#Specification of Modern Carding Machine

[lystopianne]

Business & Retail themed cc list

with the highly anticipated release of businesses & hobbies, I gotta say: opportunity taken to make a cc masterlist, yay! I love making those!

small (family) businesses is a huge add-on to our gameplay and with custom content, the fun will never go away. 🥰 everything from essential mods, shopping decor & specific-themed businesses items are to be found here.

feel free to send any suggestions for the list, I'll be happy to add them!

*NEW UPDATES WILL BE MADE ON THIS PAGE*

ESSENTIALS

miunachan's ultimate list of business ideas 🧡

mods

cheat retail & restaurant prices

club & business activity expanded

club & business expanded interactions

functional registers

higher business activity limit

more selectable icons

more small business employees

more small business logos

more small business visitors

no autonomous dancing

sell stuff from any surfaces

small business do not close

tend stalls activity expanded

decor & display

business essentials x @soloriya

industrial inventory shelves x @brazenlotus

retail therapy set x @syboubou

shopping bags & box x @aroundthesims

simoleons decor set x @simdertalia

tip jars x @simdertalia

signs & stickers

backlit wall signs x @gfvsims

business sign decals x @cryptiam

credit card stickers x @ccbybudgie

convenience store ads x @cryptiam

fire department stickers x @ccbybudgie

gift shop neons x @simdertalia

lit up ads on wheels x @ccbybudgie

lit wall advertisements x @brazenlotus

open led sign decals x @cryptiam

sale & ad posters x @simdertalia

security sign decals x @cryptiam

shop ads x @ccbybudgie

THEMED SPECIFICS

animals & pets

aquarium retail display fridge x @brazenlotus

besties: part 1 & part 2 x @sixamcc

pet pack wall frames x @brazenlotus

art & crafts

art studio x @sixamcc

flower arrangement display x @brazenlotus

hobby knit x @helenmay

piano cc set x @syboubou

tattoo wall art x @ccbybudgie

daycare & kids

boho baby x @sixamcc

dream teen sleepover x @sixamcc

dreamy nursery x @sixamcc

kids bedroom x @sixamcc

little critters x @syboubou

modern teen bedroom x @sixamcc

princess & vampire kids x @sixamcc

private school x @sixamcc

tiny playrooms x @sixamcc

entertainment

dance studio signs x @simdertalia

functional quarter coin vending machine x @aroundthesims

old school record store x @ccbybudgie

fantasy & spooky

magic books x @simdertalia

witchy crystal shop ad posters x @simdertalia

witchy crystal shop signs x @simdertalia

witchy shop decor set x @simdertalia

witchy shop window stickers x @simdertalia

fashion & salon

anybody's dress bridal shop x @ravasheencc

chic cosmetics: part 1 - part 2 x @bostyny

fashion store x nando

jewelry set x @aroundthesims

keratin salon set x @bbygyal123

passion by judith ward x @someone-elsa

perfume set x @simdertalia

shoe store & shelving mirror set x @simdertalia

food

appliance collection x @bbygyal123

candy bags x @ccbybudgie

cozy bistro add-on x @aroundthesims

felt letter board x @ccbybudgie

fish chalkboard + fishy wall decor x @brazenlotus

food store ads x @ccbybudgie

fusion pantry set x @bostyny

greasy goods x @littledica

honey, I cooked set x @mylittleponyoh

kitchen clutter x @charlypancakes

martini mixology decor x @bbygyal123

small spaces: pantry x @sixamcc

restaurant kitchen dishwashing x @aroundthesims

rise & grind coffee house x @littledica

sweet treats x @littledica

laundry

laundromat corner x @sixamcc

laundry day clutter x @brazenlotus

laundry room x @sixamcc

library & learning center

books & stuff set x @brazenlotus

business stationery x @aroundthesims

work from home x @sixamcc

working mode set x abbypigg

outdoors

beach shop x @aroundthesims

camping & pétanque x @aroundthesims

stuff for national parks x @aroundthesims

trekking x @aroundthesims

build mode

arold's shop x @pierisim

candyfloss: part 1 & part 2 x abbypigg

love for modern windows x @sixamcc

upscale window & door addon x @brazenlotus

[kirlicues]

Maxis Lost & Found and Default Replacement List | Resources: Sims 2 | Improving the Look of the Game

Here is a resource list of the Default Replacements I use to improve the look of my game, as well as "Maxis Lost & Found items" to add a little more variety.

I play a mostly CC-free game but I've also included a list of the tiny amount of "Maxis match" CC that I use, so if you download my lots and you have these things installed the houses should look like they do in the previews.

Can you believe the Sims 2 is over 20 years old!? It will look like it's hardly aged a day after you put these defaults in. 🤭 I also recommend Reshade for a truly up-to-date experience.

** This post might get updated from time to time. 💗 **

Build Mode Defaults:

Bay Tree texture default by @tvickiesims

Greener Gardens bush defaults by @peppermint-ginger

Greener Gardens Part 2 by @peppermint-ginger

Phlox by @tvickiesims

Plant Texture Defaults from this pack by @pforestsims

Default Garden Plot by @fwaysims

Less Square Waterlilies by @lvstndhrt

Brighter leaves, less square scattered leaves by @shastakiss and TheNinthWave Sims

White Roof Trim Defaults by Phaenoh at ModtheSims

Wall top texture defaults by Maranatah at ModtheSims

Window Fixes by Honeywell at ModtheSims

Mesh replacements for "Border of Helier" fences and the "Near the Floor" half wall by @crispsandkerosene

Buy Mode Defaults:

Custom Computer Screens Default Replacement by @eddysims

Custom Computer Screen - Term paper default add-on

Smaller Cash Register by @pforestsims

Better BBQ by @pforestsims

Useable TSS Coat Hangers (Outerwear, requires Seasons) by Richi3frog at ModtheSims

Keister Kompanion by @pforestsims

White Euro Stairs and Rail OFB (no more aqua line!), open underneath by Rosie. See a picture of it in use here.

Holy Smoke stairs clear glass (as opposed to blue) by @tvickiesims

Upwardly Mobile, Sweeping Success, Stair to Remember Fixes by @simblrnova

Black and White Bare Bath by @tvickiesims

Loft Shower clear glass (as opposed to blue) by @honeywellsdownloads

Clear glass on most objects by Corax at ModtheSims

Clear glass for windows and doors by Slig

Clothing Racks by @withlovefromsimtown

Mission Redux by Leefish

Teak Double Bed by HugeLunatic

Neighborhood Defaults:

Terrain Defaults - @curiousb

No more Blurriness - Beach, Cliff, and Snow defaults - Voeille

Criquettes Linden Trees as Default Replacements

Neighborhood Tree Default Replacements (specifically Ginko,

Redbud, and Walnut) by Honeywell at ModtheSims

Beautified Birch Trees by SixFootSims

CS Seasonal Pines as BG Pine Default by @lowedeus

Snow enabled Seasonal Pines by @lowedeus

Maxis BG Clouds made Global by @lazyduchess and @lowedeus

Effects Defaults:

Prettier Plumbobs by Ambular

Better Thought/Conversation Bubbles by @eddysims

Prettier Bubble Bath by @pforestsims

Sink and Basin Water Revised by @pforestsims

Fountain Water (clear and foamy) by @pforestsims

Clean Skill Meters Default by @pforestsims

Clean OFB Buy Bar Default by @pforestsims

Eye-friendly Countertops by @pforestsims

No Sheen On Ivy by @tvickiesims

Maxis Match Custom Content I use:

Maxis Match Wall Cabinets by CTNutmegger at ModtheSims

Creeping Ivy 3t2 Conversion by MustLuvCatz at ModtheSims

3t2 Functional Washer/dryer by MustLuvCatz at ModtheSims

LG Dryer & Washer Machine by Fresh-Prince at ModtheSims

Maxis Match Chimney Recolors by Kimsie at ModtheSims

I also use some skyboxes and skylines to add interest to preview pictures but those are not included in any of the lot files I offer.

"Maxis Lost & Found" objects converted into usable items by various modders:

Floral Modern Sofa recolor

The Stainless Barbecue - Grey Recolor

Five Studio Lamps

Numica 2x2 card table

Dielectric Electrobreeze Windmill

Broken Snow Globe

18th Century Portrait

Will Wright painting and grouped photos from CAS

"Vacation" recolor for Maxis painting

Ball Obelisk and Monolith Decorative Topiaries

Seven new trees

Modern Print

Souvenir Cabinet

International Sectional Booth

Cricket Bat

Floral Centerpiece

Race Car Bedroom

Lit Clothing Shop Sign

Ikea Pictures

Stockholm Bowl

BASKIS Ceiling Light

Ikea Lights ORGEL, ORGEL VRETEN, DUNO, LYRA

SKIMRA Lamp

Billy Wall Shelf

BENNO Coffee Table (Ikea Stuff)

Washboard (BV)

Plumbob Arch

Loft CAS Window, 2-story Timber column

Loft CAS Window - Fixed

Pinegultcher and Longhorn Balustrade Fences

Nouvelle Fences - "Brass" and "White" recolors

Art Nouveau gate - "White" recolor

Zecutine's "Step Away With Me" Stairs - "Olive" recolor

ValueWood Lumber's "Justa Door" - "Grey" recolor

Yellow Community Phone Recolor

Brick Wall (plus non-Maxis add-on textures)

Nightlife Tile Wall covering

Worn "Bamboo Fever" Wallpaper

Eat At Tiles - Red and White Tile walls

Misc floors

Jungle Rocks Neighborhood Décor (BV)

Bohemian Moldings Diagonal Mesh + Default

How to find more lost and found walls and floors and fences (There are quite a few duplicates that are already in your game if you unlock all of these, so just beware.)

Maxis Pre-Order Bonuses and Old TS2 Site Downloads

Additional useful links:

Must-have mods list for TS2. Compiled especially for Sims 2 Legacy Edition players, but useful for anyone no matter what version of TS2 you play.

Sims 2 Object Default Database Spreadsheet - this includes a whole bunch of defaults that I do not use.

A huge thank you to all the talented creators and modders who keep this game looking fresh after 20 years!

