#WOMEN SOFTBALL JERSEYS

[luke-hughes43]

For the Luca au: The only thing he could catch was her number so when he went back to watch ghe game he was trying to find her jersey number. Poor Adam was confused when Luca asked him to look for that number because he was like no one had that number in umich women’s softball team. So when he found the number he realized it was an msu player he realizes his brother was crushing on her. He definitely teases him and then when he asks so where did you meet he was shocked when he said before the game

yes!

like maybe she wears like 15 or 19 or something like that and once Luca finds her, he just can't look away.

[skyler10fic]

To Have and to Hold: Ch. 11 Showered

By Skyler10

Summary: The bridal party hosts a surprise shower-turned-bachelorette for Daisy and Carol, and some familiar MCU faces show up (Jane Foster, Darcy Lewis, Piper from AoS, Natasha Romanov, and “Val” here is King Valkyrie/Brunnhilde).

Notes: Thanks to all of my wonderful writing buddies for the bridal shower game suggestions! This was a fun chapter to write.

Read on Ao3

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On the evening of the bridal shower, Elena’s living room slowly filled with women. First Jemma and Maria arrived to help set up and decorate, then Melinda brought the drinks. Carol’s friends Val, Jane, and Darcy, and Daisy’s friends Piper and Natasha rounded out the guest list. 

Elena had told Daisy and Carol to come over for dinner, and that other guests might be coming, but nothing else. She also told them a slightly later time. A note on the door said to come on in, so they hesitantly knocked, opened the door, called out that they were there, and walked inside. When they entered the living room, it all made sense. 

“Surprise!” all of the women shouted at once. 

“A surprise bridal shower,” Jemma explained, in case it wasn’t clear what was going on. 

“You guys!” Daisy exclaimed. Carol grinned and squeezed Daisy’s hand. Daisy asked, “Did you know about this?” 

“No!” Carol laughed. “I’m just as surprised as you are.”

Melinda popped her head out of the kitchen. “There they are!” 

“Mom!” Daisy laughed and went over to hug her. Meanwhile, Carol greeted their friends, and Maria made sure everyone had been introduced. 

Jemma asked Val, “So do you work with Carol?” 

Val snorted. “God no, I’m lucky I passed maths at all in school. We were on the same softball team, and now we go to all the sporting events together. Try to catch a WNBA night or football—proper football, not American football. Maria comes too with the little one on occasion.” 

“Monica gets bored with soccer and softball,” Maria explained as Carol showed pictures on her phone of Monica in various jerseys with concession snacks or napping in her seat. “She says they take too long. But we catch the WNBA when the games aren’t too late, and whatever else they go to during the day when we can.”

Meanwhile, Jane and Darcy were enthusiastically explaining their newly improved wormhole theory to Piper, Elena, and Natasha. When Jane and Darcy were called away by Jemma, Piper asked, “Okay, so did anyone get any of that or am I just an idiot?”

“No idea,” Elena freely admitted. 

“Sorry, I’ve got nothing.” Natasha shrugged. “I’ve read a lot about space, but they are way beyond my level.” 

A timer on Elena’s phone beeped, and she briefly joined Melinda and Daisy in the kitchen, then reappeared to announce that the enchiladas and drinks were ready. Maria started the party playlist in the background on Elena’s stereo system, and the bridal shower officially began. 

After dinner, they retrieved their purses for a purse scavenger hunt, which required the various friends to get to know each other even better. The true test, however, was how well they knew the brides in “Daisy + Carol Trivia,” as Jemma had titled it on her slide deck. She played the slides on the TV so everyone could see the questions and answers. Since she knew the brides equally well and had for years, she was the ideal quizmaster. Naturally, Melinda knew more of the Daisy questions and Maria knew all of the Carol ones, but the others each had questions related to their friendships with the brides as well. 

The questions for the surprise final round, however, had been a team effort from the bridal party present (Melinda, Maria, Jemma, and Elena). Jemma quizzed Carol and Daisy on how well they knew each other, like the old Newlyweds game show. Since Jemma didn’t tell the brides in advance and didn’t have their answers prepared, all she had for this round were questions on the slides. 

“And now for the happy couple,” Jemma called. “Brides come on up.” 

She had Carol and Daisy sit a few feet apart on barstools at the front of the room, facing each other. Elena handed them each a small whiteboard with a dry-erase marker. 

“Ignore the Sharpie in that corner,” Elena mumbled to Daisy. “Alfie found that one when Mack wasn’t looking.”

Daisy giggled at the child’s drawing of a small cat that would never be erased. 

Maria explained, “Those are just for the answers you’re guessing. We aren’t tallying points because 1. everyone’s a winner here and 2. we’ve seen you two compete. For those who haven’t, let’s just say there’s a reason we never put them on opposite teams.” Maria raised an eyebrow and sent the audience a look that said as well as they worked together, things got intense when they worked against each other, especially after a few drinks. 

“We’ll be good,” Daisy said sheepishly, remembering the pub trivia night or two Maria was referencing. 

“We promise,” Carol finished. They sent their best angelic, innocent looks in Maria and Jemma’s direction. The bridesmaids exchanged jokingly doubtful looks.   

Their friends laughed knowingly. 

Jemma cleared her throat. “You’ll each have 20 seconds to write your answers and then guess what the other wrote. Ready?” 

“Wait,” Carol interrupted. “So I write what I would say for me, and then I guess out loud what Daisy would have written?” 

“Precisely,” Jemma confirmed and clicked the remote. “First question! What did you do on your first date?” 

They each wrote quickly but shared a silent joke between them.

“Time’s up, and judging from those looks, it might be a rocky start?” Jemma asked.

Carol guessed, “Our first big date out was the winter formal. Is that what you said?” Daisy grimaced and revealed her board first to Carol and Jemma and then to the audience. “I said the holiday market we stopped at on the drive home from Christmas right after you asked me to be your girlfriend.” 

“Oh no,” Carol laughed. “Is that what you guessed I would say?”

“No, I thought you’d say studying together at the coffee shop,” Daisy laughed. 

“We could say we had a lot of first dates,” Carol justified, “because we’d already done so much as friends and then we were doing them as girlfriends so they were all special. But on the drive back to school was when we made it official so that’s true too.” 

Jemma clicked to the next slide. “If your partner had a superpower, what would it be?”

They wrote quickly and were ready and confident this time. 

Daisy guessed first this time. “Flying, but in a super cool way, like with rocket feet or something.”  

Carol revealed her board. “Okay, I think that counts. I said photon blasts, which would do that, but also like firepower in your hands.” 

Daisy shrugged. “Sure, yes, photon blasts. They did not teach me that in computer school.” They all laughed and Jemma conceded that it was close enough. 

“And what would Daisy’s power be?” Jemma asked.  

Carol contemplated how to phrase it. “Okay, I don’t know if this is what you would say, but in physics, everything has a frequency, right? So you could, like, control things by tuning into those frequencies.” She demonstrated a cool superhero pose and moved her open hands around. 

“Hm, like telekinesis?” Daisy asked. 

“Eh, not really.” Carol tilted her head. “It’s more like you could tap into the vibrations all around us and alter their patterns.” 

Jane bounced in her seat. “You could make things shake or break apart, even causing earthquakes or avalanches! Or even manipulate individual objects down to the smallest level. That would be so cool.”

Carol pointed at the only other person in the room who understood her language. “Yeah! And lots of other stuff. Not just earth, but liquid, metal, anything.” 

“The Avatar,” Darcy said in awe. 

Jemma squinted. “I think that’s further away from what she meant… So Daisy, what did you pick?” 

“Well, you’re not going to believe this,” Daisy teased, leading up to the dramatic reveal of her board. “I did actually put telekinesis, but this sounds much cooler. Thinking of that like a superhero fighting style? That’s badass.” She looked to her mom, who had been the one to get her into martial arts as a kid.

Melinda looked impressed. “That’d be very cool.” 

Daisy beamed at the validation. “So that seems close enough to count too, yeah?” 

Jemma opened it up to the audience, who voiced enthusiastic agreement. “There we have it. Though, I’d say the true winner here is Carol’s knowledge of physics leading to excellent superhero possibilities.” 

Val raised her hand and Jemma called on her. “Yeah, Carol, when we’re done here, can you tell the rest of us what our powers would be?” 

They laughed again and Carol agreed, then they continued with the game: “If your partner could see any living musician perform, who would they pick?” (Alanis Morissette for Carol and Taylor Swift for Daisy) and favorite foods, places to vacation, and dream cars rounded out the questions. 

“Last question, who said ‘I love you’ first?” Jemma asked, expecting a sweet, romantic story.

