#the mistakes and status effects and all

[suzirya]

God I love sewing

[ssaltlicker]

So much of the arcane fandom subscribes to the belief that any harmful action can be explained away and excused as long as its either someone you agree with or if you have a good enough sob story

[circeyoru]

Shadow and Void _ Part 4

[Yandere!Sung Jinwoo x Enemy Monarch!Reader]

Arc 1: Part 1 ― Part 2 ― Part 3 Arc 2: Part 4 (here) ― Part 5 Arc 3: Part 6 ― Part 7 Arc 4: Part 8 ― Part 9 ― Part 10 ― Part 11

You want to kill something—someone to be specific—right now. Even as you were surrounded with snacks you liked, you hated the situation unfolding before you. The mind of a human is just too weird for you to understand in any sense.

You angrily bit on the chip between your fingers with a loud and resounding snap that broke the silence while your eyes drilled holes into the man who was basically holding you there against your will, maybe with some form of bribe, but it was definitely not the snacks. Definitely.

“Just let her in your guild, you edge lord.” You hissed as you took the female Hunter’s side, annoyed at the various ridiculous excuses Jinwoo listed to push Hae-In away. You would admit that you’re impressed with her resilience when facing such a menace; then again, she is in love, and love makes one do crazy things.

Jinwoo had half a mind to know not to voice out the question of how and why you’d know such phrasing, since there was Cha Hae-In present and there was no need to raise alarm bells. Though the greatest reason was that he didn’t want another to know about you or what you are precisely. He can’t say he’s bothered by the way your eyes stared at him, all focused and guarded, ready to take Hae-In hostage if the situation calls for it.

Ah, but it won’t be much help to you. You’d have picked the wrong target. If it were someone like his mother or younger sister, then there’d be an effect you’d wanted. However, this was Hae-In, he barely met her and she barely knew him. That can’t be the case between you two. 

He knew about your being as a Monarch and an inhuman thing using a human body as a vessel, you knew about his levelling-up system that granted him his status as an S-Rank and all his other abilities. He and you could be your true selves in each other’s presence, no filter, no expectations of fulfilling anything. In a sense, he felt more at peace with you than the other people around him. Like you were someone as close to him as family. 

Perhaps this was the after-effects of viewing the memories between you and Ashborn, but that was his thoughts.

“There’s an entrance test before I can allow you to join, Hunter Cha.” Jinwoo stated nonchalantly.

You raised a brow while Hae-In flinched in alarm, “H- Huh?! That wasn’t in the recruiting notice…”

“A mistake, since we were busy these few days.” Jinwoo got up and eyed you to do the same, you complied while bringing along your unfinished snacks. “If you think it’s too sudden and unreasonable, you can―”

“What kind of test is it?” Hae-In asked with resolve.

You practically saw the shock in Jinwoo’s eyes, hiding a snicker as you internally mocked his poor insight into a woman’s determination. 

“You have to win against one of my summons.” Jinwoo laid out the simple yet vague requirement. 

“Is the evaluation of me in your eyes so low, Hunter Sung?” Hae-In’s tone turned firm and solid, nothing like her previous blushing mess. You can’t miss the fire burning in her eyes, “What kind of summon is it?”

With a cruel thought, you wondered if killing this Hunter for Ashborn and adding her to his army would be a good enough apology gift. Then again, you had to do it when the vessel’s soul is gone and Ashborn is back to fully appreciate your work well done. You’ll keep the thought in mind for the future. For now, you’ll let the humans deal with their business.

“For you, Hunter Cha, I’ll use my strongest summon ally.” Just as you were leaving the scene, Jinwoo’s hand placed firmly on your shoulder, stopping you in your tracks. You looked up at him in confusion and question as he looked down with a smirk. “This one.”

Hae-In jumped, “You’re a summon?! But you’re so… So…”

“Human?” Jinwoo smiled, leaning down to your level as his face was next to yours and made eye contact with Hae-In, “Yes, this is my perfect ally and companion in battle; it wouldn’t be good for a monster to be around me, right?”

You glared at Jinwoo, completely unaware of the conflicted expression on Hae-In’s face as your back was facing her. You whispered a hiss at him, “What are you doing? Don’t drag me into this.”

“A small deal then.” Jinwoo whispered back, taking advantage of Hae-In’s inner turmoil. “If you can ward Hunter Cha from joining my guild, you won’t have to stay by my side all the time. In other words, defeat Hunter cha and you get some free time for yourself without me around.”

That got your attention and you turned to glance at Hae-In. This woman can’t even manage to hold this vessel’s attention for long, not to mention how you were now dragged into some useless fight. Even if you let her into the guild, her use wasn’t much and she is weak compared to this vessel before you. The comparison was unfair, but it was the truth.

“Fine, but you keep your word.”

“Of course.”

You turned your heel and dumped the snacks back onto the coffee table. Taking a page out of Igris’ book, you stood at attention and fixed your expression to a more stoic and indifferent look, your chin angled down and your hands were placed behind your back, your eyes stared sharply at Hae-In. “My Lord has suggested I do battle with you for your place in his guild,” You offered your hand as you asked, “Should you accept, only if you win against me will you be considered acceptance. Do you still wish to partake in the duel?”

Jinwoo was almost taken aback with your shift in attitude and character. Not that he found fault in it, but rather, he was more drawn to you. It was smart of him to make such an appealing offer to you. The System’s information was right on the money. You are so self-centered and willing to abandon others for your own cause.

Now, all he needed to do was make sure you don’t can’t leave him.

His eyes glowed briefly when Hae-In’s hand gripped yours with a firm nod that meant ‘yes’. The moment you looked over as if asking for approval made his heart skip a beat, you were acting just like an actual Shadow soldier of his. He nodded back and watched you raise your other hand to snap your fingers. 

In the blink of an eye, all three of you were transported to another dimension. All your surroundings were misty, and even the ground was covered with a layer of fog that obscured their vision of their own feet. You had long walked off from Jinwoo’s side, only when he snapped back to attention did he realize he was standing at the perfect angle to see you and Hae-In on either side of a field of sorts.

“Here, we can battle without restraint.” You said, and with another snap of your fingers, a rack of weapons appeared by Hae-In’s side. “Pick your weapon, and we will begin on My Lord’s mark.”

So Jinwoo was right; you could have escaped to your own realm at any moment, with or without his consent and knowledge. Why you haven’t done so was odd, but that also proves how much of a hold Ashborn has on you. If only he could shift your attention from his predecessor to himself. 

Hae-In picked a long sword while you stood immobile. 

“Ready.”

Hae-In got into a stance, but you were as still as can be like you were frozen in place.

“Set.”

Hae-In’s mana aura surrounded her, charging her blade as well. You did nothing.

“Go!”

Hae-In took the initiative and charged forward, planning to end the duel with one quick decisive move. However, just before her blade reached you, you had disappeared in thin air. As quickly as you disappeared, you materialized behind Hae-In and kicked her in the back to send her flying to the side. You stood at your spot, fixing your clothes, tugging at your sleeves from your movement.

Swiftly, Hae-In had recovered and remained on the offensive. Your head tilted and you dodged her incoming attacks with graceful movements. The way you put minimum effort into this was almost like you were toying with the Hunter. Your monotonous expression and your hands behind your back were screaming handicap. It may look like an advantage to Hae-In, but it hurt her pride.

“Fight me for real.” Hae-In panted, finding this play irritating.

You merely blinked and hummed. Your eyes darted over to Jinwoo’s analytic look, no doubt he was watching this fight with a hawk, mainly judging your abilities than Hae-In’s qualifications to join the guild. You knew and he knew, there was no way Hae-In could win against you, a Monarch. It was only a matter of how to create that loss without death.

If only you could kill. Then everything would be so easy. You sighed, momentarily closing your eyes before they opened and glowed, “Humans are so ignorant of their limits…”

Note: Probably not the update you guys wanted, but I've been writing for this series still~ I'm thinking of making the parts longer cause of the gaps between updates though, not just for this series, but maybe for future posts too.

𝕮𝖎𝖗𝖈𝖊 𝖄.

My Works: MASTERLIST

Taglist: @o-qi-shisme @2021animeandwebtoons @mochinon-yah @skylar896 @rai-xxx @lilliana-14 @larettajudith

[waaaffle]

The problem with people who vehemently hate Jinshi and Jinmao is that they desperately want the author, story, and other people to view him and the ship like they do. This is why they spread misinformation about the story, precisely because the story never treats Jinshi as a villain or a monster for any of his mistakes or blunders, even when he is shown to be in the wrong. There is a clear line the series draws regarding actions like r@pe, child abuse, pedophilia, assault, etc. (compare how the previous emperor is depicted, the question of how to lower a courtesan’s value, or Lakan’s initial appearance to how Jinshi is treated).

I always see the mentions of “Maomao is forced to oblige because of status” and that “she could get her head cut off if she refuses him.” There is commentary about power imbalances throughout the story, and their relationship is no exception. However, that is not to say that these comments are accurate.

People always say that Maomao cannot refuse Jinshi, and sure, in theory that is true — someone of her status cannot refuse someone of his, or *shouldn’t* be able to. As she gets to know him throughout the series, it becomes increasingly clear to her that he would not harm her, rejection or not. Take the honey scene for example: it’s very early on in their relationship, and Maomao here has reason to believe she would face punishment for refusal. Even with that in mind, she still makes it very clear that she was uncomfortable with his advancements. The author makes it easy for the audience to understand when Maomao does not approve of something (honey scene, Lakan, etc.), so we have all the reason to believe that if Maomao felt the same way about Jinshi’s other advances (frog scene, LN 5 epilogue, etc.) that the author would make it known in some way or another. Instead, there are often conflicting feelings present when it comes to his serious advancements.

Maomao fears deepening her connection with Jinshi because of all the trouble it could bring her way. She also fears abandonment and worries that, if she makes the decision to be vulnerable and honest, that she will suffer the same fate as her mother and many other women did; she feels that she cannot let herself love or be loved (both romantically and platonically). She does not truly operate as someone who fears or detests him.

This becomes especially evident when you compare Maomao’s interactions with other people of higher status to those with Jinshi. Even with those who favor her, she maintains a polite and professional atmosphere, yet treats him with what would be taken as disrespect by anyone else in his position.

The refusal to accept that the romance subplot — something decided upon years ago that has unequivocal development on both sides of the relationship — is very much there and crucial to the story colors takes on the author’s intent with their scenes.