[3liza]

i mean the truth is that we do not need and should not have all this stupid plastic clutter in or houses. no one should be producing or selling this shit. everyone make your own merchandise and charge a living hourly wage to sell it 🤷 sorry to be so simplistic about this but it's one of the results of the lack of class unity specifically in the means of production-owning creative class, who is not mentioned or dealt with by the core Marxist texts as far as I know (i asked about this earlier on here, did marx ever address in his analysis people like, for example, a professional photographer who owns a camera ans prints his own dagguereotypes? or a portrait painter or idk, independent milliner or seamstress? these people all own the means of production and do not employ anyone, and the answer from better educated people than I was that no, Marx didn't mention them), I'm not well read on this at all, there is just a big void where leftist analysis of what modern economists call "the creative class"

I'm getting off topic. my point is make your own keychains in your kitchen. it's actually not hard. you can even mass produce (on a small scale) little plastic crap if you want, with resin and a UV lamp, or a 3d printer, or a laser cutter and acrylic sheets (or just use balsa wood damn, at least its biodegradable and less tacky).

all this stuff is available to little creators AND there are hundreds of people who already own these machines who will take work for you and produce your designs. you just have to actually find them and know them and email them. that's what I mean about the class unity issue with creatives. we have no large scale union, we have no large scale class consciousness, and we're all sending our orders for little plastic crap to sweatshops instead of emailing a guy with a laser cutter in his garage and saying "hey Keith can I get uhhhhhhhhhhh 50 laser cut keychains of this twerking Diggler design I made, like how much would that cost" and he's like sure here's the work and materials cost and tbh it's always always less than i think it's going to be. you just have to do some basic arithmetic and then order shipping, and I hate order fulfillment with my life but you can actually pay or barter with someone to do that for you too. learn to delegate and then factor that into your unit cost. this is basic shit every commercial creator needs to know. they should teach you this in art school but they dont

don't give me crap about "I can't afford a laser cutter" either because I just told you to email Keith. and all these machines get sold secondhand when a manufacturer or hobbyist needs to upgrade. i got a color laser printer perfect for making zines and wheatpastes and shipping labels from a retired lesbian on capital hill for $75 and it was still full of ink. my friend gave me her 20 year old canon dslr because she just didn't need it and didn't want to bother selling it. it works fine because I spent the time finding the right drivers and shit for my computer. and card readers exist. Craigslist. Facebook marketplace. nextdoor sales section. eBay. everyone always forgets eBay. eBay lets you save searches and will email you when it finds a guy selling his vinyl plotter in your city with local pickup. I'm serious

[devilish-cherry]

ᨳ♡₊➳ jujutsu kaisen x reader

ᨳ♡₊➳ crack with plot

"You hate your job. The pay is bad, your manager is worse, and customers are somehow both entitled and clueless. Just as you finish contemplating whether unpaid breaks are a human rights violation, weird new people keep showing up to the café. They all seem to know each other. Sometimes they talk in cryptic phrases. What the hell is this domain and why do they want to expand it? One time, a man with stitches on his forehead walked in, made prolonged eye contact with you, and then left without ordering anything. You’re pretty sure he was a serial killer. Another time, the one with white hair and sunglasses indoors mentioned a "higher mission", and you’re 90% sure this is how cult documentaries start. One of your regulars only speaks in weird food-related phrases. You assume he has some kind of medical condition, but no one explains anything to you. But you are not about to ask questions, because ignorance is bliss and also job security. And unfortunately, they are all weird and they seem very interested in coming back."

꒰ masterlist ꒱ ₊⊹. ꒰ chapter 1 ꒱ ₊⊹. ꒰ chapter 3 ꒱

ᨳ♡₊➳ or read on archive of our own!

The morning rush had ended a while ago, leaving you with a few stragglers tapping away on laptops, a couple on their second hour of an intense whisper-argument, and some guy in the corner who had been staring at a single muffin for a concerning amount of time. Business had been slow after the morning rush as per usual, this meant you’d had plenty of time to reflect on things that didn’t deserve the mental energy you were giving them. Namely, Choso. It had been a few days since your encounter with the world's most socially inept man and his human golden retriever of a brother.

That guy had been… odd. Not in a bad way, necessarily—just in a "probably spent his childhood in a cave and was learning about the modern world in real time" way. The guy had stared at you like you were a cryptid when you asked what kind of coffee he wanted. You had spent way too long trying to figure out if he had just been raised extremely sheltered, or if something was actually wrong with him. Either way, the guy had stared at his latte like it held the meaning of life, and you weren’t sure whether to find it unsettling or endearing.

Because, seriously. That was not a normal interaction.

Most customers came in, ordered their drink, paid, and left. Some lingered. Some had weirdly specific orders that made you question their sanity. Some just sat there typing aggressively on their laptops like they were composing an email that would change the fate of mankind.

None of them, however, had ever been like Choso.

Since then, you’d been left in peace, which was all you could really ask for in life. Life at the café had returned to its usual monotony. The usual entitled customers still came and went, Greg the Manager still did absolutely nothing while pretending to be busy, and the espresso machine still sounded like it was trying to contact the underworld whenever it turned on. In other words, business as usual. Everything was normal.

Which, naturally, meant something was about to ruin it.

The bell above the door jingled. You sighed, plastering on your most convincing Hello valued customer, I sure do love working here! expression before turning around.

The first person to walk in was a tall blond guy in a suit, carrying himself like he had somewhere better to be. He looked exactly like the type of guy who drank his coffee black and silently judged people who put sugar in theirs. He had the air of someone who used Google Calendar religiously and paid for everything with a metal credit card. The second he stepped into the café, he surveyed it with the deeply unimpressed expression of a man who had already decided he hated it here. You immediately got "overworked businessman" vibes. He looked like he hated fun. You respected that.

The second guy, however…

Oh, no.

Oh, this one was going to be a problem.

He was even taller than the blond one. Very tall. Like, shouldn’t be allowed to exist in regular human spaces tall. He had white hair, wore sunglasses indoors, and was dressed like some kind of high-fashion hobo. He had a self-satisfied grin that made you think he had never experienced a single consequence in his entire life. Something about him screamed problem. His whole vibe was just "that one coworker who does absolutely nothing but still gets paid more than you."

"Nanamin!" Tall Guy whined, dramatically throwing an arm around his companion's shoulder. "See? This place is cute! You never wanna go anywhere fun."

The blond man—Nanamin?—exhaled through his nose with the weariness of a man who had dealt with this for far too long. He shrugged the arm off. "I don’t need fun. I need coffee."

"Okay, but coffee can be fun—"

"Coffee is a means to an end."

"See, this is why you have no joy in your life."

You plastered on your most professional smile, already dreading whatever was about to happen. "Welcome! What can I get started for you?"

Nanamin exhaled slowly, the sigh of a man who was one bad decision away from quitting his job, leaving the country, and raising goats in the mountains. "A black coffee. No sugar."

Bless. A simple, no-nonsense order. You liked him already. You punched it into the register. "Sure. What size?"

"Large. The biggest you have."

"Got it."

You turned expectantly to the taller one.

Tall Guy hummed, tapping a finger against his chin like he was making a deeply philosophical decision. "Hmmm. What do I want? What do I need?"

You resisted the urge to check the time.

"Do you have anything sweet?"

You gestured to the massive menu behind you, which had an entire section labeled Sweet & Flavored Drinks. "Yeah."

"Okay, okay. But like, really sweet?"

"Yeah."

Tall Guy nodded, his wide grin never faltering. "Good. I’ll take the sweetest thing you have."

"...You sure?"

He leaned forward, grinning like a child about to cause chaos. "Hit me with your worst."

You stared.

Alright.

You rang up a Death By Sugar—an abomination of a drink loaded with caramel, white chocolate, vanilla syrup, and enough whipped cream to suffocate a small animal. It was the kind of thing you usually only made for children with zero parental supervision.

Tall Guy looked downright delighted when you told him.

"Yay!" Tall Guy beamed. "And make it with love!"

"I am physically incapable of that."

Nanamin gave a single, approving nod. "Good work ethic."

Totaling their order, you glanced at them. "You want your names on the cups?"

Tall Guy nodded adamantly. "Of course! That’s the most important part!"

Nanami exhaled heavily. "Nanami."

Ah, so not 'Nanamin' then.

"Just put 'The Strongest' on mine," Tall Guy added with a wink.

You didn't know what the hell he meant by that exactly, but you did not react.

You took your sweet time making their drinks, mainly because Tall Guy was watching you with the shameless enthusiasm of a child at a magic show.

"You’re really good at that," Tall Guy commented as you poured steamed milk into Nanami’s coffee.

"Yeah, it’s almost like I work here."

Nanami sighed. "Gojo, stop harassing the barista."

"How is that harassment? I’m being nice!"

"You are being a nuisance."

Tall Guy—Gojo, you guess his name is—gasped, utterly scandalized. "I’m adding joy to their day, Nanamin."

You handed Nanami his drink before he could respond. He accepted it with a grateful nod, took a sip, and immediately looked one step closer to inner peace.

You handed Gojo his monstrosity. "Look at all the caramel drizzle!" He took a sip and moaned. "Ohhhh yeah, that’s the good stuff."

Nanami looked like he had just witnessed a public execution.

"Please never do that again," he muttered.

Gojo, of course, did it again, staring directly into Nanami’s soul as he took another dramatic sip.

You were so glad these people weren’t your problem outside of this café.

"Glad you like it," you said dryly.

To your mild horror, they stuck around after getting their drinks, settling into a table near the counter. Nanami was reading a book. Gojo was not reading a book. He was watching you.

Oh no.

"Hey barista," Gojo called. "You ever get bored working here?"

You stared at him.

"Like, when it’s not busy. What do you do for fun?"

You considered telling him you started counting ceiling tiles just to make him go away. Instead, you said, "Mostly, I wait for my shift to end."

Gojo laughed. "You sound like Nanamin!"

Nanami did not look pleased with that comparison. He exhaled through his nose like he was actively restraining himself from committing a felony.

It was at this moment the door opened again.

You glanced up—

And nearly dropped the milk frother you were holding.

Because there, standing like a glitch in reality, was Choso and Yuji.

Yuji, ever the golden retriever, grinned. “Oh, hey! You guys are here too?”

Gojo turned. “Huh?”

Your eyes darted between them.

They all knew each other?

Of course they did.

