#But i feel like so far it's engaging throughout the entire thing (or at least i hope it is)

[clarks-letterman]

Wally anon new request 2: This is pretty self-explanatory. A full expansion on the reader hearing/spotting Wally jerking off in the middle of the school. I imagine it'd be more than just using his hand(s), either being that he's found a toy in somebody's gym locker or has made a makeshift fuck toy (like taking one of the field equipment dummies, cutting a hole in it, & using lube he found in the nurse's office) that he's going to town on just to add to the reader's embarrassment/attraction to him.

dummy | wally clark x male!reader

a/n — yes, I know there's a plothole LMAO uhhhh because this isn't as serious as my other fics I kind of kept it in for the sillies.. (it's just ghost physics and all) + added wally railing us at the end causee he needs the relief

words — 3.3k

summary — check the ask!

warning — smut (anal, reader receiving), cheesy dialogue, joke fic first smut second

~~~

The pitter-patter of steps with varying intensities filled the open air, along with heaving breaths and an almost pack mentality as a whistle echoed out from the opposite side of the field. You thrust your legs forward, your feet slowly sticking more and more to the ground with each step as they got harder to lift up and keep kicking. They felt heavy and warm thanks to your heart pumping blood throughout your entire body, each thump, thump, thump ringing in your ears for you to heart amidst everything else. The shortness of your own breath was entailed with everyone else’s, your steps growing slow until you were discernible from the rest of the herd as you came to a slow down. The dissonance of second-period gym class, a sound you knew all too well. 

Being in the middle of this pack was like being at the core of the Earth, so you let yourself fall behind until you were sundered from fatigue. Your legs felt like they could explode with one wrong step. The eight-lane mob in front of you kept chugging, and you watched them move away from you and further down the track. You found yourself taking up two lanes of the track, both legs in a different lane. Your hands fell on your thighs, and you hunched over, feeling the gut-wrenching exasperation work its way into a stomach-twisting nightmare. A thin veil of sweat covered you in more places than one—your face, neck, the back of your shirt. It was like some giant middle finger to you from whatever fate had decided that you deserve such a demanding class this early in the morning. Although, it could be worse. It could be math, and you didn’t have that until after lunch. Bowing your head, you took a second to catch your breath and just enjoy the outdoors, which felt impossible thanks to your gym coach being the fittest yet unhealthy person you knew. Overweight, balding, and painfully short, all of the things that would keep you from playing basketball, or any sport, for that matter. These things wouldn’t bother you if he wasn’t singlehandedly responsible for your grade in this class and he didn’t hand out the participation points for cheap. No, you had to show that you were actively engaged.

Lifting your head, you prayed that he hadn’t spotted you like the way a predator spots a weak link in a group. He seemed to be watching the oncoming stampede, but your eyes drifted to something else. Off to the left of where the coach stood, on one end of the football field was a guy messing with one of the three tackle dummies attached and propped up by curved metal bars. He was too far in the distance to let your eyes register what he was doing, only that it made the three dummies shake with his movements. He towered over them, you could tell that at least, the dummies only covering up to his torso. You figured that he was just transporting them around for the football team’s afternoon practice. But, his attire seemed awfully out of place. The school dress code would never allow shorts that short—yours were down to your mid-thigh when running and almost reached your knee when you stood up straight—and a sleeveless sweat-tank was an odd choice for a day that seemed fitting for jackets. Of course, students could wear one during gym but you were working out. Whatever he was trying to do felt like a walk in the park.

Just as you were about to question it, you heard the dreaded whistle along with your name following the disruption in the air. Some could argue that the way he hollered your name was a disruption, too. The coach called you over, and you did a half-jog, half-walk over to him with a twinge of nervousness creeping into your expression when you closed the gap between him and you. He was quick to give a pop quiz with just one question written on it, “Why did you stop running laps?”

“Well, why doesn’t he have to do it?” You asked the coach in a loud voice, pointing over to the guy. He was wearing gym attire, albeit a little out of style for the decade.

Your coach turned to look in the direction you gave him. “Who?”

“That guy over there,” You said, ready to walk over or give him a clearer insight as to who you were talking about. But, there was no one there, nothing rocking the football dummies back and forth like the man had been doing. You told him defeatedly, “The one by the… blocking guys…” 

He still wasn’t visible from where you were, yet you knew he was there. You knew it. The coach didn’t buy it for one second, though. “Kid, you sound like you need to go to the nurse.”

“What? She’s just gonna give me ice. That’s her solution for everything.” Crossing your arms, you mentally made a refusal of his suggestion. You weren’t about to just say no to a strict teacher, or any teacher at all, but he insisted.

“Tell her to put it in a cup of water, you’re dehydrated.”

The walk to the nurse was painful. You passed the navy blue training dummies on your way over and found no trace of him, which only made the walk until you got into the building even more embarrassing. Each step taken to get to the nurse’s office felt like pure fire rubbing against your joints and inflaming your leg muscles. 

It took a minute for her to get to you since she was helping a kid who got his hand stuck in a stage prop during a theater rehearsal and needed to get it off as soon as possible. Apparently, she lost the lube she kept for emergencies like this, and resorted to breaking the prop to set him free. The main reason it took so long was that it took a week to sculpt and decorate the “cornerstone of the play,” the theater kid called it. At least the time spent dealing with that allowed you to sit back and regain some of the energy you had just spent the past half an hour in class losing. When the nurse finally could see you, she gave you some water and ice to cool you down, since you were obviously having some level of delirium from overexerting yourself. She offered some Tylenol to help with a possible headache but said to tell the coach that you had to sit out for the rest of class. For embarrassing as it was, you would do anything to be safe from the scrutiny of performing your best for one out of five classes this week.

However, she must have not been paying close attention to the time, because your walk back soaked up the rest of class and no one was there by the time you got to the track. No one that you knew, at least. Once you stepped on the track, standing right about where you were when you saw him initially, he was back on the football dummies. He hadn’t moved them an inch yet they were still teetering from whatever force he was pile-driving into them. You figured that the best thing to do would be to ask if he was okay since he must have been scared of other people. It was the only logical explanation coming to fruition in your head.

Crossing the field, your legs felt heavy. You were slow with your approach, “Uh, dude, are you okay?”

You couldn’t tell if using dude or sir would be too relaxed or too informal, so you went with the safer bet because he seems to be around your age. His hair seems to be slicked back and cut short, looking reminiscent of the same decade that his attire was from. That’s what sparked the dilemma in your mind about his age. Was he younger—older? You couldn’t tell. The gym shorts you had identified from a distance were pulled down, exposing the top part of his ass crack and lower back, and clearly wrapped around and dipped in the front as they angled down on his sides, folding in on itself. 

The noises clued you in as to what he was doing. Wet, sloppy plaps fill the air as the football dummy makes almost no noise yet the sound of him smacking against it does. Specifically, his hips rocked back and forth as he gave himself distance, then pressed his body back into the dummy. Getting a better look from the side, he seemed to be fucking it about halfway up from where the navy blue leather encasing started. A hole was cut in the middle of the dummy—right between the two sixes printed on its chest. You got a better view of how long he was, and how far he had to reel himself back before slamming into the dummy.

You reached out and grabbed one of his arms holding the helmet-like shape forming the top of the dummy, “Dude, I was talking to you.”

Wally looked like he had seen a ghost. He jumped back and his cock sprung free from the poor dummy he had been using as a fucktoy. It was wet with a thick layer of lube and red from the agitation of the foam inside and stood up perfectly, the erection never softening as you talked with him. “What the hell? I’ve seen you before.”

“Well, I haven’t and you’re, uh, doing that.” You were heavy on your emphasis. “I talked about you pretty loudly and you didn’t hear me.”

“I guess it’s kind of easy to ignore people when they’re usually never talking about you. I was more than a little occupied.” He could say that again. Even if you couldn’t make out his motions, he was plowing these things so hard it would make the football team tackling them look like a sign of affection. 

“Right… am I interrupting?” 

“Nope, I got all the time in the world,” he said happily, placing his hands on his hips. His dick was still proudly standing and you were both confused and intrigued that he had yet to attempt to hide it in his little shorts.

“Aren’t you worried that people will see this happening?” You had to remind yourself of the fact that both you and your coach couldn’t see him. There was some kind of chicanery going on and it was impossible to just let it go, “You went into hiding earlier when I saw you do it, so what’s different now?”

“Oh,” he held the word for a few seconds, “I wasn’t hiding, I’ve been at this all morning. And I’d like to continue if you want to watch?”

You were almost too astonished to say no. Almost. But the word “no” never left your lips, you just kind of gave a partially verbal agreement and took a step back, letting him get back to doing his thing. He approached the dummy, jutting out his hips and using it as a way to let his cock stick out even farther. With one hand on the dummy’s head and another on his shaft, he pushed his way back into the slit he carved out. “So—haah—what’s your name?”

You reluctantly gave it out, and he nodded like he knew your face and name. The free hand he was using to guide his cock in was now reaching out to you, offering a handshake as he introduced himself. “Wally Clark.”

“Wait, like, the guy who died back in eighty-three?” You asked him with sudden intrigue, losing focus on his rhythmic thrusting. 

He moaned out, “That’s me.”

“Holy shit, I must be going crazy. I pass by your picture in the trophy case every day.” The mental image flooded your brain. You had spent just a little too long staring at it on some days when all efforts in finding love felt hopeless, and you wished you could just Frankenstein the stunning guy in the photo back to life. Little did you know, he had also spent a fair amount of time sitting in classes you were in, watching you from afar, and learning your name through roll call. He had spent himself dry with about a million dirty thoughts about you, because what else did he have to do? No one smuggled in porn for a distraction because it had all gone digital. Maybe it was that sense of wanting between the both of you that opened something up between worlds, some kind of connection neither of you had seen before.

“Hey, woah. You’re not going crazy, but I am definitely making you red in the face.” 

“Could you stop doing that?” You asked, watching him lose himself even more to the pleasure he found from fucking dense foam that doubled as a great substitute for the real thing. He would even argue that it was just as good.

“Why? It’s not like anyone will see. Unless you’re worried about getting spotted.”

“No, it’s just weird to have a conversation like this.” You had literally been talking with a ghost who was putting himself out there in ways you could never imagine doing without getting some kind of cease-and-desist letter. Of course, it was going to be weird, and even as you ventured into the realm of understanding—and the paranormal realm—you walked back so many times because he felt unreal. An ephemeral image in your mind, it had to be that. You almost expected him to disappear any moment now, to wake up from this dream in the nurse’s office just when things were getting good. Were the plastic waiting chairs really that comfy? Or were you that tired that you happened to find solace in the slightest bit of comfort?

Either way, his next actions proved to you that this wasn’t a dream. “I was gonna take turns on all three, but I can add you to the lineup?” He offered, “There’s a lot less talking involved.”

“If you want, coach.” You agreed, and in seconds, he let the dummy free from his hold. He slid his cock out—still, never going down or finding satisfaction.

“I do.” He bent down to pick up the bottle of lube lying between the metal bars that supported the three dummies. You hadn’t noticed it before, but then again, this wasn’t your reality to mess with—it was his. And, for the moment, you were crossing over into it to get fucked by a ghost.

“Lean against that one,” he pointed to the dummy on the right, yet to be graced by his cock. “He’s not worn out from me… not yet, at least.”

You did as he said, spreading your legs as if it was instinctual to do so. Just as he had left the dummy on your left, he came up behind you with the same speed. “I always knew you would listen to me…”

Wally’s hands made quick work with your shorts, pulling the elastic strings in opposite directions to undo the knot and shimmied them down until the waistband stretched around your thighs. The cheap fabric the school used to make them felt scratchy, but his hands were smooth against your ass. You could feel one or two callouses subtly forming at the ends of his fingertips from being mid-game during his death, but it only added to the sensation. You knew exactly where he was while he discovered a world of new territory to claim. He gave it a quick smack, letting you feel confident that this wasn’t a dream. On Wally’s end, he saw the red handprint quickly leave the surface of your skin because he couldn’t do much to you in his current apparitional state.

He didn’t care, though. The inability to leave any mark on you didn’t change the fact that he would be forever ingrained in your head after this. How he filled you up—how his fingers were slowly creeping to your hole in a way that only he could ever call his own—all of that is his. The next sensation to rock your world was his fingers slipping in, cold, even without the lube at the tips of his fingers. He was stretching you with no help, just the ends of his fingers. After he felt you on the inside, feeling the warmth that he knew made you human, alive, he started drizzling the lube like it was his the final topping needed to complete his favorite meal. To make sure that every bite of this meal was perfect, he slid his fingers in and out of you until he thought that it was time to dig in.

His cock, hungry for a hole that wasn’t made from inanimate objects, was raised to meet your hole. The resonating noise of a hollow bottle filled the air as he tapped out the last of the lube onto his cock, having wasted some earlier with his fist and now the dummies that came before you. Then there was a soft squelching heard as he spread it over his thick length, making sure to keep a majority of it near the top for a slicker, smoother entrance. 

Wally did as he had done with the dummies, lining himself up with precision and spearheading through your tight hole. He let out a loud moan that you would have worried about if anyone else could have heard it, it was that loud. He was even louder when he bottomed out, claiming that he “almost came” in a fleeting moment of desperation. Then, his lean frame and tall figure proved to be a force to be reckoned with once he started moving. 

Thankfully, these things are meant to withstand two-hundred and fifty-pound meatheads charging at them, so they wouldn’t give to this, no matter how hard Wally fucked you. The front of his hips smacked against you, making the thudding noise from hitting against the leather of the dummies sound like nothing compared to the skin-on-skin clapping. Wally only worked up his thrusts, never losing his speed once he started fucking faster than your damn heartbeat.

Eventually, you needed release, but Wally’s colder, bigger hands intervened by taking yours into his, “Don’t touch yourself, too much of a mess, dude.”