Natsu Hyuuga has said that her favourite scene to write was the frog scene. If it was meant to depict assault, and not to show two individuals pushing each other's buttons, then would we say that she was happy to write about a man assaulting a woman? Nothing about her clear depictions of assault and its effects within the story vs. how Maomao and Jinshi moments are depicted suggests that they are remotely the same or should be taken as such.

While the frog scene drives the plot forward (Maomao gets full confirmation that Jinshi is not a real eunuch) it also has romantic and comedic undertones that cannot be divorced from it (regardless of how the scene made some feel on a personal level). Just because the writing for a romance does not cater to one's personal tastes does not mean that the romance in these scenes are not present.

It's also a show of vulnerability (romance aside) on Jinshi’s part in wanting to share his secret with Maomao. She expresses worry, not in fear that he would harm her, but rather because she does not want to deal with the baggage that comes with being privy to what she perceived to be a crime in that moment (uncastrated man in the rear palace).

This is not to say his behavior in the scene was okay, and the series acknowledges this by having him apologize. Maomao also apologized as she was also not entirely innocent either.

Disliking him and the scene is fine, but the story not once paints him as the evil r@pist people try to make him out to be, and they must accept that. Don’t expect the story or author to validate such claims / feelings.

He is a multifaceted character, much like Maomao. You are not meant to agree with his every action, but he is painted as a genuinely good person overall. Their emphasis placed on him being too kind and caring to be emperor (a sentiment Maomao holds) suggests as much.

Also, those who say that the author actually wanted to write romance between Maomao and any other character in the story tend to use the author not initially planning a romantic subplot as justification for why the main ship of the series is bad or “forced”. If she wasn’t planning on making Maomao fall in love with anyone, how can one say that she actually wanted to make her fall in love with xyz? It would be one thing if the logic used was consistent. I promise that it's okay to hate things because you don’t vibe with it.

Genreally speaking, the lack of reading between the lines in this fandom gets rather annoying and does a disservice to both the author and her work.

[that-hazbin]

🎶📻🍎 time travel pre-relationship hellradio AU

Alastor, instead of staying hidden after his encounter with Adam, comes back out and tries to save Charlie when she gets grabbed by the throat. Alastor gets dealt a fatal blow seconds before Lucifer arrives, and he's surprised that in his final moments, he sees Charlie, Lucifer, and Vaggie all crowd around him trying to keep him alive.

Charlie, he somewhat understands; she's a bleeding heart and much too good for hell. Lucifer and Vaggie, however? Well, he certainly didn't expect that. As much as he hates the realization that he does, indeed, care enough to sacrifice his existence, it's a... reassuring consolation to know that he would be missed. Even by those he least expects it from.

...

Waking up after dying is absurd.

He's actually somewhat angry by this. Don't get him wrong, it's an appreciated gift to continue existing, but for fuck's sake, he's literally right back where he started. As in, the day he died and first appeared in hell. That day. You could almost say his sacrifice meant nothing at all.

So, forgive him if he's a little pissy about it.

It takes a while for him to calm down, but once he does, he can finally realize the opportunity he has. He's already accepted that he, ugh, cares about Charlie and, to a somewhat lesser but not nonexistent extent, the rest of the hotel residents. He died for them, after all, there's really no point in self-denial. Knowing this, and his current situation, it wouldn't be a bad idea to start preparations now, about a century earlier, for Charlie to have a better time succeeding in the future.

Obviously, he needs to do things differently than he did the first time. For example, allowing others any control over the entertainment scene was a huge fucking mistake. Vox cannot have control over television. Vox effectively ruined any form of creativity in hell, putting down any small independent artists in favor of having absolute control over the media. The result wasn't the existence of "trash television," it was that nothing else existed besides trash television, porn, and recycled stories. Everything was made to fit the vision of a cisgender privileged white man, and no one else had any right to air their own stories. The TV scene lacked culture, diversity, introspection, and, ironically enough, innovation, despite Vox's narcissistic claims to be the head of innovation itself.

Valentino, similarly, cannot be raised to any sort of position of power. His depravity doesn't even need to be explained; as much as Alastor doesn't want to touch that scene with a ten foot pole, letting that pathetic moth gain status was a worse outcome. Alastor slaughtered the previous porn overlord for a reason. The only thing that had protected Valentino from that same wrath was his teaming up with Vox and Velvette. Alastor wasn't dumb enough to take on three overlords at once, at least not directly.

Alastor needed to lock in his place at the top of the ladder. This time, he can't be The Radio Demon. He needs to become the head of all entertainment. It will be difficult, given he only has personal interest in radio, but delegation is something he's personally rather competent in.

Luckily, he no longer has a chain on his soul. Unluckily, both due to the lack of his own chain and the fact he no longer has chains on other souls, he's lacking the effortless magical power of before.

But that's fine. He had magic before he became reliant on deals, after all. He just needs to get back in the groove of things. And this time, he's familiar enough with hell that he knows exactly where to go for all the ingredients and tools he'll need.

...

A few decades later, Alastor, The Media Demon, is putting on a theatre performance. And who is seated in the VIP area? The royal family themselves.

And my, Alastor certainly seems to have caught their attention.

[canine-witch]

What's Coming Next Month?

The first month of the year is already almost over, and many of us are still feeling the effects of 2024. I recieved a message that the collective all seems to want to move forward, without uncertianty.

Drink some water, pick a pile, and release what does not resonate.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Group One ~ Lemon Water

You will be purging and releasing energy in the next month, seekers. It's time for you to level up and reach a higher plane in all aspects of your life. The purging and releasing of this energy, people, or places may be painful. But, it's all for the greater good. You are protected and safe, and sometimes we have to release what no longer serves us, even if we love something. Watch for omens and comfort yourself seeker, blessings to you, the pain will subside into joy.

Group Two ~ Noon Window

Your blockages will be removed, seekers. Many of you have found yourself in a dream like state, where you know what you want, but you never seem to get it. There has been a lack of balance in your life, and significant roadblocks that are preventing you from reaching what you desire. Sit with yourself, ask yourself if this is what you truly want. If it is, ask yourself what limiting beliefs are keeping you from claiming your dreams. Those of you who do spellwork, a hex breaking spell or a reversal spell might be helpful, if those don't work, a roadblocking one may be helpful. Take the time to rest and ask yourself what you need. Many blessings are coming your way, make sure you are aligned to claim it.

Group Three ~ Bubble Lamp

You will be helped by someone in the next month, seekers. You may be a person who thinks that you don't deserve the things that others want to give you. But, there is someone who wants to provide you with material gain, and you need to humbly accept this blessing. Charity works in a circle, those who are shown kindness and given a chance to prove themselves, go on to give that same chance to others. You must learn to claim, accept, and expect wealth and status, it is part of your destiny to bless other lives as you have been blessed. Stay humble, but when people want to be kind to you, accept their help. You deserve the blessings seeker, much power to you moving forward.

Group Four ~ Sunny Koi Pond

You need to make amends this coming month, seekers. You have offended someone with your words, perhaps intentionally or unintentionally. We all make mistakes, but there seems to be refusal on your end to claim what you need to. Making mistakes doesn't make you a bad person, and perhaps your words rang true. But, we cannot control other's emotions, and your words may have been too sharp. Release your pride, apologize. If you do not, the domino effect may happen, and you will end up alone after many more arguments and fights. Put your ego and pride aside, and apologize for the hurt you caused. Make amends and your blessings will come in again, seeker.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Thank you so much for your time and energy, seekers. If you want clarification on any of these piles, or you have another question, I am currently taking free readings from January 26, 2025 through February 3, 2025. Limited time only!

Free Readings

Pick a Pile Masterpost

Thank you!

[tinolqa]

god I haven't mentioned it enough here. Myths of the Realm is my enemy. easily my least favorite 24-man- or rather it's my least favorite raid series of either type.

probably made worse by pandaemonium being genuinely very good? the contrast was stark.

weak answer to the question of the twelve's nature, very unambitious and mediocre visual designs that were largely too married to visual fidelity to boring statues and card designs. some real disney's hercules shit. there were some innovative or appealing elements here and there: nald'thal was genuinely great visually and conceptually, I actually respect the concept of making menphina a magical girl instead of a generically hotsexy love goddess, byregot's halo of nails, uh... the models for thalaos and perykos looked good? but overall they were a bunch of very boring idealized humans.

and my god eulogia is the ugliest thing. eulogia might actually be the most hideous execution of a concept in the game yet, you might as well just clip all of the models of the twelve into each other and play their animations at once and get the same effect. zero elegance, zero thoughtful design. it's actually shocking to see in a game where we got perfect omega as a raid boss once upon a time. even eden's promise, while superficially a hot mess, is a hot mess because it pays homage to extant depictions of artemis! art history is why it looks like that! eulogia looks like the artists were asked to recreate knife dad from monster factory using ffxiv assets.

and you might ask, well, are the mechanics of the fights better than the boss designs? absolutely not. week one aglaia was a little fun, because there being a chance of failure to people not knowing the trick of the meteors in the rhalgr fight or panicking during the nald'thal scales instead of just deliberately failing the mechanic to waste everyone's time. gear creep destroyed any chance of interacting with most of the fun bits of aglaia, and they didn't repeat that "mistake" in the other two, which were boring and easy from the jump. just an absolute void of challenge or chaos. why even bother putting mechanics into your raid at that point, apparently that's only for savage.

and the rewards... boy I hope you like ugly yellow-gold saint seiya armor and generic draping faux-hellenistic robes and vague suggestions of togas. I hope you fucking gluttons for endless less-problematic rehashes of ancient greek mythology like gaudy costume jewelry and sandals and meaningless neoclassical flourishes. did you want gear that might look like something your character would wear in a city they've visited or that has a connection to a historical aesthetic? I guess if you make believe you can stretch a tenuous bond from this tacky armor to the uniform robes and masks of the ancients. ostensibly. since we all know the ancients didn't have a societal taboo about ornamentation or making your clothes individualized or anything.

so what did we achieve? did we learn anything? turns out the twelve were real all along, but also powerless except in the specific context of having flashy anime duels with the warrior of light. it's VERY important that we say they aren't primals, because primals are only summoned by primitive subhumans like the ixal and the garleans. but we do need you to fight them to return their aether to the star because... they're definitely not primals! no. not primals. primals are fake gods, and the twelve are *aetheric constructs* based on *real people* made by *hydaelyn*, which means they're good and Not Primals. the mechanic by which they visually reflect the beliefs of their followers? definitely not the same as the one that does that for primals. their nebulous dependence on the faith of eorzeans? totally unrelated to primals, because it's apparently important for the ego of the players that *their* god is real and not fake, which makes them ontologically good and righteous.

and it's definitely satisfying to find out that the goddess whose name gave weight and gravity to the reveal of the warrior of light's past incarnation and their name... is called that because she was a failed candidate for that role? she's a consolation prize sun goddess?

for that matter it's definitely satisfying to find out that the twelve are just recreations of venat's boring ancient friends, who are largely nameless and have no significance to you or your interaction with the past aside from a mediocre sidequest. oh it's so thrilling to know that the god of crafting used to be hytholdaeus's coworker. this would mean so much to me if he had any role in the setting beyond a skill name and a rock sitting in an overworld zone.

admittedly it would also suck for the reveal to be "actually eorzea's gods did create the world and are all-powerful, boy it sure is silly that those delusional foreigners are out here worshipping kami and manusya and mrga and primals which are all FAKE, as opposed to us (non-beastman) eorzeans who have the literal mandate of heaven"

but surely there's a more elegant solution (ambiguity, leaving questions instead of a glut of answers, not making this raid series at all). was this really the best they could come up with?

