#I've fully given up on 'can't we all just get along' no the fuck we cant so everybody just leave each other the fuck alone

[thefty-o]

Holiday Magic Mishap 2

I roll over in bed, my massive form barely contained by the king-size mattress. Even half-asleep, I can feel my cock throbbing, achingly hard and leaking pre-cum onto my abs. Christ, when did I get so damn horny all the time?

As I stretch, my biceps bulge obscenely, pushing against the headboard and leaving dents in the wood. Oops. I chuckle, my voice a low rumble that seems to shake the room. Everything feels so small lately - chairs creak under my weight, doorways seem narrower, and don't even get me started on clothing.

Speaking of which, I swing my tree-trunk legs over the side of the bed, fumbling for the sweatpants I discarded last night. They're comically small now, barely covering my quads and doing nothing to hide my morning wood. Whatever. It's the last day of our trip, and I've given up trying to find clothes that fit.

I lumber towards the bathroom, ducking under the doorframe. The mirror captures my reflection, and goddamn, I can't help but admire myself. Silver-streaked hair tops a ruggedly handsome face, strong jaw dusted with stubble. My shoulders are broader than the doorway, tapering down to a narrow waist and powerful legs. And right in the center, my cock stands proud, easily 12 inches long and thick as a beer can.

"Fuck, Johnson, when did you become such a stud?" I mutter, flexing my pecs. Each one is the size of a watermelon, my nipples puffy and sensitive. I give them a little tweak, groaning at the jolt of pleasure.

A knock at the door interrupts my self-admiration. "Dad? You decent?" It's my son's voice.

I laugh. "Decent? Son, I haven't been decent in days. Come on in if you dare."

The door creaks open, and my boy peeks his head in. Was he always this small? I swear he used to be taller. "Jesus, Dad," he mutters, averting his eyes from my barely-covered crotch.

"What's the matter, boy? Never seen a real man before?" I tease, turning to face him fully. My cock twitches, and I swear I see his eyes widen.

"I, uh, just wanted to let you know breakfast is ready," he stammers. "We're leaving in a couple hours."

I nod, scratching my hairy chest. "I'll be down in a minute. Gotta take care of this morning wood first." I wink at him, enjoying how he squirms.

As he scurries away, I can't help but feel a surge of... something. Pride? Lust? It's hard to tell these days. Everything just feels so damn good.

I make my way downstairs, the steps groaning under my weight. In the kitchen, my son and his boyfriend are already eating. The boyfriend - what was his name again? - looks up at me, his jaw dropping slightly.

"Morning, boys," I rumble, grabbing a chair and carefully lowering myself into it. The wood creaks ominously, but holds. "Pass the eggs, would you?"

As the boyfriend reaches for the plate, I can't help but notice how small his arms look. Weren't they bigger at the start of the trip? And his shirt seems baggy now, hanging off his frame.

"You feeling alright, son?" I ask, concerned. "You're looking a bit... deflated."

He blinks, confused. "I feel fine, Mr. Johnson. Why do you ask?"

I shrug my massive shoulders. "Just looking out for you. Can't have my future son-in-law wasting away, can I?"

My son chokes on his coffee, and I laugh, the sound booming through the kitchen. "What? You think I don't know? Please, boys. I may be old, but I'm not blind."

The boyfriend blushes, and I feel a stirring in my loins. Fuck, he's cute when he's embarrassed. I shift in my seat, trying to adjust my swelling cock without being too obvious.

"So, what's the plan for our last day?" I ask, shoveling eggs into my mouth. I'm always so damn hungry lately.

My son clears his throat. "Well, we thought we might hit the slopes one last time. You up for it, Dad?"

I grin, flexing my arm. The sleeve of my t-shirt - already stretched to its limit - finally gives up and splits along the seam. "You bet your ass I am. Think they make skis big enough for me?"

As we finish breakfast and start getting ready, I can't shake this feeling of... power. It's like I'm more alive than I've ever been. Every movement feels charged with energy, every glance from others filled with awe or lust or both.

In the ski lodge, I can feel all eyes on me as I struggle to find gear that fits. The largest ski jacket barely zips over my chest, and I've given up on finding pants that can contain my thighs and ass.

"Fuck it," I mutter, stripping down to my underwear. "I'll ski in my boxers if I have to."

My son looks mortified, but his boyfriend can't seem to tear his eyes away from my body. I wink at him, enjoying the way he squirms.

As we make our way to the lifts, I notice how people part before me like the Red Sea. Men stare in envy, women (and more than a few men) in naked lust. I breathe deep, the cold air filling my massive lungs, my cock swelling with each admiring glance.

At the top of the run, I look down the slope, feeling invincible. "Race you boys to the bottom," I challenge, my voice a low growl that seems to vibrate through the air.

Before they can respond, I push off, my powerful legs propelling me down the mountain. The wind whips past me, my nearly-naked body impervious to the cold. I hear whoops and cheers as I fly past other skiers, my massive form a blur of muscle and motion.

As I cross the finish line, far ahead of my son and his boyfriend, I roar in triumph. The sound echoes across the valley, and I swear I feel the mountain tremble beneath my feet.

God, it feels good to be a man.

[mmikmmik]

I kind of don't feel like getting the endings of Slay the Princess that don't involve Shifty and the Long Quiet having their final argument, followed by LQ agreeing to leave with her and their departure in their fully godly forms. I definitely don't want to kill her or starve her. And I guess I can see the appeal in the ending with the Princess and the Hero, but it doesn't feel like the right ending for me.

I think a big part of why I think of the Shfiting Mound as the "real" "love interest" is because I judged the Damsel a bit unfairly - she falls apart if pressed, but I don't think that means she's not real, you know? All of the Princesses are only one aspect of the Shifting Mound, but they have their own complete hearts nevertheless. But I didn't really get that when I was first playing the game and got her as my first princess, so I definitely thought of the Shifting Mound as "more real". But I think my near-immediate "oh I see! this is my beautiful wife who I love very much" would have occurred anyway. I just really like her! She's beautiful and patient and contemplative, and really successful imo as a truly divine character - an embodiment of a powerful idea/force of nature, who can express a form of kindness but can't really be "good" or "bad" in a human sense.

I also, throughout my first playthrough, felt strongly that the interactions I was having, and the resulting princesses, were like gifts to Shifty. I really liked having a little chat with her and hearing her evaluation of their hearts, and I chose dialogue options for the Long Quiet as though he wanted to bring her vessels and would, if he remembered her at the start of each Chapter 1, have actively chosen to help her complete herself. So leaving together as the Shifting Mound and the Long Quiet, not as the Princess and the Hero, felt like what they were both working towards all along. And they only sort of argued about it because that back-and-forth, rough as it can get, is a natural part of how they relate to each other as gods who embody "opposite" concepts but love each other and want to be together (thesis, antithesis, synthesis...?). I wasn't even really arguing with Shifty, she just went into that spiel because I spent a really long time asking questions before we left. It was more of a passionate explanation than an attack. (And I let her keep going because it was awesome, not because I disagreed with it.)

Putting it like that, "bringing her vessels", it is rather cold, isn't it? I can see the case that the Princess and the Hero deserve more respect than that, that by leaving them behind Shifty and LQ are abandoning something worth having, something they could have explored together at that scale.

Anyway, what I want to say with this post is that like... Slay the Princess has, more than any other game I've ever played, given me the sense that the "true"/"best" ending is really up to the player. I feel like the story + central relationship changes really really dramatically if you don't perceive the Long Quiet as enchanted by the Shifting Mound and happy to be with her and learn more about her, and the dialogue options definitely give you a ton of room to play it either way. I feel that you can play the game so that the Shifty and LQ ending is the true ending, and you can play the game so that the Princess and Hero ending is the true ending.

It does make me more curious about the ending where... I haven't even looked into it enough to really know what happens, but you can kill the Shifting Mound, can't you? Or you can "starve" her by withholding vessels? My gut reaction to the Narrator is "lmao dumbass" - I don't think he understands what he's talking about, and I don't trust his evaluation that a world without the Shifting Mound would be worth living. Just the way his scenario immediately got fucked up makes it seem to me like he doesn't have a strong grasp on the metaphysics. You can't just pick out all the parts of a major universal concept like "change" that you like and throw out all the bits that you don't! But I also don't think this game, with its writing philosophy, would really have a "bad ending" in that kind of sense, you know? I seriously doubt there's an ending that would just be like "you fucked up". But I also feel like... the way the game is written, I kind of feel like I have the freedom as the person engaging with it to say... "this ending is bad, For The Game As I Played It". Does that make sense? I'm definitely touching on complicated questions of narrative theory that smarter people than me have definitely engaged with more substantively haha.

[karotka]

I've been rewatching IWTV and what's clicked for me were Armand's motivations for betraying Louis. On first watch I thought it was such a confusing and irrational thing to do. Now, obviously it was capital B Bad etc., but we all know that, boring question. But was it a logical (≠justified) decision to pick the coven? I'm starting to think it kind of was 🤔

The café scene is so heartbreaking, makes me kick and scream at the screen, Armand on his way to end it all and Madeleine asks why Louis doesn't want him to know how much he loves him, and Louis confidently replies, “he knows.” Reader, did he know? I feel like part of the tragedy is that it didn't really matter at that point.

Press pause on the betrayal of it all and look at the facts from Armand's perspective:

Louis is suicidal. He has an expiry date, the coven vampires don't. Louis is suicidal, the coven is forever 😂😂 To quote Lestat, “There is one thing about being a vampire that I most fear above all else... And that is loneliness. You can't imagine the emptiness, a void stretching out for decades at a time.” Armand asks Madeleine, “What will you do, in a few decades, when she throws herself into the fire?” and then finds Louis in a pool of blood, his wrist slashed. He voices this to Louis much later – when he has no right to demand anything from him, but the sentiment stays true – “You left me for death. Will I be on suicide watch for the next 1,000 years?”

Louis straight up murdered his previous lover. Now, we know it wasn't all that, but Armand didn't. Major red flag, anyone? “I killed him and he fucking had it coming.” And he DID, but that's beside the point, isn't it? Especially since we know Armand is just as capable of domestic abuse :') He knew that Louis wasn't the kind of person who would just take his shit forever. If you want somebody to trust you, don't let them know you took part in the murder of your ex, heartfelt advice from both of them.

Speaking of exes, Louis is SO not over Lestat. I mean, neither is Armand, they're such a train wreck of a relationship :D But yeah, Louis is not fully committed to Armand, denying publicly that they're companions, hallucinating his ex in the bedroom or while Armand is sharing his traumatic past and, most damning of all, refusing to join the coven.

From Armand's perspective, he's risking it all for Louis and Louis a) doesn't appreciate it at all, and b) refuses to do the bare minimum of getting along with his family. (If someone treated my daughter-sister the way Armand treated Claudia, I'd kill them with my bare hands, but Louis acts like he doesn't mind. Can you imagine me without the burden of her? :/) (and yeah, he could just leave his shitty cult, the same way they could have left each other during those 70 years. Shitty stability > loneliness, I guess.)

A minor point maybe, but the moment you know that Lestat is out there and wants revenge, that only adds to the expiry date part. Especially once Lestat is cooperating with the coven, because I imagine that while Armand is OP enough to fight the coven, all of them + Lestat might be a bit too much. Maybe Armand even hoped once Louis is out of the picture they could get back together? We don't really know what exactly was going on behind the scenes but Lestat's sheer existence is bad for loumand... It is what it is.

And Louis just... repeatedly ignores Armand's warnings. I mean, they both knew Armand was going to execute him that one time. They tried to make it work but Louis was living on borrowed time from that point. Add Armand's apparent MO of “everything I love must eventually burn down so I will take control of the situation by orchestrating the downfall myself” et voilà. He was given a choice and he chose.

And THEN he betrayed the coven for Louis at his most unwell. Iconic!

[sissylittlefeather]

This is the Story

Chapter 12: The End

A/N: We've finally reached the end of this beautiful saga. I hope you have all enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it. I'm not sure I'll be able to fully give them up, so there may be an epilogue coming, but only time will tell.

