#How To Get 8 Cm Taller

[little-diable]

A Losing Game - Professor Aaron Hotchner (Profiling 101 Series, Part 8/?)

Chapter eight, here we go. I hope you enjoy the way this moves into, I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this! Thank y'all for the love on the past chapters! Please like and reblog if you enjoyed reading this, your comments keep us writers motivated. Enjoy my loves. xxx

Summary: The reader enrolls in professor Hotchner's class "Profiling 101", a man she has always looked up to, a man who treats her like an asshole from day one. Will her need for academic validation manage to push the two closer together? Will her bright mind push her into the world of Aaron Hotchner and the BAU team? Will he manage to keep his distance before the world he tries to protect her from can get its grasp on her?

Warnings: 18+, smut, unprotected piv, shower sex, some angst due to the kidnapping, regular CM stuff

Pairing: Professor!Aaron Hotchner x fem!reader (2k words)

Profiling 101 Series Masterlist

Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six Part Seven Part Nine

It took her a while to wake, forcing her eyes to stay shut, not daring to give away her awakened mind should she not be alone. With a quiet exhale leaving (y/n), she tried to focus on her other senses, on what she could feel, smell, and hear. But she was surrounded by complete silence, nothing could be heard, no cars, no beeping sounds that could indicate any machines, not even the sound of somebody breathing.

She felt the hard chair she was sitting on pressing against her aching back, her wrists unable to move due to the tape that was burning into her skin, keeping her glued to the chair. Fuck, panic arose in her system, not being able to move made the whole thing even more complicated, unable to fight off whoever had taken her.

It had been too dark inside the SUV to make out the features of her stalker, only his unfamiliar, deep voice had rang in her ears before he had knocked her out. She hadn’t even gotten any time to struggle, face falling forwards against the dark console, swallowed by the darkness within seconds before Aaron could come rescue her. 

Aaron – oh god, Aaron. (Y/n) knew that he’d blame himself for letting her out of his sight, leaving her side for just a minute too long. Had he seen her stalker drive the car away from the BAU? Or had he thought that she had driven off on her own? No, he knew what had happened, they were already looking for her – they had to be. 

Chills ran down her spine, a sensation so strong, (y/n) could no longer keep her eyes closed. She had to blink a few times to adjust to her dark surroundings. The room was small, looking like a prison cell, with only her chair, a table, and a small lamp that barely managed to alight even half of the room.

Where the hell was she?

Her gaze flickered down to the black tape that had been wrapped around her wrists, glueing her to the chair. With a huff breaking through (y/n), she tried to tug on her restraints, knowing that she’d eventually be able to break free if she’d get enough time to find her strength. Her body felt weak, leaving her to wonder how long it had been since her stalker had gotten his hands on her.

Fuck, she had been careless, in retrospect she should have been all too aware of the dangers lurking outside. She couldn’t help but curse herself for leaving Aaron’s side, for declining Derek’s offer, she would have been safe with them around. Fuck, fuck, fuck. 

(Y/n) didn’t get any more time to curse her stupid actions, eyes flickering to the door which was pushed open. The man who stared at her looked unfamiliar, a stranger she hadn’t ever crossed paths with before – at least not willingly. She wasn’t sure if she should feel relieved that he was a stranger, or scared, unable to tell what he’d do to her. 

“Well, finally, sweetheart, you had me worried.” He wasn’t much taller than she was, with brown hair slicked back, and dark eyes hidden behind round glasses. The guy must have been in his mid-twenties, a lanky figure she could take down in a fight if she’d only get the chance to. “Now, don’t look at me like that, I warned you, didn’t I? You should have been a good girl, should have listened to my warnings, to the rules, but you’ve never been good at doing that, huh? Of course not, you’re sleeping with your professor after all.

A humourless laugh left the man, dripping with jealousy and hatred. Fear thumped through her veins as he took a step closer, forcing her to part her lips to flush some water down her throat. Perhaps she could use his anger to her advantage, perhaps she could try to rile him up just enough to force him to cut her restraints – she’d only need one chance to fight her way out of this.

“Who are you?” Her voice was monotone, not dripping with anything that could give away her fear, the uneasiness she was held hostage by. She kept her eyes on him, not daring to look away even for one second.

“That’s not important right now, darling. What counts is that I’ve got you here with me, and well, I’ll need to thank the lovely Penelope Garcia for that. She helped me get you after all.”

……

“Hotch, c’mon man, at least sit down for a few minutes. We’ll get your girl.” Aaron’s coffee-coloured eyes met Derek’s wide ones, letting go of an exhausted huff as he slowly sat down on the chair. It has been over six hours since (y/n) had been taken, forced to watch the video over and over again, watching how a masked figure had broken into the SUV, how (y/n) had stepped into the car all too obliviously, and how the SUV had hastily left the parking lot moments later. 

“Alright, so we can rule out Lorey, we can rule out her family,” Emily repeated what they had put together hours ago, letting go of a defeated huff. 

“So, we have nothing.” Aaron let go of another sigh, eyes momentarily squeezed shut to try and collect himself. This is what he had been fearing all this time, after losing Haley Aaron had known that he needed to be even more careful, that he couldn’t take any risks, for his sake and Jack’s. 

“Garcia, anything you could pick up on the CCTV feed?” His dark eyes snapped towards Penelope, studying her tired features, not used to seeing her this quiet. She kept her teary eyes focused on the screen, not replying verbally, only shaking her head. With Derek’s hand placed on Peleope’s shoulder, they found themselves engulfed by silence. A silence that left their insides churning, knowing that time was working against them.

……

She helped me get you after all. She helped me get you after all. She helped me get you after all.

Bile rose in (y/n)’s throat as his words kept ringing in her ears. Penelope? It couldn’t be, not the one she had instantly clicked with. It couldn’t be, not the sunshine that had brightened the darkness she had been trapped in. It couldn’t be, it simply couldn’t be. 

She needed to distract herself, needed to get a grip before she’d spiral. Her thoughts brought her back to Aaron, how he had touched her only hours ago, in the early morning, pressed against the dark shower tiles. 

“Hold on to me, I’ve got you, baby.” Aaron’s raspy voice left her gasping, choking on the moans he forced from her. He had her pinned against the wall, hands holding her up as she slung her legs around his waist. With their eyes holding contact, he pushed into her, making them moan in unison.

Their hearts were racing, minds silenced by the intense sensations washing through them. She wondered if she’d ever get used to feeling him this close, deep inside of her, pressing against her stomach. 

Aaron fucked her without holding back, his thrusts were fast, rough, and calculated, knowing that they couldn’t waste any time in the morning. The open-mouthed kiss they shared managed to swallow some of their sounds, leaving them clinging to one another. 

“Fuck, Aaron, I can’t.” Her pulsing bundle was overstimulated from the two orgasms he had pushed through her only minutes ago, pressed to the mattress with his face buried between her thighs. No man had ever managed to make her cum this fast, this hard, an insatiable need that guided the two of them on. 

“You can, and you will, baby.” His voice dropped with possessiveness, a dark touch that left her toes curling. Fuck, (y/n) knew that she was close already, once again letting go with a moan clawing through her without another warning. 

Aaron kept fucking her, chasing his own high with his eyebrows furrowed together and his fingers digging into the flesh of her ass. She could tell that he was about to cum, pulling out of her at the last second, watching his cum paint her lower stomach. 

Fuck, she needed to get back to Aaron, to touch him again, to feel him again, to speak to him again. She had waited too long to finally be with him, and nobody could take that from her, and especially not her stalker.

As if the man had heard her thoughts, he waltzed back into the room with a smug grin glued to his lips. He wore a suit, trying to come off as sophisticated, as if he was just another normal guy, not the sick and twisted bastard who was holding her hostage. Only as he placed her breakfast down for her did (y/n)'s eyes focus on the badge dangling from his neck, clearly stating that he was working for the FBI. 

The FBI? Had he been that close the whole time?

“It’s time for me to go to work, I was called in earlier because the oh-so-valuable assistant team member of the BAU is missing. Of course, they won’t find her, especially not since I’ll be the one supporting them.” The smirk he wore on his thin lips left (y/n) choking on her angry gasps, trying to keep quiet. He wanted to get a reaction out of her, wanted to rile her up – but (y/n) wouldn’t give in, she couldn’t. “You should eat something while I’m gone. And there’s a bucket for you, I’m sure you’ll eventually need the toilet.”

“Cut me loose, asshole, otherwise I won’t be able to reach the food or the bucket.” A raspy laugh left the guy, slowly stalking closer to (y/n). His breath fanned her skin, leaving her covered in goosebumps, torn between disgust and fear.

“You’re a smart girl, (y/n), I’m sure you’ll figure something out. I’ll see you tonight, babe.” 

……

“Guys, this is Kacey, he’s from the Tech Department, he’s one of the best down there, I thought it’d be good for Penelope to have some extra help.” JJ’s voice echoed through the room, she shot Kacey a grateful smile as he pushed his glasses up his nose. 

“Hi guys, it’s good to finally meet the rest of you, Penelope always speaks so highly of you. I’ll do anything to help you find her, I promise.” He nodded at the team before he was pulled in for a tight hug by Penelope. She and Kacey had crossed paths a while ago, spending some time in her office together as they talked about shared interests, making plans to go out with their friends together, and building a friendship she deeply cherished. 

“Thank you, we’ve got no time to lose, it’s been over twelve hours by now.” Aaron’s voice was emotionless, no longer dripping with the fear he had shown his team, no longer appearing vulnerable in front of a man who was a stranger to him. “Garcia, you two will keep on following the unsub on the feed, the rest of us will go back to (y/n)’s apartment, we’ll comb through it again, and see if we missed something.”

“You found him on the feed?” Neither Penelope nor the others seemed to pick up on the surprise filling every word that rolled off Kacey’s tongue, eyebrows furrowed. 

“I did! He thought he was sneaky, but he missed a few cameras, it’s not much, but maybe we can eventually trace him back to his work, his car, or even his home." Penelope shot Aaron a hopeful smile, clinging to the smallest detail. "Thank you for helping us, really, I know if somebody can push us in the right direction, it’ll be you, Kacey.”

