#and then um... they didn't really put a proper end to the whole thing which bothers me a bit cause GUYS. sit tf down and talk omg

[koumeowkami]

stumbles out of the 2wink climax event covered in blood (and tears)

[lousypotatoes]

The Sun's In My Heart

Warning! This post contains murder, mentions of sex, and lots of cussing. If any of these make you uncomfy, please read with caution.

Song Recommendation:

you should see me in a crown - Billie Eilish

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10

Part 11

"Hey Vaggie?"

"What do you want?" Vaggie said.

"Do you and Charlie have a second?" she asked. "Me and Alastor made something that we think could help get more guests for the hotel."

"What exactly did you and Alastor make?" Vaggie asked, eyeing Y/N suspiciously.

"Find Charlie and find out," she giggled, walking away. "We'll be downstairs."

"They'll be here in a minute," she said as she walked down the stairs.

"Ah wonderful!" Alastor said. "Thank you for telling them, dear."

"It's nothing to thank me over," she waved off, walking over to stand next to Alastor. "But you're welcome."

"Alright," Angel Dust said from the couch. "What's the deal with you two? You fuckin' or what?"

Alastor didn't say anything, but Y/N saw that his eye started to twitch, his smile becoming more forced.

"It's nothing like that Angel," she awkwardly laughed. "We were just really close when we were alive,"

"You're not doin' a good job of convincin' me, toots."

"Oh my Satan, how many times do I have to explain it to you?"

"This will be the last time, dear," Alastor said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Unless our friend wants to hear his screams broadcasted to all of Hell."

Before Angel Dust could reply, Charlie came downstairs, dragging Vaggie by her hand.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so excited to see what you guys made!" she gushed, sitting on the couch. "Thank you guys so much for taking the time to make whatever it is,"

"You don't have to thank us, Charlie," Y/N said. "Besides, it was Alastor's idea to make the whole thing."

"Yes, but you also had part in making it," Alastor said.

"Can we just watch whatever it is now?" Vaggie asked, annoyed.

"Oh, right," Y/N said sheepishly, turning on the TV.

"So, what'd ya think?" Alastor said, turning off the TV after the commercial ended.

For a moment, Charlie and Vaggie didn't say anything, they just had looks of confusion and shock on both their faces.

"I'm sorry, what the fuck was that?" Vaggie said angrily.

"Hey, we worked hard on puttin' that together!" Y/N said, putting her hands on her hips.

"It's good," Charlie said, a fake smile on her face. "Alastor, Y/N-I mean," Charlie couldn't find the words to say.

"Do you not like it?" Y/N asked.

"No! No!" Charlie exclaimed, waving her arms around. "It's amazing! Thank you both so much for making it, but um..maybe the tone is a bit off?"

Neither Alastor or Y/N said anything. Vaggie continued to glare at both of them angrily.

"We want people to want to come here," Charlie continued. "This makes it look...umm-"

"Bad," Vaggie interrupted. "The word you're looking for is bad."

"We made it like that 'cause we thought it was funny," Y/N said, glaring at Vaggie.

"Hilarious is a better term for it, my dear," Alastor said, tilting his head.

"It didn't explain anything about how we're trying to save demons from extermination, which is the whole fucking point!"

"The commercial explained all of that," Y/N said.

"It didn't explain any of it!" Vaggie said angrily, crossing her arms.

"Vaggie is right," Charlie said. "The commercial was to let Sinners know we are trying to help them."

"Well, my dear," Alastor said, running his fingers across his cane. "I haven't been active in Hell for some time, and everyone remembers me from my radio show. The proper medium to express oneself! But you insisted on this noisy picture box advertisement, so we had a little fun with it." he finished, smirking.

"Oh, fun. You had a little fun with it?" Vaggie said, standing up. "Well, this is not what we want representing us."

"You said you wanted help," Y/N said, a small frown on her face. "This is us tryin' to help."

"Well then try harder," Vaggie said. "When you two showed up, both of you said you would help run the hotel, instead you're mocking us! Nobody's going to want to come to a place where two powerful Overlords think is a big waste of time!" she finished, sitting back down, scowling.

"Just be grateful we're actually trying to help," Y/N said as calmly as she could, taking a seat next to Angel. "You know what people think of this place. They all think it's the most stupidest idea ever. At least you have people like me and Al wantin' to help."

Before Vaggie could respond, Angel raised his gloved hand from the couch.

Vaggie turned her attention to him, "What?"

"If'n ya filmin' a commercial, can I suggest you take better advantage of the talented celebrity you have right here?" he said, all four of his hands pointing to himself.

"Angel, you're a porn star."

"A famous porn star," he corrected her, putting his legs on Y/N's lap. "I'll have the horniest sinners knockin' down these walls to get in."

"We are not filming a porn as a commercial." Vaggie said. Charlie just looked concerned.

"Why not?" Angel asked. "Sex sells, don't it? I swear, you film a threesome with mister fancy talk creepy voice and miss dommy mommy vibes and me, you'd be rollin' in participates willin' to stay at this tacky hotel."

Blushing, Y/N immediately pushed his legs off her.

"Gross, Angel,"

"Haha! Never going to happen!"

"Angel," Charlie began, smiling awkwardly. "I appreciate you wanting to use your special skills to, um, attract folks to the hotel, but- I don't want to exploit you in that way!"

"Oh, please, baby," Angel waved off. "This body was made to be exploited. I got the arms, I got stamina, I got the legs, I got the lung capacity-"

Y/N walked over to Alastor as Angel continued to talk about his body.

"Told you she wouldn't like the commercial," she muttered as Charlie's phone began to ring.

"All that matters is that it's entertaining, dear." he said. "Everybody likes a good laugh, don't you think?"

"Hey, I have a question," Angel said, interrupting Y/N and Alastor. "Why can't you just make people stay here babycakes? Since you're so powerful and all."

"I can," Y/N said, her eyes glowing red for a split second. "I just don't feel like doin' it."

Vaggie scoffed.

"What about you freaky face?" Angel asked

"Oh, trust me, I can!" Alastor said ominously, his antlers beginning to grow.

"Why do you think I'm here?" Husk called from the bar.

Everyone turned to look at him.

"You actually think I'd be cleaning bottles and listening to you fuck's bitch and moan all the time if he wasn't forcin' me?" he said as he cleaned a bottle.

"I like being forced," Nifty said, popping up from behind the bar.

"Keep that to yourself, Niff,"

"What, you don't love being here with me, Whiskers?" Angel teased.

"Call me Whiskers again and I'll jam that bottle down your throat!" Husk threatened.

"Kinky. Come one keep talkin' dirty."

"Angel, let Husk do his job," Vaggie sighed. "And no, we can't force sinners to stay here. They need to choose to."

"I'm choosing to be here, and I think it's all stupid." he said. "We're in Hell, toots. That's kind of the end of the road, ain't it?"

"Well maybe it doesn't have to be."

"Nobody's made it out Vaggie," Y/N pointed out. "How do we know getting redeemed is even possible?"

"We just have to try," Vaggie said. "It doesn't mean it's not possible."

"Hey," Angel said, putting his hand on Vaggie's shoulder. "Whatever means I can keep crashin' here rent free. Crack is expensive."

"I've been meanin' to ask, Al," Y/N said quietly. "Are you here to get redeemed?"

"Heavens no!" Alastor chuckled. "I'm simply here for entertainment!"

"Explain more, please," Y/N said.

"I came here because I love seeing wasteful souls struggle to accomplish something meaningful and fail spectacularly!" he exclaimed. "Isn't that why you came here?"

"A little bit yes, but-"

Before Y/N could finish, she heard Vaggie and Charlie.

"But-But the extermination just happened. What could they want this soon after-"

Charlie cut off Vaggie "This is the perfect opportunity, Vaggie," she smiled. "I could get Heaven on board with my plan."

"Charlie hold on-"

Charlie ignored Vaggie. "There's no way I can mess this up!" she said, pacing all around the room. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity!"

"It's just a meeting," Vaggie groaned.

"When I speak to them, I'm going to change their minds and touch their hearts, or whatever angels have, actually."

"This could be bad," Vaggie said.

"Vaggie, it's gonna be alright!" Charlie said, taking Vaggie's hands and spinning around. "Something tells me that today will be a happy day in Hell!"

And with that, Charlie bolted out the door.

Everyone but Husk and Vaggie crowded around the door.

"She's halfway down the street," Y/N called out, giggling.

"Is she-?" Vaggie started

"Oh, she's dancin'," Angel finished, taking a drink of his booze.

"Ugh, no!" Vaggie groaned.

Y/N was currently sitting in her room, going through paperwork of all the demons she killed. Something about seeing the number of lives she took away really boosted up her ego.

Going through the paperwork, she remembered the conversation she had with that woman on the phone before Alastor came in and brought up the idea for the commercial.

Remembering it, her eyes glowed a dangerous red. She was going to hunt down this woman, and she was going to do it now.

She opened her bedroom door and strode out, giving out a dangerous energy that even Angel and Vaggie knew not to mess with.

"I'll be back soon, Vaggie," she said, knowing that Vaggie wanted to ask. "I have some business to take care of, I shouldn't be gone long."

"What kind of business, hm?" Alastor suddenly asked, startling her. "You seem to be in a rush."

"It's something that I want done and I want it done right now." She said. Alastor saw the dangerous glint and his grin grew wider. "You're welcome to join me. Or not, I don't care."

Wanting to see Y/N in action, Alastor nodded eagerly. "Alright then,"

Y/N smirked. "I suggest you find another to keep up with me,then," she said in a way that caused Alastor to get goosebumps. "'Cause I'm not walkin' to my destination."

With that she walked out the door and unfurled her wings. Alastor was amazed on how big her wings actually were. He wanted to touch them.

"Y'know, it's quite rude to stare."

Alastor blushed, not knowing that Y/N saw him staring.

"My apologies, Y/N," he said, his eye twitching in embarrassment. "I'll meet you at our destination,"

"How do you know where I'm goin?"

"I have my ways."

Y/N grinned. She liked this side of Alastor, and she liked it a lot. She wanted to see this side of Alastor more often.

"Good luck keepin' up,"

As soon as she finished her sentence, she shot up into the air, flying gracefully. Alastor had never seen anything like this before, she was so beautiful and graceful, just like she was when she was alive. But something about seeing shoot up in the sky like that made something stir in his heart that he hadn't felt in a long time. He smiled genuinely, then melted into the shadows, following Y/N as best as he could.

As Y/N flew over Pentagram city, she tried to smell out and hear that bitch as best as she could. She had never done this before but decided that she wasn't going back to the hotel until that woman's head was off her body.

Flying past The Vee's Tower, she finally found her target. She didn't know how, but she just knew that it was her. The woman was walking out of the tower, a coffee in her hand and texting on her phone.

Swooping down, Y/N grabbed the woman and flung her into the wall of a nearby alleyway. As soon as Y/N landed on the ground, Alastor materialized out of the shadows, his grin wider than ever.

The woman's eyes were closed "WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU A-?" she screamed, but as soon as she saw Y/N and Alastor in front of her she stopped talking.

"Is this the business you had to take care of?" Alastor asked, leaning on his cane.

"Unfortunately, yes," she said, not taking her eyes off the woman.

"I'm assuming this is has to deal with the services you offer?"

"No, she just really fuckin' annoyed me," Y/N said. Her eyes glowing red, she walked over the woman. "No wonder you're so stupid. You work for the Vee's don't you?"

"If you kill me," the woman said meekly. "They'll come after you."

Y/N laughed. "They won't do anything," she grabbed the woman up by her throat. Alastor was watching intently. "You think I'm scared of the Vees? Sweetie, it's the other around."

One of the woman's arms ripped off. The woman screamed in pain.

"This is what happens when you piss me off, do you understand?"

The woman nodded, tears streaming down her face.

"I don't think you do," Y/N said

She summoned an angelic knife and pushed it straight through the womans throat. The woman gurgled but died quickly.

Alastor stared at Y/N with wide eyes. He had never seen anything more attractive.

"Did you enjoy watchin'" Y/N asked cockily.

"Immensely, my dear," Alastor breathed out. "I wish I would of saw you like that when we were alive.

Y/N giggled "So do I. Now we should head back to the Hotel," she said, dusting off her pants. "I'd hate to attract an audience."

Back at the Hotel, everyone was sitting on the couch, Vaggie pacing in front of them.

"Okay, so Charlie is dealing with something very important, so while she's gone, we are making a new commercial." Vaggie said. "One that represents her vision and what we're doing here. Alastor, we need a camera."

Alastor snapped his fingers and a camera from back when Y/N was alive popped up in Vaggie's hand.

"A video camera," Vaggie said.

Alastor hummed in dissaproval, but snapped again. The old camera disappeared and a modern video camera popped up in Vaggie's hand.

"All right! Let's do this!" Vaggie said, pumping her fist into the air.

"And....action!"

Y/N watched as Vaggie recorded a scene of Husk and Angel at the bar.

"Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel," Husk said, the script in front of his face. "Can I help you with anything?"

"I've been a bad boy," Angel said suggestively, climbing onto the bar. "And I need a big strong daddy to put me in my place...on the path to redemption!"

Seeing Husk's face made Y/N feel bad for the cat but also giggle.

Husk rolled his eyes and groaned. "Well, you come-"

"Oh yes!" Angel interrupted.

"-to the right place."

"Cut!" Vaggie cried out. "Okay Angel, I need you to be less horny, if possible. And Husk, could you maybe not have the script in front of your face?"

"I ain't no actor! I can't memorize this shit!" Husk said, throwing the paper on the bar.

"We could improve this shit, babycakes," Angel purred. "Rawrr~"

Husk pushed Angel off the bar. "Whoops,"

Vaggie sighed. "Husk, come on!"

Y/N went back upstairs, killing that woman made her tired and she wanted to take a tiny nap.

"Not going to watch them down there?"

Y/N jumped and saw Alastor standing in front of her.

"Jesus Christ, Alastor, what is it with and scarin' me all the damn time?"

Alastor chuckled. "I can't help it, my dear. "You're too easy to scare."

Y/N scoffed and continued to walk to her room. Alastor followed her.

"I'm way too tired to argue with you right now,"

"Maybe you should get some rest then, dear,"

"I was on my way too when you scared me,"

"Am I annoying you?" Alastor asked, still following her.

"A little bit, yes," Y/N mumbled, as they reached her room. "I know Vaggie wants me to film a part, so could you maybe wake me up?"

"If you need me too, then of course,"

"Thank you Al," she smiled genuinely. "And thanks for comin' with me earlier. Usually, I like doin' stuff like that by myself, but you added somethin' nice to it."

"If anything, I should be thanking you," he said. "You put on quite the show for me today. I applaud you. I'll leave you to rest now."