I'm so thankful for everyone who has helped me along the way with this one, but I'm eternally grateful to my besties @ccab and @elvisfatass for all their love and encouragement. You two mean so much to me.

Need to catch up? Here is my Masterlist.

Warnings: angst, sadness, depression, and then the smutty fun stuff, kissing, cussing, fingering, oral sex (both receiving), p in v penetrative sex, unprotected sex, creampie, also mentions of pregnancy and periods

Word count: 4.7kish

The depth of their misery is equaled only by their love for each other.

******

By sundown, Grace has packed everything in her car, including a crying Wendy.

"Mama, why do we have to leave Daddy? I like it here." She asks from the back seat, sniffling.

"I'm sorry, sweetie. We just have to go home."

"This is our home." Grace strokes Wendy's hair through the car window.

"I'm sorry, baby." She turns to look back at the house. She hasn't seen Elvis since she finished packing in the bedroom. She wonders if she should find him to say goodbye or if she should let him be. She goes back up to the bedroom one last time to the pile of things she left on the bed. She's left the boots he bought, the book, her necklace with his initials, and a few other things he's given her. She stands there with more tears on her face, looking at the pile. At the last second, she grabs the necklace. She can't leave it. She turns to walk out of the room and finds him there in the doorway.

"Grace, please don't leave."

"You know I don't have a choice."

"I'm not going to stop loving you. My heart is yours. If you ever change your mind, I'll be here."

"Elvis, please." As she goes to walk past him, he grabs her and holds her against him one last time. She melts into him, shoulders quaking as she cries on his chest.

"Honey, don't leave. We can figure this out together." He whispers into her hair. She almost gives in, wanting nothing more than to stay with him. But she can't forget about Wendy. Everything she does is for her and her good.

She pulls away from him and looks into his face.

"Kiss me goodbye."

"No. I refuse to believe this is goodbye." She looks at her feet.

"Then I have to go." She walks past him and down the stairs to the car out front. He leans against the doorframe and shakes as the tears stream down his face. He should've given her that last kiss. He tries to catch her before she leaves. But when he gets downstairs and to the driveway she's already gone.

******

He spends the rest of the day in bed. When the Colonel comes to visit the next day, he drags himself down the stairs.

"You've got a lotta nerve showing up here."

"My boy, I was only trying to protect-"

"You're fired."

"Now, my boy-"

"Get out of my house. And don't come back. You're fired. I don't care what I owe you. I'm done."

"You know it's a lot-"

"I SAID I DON'T CARE. GET OUT. I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE AGAIN, YOU FUCKING BASTARD." He moves toward the Colonel menacingly.

"Don't do anything you'll regret..." The colonel tries to back away slowly, reaching for the door handle behind him.

"I'll regret my association with you for as long as I live. You've lost me the only woman I've ever truly loved. I suggest you leave before I find a gun."

The Colonel backs through the door, shaking his head, and leaves. Elvis slams the door behind him and sinks to the floor again. Jerry comes to his side.

"Come on, boss." He half carries him back up the stairs to the bedroom, where Elvis lays on the bed.

"Don't bother me until I say so."

"Yes, sir." Jerry watches with a look of concern as he backs out of the room. He's never seen Elvis like this before.

******

Almost two weeks later, Grace is still moping around her apartment. She takes Wendy to school everyday, but that's the extent of her ability to do anything. One day, there's a knock on her door. Her heart leaps. Somewhere inside her, she hopes it's Elvis. When she opens the door, though, she finds Maryann.

"What are you doing here?"

"We haven't heard from you since Christmas. And then I saw this." She tosses a tabloid on the counter. It's a picture of Elvis with a headline about him going back to Vegas early.

"Why aren't you with him?" Grace is lost in thought. The only thing she can see is that he has on her initial necklace in the photo. He's still wearing it. "Grace?"

"We broke up."

"Why?"

"My editor said I had to end things with him or I would be fired."

"And you chose your job? What the hell, Grace?"

"How would I take care of Wendy? If he left me?"

"You really think he would do that?"

"I don't know anymore." Maryann shakes her head. She can see now that her sister is broken by this decision. She decides not to push it any further.

"Well, I'm here. And I'm staying for a while. When was the last time you ate?"

"I don't know. My stomach hasn't been great lately."

"I'm making you some food." She starts to fiddle with pots and pans.

"No chicken. I can't eat chicken." Maryann stops.

"Grace. When was your last period?" Grace turns to her with a look of panic. She hadn't even noticed.

"I'm not sure."

"Because the last time you couldn't eat chicken..."

******

The first of February is Lisa Marie's 6th birthday. Priscilla brings her to Vegas for a party with Elvis and the rest of their friends.

He almost breaks down when Lisa's first question is about Wendy and Grace. Still, he swallows his feelings and slaps on a smile, explaining to her that they won't be there. She's sad, but after she sees the pile of her presents, she cheers up significantly.

He does his best to be happy all day for his baby girl, and he's pretty sure he's doing a decent job, but anyone who knows him can tell something is wrong. Priscilla walks over to Jerry about half way through the party.

"What's wrong with him?"

"With Elvis?"

"Yes. He's not himself."

"Grace left."

"And he's this messed up about it?" Priscilla raises her eyebrows.

"Priscilla, it's been almost a month and he's still broken. I don't know what to do." Jerry shrugs in frustration and Priscilla looks at Elvis across the room with Lisa.

"I'm sure he'll be better soon. He just needs a new girl." Jerry nods, but he's not sure he agrees.

******

By that first week in February, Grace has an appointment with her doctor, but she won't get the test results for another week or so. She's trying to go about her life as usual, but nothing is the way it should be. She misses Elvis every day so much that it hurts. And she still hasn't had a period. It was nice to have Maryann's company for a while, but she couldn't stay too long with the kids at home.

One day, after dropping Wendy off at school, the phone rings.

"Grace, it's Jerry. You have to come to Vegas."

"What? Why?"

"He's dying without you. He plays his shows like he's supposed to, but nothing is helping. When he's not on stage, he's in bed. He won't come to parties or anything. We've tried everything." Her heart sinks. She knew she was miserable, but she assumed he had moved back to his Vegas life and forgotten about her.

"I can't come back, Jerry. I appreciate you calling me, but I can't fix this."

"Please, Grace. He needs you." The last part makes her heart break in two. She didn't think it was possible to hurt any more for him, but she was wrong.

"I can't. I'm sorry. Tell him- nothing. Don't tell him you talked to me. I'm sorry." They hang up and Grace sits on the floor of her apartment weeping. Will this ever hurt any less?

******

In Vegas, the Memphis mafia guys continue doing everything in their power to get Elvis back to some semblance of himself. One night after a show, Jerry takes the initiative and brings a girl to him. She's young, blonde, beautiful, and everything Elvis used to like. He really hopes this will get him out of his funk.

He knocks and Elvis opens the door slowly. He's already in his pajamas and robe, despite the party that rages downstairs in his honor.

"What do you want, Jerry?"

"I brought you some company." He gestures to the girl, who waves nervously.

"Jerry, I'm really not-"

"Will you just try? Look at her. Come on, boss. You're going to have to move on at some point." He nods as though he's defeated and opens the door for her to come in and then shuts it behind her. Jerry says a quick prayer that this will work before he walks away.

Inside the room, Elvis gestures for the girl to sit on the couch.

"What's your name, doll?" He can't call her honey. He just can't.

"I'm Linda. It's nice to meet you." She is very attractive and he knows he should try.

"Why don't you come sit a little closer to me." He pats the couch right next to him and she scoots into his shoulder. He puts his hand on her knee and then looks down into her face. He tries with everything inside him not to think of Grace as he leans in and presses his lips against hers.

Suddenly, he pulls back and stands up. He feels like he might be sick.

"I'm sorry. I can't do this." She looks at him puzzled.

"Am I not-"

"It's not you. I just... I'm in love with someone else." He hangs his head and she stands up. When she puts her hand on his shoulder, the dam breaks. He sits back down on the couch with his head in his hands weeping. The girl looks at him awkwardly and then sits down on the couch too.

"Do you... do you wanna tell me about it?" Before he can stop it the words just start pouring out of him.

"I've never loved anyone the way I love her. She's the love of my life. But she doesn't believe that I'll be faithful. She doesn't trust me. And it's my own goddamn fault." The girl is shocked to see him so broken. He always seems so strong and in control on stage. She never dreamed he would have this depth of emotion.

"It sounds like you need to show her you're serious. Most women just want some security, especially if they've been hurt before." He looks up at her, eyes red and puffy.

"Security?"

"Yeah. She needs to know you mean what you say. Words are great but action is better."

"Action."

"Mhmm." She nods her head, glad that he's finally stopped crying. "How far are you willing to go for her?"

"I want to marry her."

"Then you gotta tell her that."

"What if she says no?"

"That's a risk you're going to have to take if you mean what you're saying." He nods slowly and pats her hand.

"Thank you, Linda. I'm sorry this didn't go how you planned."

"It's okay. I hope it goes well for you." They stand up and he walks her to the door.

On the elevator ride down, she and Jerry are both silent. Jerry can tell by the way Elvis looked that his plan failed. He's wracking his brain for what to do next. And she's still reeling from the conversation she just had with Elvis Presley.

******

Grace sits in the meeting with Frank, praying he can't tell that she's spent most of the morning crying.

"This manuscript is beautiful, Grace."

"Mhmm."

"We're looking at a publication date in the next month." Grace takes a deep breath.

"You can't publish it."

"Grace..."

"You just can't. I'm saying no."

"You know the higher ups won't like that."

"I don't care. Fire me. I'll find a new job."

"Grace."

"I'm done, Frank."

"You really loved him, didn't you?" Grace looks at the ceiling, trying to keep her tears in her eyes. "You still do."

"I can't have my name on this book. Publish it under a different author. I can't do this anymore."

"Well. We're no longer working with his manager. Elvis told us to publish the book only if you want to." Her heart leaps and she looks up at Frank with a flicker of hope.

"What happened to the Colonel?"

"He said he fired him."

"So... you don't have to publish it?"

"Not unless you want us to."

"No. Please don't." Frank looks at her sadly.

"Finish your novel, Grace. I'll keep you on a contract for just that project. Once it's done, that'll be the end of our professional relationship. You're fired." She nods and gathers her things.

******

After the shows in Vegas end, Elvis seems to get a second wind of sorts. He spends his afternoons looking for something around town. Jerry and the rest of the Memphis mafia breathe more easily, hoping this marks the end of his depression over Grace. Maybe he's finally decided to move on and is ready to get back to himself before he leaves for tour in a couple of weeks.

On the third day after he finishes playing shows, he seems to find what he's looking for. He sits by the phone in his suite anxiously fiddling with the small box. He keeps picking up the phone and putting it back down. His stomach flip-flops every other second and his palms are sweating. When he can't sit still any longer he stands up and paces for a bit, always coming back to his seat by the phone.

Finally, when he just can't take it anymore, he picks up the receiver.

"Fuck it." He dials quickly and waits as the phone rings, his heart lodged in his throat.

"Hello?" Even just the sound of her voice comforts him in a way he hasn't felt in months.

******

"Hi Grace." Her heart stops cold. It's him. She's spent the days since she got fired trying to come up with an excuse to go to Vegas, but she just couldn't get up the nerve. And now he's calling her.

"Elvis." She responds breathlessly.

"I want you to come to Vegas."

"When?"

"As soon as you can." She glances at the calendar. Today is the 12th of February. Her doctor appointment to get the test results is tomorrow.

"I can be there on the 14th."

"Valentine's Day. That's perfect." She didn't even think about the fact that it would be Valentine's Day. Perfect for what?

"Don't bring Wendy. I want it to just be us. Can you swing that?"

"I'll call Paulette."

"Okay, well, I-I-I guess I'll see you then." The thought of seeing her again brings out his nervous stutter. "Grace?"

"Yes?" She doesn't know what to say, but she doesn't want to hang up either.

"I miss you, honey." Her heart melts and the tears gather in her eyes.

