, and who has the bestest most fluffiest hair? Hyrule does. Look at the fluffy:

It is absolutely possible to make tasty soup from the most basic 100 rupee cured ham. That’s a real thing that real people do in real life. You can even do it with 50 rupee ham in a can if you’re desperate (I say 50 rupee instead of 25 because of inflation). Hyrule put the bone in too so not only is there the salty flavor from the cured meat, he very well could have been making a nice bone broth for his injured colleague (he could have put other ingredients in off screen too but that’s beside the point). Ever heard of broth based soup? Probably not if you are a croissant eater who never had to cook ham water for yourself on the road. Croissants aren’t even that good unless they have chocolate in the middle, and that’s just because of the chocolate. If you’re going through the effort of laminating all that dough you should just go all the way and make something actually good like pastéis de nata.

Anyway, Hyrule is implied to be a terrible cook and I love that for him. Mostly I just wanted to take this chance to complain about croissants.

[aliorsboxostuff]

Hi! If your requests are open I have one! Just saw ATSV yesterday and its rotting my brain agsisghagdh anyways-

An M!Spider!Reader who is one of Miguel's trusted agents with a tendency to overwork himself to make sure that his teammates are kept safe and ignoring his own health in the process. This understandably makes Miguel very concerned but this man cannot healthily express this are you kidding? What I'm saying is classic troupe of patching you up while scolding you in Spanish and then maybe they kiss a little bit and well if you want to make it a little spicy I wont stop you >:]

Thank you very much! Genuinely makes my gay little heart happy when I see writers like you who exclusively write for gn/male readers, y'all are the backbone of the x reader community fr 💜

A/N: im so sorry this took so long this was months ago but a mf forgot and wow here i am yippee!!!! As usual, if yall find any spelling mistakes pls inform me as i’m always praciticing this damn 2nd language lmao. Lets see if my writing skills is still any good LOL enjoy!! <333

Careless 

Tags: Miguel O’hara xM!Reader, Spidey!Reader, Lyla, Miles Morales, Gwen Stacy, Spider Society, No Smut, Kissing , Fluff, Reader is another spiderman, Soft!Miguel, slight OOC, patching up, healing fic, non-graphic description of wounds, mentions of blood and cuts 

Yet, with all that said, Miguel likes to remind himself that no spidey truly comes home unscathed.

Ever since the new guy joined the team, he quickly rose in the ranks and became Miguel’s right-hand man. He’d usually go on patrol, jumping from one universe to another with the man as they capture and contain anomalies like the bugs they are. Miguel puts his trust in him, well, as much trust as a man like Miguel can put in someone. But despite the short time the newbie has been in the Spider society, he has managed to capture Miguel and most of the Spider people's hearts so easily. 

He’s a comet that passes by the compound. Each time he returned from a mission, the spiders would gather around him, congratulating him on another successful mission and inviting him to drink or eat together.  A aswarm would always gather around the portal they knew he would come out from and each time, without fail, he would emerge to cheers and smiles. It wasn't like everyone else wasn't doing a good job, they were all doing what they were supposed to, but somehow the newbie was liked all around, solidifying Miguel’s slowly growing infatuation with him. 

But despite the trust and praises he gets, a spidey doesn't come home unscathed, not every time. Sometimes he’d come back from one of his solo missions with a broken rib or two, bruises in more places than necessary, a torn muscle here a twisted ankle there. He’d limp his way into the infirmary, an army of other spideys following him in worry yet he’d dismiss them easily with a simple wave and a; “It’s nothing guys, I’ll be fine,”

Miguel hates it.

Whenever the man goes on missions with the leader of the society, without fail, he will come home with nothing more than one or two bruises that would heal in a couple of hours if not minutes. Miguel would roll his shoulders back and the man would simply shake his head furiously like a dog before prancing to greet his waves of fans. Miguel didn't need to pay attention to him unless they were doing teamwork. He would run around by himself, track down the anomaly with him, and they would contain it easily and transfer it back just as easily. 