Daisy and Carol’s smiles fell. The images of a stormy, tearful night in college came back to them. Carol had hung up on her dad to end a shouting match and was shaking in fear and anger. Daisy had held her tightly until she calmed down and they had cried their eyes dry. They had pledged their love in trembling whispers in the dark as thunder rumbled and rain pounded the windows. No matter what metaphorical storms they weathered, they had promised each other that their love would be strong enough to make it through to the birdsong of the blue-sky morning.

“It was sort of both of us at once,” Daisy said softly, not taking her eyes off Carol.

Carol swallowed hard. “Yeah, it just came out one night.” She put on her party face and changed the topic. “So! What’s next?” 

The women understood the story wasn’t going to be shared in detail and didn’t press. Most of them knew why Carol’s mom wasn’t here at her only daughter’s bridal shower, but even Daisy’s friends Piper and Natasha could guess, being queer themselves. 

To lighten the mood, Maria introduced the next game: Marital MadLibs. She asked them for nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and so on while writing on a notepad, filling out the blanks. They all contributed a word, playing along with the expected wacky tone of the game. When they were done, Maria revealed that they had been rewriting the traditional wedding vows. She had Carol and Daisy stand in front of her and each read their half of the vows to each other in a mock ceremony. They laughed so hard, they could barely get through them. 

Daisy started reading the notebook Maria handed her: “I, Minnie Mouse, take thee, Wonder Woman, to be my wedded dog-walker, to have and to dance, from this day forward, for pretty, for worse, for richer, for cuter, in sickness and in hunger, to love and to hug, till heaven do us part.” She looked up from the notebook to smile at Carol. “Aw, mine was kinda sweet.” 

Carol received the notebook with curiosity and began reading—or at least tried to but was interrupted several times by giggling. “I, Captain Crunch, take thee, Britney Spears, to be my wedded alien, to have and to fuck from this day forward, for better, for hard, for richer, for wetter? In sickness and in scissors , to love and to pleasure?! till math do us part!”  

Everyone in the room was laughing so hard they were crying by the end. Carol handed the notebook back to Maria and covered her blushing red face with her hands. “Mine got so dirty and we weren’t even trying!” 

“Speak for yourself.” Natasha lifted her drink.

“Here here,” Val agreed with a tap of her plastic cup to Natasha’s. 

The bridal party exchanged silent amusement. The evening wasn’t over yet, but there were clear alliances forming.  

“That seems like a good segue,” Jemma hinted. “Everyone to the kitchen!” 

“Ooo, what’s next?” Daisy said, mostly to Carol, as a subtle way to check in that she was having fun.

Carol observed Elena, Maria, and Jemma’s enthusiasm and replied, “I think the cute little bridal shower is over and the bachelorette party is starting.” 

Gathered around Elena’s large kitchen island, they played a game trying to concoct the perfect Carol + Daisy signature cocktail, with the couple being the judge of which best suited their relationship. In the process, it was decided that their wedding hashtag would be “Caisy.” Piper and Jemma coined it as the name of their cocktail, but it had resounding approval from all. 

When they had settled on a winning recipe (Jane and Darcy’s mixed berry white sangria), Melinda finished her virgin pineapple daiquiri, said her goodbyes, and headed home. She said she had a long drive back, but it went without saying that having a bride’s mom at this part of the party could get awkward or embarrassing. 

For example, the next game was a Yankee swap for the party favor bags. Each guest had brought a gift bag with an item from a sex shop such as a toy or lube, a pair of underwear or lingerie store gift card, and a sex tips book or game. Jemma and Maria had brought extra for Carol and Daisy so there would be enough for everyone playing.  

Elena held up a bowl full of pieces of paper and explained, “Each of these has a number on it. Whoever draws number one picks first, and whoever draws number two can either pick the gift bag that the first person unwrapped or can pick from the pile. When the last gift is unwrapped, whatever gift you are holding is the one you’re going home with.”

Carol playfully grabbed Daisy around the waist. “I pick this one to go home with.” 

Daisy tickled her side until she let go and they all laughed, but Elena was undeterred from her mission to make sure everyone got a number and understood the game before they started. 

Luckily, Natasha, perhaps the least shy person in the room, drew number one. While no one would describe her as loud or the center of a party, she had a bold, frank, Russian-American way of speaking her mind that made people trust her. When she opened her gift bag to reveal a toy and book the others hadn’t heard of and a pair of banana-print briefs, she oohed and ahhed like a pro. Only Daisy, knowing her better than the others did, could see her strategy of getting rid of the gift by making others believe they wanted it. 

They went around in numerical order, roaring in laughter when butch Piper got a pair of lacy pink bikini-cut panties and when Jemma tried to market the mini whip and feather she unwrapped so others would want it. Sadly, her salesmanship was lacking and obvious, so she didn’t have any takers. 

Competition heated up when Val stole Carol’s gift, Maria stole it from Val, and Daisy stole it from Maria. 

“That’s the third trade. This gift is no longer in play,” Elena announced. Daisy packed the sex dice game, soft modal short boxers, and bullet vibe back into the gift bag and hid it not-so-subtly under Carol’s chair. 

Darcy poked Jane. “Aw, she stole it back for her.” 

After that, no one dared steal Carol’s new gift she had unwrapped from the pile: black lace-hemmed boyshorts, a double-ended vibrator, and The Sassy Sapphic’s Guide to Married Pleasure . Only Val was adventurous enough to end up with Natasha’s mysterious toy and book and fun enough to enjoy the banana briefs. Jane, Darcy, Elena, Maria, and Piper traded a few times but were ultimately satisfied with their gift bags as well, whether for humor or serious use. 

Jane and Darcy headed home after the exchange, and the others decided was time for a final round of drinks, which played a key part in the final game: Dirty D20. Jemma brought one of her Dungeons and Dragons die with 20 sides and displayed a set of 20 questions on her laptop, once again hooked up to the TV so all could see. They would take turns rolling the die and had to answer the corresponding question (causing everyone else to take a drink) or refuse to answer and take a drink themselves. Unlike Never Have I Ever, a simple yes or no wouldn’t suffice. These questions were more open-ended. 

“What?!” Daisy leaned closer to the TV and read over the questions. “Name a kink you want to try?”

Val shrugged. “I’m ready, let’s do this.” 

Natasha sent her an impressed look and scooted closer on the sofa. “I’m on her team.” 

Jemma sighed. “There are no teams. I just explained the rules.”

Carol stepped in to head off a rule-breakers versus rule-giver debate. “I think we’re ready! Who's first?”   

“I’ll go.” Piper adjusted the pillow behind her and sat cross-legged in the overstuffed recliner. 

Suddenly, the trumpets of “Mambo #5” started playing loudly, making them all jump. 

“Sorry!” Piper and Elena said at once as the entire room started dancing along. Elena scrambled for the stereo volume and Piper pulled out the hidden remote her leg had hit, which had forced the volume up all the way. With the volume on Elena’s party playlist down to a background level, and the fun party vibe bolstered by the unexpected throwback song, they were back on track for a silly game.

Jemma tossed Piper the die and she used the coffee table to roll. Ironically, number 5. Jemma read from the list: “Show the last naughty photo you sent.” 

Piper was happy to oblige. She scrolled through her photos until she found a sexy post-workout selfie and a smoldering expression as she suggestively pulled at her sports bra. The women whistled and applauded her sexy selfie skills. 

They continued around the room, confessing celebrity crushes, what they find attractive, the most adventurous place they’d had sex, first kiss stories, a song that turns them on, a roleplay or fantasy they’d be into, a normal (non-lingerie) clothing item that makes them feel sexy, pet names they called or were called by a partner, dream honeymoon/anniversay locations, and more.     

The game ended when all 20 questions had been answered at least once, with Jemma crossing them off as they went. To their credit, no one had refused to answer, even the extremely personal ones. 

New friends Val and Natasha decided to share an Uber home, leading to several raised eyebrows after they left, but only Piper said what they were all thinking: “I don’t know about you guys, but I ship it.” 

They all agreed and voted on a wedding-themed movie to watch while they sobered up enough to drive home safely. My Big Fat Greek Wedding won because the wedding was between the main characters (unlike Crazy Rich Asians and My Best Friend’s Wedding) and the engaged couple planning the wedding did end up married (unlike The Wedding Planner). It seemed the best omen, especially given the quotable humor. 

As Piper fell asleep in the recliner, Elena and Jemma changed the TV settings back from displaying the laptop to playing the movie. Maria, Carol, and Daisy noted how the whole night served to unite their friends and help them bond with each other. Maria mentioned how it was helpful for her and Jemma to know these women better before the wedding, and Carol and Daisy floated the idea of more parties or even girl’s trips together with tonight’s group invited in the future. This felt like one more way marriage could be a joining of their lives in a new way. They would still have their individual hangouts with their friends separately, of course, but now that their friends all knew each other, it helped to break the ice so it wasn’t awkward if they did more together too.  

By the end of the movie, they were all sober, awake, and laughing at the Greek family’s quips and quirks. They helped clean up when it was over, making sure Elena and Mack weren’t left with a trashed party house, and they gathered up their naughty gift bags. 

