#and as u KNOW I LOVE projecting onto the Legos

[nyaskitten]

*sweating nervously* *taps mic* Jay is South Asian *crowd boos, tomatoes and popcorns me, raises pitchforks and torches* *voice comes from the crowd* No, he's right actually! *it's Jay Walker from the hit franchise Lego Ninjago!!!*

[raindrvq]

mischa headcanon time !!

except its all just me projecting random things onto him wooooo

ik i already said he was lactose intolerant but also wanna mention that (like most lactose intolerant ppl) he just does not care. can and will eat a shit ton of dairy and someone will be like 'hey isn't that gonna mess up your stomach?' n hes just like 'lol yea'

weird abt eye contact so sometimes he wont be looking at you during a conversation but sometimes hes just, intensely stare at you, for like no reason. if u ask abt it he'll just shrug but it can be very frightening when you dont notice and all of a sudden you turn and see him just like 😶

will also creepy stare at you if he wants to stop doing something without having to actually say that

for example he hates when people make mouth noises (like loud chewing) so he will just stare at you until you get creeped out n stop

he is trans (real not fake) !!!!!

gets dysphoric over like, small insignificant things but will try n correct it in order to fele more masc

like the way he stands (started putting his hands in his pockets and yes doing the dick grab), how he writes (purposefully writes fast so its more scribbly n messy), how he takes off his shirt (pulling it up from the back of his neck) and other random things that do not rly matter

also type of guy to try out multiple diy binding methods bc theres no way his adoptive parents r buying him one (they probably dont even know hes trans tbh) and he definitely wont ask so instead he resorts to other (probably unsafe) methods

hates when his hair gets even a little too long bc not only does it make him dysphoric but he also hates the feeling of hair in his face or down his neck n shoulders

if he goes too long without a haircut he will just end up putting it up but he learns how to rock the ponytail (without feeling dysphoric too 👍)

also he is ace,,,, bc im ace and i want him to be i have no explanation for this one idc if it doesn't make sense he's ace in my heart

constantly has his earbuds in, likes to be constantly be blasting music and has a hard time working without it (he needs the constant stimulation)

loves to chew on things as a form of stimming

straws ? bottle caps ? pens ? destroyed

loves to eat ice as well (this one is more encouraged bc he wont be accidentally consuming plastic this way)

if he cannot find anything to chew on sometimes he just ends up biting his lips n the inside of his cheeks and he has sharp teeth so his mouth is just kinda messed up

secretly rly likes legos

he will spend hours just building bc he will get fixated on it now he has to finish it

also he is a batman fan but he is NOT a comic dudebro joker stan ok

he loves collecting things he deems sentimental

like a ticket stub from when the choir went to see a movie together ? keeping it. a random pretty rock someone found and gave to him ? keeping it

keeps all of them in a little box in his room

ok this was longer than i intended so im stopping it here for now ! ill will probably post some about the whole choir i just had a lot of mischa ones bc projection 🫶

[versatilewindow]

Lego Sets

Find it on Ao3

Warnings: None, just fluff

Summary: A chill evening with your boyfriend, SunaRin

A/N: Earlier this week i was like, I dont wanna do my chem homework, ill project my sappy feelings and wants onto my man, SunaRin. And thanks to my friend for suggesting including legos.

The evening sun creeped in through the sheer curtains drowning Rintaro in a warm glow on the couch, a forgotten Netflix show playing faintly in the background. You walked in the front door and set down your shopping bags with a light yawn and stretch. The quiet of your shared home was a godsend after all the bright lights and sounds around the city, the smell of home instantly relaxing you. 

Hearing the sound of the TV, you walked towards it, noticing Rin asleep, curled up in your guys’ favorite blanket. You crawled over him, careful to not disturb him (not that it mattered, he usually slept like a rock), and tentatively sat down on him. He moved and your breath hitched, but he stayed asleep, damp hair splayed over his face. You always told him to dry his hair before sleeping, not wanting him to catch a cold, and he always argued he wouldn’t get sick, simply because he was ‘built different’. Giggling at the memory, you moved the hair away from his eyes with a feathery gentle touch. You’ve always loved his pretty face, gentle features, pinchable cheeks, and smooth clear skin (courtesy of your skincare routine that he adopted when you two moved in together). Taking advantage of the lighting and his serene sleeping expression, you quickly got out your phone and snapped a picture, even though you were lucky enough to see his face everyday, you wanted to admire his features without being teased by him for looking like a simp. Not that he was one to talk, he spoiled you, checking your online shopping search history to find you a surprise gift, bringing your favorite meal without being prompted, massaging your shoulders after a long day, pampering you in any way possible. He never really spoke too often about his feelings, but his actions were loud enough for you. You leaned down, the ghost of a kiss over his nose and forehead, but before you could lean away to leave him alone, strong arms wrapped around your waist, trapping you with no chance of escape. His head buried itself into your neck leaving a soft kiss before mumbling something about joining him in sleeping.

“Well, good evening to you too SunaRin.” He lightly chuckled at your nickname for him, remembering your explanation the first time he heard it years ago, ‘it just rolls off the tongue SunaRin!’, and nuzzled closer to you, breathing in your scent. “Are you hungry? Because I forgot to stop for food on my way home.”

He lifted his head enough for you to hear, “Not really, but I will be soon. What do you want?”

Mumbling an ‘I don’t know’, it was your turn to cuddle closer to him, warm breath over his neck making his heart speed up ever so slightly (it used to speed up a lot whenever you were near, but constant exposure helped his heart relax).

He sat up, taking you with him, asking “Dumplings?” already knowing you would say yes to that. “Go shower, I’ll call the place.” 

“Are you telling me i’m stinky?” 

A light snort filled the space between you two, him rolling his eyes, and you with a mischievous grin “You know what I mean, now go shower.” 

An hour later the two of you were back on the couch, in your comfiest clothes, with a spread of your favorite dumplings and other sides on the coffee table. Finishing to chew your food, you said “Thank you for the food honey.” and pressed a kiss to his shoulder.

He kissed the crown of your head, “I’ll buy you dumplings any time you want.”  A beat passes, “What were you out buying earlier?”

“It's my cousin’s birthday next week, we’re going to the party remember?” His eyes narrowed but let out a hum in affirmation as he remembered you mentioning it a while ago, “She really likes Lego sets, so I got her one Aunty said she’s been wanting, wanna see?” You had already gotten up from the couch, so he was going to see it whether he wanted too or not. Going to the bags left in the entryway, you pulled out the Lego Star Wars box and Rintaro’s face lit up.

“Wait is that the new one? That like, just came out?” His eyes widened.

“Yeah, the store had a lot of them.”

You handed him the box for a closer look, “Babe, can we PLEASE build it.”

As amusing as his cute expression was, you placed a hand back on the box, “Taro, it’s not for you, its for my-”

“I know, but you said the store had a lot, I’ll even go with you tomorrow to get another.” He looked like he was ready to get on his knees and really beg. You narrowed your eyes, and crossed your arms. He would never beg about anything, not even his beloved chuupet.

“Keep going.”

An exasperated look took over his face for a split second, but he took a deep breath, got on his knees, and did his best Puss in Boots impression, tilting his eyebrows up, eyes widening, and a cute pout on his lips, “Pleeease? I’ll give you a massage anytime you want?”

“You already do that.”

“I’ll clean the bathroom for two weeks? Please?” 

He would never willingly clean the bathroom, so you savored the moment before responding with a sigh, “Make it four and you pay for the new one, then you have a deal.” He cheered in celebration, getting up giving you a tight hug and messy kiss on the cheek before diving into the box. You chuckled and cleared the table before joining him in building the set.

The set was finished a few hours later, the two of you admired your work slumped on the couch together. You lay your head on his shoulder, lightly yawning while he wrapped his arms around you, resting his head on yours.

“Thanks for letting me steal your cousin’s present.”

“Well when you beg and offer to clean the bathroom, how can I say no?”

He grumbled softly, but pressed a kiss to your head. “Wanna go to bed and do… stuff?” you could practically hear his eyebrows wiggling suggestively.

“If by stuff you mean cuddling, then yes.”

“Of course I meant cuddling, who do you think I am, some kind of heathen?”

“With the way your dirty clothes always miss the laundry basket? Yeah.”

He got up, pulling you with him and mumbled, “Really comin for my neck with that one huh?” you could only giggle lightly in response. When you two had gotten into bed, he lay on his back, with you cuddled against his chest, breaths moving in time together. Thinking you were asleep, Rintaro pulled you closer to him, saying I love you. Grinning when he heard you respond with an I love you too. 

Extra:

The two of you were shocked in the store the next day, they were sold out of that set when there had been plenty the day before, and they wouldn’t get a new shipment till after the birthday party.

Not that you told Rin, but you definitely filmed him on his knees apologising to the 10 year old birthday girl at her party for stealing her present.