[unanimousgolddd]

Admiration

Summary: Everyone keeps secrets. But after the incident with Dr. Maria, you find yourself pushing the limits of professionalism by Umbrella’s standards. (This is part two of my previous post Bad Day, Worst Day, as requested by Vesper)

TW: eventual kissing, mild language, possibly ooc Wesker, GN! Reader, useage of dearest (like literally once)

Word Count: ~2.5k

Tags: @vesperaominosum <3

Requests are OPEN if you'd like me to write something specific (head cannons or a fic like this or if you want me to continue this)

─── ⋆⋅ ♰ ⋅⋆ ───

Watchful, effective, self-assured, keen, elusive, and respectable.

That’s how you’ve come to describe him. Sure, there were thousands of other words to describe him, but none were as fitting when you watched him work. You’ve grown to admire him throughout the time you’ve worked with him, but not so much understand him. Dr. Wesker was an enigma, or possibly like the Rubik's Cube, something you could never figure out how to solve, no matter how much you tried.

But despite how he acted, distant and private, it was his appearance that drew you in and kept you. There were handsome men, but then there was Albert Wesker. Perhaps it was his signature sunglasses that never strayed from the bridge of his perfect straight nose. Perhaps it was sharp features, sculpted like a beautiful marble statue. Or maybe it was the fact that you got to see him every day for hours upon end, granted the ability to gaze upon him whether he was working or scolding you for a mistake, even when you knew you were blatantly staring. It was impossible not to.

You knew this because you were watching him now, eyes trailing over his hands as he wrote on pieces of paper. His hands were veiny, but not disgustingly veiny like someone who took steroids. His fingers were long, and the skin on the back of his hands was smooth-looking. All the while, those same hands were attached to strong forearms, the muscles rippling whenever he took another stroke of his pen. You knew this because his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. You weren’t able to understand when or how he could get such muscles, given his packed schedule and his obvious devotedness to the Tyrant project.

You tried focusing on your work long ago, but it was a rather quick task that you had nothing else to do. Besides, you never could help yourself when it came to eye candy.

Your eyes trailed up to his face, roaming over details you’ve seen plenty of times before but were too shy to completely take in. Sharp jaw, straight nose, pursed thin lips that turned a deep pink whenever he pursed too hard, and the gentle furrow of his brows. If only you could see what lay beneath the glasses, the only item that prevented you from seeing the windows to the soul. Were they brown? Or perhaps they were a softer, darker, yet equally blue?

Maybe that’s why he wore the sunglasses, to hide the most vulnerable parts from people he didn’t trust or wasn’t close to. However, you didn’t take Dr. Wesker as a sentimental man.

“You’re staring.” Wesker suddenly said, breaking you from your staring session. You hadn’t even noticed he stopped writing and lifted his head to look at you, catching your act of continuous staring.

You sat up in your chair and cleared your throat, glancing back at your computer in a mock attempt at focusing. “Sorry, I was just mostly thinking.” You gave a half lie. He raised his left brow, his pen still poised. “Oh? And what were you thinking about?” He asked as he began to lean back in his chair, pen discarded next to the page he was writing on. “Lunch.” You lied compulsively, not wanting to admit you were staring at him for so long.

You stood up and grabbed your bag, suddenly deciding it was breaktime for you. “Figured you didn’t bring lunch again, and I’m going to a sandwich place, Jason’s. You want a sandwich?” You asked him as you approached the door. You turned to look at him. You couldn’t tell if he was contemplating his decision or was disappointed in the sudden shift of conversation. “The Panuzzo, pesto with light olive oil, tomato, mozzarella, ham.” He said. You weren’t sure whether or not to be surprised by his choice of sandwich, but you did know it sounded good. You gave him a thumbs up before leaving the office, and eventually the underground labs and Umbrella itself. Getting the sandwiches didn’t take long either, with the line inside not too long, and the actual sandwich-making was quick. Soon enough, you were showing the guards at the entrance of the labs your I.D. before walking down the same long corridor to your office.

With two knocks to the door, you opened it with your other hand and closed it behind you. “I was surprised when they had your sandwich on the menu, I’ve never heard of it before.” You said as you placed your bag on your desk. You brought the plastic bag to Wesker’s desk, digging in the bag and grabbing his wrapped sandwich. You handed him the food item before moving to your own desk to eat. “Jason is an Italian American, his grandmother was from Italy.” He responded, beginning to open the paper wrapping.

You paused and looked up from your sandwich, brows raised. “How do you know that?” You asked with a small laugh of surprise. The only indication he looked at you was the slight upward tilt of his chin. “I know Jason, I have been to his sandwich place before,” Wesker answered bluntly. “He likes to talk.” He added before moving to eat. You watched him take his bite of food, mind still whirring at the idea of a man like him, who seemed to never stop working, standing inside a small sandwich shop with a nice Jason talking his ear off. Eventually, you decided enough was enough and you began to eat your sandwich.

The office was silent for a while, the only sounds being of crumpling of the paper wrapper and the occasional shift in the seat filling the noise. It felt peaceful despite how much you two worked in hurried atmospheres.

“You were staring earlier.” He said, sandwich half eaten, and various small pieces of tomato from his sandwich resting on the wrapper. You paused your chewing and glanced away from your sandwich, brows raised in surprise. “I was not.” You responded, trying to defend your actions even though you knew you had been staring.

“Yes, you were.”

“No, I wasn’t.” You said, trying to keep yourself from cracking a smile. And it was hard to spin it around into the idea that you were doing something else since he had caught you blatantly staring.

“Yes, you were.” He wiped his hands on the napkin next to his sandwich before standing, back popping a few times while he stood with a straight back.

He moved towards you, deliberately slowing his footsteps and adding tension. He took one more step before finally standing in front of you, hands coming down to rest on the edge of your desk. You opened your mouth to give another objection to his claim, but could only lick your lips subtly. “You were admiring me.” He muttered, lowering his head so you were eye to eye. “And if I were?” You murmured, staring up at him.

He gave a hum that came from the depths of his throat, the sound rumbling in the air almost like a soft growl. “I’d say you were being unprofessional. And that it wasn’t your first time you’ve committed such an act.” He said in a quiet voice.

“You’re an enigma, that’s why.” You said in defense, suddenly no longer having the ability to look him in the eyes (sunglasses) and deciding to wipe your hands off on the napkin next to you. When you were done, his left hand came up and tilted your chin up to make you look at him. “And does that annoy you? Or…does it intrigue you?” He asked, not allowing you to look away from him.

You swallowed. The sudden lack of space, or rather, the space between the two of you, felt small. He was right in front of you, fingers holding your chin, and face so close yet so far from yours. Every bit of you, the irrational you, wanted to lean forward and kiss him despite your professional relationship. Besides, you didn’t know if he’d accept that and completely reject your feelings.

But you didn’t realize how he looked at you from behind the black shades. He found you fascinating. He lived a life of secrecy, solitude, and Umbrella. He didn’t need anyone, he told himself, until you came along. He was still secretive, yet he found himself beginning to rely on you not just because you were his assistant, but because you were competent enough to be worthy of his time and presence.

He would watch you as you worked, taking mental notes as you handled certain tasks and obstacles. He noted your quirks and habits, memorizing how you liked things organized and done, along with what you shared during conversations. He knew you preferred pasta dishes for lunch and would often avoid eating sugary treats every day. He knew you couldn’t stand silences when working and would hum a song from the radio to stay focused. He also had your files, detailing everything from your medical information to where you enrolled and graduated from college. He understood you, but he had yet to know you. It wasn’t his original plan, which had been to ignore you mostly and use you when you proved useful. However, there was something about you that kept him from acting normally.

“What do you think?” You finally answered him. He gave no sign of acknowledgement, not even a tilt of his head. You were almost convinced he was simply fucking with you.

He moved closer unexpectedly, and you could have sworn your heart jumped as anxiety filled your lower stomach, removing you from your appetite. “I think…you harbor unprofessional feelings,” Wesker whispered to you, his voice low and deep as if he were giving you a secret. However, before you could lean forward to give him the kiss you’ve been dying to give him, a knock came to the door, and he immediately moved away from you and stood straight.

“Come in.” He said to the person behind the door before moving back to his desk. You released the breath you were holding earlier and went back to your sandwich.

Neither of you had commented about what had happened four days ago. Not like you could anyway, as the two of you were surrounded by so much work that it was impossible to have a casual chat. And it wasn’t like you wanted to confront him about it, too shy and embarrassed, you let your feelings dictate your actions. You distanced yourself from him unintentionally, and he noticed quickly.

It was time to leave for you after a long ten hours of working, the weekend was finally here for you. You gently shut the lid of your laptop after logging out and placed it in your work bag. Any pens you used during the day were put away in the drawer to your right. Just as you stood, Wesker walked through the door. “Leaving now?” He asked as he moved to his desk. He caught the nod you gave and glanced down at the surface of his desk. “I’ll walk you out. It won’t do me any good to stay here for so long.” He suddenly suggested and began to gather his items. Soon enough, the two of you exited the office room and began to walk the long corridors back to the entrance of the labs.

You gave your goodbyes to the night guards as Wesker pressed the call button for the elevator. The elevator came a moment later, and you walked inside, with Wesker pressing the button for the ground floor. You didn’t say anything as the elevator doors closed and began its ascent to the surface.