You wanted to respond, to say that you’ll do whatever he wants, even depriving yourself of relief. But you couldn’t; the words didn’t form and you could barely keep your general composure against the dummy. You had gone cockdumb, unable to speak with how delirious he made you with his massive dick. You felt exhausted as if you had run a million laps, which you did on the regular in Wally’s head. He couldn’t stop thinking about you, even now that you were in the palm of his hand. In his neediness, he came, spraying himself inside you and watching it leak down the inches he hadn’t packed inside you. He pulled out and watched it disappear seconds after, but his desires felt at bay for once.

The pain and confusion quickly wore off and you were back to your good old wits, shaking your head to try and re-orient yourself with the world. It was like he had knocked you off balance, pounding into you so hard that he made you go cross-eyed. Wally finally tucked himself away and pulled up his shorts, coming to your side to help you stand. “You good?”

In combination with running for as long as you did and getting fucked, you could barely stand. All of that pain felt real. “I don’t think I can walk.”

[lets-try-some-writing]

Death and Gifts

Death has existed since time untold, but now with mortal friends, he has found himself in a bit of a pickle. Having been introduced to the concept of repayment, he now feels the need to return the kindness his friends have offered.

Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately for everyone involved, Death pays his debts in full.

Previous part here.

━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙ ━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⊙ ❖ ⊙

Death, or rather Orion Pax, was familiar with the concept of an exchange. Shanix was traded for resources or goods, life was traded for death, and knowledge was traded for service. He knew this, but he eventually came to a rather startling realization upon going through a series of datapads on mentality.

According to what he read, relationships were also a form of exchange. In a relationship of any sort, both parties were to give and take in equal exchange. Service was to be repaid in some way, shape, or form. Emotional care was to be provided in turn, and friends were meant to create bonds through a series of debts to one another in the form of attention, time, and service. To Orion, it was a wakeup call and prompted a severe misunderstanding.

Throughout his entire stay in the mortal plane, he had been receiving the time, attention, and service of his companions. He had been unintentionally indebting himself to them, and at this point, he was swimming in things that needed to be repaid. Ratchet gave knowledge and care freely, and that needed to be repaid as soon as possible. As did Megatron's dutiful companionship. There was much to do, and so Death prepared to repay that which was owed... in his own unique way.

Ratchet was his first and oldest companion. As such, Orion began devising ways to repay him first. Ratchet made his life easier and gave him understanding, Orion could do the same in turn. Thus, over the course of a few weeks, Death began to dig into Ratchet's history, connections, and prospects. The medical student had a few... blotches in his social life that Orion frowned upon seeing. An overenthusiastic ex, a corrupt higher up refusing Ratchet the title of doctor, and a bully who harassed his friend on the daily. Death does not usually pick favorites, but when it came to his friend and his debts, he was willing to compromise.

He spent what time he could with Ratchet, trying to return the emotional support through actions. And when he wasn't otherwise engaged, he put pieces in motion. He couldn't directly do anything, not without making his siblings upset. But setting up scenarios that would lead to death were not exactly off limits. So long as he wasn't there or forcing the death to happen, he wasn't responsible. So what if that one unfortunate ex got into a bad crash? He could have avoided it if he'd tried harder and paid attention. Why should it bother Death that a corrupt doctor overdosed on recreational drugs? The mech was living on borrowed time anyway. The bully ended up being arrested? Well isn't that unfortunate.

Ratchet did not grieve much, and Death was there with him all the way. He still had debts to repay, and Ratchet was worth so much more than being a mere Doctor. Perhaps it was a bit of bias, but Orion couldn't help but pull a few strings. Sometimes the corrupt needed to fall ill to make way for those who were far more suited to the roll. If Ratchet gave Orion a few side glances after he was suddenly promoted to the role of CMO, neither of them acknowledged it.

Ratchet: That mech... did you kill him?

Orion: I am forbidden to directly intervene in the affairs of your kind.

Ratchet: Did you cause this to happen?

Orion: You have been kind to me, you have given me much. It is a debt I will repay.

Ratchet: Orion, please, you don't need to-

Orion: You are of my chosen. Your purpose far exceeds those of the lesser.

Ratchet: You aren't like this. You don't usually have an opinion on anything, at least not like this.

Orion: It was, and it is still not permitted. But I will not allow that which was offered to go unrepaid.

His debt was nowhere near paid, but Orion had little else he could do. HIs friend was soaring high, and so in a bit of desperation, he focused on the rules to see what else he could possibly effect. Direct intervention was out of the question, but perhaps he could give a gift.

It wasn't against the rules to simply remove a block within a mech.

Death smiled when Ratchet found himself with an uncanny ability to sense death before it arrived. The doctor was able to solve cases before they reached a breaking point and determine a cause of death effortlessly, seemingly without any explanation. Ratchet chalked it up to his own skill, and Death grinned as he turned to his next set of debts.

Jazz was next, but for Death, he was hard to fully place. Jazz was an odd one, and repaying debts with him would be difficult. Jazz's situation did not allow for mecha to perish unfortunately. He was in too delicate of a position for that to happen and not harm him. But Orion could give him information. That much he could do. Jazz was an agent, a spy for the Council. Death dug through every case Jazz was involved in with fanatic determination, and once he had everything prepared, he began his work.

Cold cases were suddenly given new evidence as Death searched for the dead within the Allspark and questioned them. Information Jazz could not reach was put before him on a silver platter as mecha with the details found themselves incapacitated by unfortunate accidents. Those who hunted his friend were quickly silenced, not through supernatural means, but through blackmail Orion had from the Archives. To top if all off, Death gifted his friend an ability. When Death came to fallen, they trusted him instinctually. They knew what he was. To Jazz he gave a lesser version of the same gift, merely accentuating Jazz's already powerful charisma with a touch of the calm of the void.

Jazz noticed, but he said nothing. Death merely smiled.

Megatronus was not difficult to repay. Death merely began rigging things in his favor. Well, not necessarily rigging. But the odds tipping ever so slightly in his Champion's favor were not against the rules. Who was ever going to concern themselves with a blade sliding off Megatronus's armor and shattering instead of piercing. Bad craftsmanship had its effects after all. Who would be anything except awed when old wounds healed perfectly and Megatronus returned to the arena without issue? The Champion made all sorts of money for his sponsors. His success was theirs.

Orion's siblings watched him in wrath, further tightening his reigns. But Death would not halt. He could not gift abilities as obvious as he had to Jazz and Ratchet, but it was not out of the question to give Megatronus a more intimidating aura. All it took was for Death to touch him once every few cycles, and Megatronus would carry the stench of death wherever he walked. His foes feared him, and Orion laughed lightly as he watched their terror firsthand. It was not a gift, merely his presence having its effect. His siblings could not punish him for that.

Prima: You cannot keep doing this Thirteen. You are stepping beyond your bounds.

Death: I am following the rite.

Vector: You are not. Your influence has expanded beyond the limits set in place for all Primes. Continue down this path, and we shall be forced to step in.

Death: What must I do to gain the ability to expand?

Micronus: There is no-

Onyx: Expand. Grow.

Prima: Onyx enough!

Onyx: He has the right to know. We have known since the children of Primus walked the world. To keep him in the dark is cruel.

Death: What do you know?

Onyx: The rite forbids that I speak plainly, but continue as you are, and soon enough your reach will expand. The children of Primus are eager to believe.

Death considered the words of his peers, and ultimately he elected to follow Onyx's advice. He was Death, he was allowed to act as he saw fit, at least to a degree. He would obey the rites and rules, but if the children were in danger... well, rules were made to be broken on occasion.

Soundwave was the last on his list, largely because he was Megatronus's favorite. Death looked upon him and decided against any action, instead opting to give a simple gift to repay his debts. Soundwave stalked the halls, and Death dragged him into the shadows. It was for a brief moment, but when he released the spymaster and met his gaze back in the normal plane, Soundwave shakily got to his pedes, and Death smiled again. He enjoyed smiling. Such a silly thing, but one that held so much meaning.

"This gift I have given to repay my debts. The void now knows you, it has tasted your frame. Do not linger long within its grasp, but it welcomes you, should you wish to traverse the dark paths."

He left quietly, and Soundwave for his part shook like a leaf. The work was done, and now Death had largely repaid his debts.

However if a few particularly devoted mailmecha found themselves avoiding trouble and injury with surprising grace, then who were they to judge? Death would repay his debts, regardless of the outcome.

Megatronus, Ratchet, and Jazz were all very much aware that Orion had done something to them, but by the time they came to understand their new gifts, they opted not to ask. Whatever Orion was, he was old, and he was powerful. No longer was he a spark eater in disguise or some old monster. Rather, he had to be a Quintesson or a creation of them. There was no other explanation, not unless one wanted to begin believing in fairy tales about Primes and their power.

Death, oblivious to it all, continued merrily while quite content to have finally "made things right."

[ddarker-dreams]

what about ranking the phantom troupe (including my queen hwr reader) on the horny scale?

Note: the day where i reveal the nickname i've personally given HWR reader is drawing nearer... i can feel it . for now i'll continue to call her miss avalor/lady avalor <3 Warnings: Yandere themes, unhealthy relationships, dubcon, voyeurism for Shalnark, dubcon, not SFW themes under the cut.

[Least]

Machi

Machi makes an active effort to exercise restraint. While she’s not a pious individual who lauds sex as a most sacred act, she still finds it to be intimate; vulnerable. It’s the vulnerability that serves as an active deterrent from her engaging in it with you. Beneath that frosty exterior is a being who genuinely cares for you. You’d think that it’s her pride that has her tiptoeing around anything sexual since your rejection of her advances is inevitable, when in reality, it’s her heart. Machi is far more sensitive than she lets on when it comes to you. If you were the one to initiate, she’d be suspicious throughout and never able to fully enjoy it because of that. She figures you’re always going to be looking for an opportunity to escape/leverage the circumstances in your favor since that’s how she would think in your situation. So she ends up quietly admiring you from a safe distance (unfortunately for you, it really looks like she’s glaring when she does this). 

HWR Reader/Lady Avalor

Lady Avalor is normally too preoccupied to give her physical wants much thought. She likes to keep herself busy because honestly, if you sat her down and asked her to let you go in a convincing enough manner (putting a heavy emphasis on the mental toll it’s making you endure), she’d have a difficult time denying you. When she does slow down enough... her mind tends to go to more impure places. She’ll subconsciously try to appeal more to you by wearing tighter clothes/anything that shows skin. If you were to call her out on this behavior though, she’d secretly be mortified and probably brood for a few days. Carnal desire without an outlet really perturbs her because it makes her feel like she’s not in control of herself, leading to two possibilities: ignoring it or dealing with it in secret. If she’s ever in the shower for a few minutes longer than normal, that probably means she decided upon the latter solution.

Feitan

Feitan is tricky to definitively place since he can go from zero to a hundred at random. From your perspective, he has an almost nonexistent interest in physical relations. Which further perplexes you about his reasonings for keeping you around when he emits (what feels like) indifference or outright irritation toward your existence. As if he temporarily forgot that he’s the reason you’re here — you’d choose to be anywhere else if given the option. In truth, he is thinking lecherous thoughts about you almost constantly, he just chooses not to act on them. This isn’t due to any goodwill on his part. Rather, there’s a unique satisfaction to be gained from denying his urges, letting them build and build for weeks on end. He keeps you unsuspecting of what is to come. The tension, the uncertainty; he savors your negative emotions and waits until his self-control can't take it any longer to devour them. Since delayed gratification is his thing, he can sometimes go weeks without coming onto you.

Pakunoda

Due to her information-gathering profession, Pakunoda is adept at getting what she wants from others, you included. She’s a master of timing and charm without coming off as pretentious. A smooth talker where the flattery is so specific to you, it’s impossible to come off as anything less than genuine. She’ll craft the atmosphere, come to you with clear intentions, and ease you into it. The entire setup feels so natural that you almost forget you’re her captive. Her patience is remarkable too. If you remain standoffish despite her best efforts, she’ll take it in good humor, all for the sake of building rapport. Sometimes she’ll leave it at that... other times, however, she doesn’t see the point in denying herself what she wants. She’ll excuse herself to your shared bedroom and close the door without locking it. From the light buzzing and gasps of your name, you have a decent guess of what she’s getting up to. Pakunoda’s philosophy is to show you what a good time you’re missing out on to lure you in.

Chrollo

Chrollo has a slightly above-average libido but would have you believing otherwise. This isn’t due to shame, mind you, he just prefers to give off the illusion of a gentleman (he’s not). For his pride’s sake, he’d prefer to have you willing. The fact he’d be able to rub it in your face later is just too tempting to pass up on. Chrollo plays into everything that could, at the very least, get him a physiological reaction. He’ll put an arm around your shoulders, a hand on your thigh, whisper slightly suggestive promises into your ear too vague for you to call him out on. The bastard knows he’s attractive and that this works to his advantage. To make matters worse, he’ll take your preferences into account too. Lord help you if he finds out any of your kinks because he plays to them without the slightest hint of shame. He’s not above exchanging sexual favors from you for certain allowances. In fact, he finds the process of your internal justification of allowing him to do what he pleases with you for little gains to be delightful. 

Shalnark

The very definition of looks can be deceiving. Shalnark has an absolute filthy mind, thinking some of the most depraved things about you while maintaining that boyish smile. You end up underestimating the depths of his perversion due to this pretense. Sure, there’s no doubting he’s dangerous, but you look at him and hope maybe it won’t be that bad...? He gets a kick out of you thinking this way and never tries to correct you. His phone is full of photos he’d taken without your knowledge, ranging from ‘innocent’ candid shots from his stalking days to the risqué; such as when wind would whip up and reveal your undergarments. If only it stopped there. He has hard drives filled to the brim with more content relating to you. Videos from secret cameras set up in your shower and bedroom, not to mention what he’s gotten from your webcam. Plus audio from your phone. The creep has even memorized the timestamps of his favorite videos of you. He times his release to match up with yours in the videos he has of you masturbating. 