Elena made sure they were safe to drive and offered to let them crash in a guest bedroom for the night if needed, but they said they were okay. Piper had taken an Uber to the party but lived on Jemma’s route home, so Jemma drove her, and Carol and Daisy assured Elena that they could help keep each other alert if needed, though they were too hyped up from the fun of the party for anyone to be concerned. Maria was the only one alone, but she didn’t live far and she promised to text their group chat when she got home. 

Carol and Daisy felt like they were floating on the drive home. It’d never felt shorter. They might not be throwing the fanciest wedding of the year with the biggest guest list, but their inner circle was going to make sure it was an unforgettable one all the same. They were already surrounded by so much love and joy and friendship, no matter what came next, they knew they wouldn’t be alone. 

[pookha]

Disillusioned

An Owl House Fanfiction.

Luz has found out the sad truth about the author of her favorite series: Mildred Featherwhyle is a TERF. As president of the Gravesfield High Queer Alliance, she has to make a statement about it. As the owner of two Mildred Featherwhyle fansites, she also has to make a statement there. Fortunately, Camila, Vee and Masha are all there to support her.

TW: biphobia, TERFs, homophobia, Disillusionment with a hero.

A knock came at the door and Luz jumped. She’d been staring at a news article on her laptop for a long time. She had closed her eyes to think about it and had drifted into a spiral of thoughts that chased each other around and around in her head.

“Come in,” she said as she opened her eyes and spun around in her desk chair.

The door opened and Masha came in. They had their softball jersey on over dark black skinny jeans. When they turned to close the door Luz saw it was actually Vee’s JV jersey from the previous year with ‘Noceda’ printed above Vee’s number 5. Luz smiled; she should have known it was Vee’s jersey since Vee was wearing Masha’s 08 jersey from last year when she went to school that morning.

“Got a moment?” Masha asked. Luz nodded and Masha sat down on Luz’s bed across from her.

“What’s up?” Luz asked.

“I have a favor to ask you, but I think it’s going to be hard for you.” Masha sighed.

“Anything for you,” Luz said.

“Don’t say that too soon.” Masha blinked slowly, obviously screwing up courage.

“Oh no! You’re breaking up with Vee!” Luz’s mind immediately leapt to the worst thing.

Masha’s eyes snapped open.

“No, no, no, never!”

“No, it’s about that.” They pointed at Luz’s laptop.

Luz didn’t turn around. She knew what was on the screen.

“Yeah, it sucks.” She twisted in her chair and closed the lid on her laptop.

She sat with her back to Masha.

“What about it?” Luz finally asked.

Masha hesitated, then spoke firmly.

“Look, I know you’re not just a big fan. I know you’re actually a big name fan: Luzura1. I know you run the Good Witch Azura fanfiction archive and the ‘I Love Hecate’s Three Faces’ fan club page.”

Luz spun around so fast she almost fell off her chair.

“What? How?” She put her hands up on her face.

“Vee told me. She learned when you were away in the Demon Realm. You left your laptop open and she saw. She wasn’t prying; she just saw it. She told me. She probably shouldn’t have, but I can’t un-know it now.”

Luz sighed.

“Not her fault. What’s the favor?” She dreaded what Masha was going to say, already knowing the answer.

“As president of the GHQA, I think you have a duty to denounce her and make our position on this clear.”

“I—I know I do, but it’s hard. The Good Witch Azura meant so much to me; it was the book my dad gave me before…” Tears filled her eyes.

Masha reached over and took her hand.

“I know.” They squeezed Luz’s hand and Luz gripped their hand tightly, almost painfully.

“I can’t believe Mildred Featherwhyle’s a TERF.” Now the tears spilled down Luz’s cheeks.

“I mean, people have seen it coming for a while, looking at her Twitter likes and who she was following on social media. I didn’t want to believe it. I defended her when people started figuring it out and I should have known better; I saw the same links and likes they did.” Luz grabbed a tissue from the desk and wiped her eyes.

“But this…this is just out there. She really said that trans women are just perverts; that they just want to invade women’s spaces. That they just want to take women’s rights.” Luz’s voice was thick, not just with sadness, but anger, too.

“I hate to ask it of you, but coming from Luzura1 , it would have a lot more impact.” Masha leaned over and squeezed Luz’s hand again.

“I wish we’d met at the summer camp, too,” Luz said.

Masha laughed.

“But then you’d never have met Amity and I’d never have met Vee, so no to that.” They smiled at Luz.

“Yeah, but I wish we’d been friends then, too. I feel like I missed a good year.”

“Nah, you just had that good year in the Demon Realm.”

Masha stood.

“I’ll leave you alone, but if you need me, just text…or call if you must.”

Luz laughed. Masha never answered calls and often left texts on read for hours unless it was Vee; everyone knew it.

Masha got up and left. Luz slid over to the door, locked it and turned out the light. She sat in the dim twilight until it got dark, then she opened her laptop and started typing. She’d only been at it for a few minutes when Camila called up for dinner. Luz made sure her work was saved, locked her screen and went down to dinner. She immediately noticed that it was just her and Camila.

“No Vee?” Luz asked.

“She’s staying with Masha tonight.” Camila’s voice was too bright, too cheery.

“Is she afraid that I’m mad at her?” Luz asked.

“No, no,” Camila said, still too cheerily.

“I’m going to break the ‘no phones at dinner’ rule for a moment,” Luz said and pulled out her phone. She texted Vee.

Hey, not mad at you. If I’d seen something like that I’d have told Amity. ILY.

Vee texted back immediately.

ILY too…Sis

Luz laughed, Vee called her sis sometimes and it just made Luz smile, but it also made her crack up for some reason that she couldn’t say.

“Everything okay?” Camila asked.

“Yeah, just telling Vee that I love her and I’m not mad.” She put her phone away.

Camila sat down, took Luz’s hand and said a silent grace. Luz kept respectfully silent, but no longer bowed her head. Camila finished, let go of Luz’s hand and they dug in. Vee had made a rosemary-garlic sourdough bread that smelled amazing when Luz cut it, and Camila had made a seafood stew that was somewhere between a sancocho and a gumbo. They ladled it into bowls and sopped it up with their bread.

“What’s wrong?” Camila asked after a moment.

“Nothing’s…” Luz started to say, but Camila wagged her spoon at Luz.

“C’mon.”

“It’s Mildred Featherwhyle.” Luz’s spoon clanked back into her bowl as she dropped it.

“Oh, I saw that horrible stuff she said on Twitter.” Camila took Luz’s hand again and squeezed it. Luz squeezed back then returned to her food. She stirred the stew around and around in her bowl, just like the thoughts in her head earlier. The beautiful bread that Vee had made disintegrated into the stew.

“You should eat, mija.” Camila put her hand on Luz’s again to stop her.

“Sorry.” Luz ate a few bites, then put down her spoon and stared down at her bowl.

“It’s just that this is eating me up inside. Those books meant so much to me; dad gave me my first one. They made me realize it’s okay to be different, to be gay; to be bi; to be queer . They’re how I connected with Amity, and also with all the people on my websites. I looked up to her and now I see she’s not a good person like I thought she was.”

She sighed and ate another bite, then put her spoon down again.

“I don’t know what to do.” Tears sparkled at the corner of her eyes again.

“Just do what you know’s right in your heart. You’ll know when and how. Talk to your friends in the Queer Alliance; they’ll help.”

“Yeah.” Luz picked up her spoon again, but just stirred her stew around and around again. Finally, she stood up.

“I can’t eat right now. Sorry, mamá.” She covered her bowl with a lid and put it in the fridge.

“It’s okay. Let me know if I can help.” Camila stood and hugged Luz as she left the kitchen. Luz hugged her back tightly then went back to her room.

She closed and locked the door, sat at her desk and opened the laptop. She opened a new document and watched the cursor blink on the blank page.

On Off On Off On Off On Off

She shut her eyes, put her head in her hands and sobbed in the blinking light. When she looked up to get a tissue, she saw that nearly an hour had passed. She wiped her face, tossed the tissue in the garbage, and touched Amity’s photo. “Te amo, batata,” she whispered.

She touched the photo of Vee in her dirt-streaked softball uniform smiling next to Masha.

“Te amo, hermana.”

She closed her eyes for just a moment more and started typing. The words flowed in a torrent, a flood that spilled on the digital page. She didn’t pause to edit, but wrote from the heart. When she was done, she opened her contact list for the GHQA and sent her draft to all of them. Then she opened her DMs on her websites and contacted all of the moderators. Now, all she could do was wait. Almost immediately, her phone began to chime with notifications. Almost everyone told her to run with what she’d written. Some told her she was being reactionary. Some told her that she should wait and see if Mildred Featherwhyle retracted what she’d said. Two of the moderators for the Hecate fansite quit, one because they couldn’t support Mildred Featherwhyle anymore and the other because they thought Luz was betraying women to ‘the trannies and perverts.’ Luz wondered how they’d ever been a fan of The Good Witch Azura in the first place.

