#Those weird formations kinda look like spider legs

[imminent-danger-came]

It haunts me that MK is in so many shots of this one mural I can't quite place in 3x13

[papa-rhys]

Shared Empires (Rhys X Reader)

Note: Wow it’s literally been like over a year and a half since I wrote/posted fanfic, how do I even format this shit? I legit can’t remember so here goes

Warnings: none

Word count: 2131

Category: fluff

It’s been seven years since the fiasco with Handsome Jack and Hyperion, but you still can’t shake that blasted gaudy yellow colour from your mind’s eye whenever you see Rhys. 

             It’s hardly fair to keep associating him with the limp-dicked prick that awakened the Warrior - Rhys is the opposite of Jack in every way, except for the zeros in his bank account and the need to have an office with ceilings that are far too high (how are you supposed to kill spiders when they’re that high up?) Rhys is bumbly and friendly and harmless enough. And he’s better-looking, too. But that yellow colour is seared into your retinas for an eternity and there’s a tiny part of your unreasonable lizard brain that feels the need to point out Rhys’ involvement in what Hyperion did every time you come a little too close to enjoying yourself in his presence.

             Still, he’s paying your wages as of right now and a deal is a deal; help him win this war against Maliwan and he’ll make sure you never struggle for a meal again. And if there’s anything at all that you’re good at, it’s killing corporations dead in the water.

             “How you diddling, Mr Hyperion?” you ask, striding into Rhys office and feeling mighty proud of the frown you pull from him. This kind of tingle could only come from irking Rhys, you think. Or from finding the juicy photos Moxxi keeps stashed on her echo device.

             “I thought I told you not to call me that,” Rhys says, handing you a gun as you cross the floor of his office and reach him where he stands. 

             “You did,” you chirp, cheerfully, “I just didn’t listen. What’s this for?”

             Rhys straightens his back, puffs his chest out a little; all the hallmarks of a man who’s ever-so-proud of himself. He stands with his hands on his hips and his chin held high and you’re itching to throw out another teasing insult, just to bring him down a peg. It’s not fair to tease him so often and you know it, but lord is it fun to see him blush. And you’re, like, ninety percent certain he enjoys it, too.

             “That is the finest Atlas weapon on the market,” he informs you. “It’s a reward… for killing that nutjob with the miniguns... You’re welcome.” 

             You look the gun over and shrug with one shoulder, then you stash it in your backpack and shrug the bag off, lobbing it onto one of the too-big sofas in the lavish seating area of the office. There’s no way in any reality that Rhys reads enough books to justify the size of those bookshelves, but you suppose rich people have to spend their money on something.

             “What’s next on the to-do list, then, boss?” you ask, hopping up and sitting on the back of the sofa, swinging your legs back and forth.

             “Okay, I could really get used to you calling me boss,” Rhys says. “It’s... actually kind of a turn on, so let’s not talk about that anymore. Nothing is the answer to your question.” You pull your head back against the barrage of words that just flitted your way, but there’s no time to process them. Rhys is talking again. It seems he does that often. “There’s nothing on the to-do list,” he continues. “For once, we have a break in the chaos. Can’t tell you the last time that happened, I’m actually kinda miffed about it. I’m very accustomed to fearing for my life. But we’re off the clock for a while, so relish in the quiet for a while. You earned it!”

             You let yourself slip backwards onto the sofa, laying upside down and stretching your arms out each side of you. He’s not the only one who’s used to living a fast-paced life. Quiet is the exact opposite of your job description. Shooting, murdering, setting things on fire - all things that you’re far more suited to.

             “Whatever will I do with all of this free time?” you ask, gazing up at the ceiling and watching a spider making the trek from one side to the other. Maybe Rhys has a step ladder he uses to kill them?

             Rhys meddles with something out of view and music begins playing on a record player at the edge of the room - the soft, sweet kind that couples dance to; not the tedious wub-wubs that claptrap tortures you all with. Rhys comes back into view again when he leans over the back of the sofa, resting on his elbows. “We could try some dancing?” He says the words like he’s asking a question, wincing slightly as he tests the waters. 

             This is one of those moments that lizard brain ruins; reminding you of Rhys’ past and what it meant to you seven years ago. The fighting and the taunting and the constant cat and mouse. The people you lost, the ones you couldn’t save. Jack’s barrage of insults and moonshots; spat at you in equal measure. Rhys could have pushed the button on any one of those moonshots, your lizard brain suggests. He was complicit.

             But that was then, wasn’t it? And this is now. He learned lessons from Jack. He’s different. And there’s no point in fighting for the future if you still spend all of your time in the past. It’s okay to enjoy a little taste of what you’re fighting for.

             A smile spreads slowly across your lips and you cock an eyebrow. “You? Dancing? I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.”

             “You’ve never seen my dancing,” he says accusingly, though there’s an upwards slant to one side of his mouth. “I have moves like no one else.” 

             “No doubt about that,” you tease, letting him help you up off the sofa.

             The music tinkles and hums in the background as the two of you head for the centre of the office, surrounded by nothing but empty space. You shake out your hands and feet, warming up like you’re gearing for battle, and Rhys shakes his head with a smile.

             “You really don’t know how to be graceful, do you?” he asks.

             “Don’t get paid to be graceful, Rhysie boy,” you reply, rolling your neck until it cracks softly. “I get paid to kill stuff.”

             “Well, let’s hang fire on that for now, shall we?” Rhys holds out his hands and you take them, letting him guide you. He’s better at dancing than you thought he’d be, but only slightly. Better - [quotation marks] - meaning he hasn’t yet tripped over his feet. But the night is still young, so you’ll not rule that out just yet.

             He spins you and dips you and you both mutter a wealth of light-hearted insults between the pair of you. His bright smile could almost trick you into thinking he’s good at this. That he’s not a bumbling idiot with a too-big office and two left feet. A part of him is actually quite suave... in his own way.

             “Am I impressing you?” he asks.

             “Give me a minute and I’ll decide,” you smile as he spins you around on the spot.

             “Oh, come on, I’m impressing you. Admit it, I’m great at this.”

             He pulls a laugh from you, and against your better judgement, you allow it. There’s no way he’ll ever let you forget it if you compliment him on his dancing skills, so you opt for something with a little more self-preservation. A safe middle ground.

             “You’re making a good effort,” you offer.

             “Pfft,” comes the reply. He twirls you outwards and pulls you back in again.

             “Okay then, hotshot,” you say, landing against his chest with a soft oof, the breath catching in your chest. “You’re a lot better than I expected you’d be. How’s that?”

             He grins widely, the smile reaching his eyes. One of them is blue, the other a hazel colour that looks almost as electronically enhanced as the other. Do eyes naturally come in colours that bright? There’s a moment that seems to stretch for an extraordinarily long length of time, where you find yourself questioning the bizarre and totally irrational urge to do something weird, like kissing him or something. What madness that would be, right? Crazy. 

             You’ve both slowed down, now, the dancing mostly forgotten. All that’s left is a gentle sway as he speaks. “I wanna ask you something,” he says. “But I’m a little bit terrified of you.”

             “A little bit terrified?” you echo. “No need to be scared of me unless you’re thinking about cutting my wages.”

             He gives a nervous laugh that fades off as quickly as it’d had appeared. “Your wages are safe with me,” he says. “But that’s kind of along the lines of what I wanted to talk to you about.”

             “Go on…”

             Rhys spins you around to face the window behind his desk, the entire city visible beyond it in all its glowing glory. The neon lights paint a million different colours on the floor of the office and the sky is speckled with explosions that almost look pretty if you imagine that they’re not a product of war. The whole office is flooded by the view, buildings visible through every window.

             “I wanna share this with you,” Rhys says. “All of it.”

             “What do you mean?” you ask him, the light flooding your eyes, overloading you with input.

             “I don’t want all this to myself,” he explains. “It’s too much. Kingdoms are meant to be shared, right? Well, I wanna share this one with you. If you’d want that, obviously.”

             “You mean, like, business partners?”

             He laughs, nervous again. “If business partners are in love with each other, then yeah, I guess.” 

             You turn to face him and look up at him with your eyebrows raised. Now it’s your turn to blush; not an easy task for someone to accomplish. Touche, Mr Hyperion.

             “I shouldn’t have said that, should I?” he asks, watching you as you look up at him, slightly dumbfounded. Then he seems to cave in on himself a little, shoulders slumping. “I know you’re only here because I’m paying you to be here and I know you’re waaaaay too cool to ever feel that way about an idiot like me, but I figured I’d give it a try anyway, you know? And see if maybe you’d - “

             You push up onto your toes and press a kiss to his lips, cursing him for being lanky enough to make you put effort into kissing him. If he were any taller, you’d need a harness and those stabby things that rock climbers jab into cliff faces. 

             He holds onto your waist as you kiss and for all his bumbling and lack of self-assurance, he soon takes to it, cupping your jaw with one hand and leaning down to meet you halfway.

             Your own hands take hold of the collar of his vest, gripping fabric on either side and using it to pull him towards you. With shuffling steps, the two of you are edging towards the desk as one, all stumbling and heavy breathing, carefully making your way up the shallow steps, until you hit the edge of the desk. 

             “I don’t think this is an appropriate way to act with your employees,” you breathe.

             “Then you’re fired,” Rhys says. “There; now you’re not an employee.”

             Your heart hammers in your chest, pulse thrumming in your ears to match the beat. Wobbly legs and and a woozy light-headedness tell you that your body is pumping adrenaline through you at record pace. It’s different than the feeling you get on the battlefield; you feel so much more out of your depth here. Out there, you have a rhythm - motions to go through. Routine. But here, you’re just going with the flow, not quite knowing what you’re doing. A new partner means a new rhythm. A new pattern to be learned. What makes Rhys tick? What does he like and dislike? What does he - 

             “Oh!” 

             The two of you break apart at the sound of the voice coming from the doorway. Surprise in both of your faces matches the surprise in Lorelei’s voice. She watches you with her arms folded across her chest and her hip jutted out to one side as you and Rhys gather yourselves up.

             “If I had a dollar for every time I’d walked in on you in a compromising position, I’d be able to buy you out,” she tells Rhys. He smiles uncomfortably and fixes his tie. “But this takes the bloody cake,” she adds.

             “We were celebrating,” you offer.

             Lorelei hums. “I’ll bet,” she says, looking amused. “But you were celebrating prematurely. Maliwan just showed up at the front door and they’re not bothering to ring the doorbell. Need you outside, Vault Hunter.”

             Rhys sighs heavy and turns to you, the last traces of his pant visible in the way his chest moves with each breath. “I knew it was too good to be true.”

