#an airplane that I swear isn't falling

[arttsuka]

Some doodles I drew on the plane the other day technically I drew more but the other ones weren't worth sharing

[luke-o-lophus]

Sleep is for the Weak

Summary : You're overworking yourself, Marc is less than happy about it

Warnings: None really. Fluffy and indulgent

Once you get there, Marc Spector is a romantic. Sure, getting there is an easy way to say it. It's months upon months of treading carefully, bated breaths, careful propositions. Tears, shouting, apologies. But once you get there it's like when an airplane has finally zoomed into the sky and the pressure of the take-off has left your chest. You are left floating in the clouds.

Your mind does feel like it's floating somewhere, when you're pulled back to reality by disapproving clicks from Marc's tongue. You blink, vision bleary. What happened? Marc is holding you up, his arm hooked under yours. You're standing near the doorway of your bedroom, and he's staring down at you, looking less than pleased. "When will you listen that you need to take it easy", he grunts, dragging the both of you towards the bed. Your feet shuffle unsteadily but you hold yourself up the best you can, already sensing the lecture coming your direction. "I was gonna get here", you whine when he finally releases his hold, leaving you to plop atop the bed. "Don't even", he huffs, pulling out a set of your night clothes from the wardrobe and dropping them on your lap. "Maaarc", you whine. "I just need to finish this one last bit of work, I swear, it won't take..."

"Baby", he halts your rambling. "It's three in the morning, you passed out at your desk." Your eyes snap to the clock, mouth open. A flush of embarrassment crawls up your neck. Your embarrassment refuses to let you look at him; you obstinately thumb the edge of the nightgown he'd given you. You weren't anything if not stubborn. But you were also burned out, severely so. "This isn't healthy, hun. And it's me saying that", Marc adds with a chuckle, dropping to his knees before you. He combs some loose locks from the side of your face, tracing sleep lines on your cheek from passing out on your documents. You are visibly pouting, clearly not happy with the conversation. "You're gonna do well. Trust me", he seals it in with a soft peck on your forehead.

"I have been neglecting you for ages", you mumble out suddenly. Marc falters, then cautiously tilts up your face. You look ashamed, remorseful. Not a look he likes on you. "You're busy, baby. I understand. God knows I have done worse", he answers honestly. "But this isn't what this is about, I swear. I want you to rest, I don't wanna see you fall sick." A small smile fights its way onto your lips then, and you tug him up to coax him into sitting beside you. Nestling comfortable into his side, you press a soft kiss to his neck. "Am sorry, still", you say. He opens his mouth to protest but you shake your head, looping your arms around his elbow and nuzzling into his side. "Say what", you hum. "We sleep now, and when we wake up tomorrow, first thing we deal with that bit" Marc cocks his brow at that suggestion, taking the rumpled clothing from your hands and watching you slip the nightdress on. Tossing them in the hamper, he settles in bed beside you, but not before pulling up the blanket to cover you fully, tucking the end below your feet just how you like it. He kisses the top of your head when he settles in, whispering,"I like the sound of that"

[princess-of-purple-prose]

Wifeplot #XXX: The Bell Of True Origins

The PIDW origin story (heh) of the pivotal artifact of my Scum Villain fic "on all my dying days (I swear)"!!! This is quite long, so the rest is under the cut <3

The Plot: The Bell of True Origins is a small bronze bell which, when rung, reverts the user in form to what they looked like when they experienced a turning point in their life, and brings them back to their current self once rung again

Specifically, it casts a mental manipulation spell on the user to subconsciously create a self-perpetuated illusion of that past self. This means that the illusion might not be a perfect recreation-- the illusion might be better-looking or thinner than they really were at that point. Or, if you're, say, Yue Qingyuan reconstructing what you felt like while qi deviating to death in a cave, even bloodier!

The Wife: Li Shuangjie is a non-cultivator whose younger twin sister (Shuangjue-- you can throw rocks at me for the name puns now) was killed was by some villainous rogue cultivator many years ago, and she's been hunting for revenge since

MANY years ago. Lsj is, at the LEAST, in her thirties, but I've been imagining her in her mid fifties. Battle between Airplane and pidw fans' perceptions of older women vs mine akdkfk

Lsj narrows in on this villain, finally, at just the time Bingge happens to roll into town. She befriends Bingge at an inn pub (he's undercover as a regular guy and is doing spywork for himself or something, idk). They hit it off, and Bingge is intrigued by how lsj clearly has something going on, though she won't share what. Lsj is drawn to him too, but she's too on-edge and too focused about being on the cusp of achieving vengeance to fall for his flirtations. (Yet)

Lsj comes across the Bell of True Origins-- I'm imagining an unscrupulous merchant pawning it off to her without explaining what it does besides it nominally being a cultivation tool-- and it reverts her to the dashing twentysomething year old she'd been when her sister was murdered

Lsj can't risk ringing the bell again, because to her knowledge this just deaged her by full decades, and she can't afford blipping herself out of existence, not now. But her efforts to find that shitty merchant again are unsuccessful, so her plan is now ruined; the rogue cultivator wouldn't have recognized her at her real age, but he'll definitely recognize her current appearance. She's devastated, and she goes back to that pub in abject shock and despair, at a loss for what else to do

Lsj meets Bingge again, who immediately recognizes her despite her looking oh so different, and she breaks down and confesses everything. Bingge valiantly swears to carry out her revenge instead, to lsj's astonishment

He indeed kills the villain and returns to lsj at her room in the inn (I'd say with the guy's severed head, but idk if Airplane can write romance like that)

At this point lsj has of course fallen madly in love with Bingge, and she tearfully tells him that he's done her a great service and there is nothing she can do to repay him

Obviously, Bingge proceeds to reveal that he's the Junshang and hits her with a few devastating come-ons, but lsj protests that this isn't her ~true~ self and he couldn't possibly want the real her

Bingge somehow produces the Bell of True Origins (he definitely murdered the guy who gave it to her) and solemnly tells her how it works, giving her the chance to use it on herself again

After great and serious contemplation, lsj decides to keep her young hot body, in the name of reliving the life she could not while hunting for her sister's murderer. She and Bingge immediately have sex. End of arc <333

This is widely seen as one of the more feminist wife acquisitions solely bc lsj is a milf and Bingge, gasp, even generously gave her the opportunity to keep looking the part!!!

Peerless Cucumber, of course, furiously reviled the arc for the ill-defined effects and unreasonable strength of the artifact, for stealing lsj's chance at the final blow against the man who ruined her life, and for lsj's personality doing a 180 as soon as she turned young again. But he did appreciate that Bingge and lsj actually spoke like companions before the arc devolved to papapa, and he thought her reasoning to stay young was actually pretty decent, even if it was obviously another sign of Airplane's lack of integrity 🙄

There was so much fanart and fanfiction about what the bell would do to Bingge. Hahahaha.

[palettepainter]

Have some random Zoot cousins headcannons cuz I'm bored and I have no clue when or how to show these headcannons off

-So semi inspired by the 2015 show, because I love the idea of Sam getting dorky crushes on people who are total opposites to him, but I think the idea of Sam having a small crush on Zephyr is cute. Zephyr is outgoing, confident, classy, chilled and flirty, most of which Sam isn't. This probably happens long after Zephyr left Muppets Tonight to persue her own career, but before her and Clifford got back together. Zephyr has no idea Sam had a crush on her because his flirting is so stiff/awkward that she never understood he was flirting (or trying to)

-Happens after the events of Hired Sparky, but Liv learns to speak a few different languages after she starts working with the band. She already knows how to speak bits of Portuguese and Cuban Spanish, but after working at the studio for a few months she picks up Swedish to try and speak with Chef better. He gives her tips over her lunch break

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-Liv is terrified witless of heights. She can more or less handle airplanes, since she knows she's safe within the plane, but if she was to do something like rock climbing she'd politely, and very insistently decline

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-I can't remember the name of the video, but the Mayhem did a guess the song by it's lyric video, and there's one part where Zoot is sleeping against Teeth. It's super cute! So I like to think that all the Zoot cousins will instinctively lean against a surface or person when they're especially sleepy

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-Raph does modelling at a local art school, he's very body comfortable, advocate for denim shorts and crop tops

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-Penny, Raph and Zoot are the only cousins who smoke (though Penny doesn't smoke anything other cigarettes and only when she's especially stressed). Laser tried a cigarette once from peer pressure and coughed for ten minutes, he's never touched one since. Zephyr and Liv have never smoked in their lives

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-I have no idea when I'm going to get the chance to show these off since they're so random, but I made full names for the cousins, they might change later:

Olivia (Liv) Mayfield Grayson / Zephyr Francine Smith / Raph Lopes Riberio / Penny Colette Hernandez / Gavin (Laser) Matthias Hernandez

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-Penny and Laser are the only cousins to grow up with a single parent, their dad. Nothing bad happened to their mother, their father and her were just never married before they where born

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-Laser is the one who gives peoples the most nicknames

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-As well as being a DJ who plays a lot at gigs, Laser knows how to play the bass and drums. He taught Penny how to play the drums when she was in her late teens to help her try and channel her anger on something creative. Penny these days doesn't really play so much anymore but she can still drum out a decent solo

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-Due to his job that requires him to play a lot at raves and night clubs, both very noisy environments, and his time when he was learning how to play the drums, Laser's hearing can be pretty bad at times. It's not so bad that he's deaf, but it's not as sharp as it was before he became a DJ

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-All the Zoot cousins have a weird power that they can't explain. Zoot's we've seen in Muppets Mayhem but as for the others, Liv has "Spidey sense", though she's somewhat oblivious to it. Whenever she dodges something she otherwise wouldn't have seen coming she kinda blacks out and goes on auto pilot, before blinking back to reality. Zephyr has the ability to censor swears by standing near people who happen to be swearing, a little black box appears over their mouth with a pairing beep and everything. Lasers power is Onomatopoeia, he can make comical 'BAM/YEAH/BOOM's appear behind him like a comic (if anyone points this out Laser plays dumb cuz he finds it funny). Penny is a telepath and can talk to people in their head. And Raph can teleport, like Liv this is also something he's kind of unaware of. Sometimes he'll fall asleep on the sofa, and find himself in his bed when he wakes up, or he'll think about food, blink, and then he'll be in the kitchen. Raph, as well as the rest of the cousins, have learnt to not question their bizarre powers

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-All of the cousins are flexible. Liv took up gymnastics as a hobby during school, she picks it back up again when she starts working with the Muppets. Laser knows how to break dance so naturally he's got to have a lot of upper body strength and know how to do sudden flips and spins. Zephyr is a dance teacher and so does routine stretches for warm ups before and after her classes. Raph does yoga and meditation as a hobby. Penny tried meditation for a bit but found out boxing was a better stress reliever for her, she does stretches as warm ups

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-There aren't many people on the Muppets which the Zoot cousins hate, but Penny isn't too found of Rizzo and Pepe

[echoing-gravity]

Double Legacy Sally Jackson Au

Okay. This has been my head Canon for like, years, imma try to explain the best I can.

