#I imagine it will be even more frustrating to do as the game updates with more dialogue because like. I cannot think of a way to keep up

[rinmemesuoka]

got tired of waiting for nexus moderators to approve the dialogue half of that butch march mod and just opened the dialogue json in notepad++ to edit it myself.

[devosin]

000.5. "dressed for grief"

— THE CONCUBINE GAME !! Y/N L/N, the newly crowned Emperor takes the court by storm—after dethroning their father, who at the end of his reign almost led his empire to a downfall—Now, Y/n must deal with the after affects of their father's reign and stabilize the Empire . . starting by . . taking in Concubine's? . . stay tuned to see what this new Emperor has planned!!

♡. Spotify playlist | Updates, twice a month !! — twst cast x reader | 1.1k words . .

“Hold still”, Yuuken says as he rubs some more powder on your face, “we need to make you look pale, sickly”, he adds, as he brushes some blush underneath your eyes blending it out with his finger, adding a very teary effect. 

“Feeling very attractive right now”, you say monotonically, sarcasm lining your words, as your eyes remain closed, Yuuken rolls his eyes and he swears It would’ve gone to the back of his skull by now, with how you've been behaving for the past hour, as he prepped you, gave you what can only be described as media training in modern terms.  

“It’s still not right”, he mumbles under his breath, massacring his pile of makeup, because yes, he does where makeup, he needs his complexion to be up to par, although he’d never admit that because you and Yuuka make fun of him for unpractical reasons a little too much, and he’s a little embarrassed of it. 

“Wow okay . .  Feeling very loved right now”, you mumble playfully, and you can just imagine the way Yuuken backs away, “No . . Not like that—you know what I meant—”, he says in frustration, “Why is it so hard to make you look fucking sad?!?”, he says out loud this time, “It’s usually fucking easy”,  . . . “You do this on a regular basis?”. 

There was a moment of silence between you both, before he replied, “These tear ducts don’t come naturally honey, it’s tired-chic.”

There was a pause between you too, before you replied, “Alright.” 

Time: 11:49 am Setting: Side palace, Y/n’s current room. 

Yuuka knocks on the door to your room, “Yuuken, I got the rags—clothes you wanted”, she quickly corrected herself, as she entered your room without bothering to wait for someone to open the door first or allow her in the room. 

“I’m not wearing that”, you quickly say as you finally sit up after what felt like hours, “C’mon, we need the ministers to see you looking distraught, I don't want father killer rumors going around early in your reign”, Yuuken says, grasping your shoulders, looking a tinsy bit worried and you could finally notice the uneasy radiating off of him. 

You purse your lips shut, “It’s fine, he was half dead anyway”, you mumbled softly, after a few seconds of silence you added, “He died in the throne room, on his throne, where he spend his lifetime, just like he wanted.”, and you hated the look of pity he directed towards you, goddamn Yuuken and his overcompensating care. 

Yuuka buds in, considering the heavy atmosphere, she chuckles softly, “You look great”, the words knock you and Yuuken out of your trance, you stayed silent for a moment but a ghost of a smile takes over you features, “They’re not supposed to look good, they’re supposed to be sad . .  Damnit”, Yuuken dramatically falls to the ground in frustration and Yuuka just laughs, walking up to you, “Let me fix it”, she says, sitting you back down on that goddamn stool again, you felt like a doll, those porcelain dolls that they sell at the pawnshop at the corner of Town square.  

Yuuka, grabbed some make-up, carelessly, as one of her hands held your chin up, her hands were rough, but warm, “close your eyes”, and you do without complaint, didn’t bother adding a snide remark or complaint like you did with Yuuken moments prior, she rubbed something on your eyes, you couldn’t really tell If it was mascara or eyeliner. 

Then she licked her thumb, wetting it before smudging the makeup on your face even more carelessly, smudging, rubbing, before she stopped, “Perfect”, she announces, and your face drops slightly as she let go of your chin, “That was gross”, you mumble trying to ease the weird uncomfortable and warm nerves she set off, “but effective, you look sad now”, Yuuken adds in, making his presence known. “Why can’t I just look happy, everyone wanted that fucker dead”, you mumble, even though you know the answer, he didn’t reply, probably deeming your words not necessary of a response. 

Time: 3:46pm Setting: Outside the Emperor’s Study, Main palace.

Yuuka straightens her posture when she hears footsteps, looking all the posed guard she was supposed to be, only to slump back when she realizes it's another maid, too much in a hurry to note how much she was slacking. She sighed, leaning back against the door, trying her best to hear the conversation going on inside. 

It was a difficult task, considering how thick the palace walls were, including the doors. 

The court officials, and certain key players in the aristocracy were in the room discussing with y/n about their coronation and a bunch of other power dynamics and governmental shit she didn't really bother studying when she was younger—She's starting to regret that now—she leans further into the thick oak doors, trying to hear anything she could . . 

‘Nothing—Goddamn it’, her hands clenched into fists, as she let out a groan of frustration. . when the door opens, Yuuken exits the room.  

Yuuka approached him immediately, her hands on his shoulders, “Got anything useful?”, “Where to start”, he responded with an exasperated sigh, “I swear their making me age ten times faster”, he added, “So that’s why I’ve been seeing more wrinkles—”, “What wrinkles?”, she chuckled, “kidding, don’t be such a killjoy”. 

Yuuken leaned against the wall, “So, first of all they moved up the date for Y/n’s Coronation, which means so much more paperwork”, he sighs dramatically, and Yuuka can almost see the pain and anguish in his eyes, “so so so much more work.”   

“Don’t you have people who work with you”, “Incompetent motherfuckers who can’t even write properly” . . “Okay . . this feels like a problem of your own making.”, Yuuka pointed out smoothly as she stretched her arms, “Got anything else?—besides your impending workload?”, she asks. 

“Well . . the ministers were asking how y/n plans on dealing with what’s left of the empire after their father’s rule, like trade relationships with nearby countries, and well . .  a lot . . I zoned out after they mentioned taking in Concubines.”

“Excuse me?” Yuuka starts, and Yuuken just sighs and nods, “They’re going to start a harem?”, she asks and he nods again, “What. The. Fuck.”, she says finally standing upright, “You've got to be fucking kidding me, they can’t even take care of themselves, you’re telling me they’re going to handle a harem, please.” She adds quickly, rubbing her temple in frustration, “Maybe I should go in and slap the shit out of them . .  Knock some sense in that noggin you know?” 

“That’s treason”, “Is it?”

— taglist ♡ ; @ravenlking , @oogly-oogly , @corvids-treasure-box , @queerlordsimon , @syl-lithy , @vamprel , @sarah22447 , @nerdy-simp-7120 , @islander-posts , @the-dumber-scaramouche , @lunavixia , @senpaiofotome , @sophiethewitch1 , @voasprofile , @dotster001 , @eriislost , @twst-writer , @the-fox-of-the-eclipse , @achy-boo , @despairingy-obsessed , @mirai-in-the-headspace , @novaloptr , @silvery-stars-above , @alby-rei , @shionin , @shan-jia-mo-li , @phiikichi , @xmoogx , @celestisnothere , @fluffimemes , @sketchy-owl , @mscarterakaviola98 , @batknot , @lemonmoonmochi , @thespiderinyourroom , @gl00muraaii , @probablynoposts , @a-z-rie-l , @kyxmlii , @warcelia , @leifsclubroom , @entropyensues , @rhyzoma , @ghostlysyntaxed , @busy-dadzawa-fish , @iris-arcadia ,

♡ . Ask to be tagged...

Yuuken probably has costume jewelry too . . Men wearing make-up core, we love to see it. Yes he wears a corset, fight me.

Lowkey after finishing writing, Yuuka, Yuuken, and Y/n's friendship feels like those meme's of like "Two girls one guy friendships <333", because that is exactly what it is.

Can you feel the subtle gayness from Yuuka & Y/n, i'm trying so hard to be subtle about it, but like UGH, I have this vision for the two of them, yes this is primarily because I'm a Yuuka lover, sue me.

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© devosin , do not repost, plagiarize, translate, or adapt my work without prior permission and or confirmation.

[justauthoring]

Sleepless Nights Aided by You.

Summary: It's hard to sleep when surrounded by the threat of death. But Dae-ho makes it bearable, even if only a little.

Pairing: Kang Dae-ho x F!Reader

Word Count: 1,529

A/N: LOL, hey guys, I did not think I'd be posting this but I've been obsessed with Squid Game and specifically Dae-ho. I thought I'd break my own writing haitus to give you guys this little fluff piece. I'll post a little update about the status of my Tumblr soon, but for now, enjoy this :P

(Also, to everyone who sent me a message after my update post, thank you <3 Know that I did see them and read them and I appreciate all of you!)

It's been nights of this and the sleeping never gets easier.

You'd have thought that despite everything, the exhaustion would override the racing thoughts. Surely, forced to participate in gruelling and sometimes physically challenging games with the constant threat of death weighing over you and being underfed that the sleep would come naturally.

But you've always been a lousy sleeper; before all this, before the games, you'd spend nights staring up at the ceiling of your worn down, small apartment stuck in your thoughts. Even as a little girl with the carelessness and naivety that came with being young, sleep wasn't something that came easy to you.

So, really, you shouldn't be surprised that in that suffocating and prison-like room, you wouldn't be able to sleep now either. It was beyond just the games itself - with each passing day, it became abundantly clear that there were more people you couldn't trust than those you could.

The blue 'X' patch on your sweater was enough of a reason to make you a target to some. Being a woman was another. The large piggy bank that carried the sum of those already dead was of course probably the biggest reason. Among the many other things you'd come to learn about the people you'd been trapped with.

You were lucky enough to have found yourself a group of people that took you in and it wasn't that you necessarily didn't trust him. Befriending a previous winner of the games had been something you'd been unsure of before, but Gi-hun had really only shown the best intentions of trying to help as many people survive as he could.

It wasn't just him. Seeing a group of men so willingly take in a pregnant woman and doing the utmost to protect her had been enough of a reason for you to trust them.

Everything else that had ocurred was beyond what you could've imagined in a place like this. In the midst of the games and the constant disappointment of voting, they'd made you realize that there was still reason to fight and most importantly, smile when you could.

(And most of all, a certain someone had made all of this just that bit more bearable.)

You did trust them. Gi-hun's plan to set up a barrier around where you all slept was smart and having people take turns watching had proven to only be further effective.

It still didn't mean that it made it any easier to sleep.

Letting out a huff, you rub at your eyes, frustrated with your inability to even sleep for a little bit. You were getting to your wits-end with exhaustion and it was certainly going to start impacting how you performed in the games. Being sloppy and tired wouldn't just mean losing, it would mean death.

You roll over to your side, facing towards your group and the direction that allowed you to see who was keeping watch currently.

When you saw the familiar numbers of '388', your decision was made.

Figuring that tossing and turning in bed wasn't doing you any good regardless, you crawled out of bed. Careful of Jun-hee who was beside you and tip-toeing your way around Young-il, you step in behind Dae-ho. Alert as he is, he jumps faintly at the sound of you, easing the second he realizes it's just you.

His lips curve into a soft smile but the confusion is plain in his eyes as you take a seat next to him.

"Are you okay?" He asks, voice soft so as not to wake up the others.

You nod with a tired smile. "Yes," you assure with a light bow. "I couldn't sleep. I saw it was you keeping watch so I thought I'd come and keep you company."

Dae-ho's face falls with understanding. "Oh," he mumbles, "I heard you tossing and turning."

Flushing faintly, you bite your lip. You hadn't realized you'd been so obvious in your struggle. "I'm sorry if it was distracting... Hopefully I didn't wake anyone up." You glance back the sleeping bodies of your friends, frowning.

"No, no," Dae-ho shakes his head, waving his hands at you. "I was more worried. It doesn't seem like you've been sleeping well since we got here."