Phinks

To his credit, at least he’s straightforward? Pretty much everyone else here is going to be playing some mind game with you when it comes to getting what they want. Not Phinks. The man has no shame and, for better or for worse, no patience for that nonsense. Even though he’s always rather handsy, you can tell when he wants to get frisky. He’ll pull you into his lap, “accidentally” brush against your ass with his clothed member, the works. If that somehow doesn’t manage to get the message across he’ll just pick you up (sometimes slinging you over his shoulder) and bring you to the bedroom. It’s kinda hard to misconstrue that. Phinks is basically horny for you from dusk till dawn. He’s especially down bad in the summer, when you go around wearing such skimpy clothing... the man would punch the AC and say ‘whoops’ if it meant getting to see more skin from you. He’s addicted and insatiable, making for an insufferable combination. 

[Most]

[dreamties]

Sissy Slaughter W/ an S/O Who Has Sleep Issues!

A/n- This feels like such a throwback?? I remember writing several sets like this at the start of the blog! <:O Like, all the way back to 2021 I think? Maybe earlier, actually! Hope you all enjoy! I love you all & please stay safe out there! 💗💗💗

Warning for: mentions of pot use, poisoning / knocking someone out??? but it's like. done for sweet nice purposes?, Drayton cameo at the end !!

taglist: @friedwormeater @0ddmia @royalsnowxoxo @lambofjudgement @lizve @urfavsuh @strawberry-moonpies (let me know if you want to be added or removed!! <3333)

I swear I've said this somewhere before- but sissy grows & smokes her own pot <333

I'm not saying she'll suggest that as an option but I'm saying she'll suggest it as an option

If your sleep is more than just cumbersome for you- if it's affecting you physically (beyond exhaustion), affecting your ability to complete chores, etc - she may need to bring out the big guns

She knows what plants are toxic, what plants can kill and torture She also knows ones for healing !! (side thought: she uses this mostly on herself & bubba. She acts like a pain when anyone sides her youngest brother wants her for her useful abilities) And most important in this case- ones that can knock folks out !! <333 with minimal to no damage done to them She only uses plants to knock you out when you're at your worst point. When you haven't slept for days, and your eyes are irritated and red. When you're in pain all over and can barely stand up. You might not always appreciate this method- but it can work wonders <333

On some nights, when it's particularly rough for you, she'll stay up with ya <333 keep you company.

You don't deserve to go through this, especially not by yourself. Despite her poisoned personality, she can be a real sweetie around her favorite folks <33 (you bein one of em :3) Do you get nightmares? Is that the root of your sleepy time troubles? She'll sit up in bed and pull you close to her. Let you lay down with your head in her lap as she touches your hair and quietly sings. Lulls you into a safe, cozy slumber- or at the very least, calms your mind. A few times she's taken you outside to walk along the property . . . She shows you critters that come out at night, takes you closer to where she has the makeshift greenhouse set up- tells you about all the plants she's been caring for, what their uses are, let's you engage on the topic too, even if you don't know as much as her. Anything outdoorsy that she can do to tire you out, in hopes if you're sleepier you might sleep better.

Sissy has far more experience and knowledge than her siblings do, in regards to life outside the farm that is- but even she can be at a loss of ideas.

If she's really worried she might go to Drayton, ask if he knows what's wrong with you. (he grumbles throughout the entire process, things like "never should have taken them in", and "more trouble than they're worth" he mostly doesn't mean that <33 you're part of the family now so :) ) It's almost like you're a strange pet that she's keeping, because of how alien your issues can feel to her and the rest of the family. In general though !!!! All of the youngest siblings will ask Drayton about the things they don't understand, even if he isn't very knowledgeable on it either. Even if they don't get along with him much (which . . . Who does get along with him lmao)

"They seem sick," Sissy muses. She's sitting at the dining table, your body lying limp on the floor, propped up against her legs. Your head held safely in her lap. She had knocked you out with a non-lethal poison, despite your protests against it.

The poison could be helpful in getting you unconscious, but Sissy hated using it so frequently on you, especially since it doesn't appear to solve the root problem.

You're still having trouble falling or even staying asleep, she's worried about you.

"Should've gotten rid of it when we had the chance."

"C'mon, you've got to know something about this, Drayton. Ya better haven't given my little darlin' something they can't have."

Your head lolls against her lap, your ears slowly perking up with the noise. Your chest tickles with a funny, loving feeling. Your heart beats slow, quicker as you wake. Your girlfriend was so sweet to you.

She talks to her oldest brother like he's given the dog chocolate. She's concerned and trying to be patient, despite her immense dislike of him.

She runs her hands, soothingly, down your back. Noticing her sweetheart is beginning to wake.

"Oh, why don't we look at that. All this is waking up my poor thing." She glares at him, unintrigued, upset with him. She looks back to you, your head following the noise and your eyes unlocking, staring back at her with such an intensity. Lids hardly-half open. She pets your hair, hoping you'll just pass out or be quiet or something.

Sissy huffs. "Fine! We'll just figure it out on our own. You hear that, darlin'?"

She smiles at you, so sweetly. Looks at you like you're the only thing in the room. Like you're precious and irreplaceable- which you are, to her. Your smile gleams and your eyes sparkle when you look at her.

She whispers to you, helping you off the floor. "We'll figure this out, don't you worry."

Hey, I didn't say he would actually be helpful. just that they would ask lol

[stellaluna33]

Something about Jess in his last two episodes of season 4 really gets me down. He seems so… subdued. He barely talks throughout the episodes, at least not in the way we expect his character to. Luke mercilessly dissing his apartment and way of living, then giving him the whole “I’m giving up on you” speech after the fight at the strip club — and Jess just mostly stares and listens quietly in both occasions, with that resigned look on his face.

Also, his exchanges (or lack thereof) with Dean are so weird: at Doose’s market, there’s a hint of a smile, but not a single snarky remark; and at Yale, he straight out ignores Dean, not addressing him at all (which, on a side note, is kinda funny to me, because he’s become that much irrelevant to Jess). But we sure know that a married Dean at Rory’s dorm in the middle of the night would definitely not go unmentioned by the “old Jess”! It’s like he’s drained… Idk, was it just that, once he started letting go of the anger, there was only sadness left? I know that, at that point, he was already starting to change for the better, but he seems to be suffering with something else. And I think it’s kind of a miracle that in season 6 he comes back with everything sorted out, because I feel like things could’ve turned out very differently for him… What are your thoughts on this?

Yeah, I think this was a point in Jess's life when he didn't like himself or his situation very much and was too tired to pretend otherwise, but... I think that's part of WHY he was ready to change at this point. He'd tried going it alone and living his life without reference to anyone else, and... It sucked. It wasn't working. He'd pushed everyone away, and now he was just... Alone. Why fight about it? And is is sad to see him like that, so broken-spirited? Yeah, it is. But I think it was a big part of what made him actually willing to listen to Luke's advice, and actually willing to consider doing things differently, so in the end? I think it was a good thing for him. Some people are willing to accept help before they hit rock-bottom, but Jess was not one of those people when he was young. (Arrogance and low self-esteem aren't always mutually exclusive, isn't that funny?)

As far as Dean goes, I genuinely think Jess really didn't care about Dean apart from his relationship with Rory. It's like when Dean tried to pick a fight with Jess in the street in S3, but Jess didn't want to engage. Dean had to keep goading him to get any response out of him. And here? What should Jess care if Dean's buying stuff for his wife? He doesn't give a crap what that guy does, but he seemed privately amused that Dean seemed to care about what Jess thought of him. And later? I did think he seemed put-off by Dean's presence (and I've often wondered if that's part of why he lost his cool and got so stuck on the idea that they had to get away to be together. If Dean being married doesn't take him out of the picture, what WILL?), but... he does not care about fighting Dean. All he wants is Rory, and he knows that picking a fight wouldn't win him any points in her favor. And like... he KNOWS by this point that Dean has a hair-trigger temper and he'd already been thrown around the room by Dean before. I don't think he was eager to repeat the experience. He just wanted him to LEAVE. And being quiet and calm was the best way to accomplish that. It might be the most rational choice he made that entire night. 😂😭

[infamous-empire]

So I watched The Sky Crawlers

Woo boy, this is gonna be a long one.

Alright, so I’ve been interested in Mamoru Oshi films for a long, long time. He’s one of the most acclaimed directors in the anime industry, and most of his films are highly-regarded masterpieces, so I’ve always had an interest in his work. Then I watched Ghost in the Shell and it didn’t do much for me, and I promptly lowered my expectations. Still, I was curious as to whether his other work was any better, and thankfully this one delivered

MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR THE ENTIRE MOVIE AHEAD

Firstly, there’s one thing I can’t help but talk about in regards to this film: the atmosphere. This film has one of the most immaculate vibes I’ve seen in anime, and that largely just comes down to how every single part of the film is built to convey it to near perfection. All of the characters, even the more lively ones, are more than a little apathetic with understated expressions, the sound design is subtle and tends to emphasize silence a lot of the time, Kenji Kawai’s musical score is just eerie & haunting.

Hell, even the shot composition supports this (and it should say something that this movie managed to make me catch on to something as subtle as shot composition), most of the scenes are framed in a way where the places they’re in feel empty and the characters seem utterly alone even when in places where there’s other people with them. And this is even further backed up by the fact that the film rarely, if ever, uses background extras, making even the more “crowded” scenes feel pretty empty compared to most anime.

All of this comes together to create a subtle feeling of haunting emptiness which permeates the entire film, a feeling which is perfectly complemented by the character writing. Now one of my biggest complaints with the last Oshii film I watched, Ghost in the Shell, was how barebones the character writing felt, making everyone feel so unenjoyably hollow, but Sky Crawlers manages to rectify this in two ways. The first being that it does feel like there’s a sense of personality to all the characters present, on the subtlest level, even the supporting characters have their own little quirks which set them apart, and the two main leads get some fantastic development, which I’ll get to in a moment.

The other thing I enjoyed about the character writing is how it took the dry hollowness of Oshii’s writing and actually made it a compelling part of the film. The main character, Kannami, is a bit bland on the surface, of the film’s primary characters, he’s by far the least emotive and expressive, always approaching everything with the same look of detached apathy and never seeming that interested even in the ongoing plot. However, this is all by design. He’s a Kildren, someone genetically engineered from birth to be eternally young and fight in this war forever. He has no past to speak of or future to look forward to, no loved ones to ground him or home to come back to, nothing to fight for or believe in. All he has is a robotic persistence to move forward in this war because that’s the only thing he’s ever known. And it’s that same hollowness which makes the film’s ending all the more poignant, he subtly grew to care and love over the course of the film, all climaxing when he finally had something to fight for and believe in at the very end. And even if he’s dead, his and what he fought for will continue forward through Kusanagi.

While I’m on the subject, I’mma also talk about the film’s other lead, Suito Kusanagi, since she’s by far the movie’s most interesting character. Throughout most of the film, she’s something of a mystery, she’s cold towards Kannami and we see bits & pieces of what she does without much understanding of her internal logic. We’re fed details about her one bit at a time and slowly come to understand her more and more in a way which is incredibly engaging for me. She’s a Kildren who’s survived longer than anyone could have predicted, driven to suicidal depression by the monotony of fighting a meaningless, repetitive war while living an empty, repetitive life. Despite her coldness, she’s the most emotional of the characters in the film, as it’s made clear she truly does care about those she fights with and has the most strong emotional moments of the film. And the ultimate resolution of her arc at the end, being inspired by Kannami’s drive to change things and seeing hope in the future for the first time in her life, is just beautiful.

One last thing about the character writing, having a strong backbone of characterization makes some of Oshii’s other writing quirks work a lot more for me, specifically the lengthy philosophical discussions. Mitsuya infodumping about the nature of the Kildren works really well since it also doubles as her having an existential crisis and being able to unload about it to someone for the first time to the point where she’s breaking down in tears by the end of it. Or Kannami philosophizing about the monotony of Kildren life near the end, which feels earned rather than forced since it followed up on almost two hours of him slowly coming to terms with the nature of his existence.

The fact that I’ve rambled about this film for paragraphs and paragraphs without even talking about the themes yet is a testament to its depth and attention to detail, but let's get on with it. Fundamentally, Sky Crawlers is a war film, but it’s also a commentary on the frustration of our generation and on the nature of war itself in relation to modern society. It’s about the monotony of living life in a world which increasingly drives you towards pessimism and depression. The Kildren are people who have no hope for the future, the overly commercialized society which created them to fight in their wars has stripped them of any chance of a life beyond war and exploitation by the megacorporations who built the infinite meat-grinder they have no choice but to fight in. And without anything to look forward to or dreams to strive for, how do you meaningfully mature and grow as a person? How do you meaningfully develop a sense of time or continuity when every day is the same and you can’t even form new memories because of that? And without memories of the past or dreams of the future, how do you even form a reliable sense of self? These questions are at the core of this film, and they make its ending all the more powerful to me: Kannami and Kusanagi do finally find some sense of resolution at the end of the road, when they each find hope that one day they’ll be able to change the system. It’s only when they find hope in tomorrow that they begin to truly move forward. And Kannami’s death only enhances this for me, an acknowledgement that trying to change the world and truly progress is nearly impossible, an insurmountable obstacle which few might ever be able to achieve, but it’s still worth trying, worth moving forward, regardless.

I’d also be remiss not to mention the tourist scene. A bunch of tourists come to the base and treat the war they’re fighting in like a team sport they use to entertain themselves from a distance, then proceed to offer shallow pity when one of the Kildren is shot down and dies in front of them, offering vague platitudes about “fighting for a peaceful world” that not even the Kildren believe in. It’s a truly biting commentary on the sensationalization of war in modern media and adds weight to Kusanagi’s words later when she talks about how War is necessary in society because the idea of ongoing conflict in the world makes people living in peace behind the lines feel good about themselves by emphasizing the importance of peace. Plus, the scene of Kusanagi calling out the tourists is a great moment for her

One last thing, I got a lot of enjoyment out of comparing this film to Eighty-Six, my second favorite anime, since there’s a lot of interesting similarities to dig into. Narratively speaking, both are about a class of people designated to fight in someone else’s war and how they cope with being born on the battlefield & having no future, as well as having one of the main characters being one of them who’s survived longer than everyone else. Both commentate on the relationship between war and peaceful society (hell, Kusanagi’s scene of calling out the tourists feels like something right out of 86), and both have some incredible CGI fight scenes.

