#I'll hold back one or two for if people ask about them (since they're seasonal) but either way this is the best deal you'll get on them!

[bellasdragons]

Pumpkin Princess is in-stock for Aethers and Obbies!

Currently there are 5 copies of Obelisk, and 1 left of Aether - but no worries, it will be available to order until October 31st! Copies are 500g until then, and since they've been printed treasure/mixed is accepted at 1:1000. :3

I also have a bunch of other things available, check them out below!

[wintaerbaer]

things we don't say: part 5 TEASER (kth)

banner credit: @itaeewon

summary: Three years after graduating college, everything seems to be falling into place for you: stable job, cozy apartment, and a long-term boyfriend with a ring box hidden in his desk drawer. But when a mutual friend makes a remark that your best friend of nearly two decades is clearly in love with you, you realize that life may not be as simple as it seems.

pairing: Taehyung x Reader (with some VERY brief Seokjin x Reader and Yoongi x Reader)

rating: 18+

genres: best friends to lovers, idiots to lovers, slow burn, angst, fluff

word count: 721 (for the teaser; full chapter is expected to be 8-10k)

chapter warnings: weddings!, feelings, seventeen is here now because i fell into a rabbit hole and needed fill-ins, jimin kinda ruins everything, jk is relatively well-behaved, kissing?!

a/n: given that it's been the craziest time of year for work (and i may be focused on a jk oneshot rn), i figured i'd throw out a teaser since it's taking me longer to write! i'm heading into my job's off-season soon though, so i'll have more time to write and will aim to have this next part out by end-of-year :)

PART 4 // SERIES MASTERLIST

You look up to find Taehyung's eyes gazing steadily down at you, a small but confident smile playing on his lips.

"Dance with me?"

And in spite of the unease that had plagued you only moments ago, you don't hesitate to let him wrap up your small hand in his large one and lead you to the dance floor. His palm settles on your lower back to pull you in close, and maybe it’s the proximity or the intoxicating smell of his cologne that weakens your resolve, but you find the words spilling out.

"Did you get her number?"

Taehyung looks at you quizzically, brow furrowing in confusion. "Whose?"

"The woman at the bar."

His face relaxes as he realizes. "Oh, yeah. I did."

"Good." You manage a smile. Why does it feel so hard? "It really is…good you're getting back out there. Are you going to ask her on a date?"

He laughs, mischief in his eyes. "I don't think her fiancé would like that." And now it's your turn to look confused.

"Her fiancé?"

"I met the two of them through Hoseok a couple times so we've chatted. Nice people." He nods his head, and you look over to see the woman now dancing with a man not too far from you. "They just got engaged, and she knows I'm a photographer so she asked if I'd be interested in doing the wedding. I said I'd call her this week to talk about it."

"Oh." You can feel your face flush, but there's no doubting the relief that floods through you. And Taehyung surely notices, grinning down at you in amusement.

"Were you jealous?"

"No!" you say, but perhaps a little too quickly because Taehyung laughs, his fingers applying a gentle pressure to your back to pull you closer.

"I'm here with you," he murmurs matter-of-factly.

You shake your head at him. "It's fine, Tae. If someone catches your eye…like I said, it could be good—"

"I'm here with you," he repeats, more firmly this time. He releases your hand for a moment to tuck a stray curl behind your ear, and you have to look away. You spot Hoseok and Sunny swaying together in the middle of the dance floor, pressed closely together and smiling at each other like they're the only two people in the world. What it must be like to have someone look at you like that, you think, to hold you like you're something precious to be cherished. You had thought Jace made you feel that way, but now, watching your friends gaze at each other so delicately, so in love, you're no longer sure he even came close.

"What are you looking at?" Taehyung's voice rouses you out of your thoughts, and you suddenly notice his hand has drifted a little higher to where the back of your dress dips down low, exposing your bare skin.

Trying to pass off the shiver that involuntarily runs through you as a nod, you gesture at the newly married couple. "They're so good together."

Taehyung follows your line of sight, watching Hoseok lean down to murmur something in Sunny's ear that makes her giggle and press her face into his chest. "They are."

"Can you imagine loving someone like that?" Your voice is a bare whisper as if the words slipped out of their own accord, like a wish you didn't even realize you were making.

Taehyung's fingers splay at your spine, gently tugging you in until your hips are bumping his. Startled, your eyes snap back to him, breath catching in your chest. He's gazing at you intently, but as opposed to the intense fire that you've seen from him at times, there's only a deep warmth to his brown irises that you're not sure you've ever seen before. He looks at you with softness, with both a sense of familiarity and wonder that can only be attributed to your many years of companionship, and you see it all swimming behind his eyes—every day spent together seeking refuge from your families, every stupid childhood fight, every time you comforted each other through the bad days. And before you can deflect, can explain away the question as a rhetorical slip of the tongue, you hear his answer come out on a breath.

"Yes."

[dr-spencer-reids-queen]

The Performer: Part One

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Female!Reader

Word Count: ~2.3k

Summary: Hold on. Just hold onto what's good. Don't let him see how broken you are. Spencer becomes heartbroken when he realizes that you don't want to see him but you'll see everyone else. How can you see yourself through his eyes like this?

Warnings: canon violence, canon language, canon talk of death, methods of kill

Season Five Masterlist

Author’s Note: I do not own anything from Criminal Minds. All credit goes to their respective owners. If there are any warnings that exceed the normal death/kills from the show, I will list them.

x

"In all the darkest pages in the malign supernatural, there is no more terrible tradition than that of a vampire--a pariah even among demons." - Writer Montague Summers

Spencer's been busy all month. Hotch and Derek have been giving him task after task so he hasn't had a chance to see you. He finally finished everything he needed to do so he gets ready to visit you before returning to work. Derek sees him trying to leave so he drops what he's doing and approaches Spencer.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"To see Y/N. We're not that busy here, and I figured I could be back to work in a couple of hours."

"I need you to complete these files. They're urgent and must get done right away."

"You have a whole team at your disposal. Is it selfish if I ask you to give that to someone else? I promise I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Spencer, I need you to get this done."

"Morgan, I haven't been to see Y/N since she got arrested. Is it too much to ask if--"

"She doesn't want you there, man," Derek blurts.

The entire floor is quiet as Spencer tries to process his words. He looks at Emily and JJ who have sad looks on their faces, Rossi and Hotch have stoic looks, and Penelope is close to tears.

"What? She said that?" Derek opens his mouth to answer but nothing comes out. "Morgan!"

"Look, she loves you. There's no doubt about that, but she doesn't want you there."

"She's my girlfriend. I deserve to see her! I have to know how she is doing."

"Why don't Pen and I go?" JJ offers. "We can check on her and we'll let her know whatever you want us to tell her."

Spencer scoffs at her offer and shakes his head. He walks back to his desk and sits down angrily. Derek nods to JJ and the two women leave the office. Spencer's jaw ticks but he doesn't say anything about it. You don't want him there? Bullshit. Derek watches Spencer with a careful eye as he goes back to what he was doing before.

It takes JJ and Penelope 2 hours to get to you. You're glad to see your two best friends knowing that Spencer probably fought to go with them. Or maybe no one knows they're here. Regardless, you're glad to see them. The bruise on your face has gone down a lot but it's at the yellow-brown stage. It's healing but still noticeable. JJ doesn't say anything when she sees the bruise but Penelope almost breaks down at the sight of you.

"Please don't cry, Penelope, or I'll cry," you sniffle. She nods and tries to stop herself. She shakes her head and hands the phone to JJ while she calms herself down. Seeing you like this breaks her heart because she considers you to be one of her best friends and she hates seeing people she loves in pain. "So, how's Henry doing?"

"He's doing really good. He's sleeping a lot better, but he misses you a lot."

"I miss him, too."

Once Penelope is calm enough, she leans closer to the phone while it's still in JJ's hand so she can talk to you.

"I am trying really hard to work on your case. We're all being monitored very closely."

JJ hands the phone to Penelope so she can hear what you have to say.

"Don't apologize for doing your job. There is nothing wrong with that. Those people need you to help them."

"Whose going to help you? You can't be stuck in here for something you didn't do."

"My trial is coming up soon. There's still a chance I'll be released."

JJ gestures for the phone.

"We will be right there when it happens. You won't be alone."

"I know."

"Look, we have to get back but I want you to know Spencer--"

"He's not here, is he?" you panic.

"No, but he wanted to see you this morning. Morgan gave him some work to do but he was angry."

"I can't let him see me like this," you sigh. "He's going to remember me this way, and I don't want him thinking of this when he thinks of me. I don't want him to see me in pain because then he'll be in pain, and I'll feel worse than I already do."

"I get it. Trust me."

"Please try and keep him away from here."

"We'll try. We have to go now."

"Okay. I miss and love you guys."

"We love you, too," Penelope smiles.

When JJ and Penelope get back, Spencer doesn't talk to him. He's still upset over what happened. If something was wrong with you, they'd tell him for sure. They'll let Spencer be alone for right now and will talk to him when he's ready. Derek got a case just in time for their arrival, so everyone met in the briefing room to talk about it. JJ knows about this case since it came across her desk first, so she knows what to talk about in the briefing room.

"Alright, the latest victim is Tara Farris, twenty. She's the third victim in two weeks. All were found on freeway off-ramps by commuters."

"He's not hiding them. He must want them found quickly otherwise he wouldn't dump them on an LA freeway before the morning rush."

"Well, they're still dressed. That minimizes the shock value. Maybe he's concerned for them. Do you think he wants them taken care of?"

"There are no signs of sexual assault on any of the victims. All of them were severely hypovolemic. Tara had less than a pint of blood in her. The first two had more than three pints each. If exsanguination is the goal, the unsub is definitely becoming more proficient."

"This is new," JJ says. "Tara's the only victim to have a written message."

She puts a picture on the screen of Tara's crime scene. There is something written next to her body.

"The liar," Hotch reads. "What did you lie about, Tara?"

"All of the victims appear to have been strangled and then bled out through identical wounds in the throat," JJ says, showing the necks of the victims.

"Seriously? Are those supposed to be fang marks?" Emily asks.

"All of the wounds on the victims were covered in saliva. Human saliva, as though someone drank their blood."

This conversation has to continue on the plane since they need to get to Los Angeles right away.

"So, they've already set up a task force in Los Angeles," JJ says. "You remember Detective Owen Kim, right?"

"From the stalker case, yeah," Hotch nods.

"You remember that case, don't you, Spence?"

"Yeah."

"Do you still talk to Lila?"

"How can you expect me to think about another woman when mine is sitting in prison where I can't visit because she doesn't want me to?" Spencer asks angrily. The entire team is silent. "Please, continue."

"Why don't you tell us about blood drinkers, Reid."

"Human blood consumption, or clinical vampirism, is known as Renfield's Syndrome. It's named after the insect-eating character in Bram Stoker's novel Dracula."

"Are they sadists?"

"Not necessarily. Pain to the victim is usually only a byproduct. Blood is the focus. Renfield's syndrome is usually accompanied by varying levels of schizophrenia, and occasionally more classic cannibalism if the condition evolves."

"Classic cannibalism. Lovely job we have," Rossi says sarcastically.

"I will say this, true cases are exceedingly rare."

"Renfield's may be rare but vampires are anything but. There's a huge subculture in Los Angeles of the red-drinking undead," Penelope says over video chat.

"Garcia, all these people drink blood?" Derek asks.

"Au contraire. They mostly just dress up like Prentiss did in high school, and they make-believe. It's all kinds of delicious."

"It's not the same thing at all. As a matter of fact, we should refer to this unsub as a vampirist, not a vampire. They would be attracted to the subculture merely for its professed worship of blood," Spencer corrects.

"Okay, I'm going to continue spelunking through the various online sites and see if anything jumps up and bites me."

"Thanks, baby g--" Derek stops himself from flirting. She is now underneath him and he can't be seen flirting with his subordinate. "Thanks, Penelope. Stay close."

"Yes, sir. Garcia out." 

"One more thing, vampirists are coveters," Spencer says. "They most generally always have some sort of relationship with the victim, even if it's tangential. They're likely to become obsessed. They've almost certainly crossed paths in some way."

Detective Kim is eager for their arrival, and he is practically at the front door when they arrive.

"Hi, Lieutenant Kim. Agent Jareau," JJ shakes his hand.

"JJ, of course. I remember most of you. Agent Hotchner. Reid. Morgan. Where's Y/N?"

"Not here right now," Hotch says. Spencer's face drops at the mention of your name but he doesn't say anything. "These are Agents Prentiss and Rossi. I believe they're new to you."

"Hi. We already have a room set up full of glass boards, case files, and extremely bad coffee."

"Agent Morgan's in charge now. It's his show." Kim gives him a weird look. "Long story."

"I know you like to start with the freshest information and work your way back. So, Tara's apartment has been processed and sealed in case you want to go there. Her body, along with that of the first two girls, is at the morgue with an ME waiting there for your call."

"Alright. JJ, get set up here and then hook up with Garcia. Send her the witness information so she can start cross-referencing with the first two victims. Reid, I want you to go through all the case files and set up a preliminary profile based on what you already know about psychopathology. The rest of us find out what we can on Tara."

JJ and Spencer get together to work off each other while the others do their own thing. Spencer is distracted, rightfully so, but he tries his best to focus on the case. How can you say you don't want him to see you? After everything you two have been through.

"When vampirists become obsessed, they aren't likely to find a random victim. If we can find a cross-relationship, someone in all the victims' lives, that'll be incredibly helpful," Spencer says.

"Gina King knew Tara the longest. They had some classes together."

"Let's get all the information we can on that relationship. As a matter of fact, get me everything you can on all of Tara's friends."

"Alright. In the morning, I'll track them down and do some follow-up."

Rossi and Emily went to Tara's apartment where her murder took place. There are books about movies and films that she was using to study. Everything she needed to know to make movies. In her bedroom is where they find the most interesting stuff. On one side of the room are posters of a goth man named Dante. It's a mini-shrine to the man fit with posters of him, trinkets about him, candles, and other things.

She has a laptop which probably has everything they need to know about her, so Penelope is going to have to work her magic to get inside of it. If Tara was into some creepy cult shit, then her social media will show it.

