#also things might not make sense for. a bit

[woso-dreamzzz]

Secret III

Mapi León x Ingrid Engen x Child!Reader

Summary: You're a bit messy

When Mapi takes you out to the park, she doesn't expect it to rain.

But it does.

It rains and rains and rains until she's shivering in the cold and wet as you very determinedly stamp around in the mud by the bank of the lake.

"Be careful!" Mapi calls after you and you stick your tongue out at her.

It was a stupid idea to be caught without an umbrella and without a coat but this was Barcelona and she really wasn't expecting it.

"Come on!" She winces as you sink lower into the mud, ruining the new Sambas she had specifically bought for you.

"But Mami-"

"No, Skatt," Mapi says, covering her horror with a little laugh," Let's go home now."

You huff in annoyance, dipping down once more into the mud before running to her side, hands firmly in your pockets as you drag your muddy feet all the way back to Mapi's nice, clean car.

"Oh!" Ingrid exclaims when you come running into the house about twenty minutes later," You look all messy, Skatt! Did you have fun!"

You push a strand of wet hair out of your face as you grin. "Uh-huh."

You hurry off into the bathroom, leaving a trail of muddy footprints after you.

"She's ruined them," Mapi laments.

"Well," Ingrid replies, pursing her lips," Seeing as the last four pairs of the same shoes ended up the same way, you can't be surprised Mapi."

"Yes I can! I thought it would be different!"

Ingrid shakes her head fondly, pushing out from the kitchen table. "I told you," She says," Skatt doesn't need fancy shoes. You need to start putting her in her wellies even when you don't think it'll rain. Save the fancy shoes for dinners and birthday parties."

Mapi pouts, scuffing her own Sambas on the hard wood flooring. "I just wanted us to match."

"I know."

And Ingrid does know. You look like her, overwhelmingly so. It makes sense obviously but you're truly like her mini and sometimes Mapi's been called things like your auntie or babysitter by strangers and Ingrid knows Mapi hates it.

"But you can match for fancy events," Ingrid continues," It's not worth it ruining another set of shoes because Skatt decided to go digging again."

The bath starts running and Mapi smiles wryly.

"At least she knows it's bath time when she gets muddy."

"Yes," Ingrid says fondly," We've trained her well." She leans towards the bathroom. "Skatt! Are you getting undressed?"

"Yes, Mama!"

"Do you want to wash her up or should I?"

"You can," Mapi says," I'll grab her a change of clothes. You might need to do her hair. It wasn't tied up properly."

"Got it."

When Ingrid enters the bathroom, she's thrown. There's a remarkably lifelike frog toy kicking around in the water. She's never seen it before but she knows Mapi stopped off at the shops before the park and your interest in frogs is almost as high as your interest in bugs so Ingrid supposes you had convinced Mapi to buy it for you.

She lathers up your hair with shampoo after cleaning your body and you hum happily.

"Did you see a lot of bugs on your trip today?"

"Uh-hu! Saw dragonfly and gnats and flies and bumblebees-"

The power on the toy is really going strong, Ingrid notes, because it keeps swimming in circles and she has to wonder what store Mapi bought it at because it's unlike any other bath toy Ingrid's ever seen before.

"-And wasps and Mami had to run away after seeing it because she was scared it was going to string her."

"That's nice, Skatt." Ingrid rinses out your hair, pulls out the plug of the bath and moves to the living room to start towel drying your hair.

Mapi goes to grab your dirty clothes and throw them in the laundry.

That's when it croaks at her.

That's also when she screams.

A frog stares back at her, perched on the taps.

It stares.

Mapi screams again.

"Mapi?!" Ingrid bursts into the room," What is it? Are you hurt?!"

"What is that?!" Mapi points a shaking finger at the creature and you, still wrapped up in your towel, poke your head around the door.

"My frog!"

"What?!" Mapi and Ingrid both demand, whirling around to look at you.

"My frog!" You repeat," Found him in the park. He was sad so I brought him home!"

Ingrid massages her temples and Mapi shrieks again when she sees the frog hop into the now empty bathtub.

"We can't keep the frog."

You grown. "Why not? We kept my millipede."

Ingrid goes pale. "What millipede?"

"The millipede in my terrarium." You point your own finger at Mapi. "The one Mami bought for me."

"She what?!"

"Ingrid...I can explain!"

[imaluckygirl]

⭑ leak & delete

( enhypen reaction )

synopsis: what if your boyfriend — accidentally — press the post button and suddenly a photo of both of you together starts circulating on the internet/news? how he would react?

( 엔하이픈 ) - idol!maknaeline x fem.reader ( hyung ver. ) ; angst & fluff

──── bookshelf .

warnings: curse words, mentions of breaking up, enha members have a private instagram account ; long descriptions.

note: winter break is almost here in brazil, i can’t believe!!!!!! i can’t wait to have time and relax; update more often… unfortunately, one month flows really fast, but let’s make this one month vacation worth hehe ><

sunwoo would be so apologetic. he loves just taking pictures with you and of you — going from those cute pinterest couple pictures to those funny couple pictures. it’s sad that, unfortunately, when he accidentally clicked the post button and realised he did something wrong, his phone ran off of battery. the next thing he did was gasp and with his mouth open in shock. riki — who is sunwoo’s roommate — was scrolling through his phone when he heard a loud and exaggerated — the sound was almost cartoonish — gasp. “what?” riki asked, looking at sunwoo, annoyed but curious.

not hearing any answers coming out of his mouth, the youngest sighed, turning his body on the bed to look at sunwoo’s laid figure. “who’s pregnant?” “i messed up, riki.” riki dropped his head to the side while frowning, confused about what was going on. “what do you me-” “i-i posted a photo- just- can you-” “hey, calm down, talk to me man,” the black haired teased. “don’t spit random words.” “just- please, can i see my profile please?” “yeah?” riki cocked a brow, watching his roommate standing up from his bed after connecting his phone to his charger, proceeding to lay on riki’s bed by his side; unbothered by the bed owner’s presence, receiving a bothered side eye from the japanese member.

riki searched for his friend’s username and once he clicked on his profile, sunwoo snapped the phone from riki’s hand, not even spending a second looking for what he was so worried about; because he quickly found it: the photo was posted five minutes ago. riki, noticing the roommate’s unquietness, stood his body up — supporting his torso with his arms and hands — glancing at the phone’s screen behind sunwoo’s back; feeling a sense of curiously growing inside of him. “what happe-BRO YOU-”

riki was rubbing his hyung’s back, quietly trying to support him — pursing his lips mostly of the time because he didn’t know how to help. “it’s all good, hyung,” the youngest thought before pronouncing his words. “i mean, since you posted the photo at midnight, probably not many people must have seen it-” a knock on the door was heard, revealing jungwon’s sleepy figure. “kim sunwoo, what have you done for the director call me this time in the morning?” riki smirked, giggling before speaking: “oh, hyung, sunwoo hyung just posted a photo with y/n on instagra-” “SHUT UP!”

okay, so, let's talk about what happened: basically, sunwoo was called to go on a meeting with the director, and the director wasn't amazed that sunwoo couldn't delete the post under ten minutes because he got a little bit too carried away trying to explain the group's leader what had happened. the superior was pissed off, but couldn't blame sunwoo for loving someone; and also, how could he severely punish someone like him? he was always super dedicated, cheerful, committed and charismatic — literally the group's sunshine.

well, speaking like this, this situation is might be perceived as a piece of cake now. except that sunwoo hasn't spoke to you, and read articles saying that you weren't a public person and was supposedly dating the enhypen's kim. he was worried and constantly thinking about what was going through your head once you read those comments speaking about your appeal — even though dispatch and other blogs had blurred your face — and saying shit about you. unfortunately, as an idol and a public personality, he was already very familiar with those comments and feelings, making him less overwhelmed than when he actually became an idol; as an rookie in the industry.

sunwoo agreed with the director and took responsibility of his actions, even though it was all an complete mess and accident. sunwoo even shared his concern about you, a little bit hesitant and reluctant, but your safety was all he desires. later that day he saw a ton of texts from you, going from “good morning :)”, to “why there are people trying to follow me on instagram??????”. when sending those texts to him you couldn't even imagine what happened. you were at college all day and didn't opened any social medias for the entire week because of your busy schedule. however, you wished you hadn't, and you had have the patience to wait for your boyfriend's explanation. you were already kinda worked out when texting him; and then when he wasn't replying to you, you got even more pissed.

but, oh boy, hearing how his voice was weak and trembling, like he was trying to keep his tone firm just so he could murmur a ton of apologies to you; make your heart drop. you could never be mad at kim sunwoo for long. “it's okay baby.” you speak behind the call. “do you want me to come over?” you asked him with a gentle and soft voice. “n-no, you're g-good, i'm almost fr-free;” sniff. “so i can ask to be dropped there.”

cuddle this baby, it wasn't his fault after all. he was feeling his chest hurt with the feeling of guilt and dumbness; but you make sure to make him brush those feelings away and focus on how your finger play with his hair and untangle hair knots. and in the end of the day, belift kept silent but didn't denied any type of romantic relationship going on between you two, making the media even crazier and curious about these rumors and the lack of information they were receiving. receiving infos or not, sunwoo was by your side now, not as just a secret — well, maybe just a little secret now?

jungwon, in the first place, would probably one of the last members to create an instagram account. counting with that, the chances of something being accidentally leaked was close to 1% — but not zero percent.

okay, let me tell you, jungwon would be scrolling through his instagram gallery and he was just about to post a picture of both of you kissing on the instagram stories; for his close friends only. however, when jungwon finished writing a cute text/message for you after adding a romantic song to the story, he simply clicked on the post button — except that later he realised it wasn’t posted only on his close friends, but for his whole followers to see. “oh but… at least he realised it?” yeah he did; four hours later. because he posted and then left the app, opening the app hours later just to check new posts and to check his own posts; and that’s the moment he saw the photo he posted on his stories wasn’t in his only friends.

jungwon immediately deleted the story and called his manager, telling him what have happened. since he is the group’s leader he has to be responsible and mature, that’s why he was clear with his manager and company. when he hanged up the call with his upset manager, his room door was suddenly opened, revealing three of his members — riki, jaeyun, heeseung; sunwoo and jongseong appeared a minute later. heeseung was with his phone in hands while riki and jaeyun were standing behind the oldest, curious about their leader action; and just as confused. “hey, what did you just posted? belift just called us and wants to see you tomorrow at the meeting room.” heeseung spoke and jungwon froze. his heart started beating fast even though he knew this was eventually coming.