Alastor melted into the shadows, leaving Y/N flustered and grinning cheesily. He was just like how he was on Earth, despite the psychopath tendencies, she liked that part of him too. She went into her bedroom and flopped onto her bed, sighing happily, her dead heart beating rapidly in her chest.

Y/N woke up from her nap to a knock on her door.

"Come in," she said, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

The door opened and Alastor stepped in the room. He smiled genuinely when he saw Y/N in her sleepy form.

"Vaggie wants you downstairs," Alastor said quietly, an amused smile coming to his face.

"I'll be down there in a minute," Y/N said groggily. "Thanks for wakin me up, Al,"

"You don't have to thank me," Alastor waved off before heading out the door. "I'm glad you slept well, my dear."

After he left, Y/N got out of bed and straightened out her outfit and her hair before heading downstairs. When she got down there, she saw that the whole downstairs area looked like a set from a movie. There were lights and cameras everywhere, and everyone besides Alastor was dressed in outfits from the time you and Alastor were alive.

Y/N was impressed.

"Alright everyone!" Vaggie said as soon as she saw Y/N. "Let's make a fucking commercial.

After all of them were done filming for the commercial, they sat around or on the couch, waiting for Charlie to come back, and for the commercial to air.

Y/N heard Charlie come in through the front door. Vaggie heard it to, getting up to greet her.

"Charlie!" Vaggie said, hugging her. "How did it go? Did they listen?"

"Oh, uh...They sure did..hear it! But um-" Charlie said.

"Oh! Come here!" Vaggie exclaimed, pulling Charlie towards the couch. "We have something exciting to show you!"

"Alastor and Y/N pulled some strings and it's about to air," Vaggie said as her and Charlie.

"We pulled a few limbs too," Y/N giggled.

"Wait? The commercial?" Charlie said, confused. "You all made a new one?"

"Yeah, one of my better performances, if I do say so myself," Angel said, grinning.

"That's...amazing," Charlie said, her eyes sparkling.

"Shh! It's starting!" Angel shushed.

"Welcome to the Hazbin Hot-" Vaggie said on the TV before the signal got interrupted.

"Oh, what the fuck?" Y/N said in anger. Everyone reacted the same way she did.

A news broadcast came on.

"Breaking news in Hell today!" Katie Killjoy said on the TV. "We have just received word from the Heaven Embassy that the next extermination is happening sooner than ever before."

Hearing those words, Y/N's eyes widened in shock and fear.

"Do you know what that means Tom?"

"No, what does that mean, Katie?" Tom Trench asked.

"It means we're all royally fucked!" she answered, her neck snapping.

The camera cut to the Extermination Day timer, the numbers going down from 358 to 176.

"Wait...what? Why!?" Angel exclaimed.

Everyone in the room besides Nifty had looks of shock and confusion on their faces. Even Alastor didn't have his usual grin on his face.

"We are so fucked," Y/N muttered

sorry it took me so long to upload, i've been really busy lol

angel dust and husker are my spirit animals

stay safe and drink lots of water <33

xoxo, Izzy

Taglist 💋

@maksdust @trippoverrt @slytherin4ever @lucifers-silhouette @a-small-tyrant @leviwife1 @mo-0-o @cutiebimbo

[angelbitezzz]

Now where in the hell did she go?

Prev - Next - First

(more pictures and writing under the cut)

God damn it. Sans had one job—keep an eye on the human, make sure she rested, keep her out of trouble. Now, as he stared dumbfoundedly down at the obviously empty couch on the first floor, he only had one real thought come floating through his fatigued skull.

"i'm gonna kill that girl."

He threw his soiled jacket somewhere in the corner of his room and snatched his hoodie from where it was hung next to his door, slipping it on as he shoved socked feet into slippers, descending the stairs so quickly he may as well have teleported. Far be it from him to ever move that fast on purpose—apparently, that was another thing she was able to do to him without him knowing, damn it all. Frustration simmered at the back of his throat, but even he knew that the feeling was covering a darker, more icy fear that clutched at the inside of his ribcage and froze into a heavy thing somewhere next to his SOUL. She needed to rest. She needed to stay out of sight for now until they figured things out with her magic. She needed to stay safe, fuck, and even just thinking that sent an uncomfortable rattle up along his spine. He didn't bother opening the front door, he jolted through space and found himself outside a few feet away.

"think, sans, think. where would she—"

His pupils settled on the ground. Blue grass and sand mixed together to create an uneven path leading through the village proper. The isles were on the night cycle now—which, didn't look different, but having something of a curfew helped with the constant feeling of nighttime—so nobody was around save for some real night owl types. Sans had excellent night vision, picking out the disturbed sand leading through the village and far to the left, back towards the entrance. He took a step and jittered to the far end, focused on the footprints leading up, until the grass and sand gave away to stone, ascending on a gentle incline that only grew steeper until it led to a cliff overlooking a majority of the Starlight Isles and surrounding territories.

His steps slowed as a silhouette came into view near the edge, an ambient warm breeze tugging the cape pulled around their shoulders. Briefly, he thought he'd stumbled across Count Koffin K doing something...but when they raised their head to gaze upward, he realized he'd found his target.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and resisted the urge to stomp his way up the cliff to her side.

"and what the hell do you think you're doing?"

Angel startled a little, jerking around halfway and flinching. Burning purple eyes met his own, wide and alarmed.

For a second, he felt like they fit right in with the "stars" in their sky.

"Oh! Oh. Sans. Hey."

"answer the question, human."

"Right. Um." Her gaze trailed away, back over the edge of the cliff. "Well don't worry, I didn't fuck off to, uh...y'know. Yeah. Ye—yeah. I'm just, just..."

He didn't speak, recognizing by the tone of her voice that she was struggling to get her thoughts out. She got scrambled like that sometimes—it reminded him of Alphys...when she wasn't putting on a whole fake persona, anyways.

"...Processing. Mhm."

"your near death experience or your magic?"

"Can it be both?"

He inclined his head and slowly stepped forward, moving to stand beside her. There was a very long pause before he spoke.

"well, uh, anyways. asgore said you gotta rest. my brother'll have a conniption if he finds out you're out here."

"Right. Sorry. I just...really needed to get some air. Please."

Frustration boiled behind his teeth, but he sucked back the smoke and smiled anyways. When she glanced at him, whatever she saw in his expression made her grimace and look away again.

"Don't look at me like that. I'm not dying."

"you nearly did." The lights in his eyesockets extinguished, smile thinning until it was nearly a frown. "like, 6 hours ago. unless you forgot. i mean...wouldn't really be surprised, ya did hit your head pretty hard during your little stunt."

"God, Sans, can you just—not? For once?"

"i dunno what you mean."

She whirled on him, a desperate sort of anger flashing onto her features.

"You know exactly what I mean! Don't kick me while I'm down. I—"

"i'm trying to get you back in bed before anyone sees you, but hey, if you wanna keep acting like a babybones, be my guest."

"I'm NOT—" Angel cut herself off and shut her eyes, drawing Sans's cape around her shoulders tighter and covering her face with a hand. "Not...fuck. Fuck. Sans. I–I don't need you to act like my parent. Be all weird and protective over your brother, but don't...let's not pretend. Don't do the same with me cuz you think you have to. It hurts."

He didn't know what to say, for once. There was a quiet swallowing sound while he searched for something, anything to respond to that. Seconds dragged into minutes before she spoke again.

"...I'm gonna die down here."

"hey, you just said you're not—"

"No, Sans." She interrupted, insistent, voice pitching high and broken. "I'm gonna die down here. This place, it's driving me fucking mental. I don't. I don't know what to do."

Her hand slipped away again, a frightened, tight little grin stretching across her face as she looked at him. It looked like it hurt.

"The sun. I miss the sun. I feel like I've been stuck in a damn time loop where it's always night time and I do the same damn shit every day! Yesterday was the first time in weeks that I felt like something new happened and I completely fucked it. I've been having so much fun here that I forgot that—I forgot. I forgot!" She began to laugh, gesturing to her body frantically, trying to get a point across. "I forgot!"

Sans listened to her speak with an increasing feeling of worry, frustration melting into concern the longer she went on.

"kid—" He started, but she cut him off again, her laughter ceasing as quickly as it had come, turning her body away.

"Don't. Please don't. I don't think I could stand if it you started with the pity train."

"wasn't the pity train, was more like the empathy express."

His weak attempt at humor did bring a smaller, more genuine twitch of her mouth than whatever fake grin she'd been trying to keep up. How had she ever managed to fool him before? In hindsight, it was obvious now, all the times she'd been pretending at joy.

Ah, but then, she was the perseverant kind of person. Maybe she was just...used to that.

He didn't want to know why.

"i was just gonna say...you're not alone."

He reached out and set a hand on her shoulder, struggling to find the words. Sun sickness had been a lot more prevalent back during the aftermath of the war—he had no experience dealing with it directly.

"it ain't so bad. you're still here. people down here like you."

"...Do you even like me?"

"huh?"

Angel turned her head just a little, enough to catch his gaze with her own. She looked exhausted, the warm breeze threatening to spill the tears welling up in her eyes.

"I pay attention, you know. You—god, Sans, you only tolerate me cuz I'm friends with Papyrus, right? Sometimes I feel like we get along great, and then something happens and you just...act off. Am I that much of a burden to you? Should I just leave?"

His thoughts flashed back to the day before. The panic that had thrummed through his body at the mere thought of losing her, that same panic that had brought him out here looking for her in the first place.

"i..." He hesitated. "...think it's been a long day, angel. you're tired and homesick and still coming down from the adrenaline high from earlier. you'll feel better in the morning."

Angel just gazed at him for a long, long moment. Those purple eyes searching for something in his expression before they went lax, her face flattening.

"...You're right. You're right. I'm just..." A lump in her throat. The tears began streaking down her face, dripping off her chin. "...so tired."

"hey." His voice was soft now, softer than she'd heard it before. "...i get the feeling, bud."

Her shoulders shaking, she raised a hand and slipped it over the one he had on her shoulder just for some measure of comfort, head ducking and turning away as she quietly hiccuped. He let her hold him there, warm fingers on chilled bones as she anchored herself again in the present.

It was a good long while before she let him take her home.

...

"Hey, Sans...?"

"mhm?"

"I forgot my glasses. You're gonna have to lead me back."

[noblest-roman-of-them-all]

A Thoughtful Gift

Roman tapped lightly on Remus’s door then didn't wait for an answer before entering, present first. "Here," he said and tossed the box to his twin.

"Ooh!" Remus nearly squealed with delight. "Second Christmas!" He didn't even bother waiting for Roman to find a place to sit before tearing into the box that seemed to wrapped in damp newspaper. Roman ended up sitting beside his twin on the bed, watching with a faint smile as Remus fought with the box he'd tapped all the way around.

"I wasn't sure which one I wanted to give you, but after the whole air fryer thing, I thought you might like the slime to experiment with," Roman explained when Remus popped open the box with a gasp and quickly pulled out two of the slime jars, one in each hand.

"There's different textures and whatnot so you can test to see what happens to each of them. The slimes do have borax in them so please don't eat them. They will make you sick. And I thought you could use a journal specifically for your air fryer shenanigans which I expect to be hearing all about whether I want to or not so. May as well take notes on it. I know that's what we decided to give Nico, but...it seemed fitting for you too. So. There you go."

"Thanks, Ro-bro!" Remus beamed and threw his arms around Roman's shoulders.

"You're welcome, Rem-ding." He patted Remus on the back.

Remus quickly let go of Roman and nearly folded himself in half to stretch under his bed. When he sat up, he held a box wrapped in red metallic paper with a gold bow and presented to Roman, who accepted it with a smile and tore into the paper with notably less enthusiasm than his brother.

"They're bracers," Remus told him when he pulled open the box.

"You put my emblem on them!" Roman noted, his voice soft, as he pulled one of armor pieces from its box. "Remus...these are beautiful!"

"They're for the next time you're stupid and break your arm. I won't have to set it because these will keep all your bones in place! I used that leather working book you gave me to make them."

"Well, I'm hoping I don't ever do that again, but I really appreciate these. Thanks, Rem. And I'm glad that book came in handy after all. Here," he shoved a bracers and his arm at Remus. "Help me try them on!"

"You should still gave full range of motion with them," Remus explained and as he tightened the laces of the first bracers, "so using your sword should be fine, but it isn't to replace your shield. So don't get any dumb ideas. That's my job!"

Both froze at the unexpected knock on the door. "Remus?" Patton's voice called.

Roman quickly snatched up his box and sank from the room and Remus kicked the box his own gift had come in under the bed before answering the door.

"What's up, Daddio?" Remus asked cheerfully and popped open the door.

"Hey, Remus. I, uh, I talked to Janus and um." He held out a box wrapped in simple in green paper. "I...wanted to give you something that...was more personal. It's an art kit. For charcoal art."

Remus stared in surprised at the contents of the box. "I...actually...don't know what to say. ...Thank you?"

Patton nodded. "You're welcome. I mean, I know you seemed excited about the air fryer, but I couldn't stop thinking about what Janus said. He was right. It..wasn't really a thoughtful gift. And you're...becoming part of our group now. You should get a proper present. A thoughtful one. So." He gestured to the kit. "I hope you enjoy it."

"I will," Remus nodded. "Thanks, Patton."

Patton smiled brightly. "You're welcome, Remus. Merry Christmas."