Blinking, you turn to him. You didn't realize he'd been paying attention enough to notice. But really, you shouldn't be surprised - over the course of the games, Dae-ho had proven time and time again that he was at the very least paying attention. From reassuring you with jokes and smiles to encouraging you during the games, it was clear Dae-ho cared enough to pay attention.

"A little," you admit with a small shrug. "I know I should sleep but I can't get rid of this... nervous feeling. It's something about this place. I never feel safe."

Shoulders falling, you glance down at your lap, fiddling with your fingers. It was impossible to deny how terrified you were. It wasn't hard to see everyone was terrified, but you couldn't shake the constant nagging weight on your shoulders that every breath might be your last.

It was driving you crazy.

A hand falls on your shoulder, soft and gentle, and you turn to Dae-ho in surprise.

"I won't let anything happen to you."

It's such a simple thing, really. The words themselves hold little weight, but the way Dae-ho looks at you tells you he really means it. There's a determined glint to his eyes and though his face remains warm, the usual goofy smile he keeps on for the sake of trying to stay positive is replaced with certainty.

In a place like this, you didn't make a promise like that without meaning it.

Not to mention, over the few short days you've gotten to know Dae-ho, you know he isn't the type of person to lie about something like this. The concern on his face is genuine and it warms your heart in a way you thought impossible in a place like this.

The you who had thought it foolish to trust people at the beginning was long gone and you could no longer ignore the way something like that coming from Dae-ho made you feel.

"Thank you," you whisper, biting your lip as you look up at him. As he lets his face ease into a warm smile, you shake your head. "I have no idea how you do it, Dae-ho."

Raising a brow, he pauses; "hm?"

"Stay so positive," you explain. "I feel like I'm falling apart at the seams but you still seem so strong. I know you're scared, how could you not be... But you don't let it bring you down."

This time it's his turn to be shocked. Lips parting, he meets your eyes. "I am scared," he admits, nodding. "But I want to be strong... for-for everyone. For... you."

You're struck once again by his words, finding his words endearing and heart-warming all the same. You trusted all your friends, but it was foolish to say that Dae-ho wasn't the one you'd felt most safe around. From the first moment you'd met him, he'd made sure to help you survive. From simple encouragement to physically making sure no one bothered you.

It's why you chose to sit with him when you saw he was keeping watch. You find yourself naturally gravitating towards his presence and warmth and maybe it's selfish, but he doesn't seem to mind you relying on him all that much.

Swallowing thickly, you shift closer to him, moving so you're pressed against his side. His face shifts at the action, surprised, cheeks warming lightly as he moves to make space for you. The arm that had been pressed against his side moves to rest behind you, tucking you into his side.

"I do feel safe with you," you assure, nodding at him. "You make it easier to be here, even if only a little. When I'm with you... I feel like I can breathe."

A moment of silence passes, the two of you enamoured with one another before Dae-ho speaks up. "You... You can sleep here; if-if you want. I have watch until morning, I won't go anywhere."

Meeting his eyes, you notice then the way your eyelids have grown heavy. You'd been exhuasted before but in that moment it does feel as if you'd actually be able to close your eyes and fall asleep.

The nagging feeling eating away at your chest with the overwhelming threat of death wasn't gone, but it had... subdued since sitting with Dae-ho.

"You don't mind?" You ask him.

He shakes his head. "Of course not."

"Okay," you agree, turning so you're facing forward. With only the briefest moment of hesitancy, you let your head fall against his shoulder, leaning into him and letting some of your weight fall onto him. Dae-ho's arm moves to wrap around your waist instead of resting behind you, helping keeping you supported.

"Wake me if you get uncomfortable," you whisper, already feeling the sleep set in.

Dae-ho nods, but you both know he'd never do that. Not if it meant you could get some rest and stay by his side.

[mikkies]

「 EVEN IN THIS SICK "GAME", YOU'RE ALWAYS MY PRIORITY. 」

Elliot x GN! Spouse! Reader

warnings: none!

notes: I'm pretty disappointed with the huge and massive nerf Elliot got in this new update. They should bring it back man.. Also with Noob too! They nerfed my mains to the ground 💔

➹ — Before Forsaken

THE FAMILIAR HUM of the pizza oven filled the small pizzeria as you leaned against the counter, watching Elliot expertly toss dough into the air.

His red visor was slightly askew, and flour dusted his red polo, but he looked every bit like he was in his element.

“Are you ever going to take a break?” you asked, smirking as he caught the dough and began spreading sauce with quick, practiced movements.

“Breaks are for quitters,” he replied, glancing at you with a grin. “And I’ve got a reputation to uphold.”

You rolled your eyes but couldn’t help smiling.

Elliot was nothing if not determined, a trait that had drawn you to him in the first place.

It was his endless energy and unwavering kindness that had made you fall for him—and eventually say yes when he proposed over a heart-shaped pizza.

“Fine,” you said, grabbing a tray of freshly cut toppings. “At least let me help.”

“You? Help?” he teased, dodging the handful of mushrooms you threw his way.

Laughter echoed through the kitchen, a sound that had become a staple in your relationship.

Life was simple but fulfilling, filled with late-night deliveries, shared slices of pizza, and the occasional flour fight that left the kitchen—and both of you—an absolute mess.

You couldn’t imagine anything disrupting your perfect little world.

➹ — During Forsaken

THE ONCE-VIBRANT glow of the pizzeria was replaced by the dim, eerie light of the forest.

The cabin you shared with Elliot was small but comforting, a rare safe haven in the chaotic game you were trapped in.

Elliot sat on the bed, balancing a tray of pizza slices on his lap.

The faded red visor he wore looked out of place against the rough-hewn wooden walls, but it was a constant reminder of the role he’d been forced into.

“You’re quiet,” you said softly, sitting beside him.

“Just thinking,” he replied, handing you a slice. “This is all I’m good for now. Healing people with pizza.”

“And you’re amazing at it,” you reassured him, taking a bite.

He sighed, running a hand through his yellow hair. “I hate it, though.

Watching you run into danger, knowing all I can do is wait until you come back and patch you up. It’s not enough.”

“Elliot, stop,” you said firmly, placing your hand over his. “You’re not just healing me—you’re keeping me alive. You’re keeping us alive.”

He looked at you, his brown eyes filled with doubt. “But what if—”

“There are no what-ifs,” you interrupted, squeezing his hand. “You’re doing what you can, and that’s more than enough.”

Elliot’s shoulders relaxed slightly, but his frustration lingered. “It’d be nice if I could do more. Just once, I’d like to throw a punch or—”

“You know that’s not how it works,” you reminded him gently. “We all have our roles, and yours is one of the most important.”

He gave a reluctant nod, setting the tray aside and pulling you into his arms. “I just want you to be safe.”

“I know,” you murmured, resting your head against his chest. “And I feel safe, because I have you.”

Despite the horrors outside, you found solace in each other. In his warmth, his humor, and the way he’d save the best slices for you after every match.

And as the forest fell silent once more, you knew that no matter what came next, you’d face it together.

Because in a world where everything else was uncertain, your love for each other was unshakeable.

[evertidings]

— MARCH 2025.

Accomplishments.

What a month, huh? I glanced back at my update for February and wow, I really did not accomplish much in that month. In all fairness, I had a lot going on, but hey! That means my March update in comparison looks really good lol.

We’re already a third of the way through April by the time I’m writing this, so I’m a little late (when am I not, really?) but because of that, I can confidently say that the writing portion of Chapter 12 is nearly done! I was powering through it for most of March and now I’m slowly pushing through to the end; it’ll probably be done sometime this week, if everything goes well. After that comes editing, which is always the most frustrating part of doing this for me.

Because I’ve been working on this for so long, some of the chapter was written as early as October 2024, which, when you have my short-term memory, can be pretty bad. It’s kind of amusing when I stumble upon information that I already wrote at the beginning of the chapter, repeated again at the end because I forgot I mentioned it. That usually means more work for me though, since I have to cut it out and fill the empty space leftover, so you can imagine that I’m not very excited to start proofreading.

But, onto happier things. In terms of chapter content, I think this is the most RO-centric chapter I’ve ever written. I might have gone overboard, but there are three separate scenes with the RO of your choice. Some scenes are shorter than others, of course, but I’ve never fit so many in a chapter—it’s kind of exciting. It also makes sense since the romance lock is very soon (I may or may not have a chapter planned for it and am just keeping my lips locked), so I want you to have as much time possible with your potential choices. All of them are unique in their own way, though admittedly similar. Even so, I feel like they all make sense considering the content of the chapter and honestly, I doubt any of you will complain haha. They’re nice to have.

It’s a nice reprieve to the heaviness that Eliana brings to the chapter. I know she’s my character, but she’s honestly taken on a mind of her own and evolved so much throughout the writing process. My goal was to make her difficult to understand and, well, it seems like I successfully accomplished that. Aside from Sebastian, she’s probably been my favourite figurehead-like character to write. Her intrigue makes her so interesting, especially since she doesn’t like showing all her cards from the beginning. It’ll be a while until you’re able to put a finger on her character.

But, you’ll find that out soon! I know I said I wanted to put Chapter 12 out this month, and I could if I worked myself to the bone, but I think pushing it to Early May (first week or so) is best. In the past, I’ve given myself very little time to edit and code the chapter once it’s written out and it’s stressed me out a lot. For something that is supposed to be a hobby, I’m very harsh on myself with deadlines and I don’t think it’s fair for me to lose sleep over this, so, hopefully, you all understand. I’ll keep you all updated if I do manage to push the date up though and, of course, there’ll be an announcement once a date is official.

With that said, I hope you’re all taking care of yourselves and have a wonderful April!

Stats.

Chapter Total: 55,738 words (+14,113)

Game Total: ~567,170

[bonus-links]

rereading with the latest update to get caught up, and now I know its an option I am desperate for director's commentary on Ruins pt7, if you're willing, please

(Also I first started reading this before taking sign langauge classes, and while I am learning a different SL to ASL/whatever Slate is using, some things translate well. Which is to say I was very excited seeing Loft use thank you and other small signs, or recognising Slate's signs. Its very cool!)

OH AN OLDIE yeah sure!! i will do my best to remember wtf i was on about lol

first of all. this was posted in 2023. what do u mean it's 2025 and im only on ch2. explodes. ANYWAY.

I'm still proud of myself this this panel thing w the arrow lol where it's both coming towards the octorok and has already gone through it. this is something that didn't rlly end up making it into the final product but I don't think Slate actually makes a habit of just killing monsters willy nilly. I don't see him hunting down every monster in Hyrule after the calamity ends. He kills this octorok bc they antagonize the horses but also because. I needed an excuse for his bow to already be out HAHA

I have complicated feelings about the yiga and what their lore implies lol but for Slate's part, he has personal beef with them on account of how many times they're tried and nearly succeeded in killing him. I like to imagine the Yiga as both deeply goofy and also a serious threat at the same time lol, which i think sums up how Slate feels about them.

I did however want to take this opportunity to show his capacity to be a brutal fighter, the same way Loft is in the opening of ch1. Actually the idea for this scene even came about because in my own late-stage game I kept getting attacked by a blademaster literally every 2 feet in certain regions, and I was getting so frustrated by it I just started obliterating them with ancient arrows 💀 Slate using way more arrows than necessary was a nod to that. idk maybe this guy lived lol

this scene was also to spur comparisons between Slate and Loft's experiences. Loft is brutal with monsters, but he's never killed a human being. Realizing that the Yiga aren't monsters shocks him.

this is a failure of my own paneling bc I didn't have enough room on the page and refused to add another, but Loft is hallucinating this guardian being active. all the guardians are inactive since defeating the calamity. actually what I should have done was add a red targeting line that then disappeared in the next panel. MAN.

alright and probably what you actually wanted commentary on, first Champion sighting! The first time Slate actually sees Champion is at the end of ch1, so if you're wondering if Slate knows he's there in this scene, the answer is no. I think rather than following Slate around all along, Champion has spent most of his time just sort of. barely existing here at Fort Hateno, or sitting with the master sword. He's not exactly like the ghosts of the other champions, or King Rhoam. sorry buddy :-(

i do have a bonus comic the works re: ghost lore that I will hopefully finish. someday so I think that might answer some questions ppl have. and possibly introduce a few more. but on the whole I like to keep whatever's going on here a little ambiguous. like I said in this update's commentary, one part literal and one part metaphorical. maybe two parts metaphorical lol

I think that's all I got for this one!