A/N: Hope y'all liked it!!! leave a kudos or comment if you liked it!!! if you didnt like it, u can tell me in a comment or ask, im a big girl

[brookswackermanfeetcam]

You should do all of them questions and 90 is true

I love you!!!!

1. Favorite instrument?

I work at a music store u can’t just ask me this. When my coworkers play it’s the saxophone or the flute, when the boys in the repair shop are testing repairs and they harmonize with each other or try to outplay one another it’s the bassoon or the trombone or whatever they’re fixing at the moment. When I hear 🎺 give his lesson on Wednesday afternoons it’s the trumpet, and when I think about middle school it’s the clarinet, the flute, the French horn. When I hear the nutcracker pas des deux is the oboe and when I hear edith piaf l’accordeoniste it’s the remarkable human voice. Really my favorite instrument is all of them, it just depends.

2. Favorite fic trope? Mutual pining 🥺

3. Sport you played for the longest amount of time? LMAO I wasn’t a sporty kid but I did ballet

4. Shoe size? 10-11

5. Most recent (good) dream? Uhh I had a dream last night about my coworker 🎹 it wasn’t bad though I can’t really remember what it was about

6. Last person in your DMs? smugg

7. Can you do a handstand? Nooo nooo lmaoo nooooo

8. Unpopular food opinion I don’t like oranges or red meat

9. Conspiracy you believe in? There’s some kind of weird weather dome in my hometown around the military base that makes most storms pass around us

10. Is your hair its natural color/style? Most of it is I dyed the bottom layer of my hair tho so it’s blonde rn

11. state a useless fact all that’s coming to mind is outright lies rn hold on. The inventor of pringles is buried in a pringles can that’s so fucking nasty omg

12. most interesting gossip you’ve heard? Idk I don’t really care for gossip uhhhh have u heard tho rin dippindogs is a huge gay hah she uhh she like men AND women lmao gaaay gaaaay

13. Middle name? Carolyn

14. Sexuality? Bisexual

15. Amount of sleep you got last night? Idk actually I think like 9-10 hrs tho I slept in until 11

16. Opinion on ice cream cake? Tasty!!!

17. Opinion on (cup)cake frosting? It’s depends buttercream is usually too sweet for me in large amounts so I prefer whipped cream frosting

18. Last board game you played? Idk??? We played hunt a killer tho last Thursday me n my family I guess that counts kinda

19. Project you want to start? I need ideas first baby

20. Project you’re working on right now? HAHAHAHAHAHA

21. TV show you’re watching? nothing rn I just rewatch bojack a lot if I watch anything

22. Last movie you watched? Lego batman I think

23. Ever left anon hate? Not legit hate

24. Ever left anon love? Yes all the time. Sometimes to strangers it’s my favorite thing to do

25. Best Disney movie? The princess and the frog

26. Best Pixar movie? Soul or Up I can’t decide

27. Best Star Wars? Um. Empire strikes back

28. Last thing you consumed? Fuit gumy

29. NoTP? Idk I don’t really hate ships unless they’re gross like pedophilic gross

30. story behind your (nick)name? When I was a fetus my great grandfather had a dream that my name should be Carolyn Marie but my parents were huge dweebs so they named me Marina after the actress of Deanna Troi in Star Trek. Idk about my nickname ive just always been Rina/Rin as long as I can remember

31. ice cream order? Lately it’s lemon sorbetto I know it’s SO high in sugar but I love it

32. describe your blog in <5 words I love you

33. how many blogs do you follow? 436

34. Describe your voice it depends usually I sound like a sick child but my customer service voice is really pleasant

35. Describe your smile it’s cute :)

36. What is the place you live known for? LMAOOO LMAO we have a military base nearby and like. I could go on abt that one but also like. There’s a lot of gang violence and a lot of the other consequences of poverty. People from the cities around us see us as “””ghetto””” or violent but it’s just. It’s more than that it’s always more than that. And idk what else there’s nothing really particularly special about this town except that we’re all here and not anywhere else

37. What is the place you’re originally from known for? (if they’re different)

38. pronouns? she/any idc

39. Languages you speak? English

40. first friend you made through tumblr? Idk. I probably don’t talk to them anymore :(

41. Person on tumblr you know in real life? my brother

42. First dog breed you think of shih tzu I have 2 next to me rn

43. room wall color? Purble!!!! The paint color is called grape juice that’s why I picked it!!!

44. Song that’s stuck in your head right now? It’s tricky to rock a rhyme to rock a rhyme that’s right on time it’s trickyyyyy

45. Favorite number? 5, 34

46. Color you associate with your name? Red

47. Favorite jolly rancher flavor?watermelon

48. Pets? 2 dogs rocket and groot and 4 cats loki danni who r from the same litter and we raised from kittens, miss kitty who we adopted from a shelter after my boy blue moon passed away and ben (his real name is Kylo Ren thanks to my mom but I refuse to call him that) he is my little baby and he has 7 toes on his front paws

49. Collections? Hot wheels

50. Character outside of your fandom you’d marry? Girl what lmaooo idk

51. Character outside of your fandom you���d kill? That’s mean :(

52. Have you met any celebrities? NO thank god id have to kill on sight

53. Favorite time period in history? Itslian Renaissance & Romantic Era

54. What time is it right now? 2:35 am oops

55. History or future? Future but like . A good one. Or prehistory

56. Space or ocean? Space

57. Fears? Abandonment

58. Command + v and post. It’s this list of questions u don’t want that

59. Favorite season? Spring

60. Describe your aesthetic. Messy just a mess, neon and old buildings and things, antiques, countryside if there weren’t so many trump pence flags still lmaoo give uppp give up, nature just al of nature and space and places humans can’t touch and places they used to touch but can’t anymore

61. MBTI? Infp but I haven’t taken it in a few years

62. What’s your relationship with your family like? Normal.

63. “Biggest fan” in your tumblr activity? I’m in mobile hold on acc to tumblr it’s akky

64. Favorite musical? Sweeney todd

65. Comfort book? Idk how to read 💔💔💔 wuthering heights tho

66. Comfort movie? Whisper of the heart

67. OTP? Girl idk

68. BroTP? Joey and Tristan yugioh

69. AUs or canon compliant? Canon ig idk

70. Opinion on the person who’s sending the ask? It’s an anon!! But I love them

71. FMK + 3 characters anon didnt leave any characters and I was going to say something very bad but I won’t

72. Dream date? I’ve wanted to do this for a while but ideally it would be after we’d been together a while maybe even engaged or whatever, I wanna go to like a Home Depot or a furniture store and pretend to be married and looking for house paints and furniture and plan what our home is going to look like I wanna do that so bad. But idk for a first/early relationship date i really want to go to the zilker botanical garden it’s one of my favorite places, we could also go to the natural gardener which is a plant nursery in Austin I really love it there too and it’s not that far from zilker.

73. Relationship status? Single

74. Ever dyed your hair? Do you plan to? Yes and perhaps. Maybe

75. Dream job/career? Idk anymore I used to have big girl goals and I haven’t had any in a while. But when I was younger I wanted to be a game warden

76. Favorite band/singer? Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

77. Something that makes you soft/that you find adorable? My cats

78. The first thing you would do if you won the lottery? Buy a house

79. Are you superstitious? Yes

80. Character you project onto? Shizuku tsukishima

81. Fictional character you’ve had a crush on? Vergil devil may cry. Forever husband

82. Celebrity crush? LMAO

83. Person on here you’d date? my mutuals

84. Person on here you’d marry? 🥺 my mutuals

85. Person on here you’d throw into the void? Smugg

86. Other social media you have? I’ve got a photography insta that I barely use and a Twitter that’s just nintendo switch screenies that’s it

87. Finish the sentence: Due to personal reasons, ___________i will be passing away

88. Bad habit? I find it rlly hard to say no or like to say when and why I’m upset I don’t feel like for the latter I don’t feel like I should bring something that’s upsetting me up because I know I’ll get over it on my own and I don’t really trust myself to be upset about rational things. Idk I’m working on it

89. Three things you like about yourself? I’m hot, I’m kind, I’m resilient

90. Ily and you deserve the world I love you!!!!! YOU deserve it too!!!

[mischiefandspirits]

Iron Legion (29/?)

Never let it be said that Tony Stark ever does things by half. He might have grown up with little family, but he wasn’t about to keep it that way.

Tony Stark was seventeen when his first child was born, and that was just the beginning.

For Masterpost, Casting, Timeline, AO3, and Fanfiction

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Infinity Child, Part 3

“Uh, what?” Dr. Banner muttered once the shock brought on by the display of strength from the preteen faded enough for him to speak.

“Who’s the tiny super soldier?” Tony asked, turning to Pepper.

“Your granddaughter,” Rhodey said before she could answer. “Courtesy of the Princess of Wakanda.”

Tony shot him a wide-eyed look and Nebula shoved him.