“We never finished our conversation.” He suddenly commented as he stood beside you, his head facing forward. You swallow your suddenly dry throat and tighten your grip on your coat. “We’ve been busy, sir.” You responded, keeping your eyes forward. “But you know it’s not just because of that.” He remarked. You cursed at yourself mentally. You merely gave a nod at his words, unable to find the right words to make a coherent excuse for why you never brought things up again.

“It’s just…” You stopped your sentence, not liking the way things sounded when you said them out loud. Eventually, you rubbed your eyes and took a deep breath to hype yourself up. What’s the worst thing that could happen? You asked yourself.

“I didn’t want to.” You said it quieter than you would’ve liked.

“Why?” He asked immediately.

“Didn’t know how you felt. Knew it was unprofessional.” You said briefly, trying not to say too much to prevent yourself from stumbling over words and creating a pile of incoherent phrases hardly considered to be a sentence. “That didn’t stop you before, when you admired me.” He replied, his head tilting to the left as he glanced at you. “This time it was different, alright?” You said, turning your head to look at him.

The elevator stopped at your destination, and you stepped out once the doors opened to the parking garage. You wasted no time grabbing your car keys from your bag, the heels of your shoes clicking on the floor. However, Wesker’s hand came flying from his side and grabbed your forearm, spinning you around and forcing you to face him. “You wanted to kiss me.” He didn’t sound like he was questioning your previous words, instead, it sounded like a fact. You didn’t respond immediately, eyes up on your reflection in his shades. Eventually, you gave him a tiny nod that answered him. “Why didn’t you do it, then?” He whispered to you, loosening his grip on your forearm and standing closer to you.

You bit your lip. “Didn’t know if you wanted to kiss me…too.” You told him in an equally quiet murmur, cheeks flushing with heat as you register your own words.

“Could’ve just asked me, dearest.”

Suddenly, he was leaning in, hovering his lips right over yours before finally kissing you. For a moment, you let him do it as you stood stiffly before tilting your head to the right and deepening the kiss. His hand moved from your forearm to your cheek, cupping it to keep you close.

It wasn’t full of teeth or tongue, it wasn’t even heated. Instead, it was a softness you had never experienced before. It was distinctly him, unsure of how to approach the kiss, but tender like how he handled you the day Dr. Maria spilled those chemicals on you. It wasn’t exactly full of warmth like one you’d share with a significant other, but it was like a first kiss. Special.

The kiss wasn’t long, but it felt long. In a good way, of course.

You were the one to pull away first, eyes opening back up to look at Wesker. You had nothing to say, and instead, let your eyes do the talking. Wesker cracked a smirk, giving your cheek a pinch. You yelped, hand coming up to rub the reddening spot as you watched him turn away from you and walk to his car. “Remind me to do that again, yes?” He said as he unlocked the car door. He gave you one last look, a hint of a smirk still on his lips, before getting into his car, starting the engine, and driving off after buckling his seatbelt.

You’d remind him in a heartbeat, come Monday after work.

[wisteriasymphony]

What about Adrien has inspired you to put him in less than ideal situations or make him be rotten? Like why him/what keeps bringing you back to put him in those situations?

Spite.

Canon has a tendency to give him the emotional range of a wet napkin, take every avenue they can to strip him of agency, and delight in lampshading his sort of status as an eventual trophy* by likening him to a damsel in distress.

Fanon has a tendency to run with this, actively ignoring his less savory tendencies and taking the most boring routes possible to characterize him**. He is stupid, he is blind, he is whipped, he's just a sweet boy who loves Marinette so much but is too much of a fucking idiot to notice, isn't that adorable? Adrien protection squad, what a smol bean Sunshine Boy is, isn't it so sad how he gets fucked over so often because he's just such a sweet PERFECT sunshiney adorable castrated flawless cupcake baby boy—

[Cue table flip]

...I subscribe to a very simple, yet very effective principle when characterizing in order to give foundational depth (oxymoron half intended). The Rule Of Gap Moe basically states that when you push one trait or aspect of a character, the more satisfying it will be to subvert it.

Taking a boy who's built up as the perfect opportunity to deconstruct the archetype of the Dream Boyfriend (which is.. his entire existence in both canon and metacanon? Rich, Hot, Nice, Famous, Entirely and Secretly In Love With You?), only to refuse to do so, is a choice that aggravates me to no end.

Chat Noir, given the fact that most of his fanbase is 20 year olds who crushed on him in 2016 and never grew out of it, does not fucking count. All of his subversions of Dream Boyfriendism are either palatable or serialization growing pains not meant to be taken seriously***. There is nothing difficult to love about him.

...So?

Give him something you have to contend with.

Adrien is a loser in a very ornate closet of perfectness. He's deeply maladjusted from years of masking, and has constructed very elaborate delusions in his head of right or wrong ways to act—Don't rock the boat, keep your hands to your sides, walk exactly this fast because you mathematically derived it one night when you were twelve so Papa would never cane you for falling short of perfect again. He is deeply clingy, and underneath his mask of sugar glass lies a very emotionally turbulent, bitter young man. His years worth of functioning just to survive will one day snap and, in lieu of striving anything else, he will default to seeking nothing but a string of monetary pleasures and dopamine boosts because his only methods of regulating himself were imposed by abuse. Breaking out of his cage will, in essence, do to his system of repression what a pipe bomb would do to a water tower. He will do some very stupid, awful, self-serving things, and if we're lucky he'll say something incredibly unhinged in his never-ending internal monologue that we can gawk at for a moment.

The thing about all of this that separates it from, say, a normal Chat Noir anti-hero arc is that it inherently means Adrien will do some things we will not particularly agree with. That's interesting. Nowadays, that sort of "it's fun to see them make mistakes" is relegated to thought-terminating-cliches in sugar posts to dismiss any exploration into character choices, criticism or otherwise. This is why I make Sillynette unnecessarily cruel, too. Their flaws stick out like sore fucking thumbs. It's a little more complicated to like them that way.

And I think it's worth it.

*Which, granted, is a writer issue and not a Marinette issue. The reason this whole thing pisses me off is very much also due to the fact that a lot of really stupid shit occurs because Marinette has been written to make 'getting the boy' her priority just so she can fuck up. Cue S4 Finale Cue Ephemeral.

**Chameleon is another instance in which a very delicious possible ideological schism between Marinette and Adrien is effectively forgotten about in service of shippies, and only remembered in service of salting.

***Chat's harassment problem is equal to Marinette's stalking problem in this regard. They're formula jokes that have since soured, but because of misogyny or Marinette getting more focus or whatever, the latter is acknowledged more than the former.

[thewertsearch]

So pacified, he listened to what I had to say, a8out my recent travails with the law, and Pyralspite, and what I'd come for in truth - the treasure he'd 8een keeping safe for me.

There's the fucker.

I cradled the oracle in my synthetic hand, as if appraising 8y w8 the mystic qualities it still concealed. With my vision 8fold seared away, I was as 8lind to its secrets as the old Doctor was to its present wherea8outs. I'd learned to keep it cloaked from the awareness of the man who once called me his protege, a 8ackhanded term of endearment from a smug manipul8or. Loc8ing his so called dark pockets was the only gam8it I had in countering his milktongued dou8lespeak.

Milktounged is such a great descriptor for Scratch's bullshit. I'm willing to bet that the Expatriate came up with that one.

I wonder what Scratch's plan was for Mindfang? Perhaps she was just another vector for manipulating Vriska - a particularly effective one, too, since she's serve as a mouthpiece her descendant would naturally trust.

The expatri8 for indiscerni8le reasons seemed naturally surrounded 8y such a void in the Doctor's awareness, and so was uniquely fit to inherit the or8. The Doctor could not see his treasure, nor I into it.

It's been implied a couple of times that the ancestors have access to Aspect powers. The Expatriate appears to have some sort of passive Void ability, and Mindfang's (presumably) effective use of the Fluorite Octet suggests that she, too, can manipulate luck. She also referred to Redglare as a 'true seer' in her journals, implying that that each Guardian might also share their offspring's Class.

This is a pretty interesting idea. The Guardians are children of Sburb, same as the Players, so there's nothing really stopping them from having pseudo-Player status themselves. They don't seem to have Dream Selves, but it's not out of the question that they could even ascend to God Tier, if they died on a Quest Slab.

It also means that the human Guardians probably had powers, too. Could their advanced knowledge of Sburb be derived from Mom Lalonde's status as a pseudo-Seer?

I guessed exploiting some technological means of gazing through its surface may have 8een simple enough, 8ut I hesit8ed. Every expedient granted 8y its counsel, though never instantly, came at a price. Knowing his n8ture, I'm surprised I only now recognize it as yet another instrument of his spurious 8enevolence, dangerous 8y way of selective divulgence. The sense of infalli8ility his oracle 8rought me was superficial, and in hindsight weakened my readiness.

Unsurprisingly, the cueball's answers have the same asterisk attached to them as Scratch himself. It doesn't lie, but you'd be a fool to think that means it can't manipulate you. Like all of Scratch's games, it's rigged as hell; you can't win, and you probably shouldn't even try.

…mind you, there might be a way to keep its answers unambiguous. If you restricted your queries to yes/no questions, then it couldn't phrase its responses to give Scratch an advantage.

At the same time, though, there's nothing forcing it to answer a given query with a single word. It'd probably just insist on answering in full sentences.

The gr8est mistake I have ever made was asking the or8 when I would die. 8ut as I revisited the prophecy surrounding this unfortun8 query, something struck me. I thought of the man I would have as a m8sprit centuries from now, who was said to command an army of 8easts. The one it called the summoner.

Mindfang dated Primordial Tavros?

...that poor bastard.

[kelvintimeline]

The word "filler" breaking containment from anime spaces was a mistake.

Filler EXPLICITLY refers to anime adaptions of an ongoing, WIP manga: that is important because it's describing what happens when an anime adaption catches up to its source material. Filler is the creation of non-canonical material to pad the run time so that the anime can keep being released even after it has adapted everything the manga covered so far.

Filler is often non-canonical both in the fact that it has fuck all to do with the source material AND in how it often has fuck all to do with the rest of the anime adaption. Its content that almost never comes up again, never changes the status quo, and, unless it fucks up, never interrupts the flow or contradicts the source material. It's effectively meaningless. It's another villain to fight in battle series who is never mentioned again. It's another beach trip where no relationships are changed. It's a gag episode. It's a 'what if it was all a dream' bullshit.