             “Yeah,” you agree, sighing. You smooth out your hair and make your way over to the seating area to collect your backpack, crossing the room on shaky legs. Hauling your bag onto your shoulders, you pick out your favourite gun and check that it’s loaded. “Alright,” you muse, nodding to Rhys and then to Lorelei, “back to work, then.”

[destiny-smasher]

Spirit Batteries (Commission)

You can read this on AO3 if you prefer.

A/N: This is a giftfic commission from Twitter user @Porecomesis for Hayley @sakura-rose12 as a birthday gift! It is strongly recommended you have read her webcomic Dame Daffodil as well as played the FREE Life is Strange episode The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit. (I take a major liberty from the vague ending of the episode to make this fic work)

The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit is a free downloadable side story in the Life is Strange Universe. Dame Daffodil is an original webcomic.

It's strongly recommended you have experienced both before reading this short story.

If you'd like to commission me to write for you, feel free to send me a message! No budget is too small, we can always make something work!

~~~

“You got 'em?!” Her arms were starting to get some rope burn from how taut the whips were around them. “I've-” Alesea grunted out, her footing slipping slightly. She regained it. “I've got them!” She wrapped her mystical whips another loop tighter around her arms, trying her best to dig into the street curb. The black beast that they were attempting to subdue was proving to be an inconvenience. They all were, of course, but Alesea had convinced Charo – er, that is, since Lady Lily had convinced Dame Daffodil – that they ought to try striving toward safer, less destructive resolutions. While that had sounded simple enough in Alesea's head, in practice it was quickly becoming quite a pain, even with the two of them working together. Ales-...Lily had tied the creature with her whips, using two street signs as support to keep the creature from moving – a trick she had self-taught on a football field not long ago. Daffodil had needed some time to deal with the smaller creatures it had spit out. “I feel-” Daffodil zapped one. “-sorta bad-” Zapped another. “-'cause they're kinda cute.” And another. “Cute, perhaps,” Lily panted out. “but...still dangerous!” “Just like someone I know!” said Daffodil with a wide grin and a wink – all the while frying another creature. Lily smirked in spite of their circumstances, her eyes rolling a little in endeared amusement. Lily's gut reaction had been to gather these small beings up rather than outright destroying them – but they had no idea how these beasts functioned yet, and no real means of containing them. Where would they even put them? And how would they have any assurances they could even be contained? The creatures had demonstrated unnatural speed and strength. Yet if they left so many little ones out to roam, who knew what could happen? They could grow – multiply? It would be quite a mess. For the time being, it was unfortunately safer to try and attract their attention, and, well...get rid of them. Keeping their...mother? How did these things work? Well, keeping their parent creature subdued and angry seemed to be keeping the creatures nearby, hostile, yet their small size and scattered formation made them easy for Daffodil to deal with. Lily was getting tired out from keeping the larger creature pinned down, however. With a skip in her step, Daffodil taunted and clapped, drawing the remaining little ones near her, while Lily trembled and burned from the work she was doing. Daffodil airily posed, “Having a partner to help out is making this monster-fighting stuff so much easier, huh?” -zap- “Two flower-powered heads are better than-” “Daffodil,” Lily grunted through clenched teeth, her strength starting to give out. “Yup!” Daffodil squeaked sheepishly, focusing more deliberately on her task. As more small, growling black monsters were getting...killed? They seemed like living creatures, yet...also sort of not? Alesea's mind was filled with moral problems with all of this as it was. But regardless of how Alesea felt about these matters, Lady Lily was still obligated to protect human beings, first and foremost. Her feet had been using a street curb to bolster herself, but her sore legs gave way long enough for her slip a little. That slight slide, however, was exactly the moment the black, multi-legged beast had been waiting for. With Lily's whips slack for a second, the monster wriggled free, its spider-like legs rampaging at its captor in a spiteful charge. Lily stumbled backward from the disconnect, falling over. Her concentration broken, her whips' power faltered. Her heart froze for a moment as the spear-like feet of the monster punctured small craters into the pavement, heading straight for her. Its eyeless face was somehow filled with rage as its mandibles snapped. Lily re-focused her whips, trying to slash them at the beast – anything to mitigate its advance. Minimal effect, a few grazing scratches which barely slowed the monster down. “Alesea!” cried Daffodil with alarm, dashing toward the impending threat and firing off a beam – but the monster was too quick, and her attack instead cut through one of the street signs, sending it toppling over. The smaller creatures took the opportunity to swarm at Daffodil – and while most had been disposed of, enough still remained where their gnawing bites crippled the Dame to her knees to try and blast them off. “I-CHANGED-MY-MIND-THEY'RE-NOT-CUTE!!” Having scrambled to her feet, Lily had second or two to spare before the larger monster reached her. She cracked her whips at its feet, attempting to tangle them up. This somewhat succeeded, but rather than trapping the beast, it merely sent it skidding briefly before its multiple legs regained traction and cut through the whips again. Daffodil, still scraping spider-like biting from her legs, fired off another beam in a panic. This, too, missed its mark, nearly clipping Lily on the way – a gust of air pushed at her in the beam's wake. The monster lunged. Lily pulled her whips back in. But there wasn't enough time. -snap- Lily fell to her back. -snap snap- But...the creature had missed? An odd hissing. The monster was...floating. Right in front of Lily. Thrashing its mandibles in her direction, swiping its sharp legs every which way, yet...stationary in the air. It was pretty strange, all right. And Lily surely had not stopped its advance. But Daffodil, squashing and zapping small creatures off of her, looked just as puzzled. A weird moment of quiet fell over the the lot, and the monster even gave up its struggle. -zap- The beast exploded into black dust with a weak screech as Dame Daffodil finally hit her mark. The suddenness of it threw Lily off guard, another gust of air rushing past her from the destructive blow. A piece of black dust landed where the monster had just been, and a black flower quickly sprouted from its position. Daffodil was scrambling through a small batch of black critters to reach her partner. “You OK?!” Charo cried out, tripping up a bit on the beasties. “Cut it-!” she growled at them, shaking them off. “Alesea?!” “I-I'm all right,” Alesea replied, baffled at what had just happened. “How did you do that?” she asked, pulling her whips back in and ready to squash some more...'bugs?' “Do what?” Daffodil panted, kicking a couple more off of her feet. She zapped one. “Couldn't hit it until you got it to stop moving. Good stuff!” “I didn't...-” Lily noticed how tuckered out Daffodil was, but there were still maybe ten or so of the annoying pests to deal with. The poor girl's legs were all...nibbled. Yikes. Was going to be fun explaining that one to Sel...An impromptu hiking trip gone wrong? Or maybe she'd...fallen on her bike? Charo...didn't have a bike. Or maybe-? Alesea then realized that the remaining monsters were...also floating, now. Slowly being shoved together into a black, fuzzy ball. “Whoa,” Daffodil murmured in awe. “You get a new power already? ¡Guauu~!” She was pressing her wrists to her cheeks, glowing a smile of admiration at Lily, who...wasn't doing anything. “I-...It's not...-” Lily gestured a confused hand at the blob of creatures, writhing around one another and emitting their strange hissing squeaks. “My Lady's the best,” Charo smugly cited, snapping a finger at Alesea with one hand, while zapping the beasties to dust with the other. “Teamwork makes the dreamw-” “Why do you keep doing that?” Lily and Daffodil both froze at this, spoken from somewhere to their side. There was...a boy there, emerging from a payphone booth, his hand extended toward them. He sighed, letting his hand drop. He was...dressed in spray-painted cardboard, a cape, and a face-painted mask of blue. Couldn't have been much older than ten, if even that. As he approached them, he dejectedly pointed out, “Heroes aren't s'pposed to kill people...” Lily felt her face flush at this, and she glanced at Daffodil nervously. “Th-Those weren't people,” Daffodil sheepishly defended. Slamming her fists on her hips, she said with a prim nod, “Those were monsters. We-...We're saving people.” “But aren't you super heroes?” the boy asked. “I thought you don't kill - that's what makes you super.” The color probably drained from the heroines' faces as they offered squeamish smiles at that naive idea.

“We don't...hurt people,” Daffodil pointed out, with a shrug. A shrug?? Not exactly convincing... “We don't want to hurt anyone,” Lily explained. Traffic was starting to pile up a bit and police sirens could be heard approaching from the distance. Admirers of the flower-blazoned heroes were cautiously making their approach, phone camera snapping and all. Dame Daffodil went about greeting her enthusiastic fans and explaining things, while Lily pulled the child off the street. “Look, um...-” She noticed him rubbing at his eyes, squinting at her. Oh, right – some magic about their costumes made it so people couldn't see their faces. “I'm Lady Lily. What's your name?” The kid tightened his cape and nodded, hands at his sides. “I'm Captain Spirit,” he announced, deepening his voice. Lily giggled a bit at this, smiling. A hero wannabe, huh? His accent, though...- “You're not from around here, are you, Mr. Spirit?” “It's Captain. And no. I'm-...I, uh, am on a mission to explore for new allies. We need all the help we can to take down the mastermind Mantroid.” “Oh, um....Mantroid, is it?” Lily nodded seriously. “I think I've...heard of him before.” “Really?” the kid checked, his 'hero' act fizzling into suspicion. “W-well, Lady Lily has heard of him.” She winked. Then wondered if he could even tell. But based on the way his lips went agape, his eyes narrowed, and he nodded back, she sensed he could. “He's quite...a bad...egg. Isn't he?” “Um, well, he's more of a...force of negative energy that...-” “So!” Dame Daffodil pounced upon them, startling them both. “Does this kiddo wanna join the team?” she teased with a sly-eyed grin. “Oh, no, Ma'am,” Captain Spirit insisted with his deepened voice, crossing his arms over his measly but puffed chest. “I already have a team of my own. But I am looking for allies to join our cause against the killer Mantroid and his-” “Hey, who's the kid?” Some of the gathering passersby were getting eager about their, er, new acquaintance. “Uh, actually, yea,” said Daffodil, “what's your name, buddy? Where's your parents?” “I'm Captain Spirit, fellow crime-fighter. My, um-...W-well, I...