[dgdraws]

Artfight Postmortem

as you may know, i am prone to reflection on my art and process and progress. herein, i'm gonna navel gaze a bit about artfight 2024.

top line: really enjoyed myself, did a bunch of new things and this was "The Year of Artist Friends" which is spectacular.

i completed 20 attacks this year, including my first ever mass attacks! altogether I drew 28 different characters (incl 4 of my own).

for the first time, I had *users* i wanted to attack, rather than just characters i'd gathered via search or discord. honestly, three years ago when i picked up the stylus i was just excited at the prospect of drawing for other people, period. artfight was a cool way to be in community without prerequisites. i didn't quite dare to dream i might make some real connections and make proper friends. and yet :) here we are! i went in with three 'art friends' and i'm leaving with at least three more

in addition to being the year of artist friends, this could be "the year of clip studio paint was on megasale a week before artfight" because i knocked out like 2 practice pieces before July 1st so i wouldn't be starting with completely unfamiliar tools, but i used/learned csp for the vast majority of my attacks. one i finished in krita (lonnie), and my final attack i only used krita.

definitely trial-by-fired myself! but it motivated me to explore csp, and most important, gave me a reason to practice practice practice. last year i drew almost exclusively humans, lots of full bodys, because i wanted to get a better grip on anatomy and drawing a variety of faces. it worked then, and, well, i think i learned more of csp in one month of artfight than i would have if i was just plodding through my personal projects for 33 days :) *looks at my wip folder with months old files* pretty sure.

ok i'm gonna look at a few faves/standouts now:

came in hot with 0tt0 here! the main brush for this one (froggy pencil) was a mainstay for the whole month. so versatile!!! and lovely texture. this isn't quiiite brat green but this was what made me go, hmm, what if i... did a few pieces inspired by this album i can't stop listening to?

and then i took a huge turn and just used a soft round brush for Desa and Iryna for my dear friend @bobomcfoe bc i really wanted to turn these out in something approaching my "usual style" of late and i feared getting too deep into the temptations of csp if i put them off. and, um, yeah i love them. i got sooo close to matching that angle but ahh i can see the tilt now! nonetheless, love these two, not least bc brookie has some of the most pleasing color palettes to work w :)

then on to Rosé and baby's first vector lines! you can RESIZE lines in csp. did you know that? i didn't know that. i did forget to use it as much as i could have in later ones though, so i still only kinda know it ig. and halftone shading! bc why not? another thing i really only did this once, but want to experiment with more

Rook here, for my new friend @gender-premium-tm, was me realizing how to use filters/filter layers in csp. now THAT is something i used a lot this month! also something i use often in krita. i must say, though the csp options are slightly more limited (afaik), they have oomph!

okay these two are my "explicitly brat pieces"! artfight keeps you moving, which i find really valuable, bc i could have dithered foreverrr over Lonnie's gif here. like, do i add his arm? maybe he should be wearing a shirt? or, what if i just draw him twice, instead of splitting the expressi--see it just never ends. and as i am always going on about, art is so precious bc it is a reflection of us when we make it. maybe for some future artfight i'll redraw this (as Lonnie's artist @wenmistry did for me with Ebon this year), but for july 2024, i'm amazed at how well i executed this for just 2.5 days of work! (i did forget his glasses, which realization gave me a different take on the composition, so this is high on my list of potential redraws)

and then Aagatha. this is in my top 3 for this year. the pink just works so well with the green and her artist added the song to her character playlist AND added the necklace to her actual dnd inventory. like. omg. the impact your art can have!!! how freaking cool is that???

two mass attacks! i was in a silly goofy mood. i feel like i really got a handle on vectors w the anthro mass attack, i adjusted every single point on that one by hand. weird what hyperfocus makes you do sometimes, but i learned a lot from that. mainly that i will probably never user vectors as my main linework tool. there are circumstances it is perfect for, and outside of that i'm good w my raster lines lol

which is exactly what i used for this other mass attack, featuring mostly my ocs. hey, sometimes you need to shake things up! i can see here the style starting to hew back to my "usual style", though i'm thinking that might have a lot to do with drawing 5 people very quickly. falling back on practiced techniques. and by this time i apparently knew csp well enough to reproduce them pretty closely! ooh, one thing this made me miss was the transform tool in krita. that floor was ROUGH to wrestle into place in csp.

purple and green turned up a lot this year!

Echo is my crowning achievement with the froggy pencil, most of the shading here is just layers w that. and one last nod to brat green :)

i've worked in the paper cut style before (both my pfp's use it) but i really exploited csp's clipping layers to make Scraps here. they did make me briefly forget how they work in krita when i switched back, so well done w that

i played with gradient maps a little earlier in the month but for Okanar i actually made my own gradient! really a useful tool for ref'ing real human skin tones to make non-human ones, without muddying them up too much.

finally, Chaos. this actually might be my favorite! ironically this is the one that i made in krita. it was like, ahh, yes my old friend. wait where is the scroll bar. ah, okay, yes my old friend... the line layer is set to burn which just makes the whole thing so warm (and the cause of the red outlines on the earrings). used my old sable brush, a pattern fill set to overlay... my old stomping grounds! but plus a rendering technique i picked up this month and some other random habits i picked up in csp (like copying a detail to a new layer, moving it where i want a copy, and drawing/tracing it back onto the original layer in the new position. nothing i couldn't have been doing in krita all along, but made easier by the tool layout in csp, and therefore now discovered by me. amazing how one integrates new knowledge. it's like magic sometimes!!!)

that was a good roundup! if you actually read this to the end, wow! and thank you! i hope it was interesting... and inspiring! bc i want to read about your process and reflections too! yes you! and plz tag me, i'm always down to gush about art XD

[selineram3421]

Hello!!! I saw you do a lot of Alastor requests (which Im highly grateful for)

I was wondering if you could do one for when idk Y/N or basically a new person drops in hell they met most of the HH cast except for Alastor but right before they meet for the first time they were listening to Video Killed the Radio Star and singing to it (on and off)

How would you think Alastor would react?

Most of my request have been for him lol.

Installing the Disco Ball

Alastor & Reader Oneshot

~

You were running from the music store, holding onto the cassette player you recently stole. Also a bag with a bunch of cassette tapes.

"Hey! You're not getting away from me you piece of shit!", you hear the shop owner shout.

Why do they even care about this stuff? They're getting more money by selling CDs. You thought as you ran, turning at a corner. Uh oh-

A dead end.

Staring at the brick wall for a moment, you look around to see if there's something you can climb to escape.

"Nowhere to run now.", the person you were running from says, blocking the exit.

"Ya know, you sound like a greaser from one of those old movies. Where they are about to jump somebody.", you say, turning to face them. "Can I just get a slap on the wrist?", you shrug.

They pull out a bat.

"So that's a no..", you mumble.

Next thing you know, you're plummeting down into Hell.

Yeah, that hurt.

Upside is that the cassette player you stole was still on you! Looking through your pockets you also find cassettes. Score.

After walking around for a while, you find a flyer that says hotel with vacant rooms and no pay. Its covered in highlighter and glitter.

"Hmm..kinda shady but I'm sold with the glitter.", you tell yourself and start walking.

You knock on the double doors with a rhythm, then remember this is a hotel. So that's a weird thing to do..

"We don't want your fucking brownies!", a demon with long white hair yells out as they yank the door open.

Blink blink.

"Um, I don't have brownies..", you say and lift up the pink flyer. "I do have this flyer though, am I at the right place?", you ask, shaking the paper and glitter falling from it.

"Oh, yeah.", she answers and moves to the side for you to enter. "Come on in."

Once inside, you're greeted by a very bubbly blonde.

"Hi! Welcome to the Happy Hotel!", she says with a wide smile and bounces in place. "You're going to love your stay here!"

"Cool.", you say. "I just died so I had no idea where to go, then I saw glitter.", you hold up the flyer.

The blonde squeals and the white haired demon just sighs. After proper introductions, the two show you around the hotel. (Or at least the almost finished rooms.) Then you're led into an office. You ended up working at the hotel and got a free room.

Not double dead, got a job, and living somewhere for free!

It was a win in your book.

.

Eventually you got headphones for the cassette player and had them on most of the time. You've met the other demon in the hotel while listening to music. A really fluffy spider demon.

Today you had gone shopping for two specific cassette tapes. Don't Stop Believing by Journey and Video Killed The Radio Star by The Buggles. Also a few Daft Punk ones.

You kinda had to almost kill someone for them but you were able to get them! Yay!

Going back to the hotel, you go up to finish installing the disco ball that Charlie wanted in the "ball room." It was just a big open space with a stage. After getting your tools, you set up the latter and put on your headset. Fully immersed in your work and the music, you didn't hear anything.

Not even the whole musical number going on in the lobby with the Radio Demon, or the hole caused by Sir Pentious.

Safety glasses were on and you had a head light on to be able to see what you were doing.

They took the credit for your second symphony

You sang along as you got a screw from the box on top of your stomach. Kinda in a weird position but hey, it worked.

Rewritten by machine and new technology

And now I understand the problems you can see

Mumbling the lyrics, you kept working on the base of the contraption that would lower the disco ball. You hummed the rest and didn't hear the doors open.

.

Alastor had offered to make jambalaya for everyone after getting rid of the annoying snake demon. Getting ready to walk into the kitchen.

That is until the princess stopped him.

"Um, I hope you can make enough for everyone.", she says.

"Why of course! It would be terrible not to!", he smiles and does a quick head count. "Six servings, and a little more for extra."

"Seven.", Charlie says, putting up a finger.

"Oh?", the Radio Demon hums.

"They have a tendency to work with their headphones on and its probably why we haven't seen them today.", she shrugs apologetically. "They are in the ball room if you want to meet them."

"That's good to know.", he says and thinks it over for a moment. "Very well, I shall introduce myself before making the meal."

He now stood in front of the double doors of the ball room and pushed them open.

"Hello!"

.

The best part was coming up and you were almost done with the whole base! All you had left to do was to attach the wire and the disco ball.

In my mind and in my car

We can't rewind, we've gone too far

Oh-a-aho oh. Oh-a-aho oh.

That little bit of instrumental played and you kinda shimmied. Not too much or else your tools would fall.

Video killed the radio star

Video killed the radio star

In my mind and in my car

We can't rewind, we've gone too far

Pictures came and broke your heart

You were too gone into the music to notice the growing static coming from behind you.

Put the blame on VCR!

Then the latter wobbled, making you get out of your weird position.

You are the radio star. You are the radio star. Video killed-

The song continued.

"Whoa!", you yelp as you lose hold of the dang thing and close your eyes as you began falling.

No hard landing but whatever caught you felt weird.

"Oof!", you let out, eyes still shut tight.

The headphones were slid off of your ears and left on your neck. Opening your eyes and looking up, you see a pair of glowing red eyes. The volume was loud enough for the both of you to hear the music.

Video killed the radio star. Video killed the radio star. Video killed the radio star. Video killed the radio star. Video-

You didn't notice when the man grabbed your cassette player until he lifted it up and pressed the pause button, stopping the music.

"Now that I have your attention and ceased that terrible song.", he sets you down, but doesn't give back your music player. "I am Alastor. The Radio Demon.", he emphasizes the last bit.

You blinked up at the red man. Looking to your cassette and then back at him a few times.

"Hey..", you wave and reach for your cassette player. "Can I just get this back-"

He moves it out of your reach.

"May I have your name? Hm?", he says with a grin.

You tell him your name, not letting up on reaching for the source of your jams.

"Gimme my-", you almost touch it but get twirled into a dip. "Whoop-!", you say in surprise, clutching onto the man's coat with one hand.

"Would you be so kind to tell me why you're listening to such a song?", he says, still smiling.

The cassette player is between both of your interlocked hands, music still paused.

"Its a favorite?", you shrug, eyes to the cassette before looking back at the red man. "Kinda ironic since I still like to listen to the radio."

That's all it took for you to be spun back into standing.

"How splendid! Not really my cup of coffee due to the lyrics, but music is music.", he laughs, dusting you off. "I have a request though."

Fingers hold your chin and tilt your head up, now in eye contact with the Radio Demon. He leans in closer to your face, staring right into your eyes.

"Don't play it around me."

You nod, a bit flustered and dumbfounded at how this guy is just ok with being super close.

"Good!", he says pulling away. "Now! I'm making jambalaya for everyone. I hope you can handle a little spice!", he goes on talking as he makes his way back over to the doors.

You stand there for a bit trying to process everything as he leaves the room with a wave.

"Ok...", you say and shake your head.

Turning around, you see the latter not on the floor but still standing up.

. . . .

Patting your pockets after feeling your hands empty, you realize that he took your cassette player along with him.

"That jerk!", you gasp.

~

This version of the reader is just done with everything and just vibes now. Mood.

~Seline, the person.

Taglist@

@ducky-is-dead-inside @stolas-thebirb @c4rved-pumpk1n

ML for Alastor🎙

[roxy-bat-wolf-pack]

A bit of an unusual Stranger Things oneshot request.

No ships, just Steve angst of him and Hopper having a beer after S4 and talking about shit that happened to them because Steve needs a proper father figure and a moment to be vulnerable

I don't think this was unusual. I actually really liked this idea. For Hoppers bit about Vietnam, I used real conversations I've had with Vietnam veterans for reference. I hope I did it justice. Thank you!

⚠️warnings⚠️ All of the unusual Stranger Things triggers with a focus on PTSD. Discussions of war.

Empty House

Steve

The night was coming to a close. Cars pulled from the driveway, and I was waving my final goodbyes. Dustin's waving hand shot out from the passenger window as he and his friends drove off, the sounds of the engine dying down as the car got smaller in the distance. The Byers had all gone inside, and I looked up at the setting sun, a slight breeze sending some strands of my hair in my face. My hand lingered on the keys in my pocket, and I let out a sigh. I knew I was hesitating to go home.

The sound of a bottle opening made me turn around. Jim Hopper stood there at the end of the driveway, a beer in his outstretched hand. My brows knit together in confusion, but I tried to put a polite smile on my face.

"Oh, um, sorry, I'm only 19."

Hopper let out a chuckle, which told me he wasn't having any of that.

"Yea well, I spent enough time in Russia. The drinking age there was 18." He said, pushing the bottle into my hand. "Besides, I know you drink anyway. I was chief of police remember? I've broken up parties before, and you have a good attendance record for those."

I chuckled. "Yea, I did. Not anymore." I said before taking a swig.

He gestured for me to follow him back to the bonfire. The remnants of our small gathering were now no more than a couple of lawn chairs and a dying flame.

"So you don't want to go home?" He asked.

The question was abrupt, and his ability to read me so easily caught me off guard. I thought about how to respond for a moment before finally saying

"House is empty." I waited for him to fill the silence, but he didn't. He just waited for me to continue. "It's not always easy going from a gathering like this to an empty house. Everyone here is so involved. Holding onto hope, trying to come up with a plan."

Hopper nodded. "And we all get to go home with our families. Meanwhile, your parents are...?"

I took another swig before answering, the chill from the beer starting to numb my fingertips.

"Who knows where they are? Dad goes on business trips, mom doesn't trust him to go alone."

"Yea, but what do they think of all this?" He waved his hands to gegster to the whole of Hawkins. "I mean, they think it's just an earthquake, but isn't that enough reason to come back?"

I glanced over at him and gave a humorless smile. "Perhaps if they cared. But business outside of Hawkins is booming. Hawkins has already boomed. No reason to come back. "

He nodded, showing he caught onto the real meaning of my words. We sat in silence for a moment before I worked up the courage to say what was on my mind.

"I mean, they didn't even come back for my birthday. But it's fine. I was too busy trying to survive to remember it myself. Still a cake order? A present shipped to the house? A phone call? But no, nothing."

He looked to me. "A cake order?"

It wasn't the question I was expecting, and I couldn't help but chuckle a little.

"Yea. When I was little, back when mom still tried to put in the effort, I would get a strawberry cake for my birthday every year. Even when she first started traveling with dad, she would have one ordered for me. But um, not this year." I said with a shrug.

I looked over to him. His calm silence spoke volumes, allowing me room to say what was on my mind, without judgment. He just sat there. I realized he had regained some of the weight lost in Russia, and I immediately regretted my words.