Vee texted her.

Looks good to me. Masha has some sources they’re gonna send you. I know this hurts, but it means a lot to both Masha and me

Luz half-smiled around a new set of tears. She’d just started to do some light editing when Masha’s list of sources arrived. She used info from some of them and added the links to the end of her posts. She started editing more heavily based on the feedback she’d gotten. She only realized she was hungry when her stomach growled and Stringbean woke up from her perch in the corner and flicked her tongue at Luz. Luz smiled at Stringbean and she leapt from her shelf onto Luz’s shoulder.

“You’re right; I should go eat.” She looked at the clock on her laptop. She’d been at it for hours. She knew she’d miss school tomorrow, but she also knew that her mom would understand. Luz crept downstairs to the kitchen, heated her leftover stew in the microwave and when it was almost done, threw a piece of the bread on top of it for the last few seconds. She could feel Vee’s disapproving stare about microwaving bread instead of toasting it even though Vee wasn’t here; she took her baking seriously and microwaving bread was a sin in Vee’s eyes.

Luz sat down at the kitchen table and ate mechanically, shoveling the stew and bread in. Stringbean rattled in her ear and she slowed down to enjoy her mother’s and Vee’s cooking. She held up pieces for Stringbean, who ate some of the vegetables, but none of the seafood. She’d never gotten a good answer if Palismen actually needed to eat, but Stringbean enjoyed it so Luz fed her.

She heard her mother’s steps on the stairs and a moment later, Camila sat down next to her.

“Have you slept at all?”

Luz shook her head.

“Nope, I’m acting like Hunter.”

Camila laughed at that. Getting Hunter to sleep was a chore. When he and Willow got married, Luz didn’t envy Willow Hunter’s restlessness.

Luz’s phone kept chiming with notifications, but she turned it upside down and the noise stopped.

Camila tapped it.

“Are those your mods?”

“And my friends from the GHQA. They’re replying to the draft I wrote of what I’m going to post on my sites.”

She finished her stew and put her bowl in the sink. Stringbean leapt off onto Camila who stroked her. Stringbean forced her way under Camila’s sleeping cap and Camila laughed at the Palisman on her head; Stringbean was just as silly and loving as her daughter.

“A couple of the mods quit and one of them said she’s going to post about what I’m doing on her personal website. She threatened to dox me.”

She turned to Camila.

“I’m going to probably have to dox myself to put this out, but I don’t want to hurt your business or you.”

“Oh, honey, it’ll be okay. We’re in Connecticut, not Texas. I won’t lose much if any business. Will you be safe?”

Luz shrugged.

“I’m not scared of trolls anymore; I think Grom cured me of that…or maybe monster-Belos did, I don’t know.”

“Do what you need to. We’ll deal with the fallout.” Camila stood and hugged Luz again.

“I have one more favor, mamá. Could I tell the story you told me about the Gay and Lesbian club at Manderlin College?”

Camila went stiff in Luz’s arms while she thought about it. Stringbean poked her head out from under Camila’s sleeping cap and flicked her tongue at Luz. Camila saw it out of the corner of her eye and relaxed.

“It’s been long enough. You can tell that story.”

“Thank you.” Luz squeezed her mom tighter and Stringbean slithered onto Luz’s shoulder.

Luz went back to her room and spent the rest of the night typing away. When Camila checked on her in the morning, Luz was slumped over her desk on folded arms with Stringbean watching over her from the closed laptop. Camila put a blanket over Luz, petted Stringbean and went downstairs to call the school and tell them that Luz wouldn’t be there today.

When Luz woke up that morning, she wiped her eyes, stroked Stringbean, who went to sleep on her corner shelf, then picked up her phone. She made her way through all the notifications and then made a last few edits to her docs before finalizing and posting them. Now all she could do was wait for the fallout.

Just after school let out that day, Luz’s phone started playing the song, “Basilisk” by Geno Lazeretti and she snatched it up. It was Vee’s custom ringtone and like Masha, Vee didn’t often call, preferring to text.

“Hey, sis,” Vee said.

“Hey,” Luz said, her voice low.

“You okay? You sound tired.”

“I was up all night writing.” Luz put the phone on speaker and put it on her desk.

“I noticed. Masha and I both appreciate what you did and I know it must have hurt, but it means a lot to them and me.”

“Thanks, Vee. It was the right thing. Sometimes the right thing hurts, you know?”

“Yeah.”

Vee paused and there was silence.

“If you don’t want to be alone you can come to Masha’s. I’m going to make spaghetti squash with that spicy tomato sauce you like and we’re going to play some Super Smash Brothers.”

Luz looked at the unread notifications on her phone and decided they could wait a little bit longer.

“Yeah, sounds good. I’ll be there around 6. Mom will enjoy having the place to herself for once, too, probably.”

“Okay, we’ll see you around six.”

“Vee, I love you; I’m glad you’re my sister.”

“Aw, I love you, too, Luz. Basilisk hug!”

“Stringbean says ‘shapeshifter hug pile!” back at you.”

“Bye.”

“Bye.”

Luz texted her mom that she was going to eat at Masha’s and Camila would have the house to herself. She texted back a hug emoji a few minutes later.

Luz wanted Amity badly, but the portal’s scheduled opening wasn’t for two more days and they’d agreed to limit the number of emergency openings and this was painful, but not an emergency. Luz sat on her bed for a few minutes more, then got up to go shower away the previous day’s evil thoughts and the previous night’s bad dreams.

When she got to Masha’s, Vee greeted her at the door with a big hug, which Masha joined a moment later. The apartment smelled of roasting squash, spicy tomato sauce and garlic bread.

“Thank you,” Luz told both of them when they broke the hug.

“You’re welcome…sis,” Vee said.

Luz knew it would never be perfect , but with people who loved you like this, it could be better.

[ninabilotti]

Introduction

Hi, my name is Nina! I am 22 years old and I was born in Chicago, Illinois but I moved to Northern New Jersey at a young age. The 1000 Islands region in Upstate New York is also a place I call home and is somewhere I have been going since I was 3 months old. I love to swim, go boating, water ski, read, take pictures, listen to music, and be with my friends and family. I am also a huge sports fan; my favorite sports are hockey, football, and lacrosse.

I attended Syracuse University and majored in Sport Management at the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics. I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in May 2024 and am currently a graduate student at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications pursuing a Master of Arts degree in Advertising. During my four undergraduate years at Syracuse, I had multiple internships in the sport industry which gave me great experience and confirmed my passion for sports. I had the opportunity to work with Syracuse Athletics, specifically with the football, soccer, rowing and softball teams. I also worked for the Syracuse University's Marketing and Communications Office Social Team, and the Syracuse Crunch Hockey Club. At Syracuse, I was a member of the Club Lacrosse Team, Sport Management Club, Women in Sports and Events Club, Sport Law Club and Alpha Xi Delta Fraternity. I love playing lacrosse so much that I am going to continue playing during grad school.

I am currently deciding if I want to attend law school. I am very interested in the legal side of the sport industry and have recently been introduced to sport advertising law and intellectual property law. I am interested in working for one of the major leagues such as the NHL or NFL or even on the agency side.

This semester, I am taking a course called Trendspotting in Digital Media taught by Professor Sean Branagan. I am excited to take this course to learn how to analyze current and future technologies as these will be essential in my career going forward. Going forward I hope to be able to recognize potential trends and connect them back to sports because the area of media I want to focus on is sport advertising. It is impossible to predict the future, but I am excited to look for clues and put together pieces of the puzzle to try and see what the next big trends could be.

[nomarsfinery]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Under Armour Notre Dame Softball Baseball Jersey Womens Small Blue New.

