#because it’s so fun and nostalgic and I love how fast and to the point it is

[arsonistman]

I’m not really vibing with The first to die at the end, it’s so sappy and too much of a summer book for me

[art]

Creator Spotlight: @textless​​

Hi! My name is Amadee, and I am a librarian who lives in Arizona. I also love taking photos in my spare time.

Check out our interview with Amadee below!

What got you started in photography?

Both of my parents were very interested in photography. I’d always loved looking at their work, and in high school, I got a 35mm camera as a gift, so I could start taking photos myself. Back then (in the actual 80s), HS students in the Minneapolis area could take classes at area colleges for dual credit. I started taking photo classes at the University of Minnesota and had access to a darkroom and nearly unlimited film and processing supplies without realizing just how amazing that was. I took many photos of friends, acquaintances, and strangers, and I loved looking at work by Nan Goldin and Bill Owens. After college, without access to a darkroom, I stopped taking pictures almost entirely.

How has technology changed the way you approach your work?

Bluntly, technology allowed me to start taking photos again. The first digital cameras I tried in the early 2000s were terrible: slow, clunky, and with next to no storage capacity. Even so, they seemed like the first step in an interesting direction. By 2008 or so, I had a point-and-shoot digital camera and rediscovered what I loved about photography… except that I no longer wanted to take pictures of people. Soon I started taking photos of tiny things, especially insects, and my little camera wasn’t up to the task. I got a DSLR with a macro lens in 2010 and haven’t stopped taking photos since.

I know many photographers who are nostalgic for film, whether or not they were around in the analog era. More power to anyone who wants to spend the time and money, but I don’t miss film even a little. For the kind of photography I enjoy, which is almost entirely documentary, the ability to take an unlimited number of photos, and see what did or didn’t work right away, makes all the difference.

You've also written books in the past—what was the most challenging, yet rewarding part of the process?

I was a children’s librarian for many years and just love books. So, when I started writing, I hoped to create books that would connect with kids and spark their imagination. Cortez the Gnome was a book I would have liked to see as a kid, and the art project elements were fun and frustrating. Gentle Hands filled what felt like a gap in my storytimes and gave me a chance to work with a publisher I like very much. Alas, my biggest challenge is that I haven’t had an idea in years! I write occasional blog posts for Free Spirit on topics related to serving youth, but working with kids was the spark for new ideas, and these days my work is mostly admin. I enjoy it more than I would have guessed years ago, but as a wellspring of inspiration, it is not.

How do you create healthy boundaries in balancing your day job and personal aspirations?

Work comes first every time. That might sound like a drag, but I truly like my job and think library service is critically important. In some of the tiny communities we serve, the library is the only gathering place open to everyone, and the only place to access fast internet, enrichment activities for kids, books, movies, and all kinds of other good stuff. I love taking photos, but I would hate to make a job of it.

What is the hardest part of your process?

The process itself is just fun, and I’d stop if it weren’t. I used to stress about editing and posting photos soon after taking them because I wanted to create a sort of nature journal in real-ish time. That wasn’t sustainable, partly because the subjects that interest me are so seasonal. I might take 2,000 photos in August (peak macro season here), but only 100 in February. Now I just try to indicate when photos were taken and know that I’m the only person who particularly cares about that. For years I posted six new photos each day. Now I generally post two and skip days or longer whenever it suits me.

Right now, the biggest challenges are external. First, my vision is less and less sharp. It’s nothing severe, just a function of age, but it makes me think I’d better develop an interest in non-tiny subjects at some point. Second, some small but annoying health problems have kept me from getting out much over the last year. I used to take a hike or long walk at least once or twice a week, and more in peak bug season. Since last September, I’ve taken two longish walks and mostly stuck to the yard. On the plus side, it’s an excellent yard with an ever-growing assortment of interesting plants and insects.

While this is frustrating in some ways, it’s also a distillation of something I have always liked. Even when I was hiking all the time, I enjoyed going back to the same places, again and again, getting to know them in detail and watching the seasons roll through. Staying so close to home this year has been an extreme version of that, and some aspects of that have been very satisfying.

I should also say, for the record, that I am not technical at all. I’m not interested in new gear as long for its own sake, and I don’t like messing with camera settings or anything fiddly. My favorite piece of photo advice ever was “f/8 and be there,” which I took to mean finding a basic setup you like and focusing on the subject at hand. I like finding strange or beautiful things that other people might not notice and trying to make them interesting to a wider audience. (Wider than just me, that is.)