Presentation-wise, the film was great. The 2D animation is masterfully crafted and brilliantly subtle, and the CGI, while PS2-tier, is honestly really well-integrated, so I didn’t get any uncanny valley feelings. The music is incredible, easily one of Kenji Kawai’s best soundtracks.

So, yeah, this film is a masterpiece and I loved every second of it

[thedo0zyslider]

Explosions Across Lifetimes - Chapter Twenty: Sweet Celebrations - 6k words

There is a feast at Rivendell, some festivities afterward, and it some of the best moments of Jimmy's life by far.

A03 Link

Playlist

The morning after the party is quite a busy one. The Codfather, who wakes up late, is one of the last to leave House Blossom. He has to make a return trip home, mainly for some warmer clothes. Because he would most certainly die in the mountains with only one layer of clothing. Being a fish has its downsides sometimes. 

He also needs to grab some food, as Scott asked each ruler to bring a dish from their homelands with them. Jimmy kinda grabs the first thing he can find really, knowing it’s supposed to be a hotpot of sorts when they all get there. 

The festival ground, having been made by Rivendell’s citizens, Shrub, Scott, Gem and Katherine over the past few days, is absolutely stunning. There is a large part for the people to celebrate, and at a slightly higher elevation is where the emperors are to sit. The whole area is bright and colorful, and elven children run through, playing before the rest of their day is taken up with all the festive activities that are sure to follow.

Jimmy is also one of the last to arrive, but they all showed up in a clump, according to Scott, so it’s fine. Speaking of Scott, the elf is ushering him away and towards the table before the blonde can even say hello to his sister, just as a few other people start to take their seats as well. 

“You’re sitting next to me, sorry!” Scott smiles, wide and a little mischievous. In the back of his mind the cod has to wonder if his friend is planning something, because it sure feels like it.  

“But I was gonna sit next to Lizzie and Joel-” Jimmy’s protest was cut off quickly, and he made a surprised click as he was literally dragged away. Joel just watched him go with a helpless shrug, before turning back to his wife as if nothing had happened. 

“Nope,” Scott said, dragging Jimmy away by the wrist. “You’re one of my best friends, and best friends get to sit by me!”

“The setting is arranged anyways,” The elf added, upon hearing Jimmy’s grumble of complaint. Though it was a more lighthearted complaint than one of true annoyance. 

“ Why? ” Jimmy asked, a little surprised that he was finding this out less than an hour before everything began. 

“So someone will actually sit next to Joey.” Ah that made sense. Joey had felt bad for what he’d done under the demon’s possession of course, even burning all his corruption at the risk of his own jungle trees. The problem was that he was still a little in love with Xornroth, and very publicly wanted him back in some way. That hadn’t gone over well at all, and whispers had traveled quickly throughout the empires. Jimmy could only imagine how some of their friends, the ones most affected by Xornorth, could’ve reacted to the news. (The only reaction to be had was a very bad one, and the blonde hadn’t been surprised when he’d caught Sausage casting a disapproving glare at the Lost Emperor earlier.) 

"Who'd you put beside him anyways?" He asked, taking his seat near the head of the table. Scott settled next to him, shifting a little until he was fully comfortable. 

"Pix and Shrub, they like him the best I think. And if not they'll at least be civil." Jimmy let out a hum of agreement at his eleven friends' words. He was sure both of this people heavily disagreed with Joey’s opinions on Xornoth themselves, but the two wouldn’t get into an argument over it, unlike someone like Joel or Fwhip or even Sausage would risk doing.

And the arranged seating was entirely fine in Jimmy’s book, he didn’t really mind who he sat next to. He was seated across from Katherine, and was engaged in a conversation with her and the elf rather quickly. Though he soon found out why he was unaware of the seating chart when everyone else had arrived. 

It started when Fwhip walked in, who immediately shared a glance with Scott. Jimmy didn’t catch what it was exactly, but he had a feeling he knew what it was. Especially when Fwhip took the seat next to him, and the eleven ruler couldn’t hide a cheeky little grin. They had planned this to annoy him or something, and it was bloody working. 

“You cheeky little-” Jimmy muttered, the last part being cut off when Scott started to giggle like a madman. He tried to hide it at least, politely covering his mouth with a hand and muffling his already quiet laughter.  

“What’s wrong with this seat, hmm darling~? ” Fwhip purred, leaning his cheek against his palm. Jimmy just rolled his eyes and leaned away from him, maybe doing so a little teasingly.  

“Nothing,” The Codfather sighed lightly, mentally taking note of the new pet name as Fwhip’s tail playfully brushed against his calves. All the while Scott still laughed quietly beside them. 

It seemed like this was going to be a very long, but very enjoyable feast. 

________________________________

“I would like to thank you all for attending the Rivendell Feast!” Scott begins, a glass of what is either wine or some type of juice raised in the air. “Today we are here to celebrate Xornorth’s long awaited defeat!”

“I know the path to this has been rocky, thanks in part to my own errors, but I am very grateful that we are all still here today. I am very grateful for any patience extended to me by my people and my fellow emperors, and I am truly sorry for any trouble this may have caused. I am sorry as well for all the trouble my brother has made over these past few months, but they are secured now, in a crystal encased in ice.” Scott’s voice sounds sad as he talks about his sibling, not enough that it’s horribly noticeable, but if you pay attention well enough you can hear it. Another rush of sympathy goes through Fwhip as he listens, and thankfully the last part of the speech is happier. 

“This whole ordeal has been a strain on everyone involved, but with this feast we bring this dreadful era to a close, and hopefully bring a new era of peace to all the empires! Starting with the festival my people have prepared for today, and hopefully many more activities that let us move forward without fear.” 

Scott finished his toast with a smile, loud whoops and cheers following it, from the other rulers and the citizens below them. Joey clinked his glass with Pix’s in cheer, before downing the whole cup of wine in one go. Fwhip had to wonder how much of a heavyweight he was, because the drinks in Rivendell tended to be on the stronger side; strong enough to get Sausage drunk quickly. And Fwhip had seen that man be seemingly unaffected by several pints of Mythland’s and the Grimlands strongest alcohol multiple times before. 

Louder cheers came from their friends as Lizzie pulled Joel into a quick, celebratory kiss. The Mezalean looked startled, but everyone knew he wasn’t complaining. That man had it bad for his wife, almost as bad as the Count did for Jimmy. Not that either of them would ever admit to that verbally. 

That was what encouraged him to do what he did next, the Count feeling a little bold. A little impulsive even, though when was he not acting on some fleeting impulse? 

Fwhip grabbed Jimmy’s collar from where they sat, pulling him forward to press their lips together. The Codfather smiled against the Count’s lips, a small huff of fondness escaping him as he kissed back easily. A hand went to cup Fwhip’s cheek and the half dragon melted into the touch, allowing his head to be titled to the side; momentarily deepening the kiss before they broke away. 

Another whoop came from beside them, and Fwhip suddenly remembered where they were. He felt himself flush, watching as scarlet spread from Jimmy’s face to his neck at their friends' cries of celebration. 

“Finally!” Joel said. “It was getting painful to watch you two avoid kissing in public!” 

Jimmy let out an embarrassed groan, leaning down slightly and burying his head in the crook of Fwhip’s neck, his whole face red and burning. Fwhip laughed at that, listening to the others rulers congratulations as he pressed another fond kiss into Jimmy’s soft hair

"You two are adorable, really," Joey giggled. "With the whole forbidden love story and all." The feasting part of the feast seemed to start around the little conversation their kiss had struck up, the Lost Emperor going to bite into some of the steak and pickles that had been brought. 

"It-It wasn’t really forbidden ," Fwhip stammered out his weak defense only to be cut down by Pixl, of all people. 

"You two sure acted like it was," The Copper King said with a shrug. Jimmy moved away to hold his head in his hands for a moment. "How obvious are we?" He grumbled, and to everyone else’s amusement he was still bright red. 

"Enough for Pix to notice, and he only sees us at meetings!" Pearl laughed around what looked to be another bite of Ocean Empire cake. 

"Even Xor--they who will not be named made a comment about it eventually," Sausage muttered from Gem’s other side, and Fwhip wanted to kick himself. We really are terrible aren't we? 

"After the first…" Lizzie trailed off, as if searching for the right words. "... moment Jimmy told us about, I wasn't sure if it would go anywhere or remain a-" 

"And that is enough of that!" Jimmy cut her off, causing even more snickers and giggles to erupt from their friends. Fwhip, who was pretty sure the Ocean Queen was referring to their first kiss, wanted to disappear into a hole forever. He’d forgotten everyone kinda knew that had happened, unfortunately so.  

"And I didn't just start telling you things, for the record!" The Codfather added, shooting a look at the Mezalean king. "Your husband was being annoyingly persistent!" 

"That's my specialty!" Joel smirked, and Jimmy had to stop himself before he flicked food or something at his brother-in-law. Mainly because Joel would fire back, and this wasn’t the place for a food fight.  

Katherine reassured them with a smirk, clearly enjoying their embarrassment. "It wasn’t too bad guys, all of Joey’s gay panics have been way worse!" The latter gave her a playful glare, and a little tension surrounding the Lost ruler seemed to melt a little. 

Scott, who's giggles had calmed down, spoke for the first time since his speech. "Congrats on being gay, Fwhip."

That was the line that sent Gem and Sausage into small laughing fits, and Fwhip made his own pained sound in response. The Count was absolutely miserable now actually, and embarrassed. He hated these people soo much and his friends were terrible, absolutely horrible to him and to his beloved Orchid. Jimmy on the other hand, who had tried to resume their meal, had to stop himself from choking at the unexpected comment. Fwhip also heard him snicker a bit, and how dare his partner laugh at his suffering like this. 

The conversation naturally strayed away from the Count and Codfather’s now seemingly confirmed relationship status a minute or so later, but that wouldn’t stop the other ten rulers from occasionally teasing them. Fwhip, who’d heard some news from Jimmy, could not wait for the day Sausage and Scott became public, if they ever went that far. After all, he needed to get them back somehow !

Said occasional teasing mostly came in the form of Kathrine, who cast a glance at Fwhip, failing to conceal the smirk stretching across her face. "So," She said teasingly, pointing her fork at the Count, then at Jimmy. "You two gonna get married?"

"W-what!?" Jimmy sputtered, almost choking on his food for a second time in about twenty minutes. Scott gave him a few pats on the back for good measure, but still smiled widely as he listened into the exchange.

"You're acting like Lizzie and Joel, ya know the actual married couple," Gem chimed in helpfully. Fwhip, who hadn’t thought this feast could get more humiliating, lightly kicked her under the table. She kicked him back harder, and he gave her a wounded little glare in response, knowing she’d give his leg a new bruise if he even tried that again. His sister just smiled at her small victory, and took another bite of food from her plate. No one else seemed to be listening in besides Scott and the wizard, the others all engaged in their own conversations. And Fwhip was more than happy to keep this to a five person discussion. The whole table didn’t really need to know his personal relationship stuff after all. 

Jimmy answered before Fwhip could, and he was glad the two of them seemed to be on the same page. Considering they’d never even thought about discussing the topic of marriage ever . "I, um-no." He stuttered, flushing bright scarlet once more. "There's not any plans for that, at the moment anyways." 

At the moment. At the moment. The last part of the sentence implied that there could be plans later for marriage, and Fwhip’s brain wasted no time in repeating the words over and over and over again in his head. He cast a glance at the Codfather and wondered briefly what it would be like to call him his husband. Wondered what it would be like to have matching wedding rings, wondered what Jimmy would wear to a wedding. Their wedding. And the Count found he wasn’t opposed to the idea at all, but knew it wasn’t for right now. That was for later, he didn’t know when later was exactly, it was simply just a thought for later. Lest that be in three months or five years, he knew instantly that it was something he’d like to happen one day. (But only if Jimmy wanted the same, of course. Whenever they were both ready for it) 

Katherine seemed to share the same idea as Fwhip, and her grip on her fork tightened in excitement. “So it could happen in like, a year or something!?”

“It’s not off the table.” Fwhip huffed. He didn’t catch the look Jimmy flashed at him, not fully, but assumed it was a fond one. His answer had been vague enough he thought, not wanting to imply it was a discussion they had. 

“If it happens can I help decorate, pleassseee ?” The sheep hybrid immediately started begging for this role at the make believe wedding, and Fwhip had to bet that she was already thinking of possible flower arrangements. 

“Yeah you can!” Jimmy smiled, and Katherine made a little squeal of triumph. 

“I’m gonna be the best man, right Fwhip, righttt?” Gem asked, nudging Fwhip’s side. 

“Well of course! Who else would it be!?” He says, bumping his sibling in return, and Gem takes a satisfied bite of her food. His answer is genuine as well, under all the teasing. He doesn’t know who else would be his best man, other than Gem and Sausage and Pearl, there’s really no other options to be considered. If they do get married, that will be the easiest thing to decide.

“I expect to be one as well, Jimmy.” Scott chimes in, voice full of his usually sass. Jimmy rolls his eyes, and gives the elf a deadpanned look as a response.  

“I’m actually not going to make you one, just for that.” He declares, and Gem giggles at the face of mock offense the elf makes. 

Once the whole group is done chatting and their plates are clean, Fwhip asks Scott if he can present something. The elf nods, cautious yet curious, and the Count prepares to finally present something he’d been working on for months. The project had been a secret, even to the very people who worked in his manor. He’d had the idea a while ago, but had been delayed in creating it due to obvious reasons. It was the half dragon's pride and joy, the best thing he’d ever made to date. 