[kingjain]

Personalized Piglet Pig Pink White Baseball Jersey

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[golden--flowers]

I want a baseball jersey but specifically the Japanese women's softball team's but specifically the brown and white one

[sportyconnect]

Show Your Support with OU Softball Shirts and Jerseys

There’s no better way to show your support for the University of Oklahoma (OU) women’s softball team than by donning an official OU softball shirt or jersey. Whether you’re cheering from the stands or watching from home, wearing your team’s colors is a great way to feel connected to the action. In this guide, we’ll ... Read more from Sporty Connect https://ift.tt/qWrKjvb

[mediaonedesign]

Mediaonedesign.com - This Girl Loves Oklahoma Sooners Softball Her Sooners Shirt

Buy this shirt:  Click here to buy this Mediaonedesign.com - This Girl Loves Oklahoma Sooners Softball Her Sooners Shirt

But there was also a powerful array of evening wear looks on the This Girl Loves Oklahoma Sooners Softball Her Sooners Shirt and I love this ‘gram too, courtesy of the Academy Awards and the subsequent Vanity Fair after party. Michelle Yeoh was ethereal in Dior when she won her Oscar for “Best Actress—becoming only the second woman of color ever to nab the award. Ciara, meanwhile, caused quite the frenzy with the sequined “nude dress and thong she wore to the Vanity Fair after party. Defying the haters, Ciara provided a bevy of great snapshots from the night show off the instantly iconic outfit. Five years after releasing her smash debut album, CTRL, SZA released her lauded sophomore effort SOS late last year and is currently on a sold out tour. The singer songwriter’s prowess undoubtedly lies in her songwriting. Who else can make the lyric “I just killed my ex…. I just killed my ex… rather be in jail than alone seem both poignant and poised to go viral on TikTok? But the star is also delivering artistic messages via her clothing. The singer has occasionally leaned into bold high fashion this promo cycle, including wearing an ethereal Iris Van Herpen design for Time magazine and a high slit Oliver Theyskens spring 2023 patchwork dress for the Billboard Women in Music Awards. Of course, there are still the SZA signatures we know and love oversized jerseys, baggy jeans, varsity jackets. But that’s the magic of the singer’s style right now. Whether it’s a couture dress or casual leaning vintage jeans, everything she wears feels as down to earth and authentic as her songs.

Key to SZA’s latest style chapter is the This Girl Loves Oklahoma Sooners Softball Her Sooners Shirt and I love this performer’s longtime stylist Alejandra Hernandez. The two first connected in 2016, when they worked together on the visual for SZA’s early career single, “Drew Barrymore. Since then, the two women have formed a strong creative bond. Hernandez has styled SZA for the bulk of SOS—including music videos, red carpet appearances, and even handcrafted tour looks. Hernandez, who also runs the athleisure brand Year of Ours, says an overarching focus when creating SZA’s looks is comfort. “She wants to be comfortable, the stylist said. “Literally comfortable, but also comfortable with herself. Fresh from her cameo on Boss’s spring 2023 runway in Miami last week, Pamela Anderson touched down in London for a Tommy Hilfiger event, wearing an outfit that was the definition of spring.

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[mysterymirrors]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Nike Court Dri-FIT Women’s Tennis Skirt - M.

[cliftonclothing]

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[feminist-space]

"A few weeks ahead of the slated return of most U.S. sports, pro women’s softball held its first game in Melbourne, Florida this week. Shortly after the game ended, every member of the Texas-based Scrap Yard Fast Pitch quit the team. Every single one.

At some point during the game, the team’s general manager Connie May tweeted a picture of the players standing during the national anthem. The tweet tagged Donald Trump, declaring, “Everyone respecting the FLAG!”

According to the New York Times, the team returned to their locker room after the game to find a bunch of texts and notifications about the picture, which was posted without their knowledge or consent to promote a political message they say was not their intention.

May’s implication is that by standing for the anthem, the team is showing opposition (or at the very least, indifference) to the Black Lives Matter movement, making it a sort of anti-protest protest in itself. And the team made it clear they were not okay with that message.

Only two of the team’s 18 players are black. Kelsey Stewart (featured in the header image) didn’t play in Monday’s game and was the one to send a screenshot of the tweet to her teammates, along with the message: “I am not going to ever be a part of this organization whatsoever.” Kiki Stokes led the walkout after May doubled down on the tweet after the game.

The Undefeated’s Sean Hurd writes:

"When May was brought into the locker room following the game, players expected an explanation. According to Stokes, May instead tried to justify what she had posted and described how uncomfortable she had felt. When May then mentioned the phrase “All Lives Matter,” Stokes had heard enough and walked out of the locker room."

Stewart and Stokes were backed up by the entirety of their team.

“Moments later, her teammates took off their jerseys and followed her,” writes Hurd. “According to Stokes, every player in the locker room was done after that moment. They would no longer play for May or the Scrap Yard organization.”

“The more we talked about it, the angrier I got, and I finally just said, ‘I’m done, I’m not going to wear this jersey,’” Cat Osterman told the Times. “We were used as pawns in a political post, and that’s not OK.”

Additionally, the USSSA Pride, who the Scrap Yard Dawgs played in Monday’s game, has suspended the rest of their planned games in solidarity. (The two were the teams on each other’s schedules, so presumably, this means the USSSA is refusing to win by default.)

These players are sacrificing a lot to take this stand. Natasha Watley, the first Black player to play with USA Softball at the Olympics, told The Undefeated, “It’s powerful that not one of them stood back and said this doesn’t really affect me, I’d rather play,” adding, “We’re already getting paid pennies and now we’re going to get paid nothing to stand up for this. That’s how much it matters.”

The now-former Scrap Yard players have said that May’s statements don’t represent them and they’ve crafted a statement to explain what they do stand for.

“This is us,” it reads, via a series of images the teammates have posted to their personal accounts. “Awareness. Empowerment. Unity.”"

https://www.themarysue.com/softball-team-quits-over-tweet-to-trump/

[flameoutfics]

We’re Only Young and Naive Still Chapter 1

Summary: Nora is the first woman in the NHL, a recent call-up to the Calgary Flames, who has her own reasons for being there, much to the hesitation of her new teammates. As they get to know her though, she’ll find the family she never knew she wanted and sparks fly with a certain-future-captain.  *This fic will update every Monday. 

Nora waited outside the locker room for the rest of the team to join. She had been waiting for them to head out on the ice, knowing that they were in various states of undress behind the other wall. She had scrambled to get changed in the small bathroom that a member of the Avalanche’s front office had led her to. He’d sheepishly told her that this was the best that they could do and Nora had just nodded. She’d had to change in supply closets before in the absence of a women’s restroom close to the ice level. 

Waiting in the empty corridor for the team allowed her anxiety to fester. Nora could only imagine what was going to await her once she got out onto the ice. There were some who were excited for her to become the first female NHL player to ever play a professional game. She knew they had clambered to get tickets, to show the little girls that anything was possible and that they, too, could join the NHL some day. Nora was nervous to step into that role of a role model, but she didn’t mind. It was the other faction, the one who had already mentioned her on Twitter and caused her to change her Instagram settings that worried her. They didn’t want her to play, they didn’t want a woman in the NHL. Nora could only imagine what they would say after her first game, that anything she’d do wouldn’t be good enough, that she was proof of why women didn’t belong in the NHL. Nora was so lost in her thoughts that she was jolted by the sound of the locker room door opening. 

Jacob Markstrom readjusted his goalie mask on his face and headed out to the ice for warm ups. Nora followed close behind until they got to the ice’s edge. 

“You first,” Jacob nodded towards the ice and gently tapped her on the back of her legs with his goalie stick. Nora sighed. It was tradition for players playing their first game to skate the first lap solo, but she’d rather forgo it. Nevertheless, she gritted her teeth and took her first steps onto the ice. For a moment, she hoped that with her hair tucked into her helmet, people wouldn’t recognize her, but as she started to gain momentum the crowd ignited. It was like everyone had an opinion. Sure she heard the cheers, but intermingled with them she heard the boos. To be honest, she wasn’t sure which there was more of. Much to her relief, after the first solo lap, the rest of the team piled on the ice and joined her for warm ups and she felt herself relax as she began to blend in with the other red jerseys. 

Nora played 5:43 in her first NHL game. It wasn’t a lot, but it was a first. Nothing remarkable happened, and the Flames lost 3-1 in the end. It wasn’t an Auston Matthews level debut by any means but it wasn’t bad. She’d completed most of her passes and she’d made all of her line changes. Sutter didn’t play her much, nor did she expect it. She knew how he felt about having her on his team. She’d been great in the AHL racking up points and causing the hockey writers to wonder if she was going to break the glass ceiling and play in the NHL. Then she was brought up to the NHL and started practicing with the team, always being a healthy scratch when the final line up was decided. But the Flames kept losing and Nora knew that there was pressure on Sutter from the front office to play her. She wasn’t naive to the press that would surround her debut, neither was Brad. So, when Sutter finally announced that she was going to play her first NHL game, it wasn’t completely a surprise, but the timing took her off guard. The rest of the team had acknowledged it with polite cheers, but Nora knew that they weren’t thrilled to have her there either. 

She’d sat in the locker room after the game, still fully in her gear while Sutter reamed them. “None of you played well today. Fuck, she played better than half of you and it was her first fucking game,” Sutter said as he pointed Nora out. She felt the cold gaze of the other players turn towards her as Sutter had pretty much just put a target on her back. She drowned the rest of his diatribe out and as she snuck a glance around the room, it looked like the rest of the team was also ignoring him. When he stormed off, Nora finally felt like she could breathe and retreated to the bathroom where she’d gotten dressed. 

She’d only been in there for a few minutes before there was a knock on the door. 