So basically Sally is a 4th Generation legacy of the Norse God Loki (25%) and a 6th Generation Legacy of the Roman goddess Venus.

Making Percy not only 50% Greek sea demigod, but also:

20% Norse Trickster/lying/MISDIRECTION 5th gen

and 15% love/pretty as fuck Roman. 7th gen.

His Im/mortality blood split is more like 85/15.

Her parents (Percy's grandparents) died in that airplane crash when she was 5 because Sally's mom was a 3rd gen Loki and was unaware(cuz like apparently Norse demigods don't smell until AFTER they die) and Thor was all like, "heck no get the FUCK out of the sky" and Zappos hammered them to death.

(Percy has a Times 2 weakness to electric types. You think he's scared of ur lighting bolt? When he has to worry about a fucking lightning HAMMER? the answer is yes. To both. But like hammer>spear-bolt)

Sally found out about her heritage like maybe 2 months after her parents died(she inherited these cool norse pirate dagger/half-swords(I swear I can't remember what their called rn UGH), from HER great-grandparent. Percy's great-great grandparent ei: the Loki demigod. Loki gave them to her, and told her what's up.) and then she being the badass hardcore survivor she is, learned everything she ever could about Norse/roman(but also Greek) mythos by the time she's 12.

She meets Poseidon when she's 16.

Then Percy happens when she's 17 almost 18. And she learned from his father while she was carrying, that he would attract monsters.

Since she's related to Loki she has his whole "avoidance/dodge/misdirection can't be caught" thing. (As well as the shape shifting, but she can really only change her gender. But this is not relevant)

Sally, has been alone all her life, she is a SURVIVOR, so she buys an RV/tiny-home on wheels, and covers it absolutely completely buries it in a mix Norse and Egyptian magic-y misdirection runes to hide Percy's scent. She figures if she uses multiple mythos, it will be harder for Them to find her baby.

so there is no Gabe. Percy grows up even more of a mamas boy than canon.

She teaches Percy all about all the mythos, but like she does it in a very avoidance way that he knows NONE of their names like "the Greek sun god did this" or "the Roman sun god did that" and teaches him never to think their names "so they can't here you"

The changes in Percy's powers:

1: Since he's still Poseidon's kid but also now son of a legacy of the SHAPESHIFTER he can shapeshift, but only into a merperson, and only when he's wet. (Also he's genderfluid)

Sally teaches him to keep himself dry, he HATES it but understands that he needs to be sneaky, this first happens when he's like 7. And it doesn't happen during the full moon cuz like "the moon controls the tides" and what not. Yes, he is bioluminescent. Blueish/green aquamarine glowy mermaid fins!! His scales are either black or so dark indigo that they Look black.

2: Since he's a legacy of Venus, 7th gen notwithstanding cuz he has the 50% from the sea to make him stronger, he can do the charmspeaking, well... CharmSinging like a siren. When he was like 5 there was this really close call cuz when he sings one of two things happen. Either A: the default of "everyone in hearing range that isn't related to aphro/Venus is suddenly attracted to him, or b: people fall asleep. option a is the one that happened, he has to focus to get people to sleep. Sally is a smart cookie, she realized what was happening and decked the guy in the face before he could do anything to the baby 5 year old Percy. Sally then bans Percy from singing (at least around other ppl)

He HATES it. He loves to sing! but he understands enough to understand that sing around ppl is dangeours. This also happened when he was seven, but before the tail thing.

Sally, trying to hide Percy's heritage, and getting inspired from the Avatar the last airbender cartoon, trys to teach percy to only attack with "ice-bending" as to misdirect suspicions.

She tells him to "try and make the water stiff and cold"

He hates it. And how it feels "The sea doesn't like to be restricted" and what not, but like he trusts his mom, she's super cool and smart so he goes along with it, and OMG he gets cool water powers??? Like Katara?! From his favorite cartoon??? Best 10th birthday ever!

Ugh I can't remember if I'm forgetting anything, oh wait right. He can sense when people are trying to trick him. It's like a little itch I the back of his head. His mom can too, so they end up having these conversations where neither one is TECHNICALLY Lying, but like not telling the whole truth and shenanigans. Ei: "your father is lost at sea" does not ping his built in lie detector. So he's really REALLY Good at lying without lying. (Like what fae so in fairytales)

Because of this Percy thinks his dad is a mermaid. Percy is unaware that he is a demigod, he ony thinks his mom is a history-mythos nut. And that his mom is hiding him due to the myth of "if u cut out a mermaids eye and eat it you become immortal"

ugh thats all I can remember rn I'll edit it later.

Oh wait I just remembered since Percy's blood split is 85/15 he kinda can't really be referred to as a Half-blood. That is waaay more than half. Since like Frank blood split is 49/51 he can still be described as half. In other words,

IN THIS AU NICO IS ONE OF THE SEVEN.

and I also ship percico.

All of this is to say it leads to a dramatic scene outside of the doors of death where nico is like nico: "you have to go your one of the seven!"

And Percy is like

Percy: "nope I'm not 50/50 I'm 85/15 that's waaay more than half.....blood"

Nico: "but I can't leave u here"

it's more dramatic in my head and they are not dating by this point, But it's like mutual pining. Percy then kisses him and then pushes him into the elevator in his shock. Tells him to use his wish when he saves the world to use Persephone keyblade to get him and Bob out of Tartarus.

Then since this Percy is op and has seen alta, he blood bends all the rivers in the ground into spikey ice shards cutting the actual Tartarus(not his mortal plain body that Bob and friendly giant guy is fighting while Percy holds the button, but like the actual ground.) into 1000 pieces. And kills him. Like the sky primordial. He also killed poison lady. Btw. I'm so tired ugh what else. They are now stuck in Hell: frozen over.

Percy's logic for cutting up Tartarus with his own insides was as follows:

70% of the mortal human Body is made of Water.

70% of the earth is covered in a Body of Water.

The earth is Gaea, a primordial.

Mortal humans were based on gods.

And gods are descendants of primordials.

It takes a mortal and a god to kill a giant.

it took multiple titans (and a primordial to trick) to kill the sky primordial. His body was cut into 1000 pieces.

Ei: saltwater is Gaea's blood. And so are the rivers. I mean their called Bloodstreams for a reason.

A mortal a titan and a giant kill Tartarus.

Gaea was right about one thing Percy will admit.

If u want to to rid your garden of weeds, you have to rip out the roots.

[yourveryownkarma]

This was composed so many times and lost over and over again or accidentally deleted and it's been scraped and pieced together for about a year now and I always lock it in my notes and save it everytime I re-do it. I think it is now time to let all of you go; and unlock this from my clipboard and give my heart the freedom to be happy again.

I think it took so much of me to be the caregiver I always wished I had, for you... and I may never get that, but maybe you can get what you need if someone has the blueprints of all I learned with you...

As any other vapid girl, it must start with a quote, one I've found fits and it does it beautifully, at least for me.

"They all turned their backs on us because they knew if we held on tight to eachother... we were something fatal... but we fell into the wrong hands."

To the girl who loves him next;

I fucked shit up to the point of no return and the boy this letter is about deserves what I had the potential to give him... had I not been battling demons stronger than myself at the time.

If the first time you meet him it feels like you're in fucking 6th grade meeting your new best friend, talking a mile a minute and never wanting to sleep because you're so excited you found someone this amazing... (I think we spent 3 sleepless days and nights talking and falling so quickly in love it was worse than some freak hurricane, it caught me by surprise and to this day i know ill never laugh that hard again or be that happy again) then listen please, for everything that is holy please just read this a million times so he finally can have the life he deserves. I promise he is worth every fight every melt down every public scene... I fucking swear on it, but you won't know if you don't learn how to help him out of these situations.

The first few times it's going to seem like a fucking nightmare. Please stop and understand me when I say this... "imagine how he feels". As humans we are not very good at seeing beyond our own selfish existence, so it's going to take some actual effort, he's fucking worth it.

Learn his triggers and listen to what the fuck he's saying even if it sounds crazy to you, listen to those words because there's meaning behind them. It's not just to freak out its not just to embarass you and its certainly not Any fun for him. Keep cold water with you for these moments. He needs it to drink and splash his face with.Do not be afraid to jump in a cold shower with him with your clothes on, because no matter how shitty it sounds now... it's some of my favorite memories to look back on, being able to calm him and hear what he is trying to say because you've learned how to help calm him and you've become that much closer. I would sing to him, i wont give the details of that song or that part as its something i want ro keep to myself, it was my favorite song and i havent listened to it or sang it since the day i droppwd him off at the airport.

Don't lie to him, however fragile his ❤️; it can withstand the hard truth, but the sugar coated lie is a slap deep into his soul, please don't break his trust. It's so sacred and beautiful. I know right now you don't think you can handle him, and I'd love to be selfish and tell you to send him on an airplane to me because I miss my best friend and lover, but if you stick this out... he will make you the happiest girl in the whole world. I know from experience. Please do not hurt him. Because if I find out about this, you will have alot bigger troubles than him not being able to let go. He is sensitive and messy and fun and sweet and chaos and perfection... but don't ever make him feel like he is not enough, he isnt... and don't ever make him feel like he's too much... he isn't. He is a perfect portion of all and he taught me how to love myself and he taught me patience in the purest form.