-” Lily gently placed a hand on the kid's frail shoulder. “It's all right,” she gently assured. “You can trust us with your secret identity, and we can help you find your family.” “Yea, we're real super heroes,” Daffodil said cheerfully. “We know how to keep a secret.” “Hey, I am a real super hero, too,” the child claimed, shrugging out of Alesea's grasp. “I helped you beat those monsters, remember?” Aaaand then Alesea suddenly remembered – that strange stuff that had happened, which had no accounted explanation. “Whoa, wait,” said Daffodil, leaning over Lily, who was bent over toward the kid. “You serious?” She whispered at Lily, “Is he serious?” The police cars had shown up and were surveying the damage – minimal, compared to what could have happened. A car crash in the middle of the intersection from when the monster had first attacked, and Daffodil had escorted the drivers – safe, thankfully. Other cars had piled up, and it wasn't the busiest road. A damaged street sign, another one bent over, and some potholes. So, not as bad as it could've been. But, still... “Time to go,” Lily decided, nudging Daffodil off her. Her partner slipped off her shoulder, rolling sideways and nimbly skidding onto her feet. “Let's get you back to your family, Mr. Spirit.” “It's Captain. Not Mister.” “Right! Sorry.” “Are your folks nearby?” Daffodil asked, surveying the crowd and waving to a police officer. “Uh, no, they...-” The boy's were quivering a bit at this question, which had Alesea worried. “My...grandparents are...probably still at the hotel, but...-” “Do you know the way there?” Lily asked. The child nodded with hesitation. “Off we go, then,” Daffodil declared, scooping the boy up in one arm and tucking him over her shoulder. “Wah-!” he was appropriately surprised. There were some startled sounds from the small crowd that had gathered at the intersection. “This-...This missing boy was separated from his family!” Lady Lily assured with a bashfully courteous wave, raising her voice at the lot. “We're...escorting him home!” “Definitely not kidnapping!” Daffodil added, bounding off with the child in tow. ~~~ Having gotten themselves far enough away from the little monster incident back there, Daffodil and Lily stopped between a deli shop and a liquor store – a cozy little alleyway would offer enough cover for them to sort this all out. “All right, I think we should be good here,” Lily advised. Daffodil nodded, setting the boy down – he groaned and grumbled a bit, straightening his cardboard armor, shuffling his hair a bit, and adjusting his cape. “You OK?” Daffodil checked. He nodded, but definitely appeared to be perturbed. “Why were you hiding?” Lily asked. “I mean, why aren't you with your family?” Daffodil excitedly squealed, “And was that you who did the cool, like, levitation-y thing?” He raised a brow at Daffodil, who was looked quite bright-eyed and eager. “It's all right,” said Lily, deactivating her ring. Her magical appearance flashed away, revealing her everyday form – currently dressed in khaki shorts and a white tanktop. With a wry smile at the boy's shocked expression, she told him, “See? We know what it's like to have to keep these sorts of things a secret...” “Whoa,” the child murmured. “How do I get my superhero costume to do that?” “Well!” spouted Daffodil, thrusting up a proud finger. “First of all, you've gotta-” “Charo...Can we maybe...take this one step at a time?” “Oh. What?” Lily just tilted her head and curved her brows, gesturing toward her attire. “Ah.” Daffodil reverted to her chipper Charo self, wearing baggy sports shorts with brightly colored t-shirt that looked like a bi-product of a 90's commercial.

“Wow,” sighed the child, clearly envious at their transformations. So, whatever power he had...it wasn't quite the same as theirs, was it? How had he seemed so nonplussed by their abilities before, yet suddenly so surprised at their magical outfits?

“My name – my real name – is Alesea.” She extended her hand downward, and he took it, star-eyed. “And this is Charo.” Charo, naturally, leaned against the brick wall with her arms crossed, trying to look all suave. She slipped a little, the wall having been further back than she'd thought. “We can totally keep the whole 'secret identity' thing a...secret,” Charo insisted, nodding as she undid and redid her spiky little ponytail. “We've been doing this stuff ourselves for a while.” “So,” said Alesea. “What's your name?” The boy swallowed nervously, evidently embarrassed by his hand-made costume. Aw, poor little guy, that wasn't...why they'd...- “Those are fancy names,” he mumbled, shrugging. “I'm just...Chris.” “Chris is still a nice name,” Charo tried to placate. “A-and I mean, Captain Spirit? Wow, you, um, you've got us beat with that superhero name, huh? Way cooler than...erh...-” She shrugged, trailing off. “So, Chris,” Alesea began slowly. “You saw us using...um, abilities. Do you really have something like that, yourself?” Chris nodded, his bout of bashfulness giving way to a sudden excitement. He gave Charo a determined look. “It's my turn to pick you up,” he said with a mischievous little chuckle. “Eh?” Charo said, her expression wavering as the boy stuck his palm out toward her. “Wahhp-!” Charo squeaked as she slipped backward, drifting slowly up in the air. She began to giggle, watching a crushed beer can and a few pebbles start to float up beside her. She thrust out her fists, tucking her legs in and trying to spin around, but was realigned upward. Alesea studied the boy's form as he kept this up for a moment. He looked intently focused, his hand trembling, like he was wrestling with an unseen force. “Our lad here's got a juicy magic ability~” Charo snickered, trying to sway herself around. She tapped at the hovering beer can, and it moved, but wobbled back into the space it had occupied. “Like, OJ with pulp juicy!” Alesea burst into a snort-giggle, covering up her face to stifle her own aroused laughter. Charo had to stop being so adorably weird in public, it was rather distracting... Charo stretched out her legs, downward, and slammed her fists on her hips. Chris let her drop, and she landed, flat-footed, with a joking pride about her. This dissipated into some giggles. Chris, however, while smiling at first, began to cough and sputter some. Alesea and Charo practically swarmed the lad with concern. His frail hand shooing them off didn't stop Alesea from patting his back. The coughs worsened momentarily before they cleared up. “Whoa,” Charo winced he recovered. “That, um-...All that juice means you've gotta squeeze some oranges...huh?” “...What?” Chris groaned, still fuzzy-headed. “Looks like you're still learning how to use your abilities,” Alesea sympathized. She rubbed his back a bit more until he seemed to level out. He nodded in reply to her observation, and she explained, “Well, don't worry. So are we.” She accented her words with an encouraging smile. “Practice makes better,” Charo assured. Chris retorted, “Isn't it...practice makes perfect?” “Huh?” Charo's eyes slid upward as she tapped at her chin. “Sure, people say that, but...-” “Just...-” Alesea's smile withered nervously. “-...don't overexert yourself, Chris.” “I don't...know what that word means,” Chris admitted with a shrug. “Oh, um...-” Alesea's lips pouted out uncertainly. Maybe she was being a little too intimidating with how she spoke? Charo tagged in for this one. “You don't wanna push yourself so hard, buddy.” She ruffled his hair a little and he grunted a laugh, taking a step back. “Don't want you to choke on all that...superpower pulp.” “I don't like pulp in my orange juice, anyway,” Chris declared. “Smooth juicin' from here on out, then,” decided Charo, smacking one palm against the other arm's flexing bicep. Alesea shot her partner a bemused look, smirking. What was she going to do with this dorky Dame? “Anyway,” Alesea sighed out, shaking off her warm fuzzies. “How did you get this power, Chris?” Chris shrugged. “It just...happened one day. I fell, but...-” He stared down at his extended hands, flexing his fingers in, then out. “Then I...caught myself.” “No magical transformation, huh?” pondered Charo. “Did you maybe, like, feel the power coming from...something you're wearing?” “Oh, w-well-” He fluttered his cape. “-Captain Spirit's cape boosts his powers, but...-” “You can still do this without the cape,” Alesea noted, to which he nodded.

Alesea and Charo shrugged at one another. Strange. Whatever abilities this boy had, it sure wasn't related to their own. Then again, he definitely wasn't from their neck of the woods, so perhaps that was hardly a surprise. “Actually,” Alesea began, leading the trio out onto the street and out of the alleyway. “Where are you from, Chris? How did you end up out here?” “Yea,” Charo chimed in, “Are you lost?” “Maybe a little lost,” Chris mumbled with a shrug. “I'm from America.” “Ah, wondered about that,” said Charo. “This is, um, a long way from there...” “Ha, yea, the airplane ride was super long,” Chris sighed. “My grandparents fell asleep for most of it so I got really bored. I watched, like, three movies. And I'd already seen two of them.” Alesea and Charo smirked at each other over the boy's shoulders as they reached a street corner. “Is this the way back to your family?” Alesea checked. “Uh...-” Chris paused, surveying the street signs. “Actually...I'm not sure.” Oooh, boy. The child sighed deeply, and he wobbled a little with a yawn, then a cough. “You don't look like you're feeling so well, there,” Charo muttered warily. “How about-...Well, my place isn't far from here, why don't we get you there-” Charo exchanged looks with Alesea, who nodded primly in approval. “-um, get you something to drink, let you, ya know, have a sit, and...we can help you figure out what's going on?” If worse came to worse, they could ring the authorities, but given the child's predicament, the idea of putting him in police care was concerning. Who knew what could happen if they discovered what he was capable of? And some paint on his face wasn't going to work the way their magic did. “Sounds...guh...-” Chris' form slipped over to one side, and Charo caught him fretfully. He snapped awake, stumbling back upright and rubbing at his eyes. “I think that's as good idea as any right now,” Alesea agreed with her partner's notion. ~~~ Alesea could feel her face pale at his expression, stoic and deadpan, staring down at the young boy napping on his lounge. He took a quiet, judgmental sip of his canned coffee. “And you...found him?” Sel dryly posed. “Y-yes, exactly,” Alesea mumbled. She took her own sip of iced coffee from her own can, trying to mask her embarrassment. “There was-...Well, we were out hiking, and Charo had a, um, tumble, and...-” “Is that what happened to you?” Anselmo suddenly balked, nearly choking on his coffee. He thrust a finger at Charo, who had just come out of the loo, her legs now plastered with bandages. Sel grumbled out, “What kind of hiking spot around here was so rough where that could've happened?” Charo shrugged, teeth grit. “Dunno, but I'm fine. Really.” “How do you two keep...-?!” Sel's face looked like a kettle ready to explode for a second, there. “That's not important right now,” Alesea interjected, sticking her more confident foot forward. “Is it?” she retorted, gesturing toward the tuckered out child. “I mean, maybe it's a good thing we wandered outside of our...normal...hiking route, or else this poor boy might've...passed out all on his own out there.” Charo lifted her brows, stuck her hands out toward Alesea, and nodded at her brother. His frustration fizzled out and he groaned audibly, slurping more of his coffee. “You two just have to try playing the hero, don't you?” Anselmo took a deep breath and fluttered his lips against the edge of his coffee can. Alesea and Charo exchanged wary smiles at his remark. “All right, so.” Sel wandered off to the kitchen, and the pair of partners followed him. Sel scooted his chair out a bit, crossing one leg over the other. He perused the contents Charo had scooped out of the boy's pockets when they'd de-armored him for his nap. A library card. “Chris...Eriksen, huh? Beaver Creek?” Anselmo noted the town logo displayed on the card. “Where's this boy from?” “America,” Charo replied with a shrug. “It sounded like he's here visiting with his family,” Alesea pointed out. “He mentioned his grandparents at a hotel nearby.” Anselmo slid another card around on the table, which had a big triangle near the top. “Must be a keycard for their room,” he observed. “Mm,” he hummed through a sip of coffee. “Aah. I recognize this place.” He passed it to Charo. “You should look up their number, give them a call.” Charo gawked at the card, a bit baffled at first, but then nodded and headed off for her bedroom. As Charo waddled off to her task, Alesea didn't know what to do with herself, hovering in the kitchen's doorway. She drummed her fingernails against the half-empty coffee can she was slowly working through. Then she felt Anselmo's critical gaze land on her. He sipped quietly, his dead eyes laser-firing a sting of disappointment at her. She felt her face turning pink with some shame and sipped in defense. “She was-” “How did-” They both had started to murmur at each other at once, keeping their voices down. Alesea pushing loose hair behind her ears, nodding complacently at Sel to let him go first. “How could you let her take a tumble like that?” “It was...-! She was...-! That...boy, we got...distracted – um, alarmed – he was in danger, and Charo, she-” “In danger?” Nnnnnnn maybe that made it sound worse...! “Oh, what? N-not, like, danger danger, I mean, he was...all by himself, and he could've...fallen, and so-” “So Charo fell instead? To prevent him from falling.” “S-Something like that, I...-” Anselmo took a deep breath, squinting his eyes shut and pinching the bridge of his nostrils.