"Ah hey man, I'm sorry. I'm over here complaining about missing cake this year when you went through worse. I mean, I'm just some punk kid with good party attendance, and when you were my age, you were getting drafted. I'm sorry for complai-"

"Hey, no." Hopper stopped me. "None of that."

He was looking at me now, his expression one of ginuwine concern.

"Yea, I've been through hell, especially this past year, but so have you. What's happened to you is just as real as anything I've faced."

I smiled at him and was surprised to feel a slight lump in my throat. I stayed silent to let it fall but also to give him a chance to speak.

"After Vietnam, I was angry." He started. He looked off into the distance as though he was remembering something he tried to forget.

" I didn't volunteer for Nam. Hell, hardly any of us did. It was forced on us, like this situation has been forced on the town. I'll spare you the details of what I saw out there, but oh boy, did I see it. Then I came home to people protesting my arrival. People who evaded the draft spit at the sight of me. They didn't know the stuff I had been through. Then I tried to start a family, and that," He paused, choosing his words carefully, "well, that didn't work the way I had hopped. So here I ended up. Hawkins. A town in need of a police chief and boy was I a miserable one. These people came to me day in and day out with their petty complaints. 'My neighbors not mowing their lawn, my cats missing, my son used my credit card'" He sighed. " I mean, these people had no real problems. Then... all this."

He looked at me, right into my eyes. " This is like war, son. The stuff we're facing. Only difference is you got no training for it. Any one of the things you've faced would have taken out a man like your dad."

I couldn't help the sting in my eyes. It took me a moment before I was able to speak with a steady voice.

"I worry, man. Am I doing the right thing? Letting these kids fight next to me? I mean, I worry that if I don't go with them into these situations that they will just go alone."

He laughed." Oh, I know how you feel. I adopted a kid with powers, remember?"

He sighed. " I can't stop her. Lord knows, I've tried. The only thing I can do his protect her along the way."

He smiled at me. "You're a kid too, Steve. You're only 19, and you've done so much good. You've fought so hard for the people you care about. If your father was half the man you are, well then, he'd actually be rich."

I couldn't help the tear that dripped down my cheek, thankful for the darkness that concealed it. Did we have the luxury of tears? In a time like this? I noticed then that the fire had completely died. My beer was gone before I realized, and my fingers were no longer cold.

I stood. "Thank you for your time." I said timidly, not sure how to end such a conversation. I held out my hand to him. He stood and just looked at it before pulling me in for an embrace. I couldn't remember the last time my father hugged me, but I remember it never felt like this. My father's hugs were never so caring. And just like that, it was over. Hopper waved goodbye with a

"Our house is hardly empty, so stop by any time."

I thanked him one last time before getting in my car and pulling away. I was surprised to find that I was no longer worried about being home alone.

The sun was brighter than the day before as I pulled into work. The store was empty except for Robin, who lounged behind the counter.

"Hey." I said, setting down my things.

"Oh hey." She said lazily spinning in the swivel chair. "Someone stopped by and dropped this off." She pointed with the pin in her hand twords the counter. "A delivery guy in like a chefs coat."

I looked over, curious, to the small white box on the counter. A note sat on top, and I pulled it open.

"Happy Birthday! -Hopper" was all that was scribbled on the paper. I opened the box, and a smile spread across my face.

A small strawberry cake.

Authors note: Thank you for reading, love! I take requests🦇

[maiverie]

i have a question -- how did you end up getting so much engagement on your first posts? was it more gradual or sudden, and do you have any tips for new writers that are not getting as much attention on their posts?

hi anon!! UM OK i'm very very very flattered and kinda surprised you think my posts get that much engagement (honestly there are sm accs that are much bigger than mine!), but thank u sm for reaching out!! I'm really happy to help so here are my thoughts ^^

I feel like there are two ways you can categorise tumblr engagement as a writer: notes and feedback. if by "first posts" you mean the first fics I posted on this acc, I wouldn't say they did all that well with the note count, but I was really really satisfied with the amount of feedback I got back! stuff like comments/replies, asks, text rbs etc. etc. if you want your work to get notes, i.e. you want a lot of exposure, I would suggest posting things that most people like to see/read (for example, things like headcanons, drabbles, smaus, popular tropes, popular members, etc.). it's not going to be a surefire way to get a lot of notes (because obviously there's a lot more to it), but posting things that people are familiar with — whether that's a trope, a member, or a format — will increase the likelihood that they'll engage with your content. there are a lot of people that have a subset of things they like to read (and will always go back to it), and there are fewer people who like to venture out into the unknown.

you've probably seen a lot of writers talk about the whole "like to feedback ratio" where many authors are seeing discrepancies between the two. for example, a fic of theirs might get 300 likes and only have 5 people reblog it with text or something. I think authors talk about this a lot because, at least in my personal experience, the number of notes doesn't really mean much if there isn't any other feedback to accompany it. my point is that you could write a bunch of headcanons or smaus or whatever and get a bunch of notes from it and still feel unsatisfied if you don't receive proper feedback.

based on my experience, the amount of feedback I receive from my writing is proportional to how much effort I put into it. there's like a drabble that I spent one night on which didn't do that great in terms of note count or feedback/rbs, but there are series/fics I've spent hours and hours writing for which I received a lot of feedback. purely based on my experience, I would really really recommend that you pour your heart and soul into your fics and let your hard work shine through. this might seem a little blunt, but if your writing is decent, your grammar isn't totally botched, and the plot makes sense — you will do just fine :) also, people naturally give feedback only if there's something they can react to — take a look at your stories and think about whether or not there's something for readers to talk about when they rb. did something really heartwarming or shocking happen? are one of the characters funny as fuck? is the plot so toe-curling that readers can't help but scream about it? if you're struggling to have people talk about your fic, you need to give them more reasons to.

overall, I would say my acc has been pretty steady with growth. I noticed a spike when I posted my first smau (because, like I said, a lot of people like to read smaus) but even then, I didn't really care for it because I wasn't really getting the quality feedback that I had with my other stories. I hope the above answers your first two questions ^^ if you'd like any clarification, let me know!

general tips for writers who aren't getting as much attention on their posts:

make sure your layout/presentation is legible and eye-catching. make sure it looks good in both dark and light mode and that the fic's title + main idol member + general vibe/genre (for example, romcom or horror or whatever else) is obvious at first glance

pay attention to the grammar in your stories! read it again and again and make sure there aren't sentences that run off too long or seem too jarring

cut up your paragraphs and make sure they're not too lengthy — I would say anything more than 25 lines is probably going to make some people lose interest

reply to the people that engage with your posts and show genuine appreciation for them — nobody is ever obligated to give you feedback, so I think responding to everything you get and just being very open in general will make people feel more comfortable interacting with you

think about the structure of your fic: if it's a long fic, then ofc the word count doesn't really matter. but if it's a series, make sure your chapters don't run too long or too short. I don't have a lot of experience writing smaus so I can't really comment on them — but ig my advice is to make sure every update has at least one funny joke (with the obvious exception, like if it's an angsty smau or smth idk).

I feel like the stories that stick with me the most, i.e. the ones that are the most memorable, are ones that have their own little twist. you're more than welcome to write popular tropes, but from a reader's perspective, I would say putting your own little spin on them would probably result in more engagement / interest in ur story ^^

apparently (idk if this is true) only the first five tags are the ones that matter, so make sure they're the most popular tags !!

join some networks!! they’re run by amazing amazing people who literally rb your work for free :) u might even meet new friends !!

@.goldenhypen made a survey that actually shares really really interesting insights! stuff like who the most popular member is and what tropes most people seem to like. have a read through it!! it might help!!

I hope this helps anon! again, I'm very very very positive there are other users you can ask and they'll probably be more qualified to give advice TT nevertheless im wishing u all the best w ur blog!!!! u got this!!!!!

[corysmiles]

Part 2 of the SBI rust g/t prompt! :]

----

2 days later, he returned.

Once again, it took Tommy all the self control he could muster not to hug wilbur with his hand when he saw him. Wilbur chuckled and sat down, closer to the giant, he found.

Most of the visit, and the one that would follow, had Wilbur looking through old scientific researches, noting down important info in his book, and talking to Tommy.

And everytime, Tommy brought his hand to Wilbur's head and did what he would later call 'mini cuddles'.

"You like doing that stuff, do you?"

"Been so long since I had a proper hug. My mom used to do that kinda stuff when I was younger."

Wilbur widened at the quiet, hoarse voice.

"... Oh?"

"Yeah." Tommy added, and goodness, he sounded so young. "It was nice... I miss it."

"It's... probably not easy to get a good hug in your conditions." He tried lightning the mood.

"... you're right."

Shit.

That was... very awkward.

Wilbur didn't know how to handle that.

"... I really miss it."

He groaned internaly. What was he supposed to do??!?!? He was very glad when he got away from his house, and disasters kept happening so he didn't have to worry about family dinners. How was he supposed to deal with a kid that missed his parents?!

"Well, um..." he tried, not having a clue where this was going. "At least you're..... not.... alone?" Wonderful start, Wilbur. "I'm keeping you company if that's anything..."

Silence drew out. It was really, really, awkward.

"... Yeah." Tommy nodded ever so slightly. "... Can I try to hug you?"

Wilbur's breath got caught in his throat.

A hug. As in, close to his chest. As in, carried by the giant. As in, a good dozen feet away from the ground with little to no freedom of movement....

Oh hell no, he thought.

"Suuuuuuuuure?" He replied.

Tommy smiled, and he tried offering one back. "Just be careful, please." He added.

"Okay." He said.

Then, a hand thrice his size came for him. He closed his eyes as fingers wrapped around him like a blanket and he was brought off the ground.

He felt movement until a fabric, which he deduced was a shirt. He was softly pressed against it as the hand rubbed against him.

That... was.... weird. Weird was a good word to describe it.

Slowly, he brought his hands in front of the mass in a pitiful attempt to embrace it. It probably looked comical.

He felt Tommy's second hand coming and cupping the first. It... didn't feel awful. Weird, sure, but not awful.

After a few minutes that seemed an eternity to the human, he was brought down to the ground. When he saw the giant's expression, it had a smile on it.

"Thank you Wilbur."

"..No problem."

The rest of that day was spent reading the documents and doing lighter conversations with the teen.

---

3 days, 2 days, 2 days, 2 days, 3 days, 1 day, 3 days, 1 day, 2 days, 1 day....

Turned out, there was a whole fucking lot of papers to read.

But Wilbur didn't mind going back to the Dome every other day.

And he didn't mind the company there.

But he was determined to finish his researches today.

Which made Tommy's more often intervention particularly annoying today.

"So, they messed up with like, nuclear shit?"

"No, no. The nuclear testings were 4 years prior to that, I told you already."

"But then how come the researches were public after this one??"

"They kept it to themselves, Tommy. Couldn't risk other countries knowing about such a thing."

"Well that's dumb."

"I'm not gonna be one to judge. Can I continue reading now?"

"Mmhh, I don't know, you've had your head stuck in the paper since you came."

"Tommy."

"Okay, okay. Geez."

"Thank you."

He read in silence, a small satisfaction building inside of Wilbur with each page closer to the end.

And he was really glad Tommy wasn't in a too rambly mood today. Sometimes, he would tell stories of when he was younger, or elaborate on random thoughts. It was nice and a wonderful occasion to know the teen better. Not to mention, the giant was very endearing. But today, all wilbur needed was calm and silence.

And he got silence.

As time went by, though, he felt eyes more and more insistant looking at him.

With a small grunt, he looked up and saw the face almost 5 time his size (could be more, he wasn't sure himself.) Looking indeed at him like he was trying to read his soul.

"What's up?" He tried not to be too aggressive in his tone. There was only 10 or so pages left.

"You know I was like you before."

A beat of silence. Then confusion.

"... what?"

"Finish your reading and I'll tell you about it. You want it done today."

Wow. Way to be passive agressive.

"... I..." wilbur sighed. "I can take the papers back home and study them there." He sighed, putting the small little pile down. He wouldn't get much sleep, tonight, would he? "What do you mean, you 'were like me'?"

Tommy smiled at Wilbur, though its joy dissapeared as quickly as it came. Melancholy or nostalgia perhaps.

"I used to be... you know... small." He used his hand to illustrate, having his thumb and pointing finger about the size of Wilbur apart.

".... Heh?"

"Yeah." He chuckled at the confusion. "I wasn't born like that."

The natural question followed.

"Then how...?? How did you get like that?"

Tommy looked almost sad as he said. "Well, what are the papers about?"

Wilbur frowned. He looked at the papers, and his book, and back at Tommy.

What are they about?? Well, obviously, about the incident that resulted in humanity's downfall and the mutation of a ton of-

Oh.

Mutation of-

"... you're a... mutan?" He tried. That sounded weird on his tongue, but that was the only word that applied.

"Victim of a bunch of weird radiations. It almost sounds like a movie speech if you present it right."

Wilbur only looked at him, mouth agape.

".... Huh."

Tommy chuckled humourlessly. "Yeah. I know.

It kinda fucked up everyone."

"Well... I feel like, in those circumstances, it gives you advantages of some kinds." Wilbur reassured.

"... mh. Not that great when I can't have a house that fits me, but..."

Wilbur looked around. "... the dome fits you."

"For now. I'm only, like, 16. I don't know how big I'll get."

"YOU'RE 16 YEARS OLD??!?!?"

Tommy tried really hard not to burst out laughing at the absolute shock. Hand rushing to cover his mouth.

"Mh-hm." He nodded, repressing his wheeze.

"Holy shit you're a FUCKING CHILD!!??!"

"I'm a teenager."

"YOU'RE A FUCKI- OH MY GOD."

Wilbur paced around the room as Tommy giggled in small bursts that vibrated through the brunette's body.

"A child. A child who turned into a fucking giant. And he's my neighbour. What the fuck. What the actual fuck."

"I thought you figured out, since you always call me a child."

"Everyone my younger by at least two years deserves that nickname- I knew you were young but holy shit-"

"Well, I'm almost a man if you take the old legal system."

"Yeah,right" he scoffed "the legal system that surely applies 8 years or so after turning into ruins- Wait."

Wilbur paled and he looked into giant blue eyes.

"... How long have you been alone?"

The silence covered the room like a suffocating mist.

Tommy's throat was tight, he tried a few times, opening and closing his mouth as nothing came of it. And his eyes were teary as he replied.

"Well... 8 years or so."

Oh.

Oh.

Oh goodness.

SOBS THIS IS SO GOOD

I love Wilbur being so shocked that tommys a kid but damn 8 years is so sad :”(

(Also here’s part 1)

[babyboyblasty]

CHAPTER 10:

"You look nice, Deku" Uraraka smiled, her hands held behind her back as she rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet in a childish manner, looking at her green haired friend. "Is there anyone in particular you're trying to impress?" she gave him a knowing look that Izuku stuttered and blushed to.