If you give up easily, you can come join my sad club...

Yours truly, GHOSTGIRL (R.I.P. DEVIL GIRL)

[the7continentplan]

Solo female travel. It really does feel like one of the last remaining taboos. Tell anyone who isn't one of us that you're traveling alone, and you could swear you said that you're really into intravenous drugs. I have an upcoming trip to a Caribbean island that will be my first true solo adventure- no tour group, no family, no friends. With that on my horizon, I've decided to talk about my experience with some common SFT myths- list of myths mostly lifted from this article.

Traveling, especially as a solo woman is soooooo dangerous.

For me, this one is dependent on your day-to-day existence. I grew up in a rough city, went to school in a rough city, and I live now in the rust belt. There are certainly places that are more dangerous than the places I've lived in, but let's not kid ourselves and act like America is an easy place for women. If you've lived in suburban Connecticut and going to private school your entire life, while also wrapped in bubble wrap and wearing horse blinders, your milage might vary. Other than that, if you follow the same safety rules you would at home- don't get falling down drunk without back-up, don't get arrested, know where the fuck you're going if you're going to walk around at night. And for the love of all that is good, if you decide to go to a country where women are expected to be more covered up, cover up a little. This goes triple or quadruple if you've decided to go to a religious monument. You're not a feminist for disrespecting someone's religious customs. It won't kill you, and it'll save you from unwanted attention and sunburn alike. If you're really that put off by a country's expectations of women, maybe don't go and give them your money. All in all, it's all about doing your research.

2. Eating by yourself is boring/awful/scary

I have found, far and away, that the US is the worst place to eat alone of the places I've been. I went to breakfast in Chicago once, went to the bathroom for less than 5 minutes, and when I returned my place had been cleared, my coat turned into the lost and found, and another customer seated at my table. In Spain? Was never once a problem. I have become an enormous fan of eating alone. My favorite eating alone experience recently was actually on an AirFrance flight from Paris. Me and an elderly, stereotypically Parisian were sitting in the row directly behind premium economy and had had the supreme good luck of having an empty middle seat between us. Airplane food is not typically a fan favorite, but AirFrance does pretty well. Camembert, beautiful little sandwiches, genuinely good wine out of tiny bottles, and an even smaller bottle of cognac with a Madeline to finish the meal. I made that meal last an hour. I stared out of the window at the Atlantic Ocean, savoring the experience of being in transit. Of what it felt like to come home. If you need a place to practice eating alone, try it on your next flight. You're probably not going to read that book anyway.

3. You travel solo because no one likes you

Yeah, maybe some people do this. Good for them! I support women's wrongs. Be a bitch, collect passport stamps. Work from 'home' in the South of France. I love you. But even if you aren't a bitch, adult friends are hard to plan things with. Someone's got a baby, someone's got no money, someone only wants to go to Italy, and another only wants to go to Japan. There's no shame in not wanting to wait for everything to line up perfectly to go with your friends- or even with your partner.

Uh-oh. I just heard the record scratch. I sometimes have a hard time even convincing other solo female travelers of this. Yes, I have a lovely committed SO of over a year. Yes, it would be lovely to take them along. But our budgets, schedules, and interests don't perfectly overlap. We like traveling together- we even survived a great American road trip in a microscopic car- and we in fact plan to go to Italy together sometime next fall. However, I'm a big believer in maintaining your individual personality in a relationship. I was a traveler before them, I am a traveler now, and I would still be a traveler if we ever parted ways. Me traveling alone doesn't mean anything about my relationship, except that one of us has more PTO than the other.

The comradery I share with fellow STFs- including any women who might read my words and yearn to travel even if you haven't yet- is more meaningful than I can describe, and the friends I have made in this pursuit are more meaningful than I can say. I met a girl on my first leg of a flight who was also going to be traveling solo. We parted after that first flight for different continents, but we meet up for drinks once a month or so. I've met dozens of women that I have mad fleeting, but important, friendships with that I've met in tour groups. Do they hear my work drama? No, we don't know each other. But they like my Instagram posts, and I text them whenever I have a question about somewhere they're been. One girl and I had a riveting and deeply philosophical conversation while I was on my lunch break from the night shift, and she was stuck in the Istanbul airport due to 4 consecutive flight cancelations. And in my upcoming trip to Australia, I will be returning back to the US mere days before a college friend will touch down in Sydney. We tried really hard to make being there at the same time work, but it just didn't. When we finally admitted we couldn't make out schedules work, we parted with the knowledge that we would still be thinking of each other as we planned an experienced.

4. If you are going with a tour group, you aren't a real solo traveler

Yeah, sure, no true Scotsman. If I got my dumb ass on the plane by myself, booked and planned and dreamed by myself, landed by myself, got a taxi to a hotel in a foreign country by myself, and then proceeded to travel with 2 dozen absolute strangers, I booked a solo trip. Solo doesn't mean alone. You can book tours, make friends in hostels, and maybe even meet up with friends for part of your trip. Any part you do without a trusted other makes it solo. Most people won't ever have that level of independence. So, if you're a solo travel purist, and for you that means no tour groups, that's fine. But let's not undercut what tour group SFTs are doing.

Also- solo with a tour group is a great step toward true solo. That's what it was for me. I started with tour groups, and now I'm venturing into 100% solo. But! For me, that's still going to included booked day tours and trying my damnedest to make friends at the hostel. And I am not going to stop going on group tours just because I've done some trips without a group now. For example, for my 2024 Thailand/Australia trip, I'll be doing the Thailand section with a group that includes one of my college friends. This will actually be the first time I travel international with someone I DO know, though I will be getting in a day early and exploring on my own. My rule of thumb going forward is to use tour companies, such as EF or G Adventures, for countries where I will need a translator. Any English or Spanish speaking countries, or countries where the majority of people will speak those languages, I won't be doing a tour for. I will be using tour groups when I want to have experiences that are difficult to plan for if you aren't local or if you didn't book way ahead- such as St. Paddy's day in Dublin or watching wildlife migrations in sub-Saharan Africa.

5. Hostels are nasty and you're gross for staying in one.

I've stayed in some really nice hostels! Again, just do your research. Hostelworld.com makes it very easy. If you're cool with sharing a bathroom you could get your accommodation for the week for the price of a hotel room for one night.

6. All of those vacations are a waste of money.

We all make different financial decisions. For me, I don't get my hair or nails done professionally, I bought a sensible car and paid off the note, and I live in an affordable city. I have a good job. I have savings set aside for retirement, emergency fund, wedding fund, and to pay for tuition for my master's program each semester, with a percentage of my income going to each of these accounts every week. Travel is the luxury I chose. As long as it's not cutting into my rent money and it makes me happy, it isn't a waste.

7. Traveling is only for rich people.

Firstly, travel doesn't need to be super expensive. My entire budget for Puerto Rico is $750. There are lots of great destinations, that you can get to by driving and you can camp there. The KOA network was great for me as I was just starting out.

International travel is a little bit of a different animal. For most Americans, Europe is likely completely out of the question. However, not being a trust fund baby doesn't necessarily mean you can't travel internationally. For me, 6.4% of my weekly income goes to travel, plus all bonus and any OT I manage to pick up. In 2022, I worked about 100 hours' worth of OT, which paid for everything in my Morrocco trip except for flights. I am on track to work about 180 hours' worth in 2023. For me and my household, this budget and the tradeoffs of me working long hours are worth it to support the travel lifestyle. Another household could be in our same situation and ultimately decide it's not worth it. Budgets are about what works for you!

8. You're not really a traveler if you haven't been to (insert city/country/attraction here).

No, I haven't seen the Louvre. Yes, I am a traveler. And vice versa for those who've only seen European capitals. Is it my cup of tea? No. But you're seeing and experiencing new things that interest you and I love that. The only people I'll really make a face about are the all-inclusive resort folks. It's your money if it's really important to you to sleep until noon in Antigua, but unless you've seen something beside the resort, you aren't a traveler.

I tend to feel like I'm not 'really' a traveler when I think about the fact that I've only actually been to 5 countries. Social media, especially if you follow a lot of travel Instagrams or have friends from traveling, can make you feel like everyone has been to at least 20 countries. It's just a basic probability problem though. If you're on a group tour, you're more likely to have people who go on 2-3 trips a year than you are people who go on one trip every 5 years. This isn't because there are so many of the first kind of people, it's because the second sort have only ever traveled with a few people.

The experiences you have traveling make you a traveler, not the tally mark of countries. Every missed layover, canceled flight, rainout of the one activity you wanted to do, and bout of motion sickness on a bus going through the mountains is turning you into the independent, bull headed, worldly person you know you can be. Yes, it's fun to talk to people who don't travel about what it was like to see La Sagrada Familia in person, but it barely even scrapes how fun it is to talk to other travelers about that time that you had a 6-hour layover in the same terminal as 75 German teenagers on their way back from New York being forced to periodically count themselves off for their teacher.

9. You're so brave for doing that, and I can't do that because I'm not as brave as you.

I'm a little baby about traveling. I get really, really scared. I am always at the airport waiting for my first plane at least 80% hoping that it will get cancelled last minute. I get to hostels and have to practice what I'm going to say to people. I'm worried they'll hate me. I panic every time I get back to my accommodation because I'm 10000% sure I've managed to lose something. I'm not any braver than you. You can do it.

10. Travel *changes* you

It won't! At least, not in the style of Eat, Pray, Love. The reality is much more subtle. I feel like I walk taller now. I have more confidence in my abilities. Is that about travel, or is it just what happens in between 19 and 22? It could be either. I certainly didn't need to go anywhere to *find myself*, and neither do you. Enjoy the pyramids. You don't need to feel enlightened after.

