#Like don't get me wrong I am glad this tool is out there

[occultopossum]

Ok, ran a test run of glaze, so have an informative post about the process. Since there is a lot of 'Just glaze all your art!' being thrown around a lot right now, then not giving much information where to find it/how to use it. You can find glaze here (https://glaze.cs.uchicago.edu/) Was about 2.6GB to download the program Then about 4.8GB to extract the zip, for an idea of it's size/space requirements. Got it running from the application in the extract folder.

The general layout of glaze which it is simple/easy to use interface, at lowest they estimate 20 minutes, but from my test run it takes *significantly* longer, which it does disclose that on the bottom left. In terms of CPU, yes it is very intensive, I have an average laptop with 'average specs' (i.e I can run a fair few games, but nothing like 'top graphics) I ran glaze at the lowest settings, default and faster My memory Cpu usage while using glaze was at Cpu 50-60% / Memory at 70-80% * Before I ran glaze it was running 11% cpu and 42% memory (I had discord open in the background the whole time but closed out of much else, so if you do run to much you may experience a crash)

*As glaze did reach the half way point the cpu and memory usage slowly lowered Now here's the time frame it took to glaze one picture of mine that was 5.05MB

The process takes *much* longer the settings indicate (used fastest setting which was estimated to be 20 minutes), so I spent approx (9:30pm to 1:00 am running glaze) The final result

This is what some of the warping looks like (which you can see it in some of the examples on glazes website)

I've already posted this art before unglazed so used it as an example. The unglazed version is the left, and glazed is the right. I do imagine you'll get less warping at the higher settings but likely that'll be much more intensive in time and resources. In short, glaze I'm so glad this tool is there for artists, but it is *really* not feasible solution/catch all for everyone to go back and glaze every piece of art/or glaze every piece of art going forward. Between the time it takes and how intensive it is, it's likely not accessible for everyone.

Where I feel this tool is best suited (and likely intended) is more art industry settings, examples like 'I'm posting art for a industry client and/or my professional portfolio' type scenarios.

Just wanted to give a more detailed experience of using glaze. I've seen there was sign ups for people to make accounts to use glaze for a faster experience, but as far as I've seen on their site/other posts it's closed at the moment.

[singmyaubade]

you're sick

| sypnosis: eddie has non-stop bullied you since your freshman year and it certainly won't stop as you approach into your senior year.

| who doesn't love a little evil?

| bully!eddie x y/n

| warning: contains NONCON, pure smut, violence, etc..

before you read, this does feature NONCON/RAPE, i am not responsible for what you read further on !

you walked through the hallway, your green skirt with striped white lines at the bottom, flowing side to side and your green vest shown, clearly identifying you as a cheerleader.

from far away, you looked as if you were simply fine and perfect in your natural light but if anyone looked very deep, they would clearly realize something was wrong.

and the something that was wrong?

eddie munson.

he had been terrorizing you since your freshman year and never failed to make you feel worse about yourself.

he would push you, trip you, make you cry if it meant that you would get upset.

you had tried everything to get him to leave you alone but he never seems to quit, you disliked him in every way.

you didn't find a single thing to like about him.

but back to reality,

"y/n!" your friend, chrissy cunningham, coming over to you with a smile.

"chrissy!" you smiled at her as chrissy walked along side of you.

"okay so here me out, i got jason's friend who's name is jack who would love to go on a date with you." she squeaked.

you sighed, "chrissy, i do not need that at the moment."

she frowned, "it's our final year and you still refuse to go on a date with any of the guys."

you rolled your eyes, "they are all tools that don't deserve all this." you did a little turn, showing off your figure, bumping into someone.

"oh im so-" you looked up to see the man you hated the most but also feared, "i'm really sorry eddie." you apologized, not wanting any punishment.

he smirked, passing by you without saying anything, "what was that?" chrissy asked, smiling.

"nothing, just an accident." you gave an innocent smile but little did chrissy know, it goes farther than that.

the bell rang as you went to sit down in front of eddie as you always did.

"hi slut." eddie whispered in your ear, causing shivers down your back as you ignored him, "don't ignore me, you will only make it worse on yourself."

"what do you want eddie?" you sighed, still facing forward.

"what's with the attitude, you act as if i can't say hi these days, i'm quite hurt y/n." he fake frowned.

you grew visibly annoyed, "i don't wanna play your games eddie."

he smirked, "whatever princess wants."

you looked confused as to why eddie is leaving you alone but you consider it luck today.

the teacher called you up to write an equation which you do with ease. as you headed back to your seat, eddie had a huge smile on his face, it was dark. you knew he was up to something but you couldn't place your finger on it.

the bell rang as you packed up your textbooks and stood, going as you tripped over eddie's leg which was purposely put out.

you didn't even wanna entertain him so you continued exiting the classroom.

you heard him chasing after you, "y/n!"

you quickly exited the classroom, ready to go to lunch as he gripped your hand painfully, "let go of me." you looked at him angrily.

"have you forgotten who the fuck you are talking to?" he whispered in your ear angrily.

you scoffed at his cockiness, "i don't talk to man-children who play a child's game." you took back your hand, "but maybe i'll talk to you with respect when you stop hanging out with freshman, you fucking freak." you spat at him, "i would also recommend getting out of highschool before you get over the legal drinking age, asshole."

you had never seen him so angry but you were sick of the abuse, you exited the classroom to walk with your cheer friends.

you were glad that it was a friday so you would be prepared for the repercussions of your actions.

after you walked with your cheer friends, you waved goodbye, heading home.

thankfully the walk was only five minutes and took you no time. you were glad to head home because you kept feeling anxious going home as if someone was following you.

nobody was home due to your parents being on an anniversary trip that they would be back from tomorrow but you just wanted to go straight to sleep anyways.

after eating leftovers, you dressed into pajama shorts and a tanktop, going to sleep.

you were suddenly awoken to your bottoms being pulled off aggressively as you gasped to see eddie, "what the fuck are you doing! get out!" you kicked him but he only restrained you further.

this is when you started to cry, "get off of me!" you tried using your nails to scratch him.

that's when he slapped you, "don't fucking move." he aggressively said, pulling out a knife.

tears were streaming down your face as you stopped moving, scared to death.

he started rubbing your exposed clit, "you fucking insult me and think you are gonna get away with that shit, you stupid fucking bitch." he spat.

he completely ripped of your bottoms now causing you to cry harder, "i'm sorry!" you pleaded with him but you knew he wouldn't listen.

he started unbuckling his belt as you tried crawling across the bed to go but he grabbed onto your legs, "you really are fucking stubborn."

he turned you over so that your legs were spread as he went in between you and positioned himself in the middle of you, choking you.

"i should've killed you for what you said today but i should fuck the disrespect out of you instead." he whispered, letting go of you as you gasped for air as he cut your tanktop, revealing your breasts.

he stroked himself lightly, lining up with your entrance before pushing himself inside.

you gasped at the pressure, he was stretching you out completely. he started sucking on your nipples as the pleasure hit you harder than ever.

"perfect fucking tits." he bit on your nipple a little bit, making you moan.

he squeezed onto your tit as he sucked on other one, rocking into you.

he pounded into you harder, using his thumb to circle your clit, "so fucking wet and you try to act as if you don't like it." he groaned into your ear as you moaned.

"eddie please, gentle." you begged as the sounds to skin slapping against eachother and moans filled your ears.

"your cunt was made for me, holy shit." he fucked you harder.

at this point, tears were rapidly streaming down your cheeks by the pleasure, "i'm coming." you moaned.

"then do it, you dirty slut." his voice making you come harder.

"fuck." eddie moaned, pulling out of you and coming onto your sheets as your eyes closed.

he couldn't wait to punish you again.

[kelcemenow]

Drive Me Crazy - Chapter 4.

Pairing Travis Kelce x Reader

Words 1556

Warnings Like, maybe one swear word. A hint of angst and a bit more fluff.

Huge thank you to the Anon who sent this in! They had such amazing words to say about my writing which I massively appreciate and then to top it off, had an incredible request for me! I only have experience with mechanics in the UK, so I've tried my best with this one! "I just recently got interested in Travis K. X reader stories and wanted to let you know, I read all of yours as quickly as I could. They are so well done and I couldn’t help but laugh/giggle and feel through each word you typed out. You’re doing amazing and I’m so glad to have stumbled onto your page. If you have any space for a request, I’d be curious about what Trav would think about having a military (like fighter pilot) or engineer or mechanic girlfriend. I see a lot of stories with him paired with models/singers/social media individuals (which are phenomenal!) but just wondering how he would be with a more tomboy like girlfriend!"

CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 4

"And all you'd ever hear me say, is how I pictured me with you. That's all you'd ever hear me say. But since you been gone..."

Your mouth gaped open as a yawn took over your body, halting your singing along to the music playing on the radio as you worked under the hood of a bright blue Honda. Standing up, you stretched your arms above your body, allowing another yawn to loudly roar out across the shop floor.

"Tired?" Jordan asked as he approached you from the other side of the room.

You blinked your bleary eyes, "Yeah. I didn't get home until late last night."

"Bro!" He sucked his mouth to his teeth and shook his head, "You gotta stop working so hard."

You quickly glanced around the room before leaning closer to Jordan, "Can you keep a secret?"

Jordan eyes glittered and he nodded enthusiastically, closing the gap between you further.

"I think I went on a date last night." You said with a grin.

Jordan's expression changed, a slight quiver on his brow. He straightened up and cleared his throat, "You think you did?"

"Well, yeah. It wasn't described as a date or anything...but it was nice. We talked and got to know each other." You paused, wondering how detailed you should be.

"Sorry, I just find it hard to believe that you went on a date." He looked away from you and began rummaging through one of the large tool boxes that were lined up along the side of the wall.

You twisted your mouth, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, it's you, you know. You're...Y/N. You don't go on dates."

You stepped towards him, "And what? You don't think there would be any chance that someone...anyone...would be interested in me?"

He turned his head, "That's not what I mean."

"Well, that's what it sounds like to me."

Jordan sighed and straightened up, "Y/N, come on. Stop acting like a g-"

"Like a girl? Is that what you're about to say?"

"No, that's...well, to be honest, yeah."

You could feel anger rising in your chest, "Surprise surprise, Jordan. I am a girl."

You watched as Jordan attempted to backtrack his words, "No, you're taking this all wrong. I'm just saying that I'm surprised that someone asked you out."

"You're not helping yourself here, Jordan. You're being an asshole. Someone did ask me out...and he is interested in me."

"Are you sure?"

"Why did he kiss me then?"

Jordan's eyebrows jumped up, "Oh, right."

"You're a jerk." Turning on your heels, you headed into the office, not waiting for Jordan's response.

As you reached the door, you swung it open with force, letting it slam once you were safely inside the cosy room.

Your Dad jumped a little in his seat, "Woah, what's up, sport?"

"Sorry, Dad...I just needed to get out of there." You said as you slumped down in the chair next to him.

"Wanna talk about it?"

You shook your head gently, "Not really."

You exhaled slowly, flicking mindlessly through the diary, checking your jobs for the next few days. Your eyes were scanning the words on the pages in front of you but your mind was elsewhere. Usually, you didn't let other people's opinions matter but Jordan had hit a nerve with you. Was it because you cared what Jordan thought of you? You had always got on well with Jordan, harmlessly flirting occasionally, but nothing had ever come of it. Maybe his outburst was out of jealousy, or maybe he really didn't see you in that way. Was it because you were starting to really like Travis? He was the first person who seemed to genuinely like you regardless of your appearance or personality. But something was stopping you. You weren't Travis' usual type; you didn't wear a lot of make-up or really care about what you were wearing on a day-to-day basis.

"Dad, do you ever wish that I was...more girly?"

Your Dad turned to look at you, concern plastered across his face, "What's this about?"

"Just answer the question."

He took a deep breath, as if preparing his answer, "There was a time when I was worried. When all of the other little girls were having sleepovers and horse riding lessons or going to ballet class and I looked at you, covered in oil and repairing your bike in your overalls and baseball cap." He chuckled at the memory, "But you never let it bother you. You liked being you and I wouldn't change you for the world."

You smiled as he wheeled his chair closer to you and threw his arm around the back of your neck, pulling you in and laying a kiss on the top of your head.

The moment was interrupted by the shop door opening and a young man walking in, struggling with a giant bouquet of flowers in his arms. Your Dad stood from his chair and assisted him to settle them on top of the counter.

"Flowers? Here? Are you sure?" Your Dad joked.

The young man smiled and pointed to the delivery note in his hand, "KC Auto Repairs? They're for Y/N. Later."

You watched him leave with your eyebrows lowered, surprised and confused, "For me?"

Your Dad craned his neck, retrieving the card that was stuck in the middle of the mass of beautiful blooms, "Well, who are they from?"

You took the card from his hand, carefully opening the crisp white envelope and scanning the contents.

"There's 2 tickets for Sunday's game with your name on. TK."

A smile tugged at the corners of your mouth and your heart leapt at Travis' kind gesture.

"TK? Is that...is that Travis Kelce?" He held a shaky finger towards the card.

You smirked as you continued to stare at the card, the fingers on your free hand dancing over the petals, "Erm...yeah."

"Wow. It seems you've certainly made an impression on him." He pulled you closer, "Who are you taking to the game then?"

You faced him with wide eyes, "Are you joking? You, you dummy!"

Your Dad let out a loud roar of laughter before breaking out into an impressive celebratory song and dance, "I'm going to Arrowhead!"