.……

Sweat was pooling on (y/n)’s forehead, lips bloody from the way she had pierced her teeth into the thin skin. She had lost count of the amount of tries she had used to free her aching wrists, without any luck so far.

“Fuck, c’mon!" Tears dripped down her cheeks and a deep, shaky exhale left her, trying to keep herself somewhat collected. With another breath inhaled into her burning lungs, (y/n) collected all her strength to try and rip her wrists free. One last try. It took her a second to realise that she had managed to break through the layers of tape on her left wrist, having to shake her numb fingers a few times before she could free her other wrist. 

She’d get out of here, for the sake of herself, for the sake of Aaron.

[stillfrownyclownlol]

Hiding in the bathroom from a man rn lmao

Aidlyn headcanons because...please? Please? They make me sick /positive

These aren't all fluffy or whatever because they traumatized af and relationships like that are...difficult... but not impossible.

-he's 8-ish months older than her and like, 20ish cms taller (sorry I don't know how American feet work lol 😭)

-He hyperfixated on the relationship lmao.

-Clingy...they BOTH are. In different ways I mean but. They are both clingy. They're scared the other is gonna die when they aren't around lol 🙃 Aiden is ofc very touchy and grabby, he just has to FEEL that she's with him. Also type of guy to call at 2am "hey bby u good?". Ash gets antsy if she hasn't seen or heard from him in a while (a while means like 2 hours) especially since he like spam texts her every 5 seconds. But he also hyperfixates or disassociates for a while and will forget 🤡 like she will yell at him about why he didn't call her for 17 hours and he'll just be like "um sorry. I was. Staring at a wall."

-he has a lot of weird/cringy ass pet names for her that makes her want to slap him; probably calls her Bae or whatever. Ash nicknames for Aiden: Idiot, stupid, dumbass, public safety hazard...called him "dear" like once just to try it and hated it. "Mr. Durable" if she wants to annoy him.

-worlds worst pick up lines. Ash NEVER understands them.

-he loves surprises! Surprise him! He wants to surprise Ash too! She kinda hates this. They decided to "compromise": he will tell her beforehand that there is a "surprise" and gives her little clues/puzzles so she can figure out whatever it is. He has like 0 patience tho so he always helps her figure them out 🤡 Ash likes watching him get excited about the puzzles and doing them together more than the surprise half of the time.

-Him infodumping is like white noise so she can sleep lol.

-they try to do things the other likes since Ash thinks this is important for a "healthy relationship". Almost died when they went to an indoor rock climbing place 💀 but she got to see Aiden in a leotard when they did ballet together so it was a fair trade (blackmail)

-he is her hypeman at ballet recitals, will probably cheer when she comes on stage and has a sign and everything, the rest of the gang (and Ash) is just like "...we don't know this guy"

-she wishes he took care of himself more. Sends him stuff like "did you drink any water today", "Ben told me you're gonna skateboard down the hill please dont", or "IF YOU SET YOUR BOOKS ON FIRE IM GONNA CALL THE POLICE" <3

-sometimes if she's sad she just kinda. Falls on his back. Like a koala or smth. She has that "I literally cannot do anything" sort of depression (which to be fair Aiden also has sometimes). Aiden carries her around.

-when nobody's looking she kisses his cheek, cuz she knows his face is usually sore from smiling so much.

-pretty low key on her part, but Aiden is so obvious everybody knows 💀 She doesn't like PDA (more so the fact that people stare) but Aiden will usually put his arm around her shoulders or waist/give her a smooch (not on the mouth) <3 it's honestly not that different from how he was when they were just friends ngl 🤡

-he says "I love you" easily, because it genuinely is the easiest thing in the world for him. He has 0 doubts about how he feels for her. Ash doesn't say it a lot cuz she feels weird saying it, so she does her best to show it in other ways.

-he gets jealous easily *siiiiigh* It's cuz he's insecure!!! Help him! 😭 He doesn't get annoyed with her because like. Ash pays about as much attention to other guys (I mean besides Tyler, Ben and Logan) as she does to dust. But he will death glare at any guy they don't know that's staring at her 💀

-kinda codependent... *looks at the floor* they are working on it. Sometimes Aiden feels like he's only alive for her. (I- Look at episode 61- IVE BEEN IN HIS POSITION. AIDEN BABY THIS AINT HEALTHY)

-absolute dork. Draws "A.C. + A.B." in a little heart in his note margins because he's goofy like that.

-he fell first she fell harder NO I will not be taking any criticism for this.

Anyways it's raining outside so I'll just post this now

[luixiv]

So, the pic of Machine Herald Viktor from Bridging the Rift has been sitting in my brain for past couple of days and simply refusing to leave. Therefore, as an attempt to appease my very much obsessed brain and make him to shut up, I went and tried to figure out just how tall he actually will be (give or take cca 10 cm/4 inches, the picture is really blurry and hard to determine where the top of his head is). So, to anyone as obsessed as me with this man or anyone that would be simply interested, I present to you my little moment of analysis fuelled by insanity, lack of sleep and my never ending obsession. Enjoy!

(As a side note, since I’m accustomed to using metric units and imperial units are little bit foreign to me, I used Google to convert them. So if there are any mistakes my converting please tell me so I can correct it. Also, if I’m wrong in my maths anywhere or anywhere else actually, please correct on that too.)

Alright, first we need to determine where the top of MH head is. This was a bit tricky since like I said the image is very blurry, so I had to guess a little bit. But with the help of this picture

we can approximately trace the silhouette of MH. Albeit bit crude and with the Hexclaw missing a joint (there should be 3 [if he is using the model we saw in ep 4], but I couldn’t make the last one out, maybe it’s even folded behind his back, honestly I don’t know) we can make out his hand and shoulders, staff, Hexclaw and shoulder pauldron and his head.

With approximate location of his head known, we now can compare MH’s and Vik’s height. So how tall is human Viktor? Well, looking at the height chart posted by Arcane’s twitter the answer seems to be strait forward.

But it’s actually not. Vik and Mel are written to be 172 cm (5 feet 8 inches), but looking at them, they are not the same height on this picture. First the line which symbolizes 172 cm (5 feet 8 inches) is touching the top of Mel’s head but coming through Viktor’s (I get that he has a fluffy hair, but still, it’s a bit too low). Second his forehead, chin, mouth and eyes are higher too. So, he is a little bit taller. But how much? 2 cm (0.79 inches) if we account for his fluffy hair or 4 cm (1.57 inches) if we don’t.

(Dark red lines symbolize 170 cm [5 feet 7 inches], 180 cm [5 feet 11] and 190 cm [6 feet 3 inches] respectively. I had to add them since they weren't marked, only the nubers were written, but they didn't correspond to any red or white lines. And blue line is 174 cm [5 feet 8 and ½ inches]).

So, Viktor is 174 cm (5 feet 8 and ½ inches) to 176 cm tall (5 feet 9 inches). With this information in mind, we can now compare Vik and MH and calculate MH’s height.

If Viktor is 174 cm tall:

174 cm = 10 units

1 unit = 17.4 cm

their difference is 2 units = 34.8 cm

174 + 34.8 = 208.8 cm rounded to 209 cm

Machine Herald would be then 209 cm (6 feet 10 inches).

If Viktor is 176 cm tall:

2 units = 35.2 cm

176 + 35.2 = 211.2 cm rounded to 211 cm.

Machine Herald would be then 211 cm (6 feet 11 inches).

In other words, absolute unit. Giant even. He is hiding some huge platforms/stilettos in the suit of his. Viktor in his girl boss era. Bless him. I’m jealous honestly. He looked at Jayce and rest of Piltover and went: “Taller than me? Absolutely not. Over my dead body!” I love him so much.

[decafdoodlez]

Hey I've been a fan for a while! I hope this isn't too much to ask but I love your character Rina and wanna learn more abt her.

Can you tell us some Rina fun facts? 🙈✨️

Have a nice day pookie

Aw, hi anon! <3

And it isn’t too much to ask, I love answering questions about my OCs! :D I’ll hit you with the basic facts, then some fun facts/lore, heheh.

Here are her basic facts:

Name: Marina “Rina” Kaninsen

Nationality & Ethnicity: Canadian citizen, Norwegian heritage

Age: 25 (Aquarius)

5’5” or 165 cm (She’s a bit taller than Ren, yippee!)

Rina Lore:

Marina was born into an affluent family who invested their capital into real estate and stocks. She is the youngest of 6 siblings, with a 13 year age gap between her older sister, and an 8 year gap between her youngest older twin brothers.

Rina’s father lost all of their wealth by the time Rina finished college. As a “favor,” Derek Goffard’s father proposed a deal with Rina’s father to have Rina work for him and he would give him a lump sum of money to get his business back up and running and life back on track. Mr. Goffard, the slimy gore pervert he is, did NOT have good intentions upon obtaining Rina, and would’ve acted on his impulses sooner or later if had gotten the chance to before she was kidnapped by Fox’s auctions. In a sense, Rina’s father sold Rina to the Goffards.

Marina worked at Goffard Conglomerate under Derek and his father as a business assistant for a little under a year.

Marina was kidnapped for auction after leaving alone early after a (one-sided) petty fight over drinks with her friends.

Fun Facts:

Rina’s last name, ‘Kaninsen,’ is a made up Norwegian patronymic name that means “son of rabbit.” Kind of a call back to her family having a lot of kids, haha.

Marina is fluent in Norwegian.

Rina appears to have pointed ears, though she does not possess any sort of mystical or elven heritage. (I just like pointed ears, like how Guts from Berserk has pointed ears and is just a human dude, lol.)

Before being kept by Fox, Marina preferred to dress modestly! She still does prefer to cover up, but Fox thinks it’d be a damn shame for her to just “cover up her beautiful assets.”

Rina is musically gifted, and plays piano and harp.

Marina is the most academically gifted amongst her siblings, and is quite smart.

Marina was a very career driven and “results driven” person.

Marina had NO relationship experience before being kidnapped then taken in by Fox as his “pet.”

Marina has a secret blog where she gushes over her nerdy interests. No one in her family or friend group knows of the blog.

Marina generally hides any nerdy interest from friends and family.