Filler content is stagnant. It's stalling for time. It's saying oh FUCK we don't want to fall into obscurity by having to wait a year, two years to have more of the adaption, we want to be on your mind all the time, but also we have nothing to say or do to warrant this perpetual existence.

If it isn't an adaption trying to trick you into watching it without having any new actual content, IT ISN'T FILLER!

Scenes that don't move the plot forward but establish setting, character, time frames, moods and tones, tension, and world view ARE NOT FILLER! Scenes that just explore a relationship dynamic or someone's backstory, even if it ultimately isn't Main Plot Relevant, is not filler. It's storybuilding!! It's fleshing out the story's world and the people within it.

That's a RICH TEXT! NOT FILLER!!!

TV shows do not exist to only tell the main story where everything else is worthless and peripheral!!!! They exist to meander and EXPLORE! THAT IS NOT FILLER THAT IS DEPTH AND PURPOSE.

I AM TAKING THE WORD FILLER AWAY FROM EVERYONE WHO WATCHES SEVERANCE AND I'M GOING TO CUT ITS FINGERS OFF IN FRONT OF YOU HELLY STYLE

[kakiastro]

2024: The Year of the Dragon

Well, we made yall! This was a 7 ruled year, ruled by the Moon, Neptune, and South Node. This year had us all deep in our feelings. So many people had their first spiritual awakening, others psychic gifts has strengthened. This year was teaching us on how to listen to our intuition. If you’re a creative, then this year was really the year ideas and projects came to you. With the moon here, so many people started their own families, so many woman in my personal life had babies this year lol. Our family dynamics changed, our homes may have changed. Lots of early life/past lives issues smacked us in the face this year, a lot of people started their healing journey.

This year is an 8 ruled year.

8 rules over the spiritual and materialistic world. 8 is balance, it means you need to balance being in our world and the spiritual.

8 is also an infinity symbol, hence why is it’s a loop. What loops(patterns)have you been stuck in? This year will show you that and what loops you need to get out of

8 also have a deep love for humanity, so I personally expect more protest against wars, those who are really suffering in our world. There’s going to be a strong empathy pull. Make no mistake though, the number 8 also rules over authority, social status, ego, inner strength and wisdom. While there’s a lot of love, there’s going to lots of people having unchecked egos so be careful of that. Listening to others opinions(whether you agree or not) will be a collective lesson.

The number 8 is ruled by Saturn and Capricorn. This is a Saturnian year. So to my fellow Saturnians/Capricorn placements/10h, we are the first in line the classroom (earth) this year lol.

Saturn is in Pisces, so fellow Caps, and everyone really, I feel we are going to continue being in our feelings and will begin to open our hearts to others. Capricorn is a reserved sign, doesn’t really show outward emotions, they would rather cry in private or in the shower😅. Not this year LoL, this year is teaching us that it’s okay to not be okay, it’s okay to be open about it as well. We will meet people who will show us the magical side of life. Saturn is a realism and pessimistic sign, but Pisces is the sign of hope, magic and fantasy. Remember, Pisces is also co ruled by Jupiter which is currently in Taurus. What is success to you? Is this success to you because this is what you were taught or is this what you really want? These are the type of questions you will be asking yourself.

8 is the number for Karma as well. Karma isn’t what many people think it is lol. Karma isn’t just some revenge type of thing lol. Also, Karma isn’t always bad either so get that out your mindset as well. Bad things happen to good people all the time, you being a good person doesn’t exempt you of messed up situations. If anything, it’s to make you become more empathetic and self aware of the bad things. Karma can be good as well

The etymology of karma is from the Sanskrit meaning “Action, Effect, Fate”

Karma is what you do that will cause a ripple/effect that can change your fate.

Example:

1. You get into a relationship and everything is going great for a year. Then you discovered your partner cheated. Your hurt and say “karma will get him and I can’t wait to watch.”

2. Months go by and you see your cheater ex is in a new relationship, treating this new partner better than you. You start thinking “karmas not real because if it was, why are they living the good life?” Meanwhile, you’re still picking up the pieces to heal but you’re healing is the key word.

3. Little do you know, your ex had cheated on you with someone who’s only using them and they end up getting cheated on. It wasn’t because of you, know they created that ripple for themselves. They let there ego and lust dictate there actions. If they would’ve had any control, they would’ve known not to do this so the Universe/God let the domino fall. They may end struggling with their career, health, spiritually to teach them to grow and learn. Now will they? That’s up to them. Just because someone appears to be doing well from the outside doesn’t mean that they really are or going to be.

4. You’ve done your healing and now know what you want and the red flags to look out for. You end up in an actual healthy relationship. A friend of yours suspects her partner of cheating and asked for your advice. Because you went through this, you know the signs. Because of this, you helped her. See that domino effect lol

That was long but I hope that makes sense you all! I have a mercury Rx in my chart so my thoughts go everywhere lol.

One of the first biggest events of 2024 is that Pluto enters Aquarius

Dates: January 20th - September 1st

Then: it will go back in Capricorn for the last time in our lifetime in September 1- November 20th.

Finally: it will go into Aquarius November 20th, where it will stay unto 2043. Y’all this is a 20 year transit!! So many changes are about to happen

I’ve already made a post about this transit, you can read it here!

2024 is the year of the dragon, in the element Wood.

Dragons are seen as honorable, strength, success

Wood represents vitality and creativity

-this is good year to pursue your goals and if you’re consistent, you will achieve success.

Eclipses

First Lunar eclipse will be on March 25th.

It will be in the sign of Libra! Which is where South Node currently is as well. Relationships with our family and within our home will be highlighted. The house that Libra rules in your chart will tell you how this will

First Solar eclipse will be on April 8th

It will be in the sign of Aries with NN being in it. Setting new goals for yourself, starting something new in your life, be bold and brave.

2nd Lunar eclipse is in Pisces on September 17th. Hello feelings lol! Pisces will have us sit alone and think about our most hidden thoughts and they will be highlighted. This is a good time for spiritual growth.

2nd Solar eclipse is in Libra on October 2nd. Relationships will be the hot topic for 2024. I predict so many people are going to be breaking up, finding love, having new friendships, family relationships are going to be changing, collaborating with people, justice, fairness will all be themes

Mercury Retrogrades will be in fire signs this year

First Mercury Rx is in Aries on April 1st-25th. Thinking and planning your goals, making sure everything is in order.

2nd Rx is August 4th-28th in the sign of Virgo and Leo. It’s giving say it with your chest energy but not too much lol. Be brave with your thoughts but try to think rationally as well.

3rd Rx is November 25th in Sagittarius. Time for us to reflect on our ideals that we’ve learned. Look at different philosophies point of view

Another big Astrological event is the Jupiter-Uranus in Taurus conjunction on April 20th.

Jupiter is the planet if expansion, higher learning, traveling and religion

Uranus is the planet of change, science of medicine, innovation and rebellion.

Taurus is the 2nd sign of the zodiac and it rules over our finances, self worth, our possessions, food, beauty, nature such as forest and trees.

What do I predict with this transit:

-huge breakthroughs with regarding medicines and innovative discoveries

-something dealing with travel or immigration

-I suspect some type if change regarding the church or how people view the church (pastors, priest etc)

-something dealing with our food and us being more aware about our own dietary choices. What’s not good for us and what goes in our food basically

On May 25th, Jupiter leaves Taurus and enters airy sign Gemini. It will be in Gemini until 2025

The best way to describe this transit is communication!!! Remember Jupiter expands everything so we will be more open about our thoughts and standing on business on what we say! I feel there’s going to be a huge influx on the dire need to want to go back to school and learn new things. Big cars are going to the thing everyone will want to have! If you’re a writer, this can be a good year to write that book and get it published, all the way up until 2025 at least.

Mars Go Rx December 6th- February 23rd 2025, in the sign of Cancer and Leo!

This is poignant because Mars only go retrograde every 2 years! The last Rx was 2021-2022 ish and it was in Gemini

With it switching from water and fire, emotions will be be high. Really check your emotions during this time, this can be a good time to sort your home out, being motivated to start something like a creative outlet.

As you all can see, this is going to be an eventful year but I’m wishing you all happy and memorable one! To those who’ve been following me this year, I just want to say thank you! thank you! thank you!

With love and gratitude

-kaki

[mayosmultiverse]

Report Overview

FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

BEHAVIOURAL ANALYSIS UNIT

PRIMARY ARCHIVE: "Things That Hotch Would Prefer Not to Know About."

SECONDARY CLASSIFICATION: "Things That Shouldn’t Be in an FBI Database But Are."

DOCUMENT TYPE: Unclassified Internal Report

PAIRING: Spencer Reid x BAU GN!Reader (Pre-Relationship, Slow Burn.. sort of)

WC: 1.3k (This was supposed to be a blurb)

CASE STATUS: Refer to attached report. (No spoilers.)

SUBMITTED BY: D. Morgan

ARCHIVED BY: P. Garcia

CASE NO. 001 | The IKEA Disappearance: A Tactical Search Mission

SUBJECT: A simple furniture shopping trip turns into an FBI level search mission after Spencer inexplicably disappears inside an IKEA.

INVESTIGATING AGENTS: D. Morgan, P. Garcia, Scout (Reader), S. Reid

Case 000 | Case 002 | Case File Index | Criminal Minds Masterlist

There are many mistakes to life. Some unavoidable, and some not.

Well the situation Scout was currently in, they would argue that this would land in the latter. But apparently the BAU has a penchant for trouble and a thirst for dramatics. When all that should've happened was to buy a couch.

Everything was set up and ready to go, Penelope The Personal Hype Women was ready to freely judge and give much needed advice in the bounds of a very pixelated video call, with Derek Morgan, the go to person proficient in interior decor. The two HR baits were meant to help Scout in their gruesome indecisive search, being fully prepared to be bullied into a decision

That was supposed to be it. That was the plan.

But Spencer Reid had not been a part of the original plan.

He originally had no interest in furniture shopping. A place so popular that becomes the host to what he resents the most: Germs. Through every touch, sneeze and snot they systematically increase without any bounds. A place where statistically, 78% of people buy something they don't actually need. So no, he was not interested by the least.

But all of those reservations were knocked down when Derek made an offhand bet.

"Come on, Pretty Boy, what’s wrong? Afraid you’ll get lost in IKEA?" Spencer scoffed at that idea. One of the tactics used to track down unsubs were through geographical profiles. Something he was extremely proficient in.