Choso approached the counter, completely ignoring the other two men. His expression was blank as ever, but the moment his eyes landed on you, something shifted.

“Barista.”

You braced yourself. “Choso."

“I have returned.”

“Yes. I can see that.”

“I would like another latte."

You nodded, trying to ignore Gojo’s eyes burning into the side of your skull and the way he was grinning like he knew something you didn't. “Got it.”

Gojo crept towards Choso with that same knowing grin. “Choso, buddy, pal. This is a big deal.”

Choso frowned. “What is?”

“Oh, you know,” Gojo drawled, “you like the barista.”

Yuji coughed violently. Nanami looked ready to walk into the ocean.

Choso, to your utter confusion, considered this. Like he was running some kind of internal diagnostic.

Then, after a very long pause—

“Yes.”

Silence.

Yuji choked once again. Gojo lost his mind, cackling. Nanami, to his credit, simply closed his eyes as if this entire experience had finally broken him.

You, meanwhile, stood there with Choso’s latte in your hand, processing the fact that a man who seemed to barely understand how cafés worked had just admitted, without hesitation, that he liked you.

Nanami, who had been spectating in exhausted silence, shook his head. “I regret coming here.”

Gojo pouted. “Oh, don’t be like that! It’s fun!”

“Nothing about this is fun.”

"I think it's fun!" Yuji piped in with a wide smile.

Ignoring them, you turned back to Choso. “So. I guess you, uh, really liked the latte, huh?”

Choso nodded, looking far too serious. “It was the best thing I have ever consumed.”

You stared at him. He stared back, intense as ever.

God. This was your life now.

Choso, completely unaware of the sheer weight of his words, took the latte from you with his usual blank expression.

“Thank you, barista.”

And just like that, he took a sip, eyes half-lidding like it was the greatest thing he had ever experienced.

You exhaled. “You’re welcome, Choso.”

Gojo, still wheezing, turned to Yuji. “You have to let me know how this plays out.”

You just stared at Choso, who was still enjoying his latte like nothing had happened, wondering how your life had spiraled into this.

"Alright," Gojo said, standing up and stretching like he’d been working hard at sitting down. "We’ll be back!"

You had never heard a more ominous sentence in your life.

Nanami placed a few bills on the counter—far more than necessary—and gave you a knowing look, like he already pitied your future.

You watched the four of them leave, took a long breath, and checked the time.

Somehow, you still had four hours left on your shift.

Great.

[depression-napping]

Topics of Vincent

(Your resident translator was on a plane and had plenty of time to do some work so here we go with the second page of his profile ❤️)

This is long so content is under the cut

1) 身体に秘めたる魔獣の因子

The factor of the magical beasts hidden in his body

ヴィンセントはその体内に魔獣の因子を宿しており、ガリアンビーストに変身する能力を持つ。変身後は、俊敏さと力強さを兼ね備えた、文字どおり人間離れした動きが可能となる一方で、理性を失って暴走するため、肉体にはかなりの負荷がかかってしまう模様。ヴィンセントが睡眠に多くの時間を割くのは、特殊な体質のせいなのかもしれない。

Because of the factor that Vincent houses magical beasts within his body, he has the ability to transform into Galian Beast. After transforming, he gains the ability to move with both speed and strength that is literally superhuman. At the same time, his rational mind gives way to wild rampaging, and it seems to take quite a toll on his body. The fact that Vincent spares a lot of time sleeping may be due to the peculiar nature of his physical make-up.

2) 新しめの機械には弱い？

Is he bad with new technology?

ヴィンセントは、電源が入っていないカードリーダーを故障していると思い込み、起動させられずに四苦八苦*するなど、機械のあつかいには不慣れな様子を見せる。とはいえ、機械全般にわけではなく、タイニーブロンコに搭載された旧式の無線機は難なく使いこなしており、どちらかといえば古めの機械のほうがなじみがあるようだ。

Vincent has the mistaken impression that the card reader doesn’t work as it’s lacking a power source, and the device not activating seems to cause him all manner of distress*. [Please see the footnote this phrase is amazing] It seems he is inexperienced with handling such devices. Even so, it doesn’t mean he is generally bad with all technology per se, as he was able to easily handle the wireless radio on the Tiny Bronco. That is to say, he seems to be more familiar with older machines.

(*I just want to talk about this phrase 四苦八苦. It almost sent me into hysterics. It’s pronounced “shikuhakku” and it means great distress, but literally translates to “four and eight kinds of suffering.” It’s another idiomatic expression with Buddhist roots that refers to “birth, old age, disease, death, parting from loved ones, meeting disliked ones, not getting what one seeks,” and so on. Basically a summary of his life so far, minus the old age. But the fact that they used this term specifically to talk about his distress at newfangled technology just sent me. Literally you can read this as “modern technology causes him four and eight kinds of suffering.” Like the rest of what he’s gone through isn’t 四苦八苦? But the card reader not working is. I’m dead ya’ll. Like. Vincent needs this on a shirt. I need this on a shirt.)

3) Original VII Playback (Vincent Summary)

仲間に加えるかどうかを任意で選べるキャラクターながら、セフィロスや宝条と深い因縁があり、物語の背景を知るうえでは重要な役どころだった。関連作品のひとつ「Dirge of Cerberus -FFVII-」���は主人公を務める。

The player can choose whether to befriend Vincent as he is an optional character. Since he has a deep connection to Sephiroth and Hojo, viewed in the context of the game’s background story, the role he plays is essential. He takes on the role of the main character in the related game, Dirge of Cerberus.

「フ… 悪夢にうなされる長き眠りこそ

私に与えられたつぐないの時間」

“Hmph… my long, nightmare-laden sleep has given me time to atone…”

(Picture captions)

追い詰められると、咆哮とともに赤黒いオーラをまとい、凶暴性さらに増す。

When pushed to the wall, with a loud roar, clad in a dark red aura, his savage nature increases further.

壊れた思ったものを叩いたり振ったりして直そうとするあたりは、どことなく前世代的。

When he tries to fix something he thought was broken by hitting and shaking it, somehow it seems like he’s from another generation.

[historicity-was-already-taken]

Short question: Do you have any tips for turning "If you knew anything about the Holocaust, you'd know why we need Israel" from a conversation ender into a conversation starter? Longer context: I find it important, as a Jewish anarchist and anti-Zionist, to try my best to have hard conversations about safety and perceptions thereof with irl Jewish family, friends, and acquaintances. My politics make me an outlier in these spaces, as does my status as a convert, which I choose to be quite open about. I cannot begin to estimate how many people self-righteously cut short these conversations with "If you knew ANYTHING about [the Holocaust/antisemitism/generational trauma] you'd UNDERSTAND why we REALLY NEED [medinat yisrael/any jewish ethnostate/colonial zionism]". I'm under no illusion that I'm a scholar on the history of antisemitism or Jewish living patterns or the Levant or anything. I've taken one college-level course on Nazi Germany policy and beaucratic shit, but it intentionally dealt minimally with the pointy end of the death machine. I've taken two year-long Judaism 101 style classes, which of course dealt with the history of the Jewish people. I read relevant nonfiction, both books and essays. I also understand that being a convert gives me a very different personal history with the intergenerational trauma, and I want to be super respect of that. So overall I consider myself reasonably well informed, but I obviously can't respond to them with the "I know more than you" card. (Not that that would be a good way to handle it, but still.) I want to talk to people, who use this specific argumentative tactic, about what it means that our very legitimate traumas as a people led us to the point of producing our own little ethnostate (with a number of very paternalistic inputs from European nations of course). About how the shoah shaped modern zionism. About the biblical Joshua vs the archaeological evidence of that time period and what it means for our national/societal identities. About the haftarah in which israel demands a king and whether being just like the other nations has ever been lastingly good for literally anyone. But unanimously, people look at me like I'm the fool for going "yeah actually let's talk about history and fear and trauma and cultural legacies and (re)interpretation" instead of like. Applauding their sick burn about how clearly naïve I am. Do you, a Real Actual Holocaust Scholar, have a way to turn that "obviously you know nothing" accusation into a productive conversation? If so can you please share because I am losing my mind over here.

NOTE TO READERS: I'm going to speak frankly about stuff that goes down in the American Jewish community, as a lifelong and active MEMBER of that community. This is not fodder for any of your anti-Semitic bullshit and I'm deeply uninterested in Gentile Thoughts on what I'm about to write. You do not have my consent to weaponize anything you read here against Jews you encounter here, or elsewhere, regardless of their politics.

Oof ok. I have some answers, but you may not like them. First, politics within the Jewish community. I love that you're a convert and I respect your dedication and hard work; I'm sure you know much more about the Jewish faith than I do. However, as you know, Judaism is both a religion and an ethnic group/identity. And there are a lot of religious and secular Jews who chafe at the feeling of being told how they should and should not feel about Israel by a convert who does not share our heritage and experience of intergenerational trauma. Especially if they're over 60.

I also want to tell you that when members of our community, particularly individuals over 60 years of age, have their minds made up about Israel, Zionism, etc, they're not interested in valid historical takes from experts. Their minds are made up and they reject any information counter to their stance, and attack the person providing them with the info. I've been personally attacked here and elsewhere by our people for bringing up historical and archaeological issues which run counter to their arguments. I've had my intellect and education and abilities mocked, while I'm out here voluntarily traumatizing myself through my dedication to the study of Holocaust history.

Another issue, is that Jewish history is deeply interwoven in our observance, faith, and heritage. This gives individuals involved at various levels with the Jewish community the idea that they Know Jewish History. They don't. They know a version of the Jewish past specifically constructed by and within our communal spaces; see Zakhor by Hayim Yerushalmi. And a lot of them, especially if they're a man over 50 and you're a woman who reads as young, get real nasty if you assert vaster and more accurate knowledge. It's kind of similar to how people in our communities think that they Know Holocaust History because they read Night and Grandma was a survivor. But those things don't mean that they know Holocaust history--it means they've engaged with two first-hand accounts.

I'm going to advise you to stop trying with these people. I know that's not the answer you want, and I'm really sorry about that. But, the types of people you're engaging with are so deeply traumatized and set in their own defensive views, that they would never listen to me, a Jewish granddaughter of Holocaust refugees and academically trained Holocaust historian. And if they won't listen to me, they sure as hell won't listen to someone they view as an outsider to the Jewish historical experience.