“Peter and Harley created her, alongside Princess Shuri and Helen’s son,” Pepper explained. She nodded at Vivian. “Show him.”

She glanced at Dr. Banner as J.A.R.V.I.S. turned on the privacy function on the glass walls then shifted into her base appearance.

Both Tony and Dr. Banner made astonished noises.

“The kids made her?” Tony asked, sounding strangled.

“Amazing,” Dr. Banner gasped. “How?”

“The boys stole the readings from the cradle that was used to make Vision and Dr. Cho’s notes from her time under V.I.R.G.I.L.’s control,” Nebula said.

“They recreated Vision? Incredible. And they brought in Princess Shuri?”

“They needed vibranium and her experience with it,” Vivian explained.

“How did they even get into contact with her?” Tony asked, rubbing a hand over his face.

“They programmed a mini spider bot to locate her and give her Peter’s number then had me drop it on a car heading into Wakanda. Apparently, it managed to slip through their detections because of its size and the fact it didn’t give off any wireless signals,” J.O.C.A.S.T.A. said. “For the record, I didn’t actually know what the bot was for.”

“Not a good excuse,” Nebula said.

“They could have gotten in so much trouble,” Tony sighed.

“Shuri thought it was funny. She loved Ana,” Karen said.

Tony frowned. “Is she…”

The amusement from her treatment of Captain America fled.

Rhodey nodded. “Her brother as well. Their mother is ruling for now.”

Tony looked her over and held out the hand Pepper wasn’t holding, with a smile. “Com’ere, kiddo.”

When she got close enough, he weakly pulled her into a one-armed hug. She carefully returned it, mindful of his injuries. “I’m Tony, but you can call me whatever. Nice to meet you, kid. ”

“You too. I’m Karen or Project Vivian,” she whispered into his shoulder.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tony looked around the penthouse as Happy helped him out of the elevator. “Good to be home,” he muttered bleakly before forcing a smile on as Karen came rushing in to hug him. “You my welcome home party? I know Rhodey, Nebula, and Bruce left this morning, but where’s everyone else.”

“Mom’s helping Aunt Pepper,” Val said, shuffling in with U still in drone form perched on her head. “She’s not feeling good.”

“Just a stomach bug,” Happy said before Tony could start to panic. “She’s just been a little bit nauseous the past couple days. She hasn’t thrown up though.”

“She has now,” Val said. “That’s why mom’s helping her. She’s holding her hair.”

Tony went pale. “A doctor. What’s the status on doctors? We need one.”

“Calm down, Stark,” Tori huffed and Tony turned to see her standing in the doorway. “She’s fine.”

“But -”

“Tony.” Pepper walked up behind Tori and the woman stepped aside to let her through.

“Pep, are you okay? What’s wrong? Do we need to -”

“I’m fine,” she said and Karen pulled away so she could hug him.

“Val said you threw up.”

“I did, but Tori and I talked and,” she glanced over her shoulder then met Tony’s eyes, “I think I’m pregnant.”

…

“Tony?”

“I think you broke him,” Val chuckled.

“Wait, are you serious?” Happy asked in a choked voice.

“Tony?” Pepper said, ignoring him.

“You… I was right?”

Pepper frowned. “Right?”

“I said I had a dream that we had a kid!”

Pepper’s eyes widened. “Oh my god.”

“I was right!”

“We don’t know that for sure, right?” Happy said, looking to Tori with pleading eyes.

“I’m late, and it would explain the nausea and I’ve been getting some body pains,” Pepper said.

Tony kissed her.

“I’m going to go grab a test for her,” Tori told Happy as the two continued at it. “Why don’t you girls go play.”

“I’m too old for this,” Happy groaned.

When Tony pulled away, they were alone. “We’re having a baby?”

“Maybe? Probably?” she breathed, setting her forehead against his.

His smile slowly faded as something occurred to him.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, cupping his face between her hands as he tried to look away.

Tony pressed a kiss to her wrist then stepped back. His eyes landed on the crate Pepper had bought that was theoretically decorative, but secretly held a few tubs of legos and a potato gun hidden underneath Nebula’s favorite blanket. “They’ll never get to know him.”

Pepper followed his gaze then took his hand.

He stared for a moment before turning back to her. “Maybe… maybe we should move.”

She gave him a confused frown.

“Its… Peter and F.R.I.D.A.Y. are everywhere. It was the same at the mansion. I just -”

Pepper nodded. “I know. I think the same thing’s been happening to Nebula. She’s been staying with Happy and hasn’t been back to their apartment since. I don’t think I’d be around much either if it wasn’t for Tori, Karen, and Val.”

“Maybe a fresh start is what we need. Get out of the city. You, me, Karen, and little Morgan. Get a place away from everything and everyone. The Keeners, Nebula, Happy, and Rhodey can come too if we can talk them into it.”

“That actually sounds really good,” she sighed. She leaned her head against her shoulder. “We need to talk about the name though.”

“Nope. Morgan. It’s perfect.”

“We don’t even know if it's a boy.”

“Even better!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hey U,” Rhodey said when they flew up in their new blue orchard bee-inspired drone.

They gave a few beeps and buzzes, landing on his car door as he carefully maneuvered his legs out.

Once they were clear, he engaged the braces and stood up. “Everyone inside?”

U chirped and did a spin around his head before flying away.

Rhodey closed the door and headed into Tony and Pepper’s cabin.

“Hey Rhodey,” Happy called when he stepped through the door.

“RHODEY!” Karen cheered and suddenly he had a little girl hanging from his front.

He blinked and wrapped his arms around her. “Where did you come from?”

“Karen Vivian Rhodes, what have we said about flying in the house?” Pepper huffed from out of sight.

“Sorry. But Rhodey’s here!” she called back, nuzzling his chest.

“Go put your book in your room and get cleaned up,” Pepper tisked, coming out of the dining room. “Dinner’s almost done.”

The girl gave him one last squeeze then fled the room.

“She’s like a duckling,” Tony chuckled as he peeked out of the kitchen. “She saw you first now she’s attached, Platypus.”

“Shouldn’t you be keeping an eye on the vegetables?”

“Yes, dear.” Tony gave Rhodey a wink then fled from Pepper’s glare. “Soon she’ll be calling you mama,” he called out.

“I don’t think I’m the mama you should be worried about,” Rhodey called back before focusing on Pepper. “How are you doing? You three settled in alright?”

“We’re doing… better. Getting out of the city has helped. Tori’s given me a recipe for a homemade ginger shake that’s really helped with the nausea and it’s relaxing not having work right under my feet. The workshop is finally all unpacked so Tony is only hovering nervously over us eighty percent of the time and Karen has just discovered a fascination with painting so J.A.R.V.I.S. has been helping her research. There are still moments, but it’s getting better.” She gestured out the window. “Even U has calmed down some. Instead of hovering over us every second of the day, they’ve taken to patrolling the grounds. I think Tony’s been considering making them an entire swarm so they can run security.”

“Would U even be able to handle processing that many bodies?” Rhodey asked in a low voice so Tony wouldn’t hear.

“I don’t know and I don’t care. Just as long as it means he’ll stop hovering and grabbing boxes out of my hands every five minutes while I’m trying to unpack because I might hurt the baby! I’m barely two months along, the baby’s fine!” Pepper responded, not bothering to lower her voice. In fact, the last part she practically shouted in the direction of the kitchen.

“Of course, dear,” Tony shot back happily.

“He’s really been getting on your nerves then,” Rhodey chuckled.

Pepper sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “I know he doesn’t mean anything by it and he knows I’m not really angry. It’s just everything that happened and my hormones and his PTSD all piling up and spilling over.”

“Hey, if you guys need some you-time, just let me know. I’ll be happy to watch Karen for you.”

“Mama bear,” Tony chimed and stepped into the doorway. “Also, dinner is ready.”

“Did you take the bread out of the oven?”

“I thought you said you did that already.”

“No, I said I got the chicken out of the oven.”

Tony cursed and ducked away.

“No cursing in the house!”

“That’ll never stick,” Happy muttered.

Pepper shot a glare at him then called up the stairs, “Karen, are you almost done?”

“Yes!”

“Speaking of which,” Rhodey said. “Since when can she fly?”

“We found out a few days ago,” Pepper said, leading him and Happy into the dining room. “Tony gave her a check-up.”

“She doesn’t seem to have all of Vision’s abilities, but alongside the flight and strength, she can also shift her density for short periods and create energy pulses. I’m guessing that last one was Shuri’s work because they work similar to King Cat’s suit, just using the arc energy from the reactor in her forehead instead of kinetic energy,” Tony explained, setting a bowl of garlic bread onto the table.

They all sat down, Karen slipping in a moment later to sit next to Rhodey.

“Duckling,” Tony hummed.

She frowned and Rhodey ruffled her hair with an eye roll.