Derek and Hotch went to the ME's office to inspect the bodies of all three victims. The saliva found on them hasn't been a match of anyone in the DNA database but they have it going through the lab for more testing. If the ME sends the samples over to the local bureau lab and has them rush it, they'll have something by tomorrow.

The weird thing about the bites is just that... they're not bites. The edges of the wounds are razor-sharp. A tooth would leave a ragged, torn edge. Even with animal bites, the edges are torn by teeth. The "bites" were done with some sort of sharp and efficient instrument. If the bites aren't really bites, then why is there saliva on the wounds? From licking it afterward?

All they know for sure is that once an unsub like this gets started, it only gets worse.

Nothing can get done until the lab results are back in, so the team picks up the investigation the next morning. However, by the time they got into the station, there was news of another body. Spencer and JJ have gotten custody of Tara's laptop so Penelope is working remotely trying to get into it. The news is on about the recent murder and what it could mean, which is where most of the team is.

"This is Chase Manning, News Chopper 12, over the 101 freeway in San Fernando Valley. Apparently, a second body in as many days has been found near an off-ramp," a news reporter says.

"So much for keeping the media out," JJ scoffs. Penelope calls and she places her on speakerphone. "Penelope? Are we in yet?"

"All yours. I always feel skeevy going through someone's life like this."

"Okay, so everything looks like it's password protected so you might not even be able to--you're in already, aren't you?" JJ chuckles.

"The password was 'Cullen'."

"Of course," JJ laughs.

"Colon?" Spencer asks.

"Cullen. The vampire family from Twilight." Spencer's bottom lip wobbles as he tries not to cry. "Are you okay?"

"I kept putting off having a Twilight marathon with Y/N. She really wanted me to watch it."

JJ becomes sad for Spencer. She hates what this is doing to him. If it were up to her, she would bring him right to you. She understands why you don't want him to see you but she understands why he feels like he has the right to.

"If it makes you feel any better, she seems to be doing okay," she white-lies.

"It doesn't," Spencer sighs.

"Okay. I am gonna go talk to Tara's BFF before the media requests come in and it gets too crazy."

"What's a BFF?"

"Best friends forever."

"Should I go with you?"

"No, you have a profile to deliver."

"I should really work on it a little more."

JJ rolls her eyes and grabs his phone before he can stop her.

"What are you doing with my phone?"

She dials someone and places the phone against her ear.

"Derek, hey, Spence is ready for the profile." Spencer tries to grab the phone from her but she moves away. "Why, yes, he is right here." She hands him his phone and waves. "I'll be back."

"Hey, yeah, I have the profile ready to go whenever you are."

"Alright, we'll be right in," Derek says before hanging up. "Hotch, Reid's ready with the profile."

"Good."

x

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[carefulfears]

my thoughts on the field where i died, as promised!

first of all, i just have to say, this episode is so visually stunning. glen morgan/james wong + rob bowman behind the camera is a dream team, and i’m inclined to be a bit more open to the content than i probably would be if it came from the perspective of another writer.

the criticism that i hear the most regarding this episode is that it implies that mulder and scully aren’t soulmates, but i've never interpreted it that way

the field where i died opens on an FBI raid of a cult in tennessee headed by vernon ephesian, where mulder intuitively leads the team to a bunker housing ephesian and his six wives, including melissa riedal-ephesian.

throughout the investigation, FBI focus turns to uncovering the location of the cult's weapons, in a search to find enough evidence to charge ephesian. otherwise, he will be released in 24 hours.

throughout the 24 hour holding period, multiple interrogations of melissa reveal not only the depth of the connection that mulder feels to her, but that she seems to exhibit multiple personalities, each with differing information about ephesian's crimes.

in what is possibly my favorite frame of the series, mulder suggests that these alternate personalities might actually be melissa recalling her past lives, and suggests that she try regression hypnosis, with the goal of revealing where the bunker holding the weapons is

this is where this episode starts to lose people, as both mulder and melissa undergo regression hypnosis, and both claim to recognize each other as their spouse in each previous life

however, as the wikipedia summary points out, the recollected histories all end with the two being separated.

melissa describes watching mulder's death during the civil war, while mulder describes witnessing her being taken away (by CSM?? i'll admit this is a weird one, folks) during WWII, with mulder having the line "we're always taken away."

also a frequent flyer in the past life regression session, is scully, who appears in each of mulder's previous lives, an occurrence he describes as souls coming back "different, but always together, again and again, to learn"

personally, i don't think that mulder and melissa being married in each life, or even the emotional connection that they have to each other, is implying that they're soulmates or supposed to be together.

i think that the repeated theme of mulder and melissa being separated and mulder and scully "coming together" in each life is the more meaningful note from morgan and wong. and more than that, i don't think that any of this matters at all.

if you recall, the goal of the regression hypnosis in the first place was to find the bunker. to locate the weapons, to charge ephesian, and to hold the cult members in custody.

ultimately, the regression doesn't assist in the investigation at all, and a planned FBI search of the grounds finds every member of the group dead in a mass suicide, including melissa.

the stand-out of this episode, however, comes before the revelation of the ending.

"dana, if early in the four years we've been working together, an event occurred that suggested or somebody told you that...we'd been friends together. in other lifetimes. always. wouldn't it have changed some of the ways we looked at one another?"

following mulder's regression, the episode pauses. and mulder asks scully (calling her by her first name, i believe for the first time since season one) if having known they were fated to come back together, to always be friends, would have changed things between them.

this is a conversation that is ongoing throughout the series, the question of fate vs. free will, and as the incredible @scullysflannel has written about before, mulder loves free will.

while fated past lives might be the MOTW, might be the supernatural phenomenon that we're focusing on, that doesn't mean that the episode, or mulder, comes out on the side of fate.

fate can't find the bunker. fate doesn't save anyone's life.

frequently, when this debate is brought up, as is scully's involvement in the x-files.

scully was assigned to the x-files, she was positioned there by CSM purposefully, and they both know that. but she has chosen to commit herself to the cause, and specifically to mulder. she sought him out when they were shut down, she describes herself as having "followed" him, and she continuously fights to stay involved in his journey.

this is something that mulder rebels against from time to time, feeling responsible for the things that have happened to her since she became involved in his quest

and feeling that there's more for her than what a life with him offers.

in fight the future, he tells her to leave and go be a doctor. in requiem, he laments "everything that's been taken" from her, including her health and chance at being a mother.

over 15 years later, in nothing lasts forever, he admits to the scenario he envisions, a world where she "left that basement office" and married some brain surgeon, became everyone's boss at the FBI, her family and health and babies intact.

regardless of the underlying level of guilt and responsibility that he always feels when it comes to the losses that scully has suffered

he needs this life to have been her choice, for her autonomy in that decision to have been intact, for a life with him to not have been her irrevocable, and somewhat tragic, fate

and so in the field where i died, shortly after exploring the connections of his past, he looks up at her and asks...if this were all because we're supposed to know each other, would it have been different?

and she tells him, no.

the way that in fight the future she tells him that she'll be a doctor, but her work is with him. the way that in requiem she told him that she won't let him go alone. the way that in nothing lasts forever she told him that she doesn't begrudge him anything, that her "leap of faith forward" is the future she wants with him.

maybe they have been friends in every life that they have ever lived. maybe they are fated to always come back together, to always learn from each other.

but fate doesn't save the day, fate doesn't show you what you need to find.

they choose each other, and more than anything else in this episode, that's what he needed to hear.

[sea-of-dust]

"They call me rizz lord"

Mikey, Baji, Kazutora x Reader

Summary: they got with someone good with people...maybe too good...

Notes: BANDORI ANNON IM WORKING ON IT M8. l was in the middle of writing Mikey's part then realized y/n's kinda like Sakamoto and Aoi akane.. Finna use story beats from both of em 😼. So yea....ALSO TR SEASON 2 DROPPED

Warnings: Down horrendous background characters. There's a shit ton of references-. sus remarks, swearing, Manga spoilers in kazutoras part

Gender Neutral Reader

He feels warm and fuzzy around you no doubt you two started dating the problem was...that's the reason a lot of people like you too....a whole crowd in fact

You could be walking around the halls with him "you need the homework? I have the answers ^^" "AH Y/N DOING HOMEWORK HOW STUDIOUS" "?" "THEY LOOKED AT MEEE I MIGHT FAINT" you look at them walking faster covering your eyes "Mikey as soon as we turn the corner we run"

He's heard tales of you mostly told by simps. what he didn't know if that they might be true....he's seen you rizz up fountains because your friends wanted to drink out of the fountain you were using. "Bro watch this" they mimic how you spoke to your friend "And then when they bent over to drink it the water started spraying out all over!" "And then they fliped their head back turning to face us in embarrassment!" "REMEMBER WHAT THEY SAID" they clear their throat "oh! Why hello?" The two fans squeal. He's...impressed and also scared.

He's gonna use it as a teasing point "heyyy don't break the sink alright~" "Mikey I beg of you-" "hehe~"

He's also gonna use you to get things he wants. "Listen I'm gonna need you to go in get some dorayaki, come out" "Why are we huddled down behind the building like it's a sneak mission?" "It is!" He jokes. You walk in buy one dorayaki and end up with five. "Crazy they said it was on the house" "YES"

He doesn't mind your simps as long as they don't bother him! He likes going "that's nice" to people telling stories about you and then internally smirking at the fact you two are dating.

Pdas something that's gonna leave the crowd rioting. Everyone thinks you two are close friends till they see you kiss him goodbye or hold his hand. Then they just forget the next day because you breathed near them.

Speaking of pda he suddenly shows ALOT of it when your friend comes up to you. "Oh hi (c/n!)" He's hugging you from behind moving his hands along your clothing to fiddle with it "Y/n! I was hoping you could-" "They're not interested" Mikey pulls you away slowly. your friend and you are confused but they say it anyway "You mind joining me to get some food this weekend" "NO" "Sure!" You waved bye to your friend as Mikey dragged you out of sight.

If he ever came to visit he always notices the house is sparkling clean and lively. It's comforting plus it's your house! He's staying over! Called it no take backs! "Mikey this is the third time...maybe I'll go sleep at yours one of these days" he's kept his house clean ever since you said that. Nearly as sparkling as yours

Lower ranks in the gang often talk about you. "Bro y/n" "THEYRE SO FUCKING CUTE" "IKR" "aren't they in the gardening club?" They all pause "finna start gardening" "YES SIRR" they join the next day finding you in the field. "Lemme help you out with that shawty" "thank you?" "Your wel-" He notices Mikey next to you at that second a little carrot sticker on his face. "Yo <3" They still show up to help out with the school garden too scared to flirt with you. "Yo I heard you tried asking out someone your interested in what happened?" "The boss is already trying to rizz them up"

A student and you made an agreement that they could take pictures of you. You didn't mind after all they're paying you but they started noticing something weird in the pictures. A ghost staring at the camera it's always so close to you. They told you about it pointing at the ghost. "Interesting" you inspect it to make sure it wasn't your boyfriend being a goof. After a full minute of staring you ask "you close to Mikey Sano?" "No" "...shit" you go to the copying room. "Oh hey y/n-" "hi Mikey" you push him aside putting your face in the copying machine. Both of them looked at each other. "Sooo um-" "here..." they show Mikey the pictures. "So should we place salt around the room?" "Idk" "You know its mouth is different in each of these" The photographer looks back at the images and they try to read the ghosts lips Mikey peaking over. "tear m-" "please don't continue Mikey..." suddenly a gust of wind flies the papers you've copied out the window. "The hell did you do-" "I gave our ghost friend a response <3" You walk out the room smiling "if they ever come back tell me. Also that's 5 bucks added to my paycheck this Friday for extended hours" "what-"

He finds it strange how you're so calm when doing things that fluster the average person. Like holding a live bug in your hand after catching that mf mid-air...God that was terrifying....Or the time you let him lay his head on your lap...when he's supposed to be at a meeting. If a toman member ever found you and him they would shout "BOSS" and he would nearly run down to make them can it. "YO BOSS" "boss?" "Sorry gotta go!" "WAIT WHAT ABOUT YOUR COAT-" he runs back and grabs it "cover your eyes and don't open em till I say" you cover your eyes as he runs down "YOU CAN LOOK NOW" you couldn't even say bye as he's zooming off. "The next time you call me boss in front of them were gonna have problems" he pulls the member's cheeks. "Yes sir!"

You decided to try your siblings skin care routine while they were away...on Mikey... "OK then that piece of shit rubs a rock in their ugly ass face...bitch looks like a rock" he'd never hear you talk about someone like that about someone. Giggling awkwardly at some of their comments. "Why do you hate your sibling so much-" "they're an asshole you wouldn't understand you're pretty soft" "huh-" "you heard me your soft" DO YOU KNOW WHO YOURE TALKING TO RIGHT NOW?! He pulls you into his chest. "I have you know I'm the opposite of soft" "oh really?" You grab his arm. "Your hands says otherwise" "that's not what I ment!" "You're pretty soft Sano" you place his hand on your cheek. Damn you and your charm. You take out your phone taking a picture of his face. "HEY!" "using this as your contact"

Some students decided to interview people around school coming up to you and Mikey. "So y/n what's your type?" You pause in your conversation with Mikey. "Guys with abs and a cute personality. I-" you went on a whole speech about cute guys the crew weren't even sure if they should tell you to stop "BUT THEN there's cute girls" "Alright that's enough" "HEY MIKEY LET ME TELL THEM" "You've done enough telling for today" The next day everyone was either ripped or look like they just came off the cute girl tab on pintrest. "What have I done..." "you've made everyone even more of your bitch..." "does that mean...😏" "...no"

If Takemichi were to go to the future you'd always disappear with Mikey, or become untouchable by the gang. In every outcome, you'd always have Mikey's contact info. Some timeliness you two broke up due to him distancing himself for your safety. The times Takemichi did end up talking to you you'd either say. "Don't bring up Mikey like I fuck with him" "He won't tell me his whereabouts either..." "After high school, we kinda drifted sorry man" he could tell that with each of these answers you still somewhat cared for him.