His favorite project, his baby, is a crown. One crown to rule them all, one crown to start a fun mini game for him and all his friends, something he hopes will bring more fun into their lives; brighten everything up after the past little while. He certainly thinks it will, and hopes that train of thought it’s horribly wrong.  

Fwhip presents the crown, and sees the way eleven pairs of eyes light up around the table. Some with curiosity, and some with poorly hidden greed once they realize what the Count might be planning. 

As soon as he explains the said plan the twelve of them jump into a fight. It’s not really a fight, more of a light scuffle than anything. Weapons aren’t used, and if they are no harm comes to anyone. The play fighting as the part most of them expected, the winner of the fight however, was certainly a great surprise for a handful of the emperors. 

__________________________________

Jimmy really didn't know how he did it, logically he should've had his ass handed to him. He was more skilled at fighting in the water than out of it, and Lizzie was much better with a trident than he'd ever be. Pix was also skilled with a trident, Gem had magic. Fwhip and Sausage had won against him multiple times, and Scott had bloody ice magic . He didn’t use it much, but still, ice powers were ice powers . 

But there he stands after the scuffle, holding the crown in his hands. Pix, the person he’d won it from, just smiles, and goes to take it from his hands and place it atop the cod’s head; his trident being put away as well. He does so mostly because Jimmy is too stunned to do it himself, and some of these people would play dirty and steal the thing right from under his nose. It takes most of the others a moment to realize who exactly one, but when they do the teasing is almost instantaneous, and Jimmy has to hold back giggles.  

“That was rigged!” Sausage calls out, but then goes to congratulate Jimmy immediately after. He’s the first one too in fact, clapping the cod on the back maybe a bit harder than intended. Jimmy laughs, and endures everyone’s playfully groans that the blonde of all people is the one to win the crown. The Codfather can empathize, because he has no idea how he got this thing either, but now that Jimmy has it he’s not too keen on giving it away. 

“Oh course his boyfriend won the crown..” He hears Joey mumble from a few feet away, not at all quietly. The statement is more said loudly than it is muttered, actually. His tone is playful, but the words still carry a sour undertone to them. Which does make sense, considering the cod did hear him yelling about wanting power during the scuffle. 

Shrub elbows her friend and the side, and for the most part the comment goes ignored. Everyone moves in to give Jimmy some congratulations, before moving away a little once more. The people of Rivendell had prepared some stalls, a festival ground of sorts below as their own way of celebration, and they were all itching to go investigate. 

Fwhip basically runs over to him before he can take a step forward, and wraps his arms around the blonde’s neck as soon as he physically can. Jimmy just laughs, and holds the Count’s waist to steady him. “You didn’t rig it did you?” He asks, knowing that was exactly something the half dragon would do. 

“No! It’s not fun if it’s rigged!” Fwhip huffed rather dramatically, pouting a little. 

“Fine, I believe you.” He says, noticing how the other emperors are properly starting to leave the area to enjoy the rest of the festival. He hums as the Count bumps their noses together, eyes fluttering shut slowly. 

“You better.” Fwhip mutters against his lips, before closing the small gap between them. It’s better than the one they shared at the table barely an hour ago, certainly much better than leaning awkwardly in a chair to reach his partner. It's a longer one as well, the two of them pulling away slowly and sharing fond looks as they do so.

“No crown until the feast is over, by the way!” The Count declares, swiping the crown of Jimmy’s head before he even processes what’s happening. Fwhip also takes the time to fix his hair and the Codfather’s head as well, and Jimmy just looks at him like a kicked puppy all the while. 

“But whyyy ?” He whines, watching as the crown is so rudely taken away from him.

“Because I don’t want people to fight over it at Scott’s feast.” The half dragon reasons, and places on final peck to the blonde’s lips.

“That’s fine, I suppose.” Jimmy lets out a dramatic sigh, momentarily bumping their foreheads together. His partner grumbles as he does so. 

“You suppose ?” Fwhip teases, moving to cup the cod’s cheeks in his hands. Jimmy leans into it with a small laugh.

Before he can properly respond, Scott calls for them, asking if they’re going to explore the festival grounds or flirt all day. The two erupt into more smiles and laughs, and Jimmy slips out of his partner's hold.

“Can this be date number two?” The Count asks quietly, the two emperors now walking through the stalls and activities Rivendell’s citizens had set up for the day. 

“Yeah, this is date number two.” Jimmy confirms, and presses the quickest of kisses to Fwhip’s hair. The other beams at that, and begins excitedly leading his partner around the fair grounds by the hand, and it really makes the two look like they’re on some sort of date, doesn’t it?

Jimmy lets out an amused snort and lets the half dragon lead him around for the time being. He knows their other friends will probably drag both of them off to do something stupid (not that he minds that, for the record,) so the cod is content to enjoy the short date while it lasts. 

__________________________________

At some point, after an hour of the two of them walking around, Fwhip pulls Jimmy off to the side. He wants a private moment with the Codfather, wants to have a talk he can’t have in public. A topic that is not meant for anyone else’s ears but them. 

Jimmy asks where they’re going, and Fwhip says there’s a nice view he wants to show him. It’s not exactly a lie per say, because the Count does manage to find a spot with a great view of the mountains. He has a feeling the cod can guess what he’s trying to do as well, but Jimmy says nothing, and simply lets Fwhip lead him around some more. 

“Woah,” The blonde says, looking off to the side of the cliffs. “This really is a good view!” There’s a railing along the edge, likely to prevent people from falling, and he leans on it to get a better look at the world below. Fwhip just smiles at his, and leans against the wooden fences as well. 

“Yeah,” The Count murmurs lightly, eyes fixed on the man beside him. He takes a few, deep breaths, and prepares for a conversation he’s been mulling over in his head. A conversation part of him has been dreading. Only slightly though, because he’s fairly sure what the answer might be. Well he hopes he’s sure anyways. 

“I’ve been meaning to ask this for awhile, but are we boyfriends now? Like officially?” Fwhip asked, glancing away for a quick second. He drummed his fingers against his thigh as he spoke, the action riddled with a mix of slight nervousness and excitement. 

“Why are you asking?” Jimmy sounded a little puzzled. He blinked a few times at the Count, curious clicking sounds coming from the back of his throat. 

Fwhip felt his features go a little soft at the question. “You called me your boyfriend at the ball, remember? After we danced?” He reminded the blonde gently. 

“Oh,” Jimmy muttered dumbly. He probably hadn't realized he'd even said that, which made Fwhip want to roll his eyes in fondness. "Well, only if you want to be…." Jimmy trailed off, shifting his weight from side to side a bit. 

The Count took a moment to think, aware that….putting an actual label on their relationship was kinda a serious decision. The answer came easy to him obviously, but a little more thought never hurt, in case he found that he wasn't ready for whatever stupid reason. "Pretty sure I want to be your boyfriend." He said, and a few years ago the Count had never thought he'd be saying those words to anyone, let alone Jimmy. It was a little disorienting, to fully process just how far they'd come in what felt like so little time.

Jimmy took a moment before speaking again, simply blinking at him. "...are we…a thing now? Like an official couple or whatever?" His voice was laced with building excitement, an infectious kind. Fwhip smiled back at him, the others enthusiasm bleeding into the air around them. 

"Yeah, we are!" He purred, tail curling up in joy behind him. 

"We're….we're boyfriends! " Jimmy exclaimed, moving closer. Before Fwhip could ask what he was doing, he found himself being lifted off the ground. "Wha-- hey !" He squeaked, fumbling to try and wrap his arms around the cod's neck. 

He accidentally smacked Jimmy in the face with a wing, and couldn't squeeze an apology out over the blonde's laughter. The cod lifted him fairly high in the air, just enough to where he stared down at the other. Eventually Fwhip joined in the laughing, warmth spreading through him from his chest. 

"We're boyfriends!" Jimmy repeated with another laugh. 

"Yeah, we're boyfriends!" Fwhip giggled, leaning down to press a swift kiss to his boyfriend's lips. Jimmy laughed into it, spinning them around a little. 

"Now put me down!" The Count spat playfully, wriggling a bit in his boyfriend's grasp. His boyfriend. His boyfriend. 

"But what if I don't want to?" Jimmy whined, looking up at him with puppy dog eyes. 

"Then I'll bite you!" The threat was a playful, empty one, and the cod saw right through it almost immediately. Jimmy knew Fwhip would do nothing if he didn’t put him down, well nothing other than loudly compian that is. 

" Oh? " Jimmy wriggled an eyebrow, and the Count rolled his eyes. 

"Not like that! We can do that later!" That was the comment that made the blonde put him down, Jimmy spluttering a bit as he did so. Fwhip laughed for what felt like the thousandth time in the past day alone, and met Jimmy in the middle when the latter inevitably leaned in for another kiss. The Count melted against his boyfriend, arms draping around the cod's neck, and for a moment everything felt right. For a moment the whole world felt perfect. 

They moved away slowly, and with happy giggles; Fwhip protesting as he’s spun around one final time. The moment ends after that, the Count having seen a few stands he wants to check out before night falls, and Jimmy having seen a few of his own. Which means that sadly the two of them cannot waste any more moments kissing. 

By the time they returned to the others Joel was dragging Jimmy away, saying he’d spent too much time with his bloody boyfriend and that Lizzie and Shrub had been looking for him. Jimmy just teased back, claiming Joel had missed him. Which the Meazakean denied fervently. Allegedly, according to him, Joel never got that sappy over anyone ever (except his wife.) He would never miss an idiot like Jimmy in a thousand years!

Fwhip follows a few other emperors around as well, enjoying the rest of the festivities, until night starts to fall and it’s too dark to do much else. All of them are staying in Rivdendell’s royal palace tonight due to the lights tomorrow, and the twelve of them start to head inside. Somehow they still manage to be quite the rowdy little group as they do, despite many of them being tired and socially drained. 

The palace is warmer than the outside, and everyone not used to the mountain cold immediately lets out a sigh of relief upon entering. Scott tells them to make themselves at home during their short stay, and tries to show twelve whole people around the best he can. A few of them have seen the place before, but the ones who haven’t take their time marbling at it, and calling the elves' palace beautiful.

Scott had offered them all rooms during their stay, and the emperors had taken them all gratefully. Once they were shown where they were of course. He’d also very cheekily put Jimmy’s next to Fwhip’s, just as he had with their seats at the feast. When the cod asked him about it, the elf had just smiled a little slyly and said he thought they’d want to “spend a bit more time together.” Knowing Scott, Jimmy felt like those words had some underlying meaning, but he appreciated the gesture regardless. (If Sausage’s guest room was the closest to Scott’s own bedroom, well no one made any comment on that.)

So it was no surprise when the Codfather ended up in the Count’s room late at night, flopping onto the bed like a needy little cat. 

“Hi Orchid.” Fwhip purred, patting the spot next to him on the bed. Jimmy scooted forward, until he could bury his head into the half dragon's shoulder. The other laughed quietly, hands going to play with his hair. Jimmy let out a clicking sound, and leaned into the touch.

“You’re not leaving, are you?” The Count asked fondly, taking off his goggles one handedly. 

“Nope!” The cod mumbled against him, and Fwhip purred even louder. 

“Good,” He muttered. He hadn’t been expecting a sleepover, but it was something the half dragon had no qualms about; not if he got to cuddle his boyfriend after all. (He’d been repeating the phrase his boyfriend in his head since they’d decided on it, adoring how right the words sounded when put next to Jimmy’s name.) 

The two of them slowly got a bit more settled as the night continued to wind down. Jimmy stays snuggled up against him, the Count’s arms wrapping around his waist. Each of them slowly placed lazy kisses to their partner’s skin, Jimmy giggling as Fwhip kissed him in all the more ticklish spots. 

Eventually, the cod muttered something quietly to Fwhip. A question that made him want to roll his eyes. “Where’d you end up putting the crown?” Jimmy murmured quietly, and the Count could practically feel the others' curious gaze burning holes in him. 

“You’ll get it back, I promise.” He snorted, moving to play with the blonde’s hair again. “Didn’t know you’d be so obsessed over this thing.”

“I was just curious is all!” Jimmy’s defense was a weak one, not helped by how he melted once again at Fwhip’s hands running through his hair. He leaned into the touch with a yawn, and the Count muttered something about how he needed to go to bed instead of worrying about a piece of jewelry. Jimmy said nothing, and just buried himself further into the half dragon's comfortable hold. 

They woke up still tangled together the next morning, Fwhip awakening to soft morning kisses being placed on his forehead. He hummed as he woke up, kissed Jimmy back sweetly, and before long they were heading out of the room, fully intending to steal each other away for a day. Just a few hours. The others wouldn’t mind surely, not after they’d just decided to date of course. The Count knew Sausage would probably encourage them if anything, actually. 

The two lovebirds headed out into the main part of the empire again, on a third date of sorts. The eleven people waved to them as they passed, Jimmy even seeming like he recognized a few from prior visits to the mountain empire. 

They ran around for most of the day, until late afternoon when they finally returned from the place. It was then Jimmy had a positively horrible idea, to give his boyfriend proper dance lessons. Fwhip protested, but went along with the blonde’s shenanigans anyway, with the promise that they could have even more dances in the future. 

The start was…. rocky to say the least, Fwhip having mostly been following Jimmy’s lead the night before. The two men stood alone in Rivendell’s vast ballroom, voices echoing off the walls as Jimmy gave out what felt like endless instructions and corrections. The Codfather loved his boyfriend a whole lot, but part of him was starting to think the man had spared him and his sister poor dance teachers all those years ago. 

“Is this right?” Fwhip asked the question again, and upon examining the way the Count stood, Jimmy concluded he had no idea what he was doing or what the hell that pose was supposed to be. When Fwhip said he’d skimmed dance lessons, he really meant he’d skimmed those dance lessons.