“Speaking of baby birds and nests, what were you guys thinking for school?” he asked as they all started to dig in.

“Does she even need to go to school?” Happy asked. “I mean, can’t she just download anything she needs to know?”

“No, she can’t interact with computers like Vision could. Violet, salad too,” Tony interrupted himself before continuing, “As soon as the cradle disconnected from her brain, she was locked into a closed system. She’s got an eidetic memory, but she’d still have to learn things the hard way first.”

“The others couldn’t figure out how to make any wireless connection devices work with my synthetic brain given the guidelines they were working with from Vision,” Karen added, looking up from where she was cutting her chicken into pieces to grab the salad bowl. “They ended up deciding the Mind Stone was what allowed for the compatibility.”

“So school?” Rhodey asked, amused.

Tony shrugged and turned to Pepper, who shook her head.

“We haven’t talked about it. I suppose we’ll have to see what online schools are still running.” Pepper gave her an apologetic look. “I know you can disguise yourself as a human, but people will begin to notice that you don’t age.”

“She ages.”

Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy turned to Tony, who shrugged again.

“Shuri figured it out,” Karen said. “She didn’t explain it well -- I think she enjoyed teasing the boys on their lack of knowledge about Vibranium -- but it has something to do with it being a living metal.”

“Living metal?” Happy asked, slowly, and she nodded.

“Wherever the asteroid carrying the Vibranium came from must have developed life of a more metallic variety.”

“Explains why it’s so adaptable,” Tony hummed. “Too bad Dad mixed his batch up with other metals to make Cap’s frisbee. What I wouldn’t give to get my hands on some of the raw stuff.”

“The boys felt the same, but Peter kept track of everything that Shuri sent them to be sure that any that wasn’t used on me was sent back untouched out of respect for her culture.”

“Of course he did,” Pepper said proudly before getting back on topic. “Well, I suppose it’s your choice then, Karen. Would you rather go to school or take online courses?”

Karen blinked up at them, surprised. “Me?”

“Yeah, Violet. We’re not going to force you into anything,” Tony said gently.

Karen looked between them then ducked her head. As she started to make little swirls in her sauce, she said, “I don’t know. Peter always seemed to like school and his friends there, but Harley always complained about it and Shuri and Amadeus thought it was useless.”

Tony rolled his eyes. “Harley was a brat and would have complained no matter what, Shuri probably had an army of tutors ready to teach her whatever she wanted at her own pace and probably never set foot in an actual school in her life, and Cho thought everything was beneath him. You’re a lot more like Peter.”

Karen looked up at Rhodey and he squeezed her shoulder with a smile. “It’s your choice, but socialization is important.”

When she still looked uncertain, Pepper offered, “How about this: You try going to school for a semester and if you don’t like it, then we can look into online options for next semester. There’s nothing wrong with keeping your options open.”

Karen glanced up at Rhodey again and nodded. “Okay.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hey, you.”

Vivian looked up from her book on the Lascaux cave paintings to see a pair of boys standing in front of her.

“What are you doing out here?”

“Reading,” she said with bemusement, holding up her book. “It’s about -”

“Why’re you outside?” one of the boys asked, with a snort.

“Why not?”

The boys frowned. “Aren’t you going to eat?”

She shrugged. She had been so excited about her new book, she had decided to sit out in the courtyard instead of eating lunch. “I’m not hungry.”

“What’s wrong with your face?” the other boy asked, pointing at her forehead.

“Birthmark.”

“What’s your deal?” the first boy asked, frustrated.

“What do you mean?”

Before either boy could say something, a voice yelled, “Would you two just get lost before you end up looking even more like idiots? She’s not buying your bait.”

The three turned to a girl who was lying on the grass nearby, her head held up to glare at them and a bag of chips on her stomach.

The boys grumbled, giving both girls scowls, but walked off.

“Bait?” Vivian asked as the other girl laid her head back on her folded up jacket.

“They wanted to upset you,” she said like it was obvious.

“Why?”

“Because their boys and you’re a pretty girl,” she scoffed, looking back up at her. “You haven’t spent a lot of time around boys have you?”

“Not exactly.” Vivian frowned down at her book. “Why would they want to upset me if they think I’m pretty?”

“Because they’re idiots who don’t know what emotions are.” She sat up fully, chips falling into her lap. “I don’t remember you from Elementary school.”

“My family just moved here from the city this summer. I’m Karen.”

“America.”

“Pardon?”

“My name,” the other girl chuckled. “It’s America. I know, weird.”

Vivian closed her book. “My aunt’s name was F.R.I.D.A.Y. I’ve heard weirder.”

The girl smiled and held out the bag. “So are you on a diet or did you forget your lunch money?”

Vivian shook her head and pulled out the box of food Pepper prepared for her. “I really was just not hungry.”

America shrugged and grabbed a chip.

[theroyalweisme]

Follow Me (Liam x MC)

Book: Royal Romance

Pairing: Liam x MC (Riley)

Rating: PG 13

Word Count: +2700

Summary: He’s gone to NYC... To find her... to talk to her... But he’s left his Best Friend to run things back home... What could go wrong?

Author’s Note: Part 10 of Hold On

Wow has it ever been a LONG time since I’ve written this. I’m sorry for making you all wait so long… I hope it was worth it! Special thanks to @mfackenthal and @kinkykingliam for listening to me ramble as I wrote this...

Also I’m sorry if I missed you in tags... it’s been so damned long.

Catch up here

Tagging: @youwontlikewherewewillgo @chrstbll @pens-girl-87 @mariawalkerwrites @mrswalkerreynolds @queencatherynerhys @hhiggs @viktoriapetit @topsyturvy-dream @heatherfilliez

Permatags: @mfackenthal @kinkykingliam @enmchoices @writtenbycandy @alwaysthebestchoice @diamond-dreamland @craftytacotrashdream @umccall71 @mitalijoshi @blackcatkita @xxrainbowprincessxx @scarlettedragon @ranishajay @hopefulmoonobject

-Liam’s POV-

The feeling of her hand in mine warmed my soul as I led her out of the bar and down the street towards the water. Bastien fell into step behind us as we continued to walk.

“You brought Bastien with you?” Her voice was soft as the question passed by her soft lips. I felt my heart jump a beat or two at the sound of her.

“Yes…” I cleared my throat, trying to come up with the words to say to her. “I thought it would be best.”

“Of course…” she nodded her gaze looking over the water.

“Riley…” I started leading her towards a secluded bench. Her crystal blue eyes lifted to mine as we sat side by side on the bench. “You just left.”

She pulled her gaze from mine, trying to hide the tears I could see gathering behind them.

“Please, my love,” I soothed, rubbing small circles on the back of her hand with my thumb. “Please don’t run from me here… It’s just me.”

“I… I didn’t mean to run from you, Liam,” she sighed as my fingers lifted her face back to mine. “I… I was drowning there.”

“What do you mean?” My voice trembled. “I didn’t-“

“No… No, Liam,” she interrupted my thoughts vehemently. “Never. It was never you. You were the only thing keeping me grounded.”

“So then… why?”

She pushed all the air out of her lungs as she considered her answer, my heart pounding as I waited for her words.

-Riley’s POV-

“So then… why?” Liam’s words hit me like a ton of bricks… How could I tell him the real reason?

That I was weak… That there was no way I could stay in Cordonia and become its queen. That I needed him to be happy and move on… That my soul shattered even thinking of him with someone else.

I leaned heavily against the park bench as I considered what I would tell him, my mind drifting to a conversation I had so many years ago looking over this same river.

“Daddy…” My voice was tentative as I stared over the water, not wanting to look into my father’s steel grey eyes.

“What’s up, Rye Bread?” My father’s voice enveloped me, not unlike his strong arms. I glanced down at my hands, twisting in my lap nervously.

“How do you know you’re in love?” My words were rushed and half under my breath, my father was forced to lean in to catch what I had said.

“In love?” He croaked, his voice cracking with shock. “Well… at twelve… you shouldn’t be in love… Not until you’re at least thirty…”

“Daddy…” I rolled my eyes at him, seeing a smile crack on his lips.

“I had hoped I wouldn’t need to have this conversation with you for a long time, baby…” he sighed, pulling into a side hug awkwardly.

“I’m not a baby anymore. I’m almost a teenager,” my chin jut out in an air of authority as he chuckled lightly next to me.

“That you are, Rye Bread… that you are,” his eyes took on a wistful quality as he thought about my original question. “You want to know how to know if you’re in love…?”

I nodded easily.

“Should I be worried about a boy?” He looked down at me, half sad… half worried… and a sliver of pride shining through his gaze.

“Gross, Daddy!” I cried pushing against him. “No… I just want to know… so I can be ready for it... when it happens.”

My father paused before nodding, allowing my words to sink into him.