[caffeinewitchcraft]

The Hero and Hope 4/5

Okaaaay, so there's 5 parts instead of 4! I realized that the last part was over 6k words, so we're splitting it into two! The last part will still be posted next Friday, so this will keep us on track!

Summary: The picnic has an uninvited guest that you're uniquely suited to greet.

-------

(part 1) (part 2) (part 3)

“Didn’t think I’d see anyone able to catch Marie,” the Lord says, brows raised. His golden eyes track Isla across the garden and he whistles when she jumps to tag his former knight. “That was not within the capabilities of a Villager.”

Ivan scans the crowd around them. Most of the townsfolk are too far away to eavesdrop and the ones close enough to potentially hear are engaged in their own conversations. “Careful, Brennan. If the Director hears you speculate…”

“Yes, the Director,” Lord Brennan sighs. He brings his teacup to his lips, but doesn’t drink. He contemplates Director Sarah where she crouches with a glass of water near Annie. “You know this is the first time we’ve met?”

It’d been a fight to get Sarah to agree to today at all. Ivan chooses his words carefully. “Your predecessor did not have the sort of…kind interest you do.”

The former Lord’s interest Sarah shared with them was a lot more horrifying. There’s a reason that Isla at only fifteen years old is the eldest at the orphanage.

“That’s one way to put it,” Lord Brennan agrees. He settles back into his seat and sighs in satisfaction. He watches the children gradually grow tired of their game and drift towards the dessert table. He grins when the townsfolk naturally make room for them, a few of them even fetching treats from the center of the table for the littler ones. “See my people together? It was very good of me to lure you and Marie to my territory.”

“You gave us a castle,” Ivan says. They weren’t so much lured as bludgeoned with generosity. Some days it feels like they blinked and ended up standing amongst fine silk and filigree.

“It’s a manor as far as paperwork goes,” Lord Brennan says.

“It has buttresses.”

“A very fortified manor.” Lord Brennan finally sips his tea and sighs again. “This tea is from our fields, isn’t it?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“It’s delicious.” The full canopies of the trees enveloping the estate rustle in the wind. The sun shines warmly overhead. Lord Brennan takes another drink. Delicious. “The land’s come a long way since we ousted my father, hasn’t it? Plentiful harvests, an established trade route, a new school. If it weren’t for the demons, my work would be done.”

“I would prefer you had no work then,” Ivan says dryly.

“Me too.” Lord Brennan sets his tea aside and rubs his eyes. “Any updates?”

“None,” Ivan admits, frustration leaking through his words. His face is still amiable and the disconnect between his tone and his visage is jarring. “We investigated the wolf tracks in the woods and only found carnage. No signs of the demons themselves.”

“So they are demons?”

“Regular wolves wouldn’t be able to evade a squadron of your knights, my lord.”

“Neither would demon wolves,” Lord Brennan says. He rubs his chin, brow furrowing. “I don’t like what that implies. Any sign of larger foes?”

Ivan doesn’t want to discuss this here. Marie’s eyes are on him, sensing his rising distress. He smiles and waves to her. “Besides the horned rabbit migration?”

“Is it a migration?”

“Isla saw five within the first four weeks of summer,” Ivan says.

The Lord’s attention falls on the teenager. She’s patiently letting one of the other children – Hera? The one who’d curtsied to him like a little noble – weave flowers into her braid. He tries to imagine her fighting a horned rabbit and his lips thin. “I’ll call for reinforcements from the capital.”

“Marie and I can—”

Lord Brennan waves Ivan off. “No, no, I’ve asked too much of you already. Aren’t the two of you too busy in your retirement already? I thought you’d be settled with a child by now.”

“It’s not good to rush these things,” Ivan says as he has the last three times Lord Brennan has asked. This time it’s Ivan who sighs. “It took Marie and I a good few months to win Director Sarah over after our misstep.”

“Asking about Destinies, was it?”

“Implying we’d value any child less for not being a knight like us,” Ivan corrects.

“There seem to be a lot of unusual Destinies in the orphanage,” Lord Brennan says. He’s not an Identifier but he’s got a good eye. Though no one can know for sure until a child either develops their mark or comes into their power at fifteen, he’s seen more than a few signs of a Scholar, a Guardian, and a Teacher. Once again he finds his gaze being drawn back to Isla. She’s got a child under each arm and is running from Marie again, the game having resumed after their snack break. “That one is a Guard, at least. Nobody else would have physical abilities like that.”

Ivan ignores the Lord’s comment. “It’s been worthwhile getting to know them all.” His smile turns a little more genuine. “They’re all good kids.”

“Surely you and Marie have an inkling of who’ll be a good fit?” When Ivan doesn’t reply, the Lord clicks his tongue. “You can’t choose all of them.”

Ivan’s voice is a study in nonchalance. “Can’t we?”

Lord Brennan opens his mouth only for no words to come out. At length, he has to laugh. His knights do like to keep busy. “You’d need a castle.”

“You did give us one, my lord.”

“I suppose I did.”

The two men lapse into a pleasant silence. It is good to see the townsfolk this cheerful. This town is the furthest from Lord Brennan’s own castle and he rarely has a chance to visit. The first time he had had been very different. The people still bore the wounds of winter in gouged cheeks and brittle smiles. Now he sees the glow of health everywhere he looks.

He contemplates the Director once again. She’d been the only one back then to not seem pleased to see him ride in on his white horse. Even now he can feel the chill of her scrutiny as she stood defensively between him and the orphanage. None of that chill is present today. Her smile is as sweet as his tea while she tends to a scrape the little Scholar sustained in this round of tag. “Ms. Sarah is very pretty, isn’t she?”

“I know we can’t adopt them all,” Ivan blurts out. He doesn’t seem to have heard Lord Brennan. His gaze is turned towards his own inner conflict which is why he also doesn’t notice the blush dusting the Lord’s cheeks. “It wouldn’t be fair to them. Marie and I decided to adopt a child who would benefit from what little we can offer. Military arts and luck.”

“I don’t think you’re being fair,” Lord Brennan says with raised brows. “You and Marie offer a lot more than a Knight’s experience. Haven’t you shown that already in your actions?” He’s not aware of everything his former knights have done, but he’s heard plenty from the children today. He didn’t think Marie had the patience to teach anyone how to read.

Ivan’s hands fist. “It’s not enough, it’s not—the little boy. Josiah. He’s so smart. I don’t even know where to start with him and even Marie says that he’ll soon outpace her—”

“Well,” Lord Brennan says, “Neither of you are Teachers, true, but there is a school for that--”

“And Annie wants to know why bread rises and why the sun sets and how many seconds are in a day—”

“All kids are curious—”

“Hera staged a whole theater production for my birthday and all we could do was clap—”

Is he missing something? “Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do?”

“We don’t know any actors or directors to introduce her to!” Ivan cries out. He quickly lowers his voice, but can’t hide the stress around his eyes. “What could we give to a child like her? Like any of them?  Marie and I are out of our depth. It would be so much simpler if one was a Knight!”

The Lord tentatively offers, “If Isla’s a Guard--?”

Ivan gives a cry of distress that he barely capture in the palm of his hand. “Isla! That girl feels like my daughter already, but…she’s been through so much. She doesn’t need a father who teaches her how to fight or a mother who teaches her how to withstand a siege! She deserves to never have to fight again. What could we offer her? What could we possibly give to her she hasn’t already learned on her own?”

A light goes on in the Lord’s head. He takes in the festivities with new eyes. The town’s Baker, Blacksmith, Teacher… His friends have invited every possible parent they could in hopes of providing for the children in ways they felt incapable of doing themselves. As noble as that was…��Ivan, being a parent goes beyond the skills you can give a child. It’s more than fostering talent or an offering an apprenticeship. It’s—”

A horse’s scream drowns out the Lord’s next words.

Ivan is in front of Lord Brennan with his sword drawn before the horses and their blood-splattered riders even round the side of the castle.

-----.

 You throw Annie and Josiah behind you the moment you hear the sound of hooves galloping towards the manor.

“Isla, what—” Josiah starts to ask and then cuts himself off as the innkeepers and their entourage burst into the party.

You smell blood before your eyes register the terrible red staining their fine clothing.

“ORCS!” Mr. Innkeeper screams over the frightened snorts of his horse. He stumbles down from his mount and staggers towards the Lord. “They overtook our carriage—please, my wife, she’s hurt—”

Mrs. Inkeeper is holding her side and seemingly barely holding onto the saddle horn. “Our guards won’t be enough to hold them off—”

“Inside,” Sarah hisses into your ear. She points after Hera who’s already shepherding the younger kids into the building. “Now.”

“—an army—”

“—fast—”

“—waiting for us—”

You move faster than you’ve allowed yourself since you arrived. This is no time to take care in hiding your abilities; there are roars coming from the forest unlike anything you’ve ever heard before. Your senses seem to dial up with your heartrate and you can hear the clash of steel against rock and flesh. You scoop Annie into your arms and leap after Josiah and Sarah.

Mr. Dallen’s face is pale as he ushers you all into the manor. He holds the door open for the townsfolk. The hall fills with the sounds of panic and sobs as fear washes through you like a tidal wave. There have never been orcs south of the mountains, there have never been demons bigger than a horned rabbit in the last twenty years, even when the Winter froze the river—

Mr. Dallen waves down Marie as she sprints to the large doorway. You think that he’s going to pull her inside to safety, but instead he thrusts her bow into her outstretched hands.

“Do not open these doors,” she commands. Behind her the knights are assembling into a formation, their Lord at the center. Ivan stands before them all, barking orders to ready their spears as the trees in front of them begin to sway. Marie pulls a dagger from under her skirts and slices the bottom half of her dress clean off. She kicks it away from her feet as she talks. “Take everyone to the basement—”

“Ma’am, the escape tunnel still isn’t cleared of debris—”

Marie swears so violently that half the townsfolk gasp. She grabs Mr. Dallen by the shoulder, her eyes flicking back and forth between him and her husband. “Then we will draw them away. The moment you think you can, run to the wagon. Get the children to—” She bites her lip. You can see the devastating truth flash through her mind. There isn’t anywhere to go. “Damnit. Bar the door and arm everyone you can.”

Mr. Dallen’s lips are bloodless as he nods. “My lady.”

Marie turns to everyone. Her voice is unlike anything you’ve heard come from her lips; it’s harsh and barking. A commander giving orders much like Ivan is doing outside. “Listen, everyone. We are in danger. Our best estimate is that 25 orcs are marching on the manor. There is no guarantee of survival. The moment this door is breached, it will mean the knights have failed. You must be prepared to fight. Do you understand?”

Twenty-five? Your hands ball into fists and your breath catches in your throat. You’ve heard of entire villages being wiped out by three.

“Then we’ll fight with the knights,” the Baker says. He pushes away from the center of the group and marches to the wall. He pulls down the crossed axes, keeps one, tosses the other to the Blacksmith. She catches it easily. “You’ll need everyone who can hold a weapon.”

Marie never voices her protest. You can see the strain of holding it back in her tense shoulders and her poignant silence. At long last, she nods. “You’re right. Stay behind the knights. They know how to handle the frontline better than you.”

There’s a flurry after that. The townsfolk divide in half. Those unable to fight slide back as those who can start scavenging for weapons. Mr. Dallen grimly pulls two long daggers from under his coat while pointing your neighbors to decorative swords, to ornamental spears, to the heavy coatrack just inside the parlor.