"No! O-of course not" he immediately denied and averted his eyes when that only seemed to make Uraraka's smirk widen. Izuku knew he was a terrible liar and Uraraka could be very scary sometimes. "But um, hypothetically speaking.. if I /were/ trying to impress someone- which I'm not- but hypothetically speaking do you think they'll.. you know. Be impressed? Hypothetically."

Uraraka looked her friend up and down. Izuku's fashion sense has definitely improved since the beginning of their first year. Both Tsuyu and herself had made sure to teach Deku and Todoroki a thing or two about dressing themselves since they were completely clueless sometimes. Midoriya was wearing brown, cuffed corduroy pants with a forest green oversized short sleeve button up, a lighter green long sleeve underneath that to create layers. The red shoes were never going away though and Uraraka gave up in trying to get him to wear another pair of shoes. He looked good and Uraraka noticed how his hair was a bit neater too so he obviously put a bit of extra effort into trying to style his curls. In fact, looking around the common room it seemed that Deku wasn't the only one who put a little extra effort into their appearance today. Half the boys there looked like they were going off to a party instead of a casual class outing. Even Iida looked like he was trying out a new hairstyle. No glasses either.

"Umm, Uraraka-san?" Izuku waved his hand in front of the girl's face to get her attention. She zoned out for a bit there and she blinked, turning to face him again.

"Oh, right! Well, /hypothetically speaking/ right?" she smiled and he nodded, "I think they'll be very impressed." Deku beamed and her eyes shifted to Todoroki who was just arriving downstairs. "Oh, look! There's Todoroki-kun. Let's go talk" she grabbed Deku's hand in hers and took him with her. He looked very good! Todoroki's aesthetic was more of a simplistic/classy style with neutral colors. This time he decided to switch it up and was wearing a white t-shirt with an unbuttoned, loose fitting pale blue and white striped dress shirt over that. He had black jeans and white sneakers too. He looked very good. "Oooo~ is there anyone /you're/ trying to impress, Todoroki-kun?" Ochako teased.

"Yes."

Ochako didn't expect such a direct answer but giggled anyway at her blunt friend. Deku on the other hand didn't find it as funny.

"Is Bakugou here yet?" Shoto changed the subject and looked around the common room but didn't spot the explosion quirk user anywhere. He felt a little disappointed.

"No, Kacchan isn't here. Neither is Kirishima-kun" Izuku really tried to keep the bitterness out of his tone. He knew that they were best friends but did they really have to be glued at the hip 24/7? Deku doesn't like the way he starts to feel when he thinks of those two together but he can't help it.

"Oh" Shoto mumbled. There was an awkward silence where no one said anything for a few seconds until Uraraka couldn't stand it and broke it.

"So how are you feeling, Todoroki-kun? Are you still tired or are you feeling a bit better from earlier?" Ochako questioned. That got Izuku's attention and he turned to Todoroki with a curious expression. Was he sick? Todoroki didn't mention anything to him today. He wondered why he didn't tell him.

"I feel better, thank you. I'm excited to be going out with my friends" he smiled briefly and Izuku returned it. After that things started to go back to normal as they talked about what stores they wanted to go to and if they had anything in particular they wanted to buy. The common room was filled with brief conversation before the 'ding' of the elevator was heard and everyone turned to look at a nervous Kirishima standing on the far opposite side of a bored looking Bakugou. Izuku felt a knot form in his throat and Todoroki felt his heart skip a beat, their faces heating up a little at what girl Kacchan was wearing. He looked good. Hell, even if he was in his normal body and wore that he'd look good.

"You're here!" Mina rushed forward to hug her two friends in a crushing hug which Kirishima gladly returned. The girls may or may not be feeling smug at how everyone reacted to seeing Bakugou. Yeah, they did that.

"I said I would go with you extras, didn't I? Now let go, pinky" Bakugou groaned. She smiled wide before stepping back.

"This'll be so much fun!" Mina jumped up and down.

"Everyone please form a single file line for attendance! As class president I must make sure everyone is accounted for before we vacate school grounds" Iida made sure to grab everyone's attention by speaking loud and clear as well as waving his arms about. Where he pulled the clipboard from no one knows but Iida started to check off names in the class roster to submit to Aizawa sensei once they come back in a few hours. "Alright. Everyone is here. We can go now" he nodded in confirmation.

The class had to take the bus to go to the mall so Iida stayed by the door until everyone was inside before going in himself. Bakugou was planning to sit with Kirishima but the redhead as soon as he was in the bus went and sat beside Sero instead. Katsuki was confused since they always sit together and even Sero was looking between the pair in confusion. "You don't mind, right Bakubro?" Kirishima awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. Bakugou just shrugged and moved on to find an empty seat to which Kirishima let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding.

"What was that?" Sero questioned once Bakugou was out of earshot.

"What was what?" Kirishima turned to him.

"That. You always sit with Bakugou so why all of a sudden did you decide to sit next to me? I don't mind but I was a little caught off guard, man. You know, you've been acting weird ever since the night we played games in my room. Is everything cool?" Sero had an idea of what was happening but he wanted to hear it from Kiri himself.

"Yeah, everything's good. I just need to sort some things out for myself first" he explained and Sero nodded, leaving it at that. Kirishima appreciated that about Sero. He knew if it was Mina or Kaminari they wouldn't stop pestering him about it. Kirishima just wanted some time to hopefully figure out why he was all of a sudden feeling so weird around Katsuki.

On the other end of the bus, towards the back, Bakugou found an empty seat. Everyone else seemed to be already sitting with someone else but he didn't really mind it. Once seated, Bakugou put his elbow up on the edge of the window and looked outside. He felt someone slightly tap his shoulder though and looked up to a shy Koda. 'May I sit here?' he signed and Bakugou raised an eyebrow. He rolled his eyes and signed back 'go for it' and Koda smiled a little, quickly sitting down beside Bakugou. Aizawa did mention that because of his quirk, he may experience hearing loss in the future if he didn't take the proper precautions so Bakugou has been taking JSL classes from Koda since the beginning of their second year and developed a somewhat mutual understanding with the guy. He really wasn't all that bad, just a little quiet. And while they weren't friends friends, Bakugou knew that if he ever needed a quiet place to study or just hang out for a bit without talking, he could go to Koda's room. The same went for Bakugou. If Koda ever wanted to spar or wanted pointers to help in improving his fighting skills, Bakugou is available.

Now that everyone had a seat, the bus began to move. The ride was going to take approximately fifteen to twenty minutes so he just wanted to use the break to relax. Bakugou could tell Koda wanted to say something based on the way he would look at him every few minutes but then look away though. "What is it?" he finally asked a little less than halfway into the trip and Koda shook his head. "I know you want to say something, now what is it?"

Koda looked hesitant at first but then signed 'how are you feeling?' with a sincere look. Maybe if it was someone else Bakugou would have told them off for getting into his business but Koda was someone who earned his respect and admiration throughout their time together in UA and who he saw as an equal.

"Why do you ask?" he asked instead, a bit defensive, and Koda responded by signing 'this is a big change and I was just wondering how you were doing.' Bakugou shrugged. "It isn't something I can't handle. Besides, today is the last day of the quirk so I should be back to normal by tomorrow morning" Bakugou mumbled, adding in a "thanks" as an afterthought. Honestly speaking, Koda has been the only one who's asked him how he felt about this whole quirk situation. The rest of his classmates all just seemed to be having fun with it and while he didn't mind, it was nice to be asked.

'You're always welcome to come hang out with me and my bunny if you ever need quiet time,' Koda offered. 'He told me he misses the angry blonde boy with the warm hands" he joked. Bakugou smirked a little with a "tch, sure whatever. Tell 'im I miss the furball too" leaving his lips. After that Bakugou and Koda fell into a comfortable silence where Bakugou closed his eyes to rest for the few minutes they had left on the bus ride.

Everyone else in class 3-A never thought they'd see the day where they all wished they were in Koda's place. The anivoice boy was sitting perfectly still so as to not wake the pretty blonde that had leaned his head on the other's shoulder sometime along the trip and was now sleeping peacefully on him.

[word count: 1775]

( this fan art isn't in correlation with the story chapter but oH MY GOD LOOK HOW PRETTY GIRL BAKUGOU IS- 😩)

[itsbenedict]

Two-Faced Jewel: Session 11.5

What Does a Moth Sound Like?

A half-elf conwoman (and the moth tasked with keeping her out of trouble) travel the Jewel in search of, uh, whatever a fashionable accessory is pointing them at. [Campaign log]

Last time: the party returned to Barley to deal with a few loose ends while their hired muscle dealt with the biggest, scaliest loose end. Between that session and the next, we had a brief mini-session to wrap up one of said ends we'd left unwrapped- what exactly is up with the Kanthalga family?

(Also included: a conversational omake between Looseleaf and Saelhen, pictured courtesy of @drazelic, Looseleaf's player.)

After their encounter with Kensa, Oyobi tries to talk the party into going to the tower and helping the Deathseekers kill the dragon. Her brilliant plan of "stab it in the brain before it can cast any spells" has some flaws, though, and they patiently explain the plan's many flaws and strike a blow against Oyobi's sense of invincibility.

They also ask Malath a few questions, trying to get to the bottom of her odd discomfort with the idea of the dragon as a culprit and the presence of Deathseekers.

Saelhen du Fishercrown: "When we spoke before, you asked us whether the dragon was green. I regret that I still cannot answer, as I have not seen it, or heard any news on the topic from the deathseekers. But you seemed... concerned that it might be a green dragon. Is there any reason that such a dragon might pose a particular threat to your town?" Benedict I. (GM): "Mmm. I don't know if you've heard, but... going on thirty years ago, there was a town to the east called Grain." "It was attacked by a green dragon, and the elders... as the dragon had words with them, they had to be remanded to the custody of their gods." Looseleaf: Oooh, that is harsh. Benedict I. (GM): "In the ensuing chaos, the miscreants who now inhabit Wheat set fire to the town and fled further east." "The survivors of the disaster fled west, and established Barley here." "If that same dragon still has its sights on our people, we could be in grave danger." "We refused to submit once, and it very nearly destroyed us."

As far as they can tell from their questioning, Malath isn't hiding any dark secret- she's just sort of a control freak, who's nervous that her control over the people might slip. Plus she's worried that if the dragon is provoked and comes to town, she- as the current elder in charge- might suffer the same fate as Grain's elders.

Saelhen... isn't satisfied with this. Something seems wrong about Malath Kanthalga- Thalath wouldn't try to enlist their help rescuing Kensa for no reason. She takes the party to the general store, in hopes of catching Kensa on her nightly delivery.

Kensa arrives as expected, but when she sees Saelhen there, she makes her delivery and tries to leave, rather than sit at the loom as is her custom. She seems afraid of Saelhen.

Saelhen du Fishercrown: "...I don't intend to keep you from your work. Though I did have a question I wanted to ask you, dear. If you'll permit me one." Kensa Kanthalga: "...A question?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "Of a sensitive nature, possibly. Something vouchsafed to me by... someone you might know." Kensa Kanthalga: She looks less afraid and more confused, now. And after thinking a moment... "...oh." She actually looks a little angry, now. "That makes sense." "He sent you, didn't he?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: Okay, the conclusions she's reached here... may or may not be correct! "Under what I am starting to think may have been false pretenses." Kensa Kanthalga: "What did he tell you? Did he say I was being brainwashed?" "I don't need to be rescued from my duty by someone who abandoned his!" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "More a very general concern for your person than anything --" Ah, there's the word that raises her hackles, duty.

Having somewhat misread the situation, Saelhen is unpleasantly surprised to find that Kensa seems just as devoted to the teachings of Diamode as Malath is, and has no interest in fleeing. She seems contemptuous of her older brother on the basis that, uh...

Well, the Goddess of Family, who's all about having kids and living a very prescribed sort of life path inside strict gender roles, is- as might be unsurprising- a bit of a homophobe. The party never met Thalath's boyfriend (who works the night shift at Wheatley Inn- they never stayed the night there), but there are several reasons why the place isn't popular with the locals.

Saelhen is caught kind of flat-footed here- she can tell something's still not quite right, but she doesn't have the kind of cultural context to unravel this level of baggage.

Luckily, she brought along an ersatz cleric of Diamode, and so... Orluthe is able to spot the missing piece of the puzzle.

Orluthe Chokorov: Orluthe, in the back, has been looking increasingly uncomfortable. So far, he's had his stole and cap stowed away, so as not to be recognized as a cleric of Diamode. He's now taking them out and putting them on. "Hey, um, miss?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: Saelhen... legitimately forgot he had those. Kensa Kanthalga: Kensa turns and notices him- possibly for the first time. "Oh, ah- Mr., um..." Orluthe Chokorov: "Chokorov," he says. "I'm..." He holds up a hand, and points at a tiny circular scar around his pinky finger. "You have one of these, right?" Kensa Kanthalga: Kensa looks down at her hand, and you can see- yes, she has a matching scar. Saelhen du Fishercrown: Well. That's novel information about Orluthe. Religion check to... I mean, we know the finger-cutting thing. I guess a "what does this mean, it's not like these two have disowned anyone" check. 13 - RELIGION (2) Benedict I. (GM): With a 13, you know that only a parent needs to cut off their finger- but you're not sure what happens with sibling relationships. This might be something related- like you don't have to cut your finger off all the way? Some sort of signifier that the connection has been severed, though you don't know the finer doctrinal points. Orluthe Chokorov: "My older sister," he says. "Four years ago. We all had to get the mark." Kensa Kanthalga: "Wait, but..." Orluthe Chokorov: "You didn't want that to happen to you, too, right?" "You can't stand up to a power like that. You'd never win, right? If I tried to defend my sister, my parents would have two missing fingers." "You have to pretend, right?" Kensa Kanthalga: "Why... no, it's... I really...!" Orluthe Chokorov: "Feels that way, doesn't it? For a long time." Kensa Kanthalga: Kensa looks terrified- like for the first time, someone's seen right through her. Orluthe Chokorov:"It's not a betrayal of your family- of your duty- to... have love." "There's nothing in Diamode's teachings about the mark, you know? Neither of us had to take it." Saelhen du Fishercrown: ...well. That's a... new consideration. Kensa Kanthalga: Kensa's on the verge of tears, looking like she's about to bolt. "N-no, I- I really... want to... I have to..." Saelhen du Fishercrown: Saelhen is right back to Steal This Child Town. "...wait, do you seriously mean that the finger-cutting thing came after the scripture?" Orluthe Chokorov: Orluthe nods. "I mean, the finger-cutting is... it's a punishment. You're not supposed to disown your children. It's not like you can do it and then you lose the finger and then you're all square and it's fine." "And when parents scar their kids' fingers to make them share in a punishment for a sin they didn't commit... Diamode doesn't want that." "I should know," he says, gesturing to his vestments. Saelhen du Fishercrown: "...well. Thank you, Orluthe." Saelhen's face is hard. "I was previously under the impression that I had misunderstood a culture which is strange to me." "But now it sounds as if... I haven't, quite." Kensa Kanthalga: Kensa's makeup is starting to run. "What... what do you know? I- I wanted to... if I could've... I couldn't..." "What do you want with me?!" "I had to, okay? I have to!"