“Okay…” he smiled softly, I could almost see the image of my mother in front of his mind eye. “When the person standing next to you becomes a home more than the four walls around you, you’re in love. When the world stops as soon as they walk through the door… you’re in love. When they’re the first person you want to tell the good news to and the only one you want to console you through bad news… My little, Rye Bread… that’s love.”

“And you have that with, Mom?” My blue eyes shone up at him hopefully.

“She’s my world…” he smiled down at me before placing a kiss on the top of my head. “Not unlike my crazy daughter.”

“Daddy…” I warned trying to hide my smile from him.

“Riley…” Liam called gently to me, his fingers brushing against my cheek. “Why did you leave?”

“I… I had to…” I lifted my eyes to him, trying to take the hurt I knew I had caused him and pull it to myself. “Liam… It was never you. It was…”

I sighed deeply, motioning around me.

“Everything… The palace… The guards… Planning our wedding. It was too much.” His forehead crinkled as he took in my words silently. “I couldn’t breathe…”

He stepped away from me, just a few paces before he turned back to me the hurt shining in his eyes.

“Was I not enough for you?” His deep blue eyes shone with tears causing the lump in my throat to grow even bigger than it was.

“No…” I whispered softly into the wind. “I wasn’t enough…”

Before I knew what was happening Liam knelt in front of me on the cold concrete. He pulled my hands in his, his ocean blue eyes pleading with me as his voice cracked with passion.

“You are always enough, Riley MacEwan,” he insisted. “Riley… When you left…”

He paused clearing his throat from the emotion.

“When I couldn’t find you…” He sighed deeply, I could see him searching for the words to say to me. “I died a thousand deaths that day. I thought so many things I could have never of fathomed before meeting you.”

He pushed a curl off of my face his thumb lingering on my cheek, catching a single tear as it escaped my eye.

“You are my life,” he proclaimed, his own eyes shining with unshed tears. I couldn’t stop myself from sliding off of the bench and into his lap, my lips pressing gently to his as my hands cupped his cheeks. It took a second for the shock of my movements to wear off for him; but as soon as it had his fingers wound themselves deep into my curls, his lips returning my kiss fervently.

“Where are you staying?” He pulled his lips away from me. It took everything in me from following his lips with my own. His eyes danced as he waited for my response.

“On Daniel’s couch...” I flinched out of embarrassment at the thought of not being in my own place already. “I...I didn’t want to be alone...”

“Daniel... he was the man from the bar? The bartender?” His eyes held an essence of sadness as he pulled himself up and onto the bench. My brow furrowed as I scrambled up next to him.

“Yah…” I watched him closely as his gaze shied away from me. “Both Daniel and his wife, Emily, have been amazing about me crashing there.”

His eyes shot up to mine as the realization of what I just said to him sunk in.

“W-wife?” a soft grin played at the corner of his lips as my own lips twitched.

“Mmmhmm…” I held my hand out to him. “And their one-year-old, Henry… He’s such a little card. You’d love him.”

His strong hand curled around mine as I started to walk back towards the crowded streets.

“Just watch your head if he’s holding any Legos…” he chuckled softly with me, our arms swinging gently between us.

“Perhaps we should retire to my hotel, rather than your friends’ apartment?” My teeth pressed into my lower lip as I kept my gaze out in front of me.

“They’d probably appreciate that…” I glanced over at him through my peripheral vision as a grin grew on his plush lips. He pulled my hand up to lips kissing the knuckles gently as we continued down the street, Bastien falling into step behind me.

-Drake’s POV-

This was supposed to be an easy task… Just make sure the country doesn’t fall apart while my best friend, and the fucking King, runs after the love of his life. No problem right? Wrong.

I had been buried in Liam’s study from the moment he shut the door to the SUV. Madeleine hadn’t gone back to Fydelia yet, a surprising blessing, and she had kept me moving forward with the projects that were pressing.

Not that I wanted to be making any of these decisions. But my supposed “best friend” had turned off his phone. Maybe Bastien would answer…

I dialled the familiar numbers on Liam’s desk phone pressing the receiver to my ear as it rang, once… twice… three times… four…

“You have reached…” The message started in Bastien’s clipped tone as I slammed the phone back into its cradle.

“Damnit!” I shouted to the empty study. What the fuck was I doing here? I didn’t have the right to be making decisions for this fucking country! I was just the King’s best friend… Some lowly commoner kid that a prince took pity on when we were younger. My fingers curled around the crystal tumbler as I stared down at the package in front of me.

How the fuck does Liam do this day in and day out? My head was throbbing as I tipped the crystal to my lips savouring the dark amber liquid in the glass before turning back to the garble of words in front of me.

In accordance with Section 6.2 of the Cordonian Tax Reform Bill 27C…

My eyes closed as a soft thud pounded behind them. I pressed my fingers against my temples as shouting started outside of the study door.

“Miss…” The guard posted outside the heavy oak door, Jonah…? Jonathan…? Something like that, cried as it swung open, a petit brunette bursting through the door. “Miss… you cannot…”

“Your Majesty,” the dark-haired woman demanded, her head was still down as she continued to stomp towards the desk, determination oozing from every pore. “I need to speak with you. The paltry amount you’ve provided will bare-“

Her eyes drifted up to mine, warm brown orbs stared back at me from a perfectly heart-shaped face. Woah… my mouth seemed to dry up faster than the Gobi Desert as those whisky coloured eyes stared back at me.

“You’re not…” Her pouty lips pushed out even further as I could see her thought process flit across her face.

“No…” I cleared my throat, taking another drink of my whisky and trying to hide a smirk as I watched her eyes focus on my throat as I swallowed. “I’m not.”

“I…” she stepped back tentatively, wringing her hands in front of her. Those whisky coloured eyes hid from me under thick dark lashes as she mumbled to herself before straightening her back and opening them to stare challenging at me. “I need to speak with King Liam… Immediately.”

I sighed gently, placing the whisky glass aside before clasping my hands together and resting them in front of me on the desk. I fucking told Liam this would happen. My best friend’s words haunted me as I considered how to respond to the tiny dark-haired sprite in front of me. You’ll be fine, Drake… Court isn’t sitting and nothing is happening politically. Just keep people occupied and away from the fact that I’m gone.

“Fucker…” I muttered under my breath.

“Pardon me?” The sprite spoke, my eyes flying back to hers as I realized she had heard my outburst.

“Shit… I’m…” I fumbled over my words, before noticing I’d done it again. “I mean… I didn’t… Aww… damnit.”

I pushed my head back against Liam’s high back chair, my eyes closing as my hands tried to rub the pain from my forehead.

“If I wasn’t sure before…” her voice was light, almost like she was laughing. “I could definitely tell now, that you are most definitely not King Liam.”

I took the chance of glancing up at her to see her eyes sparkling with mischief, her teeth biting into her bottom lip gently. Hadn’t we already had this conversation?

I pushed the chair back gently before moving towards the tiny creature in front of the desk.

“Look, Miss...?” I prompted, having no clue who this girl was.

“Valantez,” her grin grew as she extended her hand for me to shake. “Cynthia Valantez.”

“Miss Valantez,” I nodded shaking her hand, marvelling at how small and soft it was. How could someone this tiny have such a demanding presence? “If you could leave your proposal for additional funding with me I’d be happy to discuss it with King Liam and get back to you with a decision.”

The sharp whisky eyes widened at my request; those teeth finding the plush lower lip again. Fuck... I bet that lip is softer than her hands. Get a grip, you idiot! I forced my thoughts away from the woman in front of me and that lip as red as a Cordonian Ruby.

“I’d much rather discuss the proposal with King Liam in person,” she nodded, almost as if she was convincing herself on her argument.

“Well...” I sighed, moving back to the other side of the desk. “Unfortunately, King Liam is booked solid for the foreseeable future. He is planning his wedding while running a country.”

My grin didn’t quite reach my eyes as my mind moved to the pretty woman with chestnut curls and crystal blue eyes that my best friend was about to call his wife.

“Well...” she shifted awkwardly on her feet. “I don’t have my proposal with me currently... perhaps we could schedule a follow-up meeting?”

I turned to the laptop I had perched on the corner of Liam’s desk, clicking into my calendar app and saw that dinner time tomorrow was my only free slot for the rest of the week. My sigh was heavy as I turned back to the pretty woman in front of me.

“It seems that the only time I have available will be at 6pm tomorrow.”

Her pouty lips formed a shocked “o” shape as her whisky eyes widened at the short turn around time.

“I see...” her mouth twisted and her button nose scrunched as she considered the meeting offer.

“Drake!!” A new voice called out as the heavy door to the study swung open. “Drake, I finally got a hold of Ri-“

Maxwell careened into the study stopping mid-step in front of the tiny woman.

“Oh... I’m sorry...” his lips twitched into a large grin as he glanced between Cynthia and I. “I didn’t realize you had company...”

“Maxwell...” I groaned, rubbing my forehead as the pounding in my head returned. “It’s not company... Miss Valantez is here to meet with Liam.”