The office door squeaked open and you rolled your eyes slightly when Jordan poked his head into the room. Turning away from him, you stuffed the small card back into the envelope before admiring the flowers.

"Sorry, can I just get the keys for the Buick?" He mumbled.

Your Dad stopped dancing, opening the small cabinet that was hanging on the wall. He fished out the correct car keys before grinning to Jordan, "You'll never guess what, Jordan? Our Y/N here has an admirer!"

"She does?" He said, emotionless.

"Travis fucking Kelce!" He yelled.

"Dad!" You shouted in shock. You weren't used to hearing your Dad using language like that. He certainly didn't use it around you.

"I'm sorry, sport. I'm just so excited!" He slapped Jordan lightly on the chest, "I'm going to Arrowhead, man! Kelce's special guests!"

Jordan's eyes met with yours and you spotted the realisation as it hit him.

"Well, good luck to you." He nodded his head slowly before taking the keys and disappearing back to the shop floor.

There was a slightly uncomfortable silence before your Dad snorted a small laugh, "What was that about?"

"I don't know." You shrugged your shoulders and began chewing on your bottom lip, "Hey Dad, is it okay if I go take lunch now?"

"Sure, sport."

You smiled and grabbed your hoodie, quickly tying it around your waist and making sure your cell phone was in your overall pocket. As you pushed the door to the shop open, the bright midday sun warmed your face instantly. You began walking down the road with your phone gripped in your hand, Travis' contact showing on the screen and your head whirring with thoughts. After a few seconds you took a deep breath and pressed dial, lifting the phone up to your ear.

You weren't sure why you were so nervous, you had called Travis before. This time it was different, though. The dynamic had changed between you and this was something you really weren't used to.

The dial tone stopped after only a couple of seconds and Travis' low voice echoed into your ear, "Hello?"

"Hi, Travis. It's Y/N."

"Ahhh, you like the flowers?"

You could hear him smiling as he spoke, which made your stomach fill with butterflies, "That was a real smooth move, Kelce. I see you, getting in good with the Dad first, huh?"

He laughed, "You see right through me. So, are you coming?"

"I am."

"Are you excited for your first football game? I got you seats in the friends and family box so it won't be the true fan experience down in the stands, but I figured your Dad would be happy."

Your heart warmed, "You really didn't have to do this."

"I know I didn't." He said abruptly. "I wanted to."

You could feel your cheeks blushing and your heart rate increasing.

"So, you gotta put me out of my misery." He purred, "When can I take you out for a real date?"

Your teeth clamped down on themselves, apprehension and nerves filling your body, "I'm free tonight?"

"Tonight it is."

______________________________________________________________

I think I figured this one out, and I think I've got the rest of story in my head. But please feel free to send any burning ideas you have for this one. Because you know what I'm like, this will end up with a thousand chapters if I don't rein myself in. Quick warning for the next chapter...it's about to get spicy! Let me know if you want to be added to my Taglist too, that way you'll never miss any of my fics!!

Taglist @rd14 @dandelionwrites8 @keiva1000 @fantasywritersstuff @caelipartem @anacarangel @she-lives-in-her-dreams @kkrenae @kristencochefski1125 @countrygirl120983 @charmed2000 @nouis-bum @cixrosie @delicateearthquakellama @wordsaresimple-imnot @amylouwho9 @queenisa17 @talicat713 @luvvtrent @purecinnamonextract @savaneafricaine @caelipartem @beyxgrande @caitdaniels @ezgirl1108 @vir-tual @lightsoutstyles @macey234 @s294749w @kelcemesoftly @calirindo @livinginmyfantasies @bernelflo @secretmywritingfictionlawyer @killatravtramp @there-goes-thefighter @unicornblueberry @calirindo @tjkelce87 @kristinamae093 @kmc1989 @ajbird18 @triski73 @ctn26 @kgcaputo07 @abby-splace @bobthe-turmpetman29 @cedricbitch @abby-splace @jmamas92 @bellstwd @killatravsworld @marchmaiden @chimchimmarie @blackstabbath6 @fanficfanatic15 @jessiemariebarnes @mmb219 @vanwritesfan-fiction @futebollover @ks-dreams-fantasies @laurenmcucm @blackstabbath6

[randomwriteronline]

"Ah! You're one of those," a voice came to his ears.

Nuparu turned to find a tall Gaquri standing at the entrance, looking at him curiously.

"I am a Toa," he corrected.

The other nodded: "Yes, I do know that. Forgot the name is all. You're a, uh... Ko?"

"Onu."

"Hm! My mistake. Which element is that, again?"

"Earth. Do you need something?" the inventor cut their small talk short, lightly tapping a tool similar to a wrench against the skeletal frame of what appeared to be a heavily modded chariot: "I'm working on a project."

"You know where Berix is?" the Gaquri asked. He raised an arm: an interesting weapon, with a jagged light blue blade at one end and some kind of projectile mechanism attached to the handle, dangled from it casually. "Wanted to drop this off to him. The thornax launcher's been jamming up more often and I know that boy can make it work like a charm again."

"He's getting parts," Nuparu answered. His eyes rested once more on the blade and he added, tilting his head intrigued: "You can leave it here if you want."

"So you can study some original Bara Magna manufacturing?" the other joked.

"It's not really my field, but it looks remarkable."

He watched the organic being laugh heartily as he approached - with a fairly heavy limp, he noticed: "Remarkable! Now that's a bit of an exaggeration, kid. I made these from some bones, whatever viable scraps I could find from wrecks of the Core War, and a few patches across the years when I could afford it. It's held together by spit and whatever Ackar's friend did to make it spurt water."

"From what I understand, spit doesn't seem like a good adhesive."

"That's what we say here to mean something's parts are real shoddily connected together."

"Hm! Like dried mud. Or aluminum sheet."

"That's the idea. Ah, where should I put this, anyhow?"

"There is fine. What's with your leg?"

The Gaquri gave a grimace: "Nothing much - just my knee acting up," he replied, patting the guilty joint. "Something must have gotten rusted. It happens."

Even through the lack of expression of his mask Nuparu treated him to a baffled look.

"What?"

"Organic parts don't rust," the Toa sputtered. "At least, ours don't."

The other eyed the tendons and muscles peeking through black armor, and his lips perked up in a little smile.

Without a word he placed his weapon on the least cluttered corner of Berix's work desk before redirecting his now free hands to the side of the faulty knee, messing with what appeared to be the graceless stitching of a large wound: his fingers sank deftly into it and pried through the gaps enough to loosen the whole thing, and before the less organic being's flabbergasted eyes pulled down the fake skin and meat to reveal a fully mechanical joint, complete with pistons and springs and even what seemed like wires.

"Don't worry," he chuckled with a wave, "Ours don't either. But most crusty old Glatorian like me haven't been completely flesh and bone in a long time."

If the inventor's attention had been piqued before, he was completely captivated now. He was leaning on his seat towards him, vehicle project all but forgotten, intently studying as many details of the prosthesis as he could see from that distance.

His eager interest made the other laugh again: "Why all that surprise! Don't you see something like this on you every day?"

"Yes, but I'm not you!"

"And what's that mean?"

"You're all flesh! And meat! And skin! How does that work?"

The Gaquri considered something for a moment. "If you can get me a seat and figure out what's wrong with it, I'll be glad to let you have a closer look," he offered at last.

Nuparu pulled the stool from right under himself so fast that he fell on his ass.

He then placed it down with extreme care and patted it insistently.

The other barely held back a snort.

His implant hadn't caused this much of a scene since the first day it had been up and functional.

"The name's Tarix, anyhow," he introduced himself as he sat down a little heavily. "Since you'll be rummaging knuckle-deep through the insides of my leg for the next thirty minutes."

"Hm," Nuparu replied as he kneeled until his mask was all but grazing the joint.

Tarix waited a dozen seconds, and added: "You got one too, Toa?"

"One what?"

"Name."

"Nuparu."

"I see. Ah - nope, nope, don't-" his fingers quickly pinched the mechanical being's and lifted them away from the scarified tissue binding the meat to the metal: "That's real flesh, don't peel that - the nerves still work, you'd put me through the pains of Plude."

"What's that?"

"You folks have a place in your lore built just to torture you forever?"

"Yes, Karzhani. I've been there."

"Huh. Well, I've been to Plude too back when it still existed, and I'll just say that the only good thing the Lord of Sand might've done was collapsing it on itself. So, you get what I mean about the pain."

"Hm. Yes, I can imagine. But how do I - see, to check the individual parts, I'd need to pull them off..."

"Oh - hold it, let me just..."

Angling his leg in an uncomfortable position and hunching down with a hiss, the Glatorian set to work carefully pulling screws loose with the help of an empty pipe he'd fetched from his pocket. The small parts dangled from their sockets without falling, just distant enough from the point the metal touched to allow the top and bottom pieces to be pulled apart without needing to pull the much more easy to lose components out of the whole.

"Hold the calf a moment, will you?" he muttered with the pipe now stuck between his teeth. Nuparu complied, holding the lower half of the leg still as Tarix worked his magic on the inner wires. At last, satisfied, he unfurled his back up once more and puffed satisfied: "There, pull."

When the Toa did so, the prosthesis came apart as easily as a house of cards. Suddenly, in the mechanical palm was a whole calf, still warm with life and undoubtedly organic.

Tarix watched genuinely amused as Nuparu tested the ankle in his hands and on the ground, miming an attempt at a walk as though playing with a very concerning doll with nothing short of pure unadultered fascination.

He posed it as if stuck in a sprint: "Can you feel this?"

"Not a single thing," the Glatorian replied. He patted the metallic femur's exposed head: "And neither can I here. The connections are all in the wires, they go right into the nerves, see? So long as they're apart I can't feel crap anywhere from over here," and he pointed to the flesh that stopped around the middle of his thigh "To the rest of the leg underneath. Not that I should be able to, frankly, if we wanted to abide by nature's whims, but luckily for me us Spherus Magna natives never cared much for that."

Nuparu hummed: "How'd you get it like this, anyways?"

"Oh," the Glatorian shrugged as though it were the most normal thing in the world, "Blew up."

"It just exploded?"

"Not by itself, of course, someone shot the whole thing out of me."

The Toa treated him to an appalled look.

Tarix waved a hand harshly, chewing on his unlit pipe: "The Core War was absolutely barbaric, kid! I've witnessed stuff I wouldn't wish on a Skrall. When I saw that half you've got there in your hand fly over my head as gracefully as the ugliest bird known to any being with eyes, I thought I was going to die of shock like a Mountain Striker with a broken wing. I still have no clue how I managed to keep awake through the bloodloss and pain long enough for the fixers to figure out I was still alive enough to be taken down to the medic."

Nuparu regarded the half of a limb in his grasp with newfound horror and fascination. A whole portion of leg, shot right out... He wasn't sure if even the Vortixx could have had something capable of doing that. Oh, sure, they had plenty of possibly worse things, but even the most blunt tended to have slightly more complex effects than just 'blows a chunk off of you'.

And the fact that they had managed to rebuild the broken joint and connected it to the rest of the nervous system was nothing short of miraculous, compared to the same thing done on a mechanical being - whose organic components regenerate, too.

"And all Glatorian have something like this?"

"Us older ones, yes," the other nodded. He watched with a sort of lazy interest as the Toa turned his attention to the mechanism of his prosthesis, checking for damage as he had promised. "The rookies tend to have the usual stuff, thank goodness - scars, plaques, maybe a limb, some fingers..."

"Fingers?"

"Yes, some of them. They tend to nip 'em a lot during training, you know, when they start to get the hang of it and stop holding their weapons like they're gonna grow a mouth and bite them - they cut tendons often those first few times. Or just the whole thing."

"Really?"

He chuckled, playfully waving his fingers: "Gresh keeps losing them. If you look closely you can tell which phalanxes are still his."

"I thought he was good at fighting."

"He is. He's just young. And a little too brash at times."

Nuparu hummed, moving onto the piece of implant attached to his thigh: "You mentioned limbs, too," he noted absentmindedly: "Is that also common, during training?"

"Losing them? Oh no, that happens out in the desert. Or, used to happen... Well, the desert's still out there, just smaller, so I guess - point is, you'll sooner get one cut off by a Bone Hunter or chewed up by a Vorox than find a fellow Glatorian who'll do that to you, on purpose or not. We made sure to try and avoid that sort of thing when we made the rules for the job."

"And plaques?"

"Oh, these," and he tapped some strange metallic protrusions on the top of his legs, on the side of his arms, and on his shoulders. "Nothing special, they keep armor in place. Easier than having to strap it on. We install them when we come of age."

Their shape was somewhat familiar: "Berix has them too, I think."

"I think everybody gets them - Agori, Glatorian, Skrall..."

"They are pretty useful," the Toa nodded.

He couldn't really imagine how they could have managed to stick armor to themselves otherwise. Maybe through some cloth? But then it might chafe their joints, and they'd have to find a way to insert it in the metal anyways...

He hummed thoughtfully, wracking his brain as he tried at once to figure out both the logistics of putting armor on fully organic beings and whatever was wrong with the implant.

So concentrated he was that he actually jumped a little when the pipe gently smacked his shoulder.

Tarix had a strange look on his face as he pointed down at a spot on his prosthesis: "Don't - it's nothing to be worried about yet, just, watch it," he warned, "That coil there you've got near your index, she's real frisky. Won't be a problem now that it's taken apart, but when you stick it back together you'd better avoid even just so much as grazing it - it'll pull my calf back at top speeds to kick my ass. Been like that since the start."

"Oh! Sounds painful."

"It is!"