All the inside jokes about him not folding and simping. He did..."You're like the geek you were before around them" "NOT TRUE" "what about the time you two had to go on the train together and they brushed your hand and started talking to you" "eh-" "or the time you muttered while speaking to them" "Chifuyu I think you had enough fun for today..." "you're a simp~" "shut up"

There was a fight at school and someone thought it would be a good idea to throw a potted plant from the gardening club. Unluckily for them you were there and caught it. "EY WHAT THE HELL MAN" "Don't bring the plants into this fight off of school grounds" "oh shit y/n-" litterally everyone stopped fighting just to look at you. "Shit bbg my bad TAKE EM BACK BOYS" "YOU TOOK MORE-" you turned to Baji "You alright" "Tf you mean am I alright" "...you know what maybe the gardening club wouldn't mind" He's been slightly scared of you since but hey atleast he didn't get socked in the face by big Gertrude

You two met a second time on a blind double date. "Oh hey, you're that dude that almost got hit in the face by Gertrude!" "My names Baji.." "Baji! What a nice name!" He could tell you wanted to rip your head off. "so um why did they drag you here?" "They wanted me to "get out the house" or something.." "felt" "yea..whyed your friend drag you here?" "They promised food" you two had a long talk and ended up getting along. You two kept finding each other at the same places and became friends only to start dating a few months later

He doesn't like your "fans" All they really do is talk about you and say the most strange things too. Until he released most of the stories were true. Like the time you started playing a song...ON YOUR ARM. How does that even, what huh what he doesn't understand you but hey...if it works it works...

He also isn't surprised you're popular enough for people to actually listen to your speech at the end of the year. He doesn't mind hearing it either your voice is nice on the ears. Then a student came up on stage with a bat. "Shut up will you!" He tries to run up to you and take a swing when you dodge perfectly taking the mic. "Dreams are near impossible if you don't try" you leave your foot out for the troublesome student to fall on subduing him. "Which is why I recommend trying in class!" The crowd exploded into screams of praise. The speech was so boring but that part? 10/10

You got involved with the gang...Takemichi and Chifuyu often come up to you and they brought you to a spot used for a meeting on the same day. "Baji?" "Y/n?" "Why are you here? Takemichi said this was a private meeting point" "...." He gives Takemichi a death stare before turning back to you. "Let's go get something to eat if you're done here" "alright!" He leads you out putting his jacket over your shoulders. "It's not even cold-" "shush"

Eventually toman learns about you fully and welcomes you in with open arms. They treat you like a little sibling, telling you not to go somewhere their about to fight, telling you who to avoid. "Remember these guys are fucking nuts" "he's kinda pretty tho" "HE'S LITERALLY APART OF A GANG THAT BEATS PEOPLE UP FOR BREATHING" "I'd let him" "....you're a lost cause"

You often carry around multiple hair ties so when he's asleep and conveniently sleeping on his stomach you try to tie his hair into pigtails. You try not to laugh but it's pretty hard when your friends are pretending to play ping pong with his snores sounding like a ball hitting the paddle. "bro wtf are you two doing" "shush shush watch this" your friend swings his arm in rhythm with Banji's snores. You sigh trying not to let out a giggle

You've kept Banji alive for longer that he was intended witch is great the problem is that usually when he time jumps he ends up meeting you as a member of Toman being a high executive or if Baji died in that future you would swear revenge becoming a detective. Those detective endings end in you getting murdered by a toman leader or you having small details you're able to share with him. On regular occasions, he found you and Baji on a date.

You manhandled him once...You had a playful argument with him at gardening club. You were planting when he kept stepping on crops. "You're messing it up Baji..." "sorry sorry" "that's the third time" you sigh fixing it again as he nearly ruins another. You getting slightly annoyed tell Banji to stay near the brick wall. "Don't resist alright" "what are you-" You pick him up and place him down on the flat part of the wall. "Now you can't fuck up the plants" he's kinda concerned that you can manhandle him. Kinda scared of what you'll be able to do to Draken...

Some students are pretty jealous of this natural talent of infinite rizz. So they decided to mess with you a bit. They took your desk somehow. The morning you got to where your desk should have been you sat at the open windowsill. "Please get off the window y/n" "it's the perfect spot of the perfect s/o!!" "You're not even dating" You got down listening to the teacher walking up to Baji "You mind if we share a seat-" despite the fact you whispered people turned their heads to you two moving over their seats. "IM CLEARLY THE BETTER PICK SIT WITH ME" "Y/N I BEG OF YOU PLEASE" "I HAVE NOTES FROM LAST CLASS" the classroom went ballistic as you sat down with Baji sharing the seat. "How do you stop them-" "I don't know anymore..."

You two play video games together and turns out people don't have to see you for then to nearly instantly fall in love with you... "damn wish I didn't get splatted so much.." "we could double team!" "Thx!" The whole teams blocking you now. They don't even allow people on the other team to talk shit. "Really it's fine I'm not using the same weapon anymore" "I'll still stay with you!" "Same!" He's pretty chill about it but asks to play games that don't have an online feature

He does wish he could have you to himself sometimes without people going ballistic over you. So he saved up and took you somewhere people wouldn't recognize you two. A nice quiet spot for you two. "This is a nice spot. The views great! I really can't thank you enough for bringing me here" he feels proud of himself "don't mention it!"

You took him to karaoke as a way to repay him. You two had a blast but he did notice a few weird things. One, when you sung a bunch of people hoarded on the glass outside. Turns out someone left your door open. WHATS WORSE is that they left as soon as he got up to sing, like wtf is he not that good of a singer 😾. Secound, you mostly sang in another language don't get me wrong he liked your singing he just didn't know what you were saying and when he asked you giggled before saying "it's about a girl in love with a dude trying to confess to him before he moves" Just off the giggle and the held in laughs while you sung he's sure you're singing that languages version of the most lewd song known to man

Whenever you two are about to sleep. you can't help touching his checks. Pinching them a bit. If he ever wakes up while you're doing this you'd try to pull away to make sure he didn't notice sometimes he'd pull you in closer. You could hear him mumble something about warmth before closing his eyes again. You can't help but fall asleep shortly after waking up to the hand on your waist now resting on your face.

S A V E H I M

You and your unimaginable charm has made you nearly untouchable until you decided to partner up with him on a task. You did this multiple times and began hanging out after school. He found you slightly annoying thinking that this is how you treated everyone. He only learned later that excluding the people that surrounded you you only considered 3 other people friends excluding himself. He's pissed he feels special. "They're just using you for popularity points" he repeats to himself.

His opinion on you shifted when valentines day rolled around. "Oh hey, Kazutora!" You run up to him. "Y/n..." "Don't y/n.. me let's see what you got" you look so excited you could hardly keep it together. He opens his locker finding a small plush and candy. "It had a letter!" "No need to yell-" he opens up the letter you reading it with him. It read: "Shit bbg I stopped using Google when I found you out cause my search was over" "who in their right mind" "💀" You open your locker only to be flooded with letters. A wave that almost moved you off your feet. "Really hate when this happens" he looks over. "You were prepared for this?" "Yea this happens every year...I read them all over at home and respond" you sigh. "If it makes em happy" you picked up the notes putting them in a spare bag. Kazutora bent down to help. You two gathered the letters into the bag and began your school day. When kazutora got back to his locker later he found another note. "I forgot to ask for your contact info...anyway wanna go to a dinner after school?-y/n" He could tell you tried extra hard on the letter with the same fancy seal on it as the anonymous one. "Oh so you found it! Thank god. Wait does this mean-" "Sure" you slightly shocked. "Oh um...pretty straightforward...let's go?"

When you two started dating he almost completely changed. He's shown to be alot more soft and less careful around you. "You were always so on edge before..." You say while rubbing his cheek. "You're so cute <3" he doesn't respond only clinging to you closer. "So cute~"

He never tells you about the gang and avoids you ever getting involved doesn't stop them from simping tho. "Y/n's pretty popular" "y/n?!" "They're pretty cute" "maybe we cou-" "maybe what" The member was met with Kazutora's looking down at them with a pipe in hand "MAYBE WE COULD ASK FOR TUTORING" "...keep away from them" "alright" the member turns around "who's Kazutora for telling me what to do" The next day the member asks you for help on a homework task. You two stayed back after school as you two settled down he noticed that kazutora was with you. "What's he doing here-" "He needed help on the same task" he didn't he just sat there menacingly as you tried to teach the member. "Crazy he seemed kinda scared" "don't worry about it"

You two joke about your infinite rizz. "It's all fun and games till they hear your morning voice" "my morning voice is fine" "you sound like a grown man..." "pfftt noo i don't ~" he could perfectly recount the time you slept in the same room the first time. He wakes up his arms around you "good morning" "good morn shawty" he jumps outta the end grabbing the nearby lamp. "you good-" "WHY IS YOUR VOICE SO DAMN DEEP" "idk what you're talking about-" "do you not hear yourself talking?!?" "Stfu and go back to bed" "..." He's been in a lot of situations and he'll admit hearing your morning voice for the first time is in his top 3 in scariest ones and it isn't number 3

He hates admitting it but he loves seeing you turn other people down by straight up telling them you have a boyfriend. Sometimes they wouldn't accept the fact you're taken so he gladly pops into existence to sock them in the head.

The one time you left the room you left a hair clip in the same room as him. "What is this" he squeezes the back, the clip opening up. Curiosity gets the best of him as he closes the clamp on his lips, nose, ear-. "What are you doing-" he looks at you like a dear in headlights "is that my mom's hairclip" "No idea what you're talking about" "...it's literally on your lip" "No it isn't" He looks away like an ashamed child being caught red-handed "Take it out" he looks away more "come on Kazutora~" he takes it out and gives it too you after much convincing. "geez that took too long"

"Maybe I should get you a matching earring" "oh?" He got the idea thinking it's a way to mark you as his without making it super obvious. "The earring looks kinda heavy-" "you'll get used to it" "Alright?" I mean it's not like he has the other one on his person...oh he does..."hold still" you try not the flinch as he inserts the earring into your ear. He holds up his phone camera flipping it so you could see yourself. "What do you think?" "It's nice...but still pretty heavy" your head moves with the weight of the earring. "Might have to only wear this on special occasions" "you'll get used to wearing them everyday!" He's like a puppy excited to see it's caretaker after a while. "Well see but for now I don't wanna break it"

In the future you two are still constantly around each other, he was right about the earring thing too you now only take off the earring when you're about to sleep. "Takemichi...you broke Hina's heart this time I'll make sure you turn into a woman by the end of this" you crack your fingers. "Hey hey we could talk this out-" "is that the same thing you said to Hina when you cheated on her" "I just wanted to ask where Kazutora was and I'll be on my way!" "...he's at his job" "tha-" he couldn't get another word out before you socked him. "She treated you well for such scum" The only timelines where you were even slightly kind to him were when he'd slowly become more powerful in the ranks. You didn't respect him but you just couldn't sock him immediately. He's terrified of you even in the past just off of those interactions.

He remembers hearing positive rumors about you and didn't think they were true since they seemed kinda fake. Then he remembered you using the janitor's bucket almost like a scooter... "is that even allowed" "WHO CARES ITS Y/N" "Bro they're being zesty again-"

He likes pda but mostly prefers private displays of affection. Can't let people know he has a soft spot around you ya know. He can't help leaning in to kiss you but it'll be so embarrassing if someone that knows him found you two in that moment. He's also afraid of what will happen if other gangs found out you two were in a relationship so try to keep pda on the down low alright!

He usually hates candy but whenever you two bake something together or you buy him sweets his distain for sweets somehow disappears when you do something for or with him. "Its for the school news show come on!" "If I get a cavity I blame you" "just try it Kazutora" people surround you two like wild animals finding prey after that post went up. "AH Y/N DID YOU REALLY MAKE ALL OF THEM YOURSELF" "I did most of them with Kazutora" "As long as you're part of its creation I'll eat it" "thank you?"

You sleep on him sometimes. People go ham when they see your sleeping face so he's learned to cover your face with a newspaper or something. Keeps simps away and the sun out if your eyes! He also asks you to put your face more inward. "Why so my face would get closer 😏" "do you like the sun in your eyes when sleeping?" "Oh...AWW YOU CARE ABOUT STUFF LIKE THAT. YOURE SO CUTE KAZUTORA!" "I'm right next to you" "you're adorable even with your banana hair <3"

He would come to your house bruised up. "what happened?" "I fell while coming over nothing too bad!" You look at him worried helping him inside "I'm gonna go get a first aid kid alright! Don't move" you run to your bathroom leaving Kazutora alone. He kinda wished you left him with at least a plush he could punch, he's so jealous of those things. You come down with a blanket and first aid kit. "Alright hold still" you patch him up rubbing his cheeks when you finish. "Kazutora...the next time you come into my house lying to me while bruised im going to snap you like a lego brick" Your voice suddenly changes back to its regular cheerful tone "alright!" "Yes y/n!" Now he just doesn't tell you or thinks up a convincing lie while going over.

Reposts Appreciated!

[rickie-the-storyteller]

Steph's Crew - Book 3 Summary

I was meant to post this last year to sort of close the Steph-related content and focus more on other projects. Actually, I was meant to post a lot of things last year...

Bretanie analysis (on here)

Season 1 of AU (on my second blog)

Jekyll and Hyde, but in the modern world (I've been working on that for fun on the side, and I've decided to post the full story on Wattpad)

Revealing the identity of the secret blogger (I'll probably do it in this post, since it is relevant to this part of the story as well)

I've been so busy, y'all. Sorry for the delays.

I just want to make sure I have time to do everything as best as I possibly can, so you can enjoy it. I think it was less pressure posting the Steph's Crew dialogues and snippets because they were old pieces of work, and since the time I first wrote them, I've neatened it up and made it considerably better than it was... I know that the stuff I've shared isn't the final product, so I don't feel the urge to make it perfect. At least not to the extent that I do with all these other projects lol.

Hopefully this can help make up for lost time. I'll get to the other posts mentioned on that list as soon as possible, but until then... here's a summary of the third and final instalment of Steph's Crew!

Enjoy!

Keep in mind that I'm still working on this one. It isn't finished yet, but I wanted to give you guys a rough idea of how it goes. And prepare for this, because it's pretty unhinged lol. I collaborated with my sister on some of the wackier ideas...