“Ooooohhhh...” Maxwell winked. “And with Li-“

His hand clamped over his mouth as I narrowed my eyes at him.

“I mean with Liam so busy right now... you’re meeting with her?”

“Yes, Maxwell,” I sighed as he bowed deeply in front of her.

“Please forgive my interruption, Miss Valantez,” his eyes twinkling as he took her hand and kissed the back of it. I had to suppress a growl as her cheeks pinked lightly at his actions. Where the fuck did that come from?

“No forgiveness is necessary, Mr Beaumont,” she simpered as he finally stood in front of her. “To answer your question, Mr Walker, tomorrow at 6pm would work well. Will this meeting be conducted over dinner or should I eat before I get here?”

Maxwell’s eyes shifted to me, that damned grin growing on his face.

“I will have the kitchen prepare something for us,” I nodded thoughtfully, standing and walking around the desk once more.

“Anything but red meat,” she smiled prettily, holding her hand out once more to me. My large hand engulfed hers. I could feel my cheeks heat at the thought of my rough, calloused fingers brushing her soft skin. “I will see you tomorrow.”

Those whisky eyes smiled at me as the tiny beautiful woman turned on her heel and quickly left the study.

“Well well well...” Maxwell grinned as he sat in the chair in front of Liam’s desk. “This is interesting...”

“Fuck off, Beaumont...” I muttered, sitting back behind the desk and pulling the next pile of paper towards me. “I’ve got shit to do.”

[farraan]

okay but lego elves, high school concert band au (because i need to self project onto these beautiful characters some more)

- emily plays trumpet or alto sax but she’s one of the quieter ones - azari is TENOR SAX YEAAAA BOI - naida plays bass clarinet but she’s one of the really good ones that make you go “holy shit so thats what the good ones sound like” and also plays piano - building off of that, rosalyn plays oboe and is one of those ones that just. is fantastic. u know what im talkin abt. the crazy good oboes. plus piano - farran plays the euphonium but also, the ukulele (which he likes to bring into class despite it not being a concert band instrument) - tidus is percussion and REALLY loves the gong (duh) but is also a fan of mallet instruments & the base drum - aira plays flute (what else?) but also plays violin outside of concert band - cronan plays the trombone but is one of those people that likes to pretend he’s not in band because he’s “too cool for that” - bonus: sophie wants to learn soprano sax

[whiparoundandcry]

Can I just say that I love you? I literally check your blog like ever half an hour bc it be summer (school starts in dose weeks nooo!!) and I have no social life in need to be entertained. also your writing is great i love you byes!

I LOVE U TOO,,, IM GLAD U LIKE THE DUMB LEGO BLOG I MADE ON A WHIM!! I’m so happy ive made this blog tbh everyones been so nice and Ive felt so welcomed ;v;

I’m sorry about school dude!!! yall already know my opinions on highschool bc ive projected p hardcore onto kai so if thats where ur heading good fuckin luck my dude 

[lazulii-rain]

don’t mind me, i’ve decided to start keeping a physical log of my experiences in life just to get them down and have a place to record the beautiful events transpiring. i doubt anyone will read these but me, but if you are reading this, sorry to drop you in the middle of my life lol. should have started at a more focused point. BUT ITS ALL TOO BEAUTIFUL AND JUST FOR ME ANYWAY

ill be totally writing a recap of everything since the moment we met and probably before, a chronicle of my life so i can go back because my memory suuuucks and i don’t want to lose a moment of this.  (BAE, Before Anyone Else. It’s very special to usss and i’m the first/only person my hunny has ever called that. i used to use it ironically but now only use it for my Bae. c: ) 