With a hand already rummaging through a box of springs, Nuparu offered: "Since I'm here already, I could replace that..."

"Ah, there's no need really," the Glatorian quickly stopped him.

"But it's a liability."

"If it's out in the open like this, yeah, but - well, when it's covered it's a lot more manageable, and the wires-"

"It's still a malfunction. I can fix that without any trouble."

"I get it, but it's - I - hm! Let me explain. See, when - if I cover it up, see, with my-"

"The fake flesh?"

"Yes, that - it still jerks back if touched, but not as hard, you get me?"

"But it still does."

"Yes, and here's the - the thing is, I also have my nerves connected, right? Right, and when the coil gets touched and makes my leg jerk, it... Er... See - have you ever - hm! Hmm-hm. Hold on. Do you... Is there something that you know is not good for your body, but when you do it it just feels nice?"

"No."

"Alright, this complicates things."

"Oh! Oh, no, wait - when I cut metal with a saw, I like to keep myself as close to the sparks as possible so they can hit me because they tingle. It's fun. Do you mean like that?"

"Eeeh, close enough! That's what's going on with that coil."

"It tingles?"

"It... Uh... Sure, let's. Call it that."

The change in tone was weird, and he seemed to be somewhat embarrassed about having brought the subject up.

Now, in regards to asking personal questions, Nuparu tended to be as uninterested in other beings' private matter as much as a Kofo-Jaga is in lightstones.

However, this was directly related to the machinations of an impressive, if a little primitive, handmade mechanical joint.

So yes, he would have loved to pry.

The mental manifestation of Turaga Whenua repeatedly smacking him over the head with his drilling staff was currently the only thing keeping him from inquiring on any activities Tarix might have enjoyed dabbling in outside of his work hours, but luckily for the Glatorian that singular imaginary scenario was also an extremely effective deterrent for any Matoran or Toa that had ever at some point of their lives resided in Onu-Koro.

As such, the Toa just shrugged and diverted his attention onto the object the Gaquri was now nervously twisting in his hand: "What's that, by the way?"

The total swerve in subject matter destabilized the Glatorian briefly. He looked down at his fingers, then back at the Toa.

"A pipe?" he replied.

Nuparu squinted at it a little better: "That does not look like a pipe." he decreted.

Tarix lifted an eyebrow, curiously: "It's just an Agori pipe."

"That's not a pipe," the inventor insisted.

"And how should a proper Toa pipe look like, then?"

"Matoran pipe, maybe-" the Toa scoffed, rolling his eyes and making the other chuckle a bit while the mechanical hands went right back to checking on his implant in the midst of his correction: "First of all, it's far too small to be of any proper use; second, that seems to be made of wood, which is the worst material for this kind of thing - even if you could fit that tiny piece in a proper hydraulic system, long time usage will lend it to rot and come apart much faster, which is why we used to trade iron with Le-Koro to avoid the whole village from caving in on--"

"Oh!" Tarix interrupted him all of a sudden, smacking the object on his palm with a hollow sound: "Oh, you meant - no no no, it's not that type of pipe! It's a, uh -- pipa! Nagele! Sghitt!"

"Don't curse at me, please."

"I'm not cursing at you, it's just different names for this! You really don't have a word for-?" then he cut himself off as he seemed to remind himself of something evidently obvious: "Ah - well, I mean, you don't have a mouth, of course you can't smoke..."

"Yes we do."

"You do?"

"Yes? How else would we hold our masks?"

Tarix blinked, briefly wondered if he should have asked, and decided it didn't matter: "But you don't smoke? At all?"

"No? Unless we get catastrophically overheated or are set on fire," Nuparu replied as he attached the disjointed calf into the thigh again. "Both of which in all fairness have happened before. Not very often, but they have happened."

"No, I meant... Ah, hold it, hold it..."

He stuck the unlit pipe back in his mouth, puffing out nothing a few times with a thoughtful expression on his face.

"See - it's a bit like the coil and the sparks again, the matter with smoking," he decided to start explaining: "There's certain plants, if you dry them and burn them well, that make really pleasant smoke."

"How is smoke pleasant?" the Toa muttered.

"The smell can be," the Gaquri shrugged, "And the taste too. Wait-" and he gently knocked the foot of the pipe on the top of the Volitak before the inventor could interrupt him again "-Wait a second, I can't very well clear this up if you keep cutting in. Alright, so the bigger part here, the bowl we call it - you need to press the dried plants in here and light them up, only a little before the whole thing burns up; once they're charred nicely, you inhale through the shank, and then you puff it back out. That's how the smoke gets in your mouth and you can taste it."

"And how does it taste, then?"

"Ah, depends on what you smoke," was the whistful answer. "Same goes for the smell. The Lebori have a certain bark that gets real flexible when wet - they make whole pipes with it, they burn up real well, but it's a bit too sour for me. Before the Shattering there used to be a type of kelp I liked, and Kiina said they had River Eyes up near the Dormus that made some terribly sweet smoke."

"River Eyes?"

"It's a flower! Small, round, blue, and it grows on river banks. Never got to try them, though, and it's better I don't go around asking for some with the lungs I've got. Like I said, smoking's the same as the coil and the sparks: feels good to do, but it's bad for the body."

Nuparu hummed deeply, rummaging inside the knee as he handled the hanging wires carefully.

"I think I figured out the problem," he announced.

At that Tarix perked up: "Rust?"

"One piston has developed a limestone growth that makes it much harder to move properly, and as a result one of the springs is bent out of shape and chafes right against the nerve."

"Ah! Well, damn. You can get limestone in there?"

"If it's humid enough, it can build up over time."

"Hm... Alright, I guess all those years sweating in arenas and whatnot were bound to do the trick eventually."

"Also there was rust."

"Hm. Where?"

"Three screws. I changed them already."

"Wait, really? When?"

"While you were talking about the Core War."

"Huh! You're quick. And quiet."

The Toa shrugged: "I like working."

He pulled the prosthesis apart for a second time, laying the calf down on the floor. He then leaned back to search through a tool box brimming with bits and pieces - bolts, nuts, coils, springs, and all sorts of other things - with what his mask's stillness still managed to convey as a focused furrowed brow, evidently still thinking about what course of action to take now that he had pinpointed the anomaly to fix.

Changing his mind, he stood up and made his way to one of the various piles of junk and assorted more or less useful knicknacks to start looking for something in there instead.

"Speaking of the Core War," he said, implying he wanted to start a conversation but without really adding to that sentence.

Tarix waited a few minutes, puffing out in silence while watching him shift towels or bottles until he found what he was looking for (a clean enough rag and flask containing a murky liquid), before figuring that he was waiting for some kind of permission to continue on the admittedly not particularly pleasant topic: "Yes?"

"You said other older Glatorians also got implants like this from it."

"I implied it, but yes, that's the case."

The Toa hummed as he settled back before him: "And they're all knees, like yours?"

"You want to ask what their own prosthesis are?"

At that, he got no response.

"You can, by the way," Tarix reassured him, "It's been a damn long time by now, it doesn't hurt as much as say, eighty hundred years ago. We've been living like this long enough to joke about the whole thing and whatnot."

Nuparu mumbled something indistict as he soaked up the rag and began scraping the limestone off of the metal with it.

"Don't act all shy now, kid! As I said, it's no trouble." the Glatorian repeated. A sly smile curled the corners of his lip: "You can't get embarrassed like this every time you have to ask about new possible clients, you know," he jokingly reprimanded him, "Otherwise you'll have a hard time getting any."

"I don't want to be paid!" the Toa replied. "I'm just curious, is all! This is... Well, I didn't expect it to be something you'd have."

"Oh, don't worry, not everybody's missing a whole chunk of leg like me," Tarix chuckled. "We Glatorian like to keep ourselves distinct from one another."

"In implant too?"

"Of course! Let me think, now..."

He inhaled a long breath through his pipe, leaning back a little as the kid continued on with his work, and exhaled with a whistle.

"So, let's see - Vastus, he's got a good chunk of his lower spine replaced and, oh, 'bout three quarters of his intestines," he began: "Kiina had her hip crushed and put back together, and that should be... Ah, nope, nope, half of her left hand and the whole ulna too. Telluris I haven't see in a long while now, but unless he's figured out how to place his brain in a tin can I'd bet his head's all that's left. Certavus, bless his memory, I don't think he had a single original organ left by the end, and Gelu's got bionic feet - one foot, one leg, right, a whole leg, so then Strakk was the one who got his eye shot out and his nose crushed. And the jaw, of course. I don't remember if it was him or Malum who cracked his head but I do think it was him, because Malum had the femur that got split in half and it worsened with that problem with his ribcage where the metal was corroding and messing with his blood... Which is why he had to get his marrow replaced in his leg later on. Oh, and Ackar also had to... Ah, wait, which one was it? Right, right. Ackar, poor guy, his back itself is worse than a Plude street but his real problem's his right shoulder blade, which got essentially pulverized - I was there, ghastly sight - so they had to replace the whole thing, and that was bad enough; but then, and this is the fucked thing, the implant actively degraded the rest of the arm, so he had to keep replacing bits and pieces of it until it was just completely gone."

Nuparu lifted his head, eyes wide and flabbergasted: "The fixing made it worse?"

"It did! He kept having trouble moving it."

"How?"

Tarix raised his shoulders: "Beats me," he replied just as baffled. "It's a common thing for Tapyri, honestly. It's hard to tell if the material's bad quality or has trouble with the heat. Perditus too - after he got half his leg replaced, the damn thing somehow managed to melt halfways and left him limping almost worse than he would if he just didn't have it."

"And he can't replace it?"

"It's grafted onto the bone and the muscle has grown over it. They'd have to carve the whole thing out with it, it's just not worth it."

The Toa stared at him positively appalled.

"That is horrid," he spat, punctuating the adjective with a harsh yank of his hand over the faulty piston, thus launching a loosened piece of limestone to skid across the floor.

"You're tellin' me, kid."

"That's - it's inadmissible. It's insane."

"And I haven't told you about the Agori."

"What about the Agori? Were they fighting too? Do they-?"

"No, not fighting, usually - it's something we got in common with your lot: we're basically the same species, but we are much bigger and they're much nimbler. So you had us larger folk tearing one another to bits properly, while they tended to work as scouts if they weren't busy trying to put us back in one piece."

The Gaquri interrupted himself to stretch his arms up, pulling one towards his head.

The movement produced a loud 'crock!' roughly around the height of his shoulder, followed by much softer pops crackling all the way up towards his wrist as it twisted.

Satisfied with the sound (which instead made the inventor a little uneasy considering their conversation), he moved to massage the sides of his spine with his knuckles, rolling his neck: it seemed to make a curious ticking noise in place of a meatier sound, filling in the quick pauses of Nuparu's rag scrubbing the limestone away.

At last he puffed into his unlit pipe: "If you look at the older ones - the Agori, I mean - you'll see they've got less lower half than upper."

"That makes no sense."

"It does if you don't count implants. We've got them a bit everywhere, I told you, but an Agori with an arm prosthesis is a real rarity. They've got them mostly between their soles and the top of their hipbones."

"And why's that?"

"It's 'cause the lucky ones stepped on mines."

The Toa hummed thoughtfully.

He did not raise his eyes from the almost clean piston: "And the unlucky ones?"

"Well, we were trained to aim for either the neck or the head."

Ah.

Those certainly had been unlucky.

For every thing Toa and Glatorians seemed to have in common, a complete opposite came around. To imagine a Toa willingly kill was already hard, though not impossible - the Mahri themselves had been met with the chance to do so once or twice, and it had been tantalizing to say the least; but to envision a group of his brothers and sisters being not only instructed but even trained to kill, and especially to kill Matoran...

Well, he was glad he did not live in that kind of world.

"That's just how life is," Tarix sighed in the end. "Nobody wins. They've got their metal hips, and I've got my leg held together by wires and pistons. And an artificial diaphragm."

That snapped Nuparu out of his unpleasant musings: "A what?"

"That one wasn't the war's fault, though - well, it was, but it came in later. See, I had some sharpnel that got stuck in there but nobody noticed, and then one day I got a shove in the wrong spot during a match and just stopped breathing. So I had to get a mechanical one, and when I have to put myself under any sort of strain I need to hook myself up to an oxygen supplier to make sure it doesn't collapse under the effort - you know, that tube thing you might have seen on me, sort of like yours."

"Your gills?"

"I..." the Gaquri briefly did a double take. "You call those gills?"

"Yes?"

They blinked at each other briefly.

"Yeah," Tarix conceded, "Yeah, I guess those would be gills for you folks, huh. Makes sense."

"What was it that you had to replace?"

"My diaphragm."

"What is that?"

"... The muscle?"

"Which muscle?"

"The... The one that makes the... Lungs? Work? I understood you did have lungs?"

"Lungs work on their own."

"No they do not?"

"Yes they do. They are muscles."

"No they are not??"

Before Nuparu could further argue his point by lifting his chest plate and forcing Tarix to behold the disquieting spectacle offered by his very much clearly autonomously moving lungs, the unmistakeable noise of a small variety of hollow brass objects gracelessly crashing on the floor and being hurriedly chased after by stomping feet attracted their attention elsewhere.

Berix did not notice them as immediately as they noticed him, since he was busy making his entrance on all fours as he scrambled to pick up a bunch of scrap metal that had spilled from his arms.

The other two beings made no sound as they watched him curse to himself after stepping on a rogue bolt. They decided to simply observe him in silence much like an equipe of entomologists observes a particularly frenetic spider panicking for some kind of fault in its web, making no motion to lend the young Agori any help as he crawled along the ground to collect the scattered pieces of his scavenged treasure of junk.