“All right. That's enough.” Anselmo slurped the last of his coffee and planted the empty can on the table. “I don't know why you're lying to me. But I'm sure it must be to protect someone over something.” Alesea twitched a nervous shrug through her grimaced smile. “I guess at the end of the day, I'd rather my sister get some bug bites and scratches than let a lost child have a heat stroke. So...you did good.” “Mm...-!” Alesea grunted her gratitude through her coffee can.

Ansemlo breathed out tiredly as he rose from the table, grabbed the can and rinsing it in the sink. “Just wish you two would stop trying to take on these kinds of things, especially with...this monster business going on.” He flicked water from his fingertips and dunked the can into the recycling bin. “You could've called the cops or something, instead of...-” He warily flicked his wrist toward the lounge room. “We panicked,” Alesea confessed, clutching her can daintily with both hands, almost like a shield before her. “He was...over-excited about...finding someone who was...willing to help, and he had a dizzy spell – passed out. And we weren't...sure what else to...-” She swallowed a gulp of cold coffee and shook her head with shrug. Her stomach felt weird from the sensation of, well, lying to Sel. Again. This feeling was getting old, and fast. But what other choice did she have? Charo emerged from her room, still on her phone. “Yup!...Mm-hmn...Thanks.” She let loose a raspberry sigh as she ended the call. “Why'd you make me call them? Talking to random people on the phone is terrible. Mean Momo.”

As she grouchily pouted her way into the kitchen, she put her phone into her pocket as Anselmo gave her a pat on the head. “You brought him here,” Sel pointed out, heading toward the cupboard. “That makes you his host. And a good host would make those kinds of arrangements for their guest.” Alesea squirmed her way over and gave Charo a gentle rub on the back, complimented by a warm little smile, which she received back in turn. “Well?” Sel pondered, digging into the cupboard. “What did they say at the hotel?” “Oh, erh,” Charo scratched at the tip of her nose. “Sounds like his grandparents are the ones he's traveling with, they'd fallen asleep. Guess they'll be on their way to pick him up soon.” “Ah, good,” said Alesea, relieved to hear it. “In the meantime,” decided Sel, “we should probably give him something to eat, if he's been out out there in this heat. Now, I mean, it's been a while since I was his age,” Sel pointed out, “but I figure...-” He flashed them an unopened package of Hobknobs. “-...milk and biscuits, that's gotta be one way to pick up a boy's spirits, right?” “Chh, 'spirits,'” Charo snickered, elbowing Alesea. She couldn't help but giggle as another warm tingle swept up her neck. “What?” Sel prodded, slightly irate at their mocking. “It's just cute,” Alesea dismissed, nodding as she drank the last of her coffee. “I think it's a brilliant idea.” “I'll get the milk,” Charo decreed, heading off. Alesea gave her a pat on the arm to send her on her way. “I'll go wake him,” decided Alesea. Like their own little team, they went about their tasks with efficiency. Small as it was, it felt good working on the same side as Charo's brother, instead of working around him. Alesea knelt down over the couch, brushed her ponytail behind her shoulder, took a deep breath, and nudged a cautious hand at the child's shoulder. He moaned and sputtered nonsense for a moment before his eyes slowly opened. “...nfgh...th'prncess...” “Chris?” Alesea checked when his eyes closed again. “Hey. We've got a snack for you.” Chris opened his eyes again, wider this time. Alesea smiled at how adorable this kid was. “...nnn...have a pretty smile,” Chris mumbled, still half-awake. Alesea felt her face light up. “Like my mom's,” Chris yawned out. Alesea chuckled through her nose, not sure if she was more embarrassed for her, or for the boy. “What?” Charo prodded, amused but confused as she entered with a glass of milk, complete with ice cubes to keep it cold.

Alesea just shook her head, smirking, and gave her befuddled partner a rub on the arm. Charo set the glass down on the coffee table, and Anselmo sighed – loudly – as he put a platter of Hobknobs down beside it. Chris seemed a bit perplexed by this new figure, but not as startled at the change of scenery as one might expect. Anselmo was giving Charo a glare. She beamed innocently at her brother as she scooted a coaster beneath the glass of milk, appeasing him. Chris sat up, rubbing at his face some more. He scratched at his chest, and then the surprise kicked in. “Wh-? Where's my...-?” “Your gear is over there, Captain Spirit,” Charo quelled, nodding toward the front door. The boy noted his cape and cardboard armor sitting on the floor by everyone's shoes and, after a moment, nodded his contentedness about the matter. “He's a superhero,” Charo said to her brother, waggling her brows and nudging him with the back of her wrist. Jeez, Charo, do you really need to...-?? “Uh-huh,” Anselmo said dully. “Must be getting swept up in all that hype over those...'heroes'-” He air-quoted. EXCUSE HIM?? “-that the news is obsessed about.” Chris cleared his throat, “Mmph, I...used up my energy fighting off a monster attack.” He coughed drylu – ow, hopefully he was OK? “It's time to recharge...” He took a swig of ice-cold milk, humming pleasantly. “I can feee~eeeel the power.” Alesea had to contain another snort-giggle from escaping. “Heh.” Even Anselmo seemed a bit charmed, which was saying something. “Well, uh, every superhero needs to keep their strength up. We, uh, got you some Hobnobs, here, so...have at it.” Chris – well, Captain Spirit – frowned at this. Breaking character, he asked, “What's a hobnob?” Charo gasped with shock at this. “No. You eat those,” she commanded, jabbing a finger out. “You take one of those, and you stick it in your face-mouth-place, and you bite at it, and you eat it, and it is w-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l...!” The kid seemed taken aback at this. “I-...I don't...-” “Like this!” Charo grabbed a biscuit and bit into it. “One nibble and your hobnobbled,” Charo quoted, not being dignified with a reaction. “I think you're scaring him,” Anselmo grumbled, clutching his sister by the skull to get her hyperactivity to settle down a peg. “They're just biscuits,” Alesea explained gently to Chris. “Go on, try one.” “Biscuits...?” He looked skeptical. He carefully picked one up, studying it. “Looks like a cookie.” “Oh, right,” Alesea blurted sheepishly. “American...” Through mouth full of Hobnob, Charo asked, “Whuff's uh googi emmeeweh?” Chris took a bite, seemed to approve, and then devoured the rest of the thing, glugging some milk along with it. A gentle rumble emitted from Charo's hip – her mouth still chewing at a Hobnob, she pulled out her cell phone. Swallowing and flinching at the under-chewed biscuit going down her throat, Charo greeted, “Hello?” She glanced at Chris, who was going to town on his snack. “Ah, yes! That was me. We-...Uh-huh. Yea, he's fine.” She nodded down at the boy, and then glanced at Alesea, who nibbled on a Hobnob herself, smiling back. “Directions? Erh-...I'm...-” She grimaced, tugging at Sel's sleeve. “Lehhhht me pass you to my brother, he can-...Ahhh, yea,” she said through a sheepish laugh. “Juh-...Yea, just a...-” Her eyes popped open wide, a flash of impatience as she handed her phone to Anselmo, who gave her a stern look before taking it. “What are these called?” Chris asked, breaking one of the biscuits in half. “Hobgoblins?” “Oh, uh-” “Hello, yes? This is Anselmo.” “They're good,” Chris blurted. “Mm,” Alesea lifted a finger toward him. “I'm her older brother. He's-” Chris rammed the two Hobnob halves against each other, growling and crying as he played. “...Mm.” Anselmo frowned briefly, then began to walk off. “He's safe. Just...having a snack, he-...Oh, well, it...sounded as if he could've been dehydrated, but-...Wait, from what hotel?” “-rreeEEOWW, ksshhh-ksshhh, shuh-WING~ ” Hoo. Kid was maybe having a bit of a sugar rush, or something? Charo grinned, grabbing a Hobnob and thrusting it toward Chris' dualing makeshift toys. She began to make weird little hissing noises – evocative of the kinds of black beasts they had been contending with. Chris rotated his pieces to face Charo's encroaching 'monster.' “ahhh watch out! it's a mega spike spider! It's heading right for us, I don't know if I can hold it off! captain spirit captain spirit! please lend us your power!” He set down the pieces, sticking out his hand. “Don't worry, Captain Spirit will protect you from far away. Hnnnnnn-” “O-OK, now,” Alesea chimed in warily, reaching out a hand to Chris's arm. “Just...don't...really use-” “I'm just playing,” Chris matter-of-factly advised. He nodded his head with raised brows off toward where Anselmo had gone, adding in a whisper, “There's still a civilian around...” Alesea smiled with bemusement, receiving a smirk from Charo. “Hnnnn-”