You'd be better off engaging members of your community who are still learning and figuring everything out, discussing your views as equals who are learning from one another, and putting your energies towards Jewish organizations who do not need convincing of your perspective.

ETA: this is something that will only likely change over the course of generations. the traumas of the holocaust are still fresh and living in the minds of survivors, their Baby Boomer children, and their millennial grandchildren; and I'm saying that as one of those millennial grandchildren. The trauma-induced view that Israel is our shield against the Holocaust ever happening again will not change because of anything you or I might say. It will only begin to fade into new paradigms of thought when we are many more years removed from living memory of those events.

[commodorez]

What is the appeal of vintage computers to you? Is it the vintage video games or is it the programs? If so, what kind of programs do you like to run on them?

Fair warning, we're talking about a subject I've been passionate about for most of my life, so this will take a minute. The answer ties into how I discovered the hobby, so we'll start with a few highlights:

I played old video games starting when I was 9 or 10.

I became fascinated with older icons buried within Windows.

Tried to play my first video game (War Eagles) again at age 11, learned about the hardware and software requirements being way different than anything I had available (a Pentium III-era Celeron running Windows ME)

I was given a Commodore 1541 by a family friend at age ~12.

Watched a documentary about the history of computers that filled in the gaps between vague mentions of ENIAC and punch cards, and DOS/Windows machines (age 13).

Read through OLD-COMPUTERS.COM for the entire summer immediately after that.

Got my first Commodore 64 at age 14.

I mostly fell into the hobby because I wanted to play old video games, but ended up not finding a ton of stuff that I really wanted to play. Instead, the process of using the machines, trying the operating system, appreciating the aesthetic, the functional design choices of the user experience became the greater experience. Oh, and fixing them.

Then I started installing operating systems on some DOS machines, or playing with odd peripherals, and customizing hardware to my needs. Oh, and programming! Mostly in BASIC on 8-bit hardware, but tinkering with what each computer could do is just so fascinating to me. I'm in control, and there isn't much of anything between what I write and the hardware carrying it out (especially on pre-Windows machines)! No obfuscation layers, run-times, .dlls, etc. Regardless of the system, BASIC is always a first choice for me. Nova, Ohio Scientific, Commodore, etc. I usually try to see what I can do with the available BASIC dialect and hardware. I also tend to find a game or two to try, especially modern homebrew Commodore games because that community is always creating something new. PC stuff I focus more on pre-made software of the era.

Just to name a few examples from a variety of systems: Tetris, terminal emulators, Command & Conquer titles, screen savers, War Eagles, Continuum, video capture software, Atomic Bomberman, demos, LEGO Island, Bejeweled clones, Commander Keen 1-3, lunar lander, Galaxian, sinewave displays, 2048, Pacman, mandelbrot sets, war dialers, paint -- I could keep going.

Changing gears, I find it funny how often elders outside of the vintage computing community would talk about the era I'm interested in (60s-early 90s). [spoken with Mr. Regular's old man voice]: "Well, computers used to be big as a room! And we used punch cards, and COBOL!" I didn't know what any of that meant, and when pressed for technical detail they couldn't tell you anything substantial. Nobody conveyed any specifics beyond "that's what we used!"

I noticed that gaps remained in how that history was presented to me, even when university-level computer science and history professors were engaged on the subject. I had to go find it on my own. History is written by the victors, yeah? When was the last time a mainstream documentary or period piece focused on someone other than an Apple or Microsoft employee? Well, in this case, you can sidestep all that and see it for yourself if you know where to look.

Experiencing the history first hand to really convey how computers got from point A to B all the way down to Z is enlightening. What's cool is that unlike so many other fields of history, it's near enough in time that we can engage with people who were there, or better yet, made it happen! Why do you think I like going to vintage computer festivals?

We can see the missteps, the dead-ends, the clunkiness, the forgotten gems and lost paradigms, hopefully with context of why it happened. For the things we can't find more information on, when or documentation and perspectives are limited, sometimes we have to resort to digital archeology, and reverse engineering practices to save data, fix machines, and learn how they work. The greater arc of computer history fascinates me, and I intend to learn about it by fixing and using the computers that exemplify it best, and sharing that passion with others who might enjoy it.

[witchyintention]

So You Found a Deity—Now What?

Worship, Work With, Honor, or Venerate? Let’s Break It Down

We’ve all been there. You’re deep in your craft, casually stirring your tea clockwise for prosperity, and suddenly—boom—an energy shows up. A dream, a nudge, a name that keeps popping up. Maybe it’s Hekate, or Odin, or The Morrigan, or a local spirit you can’t quite name yet. You feel the call... but what now?

Do you worship them? Work with them? Honor them? Venerate them? Is there a form to fill out? (Just kidding. Kind of.)

Let’s demystify the divine dynamics.

Worship: Bowing with Reverence

Worship is the most formal and traditional of the bunch. Think temples, rituals, prayers, altars, and offerings designed to show reverence and devotion. It’s the language of religion—whether ancient or modern—and often includes:

Structured prayer or praise

Ritual offerings and feast days

Seeing the deity as supreme or greater than yourself

You might worship a deity if they are your patron/matron, a central figure in your personal cosmology, or if you come from a religious background that already involves this type of relationship (like Hellenism or Kemeticism).

Key Vibe: “You are divine, and I revere you with loyalty and devotion.”

Working With: Co-Creating with Consent

This is the freelancer-gig economy of deity relationships. Working with a deity is more like entering a partnership. You may not see them as a god above all, but you respect their domain and ask for their help on specific tasks.

Calling on Aphrodite for love work? That’s working with.

Asking Hermes for protection during travel? That’s working with.

This usually involves:

Rituals with a purpose

Offerings as payment or thanks

A mutual exchange of energy

You might not worship this deity daily—but you build a respectful working relationship. Boundaries are key, and consent from both sides is a must.

Key Vibe: “You’re powerful in this area. Let’s collaborate.”

Honoring: Recognition Without Expectation

Honoring a deity is like giving someone flowers without asking for anything back. It’s respect, gratitude, and attention, especially during key dates or festivals.

You might:

Light a candle in their name

Add a token to your altar

Mention them in prayer or meditation

Observe their feast day even if they’re not in your personal pantheon

This is common when you have ancestral deities, cultural gods, or deities you feel affinity for but don’t actively worship or work with.

Key Vibe: “I see you. I respect you. Thank you for existing.”

Veneration: Ancestor-Level Honor

Veneration is closely tied to ancestor worship and cultural heritage. It’s often used when talking about spirits, saints, and older gods in more traditional, often polytheistic systems. To venerate is to elevate someone through ritual and memory—to keep their name alive, even if you’re not “working” with them actively.

This includes:

Shrine maintenance

Periodic offerings

Speaking their name in reverence

Retelling their myths or stories

In many traditions (especially Hellenic, Roman, Slavic, and others), veneration is a communal act that connects the present with the past.

Key Vibe: “You are sacred. Your legacy lives through my actions.”

So What’s the Right Way?

Here’s the secret: there’s no one-size-fits-all way to relate to a deity. You might worship one, work with another, honor a few, and venerate your ancestral spirits. All are valid. All are powerful. What matters is that you’re clear in your intentions, respectful in your approach, and honest about your needs and capacity.

And if you’re unsure where you stand? Start small. Light a candle. Speak aloud. Journal your experiences. Divine with your cards. Let the relationship grow like any other—organically, with trust and communication.

Remember: The gods aren’t vending machines. They’re not customer service agents. They are forces, stories, memories, and entities that demand more than a trendy hashtag. But when you build that relationship? It’s like opening a door to something vast, wild, and beautifully old.

Whatever path you choose—worship, work with, honor, or venerate—walk it with intention. And maybe offer them a cup of tea now and then. The divine loves a good brew.

[techav]

On Documenting History

I've mentioned a couple times before that the first computer I really got to use was the Sanyo MBC-1000, a Z80-based CP/M machine. In the greater picture it was a largely forgettable machine with little to differentiate it from its competitors. Which is pretty much what has happened. There are a few units sitting in museums and the odd Reddit post of someone acquiring one, but not much real information.

So last year I started taking a closer look at the machine I grew up with to try to learn what I could about how it works. And in the interest of preservation and education, I've pushed my notes to a GitHub repository.

There is much more work to be done, but so far I've made an entry-level attempt at reverse-engineering & annotating a disassembly of the boot ROM, documented all of the components on the main logic board, documented the expansion card specifications including modeling the slot and mounting brackets in freecad as well as the board outline in kicad. I've also made an effort to reverse engineer a schematic for the serial expansion card — which as far as I am currently aware is the only official expansion card that was ever produced.

I plan to continue adding notes to this repository as I learn more about this machine. It may not have made any significant historical impact, but it was a solid machine that was more than capable of doing some serious work. I believe it can still teach us something and deserves to be remembered.

I do have a secondary motive for taking such a detailed look at this machine though — at some point in the last 20 years we misplaced the box containing its boot disks and other software. I have found an old Teledisk image of an MBC-1000 boot disk which does appear to have all of the important CP/M components (like the disk format utility, sysgen, and assembler), but there is no guarantee it will work. Beyond that, its floppy drives were never terribly reliable and out-of-production magnetic media does not have much life left anyway. I want to come up with some way to attach a modern storage device to the machine to breathe new life into it (a Gotek would probably be easiest since it uses standard Shugart floppy drives, but I would love to come up with a way to give it an SD card interface or something like that). All this information will be useful for developing anything new for this machine.

[tgrailwar-zero]

... leaving aside the fact that some Servants have categorically, measurably better luck than others... do we even have enough cash to blow on gambling?

... is there a signup fee for the Flaming Bout or can we just put out hat in the ring?

.... Caster, Caster, dear beloved empress, why did you make me think about gambling- now I wanna test my luck... the slot machines are calling to me... the poker tables are calling to me... the roulette wheels- well maybe not the roulette wheels, but...

Rider, please be a voice of reason on this...

NERO: "I cannot relate to those urges that you and Saber seem to have. I only like games of chance if I win. Who wishes to lose money? Money is to be spent, not wasted."