Book 3 is titled "Story of a Broken Thing." It picks up where Book 2 ends off, more or less (or at least, it fills us in on what went down since the end of Book 2). If you can't remember how UVC ended, then here's a link to that summary:

But to put it briefly, the crew have successfully solved the mystery, Brelise have split up again, Bret's gone on tour with his band, Dalice are together, Bephanie is over, and Stephanie got arrested... but then escaped from holding. Nobody knows where she could have gone.

Which leads us to Book 3. It is set a couple of years later (I think about 5 years after Book 2 ended), and a lot of stuff has happened in all that time...

Dylan and Alice have broken up. Wasn't meant to be, I guess. But don't worry - they're still friends, and there's no bad blood between them or anything.

Victor and Jen have unfortunately split up as well, leading to Jen moving back to Texas. Alice decides to go with her. She's doing alright - currently taking some classes at a local college, and helping out at her old dance studio in her spare time. She's also still making YouTube videos.

Bret's band is still doing well. They're not touring anymore at the moment, but they are super busy recording a new album, and filming music videos. Plus, they have been asked to perform at the Jingle Bell Ball towards the end of the year, which is very exciting. Even though he has moved back to the UK, because of the nature of Bret's job, he can't just stay in London with his aunt anymore like how he used to... but he still comes to visit her as often as possible. And he and Elise are still close friends, so that's cool. He's been seeing other people over the past couple of years, though.

Elise and Charlie are together. She decided to give him a chance. They're really happy together and they seem to have a pretty healthy, solid relationship for the most part (they've been together for two years straight by the time Book 3 has started). Charlie still harbours some degree of jealousy/wariness towards Bret, though, since she's still really good friends with him. He's never once brought it up to her, though. But it becomes a big deal in this part of the story... more on that later.

Ben isn't really in this part of the story... at least not until towards the end, when Stephanie randomly decides to call him for some reason. But he's doing fine. Moved back to his cooking job from Book 1 lol. It was good money, and now he doesn't have another person to share it with! Wait, that sad-

And by now, Dylan, Connor (who has finally moved on from Daisy! Thank God), Elise and Charlie have all finished their university courses. Yay!

In fact, this is what kickstarts the plot. Dylan's family (we get to see them again in this one! Specifically his mother, her new husband and his younger brother Sam. I feel like we didn't get enough of them last time) is very proud of him for finishing such a long, tough course (3 years, + 1 foundation year + 1 year of masters), and they decide to reward him with an epic summer trip to Australia. And it is during this holiday that he sees Steph again (she's not in Australia btw - he sees her when he goes with a family friend to the Samoan islands).

She fills him in on how she got there. I haven't neatly worked this part out... but basically, Reggie helped her leave the country (idk whether to make him a villain or some kind of loose cannon/antihero type of guy. Like, he's awful most of the time, but he's also one of Stephanie's oldest friends, and he can be genuinely nice when he wants to be. Especially to her. He needs to be in trouble tho lol. I think the thing about him is that he gets away with his awful behaviour easily, whereas Stephanie is kind of forced to be held accountable, even if she actively runs away from the consequences of her actions sometimes...)

After that, she was stuck on her own again for a while and needed a job. So she applied for a job at a local Natia hotel (Natia is a famous line of hotels... kind of like Hilton, to give a known real-life example). She didn't have enough money for a cab or bus, so she had to walk the whole way there through heavy rain. By the time she got there, she looked terrible lol. But when she arrived, she bumped into a handsome young man who kindly helped her out. He got her a room and some clothes to change into, which helped in making a good first impression and whatnot. She got the job!

Later, she found out that the guy's name was Jordan Natia. The son of the hotel line founder (he also owns the hotel she got a job at). She thanks him for her help, and he invites her for dinner... and the rest is history.

And by history, I mean she ends up marrying him lol. Dylan finds out that she now lives at the resort that he and his family friend are currently staying at. She also has a baby daughter named Mia (short for Miranda. Not suspicious at all). She loves her life so much right now. She's always prided herself on being a strong independent woman who can take care of herself, but she's surprised at how much she's enjoying being a stay-at-home mother and housewife lol. She loves spending time with her baby, and she loves her husband a lot, too. He takes good care of her. However, similar to Ben, he doesn't really know all that much about her (Jordan goes through a similar arc to Ben's in Book 2, where he finds out the truth about Stephanie, and it changes the way he sees her. Minus the cheating lol).

Dylan is shocked at how much Steph has changed since the last time he saw her, but he's happy for her at the same time. He can see that she's genuinely happy and seemingly at peace, which is great.

Meanwhile, back in the UK, Charlie has decided to propose to El. He's taking it VERY seriously - even asked for her family's blessing and everything. They all said yes... even Adam lol (he's grown to like Charles by now). One summer evening, he pops the question (in a truly beautiful and romantic way btw), and Elise says yes in the moment, but she doesn't know if she truly feels ready for marriage yet. Something about the situation feels wrong to her, but she doesn't know what it is. However, instead of communicating her mixed feelings to her now fiance, she decides to distract herself with hangouts with her family and friends, as well as getting into her work and other hobbies, preferring to think about anything other than her problems (man, does THIS sound familiar lol). Charlie starts noticing a change in El's behaviour and it begins to really upset him (especially since Bret is one of the people she starts spending more time with, and we all know how she feels about him), causing more strain in their relationship. It only gets worse when they find out about Stephanie's whereabouts...

Dylan messages the others about his trip everyday through a group chat. One night he reveals that he's reunited with an old friend of theirs and sends a picture of him and Stephanie hanging out. The others are shocked. Elise especially.

The situation started becoming somewhat of a controversy in the news... people started talking about it more online, many blogs and news websites (including The Looking Glass) started covering it. Alice made a video on YouTube talking about it (and it came from the unique angle of her knowing the person from school and being their friend and everything. She didn't mention Steph by name, though). It blew her channel up.

The story of Stephanie's escape was quickly resurfacing back into people's minds after being forgotten for such a long time. And this wasn't good for Steph lol. Especially after finally making a life for herself that she was genuinely truly happy in.

But that's not the end of the story.

I'll tell you the rest in part 2 of this summary!

[epickiya722]

Langa & Reki, please, for the ask game...

I'm just gonna answer these two characters together! 🌈❄

My first impression: Thought those two were the cutest. Saw Reki's skate against Shadow and thought "Oh, he has heart. I'm gonna like that one." Shadow did him so dirty though!! With Langa, I just thought he looked like he would be a quiet one.

My impression now: I definitely adore them both. Reki is my favorite character and Langa follows after.

Favorite thing about that character: Besides their personalities, I like their aesthetics. Reki's style is really colorful and I'm a sucker for colors. His hoodies are too cute and I love that his headband's expressions will match his. Langa's ice theme, I like that! Especially since it leans more on the blues and there's some black thrown in there. It matches how they are. I love that while Reki is a bit on the fiery side, his character isn't heavy with the fire/sun symbolism. Instead, it's the rainbow and hibiscus. With Langa, he's ice themed, but he isn't a cold person. He's "cool" to others, he's calm.

Least favorite thing: They made me so frustrated during their whole falling out. I hate that Reki can be so self-deprecating sometimes and I wanted to shake Langa for wanting to still skate against Adam.

Favorite line/scene: Hard to choose when it comes to these two. They have so many great scenes together. To choose I have to go with when they finally make back up and decide to add the Infinity symbol to their handshake. That was too cute! But I also like their scene where Reki pretends to be in distress and Langa is like "Don't worry, bae. I'll protect you."

Favorite interaction that character has with another: Other than with each other, I adore how they interact with the rest of the SK8 squad. Especially with Miya. To choose an interaction, I gotta go with the scene after Reki's rematch with Adam and they just pile on him to make sure he's okay and he's smiling and laughing. Love that.

A character that I wish that character would interact with more: Ooh, so many options here actually. To pick... okay, I would like to see more of Reki and Langa's time working with Oda. Like, how does Oda deal with those two when they're working at the skate shop. I'm sure they get into a lot of shenanigans. 😆

Another character from another fandom that reminds me of that character: I actually made a post about this for Reki! He and Yuji from Jujutsu Kaisen are like the same person, but in different genres. Hoodie wearing redheads, bright smiles, and have recognized skill that makes amazes others when they do show off those skills, yet often underestimated. Langa reminds me of Shoto Todoroki, especially after the Sports Festival. Ice people who aren't actually cold, love their mamas, talented pretty boys, and have a signature food they like.

A headcanon about that character: Okay, I ended up writing a whole series about this one! I headcanon that Reki likes to let Koyomi paint his nails from time to time. He likes colors and he doesn't mind Koyomi using him for practice. It's also nice to spend quality time with his sister and see her do something she likes. Sometimes, he'll even ask her to paint his nails blue to match Langa, who likes the idea of Reki wearing his color.

A song that reminds of that character: Shawn Wasabi's Animal Crossing. It's such a cute song! And of course, Infinity by Yuuri will always be their song. I can't think of a Langa song, but for Reki, Alessia Cara's My Kind comes to mind.

An unpopular opinion about that character: I actually didn't feel "queerbaited" at the end of the first season. Some people threw out "queerbait" because we didn't see LanReki kiss. Kiss? I was gonna ship them regardless of the ending. We at least were left to interpretation if their relationship is platonic or romantic. I don't think a ship should always be confirmed through a kiss because kissing isn't the only thing romantic couples do. They hold hands, call each other nicknames, hug, tells the other person that they make them happy, etc. Kissing isn't the only gesture used to say "I love you".

Favorite picture: There's so many of these two that I can look at all day, but to choose I'm going with these two since I have used them for edits before.

Send Me a Character...✨️

[writing-plurals]

Hello! I've been thinking of writing fanfics about a ship making them share the same body. It's going to be drabbles/one-shots tho, since I'm not good at writing (I barely ever write XD) and I don't think I would be able to write a full story with various chapters. I'm plural myself so I have a basic idea of what I should avoid (evil killer alter trope for example)

There's some ideas I came up with and would like some advice on writing the following:

In-system romantic relationships

DID systems

Median systems

Plurals fighting together as heroes

But there's something else I wanted to ask advice on (even if it isn't exactly for writing). See, I'm a native spanish speaker so I'm gonna write the drabbles in spanish. I think it could be a good way of introducing non-disordered and non-traumagenic plurality to other spanish speakers since most of the plural content and activism in spanish is about dissociative disorders only, but because of that there's many sysmeds and anti-endos and I don't know how I should deal with them.

I don't think I can ignore them, specially because I don't want them spreading misinformation (as always) in the comments but I also don't want to flood them debating sysmeds. I thought of maybe making a carrd (with sources) and linking it but IDK if it's actually worth it to make a carrd just for this.

Hey friend! That's a lot, and I can't touch on all of them, so some of them I'll be throwing to other mods and our followers to add on in reblogs. I hope that's alright!

In-system Romantic Relationships

Internal Romantic Relationships are almost the same as ones in the Outside. You can surprise each other with flowers, and presents that's to be THEIRS. You can hold them inside *and* out (when cofronting. It'll all just look a little different.

Person A wants to surprise Person B? Gotta make sure internal walls are built up so they don't know about the flowers until they're set up and they switch in. Have them leave notes for them with the sappy shit people would normally say to their face if there were two bodies involved.

Person A and B want to cuddle while watching a movie, it looks like hugging yourself, but maybe B has control of one arm, and is stroking the face or other hand. During sad parts, A hugs B (with the body) eeeeeeextra tight!

Plurals Fighting As Heroes

The mask a singlet would wear as a hero has multiple meanings once a system puts one on. So plan on the group having a long conversation about the name they all want to use that won't tip anyone off. Think System Name but opposite direction, so as not to be found out.

And same goes for the outfit, except you can probably lead with more of what the system members like in aesthetics.

And the elephant in the room, what about powers? Do they all have seperate (more nichely specific) powers? Do they all have the same one and use it differently? If you've seen the later seasons of My Hero Academia, there's a comparison to Midoriya you might find helpful.

Just make sure that if you include powers, that the way it fits into the world doesn't show your system to be Different because they're a system.

And last but not least (for my advice before additions)

If you're planning on writing some of the first creative representation of plurality, prepare to be the people that are looked to for information.

Set up a Caard or something akin to one with information, (credited and linked to sources!!!, Caards get a bad rep for that), and you can direct people to it like a FAQ.

And by taking on this role, you have to accept the risk that sysmeds are going to try to debate you. So deeply consider if you have the time to research responses that are backed up by studies that you can shut them down with. There are several blogs I've seen share information like this that you might find helpful in bringing it to the spanish side of fandom.

@cambriancrew is a fantastic place to start, and you can find more blogs akin to them there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope that this and advice further down on this post is helpful. And I give my best wishes as you embark on this. We need more people like you making content online.

-Mod Tick Tock

(This has been edited to remove the color, thank you for the feedback!)

[andrebearakovsky]

(cont. ask) first of all NOOO don't apologize i was looking for a long post, this is why i came here! i've been lurking way back! i remembered your blog name! 2. wow??? this is such a comprehensive answer!!! 😍😍😍😍😍😍🤗😳 thank you so much! 3. any content you want to post i am here for! 4. i can't believe there are so many new guys, like yes of course, but i can't believe it! 5. Oh yeah the details of the Holtby thing are coming back to me, i seem to have repressed it.🙈

Aw that's so sweet of you! A longtime viewer! (Viewer? What am I, a YouTuber? Calm down.) It's sweet of you to remember me and I'm delighted that I am apparently famous and evidently famous for making long/extensive posts lol. Which I'm about to do again.

I talked about Strome, Milano, Sandin, and alllll those young guys on my last post, as well as Darcy and TvR. [And Dowd but you already knew him.] The rest of the guys currently on the team I haven't really touched on yet that joined post-Holtby era are Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Anthony Mantha, and Charlie Lindgren. I'll get into them in a bit, but I gotta get into some other things first.