He might not look like it, but when Miguel brings a teammate with him on duo missions, he’s expected to cover their back and vice versa. Miguel will break any skull that dares to hurt his team and he hopes for the same response from his teammate. The newbie never disappoints. 

Miguel would find himself enraged, almost cornered by an anomaly, and there come’s Prince Charming with a devastating kick towards the anomaly’s side which sends it hurling into another building. Miguel appreciates their duo missions, the main reason he puts himself with the newbie. 

Not to mention, he makes a great team leader too. He’s carried out several missions with the younger ones, mainly Miles and Gwen, and despite it all, they always return successfully and with a snack in hand. When he goes on missions with Hobie, they’d somehow come back with a new intricate playlist created and when he goes on missions with Pavitr, they’d come back with pockets full of trinkets ready to give them to the other youngins. All in all, a solid team leader.

Yet, with all that said, Miguel likes to remind himself that no spidey truly comes home unscathed.

—

You were on a mission with Miles. One of your duo missions with the boy, rare considering Gwen usually tags along. But today she’s got a mission with Pavitr and Peni, which leaves you and Miles for some quality Dude Time. 

It was a sunny day in the universe Miles and you dropped in. As the two of you swing from building to building, talking about Miles’ thing with Gwen and laughing at how embarrassed he gets, continuing the topic to buying a new Lego set for Pavitr and Hobie as the two of you swung past a Lego shop, when suddenly the anomaly reveals itself.

Another variant of Doc Oct holding themselves up with their extended metal arms. You can handle a Doc Oct alone, and with Miles helping you, the mission was expected to be so easy you were already thinking about what to have for dinner. 

But things don't always go according to plan, does it?

It strikes 8 pm when Miguel gets a notif from Lyla that an arriving portal was opened into the containment site of the compound. The man clicks his tongue, dropping from his platform before making his way to the site. Every step he takes he leaves his foul mood like a repellent, making the other spidey avoid him, cutting the middle path of the other spideys like a blade. His scowl is not helping his case either way.

The last portal should've been at 6 pm.

The door slides open, and a slight hiss rings out into the room. Inside the evenly lit expanse of the room, he easily spots yours and Mile’s spider suits in between all the other anomaly's dingy outfits. Miguel takes a breath before he stalks towards the two men, their backs to him.

“Ugh, my rib is killing me,” You groan, pressing in the code to store the anomaly in its cell.

“You're telling me, this bruise is going to be a pain in the butt to heal,” Miles sighed, holding his left arm. “But if it weren't for you, man, I’d be dead meat,” 

“Oh come on Miles, none of us knew the guy would send a gas truck our way,” You scoff. The terminal beeps and the thrashing anomaly is contained. 

“The fact that it burned on its way towards us was also something we didn't expect.” Miles laughs at what you said as you find yourself cringing. You knew there were going to be burn marks on your leg.

“No, but seriously, thanks for covering me back there, I thought we’d-”

“You thought you’d what?” 

Miles practically jumps into your arms as the both of you screams. You shut your eyes and it seems like Mile’s did the same before a stern cough makes you peek through your eyelids. There, in front of you, stands a solid wall of muscle and anger. Miguel has his arms crossed, eyes so sharp it could cut a mountain in half. The slight scowl on his lips would be cute if it weren't for the pure bloodlust as he gazes down into you, making you gulp.

“Heeeeeey Miguel,” Your pathetic excuse of a smile was met with nothing but him deepening his frown. Okay alright yup.

Miles awkwardly scuffles down your arms. He coughs into his fist, pulling at the edge of his suit. “Hi there haha…”

Miguel stares. “The last arrival portal should've been at six.”

Not a sound from you or Miles. Miguel holds back a growl. 

“You two are late.”

“Right, ‘m sorry Miguel, I promise this would be the last time, it was just that- See me and Miles here; we didn't realize that this Doc Oct was gonna be slightly more insane than the others-” You ramble, Miles quickly nodding along. 

“And haha, well, one truck lead to another and next thing ya’ now, bam! We got uh… hurt,” A nervous chuckle left your lips. Miguel replies nothing.