[gloriabomfim]

Cuts to Ubel makes the plane go even higher making Joey hit the wall, which causes the emergency supplies to fall off. Cuts to Joey attempts to get to Ubel but keeps falling because there isn't enough oxygen. Cuts to Joey weakly tries to reach for Ubel but Joey falls to the ground on hands and knees again trying to breathe. Cuts to Ubel holds Joey's chin as Joey's being incapacitated by hypoxia. Cuts to due to Joey suffering hypoxia, Joey crawls towards Ubel and confronts Ubel on a jet plane, Ubel talks about Ubel steers the plane up high enough for Joey to become affected with hypoxia. The delirious Joey grins and starts to spout some non sequiturs. Transcript with actions and dialogues:

[Scene: A chaotic airplane in mid-air, with Joey, Dee Dee, and Marky desperately trying to confront the menacing Ubel, who is wreaking havoc.]

Joey (frustrated, while gasping for air): I swear, guys, this Ubel character is really getting on my last nerve!

[As Joey lunges towards Ubel, the airplane suddenly jerks upward, causing Joey to crash into the cabin wall, sending emergency supplies tumbling down.]

Dee Dee (chuckling): Whoa, Joey! Looks like you just hit a turbulence of trouble there!

Marky (raising an eyebrow): You know, Joey, this whole situation is really "uplifting"!

[Joey, still determined, attempts to get back up, but the lack of oxygen at this high altitude makes him wobbly and unsteady.]

Joey (struggling to breathe): I can do this…I can…just…need…some…air!

[Ubel, in his sinister glory, takes advantage of Joey's weakness and grabs his chin, taunting him.]

Ubel (with a creepy grin): Oh, Joey, my dear fellow. Feeling a bit light-headed, are we?

[Joey, now crawling on hands and knees, slowly inches closer to Ubel, still trying to confront him despite his oxygen-deprived state.]

Joey (delirious, grinning): You know, Ubel, I've always wondered…why do villains always laugh so much?

[The scene continues with Joey's nonsensical ramblings and Ubel's sinister laughter as they battle it out in the high-altitude airplane chaos, leaving us all in stitches.]

[ghost-of-you]

Can you explain SGFG like you did self titled haha

*straightens back* *pull up sleeves* *cracks fingers* i thought you'd never ask skspakoakaoak

We start out strong with a "you're so hot I'd let you rob me" song, don't know what was going on when they wrote this, but sure, then we move on to "i might be crazy and broken but it's alright tho cuz people around me are kinda hot but just kinda tho" then we move to a fuck capitalism song "we can all get some we can all get paid" still waiting for clearer instructions on that one, then we go to "I'm complicated, slightly depressed but I don't give a fuck" and then we have one of the best songs ever written with the amazing "I'm trapped in my own head and I keep making mistakes but I'm trying so fucking hard please tell me you see that" like excuse me *hiding knife in my back" Michael, who hurt you like that? I just wanna talk.

Then we have catch fire, i don't know what Muke was on when they wrote that but i want some of it "now I'm lost in the swirling sea of your sorry eyes" "cause the ghost of survivals guilt can be so unkind" "the words you speak surrounding me this is broken love in the first degree the air you breathe is haunting me maybe I'll change your mind" excuse me???????!??? Then we get "I'm broken and you're broken let's be broken together" the "no more waiting we can save us from falling" gets me every time, then we have a mandatory song about sex but it's so profound and romantic you can forget it is a mandatory song about sex specially with that cool little interlude in the end, then they spin you around with "i love you so much I'll let you use me cuz if I try hard enough I can pretend this isn't just a big lie", then we have an ultimate "how the hell did we get here song" that has stuff like "heartbreak that i can't escape a sinking ship I'll never save" "all your screaming whispers slip right through my fingers but these memories linger on" all hidden by the pop punk moment (castaway should've been a single and. I'll die on this hill).

Then we have the "i wanna believe you but i can't trust you" featuring "it doesn't have to be this tragedy this endless lost parade a castle of facade of make believe" again who let them get away with writing this stuff???? And we move on to "my parents got a divorce and they definitely should have but I miss feeling safe at home" I'm not gonna quote anything here cuz I would just write the whole song, the whole song is beautifully written and just paints the most heartbreaking picture ever, but then they spin you around and throw fly away in your face with the "i really really really really wanna run away let's go like right now" song.

And then they spin you around punch you the face and kick you while your down with invisible, i am positive that "another day the wall are built to keep me save i can't escape is too late" is the most heartbreaking thing I'll ever hear, and they follow that up with the hope anthem, i swear every time i hear airplanes for 3:38 minutes i feel like i can conquer the world, the bridge alone is everything, then we have a little "nostalgia is a powerful thing" with San Francisco that in the end is another "i was awful and I'm so sorry please take me back" song and I eat that up every time, then we have 5sos masterpiece, if os/co song is not in your top 10 5sos songs, you're listening to them wrong, go do it again and pay attention this time, I'm looking at you Ashton Calum Luke and Michael how dare you say this is not an s tier song"i guess I was running from something i was running back to you" amazing, the whole outerspace outro, "the darkest night never felt so bright with you by my side" "nothing like the rain when you're in outerspace" the repetition of the "love me like you did" that gives you hope followed by the "I'll give you anything" that just takes it away and then we have the waves and everything calms down and then bam a whole choir telling you it's gonna get better, honestly ending the album with this was such a power move, incredible.

But then you get the bonus songs, the "I'm bad you're worse but I'm loving every second of this rollercoaster" and yet another entry to the "I'm the worst and I'm so sorry please just take me back" that makes me want to rip my hair out "an epilogue before you're done a sequel to what we began" the chorus?!??? The bridge??????? The whole song actually.

Amazing experience from beginning to end, will make you experience the whole spectrum of human emotions. 10000000/10 album.

[divinerulerluvr]

Random Headcanons I Have for the Evans

Includes Tate, Kit, Kyle, Jimmy, James, Kai, Jeff, Warren, Stan

A/N - I've been having issues writing full-length fics for some reason so I've resorted to doing headcanons. I usually don't do these often but they're easy and fun to write. <3

TATE LANGDON

Says he likes horror movies but when he watches them, he's a complete crybaby.

Has an odd affinity for older Disney movies.

Starts books and never finishes them.

Drinks Arizona Iced Tea.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S is his guilty pleasure show.

Has a celeb crush on Jennifer Aniston

But don't we all?

KIT WALKER

Likes the smell of lavender and linen.

Answers the phone by saying "Hello, there,"

Lifts his feet from the flooring of the car when driving over train tracks and holds his breath while passing cemeteries.

Likes chocolate-covered peanuts.

Appreciates a good dad joke.

Makes dad jokes.

Laughs at dad jokes.

KYLE SPENCER

Hates commercials.

Gets upset when people use the wrong "your".

Acts like he's picky with alcohol when he isn't.

Not even close.

Has a cooling pillow.

Sleeps with an unmade bed, though.

Loves to doodle on himself with pens and markers.

Thinks Oreos > Chips Ahoy.

JIMMY DARLING

Fully believes in Astrology.

Water enthusiast.

Would be very good at doing those Bop-It toys.

Smacks the place where he itches instead of scratching it.

Not opposed to a puzzle.

Talks to himself.

Doesn't like the dark even though he lives on an open field.

JAMES PATRICK MARCH

Loves strawberries.

Hates disco.

Drinks V8 on a daily basis.

Has the type of handwriting where he writes the capital letters really big and writes the rest of the word small and basically unreadable.

Likes orange juice with pulp.

Horrible at falling asleep at night.

Utterly fascinated by lava lamps and how they work.

Asks a lot of "What if" questions.

Rambles a lot.

Adores the Great Gatsby

Kins Jay Gatsby

KAI ANDERSON

Likes Sherpa blankets.

Says "I swear to God" a lot even if he isn't religious.

Also despises religion.

Will stay on his laptop forever.

Strongly against smoking cigarettes.

Says he hates cats when he really doesn't.

Loves the beach.

Yells at characters in TV shows/movies when they do something stupid as if they'd hear him.

Favorite brand of ice cream is Ben & Jerry's.

JEFF PFISTER

Drinks Monster (the original flavor and nothing else).

Firm believer of the paranormal.

Used to play Club Penguin.

Probably Roblox too just to bully kids on it.

Favorite animal is something so out of the blue like Axolotls or Hairless Armadillos.

Has one of those finger stretcher things since he works on computers all day.

Will not eat chicken wings with bones in them.

Has to be boneless.

WARREN LIPKA

Hates Capitalism

Who doesn't??

Likes vintage wallpaper for houses. Thinks its pretty

Drinks a shit ton of Redbull.

Watches rom-coms for fun.

Relates maybe a little too heavily to Tyler Durden from Fight Club.

Drinks those weird mixture cocktails of Vodka and blue Gatorade and sour patch kids to get drunk.

Uses shampoo when in the shower to spike his hair up.

Loves popping bubble wrap.

STAN BOWES

Very clever and yet so, so dumb.

Likes when girls wear rings.

Doesn't like chocolate and prefers caramel candies.

Didn't understand how refrigerator lights worked until maybe thirteen years old.

Refuses to go on airplanes.

Likes documentaries.

Adores sniffing candles at stores.

On that note, he loves samples.

Has sloppy handwriting.

Taglist:

@just-some-lesbian @evanmybeloved @sallyscigarettes @arsenicbruise @auricgold @billyhxrgrove @liandav @peanutbutter-y-jams @ellamaianderson

[writer-ish]

makai

Pairing: Dr. Ethan Ramsey x f!MC (Dr. Brooke Spiers) Word Count: 3.4k Rating: 18+ (NSFW - minors dni) Author's Note: makai (mah-kigh) - one of the four key directions on Oahu, but used on all Hawaiian Islands; makai means "toward the ocean".

Premise: A follow-up fic to this text exchange. Ethan and Brooke meet for a little pre-planned Hawaiian rendezvous.

Hey, I’m here. Where you at?

Brooke taps out the message on her cell phone, keeping one eye on the almost-empty lobby.

It's late now - late for check-in, late for milling around, late, it seems, for Hawaii itself - and she'd be lying to herself if she said she wasn't feeling a bit sleepy—a bit like, maybe, she should be getting up for a six AM shift in Boston after having gotten a good seven hours of sleep the night before?

Rather than waiting for her elderly boyfriend to meet her for a late-night swim - and a little more, hopefully - after sleeping a total of five half-lucid hours on an airplane in the last twenty-four hour period.