OKAY. 08/18/18...heh (oops forgot to post when i finished writing it. lol)  My love has a day off today; so I was excited to spend my day with him, but also aware of the fact I wouldn’t get a lot of what I had to finish completed. I design logos, t-shirts and tattoos, have a few projects on the go that I need to work on. But he is more important in my opinion. awoke really early to the annoying Luna (black tabby who belongs to my roommate) EATING PEACHY’S FOOD. (also roomates orange tabby, but not really his bc her previous abusive owner abandoned her and he complained about having her... So we kind of bonded. she used to be a super anxious kitty until attaching to my Bae and I.)  First time I got up and shooed her away, but that woke Bae up. and when I heard her back at it I whipped a wooden spoon at her from the bed, so that he was not disturbed. Gave up after that and drifted back to sleep because hunny flung his arm & leg over me, so I was trapped as heck and loving every second of it (tho my face was kinda buried so I couldn’t breathe lmaoooo)  When he woke up, we were both in funny sassy moods, I showered while he played guitar and drank his coffee, as I was waiting to go get one at Tim’s. We got chicken wraps because I was so hungry I literally couldn’t decide what to get, I wanted everything, so he chose for us loool. ♥ cutie. He managed to make a giant sploosh with his coffee all over one of the tie dye shirts I made him for his birthday, by squeezing the coffee too tight (He is clumsy yet capable of longboarding fullspeed holding a pizza and an open coffee.... lmao.. how does that work? :P) and he had a funny looking shirt for the day but it’s okay because he is adorable no matter what. There was also victims of his spill all over the floor and table, for losing a tiny bit of coffee it was an impressive blood bath. I had an iced coffee obviously because it was hot outside, he’ll get a hot coffee even in like 32C degree weather, because he’s satan like that looool. On the way to the bus stop I was concerned that there was a strange vibe and we both confirmed our desire for an authentic, respectful, loving adventurous life together, and my worry quickly faded. He put his arm around me and we vaped and drank our coffee, our bus came pretty instantly and we were off. Our friend wrote a very insightful and inspiring story about mediation and consciousness, but I had a few things I didn’t agree with/wanted to add onto, so I am in the process of writing out my review on it as he’d like to publish it.  Stop 1. Bae’s cellphone company store so he could re-activate his phone. He has such an old plan that it doesn’t exist anymore, but gives him a way better deal than what is offered currently, and it was grandfathered in on a loyalty plan so they can’t change it, but they can make it difficult to renew every month. lol. so he has to go in and call someone at the store to manually enter the plan specifications so he can activate. they put him on hold for ten minutes and we decided to just leave and stay on hold adventuring until we were answered. ANOTHER WHILE PASSES and they go off-hold, only to be like lol i’ll call u back in 20 minutes this is gonna be a process.... oh,. lmao. ok so.  Stop 2. The vape shoppp. Somehow Bae knew exactly where to go with no map from wherever we were, when I literally had no idea where we were until we rounded the corner and were basically there. HOW?! I’ve been there so many times and yet get lost so damn easily. I am directionally challenged af, but getting a lot better with it esp. in this city. lol. We didn’t need juice, but went to go see kev as he had given me an IOU and half off the juice on my mum’s death day, and I had forgotten my debit card!!!! >:( he was nice to me tho because apparently i always brighten their day with my vibezzzz and we are becoming closer friends and trust each otherr. very grateful. ALSO THAT DAY (aug 16) i went the wrong way from the shop, because i was disassociating all day, and when i finally found my way to a bus stop, took it the WRONG DIRECTION and ended up somewhere in the city i’ve never been, and because my bus pass was also not with me and i paid like 1.75(all i had) of the 3.75 fare, and asked him to give me a transfer because i needed to go the opposite direction, he tried to say i was scamming him or something NO BITCH I NEED TO GO HOME AND HAVE HAD A TERRIBLE DAY AND JUST WANT TO GET ON THE FRICKEN BUS HOME. I growled that it was my mom’s deathaversary and i am not from here because i moved a few months ago, and he was like “ok i’ll give u a break this once..” like wtf! ugh  it was a strange day but i made it. ANYWAY. back to today. We had some fun talks with kev about RDA’s, and a new mod box but they only rly carry kits which we didn’t want for Bae. So we paid the IOU and went on our way. En route to next stop, we saw the Shaw sign and walked along this BEAUTIFUL RIVER that I remember dearly from me and Bae’s first week/visit together in person (we met and fell in love online).... I was squealey and so excited, wanted to leap into the river but realized that it was totally nasty so decided to enjoy the walk instead, lol. We saw a cute duck folding its neck to put its head on its body. LMAO. Bae was like quackquackquacckkkkk. Quack attack. XD I mentioned that I really love this area and inquired if the MAGICAL SPIRAL STAIRCASE was near here; because I also remember running valiantly up that with intensity during our first week. He laughed and was like “Ya. we’re near it. It’s almost like I planned out this walk ;) “ HEHEHEHEHEHEHEE So we got to the staircase and as I went to leap up it as fast as I could, he STEPS IN FRONT OF ME and starts walking super slow. hahahahahaha. wtf. obvi trying to make me run up the broader edge as i adore running rly rly fast up the narrow loop of the spiral staircase, so i did and pretended i was an airplane, usually its a dragon but this time i was like nyoooom. lol.  so when we got to the top i was giggling my butt off and mentioned the plane thing, and hunny was like “or you know, an eagle riding an upcurrent” and i was like OMG MORE ACCURATE! he’s brilliant tho even for silly things like that. ♥ we walked thru south-asian fest to go to city hall for a bus pass, and when i saw Asian (I don’t know anything about geography ever) i was like OMG SUSHI BAE?!?!?!!?!?!?! and he was like hehe , no love, SOUTH asian fest. i looked around and was like oh, no sushi. :( but still cool music and culture! noted that this is some people’s whole adventure, and we are passing thru but still it’s only a tiny fragment of our adventure!  Stop 3: Took a quick stop to grab me a new bus pass only to find out it’s a government building and closed on the weekends. lmao. SMOOTH. but it’s fine because we actually saw these really cool sculptures inside of dragon-scale and tentacle-like patterns, aztec rock-like patterns, and one kinda plain one that had a cute dog on top. Kind of like square-ish uneven poles. very cool! ALSO  in one of the accessable rooms, there was a huge art exhibit that, at first glance, looked like a toddler went nuts with toy cars, cardboard, lego, paint and other childlike items, but upon close inspection we realized it was very in-depth metaphorical, substantial political and environmental statements. We laughed more, stayed longer, and took more pictures than I expected we would when first walking into that room.  Slyly sighed and giggled at each other as we watched other people walk into the room only to quickly circle the exhibit and leave, without actually investigating or considering the significance of the creations.  (MY COTTON IS BURNING AND I CHANGED IT LIKE 2 DAYS AGO...random)  i had to pee and saw the cutest little black girls observing themselves in the mirror with their beauuutiful dresses on, as they were attending a wedding happening in the area, and i complimented them on their outfits. The older of the two said thank you shyly, and when her younger (I presume sister) asked for clarification, not able to speak fluent english yet, the older girl explained in her language, and the little one beamed a smile and said “thank you!” WARMED MY DAMN HEART.  Bae & I went on our way to the next stop, while waiting for a stoplight to change, I looked over at some random building, gasped in awe, and whipped out my phone to take a picture, saying “I may be a resident of this city but i will always act like a tourist”. This man crossing the street conjunct to us saw my wonder at such a small event, smiled ear to ear, and looked back at the building I mentioned even though he has obviously lived here a long time. When I turned around, I saw a Beautiful Monument that had one word in English, “Dignity”, and one in French, “Egilate”. I said to Bae that I assume “Egilate” was French for dignity, but the same man who saw me and smiled about my passion turned around and said “it means Equality :) “ I was very thankful for his knowledge and obviously instilled some passion back in his heart with my excitement at the world around me. As my hunny always says, “stop and smell the roses.”   and we saw some beautiful apartments and i photographed the numbers so we could find out prices, as we intend to move into our own roommate-free place ASAP. Living with this guy isn’t exactly private or nest-like, or inducing of healing/aligning. We are working hard on that to be safe and in a place we can work on our dreams together. Including a loft, a place with nice balconies, and we saw an older place that was dingy at first glance but no, actually had MARBLE OUTSIDE WALLS. wow. musta been top notch back in the day. Stop 3: we went to the weed dispensary to get some pot for hunny, because although i miss toking intensely i can’t anymore but he’s still a proud stoner and i looooooove him for it. he ended up getting a quarter of 2 different indicas’ northern lights and grape god flower, as well as blue dream crumble for 25% off. grabbed a coil for his dab attachment for his vape as well which was on suprise 420 sale. it was like 4:28 and apparently after 4:20 every day something random goes on sale; no customer or employee knows what it is; its just a suprise if anyone gets it completely. and it happened to be the exact item my hunny needed to get. coincidence? ;)  we went to timmies a few times downtown, i cant exactly remember the order of when or why, but the first time, hunny bought me an iced coffee and a large icey water because i was desperately thirsty and needed liquid. the second time i grabbed him a coffee and myself another iced water cause i am apparently always thirsty. lmao. looked for torches for his dab rig so he can enjoy, we decided to go to canadian tire(but realized later on the bus that it was closed, thankfully before our stop for home, so we just went str8 home.) we went to freedom again and bae got his service back bc apparently the guy on the phone fixed it and never called backkk....... lol.  My Bae decided to take me to a bong shop, for “apparently no reason” Just to mess around and have fun....lol..... we got there and there were beautiful glass cabinets filled with showcased, amazing, meticulous handmade pieces. Pendants, pipes, bongs, all of it so beautiful.  He grabbed a one-hitter that glows under UV Light, slime design, and we went on our way after good chats with the very passionate shopworker.  We went to find a place for Bae to smoke some weed, and ran into a cute community garden with honeybees and carpenter bees stuffing their faces in flowers. As well as a group of finches playing and wiggling their butts in the dust. Very adorable, we took a video and then hunny chased them away haha.  Cool mural that appeared quite old, some hilarious facial expressions that I snagged close-ups of. When we got home, I made him a piece of the lasagna I cooked for his birthday, and made myself a cream-based pasta with onion because I was lasagna-d out. (it was like a 10 lb beast of a lasagna) I wanted to grab a few beers while I hung out, so hunny gave me 5 bucks to make sure I had enough for two. When I went out I realized I forgot my vape and surely it was safe at home, so dealt with not vaping on the trip. On my bus ride home, the ding for stop request appeared normal as I sat in the very back by the speakers, but out of nowhere it made the LOUDEST Most terrifying screech noise and I jumped/winced. Everyone looked at me and laughed a little in solidarity, I moved a few seats because sure enough it happened again, thank gosh I wasn’t right by it that time.  When I got home, my vape wasn’t anywhere that I thought it was. I freaked a little and started crying, didn’t even wanna hit Bae’s vape because it wasn’t my baby; this is when I realized how attached I was. He beelined to a spot under my clothes and found it in like .5 seconds, how, I have no idea. I was sooo grateful for his radiance and helpfulness as always. ♥ IT WAS A GREAT DAY.

[barbosaasouza]

Nintendo Labo: Genius or Insanity?

The French have a saying: Les extremes se touchent. It’s a way of saying that things so far out on either side of a spectrum might actually have some overlap. Some of the world’s brightest minds throughout history, for example, have had a touch of madness. Perhaps some of Nintendo’s designers have this trait too. Innovation requires unique thinking. Nintendo’s newest innovation, Labo, is a series of cardboard construction kits that interact with the Switch platform. And frankly, it feels so mad, that maybe it’s brilliant.

As Nintendo describes it, Labo “combines the magic of the Nintendo Switch system with the fun of DIY creations.” It draws on the appeal of building blocks like Lego as well as the Switch itself, which has already sold well over 14 million units worldwide. Nintendo will begin by selling a Variety Kit and a Robot Kit on April 20th, for $69.99 and $79.99, respectively.

Reactions to the Labo announcement a few months ago were, unsurprisingly, polarizing. Some took to social media to lavish praise on Nintendo for doing something truly creative, something that no other major company in the business would even dare to attempt. Others bemoaned the fact that Nintendo is charging people 80 bucks for pieces of pre-cut cardboard.

Nintendo’s product track record is certainly not flawless (Virtual Boy, Wii U anyone?) but if the house of Mario can legitimately sell cardboard pieces at those prices, it’s hard not to think of it as genius. The margins are going to be substantially better.

As Wedbush Securities' Michael Pachter explained, "The only costs are design (R&D) and marketing. My guess is that R&D is very low, but marketing is around the same as for any other games. So the difference in profits is the difference in R&D spending. That is likely $50 - $80 million total. If they sell 10 million Labo [units], the profit per unit will be $5 - $8 higher than a conventional game."

The announcement and pending launch also serve to fill a marketing gap for the Switch, which is coming off the stupendous release of Super Mario Odyssey last holiday but doesn’t have any major first-party titles on the immediate horizon.

“Labo is a great and novel product that fits well with Nintendo's history and its penchant for coming up with cool accessories,” Joost van Dreunen, CEO of SuperData Research told me. “Its key value currently is to boost the marketing effort for the Switch. Releasing the Labo footage unexpectedly bought Nintendo a lot of traction on social media, which is clearly a critical component to its overall marketing strategy. By continuing to feed its fanbase, Nintendo keeps its core offering top of mind.”

That said, the analyst was unsure “whether people will buy it en masse and whether it will have a life-cycle beyond a few weeks of novelty before it ends up on a shelf much less relevant.”

Predictions aside, Nintendo Labo is already a hit with one important crowd: creatives. The bulk of the developers I spoke to about the cardboard kits expressed genuine enthusiasm.

“There's something about building the toys you play with that I'm sure will reach a broad audience,” said Jean-François Major, co-founder at Tribute Games, which has released the Contra-like 2D action title Mercenary Kings Reloaded on Switch and other platforms.