“why did they called you instead of me?” jungwon asked, already sitting on his bed, nervous. “they said you were in a call with another person, was it y/n?” heeseung asked without even hesitating. “no! wait- fu-, i don’t- i need to think.” jungwon stood up from his bed, walking past the five masculine curious figures to breath some fresh air. “hey bro-” sunghoon — who was sat on the living room’s couch, waved his hands but saw heeseung gesturing him that it wasn’t a good time, making him cough and cringe.

taking a deep breath he placed his arms on the balcony’s parapet, watching the snowy windy weather making his breath turn into a white fumace. jungwon closed his eyes and picked up his phone to call you. “hi baby!” your sweet voice resounded behind the device’s speaker. “oh… hey, um…” “what happened?” jungwon’s legs began to feel like jelly and his eyes started to water. “wonie?” he sighed before speaking: “um, i–i… i’m sorry baby, i posted a picture of us on my stories thinking i had posted on my close friends; and…” he was out of breath for explaining all of it at once. “are you okay wonie?” — were you okay?

resuming everything: jungwon went to the company’s building and went straight to the meeting room. the white painted walls made him feel uncomfortable, and the feeling of guiltiness was unhelpful. you or course forgave your boyfriend. you told him he had more important things to worry about, and not about apologising for something that was accidentally done. but he kept saying he was sorry anyway. however, in the end, jungwon decided to ask you if it was okay to reveal your relationship and you were pretty chill with it; since you trusted on your boyfriend’s choices and maturity. dispatch later released an article about both of you, revealing that belift had contacted with them and said both of you had good sentiments about each other. the CEO was pissed off and denied to accept his relationship with you, but the enhypen’s leader insisted and eventually his manager and superior couldn’t help to be proud of jungwon for being mature and understanding the company’s side, letting him have this freedom.

riki wouldn’t really bother since he knew that the secret relationship wasn’t going to be a forever thing; and would actually joke about it, but still feel very concern about you. on weverse, he was about to post a photo of him at the practice room after finishing practicing, saying: “practice is donee! 🔥 ㅋ what are engenes doing?”. the thing is that you were at the practice room just watching your boyfriend looking hot while dancing wearing his grey trousers and hoodie. oh, so what? what could go wrong? nothing, but riki didn’t double checked which pictures he was selecting and deciding to post, letting the photo where he kisses your cheek while sitting beside you on the ground slip from his sight.

okay, riki is the member that every engene goes crazy about, and you guys can’t tell me otherwise. so when he posted the photos, waiting for the engenes to see it and comment, everyone was confused and going nuts. “i’m going to ruin this girl’s life 🥺 ㅎㅎㅎㅎ” — and that was the comment he was the most afraid about. however, he was confused with those comments since he didn’t checked the photos and everyone was commenting about a girl in the picture. and then before he knew it, dispatch already has posted a screenshot of riki’s weverse account with the photo of both of you, saying: “who is this mysterious girl?”.

fortunately, your instagram account is private, just people you know follows you and comments on your posts. but, why are there literally hundreds of people wanting to follow you? you didn’t know, but people already have found you. sounds scary, and for you it is, but you thought you were just being paranoid about it, brushing away this strange feeling that was slowly growing in your chest.

this strange feeling just got worse when you saw riki sitting by your side and picking up his phone to answer engenes five minutes after posting the pictures he took two hours ago. as i mentioned, he wasn’t expecting to see comments like people threatening someone’s girl or something, making him concern about what he had done; because he knew he has taken a picture with you before deciding to post it. i think he got a bit carried away with his practice and forgot to check if the photos he had selected were okay before clicking the post button.

“‘ki? what happened?” you asked your pale boyfriend. “u-um… nothing.” you saw how awkward he was acting, fidgeting on his phone’s screen with eager, like he was trying to undo something as fast as possible. “are you cheating on me?” you joked, but watched your boyfriend flashing his head towards you gulping down tightly. “i may have– like…” riki leaned his body forward, getting his back off from the sofa’s material. “posted a picture of us kissing?” he dropped his head to the side, sending you a half-hearted smile. your mouth dropped, making him take a deep breath and rub his temples, pulling you for a hug. “i’m so sorry, i didn’t see it…” riki whispered, placing a sweet kiss onto your scalp. you were told shocked to answer his apologies, making him even more nervous and the guiltiness was punching his stomach.

riki was feeling like he was about to throw up. imagine losing your first love just because he accidentally pressed a single button? imagine losing the love of your life just because you did something stupid and dumb? it couldn’t be worse. but riki couldn’t get really into his deep feeling because his manager managed to snap the practice’s room door open, clearly not in his most calm state. “riki, meeting room.” the manager spoke firmly leaving the room beating his feet on the ground. riki whined against your hair, and you felt the manager’s gazing at you with anger — that made you feel extremely uncomfortable, but tried to shake this feeling off just to make things go smoother and easier, because you could tell it wasn’t going to be easy for poor riki. “see you later baby.” he sent you a flying kiss after pulling away from you, standing up from the sofa. “i’m sorry again okay? i’ll solve this.” he placed a kiss on your pouty lips and smiled at himself, like he was trying to enjoy the last moment he thought he had with you being his girlfriend.

thankfully, when riki arrived at the meeting room the manager seemed to be calmer. however, the CEO didn’t seemed like it, turning riki into a anxious mess. since the youngest was japanese, which means he was foreigner, the company was harsher with him. were more cruel and hostile in some kind of ways. except this time was a more of a serious topic, and the CEO wasn’t looking very happy. riki was already waiting for having to record a apology video and then break up with you or, worse, being expelled from the company’s team. even the thought of this possibility makes the black haired boy shiver from his head to his toe.

“nishimura riki, we need to talk.” was the first thing he heard echoing at the meeting room, and then this was the moment riki knew it was going to be a long day of talking. meanwhile, you were walking back home when suddenly heard your phone ringing. you quickly picked up the device from your coat’s pocket and answered the call, letting your boyfriend’s deep voice flow into your ear. “babe, i’m sorry but i had to agree with revealing our relationship.” his tone was apologetic, but you silently chuckled behind the call. “i mean– i feel bad for making this decision without your actual consent and opinion but otherwise i would have to leave you; and–” “it’s okay baby.” because of your tone, riki knew you were smiling. “where are you?” you heard him asking, making you realise you were just walking on the streets. proceeding to turn your body to take a look around, you answered replying: “i don’t know, it’s like–” “surprise, surprise~” you heard a familiar voice hum behind you. slowly turning your body towards the voice, you were met with the smiley figure of your boyfriend. “hey pretty.” his smile grew as he saw your eyes shining under the night sky. “do you have a boyfriend?” and you could only laugh at his attempt to make you smile between such a difficult situation you were put in; but now you couldn’t be happier without being a secret anymore, feeling so strong that you felt like you and riki could run through all those hate comments. yeah, both of you are definitely inseparable.

© imaluckygirl , originals .ᐟ 24.

taglist: @jakesangel , @laylasbunbunny , @jaeyunpinkyring ( + ) @secretlyapartofthisfandom . . .

[lucysarah-c]

going back to an ask youve answered, what do you think levi would do if he fell in love?

would he persue said person or not? what else?

Hi, sweetie! How are you?

That’s a good question. I think Levi's reaction depends a lot on her role. Is she part of the Scouts, or is she a civilian?

Regardless, I believe Levi’s first reaction would be denial—but not in the sense of "I'm not in love." Levi is straightforward with his thoughts and feelings, so he knows he’s in love with this girl. The denial comes in the form of refusing to acknowledge that he’s even thinking about it, even though he does it constantly.

For example, Levi might tell himself, "I don’t have time to invest in a romantic relationship right now." Yet, if she’s a Scout, he’ll always find time to check if she needs anything, perhaps offer to have tea or help with paperwork. He might think, "I can't take on another responsibility," but still, if her bakery is in a part of town known to be unsafe, he’ll often check on her as she closes up, offering to walk her home if she allows it.

When confronted, Levi would brush it off with, "Tch, it's my job as a soldier," even though he doesn’t escort anyone else home.

He’ll insist on getting supplies from her bakery, claiming she’s "the only one who doesn’t make crappy bread," despite never having complained about the previous shop.

If she’s a nurse in the military medical service, Levi might use the excuse that cadets are misbehaving just to check on her at the infirmary.

Although Levi claims he has no time for a relationship, he constantly carves out moments from his responsibilities to ensure she’s safe and well.

Levi’s approach to showing affection is very subtle. She might need to make the first bold move to let him know she’s interested and doesn’t think he’s being creepy.

The boldest move Levi might make would be to bring her a flower from outside the walls, something rare and unique. He could press the flower in a notebook and then give it to her as a dried keepsake. This gesture would be the result of months of self-debate. Levi’s idea of courting is straightforward and a bit rustic, much like his fashion sense—not the smoothest, but it gets the job done.

Levi might ponder, "What do women like? Sweet stuff, cute stuff, things that smell nice." So, flowers seem perfect—they’re cute, smell good, and are sweet in their own way. Maybe chocolates, too.

He would hand over the dried flower stiffly, saying, "Here, this is for you." She might be surprised and invite him in for tea and biscuits. During their conversation, she might mention other things she enjoys, like a specific dessert, flower, or color. Since Levi isn’t the talkative type, she would likely do most of the talking. Levi would take note of everything she mentions to ensure he gets the right thing in the future. He might also offer to help her around the house if she needs anything.

Perhaps, one day, she visits Levi at the Scout headquarters after a mission, grateful that he’s safe. They get so lost in conversation that they don’t realize how late it’s gotten. Levi might then suggest it’s too late for her to go back alone, and just maybe, she decides to spend the night there.