She's about to text him again, when she hears a voice from behind her.

"Christ, enough with the texting already."

Whirling around, she can't help the grin that splits her cheeks at the sight of him. Without responding, she throws her arms around his neck, squeezing him in an impromptu hug. His hair is a little damp and appears freshly washed and there's the sharp, pleasant, and familiar smell of his cologne that she inhales when she presses her body to his.

He seems almost nonplussed at her public and spontaneous affection, his arms staying at his sides for a beat longer than they should, before he returns her embrace. She giggles as he even takes her for a half spin, kissing her neck before setting her down, hands lingering at her hips.

"Well, aren't you in a good mood," he comments, a smile playing at the corners of his lips.

She shrugs, giving him a cheeky grin. "It's nice to see you. Plus," she adds, taking his hand and interlocking her fingers with his as she starts to walk, "I'm in vacation mode, so you're going to a get a much better version of me for the next few days."

He allows her to lead him out of the lobby and to the stone pathway that will eventually take them down to the beach.

"I like the version I get at home," he remarks once they're in the open air, which smells like hibiscus and coconut and the reminiscent warmth of the sun still emanating from the stones.

As they walk, he tugs her closer and puts his arm over her shoulders. She smiles up at him as she wraps her arm around his waist. He returns it, staring down at her with an inscrutable look, but one that causes a bloom of warmth to start in her chest and work its way outwards.

"It's nice to be somewhere different, though." Resting her head on his shoulder, they continue to amble down the path. "I like us at home, too, but…" She trails off with a shrug. "We work a lot. And don't see each other outside of work enough. I mean, I thought with you suspended I'd at least get a date night, then you had to go and get your freaking job back!"

He throws his head back and laughs, a loud, head-shaking, self-deprecating thing.

"Oh god, I've really done you wrong, haven't I?"

"Yes!" she insists, though she can't stop her own giggles. "Not even a dinner out. Our first movie in months was on the private jet that Vik got me."

Ethan rubs his chin thoughtfully. "I haven't gotten you a private jet yet?"

"Nope." Her hair tosses against her cheeks as she shakes her head, unable to keep the smile off her face. She loves teasing him, she loves being away with him, she loves—she cuts her thoughts short and focuses on their banter. "For shame, sir."

He glances at her and she sees the heat in his gaze as she calls him "sir". She bites her lip and looks up at him innocently. His eyes go from hers down to her lip in an instant and she laughs again.

"You're like one of Pavlov's dogs, I swear." Breaking free from him, she jogs lightly ahead of him down the path, her sandals slapping the pavement with her movements. "Anyway, your old bones are slowing me down. Keep up!" She takes off towards the beach, her sundress whipping around her legs, even as she can hear his bit off curse from behind her.

"I'm not running!" he calls, his voice growing distant as she puts more space between them.

"Your loss!" she yells over her shoulder, before turning around and jogging backwards to tease him even more. She screams as she sees him gaining speed quickly and her shrieks turn into hysterical giggles as he ducks down and lifts her effortlessly over his shoulder, continuing on without breaking his stride.

She buries her face in the thin cotton of his shirt so that she doesn’t wake up all the other sleepy inhabitants of their resort with her giddy snorts, especially when he playfully smacks her butt as he carries her steadily to the beach. Soon, she feels his steps change as his feet sink into the soft sand.

"Wow." His voice is soft and, even though it's coming from somewhere near her rump, it still carries over to where she is, hanging securely off his shoulder.

"I want to see!" She squirms and he grips her bottom, holding her still as he reaches up with his other hand. She feels him wriggle his finger under the heel strap of her sandals and she stills, waiting as he removes first one and then the other. Leaning forward, he places her down gently and she immediately wiggles her toes in the warm, fine sand before whirling around to take in the view.

"Oh, wow," she breathes as well, because truly there isn't another word for it.

The moonlight reflects off the dark surface of the waves, illuminating the gentle ebb and flow of the tide. Dark shadows on the horizon appear to be mountains or something in the distance - she hadn't had a chance to check out the beach in the daytime upon their arrival, so she's just seeing it now for the first time, perhaps not in all its colourful splendour, but still, majestic and beautiful in its own right.

And the stars - Brooke can't remember the last time she'd seen so many of them. They sparkle in the inky blue firmament like someone had tossed an infinity of tiny diamonds on a velvet tray. She breathes in the salty sweet air deeply as her and Ethan take in the view together, silently, for a moment.

"Thank you for asking me to come here with you," Ethan says quietly, eyes still on the sea and the sky. "I didn't realize how much I needed this… this quiet beauty. This moment of serenity."

She quirks a smile at him, taking his hand in hers. He looks down at their intertwined fingers and then back up at her face, his eyes warm and soft, the pale blue glistening in the moonlight.

"I did," she tells him simply with a little shrug, still smiling up at him.

He looks at her for another beat, his eyes conveying a message that only her heart understands, then he turns to her, stroking her cheek softly with his knuckles, before leaning in to place a soft kiss on her lips.

She cups his cheeks in her hands and returns it, keeping it soft, sweet, open-mouthed and warm. After a moment, she pulls back and looks up at him, the smile back on her face. It’s silly, but it almost feels like a permanent fixture tonight; one she can't get rid of even if she tries.

He’s watching her again, eyes heavy and heated, even in the glowing light of the moon. He slides his thumbs over her cheekbones in a light caress. "Brooke, I—"

Even though they’ve gone down this road many times before - the incomplete sentences, the longing looks, the words that are felt but not said - Brooke still feels her breath catch and her heart rate increase as she waits.

They stay suspended like that for a moment, the waves and the moon their only companions, when suddenly the call of a night bird, tropical and unfamiliar, breaks them from their reverie.

Ethan looks up and Brooke looks away, disappointed - though not surprised - that the moment got away from them again without any new revelations.

“Looks like we have company,” Ethan remarks, his voice carefully composed, even as he pulls her closer, rubbing her bare arms with his hands.

“Well,” Brooke replies, still determined to make this a good night, “as long as our only company is avian...” She pulls away from him, reaching up and teasing at the straps of her sundress. “What do you say we go for a swim?”

Biting back a smirk, he looks back and forth across the long expanse of beach. Her gaze follows his, ensuring along with him that they truly are alone. As much as she thrives on the spontaneity of a moment like this, she'd rather not have any of their colleagues - or any guest for that matter - see her naked. Which is exactly what she plans on being in due course.

“Looks pretty quiet.” His gaze locks in on hers again. “No?”

She nods, teeth catching at her bottom lip as she slowly backs up towards the water, pulling the straps of her dress down to fall on her upper arms. “Indeed it does, Dr Ramsey.” She pulls one arm out and then the other, leaving the dress clinging to the tops of her breasts. She continues to step backwards until her feet hit the shoreline, warm, frothy waves caressing her ankles. She laughs in delight and looks down, sliding around in the wet sand.

Ethan is closing in on her, his shirt already off. She sees he’s holding her sandals and his shoes in one hand, shirt slung over his arm.

“How’s the water?” he asks, though his eyes are still on the beach, as though he’s looking for something.

When she realizes his apparent destination, she can't help but shake her head fondly - he's walked over to one of the resort chairs, stacked up neatly for the evening, and is placing their shoes and his shirt on the pile.

Heaven forbid they get sand on them, she thinks, unable to stop the swell of affection she feels for her fastidious man.

Making her way over to him, she shimmies the dress up and over her head.

“Space for one more thing?” she asks innocently waiting for him to turn to look at her.

When he does, she gets immediate gratification at his dumbstruck look.

She had foregone a bra completely, so she watches as he takes her in from head to toe, nipples already stiffening in the exposed night air and under his gaze. She'd also pulled out the "special occasion" underwear, a lacy, boy-cut confection that she knew he'd appreciate.

And by the look in his eyes, he seems very appreciative.

Smiling cheekily, she shimmies down the underwear as well, tossing it to him before wading further into the water.

For all her bravado, standing stark naked on a public beach for longer than thirty seconds stretches the limits of her comfort, so it feels nice to seek both warmth and privacy in the languid tropical waves.

She had almost been worried that the water would be cold, but instead it's the perfect temperature - just nice enough to submerge herself in without feeling like she's entering a frigid bath. She wades out a bit deeper until the water just skims the top of her breasts and she turns in time to see Ethan entering the water.

Her heart picks up speed as she admires him, his naked, muscular body limned by the moonlight, walking into the ocean like some sort of reverse Poseidon, his eyes fixated on her and her alone.

Brooke shivers in a way that has nothing to do with water temperature, goosebumps lifting the fine hairs on her arms as she waits for him to get to her. The anticipation is sweet, but not as sweet as seeing him up close, smiling down at her as he collects her in his arms.

Their naked bodies slide together and she instinctively wraps her legs around his waist, feeling his arousal at the crux of her body. She kisses his neck, his jaw, his cheek, as his hands glide down to her bottom to lift her higher.

"This is nice," she murmurs, twining her arms tighter around his neck.

He hums in agreement, stroking her back up and down with one hand as they quietly watch the moon ripple on the horizon.

"I love touching you like this." He presses a kisses to her shoulder, squeezes her tighter. "If I could keep you this way, naked, pressed up against me, your skin on mine—if I could hold you like this forever, I would do it."

"Might be difficult to get work done." Her response is flippant, but his words have struck a chord deep inside her and her heart twangs painfully at the implications.

He snorts. "I don't care. Who needs work."

She pulls back to look at him, affecting a look of shock. "I'm sorry, who are you, and what have you done with Dr. Ethan Ramsey?"

He shakes his head, burying his face in her neck. When he speaks again, his words are muffled against her skin. "Dr. Ramsey has learned more in the past three years than in any of the previous years combined." He pulls back to look at her, one hand still holding her against him securely, the other pushing her damp waves back from her face. "Learned and grown and just—" He shakes his head before continuing. "Just tried to be better. To do better. Thanks to you." He kisses her and she can taste the salt on his lips.

"I can't take all the credit," she whispers against his mouth as they pull apart after a beat.

"Why not?" he whispers back, pressing another salty kiss to her lips. "You do it all the time at work anyway."