“No,” Jimmy said, correcting his stance just a bit. “It’s more like this.” He readjusted the way the Count’s arms were placed, and went to perform the next step in the dance. They were doing a waltz again, to keep it relatively simple. Plus the fact that it was the only dance they’d ever shared before. 

A few steps and turns, and maybe a few cheekily done dips and twirls later, Fwhip was finally starting to get the hang of it. Until he tripped. Because of course he tripped, and almost took both of them crashing into the floor. Which didn’t happen, because Jimmy had kinda been waiting for something like this to happen. It had felt inevitable, really, and was entirely okay that someone new to the craft would mess up majorly a handful of times

Fwhip let out a startled sound as he tripped, Jimmy quickly catching him before one or both of the rulers could face plant into the quartz flooring below their feet. They called it a day there, with Fwhip’s face landing directly in Jimmy’’s chest. They laughed about it, the Count’s face cherry red as they ushered out of the room, realizing how long they’d actually been practicing for. Night was beginning to fall already, and the lights were going to start within an hour or so. 

They join the group, and Scott immediately starts teasing. The elf says he was right, as Fwhip is sweeped away by his siblings, that they did need more time to themselves. Jimmy bumps him playfully, and asks about the placement of Sausage’s own guest room. That is the point where the elven king shoves him towards Joel, almost making the two of them collide, and scurries off to strike up a conversation with Katherine. 

Most of Rivendell’s citizens had already headed out, and the emperors brought up the rear of the last group heading further up the mountains. Joel tries to start a snowball fight with Jimmy quickly, who ends up chucking another snowball back and entirely missing. He almost hits Pearl in the process, and has to dodge the farmer’s own ball of snow a few seconds later. 

When they reach the top of the mountain, after a somewhat on and off snowball fight, there are whispers that the lights should be there soon. Everyone is getting settled, and their group follows suit. Most everyone stays in somewhat of a group for the time being. But Jimmy moves off by himself. He sits in the snow, near the edge of the mountain, but not close enough to be in any danger of falling.

Jimmy looks over when he hears the telltale sound of boots crunching in the snow, and sees that Fwhip has plopped himself next to him in the snow. They say nothing, just sit in comfortable silence while they wait for the promised show to start. All of their friends are close by, some sitting, some standing. Other couples are doing the same thing as well, and everyone waits with somewhat baited breath. There is excitement building in the air, and Jimmy feels it coursing through him as he waits as well. 

Fwhip shuffles closer, until he can once again wrap a wing around Jimmy. Just as he does this the lights show starts, and it’s quite frankly one of the most beautiful things the Codfather thinks he’s ever seen. There are stunned and excited whispers and gasps around them, and it’s well warranted too. The colors in the sky are absolutely captivating, and he catches the way Fwhip’s eyes widen in wonder beside him, the way his whole face beams at the sight. It makes his heart feel warmer than any other light ever could he thinks. 

Apparently, these lights don’t last long, so Jimmy soaks as much of the color up as he can, commits the beautifully vivid blues and greens to memory as best as he can manage. Fwhip snuggles closer with every passing minute, his tail flicking up snow behind them as it basically wags in excitement. Jimmy can’t help but cast many fond looks at him, until they’re both missing the light’s show due to staring at each other, absolutely lost in the other man’s fond gaze. 

They share yet another kiss under the lights, because what else are you meant to do with a sight so beautiful? It feels like a scene from a cheesy romance novel, but Jimmy doesn’t care. All he cares for in the moment is the man beside him, the one pulling him back in for a softer kiss, the man who will shower him in affection during and long after the northern lights are in the sky. The man who loves him, and the one Jimmy loves back. 

They don’t say as much, but it’s felt regardless. It’s felt in the way Fwhip squeezes Jimmy’s hand, it’s felt in the sickly sweet looks each of them gives his boyfriend when the latter isn’t looking. It’s felt in their sweet goodbye kiss the next morning, and in all the times they see each other after, all the way until the end of the world. 

[itsclydebitches]

It seems that they had this Ever After idea since volume 2. So if I had to garner a realistic, not super interesting guess it was simply a case of them holding onto an idea they liked to a point of stubbornness and refusing to see the themes of their story no longer fit for this whimsical, fun nonsense. Unlike the Apathy, another long standing idea which actually fit better when things got more dire, Ever After doesn’t have a place anymore when things have changed this much.

Hard agree with that assessment. I feel like it's pretty well known by now that I don't engage with much behind-the-scenes stuff, so that's actually really interesting to hear. With the huge disclaimer that I'm always cautious when authors claim that something was planned from an early date (especially in collaborative projects, especially when the primary author is no longer with us, super especially when the writers have a history of making such claims that simply don't add up), that makes for a... very surprising conception of RWBY as a whole.

I mean, the Apathy makes perfect sense to me. It's just a grimm concept, one that could fit into any fight throughout the series. It's entirely disconnected from the plot except for what's already established at the very start: this is a world populated by a variety of vicious monsters, drawn by negative emotion. So why not a type that causes such emotions too? That's exactly the kind of Rule of Cool antagonist concept that could be conceived of at the start, stuck in a back drawer, and only pulled out years later when, as you say, it fits the tone very well.

The Ever After though? I have a much harder time picturing them conceptualizing that in Volume 2. It simply depends on so much that we know was thought up later, or at least significantly changed: the concept of magic vs. semblances, the Gods, Ozpin's backstory, Oscar's existence, the popularity of RWBY and its connection with other media worlds (Justice League, Chibi, the tie-in novels, etc.) thereby making a trip to an alternate reality feel less out of place in this franchise. Volume 2 was school shenanigans with only the slightest, vaguest, underdeveloped hint at a larger world. Looking at the Ever After we have now, that character work, nearly everything we're seeing hinges on something I truly doubt the writers knew about that far ahead. There was no bumblebee. I truly doubt Penny's resurrection - and thus Ruby's response to her death - was planned. Weiss hadn't undergone any of the character development that would lead to this... odd role as comic relief. Yang was about to start a trajectory towards improving her anger issues and impulsive fighting style, not wallowing in it. Hell, this entire world is built around a story that was only mentioned a Volume ago and there the summary was so vague the writers could have come up with the details at any point. If Ever After was "planned" it was only in the loosest sense possible - "What if our characters based on fairy tales went to a fairy tale?" - but even then, I have a very hard time picturing that conversation back when RWBY was a tiny passion project focusing on the fun fights of a group of students. We had a Big Bad via Salem's voice over, but beyond that there's nothing to imply they'd planned to take us through such an epic journey - with "epic" used to express scale, not quality. Certainly not something as massive as alternate realities the girls have to come back from via the magic of Gods.

I mean sure, they could have planned it from Volume 2. I'm not in the writers' room. I don't know their process, or how much of the tiny references embedded in Salem's speech actually had developed lore behind them. But I think modern fandom - the RWBY fandom in particular - needs to remember the term "retcon" and how common it is for writers to try and pull off. Especially when they have fans so willing to believe their every word. RWBY is absolutely OVERFLOWING with evidence for things that were never thought about ahead of time, despite the writers' claims to the contrary, so whenever the writers give another, "Oh yeah, of course we've planned this for years!" I'm side-eyeing it and the fans scrambling to make sense of prior writing through that lens. Occam's razor and all that.

And if it was an idea they had since Volume 2, uh... that's worse? That's so much worse. You had six years to set up this journey and the best you could do was a few lines from Oscar - a character who didn't exist back then - about a random story the audience has otherwise never heard of? The way the characters get to the Ever After is through a plan they came up with off screen, mere minutes after they learned the rules of the Staff? We knew about this trip ahead of time and that's really the best way to pull it off? That's what six years of planning time amounts to?

That makes the writers look way, way worse to my mind because it's demonstrating a severe lack of skill in following through on these ideas. They'd honestly come across better if they just went, "Yeah, we're making this up as we go, so things are bound to get pretty messy in places. Sorry." A "Oh yeah, it's planned ;)" just generates the response of, "Okay. So why in the world isn't it better?"

[cookinguptales]

ive been feeling a bit disenchanted with season 4. maybe its cause im dreading the finale based on the vague spoilers i saw, or the treatment of marwa or how the "the gang is separated unexpectedly" twist of s3 was totaly glossed over... i dunno. how are you feeling about it?

No specific spoilers here for 4.09 and 4.10, but just in case people want to avoid even my vague feelings and criticisms, I'm putting my answer behind a cut. Plus, as always, this did get long.

Honestly, I'm feeling a bit disenchanted, too. I'll write some meta about my exact reasoning after the episode airs tonight (and even more after the finale airs), but I just... Now that I know how the rest of the season is going to go, it kind of puts a lot of things I've been putting up with for the rest of the season into sharp relief. I thought certain storylines were going somewhere so I put up with the way they were being written, but now that I know they're not going anywhere with them, I've had to come to terms with the fact that what I thought was maybe hints was actually just lazy writing. That's kind of where I've been at the past couple days. Looking at the lil bits we've been picking through on fandom and realizing that they never really intended to flesh out any of those things or take them in any interesting directions.

I also agree thoroughly with Marwa. It's one of the things that's been a growing concern of mine throughout the season, and now that we have spoilers... idk, again, I'll talk about this a lot more thoroughly tonight? But I hate this storyline now. I also hate what I'm now seeing as an overdependence on hypnosis and Djinn-facilitated personality transplants, too. Like... I can recognize now that it's a season-long issue. Like damn, stop using this to dig yourself out of plot holes. It's lazy writing and the implications get creepy very quickly. I thought they were doing these things on purpose to criticize it later but maybe?? they're not??

I'd say the big two disappointments for me are Marwa and Guillermo... I won't get into details with Marwa, but Guillermo... yeah. I've been saying it since literally the premiere aired, but the whole one-year gap was a killer. I hate that we just don't hear from any of them for a year when they are doing important things. We miss all of Laszlo's bumbling through the beginnings of parenthood. We miss Nandor's journeys, for the most part. We miss Nadja's growing disenchantment with the council. And Guillermo, Guillermo gets the worst of it. He has the most change and the least of it is shown onscreen.

And I kept hoping they'd go back to it. They'd go back to what he must have been feeling and the decisions he must have made. That they'd explain why his focuses and motivations seem different. Why he's stopped being a weird little busybody who's a lil freak about the others' personal lives. Like... I cannot get over his behavior at the wedding. I keep trying to find a way to make it make sense! I don't care if he was no longer in love with Nandor or not! It didn't make sense for the nosiest, most interfering character in the entire cast to be the only one not to object! Mr. We All Need To Grieve Colin Robinson? Mr. I'm Going to Manipulate Everyone? Mr. Gail?

But as far as I can tell, they're really never going to meaningfully engage with any of that. And no, just saying that he got a boyfriend is not enough for me. You don't get a total personality transplant when you start dating someone! If you want me to buy that all these changes happened, you have to show me how they did! I feel so... idk, cheated with Guillermo. And when I'm feeling uncharitable, it makes me feel like they've adapted his personality to be whatever it needs to be to forward the plot elements they decided on. That's just... it's not good writing, and that is not a criticism I am accustomed to making with this show.

I have thoughts about Nandor, too, but it's a lot harder to talk about those without delving into spoilers... But I do think that in some ways his character has regressed as well. I think some of it might be purposeful...? Like a one step forward, two steps back situation? But I'll reserve my judgment on that one a little more until I've actually seen the episode.

It's odd, because I feel like Guillermo and Nandor have actually had some really nice moments in s4... when we're not focusing on the (imo) truly disastrous storylines that are their romances. It's like all preexisting characterization just flies out the window sometimes and that's so frustrating.

As for 4.09 in particular, too... I'm not going to say any spoilers, but it is bewildering to me to see my sense of humor diverge so wildly from a show that's always made me laugh more than any other, especially because the writers of the episode wrote two of the best episodes of the entire series. I haven't seen the episode yet, so maybe it will be way less bad than I'm expecting! I'm holding onto that hope. But I cannot see how they could make the spoilers I know funny and not just. Very upsetting to me, actually. There's a sort of cruelty there that WWDITS has never quite hit in the past, for all that it tortures its characters, and it goes into some tropes that I just find overtly creepy, honestly. I do not think I'm going to enjoy watching this episode at all, which is a feeling I have never experienced from WWDITS before.

As for the cliffhanger in 4.10... I have to say I find it unconvincing. I just don't believe it'll have lasting implications, and moreover, after seeing the way they casually disregarded the emotional arcs they set up in the s3 finale, I no longer feel like we have any guarantee that the events of 4.09 and 4.10 will ever be dealt with in s5, either. I'll talk about this in more detail after it happens, obviously, but like. It does feel like they're going WOW, ARE WE ACTUALLY GOING TO DO THIS? and I'm just sitting here like. no... you're obviously not... So it doesn't feel all that cliffhanger-y, tbh.

It's odd, because the one aspect of this season I was most convinced I would hate (Baby Colin) has been the one thing that I've felt genuinely touched by. I feel like this show has been at its best when it's used Baby Colin to delve into ideas of family and fatherhood and belonging, and it frustrates me a little that the back half of the season put that on the back burner for pretty extended periods only to return to it in the finale. The pacing is off.

I think in general the back end of the season has been... weird. 4.08 notwithstanding, because I think it's kinda it's own thing... I know we've gone around and around and around with episode order and such but I really do feel like some of these late-stage episodes smack of rewrites. I keep thinking about the fact that the Djinn wasn't supposed to be in this many episodes and I really have to wonder how that affected the Marwa and Freddie storylines, which I feel are by far the weakest part of the season.

Like damn, I thought they were gonna fuck me up because of the implications for my OTP, but I can write my way out of 4.10 fairly easily, if we're just talking OTP. I never thought that these storylines were gonna make me lose faith in the writing team. I feel a little adrift, if I'm being honest with you.