You said you haven't really watched since the Holtby era, so I'm going to assume you know everything that happened/all the people we had up til that final season, and that you know little/nothing of what has happened since then. So I'm gonna give a quick recap of some of the big things that have happened in that time:

You missed the ENTIRETY of the Sammy and Vitek goaltending era, which was kinda turbulent. Sammy was gonna be the starter with Henrik Lundqvist as the backup, but then it turned out Lundqvist had a heart condition and had to retire and never played a game for the Caps. This forced Vitek into action, and we had 2 years of the Sammy and Vitek goaltending duo. I, personally, loved it. Some people did not. I still hold that they were BOTH GOOD!! They split time, neither one ever TRULY grasped the starting reigns. There was also when Vitek got taken by the Kraken in the expansion draft and then immediately traded him back to us. Also they were besties, which started when they were a duo down in Hershey. It's also why my blog is titled "goalie best friend tandem," though it also currently applies to Darcy and Chuck who are besties. You can search the "goalie best friends" tag on my blog for cute Sammy and Vitek content. Neither of them are here anymore, but they're still friends - I remember seeing a quote Vitek gave to some Devils people talking about him and about still being friends and such.

Players you knew back from the Holtby era who are no longer with us: Lars Eller, Richard Panik (useless), Jonas Siegenthaler, Travis Boyd, Christian Djoos, Michal Kempny, Radko Gudas, Garnet Hathaway, Dmitry Orlov [don't talk to me about these last two I'm sad]

Players that played with us for multiple seasons after the Holtby era who are no longer with us this year: Justin Schultz, Conor Sheary, Daniel Sprong, Matt Irwin

COVID robbed us of our time with Brenden Dillon and I'm sad about it

We had Zdeno Chara for 1 year, and he straightup fixed Nick Jensen. Jensen was abysmal before that, then Chara was his defense partner for the whole year, and Jensen is good now. I no longer dread every time he touches the puck, I trust him. Also he has a personality now! Idk what kind of dark magic Chara used, but I will be forever thankful to him for it. 1 year of Chara absolutely 1000% worth it just for fixing Nick Jensen

We got Marcus Johansson back! :) And then we traded him again

We traded Jakub Vrana for Anthony Mantha, who is useless and unfortunately still here. He never fit in with the team vibe of "sexy idiots," he's not loud enough or slutty enough.

In March 2022 Carl Hagelin suffered a really bad eye injury during practice. I think the butt end of someone's stick got into his eye? (We were never told whose stick it was, I'm sure they have to feel absolutely terrible about it.) He's lucky he didn't lose his eye. He tried to come back, but he never played a game again after that. He was technically on the roster all of last season, but he never got into any games, and he just announced his retirement this summer. A really sad end, tbh. And RIP to the 4th line of dreams.

We were GONNA have Connor Brown for the 2022-23 season, and he was gonna play with Dylan Strome whom he's friends with and played in juniors with. But he played for like 2 games and then got hurt and was out for the season and never played for us again. I think he's in Edmonton now.

You know about goal songs, right?? I think the last year of Holtby was the first year of goal songs. I have a Spotify playlist of goal songs if you wanna check it out

There have been SO many injuries the last 3 years. 2021-22 was what I like to call the year of babies. I don't even remember who exactly was injured but there were so many injuries it necessitated the callup of SO many rookies. TWELVE rookies played that season: Martin Fehervary, Connor McMichael, Beck Malenstyn, Garrett Pilon, Hendrix Lapierre, Brett Leason, Aliaksei Protas, Axel Jonsson-Fjallby, Zach Fucale, Joe Snively, Alex Alexeyev, and Lucas Johansen. All of whom made their NHL debuts that season except for Fehervary, McMichael, Malenstyn, and Pilon. Of those rookies, Fehervary and McMichael were the only ones who were really supposed to make the team that season; they stuck around the whole season, while Leason and Protas played 30+ games, AJF played 20+, Snively and Malenstyn played more than 10 each, and the rest had 6 or less. It was truly the year of babies. Some of those guys aren't in the organization anymore, but I think this is the year the rest of them finally make the leap and are true full-timers. [Except for Fehervary, who already is]

More injury news: Nicky and Tom were injured for like the first half of last season. And in December, John Carlson broke his fucking face. He got hit in the face with a puck and it broke his entire face, like it was really bad, and he hardly played again. I think he came back for like the last few weeks, but tbh his injury was when the season went downhill. [I say "broke his face" but the official reports are he had a fractured skull and severed temporal artery. Yikes! He's fine now though]

Ovi just keeps breaking goal records. He got 800 goals and then passed Gordie Howe last season!!! He is now number 2 all-time in goals!! He currently has 822. Watch out, Gretzky, he's comin' for ya

Oh yeah the Hershey Bears won the Calder Cup this year!! It was absolutely epic. They played the Coachella Valley Firebirds (Kraken AHL team) in the finals, and it was an awesome finals. It went to Game 7 overtime. GAME SEVEN OVERTIME!!!!! Do you know how rare that is? It's only the 2nd time the Calder Cup Finals has gone to overtime in Game 7, with the first time being in 1953. In the NHL, it has only ever happened in the Stanley Cup Finals TWICE. EVER! By the Wings in 1950 and 1954. So the Bears won the Calder Cup in Game 7 overtime and it was exciting as FUCK. And a lot of guys who might make the Caps roster this year were on that Cup-winning team: Snively, Protas, McMichael, Malenstyn, Johansen, as well as top prospects Lapierre and Iorio. They're the oldest franchise in the AHL, and that was their 12th Calder Cup, which is the most in AHL history.

And you said to feel free to post some content so I am going to POST some CONTENT. Starting with:

✨Darcy Kuemper✨

I fucking love Darcy, so much. I've already said that I've liked him for a long time, and I'm absolutely elated to have him on the team. He won the Cup with the Avs in 2022. He is also very tall, he's 6'5", one time he hugged TJ and it made TJ look like a child. He's so sweet, and he's so dumb. He's like a giant labrador. Some of my favorite assorted Darcy things and moments include:

In one of his first interviews after signing he said he was gonna visit every museum in DC, and I'm like no you're not, Darcy, that's not possible. Our first sign that he was a big dummy

One time suplexed Matthew Tkachuk into the ice

Got a shot on goal during a game last year

The time he tried to "interview" Nick Jensen at the outdoor game practice while giggling incessantly

Here's him at NHL media day last year, featuring him kicking a soccer ball like you see in my profile pic :)

Says one of his life goals is to bring back the dinosaurs. Please see this post for the full story on that one

Is absolute BESTIES with Charlie Lindgren, the backup goalie. Like, so much so that they and their wives constantly take their dogs on walks together, the dogs are reportedly besties as well, and the Kuempers dog-sat Chuck's dog over Christmas. They also kind of have matching dogs, I'll include a picture below. Chuck also called himself and Darcy two of the "more normal goalies in the league" which is an absolute lie after the dinosaurs thing, so clearly Chuck doesn't have that many brain cells rolling around up there either. They also did THIS at media day this year. Their friendship is just so pure. You can read more about it in this article. And like, they didn't know each other before signing here. According to the article, evidently after they signed, they texted each other and then literally the scene from stepbrothers happened

And then TvR 🥰 Mine own love TvR. I adore Trevor van Riemsdyk so much. He's just got incredibly good vibes. I also have a bit more of a personal attachment to him, because he and I have the same birthday (July 24). He's a bit soft-spoken, especially compared to some of the other freaks on this team. Possibly one of the only ones with any semblance of a brain cell. He's not flashy; he's a steady-eddy defenseman, almost always on the third pair barring injuries. He's not gonna score a bunch of points, but he plays hard defensively every game (one of the reasons goalies love him), he's reliable, and he blocks SO many shots. He's also one of THE guys on the penalty kill. The penalty kill is TvR, Jensen, Fehervary, and Dowd, those are the main guys. We also officially claimed him as our own. As of this year, he will have played more years with the Caps than with anyone else, he currently has more goals, assists, and points with us than with anyone else, and after about 40 more games he will have played more games with us than with anyone else.

Also the ENTIRE team is absolutely fucking OBSESSED with him. There aren't like that many big specific things I can point to, it's just how I've noticed them treating him over the years, and how they talk about/to him and the general energy. They all love to shout "REEEEEEEEEEEEMERRRRRRRR" at any and every opportunity. And like you can just tell that every single one of them is deeply in love with him. They are all constantly tripping over themselves to give him the player of the game award in the locker room, even when other guys have a bunch of points in the game and it feels like they're the obvious choice but no they all want to give a love letter to their collective crush. The goalies especially love him. (Here's Chuck giving him the POTG, Nicky giving him the POTG, and a recounting of Sammy's love affair with him two seasons ago). The coaches also love him, sometimes too much for their own good - there have been times in the last few years when they've put TvR on the power play and in the shootout (??) when he had no business being there lol. And like I don't blame them lmao. He's grown to become a leader on the team (and occasionally gets As on his chest during preseason games and when a bunch of dudes are injured - another thing that confirms to me they're all in love with him, he got real high up on the chain of command real quick), he's super consistent (there was one game last year when there were so many injuries on D that the defense was quite literally just TvR plus a bunch of rookies - I said that day that the defense was "TvR and a dream"), and he will absolutely never put his mouthguard in his mouth. So as the year goes on, and as you watch games and social media content, just keep your eyes peeled, watch TvR, and you'll see that the entire team is so fucking horny for TvR specifically. I made this meme awhile back, which is exactly how the Caps feel about TvR:

Other miscellaneous fun facts about the team and players that I think you should know:

Our backup goalie is Charlie Lindgren, but we all call him Chuck. It suits him better, especially with his mustache. He also catches right-handed, which is different than practically every other goalie in the league. So like if you look, he and Darcy wear their catching gloves on different hands.

There are a LOT of NHL brothers on this team. Dylan Strome's older brother Ryan plays for the Ducks, and his younger brother Matt actually plays for the Hershey Bears. Trevor van Riemsdyk is also the middle child of three hockey-playing brothers: his older brother James plays for the Bruins, and younger brother Brendan doesn't play in the NHL but played college hockey. And Charlie Lindgren is the oldest of 3 hockey brothers: Andrew played college hockey but never made the NHL, and youngest brother Ryan plays for the Rangers.

Kuzy has been doing some wacky shit in the shootout the last few years, just go look it up on YouTube

Here's a video of the mentors trip this year so you can see Sonny Milano's father who is simply exactly who I envisioned him to be in my head

Nicolas Aube-Kubel (NAK), a French-Canadian fourth line winger that the Caps picked up on waivers in November last year, is Sergei Ovechkin's (Ovi's son) favorite player. We learn this in a video feature with Ovi's wife and kids (I'm including the link to this gifset from the lovely @thornescratch which is where I first saw this). The producer asks who Sergei's favorite player is, and Sergei immediately answers "Aube-Kubel." Not only is Aube-Kubel his "guy" according to Nastya, but then we also see that a selfie of Sergei and Aube-Kubel is the lock screen of Sergei's iPad. And Sergei calls Aube-Kubel his "best friend." Learning this information is such a curveball, because it's like the last person you'd expect Sergei's favorite to be. It's not somebody Russian or even European, it's not somebody old or someone who's been on the team a long time, it's not one of his dad's closer friends, and it's not even one of the stars of the team, it's a young Canadian dude who plays fourth line if he's in. Aube-Kubel must be REALLY friendly, otherwise why else would he be Sergei's favorite? You know it has to be absolutely devastating to Tom Wilson to not be Sergei's favorite lol. [I'm also convinced this is why they re-signed NAK so quick in the offseason, you HAVE to bring back Sergei's favorite player!!]

Speaking of NAK: remember how I said Beck Malenstyn was Nic Dowd's chosen winger? NAK is his OTHER chosen winger. Those two are twin shitstarters and Dowd loves them and I know he absolutely wants both of them on his line this season. They're gonna be a great 4th line. I could talk all day about Dowd and his 4th line duties, and you can ask me to do that if you want but I'm not gonna do it here

I also know everyone's zodiac sign because I'm a freak. I can also get more into that in a separate post if you want

There's probably more stuff, but this is all I can think of for now. Please feel free to ask me more stuff, I love diving into things. Stuff about the team, players, my favorites, whatever. I hope this is both informative and entertaining!

[bluejay-in-write]

👀👀

Send 👀 and I'll tell you some OC Lore

Tyyy for the ask!! ^^ SO idk if you were interested in hearing about Himari which is the other half of the chaotic duo that is Himari and Ryuu from my Atla story Winds of Change but since there was nothing else but eyes I thought I would shake things up from the last ask where I mentioned her and talk about one of my favorite Ocs (hell they're all my favorites) Monte who is from my Leverage (Redemption) story Leverage Legacy!

Okay so I love love love Monte's backstory so much!!! Honestly I love what I did with all my Ocs/psuedo Ocs in that fic because Leverage Legacy is mainly about (theme wise) how one person's action can change another person's life and through them can change even more lives because we're all connected. And more specifically it's about how both Leverage teams (og and redemption) went on to affect the world in a bigger way then they themselves will ever realize. (Insert obligatory read me cause imma take ya'll on a ride)

Now Monte is on of my two full Ocs that is apart of next gen leverage group. The other is Victoria who prefers to go by Vi. There is also three psuedo Ocs who I call that because two of them only had one episode each in Leverage Redemption and who's personalities while extrapolated from those two episodes go way beyond and way more in depth than what is shown in those episodes.

So while you guys who have watched Redemption know them as Becky (Harry's Daughter) and Maurice (Client from the Librarian episode) they will be called Bex and Reece in my story because let's be honest who doesn't want a cool nickname when they become a thief and they just deserve better :') (not changing their real names ofc)

There's also Breanna who we all know and love but due to some events after the "end" of Leverage Redemption she will also be extremely different as well for understandable reasons while still keeping the things that make her her ofc. Everyone will also be aged up a decent amount like they will be early to mid thirties which will also create even more changes. Anyways onto the actual character lore!

You will eventually see that all of the next gen leverage gang has a connection to one of the og or redemption gang and Monte's is Sophie. Now we never get to know too much about Sophie's past although it is more touched on in Redemption than Leverage proper and I have my own ideas I've come up with dunno if I'll ever write them out tho because I kind of like her being such a mystery.