"Hey—!" She pulls away indignantly. "It's not my fault I’m the only one who can actually solve our cases—"

He laughs loudly and spins her around, making her lose track of her indignation as she dissolves into helpless giggles.

The warm water swirls over their bodies and she tightens her arms and legs around him. Her giggles inadvertently turn into a soft moan as she feels him, hard against her centre, settled right between her spread legs.

He tucks a kiss below her ear, nipping lightly at her pulse. "I want you so bad," he murmurs, sucking gently on the spot where he bit.

"So what are you waiting for," she breathes, her head lolling back as her hips move restlessly, her body stroking wetly against his length.

"Not in here," he groans, "the bacteria—not good for your—" He grunts as she presses more tightly against him, continuing to rub intimately in a way that has them both moaning.

"Have I ever told you—" She gasps, her breath coming out in short pants. "—how hot it is when you say the word 'bacteria' during sex?"

His response is a muffled groan into her shoulder as her jerky movements become more frantic, chasing the climax that has been inevitable since the first touch of salt water on her bare skin.

It's an odd sensation, the languid warmth of the ocean surrounding them while a different, more intimate, kind of wetness grows between. She misses the feel of him inside her during a moment like this, but there is something strangely, captivatingly erotic about making love this way. Their bodies sliding together in a new sort of intimacy, his rigid heat captured between her velvety folds.

“Ethan, I—” Her voice catches and his fingers tighten on her bottom, holding her to him in a way that hits that exact spot she needs it to. "Ah—ah!" She feels her muscles clench as a wave of pleasure crests…then crashes down over her. She lets out a moan, throwing her head back, the movement lifting her half out the water. Her nipples hit the cooler night air as her breasts emerge from the sea, and the feel of it in contrast to her climax sends prickles of sensation across her skin.

Ethan ducks down, kissing between her breasts as his hips jerk and finally still. He lets out a long groan through clenched teeth and she feels a bloom of warmth between them as she holds his head tightly against her chest. She can feel her heart pounding and his heartbeats echo hers from where his chest is pressed, closer to her stomach.

They hold each other for a protracted beat, the only sounds the crashing waves and their ragged breaths.

"Would you consider that," she finally says, still slightly breathless, "acceptable for my pH balance?"

He snickers deeply into her skin as he wraps his arms around her tighter before releasing her slowly. She allows her body to dip back and float leisurely on the bobbing waves. Letting out a contented sigh, she looks up at the stars, her eyes catching on a streak of light separate from the rest.

"Look!" She sits up quickly and grabs Ethan's arm, pointing at the sky.

He looks up as well and they watch as two, three stars make a quick descent from their position, a trail of sparkles in their wake.

"I've never seen a shooting star," she breathes, mesmerized.

He doesn't reply, so after a minute she glances over at him. He's staring at her, a soft smile tilting the corners of his lips. She can't see his face that well, even in the bright glow of an almost-full moon, but she recognizes the gentleness in his expression, the curve of his cheek as the shadow of a dimple barely appears.

She loves him so much.

She loves him so much that her heart aches with it, like a balloon that's about to pop or a cup that's overflowing.

She loves him for all his flaws, for all his hubris, for the ways he tries to be so good, and for all the ways he fails.

Her eyes well up as she looks at him, the words yearning to tumble from her lips. To tell him that she's always on his side. That he's hers, no matter what. There's no one else and there never will be.

That this is it, for her.

Instead she smiles back at him, albeit a little tremulously, and she leans forward, pushing off with her feet as she wades back to the shore.

He follows her quietly and they dress quickly, clothes awkward and difficult to tug onto their still-wet bodies.

As she grabs her sandals and goes to walk, he grabs her hand to stop her and pulls her into his arms.

They stand there for a bit, quiet and still, and Brooke feels all the little moments that have brought them here swirling around them in a hopeful nostalgia; the promise of things to come, built on a foundation of what they've surpassed.

"Time to sleep?" She looks up at the rumbling sound of his voice, blinking her eyes tiredly without even having realized just how tired she was.

"Mmm," she agrees, pulling away. "Your room or mine?"

He looks askance at her and she groans good-naturedly. "Fine, we'll be good. But see if you last more than one night without me. Just see!" She pokes his shoulder and grins at him and he catches her hand and holds it tightly against his chest, over his heart.

"Meet me for coffee tomorrow morning?" He brings her hand up to his lips and presses a kiss to the palm. "Hawaii has the best—"

"Yes, yes, I know, you talked my ear off about it on the plane, I remember." She shakes her head. "You're so boring I literally don't know how I stand you."

He grins at her and shrugs good-naturedly as they begin the slow walk back to the resort. "I try not to tempt fate too often by asking that very same question."

"Probably for the best." She tilts her head onto him and he drapes his arm around her shoulders. They meander down the path, away from the ocean, in comfortable silence.

She knows, deep down, how he feels about her. And if the final show of her loyalty to him is for her to wait until he's ready to tell her, well, then—

She'll wait.

[sorry-sorry-sorry]

OBEY ME QUESTION GAME!!

BEFORE YOU START PLEASE READ THIS!

Alright, to start off let me explain how I want you to play this. All I expect of you is to just to either copy the questions or the numbers of the questions and answer them, and once you are done, I guess just re-blog it so others can play this too. I will include my answers under each question to inspire those who aren’t sure what to write or what they would do, and for those who want to get to know me more.

I actually made this because I want to see how everyone actually would react to specific situations so I can, when it comes to writing stories for you all, make them more relatable and not something where you would read the story and think “Umm I/My MC would never do something like this.... “ alright let me stop wasting time now

WARNING THIS CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR SEASON 1!!

Questions

1. Is this going to be about you or your OC/MC?

this is going to be about me, I think it will be about the things I would do realistically

2. What were you wearing when you first arrived? (Casual, smart, PJs, etc. Describe your outfit) 

Realistically speaking, I imagine myself arriving to devildom wearing my favourite BNHA hoodie and some black joggers/sweatpants

3. What we're you doing before you got teleported into devildom?

I actually like to headcanon/imagine that MC originally signed up to study abroad and as they go to the airport and sit on the plane, 2 hours into the flight as they are staring out of the window, they suddenly notice how the light suddenly went off around them and everything went quiet, so when they look away from the window to see what's going on they see that actually somehow everyone feel asleep around them, even the stewards and stewardess. When MC looks back out of the window they suddenly see everything is actually upside down, the plane is flying normally but the city/ land that they saw is suddenly now in the sky and the clouds are at the bottom, and suddenly the airplane starts lowering itself into the clouds which start looking more orange and grey. That is when they suddenly hear Belphagore's voice calling for them as they slowly drift to sleep and then end up waking up in devildom.

4. First reaction when you get there 

Once again Realistically speaking, I'd think this was all either A) a dream (based on Q3), B) A big joke or C) A game show or like a Darren brown kinda thing.

I would probably just be laughing at the whole situation out of nervousness and be like " ya guys are joking right? Hahaha very funny.... ok how do I wake up now?"

5. Reaction to finding out their names

The amount of times I'm going to repeat the word 'Realistically' in this post is uncountable, but realistically speaking I would start bursting out laughing when Satan and Lucifer would introduce themselves. I can imagine myself making fun of it and be like "SATAN AND LUCIFER??!! BWAHAHAHAHAHA IF YOU GUYS ARE SATAN AND LUCIFER, I'M BEYONCE! BWWAAAAHAHAHAHA"

I can clearly imagine them getting pissed at me due to this, because imagine someone laughs at you after you tell them your name, quite rude isn't it ? Lolol

6. Reaction to them actually dancing (dance battles )

In the beginning I'd start laughing but then also die out of second hand embarassment. I don't know why but seeing people dance makes me uncomfortable.

7. If you were to stand next to the characters where does your MC/ OC / Do you imagine yourself to reach up to?

(Going from tallest to smallest )

Beelzebub/Lucifer/Diavolo - around the chest area, Def not reaching up to their shoulders.

Simeon / Solomon / Satan / Barbatos - up to their necks

Leviathan / Mammon - up to their chins

Asmodeus / Belphagore - their ears

Luke my cute little sweet baby that I'm ready to kill for - he would reach up to my shoulders lmao

8. Would you miss anyone? When would you start missing them ?

My family? Lolol no, I wouldn't miss them.

I would only miss my friends and my cats probably after satan would talk about cats. I can imagine me missing them after the first week or the second week

9. Who would you be closest to ?

I can imagine myself being close to the following : Leviathan, Asmodeus and Satan. I think I'd be really good friends with levi or asmo though since they are both invested into things that I'm also really into. Ah! I forgot to mention, I'd try to be friends with Mammon if I saw the brothers getting rude to him.

I'd try to get close to Lucifer but be a bit intimidated by him though and Mammon's tsundere act would kinda hurt me, but after I would realize that he's a tsundere I would be be friends with him.

10. Realistically speaking would you go up the stairs when Lucifer tells you not to? 

Honestly, I would respect Lucifer's wishes and not go up the stairs but if Belphagore doesn't shut the fuck up and keeps telling me to come to him, I'd probably go.

11. How would you react after Belphie kills you? What would you say to him ? 

After the whole killing thing and me seeing my dead body, I would be shocked and probably start swearing worse than s sailor and then lunge at him and beat him up out of anger. Honestly If I ever got the chance to make one of my wishes come true, it would be to get in a fist fight with Belphagore, where I would beat the living hell out of him.

12. How would you react after finding out you left the original timeline?

I would honestly be sad about it, yes I get it that in this timeline we still have the same characters but honestly I would struggle accepting the new ones, and end up missing the original ones.

I think it would also result to me constantly thinking, if this Satan likes me, would the original Satan also like me? What would he have done in this situation, etc.

13. Reaction to finding out about being Liliths descendent? 

One word : shit

I would think it would be cool at first but then when I'd realize that the brothers are technically like my great-great¹⁰⁰⁰ granduncle ( ik that it says that human Lilith is not related to the brothers by blood ) I'd be a bit .... disturbed. I'd definitely crack a lot of grandpa jokes with them and joking call them "grandpapi" randomly.