It was particularly fascinating when he accidentally shoved several bolts in his mouth to the point of almost stuffing his cheeks with them, realized his mistake, and spat them in what looked like an exhaust pipe.

He almost cried when they fell out of it and rolled away again.

Then he lifted his eyes briefly to the other two silent beings in the room and failed to recognize them.

Meaning he then proceded to jump almost three whole bio straight in the air once he figured there were people looking at him - landing on a screw.

"FUCK!" he whimpered.

Tarix waved: "Hello to you."

"Do you need help?" Nuparu asked with a notable delay.

The Agori kneeled to the ground and skidded across it: "No no no, I'm good! I'm good, I'm - hey, hi, Tarix, hi, when did-? What are you-? Uh," he said nervously as he tried to catch as many nuts and springs as possible, "What is going on there? Is it, did I interrupt or, should- should I leave? Again? Should I leave again?"

"Nuparu's fixing my leg."

At that Berix snapped his head with a deafening gasp to look directly at him, the most betrayed expression to ever grace his face plaster across it.

"But I wanted to do that!" he cried out in anguish like a desert fox cub experiencing the horrors of its mother's tongue bath for the first time: "I told you I could do it, I- I replaced Gresh's ribs and, and I fixed his lungs when the Skrall got him and he hasn't had problems with them since, I told you I could do it, I'm good at fixing-!"

"I know that, and Gresh told me you did real well," the older Gaquri stopped him, "But - don't take it personally, kid, you're good and all, but when it comes to my leg I only trust you as far as I can throw you and believe me, it ain't far."

"But then why does he get to do it!" Berix wailed, pointing at Nuparu still scrubbing off the limestone.

"He's got a whole body like this, I'd imagine he knows what to do."

"But I know what to do too!"

"I told you, I'd rather have a specialist on it."

The Toa briefly wondered if being a descendant of the Water Tribe had something to do with how outstandingly wet Berix could will his eyes to look, or if it was just a specifically Berix thing.

Mabe it was an Agori defense mechanism. After all, it would have been pretty hard to want to hurt something that appeared to be the personification of the verbs 'to whimper', 'to whine', 'to sob', and last but not least 'to wail'.

Whatever the origin of such an expression of anguish, Tarix was not immune to its effects: "Oh, don't be like that," he finally pleaded with a tired but guilty tone, and pointed off to the cluttered desk not too far away: "There, I've got something for you too, alright? I came in 'cause my Thornax launcher's busted and you're the best with 'em. Could you fix that for me? Pretty please?"

That was enough to light the younger being's face up again.

With the sort of excited thin howling laugh that a mischievous ghost might have, he scuttled away to the mess of a table that was the headquarters for most of his projects: onto it he dumped the rest of his scraps, not caring even in the slightest that it only helped to worsen the general situation he already had going on as he was already completely absorbed by the thought of the inner mechanics of the weapon at hand.

The perfectly good chair right beside him thoroughly ignored in favor of sitting on the ground in a curled position that would have made a shrimp suggest booking an osteopathic appointment, he immediately started tinkering around to figure what the problem was with the drive and precision of a blood hound.

That had been perhaps one of the best things their unplanned collaboration had brought Nuparu - aside from all the knick-knacks and thingamajigs and vehicles and tools he'd been able to make or just plan out with the Agori, of course. Watching Berix work on something was such a fun and fascinating experience: his intensity gave his body language a sort of visceral desperation that contrasted his careful fumbling motions, pulling pieces apart with his scarred skeletal fingers and letting them fall all around him as though discarded carelessly - yet he somehow always knew where to search when he needed them again, and if in the middle of his fixer's frenzy you asked him for a specific nut or a gear he could pick it up without even looking, always on the first try. The thunderous act of creation and its rhythmic symphony played on rough instruments whisked the both of them away from the world at large, but when the Toa managed to pull himself back to reality (whether done or stumped or just in need of a break) it was enjoyable if not just all-together mesmerizing to observe the other hard at work on his own project.

A loud bang was not enough to deter him from the launcher either.

The equally loud voice that followed with an exasperated bark did, however: "BERIX! THE DOOR!"

"RIGHT! RIGHT- RIGHT, HOLD ON!" he squeaked hurriedly, abandoning (with a little more care) the weapon to scuttle away as fast as he could to the entrance of their laboratory.

The figure that emerged from the held open door replied to his rambling apologies by grunting every few steps - not without reason, seeing as they were carrying the carcass of an older model of chariot intertwined with some other mean of transport that had clearly gotten lodged sideways in its back, trying to balance the hellish thing on their shoulders in a way not too dissimilar to how a shepherd might carry a too small Mahi tired from a day of running wildly.

The mess of a car accident was dropped rather gracelessly onto the first largest spot of floor available; freed from their herculean weight, the being sighed and pulled back their arms, making the rather dull metal vertebrae poking from their skin creak in a somewhat unsettling fashion.

Nuparu briefly wondered if they were encrusted in limestone too.

They sort of looked like it.

Hm.

Now he had to wonder if it was a common yet not very well-known problem for organic beings with mechanical implants. Maybe it had to do with an excessive production of sweat?

While he was busy pondering that, Tarix grinned at the sight: "Hello, my beautiful wife who sucks at killing me," he crooned lovingly.

Vastus turned to him with a smirk, thin feathers raised and brows slightly furrowed in a manner that was much more fond than annoyed: "Hello, my beautiful husband who can't aim for shit," he replied; upon noticing the Toa kneeled before him, he cheekily added: "Committing adultery, I see?"

His partner wheezed a loud gurgling laugh: "Twelve thousand years we've been married! Twelve thousand years and now you mistake me for Gelu!"

"For who?"

"What, you haven't heard about--?"

"NOT IN FRONT OF MY PROJECTS!" Berix shrieked.

The Lebori chuckled - it was a strange sound, some kind of hiccuping hiss - and reached out to rub his hand all over the younger Gaquri's head; the kid swiveled away from him with a soft rattling noise as his annoyed trembling arms shook his scales against one another, face contorting into a piqued grimace, and returned to the launcher to tinker the other two away from his conscious perception.

"And where'd you get that?" the Glatorian inquired, pointing at it with his chin as it was common to do in his tribe and getting no answer.

"It's mine," his husband reassured him, "He's fixing it."

"Jammed again?"

"Seems like it."

"Bet you just didn't clean it properly."

"You don't know that."

"But I'm right," Vastus teased him as he approached to steal the pipe from his mouth. "And over here, what's going on?"

"He's fixin' up my leg. Nuparu, by the way, that's his name - he's a, ah, Ko- nope, Onu-Toa, he said - thought it was rust but I had limestone in it."

"We can get limestone?"

"Might be the sweating," Nuparu interrupted them suddenly. He fixed his unmoving mask onto the Lebori: "Can you turn around, please?"

Tarix snorted at the other's brief baffled blink: "Hey now, kid, I get you've put your hands in me and all, but you shouldn't go around just checking my wife out like that!"

"NOT! IN FRONT! OF THE PROJECTS!"

The Toa looked between the three of them with no clue what any of them was going on about: "I thought there might have been crusts on the vertebrae," he explained. "Since I have the solvent at hand already, I could handle that already if it's the case..."

"That's what they all say," the Gaquri snickered.

His confusion was palpable.

Vastus flicked a playful finger at his husband's head, warning him: "Berix is gonna kick you out at this rate... But I'm sure it's just some dust, kid, nothing to worry about."

"It still would not hurt to do a simple visual check."

"He's right," Tarix interjected while trying to snatch his pipe back and failing: "Maybe you've been building up a limestone deposit this whole time without knowing it."

"I don't have limestone."

"You don't know that."

Vastus smirked at him as he turned around for Nuparu to check: "But I'm right."

"You can't keep answering that and get away with it."

"I can if I'm always right."

The inventor gave a high pitched hum: "False alarm. That's just dust," he confirmed.

A triumphant grin briefly met the Gaquri's eyes as he rolled them.

Nuparu reached into a box to pull out a short variety of springs in order to compare their size with that of the one that had been bent by the affected piston, now cleaned and hopefully ready to work smoothly; careful not to dislodge anything else, he carefully pried the ill piece out and hooked up its replacement.

Satisfied with how the procedure had done, he pulled himself back a little and announced: "I have another question."

"Shoot," Tarix answered instantly.

"What do 'wife' and 'husband' mean, exactly?"

A hot second of silence passed in which the Glatorian regretted opening his mouth.

He glanced at Vastus.

His wife glanced back.

The quiet persisted.

"We're married," he answered lamely at last.

The question he dreaded slapped him in the face with outstanding punctuality: "And what does that mean?"

Having had his fun of seeing his husband's best full-body impression of a yam turning exponentially smaller when fried to a crisp piece of coal, the Lebori finally intervened: "You folks have contracts?"

"We do."

"Marriage is a contract between people where you become part of one other's family. And tribe, if you're from different ones like us."

A vacuous gaze met his explanation.

"Alright, what's confusing you?"

"The 'becoming part of' thing."

Vastus shrugged, his feathers puffing out for a moment before returning flat in a way similar to how certain avian Rahi did before starting a very long song: "It means we become relatives," he tried again. "Here, look - Tarix is a Gaquri and I'm a Lebori, so my family and hers come from different tribes. By marrying me she became a sort of honorary member of the Jungle tribe, and everybody treats her almost as though she was my brother, or my cousin; in the same manner, I became an honorary member of the Water tribe and I'm treated like her sister or cousin."

"So... It's sort of like assembling a team?" Nuparu tilted his head, puzzled: "There's no need for a contract for that. All Toa consider each other siblings already."

The other clicked his tongue as though he'd bitten it by accident: "I shouldn't have used that metaphor," he muttered.

"Why not?"

"First of all marrying your actual blood-siblings is frowned upon."

"Why? What's a blood-sibling?"

"I'll tell you when you're older. Secondly, I can assure you marriage is nothing like siblinghood."

At that, the Toa frowned: "It sounds the same to me."

"Your knee and Tarix's look the same to me, too," Vastus argued: "They're both made of metal, so they're the same thing."

"They really aren't." then he blinked, bright eyes flashing briefly, looked to the ceiling to recollect his thought, gave a loud hum, and met his gaze again: "I see your point."

The Glatorian smiled: "Good kid."

"Back to the point - how do 'wife' and 'husband' fit with all that?"

"That's just how you call someone who's married."

"So they're synonyms?"

"Yes, pretty much."

The answer seemed to satisfy the inventor greatly.

"I'm learning so much about your species today," he commented in a giddy tone. He returned to the discarded robot calf on the floor, dusting off its mechanical parts to make sure not even small amounts of debris would interefere with its functions; just as he plucked it back into the bulk of the implant, he looked again at the two Glatorian and told them with complete and total earnestness: "You know, if you were significantly smaller, quadrupedal, perhaps vaguely insectoid and incapable of speech, Turaga Whenua would have the best day of his life writing down and trying to decypher your absolutely incomprehensible habits."

That was the highest compliment an Onu-Matoran from the island of Mata Nui could bestow upon someone.

It was not categorizable as such by perhaps any other being in the entire universe, considering the source of such an idiom had been cut off from all other known civilizations and it was generally not considered particularly flattering to be told that you would make for a great petri dish for one's paternal figure to microscope if you were any less sentient, but luckily his tone did manage to properly convey the positive nature of his otherwise insane sentence.

So instead of knocking his head off with roundhouse kick, Tarix and Vastus smiled awkwardly in an attempt at not laughing in his face and just replied: "Thanks."

His Volitak did not have a mouth, but Nuparu's grin was blinding.

Berix chose that moment to shriek triumphantly.

"Fixed!" he declared, Thornax launcher hoisted into the air like it was the second making of the Element Lords.

The older Gaquri turned to him with eyes wide: "What, already?"

"It was encrusted with Thornax juice!"

Not even the time to feel bashful about such a silly and easy to fix thing hindering his battling performance so much that his wife was already leaning down into his line of sight with a smirk so wide that he could have just bitten his whole head off with it.

"What did I say?" he teased.

Tarix sighed, a weary smile on his face: "You cannot keep getting away with this."

"Yes I can," Vastus gloated, "If I'm always right."

[jellycreamjammedart]

Lost and Found (Super)Stars

PT. 3 (index/parts) (Tag: desktop/mobile)

FNAF Security Breach Ruin, post-"betrayal" elevator ending hurt/comfort, Found Family, something I like to call "Hopeful Horror"

Summary: Having had her kindness stomped on then spat back at her, betrayed by who she thought was her friend, and now stuck at the ruined remains of Freddy Fazbear's Mega PizzaPlex, Cassie tries to find the slightest bit of meaning and worth in all of this.

Everything was foggy at the seams, colors blurring together, but Cassie could make out a birthday cake before her (carrot cake, her favorite,) with a familiar wolf and bear as they both sung her a birthday song, a boy clapping along to the tune. She can feel her own face beaming with a wide smile before she blows the candles on the cake, somehow blowing everything and everyone around her as if everything was smoke of several colors, the singing fading away.

-

Cassie opens her eyes and blinks, looking up to see Roxy looking down at her with what she could imagine was a worried expression if she still had her facial features. She could feel the wolf's hand on her back, likely to stop her from being flat on the floor. "Huh... what happened?" She asks, bringing a hand to rub her eyes with her thumb and index.

Roxy's ears gave a light twitch, glad to hear the girl's voice. "It looks like you suffered a dizzy spell. From hitting your head in that elevator, I assume." It wouldn't be a stretch, given Cassie clearly had blood trickling down her head every now and then.