Regardless of this though there is a blank point in Sophie's timeline that I would love to touch on and this is during the second season where Sophie takes time away to discover herself and that's where Monte comes in! At this point in time Monte is around nine years old and up until now has grown up on the streets of London learning how to steal and dumpster dive for his food.

He had learned quickly how be quiet and nimble sneaking only what he needed from people's pockets so he wouldn't starve. He picked the wrong target though this cold winters night because Sophie Deveroux had become quite close to the best thief there ever was and no one less than Parker would manage to pick pocket her anymore.

But when she saw it was a young boy Sophie was reminded of someone else long ago and knew that she wouldn't be able to leave this boy out in the cold. So carefully as if with a wild animal she taught him how to trust her eventually feeding him and taking him home to one of her safe houses. It took time but finally she was able to clean him and clothe him taking care of him in a way that it looked like he hadn't experienced in a long time.

Each day he watched her silent expecting her to throw him back on the street. But instead she taught him sign language so they could better communicate. And when he picked that up as quickly as he had picked up stealing she taught him about her favorite heists, took him to her favorite museums holding his hand through how to case a building, and then around her favorite parts of London introducing beauty in his world that up until this point had only consisted of alley ways and dirty sidewalks.

Eventually Sophie realized that her time in what became a home away from how had come to an end and that day he had feared so much finally arrived. But she did not throw him back on the street like he had been preparing for. Instead she gave Monte to a Thieves guild that had owed her a favor making them promise to her that they would treat him right our else she would be back to make them regret doing otherwise.

Of course she had also kept in touch through video calls and letters and always kept an eye out for the day when the newspapers reported that Parker worlds greatest thief had finally gained some competition.

(So like last time this was probably way more than some lore but oh well I've been wanting to gush about Monte for a long time haha. But if anyone is interested I'm always up for doing another post about him and how he got the name Monte because actually when she first asked his name he hadn't had one to tell her. But anyways hope you enjoyed reading if you got to this point!)

[matan4il]

hey it’s miya again! thanks so much for responding to my previous ask!! i read your meta and it was amazing as always. i really like what you said about how addiction was something athena was aware of but not to a point where he is now inviting her to his meetings. the trust and bond the two of them have only got deeper with that. Following that up with how buck does not tell people his feelings and the level of honesty and vulnerability he let out in eddie’s presence just speaks volumes. there was no looking away like the fact that he looks up into eddie’s eyes and holds his gaze 😭😭 he has grown so much cause we haven’t had a moment like this with buck very clearly lost and trying to make sense of his trauma and it was done so well. love a bobby/buck parallel ❤️

I wanted to get more of your thoughts on if eddie was actually deflecting with the conversation about the shooting. cause to me he answered it so quick but in my mind it’s because the first thing he thought of was buck. if eddie had said “i remember you being in front of me when it happened or i remember falling to the ground and you watching me” that would would have been a shift in tone & kind of revealed a bit to much. eddie is very aware of his feelings for buck and i think with buck dying and then coming back to life (by his hands might i add) those feelings start to become more intensified. he wants to tell buck how he feels but it’s just not the right time ya know but i believe by the end of the season eddie won’t have a choice to tell him cause he can’t spend another minute without letting him know how much he loves him.

My lovely Miya! :D Hello again, so happy to hear from you! *HUGS* And please, you never have to thank me for replying to your ask, I'll always do my best with that! I just apologize if because of my disability, I can't answer too many asks at once, and it takes me more time. But I'm absolutely delighted to hear you enjoyed my 612 meta, thank you SO MUCH for the kind words!

I loved the Bobby/Buck parallels, so very appropriate since they're now acknowledged by both for the father and son they are! And yes, God. The vulnerability Buck is capable of around Eddie because he feels safe with him, it's gonna keep me up at night for several good years, I think... ;_;

Regarding what Eddie says... I'm not sure if he remembers. Yes, I know he answered quickly and averted his eyes, but that feels like a very natural form of behavior for someone remembering a life altering moment. He might remember and not be saying anything about it! I'm just not convinced the show has hinted at it in a manner that's unambiguous. Then again, sometimes shows are intentionally ambiguous because they're deflecting themselves. ;)

One reason why I think maybe full real doesn't remember (beyond the fact that trauma will sometimes do that to you) is that while you're absolutely right and saying "I remember you" would have been a very exposed moment between them, it could have also served to help Buck. Something like... telling him that in Eddie's greatest moment of need, he remembers Buck being there. Eddie knows Buck struggles with feelings of inadequacy, so telling him how instrumental he was during the worst moment of Eddie's life, that could have been very significant. Then again, Eddie might not say it if he thinks there's a way he can help Buck without putting himself too out there. We'll see, but I am very hopeful that one way or another, by the end of the season, we'll get one of them at least canonically knowing how they feel about the other one.

Thank you for this lovely ask, sweetheart! I hope you have a great day and I'm delighted we get to exchange POVs! As always, here's my ask tag. xoxox

[eloquentgifs]

I'm going to say things bc that's how I cope.

As a person who thinks that if you're going to do something you should do it right, I can't help it, it bothered me how sloppy this season felt. Of course I fully blame HBO and their cheapness, but it stills bothers me. Not only we got two episodes less than s1, but the 8 we got were shorter, and you can tell. I also blame the budget cuts for the constant yet unnecessary flashbacks, and the weird editing, and the anticlimatic pace. In any case, I want to highlight the things I did like, because I fucking love this show and Im sure that after a rewatch or two I'll be less angry, so let's stay positive:

Since it seems they were having trouble to get the complete cast together in one plot, I do love they kinda let them have their spotlight one by one. Like, Frenchie in the first episodes, Wee John as Calypso, Lucius with his PTSD in ep5... It's not the same as s1, but it's something.

I've seen people complaining about this, but Im happy they didnt invest too much time on the forgiving process. I like it better when everyone gets along fine, and in the end they're pirates and they never seemed to be the kind of people who hold grudges, so yeah lets skip to the nice part.

I did like a lot what they did with Izzy. I don't care if it happened too quick or what, I used to feel indiference towards him and this season I actually enjoy his scenes a lot. I still dont know how I feel about his death tho. It bothered me a little that the whole scene was more about Ed than Izzy himself, but in the end I always saw Izzy as a narrative tool in Ed's arc more than as a character of his own, so I guess it makes sense.

Super happy with the music choices, and also the new outfits.

Really, the first five episodes were absolutely brilliant.

It made me so happy they got Bronson Pinchot as Ned Low.

Huge fan of Zheng Yi Sao and Auntie.

Im so fucking furious at Taika Waititi for his pro-Israel shit that seeing Pop Pop attacking him gave me some sort of inner peace.

Now, things I wished had been done differently: - There were a lot of paralelisms with s1, which is good, but I'd like they brought back more actual elements of s1 into play. Like, the lighthouse painting, the secret wardrobe, the pink robe, a third Badmington (he would have work better as big bad than this prince ricky guy I dont really care about?). Frenchie singing again. This oneis a reach, but I would love to have Mary Bonnet back. And I was really hoping they play with the fact that Stede is "dead". The guy doesnt even mention the Master Fuckery from ep10.

-On that note, I was a little dissapointed on Jim's arc. I was never that invested on them or their plot in s1, but it feels weird how this season it seems like none of that even happened. Even Jim felt like a different character. I feel it would worked better if some of the conflict was related to Siete Gallos stuff, so at least it would feel all of that subplot wasnt a waste of time.

-Little missing opportunities of making me happy: Anne Bonny and Mary Read mentioning Jack (to insult him, mostly); they kissing when the house is on fire; Ed finding not just one letter but the whole pile of them; a better narrative use for Seagull Buttons (well, any narrative use, really); developing the bombclocks thing in a way where Auntie was not deprived of her superhuman detective skills; having Ned Low as bigger villain, with several appearances.

-The general development of Ed/Stede in the final episode... It's just confusing to me. My reading of Stede's mind state was that he was on autopilot since he killed Ned Low, and being abandoned by Ed and having his ass kicked by Zheng would wake him up a little, but this episode he's still in PROBLEM SOLVER mode, zero regrets about anything, still hasn't talked anything through EVER, he's just fine. With Ed I dont even ask for coherence bc he's always been a wtf guy, but I dont understand the "just do whatever you're good at" thing in the beginning of the episode, and he claiming back his leathers and his pirate-self and going on berserker mode and fighting along Stede as equals and blablabla if at the end he's still chosing to be a fucking innkeeper. Also, having a shitty inn in the middle of nowhere sounds too close to the antique shop in ep4, didn't they learn ANYTHING from Mary and Anne? I mean, the innkeeping was a predictible outcome, but the setting up of the episode was really aiming to the opposite, so it feels weird to me. In any case, I'm happy they're together and if being absolutely on their own in the loneliest house in the world doesn't get them to improve their communication, idk what else they could do.

-Still think they should have been lighthouse keepers instead.

-Next season Im totally muting every OFMD tag as soon as they announce the trailer release, because the promo and bts content was absolutely TOO MUCH. Those fuckers had been showing us stuff from the very climax of the fucking last episode since weeks before the season aired. I get it's a me problem, but I do believe it ruined my experience a lot, so fuck that.

And well. That's it. Good season, could have been great. Im happy but sad. Let's just hope that, if there's a season 3, they gave them more money and time to do it properly.

And before I post this and run away from tumblr, Im checking out how much of my wishlist had been fulfilled: - LUCIUS IS ALIVE - Stede Bonnet, berserker era [Not as I imagined, but hey] - The Queen Anne’s Revenge, either being captured or coming back as the ship Ed left behind when he went to The Revenge - The Blockade of Charleston (and make really absurd) [Still might happen in the future?] - Anne Bonny and Mary Read(as middle aged women who kinda mirror Ed and Stede, but they did it right) - Since he was already mentioned in s1, it would make sense introducing Hornigold, maybe as a new antagonist or something. - A rip off of that wwdits episode with the Vampire Council, except this time is the Pirate Council and its members are pirates from other movies and shows [I was really dreaming big here] - On that note, a really weird episode with every person who has played Blackbeard in recent years [Fully tripping] - More women and more asian characters. And more people speaking their mother tongues [So many Chinese gals, not one chinese word :(] - Ed finding out about Stede’s death and believing it [It did happened but not how/when we thought] - Ed meeting Mary and getting along [Never losing hope on this one] - Frenchie adopting a cat (and singing a song about it). - More info about everyone’s pasts. - I would LOVE having Bartholomew Roberts in the show. [YES PLEASE]

[golbrocklovely]

very, very interesting point about whether some people in the paranormal community hold snc at a distance - i think I agree. I've seen some of that sentiment on tiktok/YT/reddit, especially from an older crowd that still seems to have a bit of a bias against YT and popular creators. that they're not "serious" enough and working with them might tarnish a certain hardcore contingent's credibility. interestingly, I don't really see that at all with Shane & Ryan, who had a bizarre revisionist history spin with Ghost Files coming out where suddenly they're like the best ghost hunters ever and not uhhh.. two goofy guys at Buzzfeed who would do stuff like wear cat ears and show their belly buttons to try to seduce ghosts. when snc first started dabbling in 2018ish, hell when Shane and Ryan first started out, this sort of judgement and skepticism didn't really exist in the same way it does now. fascinating how a paranormal community has really been developing but I can see how that complicates collabs snc may want to do. (and they're also well-liked by tons of paranormal content creators too so I'll cherish the ones we get ig)

this became such a long response, my bad lol

well a lot of the ppl that do paranormal investigating for a living are usually much older than snc so i think a lot of them feel like snc are just jumping on a bandwagon and will leave once it no longer makes them money. but i don't agree with that.

and again, i also do and don't believe the idea that snc aren't serious enough or not professional enough to be taken seriously. they just do things their own way. which can be both good and bad but i think it is what sets them apart. also realistically, they are entertainers first before anything else. so if they were stoic and had no reaction to some of the shit they have experienced, ppl would be bored and no one would watch.

slight side tangent, but i saw on reddit someone saying that they think snc will never get taken seriously enough bc, among a bunch of other stuff, they curse a lot. like……… you can't be serious. hate to be the bear of bad news, but tons of everyday ppl curse frequently. and i highly doubt snc are in a profession where cursing is frowned upon lol

i think one of the problems snc face, still, is that ppl see their content as what they did way back in the day. like 2019/when sam used to do the 3 am challenges. like they see that, and think that that's what they are still doing, which just isn't the case. but bc there is already that notion that snc are """liars""", ppl that don't like them for those reasons aren't gonna give them a chance. but honestly they have improved so much over the years, it's a shame some ppl write them off.

but whatever, your loss sksk

as for shane and ryan, honestly i haven't watched them since they were on buzzfeed so i can't really comment on what they do now. but from what i've heard from other ppl/fans is that they don't really do the same shit they once did. like obviously there is some overlap for sure, but the vibe is different.

maybe this is just a misconception, idk, but i gotta ask: the way some ppl talk about them, they make it seem as if they are just goofy and don't take it seriously anymore. like i know ryan used to believe in all this stuff and shane was the one that outwardly would joke about demons and not believe anything paranormal that could happen, but like… is that different now? i genuinely want to know bc that's the vibe i get from other ppl's comments. like now they make a mockery of what they used to do/ghost hunting in general, but not in a mean way. more as in like "we don't really believe and we're trying to show you this shit is bs too" or whatever. kinda like how the later seasons of ghost hunters, they would actively disprove their evidence or constantly trying to find a logically explanation instead of just… accepting that it might actually be paranormal.

i'm not saying any of this to be mean to shane and ryan. i'm just genuinely curious as to if i'm right or not. bc again i haven't watched them since they were on buzzfeed.

if i'm honest, i love the paranormal. i love ghost hunting and the supernatural. i find it all fascinating. however…. i think it's a bit silly to try and argue who's the best ghost hunter or who should or shouldn't be taken seriously. i mean, there is no science to this. this is a profession that you kinda have to have a bit of a whimsical nature to you, otherwise you look goofy lol

maybe i'm wrong, but i think both snc and shane and ryan can exist in the same universe without it being a who's better than who fight. i think a collab would be a bit strange, but i also wouldn't be completely against it in theory.