Orluthe having successfully exposed Kensa's fear and dissatisfaction with the situation, Saelhen proceeds to talk her around to trying to leave. It's pretty touch-and-go for a little bit, but Kensa's mind is made up when the party mentions that they're going to be passing through Corolos. Apparently, there's something there she really cares a lot about...?

So they're going to need a few days for Kensa to prepare to, uh, run away with a bunch of strangers. That's- this is technically kidnapping, right? This isn't something you should do in real life? This is kind of bad? Hm. Well.

-

Anyway, they've got some downtime here in Barley while the Deathseekers do their work and Kensa prepares to leave. And- well, later in the campaign, there was a flashback to this time period, so I'm going to cover that scene here.

Saelhen du Fishercrown: So: days in the past (but not many)... It's Cassie Zeishus's inn, and Saelhen is brushing up on her card tricks; she's let herself get rusty, just a bit, ever since she left... Well, since she got to Oyashio, anyway. She's cutting a borrowed deck at one of the inn's tables, downstairs, flicking cards from hand to hand, then up her giant poofy sleeves. Where's Looseleaf? Looseleaf: Probably sitting around outside, doing her whole 'fix-things-up' gimmick! After the early burst of things-to-fix, though, business has dried up a little. There's just not that many broken things left to fix that people need help with after a while! Saelhen du Fishercrown: Saelhen is... bored, she decides, for a reason. She can't evaluate how impressive her card tricks/cheating techniques are without a proper audience! She knows how they work already! So she leans out the door. "How goes the repair work?" Looseleaf: "It isnnnnn't," Looseleaf says back. "I think that there's not much repair work left in Barley at all!" "I've done too good a job and my business has dried up. This is why you never peddle perfect cures, innit." Abruptly, she gets up from the carpet she'd gotten Orluthe to roll out for her- the one from Lumiere's tower. "Boooored." She rolls it up. "I demand entertainment."

Saelhen decides to entertain Looseleaf by performing a card trick... and proceeds to roll a natural 1 on her sleight of hand check. She completely fucks it up, and Looseleaf- who had to be convinced to put money on the wager- earns herself a silver piece.

Saelhen du Fishercrown: "...I lost the card." "So I'm going to have to replace that for Cassie. On account of her deck being a card short." "Your card, specifically." Looseleaf: "Hhhhokay." "Wow, you're actually serious, aren't you." "I thought this was still part of the bit, but, if you're serious, you know the card's on the underside of your shoe, right?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "I just want to reassure you that I'm good at this, Looseleaf --" Looseleaf: "I thought you'd stepped on it because, y'know, part of the trick." Saelhen du Fishercrown: "No, I already checked there --" Saelhen finds the Hierophant stuck to her instep. There's a beat. Then she blushes furiously, in what looks like actual mortification. "Oh damn it." "I haven't done that since I was sixteen, what the hell..." Looseleaf: Looseleaf laughs. It doesn't sound like her usual laugh, and you can only tell it's a laugh because she's bowled over laughing. The actual sound of the laughter sounds like- trilling chirps with a hint of vibration, a distinctly insectile sound. "Oh gods," she says while somehow still laughing simultaneously, "that was- I'm so sorry about how much I'm laughing, Saelhen-" She's still moth-laughing. "Please understand that your status is no way diminished in my eyes and you are still every bit as much of the cool conwoman you always were in my eyes- oh my gods I'm going to die laughing."

Saelhen, intrigued, attempts to use her preternatural skill at impressions to try and copy the laughter, which Looseleaf finds freaky-deaky.

Looseleaf: "Yeah, if you really want to imitate mothspeech what you actually need are the standard instruments. Your throats are not cut out for the kinds of vibes we naturally talk with." "No offense- your throats are perfectly nice, I mean." Saelhen du Fishercrown: "I'm aware my throat is lovely." "What do you mean, standard instruments? Some kind of... pipe, or flute, or something?" Looseleaf: "The Standard Instruments," she says, this time with an intonation so that Saelhen can tell it's words with Capitalized Letters, "are... sort of like a flute, yeah, except instead of working like a woodwind it's more like, a bunch of little flutes with flaps of springy metal at the end, so when you blow through the flute the flaps vibrate and you get a sound that's way closer to the range of sounds we make, and it doesn't hurt your throat nearly as much. The Standard Instruments for imitation mothspeech." "Alternatively, if you knew spirit magic, we could have just taken you to the Archive of the Ever-Living Voice, but that's not really an option..." Saelhen du Fishercrown: Saelhen attempts to imagine this. "So, ten harmonicas glued together." Looseleaf: "Yeah pretty much." Saelhen du Fishercrown: "...that last comment sounded alarmingly practical, in its concerns, Looseleaf." "Are you proposing to teach me, here?" Looseleaf: "How dare you imply that I would ever let slip the magical secrets of my people to an outsider who knows nothing of our ways or our culture why I am absolutely offended and ha ha I'm just messing around." "If you want to learn mothspeech," Looseleaf hesitates for a moment. "...Well, we should get started by trying to put together, as you put it, ten harmonicas!" "...Does this town have harmonicas?" Benedict I. (GM): This town totally has harmonicas.

So it looks like Looseleaf is going to be teaching Saelhen the language of the mothfolk!

Looseleaf hesitates, though. "...You know, learning mothspeech is- well, it's not likely to be useful, you know?" "There's, like, no chance you're ever going to get to really put it into use with anybody other than me." Saelhen du Fishercrown: "...it is a bit obscure, isn't it?" Saelhen looks contemplative for a moment... then cracks a grin. "Which means that absolutely no one will know when I insult them." "Beyond their range of hearing, even! Oh that'll be such an easy way to blow off steam, dear, I love it."

After a shopping trip to assemble the device that substitutes for having moth mouthparts, they have a nice time bonding over linguistics. Building the thing is tricky, but... Saelhen gets a good roll!

Looseleaf:"...Y'know, trying to reverse-engineer an instrument just from how you saw it once is... more difficult than I thought it would be." Saelhen du Fishercrown: Saelhen expertly pulls two pieces together. "This and this, yes?" Looseleaf: "Yeah, make sure you leave extra length on the tubes- I don't know exactly how long they have to be so we might have to cut them down a little to fit... The day continues. Looseleaf teaches Saelhen a whole plethora of fun insults in mothspeech. Things like, "You must have had a hole in your cocoon while you were pupating, because your brain clearly leaked out during your metamorphosis." "Remind me what instar you are again?" And, her favorite of all, a surprisingly terse noun that apparently translates to "immature child who sticks two feathers on their forehead and thinks that means they have the antennae of an adult."

Saelhen manages to nail the pronunciation pretty quickly, and adds Mothfolk to her list of languages.

The conversation turns to Elvish (Looseleaf is shocked to learn that Oyobi has been being rude this entire time!), and Saelhen's upbringing in Kanzentokai.

Looseleaf is shocked by Saelhen's quick mastery of the language- and of Tabaxi, and Halfling, which are apparently languages she speaks.

Eventually, Looseleaf decides to make a wager with Saelhen. The stakes: if Looseleaf can fool Saelhen with a card trick of her own, Saelhen has to teach her Thieves' Cant. If she loses, she'll have to tell Saelhen how she did the trick- a standard "is this your card" situation.

Saelhen gets a 21, and Looseleaf then has to explain that she was able to track the card via... spirit-linking. Which she then has to explain she's been doing to the bracer.

Looseleaf: "I'm trying to use this as a, uh, lighthearted segue, to confess to the fact that I've soooorta actually had a tracking magic thing set on you, like, since we met." "I'm hoping that's not, un- discomforting for you, since you said, you liked the whole suspicion thing I had?" "But, yeah, uh, I was totally suspicious of you the whole time, and my first response to seeing someone I pegged as a conwoman trying to con the university out of a magic item was, to, put a tracker on the magic item." "Which is that bracer. I know the position of that bracer, at all times, as long as it's within ten miles of me; further than that, and I know the direction it is relative to me." "I'm coming clean because- well, I guess, we're friends now actually, and you should know about the fact that I'm technically tracking your movements. And also because I want to give you the option to tell me to fuck off with that shit, if you want to." "I think that keeping the tracker's still a good idea, on a practical level, though, because of the, uh, use-case, where, a scary badguy chops your arm off to take the bracer, like that way we could still get your arm back and get the bracer back and I'm also rambling because I'm nervous that this is the end of our friendship aha." Saelhen du Fishercrown: Saelhen has gone very still. Like the hackles-up bristling from earlier, except... a lot less movement. "......" Looseleaf: "Look, if you want me to turn it off I'll turn it off!" Saelhen du Fishercrown: And then she very deliberately settles back into motion, with barely even a little bit of shaking hands! Deep deep breath. "...you make a good point. "About the, bracer tracking." "I am..." "Fine, with it." Looseleaf: "Iiii am not convinced you are fine. You seem like you are in fact very emotionally distraught about it," Looseleaf says with caution. "I could... put a tracker on something that's not the bracer, for you to hold, of your own volition?" "Really, at this point, I'm less scared of you running off with the bracer, and more scared of something happening to you because of the bracer." Saelhen du Fishercrown: "...with a condition." "Which is that you do not tell anyone that you can track things, or, if you have to reveal your hand, that you don't tell anyone that you can find me." Looseleaf: "...You don't want to be found, by... something or someone that wants to find you?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "In general, no." "...I'll tie something around the bracer. Or place a coin between my skin and its surface, or something. You can track that." Looseleaf: "Okay. I'll try my best to not tell anybody about my ability to find you. Except unless I have very good reason to believe that, I dunno, a dragon has abducted you and if I don't find help for you then you're dead, or something like that. Is that fine?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "That would be fine, thank you. And I forgive you for... the initial... situation."

It seems... Saelhen really doesn't want to be found, by someone. I wonder who?

Still, the two of them manage to talk the issue over like adults, and grow closer as friends- so that means everything is probably fine, there's no secrets anymore, and absolutely nothing else is going to go wrong in the town of Barley.

NEXT TIME: END OF DAYS!!! HOMICIDAL INTENT!!! THE SINISTER MACHINATIONS OF THE SHADOW-MAYOR OF WHEAT!!!

[norminahs-child]

Little Monster (Norminah Adoption Story)

Draft from my Wattpad😅

Dinah giggles, "I'm not. I'm just wondering how I got so lucky to have you." She says, wrapping her arms around Normani's waist and pulling her closer before cuddling into her side. Normani looks at Dinah, "I beg to differ. If anything, I'm the lucky one. You're so amazing..." She mumbles before placing a soft peck on Dinah's lips. Pretty soon, the door busts open, "WAKE UP! ALLY MADE BREAKFAST!" Camila shouts loudly. Normani smile slightly while shaking her head, "We'll be down in a bit, Camila." She says. Camila groans, "Really, Mani?! I told you to call me Mila! When you say my name, it sounds so... Proper." She says with a shudder making Dinah snicker slightly.

Normani sits up with Dinah still holding onto her and tilts her head, "Is that a bad thing?" She asks. Camila shakes her head, "Nope. Just weird." She says. Normani feigned hurt, "Good to know, Mila." She says. Dinah laughs, "We'll be down, Chancho. Tell Ally to make our plates." She says. Camila sends a thumbs up before walking out and closing the door.

Normani shakes her head and stands up, "I don't understand how you deal with her. She's a very nice girl... But, how do you deal with her?" She asks, trying not to sound rude. Dinah laughs, "Baby, chill. She's my best friend. Yeah, she's a little unbearable, but I wouldn't trade her for no one else. Plus, you know she looks up to you." She says, subtly admiring the dark skin beauty that was in nothing but her (Dinah's) shirt, which was a little big on her, and her undergarments.

Normani looks back at Dinah, "I don't understand why. We're about the same height." She says. Dinah rolls her hazel like gold eyes, "You know what I mean, princess." She says, jokingly using the nickname Normani hated. Normani shakes her head, "Still, Dinah Jane. I don't understand. She's a bit of a mystery for a girl so... Bubbly." She says, unsure of what word to use. Dinah slowly stands up and walks to their shared closet, "That she is. We've been best friends since we were little supernaturals and she's still a mystery to me." She says from the closet.

Normani hums, "Interesting..." She mumbles before walking to where Dinah is and wrapping her arms around the taller woman's waist, placing her chin on her shoulder, "Are you going to let me braid your hair again?" Normani asks making Dinah freeze and look back at her, "This is not up for debate, is it?" She asks. Normani shakes her head making Dinah curse under her breath.

After the duo got dressed, they made their way downstairs. Lauren was knocked out with her head on the table, "You didn't get enough sleep, Ralph?" Dinah asks softly. The older female shakes her head sleepily. Being the affectionate person she was, Dinah gently kisses Lauren's head making her sigh softly. Normani smiles softly, "After breakfast, I'm doing your hair." She says making Dinah groan. Camila snickers, "I swear to go-" Ally glares at Camila from the kitchen, "Bananas! I swear when you do Dinah's hair, it sounds like you two are having sex. Like, does getting your hair done hurt that bad?!" She asks. Dinah turns red, "Yea, it does!" She defends. Normani shrugs, "She's way louder when we're having sex." She says making Lauren groan, "Too much information, Manz!" She exclaims as Dinah looked away with a deep red blush. Ally raises an eyebrow, "I guess that sound proof spell and the lock spell came in handy, huh?" She asks, walking out of the kitchen with plates floating above her head.

Ally had on a sports bra and cargo pants. Dinah just buries her face in her hand with a groan, "Can we not?" She asks. Camila just tries to reach for her plate with a pout as Ally kept moving it from her, "Anyways, eat up, children." Ally says while putting their plates down. Dinah and Camila squealed befoee digging in. Normani smiles softly, "Thank you, Allyson." She says greatfully. Ally returns the smile, "No problem, Normani." She responds before sitting down herself.

After the group of five finished eating, Lauren, Ally, and Camila had to endure an hour and a half of Dinah screaming and crying because her head hurts, "DAMN IT, DINAH! IT DOES NOT HURT THAT BAD, BE QUIET!" Normani snaps. Dinah glares up at Normani through tearfilled eyes, "YES IT DOES, ASSHOLE! YOU KNOW I'M SENSITIVE!" She shouts back. They continued shouting at each other as the other three laughed loudly at the duo. It was unusual to see Normani shouting or showing any type of emotion, so they were enjoying it.