Charo began to wobble the biscuit around, slowly pushing it toward Chris' hand. She squealed and hissed angrily, making an adorably authentic face to match. “It's...so strong,” Chris grunted. “It's taking...all my power...just to-...urgh...-keep it from attacking...!” He scooped up his two biscuit halves suddenly, while still holding out his hand. “thank you thank you let's get outta here!” He waddled them off, tucking them behind his milk glass. He then drank a sip of milk while the thought occurred to him. “Now what?” Charo asked quietly, still thrashing her biscuit around. “You can't just...let it go free, can you?” “Uh...-” Chris seemed taken aback by the question. And Alesea was a bit alarmed at that being brought up again. “It'll hurt people,” Charo pointed out, squeezing in some more little monster growls. “So, what'll you do?” “I...erh...-” Chris scratched an itched on his nose, flustered. “Uh-oh,” Charo gasped, jerking the Hobnob about. “It's...breaking free...!” “Hnnnn-” Chris refocused his hand at it. “You can't keep this up forever,” Charo whispered in an eerie, villainous voice. “Sooner or later, you'll slip up...” “I-...I can throw it into space,” Chris theorized. “It can't hurt anyone up there!” “Can you throw it into space?” Charo growled with her cracking voice, brows narrowed. “I've never seen Captain Spirit wield such power. You're bluffing.” “I...could...put it in the ocean.” “haha, yessss, throw it in the sea~ It will make babies and consume the innocent animals!” “Charo,” Alesea snipped, giving her a sharp but gentle slap with the back of her wrist. She shrugged defensively. “If you can't destroy a monster,” Charo quietly rumbled, “how can you protect a person from it?” “Heroes can't kill,” Chris huffed. “I thought you were a hero, how come you're doing this?” Charo sighed, fluttering her lips and setting the biscuit back onto the plate. Agh, Charo...your fingers have been all over that... “Sorry,” Charo mumbled, shedding her facade. “It's just...being a hero, sometimes that means you can't...just...do the nice always.” “Then what's the point?” Chris raised. Charo gawked back at him. “It-...You're helping people,” she said. “Protecting them.” “But,” Alesea intervened, “what if there's another way to do it?” “Like what?” Charo puffed, her patience slipping a little at the implication. “What if I trap it?” Chris decided. “Keep it in, like, a monster cage. That way, we can get...a scientist to do research on it.” Alesea smiled at the notion. She wasn't so sure that would work in their particular case. But it was the thought that she got behind. “Mmmm,” Charo hummed, shrugging uncertainly. “That's...maybe harder to do than to say.” “Maybe you could...tame it?” Chris pondered, taking one of his biscuit halves from before and dipping it into his milk – a ways down – before eating it. “Like a stray dog?” he said through a cheekful of biscuit. Charo and Alesea traded thoughtful looks of consideration, neither sure of what that would entail, much less where they'd keep the things. “Do you want to keep a monster at your house?” Charo asked him. “Also – wouldn't it give away your secret identity? Also, what if those monsters keep coming all the time? Where do you put them all?” “Hm.” Chris crossed his arms, swallowed his morsel, and rubbed his chin blatantly. “Well, where do the monsters come from?” Alesea and Charo both paused at this. They didn't know. “Uh...up?” Alesea muttered, pointing a finger skyward, her face wrinkling with dissatisfaction at the blindness of their situation. “They fall from the sky.” “Whoa, like aliens?” Chris said quietly, in awe. Charo and Alesea gave each other bug-eyed shrugs. For all they knew...- “Maybe you can't throw them back up to space,” Chris admitted. “But if they got here, there's gotta be a way to go back where they came.” “Possibly,” Alesea decided. “Or at least a way to figure out what they really are,” she said to Charo, rubbing her partner on the shoulder. “It sounds like a better idea than trying to...keep this up, anyway.” Charo took a deep breath, her glazed-over eyes wandering off as an ashamed pout slipped over her face. Alesea squeezed her hand down, rubbing her thumb against Charo. “These are the kinds of complicated messes heroes get themselves into,” she said. She glanced to Chris and added, “And it takes a brave person to try to do something about it, even if they might do it in a different way.” She let her forehead press itself against the side of Charo's head. “Being a hero means making some mistakes along the way, but as long as you're keeping people safe...-” She sighed into Charo's neck. “-...you're still doing something important. And courageous.” Charo leaned back into Alesea, their skulls pressing together gently for a moment. “I'm glad I don't have to fight monsters like you do,” Chris decided, grabbing the biscuit that Charo had placed down. And putting it IN HIS MOUTH Aughh, Chris, Charo put her fingers ALL OVER THAT. “It's...pretty scary.” “Ah, well, every hero needs someone to help watch their back,” Charo replied, tapping Alesea's back with her chubby palm and scratching a little. “It's less scary that way,” she said, looking at her partner with a pink-cheeked grin. “A lot less scary,” Alesea agreed. “But...still scary.” Anselmo entered the room, thumbing the front door with the phone still to her ear. “Chris?” “Yea?” “I think your grandparents are here to pick-...Huh?” He side-eyed Charo's phone. “Yes, he's right-...Uh-huh.” “Oh.” Chris had a bit of a mopey look to him. Looking up to Charo and Alesea, he assumed, “Guess I should probably go, then, huh?” “You've got people waiting on you,” said Charo. “Gotta keep them safe, too, right?” “Keep them safe from driving on the wrong side of the road,” Anselmo muttered under his breath, handing Charo's phone back to her. Running his hand through his hair, he sighed. “Anyway. Uh...So, Captain Strange-” “Spirit.” “Captain...Spirit. Next time you've got monsters to fight, uh...make sure to check in with your family first, all right?” “Roger.” Chris bounded up from the couch and give Sel a salute. He grabbed another Hobnob, stuffing it into his face, and guzzling down the last of the milk. Heh. “Gotta stayed fueled,” Charo encouraged, ruffling his hair roughly as he wiped a milk mustache from his lip. “Make sure you don't, ya know, drain your Spirit Batteries when you fight evil.” “Yea,” Chris agreed, looking up at Charo with an admiring smirk. As he rounded the table and passed by Alesea, she gave him a pat on the shoulder. She leaned down and said to him with a cautious tone, “I think you're right, that heroes should try to not hurt anyone – even monsters. Just remember that sometimes...people are the monsters.” “So...” Chris gave her a thoughtful nod with a gleam in his eye that she very much approved of. “That means it's super important to try to save them. Those people, I mean.” Alesea beamed down at him and nodded emphatically. She escorted him to Charo's front door. He gathered his armor and stuck it on. A car beeped from outside. Alesea concluded, “I'm sure you'll figure that stuff out as you go, um, Captain Spirit. Even the most super of heroes have to figure out these kinds of things. Whatever you do, I just hope you can learn to be whatever kind of hero you need to be.” “You've definitely got the stuff to be super~” Charo assured, helping tighten his cape on and nudging him along out the door. Heading to the driveway with him at her side, Charo pumped up a fist. “When you get back home, you've gotta find your own way to be someone's hero!”

[northwest-cryptid]

Get to know me tag thing that I’ve not gotten a tag for in a real long time so I’ve sorta forgot how they work but I’m just gonna wing it and hope it’s okay in the end. I have been tagged by @kaiachu to do the “get to know me tag” thing, I normally don’t get tagged for this sort of thing so I’m happy to give it a shot :D (Thanks by the way!) 

This got way longer than I thought it’d be so, here’s a read more for the people who follow me and don’t have any kind of xkit thing to blacklist “#long post”

1ST RULE: tag 10 people you want to get to know better (I’m horrible with that sort of thing so I probably won’t have 10 people but I’ll try to at least tag some people in this (and yet I’ll fail, trust me.))

2ND RULE: bold the statements that are true (Personally this format sorta confuses me so I’m just going off what was already listed and just gonna swap out details to be facts about me hope that’s alright, rules are weird, I’m not really a rebel but sometimes it’s easier to make your own rules :P)

APPEARANCE: -I’m nearly 6 foot but I genuinely forget the exact, though I know I’m rounding up so that’s a thing. -I have black hair and brown eyes -My hair doesn’t know what it wants to do, some days it’s super curly other days it’s straighter than the most cliche straight white boy. -I’m tall and skinny which is honestly a little annoying -I’m not super pale but I’m what I’d call “white” if my Native American heritage and culture didn’t make me salty about everyone calling me white :P -Imagine Akira from Persona 5, except I can’t summon demons and also I’m not anime, and also I’m not as attractive as him, and also I remember to turn off the light when I go to sleep (there’s a joke for anyone out there who’s played Persona 5 and got annoyed when Akira continuously left the damn lights on every night, no wonder he needs glasses!) Basically I’ve got that same general tall skinny guy build with curly poofy hair and right now it’s actually pretty short so I could actually style it like that if I wanted.

PERSONALITY: -I’m an unintentionally sassy/sarcastic friend if you know me well enough to know I’m joking. -I am always up to help someone however I can, be that listening to their problems or taking direct action to help solve said problems. Though I dislike the idea of being the therapist friend who is only ever spoken to when someone has a problem. -I have more social anxiety in casual settings, however during important/formal social events I find that I already know my role and I’m relatively calm so I’d not say I’m anxious in every social situation. I just need to know my role. -I really try to be a chill person, however I feel like a lot of our culture says “chill” and means “has no opinions on anything and won’t take a stand against something they don’t believe in.” I say that mostly because I find that people will often talk about how chill I am right up until something strikes a nerve with me and I stand up for my morals or beliefs and suddenly it’s “wow you’re so dramatic!” For the record no I’m not talking about the MANY times I’ve actually been way too god damn dramatic (believe me I’m all too aware of those times). -I love all animals, I’ve volunteered at cat shelters quite a lot in my early life because we had a no-kill shelter near my house that needed someone to work with the unadoptable cats. However I’ve been part of a family who has rescued anything from squirrels to snakes to bearded dragons to dogs, to one legged parrots, at one point we had a tarantula and weirdly enough I wasn’t quite as scared of it as I am with most spiders... still didn’t want it anywhere near me. However yeah in general I’ve helped treat tons of animals in my life and I’ve learned to appreciate them all.

ABILITY: -I’d say I can’t draw to save my life but Bob Ross basically dedicated his life to explaining that anyone can make art so yea I’ll respect that. I’m not exactly good at it though. -I’m reasonably athletic but it depends on the activity. I’m a fine sprinter but a bad jogger, I’m good at fencing, I can bike for quite a while, I work out fairly often when I get the chance and according to the numbers the machines give me I’m healthily athletic? I’m not some sports person though. -I personally hate sleeping, it feels like a waste of my time. -I love to play/write music. Music is such a beautiful form of art that can make people feel so many different emotions. Music means a lot to me and I love to sit down and play an instrument with friends or write a new song.

HOBBIES: -I play a LOT of games, anything from video games to tabletop D&D to dice games and casino style gambling games with friends :P -I tend to draw, write, or make music for fun whenever I have an artistic itch to scratch. -I previously mentioned that I work out, I don’t say that to brag or anything I just genuinely find it fun to run around a gym listening to motivational music and having an outlet for all my energy. -It may sound silly but a legitimate hobby of mine is to listen to music, I will sometimes just sit down and put on music I like, this is often something I’ll do at night, I like to just sit down with some tea and relax with good music. -I also enjoy driving, mostly night driving but I’m not going to be picky. Getting lost out in the middle of nowhere and admiring the scenery around me is always really fun, it’s part of why I love night-driving I really enjoy getting away from the light pollution and looking up at the stars. I drive a convertible so it makes it really easy to see everything around me while I drive, but it’s sort of a death trap if I get in an accident so I tend to take in the sights when I’m at a stop and not in the middle of a drive :P