"I miss you too." There's so much more to say, but neither of them can bring themselves to say it.

******

After he hangs up, Elvis breathes a sigh of relief. She agreed to come to Vegas. He knows this may not mean anything, but for the first time in months, he has some hope. He puts the box in his pocket and sets out to make the arrangements.

******

The next day, Grace sits in her car in the parking lot of her doctor's office crying hysterically.

The test confirmed what she was too terrified to contemplate as a reality.

She's pregnant.

As the tears stream down her face, a million thoughts run around her mind. Just when she thought she had a chance of getting Elvis back, this happens. Surely, he won't want anything to do with her now. And even if he does, it'll only be out of obligation.

She doesn't have a job. It's hard enough trying to support Wendy. How will she raise and care for two children on her own?

Maybe she'll invent a dead husband to explain why she has two children with no man. She shakes her head at that thought.

And what will this do for Elvis's image? What if it gets out that this is his baby? Should she even tell him?

She holds her head in her hands and continues weeping. How will she face him tomorrow?

******

Elvis paces nervously in his suite. She's here in the hotel. He sent Jerry to the airport to pick her up an hour ago with a message to meet him downstairs at 7. He's actually going to take her to a real restaurant for dinner. He no longer cares if anyone sees them together. In fact, he hopes there are pictures in magazines after tonight. Every few minutes, he pats his pocket to make sure the box is still there.

He's dressed in the velvet jacket again, this time with a white silk shirt under it, unbuttoned enough for her to see that he's wearing the initial necklace. A cigarillo hangs from his mouth and he keeps running his hand through his hair, so it's especially fluffy. He's trying to recreate the feeling of New Year's Eve, since it's the last time they were really happy together, but he's not sure he's succeeded.

Finally, he looks at the clock and it's five til. He can head downstairs and not look like he's too desperate. When the elevator opens, he looks around anxiously. He spots her standing uneasily in the lobby. She's looking around for him too, her dark hair pulled into a low bun, purse tucked up under her arm. She has on the black dress she wore for Halloween. His eyes drift slowly over her body as the dress hugs her curves perfectly. He wants to touch her so badly it hurts. When he can't stand it anymore, he walks over to her and resists the urge to wrap his arms around her.

"Hi honey." She turns to face him, obviously nervous too.

"Oh hi!"

"Should we... go?" She nods and he leads her through the lobby to the parking garage where his car is waiting. He wants tonight to be as normal as possible, so he's driving his own car.

They make small talk as he drives the short distance to the restaurant. It's clear that they're not sure how to approach their reunion. Neither wants to be the first one to take the conversation into deeper territory. Yet they're both sitting on secrets that will require a real talk at some point.

At the restaurant, they're seated at a private table in the back. He pulls her chair out for her and softly grazes her shoulder she sits. His touch is electric and they both shiver with the contact.

They eat, talking about everything and nothing. He tells her about firing the Colonel and she tells him about being fired for not publishing the book. At last, they sit there with nothing to distract them and they both know the time has come. He clears his throat, assuming he's the only one with a confession.

"Grace, I asked you to come here for a reason."

"Elvis, wait-"

"No, I need to say this. I love you, Grace. I'm barely half a person without you. I can't live-"

"Elvis, I'm pregnant." His mouth drops open and Grace's mind runs wild. She's pretty sure he's about to backtrack on everything he just said.

"I'm sorry I just blurted it out like that, but I feel like you needed to know before you made some big declaration." He closes his mouth and sits quietly, his heart pounding as he reaches into his pocket. "Anyway, so now you know. I don't expect anything from you. I've had a baby out of wedlock before, I can do it again-"

"No. You won't." He sets the box on the table and opens it. Inside is a 8 carat emerald cut diamond engagement ring. Now it's Grace's turn to be speechless. He slides out of his chair and onto one knee beside her with the ring box in his hand.

"Grace, I have loved you from the moment I laid eyes on you. You are the other half of my soul and I've been searching for you for as long as I can remember. Everything about you is music and poetry and you amaze me every day. You are the only woman I want for the rest of my life. Please let me love you forever. Marry me, Grace Dubois."

"Yes." She whispers it, unable to summon any more words. And besides, that's the only one that really matters. The smile that spreads across his face could light up a million dark rooms and he pulls the ring out of the box and slides it onto her finger. Without another thought, she wraps her arms around his neck and pulls him into a deep and passionate kiss. Then, he kisses her cheek and they embrace.

"I love you, Elvis. God, I love you so much." She laughs as the tears slide down her cheeks and he pulls back, cupping her face in his hands.

"Oh, Grace. I'm so excited for this life with you, for our child, for our family. I've never been this happy before."

"Me neither. I'm just so glad you're happy about the baby." He stands up and goes back to his chair, pulling it closer to hers so he can keep hold of her hand.

"Of course, honey. The girls need another sibling. I love that we will have one that is part of both of us." He kisses her hand. Then, he looks around.

"Hey, you know where we are?"

"Vegas?"

"We could get married tonight." His eyes sparkle with excitement and she laughs.

"We could."

"Why not?"

"I honestly can't think of a single damn reason."

They laugh together and head out of the restaurant hand in hand.

******

Elvis and Grace make it to a chapel before the paparazzi find them, but the way out is crowded with cameras. Elvis doesn't care. He holds up her hand to show off the ring and tells anyone who'll listen that he's happily married. Grace is shy at first, but his energy is contagious and before long, she's the perfect picture of a blushing bride. They kiss one last time for the cameras before he helps her into the car and they drive away, laughing and waving.

******

Back at the International, they maintain decorum only as far as the elevator. Once the doors begin to close, they turn and wrap around each other passionately, mouths pressed together with tongues dancing wildly. He slides his hands back to her ass and rolls his hips into her. She moans into his mouth and he kisses down her neck to her cleavage, running his tongue along the edge of her dress.

When the doors finally open, they tumble out of the elevator together to the door of his suite. He presses her body against the door with his own and she nibbles on his earlobe as he fiddles with the key. They roll into the room together, kicking off shoes and shedding clothing left and right. By the time they make it to the bedroom, they're both naked.

He lays her gently on the bed and kisses down her body to her stomach. He kisses just below her bellybutton and looks up at her softly. She knows he's thinking about the baby that's settled there for the moment. But he quickly switches gears and moves down lower on her body. He kisses the inside of each thigh before he presses his mouth to her center and she moans loudly, arching her back. He moves his tongue in circles over and around her most sensitive spot. He was always skilled, but in the time they've been together he's learned her body and knows exactly how to make her crazy. He slides first one finger and then two inside her and begins to move them against her as she squirms. He continues to move his tongue in a way that causes her to cry out his name. He knows exactly what she wants and he gives it to her until the waves of ecstatic pleasure wash over her again and again and she runs her fingers through his hair. He kisses back up her body and lines his cock up with her entrance. When he pushes into her slowly, they groan together at the sensation of him sliding into her tight pussy. She takes all of him easily, almost as though she was made for him to fill her up. He fucks into her, kissing her shoulder and neck and cheek.

"God, honey, I missed you so much. You feel so good." He says, his voice a husky whisper. She moans into his mouth as he pounds his hips against hers.

"I love you so much. Don't stop. Don't ever stop."

"Honey, that ring on your finger is a promise that I won't." He leans in and kisses her deeply, all the while filling her rhythmically with his cock.

She pushes him onto his back and settles between his legs. He loves it when she takes control like this. He never dreamed he would, but there's something about the way their love is a give and take that drives him wild.

Holding the base of him in one hand, she sinks her mouth down onto him, rolling his foreskin back so that the sensitive head hits the back of her throat.

"Oh, fuck, honey." He moans loudly and throws his head back. She continues to work, running her tongue up the bottom of his shaft and licking small circles around him. She's learned his body too and it's obvious by how she makes him come undone.

When he's approaching the edge, she stops and pulls back. He whimpers and aligns her hips with his desperately. He's so close to his release and it's been so long that he feels like he might burst. She slips him into her slowly and then lets him drive into her from underneath. He holds her tight to his chest with both arms while he fucks her, grabbing the back of her hair and pulling her in for deep kisses.

Before too long, he slams into her one last time, filling her with warmth as he shudders and pulses inside her. Neither of them expected her to tumble over the edge with him, but she does, the heat from her orgasm exploding from her center, muffling her hearing and coursing through her like wildfire. They lay there together panting and sweating for a moment. Then, she pulls off of him and settles in the crook of his arm, her fingers making circles in his chest hair. He's the first one to speak.

"I think I can handle doing that forever."

"You better! Not much choice now." They laugh and he rolls over to face her, bringing her fingers to his lips, suddenly serious.

"I know we said vows at the chapel, but I'm making another one to you now. I promise to always love you like this, even when it's hard. I promise to always try."

Her eyes glisten and she holds her hand to his cheek.

"I promise to trust you and believe in you with my whole heart. I love you, Elvis Presley. Always."

They settle in to sleep, finally secure in knowing there's no end to the nights they'll spend wrapped up in each other.

******

The first stop on his tour is Tulsa, so Paulette brings Wendy and they head to Grace's mom's house. The welcome they receive is warm and chaotic and their joy is undeniable. At first, Ruth is disappointed that they didn't have a big wedding, but the news of a new grandchild distracts her.

After several hours of family time, Elvis and Grace head to the hotel where they stayed for Thanksgiving, leaving Wendy to stay with her grandma again.

When they get to the door of their room, he stops her.

"Wait, I wanna carry you over the threshold." He scoops her into his arms.

"This is not our home, though?" She looks at him puzzled.

"Honey, my home is wherever you are." He kicks the door open and carries her inside, never looking back.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The End

Taglist:

@ccab @elvisfatass @elvisalltheway101 @ashtag6887 @aliypop @your-nanas-house @dkayfixates @everythingelvispresley @xanatenshi @returntopresley @p0lksaladannie @deniseinmn @jaqueline19997 @that-hotdog @18lkpeters @joshuntildawn13 @rjmartin11 @littlehoneyposts @epthedream69

[owengrose]

Blacknatural

I've been rewriting and recasting Blacknatural in my head so here's the updated cast + storylines. Some of these casting decisions have fundamental story changes, but some of them don't have to change at all (gee it's almost like Black people are just as capable of representing the human experience as white people..........)

Mary Campbell Winchester: Nicole Beharie

Mary comes from a long line of hunters who balance hunting and living a life by operating more as defenders than hunters. They never seek out threats, they only defend their community against monsters that do harm. She's good at what she does and loves doing it. When she announces she's marrying John Winchester, a white man her parents have never met who actively enlisted to fight in Iraq, they're understandably against it. She's constantly self-sabotaging the relationship bc "something" is telling her it's not right (it's her free will resisting the Cupid match with everything she's got). The night of the fire, she's finally gathered up the ability to leave them. Sam cries and she goes to comfort her one last time (she does love them even if she never wants them and can't be maternal) and that's when the fire strikes. When she comes back, it’s like no time has passed for her but suddenly her children are adults. She tries to be their mom again, thinking it might be easier since they’re grown, but they still want and expect things from her that she can’t give, so she strikes out on her own again.

When she learns she and John were a Cupid match, she’s both angry that she wasn’t given any agency in her life and relieved that she wasn’t the one who fucked up her life with bad choices.

Dean Winchester: Keiynan Lonsdale

His only frame of reference for masculinity is the middle-class white masculinity shown on motel cable TV and the movies they snuck into (man cave, cars, objectifying women, beer, physical strength, etc). His performance of this + skill at hunting attracted something close enough to approval from John, and raised no eyebrows from almost anyone else, so it let him fly under the radar. But he's cultivated this performance so thoroughly that he's not even sure there is an authentic self underneath it.

Sam Winchester: Storm Reid

Sam has struggled her whole life with other's perceptions of her. The siblings' upbringing is seen by others as very white trash, but she obviously doesn't neatly fit into that category. But being raised by John, who made no effort to celebrate or even recognize their Blackness, gave her no connection to her own Blackness to draw on. At Stanford, she double majors in pre-law and African-American Studies, joins the BSU, and does everything she can to make her narrative #BlackExcellence despite constantly feeling like an imposter. Her dating Jess, a white girl, doesn't make that much easier. She and Jess are a Cupid match, though we don't find this out until later.