[uglytsumugi12]

shine▲polyhedric tri-lights 【ep 2】

♢ characters: natsume, sora, tsumugi

♢ season: winter

― ☆ ―

〈 The next day, after the business prepatory meeting 〉

Tsumugi: Ahh. I'm so glad that the person who met with us was so nice~♪

As expected from such a powerful company in sports fashion. I even somehow managed to get a sample of the underwear they are developping. We'll certainly be staying warmed up from the cold winter!

Natsume & Sora: …..

Tsumugi: Eh? What's wrong, guys?

Let's cheer up some more! This kind of tie-up with such company is a rare opportunity for Switch ♪

Natsume: Shut up, you idiot.

I'll choose to completely forget what you just sAID.

They told us TO "forget about magic and fantasy, and focus more on a reality that makes you shine and improve yourselves more".

Do they think¹ we're just some closetted neRDS? SeriouSLY, I'm simply offenDED!

Tsumugi: N- Nono, hey, don't you think you're overreacting a bit…?

Up until now, we've been showing off a "magical" aesthetic. It was to be expected that we'd have to differ from our usual activities.

It certainly won't be easy, but we'll have to display an image different from our usual "magical" one.

Sora: …Shisho~, senpai. Sora is sorry.

Sora put you both into trouble because of his wish for a new challenge.

Natsume: SoRA, it's not your fAULT. I just wasn't prepared for Switch's innovation to show so SOON.

AnD, come to think of IT, ES's other units have also been varying more from their usual lives and perfomaNCES.

We can't be the only ones remaining invariANT.

With changes has to come disTRESS, and I underestimated thAT. I'm sorRY, SoRA.

Tsumugi: Natsume-kun, don't take all the blame on yourself. In the back of my mind, I also thought this job would be different from the usual Switch work.

I'll also do my best to help you realize your ideal, Sora.

Our next meeting is scheduled for next week, let's show them the brand new "Switch" and surprise them!

Sora: …Yes!

Oops. We didn't even touch our sandwiches and drinks. Let's discuss the sporty Switch while we eat!

Natsume: YeS. If we're going to do thIS, we have to show our cutting edGE.

If we can become the unit that best embodies the "reality that makes you shine and improve yourself", I'm sure our client will be grateful to have us as their parTNER.

Tsumugi: Natsume-kun holds quite the grudge², doesn't he?

Natsume: NaturaLLY. If they're going to use SwiTCH, the least³ they could do is ask US, considering our past perfomaNCES.

First of ALL, it troubles me to be told to improve mysELF.

And we have to find a concept by ourselVES, since the company hasn't came up with anything concrete for us to DO.

Sora: Hmm~. Shisho's right, that is something we have to figure out.

Sora likes sports too, but Sora thinks that people who are in sports clubs are closer to the image of "improving oneself".~

Tsumugi: …I can think of one person who's good at that kind of thing…

How about I ask Mikejima-kun about this? He's the former head of the Track & Field Club, and still a member of "SHIN"⁴ and other athletic clubs.

He'd also agreed to help us during the "Phantom Airship" project, as well as various other jobs concerning New Di ♪

Sora: HaHa~♪ Sora is sure you can trust Giant-san, since Sora shares the same dorm with him! ♪

Natsume: Are you two seriOUS? I don't want to owe him anythING.

Tsumugi: Oh? Do you not agree with asking Mikejima-kun, Natsume-kun?

I thought you both were on good terms since I saw you guys talking openly when you saw each other at New Di.

Natsume: If that's what you thoUGHT, I guess I'm better at pretending than I thought I wAS.

You may both be good-natured and not mIND, but that Mikejima-senpai doesn't seem like a trustworthy partner to affiliate wiTH.

I agreed for him to help us on the "Phantom Airship" only out of rebelliousness against Eichi TenshoUIN. It'd be bothersome if we were to owe him a favor laTER.

Tsumugi: Hmm. Natsume-kun, can't you try and trust people a bit more?

Natsume: NO, I refuse to trust hIM. Haven't you seen he leads people by their noses through his actIONS?

After seeing that sceNE, it's obvious we can't possibly rely on hIM.

Tsumugi: Haha. That's part of what's so fascinating about Mikejima-kun, right?

Natsume: …Your perception of others is always so positIVE.

BUT, I can agree he seems to be the only suitable perSON… I guess⁵ we could talk about it to him onCE.

Tsumugi: Alright then, I'll be contacting him soon.

Sora: Yes! Please do so, Senpai ♪

Giant-san must have a wide range of representation material, since he leads two units~♪

Natsume: "Double Face" and "MaM"…. Those two units do strange things sometiMES, and I'm having some trouble trusting tHIS…

God only knows what may happEN. Either WAY, it looks like we'll have no choice but to handle difficult chaNGES.

￣

1- the expression here is used in a mocking/cynical way, like natsume feels the company are mocking them 2- here the expression is literally "have [sth] at the root" which is like holding a bad memory abt sth/smn for a long time, though the usage of this expressions shows sth less serious and kinda lighter. so ig natsu being natsu 3- here there is a reference kinda to them being..rude for not asking beforehand? ig natsume rly hates this company damn 4- the martial arts club incase u didnt know! 5- here natsume expresses reluctance through the vocabulary he uses--like, against his will he has to agree etc etc

― ☆ ― ♢ previous chapter ♢ next chapter

✦ masterlist

[imaginationofomi]

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Chapter Four

☪︎

Taco Tuesdays at Rosario's always brought out a big crowd. It could've been the $2 margaritas or the music and dancing. The TVs played whatever sporting events were in season, and beer flowed into and out of large glasses. In the packed space, Aubrie and Kirsten found themselves sitting across from each other in a small booth near the kitchen. Their first round of margaritas and basket of chips with salsa were on their way to them.

"It's good you decided to finally leave the lab. You're getting a little morbid on us," Kirsten noted and picked up one of the taco menus. Aubrie wasn't a ball of sunshine on a daily basis, but multiple people were noticing her mood decline in recent weeks. Even the chronic, grade A asshole DNA analyst, Ivan, asked if she was okay.

"My job is morbid. I bask in it."

"That's depressing. We should do something fun. Have you ever been to a rage room?"

"I've heard of them but no."

"Saturday at eleven. We should go. You could bring a friend." They were temporarily interrupted by their waiter dropping off their drinks and chips with mild chunky salsa.

"I'll consider it. How are you liking Briton Beach?" Aubrie asked after they put in their taco orders, licking salt from the rim of her margarita glass and biting into the lime wedge.

"I love what I've seen of it. Most of the people I've met since I moved are transplants, and they don't know where the real fun is. I'd like to see more. Are you from here?"

"Yes and no. I moved back and forth between here and Sacramento until college. Undergrad in DC, North Carolina for med school, and I settled here because it felt like home. I need the beach and not a crowded one."

"I hear you. The water out there is pretty."

"It is, and fun is easy to find if you know what you're looking for."

"I do and I don't," Kirsten sighed and munched on a chip.

"What's holding you back?" Aubrie found time for fun with her questionable hours on the clock. Her co-worker either wasn't looking hard enough or Aubrie was mistaken about Kirsten's definition of the word because Google was free and helpful when it wanted to be.

"Not wanting to fall into old habits."

"Old habits?" She felt the conversation veering off of the safe street they were on and and took a strong gulp of her margarita.

"Getting into relationships I know are no good for me. I'm the fixer. I attract the broken, toxic souls, patch them up and send them on their way to healthy marriages."

"Quite a few of those souls are terrorizing the streets. Be careful." People looking for a good time often did well. Everyone else had to flip a coin and hope it would land in their favor.

"Are you one of them?" Kirsten asked, toying with the paper that separated the chips from the red plastic basket. Aubrie smirked and stuck the end of her straw into her mouth.

"Depends on who you ask. My boyfriend will tell you I'm an angel. My girlfriend might say different if the wind blows a certain way. You'll get mixed answers from my exes and past lovers." She watched Kirsten's eyes widen a little more at each of her sentences.

"Boyfriend? Girlfriend? Lovers?"

"I'm pansexual and polyamorous." Her admission was met with yet another bug eyed look, and she flagged down their waiter to order a second margarita.

"Wait, seriously?"

"Yeah."

"Boy, I had you pegged very wrong," Kirsten giggled to herself.

"Most people do, but I think the poly part shocks them more than my sexuality."

"Oh, for sure. I honestly thought you were a lesbian, bisexual at the very least. Definitely wasn't expecting to hear that you're poly."

"I identified as bi for a long time, but I don't discriminate when it comes to romance....unless they're a Republican. Forever an absolute hell no."

"That makes two of us. I don't get being a gay republican anyhow. It goes against the core of who we are."

She was a lesbian. Aubrie hadn't spent much time thinking about the sexuality of her co-workers, but she caught a vibe from Kirsten that wasn't unfamiliar to her.......which explained the sudden conversation shift.

"In a world with endless possibilities, nothing should shock us, but there are always the few you have to question. I chalk it up to successful brainwashing."

"Ain't that the truth." Kirsten lifted her glass and downed the contents, also ordering her second when their waiter got to the table, "How did you come to the conclusion that you were polyamorous?"

"I don't know if there was never a moment that I made the decision. I just have been from the time I started dating."

"How? I didn't know anything about polyamory until I started my Masters program. Everything was monogamy or cheating. There had to be a turning point or something."

"Not really, but if I had to pinpoint something specific that shaped my lifestyle, I guess it would be living with my dad during summers and holiday breaks. He's been poly my whole life, and it worked well for him. Always had a stable home, everyone helped out, and there was no shortage of love. It made sense to me, so I never wanted anything different," Aubrie explained with a shrug.

"Interesting. Do you think with the right person you could be monogamous?"

"No. I gave monogamy a fair shot. It's not for me. I was extremely unhappy, I felt trapped, and I ended up resenting the hell out of my girlfriend at the time. It was like being kept on a very short leash that got shorter every week. I was born to be free."

"Fair enough." Kirsten smiled at her, and their plates of tacos came out hot, cutting some of the tension at the table, "What do the locals do for fun here?"

"Surfing, we have some hiking trails and shooting ranges. The museums are great. The pier and boardwalk are a good time when they're not overloaded with tourists. The bars down there are always live. Downtown has a nice club scene if you're into that. PCH Bowling turns into adults only after 8. The community theater puts on nice productions, we have a movie theater that shows nothing but classics, an old school ice cream parlor, and the annual festivals. I like to think there's something for everyone here." Aubrie sanitized her hands, squeezed lime over her plate and picked up an al pastor taco. The first bite was heaven on her tongue, and she wiggled in her seat.

"Seems that way. What's your scene?"

"Whatever I feel like doing that day. You?"

"Definitely surfing, and I love to bowl. I like classic movies and ice cream. Clubs are alright but the ones I've been to so far don't have what I'm looking for."

"Most of the queer bars and clubs are on Sunset Lane." Beach front properties that glimmered and glowed at night with their neon lights and LED signs.

"Do you have a favorite?"

"Sticky Fingers." Just like that, her mind was back on Bianca's case. She couldn't even make it a couple of hours without trying to find an answer she wouldn't get without asking the right person the right questions.

"I'll check it out for sure."

Aubrie planned on returning soon, too. Someone had to know about Bianca's second job. Whoever she worked for might be able to clear up the Madam Psycho brand. A collective yell at the TVs broke her train of thought, and she refocused her attention on her conversation with Kirsten.

"Don't go down the stairs unless you're ready to look beyond the box of traditional relationships."

"What makes you say that?"

"The club caters to people that are open in one way or another. I don't get the impression that you're up for that," Aubrie said, dipping a tortilla chip into her refried beans.

"You're right, but my tastes haven't exactly worked out for me in the past. It might be time to try something new."

"Kind word of advice, do a lot of self reflection before you take that leap. Issues you have in traditional relationships don't go away because you've chosen to be otherwise." She came across many people that thought opening their relationships would solve all of their problems. Most of the time, the opposite happened because even with the "open" aspect of it, trust issues still existed. Disrespect still existed. Having multiple partners was much more work than having one.

"Okay, I want to pick your brain, but I don't want to overstep." The words tumbled out of Kirsten's mouth.

"Ask anything you want. I'm an open book."

"Is cheating still a thing?"

"Yeah, but the definition varies from couple to couple. I'll give you a personal example. If I go on a date with someone new without discussing it with my partners first, cheating. Same thing if I sleep with someone without a discussion, but if I'm drunk at a bar and I kiss someone? Not cheating, or it might be but I don't get in trouble for it. Meeting someone and exchanging information is fine. Having sex with someone outside of my relationships in my bed is a no no, so I have a separate room in my home or I go to their place. Lying is cheating, but that's a universal rule in my opinion." Many parameters were laid out, and she was good about staying within them, though everyone slipped once or twice.

"Wow, so like what about jealousy? Do you deal with that at all?"

"No more or less than the average person. It's a human emotion, but when one of us is feeling it, there's a reason. We have a conversation and get to the root of it." A chilling tremble went down Aubrie's spine, and her eyes flickered over her surroundings. Someone was watching her.

"The root of it?"

"I've learned over the years that the emotion stems from a lack of something; a lack of attention, lack of security, lack of quality time, things like that and they end up presenting as jealousy. Once we get to the root of it, it's easy to remedy."

"I've never heard anything like that in my life." Kirsten's face was full of wonder. Aubrie unintentionally introduced her to a world she was thinking about exploring. There were about a hundred more inquiries in her head, but Aubrie started to zone out.

Several tables away, there was a man sitting by himself, eyes trained in their direction. Aubrie made eye contact and slowly moved her hand for her phone while playing off the glance as people watching. Unlocking the device, she went to her photos app and pulled up the picture of Robin Shank, taking a long look at it so she could be sure when she nailed the creep across the room.

"You have to live through it. I might've made it sound easy, but it has its struggles like any other relation...ship." When she looked back at the table, he was gone. Her head whipped around until she caught him power walking through people and chairs toward the exit.

"What is it?"

"I'll be right back." Aubrie snatched up her phone and slid out of the booth, almost crashing into a waitress in her attempt to catch up to the man who was trying to run away, "Sorry," she apologized to the woman and kept moving.