“B-but! I covered Miles from the fire! So he only got a couple of bruises, I promise the kid is fine and it wasn't his fault either so let’s just-”

“Enough.” He barks. You practically clamped your mouth shut. 

The doors hisses open again and Gwen comes running in, worry on her face. She sighs in relief as he spots Miles hiding beside you. “Miles! Thank goodness you’re okay!” 

Miguel turns as she runs and wraps her arms around the boy. “You came back so late!”

“I’m sorry Gwen, things got a bit out of control,” Miles pats the girl back reassuringly. “I just got a bit beaten up, nothing I can't handle,” 

Gwen pulls back and grabs the boy's face before turning it left and right and up and down, her eyes scanning like a hawk. She deems it enough as she stops, hands firmly holding Miles’ arms. “You always say that,” She sighs. 

You can't help the small relieved smile on your lips as you watch the two teens catch up with each other before Miguel makes a gesture with his hand.

“Gwen, go take Morales into the infirmary.” He says as he nods to Lyla that popped up on his brace. “And make sure he doesn't get out of bed for the next two days.”

“What?! But it’s barely a scratch-” 

“Now, Morales.” The man stares them down until eventually, Miles relents with a sigh and lets the girl usher him into the Infirmary's direction, the two of them shuffling next to each other, Gwen's arm around Miles. 

You hear something along the lines of ‘detention’ from Gwen as she laughs before the door slides close, leaving you with an enraged lion in its territory. You gulp as Miguel fixes his red eyes on you.

“You. Come with me.” 

And that's how you find yourself walking down the halls of the many living quarters of the compound. You followed silently behind Miguel’s broad shoulders, in any other day you would find it hard to resist not ogling those massive arms, but tonight Miguel was practically a walking beacon of rage. The smallest misstep would make him burst and thats the last thing you want to happen. 

“Miguel, I'm sorry, okay?” You try, catching up to walk beside him. “I promise this will be the last time I’ll come back from a mission late, plus, I won't bring anyone else with me too if I ever do it again. I swear this won't hap-”

His sudden halt catches you off guard and you bump against him. You scratch the bridge of your nose with a slight frown from the impact. The dimly lit hallway made it a slight challenge to read the nameplate but you managed to make out ‘O’Hara’ and with that, your stomach drops.

“Um… Miguel, this isn't my room…” 

The door opens. The room is pitch black. 

Miguel makes his way inside. His red eye glows before he commands; “Sit.” 

Fear brought you to sit on his bed, not a crease in sight which only struck your fear deeper into you. You could hear your heartbeat, terrified for what's to come. The worst thing Miguel could do would probably chew you out in the comfort of his room, away from any possible witnesses, and then maybe take you out of commission for a while as your punishment. 

You gulp as the man sets something beside you. It was a box, hard to make out what it was but it seemed heavy. Miguel clawed and the large hand extends towards you and you screw your eyes shut, hell did you pray to any god that was willing to listen to you so please please please-

“Bring your face closer.” 

Huh?

Cautiously, you open your eyes to Miguel’s face inches away from you, a warm light bathes over his features, making the lines of worry and fear evident. “Let me see your wounds.” 

You blink, once, twice, owlishly, making the man before you sigh and cup your jaw softly. He turns your face to inspect it before he brings his other hand which wipes your fringe away from covering any other possible wounds. 

He hums. “Looks like just scratches.” 

The mystery box turns out to be a first aid kit. Miguel flicks it open and rummages around in it before he pulls a couple of bottles and bandages out. 

“Take off your suit top, we need to treat that burn before it gets worse.” He demands. You cough before awkwardly peeling off what's left of your suit before dropping it on the carpeted floor. You need to get that repaired.

You couldn't bear to meet Miguel's eyes. Not when he’s kneeled in front of you, his usually intimidating body looking small as he’s hunched over. He looks tired, his frown is a mixture of worry and annoyance, but there is something beneath it. Something you don't dare to think about but you know. You always knew. From the first day, you finally managed to see that crack in Miguel’s hardened exterior, you’ve been scared to make another move toward him. Behind this wall of a man, is a heart guarded with spikes and what he has in his eyes right now as he’s wrapping a cooling pad around your arm is something that petrifies you. 