"Dizzy spell?" Cassie parroted, trying to sit herself more upright. "How long?"

"Not long. Around two minutes." Roxy, being a robot, could be sharply precise at counting time, but rounding it up seemed far more useful. "How are you feeling now?"

Cassie, took her hand away from her face, blinking her eyes a few times as she contemplates Roxy's concern. "... better. I think the dizziness passed." She looks down, seeing the V.A.N.N.I mask resting on her lap. Wordlessly, she puts it back on, immediately getting greeted by not only Helpi, but M.X.E.S as well, as the two digital beings look down at her along with Roxy.

"Oh, hey! You're finally awake!" Helpi exclaims, his blue eyes twinkling in relief and joy. "You had us worried there!" He glances back at the cybernetic rabbit. "Isn't that right?"

M.X.E.S rolls its eyes, crossing its arms as it glanced away. It didn't refute Helpi, however.

Helpi just chuckles slightly, winking at Cassie. "Don't mind them! They just need to get used to sharing the V.A.N.N.I system with me!"

Cassie blinks at the little bear. Sharing the V.A.N.N.I system? Helpi seemed to sense her inquisition. "When you configured the mask into a security node for them, it allowed them integration into the V.A.N.N.I system, just like me!" He paused to give Cassie a bemused smile. "It sure is something I've never considered possible, or considered at all! No one thought of this before. But perhaps it is good that you did." Helpi goes a little more serious, despite his adorable looks. "... their integration into the system appears to have expelled something else from the system." From serious, the tiny bear also expresses remorse, his smile fading a little. "... if I ever said or did anything that misled you and contributed to your plight, I am terribly sorry. That... might not have been truly me."

For an AI programmed to be just a work tool full of that soulless corporate talk, Helpi really does look like he feels guilty for unwittingly setting Cassie up, even though it's likely that he either didn't notice something was wrong or had no say in it. With M.X.E.S integrated into the V.A.N.N.I system, it seems the rabbit turned into an extra protection for the system including Helpi's AI. "I don't remember those moments really, though; it seems that in the process of securing my AI from further interception, my memories from those moments got corrupt. They might be repairable, but I don't see it happening anytime soon."

Well, bummer, if he could remember, he could pinpoint exactly when that thing intervened to lie to Cassie, but perhaps it's the price to pay for a more secure system thanks to M.X.E.S. The rabbit was single-handedly keeping both their minds safer.

Helpi shakes his head at himself, trying to switch back to his more peppy self. "But enough feeling bad! We have work to do, and you've proved to be cut for the job with your thinking outside the box! You'd make an excellent Faz-technician, if you were old enough Fazbear Entertainment would hire you on the spot!" Okay, that's a bit of the corporate talk junk, but beggars can't be choosers.

But either way Helpi was right: they have work to do.

"Think you can stand up?" Roxy asks cautiously as she felt Cassie stirring, keeping her hand on the child's back just in case. The girl lets out a positive hum in response.

"Yeah, I don't feel dizzy anymore."

"Good!"

But Cassie was careful anyways as she stood up to her feet. She looks from Roxy in her holographically reconstructed self, to Helpi, then to M.X.E.S, before briefly glancing to the bunny's server now up and running okay... then to that Glamrock Freddy backpack close to a collapsed vent. She picks it up in her hands, staring down at it. "It is Gregory's."

The name prompts a very low growl from Roxy somewhere behind Cassie but she doesn't say anything. She stares rather intently at the little nametag close to the bottom of the backpack, before her gaze shifted to what looked like muddy smudges from the vent. "I'm pretty sure this is his, too." She pulls out the Freddy-talk from her pocket, which she had collected from the other room before Roxy saved them both from being flattened by a boulder. The same Freddy-talk that thing used to lure her in.

Her grip on the cute little device tightened, her hand shaking slightly with a feeling of bitterness.

It's Gregory's fault that all this happened in the first place.

He was so careless in not only leaving his Freddy-talk behind but also his entire backpack. This carelessness was what gave that old thing an opening to reach her.

Why does Gregory get to commit such mistake and get away with it, but she has to be punished not only for hers but his as well? Why does she have to pay for what was his slip-up so that he can wash his hands at her expense!?

It's not fair.

The longer Cassie stared at the nametag, the more it was as if she was looking at the most insulting word in the entire vocabulary. "He was never my friend." She mutters out bitterly.

She would've thrown the Freddy-talk to the floor in frustration, but couldn't bring herself to do it due to Glamrock Freddy's image. Instead she tucks it back into her pocket to free her hand, then she tugs the tip of Gregory's nametag with her nail until she can pull it, ripping the adhesive off the backpack like a nasty bandaid. She crumples the little tape into a fist and tosses it away, before glancing back at the other three. "Finders keepers."

That seems to amuse Roxy, who barely suppresses a snort. "Hah! It's just too bad it's not a backpack with my face." She says mostly jokingly. But otherwise pays it no mind; Truth be told, she does miss the bookish bear, along with all the good times of the PizzaPlex. "Either way, that will sure come in handy. You're risking losing things from those tiny pockets of yours." Seriously, why are pockets in female clothes borderline unusable?

Cassie opens the backpack, and proceeds to tuck in both the Freddy and Roxy-talkies, then her Faz-Wrench and flashlight, as well as anything else she may have found along the way, then things she had shoved at the bottom of her pockets, which turned out to be a little bunch of cereal bars; Hey, she had prepared a little for what she thought would be a straightforward rescue mission!

Roxy's ears perk up at the sight of the treats; Those kinds of snacks might be the only things in the PizzaPlex that are still safe for human consumption... if they find any more of it. That's something the wolf keeps in the backburner; Cassie certainly will need to eat at some point, being human and all.

"So," Cassie turns to fully face Roxy, as well as Helpi and M.X.E.S, tucking her arms through the backpack's straps to carry it on her back. "- are we ready for that race, after all?"

Roxy's torn up chest emulates a puff forward in pride towards her twice number 1's initiative. "I thought you'd never ask." She gathers Cassie up into her arms then onto her back. "Hang in there, it's a bit of a bump road ahead!" She heeds, leaving the basement room through the hole back into the earth tunnels up which led back to the remains of the old pizzeria. Cassie had to slide the mask up off her face since that area was out of the V.A.N.N.I network zone, but she knew Helpi and M.X.E.S weren't far off.

To Be Continued...

[swaps55]

Swaps! Master of povs. Any advice on writing multiple pov-fics? I'm working on a multi chapter fic that would thrive if it was written in multi povs, alas, that's hard and I don't know where to start. Any thoughts about the process, or any chance you have already answered such an ask before and can link me that? (as always: love your writing. It's gold. Thank you for letting us be part of your journey.)

Oh, yesssssss, I live for multiple POVs! Thank you for the kind words!

Now, keep in mind, I wheel and deal in multiple POVs. For me there is no such thing as too many, which I am sure a lot of others would disagree with, and I don’t think you see it used and abused in published work the way I do it. But hey, I’m writing for free, and my fic in particular is predicated on the idea that every POV is on the table except for the main character, and I will use whatever POV I need to center the one POV I can’t have.

What a lot of sensible people will do is settle on a fixed number of POVs, say, 2-4, they’re willing to rotate through and try and distribute them somewhat equally. The Expanse series does this, for example. So one way to do it is to think about the story you want to tell and select your POV carousel based on who you think you will get the most mileage out of. If you have a story taking place in different locations simultaneously, you probably need a POV character for each. If you are looking at two different sides to the same story, you probably need POVs that are antagonistic to each other.

Or you can be like me and use whatever POV seems most useful at the time, no matter how many it winds up being in the end.

With the caveat that rules are made to be broken, and I am writing this as more of a peek into what I do vs a treatise on the right and wrong ways to do it, this is a breakdown of some of the exercises I work through when choosing and working in multiple POVs.

Be thoughtful about whose POV you want and why. One of the benefits of multiple POVs is that you can get wildly different perspectives on the same series of events. Different characters see the world differently. They notice different things. They interact with their world differently. These are things you can use to your advantage, and act as tools to tell your story. One of my favorite things to do is use the POV of a character who absolutely would not clock the important takeaway I’m after in a scene, but the things they notice and observe make the reader able to clock it. What that character experiences might be very different from what the reader experiences. I’ll often ask myself, ‘what does this character give me that another character wouldn’t in this scene, and why is that important?’

Spend time sitting between the ears of your chosen POV character to get a feel for how they see the world. I usually wind up marinating in a character’s head for a while before I dive into their POV for the first time. What state of mind are they in when we meet them? What’s important to them? What are they thinking about? What drives them? How can you use those drivers to connect back to your central narrative? You'll see a character you think you already know in a whole different light if you spend the time you need to really think about these questions, how to answer them, and what that means for the story. You’ll be really glad you did it.

Treat the POV character as the hero of their own story. One of the struggles and rewards of working in multiple POVs, especially POVs who are not a main character, is that those POVs have to work on two levels: they have to further the plot/character arcs of the main characters while honoring the motivations and goals of the POV character. It can be really difficult to find the right way to line both these things up, but it’s worth doing. If you just write a POV character in service of the main character/plot, it falls flat. (This is honestly true of any character, POV character or not, but for the sake of this post we’re focused on POV.) I’ve done a lot of agonizing over how to center a POV’s character’s own narrative within a larger context. Your character doesn’t know they are in a story. They don’t know they aren’t necessarily the main character. That’s where multiple POVs can really shine: by letting that character have their own agency within a bigger narrative, you can add a lot of depth.  

Make your POV shifts clear and easy to follow. This can mean sticking to a single POV per chapter, or using a clear scene break if you’re switching within a chapter. Establish your new POV as quickly as possible so your reader doesn’t get lost or confused. I could go into a whole other discussion about head hopping and multiple POVs vs. omniscient POV, but that’s getting off track.

Have fun and be creative! If you’re wheeling and dealing like I am, sometimes POVs you never would have considered otherwise can offer you a totally new perspective. My “No Main Character POV Rule” led me to try the POV of a character I never would have otherwise tried, and it has dramatically shaped the story in some really powerful ways. Don’t be afraid to try something off the beaten path!

I hope any of that helps. I love multiple POVs. The kaleidoscope of perspectives it offers is such a fantastic tool that I really love using, and I hope you have a lot of fun with it!!!!!!

[pub-lius]

I just wanna say, DUDE. The majority of what I know about amrev comes from your blog. Your in-depth posts literally have me FOAMING AT THE MOUTHH I don't have much time to read longer books due to school but I wanna feed my obsession so do you have any books on the shorter side or some websites/archives I can research/read a bit quicker? If not it's totally fine.

Also off topic but I'm loving "It Began About Dusk" on AO3 <3

OH MY GOD THE FLATTERY‼️‼️‼️ you’re making me blush here anon. im so glad that you find my posts helpful!!! AND IM SO GLAD YOU LIKE MY FICS i have a chapter of it began about dusk in the drafts rn so you’ll get more content soon

now this is a tricky question because im absolutely insane and ive barely ever read short books. right now im reading His Excellency by Joseph J Ellis and i recommend it!! its only around 2-300 pages which is the shortest history book ive got VSJWBW primary sources can be really good to get in book form, things like Common Sense by Thomas Paine, Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior (Washington’s rule book), and Memoir of Lieut. Col. Tench Tilghman, Secretary and aid to Washington are all primary sources i have on my shelf that are short and sweet.

i also have Hercules Mulligan by Micheal J. Obrien which i haven’t read but is VERY small. there is also James Monroe by Gary Hart which is short but i have not finished (i dont even truly remember reading it but i annotated part of it apparently), The Drillmaster of Valley Forge by Paul Lockhart is a little longer than those others, but still isn’t chernow levels of wrong, but i also haven’t read that one. Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger isn’t the most serious history book, but it is pretty good and an easy read.

as for secondary source websites, start with encyclopedias ie Britannica, which post short articles on different historical figures and events that give you the overview. from there im gonna point you to the National Park Service. this is the best thing the US government has ever made for researchers. this is all your battlefields, winter encampments, historical reproductions, and former capitals. also check out private residences turned museums, such as Mount Vernon, Monticello, and Schuyler Mansion. these institutions have an abundance of easily accessible information on more than just the people who lived there.

now the Library of Congress was a good decision on Jefferson’s part, but it can be inaccessible if you don’t know how to use it well because their website is one of my least favorite things about being alive. so instead, i recommend using Founders Online for any primary source regarding the founding fathers or amrev figures. the Washington Papers are filled to the brim with almost everything that went out of headquarters during all 8 years of the war. founders online is the shit

all of these websites i’ve mentioned are free to access, because i do not pay money on any research tools besides books out of spite for late stage capitalism. also any primary source is 100% accessible online. that includes memoirs and court transcripts, which can be very helpful

also i really do recommend watching documentaries and informational videos on the subjects you’re interested in while doing work or other things if you’re someone who does that (ik some people don’t have background noise but im just assuming you’re as neurodivergent as i am) because you can absorb just a little of that information and it being about a subject of interest can make academics seem a little less miserable!

i hope this is helpful and if you have absolutely any further questions, feel free to ask. i know im very privileged to have the time and resources to read long ass books, which is why i very freely share the information i absorb with the public bc i believe education should never be gatekept by anyone. so if you have any questions, im happy to research them for you, or at least point you in the right direction. love ya!!