“Nora, they’re going to want you for post-game interviews,” Tanya, the PR rep said, from outside of the bathroom where Nora stripped out of her gear. She was sweaty from the game but knew she’d have to wait until she made it back to the hotel room before she could 

“Okay,” Nora agreed, even though she knew that she was going to be the focus of the interview, “is anyone else going to be there?” 

“Matthew will be too,” Tanya said. Nora sighed to herself but nodded. 

“Okay, I’ll be out in a minute,” Nora said. She wished it was Jacob or even Johnny doing the interview with her instead of Matthew. She didn’t hate him, but she didn’t like him either. Since she’d been called up to practice with the team, he’d coolly ignored her. Most of the guys treated her that way too, with Jacob and Johnny being two exceptions. 

Matthew was already waiting at the table that had been set up for them for press availability. He glanced up at her and nodded in acknowledgement but didn’t say anything. Nora didn’t know what she was expecting. Did she think he’d say ‘hi’ or ‘great job today’? They weren’t friends, they were barely even teammates. 

“Alright, let’s start with the first question,” Tanya said. 

“Nora, how did your first game in the NHL feel?” a reporter asked. It was a softball question and one that Nora appreciated. 

“It was great. It was a dream come true, honestly,” Nora said, “and I’m really fortunate to be able to be here and on such an amazing team to share the game with them.”

“It’s not the result that I’m sure you wished for, though,” the reporter followed up.

“No,” Nora conceded, “I definitely thought that I could have played better, especially in the third period, but Matthew had an amazing goal in the second period, and really it’s just an honor to be here and play a game in the NHL. 

“Any family here today to celebrate your first game with you?” A different reporter asked. 

Nora pasted a smile on her face, “No, unfortunately they couldn’t make it, but I know they were watching from home.” 

“I have a question for Nora…” another reporter started and Nora wished that just one of them could direct their attention to Matthew. 

“Why aren’t you in the NWHL?” a reporter asked. That caused Nora to pause. The answer caught in her throat. She knew that was the question that thousands of people had on their minds. There was a league for female hockey players, a great league, so why wasn’t Nora playing in it? Nora had rehearsed the answer to the inevitable in the mirror for what felt like hundreds of times, but here the words failed her. 

Tanya looked over at her and watched as she floundered for a response. “Sorry,” Nora said as she brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear, “would you mind repeating the question?”

“Sure, Nora, why aren’t you in the NWHL?” the reporter repeated. 

“I- I-...”

“Alright, I think our time has wrapped up,” Tanya said as she closed out the interview, saving Nora from answering. Once all the reporters left, Nora turned to Tanya. “I’m sorry, I don’t know why I couldn’t answer that.”

Tanya smiled but it didn’t quite reach her eyes, “Don’t worry, we can discuss some possible answers and better prepare you for media availability in the future.”

“Thanks,” Nora said. Matthew hadn’t said anything except for the one question directed towards him about his second-period goal. All Nora wanted to do was go back to her hotel room and take a nice warm shower. She didn’t give either of them a chance to say anything and instead headed out and grabbed her coat, knowing her gear would travel with the rest of the team’s. She walked the couple of blocks back to the hotel. She kept her head down, hoping to remain unrecognized by fans who were still lingering by the arena and made it back to her hotel room without running into anyone. She stripped out of her Flames-branded gear and headed for the shower. In the mirror, she could already see bruises starting to develop from where she’d been checked into the boards.  She should have been ecstatic to be playing in the NHL; most people in her position would be, but she didn’t. She just wanted the day to be over and to go to bed. That was what made her sad, that she didn’t care that much about being in the NHL, it was just a means to an end. Before she went to sleep, she took one more look at her phone and reminded herself why she was doing this. She knew why she was playing in the NHL; she just couldn’t say it. 

Nora glanced around the dining room for breakfast the next day looking for a place to sit. It felt like high school all over again. Ideally, she would have sat near Jacob or Johnny, but their tables were all filled so instead she sat in an open seat with some of the other newer players, Elias, and Matthew. They were happily chatting about some football game that Nora knew nothing about. She tried to follow along for a while, but after realizing that she didn’t really have anything to contribute, she hurriedly ate her breakfast and wanted to rush back to her room. She cleared her plate and offered a faint excuse for something she’d forgotten in her room, hoping to leave. It wasn’t like any of them would notice that she was gone anyways. She’d only made it a little ways before she heard footsteps follow her out. 

“What’s your problem?” Matthew asked as he cornered Nora. 

“I don’t have a problem,” Nora said. 

“You could at least try to pretend to be interested in getting along with the team,” Matthew said.

“What are you talking about?” Nora asked. 

“You didn’t come out with us last night,” Matthew said. 

“I wasn’t invited,” Nora answered.

“Everyone was,” Matthew said. 

“Well I wasn’t,” Nora insisted. 

“It was in the group chat,” Matthew said. 

“I’m not in the group chat, so I didn’t see the message,” Nora said. 

“Oh,” Matthew said. 

“Yeah,” Nora said.

Matthew fished out his phone and fiddled around with a few buttons. “There, you should be added now.”

“Thanks,” Nora said. Matthew looked like he was going to say something more but reconsidered. 

“Ready for the flight?” Matthew asked.

“Yeah,” Nora replied, “I’ll be back down soon.” She headed back up to her room and collapsed on the bed, with just a few minutes before she’d have to pack her things for the flight. Against her better judgement she scrolled through the group chat back to previous messages and saw messages from when it had been announced that she’d been called up to the Flames.

Johnny: That girl from the AHL’s being brought up. 

Peter: Really? I didn’t think she was that good.

Elias: She’s on a five-game goal streak.

Matthew: We’re getting a girl on the team? Are we really that bad that they need to bring her up? 

Nora sighed and put her phone away. Tears pricked her eyes as she tried to blink them away. There were other comments like that in the group chat that they hadn’t bothered to delete and Nora read them, wanting to know what her teammates really thought about her. Reactions ranged from ambivalent to disgust, with most somewhere in the middle. There was a knock on the door as a warning to head downstairs and Nora tried to compose herself. 

“Are you okay?” Johnny asked when Nora arrived downstairs with her bag. 

“Yeah, I’m ready to head to Detroit,” Nora replied with a fake smile on her face. 

[strange-destinations]

what's the game of rassilon thing???

Oh, thank you for giving me permission to invite all of your into my current hyperfixation hole.

The Game of Rassilon is a fan-made actual-play RPG podcast where a bunch of very funny and very creative people play the official Doctor Who roleplaying game. If you've been following me on Twitter recently you may have noticed I've done a fuckton of art for it. That's because it's extremely good! the adventures are well-thought-out, the roleplaying is choice, the goofs are hilarious and the emotional beats hit hard. it feels quite a lot like listening to a canon series of tv doctor who, except it's all improv and dice rolling and rpg.

the first two seasons are typical monster-of-the-week doctor who adventures with a gradually building plot revolving around the Doctor & co running from... someone (or perhaps something), and a Big Plan that even the Doctor isn't sure of the details of, at least at first. there is the Power of Friendship! there are Pokemon battles! there is freestyle jazz scatting, much to the Doctor's exasperation! it's all excellent. i haven't started season 3 yet because of Time Issues on my end, but I have no doubt it's going to be just as good as the first two seasons.

You can listen to it on their website (go to the start of the archive and start from the beginning) or on most podcast apps. The episodes are about 1/1-1/2 hours long each, and there's currently two and a half seasons out (20ish episodes each season, i believe) so it's not quite as intimidating as like. TAZ is. definitely not as scary as CritRole.

also i wrote fic for it. i would link to it here, but it's spoiler-y for all through to the start of season 2. and i am writing more, because i apparently just can't help myself when it comes to One Certain Character.

so yes. go listen to it and then come back and let me know so i know that i've got more people into it. i'm on a roll here. i will drag everyone i know into this very good podcast!

if you're curious about the content and don't mind mild spoilers, then come with me beneath the cut and I will introduce you to the Party, featuring some Fun Art From Me

The Doctor

played by Riley Silverman. eternally delightful force of chaos. 'the most 90s doctor', according to michael, and honestly he's not wrong. canonically trans! in the sense that her player is also trans and said 'if you think she's trans also i'm 100% behind you' and i choose to think she's trans

got stranded in the 90s for a while, which explains why the interior of her TARDIS currently resembles a 90s coffeeshop. gives very good very doctor-y speeches. stubborn. curious.

Travis Killian

played by Dan Peck (who is the sort of RPG player who breaks the game at least once every session. and it's great). worked at a library in New Jersey, 1998, and then Things Happened and now he lives in a time machine. you know how it goes. 'gentle ball of confident anxiety'. Star Wars fan, Pokemon nerd. basically half his character sheet is based around how much he loves his friends. Best Boy!! with a really genuinely excellent character arc.

welcome to the travis killian stan club. i love him very much.