Link to my masterlist and my other works if you feel like checking them out. Tags!: @nube55 @justkon @notgoodforlife @nmlkys @humanitys-strongest-bamf @quillinhand @thoreeo @darkstarlight82 @angelofthorr @aomi04 @levisbrat25 @l3visthighs @hum4n-wr3ckag3 @hannieslovebot @starrylevi @rithty @mariaace @ackrmntea @emilyyyy-08 @levisfavoriteteashop @katestrophes @levistealeaf @an-ever-angry-bi @youre-ackermine @fxnnyackerman @secretmoneybearvoid @trashblackrainbow @flxrartsstuff @katharinasdiaryy @levisecretgfblog @searriously @blackdxggr @ackermanswifee @galactict3a @abiatackerman @braunsbabe @moonchild-12345 Wanna join my tag list? Here!

[fanficsbyme-causeimgay]

Imagine, if you will, you have been hiking. Regardless of your disability that gave you problems walking, hiking was an activity you loved doing.

Sadly, one day, that disability does not help.

You trip and fumble, rolling down a hill. Thankfully, you haven't broken anything, but you have lost your backpack that had the means to contact others to help you. Your phone broke, but even if it hadn't broken, you wouldn't have any signal.

Lying there in pain because of the many injuries you've sustained - as minor as they might be, they're still painful - you just see a shadow looming above you.

When you wake up next, you're in a cabin in the middle of the woods. The owner and sole person living in it is what can only be described as a lumberjack. Big man with thick arms and even thicker and strong voice that was a lot gentler than you'd expect from a man of his size. He helped you, he took you from where you were and brought you to his home - Here you have been for three days until now. He lives away from proper civilization, and although he has an emergency kit, he doesn't really use it, and some things have expired already. He can't exactly leave you here because it would take him days to get to the closest town, and you can't possible be by yourself for so long in the state you're in!

So he stayed.

As he lives alone and you're taking his only bed, he sleeps on the ground. At first, you felt really guilty about it - it is his house, so he should sleep on the bed! - but he keeps insisting that this wasn't the first time he slept on the ground and probably won't be the last. Still, you insist that at least you share, right? But it is awkward to share the bed with a stranger. So, why not become friends? That way the awkwardness will fade away... right?

You learn a few things about him. Very important things indeed.

He loves star fruits. His favorite color is green. He is an avid reader of what he explained to you to be scientific texts about soil and rocks (he went on and on about the differences between various types of rocks). He has taken to the art of woodcarving. And he also loves bears! He has made various small hand sized little bear statues that he has all around his house.

Talking about his house, although you have been mostly confined to the bedroom, you have seen a bit of it, mainly the kitchen. After a week of living together, you can finally move your body without too much pain or strain on your muscles, but walking still eludes you, cane or no cane. It is too painful. Maybe you tore something? Regardless, he sets you down on a chair he most likely makes himself and talks about whatever he wants as he makes dinner, and he is a good cook! He lives alone, so he has to be... Or make food good enough to eat.

He loves soups, too. "They're easy to make, hut hard to truly master." Is what he said when you asked about it... and it kinda makes sense.

One week turns into two, and you're starting to move around a little more, and that's when he takes you outside. It was cold, very cold, and that is when you find out he lives on top of a mountain. Without windows in his house ("I don't like them for... personal reasons."), you didn't really know you were higher up, but it was a beautiful, beautiful place... Miles and miles of forest as far as the eyes could see - and you could see your original trail too. It was two or so miles away and a steep drop down, too.

He sat you down by the porch and you two just watched the horizon as the sun set down before going back inside... it felt weirdly romantic.

Maybe that was when things started.

You began to help him with cooking - just small things. "Let me cut the potatoes for you." Oh yeah, he grew them and a bunch of other things too. He likes gardening, too... "Let me help you with that!" Or a good ol' "You look like you need some help."

And soft touches when reaching out for the same thing became more natural. Touches become more natural. Sleeping on the same bed becomes natural. Cuddling becomes more natural. And that was when you noticed it - He was gruff with it. He just told you: "I turn into a big bear sometimes." Like was the most common and perfectly normal thing for a big guy like him to do!

"Uhm, like, regularly?"

"Whenever I want to."

"...can I see that?"

And he shows you. He is big. He is brown. He is fluffy.

Secrelty, he is also extremely happy that you didn't freak out and tried to run away. He is even happier when you literally cuddle the fuck out od him.

But time, as always, moves on.

You were well enough to return to civilization. And he knew that, so he told you that the next morning, he would bring you to the nearest town. As a last farewell, he made a campfire, and you both sat together and watched as thunder rumbled above your heads. The dark clouds rolling in as rain would soon fall - and that is when he pulls out a simple guitar.

"...can I sing you something?" He asks, nervous. "I don't make any promises about the quality. It will probably suck."

"I would love to hear it." You say.

And he sings -

And when he finishes, you can't help it.

You don't wanna leave.

That night, you both did kiss, like real people do.

[animekpopsimp]

Can you do a nerd reader with hsr men (doesn’t have to be romantic) I just adore your writing style <3

Honkai Star Rail x nerdy reader

Dan Heng

Dan Heng is a bit of a nerd himself, so the two of you just click. You both love spending time going through all the artifacts he's found, or talking about something new you've learned. He finds it comfortable to have someone around who's just as interested in the same things he is.

Welt

Welt can also be considered a nerd, so he quite enjoys your company. He's always happy to listen to you ramble about something you've learned, he'll simply sit there and let you talk for however long.

Adventurine

Adventurine isn't very smart in the traditional sense, but none the less, he enjoys your company. He may not always understand what you're talking about, but he'll listen to whatever you're talking about anyway, even if you may have to explain it a second time.

Dr. Ratio

Dr. Ratio is a very smart man, and he enjoys the company of other smart people, you included. The two of you will sit there, one of you rambling about something while the other listens. Ratio is just happy to have someone around who's as smart as he is.

Jing Yuang

As a general, Jing Yuan isn't the smartest person. He isn't stupid, but he's more focused on his combat skills. When it comes to your nerdy personality, he finds it adorable. He'll let you ramble about any topic you find interesting, as long as you're happy.

Argenti

Argenti loves how passionate you are about learning new things. He may have trouble understanding what you're talking about anything you've learned, as long as you're happy.

Sunday

Sunday isn't dumb, but he isn't the smartest either. He loves listening to you ramble about whatever topic interests you because he knows it makes you happy. Your nerdy personality is adorable to him.

Boothill

Boothill isn't that smart, so if you're rambling about a specific topic, you might have to explain things more than once. He thinks you're adorable and absolutely loves hearing you go on about whatever topic interests you.

[pubbamoon]

Random Astrology Observation

Hi guys! Thank you so much for liking my recent post about Midheaven. I was absolutely shocked and blown away when I see the number of notes in the first 12 hours (more than 100 notes). This time, I'm going to do something different. I'm going to make an astrology observation about random placements from any natal chart. I didn't prepare anything, I'm just going to describe those placements that will come to my mind first, haha lol. This observation may apply to the western astrology only. Also, this will be a general observation, so take only what resonates with you. Hope it's going to makes sense, at least.

Natives who have multiple planets in the angular houses (1st, 4th, 7th, 10th) are meant to be leaders at some point. They might have such a strong presence and naturally attract other people because of their strong and natural charisma. Every angular house describes the most important things and events in our life.

1st house represents someone's personality, body and overall life.

4th house represents home, childhood and someone's private life.

7th house represents marriage, other people and our partner's life.

10th house represents career path and someone's professional life.

For a couple of months, I have realized that I eat very poorly and less than I have ever eaten for years. Sometimes I basically skip breakfast. It's become clear to me why this happens to me when I did look at the transits and saw that transit Saturn is currently in Pisces sign and it's sitting in my natal 2nd house of food, eating and throat. Saturn is all about restrictions and struggles and I don't have that capacity to eat the huge amount of food like I used to do. And it's not that I'm big, I'm naturally skinny actually.

South Node is related to spirituality, detachment and our comfort zone. When someone's personal planet or point, especially Sun, Moon or Rising, conjuncts your natal South Node, this may be a person who you naturally hang out with. You might feel comfortable with this type of person, but you may suddenly lose or break contact with this person like that is meant to happen. That is because South Node is a karmic planet and you should learn some lessons from your past life while interacting with person whose natal Sun/Moon/Rising conjuncts your natal South Node.

I could be called out for this statement, but I find Lilith a little bit overrated here on Tumblr and on every other social platforms (especially on Instagram and Twitter/X). Since I started following some astrology accounts here, I've been hearing about Lilith and other asteroids like they're something special. Don't get me wrong, I do think that Lilith does represent the sexual and dark side of us and that it can be accurate, but I also think that we already have Pluto for this (and Mars and Saturn too, 'cause they're all dark planets). My opinion is that people rely a little bit too much on asteroids here. When I look at someone's natal chart, I usually look the positions of the planets and I get enough clarity on someone's life and behavior. I use asteroids too, but that's the last thing I look on someone's natal chart.

Since I switched a house system from a Placidus to a Whole Sign, I have understood my own natal chart with the Whole Sign system clearer than before I used Placidus system. I'm not saying that the Placidus is bad and less accurate, but from my experience, that house system has always been confusing to me. When I switched to the Whole Sign system, I could understand my natal chart better and everything just 'clicked' to me. Whole Sign just makes more sense to me, I don't know about you and others.

I used to use both traditional and modern planetary rulers for each sign and house, but now I'm starting to realize that is enough to use only the traditional ones. I'll still use planets from Sun to Pluto while analyzing someone's natal chart, but when it comes to the rulers of the signs and houses, I'll use only planets from Sun to Saturn. The reason why is because I've concluded that the outer planets (Uranus, Neptune and Pluto) move too slow and it takes several years to change their signs. But regardless, I'll still say that these outer planets are co-rulers in modern tropical/western astrology, but I won't use them in practice anymore until I change my mind, which happens quite often, hahaha.

In traditional tropical astrology, Saturn rules over the Capricorn and Aquarius, Jupiter rules over the Sagittarius and Pisces and Mars rules over the Aries and Scorpio. But in modern tropical astrology, Aquarius is co-ruled by Uranus, Pisces is co-ruled by Neptune and Scorpio is co-ruled by Pluto. Use whatever it resonates more to you. I don't force you to think like me, that's not my goal at all.

Thank you for reading this observation and supporting my work. You can ask me what do you want me to do next if you have any ideas. Wish you all had a wonderful day ahead.

Best regards,

Paky McGee

[cable-salamder]

An Analysis on the Newly Released Images

Okay okay. We’re all freaking out. I am too, but there’s some stuff that I immediately took note of that I want to point out (before anyone else does-). I’ll be going through the pictures one by one so this might be a bit of a longer read. But without further ado, let’s crack in, shall we?