Though Marina is secretive about her otaku/weeb interests/habits, while in captivity in the bunker, Fox found her secret blog and read up on her interests and learned more about her want to live in a fantasy world.

Marina likes to play 18+ otome games.

Marina’s favorite eligible bachelor in her favorite otome series, Feral Fantasy, was a human-canine hybrid man with pointed dog ears and a tail, similar to Ren.

Rina learned how to knit while in Fox’s care, and sometimes tries to make him gifts, such as scarves, blankets, or sweaters. With each project, she gets better, and Fox is smitten with each gift she makes for him.

Marina is also into crafting, she even made an iron on decal sweater that says "Fox's #1 Fan," complete with the signature fox logo. (Fox thought it was adorable)

Marina rarely smiles, though she does smile a bit more after being kept by Fox, and it stops him dead in his tracks and warms Fox’s heart every time.

Marina also enjoys reading novels. Fox usually buys her a new novel each time he goes out into town, with or without her.

She can frequently be found with a book laid atop her chest as she sleeps on the couch, waiting for Fox to come home.

Fox has also designated a room in his living quarters filled with plushies, cute objects, and video games just for Marina to “play” in, especially when he’s away.

Though not falling for him immediately, Marina does eventually come to love Ren.

And I think that’s enough for now! :) If you have any specific questions about Rina, her background, or her relationship with Fox, I will be more than happy to answer! (SFW & NSFW asks are welcome!)

Thanks anon! Thank you for your curiosity about darling Rina! <3

[keelt9]

Cap. 1

Part 1

Masterlist

The soft breeze keeps making the leaves fall. You can hardly recognize their color if it is yellow, orange or a strange mixture of red, but she seems so immersed in the small show all of them give from the moment they detach from the tree until they crash to the ground.

“Is this your first time here?” The taxi driver takes her down to earth.

“Yes.” She sees the driver smiling and turning around in a small street, which she recognizes immediately. 

“Well, it’s almost winter, I bet you will have a lot of fun these days.” The car stops in front of a colorful house and she just smiles before opening the door.

If she counted the seconds between when she grabbed her bags and the moment she felt her lungs lost all the oxygen thanks to the impact of the hug, it would be less than 17.

“___, YOU’RE HERE! YOU’RE HEREEEEEE!” Carolina Mendieta, her best friend since childhood. Their friendship started in the third grade after both of them got punished for making a scene in the middle of the dance class. 

“Oh my god, honey, you will break her bones.” Her mother appears in the frame door with a big smile on her face. The fact Caro is 4 cm taller than her and has practiced karate since she was 5 years old turns everything into a  high possibility. 

“Mrs. Mendienta.” After Caro let her go, her mother immediately hugged her one more time. “___, darling, it’s amazing having you here, sorry for the over excitement.” She points with her eyes to Caro who seems like she just received the best present in years. 

The Mendieta's moved to Uruguay 8 years ago, after her father was notified about his promotion; __ used to joke about being a doctor brings benefits outside of the country. What seemed like the distance could break their prove just made it stronger, constant phone calls, video calls late at night and packages coming and going from country to country; reducing the kilometers and joining her hearts.

That’s why the house doesn’t feel strange or an unfamiliar place, iIt's like she has already been there multiple times, they go inside and a tiny black pug came running and barked all the way until he was  in front of them.

“Hi, Moka.” She squatted to be a little bit closer, she extended her hand and waited for him to make the first move to pat his head.

“I thought your father and Mar would be here.” __ said sitting and rubbing Moka's stomach. 

“Ahg, you know them, dad is a workaholic and Mar is in a shooting.” Mar, is the oldest sister of Carolina, she works as Audio Engineer, so she has been involved in multiple shootings from all types of genres.

“Here, __, you must be thirsty.” Mrs. Mendieta came from the kitchen with a tray of glasses of water and some snacks. “How are your siblings?” She asked her while they sat on the couch followed by Moka who already smelled the sweet essence of the fruit.

“They’re fine, thanks, annoying as always.” Her answer made them giggle. “Oh, how is the pregnancy going?” __ oldest brother, Esteban and his wife are expecting their first baby, driving all her family crazy with excitement. “Good, if everything goes according to the plan, the baby will be born in April.” 

“Your mother must be crazy.” She adds but Caro clears her throat. The mom topic isn’t one of __ favorite ones lately.

“Yeah, she is, but it’s hard to know if it is for the baby or for the wedding number 3.” She drinks a sip of the water. __’s mother, Lucia is preparing her third wedding, after the divorce of her stepfather Enrique Arteaga, one year was enough for her to get a boyfriend and 5 months later in an awkward dinner announced their engagement. 

It’s not like she didn’t want her mother to start a new chapter in her life, or her fiance. What makes her angry is the way she does things. After her father’s death, when she had 2 years old and her twins siblings 8, the following years were a torment; until 3 years after their mother met Enrique, they were in a relationship for 2 years before they decided to get married; Enrique is the father they lost in a early age; every soccer game, competition, festival, morning breakfast, pick from school and a sidekick, the three siblings found in him.

But suddenly the fights began and before everything became a mess, they decided to end the marriage, 8 years of marriage were resumed in a house sold, and the split of her family. __ chose to live with Enrique and her siblings moved in with her mother, well, just Valentina; Estaban got engaged a year later and 9 months later, they were celebrating a wedding.

“And, where are they spending Christmas?” Mrs. Mendienta changes the subject as quickly as she can. In a cowardly way to face her problems, __ notified her family she will spend the holidays with Caro’s family. Her siblings tried to convince her to at least spend those days with them but deep down her parents know letting her go was the wisest decision.

“Enrique with Raquel’s family and Valentina, she doesn’t know.” The conversation was interrupted by Mar's voice.

“I’m home.” As soon as Mar sees __, just like Caro, she screams and runs to hug her. “Shit, I totally forgot.” She spreads apart and grabs __ face in her hands. “God, how old are you 20?” __ laughs and Caro puts her eyes in white. 

“We are the same age fool.” Mar pushes her sister before __ can answer. “24, and you look so much better than her, how is that possible?” She laughs and hugs one more time.

In the dinner they talked about the news Caro forgot to mention and __ too, Caro’s father was excited too for having her in the holidays, and they all already have a schedule for her, one month of adventures, they resumed it like that.

“Your father must be proud of your work in the vineyard.” Mr. Mendieta mentioned serving the dessert. 

__ is in the last semesters of Agricultural Engineering, and she already had been working to specialize in oenology, the fact Enrique has a small vineyard was one of the main inspirations. 

“Or terrified.” She jokes causing everyone a small laugh. “I just hope to do a great job, and learn everything I can.” 

“That’s for sure honey, also your graduation gives us the perfect excuse to go home even if it is for a couple of days.” It wasn’t a secret that everyone missed Mexico, and being away for 8 years made them miss it more.

[snowlilly]

Sorry for the random ask but have you talked about your oni oc lore anywhere? I’ve seen them a bit on your art blog and they seem very fun!!

Oh boy

Physical Traits

Oni grow a lot larger than humans. While the height of an adult human ranges between 150-210 cm (4'11"-6'10"), Oni are usually 230-290 cm (7'7"-9'6") tall. Their lifespan is about twice as long as humans, so they can get up to 200 years old. They also take twice as long to age though, so Oni don't reach adulthood until they're about 35 years old. Each Oni has two horns that are a bit darker shade than their skin color. Their shapes can vary a lot, but remain more or less consistent in the same family. The size, however, depends on the climate they live in: they're rather small in cold regions, while they get quite large in hotter areas. The horns grow their whole life, and moving to a place with different temperatures can change their growth speed as well. Aside from their horns, their hair is also a unique trait, as Oni are the only humanoids that have naturally white hair. Most Oni live in one of two large regions: the icefields in the north, or the desertlands in the south. Icefield Oni are generally sturdier and have thicker body hair, while desertland Oni are taller and slenderer. Their bodies can adapt well to extreme temperatures, but being exposed to rapid changes takes quite  the toll on them, so they rarely travel far away.

Culture and traditions

Like all humanoids, Oni are able to have magic powers, but with far fewer numbers than humans. Because of the low amount of mages, there are next to no resources for cultivating their abilities, and magic isn't as controversial a topic as among humans. Oni are particularly proud of their horns. They value them as much as their own life; damaging them is a disgrace. However, they may sever one of their horns to give it to someone else, as symbol of wanting to share their life with that person. This is most commonly done for marriage proposals, but it can also be a platonic gesture. Cutting off one's horn is a decision not to be rashly made, and many Oni wait well into their hundreds until offering it to someone. After accepting it, the recipient should keep it close to them at all times, so the horns are often crafted into accessories and passed down as heirlooms. It is said that the missing horn does not grow back if it has been given to the "right one". (This is merely a superstition. The horns always grow back; some Oni file the regrowing horn off to keep up appearances.) Apart from their color, Oni horns are not much different from those of horned animals, and thus hold little value to humans. But there seem to be a few human eccentrics who would pay a fair sum for Oni horns, with little regard to how they were aquired...

Individual Characters

Side A: Vallheim

Kaori (48)

One of the Elite fighters of the Volcano Arena, and also a successful musician. With her popularity in both fields, she is probably the most famous Oni living among humans.

"Ao" (37)

Kaori's younger brother who was forced sent by his parents to Vallheim for his sister to look after him. Perpetually moody and overdramatic. And no, he didn't give his left horn to someone else.

Side B: [city name still pending sorry]

Shiki (55)

A young man who left the icefields shortly after becoming an adult, much to his family's dismay. Although he is gentle and well-mannered, he sometimes acts without thinking, which has caused him all sorts of trouble in the past. His left horn is currently regrowing after he gave it to his wife.

"Surya" (8)

Shiki's child. Surya's mother is a human, so their skin and horn color don't match, and so far, they've been aging and growing like a normal human. Bright and energetic, Surya is friendly to everyone around. The other kids at school seem to think they're weird though, and not just because of their horns...

Mari (59)

Mari is a construction worker. Her horns have been going through quite the growth spurt since she moved to a warmer region, and she nonchalantly "gives them a trim" once in a while so they don't get in the way while working. Has been lectured by her friends quite few times for this. One of Shiki's friends.