[finelinens]

Hey, about your media literacy post—which was very well done—I totally agree that we sort of unable to trust other users or institutional opinions right now. So the way I see it, the option left to us that is to learn to trust ourselves. Learn to pay attention to the way truth feels when we ourselves say it (on any topic, especially the tiny ones), what it sounds like, and what untruth feels like when we also say it (the instances where we say things we don’t mean). A focused study of truth in ourselves makes it easy to recognise in others and other situations.

For example, I’ll now know when my answer to a maths/logical question is wrong, because it feels/sounds like not the truth, even if it’s what I have logically deduced and therefore ‘should’ be right. So then I’ll know to stop and rethink until I do find the right answer, I’ll realise my logical thinking was off, which I recognise because it feels like the truth when I see it. (This is all easy to prove because they’re all maths / logic questions, for example. It works. And then extrapolate this concept.)

It’s interesting that in the past many would have dismissed this approach due to its seeming lack of objectivity—but it is glaringly obvious now that trying to form an opinion based off ‘objective’ evidence is just not going to be possible (and I’d argue, it never was). So, this is my approach of some tools to which to turn. Honestly, it’s the only way out that I see. Increasingly I am realising truth is not a set of facts, which can be easily manipulated, or which are scientific fact one day and not the next, but rather this total calm knowing which goes beyond all need for argument. I feel like if you can just calmly smile in an argument rather than argue back, you’re probably closer to the truth.

i debated a lot about whether or not i should post this message at all but it might be a good thing to talk about, so i'll post it for now

the thought process you described here has the potential to be really unbelievably dangerous, so i hope you can try to hear me out here. the truth "feeling" like the truth is such an incredibly subjective thing and is 100% vulnerable to your own biases. at one point in my life, the "truth" according to my feeling was... just not true at all. the "truth" according to my feelings was that transgender people were mentally ill and just needed some sympathy and help in order to get better. i genuinely felt this, and, like you described, it felt true and right. it was not true or right, though; my perceived "truth" was not truth at all, it was just ignorance entirely influenced by my own biases and fears. the way of thinking you described in your message is exactly what leads people to believe that their thoughts borne of ignorance are true and right, no matter what, because they feel right. of course they feel right! ignorance is comfortable! you could absolutely debate the validity of objective truth as a concept, but purely functioning on a vibes-based moral and ethical system is just accidentally giving yourself permission to remain ignorant or bigoted.

i apologize if my original post wasn't clear enough, as i said, i was just writing out my thoughts unedited! i wasn't trying to say that since there is no way to verify information anymore, we should just give up and go with our guts. i was saying that information is becoming increasingly more difficult to verify, so i'm nervous about the future of education and information gathering. i don't have a proposed solution, i'm just expressing fears that are widespread nowadays. a possible solution to this frankly existential issue is something i think about a lot, and i'm glad to see many others thinking about it too.

hopefully this makes sense, and hopefully it prompts you to reflect on your philosophy about your relationship with truth!

[altraviolet]

Having finished both MTMTE and Lost Light, I, TEG -> MTMTE anon, am back again with more impressions!

I got really good perspective on how truly stupid Soundwave choosing the Scavengers as his tools of ship takeover was. I thought it couldn't get worse than the Lost Light crew, but the Scavengers have proven me wrong.

Reading TEG, I couldn't tell if Ultra Magnus and Megatron were meant to be a couple, and I'm glad to learn that according to the Holiday Special, canon Rodimus couldn't tell either.

It's impressive how you've managed to replicate MTMTE's narration style with the Firestar story. It really felt like a MTMTE-style adventure especially with the constant switching back and forth between scenes at the most interesting moment that had me losing my mind reading both MTMTE and TEG.

I am definitely going to reread TEG some time after because I'm soooo interested in how my perception of the characters is going to change, especially Whirl. Whirl's development in the comics had a particularly strong impact on me, and learning more about him certainly paints his aggression towards Soundwave in TEG in a new light. The Lost Light is not only his home, but also the thread that holds him together. And man is it heartbreaking to now recognize his behavior in TEG as a relapse. Without the comic, I struggled to see Whirl as anything more than the average bully.

Thanks again for introducing me to this wonderful story and for doing it justice with your sequel!

Hello again TEG -> MTMTE anon! :D!

1- I thought it couldn't get worse than the Lost Light crew, but the Scavengers have proven me wrong.

bahaha yes xD their whole thing is being the worst Decepticons in the universe... an extra lol for the reader that knows that- they know SW could never get what he wanted out of the Scavengers :D

2- Ultra Magnus and Megatron

haha yesssss ok ok so to be honest, I don't like that pairing very much. however, that doesn't stop me from putting it in a story if I think it fits. and in this case, I thought keeping it ambiguous was appropriate. the people who like the pairing would see it there and be happy, and the people won't don't like it or don't care don't see anything explicit going on there. so it's all good!

3- It's impressive how you've managed to replicate MTMTE's narration style with the Firestar story.

thanks! those quick back and forth cuts, like a movie, hehe :D glad you enjoyed!

4- Whirl

yesssss and I hope you enjoy your reread! Whirl canonically has a "relapse," but, like in LL #25, his friends Tailgate and Cyclonus are there for him <3

thanks for stopping by again! as always, it's a pleasure to read your thoughts! =)

[bengiyo]

I Told Sunset About You Rewatch Ep 3 Stray Thoughts

It's time for the tension episode. This is where things come to a head. Let's just go.

This boy really liked Oh-aew so much that it rewired his sense of smell. It's really incredible how much Billkin was willing to be unattractive in this show. This team understood that to be truly beautiful, there needs to be a little ugly.

I'm really glad they took time for us to see Teh thank Hoon for the plane ticket.

I forgot we started with Oh-aew in the tub. The girlies were not ready.

Of course Teh is up at 4 am for Oh, but he wouldn't get up for Tarn. That poor girl. Look at Tuty in the background watching this gay shit go down.

Teh asking Tarn to go off with his friends while they all watch silently from behind the screen is still one of the best scenes in the e fire show. Will also never get over PP making Billkin cry for accidentally hitting him too hard during the horseplay.

See, even Tarn knows that Teh is making exceptions for Oh he wouldn't make for her.

They just love letting Billkin play Teh being awkward. The cut to Oh falling behind Bas? Incredible. Bas always knew what was going on and was so powerless to do anything about it.

Teh is actively flirting and confusing everyone!

"I'll be with Bas, then," but looks directly at Teh? Both of these boys need to stop using Tarn and Bas as a way to one-up each other.

This going back and forth between them, Oh-aew? Heart wrenching.

Truly, how much money have PP and Billkin made from Lays because of this scene on the deck?

Poor Bas. Puts his heart out there and gets crushed. Oh knew what agreeing to that New Year's date would mean. At least be has enough class to let Bad down.

This couch scene is great because it almost feels like it could be from a multi-cam sitcom.

Hammock scene my beloved. Oh-aew is so brave. He breaks the subtext of all of their interactions and pushes Teh directly. Lets him know as they're literally on top of each other that Teh is the source of his confusion about Bas. He asks Teh the question in a way that doesn't let him deny it. Teh knows it's coming and pretends like he doesn't. "I think you know. You really don't? But I think you do. Or you really don't? But I do think you know?" Teh can't help but ask, "Since when?" And can only answer "I don't know." And admit his desire for closeness when Oh leans forward and pushes.

And now Skyline. It's out in the open now. They may not have moved much, but everything shifted.

Oh, Tarn. I need you and Bas to get a scene like Lennier and Vir in Babylon 5 where they commiserate about Delenn and Londo.

Oh shit Teh is wearing the shirt. It's about to go down.

I get it, Teh. Oh-aew is just so alluring. This man is on the floor inhaling the paper. Mess of his face. He is so gone.

Skyline really is undefeated. The amount of control Oh exerts over Teh with just his presence is just so incredible to watch even still three years later.

"Why do you have to think so hard about it? Forget about it. Do whatever you feel like. There's no need for an answer, if there's no answer." This is what I'm saying!! We get so caught up in the warring over labels. They're just tools to help us think about ourselves. Oh knows intrinsically that these two are drawn to each other and it's stronger than what he's ever felt for Bas. That feeling is what matters. He offers Teh the time and patience of "secret" to let him figure it out. You can see Teh instantly relax at that and try to fall back into the flirtatious studying they've been doing.

Man, what is it about Teh? If Teh tells him he can't quit, Oh always finds a way to dig deeper.

Jesus, Skyline remains undefeated.

"As promised." It gets me every time.

I tell ya. It's always queer boys and their moms.

I don't know what went wrong with the original translation scene or the final scene from this episode when they were in post, but what we got was so good from the reshoots that I legit never want to see the discarded takes.

I still can't believe they filmed this while surrounded by tourists. The translation scene is still my favorite confession in BL. Oh knew what was happening. He knows Teh is flirting through these Chinese lessons. It's absolutely incredible. It's just so much. Teh connected the series that helped him find his purpose to his feelings for Oh. Just omg.

That's right, Tuty! Regulate!! You can smell the sexual energy! Don't let nothing gay happen on your watch!!!

Notice that the leg touching begins as soon as Tuty leaves? She lost focus and now look at us.

Oh is so careful, he mentions being tired from walking before touching Teh's leg. He's giving Teh another way to ease in by framing it as normal help. But the score knows. Oh's hand on the inside of his thigh knows.

Oh's shirt literally says sunset, and Teh is wearing the branded shirt. They wanted us to know how this was really the climactic moment of the show. That's where his head is still at.

JFC Teh pushing Oh's face to say he's not ready for that. Look. I need to pause for this one. So many of my young encounters did not begin with or ever involve kissing. It's just too much. We can rub each other's legs and grope all night, but there's something about kissing when you're in the closet that makes it too much. Oh made it clear it's what he wanted, Teh couldn't give it to him, but they can still touch.

"What if there are two male protagonists?" I was holding my breath at this point in 2020.

It's the way Teh can't stop moving as he pulls Oh onto his chest. He just can't stop touching. The breathing gets heavy. We know where this is going. And then he stops at Oh's chest and the spell is broken.

The hot, bothered, and devastated look on Oh's face is the most impressive single expression I've seen in all of BL.

The silence at the end is deafening, and then we go into PP singing Skyline? I remember this week breaking us.

What an incredible episode. All of the games. All of the rituals. All of the safety valves. All of the blinders. All of it just to have Teh bail in the moment because he faced the physical reality that Oh wasn't a woman. He once again made Oh think he wasn't enough after pouring it on thick all episode. Goddamn.

[melodyschaos]

😍😍😍

I read the last polyweb, I want to order more of this scrubdilishys meal (specifically the reader talking about trauma like it's normal) of course, only if you want to and have time THANK YOU!!

TW: Trauma Discussions (Light to Medium), Some Angst, Gore Mention, Mention of Parental Abuse, Death Mention A/N: I am so glad you guys love the Sapphire Polyweb! I hope this becomes like The Thing for my blog I would love that- anyways we're trying color fonts now I'm feelin' creative

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

Another day, another sleepover in Y/N's house. Things had gone better than expected, Huntsman hadn't even bitten Syntax, even when he got hit with three red shells in a row during Mario Kart! Everyone had changed into their sleep-wear (which was very weird to see the Mayor in, though he only wore a very basic set of dark blue flannel pajamas. They were all stuck in that space where they ought to be sleeping but were talking instead. Syntax had lifted his phone to check something but let out a disgruntled huff before shoving it back in his pant pocket. Y/N rolled over from their spot on the floor of their massive pillow fort and asked what's wrong.

"Father's Day approaches and annoying e-mails are barraging me about buying a set of tools. If I had a father I am certain he would not care for a tool belt."

Y/N rolled on their stomach and propped themselves up on an elbow. "What do you mean? Don't...you don't know your dad?"

In the darkness Syntax sighed. "Let me put it in simple terms: as far as anyone in the world is concerned, I am an orphan, for I have no worthy father."

He felt Y/N's hand slip into his own. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be, it's a thing of the past. I prefer to try and forget, but...it's rather difficult during the holidays."

They sat there holding hands before Y/N spoke again to the oddly quiet others, "Hey...come to think of it, Hunter, Goliath, Queenie, do you guys have moms or dads?"

The Spider Queen answered first after a sizeable silence. "Let's just say a Queen has no need for parents. I had sisters, though. Seven. But...let's just say they went the way of the birds."

"What?? I never heard about this, Queenie, why didn't you tell me?" Y/N was sitting up now and had turned on the lamp that had been placed in the floor of the fort.

The Spider Queen looked oddly grim-faced. Her silky black hair was down, and she wore a rather fancy black nightrobe over a long nightgown. "I don't like talkin' about it."

"Wait-" Now Goliath was sitting up (though he was hunched a bit so as not to disrupt the blanket roof of the fort. "My Queen, if you have sisters, why aren't they here?"

Huntsman was up now too, though he used a fist to hit the side of Goliath's arm. It obviously didn't hurt him but the intent was still there. "She just said she doesn't like talking about it, pea brain."

Ignoring the bickering, Y/N released Syntax's hand and scooted over to the Queen. "You can tell me, Queenie, if you want to."

The Spider Queen looked even more uncomfortable as she glanced at her three spider underlings. Owing to her pride, she never liked feeling vulnerable normally...but she exhaled through her nose. "Just this once. When I was a spiderling I was the youngest of my sisters. Born the last. I wanted to go out there, to make somethin' of myself instead of sittin' around trappin' random passerby. So one day when I was sixteen I packed up a few things and set out to get real-world experience. A few years passed, and I was gainin' myself some new infernal powers. I'd even begun to further transform." She gestured to her purple skin and green eyes. The Queen looked distressed as if she didn't want to continue...