After Normani was done with Dinah's hair, Dinah held a mean ass glare towards the neutral shorter girl. Normani stands up and walks over to the obviously butt hurt Dinah, grips her by her neck and places a soft, passionate kiss on her lips. Just like that, all Dinah's anger and pain disappeared in an instant. Dinah didn't know if it was because of Normani's powers or Dinah's overwhelming love for her to stay mad. Normani broke away from the kiss, "Feel a little better?" She asks, her eyes glowing red. Dinah's eyes glowed gold, "Y-Yes..." She says.

Ally awwed while Lauren and Camila gagged, "Anyway, Cheechee, you're hair looks amazing!" Camila exclaims,

Lauren nods, "Yeah! Braids look good on you girl!" She says. Normani smiles softly, "Call me a miracle worker because I swear on everything evil, I was about to hurt Dinah." She growls playfully making everyone laugh. Dinah leans her head on Normani's shoulder, "Um, Normani." Dinah says. Normani got an instant red flag. Dinah doesn't really call her by her first name unless something was wrong or if she needed to get something off of her chest.

Normani kisses her forehead, "What's wrong, my love?" She asks. Dinah stands up and gently drags her by the stairs leading to the second floor. Dinah sits down on the second step with a nervous look. Normani started to get a little worried. Dinah's whole aura was a blueish color which meant she was scared. Dinah's normal aura was white, "What's wrong?" Normani asks while sitting down beside her wife of 3 years.

Dinah nervously looks around, "Baby I... I love you, and you know this..." She starts making Normani sweat slightly, Oh god, is she trying to divorce me? Was all that ran through Normani's head. As if Dinah read her thoughts, she reaches over and squeezes Normani's hand, giving her a sweet kiss, "It's nothing bad, Mani. I promise." Dinah reassures, easing Normani's nerves slightly. Dinah lets out a shaky sigh, "Mani, I want a child." She says making Normani's eyes widen, "Um, DJ... Do you not know that we are both women?" She asks, clearly stating the obvious.

Dinah lets out a breathy chuckle, "I know, Mani... I want to adopt. I want to adopt with you. I want us to have a family, Normani. Yeah, Camila, Lauren, and Ally are our family, but I want a daughter." She says. Normani was unsure. It's not like she didn't want to expand her family with Dinah, she just wasn't sure about a kid, "I-I don't know, Dinah." Normani says, almost instantly regreting what she said as she saw the heartbreak in Dinah's eyes, "Wh-Why, Normani? D-Do you n-not want a f-family with me?" She stutters out, her voice cracking badly.

Normani shakes her head, "That's not it... It's just I... I don't know, what if I'm not a good mom? What if I turn out like my parents?" She asks. Dinah cups Normani's cheek, "Look at me... You won't turn out like your parents. They left you, they abused you. You're nothing like them. You'll be an amazing mom... We'll be amazing moms with Lauren, Camila, and Ally being amazing aunties. Give it a chance, baby..." Dinah begs. Normani stares into Dinah's hazel eyes, "I... Okay. I'll give it a try..." She says softly making Dinah smile.

End Chapter~

[damejanai]

Dameraji

20.10.21

[TRANS]

Kaito: It was my birthday right?

Soma: Yea

K: So I got wishes from many people through LINE, and my phone was buzzing away

S: Uh huh

K: Most people would just say one line and be done with it but, one person kept making my phone buzz and buzz. With words and also stamps one after another probably

S: Yes yes

K: So my phone had 10 notifications suddenly

S: Huh!

K: What was that? I thought, who's that person? When i opened my app i saw that i was my grandma

S: Wwwwwwwww

K: Hahhahaa. Oh that, she would drop tons of LINE stamps on me

S: Learnt how to do it probably, recently

K: Yeah yeah, She kept sending me flying kisses

S: Amazing! But, she really knows her way with these gadgets

K: Even though she's using an easy smart phone, she can totally the functions of LINE

S: Amazing~

K: But she's still slow at typing words, so every 5 minutes or so i'll receive a few words

S: Ahhahaa

K: When that happens while you're working, you'd be a little concerned about it

S: Yes yes, true

K: So, I think i shall try to tell her not to bombard me

S: Ahahhaa, this has a different meaning too

K: Yes for youngsters, this means harassment

S: Hahahaha, but well that means many people celebrated your birthday/ wished you well

K: But you know with the apple watch

S: Ahh yes!

K: My wrist keeps buzzing and buzzing

S: Hahaha Turn off the vibrations!

K: I totally turned it to airplane mode after that

S: Aahhaa

K: While saying "oh no oh no"

S: Well you know yeah, I also wished you, at like 2am or something, after seeing it on some news. "Oh shit, it's his birthday"

K: What the hell

S: Aahhaha

K: I wish you properly

S: That's true, Kaito kun, your birthday messages are totally proper huh?

K: I have been taught to do that

S: By your grandma

K: By my grandma

S: Hahahahaha

K: Yeah like, my grandma sent me a message at 12am

S: Uh huh

K: But i had fallen asleep

S: Yea

K: So i read it in the morning, and replied, and the bombardment came after that

S: Hahahha

K: Haahhaa

-----

~Omikuji yon kyoudai~

S: Ahh, speaking of which, we didn't manage to talk about it last episode but Kaito kun came as a guest on a show with 4 of us from 81 produce

K: Yes

S: Thank you so much!

K: Thank you so much, you're welcome!

S: Yeah and we could see the viewers' comments from a tablet or so called stone slab. And many of them were saying that they would like you to come as a guest again

K: Ahhh ahhaa, well.... it's an amazing project eh?

S: Kaito kun you left immediately after the show but we talked a lot after that too you know

K: Ooooh

S: How we're so thankful for Kaito kun

K: When i wasn't even there

S: Coz that was how we felt

K: Convey that to me!

S: Hahahah

K: Reenact it to me then

S: Well every time, well Komada kun came on the last round, and we're given a lot of freedom

K: Um

S: Well we have our characters to play but for the guest, it's just one time

K: Yes

S: But you know, you were like, ad-libbing for one whole part

K: Totally

S: Hahaha

K: It was difficult, i felt that asking about how the character is like, too much, would be, you know

S: Um

K: In the end it was mostly like being myself when acting as the character

S: It was splendid

K: Yeah~ like i kind of ignored some speech quirks written in the script

S: But kind of, you know, it was our first time doing it via streaming too

K: Yeah yeah yeah

S: But streaming has it's good parts so, you know wwwwww, Thank you

K: Hahahhaa

S: There are a lot of complicated feelings within me but in a way you made things easier for us

K: Well well well

S: Kaito kun is totally, well, there's a scene where we would come out in cosplay

K: Um

S: And we did the show twice but he did a different commentary each time

K: Yes, that was it, and i did commentary but the cosplays were the same

S: Yeahh

K: If it were a game, i would be commentating on the same gameplay twice

S: wwww

K: As though it was the first time i had seen it

S: Yeahhh, it was awesome though

K: But well well i had fun with that too, if i were to say this, it would sound, well, it was said to us by the director too so it's probably fine, but it was, some low quality cosplay

S: Hahahha

K: You guys put it on there and then

S: Well we took videos of cosplay as well, and those were rather high quality

K: Yes yes yes, it was a stark difference, but well it was funny in that too

S: Really, thank you so much

K: No, thank you

~Dame raji photo studio~

Theme: Dameraji's way of posing like "CITY"

[booasaur]

You touched on what I found most weird about Juliantina's scenes last night: Juliana didnt seem to have a proper read on Val's emotions. I thought the 1st scene with her saying she didn't like being with Sergio was good, but I found it weird that she didn't notice how angry Val looked later when she asked how Sergio was or that she didn't attempt to reassure her that she still has feelings for her when she asked for them to be friends knowing how hurt Val was the last time she suggested that.

I think…there was also not much she could do about it? Or allow herself to do? Like, would it be the time, when the other person is hurt and angry, to keep on focusing on what you feel for them? Especially Juls, who’s seen herself as a burden in this relationship for a while now? It’s one thing to console her with touches and a kiss when the only issue is that you’re not together, a whole ‘nother thing when it’s you who’s hurt the other person.

And another anon:

I was literally shouting at my screen (ok, maybe just in my head) — “No! You do NOT just want to be friends! For the love of all things holy, you are MEANT to be together. You are meant to be together NOW. Come ON!!!” And then I was like, okay, sure, yes, kidnapping, death, rampant homophobia, etc, etc, etc. Okay, okay. But STILL. Las chicas. POR FAVOR. ;)

They really can’t be just friends, I do not see how they’re going to go into a time jump like this. They don’t deserve to?? 

And another anon:

I thought juliantina’s reactions were pretty much in characters n enjoyed it as such. Val’s anger has always exploded For Juliana never At Juliana. Seeing theories wher she will lash out at her seemed OOC .I loved maca’s acting choices in this. Her anger at juls for mentioning mazcal, they way she showed disgust at sergios hug by shoving his shoulder at the end of the hug and then wiping her hands on her jeans, when juls puts her hand on vals she tightens her fit as if shes holding herself back!

Huh, I don’t think I saw that with Sergio, but then I wasn’t watching too closely, lol.

You are right, though, Val was never going to get super angry or hurtful toward Juls. The loudest she’s been with her was “let yourself be loved”, which says a lot, lol.

And other anons:

Why people are disappointed with last night episode?? I think it was great how they were truthful about their feelings. I get that everyone (litterally everyone in the world) wants them to be together but it would be unrealistic for them to get there immediately. Val has been hurt in a 1000 different ways in the last few days and needs time to process her feelings while Juls has family drama and guilt to work through. What it’s great with those 2 it’s how even now you can feel the love btw them

i’m a little mad that Juls didn’t defend the herself more. like Val said ‘so *now* you decide to drink mezcal’ when that should’ve been a huge red flag to her, that Juls was drinking. i wish Juls had drive. home the fact that she was basically homeless, everyone kept telling her she was confused and Sergio 1000% took advantage of her

I don’t think people were necessarily disappointed that they didn’t get together after it, I think people just felt a lot had been left unsaid. 

Also, Juls was hurt in a whole bunch of different ways these last few days. I think there were two things that should have been covered but due to time and plot, ultimately weren’t. One was just what Juls had been going through, you can’t tell me that she could just casually say “I’d left home” and this wouldn’t be a major thing for Val to stop at and dissect? And I haven’t really mentioned it but for Juls to confirm that she didn’t like it shows actually how terrible that day must have been for her, what her frame of mind must have been. AND of course the whole kidnapping thing. They’re feeling sorry for what Sergio’s going through? Um?? If Juls had really said everything

The other thing was how hurt Val was feeling and why. And I think if they’d really gotten into that talk, as well, hashed out everything, how they felt, the strength of their feelings, the outcome of the conversation and ep would be different. Both things, really, would have changed the ep. There’s no way Val would just leave it at that if she truly knew what Juls was going through. But they can’t have them get through all that right now, lol. Having watched today’s ep, like, yes, that Mateo/Eva conversation was awesome for them, it revealed so much, but that’s what’s needed for where their plot needs to be. If Juliantina had something like that (with 1000% less yelling), it would…resolve too much. 

Keeping aside external reasons, it could make sense in the plot too, they just weren’t in the mood for it, Lucho’s death was still hanging over them, they were too raw over everything.

And another anon:

Ok, boss, so Valentina has to put on her Sungay best to get ready for the funeral; Juliana’s already in the room, does Vale change in her en suite? Does Juli go chill with Chivis until Vale’s ready? Does Juli stay? Does Vale ask her to leave? I guess my question is, how much awkward ‘what are we to each other anymore’ energy do you reckon was between them between the bedroom scene and the break up-ception scene? Especially at the funeral with Juli knowing she kinda broke Lucho & Vale up?

Lol, this ask in the middle of the others. I bet Juls was full on averting eyes or straight up left the room, Val was not in the mood for anything like the post-first-kiss or even post-breakup awkwardness. Neither was Juls, of course. I imagine both felt just miserable and guilty at the funeral, and also super weird not just because of Lucho but Sergio.

Oh, oh, though, there was that cute little classic “look at the other when she’s not looking” moment.

[monsterloveday]

Dating is just as enjoyable as explosive diarrhoea.

This will make you laugh. My pathetic failings will make you feel awesome. Man they are good stories to tell. There I was, the 26 year old Jay, feeling lame and inexperienced due to never having gone on a date and really wanting to try it out to ‘cross it off the list’... what a pile of wank. I’d tell her to stay home and eat, I’d tell her to spend that 50 or so quid and spend it on something more useful than trying to impress a guy who she most likely didn't give a crap about. And for the love of god DONT shave - DO NOT WASTE HOURS OF YOUR TIME JUST TO END IN NOT GETTING PORKED AND TO ITCH CONSTANTLY AND GET RASH FOR THE NEXT THREE DAYS.

Why do we do this to ourselves? - who thought meeting a stranger and feeling like you're in a job interview would actually go well? 

Actually maybe we should do it more like it were a job interview - it would certainly save time... *Girl* “Are you a dick?” *Boy* Yes, after I have learned that you wont just fuck me, i’ll piss off and move into the next fanny and will probably forget your whole existence, wait, whats your name again babe?” *Girl* - Thank you for applying, if you do not hear anything, it means you have not been successful”.... AAANDDD leaves. And then theres the trying on numerous outfits / buying brand new clothes to feel sexy and try them all on - with optional shoes and bags and sending all these options via Whatsapp to your mates and making sure you wear good make up but not too much make up, but make up that looks like make up but natural at the same time bla bla blaaaaaa. Surely someone has to earn the right to this shit? - not someone totally random who wont even buy me a drink?!. And whats more - with every date that is bad, you end up totally evaluating your whole love life and go into the major “Woeist MEEE! I am going to be alone forever’ WHERE IST THOU HUSBAND?!” and wanting to eat your body weight in ice cream until you somehow master the courage to do it all again with some other guy who is also “not the one”.  So we have, lets say his name was ‘Dave’. Dave was clearly very shy (my loud ass does NOT do shy guys). His inexperience was very clear, if there were a ten minute gap or so of me not replying to his texts, I’d receive a text from his relative telling me to hurry up and text him back. Oh lord. Why didn't I run for the hills at this point? He wouldn't make any decisions as to where we should go and wanted me to take the lead (urgh, my flange does shut very tightly), so I tell him he could take me anywhere as long as it was quiet so we could hear each other speak and that we could get some cocktails, (after our previous conversation of how much we liked them). His MUM drops him off to our meeting place - a nightclub. A nightclub where coincidentally his mates are. And the first thing he does is look at he prices of cocktails, states he's not getting any due to the expense. So he asks me what else I want, I tell him vodka and coke, he comes back moaning how expensive that was. Bet it wasn't as expensive as my taxis here and back to you love, but Im not being a little bitch about it!. I took turns in getting drinks (I usually do anyway) just to shut this one up.