Mirroring Mary, she doesn't have a maternal bone in her body. When she's suddenly left with Kevin when Dean and Cas get sent to Purgatory, she does her best but is struggling and resentful the whole time. When Kevin is taken by Crowley, she's secretly relieved and makes no effort to rescue him. The guilt of this haunts her for the rest of the show, even though she's fully aware that she would do it again if she had the chance to do it over. Because of this, she isn't resentful of resurrected Mary being unable/unwilling to be a mother to them the same way Dean is.

Rufus Turner: Steven Williams

Rather than leaving the kids with Bobby, John would instead leave them with Rufus, with Bobby instead being a fellow hunter that Rufus knows (essentially flipping their roles narratively). Rufus and John didn't get along, with John devaluing his years of experience and dismissing his approach to hunting as focusing on defending his town of Greenwood, Mississippi (similar to the Campbell family). With this ideology, he would take the kids hunting for animals rather than monsters, and did his best to plant the idea in them that the only supernatural beings that need to be hunted are the ones actively causing harm, encouraging them not to "chase trouble". While he would never send them out on hunts across the country, he would assist them with advice, resources, and fake FBI verification whenever asked. He also gave both of them The Talk about police, since John didn't know or care to.

Castiel: DeRon Horton

Compounding his difficulty in understanding and interacting with humans is the added layer of racism. White people are less forthcoming at best and outright hostile at worst. When interacting with Black people, he misses most if not all of the cultural references and understandings they expect him to have. (Someone tries to dap him up. This does not go well for him.) This also strains his relationship with Claire; he looks like her father but has no context for family in-jokes and stories, Black cultural references and understandings, or American references.

Because he has no context for these references, but recognizes that they seem to be important, he looks up every reference that someone makes that he misses. Sam is the only person who will explain a reference to him, having had to do the same thing to try and fit in at Stanford.

Eileen Leahy: Treshelle Edmond

Being a Black Deaf lesbian hunter has made her used to taking care of herself, being either infantilized or disregarded by most in whatever situation she finds herself in. Not only is she excellent at taking care of herself, she knows that even the most well-meaning people cannot take care of her as well as she can. Sam's instinct to respect her skill and defer to her understanding makes Eileen feel finally seen, and is why Sam's attempts at being protective feel so smothering to her. They're both independent people who come together by choice, not by necessity. She's thrown by the revelation of Chuck's interference because it calls into question whether she's done so well because of her own merit, or because of his interference. It also means that every fucked-up thing she's endured hasn't been from the random chaos of life, which she can understand and accept, but has instead been deliberate decisions caused by yet another person in a position of power who decided their narrative was more important than her own autonomy.

Rowena Mcleod: Dominique Jackson

Condemned to death by the British for practicing Obeah, which they called witchcraft and devilry, she was able to escape and survive through a mix of cunning and magic. She aimed to survive and thrive despite the colonizers running rampant through her country, and viewed Crowley as an obstacle to that and so abandoned him. As she and Sam bond, she helps her tap back into the abilities that were there that the demon blood enhanced. As Sam, still wrestling with ideas of purity regarding human and non-human, struggles with this, Rowena points out that ideas of purity like that are colonial philosophies. It is pure because it is innate to her, denying it is the real impurity.

Adam Milligan: Jaboukie Young-White

Azazel/Yellow Eyes: Lakeith Stanfield

@daalcuntynatural and I talked about this before. He just has an otherworldly and unsettling vibe that makes him absolutely perfect.

Mr. Tran: Osric Chau

Mr. Tran is a devoted single father to high school student Kevin Tran. Unlike John, Mr. Tran goes out of his way to celebrate Kevin's dual heritage. Kevin's mom passed away when Kevin was a baby due to complications from birth that the hospital staff didn't take seriously. Because of this, Mr. Tran is a bit overprotective because he is very aware that people will not always take Kevin's concerns and struggles as seriously as they deserve. Kevin, in turn, pushes himself very hard (too hard) because he doesn't want all of his father's hard work to be for nothing.

Osric was done so dirty on this show (killed off over and over), and deserves the opportunity to have some fucking dignity.

[ehh-is-the-name]

Pulling all this from me notes app yesterday:

Cobs and Mephone4 really are one in the same and I hate that ii16 ep proves it. Mephone uses the show as a form as escapism and Cobs ended up doing the same. They were always in cahoots. Like father like son and all but this is a lot to take in. The fact that MePhone slightly did what Cobs did to him. He created sentient beings with his purposes in mind, sure not to colonize a place, but still with a purpose in mind. He shaped the contestants into what he wanted them to be to have fun but still. Just because the method and purposes were different both Cobs and Mephone made sentient beings for their own purposes, and now they use them both for entertainment. This makes Mephone even worse than he already is- and as a Mephone apologist it's already pretty fuckin' hard. Like this just makes things so much fucking worse. Damn... Guess him and Airy are more alike than I first thought. Ahhh it's like ONE all over again but the opposite. Instead of context making him better it's making him worse- step the fuck back augh.... I might just pull a post-ONE 18 fan move and just ignore the finale. Every single fanfic that tried to be as canon accurate as they could is now fiery fanon. Which is still good, but Maaannn. Can't have shit in the OSC these days. Twists at every corner and not the good kind. I say that but I probably wouldn't be mad if I wasn't drowning in "fanon I consider canon" juice. Wait is that why the contestants could see the gemories? Since they weren't real to begin with?

Hope y'all know that I cried like twice between writing that on the 7th and now, and now I'm fucking sick because my immune system can't handle my waterworks-

"Drowning in 'fanon I consider canon' juice" is an understatement. To all ii fic writers our there, keep your headcanons please- I'm begging! Don't let the canon kill you, you're right to me </3 And man, this whole thing has me dying for real. To pull lines from Taco Tirade, I've lost more than I've gained, but I also know that feeling double crossed is part of dealing with a loss. When they said we weren't ready, they could never prepared me for that bombshell.

I've got so many questions.... Does Mepad know? I mean from the way he begins to care about the contestants and Toilet makes me think not and other scenes, but I can't be sure of anything anymore. Is Mephone kinda a dad but not? Are the contestants fully controlled by Mephone or is it a situation like Cobs and Mephone, where the creator gives free will only for things to go awry? I think it's the second one (I'm groveling to the OSC overlords that it's the second one.)

Once Mephone got his memory back he knew just how behind everything Cobs was because he himself knew the extent of the show... Side tangent, Mephone is a great actor then, grade A top of the line. Probably gets it from his dad, given the theatrical performance we saw- But no really, Mephone IS smart, a lot smarter than he gives himself credit for honestly. Even if I don't believe he was puppeteering the contestants, he still made a diverse cast of characters and subtlely brought them together and tore them apart all without him hinting to the audience that he knew he made them. Sure the hints came along the way, but not directly from Mephone. Or at least I don't think so, please feel free to prove me wrong about that- I seriously don't know anything about this show anymore.

acutally going through the stages of grief because of a parody iphone- wtf is living. Am I even real?

[dandelion-wings]

Aether and Lumine? Paimon too.

Thank you for the ask! :> I am going to split this not on Aether/Lumine lines but on Traveler/Abyss Prince(ss) lines, because, well, canon did set it up that way, and while if absolutely pushed, Lumine is my Traveler, I mostly prefer to be agnostic in my meta and fic about who is who.

TRAVELER

How I feel about this character

Ah, yes, Traveler von Protagonist Disease.

The thing that complicates the Traveler for me is that I absolutely loathe the kind of semi-self-insert-but-semi-independent-character protagonist that seems to be getting popular in video games these days. Byleth in FE3H is another good example. I wish they didn't exist! I wish that it was either a full self-insert, character-builder and all, or that they gave us a protagonist with a personality in the style of Tales Of and Final Fantasy games in the first place. I really enjoy roleplaying a character as I play a video game, whether given to me as a fully-realized character or as one I made up myself, and this in-between kind of robs me of that because I can't go full "this OC of mine believes this" and I also can't try for accuracy to the character I'm presented on-screen.

That said, they have been getting better about this with the Traveler over the last few nations, and I like the increasing sense of actual, independent personality that we've gotten for them! Obviously a protagonist of this kind of game, where all the others have to like the player character to make the gacha appealing, is going to want to help others, so I actually particularly like the occasional thread we get where they're like "no, I don't actually care half as much for Teyvat as I do for my sibling, I don't not care but my main mission is still to get to them" because it's very refreshing to me.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

Childe with the Lumine version, as two people who can and will absolutely fuck each other up in a play-battle, post-fight sex optional but fun. (Also I once read a Childe/Lumine AU fic where Childe was attempting to pursue The Greatest Game with Lumine and she turned the tables and pinned him down with knives through his hands, and it was incredibly hot.) Ayaka, as a one-sided crush on Ayaka's part. That's... really about it.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Paimon! My bestest and beloved friend. :>

My unpopular opinion about this character

With a handful of exceptions, I... do not particularly enjoy Traveler-centered fic/art/meta. I don't know how unpopular that is but it's all I've got.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

I know why Hoyo can't do this with their gacha game full of waifus and husbandos, but I wish we had at least one major/playable character who just did not get along with them. All their voicelines are along the lines of "you think I'm fucking telling you that?" I just want to see how it would play out.

THE ABYSS PRINCE(SS)

How I feel about this character

Honestly much more fascinating to me, in part because they've been a lot more allowed to have some kind of personality from the beginning! I want to know all about what's happened to them, why they hold the positions they do, why they give their twin so few crumbs, etc.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

I mean. Dain. XD

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Aside from their twin, also Dain! Love their history.

My unpopular opinion about this character

This sort of overlaps with the second, but while I don't know how plausible or how unpopular it is, the mirror in the Caribert quest where the Traveler saw them in it combined with some minor previous stuff to unlock a Theory for me that the Traveler and the Abyss Prince(ss) aren't twins, but a single person with, for the Traveler, altered memories, whom the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles broke apart in order to nerf their power and/or for other reasons related to the whole "Fourth Descender broken up for parts" thing. Fascinating to me.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

Related to the above: Hoyo, please give me this. For all the game's deliberate sibling analogies and their pleasing narrative resonance, this theory honestly has way more appeal to me overall.

PAIMON

How I feel about this character

My buddy! My bestest friend! :> I get mad when people are mean to her (in-game or people who choose those options in play). I get sad when she talks about being scared without us (@chrysoula has a theory that this is all foreshadowing a quest/arc where she's taken away and I think this is reasonably likely but I'm also dreading it). I refuse to believe the theories that she's evil, but I do love the theories that she's a reduced/de-powered version of Something/Someone in Teyvat's lore, that would be very fun. I want to give her so many hugs.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

I do not. XD

My non-romantic OTP for this character

The Traveler, of course! :> I also love her rivalry with Itto. I love when characters treat her as a separate person from the Traveler and have their own relationships with her.

My unpopular opinion about this character

From what I've seen in the fandom... that I like her at all? XD;;

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

Hoyo stop giving us options to be mean to her. She doesn't deserve it. >:( Appreciating and loving Paimon hours ONLY.

[kanmom51]

My opinion on the whole coming out issue,

I just want to start with a quote from a kdrama I recently watched. I'm sure some of you have watched it, it's called Business Proposal. Basically there's a whole sub-narrative about a "hidden relationship"

Episode 10 from Kang Tae moo "Who cares, I am just hugging my girlfriend. I can't wait for the entire world to know about us"

Knowing Jungkook has watched it too, I really wonder what did he feel hearing this, but it really gave me the "Keep on being jealous, I will keep holding my Jiminie" vibe.

This brings me to GCFs. The videos are surely an avenue for Jungkook to express his feelings to the world. And I am one of those who believe GCF Tokyo was a statement. I wasn't here when it came out, but I've heard a lot of people at that time thought this was a coming out. I mean, even until now, when we look at the comment section, a lot of strangers/non bts fans think it's a cute couple travel video. This just says a lot about how unbiased people perceive the video. GCF Saipan was a subtle statement too. It's no coincidence that out of all members, only Jimin appeared along the lines "I don't wanna lie no more, I don't wanna hide no more".