“Next time you’ll be doing missions with me and me only. I won't be assigning you to any other spiders until you learn to take care of yourself,” He huffs, unveiling another roll of bandages.  He pulls at your shoulder which makes you turn slightly. 

"Fucking hell, ¿cómo puedes ser tan descuidado? You run around saving everyone else but who’s going to save you, huh?" He huffs, wrapping the last of the bandage slightly too tight which makes you wince. He notices but does nothing. 

Once again, he holds your chin between his fingers as your gazes suddenly meet. Miguel growls with how you won't meet his eyes, firmly pointed anywhere but into Miguel’s red eyes. He sighs before letting you go as he takes out some ointments. He puts the substance on your cheek and under your slowly blackening eye, then down your jaw where you know a pretty bad bruise taints your skin. You feel his movement slow before his hand rests on your nape, sending jolts of warmth through your body.

“Cuídate, ¿eh? Cuídate." His voice devastatingly soft. 

Confusion and a steady wave of feelings start at the bottom of your heart, which only worsens as you finally find the courage to look at Miguel. To your surprise, his eyes are wider than usual, pools of crimson oozing with care as he scans your features. His thumb rubs at the base of your skull. “I can't lose my right-hand man.” 

He sighs. “Please, necesito que estés seguro por mí,"

You inhale sharply. Without realizing it, he's practically inches away from you. Your heart races, beats out of your control when Miguel rubs your nape again. 

“Miguel…?” 

A beat passes. Silence. 

Before Miguel growls roughly and promptly stands, taking the med kit with him. He makes his way to what you assume was his wardrobe. Panic rises beside you, making you wave around your hands. “I- Um- Miguel please I didn't mean to- Oof!”

Something was thrown at you. Something soft and large and is this hit shirt and… boxers?! 

“Change your clothes. You can't sleep in those.” Miguel points out, his scowl now a pout on his lips. 

“But-”

“I'm not saying this twice.” He growls before he slides into the bathroom and leaves you in his bedroom along with the pile of his clothes in your arms. 

You slowly look down at what you're holding. Carefully, you slide off what's left of your suit and drop them in a discarded pile before pulling on Miguel's clothes. To no one's surprise, you're practically drowning in the shirt. His boxers barrel fits you and the first goes over your tighs easily. You feel smaller even for your height and stature, but it feels… safe. 

The door of the bathroom slides open to reveal Miguel standing with slightly damp hair as he's drying it off with a towel and in nothing but gray sweats. Something grows within you and it’s definitely something else besides your heart. 

“Ah, you're done,” He glances toward you before setting the towel down neatly. He saunters to the side of his large bed, pulling the covers off before sliding in. An arm keeps the cover slightly open, before he raises an obvious brow.

“Get in here and sleep,” He huffs. 

You jump and quickly slide beside Miguel, careful to keep an inch of a distance. But that was deemed unsuccessful when the man beside you pulled you to his side, and his arm wrapped protectively around your middle which made you drape your hand over his chest. Before you can squirm, he locks his chin over your head with a content sigh. 

Shit, he really is a giant lion. You sigh. 

“Sleep. You need your rest to heal.” Miguel’s voice purrs through you while you're practically glued to his side. You chuckle slightly before pressing a peck just below his jaw.

“You sleep too.” You smile. “Good night Miguel.” 

You hear Miguel hum before he presses his lips to your crown. “Good night.” 

Translations:

how can you be so careless? = cómo puedes ser tan descuidado

Take care, huh? Take care of yourself. = Cuídate, ¿eh? Cuídate.

I need you to be safe for me, = necesito que estés seguro por mí,

Reblogs are appreciated <3

[astralbulldragon13]

Happy Bug Anniversary!

One year ago, I was looking up Obsidian Lantern on Tumblr, and I kept seeing a series called ‘Gator Boys’. I wasn’t sure about it at first, then I found out it was connected to Siren’s Son’s stories. So, one night, when there was a lull at work, I decided, ‘what the hell’ and started listening. I binged episodes 1 through 6 in one night.