Camille (67)

Camille is one of the few mages among Oni, and moved to a human city to study magic. One of Shiki's friends.

Lagura (46)

Lagura usually doesn't say a lot. He evidently left the desertlands at a pretty early age, but never really said why. One of Shiki's friends.

Shigure (94)

A blacksmith from the north. He strongly believes that doing things old school is the superior way. Some of his views seem a bit too "old school", though... One of Shiki's friends.

[honey-minded-hivemind]

You know, I did a little brainstorming and decided that all teenagers/young gems would be small compared to Opal Creed Reader (who are 8 feet 2 inches or 250 cm tall) but Skinny Honey Jasper Reader would be 6 feet or 175 cm tall and Peach Pearl Reader 5 feet or 152 See How do you like that?

Pearl Anon

Ahaha, I like that! Honeycomb Opal Creed Reader is this tall, lanky gem who towers over the other gems/teens, and they sometimes just pick them up in battle or when they want hugs. Opal Creed Reader is very huggy. The taller gems I can see being Gem or Fusion Scott and Gem or Fusion Jean, while the smaller ones would likley be Gem or Fusion Kitty, Kurt, Evan, and Todd. There's also Gems Fred, Lance, Rogue, Pietro, and Wanda, who like how tall Reader is and sometimes ask them to grab things for them.

Everyone argues who gets to hang out with Opal Creed Reader at times. They want to hang out with this funny Homeworld Gem, who keeps enjoying this planet with them! So let them be friends! They just- they sometimes wish Creed Reader eoukd explain why they have scars/cracks on their form, and why they don't like to talk about their personal adventures on Homeworld...

[an1d10t]

YOU'VE BEEN TAGGED!!

1) Are you named after anyone?

2) When was the last time you cried?

3) Do you have kids?

4) What sports do you play/have you played?

5) Do you use sarcasm?

6) What's the first thing you notice about people?

7) What's your eye colour?

8) Scary movies or happy endings?

9) Any talents?

10) Where were you born?

11) What are your hobbies?

12) Do you have any pets?

13) How tall are you?

14) Favorite subject in school?

15) Dream job?

Tag someone!

1) I ACTUALLY DONT KNOW LOL- My parents just got my name from one of their friend’s children

2) uh like 2 weeks ago? I do not remember

3) no. I personally don’t want them too

4) I’ve played a few sports (taekwondo, tennis and mountainbike) and I’m going to do archery in like may.

5) well yes

6) in real life, their voice and online their greeting

7) blueish

8) both

9) ignoring people and walking really fast without getting bored for more than 2 hours

10) somewhere in a Dutch hospital. Don’t remember, honestly am not planning on saying which one

11) my hobbies are walking in the forest, trying to know a lot of animals and sometimes I also really like reading

12) two actually. A dog and a cat

13) 163 cm or 5 foot 4 (haha Kore, im taller than you)

14) BIOLOGY. Yesterday we got to eat mealworms. But I also really like history

15) genuinely have no idea. Maybe something with historical stuff or something with biology. I still need to decide (and I have the time so Whoohoo)

@matimatillda @tallbrownhairsarcastic @donaardaardendrian @fourwingedsnake @klockworks

[asktheahogesandblondes]

Daaww so sweet, and also very interesting! But I won't comment on now so I need to make a pin on that PUT A PIN IN IT

*I pull out a pin out of nowhere and do the motions as if I was placing it on a board and let go and though attached to nothing it still floats in the air*

Ok! Next up Junko and makoto!

So makoto how's it feel being tall? And big

Makoto:Oh yes, I feel very tall, a practical giant...so does anyone else who puts boots with heels that add 10 cm to their height.

Junko:Oh shut up!

Makoto:Wanna see a magic trick? *Takes off boots so now is smaller than his original body and Natsumi's original body*

Junko:Fuck off!

Natsumi:Hah! So it turns out I'm not the pipsqueak of the three.

Miu:You're really smaller than me at everything, smaller brain, smaller tits, smaller boyfriend and smaller height. Maybe I should call you small bitch.

Junko:You're really talking a lot of shit for someone who also uses boots to increase her height. And don't you talk like you are any different Yakuza bitch.

Natsumi:Yeah, but my shoes don't actually increase my height that much like yours two does.

Miu:Hey! My boots don't increase my height that much!

Shuichi:Actually *Takes of the boots, now being basically at Makoto's original body height* They add 10 cm.

Makoto:Same as Junko's.

Miu:I'm still taller than Despair Bitch.

Junko:Like height matters that much, all those centimeters won't give a bigger spine, and it certainly doesn't prevent me from kicking your ass and-

Makoto:Ok Junko, that's enough for now, Miu is already scared enough.

*Miu was hiding behind Shuichi, which looked a bit silly since now he was much smaller on her body*

Shuichi:It's ok Miu, don't worry, you shouldn't have asked for it though.

Hajime:...I wonder*Takes of their shoes, now being eye level with Makoto's original body*

Natsumi:Thanks, out me as pipsqueak why don't you?

Hajime:You asked for it.

Natsumi:...I guess.

Makoto:Well...I guess I can say I actually feel pretty tall now, I only wish it didn't happen this way.

Junko:Well, now people can't crack short jokes at your expense, I mean you're still short but you get the point.

Makoto:Good, I didn't wanna ruin people their fun but it was getting annoying.

Junko:It's ok...you're big where it counts.

Makoto:*Sigh* I would find this cute but I know at which part are you referring to.

Junko:Heheheh.

Makoto:...Never change...though tone down the threatening a bit.

*M/A Counter:8*

[therk900]

🫧February TC Challenge (Day 1-29)🫧

1. Do you have more platonic or romantic feelings for them? Romantic feelings tbh

2. Have they ever physically touched you? Yes. A has lots of times, mainly through high fives or "accidental" knee touching! I have touched S's shoulder once. M and i have knocked hands a few times

3. Would you ever plan to pursue them when you graduate? (And when you’re legal) Maybe! Haven't completely decided yet

4. Do you know their birthday/zodiac sign? I know what zodiac sign S is since i know his birthday

5. Do you know their favourite colour? Nope

6. What do they teach? B taught English, M and S teaches science. S also teaches Italian.

7. Do you think you’re their favourite student? I have no clue. Hopefully i am!

8. Are they tall, short, or average height? S is tall. And i mean VERY tall. B is average...man height?? A is 5'11" and M is just a bit shorter than S. I think N is around the same height as M, maybe a cm taller

9. Do they have any pets? B did have a cat once, but it had to be put down when B was 16. M also had a couple pets

10. Do you ever plan to confess your feelings to them? (Careful with this one, they could possibly lose their job or get you in trouble) I don't know, maybe not. i don't want them to lose their jobs. maybe after i leave if i keep in touch with them

11. Do you know any of their talents? S is good at netball if that counts as a talent. N knows how to play the guitar and A knows how to play an instrument (i forget which one 😬)!

12. How often do you think of them? Most of the time

13. Have you told anybody irl about your crush? Yes. I have told my friend. She is the only one that knows

14. Be honest: Do you think you're in love? Happy Valentines Day everyone! To be completely honest, maybe! There are so many things that i've done with all of them that have stuck with me and still make me happy!

15. Do they motivate you to come to school? They motivate me all the time

16. Have you ever seen them cry? I haven’t, no

17. What kind of dynamic do you guys have? M is so fucking nice and caring towards me! He just treats me more differently then other students! A said to my mum personally that I’m his favourite student! He is fun to be around! S likes to joke around with me all the time, and we have this special bond and also treats me differently than other students! B used to be so caring towards me! N is like S!

18. Have they ever caught you staring? I'm pretty sure on multiple occasions

19. What was the most embarrassing thing you’ve done in front of them? (All of us have done some pretty embarrassing stuff, let’s be honest.) Falling in front of S multiple times (haha, i'm so clumsy) and crying in front of B 

20. Do they make you feel safe/loved? Yes

21. Have they ever rendered you speechless? Multiple times. It is a bit embarrassing when it happens. They help me to get my words out which is good

22. Are they a good teacher? They are amazing! Other students think so as well

23. Is there something they do that gives you the ick? No

24. Are you guys close? Well, kind of. With M, N and S, we are very close! A and i are quite close as well! B and i were close, but not as close as the rest.

25. Have you ever looked for their initial in those stupid TikToks that eight year olds make? I have a couple times. I just do it for fun

26. Have you ever dreamed about them? Plenty of times! I love each and ever one of them

27. Do you see yourself in a relationship with them? Kind of

28. Have you ever cried in front of them? I have cried in front of B and N once. S saw me just after I have cried which was embarrassing. M has seen me nearly cry. i was so close to crying in front of him, but i didn't.

29. How often do you speak to him/her? All the time 

[feathers-little-nest]

15 questions but it's the Tired Sleepy Unhinged version

I was tagged by @sleepyowlwrites and @rains-inky-mind! Thank you so much, lads!

1. Are you named after anyone?

Yup. After my grandgrandmother. My second name is after my grandmother. As a bonus, there's also a bit of extra supernatural lore around it, lol. I won't ever be allowed to change it

Ps Feather is not my real name, I recently discovered that you can name a child Feather

2. When was the last time you cried?

Idk

3. Do you have kids?

No. And I won't have, ever. It would hurt both me and the child.

4. There's no number 4 for some reason

5. What sports do you play/have played?

I used to do many different kinds of dances, swimming, hema fencing and a bunch of other sports. Now I'm a couch potato who does some stretching every once in a while.

6. What's the first thing you notice about people?

Hair.

7. What's your eye color?

Greenish gray.

8. Scary movies or happy endings?

The latter. I hate fucking jump scares and they're way too common in horrors.

9. Any special talents

10. Where were you born?

In Poland, land of a rising onion and flowing with vodka.

11. What are your hobbies?

Writing and drawing. Every two weeks or so I have a new extra hobby, though.

12. Do you have pets.

Nope. I'm planning to get rats in a few years but who knows what will happen, right

13. How tall are you?

Around 160 cm. I don't know exactly. Taller than a typical car.

14. Favourite subject in school?

I liked maths in primary school because I was way ahead of the curriculum and the teacher allowed me to read books on their lessons. In high school I liked history, my teacher's lessons sounded like historical podcasts.