For those reasons alone, I don't think they want to hide forever. They are doing it now simply because they have no choice, due to the current climate. Yes, coming out is a risk and it can impact the other members and their careers, but you know what? Everyone in the industry is in the same boat here. Every idol face huge risks whenever a relationship is revealed. Whether it's straight or gay. We have all witnessed the many scandals in the past. And it is bound to happen to BTS members too. Them being under the biggest spotlight in Korea for years and years to come. Plus they won't be able to keep up with the "I am innocent, single, and I will marry army' narrative forever. In the future, if ever one of the member's relationship comes to light, I believe the other members will follow too. They will take the bullet together as a group. Plus, they are so big now. They have nothing to loose. A scandal here and there will never break them. Their huge international fanbase benefits them, simply because I feel like we are much more accepting in terms of dating scandals and lgbt+ issues. Also their whole vibe right now is shifting to "idgaf anymore about what people will think"

Change is coming! I may sound too much of a utopist right now, but I really believe that in the future we'll be able to see all of the members enjoy their life with their respective partners happily, freely without having the burden to hide and lie. Regardless of their orientation.

Another one from the vault.

Like deep deep in the back of the vault.

Doing some Spring cleaning in Autumn...

Kind of strange looking at these words in May 2023. With hiatus, solo debuts, almost no ot7 content and even less Jikookery.

I guess the climate, the SM purchase debacle, enlistment, all had an impact on them.

You were talking, anon, about a member in a relationship and it getting out... well, we saw how that's going for Tae, haven't we? Given, he hasn't admitted to it yet, but man, even before he has parts of this fandom (and another one to remain unnamed) went feral.

I have talked about them 'coming out' many times. My opinion being that they won't, not fully that is, not announcing "we're a couple". Not to say that I don't wish that one day we all live in a world where they can do that and will do that without having to worry about their safety, their livelihood, their families.

But that day is not here yet.

What I do see though, especially now after JM's folio and Face and JK struggling so so hard to not throw it all to the wind scream "fuck it all" and shout it out loud for all to hear, is that as of where they are to date, and unless anything drastic happens between now and their discharge from the military, things will change after they get out.

They might not say things out loud, but they definitley won't be holding back as much. Definitely not as much as they are now, and not as much as they were even going back to 2021-2022 (LV Jikook).

You said "change is coming".

Sadly, after that change did come, but not for the better.

What I'm hoping for is for good change to come as soon as they have this hump called MS off their backs.

We know they will have a lot to say and do, changes will be made... AFTER (sadly, we know this by RM's privacy being breached).

So, we will sit here patiently, us supporters, the people that love JK and JM separately and together, the people that love BTS, their music, what they stand for and the members as individuals as well, and hope that by mid 2025 we will get to see them all on the other side of this fuckery.

[consumeroflemoans]

Hello, ask and you shall receive even if belated by about about three days

I sat down with the post about the scuba diver and the mer and thought about it a bit, Vilidia because what else would it be

Full disclosure, I've never really been diving, scuba or otherwise, so forgive any potential inaccuracies

Also, when you said "like a curious seal" I immediatly went "Selkie", so because of that and for the sake of variety, but mostly because I want to, we're doing selkies this time around

I can imagine either of them taking any given position, Vil just seems like he might enjoy it, the full immersion of water as the space around you is taken up by something other than air, creating a feeling between perhaps the closest thing to weightlessness we have on the planet and the surrounding pressure putting its effect on the body, changing with the depths you reach, combined with the sights you see below the surface, the often mesmerizing ways in which space and that within it arranges itself underwater, the way the perception of everything around you would become other from the usual, diving alone would presumably have an element of silence and the inherent seperation from the regular that comes with entering a an atmosphere different to your own

I can see him both finding a fascination for everything he sees down there and appreciating being able to get a full break from everything, a fan of being part of a different world for a bit

It's a hobby he likes to indulge in every once in a while, when he can make room in his scheduel

So Vil goes diving, nothing out of the ordinary, looking around he spots a seal that he for a moment thinks is looking at him strangely, but it swims further away the moment he as much as turns his head towards it, so that's that

Everything continues on as normal, though he may feel lightly watched

He gets out of the water and shortly after a seal follows, though it keeps about six feet of distance and seems to be trying to to hide itself behind a big rock, pretty unsuccesfully at that, not only is it not fully hidden from view in the first place, but it keeps repeatedly poking out its head from behind the rock to look at him

It's a bit perplexing and what would you even realistically do in this situation, Vil decides to try waving at it and while at first it just gets him the most wide eyed deer in headlights stare he ever received from a seal, eventually it seems to try waving back, there's a moment where he tilts his head and it mirrors the movement, then to the other side as well, it's fun, it feels like he's having a little moment with a seal, eventually he moves to remove some of his diving gear and in turn hands come out of the seal and take its skin off, peeling it back like a blanket

And then there's a person there, he's kinda cute, but Vil isn't incredibly hung up on that in the moment because he just watched a guy peel himself out of an animal like the worlds most fucked up orange, or considering the blog maybe lemon, Idia is just sitting there with the empty seal pelt over his shoulders looking at Vil like "Hey, what's your name?"

Now for diver Idia, while I don't think it's likely that he would willingly go diving, a scenario where he built Ortho an underwater gear would be plausible, all his gears are at least to some extent water proof, but immersing yourself completly in water is still not a good idea when you're body is made out of machinery, after several tests in the shower and the bathtub to make sure everything is completly safe it's finally time for the real deal

Ortho is so excited, his gear has convertable legs that can transform into a tail with separate sections similar to these movable shark toys, along with arm fins and a back with a glowing streak leading along the edge of them, it's all around awesome and he can't wait to go swimming

Idia already had to come along to make sure everything is up and running during the big gear debut, might as well get him into the water too, though it turns out that impromptu diving isn't the most succesful idea when you barely know how to swim in the first place

Yeah, someone gets a little lost after Ortho decides to go test a little further out where the water's deeper

Anything but ideal, though honestly? It's definetly not his scene at all, but it is kinda fun, just going around looking at everything in silence

Oh, it looks so cool and it's pretty intresting to get to see it all up close, he's lived underwater most of his life, the whole thing was right next door so there's nothing he's particulary unfamiliar with on an objective level, but it's not like he could have opened a door and stepped out of the dome to actually get a closer look so there was always that degree of seperation to what he saw outside in the form of a thick sheet of glass

Admittedly the Isle of Woe was a little deeper down and up here there are a considerably smaller amount of natural atrocities, it still counts though

The fish up there are almost a little cute with how small they are, the biggest thing here is a seal, he's not sure if there are a lot of seals in the area or if he's just seeing this one again and again, but he's starting to feel slightly nervous about the seal following him, it's suspicious, mildly threatening even, there is malice behind those big black eyes, he can feel it

Alternatively he could probably also be so enthusiastic about being The Chosen of the seal, what an honour, what a privilege to be deemed worthy by this beautiful creature

Eventually he does have to actually find his way to land though so he swims up, if he has one of those inflatible vests that give you some buoyancy he probably pulls that and now he's on the surface again, but what direction is the right one?

At this point the seal or more accurately Vil starts to notice that it's really looking like this guy does not have a clue in what direction he's supposed to go here, so deciding to be nice he swims up to Idia and pulls him to where he saw him come from onto some kind of solid surface, taking off his pelt and taking his hand into his own to fully walk there with him

Idia is monentarily stunned, for both seal-turned-into-person and pretty-boy reasons

And also after some consideration, along with consultation of a friend, it is finally decided that you can call me :]

-Leuchtturm

Hi omg thank you for turning the ravings of a madman into something I am kicking my legs giggling.

The part with Idia being the mer is literally exactly what I was amazing and it is so cute. I do think Vil would love diving. I like to think he got certified once for a movie and fell in love with the idea of having a little world to himself.

Even though rule #1 of diving is never go by yourself. Ahagauav Rook would join him as a dive buddy I’m sure. Dude’s the kind of guy to get certified and occasionally go on multiple day trips and just. Never tell anyone.

He would just keep an eye on Vil and the seal not so subtly stalking him.

But I digress.

And then there's a person there, he's kinda cute, but Vil isn't incredibly hung up on that in the moment because he just watched a guy peel himself out of an animal like the worlds most fucked up orange, or considering the blog maybe lemon, Idia is just sitting there with the empty seal pelt over his shoulders looking at Vil like "Hey, what's your name?"

Thank you for this I cackle every single time I read it this is literally perfect. My brain is dying but just know I sounded like a dying chicken the first time I read this

OK NOW FOR IDIA BECAUSE I HAVE IDEAS

First of all, I feel like Idia would love the tech aspect of diving a lot. The actual practice? Not so much.

The whole fire aspect of his hair is a major factor for one, but I do think that could be solved by designing a fireproof wetsuit hood. Or hell, even using a dry suit would work.

(For those not in the know. Wetsuits are more common and keep you warm by trapping in your body heat using water. Dry suits require special certifications to use. They insulate you with air, allowing you to stay dry and even go deeper underwater because you’re not as effected by the water temperature)

Using a drysuit would allow Idia to go into the depths with Ortho and also would protect his fire hair essentially.

Also it would depend on how deep they go, but Idia’s situation is one of a diver’s worst nightmares.

With the certifications I have (advanced open water mainly) I can go down to 30 meters/100 ft. It’s definitely not as dark in the ocean at that depth as it is in lakes/quarries, but it still gets dark pretty quick.

Getting lost in that situation is one of the most terrifying things that can happen. Because, another fun note, you also have less air the deeper you go. That means less time to figure out where you are and ascend.

(This is on an o2 tank and assuming Idia doesn’t have a rebreather)

Thank goodness Vil is there because I know I would have been so damn traumatized. Idia has a cute seal to focus on as he ascends to the surface.

Also me being a scuba nerd once more, standard scuba gear comes with a BCD or Buoyancy Control Device. So once Idia’s on the surface he should be able to inflate that just fine (:

Aaaaaa oh my gosh the thought of Vil just grabbing Idia and dragging him towards land is so cute. Man’s so helpful he deserves a kiss on his cute seal head.

And then Idia’s savior turns into a hot guy and just brings him onto shore. Bro is flabbergasted and just holds onto Vil’s hand, staring at him

Iacsuaav omg my crazed rambles ended up being less cute gay people and more me rambling about my way too many scuba certs 😭😭😭

I need to write something properly for them I swear

Someone lock me to my computer and make me type

[pinkrangerv]

Okay yeah fuck it this needs A Post.

So! Power Rangers! Anyone noticed the not just Really Queer but Really Kinky undertones?

Like not even a sex thing. Everyone's banging and we can trace who's banging who but that part is 100% irrelevant. You know what is?

When Tommy joins the MMPR team, he and Jason have to learn to work together. They do it by learning to swap weapons and armor. By learning to let each other access parts of themselves. Coming back, Jason's officially the leader, but they co-lead, and do it by moving power between each other.

When Kim dates Tommy, Kim is the one in the lead and command. She's the most powerful Ranger, and Tommy is very much her service sub. Again--not in sex. Because Tommy gets her a cactus instead of flowers, because it's a rare one she wants for her garden; because Tommy backs her play when she attacks a monster; because Kim is the one with functionally a guided missile launcher in bow form and when she shows up, the monster dies, and she saves Tommy, despite what fandom thought for a long time.

Other seasons? Look at in Space--TJ takes the unquestioned lead almost all the time. Andros is Red, sure, and trains the other Rangers on a lot of things, but TJ is the leader in an almost military style, because TJ is very the fuck competent, but also because TJ takes care of all of them. TJ displays leadership as dominance in the BDSM sense--everyone fully, enthusiastically consenting, and he's taking care of them.