CONSTANTINE: "I get the feeling there's no stopping you all. I'll watch the little one and wait in the lobby, maybe ask around. Don't spend too much in one place, like you said we don't know if there's an entrance fee yet. Just… be careful."

CONSTANTINE: "Not a bad idea. I'll see what I can find related to our Pharaoh, and keep the little one with me. I'd rather the child not get caught up in the gambling."

MUSASHI: "I'll keep them safe, okay?"

CONSTANTINE: "Oh, like it's just them I'm worried about? You stay out of trouble too, Saber."

With that, he stepped off on his own, taking the little guy by the hands.

(CONSTANTINE has temporarily left the party!)

She feigned a deep gasp, as if gravely offended.

MUSASHI: "I don't cheat, I strategize. And I'm better at swordfighting. Playing cards would be fun, but I probably couldn't pull a ton off without a plan first. Or... what's it they say in modern movies? 'Casing the joint'?"

That was about right. The voice matched up.

Your Assassin, OKADA IZOU...

ASSASSIN... he was surly, loyal to a fault, and had horrible gambling luck. Far from the most heroic of individuals, but he wasn't an unpleasant person to be around-- when he was in a good mood at least.

He was also notoriously bad at gambling, and yet notoriously obsessed with it, if your memory served you right.

Outside of the 'black box' prison, he had also died at the hands of KARNA after killing ASCLEPIUS, but considering those memories were much less clear, it was best to remember the good times like 'Grail Force'.

IZOU was a blade, coated with blood and grime, but as effective as even the most luxurious of swords.

Approaching the table, you could see that he wasn't in the best of moods or situations.

IZOU: "Hey… mind loaning me a few bucks? Not a lot, just enough so I can afford this blind..."

GAUDY MAN: "Wahahaha! Why? What's the fun in winning my own cash back?"

GAUDY MAN: "However, if you really think you can pay me back… I'll loan it, with interest."

IZOU: "You're downright criminal, you know that?"

GAUDY MAN: "Come on, what if you win this time? And win big too, so that you actually turn a profit."

IZOU: "Bastard…"

Despite his cursing, you could already see him rummaging around in his wallet.

GAUDY MAN: "Attaboy. You need to spend money to make money, my friend. And see? Your goodwill has been rewarded by a couple of beautiful women and their pet ominous shadow gracing our presence."

They seemed to have noticed your arrival, looking up from the table as you, NERO, and MUSASHI approached.

OKADA IZOU, abruptly stood up, pointing in your direction. Or, more specifically, in MUSASHI's direction.

IZOU: "Saber? Saber, if that ain't you! Long time no see! I could never forget a pretty face like yours!"

It seems like he didn't pay much attention to you at the moment. You weren't exactly sure what you looked like previously, so there was a solid chance he just didn't recognize you.

MUSASHI: "I didn't think you'd be here, Assassin. How are things?"

IZOU: "Ah, the summonin' is a new deal. But... Say, do you and your rich-looking friend have some PPT you can loan an old pal? I swear I'm good for it."

MUSASHI: "Straight to asking for money? Assassin… take the war out of the picture and you're just sort of a slimeball, huh?"

IZOU: "C'mon, you're breakin' my heart here."

NERO: "As far as men go, I'd opt to call them both unsavory in very different ways."

GAUDY MAN: "Well, 'Assassin', don't just start up a conversation without introducing me. Especially in the company of such lovely ladies and their... well, dark and looming bodyguard, I presume?"

The man by IZOU spoke up, lightly clapping the Assassin on the back. He had a roguishly charismatic air about him, and seemed as slick as he was strong. He had the eyes of a schemer, similarly to CASTER.

DURYODHANA: "My name is Duryodhana, a pleasure. Though, when I grace the battlefield, the crowds have taken to calling me 'Jishnu'. It means 'Triumphant', where I hail from. I know, I know, it's a lot, but what can I say? The people call it as they see it."

MUSASHI: "Nice to meet you. You can just call me 'Saber', for now."

NERO: "I am Emperor Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus. Though Emperor Nero will suffice."

DURYODHANA: "An Emperor? Well, how about that? I'm royalty myself! How about some drinks for our new friends? I've come into quite a windfall recently thanks to my swordsman friend here, you see. Hahahahaha!"

DURYODHANA flagged down some of the waitstaff as he cackled heartily, as IZOU placed a hand on his blade, smiling wickedly.

IZOU: "Oh, fuck off… I'll kill you, you know? Stab you right through that exposed gut."

DURYODHANA: "I'd love to see you try."

The two men, the former with the eyes of a killer and the latter with the glare of a demon, stared at one another.

There was a moment of tension where you really thought they actually would slaughter each other in the middle of this casino, before they both laughed and clinked their drinks together.

[siryouarebeingmocked]

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse: I may have activated my own trap card

Spoilers for a movie that's two months old and also out on home release.

So, Miles, Gwen, Pavitr (Spider-India), and Hobie (Spider-Punk) all seem to have modern left-wing politics, though Gwen's got edited out. Hobie's introduction specifically says he hates "fascists", which carries over from the original comics.

By the time Hobie came around, I assumed he was just another poser, cooler than the hero rival character, expressing generic leftie politics, and his punk ethos wasn't sincere.

Which is exactly what the writers wanted me to think.

Not only is Hobie perfectly sincere about being anti-authoritarian, but he's been helping Miles since before they even met. He's been blatantly stealing junk from the Spider Society to build his own universe-jumping watch, and disguising it as petty vandalism.

He even tries to talk Miles out of trying to join the Spider-Society before the reveal that Miles himself is an anomaly, and the SS (geddit?) tries to detain Miles.

When Hobie says he's against authoritarianism, he really means it.

Speaking of the left-wing politics, Miles has a "#BLM" pin on his bag. It's very visible while he sits next to his dad.

Who's a cop.

(TANGENT: A few years ago, someone drew a stupid, very bad comic where Spider-Man (Peter Parker) was a) black, b) hated cops, and c) assaulted and subdued riot cops when they asked him for help.

That the comic didn't even show the riot cops were wrong. We were just supposed to assume they deserve to be left to the mercy of an angry mob.

Also, in this comic, Uncle Ben was killed by a cop, not a random thug who Spidey could've stopped but chose not to. Which makes me wonder how that would shake out.

It's kind of weird for someone to look at a character who's about personal responsibility to an unhealthy degree, and use him to express their collectivist anti-cop terrorism fantasies. That, or they didn't think through their fantasies.)

During Spider-India's opening, Miles says "I love Chai Tea!" And Pavitr goes on a rant about how "Chai" means "tea". Later on, The Spot says he's been on a "journey of self-discovery", and Pavitr basically says he's racist.

Which is a tad ironic, because Spot is literally white. And also because Pavitr is the one making the racist assumptions.

And I personally go to a church - in England - that has a lot of non-white non-British people. Mostly Africans. And me, of course. I wonder if any Asians ever went on a journey of self discovery to South London.

And I don't just mean as a cab driver.

"Wait, SYABM, didn't you move to the UK for self-discovery?"

W-well, yes, partially.

Aside: I made the mistake of watching a Youtube video with the Chai Tea joke, and then I looked at the comments.

One guy said "tfw when Twitter users write a movie". An idiot (with much more upvotes) said "bro out here wanting blatant racism in movies".

...When the whole point of the joke is that the racism is not blatant.

It's only "blatant" if you're insufferably Twitterized. There are loads of redundant phrasings in English, like "ATM machine", and words often shift when they're adopted from other languages.

Also, "I dislike this joke" is not the same as "I want racism in this movie", when the "racism" in the movie is only there so it could be mocked.

One of the issues with putting real world movements in worlds that are drastically different - it's one of the main selling points of the franchise - is that it may seem odd that those movements exist in very similar form to the IRL version.

For example, Miles supports BLM in both his video game, and this. Which makes me think "did Trayvon Martin get shot in Florida? How about Mike Brown? Wouldn't the existence of supervillains throw things into a new perspective?"

Did I mention the giant George Floyd-style "REST IN POWER" mural to Miles' dead uncle? I cringed at that in the Wakanda Forever trailer, and I rolled my eyes at it here.

Floyd wasn't a saintly martyr, he was an unlucky violent thug.

Also, Aaron was a supervillain killed by another bad guy who nearly destroyed the city, not a cop.

Also, this is at a party to celebrate how Miles' dad is about to be promoted. Assuming Floyd died and the 2020 protests/riots also happened in Miles' universe, then it seems a tad tasteless to have a mural inspired by an anti-cop movement overlooking it, even if the party is not full of cops.

Spider-India lives in "Mumbattan".

The people who settled the Manhattan area were originally Indian. But the other type of Indian. The Indians we're not supposed to call Indians anymore.

The name "Manhattan" is even Native American.

The first permanent settlement was Dutch. Then the English got it. I guess the English could've shipped Indians to the other side of the world and eventually ceded the area to them, or maybe in this world India was a world-conquering superpower and Mumbattan is the result of...importing Native Americans?

Which would make Pavitr's complaint that "the British stole all of our stuff and put it in their museums" seem a tad hypocritical.

Of course, since I wrote all that, someone reminded me that Pavitr explicitly says the joint is in India.

"SYABM," you say, "you're overthinking this."

Yes, I am. Because the filmmakers didn't think it through. If you want to use ha-ha-funny to make a serious point, you invite examination of that point.

Miles (as Spidey) now works with his dad, though he disguises his voice. At one point, Miles tells his father that men bottle up mental health issues.

This is true (and ironic, considering Miles is hiding who he is from Jeff), but it's not the first time I've seen some progressive work try to address men's issues in an very awkward way. At least here, it's played for comedy.

Also, seems a tad hypocritical coming from a guy who wears a "#BLM" pin in the presence of his cop father.

Also, if you work the timeline, that would mean Miles was about 7 or 6 when BLM started. Which means he's gone most of his life knowing nothing else.

There was a controversy over a "protect trans kids" trans flag in Gwen's room, which was apparently edited out.

IMO, it seems a tad strange for a girl who feels estranged from everyone in her world to join a social movement, but what do I know? Maybe it was there before then.

Some people came to the extremely logical conclusion that Gwen herself is trans. Even though she's distinctly physically feminine and possibly too young for puberty blockers depending on Earth 65′s laws.

Like the "oh great, it's Liv" shippers, people are reaching really hard to see what they want to see.