"IKEA layouts are designed specifically using a concept called long natural way. It's a one way system that helps customers avoid shortcuts by making them stick by a preplanned path. So, theoretically, it is next to impossible for someone with strong spacial and geographical intelligence to get lost"

"So you're saying you can't get lost?" To which Spencer nodded confidently. Morgan smirked, already setting a trap. "Wanna bet?"

And thus, they started a competition based on confidence that had their dignity on the line.

Having been a BAU agent for a while now, Scout should have known that the addition to their ragtag team of furniture finders (which for the record was a terrible name) would create nothing but chaos. Because the moment they stepped into the colourful maze of IKEA, Spencer started analysing the layout. So instead of shopping or giving helpful advice, he was walking through the store like it was some sort of case study.

"Did you know IKEA uses something called the ‘Gruen Effect’? It overwhelms the senses and disrupts logical decision making, which increases impulse purchases." Spencer's eyes were flashing from one place to other but the very enthusiasm in his words were something Scout found endearing. But their track record of being called for a case while on off was pretty bad.

"Uh huh, Fascinating. Would love to know more about this later. But for now, Couch. Please pick one." Scout pried, waving her phone to various options. But in Spencer’s excitement he unintentionally ignored her.

"The showroom paths are designed to mimic a psychological maze. Each section leads naturally to another, that is why around 80% of IKEA purchases are unplanned. Statistically speaking, the everage time spent in the store is 2 hours."

"Man, if you spent half as much time picking out a couch as you do analyzing one, you’d be done already."

"It’s important to understand the mechanisms that influence human behavior." Spencer was still unbothered by his statement.

30 minutes had passed in the search, Scout and Morgan had actually started looking at furniture, distracted by arguments over colour pallets and which was better for durability. What they didn't notice was that Spencer had stopped talking for a very long interval.

"Uh, did The Good Doctor just vanish?" Garcia was the first to notice his disappearance. This was the first time Scout and Morgan actually looked around.

"Oh yes, he's just.. uh" Scout was frowning scanning the room.

"Hold on where is he? Meanwhile Morgan took a page out of Scout's book and full on moved in a circle.

"Hey Derek, can you call him, my phone is.. busy right now" They were not worried. Yet.

But when Morgan gets no answer to the call. That is when it actually sets in.

"Oh. My. God. You lost Spencer in an IKEA." Garcia was now fully invested in this.

"No, we didn’t. He’s gotta be around here somewhere." Morgan tried his best to not let anyone overthink.

"He’s literally a 6'1 genius in a cardigan. How hard can he be to find?"

"Oh, babe. I have faith in you. But also? I’m already making a missing poster." This was going sideways way too fast. Scout's eyes widened in alarm.

"No, no! that is not necessary!" But by the look of Garcia's face it seemed like she had already started. They just had to do this on this very unassuming day?

Morgan took charge and grabbed one of the store maps.

“This man has three PhDs and still got played by a Swedish furniture store.” He grumbled under his breath as he studied the map. Apparently, he left no opportunity to roast Spencer.

“Okay, okay. I’m hacking IKEA.” Garcia took the initiative of using her skills to good use and started tracking Spencers last known location through IKEA's cameras."

"WHAT?!"

"Not in a bad way! Just… mildly unauthorized." Waiting a beat, Garcia went through facial recognition, she finally found the lost genius. And starts guiding them like a real FBI op. "Alright, I have a visual! Target was last seen near the bookshelves."

"Why am I not surprised?" Morgan pinched the bridge of his nose.

"New question, should I make the missing poster or a found in the wild meme. Be honest." Scout was already dragging Morgan towards the bookshelves.

"Garcia, PLEASE NO" Unbeknownst to Scout Morgan was texting Garcia the answer.

When they find Spencer he was in a very deep conversation with an IKEA employee. When he saw the two walking towards him, a minor blush painted his face.

"…Why are you in the children’s section?" From couch to children section, Scout was confused.

"I got distracted and ended up near the books. Then I thought I found a shortcut, but it led me here."

"You had a MAP, Genius." Derek pointed out. Spencer looked down and lo and behold it was pressed between his arm.

"The map was misleading." At that point both Scout and Morgan were looking at him in disbelief.

"Are you telling me you.. an actual genius.. were outsmarted by a furniture store?"

"Statistically speaking, 70% of people struggle with IKEA navigation. That’s SEVEN out of TEN." Spencer's hands were pacing and moving around in emphasis.

"Ok, but you have an IQ of 187." Scout took this as their chance to insert themselves in the situation. They weren't going to buy a couch either way.

"…Which is why I wasn’t lost. I was gathering data." Garcia was already cackling, and clicking away on her laptop slightly confusing Spencer. He looked at Scout for answers to which the only response he got was a shaking head.

"So. Much. Confidence." Morgan, again, was copying Scout by Shaking his head, though in a different context.

"A tragic downfall" Scout agreed. This was when Garcia yet again inserted herself in the conversation, effectively cutting them off.

"Guys, please. The missing poster needs a dramatic title."

"He went out for a couch and never came back" Rossi dryly said. He had gone to Garcia for something that seemed so nonsensical now, but was more interested in the particular incident at hand.

"That is completely inaccurate" Spencer scoffed, offended at the very statement.

"But is it though?"

CASE STATUS: Successfully Resolved

ADDITIONAL NOTES: INTERNAL USE ONLY

Target was recovered near the bookshelf.

Scout never got their couch (the real tragedy of the day)

Garcia completed the missing poster. (And enjoyed every second of it.)

Spencer insists he was never lost. (No one believes him.)

Morgan is still roasting him. (For the foreseeable future.)

Rossi’s official stance: "Sure, kid."

TAGGED PERSONNEL: Contact author for notification requests

CASE SUGGESTIONS: Submissions for additional reports are open and under review

[janetbrown711]

Sonic Boom Fankids

Name: Wisteria "Teri" the Badgerhog

Age: I'll write and draw her at all sorts of ages, but she's drawn as 10 here

Pronouns: She/They

Basic Information:

During a rough patch in Boom!Amy and Sonic's relationship, Sticks and Amy may have had three too many drinks in a "Girl's Vent Sesh" which may or may not have turned into a week of messy, messy mistakes that ended with Amy and Sticks both realizing it was unhealthy and they were better off as friends anyways. Unfortunately, the universe didn't listen and despite even Amy and Sonic finally officially getting together for real this time, Sticks ended up pregnant. Amy originally panics, but Sticks is 100% convinced she's got this, and so voila the two of them (plus Sonic, technically) become parents !!!

Teri herself is a very feral and chaotic kiddo– but only if you know her. If you don't, she's actually very silent and awkward. She's a master of the autism stare, which causes quite a bit of social isolation– not helped by her selective mutism, and Sticks' own reputation. However, she'd sooner bite her classmates than trash talk her mama, and with a crazy family like hers she doesn't need anyone else. With Sonic's encouragement though she joins the baseball team, which she's actually pretty great at! And as a bonus, she now has a weapon for when Eggman attacks the village, nice 😎👍 She's also a super fiercely protective and supportive big sister, and if anyone so much as looks at Tempest wrong, Teri is gonna wanna fight em. Family means everything to this girl, and there's absolutely no limit to how far she would go to protect and fight for those she loves.

Extra bits:

✨️ Her favorite color is purple

✨️ Her favorite food is river salmon (that Sticks catches fresh with her bare teeth)

✨️ As a compromise between Amy and Sticks, Tails is her primary care doctor who gives her all of her vaccines (which in turn ends up straining their relationship, as she can't see him as a fun uncle when he's the one stabbing her with scary needles)

✨️ In contrast, she's very close woth Knuckles and together they get in all sorts of trouble around the island

✨️ When she was a toddler, she tore Cubot limb-from-limb

✨️ She calls Sticks mama and Amy mom

✨️ Like her mama, she refuses to wear gloves (sensory ick)

Name: Tempest the Hedgehog

Age: Three years younger than Teri, so 7 !!

Pronouns: She/Her

Basic Information:

During Sticks' pregnancy, Amy found herself struggling with jealousy and gender envy at the thought of being a mom, which she hid from Sticks but would vent to Sonic about a lot (even though he didn't get it in the slightest, hating every part of having a uterus). In turn, Sonic told Tails, and immediately the fox started working on a bottom/organ transplant surgery that would allow Amy to fulfill her dream, and while it took roughly two years, he did it! And Amy was overjoyed! Unfortunately, it wasn't very easy on her, since things were very shaky and some quirks were being worked out–but nevertheless Tempest is born (albeit four weeks premature). Her hypertonia is a direct side effect of her premature status, which hits Sonic and Amy pretty hard at first (Amy blaming herself and Sonic doubting he can really be a dad if he can't pass on his running skills), but they learn to grow and accept Tempest for who she is and don't try to fix her, only help her not be in pain.

In terms of personality, Tempest has all the sass and spunk her name demands, learning only from the best. She's well liked around the island and at school, but she's not popular by any means and has a tendency to be left out and sometimes even bullied on occasion (which is usually dealt with by Teri). She's very close to her big sister though, and admires her almost as much as she admires Sonic, feeling a sense of security knowing they'll always be around to protect her when she ends up running her mouth. She's not even a little bit scared of Eggman and can't even take him seriously with how much she trusts her dad and the rest of them to take care of him. Metal Sonic and Shadow... not so much. But even then, she's pretty good at faking it til she makes it back home 👍

Extra bits:

✨️ Her favorite color is red

✨️ Her fav food is a Chicago style hot dog

✨️ One of her first words was "Egghead" (said directly to his face)

✨️ In direct contrast to Teri, she's very close with Tails because he's her doctor and helps make all of her crutches and tools that make her chronic pain feel better and she loves spending time with him in his workshop.

✨️ She has Sonic's sass and Amy's inability to let an argument or falsehood go, which can cause quite a bit of arguing, whether with classmates or with villains (or Knuckles or Sticks 💀✌️)

✨️ Sonic likes to carry her bridal style when he goes on runs and she loves it

✨️ She loves hitting people with her crutches

✨️ Amy took her to swimming lessons behind Sonic's back

[sheerfreesia007]

No Longer Playing Pretend

Pairing: Hyunjin x Reader

Word count: 4,458

Content warnings: Fluff, suggestive

Summary: Your relationship with Hyunjin may have started as a faux bid for freedom for the both of you, but as the year moves along you both come to realize that it’s no longer fake and has become something so much more precious to you than even your freedom was.