Grimly, you stride past Sarah, ignoring her hiss and darting hands. You can leave the weapons to the villagers, there’s a large knife on the dessert table you can use—

Marie slams a hand against your chest. You stagger back at the weight of the blow, breath knocked from your lungs. You’re more stunned than hurt as you gape at her.

“Children stay here,” Marie says. Her eyes narrow. “No exceptions.”

“But I’m—”

“We don’t have time to argue!” She pushes you further back, clearing the doorway for the armed villagers to run outside towards the knights. “You’re strong Isla, but this isn’t your fight. Stay here. Guard the door.”

The winter wind howls in your mind. You splutter. “But I—”

Marie spins away from you. “Director Sarah.”

Sarah’s arms slide around your shoulders. “Yes, lady.”

 The closing of the door feels like a blow in itself. You stare sightlessly at the unyielding wood as your emotions rage. How could she? You’re strong, you can do more, you can help, you’re the one who kept everyone from starving—

“We need to barricade the windows,” Director Sarah is saying to the townsfolk. Half of them gaze at her uncomprehendingly. Her hands slide from your shoulders slowly, as if testing that you aren’t going to leap outside. When you don’t move, she lets go entirely. “Isla, move the furniture. Hera and Josiah, find something to tie it down with.”

You move on autopilot. There are other hands alongside yours as you push the sofa and armchairs in front of the windows, the townsfolk coming together to defend the manor. Hera darts between you all and pulls the curtains closed, reclaiming the curtain ties to use as rope. She’s got a grim determination in her eyes that looks uncomfortably familiar.

Your attention is on the noise outside. The orcs are slow, but loud. The roars change to squeals and bellows of challenge. Branches break and there’s a terrifying, splintering crash as a tree falls. Metal rings as the knights raise their shields. You can see it all in your mind’s eye, the knights in a defensive line across the length of the garden, the Lord securely in their center. Ivan is shouting about this being what they’ve trained for, that there are more of them than there are orcs, that this city won’t fall—

And the Lord is speaking too, quickly and quietly to Marie. The escape tunnel? Damnit, I should have sent more men—

It will be fine, Marie says. Her bow sings as she holds it ready and you know the way her muscles flex and her eyes narrow from experience. We won’t let a single one of those monsters past us. We won’t--

The knights bellow alongside the orcs. Your heart leaps and your focus is jarred. You’re standing in front of the door again, your hands balled at your sides. Everyone can hear the battle now and the townsfolk scream when the orcs’ battle cries shake the manor.

“Quiet!” Is that your voice? It is. Your eyes slide to the frightened faces behind you. “You’ll distract the knights.”

Sarah steps up alongside you. “And let the orcs know exactly where we are.”

The villagers quiet into aborted whimpers and muffled sobs.

The battle rages, louder and louder. Are orcs big? They sound big. When you close your eyes you can hear the way their feet pummel the earth. Do they have weapons? Metal clashes. A knight screams that their hides are too thick. The Lord shouts back to aim for their eyes. A table splinters, a bow sings, there’s a liquid gasp—

BOOM!

You slam your hands against the door, muscles straining as another blow lands against it. The wood convulses under your hands and the lock creaks. The villagers scream.

“No,” someone whispers. “No, they found us.”

You’re eight and the snow spirits are howling for blood. Your shoulders ache with the effort to hold the door against the wind. The cold is biting at your fingertips and there is an old hope dying in your chest--

Small hands slam against the door next to yours. Hera is snarling and swearing, Josiah is crying. Sarah is telling the kids not to worry, Isla and Hera and Josiah won’t let them in –

They’re here. You’re not alone.

“GET AWAY FROM THERE!”

The orc’s bellow isn’t nearly as loud as Ivan’s roar.

The blow you’re bracing for never comes. Ivan goads the orc to follow him, to leave the manor alone, to eat the man readily available to him—

It does not sound like the knights are winning now.

“My Lord!” Marie’s voice is strained.

“Do not fall back, they’ll corner us—”

“Who is that? Who is—”

The crack under the door lights with a sickly purple. The smell of ozone seeps into the manor. For a moment there is a silence so complete you think you’ve been struck. What was that? Magic? You’ve never seen magic before--

Screams rocket across the field. The Blacksmith’s screams. The Baker’s screams. Marie’s rage-filled howls.

“DEMON KING!”

Your Destiny burns.

---.

(part 1) (part 2) (part 3)

----------------

Thanks for reading! If you'd like read the last part of Isla a week early, please consider supporting me on Patreon(X)!

[kiwriteswords]

My Funny Valentine [Aaron Hotchner x Female Reader]

Masterlist (not updated, sorry!)|| Ao3||Word Count: 1.9k|| AN: I have been binge-re-watching The Nanny for the first time since I was a teenager and got to the episode where Fran buys a billboard for Mr. Sheffield after thinking he was her secret admirer. I had to do this for Hotch and Reader!

Tags/Warnings: female reader, BAU reader, will they won't they relationship, Valentine's Day, mentions of Haley, mentions of a creepy police officer, based off an episode of The Nanny, fools in love.

Summary: Given your undeniable chemistry and attraction for one another, when an unsigned card with flowers and a teddy bear shows up on your desk, you assume it's from Hotch. After making a grand gesture for what you thought was in return, you both soon realize the truth.

Ever since you joined the BAU, your interactions with Hotch have been a mixture of professional respect and undeniable chemistry. Over the years, the flirty banter had evolved into a dance of “will they, won't they,” much to the entertainment--and sometimes frustration--of the team. 

Everyone could see the mutual attraction except, it seemed, the two of you.

Being Hotch's subordinate, you treaded carefully, harboring feelings you dared not confess, always secretly hoping he'd be the one to break the professional boundary.

You were younger--not inappropriately so (maybe just a little)...well, enough to make you question if this chemistry was all in your head. Enough questioning to allow these feelings to remain at a standstill--or at least until he broke first. 

This Valentine's Day seemed like any other day at the BAU, but when you arrived at your desk, you found a bouquet of pink carnations and a teddy bear holding a card. Your heart skipped a beat as you read the flirty message. 

"To the one who captures my thoughts as easily as she profiles unsubs. Happy Valentine's Day."

You couldn't help but think it was from Hotch. Carnations and a teddy bear? Not what you would have imagined Hotch picking out, but nonetheless, thoughtful. Unexpected. Thrilling. 

He was finally crossing that line drawn in the sand. The one you blurred and blurred but ultimately never swept away. 

Excitement bubbling up inside you, you rushed to share the news with Penelope Garcia, your go-to confidante for all things romantic and dramatic. The one who had been arguably rooting for you and Hotch more than anyone. 

Maybe it was the hopeless romantic in her, or maybe…just maybe, the proof was there in plain daylight with the way you and Hotch played your games with one another. Like a tennis match of back and forth--over and over. 

“My gosh,” Penelope squealed, looking at the card, “I mean…I can’t believe it. What are you going to do? What are you going to say!?” She leaned forward, capturing your arm, almost to steady her own excitement. 

“I want to do something for him…something nobody’s ever done for him before.” You thought carefully. 

Many would argue that you were…of the dramatic kind. Maybe that’s why you and Penelope got along so easily. Hotch would argue that you were dramatic the most. You often used it to your own advantage with him. 

You knew--although you’d both never admit it--you had Hotch wrapped around your finger so it was easy to use those puppy dog eyes when you didn’t feel like completing a case assignment or if you wanted the bigger room at the hotel. 

“You know,” Penelope pondered, “Now that I think of it,” She scrunched her face, “All of these years here, I’m not sure anyone’s ever left Hotch a Valentine. I mean…I gave him a pink fostered sugar cookie once, but even Haley…I don’t think there was anything here for him.” 

You smirked, raising an eyebrow, “He doesn’t seem like the type that’s going to like a velvet heart-shaped box filled with fruit-filled chocolates.” 

“That man is a closet sweet eater,” Penelope pointed at you, “But to your point, you’ve gotta do something…something grand. Something that will knock his argyle socks off.” 

You snorted, then really thought. Grand. Grand? What would be grand? Then it came to you. 

“I have the best idea.” 

The two of you giggled and brainstormed extravagant ideas to win Hotch's heart, finally settling on a grand gesture that no one could ignore--a billboard confession. You found the idea so wildly romantic, the perfect way to tell Hotch how you felt.

With Penelope's enthusiastic encouragement, you commissioned a billboard on Hotch's route home.

“Be My Valentine, Aaron Hotchner! Love your Y/N” 

However, as you prepared to leave work that evening, you received a call from the local police department asking if you enjoyed the flowers. Your stomach dropped as you recognized the voice--it was the overly friendly officer from your last case, the one Hotch had given a look to the entire time. 

The cheesy teddy bear. The cheap carnations. The corny card. None of that would be Hotch. You wanted to die. Crawl into a ball and die of embarrassment and stupidity, but not until after you got rid of that billboard!

Frantic, you rushed to find Rossi, Derek, and Spencer, blurting out your predicament and the mistake you’d made. They erupted into laughter but saw the urgency of the situation.

"We’ve got to get that billboard down before Hotch drives home!" you exclaimed, your face burning with embarrassment. You paced around the bullpen, looking up to Hotch’s office, then to them, then back up. You ran your hand over your face, stressed. 

Rossi, Spencer, and Derek gathered around you, each wearing an expression that meant business. Derek leaned against his car, arms crossed. "You know, you could just leave that billboard up. It's about time one of you made a move."

Rossi nodded, his wise eyes fixed on you. "We're all tired of the dance, kid. It's not just you suffering from all this uncertainty--Hotch is right there with you. You both need to take that leap."

Spencer chimed in, "Statistically, the likelihood of mutual feelings being reciprocated in situations like these is quite high. You might be pleasantly surprised."

You appreciated their support, but the thought of Hotch seeing the billboard without understanding the context terrified you. You grabbed your car keys and headed to the nearest hardware store. "I just need to fix this before it gets worse," you muttered more to yourself than to them.

At the hardware store, you picked up a bucket of paint and a roller, your hands trembling slightly at the thought of climbing up the billboard. Heights had never been your friend, but today, they seemed a lesser evil compared to the embarrassment of Hotch reading your unintended public declaration.

With the sun setting, you parked your car by the billboard and stared up at the looming structure. Steeling your nerves, you looked up toward the tall ladder that led to a ledge where the freshly painted billboard sat. You wished the service you paid earlier was available after hours to come and take down the work they had done so quickly. 

Each step up made your heart pound louder, but the fear of making a fool of yourself pushed you onward.

Once you reached the top, you positioned yourself to start painting, but a sudden wave of vertigo hit as you peered down. The can of paint slipped from your grip, tumbling down and splattering the ground below with white paint.

You looked up to the sky and raised your hands with defeat and tears forming in your eyes, “Is this some sick joke?!”

Climbing down was even harder, with your hands shaking and tears of frustration starting to blur your vision. Just as you reached the last few rungs, a pair of steady hands gently guided you down. You almost jumped out of your skin, only to turn and see Hotch, his face filled with concern.

"Hey, it's okay," he soothed, keeping his hands on your shoulders to steady you.

You took a deep breath, wiping away a stray tear, turning as you took your last step off the ladder. He steadied you on the last few steps down, his touch reassuring.

"I'm so sorry, Hotch. There’s been a huge misunderstanding," you began, your voice a mix of embarrassment and relief. "I thought those flowers and the teddy bear were from you, and Penelope and I--we…I just got carried away."

Hotch gave you a small, understanding smile. "Emily and JJ told me there was a surprise waiting for me on the freeway home. I left early to see what it was." The last thing you expected was Hotch’s calm voice breaking through your flustered apologies. 

Your heart sank, imagining what he must have thought seeing that message. "I was trying to cover it up before you could see it. I didn’t want you to find out like this." You gestured up to the brightly colored billboard with what felt like the most embarrassing thing in the world displayed for everyone and their mother to see. 