Honestly though it would also make me feel bad about myself because I'd start thinking that they would start treating me as Lilith's replacement or that they are actually trying to find Lilith in me. But I guess after some time I'd get over it.

14. Reaction to the demon brothers being in their demon form ?

It's simple, if they are angry while being in their form, I'd be wary of them for a while, but if they are calm while being in it, I'd be amazed and ask a lot of questions, resulting to me jumping around excitedly and trying to touch them.

15. On the last day, realistically what would you do? Would you hug the brothers ? If you were to leave devildom who would you stay in contact with?

Honestly I'd kiss the character that I'd fall for the night before I leave. I can imagine that it's either Satan, Mammon, Lucifer, Leviathan or Solomon. It's either go big or go home!

I'd take one of those typical Victorian family pictures with everyone in it, meaning diavolo and barbs, the demon brothers, the angels and Solomon, and I'd make a copy for everyone to keep. I'd also maybe make something that they call all remember me by such as personalized keychains or bracelets.

I can definitely imagine myself staying in contact with Leviathan because... You know... Anime lolol and Solomon since he is the only human who I could talk to about devildom and everything that happened there. I'd love to stay in contact with the others but I feel like I won't be able to entertain them much via texting. I'd also love to stay in contact with the angels but I think we all know that won't be possible. Sad sigh

Would I cry? ... Yes, I would get ready eyed and hug them

16. Lastly, What would you tell your family and friends when you return, what will you tell them when they ask you about where you disappeared off to?

Honestly, I would tell my family about everything that happened, I'd tell them about devildom and everything I experienced since I know they would believe me because our family already has some history with demons and spiritual stuff.

However, I'd definitely lie to my friends saying something such as me breaking my phone when I went to study abroad causing me to lose contact as I was gone.

To be honest, this was really fun to make and answer, it really got me thinking about myself and my personality. I really hope you guys also end up doing this, and enjoy yourself. If you guys want I can also make part 2 which will contain scenes from season 2.

Once again I hope you enjoy yourself, and don't forget to re-blog this with your answers so I can see your responses and so others can play this too.

[haikyuu-imagines-and-others]

Can I go ahead and ask for a sequel to the Mattsun Soulmate one! It was so lovely and amazing and I was wondering if it could turn into a poly Mattsun/reader/Makki?? Like maybe Makki's mark isn't really visible either? I love the idea of being shared between those two! :3

I have not been feeling very…. creative… lately lol so I’m sorry if I hyped this up much more than it came out to be!!! But thank you for the request, love!!! You really spurred that idea for me :) - Admin Satori

Part 1 Here       Part 2 Here

Matsukawa Issei x Reader x Hanamaki Takahiro

“I’m honestly fine, guys, you’re being a bit dramatic.”

“You lost half your weight in the last month, Hiro!”

“Dude, have you even showered? You smell like a dump.”

Hanamaki rolled his lips into a impish smile before shrugging, “What can I say… I forgot?”

But you weren’t having it, at all. You grabbed him by the wrist, pushing aside your worry about how fragile he felt in your hold, and dragged him down the sidewalk, Matsukawa hot on your heels. “Absolutely goddamn ridiculous. Acting like a child. Making me be a goddamn parent. Buncha bullshit.” You were not happy, and Hanamaki internally shriveled at your frustrated mutterings while Matsukawa only chuckled at your mumblings.

Of course, he was only laughing to mask his worry. This was his best friend dried to nothing more than skin and bones. What had happened? The last he’d seen him, everything had been fine. The three of you were okay…. And then you’d showed Matsukawa your tattoo, and he’d shown you his… But what about Hanamaki? His hadn’t even bloomed on his skin yet…. Was that why he was acting out the way he was? Because he was upset he was alone?

The idea of Hanamaki being alone had Mattsun’s smile slipping from his face. This wasn’t funny anymore. Your irritation was rightly placed. Hanamaki’s general shame was rightly felt…. So why did Mattsun feel as if he needed to take the brunt of the blame for his best friend? Why did he feel the overwhelming desire to save his best friend. Not from you, since he’d do the same for you, but from… He didn’t know.

The shame? The hurt? Is that what he wanted to protect Makki from?

“Issei,” Your voice snapped Mattsun from his internal spiral, his sleepy brown eyes on you with full attention. “I need you to go to the nearest fast food, Hiro’s favorite - and get as much food as your big arms can hold, okay?”

Matsukawa raised an eyebrow at you, his lips curling into an almost lethargic smirk, “Are you coming on to me?” You scoffed with a smile and pushed him out of the room. Then you were turning to Hanamaki and pulling him further into the house.

Straight to your bathroom. You’d have just the tools to cut down the rats nest that had grown on his head. To give him a deep cleaning on his greasy, flaky scalp.

Hanamaki gave you a fearful look with wide eyes, “All of it?” You nodded with a smirk, “Oh no! It’s not that bad! I swear! I can wash it! No problem.” But your smirk fell almost as quickly as it’d been placed there, and almost immediately Makki regretted offering to take care of his hair issue. Because you were right to bring him. Honestly, his hair had gotten so bad, he’d gotten so uncomfortable in the past couple of weeks with it’s unkept nature…. But he was scared to even touch it. He was worried it’d hurt too much or it’d just all fall out from his roots going through extreme pressure!

Your hand found his, and he held tightly onto you as the buzzing of the clippers pierced the calm parlor atmosphere. You clicked it off before resting it on the bathroom counter, removing your hand from his hold to lead him to the edge of the bathtub. He sat down on the edge without a fight, though he was still a tall young man. His head came to just below your chin even while sitting down.

“I’ll be gentle. I promise. Okay?” You smiled softly, reassuringly. Because he was your friend. One of your best friends. Never would you ever intentionally hurt him…. Even though you had. That’s how he’d ended up here. Looking tired and worn, a few steps from an early funeral…. You couldn’t keep it together anymore, a tear leaked passed your control, streaking down your cheek as you slowly worked his hair tie out of the tangle of pink hair.

He saw it. Clear as day. And his heart crumbled inside. He’d made you cry. He’d allowed himself to get so horribly unkempt that it made you cry. Were you ashamed to know him? To have him anywhere near you? “I’m sorry….” He whispered quietly, leaning his head forward to rest it against your collarbone, giving you a better view of the hair tie.

Almost immediately you were able to undo the knot, his pink hair falling to mid-ear. You slowly, carefully, ran your fingers through his hair, pushing it back from his face, “What’re you sorry for?” You question, confused on his apology. It was heartfelt. Your heart had jumped in your chest at his voice, but why? “We all get a little sad now and then… It’s okay…” You smiled down at him, fingers stroking his cheek with a ghostly touch as he lifted his head to be able to see you.

“I’m pathetic….” He sniffled, his own tears welling in his eyes, but you quickly wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight hug, resting your head over his and closing your eyes. “I’m literally the saddest excuse of a human. What the fuck….” He sniffled, though there was a sour smile in his voice. You shook your head, “And you can’t even disagree… Look at me… Can’t even fucking take care of myself….” He sniffled into your shoulder, his arms wrapping around your waist.

You didn’t say anything more. You knew if you disagreed, he’d only insist on his self-depreciation. And you definitely didn’t agree. Because you’d felt more or less the same he’d been feeling… To a lesser degree, thanks to Matsukawa always having his ears open for you, but you still felt…. Lost. Like Hanamaki.

His sniffles slowed in occurrence, his breathing slowly returned back to a calm breathing - though they turned into deep inhales, his face pressing into your shoulder, his arms holding you closer. “You’re warm…” He whispered quietly, so quietly he hoped you hadn’t heard him. Makki would have given anything… anything at all… to be able to stay here in your arms. To have you holding him so close for the rest of his life…. This is what he’d dreamt of for so long.

But he couldn’t stay here forever…. You had a life to live with his best friend… The two of you, happy forever. Living together and being happy… Probably marriage and kids not too far out… And he’d be there for you two… He swore on it. He’d never let himself get this badly ever again. Not when he knew it’d hurt you. Hurt Mattsun. Never again.

A deep breath and he was slowly pulling away, looking up at you with tired eyes, but your smile filled him with the energy he so desperately needed. “Better?” He nodded, and you leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his forehead before turning to grab the electric clippers.

He only continued to stare up at your face as you slowly pressed the guard blade against his scalp, pushing along the side of his head to the base of his skull. The entire length of his hair fell limp into the tub below. The side of his head, now without hair covering it - only a light fuzz of pink - felt cooler, felt lighter. A buzz a little higher up took another length of hair off. More cool, less heavy… It felt nice. And the view…. It was incomparable.

Well… Not incomparable.

Matsukawa knocked on the bathroom door, and you clicked off the clippers before letting his best friend in, “I got the goods…. Where’s my money?” You scoffed with a smile before waving him off, “So…. We gonna do this like the old days, Taka?” Makki stared at him in confusion as Mattsun sat beside him on the edge of the tub, reaching into the greasy bag and pulling out fries between his pinched finger and thumb. “Say ‘ahhhhhh’…… Don’t make me do the airplane.”

Hanamaki’s confused expression quickly broke into a disbelieving smile to then break into a open smile as he laughed at his friend tried to hand feed him. “Ahhhhhh.” He opened his mouth, and Mattsun delicately placed the fries in Makki’s mouth. “Ah yuck! These are cold!” Makki whined around the frozen fries, chewing and swallowing quickly.

“Well? What do you want from me, man? The nearest fast food is in town, and that’s not exactly a quick car ride since someone-“ His sleepy eyes focused on you pointedly, “-wanted to live like some kind of farmer way out here!”

“We’re in the suburbs of Tokyo, Issei…” You deadpanned, but it didn’t last long at his challenging, playful glare.

“Exaaaaactly! Who lives in the suburbs of Tokyo? Why not actual Tokyo?” He grumbled, grabbing a few fries and eating them himself, “They’re not even that bad.” Makki chuckled at his friends teasing downturned mood before taking the food from his friend.

He stared into the bag. Fries. Chicken. Beef…. Was that stir fry, too? Hanamaki looked at Matsukawa with wide eyes, “You got all this for me?”