And that means when Karone defects, TJ ends up violating international laws of war--prisoners of war (can't find anything on defectors, but at that point the sensible assumption was to start with her as a prisoner of war and move from there) are entitled to be treated according to rank, and only imprisoned at need. Which means that chaining Karone up in a spare room? Fucking war crime.

Everyone goes along with it, because TJ is the one they trust. And Karone could easily have let them die for it. And being honest, that probably plays into why she volunteers to go try and stop the asteroid and gets recaptured--TJ is taking care of his team, but can she trust him? Because the Princess of Dark Spectre's empire damn well knows the law, and she knows even her own brother won't turn on TJ if he breaks it again.

Another season: Jungle Fury. Camille and Jarrod don't have a direct dynamic where one surrenders power to another. Instead, both of them learn over time--usually in time spans of a couple minutes--how to completely transfer power to the other. And that is the most vital tool of escape either of them have, and saves them both from Dai Shi.

Switching seasons again? Dino Thunder. Mesegog isn't like other villains. His generals aren't loyal, his minions are mindless hordes, his monsters are thoughtless creations.

Because Mesegog's evil is that he takes power without consent, that he abuses people. He spends the entire season using magic to physically abuse everyone, even his own son. Dino Thunder's villain is a warning about abuse, and yes, that means talking about consent and why power can rightfully only be claimed freely.

Because Conner's Triassic Form required freely-given power. And it was more powerful than any Ranger alone, because his teammates gave it freely. And the Rangers won because they moved power between themselves because they wanted to.

Like. We don't really talk about this in fandom, but BDSM is one of the only places I've seen it discussed about how leadership involves power exchange. And Power Rangers has at least one plotline each season about how that works.

With a lot of shipping undertones. Because this is the shipping show. Obviously.

[eriexplosion]

Moving right along to Cornered

Listen the fact that Hunter was just going to take them to an uninhabited planet to hide out forever. The community themes of season 2 make much more sense as part of the overall plot when you look at that ORIGINAL plan. What if they just go to Idaflor and never see anyone ever again? A great plan!

"Can't we explore?" No Omega you will go to your empty ass planet and you will LIKE IT.

Genuinely the way that Omega is going to influence them is so clear in these early episodes. She wants to go out and engage with the world while Hunter especially wants to withdraw and put up barriers to avoid getting hurt. Omega trusts people and reaches out and it does put her at risk of getting hurt, but it's also one of her biggest strengths, because it's what lets her connect with people, and I think a lot of those connections are going to come into play for season 3.

Just squealing over this, Omega is the reason they all start to branch out with Hunter being the slowest (other than Crosshair of course who has a good excuse for not being ready given the whole Imperial Brainwashing followed by intense torture thing) and I think that the best ending isn't one where he sacrifices himself for them (he would have done that from day one, it's not an ARC) but one where he finally, finally lets himself open up to the world beyond just them, when Hunter lets himself and his family actually thrive instead of survive.

"Without the republic to provide us supplies we'll have to acquire these necessities on our own." Spoken like a man that is aware of the concept of credits but has never had to actually use them before.

The scene with the repairman is great, they are so unfamiliar with the concept of a bribe. Wrecker is so genuinely confused and just to make it clear this is not a Wrecker thing, Tech takes so long to fully grasp that this is what he's asking for too. He heard about this once but has never encountered it in the wild. And Tech tries to be SO SMOOTH about the fact that he doesn't know how much a bribe is supposed to cost.

Obsessed with this face he makes. Boggled! At The Shipyard!

AND IT WASN'T EVEN ENOUGH THE GUY CALLS FENNEC INSTANTLY.

Hunter has found the one (1) item they have that is worth money and it is a SINGULAR EXPLOSIVE. Everything else they own is presumably absolute garbage.

Echo's SUPER confident "NOT DRESSED LIKE THIS!" gets me every time. So proud of this droid disguise.

Do not be alarmed it is I, a harmless protocol droid that happens to talk like a drill sergeant.

Your explosive might be worth 1800 in the black market, and Hunter is still catching up to the fact that there are different markets to begin with.

Love the glimpse of Hunter's college bro self we get with the Selling Echo scene. Come on, it'll be fine, it's just a minor scam!

I AM WORTH MORE THAN 2000. Know ur worth Echo.

What does this look like from the outside that he's discussing the price of the 'droid' with said 'droid'?

Did they ever pay for that trooper doll or did Omega just commit theft with more steps?

I'm sorry I can't breathe looking at this picture. Hunter is so fucking pleased with himself, he did so good with this scam, and in the distance you just have Echo flailing their scomp arm like BROTHER... HELP ME....

The droid supervisor is so funny to me, they really just invented a whole series of protocol droids and made them want nothing more in life than to be a middle manager. And Echo just fucking pulls a blaster on her. She was NOT programmed for this.

Fennec introducing Omega to the wild world of theft with the least subtle fruit stealing I've ever seen.

Cannot get past how attractive the knife kept in the small of Hunter's back is.

Echo has unionized this droid workplace, time to stage a walkout.

I will say Wrecker should not have gone down to Fennec so easily. I blame his likely ongoing migraine from his desperately trying to activate chip.

Hunter stealing the speeder to get Omega, he's really in his crimes era this episode. And I still can't get over how funny his HanGiNG? line is. Please he's SO TIRED.

RIP to this guy that Fennec straight up murders.

Also shout out to this guy who is the most blissfully in his lane person in this episode. Flourishing.

Forgot Fennec also shot a traffic cop following up on the likely violation of multiple people hanging off a vehicle.

Replacements was tense and you know this because the high speed speeder chase is the breather episode.

My crime wife Cid is gonna be here soon and I'm so disappointed that I have to go to bed instead of going onto Rampage DAMN IT.

[eternalvault]

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR GRANBLUE FANTASY'S WHAT MAKES THE SKY BLUE:

Granblue fans, WMTSB enjoyers - I wanna talk about Lucilius - or more specifically what could have been. I wanna talk about my thoughts because he's genuinely one of the most intriguing characters I've ever come across in media. (Please note: I have not finished GBVSR's story nor come anywhere close to where he shows up - thank you Story Mode update not working - so if I'm missing explanations for things by all means feel free to add it in the comments - I want to learn more.)

I've been sitting on a fic concept for a few days, and I've slowly started putting together a draft. It stems a lot from what we learn through raid quests and WMTSB - both Paradise Lost and 000. I'm not at all an experienced writer by any means, so I'm not sure the fic itself will ever truly get off the ground. But here's the concept:

An AU in which Lucilius, after his research is halted and the limiters are in place, turns against and actively undermines the High Council rather than God himself. Going right to the immediate source first before potentially upending the entire world. He's a scientist, a researcher first before anything else. I have a hard time believing that with the pragmatism he possesses that his descent into seeking oblivion within the events of WMTSB itself was nothing short of torturously slow. The kind of loathing that comes from watching your life's work be torn apart and reshaped into something unrecognizable by hands other than your own, while being forced to sit back due to someone else's fear. Sahar in 000 speaks of dreams, of fleeting thoughts with nothing to recall them by. Lucilius has encountered so much in canon that I imagine it would make any being - immortal or otherwise - dizzy and sick.

And I'd be pretty fucking jaded too if all of those things came together and landed on my head. Lucilius's current outlook had to start somewhere. No one is born with that level of hatred. No one is born so cynical. I fully believe that given the opportunity and the resources Lucilius would've been able to flip the High Council's entire world upside down without having to resort to dimensional obliteration. If any Astral we have met thus far would have the tenacity, it'd be him. Not right away though. Just as slow as his descent would've been. Sneaking around to look through records, hiding copies of his research in a million different places so even if the Council found one set they'd never find them all. Biding his time by using the Fallen Angels as a true information network, with ciphers and hidden travel routes and verbal codes to signal exactly what their plans are to each other and which hideout to use next.

To use the information gleaned from Lucifer's interactions with the sky to learn exactly where he has the best shot of not being found at any given time - by Astrals or skydwellers alike. Because god forbid a horde of skydwellers pre-War finds out there's a lone Astral and a bunch of primal beasts sitting in their backyard. And to not be afraid to leave the structure in flames before he goes, knowing he has everything he needs in the next one.

And Lucifer, dear Lucifer having to make the decision to stand against him once again. To be ordered by the Council to hunt Lucilius down after he goes on the run, to be the one to arrest him and carry out his sentence in a spectacle he never wanted to see. Belial, who narrowly escaped the conflict that erupted when they were finally caught on Lucilius's own orders and for once is powerless to do anything other than let it happen because he can't be seen. Who is well aware of the sorrow in Lucifer's eyes as the blade comes down and hates him anyway for it because why couldn't you just play along?

Sandalphon, who had heard months prior that there was finally a way that he could be useful, extended a hand by someone he never expected to receive more than dirty looks and harsh whispers from and practically bounding at the chance. The sheer betrayal striking through his core because when the operation goes down and he sees Lucifer on the battlefield surely the other wouldn't miss the wings and hair and armor he's been so familiar with?

Lucifer, who in the span of just a day lost everything. His confidante, his friend, and the light of his life when all the stress of his position makes the wings upon his back drag at his spine. And when Michael steps into the garden as Lucifer looks up at a sky that never felt so grey, giving the news that Sandalphon was there when the last hideout when down for a brief, short moment in comparison to his already long life (has it been so long?) he no longer possesses that shining brilliance he's so lauded for.

Anyway that's about as far as I've gotten in terms of planning and thought processes so let me know what y'all think. This is the first time I've done something like this so I'm interested in the feedback. As far as other writers and artists, if y'all wanna consider using any part (not the whole thing) of this just ask me first. My messages should be open and if not, leave a comment under this post and I will open them.

[livingfast04]

Hi!

I'm seriously obsessed with you monster au, it's seriously all I can think about these days! I'd love to know more about how different types of monsters are viewed by society, especially how shapeshifters are viewed and whether people even know if they still excist or if they are generally more seen as something like a story told to get children to behave.

I'd also just love more bits of lore and stuff you've came up with about this au, I seriously want to know it all!! Thank you♡

*foams at the mouth* Okay, okay, okay-

Monster's or well "Creatures" taking the themes I've stolen from Frankenstein- Most supernatural, at least half, full, born, or made. Tend to be very accepted, actually more so than Humans in several cases. Of course there are acceptations. Jason, and the basketball team as an example. And like most of the entire population of Hawkins' who aren't monsters- or monster adjacent. There's going to be Prejudice That's a given, it's not a perfect world. Now! Most Vampires are, generally born vampires. Some are turned, and some can be made via ritual- Born Vampires are more "accepted" they are less hostile. Opinions on them are very high, just because they tend to go into the medical field. Vampires and Werewolves are very accepted into higher positions in public service jobs. Born, not turned. Witches are incredibly common, because Humans can further their social setting by becoming "a super natural" but they are still very human. Learned Witches are Different than Born Witches. The Byers are Born Witches, and The Wheelers (besides Ted, because fuck him) are learned witches. Now, Learned witches carry a bit of a "I'm better than you because I have magic." Especially to humans even though they are humans themselves honestly

Shapeshifters have more issues because they faced a lot of issues along the lines of "Giving you rights means you can't really shift anymore, because we have to be able to tell what you are" but also because they faced a lot of issues that people killed them more because they saw them as less human and more Monster. Which at the time of the supernatural like laws being put into place, that was a huge issue. and Instead of fighting it shapeshifters can pass as humans pretty well. For the most part, they are considered to not be around anymore. In small towns, and further south. They are "boogie man" stories used to make children behave. "If you don't behave a Skin Eater is going to come steal your face in your sleep" kind of shit. Under Supernatural laws, they are protected. Their Territory, kills based on Bonds, and other supernatural pushing into their space. But they have no individual laws that other Creatures do, that protect them from humans, and other supernatural. Basically it's a huge melting pool over all, but discrimination and hate crimes are covered because they won't give themselves a voice. If you can't tell I've desperately wanted someone to talk to about this. <3 YOU ASKED FOR OTHER LORE, WHICH IS JUST- *Flaps hands* Shapeshifters are VERY tactile. In like early humans and early Supernatural times- they where referred to as "Skin Stealers" (Or Skin Eaters) Because the people they bond with that aren't blood related they tend to copycat their features! It's a comfort thing, they just like looking like their people. They also can easily become touch starved! Which, used to be called "Skin hunger" which is a weird fucking term but whatever. I think it's kind of cool. Which is where the classification or just term, Skin Eaters comes from. They didn't get to be classified as Shifters until much later, and then reclassified as Shapeshifters as Animal Shifters are also a thing. (Shifters in general face most of the same issues, because they are all grouped together) Animal Shifters are different from were-creatures too! Robin can't shift fully unless it's the full moon, she can half shift, teeth, ears, maybe a tail. But she's more human- A wolf shifter, can straight up just be a wolf whenever they want.