I felt myself just instantly shift into fix-it fic mode as soon as I learned about the events of 4.09 and just. It's never where I wanted to be with this show. I've been a diehard WWDITS fan since the movie first came out and it's always been a franchise where I've respected the writing above all else. Not every episode of WWDITS and Wellington Paranormal is an absolute banger, but I've enjoyed all of them and loved most of them. Nothing has made me laugh like WWDITS and I've come to be truly invested in the characters. So to see things to go so spectacularly sideways so quickly has me like... ah...

I'm readjusting, I think. idk. I've been thinking a lot. I've been talking to my cat a lot. lmao. I still have some hopes for certain elements of the last two episodes and I did really, really enjoy certain parts of season 4. It just... didn't ever end up being as cohesive as I'd hoped, nor did it have the same loyalty to characterization that I was expecting. (And it really, really did not seem to have any respect for most of its new characters.) It's frustrating to have bad so thoroughly mixed in with the good and to have to puzzle out which things don't work for you and which things do. It'd be easier if I just hated all of it! But I really didn't.

Either way, anon, you're definitely gonna see a LOT of words from me over the next two weeks. I have a lot of things to talk about and a lot of feelings to express and honestly, I'm really hoping I end up having meta to write about things I like, too. But who knows? I guess we'll see.

[provincial-girl]

Gretson Fic Recs

I’ve been reading boatloads of great A League of Their Own fic, specifically Greta/Carson, so I decided to try my hand at doing some Gretson fic recs. It’s something exactly no one asked for, but I used to love the whole fic recs thing, so I figured why not? This is just a smattering of the dozens and dozens of great stories I’ve read, which means it’s by no means an exhaustive list. I’ll split them up by whether they’re one shot or multi-chapter, with multi-chapter fics labeled complete or work in progress. Each description will have a link to the fic, a bit of spoiler-free info about it, the length, rating, and potential reasons for the rating. Please note, I’ve not included an exhaustive list of every potential trigger, so keep an eye on fic tags too. Also, most of these take place in the 1940’s, so assume there’s bound to be at least a bit period typical homophobia.

Multi-Chapter

Complete

Off-Season-A post season 1 Gretson reunion fic that’s well-written, very in-character, and clearly very well researched. The research makes this feel authentic, adds some depth to the fic in a way that keeps you engaged in the story. It’s complete, canon compliant, and gives all kinds of good Gretson feels. At just over 11,000 words, it’s a good fic if you want to spend some time with a story, but can’t make a huge time commitment. Rated M for sexual content.

Pizza with a Friend-I've really enjoyed everything I've read from Zulu, but this one here is a personal favorite. In one of the notes, the author describes the writing process as digging a comedy hole with an angst shovel, which is actually a pretty perfect way to describe it. There’s comedy and hijinks, often related to oblivious Baby Gay Carson, then there’s angst related to all of Greta’s Big Feelings, but it all manages to fit together really well, and the tone is somehow really consistent throughout. I’d say it’s canon divergent, but feels like it could fit within canon from a vibes perspective (don’t really know how else to explain it). It’s complete, and about 28,000 words, the kind of fic I might read over the course of 2 nights, though I’m sure it could easily be read in one evening. Rated E for sexual content sprinkled throughout, though the author carefully picks those moments.

‘Round and ‘Round We Go-Well written and cleverly plotted, this fic is kind of a time travel AU fic, but not in the way you’re used to. Carson lives in modern times, while Greta is from the 1940s. The fic is entirely Carson’s POV, and set in modern times, but I won’t say much more than that to avoid major spoilers. The inspiration for the fic’s version of time travel is apparently a novel called One Last Stop, though I haven’t read it, so I don’t know much beyond that. There’s some neat formatting at the start of each chapter that I really enjoyed. It’s complete at about 17,000 words, a great fic if you want something long, but not too long, the kind of thing I could  read in an evening if I wanted to sit with a fic for a little while. Rated T, not too much beyond kissing as far as sexual content. Though it takes place in modern day, occasional references to 1940’s homophobia.

Works in Progress

Just Put Your Hands on Me-The hurt/comfort fic to end all hurt/comfort fics. It’s all achingly soft Gretson, all the time. There’s moments of the Peaches shipping it too, but it heavily features scenes with just Carson and Greta, so there’s a lot of introspection and exploration of their feelings for one another. The author does a great job of using both Greta and Carson’s POV, often writing from one POV before switching to the other to describe the same events, but it never feels boring or unnecessary, because it creates a more complete picture of what is happening. If I had to label it I’d say it maybe drifts in the direction of slightly canon divergent, but I wouldn’t argue with someone calling it canon compliant. The fic isn’t complete, but has 19 chapters for about 48,000 words, probably a little over half an average sized novel, so there’s enough to keep you busy for a while. Rated T at the moment for mild sexual content (kissing and vague references to other things), though the focus of the fic is more on emotional intimacy.

Tinsel-An exceptionally well-paced, beautifully written AU that I absolutely cannot stop thinking about. It's a story in which Greta is a 1940’s movie star, and Carson is a secretary at MGM looking for an adventure before she settles down and marries Charlie when he returns from war. It’s really well-researched, which creates this amazing atmosphere that captures the dark underbelly behind the glamor of Old Hollywood. It’s also very in-character for everyone, particularly Greta, who I’ve found can be hard to pin down.  Not completed at the moment, but the first three of five chapters are up, and they average over 10,000 words each for a total of 37,000 words, which would be the length of a longish novella (short novel), so there’s plenty to read. Rated M, likely for scattered sexual content, pervasive period typical homophobia, general grossness of the studio system in Old Hollywood, and some heavy drug & alcohol use.

One Shots

Can this be a real thing? can it?-A gorgeously written one shot about times Greta and Carson dream about each other that perfectly captures the ethereal, otherworldly feeling of dreams. There’s some canon-typical angst, but it gets balanced out really nicely by some soft, happy moments. This is one of those 5 times +1 fics, and I’m weak for those, so this hit all my buttons. At 3,200 words, it’s the perfect length if you’re looking for a quick hit of some quality, canon-compliant Gretson content. Rated T, likely for kissing and references to the bar raid. 

She’s Like Us-A short, missing moment fic about the time Jess finds Carson asleep in Greta’s bed. It has the whole tone and vibe of the show captured perfectly, and you can really hear the character voices coming through. It’s from Jess’ POV, and, though they talk about Greta/Carson, it’s really about the budding friendship between Greta and Jess. At just over 1,000 words it’s a perfect fic if you want to spend a few minutes with the good vibes, queer friendship content that ALOTO excels at. Rated T, perhaps for allusion to period typical homophobia and smoking.

She is made up of more-A long-ish one shot from Greta’s POV. It’s a canon-compliant fic about Greta getting into a personal and professional slump somewhere around mid-season, and how she works her way out of it. It’s quite introspective and Greta-centric, but there’s a good dose of the rest of the Peaches in there too. There are sexually explicit sections, though this is definitely not PWP, as those sections are a key part of moving the plot forward. At about 6,500 words, this fic is great if you want something a bit longer than your standard one shot, but don’t have the time or inclination to read a multi-chapter fic. Rated E for several instances of explicit sexual content.

************************************************************************

That’s all for now! There are some other fics I’m in the middle of reading that I was tempted to rec, but decided to hold off and only recommend stories I’m all caught up on. There's lots of other stuff I've read and loved, so I can definitely do some more of this sort of thing if folks are interested/looking for something specific in their stories. And if you read any of these recs (or any fic, really), don’t forget to leave some love for the story’s author in the fic’s comments!

[twistedtummies2]

Year of the Bat - Number 2

Welcome to Year of the Bat! In honor of Kevin Conroy, Arleen Sorkin, and Richard Moll, I’ve been counting down my Top 31 Favorite Episodes of “Batman: The Animated Series” throughout this January. The time has come to present the penultimate place in the countdown! TODAY’S EPISODE QUOTE: “Are you the dreamer, or merely part of someone’s dream?” Number 2 is…Perchance to Dream.

This is another episode of B:TAS - like "Over the Edge" and "Growing Pains" - that feels almost like something out of “The Twilight Zone,” and that’s far from a bad thing. In memory of Kevin Conroy, I think it’s a great episode to feature, especially so high up, since I believe this was actually his personal favorite (although I might be remembering wrongly there, so don’t quote me on that). It’s certainly high up in my books, so one could hardly blame him. “Perchance to Dream” begins with a typical scenario: Batman is chasing some thugs, and follows them into a warehouse. While searching for the crooks, something suddenly crashes down and lands on his head…and when he wakes up, Bruce Wayne finds himself in a world that should simply not exist. His parents are still alive. He’s engaged to Selina Kyle, who has no idea who “Catwoman” even is. There’s no Batcave, and no Robin; not around Wayne Manor, anyway. In fact, while there IS a Batman in Gotham City, it seems someone else is in the costume, and none of the famous villains are anywhere to be found! It’s the perfect life, and Bruce soon starts to buy into it, wondering if all his escapades as the Caped Crusader were just a mad nightmare… …Which is why he starts to become unhinged when he starts to realize something is very wrong. When he tries to read, words don’t appear the way they should, turning out jumbled and fragmented. And no matter where he goes, the specter of Batman always seems to be lingering, at the corners of his own little world, never leaving him be. It all becomes too much, and Bruce starts to question his own sanity as he races to find the Dark Knight and tackle the problem head on: he has to know what’s real and what’s not. I can’t discuss more without giving away spoilers, so…SPOILER ALERT: it’s ultimately revealed that Bruce is inside a dream world, manufactured by the Mad Hatter. The Hatter has hooked Batman up to a “Dream Machine” in the real world, and now Bruce is trapped in “his own private Wonderland!” Refusing to live a lie, “no matter how attractive,” Bruce must find a way to escape his paradise-gone-wrong and return to reality.

Once again, there is SO MUCH I could talk about with this episode. One thing I will say is that, after perhaps “Mask of the Phantasm,” this is Kevin Conroy’s absolute greatest performance as Batman/Bruce, at least within the DCAU. I love the way we literally get into Batman’s head with this, as he REJECTS his own paradise in favor of carrying out his duty as a hero. You can read into that in several ways, both positive AND negative. It’s also a great episode for the Mad Hatter! While his actual time onscreen is small, the Hatter steals the show once he enters the frame. I love how his “evil scheme” isn’t to turn Batman into a warped servant, nor even to kill him, but just to get him out of the way. And his way of doing that isn’t through horrible means, but by actually trying to APPEASE the Dark Knight, and make him WANT to stay out of the Hatter’s business. The emotion McDowall puts into his delivery when the Hatter confronts the Caped Crusader is one of the absolute best moments for the character I’ve ever seen, and one of the best moments in the entire SERIES. It’s only heightened by the animation; apparently, the creators had to really push McDowall to give that level of intensity, and it pays off in spades.

As much as I love the Mad Hatter though, and this episode – like “Mad as a Hatter” – is a big part of why I adore this villain, especially in this particular rendition…it really is Batman himself, and the surreal, strange plot, that makes this so great. We know it’s all too good to be true, but watching Bruce buy into it while knowing his heart is going to be broken is such an engaging experience. This episode is similar to “Over the Edge” in a lot of ways, but it plays with things on a different angle and perspective, and raises some interesting questions. If everything we ever wanted was put on a silver platter for us to take, how would we react? If we found out there was a big catch to it, what would get us to bite or to refuse? How wicked is it to give someone so much with such a catch, and how noble or even healthy is it to deny oneself happiness, no matter how it’s earned? “Aye, there’s the rub.”

Tomorrow, the countdown concludes with my number one pick! Hint: “You’d think one of us would have got ‘im by now.”

[lunaprincipessa]

ENTRY FIFTY-THREE

Trying my best not to think of you, but of course, that's exactly when you haunt my mind even more.

I wish you would've been honest with me. This has all been so disappointing. 💔

You do know hiding information IS lying right? It's the act of presenting a false reality while supposedly exonerating yourself from any wrongdoing because you didn't directly speak the lie itself. Want more detail?

There are two main forms of lying. Falsifying and concealing. When you falsify something, the truth remains hidden while untrue information is offered up in its place. Concealing is when a person withholds the truth without actually saying anything that's untrue, which is what you have engaged in with me. Why?

Help me understand these next three things. I'd like to know. Please...

1.) Why did you see me as nothing more than someone whose only purpose is to keep you entertained while your girlfriend is at work?

2.) What was going through your mind when you didn't want me knowing about your girlfriend, even after I said I'd wish you both well if you ever got with someone?

3.) What was going through your mind when I expressed hesitation to be in a relationship with anyone in general because I feel like people today don't take their real-life relationships serious enough because they don't want to sacrifice the attention they get from strangers on the internet? What was going through your mind when I said that, knowing that's what you may have been doing?

I was trying to show you good people still exist in this world without hidden agendas. I was trying to show you not all women are toxic. I was trying to show you generosity and gentleness. I was trying to show you, and I had nothing but good intentions in doing so.

I cried for you, I cared for you, I thought you were facing all of that hardship and trauma alone... And you had a girlfriend catering to you the entire time. I wish you wouldn't have kept secrets. I feel so stupid right now, and I have you to thank for that. 😔

I even opened up to you about all of the lies, abuse, cheating, rape, and the overall disrespect that I've endured from men throughout my life. Did you not hear a single word I spoke or did you just think I haven't been through enough yet?

That being said, maybe it's best not to have your reasons in the end. Who knows if what you would say would even be the truth anyway. That's another shitty aspect of lying that hardly anyone talks about. Maybe you would say something sincere but can it be believed? The Boy Who Cried Wolf and all that jazz.

Last but never least, full transparency: "words reveal only who we want to be, but our actions reveal who we really are." And you have shown me who you really are. And for the first time since I met you, I am happy and thankful that you're far away from me.

I wish you good health, but I truly hope to never hear from you again. Just the simple act of talking to you turned me into something I never wanted to be. I never wanted to be the woman that a guy hits up when his girlfriend isn't home.

With the way I can love a man, with the way I can take care of him, with the ways in which I can commit, I know for a fact that I deserve so much more and so much better than being a little backup plan.