15. Dream job?

I would be perfectly fine just sitting at home and writing. Eventually something in game dev?

Tagging friemds @jelliedoodles, @kamileonik, @ayakashibackstreet, @chuuyas-beloved and @sam-glade

[spidertalia]

Meet my boy New Jersey !!

His human name is Daniel Burr, but he exclusively goes by Danny and will knock your lights out if you call him Daniel. He's physically 23 and is the 14th oldest state.

Danny has quite the personality. He's proud, hot tempered, confrontational, dramatic, sarcastic, loud, lively, sassy, blunt, good-humored, passionate, impatient, a jokester, hardworking, diligent, sociable, intelligent, quick-witted, sharp, snarky, fiercely loyal, honest, slightly cynical, pragmatic, analytical, industrious, outspoken and opinionated. He actually makes friends surprisingly easily and loves chatting up strangers, but he also loves starting fights and arguments with some of the other states. He lives for drama. He's very proud and has a very short temper as well. He will not hesitate to speak his mind on anything or call people out when they're being idiotic or irresponsible without regard for their feelings.

Some fun facts about him:

He's 5'5 or 165 cm in height. He's the third shortest male state, being taller than Rhode Island and Delaware.

He has roughly 3A hair

He speaks 18 languages fluently outside of his Indigenous languages, and is learning a further ten languages.

He can fluently speak English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Mandarin, Cantonese, Hindi, Tagalog, Gujarati, Korean, Arabic, Polish, Greek, Haitian, Hebrew, Yiddish, Russian and French. He is currently learning and speaks some Yoruba, Ukrainian, Japanese, German, Lithuanian, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Turkish, Tamil and Telugu.

He's Hispanic. Specifically, mixed white and Indigenous.

He is pretty much constantly fighting with New York, Delaware and Pennsylvania. He also on occasion fights with Massachusetts and Connecticut.

He starts drama and fights on purpose, for the sheer fun of it.

He's surprisingly very competitive and loves to prove himself by being good at things. However, his confidence isn't unfounded; he's a genuinely hard worker who throws himself wholeheartedly into learning new skills and things. He may like to brag, but he absolutely earns the right to.

He is the second best cook of all the states, behind Louisiana. He knows 2-8 recipes from over 80 countries, and he has well over 500 recipes under his belt. Similar to how New York loves learning languages, New Jersey loves learning recipes.

He's actually an insanely skilled driver with impeccably fast reflexes, and is quite possibly one of the very best drivers. He just has a personal vendetta against every single traffic law and driver out there. He can make death-defying turns in the blink of an eye, and will absolutely cut people off on the road for simply looking at him wrong. He has negative patience on the road and gets road rage very easily.

He's a very skilled and very hard worker. He's great at getting things done and getting them done on time.

Despite his argumentative and hot tempered nature, he actually makes friends very easily. He genuinely enjoys chatting up random strangers on the street and having hour long conversations over any topic they can think of. He's a great listener and an engaging conversationalist.

He likes spending time outdoors and in nature.

He jaywalks on occasion for fun.

He cares more about his appearance than he lets on

He's naturally very stylish. He especially loves jean jackets and jackets with pins on them.

He will complain if he has to drive more than half an hour to get anywhere.

He's very skilled at machinery, engineering and mechanics. He can fix up cars, repair wiring, repair machinery and make home improvements.

He talks fast and works faster

Despite his pride in his appearance, he's generally unafraid to get his hands dirty or jump headfirst into nature.

He's actually good friends with Romano, despite what one might think. The two bond over hating people and loving pasta and pizza.

He has a New Jersey accent

He's also, strangely enough, friends with Florida. Any of his insults just roll off of Florida's shoulders, and the two eventually became friends thanks to their shared loud, lively personalities. Danny still likes to play bicker with him, though.

His hobbies are cooking, listening to music, tinkering and complaining

He will complain about pretty much anything and everything.

He played a big part in the Industrial Revolution, like Pennsylvania, and remains his skill with machinery and mechanics to this day. He's not nearly as into it anymore as Pennsylvania is, but he does find joy in fixing up old cars.

He collects old cars.

He is very sarcastic, snarky and quick-witted. He has a nickname for pretty much everyone.

He converted to Judaism sometime during-after the Revolution and has stuck to it since. He's very proud of it.

He's the 11th oldest of the 13 colonies, and was physically 14 during the American Revolution.

He stole one house from England during the Revolution.

He will fight England nearly on sight. It's best to not have the two in the same room.

His likes include: Music, bagels, pizza, Italian food, pasta, diners, Dunkin, hoagies, subs, pork rolls, dancing, drive-in theater, tomatoes, saltwater taffy, Wawa, wine, blueberries, cranberries, corn, cooking, latino food, latino music, Springsteen, Bon Jovi, machinery, engineering, Whitney Houston, Frank Sinatra, 70's music, partying, complaining, classic movies and old cars.

His dislikes include: New York, Delaware, Pennsylvania, England, slow people, slow drivers and traffic laws.

I will be including more/posting more about him later on !! This is just what I have so far :))

I lowkey took loose inspo for him from one of my favorite fictional characters (who's from New Jersey), Danny Williams from 2010's Hawaii Five 0. If you want some idea of NJ's energy, watch clips of Danny Williams sdfghj. (Them sharing a first name is a total coincidence)

[pumpkinspicedlesbian]

@perenlied tagged me to answer 15 questions and tag 15 people, forgot about it for a while but better late than never!

1) Named after anyone?

Not really, my second name is after a few different family members though

2) Last time you cried?

Before they put me under for surgery bc I was so scared but one of the anesthesiologists was super sweet so that really helped

3) Do you have any kids?

Naur, I have a nephew and niece that I adore though!

4) Do you use sarcasm a lot?

Yeah probably pretty regularly

5) What's the first thing you notice about people?

Hhhh idk probably different for each person? I guess I pay the most attention to style so clothes/hair/makeup/accessories

6) Color of your eyes?

Blue (babadee babadie)

7) Scary movies or happy endings?

Okay I don't really like the way this question is phrased but anyone who knows me knows I love horror so scary babyyy

8) Any special talents?

Uhhh I'm pretty good at accents I think, or tongue twisters

9) Where were you born?

Nearest hospital to my hometown

10) Hobbies?

I tend to switch between creative stuff so I dabble in watercolors and embroidery, I like to draw, I like to read, I like movies a lot and I looooove secondhand shops and volunteer at one. Have also been playing lots of Zelda BOTW during recovery which has been really fun!

11) Any pets?

No :( if my living situation ever allows for it I really want to get a cat

12) What sports do you play/have you played?

Things I did and stopped liking within a month as a child include tennis, gymnastics, jazz ballet, horse riding, softball and things I actually like but never really do are climbing and roller skating

13) How tall are you?

164 cm, if u use different metrics that means I'm taller than you

14) Favorite subject in school?

Music, or English bc I didn't have to do anything

15) Dream job?

Something working with people, maybe kids, something where I can put my ideas into practice and organize projects or activities. Something that does some good in the world and that I take a personal interest in

Tagging time! @xiaoguiwang @teamfreelunch @girlwiththechickentattoo @lowpolycas @m-eowdy @joosthoe @florid-fragments @shysoftgoth @breathtakinglymiraculous @yahababs @martinilesbian @strawberrystorms @spooniepumpkin and I can't for the life of me think of anyone else so if u wanna do this just say I tagged you, it'll be our little secret ;)

[sapphire-heart-tippy]

Sapphire Heartverse

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Part 5: Unavoidable

Part 6 Part 7 Part 8

TW: blood, violence, implied childhood abuse, childhood trauma talk

June

SLAM SLAM SLAM!!! Cream is crashing his fists against Sapphire Heart’s crystal shield. Vanilla Ice is getting more and more agitated. He pokes his head out from Cream’s mouth,

“I have had it! I know what you can do for defense, why can’t you show me more attack?!” Tippy pants and wipes his brow,

“Well… you know what they say… diamond shields are unbreakable, heheh- WHOA!!!” Cream slams his fist down on the crystal shield aggressively. Breaking the force field is all in vain. Vanilla controls Cream to be more hostile in an attempt to get Tippy to use a more offensive approach rather than defensive. Cream swallows himself up into a void and zooms into nothingness. 

CRASH!!! Cream’s anti-void sphere slams into Sapphire Heart with all his might. Tippy wavers a little bit, making an opening by accident, and sending both the stand and his user flying up against the wall. Sapphire and Tippy look up at Vanilla with a similar pained expression, however, the stand fades away back into the soul of zeir user. 

“What the hell was that, Termite?! Why do you barely ever fight back?! This isn’t sparring! This is just me hitting you over and over again while you hide away behind a stupid pink force field!” Vanilla huffs and stomps his foot, pointing at the wounded boy on the ground.

“Pffft… Well, if it works it works.” Tippy dusts himself off. Vanilla gets up in his face,

“There’s going to come a time where you will actually need to fight back instead of acting like that crystal shield of yours isn’t taking bits of your soul energy, you fool.” Ice rubs his forehead and sighs, “You're 23 years old and yet you still act like a foolish brat! Why did I get stuck with babysitting an insolent little jerk?”

“Because daddy Dio told you to? And you do whatever he says because you think he’s hot?” Tippy taunts Vanilla. The brunette frowns and his cheeks burn,

“How… dare you?! I have a lot more respect for Lord Dio than just superficial traits such as attractiveness! I cannot believe you would accuse me of such perverse behavior!”

“Relax, Lucky Charms. I think he’s hot too.” Tippy mutters as he gives a mischievous smirk and brushes some hair behind his ear. Vanilla is seething. Ice’s fists are shaking on either side of his body, his face is scarlet from embarrassment and anger,

“Why you… If it weren’t for Lord Dio’s orders, I would have kicked you to a bloody pulp!”

“Oh really?!” Tippy looks up at him. Vanilla towers over Tippy, being 43 cm taller than the blue haired gentleman. 

“You’re out of your mind if you think you could take me in a fight, little man.” Vanilla growls.

“I’d just defend myself using my crystal shield and invisibreak! You have no power over me, big man!” Tippy pokes Ice in the chest.