I have far too many thoughts.

[be-the-glenn-to-my-maggie]

Alright we're gonna do our first big compilation of my longass notes for a friend of the blogs fic, obviously we mUST start with The Thunder Answered Back by @spicymiilk

Fair warning, I would read the whole fic before reading my notes and laughing/crying along with me. I do think you can go chapter by chapter if you wish. Also a fair warning, I usually cull my notes before posting a fic comment; I really let myself go wild here. Proceed with caution.

Chapter one I didn't have too many notes bc I was deep in it and also there wasn't too too much cringe. Idk if this is well known about me, but I can watch like, hardcore porn or gore and not flinch. I used to watch Animal Planet vet shows while eating cheese its when I got home from school, just munching away while they did surgery on little puppies. But if you write even a tiny bit of cringe it takes me like 5 business days to recover. I fully cannot look at the screen. I will leave the room if an awkward conversation happens in my tv show. I also can't not react to cuteness as well. These notes were mental escapes a lot of the time in this fic, like mother of GOD I want to die even imagining these conversations. Mortifying. Anyways.

Unhinged things I would say on the google doc but here!

DIALOGUE, dialogue, dialogue, dialogue. It can make or break a piece and it CARRIED in this one. It's so very cringe and realistic lol. Dialogue is usually the hardest for writers but I don't think our man here has this problem lol.

Great setting as well, I can feel the heat. A setting you can physically feel is so immersive, it sucks you right in, and my ass has never been to Italy but I've been on a dock and I've been in a hot thunderstorm and I can feel it all.

Obsessed with the way Spider steps into the house and Neytiri's like "dinner, gayboy??" like she was on his ass instantly skskskks. HER LITTLE SLIGHTS AT HIM?? EXPLAIN, LOL. WHAT DID THE CHILD DO? Reminds me of the time my friends mom asked me to stop calling her Chris and I didn't understand why and just blurted back "Okay, Chris." It's just so funny to me when she hates Spider in modern fics, because there's no systemic context it's just her beefing with a small child oddly lol. Having read the whole fic now, it's just Quarich's racism connection, I believe.

I am obsessed with the plight of the boys. Obviously Spider needs to leave, but I'm hoping Lo'ak escapes the military industrial complex lol. I'm so torn. I had Sully fam on the brain, and I wanted Spider's continuing relationship with them all so badly. Maybe I simply need for them to ask Spider to stay with them? Like "live with us for a year buddy, get yourself ready for college. You can do anything king but also ur part of the family, now go deflower our son."

Here is that clarifying question I asked: Did Kiri and Spider have sex??? Or did Mandy tell her about Spider's dick? OR BOTH? I simply could not figure that out. Also missed opportunity to name that character Ninat for the lols. The next generation of Ninat's beefing with and over Sully men.

Now that you've given me my answer, truly hilarious comedic content for everyone around.

Kiri, at night: want to hear about Spider’s dick?

Lo’ak, charcoal and paper out, ready to create an impressive sketch: ew, no, go ahead.

Chapter two, FUCK OFF Jeytiri flirting karaoke is adorable, that’s hilarious. The whole scene made my heart happy bUT NOT HAPPY ENOUGH not enough comfort I need more of it.

Spider turning to Lo’ak who's aLREADY LOOKING AT HIM cause they’re both like “oh you mentioned love, let me look at my best friend,” I’ll die.

Lo’ak literally BEGGING Spider to sing so he can swoon in the corner. I love this headcanon that seems to be cropping up of Spider being like a really good singer, it's very interesting to me.

JAKE UNDERSTANDING SPIDER I’ll die. Jake’s adopted that child you can’t convince me otherwise. Dude, even Neytiri fucking sees him as part of the family, I’ll scream. The tooth gem thing??? Iconic. Loved it. She’s giving Spider specifically cookies??? I’ll die. She's included him in all their shit. Not just anyone can do family game night karaoke. The karaoke, I am obsessed. Adorable. The Kiri and Lo’ak banter means the world to me. Their limp wrist agenda, the limp wrist bullying. What will he do when he can’t hold that against her? She must be unbearable to him in return when Spider isn't there. We love a homophobic gay. It's like what I said about my roommate i slept with twice (who follows me on here and we all better hope doesn't perceive this post); "I only get offended when SHE calls me slurs because I know then it comes from a place of true homophobia."

Kiri is literally begging Spider to understand Lo’ak wants him. BEGGING LO’AK TO UNDERSTAND SPIDER WANTS HIM. Kiri trying not to die at how obvious they both are. Kiri, going to beat the shit out of Lo’ak for asking about Mandy of all people bc of how far he's gone to avoid learning about that. I STILL AM UNCLEAR AS TO IF HIS ASS ACTUALLY DIDN'T KNOW SPIDER BROKE UP WITH MANDY OR HE WAS JUST BEING AN ASS.

Also fuck u for underestimating the importance of Tuk to Spider, he wants Tuk to remember him please I swear.

Also I have noted you have hinted at Spider’s praise kink. I can see it clearly. Nothing more will be said on that topic, but sometimes a praise kink simply makes sense for a character.

'IT COMES OUT MORE LIKE GAY' that was just for me, I know. So was Ninat's kid, obviously. Now that it's cONFIRMED for me I love to know that I am the target audience of all locorro fics ever.

Spider: *calls Lo’ak baby and gets embarrassed*

Lo’ak: *rebooting*

Lol Spider punching Lo’ak for saying slurs is so funny. Lo’ak's like if I say it I ain’t it, and that's on falling for the guy that is punching me for saying the slurs.

This little "I knew" reveal was CERTAINLY not what I was expecting. Not at all. A delightful little twist huh? A little trope subversion? AN EXPLICIT DRUNK CONFESSION IS SO HEART-WRENCHINGLY AWFUL OH MY GOD. WHAT HAPPENED THEN WHAT DID THEY D O I MUST KNOW. "It’s not a big deal bc I… like u too obviously lol." That's the end of the sentence and the end of the communication. I was driven insane by that, I just finished XO Kitty, worst show ever, and I was reminded how much I despise when communication would solve legit every problem but it's handled realistically here. Communication is so hard for the boys Kiri will throw hands. And I brought your inhaler with me obvs cause I’m in love with you.

I’m sad about an asthmatic fist fight but it’s so appropriate. I am sad tho. I am a hurt/COMFORT bitch where is my COMFORT. I don't think my body is ready for a nocorro fic from u @spicymiilk my blog is about to become all comforting headcanons and we're going to ignore the plethora of Hunger Games ones I got today.

Now we have to sit here in this world where Lo'ak thought Spider was emotionally(?) cheating on Mandy with him if he thought they were still dating, the fucking clown idiot fool.

FINALLY, for the third and final chapter, with some bonus answers Andrei has given to my demanding all caps questions.

I’m so mean, I’m laughing at the idea of Kiri waking up at an ungodly 7:34am to Lo’ak ugly crying over Spider’s fake bed on the floor like he’s gone off and died in the war. She’s just like the pizza box community meme like uhhhh. Now I know this must happen oFTEN so I again figure that she must have gotten really good at sleeping through his ugly sobbing.

JHUST FUCKING LEAVE QUARITCH THIS IS SO ANNOYING GET OUT OF MY PLOT I’M TRYNA SEE KIRI’S TEXTS, ugh I'm so biased I despised how much he was in this chapter he should choke I wish asthma was contagious. Although, for some reason Quaritch calling Spider Lo’ak’s wife did things to me personally, The sweet homosexual love line then took me out back and popped me (I mean this in a like, Italian mafia putting me down outside way and not like, doing poppers outside a club although for some reason both are giving the same energy).

Neytiri murdering Spider for both turning her son gay and also making him sad can be something so personal. I still am in denial of every universe where she doesn't like him, and in this one I just love the idea of them slinking back to Italy having eloped or some shit where Spider now has to build that relationship but now having deflowered and stolen her son in the night. Hilarious. They must bond over talking about how stupid he is. They're so similar, how can the people with Jake and his clone not be.

Lol I also forgot Lo’ak got a black eye, that makes Kiri’s texts earlier so much funnier. Kiri was like they made out so hard he was struck with love. Developed a bruise. His gayness punched him in the face.

SPIDER KILL YOURSELF IM IN YOUR ROOM KICK YOUR DAD OUT IS SO FUNNY TO ME THE KYS SPECEFICALLY KILELD ME.

Oh my god the crying was all a lie, a fantasy, I’m so disappointed. More realistic, sure, but still. I am unclear as to if it was rEAL.

I had the cunt thing spoiled for me when I was catching up on posts I missed; never did I imagine lol. Almost as hilarious as Lo’ak telling Spider to die because he didn’t look at him, gay.

Spackle covering the hole in the wall, hmm, I wonder who punched that there?? Also abusive Quaritch giving romantic advice is making me want to puke up all my organs. I know Andrei says say the hole in the wall was nothing, but you can't have an abusive dad character and then mention a hole in the wall and nOT have us thinking that Quaritch punched a hole in the wall. Every reader is gonna think that.

Lol those Kiri texts and what she says is sO MEAN god I totally get why she did it but omg way to ruin a man over something that is not his decision or his fault. She’s just so so mad about the gays being dumb. Can’t believe she finally coughed up this info. Also the way Quaritch could probably hear all this through the wall makes me wanna die.

Speaking of Quaritch, what an interesting portrayal of their relationship. As a Quaritch hater, there's very few fics where I don't just fully skip long interactions with him. I gotta have really been sucked into the world, and I was with this one. I can't tell what of my feelings on the characters have made me biased on the relationship and what are my feelings on what the text portrayed. The feeling of too late in their relationship is there, overwhelmingly and devastatingly, but part of me found myself unconvinced by the attempts from Quartich. I literally can't tell if it's my own bias (most likely) or if it's my own lack of explicit background knowledge.

What we do learn of the past we learn in fragments, passing lines from Spider's internal monologue. They aren't the focal point of the story, but they are deeply important to the world created, and it leaves me with a feeling like I'm in an unfinished paint by numbers; I don't quite have the full picture. (Again, as I always say to you in my beta notes Andrei, these are incredibly harsh comments for fic. It's just good enough I'm treating it as though it's more lol (bc it can be)).

As to why everyone is finding Kiri mean; yeah she's neurospicy and we do clearly get the vibe that they talk to each other in this way, this casual banter that doesn't really mean anything. That being said, casual "kill yourself" or like "this is all your fault" and shit like that when the character is clearly upset and angry comes across as serious. Knowing Kiri as a character I didn't think she was, but reading it took me aback because as a standalone I don't have that context. In arguments and serious moments those words pack a punch, especially to a reader in such close third as we are with Spider in this one. We are WITH him and seeing only his thoughts and perspectives, his hurt is front and center so it's easy to feel hurt and defensive as a reader. I digress.

Lo’ak’s like every man in a crime show calling his wife to hear her voice one last time before he goes to to the dangerous mission and almost dies. He's like "I'll hear Spider's breathing and then know the US military is the way for me." Spider, the barrier between Lo’ak and the goddamn US military. That’s so funny to me. This is another reason to feel confused by Kiri's vitriol; it's not Spider's fault what Lo'ak chooses to do with his life and it is unfair to blame him. One line of her doing it I get, but she does it several times and the only excuse we get for her is from Spider.

Kiri is better than me I’m an awful secret keeper. But also maybe she could’ve coughed that bad boy up earlier, huh?