But in an surprising move, Huntsman went to sit next to her and took one of her hands. He wasn't looking at her as if wanting to let her have the privacy of tears threatening to spill over her lime eyes. The gentle move from her most rambunctious subject seemed to help as the Queen continued, "I...I came home to find them all...pulverized. I- I couldn't tell which was which-" Here she stopped, covering her face with her free hand, allowing a few sobs to escape.

Syntax had fully sat up now. He and Goliath looked at each other, at a loss until Y/N moved to hug their Queen, placing their arms around her shoulders. Slowly, Goliath moved behind the Queen to gently hug her as well. Syntax made his way over to her unoccupied side. Emotions were never his strong suit, much less comforting someone with such a heavy subject. After hesitating, he put his hand on the Queen's shoulder.

After a few minutes she took a deep breath and lifted her head, clearing away the tears. She reached out her arms to hug both Syntax and Huntsman to her sides and rested her head back on Goliath's massive chest as a pillow. They sat there, comforting one another in an odd way.

They all jumped a mile when the Mayor suddenly lifted the blanket that hung over the fort's entrance. No one had heard him arrive, but this time his ever-present smile seemed more...sympathetic, somehow. He crawled in and set down a box of soft brownies. "I did not want to interrupt, but something told me we could use these."

With nerves calmed, the group eventually dug in. It occurred to Y/N to ask Goliath and Huntsman about their fathers, but Huntsman only shrugged and said, "Technically Syntax is our father. He used the Queen's venom and artificial masculine DNA to basically speed-grow us. Kinda like plants."

Goliath, who had five brownies in one large hand, huffed. "He won't let me call him dad, though."

Syntax scowled at him. "That is because I am not your father, if I were I would have had to use my own DNA. Since I did not I prefer to think of myself as your manufacturer or engineer."

Huntsman let out a cough that sounded suspiciously like "Doofus"

Anticipating the question, the Mayor spoke to Y/N as they turned their head to him. "A decent enough man as fathers go, and my mother as well. We were never too close, but we were happy. Now then..." He stood and began gathering the garbage to throw out. "As it is well past 3 AM I suggest we all head to sleep."

When he returned, the light was out and everyone was curled up together this time with the Spider Queen in the center, as if she were the center of their spider web of cuddles. There was an odd feeling as they all dozed off...a renewed closeness born from revealing (even if only by mention) secret pains of the heart and being met with comfort and companionship.

[i-know-geography]

Hey Raphaela, I love your work, especially the classroom of the elite fics.

I was wondering if you could write how Y/n would feel when Yandere Kiyotaka Ayanokōji saved Kei Karuizawa?

Aww,thanks,i'm glad to know you like my work!

This is kinda of a mini oneshot/Scenario. I hope that you like it!

Not worth for you...

[Your name] was sitted in the bed of their dormitory,looking down to their feet as their mind was filled of thoughts.

Kei Karuizawa,their best friend,told them about Kiyotaka,and how he fought bravely and saved her from Ryuen.

Don't get them wrong,[Your name] was happy that Kei was safe,they weren't jealous either,they were just...concerned.

Kei described to them how it happened,and she spoke everything like it was a romance novel scene.

[Your name] never knew that Karuizawa loved Kiyotaka,until that moment.

And now they were feeling...insecure.

The thoughts on their mind,asking to themselves.

"Am i really worth of him?"

"Maybe i should just give up"

"I mean...Kei would make him happier."

"And i'm jus-"

The knocks on the door made them get out of their thoughts,they turned around as they heard that familiar calm voice.

"[Your name],may i come in?"

It was Kiyotaka's voice.

[Your name] opened the door,looking at the brunette.

"Hey,Kiyotaka-kun."

They said calmly.

Kiyotaka knew that something was bothering you,you didn't seem like your normal self.

"[Your name],is something wrong? You don't seem good."

"O-oh no! I'm okay! I promise you that i'm fine!"

"Are you sure? If that's something bothering you,you can tell me,i'll make sure that it never bothers you again."

"I-it's nothing,i swear."

The brunette sighed as he listened to their answer.

"I see...you don't trust me at all,do you? Well,in any case,i'll pour you a cup of tea,it will make you feel better."

They sighed as they noticed that Kiyotaka wouldn't give up on making them feeling better.

A bit of time passed,[Your name] was now drinking tea that Kiyotaka made for them both.

The Brunette stopped asking if you were really okay,finally respecting the time you needed to take in order to talk about it.

As you place the cup of tea down,you looked down and then stared at Kiyotaka.

"Kiyotaka-kun...am i worth for you?"

They could see a little look of shock in Kiyotaka's eyes.

"Why would even ask something like this? Something made you think you aren't worth for me?"

"Well,Karuizawa told me about what happened,and i noticed you've been spending more time with her,and since she likes you,i began to think that maybe she would be better for you..."

Kiyotaka seemed a little annoyed,but you could tell it was not with you.

"[Your name],my dear...what makes you even think that she would be worth for me,and specially worthier than you?"

He gently held your chin,as he grabbed your hand.

"Didn't i told you? You are forever mine,and i am forever yours,that's how it'll always be."

You could feel the honesty in his voice,even though his face was blunt like always.

"Karuizawa is nothing than a tool for me,but you...you are my everything. And if i need,i'll prove it to you."

"How would you prove that?"

"I could do anything with her to prove it to you,even ruin her whole life if it is necessary,just say the word and i'll do it."

"No...there is no need to harm her,Kiyotaka,not for me."

Kiyotaka sighed again.

"I see,do you feel better?"

"A bit,thank you,Kiyotaka-kun."

"You're welcome."

He shyly kissed your forehead.

"Now,how about we spend the day together,so i can show you how much you are worth for me?"

"Okay then!"

[Your name] held his hand as he slightly blushed.

There was nothing that could bring you both apart.

Because Kiyotaka claimed you a long time ago.

No man,no woman,nothing could take you away from him.

Not even your thoughts could.

There was no need to compare yourself with Karuizawa.

Because Karuizawa was nothing to him...you though,you were everything.

Kiyotaka loved you,and he didn't knew why...

You were the only person who made him feel.

The only one to make him be his true self.

Maybe he loved you...because you made him love you.

In anyway,that doesn't matter.

The only thing that matters to him is you.

Man,i feel like that looks like shit,but i hope you liked it!

[justimagineok]

2:30 series - at home - part 1

• pairing: idol!jungkook x female reader, jungkook x brotherJunghyun , jungkook x his mother , his mother x you

• genre: fluff until it isn't 👀

• warnings : mentions of abusive parents, toxic relationship , harsh words

part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 | part 5

“And this is why mom loves me more.” Jungkook's brother teased, earning a grunt from him.

"One more word and I'll set you on fire, Junghyun. I swear.", Jungkook was sweating as he tried to put the Christmas tree together. He was trying for two hours at least, but it didn't seem to be working. The tree kept falling after a couple of minutes. "Why are we even decorating for Christmas in November, mom? It doesn't make sense."

Jungkook's mom emerged from the kitchen, drying her hands and her tunic and watching him.

"Because I got two sons who barely come to see me since they grow up, so I'm making the best of the situation.", she shuffled Jungkook's hair gently and then smacked his brother on the shoulder.

"And I love both of you. No one more than the other. Get down there and help your brother, Hyun", she reprimanded him , winking at you before getting back to the kitchen. Jungkook handed over the tools to Hyun and got up to grab the other pieces of the tree, kicking his brother on the way.

"MOM! Jungkook's kicking me! I'm gonna punch him, I'm warning." he stared Jungkook, punching his legs as Jungkook laughed.

"YOU'RE BOTH IN YOUR TWENTIES! LEARN TO HANDLE IT YOURSELVES!", she yelled.

You left them discussing about who was the handsomest while sweating, and headed for the kitchen, looking for Jungkook's mother.

"Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do to help you in the kitchen?"

Jungkook's mom smiled warmly at you, offering a place to sit.

"I'm sure, sweetie. C'mon in, take a seat! In fact, I wanted you to experiment something I made for you.", she opened the oven, taking a big pan out.

"This is for you."

She opened it, revealing the most beautiful omelette you have ever seen in your life.

"I remember you saying you last time that loved when your mom made omelette for you, so I fixed you some.", her voice was even softer, afraid she could offend you with her words. "I know it's not the same…"

Your eyes filled with tears and your hand started to shake.

"I did wrong?", she asked, impacted with your reaction.

"No, no!", you denied quickly. "It's just… I--."

The tears fell from your eyes before you could stop them. "I loved it. I loved it so much."

She got closer, pulling you in a warm hug.

"Don't cry, sweetie. I'm glad you liked it. ", she patted your shoulder for a while before letting you go. "Now, eat it before it gets cold."

From anyone watching this scene, it may look like your mom died or something. Your mother is alive. She's alive and well for all you know. You just haven't talked to her in 6 months, since she's called for your birthday.

You thought it was for your birthday, but she made it clear it was nothing but a coincidence. She just needed a 'little more money to get to the end of the month', she claimed.

That was the last day you talked to her. The day you told you wanted her and your dad away from you in any form. And that was the day you really saw who they really were.

“You are nothing to me. Do you hear me?! Nothing.", your mom spatted. " Just because you're in that trash city you think you're better than us? I am your MOTHER, stupid! Have some respect."

And there it was again. The heart beating way too fast, your palms sweating, your cheeks trembling. You wanted to run.

"You've been- you've been manipulating me, mom. You and dad. Don't you think this is wrong? I am your daughter.", you start to cry, hoping for any sympathy from her, but you got none.

"Why are you crying?! I'm the one who should be crying for having a daughter like you. You're pathetic, YN. You embarrass us, you know that? The only thing I could brag about you was that you're gaining good money and finally paying back your family for all the trouble we had with you. But now that you're being a coward and turning your back on us, is there anything you're good for? You don't even have a boyfriend, or girlfriend or anything because NO ONE wants a waste of space like you."

You didn't answer. Your parents didn't know you had a boyfriend or who he was. They couldn't know.

From experience, you knew that if they knew, they wouldn't leave Jungkook in peace. They were your parents and you gotta deal with that, but Jungkook didn't. From experience, you knew that if they knew, they wouldn't leave Jungkook in peace. They were your parents and you gotta deal with that, but Jungkook didn't.

You moved out from home to live in Seoul 3 years ago and you like to think you made the decision to move out freely, but the truth was that you had to move out, or you would be trapped there forever. Why?

Your parents never wanted you. That was what your mom told you ever since you were little, and having no brothers or sisters to help carry the burden didn't help at all. Growing up with them and having no one you could talk to was hell. Having no one to talk about why they said hurtful things to you whenever you made a mistake or didn't do well at school. Whenever you weren't perfect. The yelling every night, when they argued. Your mom telling you it was all your fault they argue that much and that your dad was always drinking because of you. You knew it wasn't true. It wasn't your fault. But there's something about hearing the same lies for so many times, they end up sounding like the truth.

"You deserve someone who isn’t okay with losing you, baby.", was what Jungkook told you when you told you a little about your family. You limited yourself to say that your parents just didn't care about how you were or how you were. You never told him about the harsh and hurtful words they always said to you, the public humiliations even at your old job, or the fact you still send them money, up until 6 months ago.

Jungkook asked you once about your parents, how they were and if he could introduce himself formally to them, but you shut him down fast. That was the first real fight you both had.

"Why you don't want me to meet them? Are you ashamed of me? Is that it?", Jungkook didn't understand why you didn't want him to meet your parents. He wanted to do it right. Why weren't you letting him?

"Of course not, Kook! Can you just respect my decision?!", you tried to defend yourself, but he wasn't having.

"Is it because you think we won't last?", he whispered, almost ashamed of his question. He was already making a playlist for you with his favorite songs, and you thought he was just a hookup? Was that it?!

You gave a step closer to him, holding his tattooed hands on yours.

"Can you trust me?", you asked. "I think-- no. I'm sure we're gonna last, Kook. I love you more than you could ever imagine. I just need you to trust me that meeting my parents is not something you should do. Can you respect my decision on this? Please?"

Jungkook stopped the next words he wanted to say, thinking about your words.

"Can I know why?", he squeezed your hands on his. You breathed deeply, choosing the right words to say.

"Let's just say not all of us have loving and caring parents, Kook."

next>>

[azreactstowormtheserial]

I should probably do this at more regular intervals! [5.7-6.X]

Guess how I spent my sunday afternoon! I'll try and do this every, like, 3 chapters, maybe? Because fuck, there's a lot to talk about. Let me try and do it in order. Arc 5 (.7 onwards) So, the Lung rematch honestly took me by surprise. The whole arc did, really? Going from a pretty depressing but harshly real depiction of what happens to girls like Taylor, to 'Fuck it, let's fuck shit up', to Lung is back! Already! It's Arc 5! I was so sure his escape and reappearance was going to be a big thing the characters dreaded and came back to bite them at the last moment, but-- And yeesh, was 5.9 a chapter. There's a certain passage in the introductory page for Worm: "Morality isn’t black and white, Taylor and her acquaintances aren’t invincible, the heroes aren’t winning the war between right and wrong ..." Every fight has me at the edge of my seat. Last year for me's been pretty brutal for media depicting major-character-deaths like it's no big deal-- and the moment Lung came back, I was so sure someone was dead. I thought it might've been-- and after the interlude, real glad it wasn't-- Newter. But somehow, everyone managed to get off scott-free. And after the fiasco that was Arc 6-- we'll get there!-- I just don't know how long this'll last. Even for the Undersiders. Which makes me want to predict deaths. I think because of the phrasing of the opening page, I know that Taylor is the POV character as a standard, and interludes are the exception. So unless this does some huge POV-shift, I think she's safe. From death, not from anything else. I am not entertaining the thought of Lisa's death. Brian and Alec, though? I don't know. I don't know about Alec at all, actually. He's kind of a scary guy? Horrifyingly subtle power, but really scarily applied in Arc 6. He's low-key one of the strongest, at least potential wise, in The Undersiders. I think Brian is going to have more story to him, now that his past's all been laid out? But later on, I just can't say. I really hope he doesn't, he means a lot to Taylor, and he's a good shoulder to lean on. Rachel-- 'Bitch'? I can't remember if she prefers one or the other... -- is a little harder to talk about. It was hard to like her after how she introduced herself! Mauling the POV character practically unprovoked isn't a good first impression. But, like Taylor's described, I feel, she's started to grow on me. Arc 5 touched on her character and personality in a nice way. I'd already started to sympathize with her come the end of Arc 4, rather than just view her as a begrudingly amazing tool for the team, but the dynamic between her and Taylor in Arc 5 was peak. She gave her her jacket!