“Oh, that is IT.” Vanilla pins Tippy to the ground and they both get into a little altercation.

Soon Vanilla has Tippy on zeir belly, face down on the ground. Ice has Tippy’s hair balled up in his fist,

“Had enough yet, Termite?!” They’re both panting and sweating a bit. Tip tries to catch his breath and gulp, but his neck is stretched backward a bit so it is difficult to swallow,

“Have… you?” 

Twinkle twinkle… Tippy disappeared with invisibreak! ….Along with Vanilla Ice.

“Nngh?! What?! H-how did-?!” Tippy tries to disappear again, but Vanilla keeps disappearing and reappearing with him. Ice lets Tip go and shakes his head,

“Hmph. Looks like your powers do have limitations and weaknesses.” he points his finger at zem,”You can’t be touching anyone without taking them with you while using invisibreak. Tch, what disappointing luck.”

“What?! But.. no. No no no… Th-this means I wouldn’t be able to…” Tippy looks at zeir hands and a troubled expression washes over zeir face.

“And in all these years of having your stand, you’re just now finding this out? How pitiful.” Ice crosses his arms. “Good. It’ll give you all the more reason to hone your attack skills.” Tippy stands up and dusts himself off.

“Go on, Termite. Attack me. Give me all you got.” Vanilla motions with his hand for Tippy to attack him. Cream has his bottom half swallowed up in his mouth already. Sapphire takes out his diamond spear,

“Ready when you are, master.” Tip narrows his eyes at Ice. The two gentlemen stare deeply into each others’ eyes. Don’t let him get to you, Nilla… He’s just a little nuisance is all. Vanilla thinks to himself. 

SLASH! Sapphire makes the first attack. Vanilla backflips into Cream and disappears. Tippy gets frustrated and uses invisibreak. The room appears empty. All of a sudden, there are sounds of quick violence. On and off, there’s silence then sounds of stands and guys yelling. Cream attempts to strike his hand upon Sapphire, but is met with the crystal shield once again. Vanilla peers through Cream’s mouth with fury,

“Why are you still using that ridiculous move?!”

“Because you’re freaking attacking me, that’s why! What else do you want me to do, Vanilla?!” Tip yells back with irritation. Vanilla leaps out of Cream and furiously stalks his way to Tippy.

“Hey, easy now, leotard boy.”

“Shut it.” Vanilla hisses. “No more defense. Show me what your stand can really do.” He gets in Tippy’s face and looks down at him, “Right now is congruent to my feelings towards you. I look down on you.” Cream winds up for a punch on Sapphire Heart. The genie-like stand moves out of the way and almost lands a punch to the beast’s cheek. Cream fights with his hands and claws while Sapphire uses his spear and fists. They are careful not to harm one another too much, because this is only practice fighting. Ice stands a little too close, neither of them have a long enough range unfortunately. The brunette gets a bit too close for comfort. Suddenly-

SLASH!!! Vanilla dodges just in time and cups the side of his face. Sapphire’s diamond spear just barely missed Ice’s right eye. 

“Vanilla!” Tippy gasps and fades Sapphire Heart away. “Oh my god, are you okay?! I’m so sorry! I-” That’s when he realizes something. Sapphire had accidentally sliced off Vanilla’s right bang. The long piece of silky brown hair is lying on the floor. “Uh oh.” Tip backs away slowly.

Ice blinks rapidly for a moment, stunned, completely still. He gently touches and pulls on the frayed strands of shortened, chopped off hair that was once a very long bang to match his left side. Ice’s eyes are wide and maddened,

“No…” He looks down at the floor. There’s the long piece of hair that was once gracefully attached to his head. Vanilla frantically picks up the bang off the floor, kneeling and shaking his head, “No no no no no… no no.” The brunette shoots a death glare at Tip. Ze chuckles nervously and back away with zeir hands up. Vanilla stands up menacingly and has his right bang gripped in his fist,

“You…”

“Hey, hey, hey! Vanilla! I-I didn’t mean it! Y-you were in the way! ! I’m so sorry!!” Tippy tries to explain himself. Ice is about to say something, but his speech is stopped by the ringing of a bell. Ice turns around and listens for it. The small bell chimes again. Ice looks back at Tippy, scans him up and down with a sneer and grumbles,

“This way. Now.”

“What? W-What’s going on?” Tippy asks and follows Vanilla. Ice ignores him and thinks to himself, My hair… it’s ruined… How am I going to make asymmetrical bangs look good? What the hell… I know it wasn’t that little bastard’s fault exactly but… ugh. I spent years growing my hair out and now it’s destroyed… I feel like weeping. Ice’s face falls from angered to disheartened by his thoughts. Tling tling tling. The little bell chimes once again. Vanilla speedwalks, making Tippy also pick up the pace.

“H-hey, wait up!” Tippy calls to him. “You know, I’m really really sorry… I mean it, I didn’t-”

“Shhh!” Vanilla sharply hushes the boy. They both make their way to the door of Dio’s bedroom. Vanilla Ice kneels and bows his head. 

“What are you-?” Tippy is interrupted by Vanilla pulling zeir arm down for zem to kneel to,

“I said ‘HUSH’! Now kneel before Lord Dio, you delinquent.”

“Okay, okay, jeez!” Tippy kneels on both of his knees. Then he quickly realizes Vanilla is in fact squatting and not kneeling. The blue haired boy can’t hold in a giggle. Ice gives zem a puzzled and slightly offended look. He whispers in a harsh tone,

“What is so funny, Termite?! Have you no respect?!”

Tippy glances over at Ice, his ivory cheeks go bright red and he covers his mouth with a gasp,

“Oh! Um… you may want to adjust a little bit.” He continues giggling and averts his eyes. 

“What?” Ice looks down and his cheeks flush as well. The brunette quickly fixes his little “situation” and ends up getting on one knee. Vanilla uses his hair as a curtain to hide his ashamed face from Tippy. Tling tling tling the bell chimes once more. Dio is getting more and more impatient. 

“My lord,” Vanilla speaks, “I came as soon as I heard you needed me.”

“Oh, I bet.” Tippy remarks. Vanilla shoots Tippy an angry glare, making zem shut up real quick and cover zeir mouth.

“Ice… You may enter. Bring Tippy with you. This concerns you both.” Dio’s smooth, otherworldly voice rings in their ears. The two gentlemen stand up and enter Dio’s bedroom. Vanilla has his hands politely folded in front of him, while Tippy is close beside him. Though Tip and Ice don’t normally get along, Tippy still looks to him for protection from certain things. Dio checks his fingernails and sighs deeply,

“I need you two to get rid of somebody for me.”

“As you wish, Lord Dio.” Vanilla nods.

“Huh?!” Tippy looks back and forth between the two men. Dio notices this, but continues to speak directly to Ice,

“Yes. Very good,” Dio sits up on his bed and brushes his hair back over his shoulders, “You see… one of the agents has gone rogue and the poor bastard has locked himself away in one of the rooms near the basement. His stand attacks anyone who tries to go down the stairs that lead that way and it’s become quite bothersome. Do go take care of that for me, would you, gentlemen?”

“As you wish, sire.” Vanilla nods his head.

“What?!” Tippy tries to make sense of everything happening so fast.

“Good. Now leave my boudoir the correct way this time, Mr Ice.” Dio smirks and lays back down on his bed.

“Y-yes, sire. Very good, sire.” The brunette quickly tries to open the door but ends up smacking his face into it.

“The… other handle, Mr Ice.” Dio speaks.

“Yes, sire. Pardon me, sire.” Vanilla opens the door using the correct handle, feeling very silly. 

On the downstairs west wing stairwell

Vanilla and Tippy both slowly make their way to the middle of the stone spiral staircase. Unfortunately, it is difficult to see what is past the stone pillar in the middle of the room exiting the staircase.

“I don’t hear anything. Still… keep quiet.” Vanilla speaks in a hushed tone. His voice is low and a bit gruff, sending tingles down Tippy’s spine. They both gently tiptoe down the steps, waiting expectantly for something shocking to occur. The two agents make it to the small windowless room, brightened sharply with one of the latest installments of an electric chandelier. Vanilla squints, letting his pupils adjust to the harsh lighting. Aha… he must be camping out in the boiler room. Ice’s umber eyes notice a trail of water leaking out of the boiler room door. Tippy takes a step next to Vanilla, only to be met with an outstretched arm preventing him from going any further,

“Wait.” Ice has his gaze fixed on the ground, “Look.” 

“There’s water on the ground.” Tip tells him. Vanilla kneels down, observing the puddles on the floor.

“Something’s… off about these puddles. The way that they’re formed.” Ice narrows his eyes. “Nngh?!” Ice jumps up and pushes Tippy away, “They’re both identical! Quickly!! Move up against the wall!”

“What?! Why is that a bad thing?!” Tippy yelps. Ice hollers an order,

“Whatever you do, don’t let it bite you!!!”

“Don’t- Huh?!” Tippy turns and is met with a horrifying looking stand. The stand looks like a malformed, beige ragdoll with razor sharp teeth poking out of the fabric. Tippy screams and forms his crystal shield. The ragdoll stand’s terrifying serpent-like yellow eyes stare directly into Tippy’s soul. The creature gnaws on the crystal shield, somehow duplicating it around Tippy.

“W-what?!” His voice cracks as he watches two force fields get put up in front of him. Ice has backflipped inside of Cream, ready to attack the imp. 

BVRRRRMMM!!! Cream smashes through the pillar, missing the stand and knocking Tippy back. The pillar now has a circular piece taken out of it.

“HEY! WATCH IT!!” Tippy shouts at Vanilla’s carelessness. Now that the crystal shield is down, the stand decides to take this opportunity to try and pounce on Tippy. In a flash, Ice reaches his arm out of Cream and drags Tippy into the void inside of his stand with him. 

“AAAAAAAUUGHH!!” Tippy cries out as he is sent hurtling inside of a dark abyss. Flipping and twisting around in an endless void, his terrified shrieks are echoed throughout the darkness. Suddenly, a large hand grasps Tippy’s bicep.