Millie Earhart

yeah, that Amelia Earhart. big strong lady with a wrench who is very good at flying things! planes in particular but she's very adaptable. a bit of a walking paradox, considering she's supposed to, you know, die on a plane trip, but it's fiiiine. it's all fine. trust her! she's amelia earhart!!

Roman

technically an NPC (it's a bit complicated). still a member of the party, in my heart if nowhere else. i will not spoil anything to do with roman because his reveal is just too good to spoil. but please rest assured he's a delight and by s2 you will love him just as much as i do.

Carrie Vu

played by châu kate lê. carrie 'i think time lords should unionize' vu is also a delight who i will similarly not spoil, simply because she doesn't show up until about mid-s2. but i couldn't not mention her. also, she has a softball bat, and is keeping the doctor who tradition of 'tiny women going to town on aliens with blunt objects' alive and well. queen

Gunther

is the doctor's cat. she is a sweetheart and she is perfect and she is also currently my profile picture on most of my social media. we all love Gunther.

in conclusion come join me in the game of rassilon. i need someone to cry over roman with and i need to justify the fact that i've written over 50k of fanfiction from travis's point of view somehow

[catradoramma]

how about a fic of Adora noticing being the jealous one after noticing other women give Catra attention.

i have been getting prompts like this since Mine, and honestly, hell yea. i deadass started working on this in 2019 and well. its finally finished. this is who i am folks. thanks so much to @kittens-and-foxes, @magicchalkdust, and lunatica (ao3) for the prompts! prompts are still open! i’m just a slave to writers block. evidently

Oh, How the Turntables

|  Rated: T  |  Words: 2,604  |  Chapter: 1/1  |

Adora was not a jealous person. She was confident with where she was in her life and always had been. Trying her best and being proud of that was something that was basically sewn into her DNA.

Adora was not jealous. Never had been, and never would be.

She wasn’t jealous.

She was just…a little upset.

Or how Adora handles being jealous. A significantly less fun sequel to Mine. 

| ao3 | buy me a kofi |

Adora was not a jealous person. She was confident with where she was in her life and always had been. Trying her best and being proud of that was something that was basically sewn into her DNA.

Adora was not jealous. Never had been, and never would be.

She wasn’t jealous.

She was just…a little upset.

It wasn’t really that big of a deal. Honestly it wasn’t a big deal at all. In fact it wasn’t even a deal at all. Catra was just making friends. Which Adora, for the record, was extremely happy about.

Catra was making friends with some of the people in the Royal Guard at Bright Moon and it was awesome! People were accepting her! And, like, treating her with respect like she obviously deserves as a literal war hero! So naturally, Adora was happy to hear this. Adora was enthused!

Obviously, okay?

It’s just that Catra had recently become closer with a few of her friends in the Royal Guard which meant they were out all day training and running drills, and then out all night getting drinks and singing bar shanties or whatever soldiers did together. Adora was so glad that Catra was fitting in and being accepted. That goes without saying.

But.

Adora also really, really, really missed her girlfriend.

Like.

Adora missed her a lot.

As simple as that.

Although, it didn’t help that one of Catra’s new friends was the totally smart, pretty and badass Captain Kassandra. And it also didn’t help that Captain Kassandra was definitely Catra’s best friend in the guard which meant Catra and Captain Kassandra were spending the majority of their days together.

Alone.

And it’s not like Adora thought anything would happen! Catra would never cheat, okay? She wouldn’t! She just might...you know. Realize that Captain Kassandra was so, so much better, and smarter, and stronger, and prettier, and cooler than Adora.

And Catra might want to break up.

Which Adora definitely didn’t want.

— . —

“Hey, Catra?” Adora called as she was pulling her hair up into a ponytail.

“Yeah?” Catra called from the closet where she was trying to decide between two identical burgundy sports bras.

“I was, uh,” Adora paused as she grabbed her hair tie with her teeth off her wrist. “I was thinking that it might be fun if we went out tonight? Go into town and grab dinner or something? Have a little date?” She asked with a tentative smile as she finished tying off her hair.

Catra turned to face her properly, lowering both sports bras. “Tonight?” She asked, not sounding excited like Adora had thought she’d be.

The lack of enthusiasm made Adora a little nervous. She licked her lips and continued. “Yeah. We’ve both been really busy lately, and I finally have a night off from--you know--She-Ra stuff. So I was, you know, just wondering if we could, I don’t know. Go on a date,” Adora bumbled, her nerves getting to her the longer she went without an answer.

“Shit, tonight?” Catra asked, her shoulders slumping alongside Adora’s heart. “I can’t. I have a game tonight.”

“Wait, you have a what tonight?” Adora asked, immediately confused.

“Oh, yeah. Sorry, I meant to tell you. Me and the Guard started up a Softball team. Bright Moon Royal Guard against Entrapta’s Robot Army,” Catra explained, a little smile curling up her lips which Adora knew meant that Catra had really been enjoying playing Softball.

Adora was, admittedly, a little hurt by the fact that Catra hadn’t even thought to tell her about this. Adora was always super supportive of everything Catra did and would have loved the opportunity to cheer her on in a very literal and vocal way.

But, Adora supposed, she had been really busy with She-Ra stuff lately so it made sense that Catra forgot to mention things. Especially when they really only saw each other at dinner and when they got in and out of bed everyday.  

Adora pushed down her hurt feelings and pressed on. “Alright, well. When’s the game? I’ll come and maybe we could grab a bite or something after,” she suggested.

Catra winced. “After games, C.K. usually buys everyone a burger,” Catra explained. C.K. So we’re calling Captain Kassandra C.K. now. Adora suddenly craved physical violence.

Catra continued, not noticing Adora’s mounting frustration. “It’s like--I don’t know--a team bonding thing,” Catra explained with a shrug. “You could come to the game though! I’ll hit a homer for you,” she added, sending Adora a deliciously wicked grin that Adora couldn’t even enjoy due to the slowly mounting rage within her.

Adora took a deep breath, suppressing the anger for the time being, and forced a smile. “That sounds awesome, babe. I’ll….be there for the game then.”

Catra grinned at that and darted over to press a kiss to Adora’s cheek. “I’ll look for you in the stands,” she said, practically glowing with happiness, and just like that, all of Adora’s rage and jealousy melted away. This was something Catra enjoyed. Having friends and maintaining them was important to Catra. So it was important to Adora.

Adora turned and stole a proper kiss from Catra. “Leave your alternate jersey for me and I’ll wear it,” she suggested with a soft smile.

Catra nodded eagerly before she disappeared back into the closet. She came back out wearing one of Adora’s white and blue sports bras, and, honestly, that made everything a little better.

— . —

Adora had no idea how Softball worked, but Gods, was she becoming a fan quickly. Everything from the tight white pants Catra wore, to the slashed up cap she wore to let her ears through was doing things for Adora. Adora was pretty sure she was actually learning less about Softball the longer she spent in the stands. Probably because she was happily staring at Catra’s ass instead of the game.

The whole experience probably would have been a net positive if it wasn’t for what happened at the very end of the game. Catra must’ve hit a particularly impressive ball (Adora wasn't exactly paying attention to the ball or where it was going as much as she was focusing on where the hitter was going and doing) because as she dashed around the diamond, everyone around her was cheering and freaking out. The Bright Mood Guard left the make-shift dugout and ran onto the pitch. They swarmed Catra as she passed home. They all wrapped her in a hug before Captain Kassandra tossed her up into the air and then sat Catra on her shoulder.

Jealousy burned inside of Adora. That was Adora’s move! Adora was absolutely the only one allowed to toss Catra into the air and catch her on her shoulder! Why the hell was someone else doing that?! Was this a common thing? Did Captain Kassandra toss Catra all the time?

Adora was about three seconds away from going full-on beast mode on the Captain. The only thing that stopped her was the way Catra pulled her cap off in celebration, waving it excitedly in Adora’s direction. The elation on Catra’s face—the pure joy that was clear from whatever game-winning hit she’d made—was entirely enough to cool Adora’s temper.

Catra looked radiant out there. And she deserved to be praised like that. She deserved to be celebrated and loved by her friends. Adora wanted that for Catra so badly, and if it wasn’t for the ugly jealous monster that was living rent free inside of her for whatever reason, Adora was sure she’d 100% be just as happy as Catra was in that moment.

So, with her mind made up, Adora grinned and waved back. She cupped her hands around her mouth and cheered loudly. She made a heart with her hands and held it up above her head for Catra to see. Catra must’ve seen it because she blushed a little darker and bit her lip in a way that made Adora’s blood burn in a very different way.

If only Adora wouldn’t have to go home alone after the game.

— . —

Adora decided to wait up for Catra. She wanted to show Catra exactly how proud of her game-winning home-run she was. Adora lit candles around their room while she waited, and even changed into some of the more frilly underwear she owned for nights exactly like this. She kept Catra’s jersey on, though, and made herself comfortable in bed to wait.