EXPERIENCES: I’m prefixing this with the fact my life is boring and the more interesting experiences of my life are things I don’t much care to just share with the internet -I’ve flown out to New York numerous times to visit my ex (who I was dating at the time) and that was always fun, it was always weirdly freeing to know that I had saved the money and independently flown myself out there. -I once stabbed my foot with my own pocket knife by somehow flipping it open as it fell off my desk it hit a vein in my foot and I was squirting blood down the hallways at like 2 AM. It didn’t hurt nearly as much as you’d think but it wasn’t fun to say the least. -Meryl and I used to often go night driving and actually managed to get out of the car and go hiking a few times at like 2 - 3 AM it was fun, except one time we managed to get a flat tire out in Washington and didn’t have a spare tire so it was exciting to find a way of getting home at midnight when we were a whole state away. 

RELATIONSHIPS: -I’m not gonna list my previous relationships or anything I don’t really feel like that’s respectful to the people I was in the relationships with, even if they weren’t all the best people (though most of them were/are fine people) I don’t want to disrespect other people’s privacy. -However I will say that I’m currently single as fuck. 

MY LIFE: -My life has been sorta interesting lately. -I’ve recently really connected with my local friends, I’m part of a D&D group which helped me make a new friend, and an old childhood friend of mine recently texted me saying he lives in the area and wants to hang out sometime. I love all my friends, and I care so much about my internet friends don’t get me wrong but it is also nice to be able to get out of the house and hang with a friend every now and then. -My family is pretty small, I’ve got 1 older brother (I know I have some siblings from my dad’s previous wife but outside of my half brother I sadly don’t know them well). -I live in Oregon but I can be found driving throughout the west coast at night, you’ll know if you find me because I’m the asshole in the red convertible playing music at like 3 AM but really quietly because I want to respect people who might be sleeping but also just loud enough that you can kinda hear it in the distance because it’s a fucking convertible and road noise makes it hard to hear... oh and also I’ll have the top down even if it’s like 10 degrees out because I like the cold and I’m probably wearing like literally a tank-top and leather jacket to balance the temperature. -I’ve literally had over 50 animals in this house at the same time. Currently however we have 1 Rhea, we just got another few chickens I think we have 3 - 4 now? We have 2 cats, 1 dog, 1 ball python, and... I think that’s it right now?

RANDOM SHIT: -I’m currently 22 -I love talking to people but I’m bad at starting conversations... -I’ve currently been playing Warframe, Guild Wars 2, FFXIV, and PSO2, though to be honest I’ll play just about anything if a friend asks me to :P -Personal favorite food is Cheesecake unless you don’t count that, then it’s Pad Thai, then Sushi, then Shrimp in general. -In person I can hold a conversation for hours, on the internet I’m awful at it. -I often feel like I’m overbearing to new friends because I am easily excited at the concept of making new friends. -I will start writing 20 D&D campaigns knowing full well I’ll never actually get to DM them for anyone, it’s a weird obsession I have with the concept of storytelling through experiences.

I mentioned this at the start, I’m bad at tagging people so the only thing I can really say here is that if you’re someone who (like myself) likes listing off random stuff about yourself, feel free to take it upon yourself and consider yourself tagged. If you’re not the type to be comfortable with this sorta thing that’s cool too, no pressure. If you DO write up one of these after seeing mine, feel free to tag me in the post so I know :P

[pomrania]

Star Wars OC species selector

((Important: I did not come up with this. The original post, by @thefoodwiththedood​, is here. I only transcribed it, and put it into a format that doesn’t use images.))

How to use this: If you’re familiar with “choose your own adventure” books, you know the drill. Answer the question, and then go to the question number that’s behind your answer. Eventually, you will reach a species name, with a link to its Wookieepedia page.

Everything below this line is no longer my words.

Alright, first question: How Human do you want your OC to be?

Almost entirely human, save for some minor differences with their biology or appearance. I don't want to get too crazy with this, after all. (1)

Mostly human, but with some other features being prevalent; something with a human face, but distinctly alien. (2)

Somewhat human, but with an alien face, features, and anatomy -- like an alien with human proportions. (3)

Only human as far as their humanoid body shape (head, arms, and legs on a central torso), something almost entirely alien. (4)

I want something weird and crazy, with hardly any human features -- humans are overrated, anyways. (5)

1. Awesome! A common thread among these human-like races are tattoos -- what's your opinion on those?

I think they look cool! (6)

Eh, they're not my favourite. (7)

2. Excellent choice! A common thread with species like this is weird things sprouting from their heads -- that being said, which seems the coolest to you?

 Horns (8)

A second brain on top of their head: CEREAN

Facial tendrils and bone spurs: SITH PUREBLOOD

Lekku (head tails) (9)

None of these (10)

3. Okay, cool! Now, biologically speaking, what do you want your OC to be like?

Mammalian (11)

Reptilian/amphibian (12)

Aquatic (13)

4. Okay! So, how big you do see them being? (Relative to a Human, that is.)

Smaller than a Human (14)

About Human sized (15)

Larger than a Human (16)

5. I agree! Now, with species this alien, there's a possibility they don't even have a definite body shape -- would you want something like that?

Yes (17)

No (18)

6. Okay, great! With that in mind, what skin tone do you think would look best for your OC?

Green: MIRIALAN

Normal Human skin tones: KIFFAR

Grey (19)

Blue: PANTORAN

7. Fair enough! With that in mind, what skin tone do you think would look best for your OC?

Blue (20)

Normal Human skin tones (21)

White: NAGAI

Purple: KESHIRI

8. How many horns were you thinking?

Eight or more: IRIDONIAN / ZABRAK

Six: THEELIN

Four: CHAGRIAN

Two (22)

9. How many lekku were you thinking?

Two: TWI'LEK

Three to four: TOGRUTA

Six to eight: THOLOTHIAN

A lot: MIKKIAN

10. Fair enough! Moving away from their face, then, what extra body feature seems coolest to you?

Extra arms: CODRU-JI

Wings, also an angelic sort of glow: DIATHIM / ANGELS

A tail: RYN

An overall air of creepiness: PAU'AN

11. Now, is that "covered in fur" mammalian or "human-like" mammalian?

Fur (23)

No fur (24)

12. Now is that "green lizard man" reptilian or just physiologically reptilian?

Lizard man (25)

Only sorta reptilian (26)

13. Were you looking for something with fins or tentacles?

Tentacles (27)

Fins (28)

14. Would you want something cute and fuzzy?

Yeah! (29)

Nah (30)

15. Okay, so what sort of body covering do you see for them?

None (31)

Hair (32)

Feathers: RISHII

16. Do you want something mammalian or reptilian?

Reptilian: ANNOO-DAT PRIME

Mammalian (33)

17. Which sounds cooler, then: a formless, immortal bundle of muscles and nerves, or a formless, immortal tree person?

Muscles and nerves: GEN'DAI

Tree dude: NETI

18. So if they're hardly human, what do you see them moving around on?

Their own gross body: HUTT

Tail/fins: MELODIE

Lobster claws: SAUVAX

Tentacles: GREE

Hands: DUG

Feet (34)

19. Do you believe in magic?

Yes: DATHOMIRIAN NIGHTSISTER

No: RATTATAKI

20. Which do you prefer as your OC's defining design trait?

Red eyes: CHISS

Bird-like features: OMWATI

21. What extra, non-human design feature seems most interesting to you?

Pure white eyes: ARKANIAN

No eyes: MIRALUKA

An extra-long lifespan: EPICANTHIX

Antennae: BALOSAR

Chlorphyll instead of blood: ZELOSIAN

None of the above (35)

22. Which way would you be pointing those horns?

Up: DEVARONIAN

Down: IKTOTCHI

23. What colour?

White: TALZ

Brown (36)

Purple: LASAT

24. Okay, so besides hair, what distinguishing feature sounds the most interesting?

Extra arms: BESALISK

Claws and talons: KALEESH

Horns (37)

25. On a scale of one to four, how lizard-like do you want your OC to be?

One, least: FALLEEN

Two: KYUZO

Three: RODIAN

Four, most: TRANDOSHAN

26. Okay, so if not green, what skin tone do you see for your OC?

Blue: DUROS

Tan-ish orange (38)

27. Where on their body?

The back of their head: NAUTOLAN

Their face: QUARREN

Both: FEEORIN

28. How fishy do you want your OC to be?

Super fishy: MON CALAMARI

Eh, only kinda-sorta: KAMINOAN

29. What's your favourite animal?

Bears: EWOK

Bats: CHADRA-FAN

Dogs: SQUIB

30. Okay, so what do you see their face looking like?

A cute tiny T-rex: ALEENA

A grumpy little muppet: YODA'S SPECIES

Almost not a face: KALLIDAHIN

Idk: JAWA

31. Which do you prefer?

Nature: ITHORIAN

Technology: SKAKOAN

32. Are you afraid of spiders?

Extremely: NELVAANIAN

Not at all: HARCH

33. Would you prefer something beastly or something more weasel-like?

Beast boi: YUZZEM

Weasel boi: SELONIAN

34. How big are they?

Tiny dude: ZILKIN

Sorta smol: XEXTO

Big stronk boi: HERGLIC

35. So you just want a normal human, then?

I guess I do: HUMAN

36. Do you mind your OC looking kinda like a fursona?

Yes: WOOKIEE

No: CATHAR

37. Do you like pirates?

Yeah: WEEQUAY

Nah: ELOMIN

38. Do you mind if they can't breathe oxygen? No: KEL DOR Yes: NIKTO

[doom-ocean]

One of them blog surveys

Haven't done one of these in a while. Instead of having people ask me from a list of questions, I'm gonna do it old school and just answer all the questions listed. 1: How tall or short do you wish you were? I am fine with being 6 foot even 2: What’s your dream pet? (Real or not) Do infinite wish granting genies count? 3: Do you have a favorite clothing style? plain ol jeans n tshirt 4: What was your favorite video game growing up? Star Ocean 2. 88 different fuckin endings! 5: What three things/people do you think of most each day: not being sober, hating life, aaaaaaaaaaaaaand I dunno, food. 6: If you had a warning label, what would yours say? WARNING: MONSTROUS ASSHOLE 7: What is your opinion on [insert person/thing here]? n/a 8: What is your Greek personality type? [Sanguine, Phlegmatic, Choleric, or Melancholic]: Unsurprisingly, melancholic. 9: Are you ticklish? Yes. 10: Are you allergic to anything? Stupidity! lololololololol. But actually, kind of allergic to the tree fluff in the spring, and possibly sunlight. I get lil hives in the summer time. 11: What’s your sexuality? Het'roseksuel 12: Do you prefer tea, coffee, or cocoa? Neither 13: Are you a cat or dog person? Cats over dogs. 14: Would you rather be a vampire, elf, or merperson? Vampire, I guess. 15: Do you have a favorite Youtuber? No. 16: How tall are you? 6ft 17: If you had to change your name, what would you change it to? Farty McCrablice 18: How much do you weigh? been hovering in the 170s for a little while. Heaviest I've ever been. It's a big achievement for someone who has been disgustingly skinny his whol life. 19: Do you believe in ghosts/spirits? Tricky question. I'm like 90% sure I lived in a haunted house for a year, but haven't experienced much since then. 20: Do you like space or the ocean more? Both are equally terrifying, but space is cooler than the ocean, for sure. 21: Are you religious? Not at all. 22: Pet peeves? lol just about everything. So fuckin sick of it all. 23: Would you rather be nocturnal or diurnal: Yes. 24: Favorite constellation? All are fine. Stars are neat to look at regardless of their formation from our perspective. 