Tbh tho, on a serious writing note; it’s so well written because from the beginning we know exactly what is happening. They both like each other and Kiri knows both sides. That was obvious to me. You tell us from the get go that Spider is leaving when he turns 18, and that Lo’ak is leaving to join the military, WE KNOW WHATS GOING TO HAPPEN. And yet the train chugs on and each event sets it in motion instead of derailing it, leaving us with an inevitable tragedy we all saw coming. Well done. If I was giving line edits on a publishable work, I’d say speed up the timeline. Make the whole fic (so excluding prior events like the party) all happen like. A few days before Spider leaves. I want to feel it all in real time, up close, as it happens. No breaks in time. I also want that memory convo with Lo’ak earlier lol, so that the realization of it can hit later. And honestly, if it wasn’t fic I’d leave it with the Kiri and Spider convo. No happy ending. BUT NOW LET ME GO READ MY WELL DESERVED HAPPY ENDING. U would've been SICK for not including one.

Extremely uncommon fanfiction Jake Sully W here. It should be more common I am an unapologetic stan.

Them going to find each other is so funny to me. Kiri was personally sending them on a wild goose chase as revenge.

OH THERE IT IS THE COMMON JAKE SULLY L. Although driving your gay ass son to do an airport rom com moment at 5:45am is actually quite the parenting w, where the fuck was Neytiri she would’ve been much more efficient. I mean she wouldn't have let him go, but she would've been efficient about it.

The idea of Lo’ak making his final decision to go to the military earlier in the day and then not actually doing it until he wakes Jake up at 2am makes me cackle. Jake: you go get that dick son, your mother can kill us both later.

ALSO WHY’S HE PULLING HIS SHIRT COLLAR SO HIGH, HMMM, ANDREI??? Showing up to meet his grandmother absolutely dEFILED. Does Lo'ak even have a change of clothes, that monster.

It’s 2:18am (when I originally write this), I have work tomorrow as I do literally every day of the week, and I’m just smiling to myself at this shit. Criticism: not enough of them being happy and also I didn’t get to learn what depraved things Spider wanted to do to Lo’ak that he drunkenly told him about that Lo’ak then had to live with torturing himself (and Kiri) over for months.

Andrei's response on what Spider drunkenly said to Lo'ak for the people: The depraved things are as follows— spider sat his ass in Lo’ak’s lap, completely and utterly gone, and waved poetry about Lo’ak’s long and strong fingers for at least ten minutes. He also made sure to mention his borderline tank top kink. Lo’ak definitely did not internalize that

I just have to say; I should've expected that. Those two gay ass losers to simply lose their minds over tHAT, which is like nOTHING. A REGULAR CONVERSATION I'D DARE SAY. ONE OF THE FIRST CONVERSATIONS I HAD WITH ONE OF MY ROOMMATES WAS ABOUT HER HAND KINK, SO I RECIPROCATED BY SAYING I THOUGHT THE DWARVES IN LOTR HAD GOOD HANDS. LO'AK WAS DEAD, SIMPLY MURDERED, A BLUSHING FOOL OVER THAT.

Lo'ak, stumbling into his and Kiri's room: Spider confessed his love for me and said... depraved things.

Kiri: OH MY GOD WHAT DID HE SAY.

Lo'ak: He said he likes my tank tops... I can barely speak of it out loud.

Kiri: Oh. 🙄

Also lowkey Kiri has to be enraged they’re normal now that they’re away from her. ALSO DOESN’T THAT BITCH LO’AK HAVE SCHOOL?? Hilarious all around. Lo’ak brings Spider back because they cannot be apart and then keeps him in his and Kiri’s room for the next year until he finishes high school. They see how long they can go without Quaritch finding out Spider’s nearby. Kiri hates them so much, especially now that they fuck in her space.

Andrei said in response to this: Lo’ak finished school in Florida!! Pulled a fast one on the school system and said hey I’m smart enough to finish like two classes here. Kiri didn’t speak to EITHER of them for months. Neytiri would call to check up and Kiri would be whining in the background about how she’s betraying her

They make up when Spider saves up to get her a ticket to visit them for a summer 🤸

The idea of Lo'ak never returning is so funny to me in so many ways. First of all, Spider dropping him off and picking him up like he's the sexy older boyfriend in every romcom ever. Second, the idea of Spider bullying him for having to go to school still. Three, they just squat with Spider's grandma, and she's like god I expected one gay loser not TWO. Four, Neytiri calling to check up just resulting in her and Spider both bitching about Lo'ak and Kiri respectively here is how the Neytiri and Spider fanboys can win-

Also, the idea of someone having to tell Neteyam about this makes me want to cry real tears of laughter. He’s in his first semester of college someone free him.

Andrei said: Let neteyam live in blissful ignorance. He knew Lo’ak was a raging homosexual for their entire lives and the second he saw spider he was like. Oooohhh okay. And then he never looked again the mental strength required to deal with it was just too much

Kiri, on facetime: so Lo'ak followed Spider-

Neteyam, opening a textbook in his Harvard dorm room or some shit:

[phantomofthehoepera]

PLEASE i wanna know all your hcs about the largo siblings and their moms

YAYY OKAY LOTS OF STUFF UNDER THE CUT <3

so basically I've just made a bunch of shit up bc we don't get a lot in the movie and I like to have fun and be myself. none of it is based off like the weird semi-canon myspace stuff I've heard abt?? if there are similarities they are pure coincidence bc I'm not reading all that god bless.

so for the moms they unfortunately still don't have names so I'm just gonna call them by their colours love and light. I've talked abt them before here but the short version of the story is they, along with marni and mag, were in an opera troupe and caught rotti's interest. they sort of just formed a social circle which nathan was also part of bc like idk college besties or something idk. rotti married red and had luigi, after which red was like you know what I'm kinda craving some nathan and left him. during one of her visits luigi killed her not like with ill intent or whatever bc he was like 5 but still he did fully murder her. rotti, not knowing a warning when he saw one, married blue and they had amber, and then blue was like you know what red was absolutely right I also want some nathan in my life and also left rotti. blue was the least well off of the opera troupe, though, and had some unpaid geneco bill lying around so she got repoed. rotti was still determined to have an opera wife so he married ourple and they had pavi and once again one of rotti's wives left him for nathan at which point he was like you know what if this ever fucking happens again that is IT I am DONE. also ourple died badly from a parasite bc me and my friend had just watched venom when we came up with this. at this point rotti married marni and we all know the rest

AS FOR THE KIDS I think luigi would basically always have been pretty unstable so he wouldn't have been put in the spotlight as much as a kid. also if you've seen a lot of my repo art you might have noticed I draw him with this big scar over his forehead which is bc in my brainverse at some point rotti would have had him undergo some sort of brain surgery in an attempt to calm him down a bit tho I can't imagine it worked at all. also think that basically from that point rotti was basically set on at the very least not letting luigi inherit and probably a bit doubtful of his other kids already

I picture amber and pavi being closer in age and like somewhat closer at least for the first few years of their lives. also I feel so strongly that rotti would have given them like ALL the spotlight just to balance off how little the public would have gotten to see of luigi, so I always picture them as basically child stars. when the novelty of being talented kids started wearing off and the public got a little less interested in them I think amber took it the hardest which is why she's so insistent on returning to the opera when mag quits

also with the kids I wanna stress I don't imagine any of this in my head to make them more sympathetic I think in the present they are all horrid bitches and deserve the guillotine but I am also a fan of succession so I was kind of primed to make up a lot of rich person lore sorry :(

[trinitywc]

On chapter 15 of Endless Winter currently, and loving every moment of it but the lead up to some projects and finals is gonna gear up within the next week so I won't be able to finish as fast as I would like to. Given that, I wanted to verbally dog ear my place & jot down some thoughts before they escaped me (particularly my appreciation for the way you portray character dynamics and the nuance you provide that I could sit and stew on for hours).

I've been enjoying Rutherford and Pinefrost's interactions a great deal. I get the feeling he loves infodumping about his interests, and particularly likes how good a listener, as well as perceptive, that Pinefrost is. She's sharp in more ways than one! and I also particularly adore the way Pinefrost often uses his explanations and points when he is explaining things to her as an anchor for her wandering mind during the present in a way that doesn't make her feel as though she's out of the loop or excluded unlike past scenes when the gang is discussing whether to stay or leave the domicile. Those two bounce off one another so well, and in such a way that it makes it so apparent how isolated Pinefrost has been even amongst her surviving group, and even before that when Creek Clan was still intact. Her loneliness has been really keen in previous chapters, and it's nice to see her feeling like she has a companion that shows her just as many new things as she can with honing Rutherford different skills.

That being said, while I really enjoy Rutherford, I don't know if I trust him fully. He's been dependable and a great source of support for the group, but I can't help wondering about his intentions. Perhaps he just wants company! But it strikes me as odd that he's giving away resources when he was so skeptical of Pinefrost giving Sedgenose her fresh kill, and is directing them all out of the city purely out of the goodness of his heart and during the thick of winter, no less. It makes me wonder to what end he plans to act as a tag along with the group, and not to mention he'd have to make the entire trip back to the city by himself once they get to the river! He seems like too much of an intellectual city slicker to want to rough it with the gang when/if they reunite with the clans... clan??? (Creekwood consolidation with the survivors perhapseth???) Surely he's not doing all this JUST because he met our intriguing mule headed protagonist, could he?

Crackpot theory but maybe he's not leading them to where he say he is- but then again he hasn't lied even with the explanation of the atom to Pinefrost. Crackpot theory #2, he seems to have observed Pinefrost's reluctance to leave, and her feelings of insecurity that she confided over what they have the possibility to come back to with the clans and I have to wonder if he'll use that to either isolate her (unhealthy option) or encourage her (healthier alternative!!!) to stay with him instead. The summary certainly implies so! Crackpot theory #3 combination of both #1 & #2.

Then a random comment and some purely satirical jokes that are essentially nonsense, feel free to skip;

"She had one option, and that was through. Through the winter, through the atom."

SO INCREDIBLY METAL, LOVE THIS. HAUNTING, GUT WRENCHING, TRAGIC IN THE BEST WAY POSSIBLE- A CAR CRASH YOU CAN'T AVOID OR REDIRECT. So much of ch 11 in particular to be honest! Rutherford's entire explanation left me with dreams. I left it waking up and checking my little kitty cat's nose for black ash.

Pinefrost: Oh yeah we knew this would happen, sedgefrost had a vision from star clan that the great light would take us out :/

Rutherford: the FUCK? the HUH?

Everytime Sedgenose or Woolycloud have an interaction with Pinefrost, I'm that one twitter reaction video, "-and she's the mother, she's mother earth, she is mother gaia, she is YOUR mother 👁👄👁"

I AM ON THE FUVKING FLOOR WITH THOSE MEMES THATS SO FUCKING FUNNY

Good luck with your exams!!!

"I get the feeling he loves infodumping about his interests, and particularly likes how good a listener, as well as perceptive, that Pinefrost is" - It’s kinda shown but Rutherford starts talking to Sedge and Wooly first before diverting to Pinefrost, he couldn’t get the same conversation about the world and atom and stuff from them; they really just click. If they had a glass porch table and a bottle of wine they’d talk for hours and hours. They are both very curious cats, for better or worse.

"Those two bounce off one another so well, and in such a way that it makes it so apparent how isolated Pinefrost has been even amongst her surviving group, and even before that when Creek Clan was still intact" - they do have such good chemistry imho. I wanted Rutherford to be a friend for Pinefrost, genuinely. She is a very lonely little cat. As is he, they are both on each others level, she is able to understand his city/atom terms where other cats cannot, and he is eager to learn more about the world outside the city. Pinefrost needs that understanding/knowledge of the world to feel more secure, and Rutherford gives it her in spades.

"it strikes me as odd that he's giving away resources when he was so skeptical of Pinefrost giving Sedgenose her fresh kill, and is directing them all out of the city purely out of the goodness of his heart" -everything is a means to an end ;) As for your theories… i love em both. I love getting people’s midway theories!

There is no way but through!!!