Okay first one: We’re all making fun of it, and we all can guess what this is: Lloyd’s internalised grief and sense and failure over losing Kai making him give everyone else intense training. Which, can I just say I love that? We barely saw anything of Lloyd’s sadness at the end of part 1, so him actually acting more strict and intense will likely lead to another one of the ninja (I’m guessing Nya, because she looks the most concerned in this picture) actually talking to him about it, especially considering the focus on mental health throughout Dragons Rising so far, specifically for Lloyd.

Also something that I thought was interesting is that everyone else is still in their previous climber suits, except for Wyldfyre! Her hair is different now too and actually matches her minifigure!! (I am so goddamn glad abt that you don’t even know). I don’t know if they will mention this, but in my head this is Wyld coping, too, but she’s doing it by changing her outfit and hair from what it was when the traumatising thing happened. For this I’m also kind of assuming Lloyd is in his Master Robe, just because I think that would also add to that pressure of him being a stern teacher and making Wu, who was arguably quite strict, proud (which could beautifully link to his nightmare from part 1, which I also wrote something about here)

Then we have this honestly gorgeous shot of what is likely the tournament spot! First off I want to point out the Life symbol on top of the tower, which confirms that this tournament is either hosted by them or at the very least has something to do with them! Here’s Life’s symbol for reference:

Now. There’s nothing else big that I could pull from this image except that the building on the right is very likely to be the equivalent of the sleeping dorms on during Chen’s tournament. I can’t help but feel like there’s something hidden in this image— (just going off of usual screenwriting and scene building here) it could be that this is either a shot right after which we may the inside of some building, or that this could be some sort of sneaking out scene. I did notice the random barrels precariously stacked on the roof/ platform on the left, which I don’t know whether it is on purpose or not that they are in this shot, but the way I know Dragons Rising and it’s small details I feel like it’s not. I guess we’ll have to wait.

And now this one. Oh, this one. I think this is the one I have the most to say about because good lord is a lot of stuff happening in this image. Let’s work from the left to the right, shall we?

First off! People! The fact that there are even spectators there implies to me that, unlike Chen’s Tournament that was only for himself, this one is actually public, or at the very least able to be viewed from outsiders! It could also potentially be that these are rich/ noble people, meaning that this would be a big and expensive event (which it does kinda look like to be honest). I personally don’t recognise any of the faces, though I do see a bunch of munce and at the very least human-looking people.

(The Ninjargon on the banner reads ‘ARENA’ by the way! From that I’m assuming there will be a bunch of banners like this, indicating which area is what.)

Second are these peeps. The most obvious person we can recognise here is Mr. Pale, standing in between a Kraglin and an unknown person in the middle picture. So he’s definitely back! No sign of Tox, though, which makes me believe that either she just hasn’t arrived yet, or that she’ll arrive with the bad guys, eg. Ras’ crew, which would align with her being on the bad sign just as that one set preview showed.

Also Roby is here! Honestly, to me, he doesn’t look like he’s an actual participant, but rather he looks like some sort of worker? His color scheme doesn’t quite match, but I can’t think of a reason why he would be standing at what seems to be the entrance and welcoming who I’m boldly assuming are the ninja or, perhaps even Ras’ contenders* (Explanation further below).

(Honestly if he is Wyld’s future bf it would just be even funnier if he was just this random worker guy lmao)

Now, about the other participants. We don’t know whether these are other people with elemental powers, or whether non elementals can also take part (in which case: will Arin be excluded). Either way: There’s obviously the Kraglin and another person with what looks like grey hair on either side of Mr. Pale. There’s not enough detail for either of them to be able to tell what kind of elemental powers they could have. But it’s the other side, the first photo, that I really want to focus on.

First of all there’s the person using a wheelchair, which, without getting too much off topic here, very much fits into Dragons Risings’ inclusion of more diverse characters! I also want to point out the fact that it looks like they are wearing goggles, which somehow makes me think that this could either be a person with a more dangerous or potentially easily-going-awry power, or that perhaps it has something to do with flight? I might just be tripping though who knows.

And now to the one I actually wanted to get to because this one eludes me the most: The character on the left. To me they look like one of the dark skeletons that Wyld and Kai encountered in s1, but moreso than that I want to point out what they are wearing. A black and white themed outfit— one that most definitely looks more like the gis of the ninja. Now. I don’t know about y’all, but for some reason this character seems important to me. I can’t quite tell whether that symbol on their chest is meant to be a flower, or potentially another Source Dragon symbol (it looks very much like Strength to me), but either way I just have this gut feeling. Maybe it’s because when I first saw them I thought it was Garmadon, but who knows (I keep trying to convince myself that it’s *not* him and failing miserably)

Either way, these seem to be the other contestants for the Tournament besides the ninja and the likely to join later Ras Gang! I’m assuming that either these will continue to be unaffiliated, or perhaps be “forced” to choose sides (I imagine Mr. Pale standing there like “shit not again”)

Then this. I don’t know why this is getting me so badly but it’s Nya and Lloyd content and that’s all that matters to me. They are both in their new suits while rising on Jiro’s back and— which is actually surprising me quite a bit— sporting the headbands that they usually have in all the sets! Canonical Nya haircut? I sure hope so.

The point is that it looks like they are either mid fight or getting ready to fight. This makes me think of two theories: Either this is them already taking part in the tournament, with the screen showing them in the middle of a challenge, or this is them actually only arriving, but already getting attacked.

Now the explanation for my * up above. If we go with the idea that this screen shows what is happening at that moment, then I feel like it’s unlikely that this entire shot shows the ninja being welcomed into the tournament, and, instead, this is a shot of the bad guys being welcomed in, and this clip just so happens to be playing. Do I think this is very likely? No, not really.

What I think is far more the case is that this screen is showing what had happened just a little bit ago (perhaps even just a few minutes), with the ninja being faced with some sort of difficulty or challenge just to get to this place; which is now being replayed again onto the big screen for the masses to see while they are being welcomed into the arena and congratulated for actually making it to this place (hence the fireworks). It could also explain why some of the other contestants are cheering (the Garmadon looking character), while some others look like they are despairing (all the ones on Mr. Pale’s side)— it could be that they were hoping the ninja wouldn’t make it in order for the competition to be easier.

Another explanation that I can see is the fact that this is live footage, but at the same time part of the team is being welcomed in. I don’t think that’s likely, because they are more likely to help each other if they were in trouble and not go ahead already, though I could see it if they had been travelling separately anyways.

Personally, however, I am of the opinion that the second one is the most likely, simply because of the other parts of this shot and what the most logical option is.

(Also something of note, though I don’t really know how actually important this is, is the fact that we see no host. Unless Roby is the host (which… no) this is very different from Chen’s tournament, where he immediately presented himself as their host and the most important figure. If the host is Life, or someone else who is representing them, then we can infer that they could be more modest in how often and just how in general they show themselves.

Also those five little circle.. platforms? Sure. They just mildly scare me, okay? I also tried figuring out what the other banners say, though I think it’s more of a drawing/ symbol than actual writing. It also strangely looks like the mech discs Sora made… anyways. Just further food for thought.)

But! Yes! That’s all I could pull from these three images in like… an hour of manic writing. I might be a Little Unwell about this show, in case you couldn’t tell :D

[ghostofbambifanfiction]

CYOA C57 Sneak Peak

Since I took a not-so-brief break from writing and it still might be another few days before I can post the next chapter, have a sneak peak of the beginning of the chapter below the cut.

Private WhatsApp Chat Resumed: Wednesday 16th March, 2022, 01:37 Members: Lily Evans, James Potter

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Lily Evans: <image attachment> You're hopefully asleep but look at what I've got!

...

Private WhatsApp Chat Resumed: Wednesday 16th March, 2022, 07:11 Members: Lily Evans, James Potter

================================

James Potter: omg it's my face mug

Lily Evans: Yep! Plus my tea, which really got me through the morning since I came in an hour early to get a site report finished. I employed cunning stealth tactics to manoeuvre it out of Pip's desk drawer yesterday.

James Potter: what did you do?

Lily Evans: I said, "Pip, can I have James's face mug?" and that worked.

James Potter: truly you are machiavellian in your endeavours also are you wearing bright pink in that photo?

Lily Evans: I am. Felt slightly daunted about it this morning because of the stupid old adage about redheads, but I mean, I BOUGHT the outfit on Monday because I loved how it looked on, so chickening out would have been a waste of my money.

James Potter: what's the old adage about redheads?

Lily Evans: There are MANY and they're all equally ridiculous because being redheaded is great actually, but this one in particular dictates that we "shouldn't wear pink," presumably because it looks terrible on us.

James Potter: that IS stupid you look so pretty

Lily Evans: Thank you! <image attachment> This is the full fit. I love Sirius's selfie mirror. What d'you think?

James Potter: christ you really do have phenomenal legs warn me next time, would you? i'm trying to drink my morning coffee in peace here, and you spring this on me

Lily Evans: Lollll you saw my legs on my Instagram yesterday.

James Potter: yesterday you had big tall boots on today you do not

Lily Evans: Forget about my legs for a second.

James Potter: i physically CAN'T

Lily Evans: The jacket is a CAPE, James. I own a CAPE. I am MAKING MY OWN DREAM (of owning a cape) COME TRUE. Do you have any idea how many crop tops I bought on Monday? LOADS. And I've been scared of crop tops my whole life. I still kind of am scared, but I'm going to be brave and wear them anyway, Bea says that if I carry myself with confidence on purpose I'll eventually start to carry myself with confidence because that's genuinely how I feel, and you know what she's right because I've had more compliments from other women in the office over the last day and a half than I've had in the year since I started working here. If you can't tell, I'm very excited about my new clothes.

James Potter: i can tell

Lily Evans: It's probably a very boring topic so I'll stop.