There's something else I'm hoping for, aside from our paths never crossing again. I hope you realize what you have and you stop taking advantage. I hope one day you decide to be faithful to your girlfriend in every way, in every area of life because it is a fucking privilege to have someone who is willing to go to work to make sure you have what you want and need in life. I would give anything for that. I also hope you decide to stop talking to females, period, until you have the decency to be open about and proud of your woman, to the point where nearly the entire country knows you're with her and you appreciate the things she does for you.

I hope one day you realize women aren't play-things. We are human beings. If you don't have good intentions with us, then leave us be. That simple.

More thoughts later.

[agent-cupcake]

hellooo! i admire your writing so much and would love to hear more about your ~process~. how much do you plan, what do you like to know before diving in, that kinda thing <3

Oh I love talking about myself you really shouldn't have opened up the floodgates

(but since you did...)

I don't really have a process I follow. Even if I do plan things out, I can't ever stick to it so mostly it's not worth the effort. For the most part, everything begins by taking story concept and character and writing down little scene snippets in an empty doc, or on my phone. Usually this is dialogue or sensory stuff, and a lot of times it doesn't make it into the final draft because my obsession with keeping to what I feel is more character accurate. The point is to set the tone, I guess.

Not that its relevant, but some of my favorites of these starting snippets that were in the final product is Junpei showing reader her own funeral and Emet-Selch dunking on reader's hopes and dreams at the end of Devil's Bouquet.

Anyway, from there, I flesh out that starting line, add more little snippets or even ideas for other scenes, and almost always write the ending, or at least write out the portion of the ending that I see as "the point" of the fic. This can be a segment of dialogue, a paragraph of emotional language, or even just a sentence to remind myself of the moment that every word I write is building up to support. That's the break of tension between the characters which, in my case, is usually the part right before or around the smut (but usually not the smut itself, as I see that as the tension builder or tension release rather than the "climax" ((haha)) itself). I didn't used to do it this way, but it's so much easier to write when you have a working knowledge of the core of your story.

You know, like your basic moral lessons: Make sure your mother doesn't marry into a family with a stepbrother who is a bully and pervert. Don't engage in a power struggle with Claude. Think twice before being too friendly with old British men.

Obviously this is a joke but yeah, I definitely could come up with single sentence explanations for any of my fics. No matter how far along in a story I am, before I decide on "the point", it's kinda a mess. Often times when I am cutting scenes, it's because it doesn't fit this specific vision. In cry foul, Sylvain and reader originally met at the wedding and he was a lot more honest about his intentions throughout, but rewatching scenes with him made me realize that my starting premise was flawed and so it all got cut and my focus shifted more onto the games he was playing with her. In Asteria, I have the scheme between Yuri and Aelfric set, but reader was going to be more of a sleuth about it (the original plot of this fic was unhinged ngl) but then I changed to make her a lot more of a charming country bumpkin sort of character so it could be smaller scale and more self contained, more focused on how reader feels about Yuri. I want to account for as much of the world and setup as I possibly can to make the payoff more satisfying. Somnambulant exists as it does because I kept adding little notes for scenes I thought were necessary which then saw a lot of elaboration to justify itself. Also characters have a tendency to run away from me. I'll add scenes or segments simply because the characters demand it. Sylvain wasn't supposed to take reader's panties but then it happened and I had to deal with it. There are a lot of small things too. In heavensent, I added in that she was sitting in a chair last minute because I felt like it smoothed out their movements and the DP thing just happened because I thought it was... Not funny, but contextually... Yeah. Forever ago when I wrote Welcome to Dead House, I straight up retconned reader's personality entirely because she was too well adjusted, so I added the therapy scene and mental breakdown.

Um. Yeah. I think the point of me saying all of this was just to say that I don't really go in with much of a plan or anything as I maybe should, I just live my bliss and see what happens. The stuff that I love the most in anything I post is usually the unintended things that spring up when I'm "in the zone" because that's when I feel like I get the best banter/dialogue and most intense scenes.

Anyway thank you for coming to my TED talk

[theeeveetamer]

Engage Impressions (~4/5ths of the way through)

The gameplay is fun as fuck, though I think if I replay I might actually try doing it on Hard. Not that Normal isn't a good time, but I actually think I might like an extra challenge next time.

I actually like Alear, something I wasn't expecting since I really wasn't the biggest fan of Corrin or Byleth (Robin can stay). IMO Alear does what a good protagonist does, which is ask/answer the damn questions the player is asking. Corrin I just didn't vibe with and Byleth was frustrating because it felt like their main contribution to cutscenes was to get guided around by the nose by whichever leading lord you had, and they occasionally made me pick between one of two options (which both led to the same answer anyway so what was even the point).

I actually like most of the characters I've actually gotten to know

I think Engage's biggest problem going forward, appeal-wise, is probably going to be the fact that supports are so hard to build. I don't think the characters are bad by any means, but If you bench a character they may as well cease to exist and you'll never know anything about them. Even dedicated meal times, training, and gifting can take a while to build support points (especially since meals seem to provide so little support and you can't pick who units face off against in the arena). That is one thing 3H did much better: plenty of opportunity to build supports outside of battle so you could still get to know characters you weren't using. I've got fifty hours in the game and I still don't feel like I have a good handle on a lot of the characters tbh. I think I'm gonna do some dedicated support grinding, at least for the characters I like so far.

Story spoilers under the cut

The showing vs. telling is much better than 3H, but the back half of the story definitely still does way too much telling. In pretty quick succession you get Mauvier, Marnie, and Veyle's entire backstories just exposition dumped onto you, and Zephia and Griss's follow not that long after. These are characters we literally see throughout the entire game, there were much better ways to get their backstories across than just dumping them on us in the 11th hour.

Some of the later stuff is... confusing. Insert Sokka-it-was-really-unclear.gif about the ENTIRE events of chapter 21 and 22.

[boundless-n-bare]

audhd confessions - my own worst enemy

being active in this community as a neurodivergent individual (audhd) can be very challenging in unexpected ways. for me the hardest thing to deal with is the rsd - rejection sensitive dysphoria. i have this BAD. this doesn't strictly pertain to real or perceived rejection from individuals in the community although that can be part of it, but more broadly its like a very intense and painful feeling of fomo. having to miss NEST this year was a huge trigger for me - no one rejected me, but i still felt rejection because i couldn't be there. my brain told me i wasn't allowed. that no-one wanted me there anyway and i wouldn't be missed.

its also very hard seeing other members of the community being active and fulfilling their desires in a way i wish i could but very deeply feel and have been telling myself for years that i can't. this one honestly kills me, like it can be super debilitating to the point that it legit keeps me away from interacting in these spaces which i hate. its a huge reason ive been so distant - it sucks majorly feeling as though you're surrounded by people who have it all figured out, or at least seem to, while you feel lowly, alienated, and incapable.

for me, rsd is this ever present voice screaming "you're not allowed." woah see this community member posting about the really awesome session they had with this other community member? you'll never have that. they flew halfway across the country for that session, you're broke and will never be able to do that. they have social skills and you're a socially inept loser who no one wants to talk to. "they" are allowed to have those experiences, "they" are normal. but you are not allowed. you can be a spectator, at best. you get to yearn

the truly fucked thing is that i have had those experiences! i have been to NEST! i have traveled long-ish distances for sessions! i have had the good fortune of having multiple tickling experiences while many in this community may struggle to cement even one. yet i still look at myself and my experiences in this completely ass-backwards light that tells me that they are nothing special, its everyone else who is out there living the absolute dream and nothing i achieve will ever live up to what they're doing - it can't, it simply isn't possible because you are not allowed!

this shit has paralyzed me for far too long. it makes me not even want to look at tumblr, or reddit, or anywhere i might come across that sort of content because what if i see another post like that and then i get sad? then i suddenly have to wrestle with these feelings of inadequacy and isolation and who needs that? its easier just to ignore it all entirely... right?

well, no, because tickling is my passion and if i ignore it completely, to the point of not even letting myself engage with the community, then im depriving myself of not only the community and any potential support network therein but literally the pursuit of the one thing in life that bares any semblance of importance to me at all! when i tell you nothing else matters to me, when i tell you there is nothing in my life that drives me forward the way tickling does i am not fucking exaggerating - if i have learned anything over the pandemic and throughout the years that followed up until now it is that i forget who the fuck i am if i sever myself from my desires for too long. i'll put it all on the back burner and then wonder why im so miserable all the time. then i'll eventually come back, start getting into the hang of being active, then the asd starts surfacing, then i experience some sort of meltdown, then isolate for a few more months, then dip my toes back in and start the cycle all over.

i honestly dont know the best way to combat this but my plan is basically to kill this ideology with persistence - from now on i won't back down and dip out when im confronted with these feelings but rather i will challenge them and keep doing what im doing anyway. i will tell myself that with patience and persistence i can do any damn thing i want, and it might not happen immediately but sooner rather than later i will prevail and i will be content with my place here.

i intend to seriously challenge any assertion by my brain that im not good enough, moneyed enough, social enough, likeable enough, etc. to participate in this community. sure, there might be very real barriers to what i can and can't do compared to others but even still there's ultimately nothing i can't do! i have even told myself for the longest time that i could never be any sort of content creator... yeah, well guess what? im challenging that shit because the very act of my brain telling me i can't do it signifies that its obviously something i want to do, therefor i should! i've deterred myself from buying toys, bondage equipment, etc. because "you're not even active! you don't even talk to people! you're so socially awkward you'd spend all the money and never use it!"

fuck you, brain! the only thing truly getting in my way is you! im not making excuses to minimize myself anymore. im going to do the thing! the fuck is even the point of living if all you're going to do is keep yourself from the shit you want? its beyond fucking stupid

i doubt its going to be easy. i doubt that i won't slip up. but persistence means getting back up and doing it anyway when even when i feel like giving up, and hiding from or not interacting with the community is a sure-fire way to get absolutely nothing from it at all

[carlatsukinamistolemyhamsandwich]

This is something I've been asking myself, but can you tell me everything the brothers Carla and Shin did wrong throughout all the games in and out of their routes? I've been wondering about this recently, sorry if this is sudden to ask...

Hi anon, while I do know quite a lot of Carla and Shin's routes off the top of my head, I'm not quite as good with all of the other Dark Fate routes and there are still routes in CL I haven't played that I don't really want to spoil for myself if I can avoid it. In order to do what you're asking, I'd basically have to go through every single DF and CL route and double check their LE routes (which admittedly I know a little too well but I do generally like to double check things). To my memory Lunatic Parade doesn't contain them doing anything particularly bad aside from Shin picking on some of the guys but if you were to do a really thorough job it wouldn't hurt to check those too.

I'm afraid that is a monumental amount of work that I'm really not willing to commit to for the sake of a single ask, especially as what I qualify as bad enough to make the list might not necessarily be the same as you or someone else. If you genuinely want to know all of the things Carla and Shin have done, then honestly I would suggest you read their routes for yourself as all of the DF routes have been very kindly translated by @dialovers-translations (who has put an incredible amount of work into her blog over the years) and their LE routes have also been translated and you can find links to them on @vampirerosemary's incredibly useful masterlists.

Now if you're asking this because you're not particularly comfortable with dark content and want to know whether to avoid DF or not, I'm afraid I would honestly suggest just not engaging with any of the main games and instead focusing on the bonus drama CDs and Lunatic Parade which is much more fluffy. I know some will say you shouldn't ignore the darker aspects of the series but at the end of the day, it's just fiction and looking out for your own well-being matters more than berating yourself for not engaging with all of the content.

On the other hand, if you're asking this just to measure how "bad" Carla and Shin are compared to the other guys, I'll cut to the chase. Literally all of the diaboys are problematic in one way or another (and even Yui can be in some of the bad endings) so I honestly don't think trying to find a "least bad" is really all that meaningful, especially as you may consider certain actions to be far worse than someone else (for example I actually found Shuu's HDB route to be way more off-putting than Laito's, which as far as I can tell, is a very uncommon opinion).

I have said before that I think out of all of the boys, Azusa is the least malicious but even then he's hardly a saint.

However, I don't think there's any use in feeling guilty about fangirling over the diaboys even though they've all done bad things. I think if you're mature enough to properly engage with some of the themes that feature in DL, then you should be able to distinguish reality and fiction. As long as you understand that irl you should run for the hills from anyone who acts like the boys, there's nothing wrong with having fantasies with dark elements if that's what you enjoy.

Another thing I want to just say while I have the chance that I saw mentioned many years ago but seems to have been forgotten about is this idea of choice. So, in game, particularly the early games, Yui does not have a chance to consent to what the boys do to her, and if you look at it from that perspective, DL is pretty much entirely a horror story (it's one of the reasons why I don't particularly enjoy writing Yui x diaboy scenarios versus reader x diaboy material).

However, the thing you have to take into account is that you, either through listening to the CDs, or playing the games, or reading the translations are effectively giving your consent to keep the scenario going and see what happens. At any point, you have the ability to take out your headphones, or turn off your console or stop reading, make up some ending in your head and never think about the series again. At the end of the day, the person in charge isn't the boys, or Yui, or even Karl, it's you.

Now I know some people prefer to view the player as being completely passive (i.e. Yui is her own character and we're just helplessly watching her story), but the fact of the matter is that in the games, that straight up isn't true, our decisions control the ending. And like I said, if anything comes up that makes you uncomfortable, you can just stop playing, and I would recommend you do at that point, especially if you're not too clear on what your own limits are when it comes to consumption of dark material.

Anyway what I am trying to get at here? Basically, the reason why you can enjoy DL as a dark fantasy is because at any point, you can disengage from it. If you find yourself reading DL and just getting upset about bad things happening to Yui, it's not that those feelings aren't valid, but honestly you are far better off taking a step back, maybe writing her a happy ending yourself if you enjoy writing, and then leaving it be. Please do not read things that only upset you, life is too short to inflict misery on yourself.

Anyway I'm sorry this isn't what you asked for anon, but hopefully it has at least been some use to you.