And with that, my brain was overtaken by Cajun Gators. I found there were a few other fans, so I decided to do write a little fanfic. It got some attention, people liked it, I felt good! So, I decided to expand, make a character profile. Using a Picrew and some inspiration from both Obi and @itzscribz I created Amber.

I was happy with it, some people liked it! I was content. Then, one day, I got a notification, I was tagged in something by the wonderful artist, @rozeliyawashereyall. Roze, this artist who I admired from afar, had created something. I opened it when work was slow and there she was. My silly little gal brought to life in digital ink and being embraced by other Bugs. @willowve01 pointed out the detail of Amber being blind in one eye, and how her and Raine are ‘blind buddies’. And I had always admired @asmrbrainrot from afar, and the fact we shared this little ragtag team was awesome!

The more time I spent with the others, watching our little army grow, Amber began to grow. She learned confidence, and earned a best friend in @aspenm00n Emerald Lynch. And her backstory, and the people in it began to grow. Her father, just a spineless cardboard stand in, became a flawed, but loving man.

When the Bug Army got a discord, everything exploded, we grew, we learned, we laughed. I have made such wonderful friends here. I love you all, thank you for helping me to become stronger. I love you all, my friends.

Thank you to Reedmace, Obsidian Lantern, and you, my Buggy Brethren. I love you all!!

[catyo90]

REASONS WHY I COULD NOT GET INTERESTED IN LEGEND OF KORRA. ( And yes I know the studio thought they were gonna get only one season and other issues but still.)

Warning: Spoilers and Really long.

1. Korra was able to bend three elements by the time she was 5. The Avatar usually wasn't found out until they were 13-16 which gives them time until they are an adult to learn and grow. But having Korra being found out and just knowing how to bend elements like this bugged me. And I understand the southern tribe would have some updates, but it's still all ice. Fire could make sense since they use it in camps and Air is everywhere, but earth made no sense to me.

2. Okay...so now everyone can Bloodbend and Metalbend.

This really bothered me for the sole purpose that only Katara and Toph would know about these abilities. Toph we know taught others how to do this and even had an academy. But bloodbending was something Katara only used as a last resort and I don't think she ever uses it after hunting the man who killed her mother. Its a terrifying technique but definitely something she would teach to another. Now I know that a bender could have found out about this ability like Hana. But this was after being imprisoned for months to years. Not to mention bloodbending can only be used under a full moon. It's way to rare to make your villain have this ability and it never made sense to me.

3. Sokka, Aang, Suki, Azula and well alot of others.

I understood when this show was announced that Aang wasn't gonna be there physically but to take out two of the gang like Sokka and Suki. It really didn't help. And to show little to no scenes of them was really a let down. And a lot of beloved side characters who we just have to presume are either dead or just not around. One thing I thought would have been nice to see was Korra speaking to Yue, she is a water tribe avatar who probably learned of the sacrifice of Yue and in all honesty should have made some connection to them. Not a huge one but just anything.

4. Aang and the gang...being given crappy adulthoods.

Aang being a father who only favored Tenzin the most cause he was an Airbender never made sense to me. He had seen what that kind of thinking did with Zuko and Azulas parents. And yet he just kinda pushes Kya and Bumi away to make Tenzin the best. In truth he should have focused on all his children.

Katara teaching Kya and careing for Bumi was fine, but I really urked me that she was just a healer. We know she's hands down the best but she is the most prominent fighter as well. Not to mention she kinda gets benched by the white lotus (they kinda suck as well.) She and Korra should have had a deeper connection, instead Katara kinda gets forgotten.

Toph being a cop....the kid who was rambunctious and the rule breaker who literally was wanted for money scams. A cop. She could have been anything else and it would have been fine. But a cop...no no no.

Zuko not being Firelord was a bit of a wildcard idea in my opinion. He gave the title to his daughter Izumi. Okay fine but here's the issue. He still has power and influence but like Katara gets benched because of age. (A reminder that Bumi, Iroh and Pakku who were at the same age in the show were literally defeating the fire nation armies on their own)

5. Technology

I hated this. The original avatar show was conveying the beauty of nature and how traditional world building works with older designs showing through.But then they added cars, airships and Gundam suits. Gundam suits. I half expected Shinji to show up.