“You don’t need to apologize for anything,” His gaze softened as he looked up at the message, then back to you. "I saw the billboard," he admitted a hint of awe in his voice. "Nobody has ever done anything quite like that for me. It was...unexpected, certainly, but kind in a way only you could manage."

Your heart fluttered, surprise etching across your features. "You liked it?" you asked, voice barely above a whisper, unsure if your ears were playing tricks on you.

"I loved it," he corrected gently, his hands still resting lightly on your shoulders. "You have a knack for the dramatic, but it’s one of the many reasons I..." His voice trailed off, and he hesitated, his eyes searching yours for a reaction. The pause was palpable, every second stretching longer than the last until finally, he continued, "It’s one of the many reasons I love you."

The world seemed to stop spinning as his words hung in the air. "You love me?" you repeated, your voice a mix of hope and disbelief. Hotch reached up to brush a stray hair out of your face, tucking it behind your ear. His hand lingered, cupping your cheek gently. Your hand reached up to cover his, leaning into his touch. 

Hotch nodded, a soft chuckle escaping him, as if it was common knowledge, like you should already know it--or maybe he realized he should have already said it. 

"Yes, I do. And I think it’s about time I said it."

Emotions swirled within you--relief, joy, and a love that had been quietly simmering for too long. It all bubbled to the surface as you stepped closer, reducing the space between you. "I love you too, Hotch," you confessed, your voice steady with conviction.

His smile was all the encouragement you needed. You both leaned in and under the soft glow of the streetlights and the shadow of the billboard, your lips met in a kiss that sealed the confessions of the day. The kiss was gentle at first, exploratory as if both of you were still gauging the reality of the moment. But as certainty took over, it deepened, affirming the years of unspoken feelings and flirtatious banter.

As you both pulled away, Hotch's eyes twinkled with a mixture of contentment and mischief. "Next time," he said with a playful grin, "I'll be the one buying flowers; you’ll know they’re from me. I wouldn’t dare buy you carnations, and they won’t come with a cheap teddy bear."

Your laughter filled the air, light and free, as you both made your way back to your cars, the billboard forgotten but its message now etched in both your hearts.

The next morning, as you walked into the BAU, you stood surprised. There, on your desk, stood two dozen long-stem roses in a vase, their crimson petals vibrant against the mundane backdrop of your office. Attached to the vase was a card, Hotch’s neat handwriting spelling out a message that was both flirty and utterly him: 

"For the record, I prefer dramatic gestures that involve flowers on days other than just February 14th. Here’s to many more, just the way we like them. --A."

The smile that spread across your face lingered long into the day, as did the warmth in your heart, knowing the dance of “will they, won't they” had transformed into a harmonious “finally, we did.”

Tag List: @zaddyhotch @estragos @todorokishoe24 @looking1016  @khxna @rousethemouse @averyhotchner @reidfile @bernelflo @lover-of-books-and-tea @frickin-bats @sleepysongbirdsings @justyourusualash @person-005 @iyskgd @hiireadstuff @kcch-ns @alexxavicry @superlegend216

[goodoldfashionedengineer]

Idea: Apocalypse Averted AU, Five gets his paper work updated and is officially his age of 58. Luther suggests they could all go to Vegas for the weekend now that Five can't be thrown out for being a minor.

Five is surprised by the suggestion but then Luther is saying "Well I'm sure you could win a lot of money by counting cards, you could probably pick it up real quick, knowing you". And well, he loves a challenge. And there's alcohol. So why not

Diego joins too because no way will he be lamer than Luther and Allison goes with them, officially because "You idiots can't be left alone in Vegas" but actually she just wants to see how it goes.

(more under the cut, this got kinda long)

Klaus has had enough of bright colors and loud noises for a while, the club was already enough, he doesn't need another flashback, thank you very much

Viktor also stays because his hearing is so sensitive now and it'd be hell he imagines

So the first group goes to Vegas, at first it's fun, even if some of them won't admit it. They drive limousine, have some fancy drinks, explore the Las Vegas strip, go to some restaurants.

And then they actually go to a casino and all hell breaks loose.

Diego had been studying a gambling book and Luther had bet $10 on roulette and won. Diego urged him to go again, it's a 50/50 chance anyway.

Luther did and-

-lost.

Luther gets up at Diego about it and Five says "Of course you shouldn't have listened to him, it's Diego"

Then they get into a fight with each other and get kicked out of that casino.

Allison then banned them from games involving actual people for the next hour.

They go to the slot machines a bit and Luther accidentally rips off the handle of one of them.

Overall, they lose A LOT

Five tries a virtual Blackjack game loses twice, then wins, almost cashes out, before he thinks 'I am in a flow right now and the winnings wouldn't even out my losses right now' and goes again.

He loses and screams at the thing

Meanwhile Diego found one that has a mini Jackpot and a Big Jackpot (why are there two Jackpots?!!) and right as he put money in, he broke the mini jackpot. Then he saw the Big Jackpot is almost at its limit too, so he spends like half an hour on that game

Only to lose all of his earnings.

He screams at the thing

The three guys get kicked out of that one too

Then they realize "WHERE IS ALLISON?!"

They obviously can't go back...

...except they can because they are trained child soldiers, so back in again it is.

Luther was sadly caught, but that helped Diego sneak back in again

Five simply blinked.

So, where was Allison during all of that?

In a secret area for A-list celebrities playing Blackjack of course.

Both Diego and Five get there, are caught right as Allison spotted them, getting increasingly frustrated and cashes out.

They get out and realize "Where the fuck is Luther?!"

Luther is actually on a party bus, but they just go back to the hotel. Allison goes to the spa, Diego and Five back to their rooms, expecting to find Luther, but he isn't there.

Both of them groan but since they don't even have an idea where he is they think that he'll probably get back to the hotel at some point.

And he does, except he's blackout drunk. They lay him to bed, Five says he's had enough and gets another drink. And another. And then he just gets the bottle.

None of them can sleep. It's way too hot and it's way too loud. What are these walls made out of, paper?!

They had a reservation for lunch the next day but they all overslept way past noon

They go walk the Strip again only to find cosplayers dressed as Umbrella Academy members.

So they decide "actually this is awful, let's go" and just do not think about all the money they lost

So, what did Klaus and Viktor do during all of this?

Well, they went to brunch, then they visited a butterfly house, afterwards they took a stroll through the park, eating ice cream, while ending the day by watching 'But I'm a cheerleader' with pizza that they ordered.

[facewithoutheart]

Thanks for the tag @prettygoododds! I totally agree the 10 to 1k challenge is way more about editing than it is writing, which I’m really loving even if omg it’s so hard.

I’m off traveling with my husband for our 12th anniversary. I spend most days alternating between being so full of love for him that it feels like my heart can’t bear it, and wanting to push him into the nearest lake. Marriage, am I right?

See below for writing updates and photos from my trip, plus a small cursed snippet.

I’ve also been doing a ton of writing while traveling and none of it on things I should be working on 🤣

Some updates:

I’ve been really loving the 10 to 1k challenge which I wasn’t planning on entering, but got an idea the night before flying out and so I guess when else do you start a new WIP? Check mine out here if you want … it’s a buddie fic where Eddie will kiss Buck … but only for five minutes at a time. Featuring lots of mutual pining and self-hatred. These boys are really good at hurting themselves. This whole fic has really helped hone my short game. I’m having a great time.

I also started posting more silly adventures of Buck the robot. It’s dumb it’s sweet. At some point there will be porn.

To the excitement of none of y’all but a lot of buddie fans, I finally started tackling my sequel to We Are Like Frogs Oblivious. It’s basically just gonna be mpreg smut interspersed with some sweeter moments. If you’re hoping for angst resolution, you’re in good luck.

I started plotting but haven’t written much of my FTH fic for @thewholelemon. I’m kind of annoyed I got a wave of juice that dissipated in favor of buddie, but it’s based on a tv show I can’t currently watch, so fingers crossed motivation comes back when I’m home.

And then for my most cursed fic, I wrote, like, 6k of RPF on my flight to Zurich. It’s ringing too melancholy now (I was so anxious while flying I feel like that colored my creativity), but I’m gonna share some of it below because I need a reason to dive back into the google doc and convince myself it’s not as bad as I remember:

The worst part is Oliver’s not even frustrated that what comes hard-won to Oliver comes so naturally to Ryan because on their first joint interview together he finds himself equally as charmed.

“I loved you in Into the Badlands,” Ryan says shortly before the cameras start rolling.

Oliver, who prides himself on never being caught off guard, is surprised by this. “I wasn’t aware that show had much of a following.”

“Well, no,” Ryan admits, his aw shucks in full force, “but I tried to watch at least one film or show for each of the cast when prepping for the job. Did you know Chimney was in Halloweentown?”

There’s a moment where Oliver could feign shock; it’s clearly the reaction Ryan expects. Because that’s the normal response one has when one of your co-workers boasts the prestigiously credited role of “hip-sales-creature” in a Disney Channel Original movie.

Instead, Oliver finds himself confessing, “I did, actually.”

When Ryan doesn’t seem thrown by Oliver’s reply, simply sits there, full eye contact, his shoulders angled toward Oliver and one hand on his chin like Ryan couldn’t imagine anything more interesting than the drivel Oliver’s about to spout, Oliver adds, “When I got cast as Buck, I actually watched every project Angela, Peter, Connie, Aisha and Kenny ever made.”

This makes Ryan react, his brows flying upward to that lush hairline of his. “Every … every project? Phew,” he whistles, “that had to have taken …”

“Way too long,” Oliver finishes for him. “I can be …” Oliver bites his lip, thinking about how to phrase this, and doesn’t miss when Ryan’s eyes track the movement “… intense,” he lands, a bit breathless.

“Mmm. I’ll say.” Ryan’s smiling placidly, like he didn’t just reveal a tell that would send Oliver in a full panic if he’d allowed it.

If you’ve made it this far, here’s some photos:

& tags for people who I don’t think will be annoyed at the lengthy update lol @sillyunicorn @martsonmars @raenestee @thewholelemon @bookish-bogwitch @cutestkilla @stitchyqueer @forabeatofadrum @fiend-for-culture @artsyunderstudy @aristocratic-otter @ic3que3n @run-for-chamo-miles @monbons @roomwithanopenfire @whatevertheweather @ileadacharmedlife @skeedelvee

[mooonjin]

A Little Needy

Pairing: Miguel O'Hara x f!reader

Warnings/Tags: 18+ work!! minors shoo flyyyyyyy - piv (wear protection cus they didnt), losing v-card mentions, no y/n mentions, implied f!reader but i dont use pronouns (i think), sub!Miguel, fantasy talk, cowgirl position, lowkey a short drabble sorry <3 ⁠— tell me if I've missed anything!

"Tell me, have you ever fantasised about me?" You asked Miguel.

His breath became ragged and laboured, each inhale was a desperate attempt to try answer you. The rhythmic pounding of your hips as you came up and down drowned out any last thoughts.

You simply watched him, his chest tightened and his gasps of air grew more intense at the sensation of your tight cunt. He was struggling to keep up with your pace despite laying there for you.

"Answer me." You mentioned once more. However, you smirked, enjoying this affect you had on him. A sheen of sweat formed on his forehead and he inhaled, finally being able to answer.

"Um y-yes.. I have." He finally whimpers out, sounding a little embarrassed. This was his first time, of course he was. He'd never ever think in his life he was here, probably about to share what he imagined with you.

You smirk, "What have you thought about?" The pace of yours hips continue to catch him off guard, he nearly forgot you were even talking to him.

He moaned out, "I've thought... I've thought about us d-doing, hngh, a lot of.. things-" He scrunched his eyes shut at the feeling of your warm cunt.

You couldn't help but smirk again. You knew an exact answer wasn't going to escape him, after all, you seemed to have completely invaded his mind, "Like?"