Arc 5 Interlude This is really sweet! It left Arc 5 off on a high note. 'Kinda. I don't know what to make of the 5.X interlude. It was interesting. Newter was nice to see again. Flatline was intriguing to get a closer look at. Gregor is a strange person, but so-- I don't know if blunt is the right word, but 'sincere'-- almost refreshingly so given the web of deception going on in every other Arc-- that I liked him by the end. What I don't know what to make of in particular is the tattoos. Does it imply that there's a different-type of origination for parahuman powers? Is it artificial? I don't know! But I'm interested in finding out! Arc 6 Anyway, that was what, 4 chapters' thoughts? Let's talk about Arc 6. I started off my liveblog talking about how one of the most interesting plot threads was the growing inner-struggle Taylor has of working with The Undersiders and having agreed to double-cross them. Something I neglected to mention as well, was Taylor's dad, Danny. Straight from the get-go, both of these are the spotlight. They almost seem to slowly be intertwining the further the Arc goes on-- something I felt especially towards the end, and a final decision Taylor makes. If it wasn't painfully clear already, I like how this arc brings to the forefront how muddy the line between traditional 'good and evil' is. Armsmaster is blatantly not-good. He does not seem to value what is right and what is wrong, and-- while we do not see inside his mind-- Taylor does, and that his reputation is above all else is very telling. Luckily, he gets what he deserves. Cue my favorite passage of the serial so far:

Actually has me grinning while reading this chapter. It is unlikely Armsmaster is the only Hero that isn't all too much of one. I'm certainly not the most researched on the subject, but the parallels between Heroes and the Cops of today seem to be a major theme. With Coil entering the picture-- and, what a fucking reveal, by the way!-- I can't imagine this idea is going to take a backseat any time soon. I don't know much about Coil, and by his own words, he is not a good person. But as the only person striving for meaningful change-- whether his methods are morally sound or not-- I think I'd feel more comfortable with Skitter under his wing than, say, Armsmaster's. From his actions and his one-chapter-of-glory alone, he's a character I'm interesting in looking out for. Arc 6 made me cry! This will likely be a running theme, as I'm warned. 6.9 in particular is where it got me. That shit was crushing. As someone that struggles with anger, I admire Danny for keeping as collected as he did given the circumstance. He really does love her, and it's awful that Taylor's gotten so deep into things so quickly that she just can't be honest with him. Not until he knows what she is, and what she does. I thought Danny and Taylor's relationship was going in a healthy direction, after the incident in the mall, but I think that was just far too wishful thinking, with how everything was going to play out. ..Conversely, it looks like Taylor is figuring herself out. Writing that letter I think finally helped her analyse what she was doing, what she cared about, and what she wanted-- contextualized after finally learning about Coil and his intentions, and everything she and The Undersiders'd been through up until now. It was a powerful moment-- burning it especially. And maybe my favorite ending to an arc so fa-- Oh! Wait! There's an interlude! This is horrifying! It sure didn't shy down from takes about law and justice! The idea of a Rogue is interesting, and one I didn't even consider in the context of the world just yet. Apparently, the world's still working on that front, too. 'Making an example' of someone in a legal context is terrifying enough. That example being that the use of powers in any altercation, if you aren't grinning and willing to be part of the governments personal army of upholding the status quo, is LIFE IMPRISONMENT IN THE MONSTER DUNGEON-- like, fuck. If this is the system Heroes are defending, it's a little bit beyond muddied good and evils, it's a swamp.

Here is a bisexual Newter as a treat for making it this far among my ramblings. (thank you, mischievious magpie.) I'm sorry that they're so -rambly-! I had a lot of thoughts, and couldn't even get all of them down! Like, here's a few more bonus-thoughts: -The way Taylor via Newter-poison fucking owned Lung was rad as hell! - This!

But, yeah. I just wanted to get this out so I could keep going this evening, and on my walk. I'll stop again at 7.4-ish, and write my thoughts so this doesn't happen again. I certainly won't do more than an arc at a time. Az out!

[amononymous]

Awaited Date

Warning: mentions of alcohol.  Yeah, the reader drinks here so apologies if you don't like that

Summary: Invited by Doc, you went to Club Advent as he waited for you.  You sit next to him at a bar.

Today’s the night when you walk up the stairs after taking the bus to Nevada Central.  Getting off the bus and walking all the way near the Clubhouse was already far enough, but having to take the stairs is as much of a hassle.  

Why do you have to be there again?  You were invited by Doc to meet up with him in the most popular clubs in Central City, Club Advent.  It’s really not much to think about even if he sounded serious.  Doc always sounded serious during work, sounding like he’s always giving an instruction whenever he speaks to you.  One can mistake him as ill-mannered.  

However, you can prove them wrong, as you and he have known each other for a long time.  He’s the sharpest tool in the shed for his work after all.  Normally, you would let him work and whenever he’s off-work, you find it easier to talk to him.

Seems like walking up the long stair has caused you to linger in thoughts.

“Hold it, name?”  The stylish bouncer asked.

“(Reader), I’m on the list right?”  You answered.

“Let’s see…”  the bouncer flips through his papers that are somehow resized for him to handle easier.  “Ah, there you are… (reader).  Buzz yourself in, and have fun.”

You walked through the door and let out one of the biggest sighs ever.  “Ahh… that guy sounded intimidating”

Walking inside the room after passing through all the parked cars.  You hear muffled music.  While quiet, you can clearly hear all the bass that goes on the other side.

“Party’s to your right.”  The voice rang out, alerting you a little bit.

“Ahh… right,”  you shift direction as you open the door.  

The music intensifies as you open the door.  Seeing all the people dancing is enough for you to be fascinated by the lively atmosphere.  It felt like centuries since you visited a nightclub but it never ceases to amaze you.

The radiant light flickers everywhere; it's almost blinding.  Every bit of the crowd chanting and hypes up the people who are killing it on the dance floor.  The DJ blasting all the tunes looked pumped as well. 

It’s enough to ease your whole entire body.  Your brain is shouting at you to join the dance floor but only for you to snap yourself awake.  Doc is waiting for you.

You see him sitting idly near the bar.  You take a seat right beside him, he doesn’t seem to be drinking anything, drumming along his fingers on the table.

“Didn’t keep you waiting long?” You asked.

“Ahh (reader),” Doc replied.  “Certainly not.  Please, have a drink.”

“I’ll help myself.  Bartender, a glass of martini please!”

“A martini?  Didn’t think you would order the glass I like.”

“Well… I didn’t think you would like that but let’s just say I’d rather explore my drinking choice.”

You giggled as the bartender served you a fine glass of martini.  The drink shines with a clear liquid as the olives and lemon zest help give a bit of colour to the clear liquid. 

Taking a sip gives you a feeling of vigor.  The herby taste is enough to refresh your taste buds and the slightly sweet taste comes after.

“How is it?” Doc asked.  “Good?” 

“Mmm~”  you sighed.  “What’s with this drink?  It’s pretty delicious!”

“Heh… Glad you found it to your liking.  That’s why I enjoy this particular glass as well.”

“Huh? If that’s the case then why don’t you enjoy yourself more?”

“Well… I’d rather not.”

“Ehhhhh? We’re at the nightclub aren’t we?”

“Yes, but it’d be better for me not to drink right now.  Besides, one of us needs to stay sober in case something happens.”

Conversations pass by, you notice Doc has been looking at you.  Placing his wrist on his jaw as he watches.

“Ahh my apologies.”  He said.  “Am I disturbing you?”

You didn’t realize it.  You’ve been looking back at him, both your eyes and his eyes meet.  “A-ah, not at all,” you broke eye contact as you preemptively asked the bartender for more.

“You’re really liking the martini, huh?”  Doc chuckled.  “I thought you wanted to ‘explore your drinking choice’.”

“Doc…” you fumed a bit.  “I can’t help it.  I really like the taste of the drink.”

“You sure you’re saying that?  Or maybe I made you flustered with my eyes?”

This man… always wording things that made it hard to look him in the eyes without looking back at the floor out of pure embarrassment. 

You cover your face with one of your hands as you take a sip again.  How can he say something like that with a straight face?  If it were up to you, it’d be nigh impossible to even consider saying.

“Huh? What’s the matter?”  Doc gently takes your hand.  “Do you have a fever?”

“Doc please…”  You can hear your heartbeat.  “You’re not helping in the slightest.”

Is it the alcohol kicking in or maybe the fact that Doc is holding your hands right now?  All of this is getting to your hand.

However, you don’t hate it.  His hands are warmer than you expected, as you feel him run his delicate fingers through your palm. 

Looking away, you feel your heartbeat.  It beats loudly, whether that’s the base from the DJ or your heart doesn’t matter.

“Here,” Doc leans in closer.  “Lemme see.”

Doc calmly places his hand on your forehead to check for the temperature.

“Doc,” you tensed up. “I’m good, really!”

“Hahaha, did I make you too flustered?” Doc chuckled.  “My apologies, I didn’t mean to.”

Him with his suave, captivating voice doesn’t help with how smooth he can be.  Even for more than a year since you know Doc.  You can’t get used to his smooth demeanor.

Suddenly, you felt very tired.  Did the alcohol finally kick in?

“Huh?” Doc acknowledged.  “Are you really okay?”

“I don’t know,” you place your palm on your head.  “I feel… drowsy.”

“That’s… not good.  Can you walk at least?”

“I don’t know Doc, can I?”

“Don’t be careless. Here.”

He holds you close.  You feel a bit more safe wrapped up in his embracing arms.  Resting on his chest.

It’s soft and pillowy, despite the music going on.  You can’t help but almost sleep a wink. 

“Oh (reader)...” Doc smiled a little.  “What am I going to do with you?”

Despite feeling tired, you feel comfortable as Doc puts your arms on both his collarbone and gives you a piggyback ride.

“Ahh, buddy.”  The bartender called out.  “You need a bit of help over there?”

“No need.” Doc replied.  “I can carry them just fine.”

Doc soon left the room carrying you.

“Oh love~” the bartender hums to himself.  “They really do come in all forms.”

Carrying you outside of the bar and struggling on his ways downstairs.  Doc sighed.

“You really shouldn’t drink too much,”  he chides.  “You could’ve been in great danger…”

“Ahaha, sorry Doc.” you apologized.  “I got a bit too carried away.”

“As long as it doesn’t happen again.”

“Don’t worry~ I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again, promise!”

“Haha alright alright, quiet down.  We’re almost there.”

“Where are we going?”

“Well obviously, your house.”

“Oh okay!”  you giggled.  “Doc…”

“Yes?”

“I… I love you Doc.”

Those words are enough to make Doc sound hesitant.  Maybe he was caught a bit off-guard when he was focused on carrying you.  “Well… that was unexpected.”

“Ahaha, say it back~”

“What are you saying, (reader).  You already knew that I love you.”

Even if you can’t see it, Doc had a soft smile on his face.

[ticklystuff]

ACKSKfslkg I was going to be too shy for this but then i saw your last call post and.... would you mind doing some more Gepard? :3 like letters C, L and... Q? 👀 if not then ALL GOOD, love your posts

ask game closed!

AHHH hello! i'm so glad you participated after all! and ofc i can talk about geppy hehehehe

C: Chase | What are their chances in a chase, both as a lee and ler?

Okay, so Gepard is really atheltic (he has to be for his job) so under normal circumstances, he'd be able to run just find, but the thought of being tickled just flusters him so bad that he can't concentrate properly and just ends up tripping over his own legs asdklfj also I feel like he's not the sharpest tool in the shed (pls correct me if I'm wrong though) so the person chasing him can just lie and tell Geppy that he's too fast and that they're done, which he falls for and just gets caught anyway asdlkfj

As a ler, I think he'd have a pretty good chance! Like I said, he's pretty athletic, so I don't really think he'd have trouble catching his lee and pinning them down. I think he'd be one of those lers that gets flustered easily over tickling someone else though so it's easy to just escape because he doesn't know what to do with his hands once he does catch them lol

L: Laughter | What does their laughter sound like when they are tickled?

He snorts and hiccups A LOT and does a lot of begging but has a lot of trouble getting the words out properly, so a lot of what he says while laughing just sounds like gibberish or super fragmented hehe poor thing

Q: Question | Their response to the question ‘are you ticklish’?

To be honest, I think he can handle the question just fine and be like "yeah I am" but it's when he's threatened with the potential for tickles that he absolutely falls apart, or if someone were to continue the discussion like asking him where he's most ticklish, then he turns into a flustered mess