25: Favorite star? Betelgeuse. Only because every time I go outside at night I look up to see if it has exploded yet. 26: Do you like ball-jointed dolls? uhhh... what? 27: Any phobias or fears? Drowning, falling, flying stinging insects. butterflies and moths. 28: Do you think global warming is real? It is, though I don't think it is as bad as hippies are trying to get us to believe. I grew up in a time where smoking indoors [including malls] was normal, so I know that a lot of smoke that can't leave combined with heat = more heat. On that note, China and India need to get their shit together. Carbon taxes are fucking stupid. 29: Do you believe in reincarnation? No, but it'd be cool to get another chance at life since I fucked this one up. 30: Favorite movie? None at the moment. Used to be Goonies. 31: Do you get scared easily? Not really. 32: How many pets have you owned in your lifetime? 3 kitties. 33: Blog rate? n/a 34: What is a color that calms you? smoked cannabis green. 35: Where would you like to travel and/or live? Meh, the way the world is going, nowhere is worth visiting. 36: Where were you born? Canada. 37: What is your eye color? Blue. 38: Introvert or extrovert? intro. 39: Do you believe in horoscopes and zodiacs? Lol no. The position of the stars millions/billions of lightyears away ha no affect on a persons personality. 40: Hugs or kisses? I've gone many a year without either, and have grown accustomed to the lack of physical contact. The idea of either of those weirds me out, now. 41: Who is someone you would like to see/visit right now? My best friend. 42: Who is someone you love deeply? n/a 43: Any piercings you want? had both my ears and my dingdong pierced at one point. Not any more. 44: Do you like tattoos and piercings? 10 years ago. 45: Do you smoke or have you eiver done so? I smoked cigarettes for 13 years, switched to a vaporizer a year ago. 46: Talk about your crush, if you have one! n/a 47: What is a sound you really hate? metal scraping on metal/stone/ceramic. Harley Davidson motorcycles. 48: A sound you really love? Fart sounds. I will never not laugh at them. 49: Can you do a backflip? No. 50: Can you do the splits? Lol no. 51: Favorite actor and/or actress? n/a 52: Favorite movie? already asked. 53: How are you feeling right now? Sober and gassy. 54: What color would you like your hair to be right now? The way it is. 55: When did you feel happiest? Happiness is incidental and temporary. 56: Something that calms you down? the tweeds. 57: Have any mental disorders? some form of depression. Not going to find out as therapists are by and large feminist and I'd rather not be told I'm depressed because of my masculinity. Could you imagine if a therapist told a gay dude he'd be happier if he stopped acting so gay? Yeah. 58: What does your URL mean? I like doom metal, and the ocean is a common theme within the genre. 59: What three words describe you the most? Unpleasant. 60: Do you believe in evolution? It's not a belief. 61: What makes you unfollow a blog? Generally overt dogmatic beliefs of both religious and non religious varieties. 62: What makes you follow a blog? Something that makes me laugh, or in the case of this site, someone who seems to be level headed. 63: Favorite kind of person: someone that is smart enough to stay away from me. 64: Favorite animal(s): Cats of all kinds except the hairless ones. 65: Name three of your favorite blogs. matt ruins your shit, SYABM, (insert your name here). 66: Favorite emoticon: n/a (although you can tell how old this is as it is called an emoticon and not an emoji) 67: Favorite meme: hate me all you want, but 'poo in loo' made me laugh like a hyena when I first encountered it. Also the " I Do not associate with..." one because the kid's accent made it funny. 68: What is your MBTI personality type? no idea, not gonna bother with it 69: What is your star sign? the ram 70: Can your dog roll over on command, if you have a dog? n/a 71: What outfit out of all your clothes do you like to wear the most? I only rock jeans and a t shirt 72: Post a selfie or two? Easiest way to see what I look like is to go to your preferred search engine, go to the 'images' section and then type in "disgusting pile of shit" 73: Do you have platform shoes? I'm not short, nor am I a girl in the 70s or mid to late 90s. 74: What is one random but interesting fact about yourself? I am left handed. 75: Can you do a front flip? no. 76: Do you like birds? I. fucking. hate. birds. 77: Do you like to swim? No. Whenever I would go swimming, I'd always come close to drowning. I don't swim anymore. 78: Is swimming or ice skating more fun to you? Skating probably, though I haven't done it since I was 12. 79: Something you wish didn’t exist: Winter. 80: Some thing you wish did exist: Matter transporters or replicators. Star Trek style. 81: Piercings you have? lready asked. 82: Something you really enjoy doing: Not much these days. The last Aalbum I wrote was titled Anhedonia.... kinda says it all. 83: Favorite person to talk to: My one and only friend. 84: What was your first impression of Tumblr? "Amateur porn that isn't terribly staged? Yes please! And then of course like a week after I join they got rid of all of it. Pff. Ams dildos. 85: How many followers do you have? one, I think. 86: Can you run a mile within ten minutes? I don't run for anyone. 87: Do your socks always match? Yes. It bothers me immensely otherwise. 88: Can you touch your toes and keep your legs straight completely? I've never been able to do that. Need my hammies massaged and stretched. 89: What are your birthstones? Diamond I think. 90: If you were an animal, which one would you be? One that doesn't exist. 91: If a flower could aesthetically represent you, what kind would it be? Either a crapweed or stenchblossom. 92: A store you hate? WalMart. I used to work there. 93: How many cups of coffee can you drink in one day? I don't drink coffee. Smells nice, but tastes awful. 94: Would you rather be able to fly or read minds? Read minds. 95: Do you like to wear camo? I am not a hick that listens to Five Finger Death Punch, so no. 96: Winter or summer? Summer always. Fuck winter. 97: How long can you hold your breath for? no idea. 98: Least favorite person? Most people, really. 99: Someone you look up to: people that are taller than me. Badumtsss. 100: A store you love? Guitar stores. 101: Favorite type of shoes: shoes that't don't wear out after 6 months. 102: Where do you live? Canada. 103: Are you a vegetarian or vegan? If so, why? No. 104: What is your favorite mineral or gem? Dunno.... emerald? 105: Do you drink milk? Occasionally. 106: Do you like bugs? Spiders and dragonflies are cool because they eat the shittier bugs, but generally, no. 107: Do you like spiders? See above. 108: Something you get paranoid about? People talking shit about me. Getting fired. Any time a boss type calls to me I get scared thinking I'm gonna get fired for being a piece of shit. 109: Can you draw: Sometimes I draw something awesome, but mostly I draw very poorly. 110: Nosiest question you have ever been asked? "Are you single?" 111: A question you hate being asked? "Why don't you want a girlfriend?" 112: Ever been bitten by a spider? Not that I know of. 113: Do you like the sound of waves at the beach? Dunno. I've been at a lake with a sandy beach, but lakes don't really have waves like oceans do. I've never been to the ocean before. 114: Do you prefer cloudy or sunny days? Either or. As long as it's not snowing. 115: Someone you’d like to kiss or cuddle right now: I'd like to give Christina Aguilera the ol in out, still. 116: Favorite cloud type: The big'ns. Cumulonimbus or whatever it is. 117: What color do you wish the sky was? Clear. Seeing the stars 24 hours a day would be sweet. 118: Do you have freckles? no. 119: Favorite thing about a person: rather non specific quesiton. I like a feminine figure. 120: Fruits or vegetables? Either or. 121: Something you want to do right now: Get hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh. 122: Is the ocean or sky prettier? probably the sky. 123: Sweet or sour foods? sweet. Sour gives me heartburn these days :( 124: Bright or dim lights? in between 125: Do you believe in a certain magical creature? No. 126: Something you hate about Tumblr: The same thing everyone else hates lol. Feminists and SJWs 127: Something you love about Tumblr: USED TO BE THE PORN. Pff 128: What do you think about the least? most things. 129: What would you want written on your tombstone? I don't intend to be buried. 130: Who would you like to punch in the face right now? Many people.Bullies I had in school, former friends, etc. 131: What is something you love but also hate about yourself? Being left handed. You have no fucking idea how much it sucks to play guitar as a lefty. Eithe guitars are cheap pieces of shit, or mad pricey 132: Do you smile with your teeth showing for pictures? No. I hate being picturelated 133: Computer or TV? Comp. 134: Do you like roller coasters? No. 135: Do you get motion sickness or seasickness? Never been on the sea. 136: Are your ears lobed or attached? My ears have lobes and are attached to my head. 137: Do you believe in karma? No. 138: On a scale of 1-10, how attractive would you say you are? Cleaned up and on a good day from the right angle I could probably pass for a soft 5. 139: What nicknames do you have/have had? Fag was one of them. 140: Did you have any pretend or imaginary friends? No. 141: Have you ever seen a therapist/shrink? No. 142: Would you say you are a good or bad influence to others? I'm not sure, but with the way things have gone for me probably bad. 143: Do you prefer giving or receiving gifts/help? Meh. 144: What makes you angry. Most things. I am easily annoyed. 145: How many languages do you speak fluently? English. 146: Do you prefer boys, girls, and/or non-binaries? there are only males and females. 147: Are you androgynous? No. 148: Favorite physical thing about yourself: Occasionally i'm like "Snap I got a big one" but then reality kicks in. 149: Favorite thing about your personality: it keeps people away from me. 150: Name three people you would like to talk to right now in person. I only know one person that isn't family. 151: If you could go back into time and live in one era, which would you choose? I'd go back to being 18 and do it all over again, hopefully with fewer mistakes. 152: Do you like BuzzFeed? Lol no. 153: How did you meet your spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend/partner? [If you have one.] n/a 154: Do you like to kiss others’ foreheads or hands for platonic reasons? No. I'm not keen on physical contact. 155: Do you like to play with others’ hair? No. Gross. 156: What embarrasses you? Being alive. 157: Something that makes you nervous/anxious: Being alive. 158: Biggest lie you have ever told: "I'm good" when asked "how are you?" 159: How many people are you following? like 6. 160: How many posts do you have on your blog(s)? more than one. 161: How many drafts do you have on your blog(s)? none. 162: How many likes do you have on your blog(s)? none? 163: Last time you cried and why: My first cat had to be put down because of intestinal cancer. 164: Do you have long or short hair? Short. 165: Longest your hair has ever been: Past my shoulders. 166: Why do you like, dislike, or have neutral feelings about religeon? While you could say that the big bang, and the idea of an all powerful being being equally ridiculous, the fact that one involves magic is what makes me stay away from it. So roughly 2000 years ago magic existed and people lived up to and well over 200 years old? Nah. 167: Do you really care how the universe and world was created? Not really. It'd be a cool thing to know, but aside from that I don't think it has much to do with anything going on in our lives, or any future person's life. 168: Do you like to wear makeup? I do not. I didn't even like kissing girlfriends when they had lipstick on. I didn't like the feeling of shumutz on my lips. Also the waxy taste was weird. 169: Can you stand on your hands or head for more than thirty seconds? Back when I was a wee one I could do both.... while leaned up against a wall. 170: Did you answer the questions you were asked truthfully? Yes. OR DID I?