Miguel gulps, grunting every time your hips met his pelvis, "L-Like.. the stuff you'd expect, ungh, people to-to fantasise about." He slid his hands to your thighs, savouring your soft skin.

Ah, he was going to play this game. To tease him, you slowed your movements, watching as his neck craned up to wonder why you stopped.

"I want to hear it from you." Your cunt was gently clenching around his cock, making him gulp every more and then. You gently rocked back and forth, letting out soft exhales from the feeling of being filled.

"Oh- okay," Miguel looks up at you, his eyes wandering over your figure and mainly the bra you had on, "I uh, imagine you.. on top of me." He groaned, your warm cunt keeping his cock snug.

"Mhm?"

"And you making noises... your heavenly sounds of you enjoying yourself." He bites his lips, already imagining it himself. He sits up, pressing soft kisses to your collarbone and tries to pump his cock in and it of you again.

"Yeah?" You taunt, pushing his hips down, keeping him still.

He seemed more nervous now with his words, "Can you please move, I can't take it..."

"Not until you tell me your fantasies." You smirk.

He lets out a frustrated sigh, his cock pulsating inside you desperately. You slowly started to bring yourself up the length of his cock to tease him and let out a choked whimper in response.

You pitied him as you slammed your hips back down onto his, causing his eyes to shoot open and strained moan to escape his throat. He felt like his lungs were suddenly punctured.

He groaned with a mix of pain and pleasure. 

With your beautiful figure straddling him, Miguel swallows lightly, his face turning red. He was too needy, his hands making their way to your hips to hold you in place. His hands gently fondled your plush. Miguel wants to thrust his cock in and out of you but you wouldn't let him.

He didn't imagine being the submissive one when he planned on losing his v-card.

But he'd be submissive for you.

Only for you.

-

Post-Notes: what a suprise that the first miguel thingy i put iut is smut!!!!! also my requests are opne now as well as an updated taglist form! :D

~ ~ ~

my taglist form!

[storm-angel989]

heyy ik this is weird to ask but cam you do valentino's daugher x vox idk why but im screaming for content and honestly i think it would be interesting to see if they "got along" you coulf say you dont have to do this i just find this a interesting concept like imagine if they had more of a special bond then valentino and his own daugher plus im sorry if this is to much to ask for

Hi there,

Sorry for the delay! Take a peek at this one- and let me know if you were thinking a different vibe!

~Mandy

“Hey, Uncle Vox!” I called cheerfully as I walked into his office.  Two more nights, two more until my final game of the school year. As an avid water polo player, my games were the height of my highschool experience and this final game this year was one I had been working hard towards. I tossed my backpack on my desk next to my Uncle Vox’s and slid myself into my chair. 

My weekday routine had been the same since I started school. With my father being The Valentino, and the odd hours he worked, it was my Uncle Vox who usually woke me up early and kept me on a schedule. Brushing my teeth, getting me dressed, breakfast and out the door when I was little. Now that I was sixteen, that morning routine looked a little different. Instead of waking up at seven, I woke up at four with Uncle Vox. We hit the gym together, then parted ways until it was time for breakfast- or more importantly, coffee. Sometimes my dad joined us, and sometimes my Auntie Vel joined us. But with their ever changing schedules more often than not it just wasn’t practical for them to join. So Uncle Vox stayed the consistent one. 

“Hey yourself, kid,” Vox replied as he stood up out of his chair. “Your dad is on the line, he wants to chat with you.” 

I slid into Vox’s seat and my fathers face appeared on the monitor in front of me. My heart soared. I bet he had a big surprise waiting to celebrate after tomorrow night.

“Hi Daddy!” I said cheerfully. “Are you ready to watch me rock it tomorrow?” 

My father’s face looked sad. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about bebita. I’m sorry, I won’t make it. I have a crisis to handle down in the greed ring and I…” 

I could feel the sadness wash over me. The rest of the conversation went in one ear and out the other and I tried to hide my crushing disappointment. 

“I’m sorry baby, but your Uncle Vox and Auntie Vel will be there and they promised to keep me updated.” My father finished. “I’ll make it up to you later okay? We can do whatever you want. Daddy daughter day.”

Yeah, sure. I had heard that one before. To date, he owed me no less than six daddy daughter days. And the flowers and trinkets he sent to make up for his absence didn’t help either. He tried- I knew it. But nothing he said or did would make up for his lack of presence. 

I signed off and put my head in my hands as I tired to keep tears from falling down my face. I felt Vox’s hand on my shoulder and I looked back at him as I bit back bitter disappointment. 

Vox seemed to recognize the look on my face. “Aw honey, I know. But we’ll be there. I promise.” He squeezed my shoulder gently. “Your Auntie Vel and I will cheer you on.” 

“Yeah, at least someone cares.” I muttered as I rubbed my eyes. 

“Now you know that isn’t true sweetheart,” Vox began. “Your Daddy loves you very much, his work just…”

“You make time for me!” I said angrily. “You make it a point to sit with me and go to my games and ask me about my day, I can’t remember the last time I saw my dad at one of my games or even just right after school!” 

“My schedule is a lot more fluid than your dads is sweetheart,” he replied calmly. “I understand your frustration, but if your dad could make it he would.”

It was the age-old argument. After a few seconds, I stood up and Vox pulled me into a hug. 

“Hey, you’re loved. Don’t forget that, okay?” He planted a kiss on my forehead. “Now let’s get that homework done.” 

I scowled but sat back down at my desk. The homework rule had been instilled by my father from my first days of preschool. Home. Snack. Work. Sometimes at my pink desk in my room, if it was Dad or auntie Vel picked me up. But more often than not, it was uncle Vox who showed up in the limo and he had work to do too. As I grew, the desk next to his grew as well. From a tiny pink plastic chair to a full grown pink office chair- I sat right by Uncle Vox almost every single day. 

His snack drawer too changed as I grew- from cheeze-itz, to fresh fruit, to protein bars and goldfish. 

“Hey, can you check this one?” I asked after a few moments of work. “Uncle Vox?”

“Did you try it three times three different ways and watch a video?” He replied back without another glance. 

“Yeah.”

“Then, sure.” He lifted his head up and picked up my homework sheet. He glanced it over. “I think this is a quadratic formula problem. You forgot the square root sign- remember the song?”

“I do but…”

He cleared his throat. “X equals negative b plus or minus the square root of b squared minus for ac all over two a!”

To his credit, the song was a great study tool. To my mortification, Vox couldn’t sing worth a damn. 

“You’re way too enthusiastic about math,” I muttered as I made the correction. 

“But I was right wasn’t I?” He teased as he turned back to his computer. 

“That’s not the point,” I replied. Not to my surprise, the problem worked itself out. “Thanks Uncle Vox.” 

I stood up and leaned in between him and his desk wrapped my arms around him. “And thanks for being the best uncle a girl could want.” 

I felt him return the hug. “Love you, kiddo. More than you’ll ever know.” 

I released him and he grinned. “If you get your homework done quickly I’ll take you to the pool and run a few practice rounds with you. And then I’ll take you out to dinner- see if Auntie can meet us.”

The work that went into Vox being able to get into the water was tremendous- not to mention he’d be leaving his job early. 

“Really? You have time for that?” I asked. 

“For you sweetie? I’ll always have time.”

[hpowellsmith]

I'm actually someone who looks at word counts when it comes to PURCHASING IFs!

So I can explain my thought process!

First of, the "purchasing" is a bit caveat here. I'm stingy, and I look at word count VS price as a factor when buying. If I see a 200k word story at the same price as a 700 word one for example, I will be wary of what it entails.

There's also the fact I always liked longer stories as a rule of thumb. A 13 episodes show? I will watch it if I'm REALLY into the pitch or if I know other seasons are in the making. A 50 episodes show? As long as it seems like my kind of story, I will watch it because I know I'm in for a long adventure and that I'll have time to truly grow attached to the characters. That's cause I know myself, and I'm always left frustrated if a work of fiction is too short.

So when I say I usually "ignore" stories that are less than 100k words it's because chances are pretty low for it to hit the spot since: a) no matter how optimized the code may be, that IS quite short as a wordcount. b) if it isn't very short, it means it has very little branching, and I usually prefer IF with more branching to begin with.

But back at the caveat. This is still because when I pay for something, I don't want to be disappointed. If it's a free story, I won't look at the wordcount because "even if I'm disappointed, I didn't loose anything by playing it". If it's not free, then the pitch has to really catch my eye to buy it. So really, it's a matter of money more than anything else.

Now, there's the fact this is mostly about choicescript based games, and I'm very used to the code of these. So if I'm hesitant, I may code-dive the demo to check the appeareance of the code and know if it's optimized or not. Seeing the way a game is coded gives me a clearer idea of what the word count may equate to and so, to the "true length" of the story.

Now, another caveat is access to the WIP!

When I follow the story update by update, making it episodic, it feels longer, especially if the author answers character asks, posts extra content and stuff. Because that sort of "adds content" to the story. In these instances, even a 70k words story feels (and technically IS) longer, thanks to the extra stuff. But if I just find a completed game on Steam well... I don't have all of that. So usually, if I follow a WIP from start to finish, I actually tend to purchase the game no matter what, even if I'm not planning on replaying it soon. Unless I really disliked it, but as long as it didn't come crashing down at the ending, there is no reason for that if I actually followed it for so long.

That doesn't mean I never purchase shorter IFs, word count wise. But for me to do so, like mentionned above, I have to REALLY love the pitch. It's especially true since I play a LOT of IFs. And I really mean a LOT. Both choicescript and twine based ones. I just have to be selective in one way or another if I don't want to lack time for anything else in my life or spend too much money on it, and word count is a factor like any other. If I know I prefer longer stories as a rule of thumb, then best to give precedence to 500k+ words IF rather than ones around 100k words which are bound to be shorter even if more optimized code wise. At least when money is a factor, of course.

Ultimately, considering I do it myself (and considering my reasons) I can't imagine not doing so, I think being mindful of word count is just something influenced by how each person's brain is wired, and both doing so and not are valid ways of thinking. At the end of the day, I prefer to support an author I know and love on patreon than spending the same money on multiple stories that are too short for what my tastes usually are. I will never actually ignore an IF with an interesting pitch (despite the phrasing I sometimes use), but I will be WAY more careful about purchasing a shorter one.

(sorry for taking so long to post this, it's from nearly five months ago when I was asking people about how game wordcount factors into whether they play/buy!)

That makes a ton of sense, thank you for sharing!

I hadn't actually thought about the fact that most people play WIPs chapter-by-chapter (or in whatever kind of small chunks) over a long period of time, so that may contribute to when someone says a completed game feels "rushed" - it's the same amount of time, but the former is spread over way longer so it'll feel like a longer game.

[horrorvale]

HorrorVale Development Blog: End of Year

Hello, citizens of HorrorVale!

As the year draws to a close, we (or more specifically me, Dustin) wanted to put together a little blog to talk about HorrorVale! How launch went, what our current and future plans are, and more!

(Note that this blog post does not receive audio, so if you respond I cannot hear it.)

Dream Colosseum

First, before I start talking about HorrorVale's Launch, I want to discuss an upcoming patch.

Currently, we're working on a massive patch for HorrorVale that will include the following:

Even MORE bug fixes

Brand new optional dialogue for every single party member in the game for main story cutscenes

More skill re-balancing

Other minor things and scenes I still wish to include

But most importantly... The DREAM COLOSSEUM!

I originally didn't think many people would bother with the "Secret Bosses" in HorrorVale, but since so many of you enjoyed them and also desired to get more opportunities to mess with party combinations, I decided to punish you horribly!

The Dream Colosseum is a brand new feature that will allow you to fight Bosses you fought previously, now all scaled up to End game stats, with new moves and quirks, and all very difficult.

If you've fought the "Last Secret Boss", now you get to imagine what a Dream Colosseum version might be like.