Inevitably the conversation is pointless as we cant hear each other. (shock!) Knowing this was a failure, I drink enough and start talking of my bingo wings and how my arm fat needs to come off and wobble it in display. I tell him I'm going to get a taxi, so he goes to meet his mates (oh wow didn't see that coming!). To my surprise I still got texts from him the next day. Fail. Then theres Glenn, the guy who looked like a nice chunky bearded lumberjack online, who turned out to be the campiest guy who’s voice was higher than mine and probably weighed about 6 stone and turned out to be a proper hard core man hating feminist. He speaks of how he gets all his girlfriends massive dildos to avoid them cheating on him with actual human men. He is mouthy to a bar man he doesn't like for no reason and demands we go somewhere else.  When he eventually leaves for his train (after hinting and pleading he come back to mine - fucks sake) he asks me out right yet nervously “so um are we going to kiss now?”, I say no and that I don't kiss on first dates, which then leads to him pushing me into a dark corridor at the train station, pinning me against a wall and trying to force it on me - what a true feminist!. On my journey home I get a multitude of apologetic texts stating he acted like everything he hates. Wow. Fail. Another was with a teacher who also had the high pitched voice of a 6 year old girl and had made as much effort as you do for a duvet day - a crinkled T shirt with jeans that dragged on the floor with holes, I smell no cologne nor had his hair been touched. I feel like a right knob when Im dressed up wearing a very flattering top, perfume, hair and make up agonised over. We do a pub quiz in which he regularly “Sssshhhhes” me angrily and tells me Im getting too excited and that the other people will hear me saying the answers. He tells me he hates people who have a problem with his smoking, knowing he stated he is a non smoker on his profile. =| I watch him have a better time with his cigarette then with me. I last an hour and beg for my sisters boyfriend to come and save me. Fail. Hal was the best one. Hal slags off his date from the day before and informs me of his upcoming date for the following day =|. He buys a packet of crisps for us ‘to share’ and chomps on them without offering me one and then tips the packet into his mouth. After telling me previously he knows exactly where he's taking me, we walk around in Bristol with his sat nav, getting nowhere fast. He kindly likes to remind me of when its my round - usually as soon as he has finished his drink. (it may be ‘my round’ darling but its a hell no to you telling me so!) He tells me how he has been in prison for drug dealing and asks me what drugs I do. =| ( erm energy drinks with vodka?) After a few drinks I tell him I don't need another after his offerings, as I am getting tiddley, with this he comes back with come cheesy chips to help me ‘pace out’ - I think, wow he could redeem himself with buying me food! He asks me if I like hot sauce - I tell him no. He then pours hot sauce all over them but thinks this is ok because he also puts ketchup and mayonnaise on them (as these are the ones I state I like). He mixes them all onto one big gooey, disgusting concoction. He devours them like he has never been fed until he gets down to the last one. This one has  managed to escape the sauce, I tell him he can have it... Now, along with everything else Ive already mentioned, Id also like to mention that later on this guy had been drunkenly looking at my chest, telling me “I just want to have sex with you”, he tried to convince me not to take my last train home and to stay at his. But THIS is what takes the biscuit... He eats the last chip. THE LAST CHIP.  HE FUCKING EATS IT!? WHO DOES THAT?....WHO?!. This is when you know someone is truly a fucking asshole. Mega fail. Chris insisted we go on a date again and again and again. After weeks of convincing I give in, he says he will take me out to dinner - on the day of the date, he randomly goes quiet and nothing happens.  Oh ok then!. The next day he drives past me and texts me asking if I want a lift to work. Um no I fucking don't douche bag!. Fail. Kieran. My first actual good date. We even have a nice kiss (even though I dont usually do this but the moment was there) and he says he could actually stay up all night with me talking, that Im the only girl he doesn't just want to have sex with, that he is attracted to me but Im also like a mate to him - good things to say right? Wrong. After the second date (that I asked him to I may add), he tells me hes not used to girls not having sex with him and ditches. Needless to say this didn't give me a wide on. Fail. Now I know what your thinking, that Im a poor judge of character, that not all men are like this and I have been dating men who are clearly twats, some of this is true, but the whole point of dating is to get to know someone and the only way to find out if they are a dick is to go on a date with them, so some responsibility I shan't take! I havent dated for a few years now and Im not planning on trying again anytime soon, regardless of how horrendous they were, Im still actually glad that I have given dating a go and have indeed ‘ticked it off the list’. I do imagine that maybe someone out there in the universe has experienced a good date - who ever you are, where ever you are hiding - I salute you, to the rest of us poor bastards - we are brave souls.  Until I can be assed again, I will continue to date myself and not shave, stuff my face and not have to explain politely why I wont fuck a random stranger on a first date - call me old fashioned, but I do prefer the whole ‘Just talking to each other” thing and I do melt if a man acts like a gentleman. I love that shit! Romance is dead my friends, but so is dating!. Be back soon Jay Monster 

[existentialstatesofmind]

Opening Up

Clare: had suspected she should avoid reading adult manga so she was glad she asked and Kota confirmed her suspicions. It would save her a lot of embarrassment. “Not for me.” She agreed. “I don’t know what all they show in porn either. I have seen True Blood...they show butts and breasts. Alli and I get the giggles even though we fast forward.” She said honestly. Clare worried about getting caught watching the vampire show too but she never watched it at home. “I have a lot to learn about cooking. Sushi sounds harder to make...and I don’t like fish. I’ll make it, just don’t expect me to eat it.” Clare looked at him. “I know there’s not actually an auction. That was the only similar thing we do here that I could think of.” She rolled her eyes playfully. “You better not fall for that trick. If whatever girl you get paired up with wants a real kiss make it as gross as possible. The boys need to skirt around the rules too. Unless they get a pairing they like. Seriously though if she’s nice and you don’t want to hurt her feelings, I’m fine with a quick peck.” She reassured him again. Clare wasn’t going to get bent out of shape over a game unless it got taken too far. The image of K.C and Jenna flirting with each other right in front of her was burned into her memory forever. “I need to participate too to capture the true spirit of the Host club for the Daily.” Clare teased, grinning at Kota. “You enjoy me putting my foot in my mouth.” She mock gasped. “That’s okay if they aren’t going for realism. Besides there are some things you can’t do anything about. I mean have you seen Alli’s long thick eyelashes?” Clare laughed. She was a little jealous of them. “Yeah, good point. The kids who actually attend the school will have to do the ‘heavy lifting’. My dad explained the currency to me. A dollar equals over 111 Japanese yen. Thank god for computers to tell me what change to give.” She smiled at Kota when he said he’d follow her. “If I got pregnant, I guess we’d find a way to make it work with college. Emi will be in elementary school so only the baby would need daycare. I’d get to have a journalism career. Hopefully there won’t be a baby until we decide we want one though.” She nodded. “You have a lot of options and so do I. I know I want to go to Columbia but there’s exchange student programs there too.” Clare could go back to Japan or spend a year in another country. “Of course I expect us to visit each other if we go to different colleges. Jimmy Fallon? Really? He wants you to come on the show?” Clare asked a small note of skepticism in her voice. “I took Emi being part of the package into consideration before I said yes to dating you. The only hesitation I’ve ever had was my parents. Nothing on my end. You’re both worth it.” Clare chuckled about Canada paying the bill. “Our baby would have dual citizenship. That’s pretty cool.” She kissed Kota, only stopping to say. “Yes, if we can talk about it we might be ready for more. If we can’t, we’re definitely not ready yet.” Clare kissed him again. “Noo. No I’m going! Alli will have to settle for a t-shirt. I wouldn’t miss the mystery concert for the world. Too many what ifs for the rest of my life especially if I like them. I’d die. Also no else at Degrassi has ever had backstage passes to anything, probably.” Clare shook her head. “Obviously I think he’s charming so I can understand people, even famous ones, liking him and inviting him to things. What is bizarre to me is how does Kota meet them in the first place? You know yourself, it’s hard to get those kind of opportunities.” Melanie was a famous singer now. However, it took time for her to be recognized. Before she went on The Voice she was just a normal teenager like them. “How are you able to talk to them in the first place? Long enough for them to realize you’re a designer?” Celebrities usually had body guards to keep fans away. “Sure, I’m ready for lunch. Um how does this work? Does Melanie usually put on a disguise and go wherever she wants or are there certain restaurants you can ask for a private room at? Or do you order take out?” She asked curiously looking back forth between Kota and Melanie.

Kota: listened to Clare and chuckled a bit when she mentioned True Bloods. "I've seen American Pie with Dom and my mom. She sat us both down while our brothers were at a sleep over and pressed play. Honestly, I still don't know how I felt watching that with my mom and twin. The whole movie was about sex, when someone says 'One time at band camp...' or anything referring to a time at band camp and you know they've never been they're referring to American Pie. In the movie the Naked Mile you seen the girls fully naked. I've also seen Skins UK which shows a few guys naked and just breasts and both guys and girl's buts. They also showed them having sex, not full blown, but the movements and sounds." he shrugged. "I've also seen some porn, seems overrated to me." he looked over at her when she mentioned her distaste for fish. "Not all sushi has fish, some have imitation crab. And I'm taking someone who doesn't like fish to Japan." he laughed a bit. "That limits the food you can eat. Japanese eat a lot of fish, I'm guessing you won't eat seaweed either?" He asked curiously. "You'll probably learn how to cook fish if you go to someone's house. It's a staple in Japan along with stuff I won't eat. We'll also probably have weekends without Emi, she's already making plans." he added and listened as she mentioned the event he may be partaking in. "I wouldn't kiss them. Some girls see kissing on the same level as sex. I don't want to give anyone that idea, besides I see kissing other girls that aren't you as cheating. I wouldn't do it unless I absolutely had to such as a play." he stated and laced their fingers together. "If you really want to be part of it, I can see if you can be a waitress. I mean it's for Kendo so the guys know English." he shrugged and laugh a bit. "I think it's cute." he smiled and rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. "I have seen her long eyelashes. If your dad explained the currency to you, you're not allowed to try to do the math when we go clothes shopping. Also you may not want to go grocery shopping with us. They sell turtles dead wrapped up and ready to be eaten also alive and they sell mystery meat, if you ask what it is they just tell you the animal, they get it cut it up, and mix it together organs and all." he added. "I hope we don't have one until we agree either." he nodded. "That's true and we have summer off regardless. Japan is only 14 hours ahead of us and yea he's asked a few times." he smiled. He was happy that Clare took her into the package before they started dating although he wasn't aware of how long she'd be in his life. "I'm happy your only hesitation was your parents, but I mean if they forbid us to date we can hide it from them." he shrugged. "I agree about our future baby having duel citizenship, it is pretty cool." he said against her lips and looked at her when she stopped. "I agree." he whispered against her lips. A soft chuckle fell from his lips when Clare mentioned a T-shirt for Alli. "I don't really know if that's possible. Normally we go get a bite to eat after or go have fun. I mean we can try to sneak while she's getting her disguise on..." he shrugged. Kota looked at Mel when Clare mentioned the people Kota met and the opportunities he's had. "It's different for designers especially for famous ones like Kota. Murder Bunny is bigger in America than it is here. America is more about Fashion, TV, and finally music. I'm slowly getting into fashion, my perfume came out as did my lipstick line. Kota came up with Murder Bunny and when it released in America with it's own cell phone cases and shirts, it took off. I met him when I went to a fashion show I knew he was going to be at, other's met him at a different fashion show. Jimmy Fallon wears Murder Bunny, a lot of famous people like the line as well. The media in America is wondering if Kota being a sixteen year-old can keep up with the fashion demand in all three countries and he seems to be doing a great job. He's pretty high up there in the fashion world." she explained to Clare. "He gets to meet the actors, singers, and models I don't. In order for me to meet some of the people Kota has I have to be as big as Fallout Boy and Taylor Swift." Mel explained and looked at Kota. "Also Adam is mad at you for rejecting his call. Apparently Behati wants to talk to you about swim suits and Behati said 'tell Kota to teach me how to put on the clothes properly.' It would be nice if you explained." she said. "I'll answer both of your questions and Clare, there's a reason I didn't tell you this yet. I met most of the celebrities at the Victoria's Secret Fashion show when I got a call saying that the Murder Bunny lingerie line was working. It's exclusive to Victoria's Secret shops so I agreed. I got a call from Jimmy Fallon asking to do an interview, but I had school. After that I got a few more calls to do interviews, but school had to come first then the show. The girls didn't really put their bras on right, the people Victoria hired to dress the models told me to just stick my hand in their bras to help. I told Cara how to fix it, in turn she took her bra off in front of me, handed it to me, then told me to put it on her. It was extremely awkward to say the least. I told her to put it on herself, put her hand in her bra, and that's when she put my hand in her bra and said to fix them. That's what Behati wants me to teach her. I will not be touching her breasts." he explained. "What's the proper way to put on a bra?" Melanie asked him. "Put your arms in the straps, bend forwards allowing them to fall perfectly in the cups as you fasten the back, stand up straight and that's it. Don't push up the bottom or pull it down, it won't give much comfort, also a wire bra isn't healthy for your circulation and doesn't support tissue growth, wireless is better for your health." he informed Mel. "I normally clip my bra around my stomach, turn the front towards me and then put the straps on." she said looking at him. "Your bra is on wrong. If you fix it like I told you, it'll feel better." he said and motioned to a room she can change in if she wanted to. "Talking to them long enough is easy. After the online store opened in America I opened an actual store with my grandpa's help. He cut the ribbon since I couldn't be there due to school, then I got a call to do a fashion show. Celebrities attended such as Rihanna and she approached me after the show asking me to make her a custom outfit. We sat down for a few hours and designed it together, then she told her friends and word got out to them. I even designed a giant MB bow with Sia which she wore and sent me a thank you picture." he said reaching for the picture of her smiling as her hair hid her eyes as usual, her hand pointing to the giant bow head band. "She sent a thank you letter with it." he said handing it to Clare. The letter reading 'Thank you so much for bow, it was worth the cost and chatting with you. Best wishes and stay in touch xox Sia.' "I have a few things like that from various people." he added and knocked on the door to the room Melanie was in. "Clare's ready to eat." he said loudly. "In America, I put on a disguise. Normally a big billed hat, dark glasses, and just dress like myself. I still get recognized once in a while, but normally they only want a picture or an autograph. Mel is putting on her disguise now." he said honestly as the door opened and Mel walked out wearing a wig with long black hair, a plain blue skirt with a Nirvana band tee on and black Chuck Taylors with her normal ruffle socks. "Don't you need your disguise?" she asked. "No, I'm not that famous here. We hold hockey higher than fashion, music is above fashion here." he said honestly as he held Clare's hand and lead them out. When they got to the car Kota opened the passenger door to his car for Clare and the back door for Mel, then shut them and got in on his side and started to drive. "Where are we eating?" he asked looking at the girls. "Clare?" Mel asked and Kota looked at her. "The mall or ---" he trailed off.