“With games like Minecraft, we've proven people are open to non traditional and linear experiences. However, the Labo games will need to be as creative as the cardboard construction.”

Klaus Lyngeled, CEO of Zoink, which just released the platformer Fe, is equally enthused.

“I think it’s an amazingly creative idea,” he said. “I personally really love games that also are toys. A few years back we developed a plush toy for the Wii called WeeWaa. It was a real passion project for me. My kids were quite young then and both played a lot of games and with their plush toys, so I created this cute little character that could eat the Wiimote, and when you moved WeeWaa he would react accordingly on screen. 

“As we designed the game we explored lots of ways to use the accelerometer and IR camera and I can really see how Labo is being very creative with all these features.”

Mike Wilson, co-founder of both Devolver Digital and Good Shepherd, has gotten to know a wide array of developers over the years, and he knows creativity when he sees it.

“I’m pretty sure my response was the same as everyone else’s, which at first was like ‘WTF is this a joke?’ and then soon moved to ‘Wow this is crazy and kind of cool.’ As someone that works with a lot of developers, I don’t think the potential of Labo has even sunk[en] in,” he commented. “... I could see the younger end of Switch players really embracing it. I love it when Nintendo does weird stuff!”

Nintendo, of course, has always had youth in mind when developing its games. That family-friendly image extends to Labo, as well. It’s something that’s targeted at kids, yes, but importantly it’s an activity that can be enjoyed jointly with parents. Anecdotally speaking, my wife does not play games, but as a woman who’s very artistic and crafty, she’s already cut and assembled things for our two toddlers using Amazon boxes. Who’s to say that’s not an untapped audience for Nintendo?

“Since I have kids, I'm already planning on buying some of the Labo things,” John Comes, CTO of indie publisher tinyBuild Games told me. “As someone who was also a mechanical engineer at one time, the entire concept is right up my alley.”

Jeremy Dunham, VP of Publishing at Rocket League developer Psyonix is planning to purchase Labo as well. “I plan on buying Labo for my kids when it's released to see what they think. I'm really excited to see what kind of ideas this kit will spark and how different (or similar) those ideas are to other building sets,” he remarked.

There’s something especially gratifying about learning to build things. You take a certain pride in what you’ve constructed. When I was a boy in 1986, I used to play endlessly with a mechanized, battery-powered construction kit called Robotix. Had I been told that I could hook up my Robotix creations to my Nintendo Entertainment System to control Mario’s jump or Simon Belmont’s whip, I think I would have been ecstatic. Nintendo may be onto something special with Labo.

I feel like this is the first gaming platform that can bridge the gap between 'games' and 'educational games'.

“My son already has an engineering mind, so the STEM learning opportunities will be huge,” Comes said. “I feel like this is the first gaming platform that can bridge the gap between 'games' and 'educational games'. There's such a divide there when you weigh teachings vs. fun gameplay.“

Dunham, too, is optimistic about the educational aspect, but he cautioned that Nintendo must remain open to broad possibilities with Labo.

“If you're only ever relegated to a few recurring designs, or add-on packs are hard to find, or any other number of challenges, it could be limiting,” he said. “I think of toys like Lego and love their concept of giving you blueprints, but still giving you the freedom to make whatever you want. If Nintendo Labo maintains that kind of flexibility, the potential is very, very high. The real trick is making sure that the cardboard itself is the only rigid thing about it.”

I also imagine that a community of Labo hackers will form and we might see some much more innovative designs floating around the internet.

Major added, “Labo is a great opportunity to see what makes something tick… it [could]l be a great parent/kid weekend project. A Labo kit could replace building a birdhouse.”

Lyngeled took it even one step further, suggesting that Labo has genuine classroom potential: “I could see that the Swedish educational system might pick this up and start using it in class -- especially if you can start programming your own toys, which it seems like Nintendo are hinting at in the trailer. I also imagine that a community of Labo hackers will form and we might see some much more innovative designs floating around the internet."

But what about the selection of cardboard as Labo’s building material? Surely, Nintendo has made a mistake by not using plastic? Time will tell how durable these kits can be, but Nintendo explained the reasoning behind its decision in a recent investor Q&A.

Shinya Takahashi, Nintendo Director and Managing Executive Officer, remarked, "I'm sure we surprised everyone with the use of cardboard, but it's not so far-fetched if you consider how familiar the material is, at least to Japanese people who, from a young age, use it for play and as a material for creating things such as fancy crafts.”

Tokyo-based veteran games journalist Justin Leeper can attest to how ingrained the papercraft hobby is with Japan’s youth. His mind immediately turned to Origami upon watching the Labo announcement trailer.

“While a mere novelty in the West - ‘Aunt Carol can make paper cranes’ - origami is a long-standing and beloved art here in Japan. Building is much more than a niche portion of Japanese toys as well,” he told me. “Go to any toy store in Tokyo, and you’ll see beautiful dioramas you can buy and build from scenes out of Studio Ghibli movies, for example, or metal sheets that somehow turn into abstract TIE Fighters. Then there’s Gundam models, train sets, Lego... all based on building.”

He continued, “The Japanese are also big on packaging. A gift isn’t a gift unless its box is put in another cardboard box that’s placed in a decorative bag and wrapped with a few hundred yards of ribbon."

"Cardboard is called ‘danboru’, a word whose origins I’ve never known despite being written in the character set for foreign-to-Japan words. There’s a relatively popular manga character, Danbo, who’s a cardboard robot from the series Yotsuba&. If anything, it shows the acceptance of cardboard in Japan’s pop-culture consciousness.”

For his part, Comes isn’t concerned about Labo’s cardboard pieces. Should a piece wear out, there’s an obvious fix, he said:

“I personally feel like cardboard was the perfect material to use. It's very approachable. I'm not worried about it getting damaged. I mean, it's cardboard. If it breaks, take the last Amazon box you got and cut out the same piece.”

Along with the worries about cardboard longevity, there’s still the very legitimate issue of price sensitivity. Nintendo will have to convince parents that the value that Labo brings justifies the expenditure. Dunham, however, has seen much worse in the hobby industry.

There appears to be a bit of a stigma associated with the cardboard so far, which is understandable, but kids and their parents will tell Nintendo really quickly if the quality and replayability is worth the price once it's out.

“As a parent of two kids myself, I can tell you that most crafting/building/exploration kits are typically a bit more expensive than you'd expect,” he offered. “There appears to be a bit of a stigma associated with the cardboard so far, which is understandable, but kids and their parents will tell Nintendo really quickly if the quality and replayability is worth the price once it's out. “Given that a lot of smart-device-controlled robots are typically in the range of $100 or more, though, I can see the argument that the ability to build the toy first would make the price worth it for some.”

Regardless of how well Labo performs on the market, Nintendo deserves credit for trying something this bold. And let’s say that it does take off, would the one-time playing cards company begin to partner up with outside developers to make unique kits for their games? Nintendo has shown an increasing willingness to work with third parties and especially indies on Switch, but extending Labo feels unlikely, even if it does get developers’ creative juices flowing.

“That would be fantastic [if they did],” exclaimed Comes. “I have a mechanical engineering degree and I've made games for 17 years. So building my own Labo thing would be a great combination of my two life loves. I'd spend hours tinkering with building them.”

Dunham liked this idea as well: “A Rocket League kit would be really neat to see on store shelves, but I imagine that Nintendo wants to see how its initial experiment works out first before opening the floodgates. If it is a success, though, and kids start asking for themed sets based on their favorite properties, Nintendo has shown in the past (in games like Smash Bros. and even our own to a lesser extent) that they have no problem finding ways to make that happen.”

Major went so far as to call Labo “an indie’s dream” and Tribute would love to see Nintendo reach out to indies for more ideas. “A lot of innovation comes from smaller studios. It would probably be a great idea to tap into other studios’ creative minds as long as Nintendo maintains a certain level of quality control,” he said.

Clearly, the developer community is fired up, but from a business standpoint, getting indies involved in Labo would still involve clearing some major hurdles.

“[It] would be amazing [to work on Labo], but unfortunately I don’t think it will happen. I don’t think Nintendo will fund an indie developer to make a game for Labo as it’s too niche,” Lyngeled said. “And funding on our own is too big a risk. We survive because we can sell digitally. Distributing a Labo kit on our own [would be] very complicated. We never managed to get the [WeeWaa] plush out on the market because of distributing.

“One solution could be that people build a construction [kit] out of household materials and their own cardboard. That could be a fun way to make an indie Labo game. Let’s see how well [these] Nintendo kits sell before diving into this.”

April 20 should be an interesting day for Nintendo. It could be utterly inconsequential or it could mark the beginning of a new long-term franchise. “Given how beloved Nintendo is and how much weight their name carries, I think [Labo] will do very well at launch,” Dunham said.

This article is a preview of Greenlit Content's upcoming industry site, launching soon.

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