Some people have said that Gwen's issues with her dad and herself seem awfully similar to the issues LGBTQIA2S+ kids go through.

Gee, it's not like, y'know, feeling estranged from one's family is a common theme in fiction about teenagers and superhero, and the whole "superpowers = minority" thing has been done to death for most of the past century.

Perhaps most notably - and clumsily - in X-Men.

I'm not saying this wasn't the intended subtext. I'm saying if it was, it would just be really, really cliche.

There's this recurring theme of people telling miles "how [his] story is supposed to go".

When he's at a meeting with his parents and his guidance counselor, the lady says his story of being a black-Latino son of an immigrant would sound great in the college application letters. His mom is a tad miffed, given that they're a) solidly middle class, and b) as a Puerto Rican, she considers herself American.

Miguel (Spider-Man 2099) doesn't want Miles in the multiversal council of Spiders, because Miles was bitten by the radioactive spider from a different universe. Which is why his local Spider-Man died, and the spider's home dimension has no Spider-Man.

Also, Miguel is fixated on "canon events". The idea that there are certain things, especially tragedies, that have to happen to Spiders, or their entire universe falls apart.

And he knows this, because he tried to take over for a version of him that got shot dead by a thug. Tried to raise his daughter.

And he watched as the universe collapsed in front of him.

So he's projecting his own guilt onto Miles, a tad.

According to TVtropes and other sources, this was actually about the people who didn't accept Miles as a replacement Spidey, possibly out of racism.

Yeah, that's real hard-hitting topical meta-commentary about a character who debuted 12 years ago. 8 years when the first movie came out.

I'd also like to point out that despite stereotypes of comic book fans, certain minority successors to banner superheros have been fairly well-received. Like Jaime Reyes, or Cassandra Cain.

(Note: I wrote that before the Blue Beetle movie came out. And flopped.)

And, of course, loads of people like Miles specifically because he's a minority Spidey, which is also racist, just from the other direction. In fact, a lot of his fans seem to forget the "Latino" part of "Afro-Latino". From what little I've seen of Miles early comics, they did actually put strong emphasis on his race.

I also suspect the filmmakers may be misinterpreting the usual successor knee-jerk reactions

as racism. If you're using an established brand name for your new hero, you're creating some expectations.

Also, you know the most popular meme about regular Spidey that I see? That Marvel's writers just keep making him suffer and don't want him to actually develop. Which would kinda make Marvel closer to Team Miguel than Team Miles.

Miles also gripes that Miguel is letting "some algorithm" tell him what to do. While I agree with the sentiment, I'd like to point out that, again, Miles supports BLM.

A movement popularized by an algorithm.

A movement made up of narratives and assumptions.

A movement which has never proven a single incident was because of racism.

During the big chase scene, we see a Spider girl in a wheelchair, aka Sun-Spider. She's from the comics. Same initiative that gave us "Web-Weaver".

Who is, of course, an extremely effete gay fashion designer Spidey. I kinda like his outfit, though the Spider-eyes with eyelashes is a little too far.

And Sun-Spider seems exactly like a character a stereotypical 90s executive and focus group would come up with. Down to the backward baseball cap.

(Turns out she's Dayn Broder's actual Spider-Sona.)

Also, while I was looking up that one black and white Spider who said "nowhere to run" (Metro-Spider, played by record producer Metro Boomin [/sic]), I found out that Aunt May's full name is "Maybelle", not just "May". TIL.

There's a bit of a double standard with this version of Spider-Woman, who's black and pregnant. -People in the movie - including Peter B - regularly point out how Peter B endangering his infant daughter Mayday by taking her along with him. But for some reason, nobody says a word about Jessica, who's an active-duty stunt-biking superhero.

Even regular motorbiking can be dangerous for pregnant women.

In fact, the movie portrays this as heroic and impressive. When Gwen sees  Jess is preggos, she asks if Jess can adopt her.

Not to mention the whole "afro and hoop earrings" thing, which seem like a bad idea for a type of hero who often gets into melee combat, even with Spider-Sense.

Yes, I'm aware that female heroes, including the Spider-Ladies, often have exposed hair. It's a genre convention. Incidentally, it was nice to see Batwoman wore a detachable decoy wig in the comics. Some bad guy tries to grab it in a fight? It comes right off.

Also, Jess doesn't have much actual character.

Being pregnant is not a character trait. In fact, her only real traits are basically "cool but stern sassy mentor", to contrast with Peter B. -Incidentally, someone on TVtropes pointed out the double standard. And when I saw the page again, a page-camper had deleted it, with no explanation.

Guess they couldn't stand someone pointing out the flaws of their waifu.

(One) Spider-UK in this movie is Muslim. I know she's Muslim because she wears a Spider-themed headdress. Note that regular Marvel 616 has a muslim lady Spider-UK, but her name is Zarina Zahari and she doesn't wear a hijabi.

(Also, she could be mistaken for Ms. Marvel.)

ms marvel.jpg

You might be thinking "wait, isn't a headdress impractical in a melee fight? Doesn't it give your enemy something to grab?" Yes, it is.

But so are Jess's earrings, afro, and being pregnant, so clearly there's a lot of artistic license going on.

Maybe it's partially tearaway, like Batman's cape.

I gotta wonder about the religious rules of wearing a head covering over a mask that *already* covers your entire head. Did she go see her imam and go "Okay, I have a really weird question..."

Come to think, Spidey is usually slim, but a lot of lady Spideys in this movie seemed to have wide hips. Including muscular ladies. Kris Anka's concept art goes really hard on wide hips. I don't know why. Stronger, faster character reads during the big chase?

I guess Spiders could be expected to have strong legs.

BOTTOM LINE:

I liked the movie overall, though the progressive bits made me roll my eyes a little. I...want to see the third one, with reservations.

[leejenowrld]

I've been so caught up in the whirlwind of Love Me Back wrapping up and the introduction of Back To You, I've completely forgotten to wish the best friends congratulations on getting their new place! 🏀🥳🥳🎶

A new beginning calls for a celebration, so what do you think each character (Y/N, Jeno, Donghyuck, Chenle, etc) would bring as a housewarming gift? What would you gift them?🎁

(And of course sending my favorite author all the love and good vibes 💖💖💖)

thank you!!!!! and yes, it’s a huge deal. mark and his best friend have literally saved and planned to move into a nice and expensive apartment since they were like 12 (yes, the apartment is rich) and they finally reached that goal <3 so happy for them and oh my god, i love this question so much—thank you for asking!! also this is canon so this is what every character brought:

y/n — she brought something meaningful and thoughtful; a framed photo collage of their favorite memories together. she also made a beautifully curated gift basket with little things she knows mark and his best friend both love—fancy snacks, candles, and a little note just for mark saying, “our place next?”

also y/n specifically gifted mark a custom-made wall art piece—a simple, modern design of a basketball court with the coordinates of the river court subtly incorporated into the print. it’s sleek enough to match the apartment’s vibe but deeply personal to him. she even included a note tucked behind the frame:

“this apartment is a new start, but i wanted you to have a little piece of where it all began. every win, every loss, and everything that brought you here—it’s all part of the place you’ll make your own now. love you always.”

mark’s gift to his best friend — mark gave her something thoughtful and nostalgic. a scrapbook filled with photos, mementos, and notes from their years of friendship—concert tickets, polaroids from high school, even silly things like wrappers from their favorite snacks. he’d wrote little captions under each photo, poking fun at her but also reminding her how much she means to him. the final page has a handwritten message

“we’ve been dreaming of this place since we were kids, and now it’s real. i couldn’t have done it without you. here’s to more chaos, more laughs, and more memories in this apartment. just… don’t kill me for the dishes, okay?”

mark’s best friend’s gift to him — it was something meaningful but also practical—a custom-designed shelf to hold all his records and guitars. it’s super sleek and modern, perfectly fitting the vibe of their apartment. she included a small plaque engraved on the side, reading “for all your noise”—a teasing nod to their years of putting up with each other.

jeno — jeno did overthink his gift a bit because of the tension with mark’s best friend. but he settled on a high-quality coffee machine and a very expensive dinner set, something neutral but useful, mark made him give the gift to his best friend and their faces were like this :/ so indifferent and awkward lmao

karina — karina brought two gifts, first a joke gift, bold, sparkly, and hilariously inappropriate. a neon sign that says “hot mess express.” she just wanted them both to think of her when looking at it lmao. but her serious gift was a massive cookbook from around the world. mark was super excited :))

donghyuck — donghyuck came with a karaoke machine and loads of party games and board games, he broke it out that same night and turned the housewarming into an unforgettable party. the apartment is a centric for all of the friends so they defo have cute movie nights and game nights

chenle — chenle kept it classy and brought a bottle of expensive champagne, along with a gift card to a luxury furniture store, telling mark and his best friend “your taste might need help.” he teased them the entire time but meant it all with love.

ningning — ningning brought something super aesthetic, a collection of chic throw pillows and blankets to make the space feel cozy. she added a hand-written card wishing them all the happiness and fun in their new home.

thank you so much for this question—it was so fun imagining what each character would bring and what it says about them. you’ve truly sparked my imagination with this one! 🎁 also sending you good vibes and love too ml <3

[sp1c3-r4ck-synd1c4t3]

Eldrazi will be the next major antagonist

This is just my own called shot. I will be looking back at this in ~a year and a half to see if I'm right, but I have evidence. I have. Some evidence.

Part 1: Data

I am going to use War of the Spark and March of the Machine as examples, and will assume their models are accurate to Ziplining, the climax event-set of the current arc.

Let's start with War of the Spark. This set had 31 months of "Foreshadow-time", which starts when the first Macguffin is loaded. Kaladesh set this in place with Tezzeret's presence, and the Planar Bridge he stole. I believe Tezzeret's presence was intentional, not just as "an" antagonist, but specifically Bolas' pawn. After that plot beat, it would take almost another year to see the true next step, in Bolas' army of Eternals. 31 months from first contact, 21 months from phase 2. Moving onto the Phyrexian arc, now that we know what we're looking for, we can find the first two teasers of Phyrexia's presence. The first is obvious, with Vorinclex on Kaldhiem, 27 months before MOM, similar to the number gained from the first examination. It would take a full year for this beat to be continued, with Jin-Gitaxis on Kamigawa, giving us 15 months pre-climax, which is definitely a much smaller time-frame, but hey, data is data.