6. The Villians

S1: A Blood bender who wanted to end all Bending. Makes no sense

S2: Unalaq and Vaatu. Another bender wanting balance with a spirits power who we have never heard of or seen before. And oh yeah the avatar has a spirit of life we never introduced and now must make sure they live.

S3: Zaheer an Airbender who basically said fuck the police and order. Oh but let's follow my rules and order of the Red Lotus

S4: Kuvira a dictator who wanted to pull a the Earth kingdom is better than everyone so let's copy paste what the fire nation did.

I can't make any of this up. Those are your enemies.

7. The Team.

This kinda gets hurt because of how young they made Korra a known Avatar. She didn't learn from her team, she already knew how to bend the elements with only Tenzin having to help. That's it that's her team. Not Mako, Bolin or Asami. They didn't teach her in the traditional sense which hurts the connection to all of them.

8. The Relationships.

I'm gonna say this now. There is nothing wrong with Korra and Asami. Okay. But they could have made the relationships of all characters have more depth instead of love squares with all four in the team. Heck Aang and Katara didn't end up till the end. Toph had possible crushes on Zuko and Sokka. Sokka had all the game to get multiple possible partners. Zuko had to wait to see Mai again till season 3. No one needed to start dating in the first season.

9. The overuse of the Avatar State.

Korra literally used this to win a race with children. The powerful state with all avatars power and wisdom.... seriously.

The literal power move of all avatars in one collected system. Used to play. It would have been a good lesson to have Korra at 13 -16 using it like that and learning that the power is not invincible. She needed to understand that in the state she could die and end the cycle.

10. Lack of Fun.

Now I know Atla had serious moments and funny ones too. But it worked better because they would be serious when the time needed to be. Heck even in the final episode Sokka, Suki and Toph take out an airships crew by saying its someone's birthday with no one questioning it. And just drops them into the water below. It's funny but funny enough to work. I can't recall any jokes from Lok. Like not a single one. But I know everyone here can recall a hell of a ton of lines.

Examples

[fromthespaceamundo]

Puff Q&A

As published in The Times (Munster, Indiana) on August 8, 2000:

You asked the questions and we passed them along. Check out what the girls had to say to you. Q: Blossom, why do you always wear a red bow in your hair? Kayla Rosiar, 6, Calumet CH Blossom: Because I'm the leader and it goes wonderfully with my long red hair. Q: Bubbles, why are you a little afraid of bugs? They are harmless. Reyna Ortiz, 9, Hammond Bubbles: Bugs are gross, gross, gross! Except for ladybugs, of course. They're sweet and pretty. Q: Buttercup, what Is your favorite thing about kicking evil butt? Victoria Hanson, 11, Valparaiso Buttercup: Everything. I like kicking and punching and showing those bad guys that bad doesn't get you anything but trouble.