Uli jag-eun geos: Our little one

Part One: Play Pretend

You stare at the pictures of the floral arrangements that your wedding planner slid across the table at you and you can’t help but frown darkly as your eyes dart around the pictures. They’re not what you had agreed on with the florist and you can feel your irritation starting to rise within you.

“These aren’t the flowers we agreed on.” you tell her while shaking your head. You wedding planner sighed softly and hung her head.

“Yes I know, but the florist thinks that these flowers would do better paired together.” your wedding planner explained.

“But the flowers we agreed on earlier were suggestions from the florist to begin with.” you argued as you shook your head. This has been a constant struggle for you lately and you were starting to feel the effects of the frustration and aggravation of having to deal with all of this. “Why would the florist suddenly now change the flower selections after being the one to suggest certain flowers to begin with?” you asked, trying to curb your anger and irritation. Suddenly your cell phone began to ring and you saw your mother’s contact name pop up on your screen filling you with dread as you held up one finger and swiftly answered her call.

“Yes Mom, what is it?” you asked tiredly and bit your tongue knowing that she’d have something to say about your tone.

“Well aren’t you just a peach.” she snipped at you huffily and you sighed softly.

“I’m sorry, I’m a little stressed. What’s going on?” you apologize quickly before looking back down quietly at the pictures of the floral arrangements that the florist had sent over. 

“Has your florist shown you the arrangements that I changed?” your mother asked and you felt your eye twitch violently at her questions. Now it all made sense to you on why things seemed to changing left and right with every choice that you made your for your wedding to Hyunjin. You knew that your mother would be very opinionated about what your wedding should look like. But you had thought that she’d at least let you make the decisions instead of trying to take over and steamroll you on everything, your mistake.

“You changed them?” you asked in a quiet rage filled voice.

“Yes, I spoke with your wedding planner. She’s such a sweetheart by the way, you should tip her well. We were able to get the flowers changed quickly before they sent you their mockups.” your mother explained and you sighed deeply as your irritation came back full force. “So what did you think?” your mother asked you and your rage consumed you instantly.

It wasn’t just the fact that you felt as if you had been fighting an uphill battle since you started planning your wedding two months ago, no you were also working longer hours at the Hwang’s real estate brokerage firm all due to the status of your relationship with Hyunjin. And while you loved working and being able to close deals left and right without the looming judgemental eye of your family on your back it was all starting to take a toll on you with all the added stress of wedding planning. You had wanted to talk to Hyunjin about all the stress lately but you knew he was busy as well with planning and preparing for his first gallery opening at his art gallery, you hadn’t wanted to add more stress onto him so you had kept your mouth shut about all of it.

“I will have to call you back.” you said into the phone just as you watched Hyunjin walk into the apartment, he looked exhausted as his eyes dragged over to look at you while a happy smile bloomed onto his face. Your rage dissipated slightly at his happy smile at seeing you before returning as you heard your wedding planner clear her throat.

“So if I could get your decision on the flowers that would be great.” she chirped out at you eagerly as her eyes darted over Hyunjin’s form with a heated sparkle in her eye causing you to grit your teeth angrily.

“Actually you can leave, I won’t be needing your services any longer.” you deadpanned as you crossed your arms over your chest as glared at the woman. She jerked in her seat and whipped her head back around to stare at you wide eyed as her mouth dropped open. Hyunjin even stared at you wide eyed as he came to stand behind you and placed his hands on your shoulders before beginning to massage his fingers into your tense muscles.

“Excuse me?” she chirped out surprised and you nodded your head at her.

“I’d like to terminate our contract. I no longer need your services.” you said with a quiet rage behind your voice.

“But we’ve only just started.” the woman said worriedly and you nodded your head at her words.

“Yes and you’ve undermined my decisions at every point. Choosing to accept my mother’s choices over mine in every aspect so far. So please contact all the vendors and venues and tell them that we will no longer be needing their services. Thank you, you can leave.” you said firmly as she gaped out without being able to say anything. You watched with barely contained disgust as she quickly gathered up all of her things and rushed from your apartment. When the door shut behind her you let out a loud tired sigh and let your head hang back against the back of your chair to stare up at Hyunjin who looked down at you worriedly.

“Are you alright?” he asked cautiously and you shook your head.

“I didn’t think it would be this hard to plan a wedding. But I should’ve known better with my mother.” you said in a soft weary tone that made Hyunjin coo softly at you. Hyunjin continued to massage your shoulders before he leant down and pressed a kiss to your forehead sweetly.

“Is work still crazy busy?” he asked softly before trailing his kisses to your temple as you sighed in comfort at his attention.

“Yeah, I closed one three big deals this week and I’ve got four more lined up for next week.” you said with a soft groan as Hyunjin dug his fingers into the back of your neck. “And now I’ve fired our wedding planner all because my mother is trying to control how our wedding will look.” you said defeated and Hyunjin cooed softly at you before pressing a kiss behind your ear.

“It was for the best. She shouldn’t have been listening to your mom. You’re the bride, it’s our wedding. Not your mother’s.” Hyunjin reassured you and you hummed softly in agreement to his words. “Do you have any appointments tomorrow at work?” he asked softly before nipping at your ear lobe gently. You flinched away from his as he chuckled and nuzzled his face into your neck.

“No, I was just going to work on the paperwork for next week’s meetings and closings.” you told him as your head tilted back against his shoulder and your eyes fluttered shut.

“Play hooky with me.” he whispered into your ear and you furrowed your brow at him softly. “Come paint with me at my studio. We both need a break from work and the wedding planning stress. And we’ve haven’t been able to spend much time together.” he husked out to you softly causing you to shiver in your chair. It took you nearly no time to agree to his plan of playing hooky. You quickly sent a text to your secretary telling her that you wouldn’t be in the office tomorrow and would see her the next day before you turned back to Hyunjin who grinned happily at you.

“I spoil you too much.” you tease him and he grins widely at you before pulling you from your chair and wrapping you into his arms as his lips descend on your neck and begin to trail kisses along the column of flesh.

“Hmmm, considered me the spoiled princess in this relationship then.” he husks out to you as he guides you towards your bedroom with a heated look in his eyes.

*-*-*-*

The next morning finds you and Hyunjin walking up the stairs to his studio after having a hearty breakfast at a local breakfast cafe where the employees all knew Hyunjin by first name. You had teased him goodnaturedly that he had been seeing the employees more than you these past few weeks and he ducked his head before dragging you to a booth and caging you in the seat. He had quickly shut you up with a sweet peck of his lips to your before whispering that you were the only one he wanted to see. The rest of the morning had been filled with happy laughter shared between the two of you as you shared stories of your week and Hyunjin had shared his plans for his art gallery trying to get your opinion on what he was planning. You didn’t want to influence him in any way away from his vision so you kept telling him that you were excited to see it come to life and that you couldn’t wait for it to finally happen for him.

Just as you get to the top of the stairs grumbling softly at how many stairs there were causing Hyunjin to chuckle softly at you he turned to face you fully and you looked at him with surprised wide eyes. He smirked softly at you before holding his hand out palm up in between the two of you. You tilted your head to the side in confusion at him and he waited patiently for you to understand. Slowly slipping your hand into his he huffed softly before shaking his head.

“Give me your phone love.” he said with an amused eye roll at you and you huffed back at him.

“Use your words baby and maybe I’d understand.” you griped at him causing him to smirk at you before you leaned into his space and crowded him up against the door behind him. “Or did I make you use all your words last night?” you asked sultrily and Hyunjin flushed brightly with embarrassment causing you to grin knowingly at him before sweetly pecking his lips as you slipped your phone into his open hand. 

You watched delightedly as Hyunjin huffed at you before setting your phone to do not disturb, he then turned away from you and unlocked his studio and led you into the brightly lit space eagerly. You slipped out of your jacket as you watched Hyunjin moved about the space setting up two easels in the middle of the room and then began to set up paints for the both of you.

“So normally I just put on a playlist and paint. But if you want I have a whole folder of photos that I’ve taken that you could use as inspiration.” he explained sounding slightly unsure of himself and you smiled softly at him as you watched him play with the hem of his old ratty t-shirt that he had chose to wear today. Walking towards him you grabbed his hand gently before raising it to your lips and kissing his knuckles slowly.

“Hyune, relax babe. We’ll do whatever strikes our fancy. Put on your playlist you wanna listen to and I’ll just follow your lead.” you reassure him gently and he flushes brightly once again at your sweet gesture before he quickly nods his head at you. He then darts forward and kisses you sweetly as his hands cup your face, when he pulls away he presses his forehead to yours and smiles widely as his eyes stay closed for a moment.

“Thank you. I don’t know why I’m so nervous to paint with you.” he whispers softly and your heart melts in your chest at how much he wants to share this experience with you. Sighing softly you kiss him once more before pressing a kiss to his nose sweetly.

“Thank you for sharing this with me. I’m so excited to do this.” you confess to him softly and his eyes open to stare at you lovingly. He then nods his head and breaks away from you to set up his music and then moves back to his easel as you step behind yours. An idea strikes you and you lift your easel to turn it away from Hyunjin so that he can’t see it and he looks at you curiously with a soft smile on his face. “I want it to be a surprise for you.” you tell him and he grins widely at you as his eyes widen slightly before his whole face softens at your intention. The two of you then begin your first painting session together.

*-*-*-*

It’s hours later and you raise a hand to wipe sweat from your brow as you look at your canvas critically. You had started with just random swatches of your and Hyunjin’s favorite colors on the canvas as the music played loudly through his studio. It didn’t take long for your reservations of painting to fall away as you easily just listened to the music and painted whatever popped into your head as you stared at the canvas. Slowly but surely an idea formed in your brain and you tried your hardest to showcase in paint on the canvas in front of you.

Tilting your head to the side you wondered if Hyunjin would see your vision the way you wanted him to or if he would interpret it differently. You hadn’t only wanted to show how beautifully the two of you had melded together since starting this faux relationship that had turned into something so precious and resplendent to you. Suddenly you heard Hyunjin giggle softly and your eyes darted over to see him watching you with a lovesick look on his face.

“What is it?” you asked softly and he grinned widely at you as his eyes darted around your face happily.

“You have paint everywhere on your face.” he said amusedly as his smile widened on his face. “Did you get any on your canvas?” he teased you and you burst out in indignant laughter at his joke.

“I’ll have you know I might surpass you in my skill.” you teased him back and watched happily as his smile morphed into a challenging smirk as his eyes hardened on you with interest.