It will require you to 100% the game to access, but won't give any unique rewards outside of a cosmetic change to Alice's bedroom so people don't feel compelled to torture themselves for completionists sake. Naturally, there won't be any new trophies either.

Right now we're working steadily on this update, and hope to have it out very early next year.

Now that that's out of the way, let's talk about how launch actually went for HorrorVale...

HorrorVale Launch

After 8 years in development and 5 years since announced, HorrorVale finally released on October 1st, 2024.

This reception has been tremendous.

Leading up to release, I was anxious but overall feeling pretty good about launch. There were minor things I wish I had included or changed, but knew that delaying what was otherwise a feature complete game would be extremely silly.

I actually intended on releasing these things as a patch in the first week of launch, in the hopes of catching most people before they get too deep in the game.

...What I did not expect however, was the unfortunate discovery of several bugs, some of which were game breaking.

What made these bugs especially frustrating is that most of them were NEW bugs, created from me adding things right before launch, or fixing other unrelated bugs.

Due to these bugs and the massive influx of new fans, comments, reviews, and more I found myself extremely overwhelmed, and it ended up being probably one of the most stressful 2 weeks of my life after launch.

In the end, everything worked out and I was quick to patch the game...

...Multiple times.

Still, despite these issues the reception was overwhelmingly positive. Certainly some critiques here and there, but the general response was that the game was so enjoyable that even the most egregious critiques could be brushed aside. All of the wonderful things I've read by people who had fun in the world I created... It truly means the world to me. The... Underworld you might say.

I'm sure some people are also interested in how the game actually DID. Good reviews and positive reception are one thing, but this is also a product being sold, so how did it DO!? Did it SMASH RECORDS and become bigger than UNDERTALE? Did it FLOP???

Well, to be honest I'm not entirely sure!

Which is a strange thing to say, but it's difficult to gauge "Success" when so many factors can change what that means. For a AAA game, success means something very different to a small indie game with a publisher, which also means something very different to a ragtag team of people with no real budget, no publisher, no marketing, and especially no notoriety whatsoever. Not to mention as first time developers we have little to compare it to...

But that being said...

As of right now, HorrorVale has sold...

1,000 COPIES!

That's an INSANE amount of people. If all of you were in a big room crowded around me, I would be very scared.

That's 1,000 new citizens to HorrorVale that have entered its gates.

If we gauge success purely based off "did it make back what you invested in it?", then HorrorVale was absolutely a success!

However, unfortunately it did not necessarily meet the expectations we had.

Going into the launch of HorrorVale, I had 3 goals in mind.

To make back what I invested in it (out of pocket, not including Patreon earnings)

To pay Matt, the composer full royalties for the HorrorVale OST (since he created the entire 170 track monster soundtrack for FREE.)

To be able to devote myself full time to Game Development

Of these three... Only 1 has been achieved so far.

While I generally try to avoid discussing topics like these, I feel like it's important context for the next piece of discussion. The future of HorrorVale.

HorrorVale: Act M

HorrorVale: Act M is a small side story featuring none other than Mothman himself! This spinoff game was greenlit thanks to HorrorVale fans reaching our Wishlist goal for the main game. This game will tell the story of HorrorVale from Mothman's perspective, giving you new insight into his side of the story, as well as elaborate on events leading up to and following that story.

I think there's something really special waiting for you in Act M, and I want to use it as an opportunity to experiment with the HorrorVale formula based off of feedback from the main game.

No matter what, this project will begin development and it will be in your hands....

...At some point.

Which is where the previous topic comes into play, because naturally how long Act M takes to make is dependent on the time I have free to work on it. HorrorVale sales could certainly pick up, and I might one day be able to devote myself fully to game dev, but for now Act M will have to follow the same development process as "HorrorVale", which means it's difficult to give an estimate of how long it'll take to make!

What I can say for sure, is that Act: M will be much, much shorter than HorrorVale. Don't expect a 50 hour experience! I'm aiming for something more like 8.

And yet, you might be asking yourself dear reader...

"How can we help?"

Indeed, you asked yourself that exact sentence and in the voice of the King from Zelda CD-I no doubt.

Which brings us to the next topic!

Patreon Revival

My original plan after HorrorVale launched was to completely retire the HorrorVale Patreon as it seemed unnecessary at that point, but since:

We did not reach our expectations of sales so far

Several fans expressed a desire to support the game in some way because of the Steam Early Access debacle

I thought it made sense to keep it up and give it a little makeover.

Now fully dedicated to "Act: M", you can expect Monthly Progress Reports here, just like the main game!

Not only that, but we've added a brand new "Cryptid" Tier, that will allow you... Yes YOU! The ability to design a Creepy, Scary, or Starry for Mothman to fight in Act: M! We don't want Mothman to just fight all the same enemies as Alice! He'd naturally encounter foes she never even knew existed. This is your opportunity to help the game out and get to be a part of it as well.

(Please note that in order to participate in this reward, you must be 18 years or older and willing to give all rights of your design to Batworks Software.)

(Also please note that Mothman will kill your beautiful creation with a crossbow and it will hurt very badly.)

Since as of now I can't "live" off of HorrorVale sales, instead my plan is to put it and Act: M Patreon earnings towards Act: M itself and Mystery Future Project. This will help ensure a smooth development cycle as possible. If you're interested in helping out the HorrorVale universe, now's your chance!

Of course, forking over your hard earned candy isn't the only way to help though!

Just enjoying the game and telling your friends about it is a MASSIVE help. Without a marketing team, word of mouth is a tremendous help to us, and it's thanks to that that we're here at all!

Closing

In closing, I just want to say thank you to all of the HorrorVale fans that have supported us over all these years. The love that HorrorVale has been shown has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. As long as I'm able to, I'd like to read every comment and message I can, but I fear that if the game does get bigger one day I won't be able to see them all. Just know that the love you've given Alice and her friends mean the world to me.

Wait Stop Right There What Do You MEAN "Mystery Future Project"???

That's all for now goodbye!!!!!!

*The device he was speaking from explodes spontaneously*

[infiniteeight8]

Hello again, just me humbly requesting that you bless us with more of the IronStrange Can’t Find Out series. I know you said getting in the queue early is the best bet, so asking for updates right after you post a new one is my game plan. I need these boys to get their happy ending in this verse eventually! 😅❤️

Your timing was excellent! 😀 Along with the other two, but you know, that means you all got three updates not too far apart! Win for everyone. lol. 

I have two prompts in the queue for this series after this one. 

And now, Tony’s POV post-heat!

-

Tony throws himself down on the couch near the armchair where Pepper is curled up, reading. “I’m not a jealous person, right?” he demands.

Pepper puts her book aside. “You aren’t,” she affirms, partly because this is obviously the appropriate response for whatever rant Tony is about to launch into, and partly because Tony really isn’t a jealous person. If a potential—or even current—partner is more interested in someone else than they are in him, the last thing Tony wants is for them to stick around. And when the interest is purely theoretical, window shopping, to speak, he has no problem playing along with his partner’s appreciation.

He shoots her a despairing look. “Then why is the thought of this mystery alpha of Stephen’s driving me crazy?” 

“Probably because he’s hurting your friend, if unknowingly,” Pepper says. “You’ve always been protective of your friends.” And Tony’s feelings for Stephen had rapidly escalated past friendship, even if he was being a little stubborn about recognizing that. 

“I can’t stop wondering what this guy is like,” Tony says, tipping his head back against the couch. “Is he enhanced? A civilian? Has he even met Stephen in this timeline? Is Stephen pining for a guy who doesn’t know he exists, or a guy who doesn’t even want him?” Tony groans. “I can’t decide which is worse. I mean, being actively rejected is probably worse, but at least then Stephen might be able to get over the guy.”

“You said they had multiple lifetimes together,” Pepper interrupts gently. “I can’t imagine that’s easy to get over.”

Tony makes a frustrated noise. “I know. But I keep thinking, if I knew something about the guy, maybe I’d understand. Or at least I’d— I don’t even know.” Pepper knows. At least I’d be able to size up the competition. Or maybe, At least I’d know what he has that I don’t. But she keeps quiet. “But Stephen won’t say anything about the guy. Nada. Nil. Zip. Except that he’s an male alpha, and that he’s happily mated.” Tony slumps.

Pepper makes a sympathetic noise. Honestly, she’s a bit baffled, too. If it was her, she thinks she’d want to talk about her mate. Even if they couldn’t be together. Maybe especially if they couldn’t be together. But on the occasions she’s met Stephen, it hasn’t really seemed to her like he was pining. He’d been rather focused on Tony, actually, almost to the point of being rude, though Pepper hadn’t minded.

Wait.

“What’s that expression for?” Tony says, sitting up out of his slouch. He points at her. “I know that face. That’s your ‘I just realized Tony is being an idiot’ face. Spill. What’d I do?”

“Tony,” Pepper says slowly. “Does Stephen know why you and I got bonded?”

“Sure,” Tony says automatically.

“No, think about it,” Pepper insists. “Did you ever actually tell him, or are you just assuming he knows because you trust him enough for him to know?”

Tony opens his mouth, then stops, brow wrinkling. “I mean, I must have…”

“When?” Pepper demands.

Tony visibly searches his memory and comes up blank. “Okay, so I may have assumed. Why?”

Pepper laughs and shakes her head. “Tony. From Stephen’s perspective, you are happily mated and therefore unavailable.”

Tony looks stunned. “You think I might be the mystery alpha?”

“It would explain why Stephen’s been so tight-lipped,” Pepper says. “His friendship with you is all he has, and he’s probably terrified it’ll ruin it if you find out.”

“He wasn’t confusing me for his alpha during his heat,” Tony says with dawning realization. “He was forgetting that I wasn’t his alpha. He must have been worried he’d give himself away, that’s why he didn’t want my help at first.”

Tony is still for a moment, and then he leaps up and is halfway to the elevator before Pepper can react. “Tony, wait!”

He stops just short of the elevator and turns back uncertainly. “Pep. We always said—”

Pepper waves him off. “Of course we’ll break our bond,” she says impatiently. “But you can’t just rush over and throw yourself at Stephen. He’s been hurting. If you’re not careful, it’ll end up seeming like you’re throwing that back in his face. You need to slow down and think.”

Tony lets out a long breath and scrubs his hands through his hair. “Right. You’re right.” He gives Pepper a wry look. “Careful isn’t my strong suit.”

She smiles. “You’ll figure it out.”

[thankskenpenders]

So I wrote a whole long thing about Amy's tarot cards, but what about, you know... the rest of the Sonic Frontiers DLC? The new alternate story route, the hours of new gameplay, all that?

Having now played it, I'm not sure Sonic has ever had this specific combination of good ideas that make the future of the series look bright, and execution that I fucking hate.

(Full spoilers ahead.)

The good

There's a lot to like here, conceptually.

First and foremost, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy are finally playable in a new mainline 3D Sonic game for the first time since 2006! Seventeen years! We've been begging for this for so very, very long. Nature is finally truly healing from the fallout of Sonic '06. Early on I hedged my bets and expected them to be locked to Cyber Space or something like that, assuming that there was no way they'd be fully playable in the Open Zone. But sure enough, while they're a bit limited compared to Sonic, they're still all full-blown characters with skill trees to unlock and lots of exploration to do.

We also got a more bombastic alternate final boss fight, after the first take on The End kind of underwhelmed. And it's obvious that Sonic Team has listened to our pleas to focus on the 3D platforming over the forced 2D sections, and to reduce the amount of automation in the level design. This update is chock full of Actual Platforming. Wow! I can only pray this means we never get an area as agonizing to explore as Chaos Island again.

Sure, there's still some jank - especially with Knuckles' movement, which is kinda rough. But if this is the stuff they're trying out so that they can refine it further for the next game, then I'm really excited.

On the other hand, good fucking lord is The Final Horizon tedious. And that tedium sapped most of the fun out of it for me.