“SHHHHH!!! RELAX! RELAX!! We’re safe in here for now.” Vanilla Ice uses his phone flashlight to brighten up the void a little bit. Tippy and Vanilla are very close to one another. Ice can feel Tip trembling in terror. “We need to come up with a plan to stop that thing.” The blue haired boy catches his breath, all while staring Ice in the eyes for comfort. He doesn’t know why… but Vanilla’s presence alone makes him feel so much safer. 

“O-okay… What… What is that stand anyway? You know what it can do?” Tip inquires.

“Yes. That stand is called ‘Copycat’. Real creative, I know. Like the stand’s name suggests, it can make copies of things. Lord Dio found this power to be exciting and would have the user make the stand bite things to make copies of them for safe keeping. In case important things got lost, there was always a copy somewhere. I heard sire even has a copy of his diary… n-not that I would know where that is.”

Tippy raises an eyebrow at Ice. Vanilla clears his throat, “Er, I digress. When the stand bites an object, it creates an exact replica of that thing… however when it bites a living thing… it creates a soulless copy of them. It appears that this stand can create a copy of literally anything besides a soul. It cannot create copies of souls nor stands.”

“Wait wait, but it could copy my crystal shield ability. That’s part of my soul, right?” Tippy tries not to float away into the void, so ze clings to Vanilla’s vest. Tippy's extremely close to Ice right now. This is the closest they've ever been to each other. Feeling Tippy's body heat, especially from being used to being in the void all alone is exciting and somewhat comforting. Vanilla looks to his side,

“Powers… are a bit different. It’s complicated. The stand can copy behaviors as well. I suppose…” Vanilla holds onto Tippy a little closer and looks into his deep chocolate brown eyes. Ice thinks, Hmm… an odd, tickly feeling in my belly all of a sudden… “I suppose… a stand power is like a behavior. Something of that sort.” Tip nods in agreement, “Back to the soulless copy thing… Lord Dio found that the stand can make zombified copies out of already living humans. However, that plan quickly fell flat when it turns out, though the copies are alive, they do nothing but droop over and lie on the floor. Essentially, the lights are on, but nobody’s home.” Ice explains. 

“Huh… So is there any way we can actually kill it?” Tip asks.

“Um… I’m not sure. It seems to be protected by that crochet covering it uses as a second skin. I’ve noticed that there appears to be something inside. Whatever it’s hiding in there, it doesn’t want to be exposed.” Vanilla scratches his head.

“Hey.. wait. Instead of trying to kill the stand itself, why not go for the user? He may be locked inside of a room, but at the end of the day he’s just a normal guy! I could just stab him to death with my diamond spear, eh? If you kill the user, you kill the stand.” Tip gives Vanilla a prideful grin.

“Well, that’s not always the case. I’ve heard of cases where stands go rogue after their master is killed. They live on pretty much as ghosts of somebody’s past.” Ice tells Tippy.

“Well, that sucks. You don’t suppose… Er… let’s hope not. I mean, the dude is still in that room, right?” Tip says.

“Yes.” My heart is racing. I’ve never let another soul inside of the void before. Not even Lord Dio. Vanilla thinks to himself. “Perhaps, that’s why he decided to lock himself in the boiler room, so nobody would get past his stand and kill him.” Ice wraps his arm around Tippy and in a flash, they peer out of Cream’s mouth, “Shit. There’s no sign of that thing. Okay, look. We need to bust down that door and kill the user inside like you said, Termite. Let’s do it.”

The two leap out of Cream’s mouth and are on guard, waiting for the creature to strike once again. 

RRAAAARRRGHHH!!! The imp-like stand screeches and flies in from the ceiling. Sapphire Heart thrusts his diamond spear up in the air and all around to attack the creature. Vanilla is sneaking off to break down the boiler room door with his body. The stand turns around and notices, suddenly making its target Vanilla.

“Vanilla! What the hell are you doing?!” Tippy screams at him. The creature dives onto Vanilla and slashes the brunette’s left shoulder with its claws. Vanilla grunts in pain and holds his arm, bleeding heavily. “USE YOUR STAND TO BUST A HOLE IN THE DOOR!!” Tippy yells. Ice jumps inside of Cream and breaks a circular hole in the wall. The two men enter the boiler room. It’s dark and eerie. The creature screeches, this time not in anger, but in terror. Ice pulls out his phone flashlight once again, revealing the deceased and decaying body of the stand user. 

“Hey, Vans, you were right. I guess he-”

“No… look.” Vanilla points his phone to the left of the body. There it is, a slumped over zombified copy of the stand user. The zombie's eyes are open and unblinking, mouth agape, and yet still alive, “The stand must’ve bitten the user… then killed him. But why?”

“Maybe we were both right and wrong? Maybe there is part of the soul inside the zombified copy… just no consciousness.” Tippy gulps. Behind them, they both hear a screech. The stand is howling and throwing a tantrum. Suddenly, a piece of thread hanging off of its ragdoll covering gets snagged on a screw from one of the pipes. It is revealed that inside of the ragdoll-like appearance, the stand itself looks like a horrific, glowing neon green, demonic cat. The creature lunges at them, jaws gnashing and claws scratching.

“VANILLA!! KILL THE ZOMBIE!! IT’S TRYING TO PROTECT THAT THING!!!” Tippy screams and tries to hold off the stand with Sapphire Heart. 

Vanilla quickly commands Cream to bite the head off of the zombified copy. The stand stops dead in its tracks. Its head explodes and the body disintegrates. It disappears, leaving behind nothing but a whisper of rage. Tippy pants and gulps, his heart just might beat out of his chest. 

“Good riddance,” Vanilla mumbles, holding onto his bleeding shoulder, “Hnngh!”

“Vans! You’re bleeding! That thing sliced you up pretty good, huh?” Tippy rushes over to his aid.

“It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that thing is dead… and we…” The brunette pants and feels blood continue to gush out of his left shoulder, “And we finished Lord Dio’s mission.”

“Dude, you need stitches.” Tippy takes Vanilla’s right arm over his shoulder, in an attempt to help him. It doesn’t help at all, but Vanilla doesn’t tell him that.

At the hospital

After Vanilla receives stitches to fix up his shoulder, Tippy meets up with him to get checked out. One of the doctor goes over how to clean and care for his stitches at home.

“Thank you. I will be sure to do so.” Vanilla nods politely.

“You take care out there, Mr Ezekiel.” The doctor leaves to go back to work.

“Your name is Ezekiel?” Tippy looks up at the brunette with curiosity. Ice looks down and thinks for a few moments before replying with a dry,

“Yeah.”

Tippy is driving them back to the mansion in a little bit of an awkward silence. 

“So,” They attempt to break the silence, “Ezeki-”

“Don’t. Do not call me that. Don’t ever call me that.” Vanilla’s voice may not be raised, but his tone is still hostile and defensive.

“I’m sorry…” The blue haired boy apologizes with a forlorn mumble. A few moments later, Tip decides to speak a bit more gently,

“How are you feeling right now?”

“... It…” There it is again… The tickling, sick feeling in my belly. “It hurts. But it doesn’t matter what I feel. That stand and its user have been destroyed, therefore making Lord Dio happy.” Ice looks out the window.

“Well, I’m more concerned about you right now. I wouldn’t feel good knowing you’re trying to sleep while in pain, dude. Did you take those meds the doctor gave you?” Tippy asks. Vanilla’s cheeks lightly flush but he remains silent for a moment,

“... Why do you care?”

“Because…” Tippy gives a small sigh, “because I just do, okay? I consider you to be one of my friends. Yeah, I know we drive each other freaking nuts but… I don’t know.”

“You think I’m your friend? I’m just your higher up…” Vanilla’s voice trails off. Friend? Does this fool really believe such an infantile thing?! Friend… what a stupid concept… and yet…

At The Mansion

“Don’t forget to take those meds, alright, Vans?” Tippy tells him. Vanilla has his head down and watches Tip leave out of his periphery.

“Wait.” Ice’s voice is soft. Tip turns around,

“You okay?”

“Come. Follow me.” Vanilla takes Tippy into his bedroom. It’s very neat and tidy. Though his walls are lightly sparsed in posters of scantily clad men, it’s very classy and adorable. His bed looks luxurious, with its deep violet sheets and pillows to match. He has beautiful lilac dressers with little hearts as the drawer knobs. Vanilla even has his own bathroom,

“Wow! You get your own bathroom too? Dang, I have to go down the hall for mine.” Tippy looks around the room. Vanilla daintily sits on his bed,

“Yeah.”

“I like that heart pillow, it’s so cute. Oh! You have a heart clock too? That’s adorable! I like the pastel goth thing you’ve got going on here, that’s awesome. This is so cool, Vans.” Tippy smiles while holding one of Vanilla’s heart shaped pillows. Ice looks over at Tippy,

“Having fun?”

“Oh, sorry.” The blue haired boy puts the pillow down.

“You can sit down. I want to talk to you.” Vanilla sighs. Tip politely takes a seat next to Vanilla on his bed. “I might as well say these things. I don't know why... But..." Ice looks into Tippy's eyes. He wants to tell him I trust you. But the words fail him. "Yes… my real name is Ezekiel.” Ice points at Tippy and gives him a stern look, “What I tell you now, will never leave your lips. Capisce? Good.” 

TW: IMPLIED CHILDHOOD ABUSE. YOU CAN SKIP THIS PART IF YOU WANT TO!! THERE WILL BE OTHER RED TEXT AFTER IT ENDS SO YOU CAN CONTINUE!

Tippy gulps and waits for Vanilla to continue what he was going to say. Ice looks off in the distance,

“I grew up in an orphanage. I was told my parents didn’t want me so they dumped me off at an orphanage to get rid of me. I was a ‘defective child’ as my caretakers told me. Yes, Ezekiel is my name, but that is not the name I answer to. It is the name that was supposedly given to me by my parents… my birth parents.” Vanilla adjusts his sitting position a little, “Bad things happened at that place.” Ice gives Tip a sinister glare, “awful things… cruelty beyond your comprehension. Things no child should ever have to bear, nor bear witness to for that matter. I was one of those children.”

Tippy’s brows furrow with concern and fear of what Vanilla is telling him. The brunette continues,

“After... certain horrors have befallen me, and I lie there sobbing in grief… he appeared. My stand. I didn’t know what he was at first and I assumed he was just an imaginary friend." Vanilla looks at his bathroom door, not wanting to look at Tippy.