James Potter: no you don't have to stop i think it's brilliant and not just because i get to see more of your legs, which is a huge win for me

Lily Evans: Lolllllllll

James Potter: a week ago you were calling yourself a frump, so it makes me happy to see you talking like this instead if new clothes make you feel good about yourself then i want to hear about them

Lily Evans: I do feel more like ME in them, if that makes any sense at all. And there's no going back now because I've bagged up a load of my old clothes and Bea and Remus are going to help me lug them to the charity shop before we all head off to the train station on Saturday. I bought A LOT of new things. Like, so much I felt a bit obscene every time it came to pay. But I couldn't have done that if you hadn't spared me from paying rent for the next few months, so thank you so much for being a bottomless well of kindness, even though I should be saving that money for a deposit on a new flat and have had no common sense in my approach to this.

James Potter: don't worry about it, you deserve bottomless wells of kindness and of every good thing in life are you going to leicester with remus and beatrice this weekend?

Lily Evans: No, although I'm going the Saturday after for a pre-Mother's Day lunch with my mum and Petunia. I'm heading to Stockport to spend the night at Emily's, it just so happens that Bea and I both need to leave from Euston. Actually, first I'm getting my hair done, then I'm donating my clothes, THEN I'm going to Stockport to see Em. Then I'm going wall climbing with her and her mum and sister.

James Potter: oh cool! i love climbing, have you ever done it before?

Lily Evans: I went to a climbing centre once for a friend's birthday party years ago, I was twelve and I got my first period while I was actively on the wall, so I spent quite a lot of the day running into the toilet to check that nobody could see it even though I was wearing black shorts and Carina's mum had given me a pad. So the short answer is: not really, but I'm not worried, none of them are expecting me to be any good at it even though they're all basically professionals. Em and her sister also go cycling every Sunday morning so I have been informed that a loaner bike and safety gear is available if I want to join them.

James Potter: do you think you will go?

Lily Evans: Yeah! I haven't cycled in a few years but I do cardio every day so I reckon I can manage the exercise even if I wind up extremely saddle-sore afterwards. Plus this all means I get to bring and wear some of my new workout clothes, and honestly I'll take any excuse.

James Potter: if you put some chamois cream on before you cycle you'll save yourself a lot of discomfort little tip from my mum that i flagrantly ignored in my youth

Lily Evans: Why did you ignore it?

James Potter: because i was A MAN who didn't NEED to smear cream on my groin to train for a triathlon except it turns out i did also i was only about sixteen, who the fuck did i think i was, cat noir?

Lily Evans: I'm going to skim past the fact that you know who Cat Noir is because then I'll need to explain why I know who he is and it's probably the same reason.

James Potter: it's definitely the same reason

Lily Evans: God, we're both such dweebs. I mean, you're much cooler than I am, but still.

James Potter: not true at all, i'm a massive dork, i just happen to play a lot of sports, so people who don't know me well don't spot it straight away

Lily Evans: And you're stupidly attractive, which isn't often expected of massive dorks because we live in a society that unfairly pigeonholes people into boxes based upon their perceived attractiveness. This I say as I shop for makeup online. I know I'm part of the problem.

James Potter: what does "stupidly" attractive mean? i'd love a definition

Lily Evans: You already defined it yourself. Weeks ago, actually.

James Potter: what??? when?

Lily Evans: "And now," gasped Theo, in a ruggedly handsome but also charmingly boyish but also sexy but also dorky way that seems really impossible for a real human man to accomplish, "I will kiss you at last!" See? Defined. As per you. Also important to note: this kind of attractiveness makes people who fancy you act and feel like blushing, giggling idiots. Hence, "stupidly" attractive.

James Potter: well

Lily Evans: Your brother, on the other hand, is NOT stupidly attractive. He's inaccessibly attractive. Which is very different. Science.

James Potter: noooo don't talk about sirius! talk about me again!

Lily Evans: I just did. At length.

James Potter: talk about me more who am i making blush and giggle?

Lily Evans: How quickly you forget that I still field emails from Jessalyn et al.

James Potter: oh it's JESSALYN, is it?

Lily Evans: Et al.

James Potter: i think you should elaborate on et al

Lily Evans: I'd love to but I have to jump into a meeting.

James Potter: no you don't!

Lily Evans: Yes I do!

James Potter: a meeting with who?

Lily Evans: With Agnes from Julia Murphy.

James Potter: who is agnes from julia murphy

Lily Evans: Julia Murphy is a skincare company, one of our brand partners, and it's in my calendar, see?? <image attachment> I'm not trying to get out of telling you I think you're cute.

James Potter: two minutes ago i was ruggedly handsome and charmingly boyish and sexy now i'm merely cute?

Lily Evans: And dorky. Don't forget dorky.

James Potter: i haven't forgotten anything, thank you very much

Lily Evans: James, you are ruggedly handsome and charmingly boyish and sexy. Are you happy now?

James Potter: that reply will do, but only because you're busy you're off the hook for now but i expect you to revisit this subject later

Lily Evans: God, who even are you, my owner?

James Potter: that's an interesting choice of words, lil

Lily Evans: DON'T YOU DARE ANSWER THAT QUESTION

[suzukiblu]

Ko-fi thank-you sentences for 🦄 behind the cut; Billy adopts Conner and it actually goes pretty good! (( chrono || non-chrono ))

“Um, yeah,” Billy repeats, shrugging awkwardly. “And–you know, you need sun, right? Like for your powers and stuff so you'll be safer on missions, but also, um–Kryptonians just really like it, I think. Well, okay, I dunno if you know if you like it yet, but Superman definitely does. He spends a lot of time in it. So–windows.” 

Lynn . . . swallows, slowly, and tightens his grip on Tawky a little bit again. Billy wonders if that means he wants a hug. Lynn's still a baby, technically–he might not know how hugging really works in real life, or just not know how to ask for one when he needs one. 

Or just not know he's allowed to ask for one when he needs one. 

Or just wants, obviously. 

“I like it,” Lynn says very, very quietly, and Billy can't help perking up excitedly at hearing that. 

“Awesome!” he blurts, then clears his throat and tries to reel himself in and settle down a little more. “Um–awesome, yeah. Cool. I'm glad.” 

Lynn doesn’t say anything else, but he loosens his grip on Tawky a little. Billy still wonders if he wants a hug, but he really doesn’t know how to tell. 

. . . well, he guesses there’s the obvious option. 

“Hey,” he says, leaning forward a little to peer a little closer at Lynn’s face while trying not to be, like, pushy about it. Lynn’s just hard to read, that’s all, and he doesn’t wanna mess up with him. “Do you want a hug or anything?” 

Lynn’s shoulders immediately stiffen, and Billy represses a wince. 

“You don’t have to,” he puts in quickly. “Just, um–I didn’t know if you knew you could have one? If you ever do? Like–that’s a normal thing to want. And, you know . . . do? And . . . stuff?” 

Billy is very, very bad at this, isn’t he, he realizes, trying not to cringe at how awkward and lame he sounds right now. Like–babies need touched and carried and hugged, and really everybody does, but he definitely could’ve made that offer way less weird-sounding. Just–he really doesn’t trust that Cadmus told Lynn that kind of thing was okay or important or ever would be okay or important, so . . . yeah. So he said it.

Just he said it very, very awkwardly and lamely. 

Lynn is totally never gonna think he’s a cool dad, is he, Billy thinks morosely. He’s gonna think he’s uncool and weird and boring and– 

Lynn . . . hesitates, slightly, and Billy gets distracted from worrying about Lynn deciding he sucks and peers at him again. Lynn looks conflicted, and Billy’s not sure what to say to him. 

“It really is fine if you don’t want one,” he promises finally, because it’s the best idea he’s got. “Just it’s also fine if you do want one, and I kinda, uh, didn’t know if you knew that or not.” 

“. . . okay,” Lynn says, which still isn’t really a helpful answer but is also still better than a lie. Billy can work with noncommittal. Like, he’d much rather do a little extra work to figure out what Lynn’s okay with than accidentally upsetting or hurting him 

Lynn probably doesn’t even know what he’s okay with yet, in a lot of ways. How could he, when everything’s still so new and strange? 

“You could hug Tawky, if you want,” Billy suggests. Lynn’s already been petting him, kinda, so maybe he’s more comfortable with touching him than he is him right now. Which makes sense, really. Tawky is really huggable, and also, like . . . sometimes it’s just less intimidating to hug somebody who looks like a stuffed animal at the time and also isn’t currently a lot bigger than you, Billy knows. Like–that’s definitely been a thing for him, a lot of times. 

. . . honestly, he’s not sure who the last person besides Tawky he even hugged was, come to think of it. Some people hugged him, because they were grateful he’d saved them and all, but–yeah. That’s . . . different, obviously. Not as . . . comforting, or comfortable, or . . . anything like that. 

And if Lynn’s never gotten a hug before–well. Yeah. 

Tawky’s a good start, Billy knows. Like–really good. 

“. . . I don’t know how,” Lynn says, his tone just a little–distant, maybe. Or . . . guarded, maybe. 

“Oh, it’s not hard,” Billy assures him, then picks up one of the throw pillows off the couch and demonstrates, wrapping his arms around it to squeeze a little. “You just wrap your arms around somebody and squeeze, kinda. I mean, you’re gonna have to be careful not to do it too hard with baseline humans and all, but Tawky’s tough!” 

And, well–he’s pretty sure Lynn couldn’t hug him hard enough to hurt him, at least not ‘til he grows up a little more or gets a little more sun in him. But he doesn’t wanna push, so he doesn’t say that.

[bonefall]

Do you think the clan cats having less kits per litter/less litters in general (they already have less kits than real cats) would fix the bloated cast issue? Because I look at Ginga and the cast is also bloated and only a few characters have offspring but the author keeps making other dogs join Ohu and refuses to kill the old as fuck dogs

I don't think there's any one particular "solution" for stopping bloat in series that manage large casts through generations like Ginga or WC, it's actually a few things

The #1 MOST important thing I think about bloat, though, is that it's about a ratio of quality to quantity. NOT raw size.

A long while back I made a couple of allegiance lists for certain eras. In spite of my Clans having the same (or even higher!) population as canon, I NEVER struggled with those lists being bloated. If anything, sometimes if a Clan's below 30, they look too small.

(I'm sure you can find those lists if you look, they're probably tagged BB!Allegiance, but they might be a bit out of date)

That's because in BB, there's dozens of HUGE cultural additions to Clan life. In "administration," alone, there's 3 new major divisions of skills (hunting, cooking, construction) ALL with their own "head" of that patrol, plus canon's leader, deputy, and Cleric. Not to mention subtitles like the Educator and maybe a Chaperone/Permaqueen!