Q: Blossom, is it hard having two sisters that are the same age as you? How do you keep them out of your stuff? Jesslyn Truesdale, 7, Calumet City Blossom: No, it's not hard, since we've been together from the beginning. And since Bubbles and Buttercup have completely different interests, it's not hard to keep them out of my stuff. Buttercup likes stuff like punching bags, Bubbles likes crayons and I like books. Q: Bubbles, why do you think Buttercup is mean to you? Miranda Russell, 13, Valparaiso Bubbles: I think she's jealous because she can't color like me. Buttercup: Yeah, right. Q: Dear Buttercup: Why are you so angry all the time? James Oppolo, 5, Hammond Buttercup: I'm not angry. I'm just tough on crime and criminals. Q: Did you have a mom? I'm asking all of you. Allison Penilla, 9, Schererrille Blossom: Nope. Bubbles: Just the Professor. Buttercup: And he's the best dad anyone could ask for. Q: Why doesn't the mayor have a real name like George? Lauren Rental, 10, Hammond Blossom: It's just easier to call him the Mayor. Then he remembers what his job is. Q: Why don't they show the mayor's secretary's face? Kaitlyn Jagar, 10, Hammond Blossom: Ms. Bellum? Buttercup: We see her face all the time. Bubbles: She's beautiful. Q: Bubbles, can you talk to animals? Elizabeth Lanman, 5, Munster Bubbles: Yes, I can speak squirrel and monster and all other animal languages. Q: Dear Bubbles, I want to know if flying is fun. Selena Castillo, 4, Hammond Bubbles: Flying is the funnest. I get to see all the beautiful colors from way up high! Q: Buttercup, why did you pick green for your outfit? Trisha Madura, 5, Munster Buttercup: 'Cause green is awesome. Much stronger than that pink and blue that Blossom and Bubbles wear. Q: Blossom, what do you do in school? Tiffany Madura, 7, Munster Blossom: I like reading and writing and math. Anything to make my young mind grow. Q: Do you like Britney Spears? Karlie Figiel, 5, Hammond Blossom: I like classical music. Buttercup: I like rock. Bubbles: I like birdies singing. Q: What was your first show about? Kelsie Figiel, 7, Hammond Blossom: Well, there was that battle with Roach Coach. He wanted to take over the world, with his army of roaches. Buttercup: That was so cool! Bubbles: No, it wasn't! It was gross! All those bugs! Yuck! Q: How do the Powerpuff girls stay big and strong? Because they fight Mojo Jojo so much? Ellen Wyand, 4, Crown Point Blossom: We stay big and strong because we are superheroes. Bubbles: Thanks to Chemical X. Buttercup: But beating up Mojo sure doesn't hurt.

[indigosfindings]

my shadow bug devil army that's been tirelessly fending off both silksong and deltarune for countless years is beginning to grow weary..... im not sure how much longer they can keep this up. im sorry for whatever's about to happen.

[swifty-fox]

is there anything you can share about benny and/or brady in cicada season au?

Omg absolutely!

Let’s seeeeee

Benny was born in Italy, his family moved here when he was six months old (yes he had to go through the citizenship process when he turned eighteen). His mother moved back home after his father passed away and he misses her very much but he knows she’s happier there. They have a phone call every few days and he tries to visit every other year or so. He’d say himself he’s about 85% fluent in Italian but does understand it fully.

He got Meatball at a party he went to where it was clear the owner wasn’t taking care of him and smuggled out the very fluffy very hungry puppy out under his jacket.

He’s a beetle guy but he does keep other bugs including some tarantulas and recently is getting into scorpions as well!

Due to the nature of what he keeps most of his animal husbandry is more bare bones (bins in racks) but he does have some vivariums that Gale has made for him. They house a few types of Mantis, a Hercules beetle and a stick bug named Steve.

He’s Catholic (of course) insofar as he goes to church on Easter and Christmas because his mother asks and prays to the saints now and again when he can’t find his car keys but he’s not very devout. Much to his mother’s chagrin.

Brady!! My princess!!! He was a flight medic, and served with John and Curt for two years before the crash. While he walked away unscathed (mostly. We will get into that) he didn’t stay in the army much longer than either of his friends. It just wasn’t the same.

On top of helping John out with his business he also works evenings as en EMT. It scratches that adrenaline thrill he misses from combat rescues as well as pays the bills. He also likes keeping busy, especially in the evening when otherwise he would be alone in his apartment. I don’t know how heavily his OCD will play in this au, but he definitly does still have it.

He is quite devout and while he split from his church due to conservatism he does go to a Jesuit church pretty consistently. Not every Sunday but at least a couple times a month. He briefly thought about becoming a priest but felt he could better use his skills elsewhere. And also he’s just. A little too mean.

He had cats growing up and is a little squeamish about how dirty animals can be but he does like them. Meatball will win him over I’m sure.

Johnnys known he’s gay since he was very very little but never acted on it until after the military. It was a bit of a self destructive act and a little unsafe circumstances but he is happy he got it over with (and we might unpack that in their fic) it’s part of why Bucky is so eager to set him up. He wants that boy to get the fucking he deserves.

He did have a brief (BRIEF) crush on John until he got to know him better