Mattsun rubbed the back of his neck with a light blush on his face, “Well… yeah? I mean… You look like you haven’t eaten in weeks, Taka….” His eyes fell to his hands on his lap, feeling his heart aching, “Dont…..” He cleared his throat before looking at Hanamaki seriously. Really serious this time. No goofing around, no jokes, no dusting it off… he was serious as he said, “Don’t scare me like that…. It’s not funny….”

You nodded in agreement, pulling him into a hug once more, though his head was turned to be able to see Matsukawa’s serious expression, “You’re too important to us, Hiro… Please… Take care of yourself….”

Hanamaki felt his heart hiccup into his throat at how much the two of you cared. The two of you had each other. You had Mattsun and he had you…. And yet…. Both of you… still cared about him? It didn’t make any sense to him. That didn’t sound like any soulmates he’d heard of before… Why would his being best friends with the two of you change anything that would happen between soul mates?

“Why do you even care? I’m not…. You guys should just focus on each other…. Don’t worry about me.” But he had to speak over the sound of the clippers being turned on once more, you’d turned them off to drown out his brushing off yours and Mattsun’s worry.

You trailed the guarded clippers across his scalp, clearing another length of hair, then another and another. You made sure to get his entire scalp the same length of shaved pink fuzz… But as you were finishing up on the right side of his face, you froze….

“It doesn’t matter, Taka. You’re our friend. Your my best friend… You think I want to see you starving yourself? Or withering away?” Matsukawa wasn’t going to let what he said go though. He was kind of surprised you had, but he’d picked up the slack instead of wondering what you were thinking. “What’s wrong, Taka? What happened that sent you spiraling?”

“It doesn’t matter, Issei… It’s not a big deal what it was… It just.. did… It’s fine, I’m fine….”

“No you’re not! Tell me, man… what was it?

Hanamaki, obviously, didn’t want to point fingers at yours and Matsukawa’s realization of your tattoos. The trees on your hip and Matsukawa’s ribs…. So obvious. So clear and plain as day… The two of you belonged…. He’d fallen for you, he’d confessed to you the night you confessed to Matsukawa… Everything for the two of you had worked out beautifully… Everything had fallen into place for you two…..

Leaving Hanamaki out in the cold. Feeling more alone than he ever had in his whole life. Feeling as if he was missing something. Feeling as if…..

As if he’d been betrayed somehow.

Before he could even admit to the cause, you were cupping his face again and pulling him in close. He thought for a kiss on the forehead, or nose……..

So he stiffened in surprise when your soft lips pressed against his cracked ones. It wasn’t a peck, it wasn’t a mistaken aim…. You kissed him soft and slow, tender and loving, and it was as if a warm, quiet campfire had been started in his very heart. His cold fingertips slowly started to warm as you pulled back for a split second only to pepper his face in kisses.

Matsukawa stared in utter confusion. Yet… where he thought there would be anger…. Or disagreement…. Or jealousy…. He felt…. Calm and content. Happy with what he was seeing before him. “What…… the fuck?”

You pulled away from your freshly shaven pink haired friend before looking at Mattsun with happy, sparkling eyes, “Issei….. Issei….” You were breathless… From your discovery and your affections to Makki, “The tattoo…. Issei…. The tattoo!” You smiled at Makki again before kissing him again, this time feeling as light as a balloon when he kissed you back just as tenderly.

But as your words registered to both young men, Hanamaki hated himself as he pulled away and stood from the edge of the tub, Matsukawa following him to stand in front of the mirror. Makki tilted and turned his head, and you grabbed your separated hand mirror to hold behind his head…. Revealing the design beneath the pink fuzz.

A tree. Inked into his scalp. Colors everywhere. Matching yours. Matching Matsukawa’s.

“Holy shi-“ Makki didn’t have a chance to finish before large hands grabbed his face and pulled him into a deep kiss. Much hotter in temperature than your cooler hands, Makki’s face felt on fire. Or maybe it was from his joyful blush covering him from head to toe.

He’d found his soul mate…. In you…. In Mattsun.

What a dick place to put a Soul Mate tattoo.

[drugsbust]

I hate the john's mind bungalow theory so I'm with you on that, just curious about whether you think The Final Problem is in Sherlock's head instead? because I think there's plenty of evidence that that isn't the case either, and yet it feels like everyone in the Johnlock ship swears by one or the other.

I absolutely think that The Final Problem took place in Sherlock’s head. I think all of series 4 did. I think all of TAB did. I think that everything in HLV after Mary shoots Sherlock did. If this seems far-fetched then I suggest reading up on EMP theory because EMP is literally “the only explantation of all the facts.”

The thing with the “John’s bleeding out” theory is that it’s kind of the definition of Sherlock’s number one warning: don’t “twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts.” People are craving The Johntent™ (I get that, I do) and they don’t even want to consider the fact that we haven’t seen Real John since the beginning of HLV. But that’s exactly what has happened and what needs to happen. Sherlock must figure out how to “save John Watson” from Mary before we can see any more development in John’s romantic arc. Because as soon as Sherlock does save him, we will get the resolution for both of their romantic arcs.

Remember: The “I love you” scene showed us that Sherlock has to be the one to say “I love you” first, not to Molly (who is a John mirror), but not just to John either. He must first acknowledge it unambiguously to himself, and thus the audience, as well, before we get textual confirmation that John returns his feelings. And yes it will most likely be catalyzed by a Three Garridebs moment with Mary behind the gun. That’s what the scene where Eurus shoots John was: a premonition. That’s why Sherlock talks about intuitions in T6T. That’s why the gun turned out to just be a tranquilizer gun. Because it hasn’t happened… yet. I’m not getting into it anymore right now lol, but just know that Eurus is dark!Sherlock trapped in Sherrinford (an abandoned name/characterization for Sherlock) and her disguises (self-portraits) represent all of Sherlock’s worst fears (The East Wind) specifically about losing John.

And here’s the other thing: EMP theory has been around since January 2016. Right after TAB aired. And the vast majority of TJLC people dismissed it immediately, myself included. But as soon as T6T aired I acknowledged that maybe EMP really was a possibility. And then I actually went and read some meta. And I realized that it’s the only possibility.

Really I’d say that mainly people’s reasoning against EMP is that “they just wouldn’t do that.” No explanation given, of course. Because there is actually no evidence that directly contradicts EMP. Everything points towards it, in fact. Name one fucky thing that has happened in the past five episodes of this show and EMP has an airtight and clever answer. Honestly and genuinely if you really do think you have “plenty of evidence” that says otherwise I’d be totally excited to hear it. (Possibly cause I’m confident that I’ll have an answer for anything you say, but I digress.)

So not only does EMP account for essentially everything, the John theories (”alibi” and “John’s TAB”) account for very little, at least on their own. The theories are actually super attractive and clever but unfortunately fall through when you think about them for more than 30 seconds. Here’s a short list of things I can’t reconcile regarding them:

How would John know about Redbeard or Victor Trevor? 

How would John know that “deep waters” is a motif in Sherlock’s dreams? 

If John is the one dreaming why does he specifically mention in TLD that he hasn’t been sleeping? 

If Sherlock isn’t the one dreaming then why does he specifically mention that he’s been having a recurring dream and why does S4 contain so much blue/water imagery? 

If Eurus really did shoot John, then how does Eurus exist (because she clearly can’t)? 

If it was actually Mary that shot John then why would John need an alibi in the first place, didn’t you say he already killed Mary and that T6T is his fake alibi?

How does Rosie exist (because she also clearly can’t)?

If Mary isn’t drugging Sherlock while he’s still in hospital from HLV then why is there nonstop subtext that she is?

Why is Mr. Blue Skull intermittently glowing (throughout all of S4, not just during scenes relevant to a potential alibi)?

Why is John’s blog no longer updating irl despite the fact we see it is in T6T?

Why is S4 an amalgam of cases that Sherlock has already solved (The Six Thatchers, Cereal Killer, The Yellow Face, The Flight of The Dead, etc)?

Why are Ella’s office and John and Mary’s house, two places we’ve never seen Sherlock go to prior to S4, different from the way we’ve previously seen?

And that’s only the tip of the iceberg. The only way I can see the John theories being accurate in any capacity is if they’re somehow incorporated into EMP as the-7-percent-solution describes here, but I still subscribe to good ol’ pure EMP over that.

I was initially convinced of EMP by Nattie loudest-subtext-in-tv, aka the creator of the original and most influential TJLC metas ever produced. I figured if T6T made her believe in EMP then I should probably look into it. So I did. And I didn’t look back. I recommend checking out the EMP tags of LSiT, the-7-percent-solution, and tjlcisthenewsexy, as they were the ones whose metas did the most to convince me of EMP. I’m in the middle of writing a couple of long EMP metas, one about what Eurus really is and one about Mary drugging Sherlock, but between my school schedule and the fact more EMP proof surfaces every day who knows when I’m gonna finish them lol.

And if you still think that “Moftiss just wouldn’t do that,” I’m gonna go ahead and assume you haven’t watched the Moffat Era episodes of Doctor Who. Particularly “Amy’s Choice” and “Last Christmas”, the latter of which Moffat wrote himself. Moffat loves the ~dream within a dream~ thing. Unless you think all the Inception airplane references are for nothing… (TAB was set in a different, Victorian world because it was a dream within a dream, not just because Sherlock was high, though that does reinforce the subtext that Sherlock is being drugged. The jump into the Reichenbach Falls was the “kick” that was supposed to wake him up, but it only sent him deeper into the waters of his mind palace. Perhaps because he fell forwards instead of backwards? That line of Molly’s in HLV right before Sherlock enters his mind palace was significant, though it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what each direction represents. Did Sherlock “just go the wrong way last time”? Mycroft says he’s in too deep in TAB, implying he’s ventured into a deeper level than he’s ever gone before, the mind palace within his mind palace. As Sherlock says in TLD, “I’m at the bottom of a pit and I’m still falling and I’m never climbing out.”)

So on that note I’ll leave with you with one of my favourite pieces of EMP evidence: John’s new chair when they rebuild 221B at the end of TFP is the same as John’s chair in Sherlock’s Victorian mind palace from TAB. Try and give me a non-EMP explanation for that one lmao.