So to bring it back to that "Ratio Theory," If our Clan is 30 cats, those 8 major roles immediately give at least a slight amount of character to a little over 25% of our group, with each role being something that the other 75% of cats can desire and compete for.

Canon's measly 3 is 10%, and you can ONLY vy for deputyship if you want any power. There's nothing else to BE ambitious about.

You can make the ratio higher by having hobbies, drama, skills, arts, etc. Basically; characterize background characters! Which should be obvious!! Give them traits that are useful and interesting and show the community being valuable.

It won't feel like "bloat," it has the sense of communities living their lives. Even if they go quiet for a while, when they return (just look at how much people like seeing Sedgecreek or Hallowflight mentioned lmao) it feels like meeting an old friend again.

WAYS TO MAKE BLOAT FEEL WORSE;

Giving too many "opportunities" to old characters.

Think of every relevant role a cat gets as a meal, and the bigger the role the more they've eaten. If you're only giving value to your old fanfavs, you're not doing much for them because they're already full while the rest of your cast starves.

Haphazardly killing off characters.

I actually strongly resent the "trend" where people conflate good storytelling with an author's willingness to suddenly kill characters off. I think it comes from the same place as needing to "outsmart" your audience.

If you kill off a character with VALUE, an unfinished arc, interesting connections, it's just unsatisfying. The Erins have this problem of killing background characters with some established lore or value (like Harelight and Briarlight) while leaving uninteresting background nobodies behind that they never build back up.

Before killing a character, ask yourself what their role in the cast is, and their dynamic with others. Try not to axe them without a plan to fill that "role" and/or comment on their absence. Replace what you take.

EASY REPLACABILITY

This one is HUGE, this is why Ginga is so bad with this. If a bunch of dogs die, 100 random soldiers can replace them from somewhere. That is REALLY bad, because all the random influxes of new characters do not have a chance to replace what was lost.

It also makes death feel cheaper. Oh no! Background dog 7446 got eaten by the newest type of bear. This won't make battles harder to win or cause us to lose any valuable skills though. Also a new dog just walked in from offscreen.

Population Growth outpaces Death Rate

AKA your cast is growing too fast and you're not getting rid of old characters. This is what anon was asking about-- and it CAN help to make births less frequent and litters smaller. Make sure to pair with preventing lots of new, adult characters to casually wander in, too.

ALL of these tips have exceptions and places where they can (and should) be subverted and broken. But these are just things I think about

[tired-biscuit]

oki i saw u repost the ‘herding dog x lamb x wolf’ post and i am asking u to pls walk w me here … that trope with naruto and kiba. maybe naruto is the protective hearding dog, anxiously looking for the lost lamb that strayed a bit too far from the herd one night. the poor pup’s so worried, ears flat against his head and big eyes shaken with fear that something bad happened to you as he walks deeper into the dark forest.

little did he know, the helpless little lamb was far from in trouble. in the arms of the big bad wolf that caught her, how could she be? as poor naruto is wondering around the woods, fearing the worst case scenario, you’re on your chest, squished against the grass as wolf boy kiba mounts you from behind, knot inflating as his canines mark you all over. grunts and moans of pleasure come from the both of you, only aiding naruto in his search.

and when naruto does end up finding you, he’s… conflicted. well of course he’s horrified at first! a wolf is mounting you for goodness’s sake! at the same time, however, he can’t help but feel a bit jealous. why does the stray get to mount you and he can’t? he’s been so nice to you, after all, and he’s known you the longest! if anyone should fill your holes, it should be him!

when naruto interrupts you n kiba, it only turns into a territorial match of who can knock you up first, to truly claim you <33

— possible 🌺 anon? :))

18+ MDNI, fem!reader / cw: hybrids, knotting, breeding

naruto is a tricky one in my opinion, because he might come across as someone who only wants what’s best for you, but then when he gets the chance to pick you up and carry you to safety, he just… falters. doubts himself and his clashing desires.

and the fact that you smell like nothing but sweat and restless hormones doesn’t help his case either. he tries being the hero, tries to stand his ground and threaten and intimidate kiba for taking advantage of a sweet thing like you in such a ‘disgusting’ manner, but the wolf hybrid just sneers, exposing his elongated canines while he tells him that all he did was keep you safe. after all, the woods can be quite the dangerous place for a little lamb such as yourself, so it’s actually a good thing that a big beast like him has kept you warm and protected from other predators, is it not?

but that can’t possibly be true, can it? though come to think of it, the dazed smile that sits on your innocent-looking face now sure tells naruto otherwise… you’re perfectly content, with or without him. you feel safe, even with several bite marks and scratches littered across your plush body.

and you also feel… needy. like you’re in heat.

so it’s no wonder that you bunch up his shirt in your trembling fists and wiggle your hips while he’s still holding onto you. that you whine and immediately try to push away from him and go back to your new scary-looking wolf friend, whose already sharp smile grows even more honed when naruto, being the loyal dog that he is, tells you that you don’t need to worry, that he’s going to get you right back home.

but the problem is that you don’t want to go home! no, no, no, what you want is to stay right here, and feel the dirt underneath your fingernails while the big bad wolf continues to make you feel like one of a kind and special instead of just another head amongst the herd.

so after a bit of back and forth, and a warning growl so deep that it makes the hair on the back of your neck stand to attention when it escapes the wolf hybrid’s throat, naruto finally succumbs.

kiba isn’t particularly happy about it — his gaze is piercing and his teeth are bared in a snarl as he watches you unclasp the collar and unbutton the dog hybrid’s pants — but he lets you do as you wish if it means that you’ll get to stay in the end. his desire to have you underneath him again is just another form of possessiveness. he’ll swallow the bullet even if it kills him.

and naruto, well, he feels this upcoming sense of animalistic frenzy come forth as he watches you lay on the soft grass and spread your legs for him; clearly beckoning him to give in to the urges that he’s been having for months now just so that you can get your way in the end. by the time he finally crawls on top of you and pushes his cock between your wet folds, still visibly hesitant, you’re already pliant, soft, and so slick between your thighs that he can see them glisten.

he knows what the reason behind it is. you’re already so full of cum and fucked out that you take him with utmost ease. your body is so warm and stretchy that when he goes to push your knees to your chest, all you do is sigh with pleasure instead of squirm with discomfort. he cautiously licks the side of your cheek, tasting salt, and his canine instincts take over eventually — making his back hunched and his temples drip with sweat as he mindlessly ruts into you, pounding your sweet pussy in a frighteningly similar way the wolf had previously done.

in the end, they’re two sides of the same coin.

you let out a broken whimper when you feel his knot begin to swell inside you. he’s nothing like the good boy that you’ve once known him to be; no, now his collar lays abandoned in the grass beside you, and he’s growling lowly into the side of your neck, letting his canines drag across your pulse point as he holds onto you with a grip so tight that it might just bruise your already marked skin.

when he sinks his claws into the back of your thighs and spills his load inside you, kiba is already nosing his way between you, cooing at you that you have to roll back onto your belly now because it’s his turn to breed you again, that he has to make sure the pups are his instead of the ‘mutt’s’.

they don’t like each other, that much is obvious.

however, they will refrain from ripping each other’s throats out if it means that you’ll offer them yours.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

you don't have to answer this if you don't want to but what do you think about Yuu who alr knows Disney and is a bit of a better strategist than canon!Yuu? Like this Yuu would know from the first dream-vision they had that they mirror reality the next day and so whenever they wake up the next day after having these dreams and write down IMMEDIATELY about what happened and try to correlate it as much as they can to reality so they can strategize this way?? Added bonus if they know they're perceived as a weak, helpless magicless student and use it to their advantage so that others constantly underestimate them too!!

Well firstly, I think someone has most likely written this kind of fanfiction before. It’s pretty common to “novelize” the main story but specifically featuring one’s own Yuu variant and/or to do a “fix” or canon divergent story. Not my thing so I just skip over those, but I’m certain I’ve at least skimmed fic summaries of this nature.

Secondly, I don’t think it would make sense narratively (even for a more intelligent and proactive Yuu that has knowledge of Disney lore) to automatically suspect that their dreams correlate with real life events and that they should be alert for parallels. It’s assuming a lot of them, including that they’d have the hindsight before their first dream that their dreams are somehow prophetic. (I’m not counting time travel or time loop theory here, only what we know is canon right now.) That’s not really strategizing then, it’s jumping the gun and assuming that they’re a seer without enough cause to believe in it. Has this happened before to them in their original world? But dreams are rarely ever so closely associate with the things playing out 1:1 in the waking world. Why would Yuu develop this belief then??? I think they’d realistically start putting the pieces together maybe book 3 because 1 time (book 1) may just be coincidence + they wouldn’t be suspicious of anything, 2 times (book 2) is establishing a pattern, and then 3 times (book 3) would be enough times to firmly believe establish said pattern. It wouldn’t happen right off the bat.

I also feel like this kind of Yuu would not work for the current (canon) story TWST wants to tell. Having all of this information and/or going out of their way to prevent things from happening because of their foresight might just cascade into many events not playing out at all, even if only halfway through the main book. It means they’d be highly wary of many characters and could successfully avoid the pitfalls they glimpse in their dreams. They could seek out the “villains” of their dreams, deduce the issue, smooth things out sooner, prevent OBs altogether. Very, very different events might play out. (And if the main story manages to stay roughly the same in spite of all the measures this Yuu takes, then what was the point of telling it all with this intentional smarter and more actionable Yuu to begin with???) Diverging from canon happens all the time in fan creations, as I’ve said earlier—and again, there’s nothing wrong with this. I just don’t know of this would “work” with the current set up without deviating considerably at a certain point.

As for Yuu being perceived as a “weak, helpless magicless student” who “uses it to their advantage so others underestimate them too”… I feel like this is already done in canon, but very subtly and definitely relies a lot on player interpretation of what “kind” of Yuu they want to be. It’s already implied that Yuu is the strategist for battles, so they offer support in this way. Additionally, many characters recognize them for talents which lie beyond their magicless status. This includes the headmaster, who declares that Yuu has the makings of a beast tamer, and Rook, who gives Yuu the nickname “Trickster” for their cleverness. I believe that Yuu was even chosen to go for the harp in Beans Day because Jade was aware that the Monsters would underestimate Yuu and prioritize going after him, who is the more obvious threat. The world and its characters seem to constantly be telling us about Yuu’s strengths outside of a magical context, but they leave how Yuu actually makes use of their helplessness open ended for players to project as they like onto them.