[welcometoerinsworld]

HOW LIFE IS GOING:

Life is going better. Things took a nose dive Thursday and Friday, but things are much better now. I was having a really hard time on Friday and posted in a facebook group about it. Didn’t realize someone I knew was in the group and he reached out to me shortly after I posted. I’ve known Josh since I was 15. I dated his best friend Sophomore year and we crossed paths over the next several years, but I haven’t seen him since sometime around 2005-2006, maybe earlier. It’s been a very long time. But, he reached out and we ended up talking for about four hours (!) and I felt a lot better by the end of it. We’ve talked several times this weekend and it’s been really nice.

WHAT I LOVED ABOUT THE LAST WEEK:

That it’s over? lol. Last week was an interesting week, but it did have some highlights. I really enjoyed reconnecting with Josh and finding out more about what’s going on in his life.

OH! And, then, on Saturday, Josh was messaging me about pizza places in the area. He served part of his mission in Salem and was talking about visiting sometime and I figured he was just wanting to know about good places to eat when he visits. Nope. His questions got very pointed and I eventually asked him what was up with all the weird questions about pizza. His response? “I’m ordering you a pizza. Get over it.” It was so sweet and so kind.

WHAT I DID THIS WEEKEND:

Yesterday I prepared my lesson for today, did a bunch of homework, went for a walk, and talked on the phone a little bit with Josh. Today I got up early to finish my lesson, went through a bunch of photos from when I went home for Christmas a few years ago, went to church, came home, and have been relaxing all afternoon. It’s been nice. I spent some time reading The Count of Monte Cristo outside, which was so wonderful. I miss reading books outside in the sun. Hooray for it finally being warm with no rain!

I also recorded a video talking about the differences between the movie version and book version of The Count of Monte Cristo, but I didn’t post it on youtube. It’s such a dumb video. I was being all weird and going all over the place with it. Probably should have written a few ideas out before making the video. I’ll have to do it again sometime. lol. I keep meaning to record videos, but my life is so boring.

WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO:

School being over. lol. I’m also looking forward to going home for my family reunion, but I don’t know if that will happen yet. My boss hasn’t given me an answer on my vacation request, so I have no idea whether I will be able to go or not. I really hope I can. I miss my family. And I haven’t been to my family reunion since 2014. It’s been a long time. I miss camping and hanging out with my family out on the mountain. Pray, cross your fingers, sacrifice spiders, do pagan dance rituals, whatever you have to do. lol. I really want to go home.

These are some photos of the last time I was at the reunion:

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PLANS FOR THE UPCOMING WEEK:

No major plans this week. I took an extra shift on Saturday morning and am babysitting Saturday night, so those are about the only ‘out of the ordinary’ events I have planned. I should probably set aside some time to make a Mother’s Day gift for my mom. haha. I didn’t realize it was next week. I do have a gift that my sister and I went in on together, but I like to do something handmade, too, when I can.

WHAT I’M NERVOUS ABOUT:

Actually, I’m not too nervous about anything at the moment. Tomorrow the panic about midterms will probably hit, but right now I’m more even keel about life and don’t really feel nervous or stressed about anything.

WHAT I’VE BEEN DAYDREAMING ABOUT:

Stuff. lol. I’ve been daydreaming about things I’d like to do this summer, places I’d like to go, and people I’d like to hand out with.

HOW SCHOOL IS GOING:

I cannot wait for school to end. Seriously. This term hasn’t been super hard, but I’m just mentally not in it. Normally the “I can’t do this anymore” doesn’t hit until around Week 6, but it hit during Week 2 this time, so this term has been a struggle. It’s midterms this week, so it’s going to be brutal. *sigh*

As far as grades go, I still have all A’s, so at least I have that going for me. I’m pretty sure midterms will drop two of those down to B’s, but we’ll see. Maybe I’ll remember more than I think I do on the tests.

HOW WORK IS GOING:

Work is going okay. Thursday was a bit on the crazy side. Kid 2 did just fine, which was nice. There were a few moments that were borderline behavior that I chose not to mark as behaviors because Kid 2 initially say no, but then did what I asked. The behavior notes say there has to be a request made three times before it is considered a behavior and Kid 2 complied on the third request, so it got close, but didn’t actually hit behavior. The crazy part was the extra shift I took Thursday night.

Have you ever wrestled a table? Well, I can now say I have. This kid decided to get underneath a table (after running around the clinic with me chasing after) and I couldn’t tell if the kid was trying to flip the table or walk around with the table on top or what, but I was all sprawled out holding the table in place with the kid underneath pushing it and tipping it periodically. I have some bruises on my knees and shins from that enjoyable activity. Once that kid get out of the behavior, though, it wasn’t too bad. Lots of questions and such, but no more running and doing weird stuff with a table.

Sadly, binders are back in preschool. Drat. Apparently that rotating supervisor didn’t have the authority to do away with binders, so they’re back. BUT, the good news is that the format has changed. Instead of spending FOREVER going through these super long preschool binders, we pick four pages a day and just do those. So, it’s peer play, group singing, book, four pages from the binder, and craft. Not too bad. We’re all a bit bummed binders are back, but we’re all soooo happy that it’s just partial binders. Hooray!

The super depressing news, though, is that Kid 2 is moving to another state in a month or so, so I’ll have to be assigned to a new kid. Not sure who they’ll assign me to yet, but I’m not super happy about it. Kid 2 and I have a great bond and working with this kid is the only reason I haven’t quit a few times over the last two months. I was seriously going to quit and never go back after that crap went down with my coworker, but I love working with this kid so much that I decided to stick it out and stay. Things have gotten ‘better’ with that coworker, but I may still leave after Kid 2 leaves. I guess I have a lot to think about.

HOW RUNNING IS GOING:

Running is not going very well. lol. I got back out on Tuesday, but the last mile was brutal. Instead of it just being my lower leg and foot hurting, it was all the way from my hip to my foot. I almost called someone to come pick me up and take me home, but didn’t want to bother anyone, so I just limped myself home. Kept wanting to go walk again on Wednesday and Thursday, but decided to take those two days off. Friday, well, Friday was a bust all over the place and I didn’t get out. Saturday, though, I got back out and walked slower. Got my whole route in, but made sure to just go at a leisurely pace and not even try to speed up. I may have to stick with that for the time being to get my leg used to doing this much distance. Feels so lame to have to go slow, but oh well. It happens.

That first little blip on Tuesday was when I first headed out, but then realized I’d left the oven on with lasagna in there, so I had to turn around and turn the oven off. lol. Kinda wonder if that had something to do with my leg hurting later.

WHAT BOOK I’M READING:

Well, I didn’t get a lot of reading in last week, but I did get one chapter read. lol. I read a chapter of Ghosts of War by Brad Taylor. Went to the park by my work to read it and had a lovely time. Then school kinda blew up and I didn’t feel like I had the time to read first and then do homework, so I went straight home from work Wednesday and Thursday. Didn’t have time to read after that. I’ll try again this week, but maybe not right after work. I think this week I’ll come home, do homework, and then take a break to read for half an hour during the evening.

GOALS FOR THIS WEEK:

Reached some of my goals, but not all of them. That’s okay, though. None of these really have a deadline, so I’ll just keep these the same as before.

Fitness

Slowly increase walking pace while maintaining a distance of at least 3.1 miles

School

Get a little ahead with homework

Work

Get Kid 2 to the bathroom more often

Personal

Read at least one chapter of a non-school book

Religious

Be more consistent at reading my scriptures

HOW I DID ON LAST WEEK’S GOALS:

Fitness

Slowly increase walking pace while maintaining a distance of at least 3.1 miles

Kinda did this, kinda didn’t. I maintained my distance, but didn’t increase my pace at all. I actually went much slower with my pace. Oh well. At least I have my distance down.

School

Keep on track with being a little ahead with homework

This did not happen. Again. I mean, I got my homework done, but I’m nowhere near getting ahead. I still have homework that’s due tomorrow left to do and then it’s on the this week’s regular homework. It should be okay, though. It’s midterms, so things will be crazy, but the midterms are timed, which means I don’t have to spend hours and hours trying to get an assignment done. Thank goodness for that. So there’s hope for at least getting everything done by Saturday night.

Work

Get Kid 2 to the bathroom more often

This one actually worked out pretty well. Kid 2 stopped saying “Don’t touch me,” so that was nice. Went to the bathroom each time without issue and Kid 2 even used the toilet with Kayla on Tuesday!!! Hooray! We’re all pretty excited about that. Kid 2 has been doing a lot better about going into the bathroom, so that has made getting to the bathroom more often easier. I’ve been using my ipad and flipping through pictures or showing short videos, which seems to help a lot. I’ll keep up with this and hopefully by the time Kid 2 moves, this will be much, much better.

Personal

Read at least one chapter of a non-school book

Yes! I did get one chapter read of a non-school book! I’m so excited about that! lol

Religious

Be more consistent at reading my scriptures

I switched this up a bit and have been listening to my scriptures while getting ready for work in the morning. It’s nice and seems to make the day flow a bit better.

ISSUES/PROBLEMS/CONCERNS:

Just the usual: having enough time to get what I need to do done this week. I have a 7am staff meeting tomorrow, which I haaaaaaaaaate, but after that I should be able to finish my Quality Management assignment before the end of the day. My hope is to get started on my psychology assignment Monday evening, but I don’t think that will happen. My QM stuff always takes way longer than I think it will, but who knows. I’ve already listened to my hour-long lecture and done some of the prep work. Hopefully it won’t take more than 7 hours to finish. Cross your fingers for me.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW:

Nothing I can really think of.

So, I guess that’s everything. Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

5 Minute Life Update 5/6/18 HOW LIFE IS GOING: Life is going better. Things took a nose dive Thursday and Friday, but things are much better now.