And wait.

And wait.

Adora waited long after the sun went down behind the back hills, long after the candles burned down to nubs, and long after the lacey bra she wore became too uncomfortable to continue wearing. Adora didn’t want to admit defeat, but eventually the mood was lost, and she could barely keep her eyes open.

It was with a new level of bitterness, and a little heartbreak, that Adora cleaned up the candles, slipped into pyjamas, and put Catra’s jersey away. This time when Adora curled up into bed, she didn’t wait. She closed her eyes and fell asleep.

If the smell of candle smoke was still in the air when Catra got back, then so what.

— . —

Adora felt very off for the rest of that week. She hadn’t even heard Catra come in that night, and when she woke up, Catra was curled up into a ball on her own side of the bed. Something about not even waking up in Catra’s arms left a sour taste in her mouth.

Adora knew, logically, that Catra hadn’t made her any promises to come back early that night. She had said that she’d be out with the team, and Adora had agreed to that. It was just that...after a game like that, the first one Adora had gone to, shouldn’t Catra have wanted to come home and celebrate with Adora? Shouldn’t she have at least come back at a decent hour? Catra had only said that she’d be getting dinner with her team. Did getting burgers really take that long?

What else had Catra been doing out there?

That thought alone was enough to leave Adora in a horrible mood for the rest of the week.

She destroyed many straw filled dummies, and snapped at anyone who so much as thought about asking her what was wrong, including Catra.

Especially Catra.

Adora hadn’t been in this bad of a mood since the war--since the time she hadn’t slept for weeks at a time.

And the worst part? Adora knew she was being unreasonable. She knew she was being dramatic and was definitely blowing things out of proportion. It was just that—

The jealous little monster that lived in her mind rent free was slowly taking over.

— . —

Adora was lounging in the bath, trying to make herself feel better though aggressive self-care, when she heard Catra come in. It was already late into the evening. Adora would usually be in bed this time of night, and Adora was beginning to think (unreasonably) that Catra was coming back late on purpose.

“Adora?” Catra called as she noticed the bed was empty. She sounded a little afraid and suddenly Adora was just tired. And sad. And frustrated. She was so, so frustrated with herself and this stupid situation. She didn’t want to be upset at Catra anymore.

“In here!” Adore called back as she moved her hands a little anxiously through the bubbles still floating on the surface.

Catra appeared in the doorway and smiled tentatively. She looked concerned and tired.

“Hey,” Adora said softly.

“Hey,” Catra repeated, her voice just as soft.

“How was your night?” Adora asked. “I missed you at dinner.”

Catra’s shoulders dropped a little and she nodded. She stepped into the bathroom and sat down on the floor right next to the tub, her knees pulled up to her chest as she looked at Adora. Catra looked small like that. Small and afraid.

“Missed you too,” Catra said back, her voice just above a whisper.

Adora bit her lip a little anxiously and had to look away. She couldn’t look at Catra knowing she was the one who made her feel uncertain like this. But...wasn’t it because Adora herself felt uncertain that this whole thing had happened?

Adora pulled in a deep breath and forced herself to look back at Catra. “I’m sorry I’ve been...rough this week,” she said.

Catra leaned her head onto the side of the tub. “Are you gonna tell me what I did?” Catra asked, her voice soft and non-judgemental.

“Catra you didn’t...do anything,” Adora said. “And...well. That’s the problem. I feel like we never see each other anymore. I feel like we don’t talk.”

Catra straightened up, her shoulders coming up in a defensive stance. It was clear she was afraid of what else was coming from this conversation. Adora reached out and placed her hand on top of one of Catra’s knee.

“I just really miss you Catra. All the time, even when I wake up next to you,” Adora admitted.

“I’m sorry,” Catra said immediately, her ears pressing back flat onto her head. “I…”

“Hey, no, I should have said something—” Adora said but Catra cut her off, her eyes wide in realization.

“Oh my gods,” Catra breathed. “You did say something. You wanted—and I totally just brushed you off to hang out with the Guard. Adora—” Catra spoke frantically, and it was Adora who cut her off this time.

“Catra, hey, no,” Adora said as she moved closer. “No, you didn’t brush me off. You just. You’ve never had a really solid group of friends before. Of course you got caught up. I like that you have these people who like you and want to hang out with you. I’ve been so busy lately and I’ve been so thankful that you’ve found these people to keep you company when I can’t,” Adora said honestly.

“It’s just that...I’m not used to having to share your attention. And it’s...it’s making me feel a little insecure—which I hate. I don’t want to be jealous of your friends. I don’t want to keep you away from them,” she admitted, looking at her hands now, ashamed of how she was feeling.

Catra reached out and threaded their fingers. “Adora…” she breathed softly as she squeezed Adora’s hand. “You should have said something, dummy,” she said affectionately, reaching out with her free hand to smooth Adora’s hair back and turn her face up.

“I’ve only been spending so much time with those idiots because I’ve been wanting to give you space to relax,” Catra admitted. “I thought that having me around, wanting your attention after you’d had to listen to people bitch and complain all day would just cause you more stress.” She leaned forward some more to press a kiss to Adora’s lips softly. “I’ve been missing you too, Adora.”

Adora let out a sigh of relief, and then a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a sob. She shot forward and wrapped her arms around Catra in a hug, holding her tight. “You’re sure you’re not unhappy with me? You wouldn’t rather be with C.K.?” Adora asked, finally voicing her deepest concerns.

“What?” Catra asked softly as she held Adora tighter, seemingly undisturbed by the fact that she was getting soaked by the bath. “Adora, Captain Kass is married. To a man. And besides that, I don’t want anyone but you. You make me happier than anything.”

Adora let out another sigh of relief. “Oh, I’m so glad,” she breathed as she pressed her face into Catra’s neck.

— . —

That little jealous monster was finally evicted.

[greengay]

Ugh I agree with everything you said about Joey etc. It reminded me that sometimes I think Billie would have loved to have had a daughter. I feel like he has the capacity to raise a badass woman but was never given the chance.

Oh I agree! I think she would have been so fucking cool........but lol also fucked up with hella daddy issues

Also...and this is terrible to say, but whatever my blog is a steaming pile of 💩

I think the entire Armstrong clan struggles with weight issues.........J2 were a little heavy growing up.......Billie’s weight fluctuates a lot......Adie isn’t big, but she isn’t stick thin.........I can’t think of anything more traumatic than growing up the chubby daughter of a celebrity 😰

And have everyone constantly commenting on & judging your weight......that is just ASKING for a hella eating disorder.....I mean if you go back on Tre’s daughter’s IG, you can see she struggled with an ED by looking at her.......

Not to mention, from personal experience, it’s hard being born a woman and having your dad away for large amounts of time? My dad would go to Antarctica/The Arctic Circle/wherever else ice breakers are needed and would be away for 3-9 months at a time.....and ya know......sons usually get along better with their moms and daughters usually get along better with their dads (I mean obviously not always, but generally speaking)? So I think that would be hard

I think she would have done a decent amount of sports (my dad is into sports about as much as billie is, but was never good at them because he was short also haha....but he coached my softball teams from when I was 6-14), been into punk music and being a musician, probably been super short (Adie is about the same height as my mom and my dad is a couple inches taller than billie and i’m pretty short so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯) and probably super spoiled haha. But I think she would have had a really close, friend-like relationship with Billie. I mean, I’m sorta frenemies with my dad??? And I draw the comparison cos my dad and billie have a lot of similarities (grew up poor, short, into the punk scene, has tattoos, not straight....tbh this haunts & vexes me, but my dad is a lot like frank iero bc in addition to everything i just mentioned, he’s italian-american and from new jersey lmfao)

ALSO there would probably be a lot of creeps out there who would love to sleep with the daughter of punk icon, Billie Joe Armstrong.......and like, generally.......creepy girls with crushes are, at worst, very annoying and moderately invasive......ya know......panic at the disco pube hair cookies.........creepy men with obsession uhhhh........kidnap and kill lol....or go above & beyond with their stalking because there’s a sense of entitlement over women

christina grimmie

john lennon

gweneth paltrow

selena gomez

lana del ray

taylor swift

kiera knightly

gigi hadid

ariana grande

and billie himself is a cult icon, so i can’t even imagine what his daughter would go through lol

i mean frances bean cobain is the daughter of kurt cobain, who i feel like was the other 90’s rock icon, and she couldn’t even press charges against her stalker bc he failed the psychiatric evaluation

ALL THAT BEING SAID, i’m sure he would have loved to have had a daughter.....i think he sort of treats v* m*y*gba from d*stroy b*ys somewhat like a daughter? she was the longshot merch person at some shows, he invited her to play on stage with him before, he hyped her up in rolling stone, he gave her a job at his guitar store, etc..... idk about their personal relationship tbh but i imagine he’s fatherly towards her, i dunno