It’d definitely be interesting to see a Yuu that leans into and plays up their weaknesses, but I also think that it would require a skilled writer to successfully pull that off. If not done well, the Yuu may come off as more whiny/desperate or too pompous and locked in their own self-aggrandizing head space. Maybe we’ll get a Yuu that strategizes with their deliberate helplessness in a future installment of the manga? Could be interesting!

[listofwhyyouloveher]

could you do the greasers with a busty s/o?

Summary: The Outsiders x Busty!Reader

Warnings:none

Author's Note: none

PONYBOY CURTIS

Pony definitely does not care if his partner has been well endowed, he's more of a personality guy, as pretentious as that sounds

He's not going to treat you differently based on your cup size, he's still a good boyfriend all around

He's very caring and gentle, massaging your back whenever it pains you and stuff like that

He's also making sure that none of the gang catcall you/try and make a move on you.

JOHNNY CADE

Johnny is also like Pony in the sense that he doesn't care about body shape, as long as you're acceptable by Dallas, you're good.

Of course Johnny turns to Dallas about Every. Single. Thing, for advice, so he's always telling you some weird joke about your body and then immediately apologizes after

He's really trying to be nice and to be someone that you'd want but he just doesn't know how

SODAPOP CURTIS

Soda likes that you look like a model, he's always complimenting you constantly, telling your that you're gorgeous etc.

He's really laying it on thick because he realllly likes you, mostly your face and personality but he thinks the body is a plus

He really likes cuddling with you too, he finds it fun to lay on your chest and he says it's "like a pillow"

Like Pony, he'll also massage your back when it hurts, generally just wants you to be as comfortable as possible

STEVE RANDLE

Steve is almost as dirty minded as Dallas, especially when it comes to the girl he's currently dating (you)

He's obviously very obsessed with your body, complimenting you whenever he can and getting you form fitting clothes

Other than that he's really treating you no differently than he would any other girlfriends, with the utmost respect etc.

Steve really likes to show you off, make sure everyone knows you're gorgeous and your his

TWO-BIT MATHEWS

Two likes girls who are the epitome of feminine beauty, and you fit into that wonderfully, not just because of your body too

He likes when you wear babydoll dresses because it makes you look like an elegant princess

He's obviously getting you clothes that he thinks would look cute on you and even his mom got some for you

He also likes to sleep on your chest and he tells you that cuddling with you is one of the best things ever.

DARRY CURTIS

Darry also likes to give you back massages when your back hurts, it's a Curtis brother thing.

Generally, he doesn't care what you look like, as long as you're sweet and caring and you work well with Pony and Soda

He finds you very gorgeous but the only way you'd be able to tell is because there's always a little blush on his cheeks when he sees you

He works very hard to find clothes that both fit you and your style and to make you feel beautiful

DALLAS WINSTON

You and Dallas are such a crazy couple because the gang obviously thought Dally would try and go out with you but no one thought you'd say yes

It's a very rough beginning of the relationship, he's hyperfixated on your body and how having you compliments his reputation

People may call you crazy for sticking with him but if they saw how your relationship was now they might still call you crazy, but less so

He's less of a jerk about complimenting and flaunting you, instead he's whistling at you from across the street, yelling "hey babydoll, wanna come back to mine" and stuff like that, of course it's something you agreed upon.

ALSO!! he fight anyone who tries to make a move on you and catcalls you!!

[ariseur]

OKAY SO I SAW YOURE ALSO A LATINA AND , WANT REQUESTS; IVE ALWAYS HAD THIS THOUGT, what if Satoru and Suguru were BOTH dating a foreign reader (Mexican if you wanna be specific) idk I just though it’d be kinda funny when they remember the reader has an entirely culture than them!!

((btw that “BOTH” was about a poly relationship with satosugu, which you obv don’t have to do!!))

FOREIGN LOVE - SATORU GOJO

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ notes - decided to change up my formatting a little bit, just experimenting lol. but!! unfortunately i don’t write for suguru ( yet, i’m still trying to get a better sense on his personality n his character since i’m almost done w/ s2!! ) and i dont write polyamorous pieces!! so i just decided to write about gojo for now 🫶

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ warnings - intended lowercase, mentions of japanese culture that i’m not educated on so lmk if there’s more common stuff i could mention instead, lmk if i missed any warnings!!

✧˖° SATORU GOJO dating a foreign reader would actually be a pretty cool dynamic to experience — anon i like your way of thinking about how gojo ( and geto ) would sometimes forget how their foreigner significant reader has an entirely culture from them because .. they probably would lol

✧˖° if you’re not that well versed in japanese / asian culture and traditions, i feel like he would just like casually bring up certain things or events that go on in japan like obon or setsubun or maybe you’re unsure of certain common etiquette, so he’s confused when you’re like “???”

✧˖° but!! if you’re interested in learning stuff about japanese culture then he’ll be like “you’ve come to the right person” and i can just imagine GOJO making that one tiktok emoji face— like the [proud] one lol. he’d love to tell you all about it though, he thinks you wanting to learn more about his culture is just another sign that you love him, and he wants to know more about you too!! he’s willing to sit with you for hours on end and ask you questions about what you do for your culture.

✧˖° if you’re new to japan and you’re unfamiliar with certain places around town and stuff, i think one of the best things that GOJO likes to show you is the food around town. i dunno about you guys but i literally love takoyaki and yakitori and that’s not even relevant to the headcanon i just felt like sharing that for no reason it’s so good to me. but of courseeee!! we can’t forget about kikufuku, a small daifuku with mochi and we all know how SATORU recommends the edamame or cream flavor, so lord forbid you don’t like it — he’ll be so dramatic 😭

✧˖° howeveerrrrr—!! since anon mentioned about shedding light on reader possibly being a latina or mexican, let’s talk about a hispanic!reader with GOJO, yeah??

✧˖° i love the idea that he can’t handle spice, and i dont even know where it came from and i feel like he probably could handle somewhat spicy foods? but i just love envisioning GOJO freaking out over like a tiny lil poblano chilé or something like that. i’m sure he’d love the food but i feel like he’d be so confused watching you make foods from your culture. like, tres leches??? why are you just soaking cake in milk???

✧˖° i’d say SATORU is a somewhat good dancer .. when it comes to certain songs 😭.. he’s not the worst when there’s some spanish music in the back but he will def try to improvise and will make both of you trip. i think he’d like dancing norteñas but i can just see him doing all these unnecessary dips in the middle of the song because he’s just seen it somewhere. he might even give you a kiss when he dips down a little lower, usually towards the end of the song. and when you call him out on it, he’s just like, “what? i can’t give my baby a kiss?” like the bastard he is ugh i need him rn

✧˖° don’t even get me started on him speaking spanish. he swears he’s suddenly this suavé latin genius once he surprises you with a few words. i think he’d be like that with any language though honestly except i’m pretty sure he knows a little bit of english since someone said he traveled abroad?? but with certain languages, he’ll definitely butcher them a lot lol. in the end, you praise him for trying and that alone results in him giving himself a pat on the back.

✧˖° i dunno about you guys in hispanic households, but growing up the way to shush someone or like a baby or something would be like “ya”. it could also be used in like “ya callaté” which is like “shut up already,”? i’m not sure if there’s a direct translation in english but i think like the closest thing to it in english is kinda like, “enough”, in that context?? so im just imagining you saying it to a dog barking or a baby crying and he’s just confused all “wdym ya ya, are they a horse??”

✧˖° i think you and him would really bond when learning about each other’s cultures, though. it’s a learning experience for the both of you and you unlock a new topic in which you guys can both learn about. you can count on your tour guide, SATORU GOJO—!

𐙚 join my taglist here !!

𐙚 requests are open — june thirteenth, 2024

[aguyinthepubliceye]

BREAKING MY SILENCE...

my partner and I have been watching different Ride The Cyclone productions. So far we've watched the off-broadway 2016 production (and just in case i'm mistaken, its the one played by Gus Halper, Alex Wyse, Tiffany Tatreau, etcetc. I will also be referring to this one as the OG even though is not cus im too lazy to type allat again), and some of t he more recent ones done in universities. I think it shocked us both to see the differences in the script. I mostly have qualms and complains around Mischa and Ocean's character. Mischa's has to do with how he's portrayed rather than the scripts, like Ocean's. In the newer ones, Ocean is portrayed as such a mean girl especially with the whole improvisation thing. They made her so superficial when in the original it really felt like she was trying her best to (as repetitive as it sounds) be her best and change the world positively even though it gave her a feeling of superiority for believing she is better than anyone else, that it came from HER being capable of changing the world. And by the end instead of reviving herself, she revives Jane and comes to terms that this is how she will affect the world, through giving someone else the chance to live again. That also means that Penny might not even remember her, and that's a whole lot development for Ocean cus she's not thinking about what her mark will be in the world and the changes SHE will make, but rather giving someone else the opportunity to live is purely selfless cus she gets absolutely NO reward, not even personal achivement or nourishment. It's just character development which kind of looses her effect when she's turned into a smart ass MEAN mean girl with airs of moral superiority that make no sense when she's bullying just because. Basically, yes she does think she can change the world but her superiority comes from moral and ethics, not just cus she's like 'im just better than anyone else cus im so slay yas girlypop'. They just pushed it too far with some of the stuff they changed/added (I will admit the improvisation bit was funny, if only it didnt ruin her character ((imo)) I feel like Mischa is being interpreted much more dumb than he actually is. They make him SUUUCH a himbo but almost fully negatively. It seems like they are putting characters in boxes. I enjoyed the OG because - much like he himself says - he gets hyped about things BUT in Halper's interpretation conserves that ''gangster'' more or less serious/chill persona and it's not just some loud ass class clown type of character. We didn't watch much of talia but even thinking of those interpretations singing Talia clashes so much because it feels so dumb'd down compared to the 'og' since he's kind of stupid and silly so it feels like Talia really is just a silly first love, he's being delusional and shit like that. Instead of the Mischa we first saw who already seemed far more realistic and less stereotypical, so it makes more believable for him to be so in love with Talia and that being the whole argument of his desire to live. GRANTED WHAT WE SAW ARE UNIVERSITY PRODUCTIONS so im not sure they were full on actors but still, it bothered me so much to see that twice, i had to get it out of my system bro. No hate to the actors tho these things happen, whateverrr anyway gus halper slayed that role, i have yet to see a Mischa that has so much ACTUAL passion and doesnt dumb down his rage thanks for listening im done yapping please dont yell at me thanks x2!!