The frustrating

The new scenario massively increases the difficulty over the base game, seemingly out of a desire to give the hardcore players who were posting speedrun videos and whatnot more of a challenge. It's the Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels of Sonic. This difficulty comes in many forms throughout your playtime, some worse than others, and continues to ramp up over time.

Rather than giving you a tutorial level, the new scenario dumps you directly into a remixed version of the final island and makes you do some fairly precise platforming with Amy, Knuckles, and Tails - new characters with new movesets that you won't have any experience with. You'll also need to find character-specific Koco that give you free levels, because Sonic's friends all start at level one and certain locked moves in their skill trees will be mandatory to progress. They don't even have Cyloop unlocked at the start. And because they're all low level, that means you'd better steer clear of the beefed-up bosses scattered around the map, which will absolutely annihilate Sonic's friends. (I honestly just avoided them and never bothered beating any of them, not even with my high-level Sonic. I have no idea if they're beatable with the others.)

None of this is explained to you particularly well. I spent my first few minutes with Amy wondering why the attack button did nothing, only to eventually think to check her skill tree and realize that I had to unlock her basic attack. If you don't bother to take the time to read through the skill trees, you'll very quickly find obstacles you have no way of getting past with no clues as to what exactly you're supposed to do.

Adding to this confusion is the fact that objective markers often tell you to go half a kilometer into the sky, and you'll have no idea how to get up there because all of the relevant platforms are out of your draw distance. Many objects seem to only pop in for me when I'm within about 60 meters of them, which isn't a long distance for a high-speed open world platformer like this. I was having this problem running the game with high graphics on PC, so I can only imagine how obnoxious it is on Switch. I'd frequently find myself poking around nearby clusters of platforming objects and praying that they'd lead me to a spring, rail, or cannon that would eventually point me in the direction of the floating objective marker.

There were always complaints about the art direction in Frontiers and the way it relies on floating rails and prefab platforms that are visually disconnected from the natural scenery of the islands, but it's even more dire here. The new platforming sections are dense and complex, but they seemingly didn't have the budget to change the topography of Ouranos Island at all, so it all takes the form of these prefabs. It very strongly gives the vibe of a Forge creation in Halo 3, back when there were no blank canvas maps and people just had to make "new maps" by jamming a bunch of shipping containers and barricades together in the sky above one of the default arenas.

I was still more or less having fun, though, despite the jank. It's a big creative swing, I told myself! They're trying stuff out! They're experimenting!

And then I hit the towers.

The towers are agonizing because they're SO close to being great. The logical part of my brain understands why some people love them, but god, I just fucking hate them. The platforming there IS cool! These layouts are cool! The individual challenges along the way are a bit tough, but totally doable. You know what's not cool? Making one mistake and slowly falling 800 meters all the way back down to the ground, forcing you to start over. Because none of these towers have checkpoints. For me, this one decision transforms what should have been a fun set of platforming challenges into a massive, unfun difficulty spike.

I enjoy some masocore platformers, but those are typically games with quick deaths and restarts like Celeste, Super Meat Boy, or VVVVVV. Hell, the Mario games tend to get way more difficult than the average Sonic game, and those are obviously all great. Quite frankly, unlike those games, Sonic Frontiers is nowhere near tight or polished enough to make this difficulty feel fair. Bits of jank that I could ignore in the base game due to its lower difficulty are now matters of life or death. Missing a jump because I boosted off an incline in a way the game didn't like for reasons I don't understand is not fun. Falling off a tower because the camera was pointing in the wrong direction while I was in midair and I couldn't see the next thing I was expected to homing attack is not fun.

And it's such a jarring spike when moving from the base game to the DLC that it feels like the game is suddenly quizzing me on skills it never bothered to instill in me. Maybe if you've spent the last year labbing out the movement tech in this game this is all a no brainer, but for the average returning player it's a kick in the dick.

I'm sure I could've beaten these towers normally if I gave them enough tries. They aren't the hardest thing in the world. But I very quickly decided I had better things to do with my life and turned on easy mode, which adds tons of extra springs and homing attack balloons to make all of the platforming piss easy. I wish there was a middle option between Only Up: Sonic Edition and this extreme hand holding, but when given the choice between the two I gladly picked baby mode. I just wanted to see the story.

(The new Cyber Space levels are also long, challenging, and devoid of checkpoints, not unlike the towers. But I only ever found the entrances to two of them. So I only did two. They're theoretically required, because they give you "Lookout Koco" that you need for... some reason? But in a rare act of mercy, Sonic Team put Cyloop treasure spots that give you free Lookout Koco all over the map.)

As I continued, so many little things started adding up to piss me off. Why do you only reveal like five tiny squares of the map at a time? I would've loved to find all the new 1-on-1 dialogue scenes, but not if I had to do dozens of hard mode versions of the stupid little puzzles and challenges to reveal the whole map. Why does every character need their own unique collectibles? What is this, Donkey Kong 64? Why can't I just grab this EXP for Amy when I find it as Tails? Why can I only manually swap characters by talking to an out-of-the-way NPC unlocked right before the final boss? Why is fast travel disabled? Why are the new vocal themes you hear when playing as Amy, Knuckles, and Tails so monotonous, with a single verse repeating over lo-fi beats ad nauseum? Why is the jukebox feature completely disabled throughout the DLC, even after rolling the credits? Why can't Tails homing attack? Why do I have to wrestle with the camera so much while also holding the jump button to fly as Knuckles and Tails? How many right thumbs do they think I have? Why is this animation for picking up animals in the Cyber Space levels so incredibly slow, and why can I still take damage while it's playing? Why does the stupid starfall event have to make it so hard to see what I'm doing when climbing these towers? Why does this shitty combat trial have a popup that makes it seem like I should be using the Cyloop when the actual strategy revolves around repeated parries? And on and on and on...

The story

What about the new story? Well, there sadly isn't much to chew on here. Most of the DLC has the cast running around and finding different macguffins for arbitrary reasons, as part of some sort of plan to divide up the work on the last island so that Sonic can go train with the spirits of the Ancients and harness the power of his cyber corruption. What the fuck is an Impact Form? I don't know, but Knuckles needs something to do, so go find one.

It's a thin excuse plot meant to make you do platforming challenges around Ouranos Island, with little room for Ian to add any real flavor of his own, even though he certainly tries. Having Sonic meet the spirits of the Ancients who controlled the Titans, who are revealed to directly parallel the personalities of him and his friends, is kinda neat, I guess? It's something. The optional conversations seem to have some fun bits, including both conversations between the supporting cast and additional lore. But again, I only found a few of those because of how tedious filling out the map was.

The writing is also let down by the voice acting - or I guess the voice direction, because I know this cast can do better. Roger's voice continues to be weirdly, distractingly deep as Sonic, which was clearly something that was requested of him just for this game. (For a recent example of him going back to his regular Sonic voice, see this LEGO trailer.) The performances of Sonic's friends are also WILDLY mismatched. This is most clear when they start feeling the effects of the cyber corruption. Knuckles seems to be barely affected at all, Tails sounds like he's moderately hurt and low on energy, and Amy starts completely overselling her pain out of nowhere. The extremely strained performance makes it sound like Cindy's literally being tortured in the fucking booth. I have no idea what's going on over there.

The final challenges

People have debated whether or not things like the towers and the new Cyber Space levels are fair challenges. What's not up for debate is the fact that Master King Koco's Trial is complete and utter bullshit, and I can't believe they shipped this.

Before you can fight the new final boss, the game forces you to do a boss rush of the first three Titans - INCLUDING the pre-Super Sonic climbing sections - with a hard limit of 400 rings. For all three lengthy, heavily scripted fights. Back to back. You can't even cheese it with the leveling system, because you're forced to do this at level 1. This all but forces you to look up speedrun strats for the Super Sonic fights so that you don't run out of rings and fail the trial.

And the real kicker? They changed the parry just for this trial! Originally, you could just hold down the bumpers endlessly and Sonic would ready himself to parry the next attack, whenever that may hit. Now it requires you to do a "Perfect Parry" with specific timing. And you HAVE to hit those parries if you wanna clear this trial and get to the new ending. Miss a few and you're probably fucked. You just have to reset. Time to go through all those fights, all those climbing sequences, all those QTEs, and all those unskippable mid-fight cutscenes all over again. This is by far the most egregious example of the DLC deciding to quiz you on new skills that the base game never required of you, and it's one of the most absurdly unfair things I have ever seen in a Sonic game.

Easy mode does make this trial easier by making the timing window for Perfect Parries much more generous, but that's all the help you get. It's still easy to lose time failing to parry Wyvern's hard-to-read animations, or to lose rings by getting hit on the climb sections, or for things to just fuck up because these fights were always kinda jank. I gave it a few shots. I looked up guide videos. I tried the Quick Cyloop and stomp combo strat that seems all but mandatory. But I quickly decided that, again, this wasn't a worthwhile use of my time. It just sucks. And I really, REALLY didn't want to overwrite all my fond memories of these Titan fights, some of my favorite setpiece moments in any Sonic game, with memories of this shit ass boss rush.

So I cheated! And if you're on PC, you should too.

With the worst hurdle out of the way, I turned cheats back off and moved on to the new final boss. It was pretty cool. It's much flashier than the original fight against The End, that's for sure. It's still kinda annoying, and it requires you to do very specific shit without properly telegraphing it, but it's nowhere near as bad as the preceding challenges. I was hoping for one last new metalcore song to go with the new fight, which we sadly didn't get, but at least the new version of I'm Here is good.

The ending is... mostly the same, with a couple altered scenes that don't really change anything in the long run. But overall the new finale was pretty good. I just wish it hadn't been such a slog to get there.

Closing thoughts

Sonic Frontiers: The Final Horizon wants to be three things:

A patch that adds a new alternate ending that was probably supposed to be in the base game in the first place.

An experimental take on making Tails, Knuckles, and Amy playable again, presumably testing things for the next game. And...

An official Kaizo Sonic Frontiers mod for the sickos.

The thing is, the people showing up for #1 and #2, the main things that Sega hyped up about the update, are not necessarily going to be down for #3. If they had announced some uber-hard new Cyber Space levels for the arcade mode or whatever, I'd be like, neat! And then not play them. I would never touch Master King Koco's Trial if it was an optional challenge. I would leave that for the sickos. But instead, they made the hardest content mandatory for anyone who wants to see the new Good Ending where the final boss gets an actual budget.

I'm mostly left in a state of shock that it shipped like this. I cannot believe they playtested this and decided this was the state The Final Horizon should be released in. That this should be the note Frontiers ends on. That this should be how we remember those Titan fights. That this should be the lingering taste in our mouths as we wait however many years for the next 3D game.

Armchair devs always love to say that things would be "easy to fix," but like... there really would be easy fixes for the insane difficulty and general tedium here! Add a few more tutorial popups explaining what the game expects of you with Sonic's friends. Give the Cyber Space stages and the towers a couple checkpoints. Give the combat trials more generous time limits, especially on the lower difficulties. Remove half of the map puzzles, and make the ones that remain uncover twice as many squares. Skip the startup animation for Knuckles' glide. Let me turn on the goddamn jukebox. Since so much of this update was designed around fan feedback, I can only pray that Sonic Team is still listening, and that they tweak at least a few of these things with a balance patch.

But still, after those many, many paragraphs of complaining... this still somehow makes the future of 3D Sonic seem pretty promising?

Sonic's friends are FINALLY playable again, and the focus is back to proper 3D platforming, rather than railroading players into awkward forced 2D sections in what's otherwise an open world. These are the things that they hopefully want to carry over to the next game. The difficulty? Well, that's just because it's the postgame DLC that's supposed to be the toughest challenge in the game. It's just an unreasonably cruel one of those - an example of how designing and balancing for a vocal minority of your fanbase can really hurt your game. But Sonic Team is onto something here, and I hope that they can learn the right lessons from this expansion and not throw the baby out with the bathwater.