With this information, we can make some reasonable estimations. Ziplining wants between 31-27 months of heads-up between its first foreshadow and its release. Its slotted to come out in Spring 2026, meaning that its first mention should have been during....... March of the Machine.

Hm. If we all rack our brains, maybe we can come up with something that happened in the Phyrexia arc that might've disturbed something that lives in the Blind Eternities...

Part 2: Story

This section starts my more outlandish speculations that will make me look truly foolish in 2 years time.

So, if we continue the pattern of first foreshadow->followup a year later, we would need something that tells the audience what's going on.

You remember Modern Horizons back in 2019? Well its funny, that set was built from the ground up! There was barely any thematic consistency between the cards except for draft archetypes. There were only a few premium Slivers, there just to spice up a limited deck. And the same holds true for Modern Horizons 2, there's even less consistency, each deck is going to feature cards with vastly different flavours!

And then came Modern Horizons 3, themed not around generically powerful cards, but around Eldrazi. Not new Eldrazi mind you, but

Time for crazy theory #1: What if the focus on Eldrazi in MH3 was in order to show the old kind of Eldrazi, so that we would be wowed by the new kind showing up 2 years later?

Now, this sets up some serious expectations! After the second story beat, every set had to do with Wank of the Spank or Mommy! Well that's what I'm predicting.

CRAZY THEORY #2 EVERY SET MENTIONED ALREADY RELATES TO THE ELDRAZI!!!

Part 3: Pepe Silvia

The Death Race set is... well I don't know what planes it takes place on yet, so I won't be making any specific claims. I like Corocojo's theory that it will be taking place on the wasteland plane of Gastal though, so... maybe it was razed by Eldrazi in the past? That one's weak but the next ones are a lot stronger.

Tarkir is pretty clear. Ugin spent a thousand years recovering on that plane, giving it... some connection to Colourless mana? Okay I'll be real this one also sucks

BUT THEN ITS SPACE OPERA TIME! People tend to view planes as one planet, with others just near enough to travel to, but with the deadly void of space/the Blind Eternities between them, and with horrible monsters potentially living Out There! Eldrazi have always been compared to aliens, so it'd make some sense to draw the distinction. Maybe in a plane all about outer space, we could learn more about the origin of Eldrazi. Maybe something that lives in the In-Betweens of reality started in the In-Betweens of planets!

Lorwyn is easily my weakest link. Nissa made contact with Emrakul on Zendikar, then planeswalked to Lorwyn? I'll be honest, not sure what I'm cooking with that one.

But then we get to the real reason I'm making this post. A return to Arcavios, the final plane before the climax. And let me ask you a question. Do we know of any colourless creatures that live on Arcavios?

That's right. Why else would they make the penultimate set a Strixhaven sequel? Because it's been the home of an entirely different kind of titan this whole time.

Part 4: A list of the many reasons I'm probably wrong

Here's a non-comprehensive list of the many reasons I'm probably wrong.

Loot is related to the Fomori, whom have nothing to do with Eldrazi

Kellan has nothing to do with Eldrazi

It probably has to do with dragons cause Tarkir and Arcavios both have extant Elder Dragons and Bolas' probably escaped his meditation realm in the Invasion

Jace already did the whole Eldrazi thing a decade prior why would he be showing up so much if they just want to make him Do It Again

Emrakul is still in the silver moon and its not very likely that she'll escape off-screen

MH3's Eldrazi could just be a way to appease fans who won't get another chance to see them in a long time

We JUST defeated Phyrexia forever, why on earth would the other big bad of the multiverse be next, instead of being saved for 2033 with a smaller big bad in-between

Tezerret has nothing to do with the Eldrazi

Why the fuck would the first "Macguffin foreshadow" be something that happened DURING the last climax

Why the fuck would the second story beat take place in a set WITHOUT A STORY

Mark Rosewater said about Ziplining "I can't even say who the antagonist is". If it was Eldrazi he might've said 'what the antagonist is'

You've never once made a correct magic theory

But hear me out on that last one. There's a first time for everything :)

[quirkymarshmallows93]

Gas Station Stream of Consciousness Post

Gas Stations as Liminal Spaces

I've had quite a few hyperfixations in my day - ATMs, laundry detergents, credit cards - so my current one pertaining to gas stations is fitting considering my affinity for liminal spaces and the dedication of this blog to them. Liminal spaces are transitory in nature, hence their portrayal in online circles through photos of carpeted hallways, illuminated stairwells, dark roads, and backrooms, among other transitional points.

Gas stations are posted online as well; images of their fuel pumps or neon signage photographed through a rainy car window communicate their liminality and the universal experiences they provide to all of society. Perhaps they are the ultimate specimen of a liminal space. The machines they are created for, automobiles and tractor trailers alike, themselves are tools for motion, vestibules that enable travel and shipment across long distances at high speeds. Cars and roads are liminal spaces, albeit in different formats, and gas stations serve as their lighthouses. Vehicles at filling stations, therefore, are in a sense liminal spaces within liminal spaces within liminal spaces.

The uniqueness of a gas station as a liminal space, however, is its intersection with the economics and aesthetics of capitalism. Gasoline (and diesel fuel) is a commodity, downstream from crude oil, merely differentiated by octane ratings. Some argue that minute distinctions between agents, detergents, and additives make some brands better than others. Indeed, fuels that are approved by the Top Tier program, sponsored by automakers, have been shown to improve engine cleanliness and performance, but this classification does not prefer specific refiners over others; it is simply a standard. To a consumer, Top Tier fuels are themselves still interchangeable commodities within the wider gasoline commodity market.

The Economics of Gas Stations

The market that gas stations serve is characterized by inelastic demand, with customers who reckon with prices that fluctuate day in and day out. This is not to say that consumer behavior does not change with fuel prices. It has been observed that as prices rise, consumers are more eager to find the cheapest gas, but when prices fall, drivers are less selective with where they pump and are just happy to fill up at a lower price than last week. In response, gas stations lower their prices at a slower rate than when increasing prices, allowing for higher profit margins when wholesale prices fall. This has been dubbed the "rockets and feathers" phenomenon.

When portrayed as liminal spaces, gas stations are most often depicted at night, places of solitude where one may also enter the adjacent convenience store and encounter a fellow individual who isn't asleep, the modern day lightkeeper. The mart that resides at the backcourt of a gas station is known to sell goods at higher prices than a supermarket, simultaneously taking advantage of a captive customer, convenient location, and making up for the inefficiencies of a smaller operation. It may come as no surprise, then, that gas stations barely make any money from fuel sales and earn their bulk through C-store sales. This is a gripe I have with our economic system. Business is gamified, and in many cases the trade of certain goods and services, called loss leaders, is not an independent operation and is subsidized by the success of another division of a business, a strategy inherently more feasible for larger companies that have greater scale to execute it.

Nevertheless, most gas station owners, whether they have just one or hundreds of sites, find this method fruitful. Even though most gas stations in the US sell one of a handful of national brands, they operate on a branded reseller, or dealer, model, with oil companies themselves generally not taking part in the operations of stations that sell their fuels. The giants do still often have the most leverage and margin in the business, with the ability to set the wholesale price for the distributor, which sells at a markup to the station owner, which in turn will normally make the least profit in the chain when selling to the end customer at the pump. This kind of horizontal integration that involves many parties lacks the synergies and efficiencies of vertical integration that are so applauded by capitalists, but ends up being the most profitable for firms like ExxonMobil, who only extract and refine oil, and on the other end of the chain merely license their recognizable brands to the resellers through purchasing agreements. Furthermore, in recent years, independent dealers have sold their businesses to larger branded resellers, in many cases the ones from whom they had been buying their fuel.

A Word on ExxonMobil's Branding Potential

The largest publicly traded oil company in the world is Exxon Mobil Corporation. It is a direct descendent of the Rockefeller monopoly, Standard Oil, which was broken up in 1911 into 34 companies, the largest of which was Jersey Standard, which became Exxon in 1973. This title was generated by a computer as the most appealing replacement name to be used nationwide to unify the Humble, Enco, and Esso brands, decades before AI was spoken of. The latter brand is still used outside of the United States for marketing, arising from the phonetic pronunciation of the initials of Standard Oil. In 1999, Exxon and Mobil merged, and the combined company to this day markets under separate brands. Exxon is more narrowly used, to brand fuel in the United States, while Mobil has remained a motor oil and industrial lubricant brand, as well as a fuel brand in multiple countries.

Mobil originated in 1866 as the Vacuum Oil Company, which first used the current brand name for Mobiloil, and later Mobilgas and Mobilubricant products, with the prefix simply short for "automobile". Over time, Mobil became the corporation's primary identity, with its official name change to Mobil Oil Corporation taking place in 1966. Its updated wordmark with a signature red O was designed by the agency Chermayeff & Geismar, and the company's image for service stations was conceived by architect Eliot Noyes. New gas stations featured distinctive circular canopies over the pumps, and the company's recognizable pegasus logo was prominently on display for motorists.

I take issue with the deyassification of the brand's image over time. As costs were cut and uniformity took over, rectangular canopies were constructed in place of the special ones designed by Noyes that resembled large mushrooms. The pegasus remained a prominent brand icon, but the Mobil wordmark took precedence, which I personally believe to be an error in judgement. This disregard for the pegasus paved the way for its complete erasure in 2016 with the introduction of ExxonMobil's "Synergy" brand for its fuel. The mythical creature is now much smaller and appears only at the top right corner of pumps at Mobil gas stations, if at all.

Even into the 90s and the 21st century the Pegasus had its place in Mobil's marketing. In 1997, the company introduced its Speedpass keytag, which was revolutionary for its time and used RFID technology, akin to mobile payments today, to allow drivers to get gas without entering the store or swiping a card. When a Speedpass would be successfully processed, the pegasus on the gas pump would light up red.

When Exxon and Mobil merged in 1999, the former adopted the payment method too, with Exxon's less iconic tiger in place of the pegasus.

The program was discontinued in 2019 in favor of ExxonMobil's app, which is more secure since it processes payments through the internet rather than at the pump.