She wasn't fast enough. Everyone in the restaurant got up to either cheer or cuss at the game winning shot, making it more difficult for her to navigate the sea of bodies. By the time she made it outside, the man was gone. She'd never know for sure if he was who she thought he was.

"Are you okay?" Kirsten asked when she made it back to the table with a defeated look on her face.

"Yeah. I thought I saw someone I knew."

🂡🂡🂡

The day was cool and sunny. 68 degrees, breezy, and somewhat peaceful. Aubrie sat on her balcony with a chess set at the end of her lounger. Her lips were dry from the salty air, and she reached down for her cup of water to rehydrate. After a few matches with herself, she started using the board as a makeshift map of Bianca's case, moving the pieces for the information she had. Two white pawns sat aside, she took her time shifting clues around the board, accounting for what could go wrong and figuring out how to correct any mistakes.

Bottom lip wedged between her teeth, she made a move she knew for a fact was coming next. Another body would drop. She just didn't know how soon, but when it did, Joel would have no choice but to listen to her. Leaning back, Aubrie stared at what her mind created and found a loophole that would put her right back where she was.

"There you are." Her upper body turned at the sound of Summer's voice, and she got up to greet her woman with several kisses and a long hug that ended with a good rump smack. Aubrie missed the feel of their soft bodies coming together in the two weeks that she was gone. Summer chuckled and licked her mouth, "I am so happy to see you."

"I can tell." Aubrie backed her through the sliding doorway and closed the screen, pulling her to the couch and onto her lap, "How did your lectures go?" she asked, kissed Summer's cheek and rubbed her hip.

"Excellent. I met with a decent amount of faculty members and got some great advice for my dissertation defense. I feel more prepared, and Dr. Charleston is going to contact me when a full time position opens up. A few professors are supposed to be retiring soon," Summer said excitedly. She was an adjunct Metaphysics professor at Briton Beach Community College hoping to find a full time tenured position once she had her Ph.D. in hand. Months were spent preparing for and going to interviews, but that was the first Aubrie heard of her considering out of state options.

"You're thinking about a cross country move?" Aubrie asked, trying not to sound bothered by it. If the opportunity was good for her, she would never hold Summer back, but it would certainly mean the end of their relationship. Long distance hardly ever worked out, and Aubrie didn't plan on moving again. She saw what other states had to offer and preferred coastal California, not to mention there was no way she'd leave Bryce behind.

"I'm open to the possibility. I forgot how much I missed home, but it's not a definite thing right now. What did I miss while I was gone?"

"The usual."

"It seems more than the usual to me."

"What do you mean?"

"You look like hell."

"Thank you, Summer." Aubrie rolled her eyes and gently shoved her girlfriend off of her legs, returning to balcony for her water and her phone.

"I'm only saying that I can tell work is stressing you out. You're looking at horrific crime scenes day after day, either in person or in photos. That would take its toll on anyone. It's time for you to take a vacation."

"I can't. I need to work." Because all of the work she'd already done wasn't getting her any closer to where she needed to be. She had a stack of information that was leading her nowhere, and she was itching for the next puzzle piece.

"You need to relax or your body will force you to," Summer argued with her arms folded over her chest.

"I'm fine. I've been getting at least seven hours of sleep, and I haven't stopped eating."

"Okay. I don't want to fight." Those were Aubrie's two favorite excuses to use. Summer prided herself on stepping back from anything before she got to losing sleep and nutrients, but as long as she'd known Aubrie, working up to her breaking point was nothing new. Summer recognized a losing battle when she saw it, "I missed you," she said, sliding her arms around Aubrie's waist and kissing her chin.

Aubrie let their lips meet, trying to release her frustration and focus on being in the moment, "Me too." Summer's hands were cool when they touched her, the sensation balancing her out as they walked to the master bedroom and flopped onto the California king bed. Summer pulled at Aubrie's cotton shorts until she lifted her butt so they could be removed.

Unlike other days when their love making was slow and gentle, they pawed at each other with the urgency of reuniting after fifteen days apart. Nothing was savored but taken greedily until the first of their climaxes calmed them. Bed rumpled and hair wild, they cuddled quietly, sated and naked on top of the comforter.

Summer caressed Aubrie's stomach, sliding her hand lower and lower until it was back between her legs rubbing her slippery clit in light circles. Aubrie spread her thighs and turned her head to capture Summer's lips, moaning into her lover's mouth as Summer's middle and ring fingers eased inside of her moist heat.

Their second round was more tender, extra kissing and touching bringing them closer together. Summer's head dropped onto Aubrie's shoulder, the friction from their pussies sliding against each other making her whine and her legs shake.

"Ride it out, baby," Aubrie whispered in her ear, clutching onto her hips to ease the jerking of her pelvis, "That's it." She smiled watching her woman tremble above her, lifting and lowering her hips to keep the party going which made Summer jolt and collapse on top of her.

"Every time," Summer said breathily, kissing all of Aubrie's skin within her reach and toying with her nipples, "Every time you make me question how I enjoyed sex before you."

"Power of the pussy," Aubrie joked and hissed when Summer's teeth dug into her flesh, moaning loudly and leaking at the apex of her thighs from the sucking that followed behind. Her nipples were almost as sensitive as her clit. Played with in just the right way, she could cum from them being stimulated alone.

"Power of your pussy, you mean." Summer was far from new to women. Aubrie just made all of her orgasms feel like a rocket ship blasting off the earth, "Lift those pretty legs the way I like." Assuming the position, Aubrie lifted and separated her legs, grabbing the backs of her knees and adding pressure until they were touching the top sheet.

Summer let out a low groan, wanting to dive right in but also wanting to take her time. She kissed down Aubrie's body and left no inch of skin untouched by her tongue, holding onto her thighs as she feasted on the woman that made her crazy and kept her up at night planning a wedding in the Bahamas. Aubrie wailed and gushed into her mouth, pushing her face down harder and humping her tongue until she was spent.

The room was quiet except for their heavy breathing. Aubrie reached for Summer and pulled her between her legs. Bodies slick with sweat, they messed up the sheets one last time before they hit the shower and went at it again.

Aubrie knew what Summer was trying to do, fuck away her stress. It worked for a while, but after they napped and her post-coital high ended, reality came back into focus. There was a serial killer on the loose, and no one was even remotely close to finding them.

While Summer slept beside her on fresh bedding, she grabbed her laptop and opened it, doing yet another google search on Robin Shank. Her first few didn't give her much but an old twitter account that hadn't been used since 2014 and a couple of Instagram pages of people with the same name. More information on him was out there somewhere.

Ding ding!

Her phone chimed on the end table, and she picked it up, opening Bryce's text and typing out her food order before lightly shaking Summer's shoulder, "Babe, Bryce wants to know what you want from Ichiban," she said.

"Hmm?" Summer responded, still half alseep. Aubrie shook her shoulder again, "Yeah?"

"Bryce is picking up Ichiban. What do you want to eat?"

"The chicken teriyaki plate," she muttered and rolled over in a huff. Aubrie exhaled quietly, adding the order to her message and hitting send. Summer's attitude was about more than being woken up, and it reminded Aubrie that they needed to have another talk.

It was their scheduled share day, and Bryce was nice enough to offer them time to themselves because he knew that Summer had been away for a while. In true Summer fashion, she was irritated that he was going to be around.

Aubrie let her nap for about ten more minutes and then woke her up for real, "We need to talk."

"Now?"

"Yes, now. I've wanted to talk to you about this for the last couple of weeks, but I felt like it was an in person conversation."

"Oh god." Summer sat up and gave Aubrie a dead look, scratching her short afro and letting the sheet fall away from her chest.

"I assume you know what I'm about to say."

"Not word for word, but I know it's about your corny ass boyfriend."

There it was. Built up frustration about the issue coupled with her stress from work made Aubrie snap, "See that, right there is a problem. You live for disrespecting him, and I don't understand why. He's been nothing but kind and accommodating to you. Why do you have a problem with him?"

"I don't."

"Clearly you do. I calmly initiated a conversation, and you immediately insulted him. Did something happen between you two that I don't know about?" If that were the case, it would clear up a lot of the confusion on her part, and they might be able to come to a resolution. She just needed to know what happened.

"No," Summer said, annoyance souring her pretty features.

"Then what's the problem?"

The room grew quiet again, and Aubrie waited for an answer with bated breath. Summer pulled at a cuticle, her annoyance turning into something else as her shoulders sank. She looked up at Aubrie with sad eyes.

"You love him." That wasn't new or shocking information.

"Yes."

"More than you love me."

"That's not true." Aubrie shook her head, relieved that they were finally getting to what the real problem was but upset because she knew she couldn't fix the way Summer felt no matter how hard she tried. It was something that Summer was going to have to overcome on her own because Aubrie did all that she could do.

"But you don't love us the same way."

"Why would I? Our relationships are completely different. That doesn't mean I love one of you more or less. I love you equally for different reasons."

Some people got it. Some people didn't, and obviously Summer was one of the ones that didn't, which was disheartening.

"It doesn't feel that way. I feel that you take him into consideration more than me. If he has a problem, you take care of it right then and there, but when I have an issue, there's no sense of urgency to fix it."

Aubrie's eyes widened to the size of tea saucers, and she fought off the urge to laugh sarcastically, "How can you seriously look me in the face and say that when the last six months of our relationship have been about making sure you felt secure? Bryce gave up days with me because you felt like the schedule was unfair, and still you take advantage of every chance you can to monopolize my time. That's not fair to him, it's not fair to me, and you are not the victim in this situation," she said, chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Tell me how you really feel," Summer mumbled. Aubrie's words hurt her feelings further, and her body language showed that she was moments away from shutting down, yet the former didn't let up.

"You're selfish and inconsiderate. When we met, I was clear about who I was, what I needed, and what I could give in return. I've given you more because I love you, and I know you're new to being poly. I didn't expect you to adjust right away, but you don't even try. This is why I told you that you needed to date other people."

Had she listened, it would've mitigated her need to be attached to Aubrie as much as possible.

"I don't want to date other people."

"And I will never be monogamous, so you have two options. Learn to get along with Bryce, hold your tongue, and respect my relationship with him, or we go our separate ways," Aubrie said, her face remaining stoic even after Summer started crying. She couldn't fall for it like she did in the past. She had to stand her ground.

"Thank you for proving my point by choosing him over me. He is more important to you."

"My peace is important to me, Summer, and your behavior disrupts that. Make a decision."

"Why would you spring this on me as soon as I get back? You couldn't wait a couple of days to give me an ultimatum?"

"Don't act like this is the first time I've said something about the way you treat him. You like to ignore me, and I was lenient when I shouldn't have been. I've let you slide for too long. I'm not doing it anymore." Aubrie got out of the bed and left the room to give Summer some space to think. It was time to shit or get off the pot.

[milogreer]

→ redacted audio headcanons ! ↳ blake & bestie edition

my obsession is obsessing so here i am with headcanons !! this is my first real hc post so be nice to me (/j). bestie is gender neutral but they're still more into oc territory than strictly canon so keep that in mind! i'll probably add to this post as i think of new ones 🖤

-> they both have multiple piercings and tattoos; blake has more tattoos, but bestie has more piercings. ↳ some of his include a snake on his right forearm, his sword symbol on his neck/collarbone area (potentially one that looks like it's piercing the skin but idk), and barbed wire just under his knuckles. his ears are pierced and so is his nose. perhaps also his tongue. ↳ some of bestie's tattoos include a crescent moon + stars on one of their fingers, a broken heart next to their eye, and various witchcraft symbols. they have two piercings in each ear, one on both sides of their nose, a belly button piercing, and a septum piercing that is secretly a clip on. ↳ they also have a "matching" tattoo with blake that they got when they were 18; they got them out of a roulette machine! blake got an open eye and bestie got a switchblade :)

-> bestie's a huge music fan and has like a thousand burned CD playlists to fit any mood or scenario they can think of. they don't get into anyone's car without a CD case that holds at least a hundred of them. they have all their playlists on spotify too, but they prefer physical media. ↳ one of their road trip CDs is titled "blake and bestie's infinite playlist" as a reference to the movie nick and norah's infinite playlist.

-> bestie is very physically affectionate with their friends, from holding hands to kissing cheeks and foreheads. naturally, this doesn't sit well with blake's possessiveness; he'll put an arm around their shoulder when in group situations to ward people off. bestie doesn't realize exactly why he's doing this, they just think he's reciprocating the way they show affection.

-> blake stares. intensely. usually at bestie, regardless of what they're doing, but he's generally more of a people watcher than an active member of conversation. dude had very little charm in high school; bestie was the real social butterfly. ↳ he gives bestie scary dog privileges with the staring. whenever anyone asks bestie why he's staring like that, especially at them, they just wave them off dismissively and say, "oh, that's just blake." ↳ his eye contact during convos with bestie is unparalleled, to the point that sometimes even bestie is like, "why do you look like you want to eat me?? i know i look like a snack, but come on-"

-> blake is a radiohead fan. he listens to "creep" whenever he's on the outs with bestie (whether he actually is or if he just thinks he is).

-> bestie's parents love blake, but their younger sister does not. she thinks blake has "bad energy," but bestie never listens to anything she has to say.

-> bestie and cutie are part of the same friend group! they're closer than most of the others (bestie loves a red flag 👍🏼) and likely get together to have gossip sessions over lunch or go to the mall. maybe not Best Friends, but definitely good ones.

-> bestie has had insomnia since junior year of high school. their parents say it started from stress (they're a whiz so they take multiple AP classes), but personally i think blake had something to do with it... ↳ present day, i have a vague idea that their insomnia is partially influenced by blake constantly fucking with their future, but i haven't thought too deeply about it (yet).

-> they can both be judgy bitches, tucking themselves off into a corner at a party to people watch. bestie's a little two-faced in that regard because they can be super friendly one minute and then turn around and be catty behind someone's back the next.

-> reality show enjoyers 🫵🏻 i’m talking the bachelor, love island, jersey shore, real housewives, anything with DRAMA. they’ll binge old seasons during sleepovers and facetime for weekly releases.

-> bestie's a grouch when they're hungry; blake learned to cook specifically for them after the first handful of times he was on the receiving end of their "grumpy morning face."