“Is that so?” he asked curiously as he began to move closer to you, but you quickly threw your hands up to stop and the paintbrush in your hand suddenly smeared paint across his old shirt and you gasped loudly in surprise. Hyunjin stopped in front of you as your hands splayed against his chest stopping him from getting closer to your easel to see your painting. You both stood there silently looking down at the bright swatch of lavender paint on his shirt before you burst out into happy laughter at your mistake. “Think that’s funny do you?” he asked challengingly and you looked up belatedly as you gasp when you felt his cold yellow paint covered paintbrush glide along the base of your neck.

“Hyune!” you cried shocked at the feeling of the cold paint. Suddenly the game was on as you grabbed your paintbrush and tried to paint more lavender onto him. Hyunjin quickly dodged as you chased him cackling with happy delighted laughter. The two of you were locked in a war of lavender and yellow as you both raced around his studio trying to get more paint on each other. Soon you’re bent over in half as you try to catch your breath after chasing him around the room like you were children, Hyunjin comes to stand in front of you still panting and chuckling at you.

When you stand up straight after catching your breath you catch sight of him and then burst into laughter once more. He’s covered in lavender and yellow paint in a kaleidoscope of contrasting colors, there’s even some paint in his dark black hair that makes you laugh even more at him. You don’t notice him still as he stares at you with awe filled eyes as you continue to laugh at him. Only when he steps close to you that your bodies are nearly flush with each other do you notice his changed manner. He’s staring at you with adoring eyes that have widened slightly as you still chuckle softly at him before he lunges forward flinging his paintbrush to the side as his arms wrap around you completely and lift your body up against his own while his lips capture yours heatedly. You squeak softly at his movement as his mouth nearly devours yours while he slides your body slowly down his body until he’s almost hunched over you still keeping his lips attached to yours hungrily.

“W-what was that for?” you ask in a gasp when he pulls away from you finally allowing you to suck in much needed air.

“I’d marry you just like this covered in paint and laughing at me as love sparkles through your eyes at me.” he whispers to you and you grip the sides of his shirt as you melt against him while tilting your face up to his wantonly. He then slowly guides you down to the floor with the whispered promise that he’s going to worship you like the queen you are to him.

*-*-*-*

The ballroom is absolutely stunningly decorated in gorgeous floral arrangements in lavenders and soft muted yellows that remind you of that day back in Hyune’s studio, it had actually been the driving inspiration for your wedding color theme. After months of planning with a new wedding planner who was more worried about making both you and Hyune happy on your big day than anyone else, the day had finally come. The ceremony had been beautiful in a famous cathedral in the middle of the city you lived in and now as your guests all happily talked with each other as they waited in their seats for dinner to be served you couldn’t help but sit back and smile to yourself.

“My wife looks very pleased with herself.” Hyunjin says in an amused whisper in your ear that makes you beam at him as you turn your face to his.

“Oh absolutely do you see the sour puss on Sherry’s face? And her mothers?” you gush out to him delightedly causing him to laugh.

“Your desire for revenge against them is delicious.” he coos at you before leaning closer and capturing your lips in a heated kiss. You hum against his mouth as you hear soft cheers from your guests as they spot you and Hyunjin kissing.

“What’s gotten into you today? You can’t keep your hands or your lips to yourself.” you say delighted and he looks at you with an offended look on his face.

“I just married the love of my life, of course I won’t be able to keep my hands to myself. Have you seen her? Stunning, gorgeous, badass queen that she is. Ten out of ten on a scale of wives I could bag.” he says teasingly as he pulls you from your chair and onto his lap.

“Did you really just rate me on a scale of one to ten?” you asked him with faux disgust tinting your tone and he quickly nods his head at you causing you to laugh amused before cupping his face and kissing his lips. His hum vibrates your lips and you sigh against him as your body melts into his as your arms come and wrap around his neck.

“Save it for tonight!” comes a loud call from your guests and Hyunjin pulls away with a disgruntled look directed at his friends while you laugh at him happily. You pull his face back to yours and smile sweetly at him as he gazes up at you like you’ve hung the stars and moon for him.

“I have a gift for you.” you tell him sweetly with a little trepidation in your voice and he smirks lustfully at you as his hands grip your hips tightly.

“Is it underneath this dress?” he asks huskily and you laugh at him before shaking your head at his teasing words.

“Yes, but that’s not the gift I’m talking about.” you tell him and he grins wickedly at you before pouting softly as you stand from his lap and walk over to the table that's a few feet from the head table where you both were sitting. You grab the plainly wrapped gift and excitedly bring it over to him. Hyunjin takes the gift from you and you stay standing next to him wanting to watch his reaction when he opens it. Your hands grip together and begin twisting nervously but Hyunjin quickly tears into the wrapping. When he has it completely opened he sits there staring at the canvas that you had painted for him that day in the studio in quiet awe. You begin to grow anxious as he has no response at all to the gift and you shift on your feet worriedly. When it all becomes too much for you you reach forward to take the canvas back but Hyunjin quickly pulls it away from you before lifting his head to stare at you with wide eyes.

“It’s us.” he whispers to you and suddenly you’re melting for him. You’re just so happy that he understands the meaning behind your abstract painting that you feel your heart swell in your chest with love for him. You grin widely as tears pool in your eyes before nodding your head at him. Hyunjin surprises you by standing swiftly from his chair and wrapping an arm low around your waist and dragging your body into his while his lips descend on yours hungrily and adoringly.

“We have to go.” he pants out when he pulls slightly away from you and you gasp softly for air as you stare up at him worriedly.

“Go where Hyune?” you ask concerned and he shakes his head as he tries to compose himself.

“I need underneath me as we stare at this masterpiece.” he pants out and your whole body ignites with heat at his words. “I need to get you pregnant while gazing at this painting.” he pants out mindlessly as he begins to drag you out of the ballroom with the canvas still gripped in his hand tightly as your guests all cheer loudly.

*-*-*-*

The evening is bustling with art enthusiasts as they all walk around the gallery taking in all the artwork that your talented husband has created over the years. You’re absolutely awed by all of his hard work and personal touches that show through the gallery. The pride swelling within is solely and completely for Hyunjin and him alone as you make your way through the gallery looking for him. 

When you spot him at the end of the gallery where his signature piece is hung proudly you stop for a moment and have to bite your bottom lip as your eyes take him in hungrily. He’s dressed in a beautiful merlot colored three piece suit with his grown out hair falling to his shoulders which makes your stomach clench with desire for him. As he turns he spots you standing there eyeing him like he’s a delectable piece of fruit and he grins knowingly at you before walking towards you.

“You’re finally here.” he whispers excitedly as his hands grab onto yours and tug you into a warm tight hug before he tilts your face up and presses a sweet kiss to your lips. You hum softly against his mouth and he flicks his tongue briefly against your bottom lip before pulling away. “How was the doctor’s appointment? Everything alright?” he asked worriedly as he pulled away and gazed down at you. Nodding your head in response he smiles before guiding you towards his signature piece.

“Yes, everything is alright. In fact it’s wonderful.” you tell him with a happy content smile on your face which makes him smile in response. He guides you to stand in front of his painting and he moves to stand behind you while wrapping his arms loosely around body to cage you in against his front. You both stand there silent for a moment as you take in the painting and gasp softly as you see the beautiful portrait of two lovers kissing. It’s not slightly abstract as both beings are colored in bright contrasting colors that meet together to create a beautiful new color. You lean your head back against his chest and Hyunjin leans forward towards your neck where he nuzzles in slightly. “It’s us.” you whisper to him and he hums softly at you before nodding his head. Your eyes then dart to the painting next to his and you beam at him with so much adoration as you recognize the painting you had made for him hung there proudly. “Is this our interpretation of our relationship?” you ask him softly and he presses a loud wet kiss to your cheek.

“I’m glad that you understand me.” he whispers in your ear softly making you grin at his words.

“So do you think uli jag-eun geos will have your talent in art or mine?” you ask curiously as you stand there leaning back against him as your eyes take in the mirroring paintings proudly.

“Well obviously mine if I have anything to say about it.” Hyunjin scoffs softly and you burst out in happy laughter at the fact that he didn’t even have to think twice about his answer. You give him a moment to process what you had asked and suddenly he’s spinning you in his arms as he stares down at you with wide eyes. 

“Uli jag-eun geos?” he asks you softly with bated breath and you grin up at him as you slowly pull out the ultrasound pictures that the sonographer had given to you to take home. Hyunjin’s eyes darted over the pictures before he hurriedly cups your face and kisses you like his life depended on it. “I love you so much. I can’t put into words how much.” he whispers against your lips and you smile so widely that you feel your cheeks ache as you feel happiness glow from within you.

“Then how about you paint it?” you ask him lovingly and he devours your mouth lovingly as he pulls you closer to him.

SKZ Taglist: @intartaruginha, @kayleefriedchicken, @babigriin, @simpforleeknaur, @inlovewithstraykids

[mllemaenad]

The longer this game goes on, the more I feel like I'm in favour of bringing down the Veil. Mostly because ... well, I've got to be well past the halfway mark, right? And so far no one's given me a good reason why it should stay up. They're just assuming I want to preserve the status quo, because Dragon Age is the "No, don't rebel, it makes you as bad as your oppressors :(" series.

We know the Veil is a mistake. Not just a mistake in the sense that it was the best thing Solas could come up with at the time, but in the sense that he fucked up the ritual and accidentally sort of trapped all the spirits in with the evanuris.

We know that the Veil can be thinned by: death, magic, bloodshed and strong emotions ... so it doesn't feel like a permanent solution to anything anyway. It's going to fall apart eventually. We might as well take control of it.

And Elgarn'nan is apparently punching holes now, so there's that.

While it was initially presented as something more dramatic, so far the only consequences for bringing it down anyone's brought up is "we might have a demon problem" and:

We already have a demon problem

Some demons are created by being forcefully summoned through the Veil, so at least that would stop

Demons aren't always a problem – we have one on the team!

There are now so many groups present who could effectively deal with demons if we brought them on board

I recognise there are ways to do this that could be bad, so we should prep for it and not let Solas just do whatever ... but I really don't see how the Veil is helping.

If they want to change my mind, this game really needs to start presenting some evidence as to why I'm "guarding" this Veil in the first place. "Varric says so" doesn't work for me. I like Varric just fine, but he didn't approve of blowing up the Kirkwall Chantry, whereas I have never in my life seen a more cursed building that needed to go right now than that bloody thing.