"I didn’t name him at first either. But ever since I was around 6 years old, I had him. He kept me happy, he kept me company, and most of all… he kept me safe.” Vanilla bows his head… He swallows hard, but remains stoic, “I had him gulp the people who have harmed me into the void, never to be seen again. However, I couldn’t do that all the time. I still had fear in my heart. Yet, I had a yearning to belong. I was treated poorly because of my sexuality. I was viciously bullied by my peers and even the adults around me. I pretended to be what they wanted, or I just wouldn’t express myself at all.” 

ABUSE MENTION PART IS OVER!!!

Ice rubs his neck and sighs with his eyes closed before continuing,

“You know… I had dreams before all this, right?”

“W…what did you want to do before this job, Vanilla?” Tippy asks with hesitation.

“I wanted to be a gymnast. No, I consider myself a gymnast already.” The brunette turns to him, “I would practice my stretches, jumps, flips, backflips, you name it. Yes, the torment from others was awful, but I figured, ‘I’m already an outcast. I might as well go all the way with it.’ So I started wearing leotards regularly. I started working out routinely as well. Nobody wanted to mess with a 6’8” full grown muscular man. Well… besides you apparently, Termite.” Vanilla Ice… smiles at Tippy. 

It’s not Tip’s mind playing tricks on zem, it’s not a smirk… but Vanilla actually gave zem a genuine warm smile. Ice continues,

“Oh. I forgot to mention what I brought you in here for. I got so caught up in my life story, I forgot to tell you why I don’t answer to ‘Ezekiel’ and why my preferred name is ‘Vanilla Ice’.” Vanilla looks up at the ceiling then closes his eyes. He inhales deeply, then exhales,

“I was going to be adopted once. There was a kind couple who were planning on adopting a child. I had a strong attachment to the woman who was preparing to be my mother. The couple would visit, and that woman was so kind to me. She would give me gifts and treats of all sorts… then one day it happened. That kind woman gave me something I have never tried before. It was ice cream. That was the first time I had ever eaten ice cream and…” Vanilla realizes he's showing too much emotion and clears his throat to speak calmly, “Pardon me. That was the first time I had eaten ice cream. I didn’t want to try any other flavor besides vanilla. I had that treat all over my face…” 

Tippy just listens to him, letting him take pauses.

“That woman thought it was so funny and cute that she decided to nickname me ‘vanilla ice cream’. I would always hear her call me ‘vanilla’ and it just stuck.” He speaks.

“But then one day… she didn’t come over. I waited for hours. She said she would see me again that day. She said she would bring more ice cream. She said I was coming home with them one day. I waited and waited… She never came back…” Vanilla’s clutches his fist, “I was told… she was murdered. She and her husband were brutally murdered. I didn’t get to be part of a big happy family. I was never adopted. I was kicked out when I became an adult and I lived on the streets… filthy, smelly… starving to death.” Ice hides his face in his hair, “But everything changed when I met Lord Dio. I needed this job to survive. I showed him what my stand could do and he loved it, and he loved me. He accepted me for who I am. He loved me for me. He encouraged me to be myself. He was my first…” Ice touches his own chest, feeling his heart pound,

“Lord Dio. In exchange for giving me a lavish place to stay, hot meals to eat, clean water to drink, a place to bathe and sleep. I would give him everything I have to offer. My life, my body, my will. Lord Dio… my love. I work as his most loyal and favorite servant for love. I do everything he says without hesitation. I trust him with my full being…” Vanilla explains with a dreamy sigh.

He turns towards Tippy and speaks quietly and calmly, “Well… there you have it, Termite. Remember, let none of this leave those lips of yours.”

“Y-you got it, Vans.” Tippy nods and looks up into his eyes, “Hey… I could, um… I could help you with things around the mansion. Consider this a truce.” He holds out his right hand. Vanilla shakes it gently. Tippy's hand is so small and fragile compared to mine... I suppose that's why Lord Dio wanted me of all his servants to protect him.

“Hmhm… you’ve got yourself a truce, Tip.” Vanilla’s lips curl up into a slight smile.

“Tip?”

“What? Am I not allowed to call you nicknames other than Termite?” Ice teases. 

The two gentlemen end up talking all night. Vanilla walks Tippy back to his room.

“Hey,” Tippy holds the bedroom door open.

“Yes?” Vanilla looks back at him.

“Goodnight… Vanilla Ice.” Tippy smiles warmly. There it is again… that funny cotton ball feeling in the pit of my stomach. Vanilla blushes a bit and stammers,

“G-...goodnight… Tippy.” 

To be continued…

[i-cast-teatus-deletus]

Re cars: This is something I've only passingly thought about so far and I am SO grateful you brought it up.

We have sort of the opposite issue of you and Large Bastard: I am the tallest at 173cm/5'8", and our guys getting teats deleted are 168cm/5'6" and 152 cm/5'0".

We have multiple cars available, loosely falling into "low-ish 4-door sedan," which I can drive but are not super comfortable for me, and "small-ish 4-seat SUV". The SUV is a slam dunk for taking the taller one to and from, but I am unsure what to do about the smaller one if I drive. I suspect the lower car would be easier for him, but if I drive it will for SURE not be easier for me. This will require some thought, luckily we have time.

Re hotel room: I had been debating getting a hotel room, probably the closest suite-style place to wherever the surgery is being done, for maybe the day night before (to make getting there on time easier since I don't need to be psychic to know our wake-up time is going to completely incompatible with my second shift work schedule and 4am work night bedtime and literally anything to make that morning less awful will be to all our benefits) and maybe a day or two after anyway. The logic here prior to reading how hard that drive can be on anesthesia is that one of them is in the bedroom furthest from the bathroom—like, opposite end of the house furthest—and while walking is good, I was worried that might be too difficult for a day or two after. The other option is dislodge EVERYONE to give the person recovering the closest bedroom, which sounds like a bad time.

It'd increase sleeping space, too. One of them sleeps alone in a queen-size bed, so no problem there, but the other shares a (split) king with me. If we get a hotel room, they could have 1-3 days with a full or queen bed to themselves (and so could I, though hotel beds are usually WAY too soft and I end up with my back and neck messed up.)

The other logic is the cats, the SMALLER of which is about 8 kg/17ish lbs and the other is still getting bigger every single day and is threatening to be like 14kg fully grown. They are significantly more motile than a dog, and I am concerned they will be a problem the first day or two. Not that they would deliberately hurt anyone, but they are used to being able to jump up on anyone they please at any time.

If we have a close-after followup (like 3-4 days) I may just cave and do that and go home after the followup appointment, but we'll see. I will admit that I am not extremely excited about that idea, but I'm unsure if it makes sense to drive back out twice if it's close together.

It's hard because I've had major surgery as an adult, but it's 15+ years in the past, and I don't remember the drive home being all that bad, but I lived like 20ish minutes from the hospital on rural back roads, not 90+ minutes of highway driving.

ALSO, thank for the advice on open heart surgery. It'll be nice to look at something besides mastectomy resources because genuinely, reading blog posts from cis women who had mastectomies for cancer is like THE worst part of this whole thing.

[fourseasonsfigs]

Madame Tussaud's (Handcrafted)

These delightful little figures represent figures of another kind - wax ones!

The inspiration for these figs is the March 3, 2023 unveiling of Gong Jun's wax statue at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in Shanghai.

Rumor has it that Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan both were scheduled to have wax figures on display at Madame Tussaud's. Perhaps in the future they can be there together.

In the meantime, I have them here in miniature fig form, looking as sweet as can be.

These figs originally started off their life as keychains. Or ornaments, I guess. I saw them pop up as ready-to-purchase items in my favorite ultra-light clay artist's store, and I was so charmed by them I had to bring them home.

This is my warehouse picture - I had to show this one off, because I thought it was utterly cute that the warehouse photographer put them right up against each other, even though they had the entire area to display them on.

The very last thing I would ever do is use these figs as keychains, of course. Not only do have a million and one Junzhe and Wenzhou keychains already (anyone need any? I will literally send you one in a padded envelope, you can just message me an address and your style preference and I will immediately drop one in the mail to you). Plus, the first time I got a ding or scuff on on one I would be terribly distressed. Nope, I planned from the start to convert these into figs on stands.

And here they are! Junjun is wearing his suit that he wore to the unveiling, and Zhehan is wearing the suit that the wax statue of Gong Jun is wearing. There's some thought among fans in China that they might have worn the same suits for the statue.

I just pulled out the hook on top of their heads that was holding the keychain loop, and glued their little tiny feet to a standee. There was no way that they would stand up on their own, unfortunately.

They are adorable. Their poses are really too wonderful - relaxed and elegant in the cutest chibi way!

You can see just how small their little feet are - they were really not meant to stand! That being said, with the glue they do stand just fine.

I love how she did their hair - we have Gong Jun's black hair with the higher volume up top (my favorite look on him!) and Zhehan with more brownish hair.

Not too much to see from this angle - the white suits are beautiful, but fairly plain on the back.

You can see the size difference here pretty well, with Gong Jun just slightly taller than Zhehan.

So debonair! Their little profiles are just adorable.

And we're back around! Please notice the hearts in their eyes, and the Wenzhou eye colors of blue for Zhehan and the sort of a maroon for Junjun.

Their little smiles are just too charming!

Their little feet! These figs are small, probably because they are meant to be keychains. A standard fig is generally anywhere around 8-10 cm. These measure around 5 cm.

You can see here where there's little divots in their head from where I pulled out the hanging hook. I was able to slowly work Junjun's out, but for Zhehan I had to use a pliers to get enough of a grip on it to get it out. I was worried it might damage the head, but actually the ultra-light clay seemed to self-heal a bit. I'm really pleased how it turned out. Worse came to worse, I was just going to leave the loops in and let them dangle down the back of the fig, but I like this better.

If I ever make it out to Shanghai, Madame Tussaud's will be definitely be a stop on the itinerary!

Material: Ultra-light clay

Fig Count: 450

Scene Count: 30

Rating: Tiny and perfect!

[link back to Master Fig Index for more posts]