[seramilla]

Hmmm after Emily learns the truth about WHO her mothers are, wouldn’t she also want to know how and why they got together? Wouldn’t she want to know the REAL reason behind Carmilla’s fall? And wouldn’t Sera feel obligated to tell her everything (within reason Emily doesn’t have to hear about their love life) because she’s kept Emily in the dark for so long now Sera must face these bright and unbearable realities. Like how she had to hide her pregnancy from the elders. How different Carmilla is from the slander spread by the elders. And Emily notices an unsettling trend with each answer she receives. The elders keep coming back as a point of conflict.

This is slowly turning into a merger with the Homophobic Heaven/Carmilla Fell Later AU, because I am really enthralled with the idea of how Carmilla fell in that timeline, not as a follower of Lucifer, but because she loved Sera so much. These two may eventually be one and the same AU, so just a heads-up if you're noticing a lot of similarities between the two. My brain was already rolling with angsty thoughts of how to describe Carmilla's falling to Emily, and it just came out that way. I may end up making a fic out of this somehow, if I can wrangle the two timelines together and make it make sense. There's just something about Carmilla and/or Sera having a secret daughter, combined with religious guilt and convoluted, angsty confessions of love for their children that gets me in a WAY. Tell me I'm not the only one!

"How did you and Carmilla meet, Mom?"

Emily's been asking a lot of questions lately. That's to be expected -- the very nature of Emily's relationship with Sera has been turned on its head. The younger Seraphim is making up for a lifetime of not knowing how she really fits into Sera's life, and it's the least Sera can do to fill in the blanks for her.

This particular question makes Sera smile a little. She hasn't thought about how she met Carmilla in so long. She has so many fond memories of those times...probably the only truly wonderful, carefree days she's had since Carmilla fell.

"I had just been appointed High Seraphim," Sera says. "It was only me back then. Carmilla was in charge of Heaven's holy arms. They weren't called Exorcists yet...this was before Adam took over, before Lucifer fell...even before the Garden was a place humans could dwell. Carmilla and I were both so young, and I was what you might call...a workaholic. I was stubborn in my ways, and only cared about making Heaven perfect. That's what I was created for. It was a lonely existence."

Emily is listening to Sera with rapt attention. The younger Seraphim has never known Heaven to be without its strict enforcers, without Winners, without all the pomp and circumstance of the nobles and elders who would bring down the proverbial hammer on anyone caught getting out of line.

Sera thinks, things had so much simpler back then. Right had been right, wrong had been wrong, and nuance did not yet exist.

Until Carmilla had taught her differently.

"Carmilla was always a dreamer, like Lucifer. She was also much too smart for her own good. Always inventing things, imagining things...wonderful things, but also things that could kill an angel, if she wasn't careful. That's how we were introduced. She was experimenting with some new contraption she'd built...something she probably shouldn't have been testing so close to a noble's house, if I'm being honest. Some Dominion angel or another who would throw a fit if even one of the flowers in his garden got trampled."

Emily giggles. She knows exactly the types of angels Sera is talking about. The uppercrust of angelic society. The Lord's favorites.

"There was a complaint filed by this particular...individual, and when I arrived to investigate, Carmilla and this gentleman were...having a bit of a spat out in an empty field. It looked like a few punches had been thrown, because they were both covered in scrapes and bruises. The moment I laid eyes on her...I knew she was going to be trouble."

Emiliy gasps. "They did not! Did he hit her?!"

"Oh, I'm sure he did, but you should have seen the other fellow...he was in much worse shape than Carmilla was."

This particular memory sends warm, mushy pangs of fondness directly to Sera's heart. Even though she hadn't thought it at the time...she'd always admired Carmilla's ability to defend herself. To not take any bullshit from anyone for any reason.

"I asked what was going on, and the Dominion complained that this 'ruffian soldier' was experimenting with deadly weapons on his property. When I asked if this was true, Carmilla didn't even attempt to deny it. She made me aware that it wasn't his property, though, and come to find out, she was right. He had tried to remove her by force, and she had retaliated. In the end, both were charged with misdemeanor crimes. Carmilla spent a few days in a jail cell...her sentence would have been longer, but I pulled some strings to get her out early. Heaven's army couldn't be without its commander, after all."

Emily shoots Sera a particular look. Like she knows Sera probably had ulterior motives, that had absolutely nothing to do with Heaven's army, and everything to do with the fact that Sera was fond of Carmilla.

"Uh huh. Suuuuure, I totally buy that excuse. There was no other reason for you to get her out?" Emily quips.

"Well...yes, but I didn't know it at the time! We had just met, and I...I felt sorry for her! It didn't have anything to do with love yet."

"Yet," Emily repeats, grinning like a maniac. "You are so transparent, Se--Mom! It's not even funny!"

Sera rolls her eyes in defeat. "Fine! Yes, something about her was...intriguing, even back then. And as soon as they let her out, she came directly back to me...to thank me, so she said. But...she started coming back every day! And I let her! It was all downhill from there..."

"OoOooOooh! You liiiiiked her!" Emily starts poking into Sera's sides, jibing at her mother to just admit what she's slowly building up to saying anyway. Sera turns toward her and starts jabbing at Emily with her fingers instead. Emily giggles, shouting, "I give! I give!" when Sera won't let up.

Sera smirks. "Now are you going to let me finish?"

"Yes! Just get to it, already!"

"As I was saying..." Sera starts, looking over at Emily to make sure she won't interrupt again. Emily swipes over her lips like she's locking something up tight, and pretends to throw away the key over her shoulder.

"Thank you. As I was saying...Carmilla started coming to visit me every day. At first, it was to thank me with words...then gifts...then invitations to go out on the town. To treat me, she said. I had never once been on a...date, before, even though we never called it that. We would never use those words within earshot of anyone. And before too long...she admitted she had feelings for me, and I didn't know how to respond. I shut her out, denied it, for so long. But she was stubborn. She never gave up on me. And eventually...Heaven, it was probably years, or decades later, after we'd fought and made up about it several times. Eventually, she convinced me that she really loved me...and I had to admit to myself that I loved her back."

Sera pauses for just a moment, reliving the memory in all of its warm, fuzzy details, and then looks over at Emily, who is staring back at her, eyes huge and glossed over, like she's about to cry. She's holding her hand over her mouth, to keep from interrupting again. Sera smiles at her.

But then Sera looks down, at her lap, and braces herself. She knows the tone of her story is about to take a dark, desolate turn...she's readying herself for it, so she can get past these painful memories for her daughter...so her girl will finally know the truth.

"Carmilla and I loved each other very much. I felt guilty about it, at first. Heaven had always taught me that same-sex relationships were dirty, and wrong, and sinful...but over time, she taught me there was nothing remotely wrong with what we had. And I believed her. How could there be anything dirty about us loving each other with everything we had, heart, body, and soul?"

Sera pauses again. Things are about to go south pretty quickly, and she's readying herself, and Emily for it -- for real, this time.

"We had...well, we did things that people in love do. It went on like that for years. Maybe we got cocky, or weren't careful enough, thinking we would never get caught. But someone must have seen us, at some point...or put two and two together. They never implicated me in the act...but someone told the elders Carmilla had a female lover. They took her into custody immediately. They did...so many horrible things to her. Tortured her. I begged with her to come clean, and just tell them it was me, and maybe I could get us both a lesser sentence for cooperation or good behavior. But she wouldn't have any of it."

Sera is the one crying now. Toward the end of that last statement, her voice wavers, and tears start falling down her face in rivers. The old wounds in her heart are slowly being ripped open again at the telling of this story, bleeding anew. She does her best to keep it together, for Emily. But reliving these memories is not easy for her, no matter how much she wants Emily to know.

"They gave her a sham trial. Everyone knew the result before it ended. Lucifer had fallen not long before this, so I knew what was coming before it happened. I watched them...I watched them push her. She fell, right over the edge, like she was nothing. She was my everything. They made an example of her...a spectacle of her. Just like they did with Lucifer and his followers. And right before she went down, she told me she loved me one last time. And then she was gone. And somehow, that made it so much worse."

Sera is actually sobbing now. Crying ugly, wet tears into her hands, trying to keep Emily from seeing, so she doesn't have to watch her mother break down in front of her. Emily rushes toward her, hugging Sera tightly around her shoulders. Sera leans into the smaller angel, letting Emily carry some of her weight...along with the weight of her sorrow and pain, that she's been keeping to herself for all these years.

When she's managed to calm down a bit, Sera continues her story. The next part is much happier...as happy as it could be possibly be, at least, after having just watched her partner receive a fate worse than death.

"What made it so much worse was that the same day that she fell, I found out I was pregnant with you. I had just lost my love, my light, my reason for being...and suddenly I had to find new purpose again, in order to keep you safe, and hidden. I hid away for a while, as best I could, and kept you a secret from the elders until you were born. I claimed that I'd commissioned you, from the same place that I was forged, because with all the new Winners entering Heaven, I needed an assistant. They were so gullible, never imagining I would double-cross them like that. So I raised you as my sister...as my heir. And that's how we wound up here."

Emily has been sitting in silence for a long while by this point, and she continues to be silent, in heavy contemplation, for several moments after Sera concludes her story. Sera reaches over, and rubs her hand against Emily's face. Emily looks up at her, and then holds Sera's hand against her cheek to ground herself.

"Thank you for telling me all this," Emily says, voice a mournful and somber timbre, like she's been reliving all these moments right along with Sera. "I'm sorry for making you...have to recount all those painful moments. But I understand now, why you did what you did. I'm so sorry you had to go through that, Mom. I can't even begin to imagine how awful that was. I love you so much."

Emily starts to cry then, too, and Sera pulls her into her arms, and they just sit and hold each other for a while, and cry together, mother and daughter.

"I care about you so much, my love," Sera says. "You were the reason I held on for so long. You are my everything now, Emily, in her absence. You saved me. I could never imagine my life without you in it."