What Shell has done with its brand identity is what Mobil should've done for itself. The European company's logo was designed in 1969 by Raymond Loewy, and is a worth contender for the "And Yet a Trace of the True Self Exists in the False Self" meme. In recent years, Shell went all in on its graphic, while Mobil's pegasus flew away. I choose to believe that the company chose to rebrand its stations in order to prevent the malfunction in the above image from happening.

ExxonMobil should have also discontinued the use of the less storied Exxon brand altogether, and simplifying its consumer-facing identity to just the global Mobil mark. Whatever, neither of the names are actual words. As a bonus, here is a Google map I put together of all 62 gas stations in Springfield, MA. This is my idea of fun. Thanks for reading to the end!

[alexluvsskittlez]

I haven't made an into in months so uhhh..

HI EVERYPONY!!! my name is Alex, you can also call me Sam, Zoe, or Binoo

I'm 14 years old, my birthday is April 23rd

i am an artist, animator, content creator, and I'm learning how to sing :3

I'm audhd and dyscalculic (idk if i spelled that right sorry)

my special interests are Paramore and my ocs

I am currently hyperfixated on Emily Armstrong

I am PARAMORE'S #1 FAN!!!!!!!

i am a PROUD SELFSHIPPER!!!!

BYI:

I am Emily Armstrong's #1 defender (sorry haters XD)

I have the worst sense of humor on this planet

i kinda fw some rpf ships some of them being people who aren't actually together sorry. I'm respectful about it tho 😓

I usually don't think before I post so if I post something wrong please let me know

idrgaf about proship discourse and it's not something that I like involving myself in. I generally don't care what people ship but I still think shipping illegal stuff is weird as hell

I get pissed really easily but I promise I'm nice

bands/artists i like (warning, its a LOT):

Paramore, pierce the veil, linkin park, mcr, Hayley Williams, pinkshift, meet me @ the altar, silverstien, fall out boy, green day, bring me the horizon, p!atd, la dispute, lemon demon, sunny day real estate, Will Wood and the tapeworms, Will Wood, asking Alexandria, not enough space, get scared, the used, Owl city, mitski, Florence + the machine, stomach book, she wants revenge, Weezer, picture me broken, rites of spring, halfnoise, isles & glaciers, dead by sunrise, black veil brides, system of a down, limp Bizkit, silly goose, dead sara, scary kids scaring kids, alesana, femtanyl, the cure, modern baseball, foxszn, 3drinkz, yellow card, vylet pony, american football, boygenius, Avril Lavigne, millionaires, Kesha, s3rl, 3oh!3, attack attack, brokencyde, and waterparks.

shows I like:

smiling friends, steven universe, gravity falls, murder drones, madoka magica, the owl house, amphibia, clone high, invader zim, eddsworld, spooky month, inside job, pelswick, tadc, toopy and binoo, mlp, and the ghost and molly mcgee.

movies i like:

the final riot, steven universe the movie, atsv, itsv, the fnaf movie, mean girls, juno, the tamagotchi movie (i think there's actually multiple but I'm specifically talking about the anime one made in 2007), toopy and binoo the movie, and mlp the movie

games i like:

splatoon 2, fnaf, minecraft, animal crossing, mario kart, castle cats, pjsekai, nintendogs, roblox, regretevator, cart ride into 17 pregnant hyenas (rip </3), baldis basics, and ddlc

youtubers i like:

Kurtis Conner, Danny Gonzalez, Drew Gooden, funkyfrogbait, bredrawz, flamingo, benoftheweek, sinjin drowning, cybernoop, dantdm, stariaat, lovely lor, juj, and penguinz0

musicals i like:

mean girls, be more chill and Hamilton (I'm still getting into musicals so if you have any recommendations please tell me!!)

titles I gave myself (probably not necessary but idgaf)

Paramore's #1 fan

Pim Pimling's spouse

professional Pim kisser

#1 tell me how listener

#1 misadventures fan

#1 Emily Armstrong defender

tamagotchi dad of 3

spinel and mars' parent

#1 laika's comet fan

#1 class of 09 the flipside hater

#1 mip hater

worst dancer in history

other stuff I like (some are fandom related some aren't):

alternative subcultures/fashion, laikas comet, homestuck, warrior cats, tamagotchis/digital pets in general, mid-late 2010s animation memes, old internet stuff, space stuff, and animals

dni:

basic dni stuff uhh, people who are 12 and under, people who harass proshippers (yeah they're weird but harassing them is no better than being one), Paramore haters, Emily Armstrong haters, and those 4chan femcel self proclaimed problematic mfs. other than that i just block freely.

other socials:

ig: alexluvsskittlez

youtube: alexluvsskittlez

sketchers united: alexluvsskittlez

newgrounds: alexluvsskittlez

deviantart: pixelisgay

spotify: Pimkisser69420👽🙏

ermm that's all BYEEE!!!

[naerwenia]

Modern William Afton

William Afton x female reader, modern setting.

Includes: Surveillance, food tampering, William just wants to be part of you (in a gross way), this is just the beginning.

William Afton was looking at you through the reflection on the coffee machine. It was late for you to be here, but William didn’t mind. It had been a quiet night as it was the day Henry Emily came to service the animatronics so no parties, just a general crowd of people who appreciated the pizza buffet or the cheap coffee. The girl was here for the latter, and for William too, at least he hoped so. It was a comfortable silence between the two of you most of the time and William did not push you to converse with him, though sometimes he found himself talking aloud to himself while you listened. The surprising part was that you always listened, committing every detail to your mind, as you remembered the people he mentioned and often asked how they were, especially little Elizabeth. On the other hand, you rarely brought up Michael, and when you did, it was to tell William how frustrating his son could be in college. You shared some classes and while Michael was bright, he was not easy to get along with. As far as William knew, the feeling wasn’t mutual, as Michael had once mentioned a girl who sounded incredibly similar to you, but William only got confirmation when he started surveilling you. 

It was easier than he had thought. Most of it was due to your trust in him and in time William took full advantage of it. The girl left your computer on your table when you went to use the toilet, and William made sure to look after it, but sometimes also looked at what you had open in there. More often than not it was research papers and discussion boards related to your interests, but once he took note of the username you used. Your full name was easy to get as you paid by card and sometimes answered calls, and William had searched those online before, finding only your public pages, but with a specific username he found a host of different sites you were registered on. Only a few were public profiles and even fewer had public posts, but William’s curiosity made him join those sites too. Most of the info he came across was mundane, books you were reading, local events you were interested in, and comments on random things, but the thing that caught his eye was your activity on Reddit and various fiction sites. Your taste in fiction and fantasy was very specific: older men, dominant, consensual nonconsent. The smile that grew on his lips as he read your comments as well as own creations was closer to a manic laugh rather than an actual smile. The discoveries he made created a picture of a lonely girl longing to belong as well as to be owned and taken. He knew your type, the silent sluts, shy whores, who would become wet the moment someone threw them against the table or gave them the sadistic pleasure they never knew existed or wanted. 

It was difficult to stop thinking about you, and his obsession of knowing everything about you soon turned to being part of everything around you. William was there, lurking behind a screen, keeping up with all your posts, and while he really wanted to see the sites you visited yet did not write to, what videos you watched, what you wrote but didn’t post. So many things were just out of his grasp, and he had to know. 

But even if he knew everything, he realised it was not enough to just take, William wanted to give you something back. Not his heart, not yet at least, but something small. Something you could not say no to. You were always refusing small gifts, like an extra cup of coffee, but when William brought it to your table, you smiled and thanked him. You were so sweet about it, not wanting to bother him and always so modest with your requests it was almost hilarious. It made him hate everyone else. Only you seemed to care. Only you turned down his advances because you were too pure, and he was the snake tempting you, waiting to show you how delightful corruption could be with him. There was no way for you to know how far he would go, as the blood had already dyed the water.

~

Cupcakes, bread, cookies, special pizza, whatever you needed, he made for you. There was always something small ready for you behind the counter, only for you. His need to be close to you had started small, simply making something you enjoyed eating or drinking was enough, but it felt hollow, like it was a fleeting sensation, so he began giving you drinks with his spit mixed in. Almost unnoticeable, but he knew it was there, even when you could not taste or see it. He was with you now, part of you.

“Thank you, it’s lovely,” you said, almost every time, and smiled. It was easy to ask if you liked it, sometimes hoping you knew, but you had no idea, only enjoyed the taste just like always. He wanted you to have more of him, but there still was a small string holding him back from falling off the cliff to depravity. A string that felt like snapping every time you smiled and thanked him. Such a small and kind gesture, but more than his kids ever gave him, and soon the kindness you gave him turned to resentment towards his own children. The smile embodied everything he wanted to give them, all the dreams and wishes he let them foster, but all he got in return was nothing. Not an ounce of gratitude, happiness, or respect, no matter how many times he did things for them and let them grow in peace. You, however, thanked him for the smallest things and appreciated every small piece of himself he gave you. 

There it was, his finest work. A cupcake with his seed mixed in it and the frosting. It was in front of you, he made sure it was this one, and you sipped your coffee while pushing your dessert fork in the baked good, separating a small piece to lift to your mouth, pushing your lips together to chew the small piece of cake. While your eyes were glued to the book you were reading, your hand almost mindlessly cut a small piece to eat again and again, lifting a piece of William Afton to your lips and mouth, taking him in eagerly, letting him enter you silently and unnoticed. All William could do was excuse himself and go to the backroom to jerk himself off. He had tried, really tried to savour the image of you eating, just watch you happily eat his cum, but he could not when his erection was way too noticeable and just the light touch of his clothes almost made him cum then and there. You embraced him, your mouth embraced him, and in William’s mind, you had allowed him to come in your mouth, and it made him cum in his hand with just a few strokes. It was messy, almost too messy, but you had given him the memory to last a lifetime, and maybe the best climax of his life. Reaching the peak just by looking at you and getting over it, actually climaxing and cumming, took so little yet the high lasted longer than normally, and he was still hard. He had to do it again, wrapping his cum covered fingers around his cock and teased his cock with a few light strokes while thinking of you, both eating the cake and licking the cum now over his cock. Oh how he wanted to see you taste it all by itself, not mixed with sugar and vanilla, just his salty cum on your lips and tongue. Rather than waste it again, the quick session ended with William cumming in a cup, hoping you wanted another cup of coffee, and another taste of Afton.