What is something you would love to photograph but haven't had the chance to yet? Why?

This is oddly specific, but I desperately want to find an Arizona Unicorn Mantis (Pseudovates arizonae; check out the photos here). Several have been spotted within two miles of my house, but I have never found one yet. They are otherworldly and just fascinating. Insect goals!

Are there similarities or differences in your workflow when it comes to photography and writing?

Mostly difference in that photography is relaxing, and writing is nearly impossible, at least right now.

Who on Tumblr inspires you and why?

There are several excellent photographers who live in my corner of Arizona, and I love their work because it shows different aspects of a place I care about. Also, their photos are just gorgeous.

@fatchance​ is practically a neighbor and an all-around lovely person. He takes beautiful pictures of birds and desert flora, and unlike me, he takes the time to learn about and share good information about his subjects.

@thelostcanyon​ is another south-eastern AZ photographer I admire, and he is also a very good painter.

@inlandwest​ is actually my partner. We’ve lived all over the west together, and I like that his wide-open-spaces aesthetic is so different from my focus on the little things.

A little farther afield, I love @macroramblings​, and Celeste, of @celestialmacros​, @celestialphotography​, and @occasionallybirds​, for their beautiful macro work.  @mostlythemarsh​ is another long-time favorite. He’s not a macro photographer, for the most part, but I like seeing familiar places through the seasons, and I like the stark difference between his environment (east coast/Canada) and my own.

Thanks for such wonderful answers, Amadee. Check out her beautiful photography work over at her Tumblr, @textless​!

[plague-of-insomnia]

I'm sorry if this is a silly question but I'm just curious. Do you know how much time Ciel and Sebastian spend in Weston? I haven't read the manga in a while but while watching the anime I just feel like everything is happening too fast??? Luke the whole are was done in 2 weeks max

Hi, anon, I am not someone who pays super close attention to the chronology of canon (as in, exactly what day/date things happen) partly bc I care more about the overall story and themes and the characters than minutiae like that. Not bc I think people who do are dumb but bc I’m more of an AU creator than canon so knowing the details like that to extreme doesn’t really benefit me much so it doesn’t interest me to spend the time doing it. (Though I know at least one person did come up with a timeline through a certain point in the manga years ago, which you may find if you do a google search.)

But what I can tell you is Ciel comes home from the Campania before Easter and arrives at Weston presumably after that holiday, so likely in March or April. (I could probably find out exactly when Easter happened in 1889 but I honestly could care less lol.) We also know from McMillian that he is joining mid-term. It’s actually a clever way for Yana to have the school “begin” in Spring (which is familiar/nostalgic for Japanese audiences, where school years begin in April, usually) while still reconciling with the Western tradition of beginning in the fall.

We also know the cricket tournament takes place on the 4th of June—probably a day Yana picked since it plays with the theme of four (four houses, four prefects) in the arc but also because the number has an association with death in Japanese.

This means that Ciel is not a student at Weston for very long at all—only 2-3 months at most—since the midnight tea party happens after the cricket completes and presumably marks the end (or close to it) of the school year/term.

Honestly, until the last episode I think the anime has been perfectly paced with the manga. They’ve really made only minor shifts and mostly expanded things, so they’re following Yana’s vision fairly closely.

The one major thing is that this episode shoves most of two chapters into one, when it really could have been done in two. But that would mean 12 episodes. and I suspect the team was worried if they didn’t get the cricket part over fast, they might risk losing/boring their core audience.

One huge change they did was take out the explanation of the game itself and its basic rules, which Bard explains in the manga. This was likely done for time/space reasons but also because they may have figured most viewers don’t care and they can communicate enough for people to understand and follow along even if they don’t understand the rules of the game itself.

This is partly perhaps because the cricket part of the arc was not well received in Japan and was one of the least popular chapters, supposedly. It’s why I was shocked they turned it into a musical a couple years ago.

I was a bit disappointed to lose all that not only bc we lost a nice scene with Bard and the servants (they cut a scene with them where they have lunch, though it’s possible that could make it into next episode, but I won’t hold my breath), but also bc I’m like the ONE person who genuinely enjoyed the cricket part of the arc, and it’s one reason this arc is my second favorite in many ways.

I LOVE seeing Ciel and Seb working together in devious ways to get their mission accomplished, and how far Ciel is willing to go to win. Ofc we can still appreciate it anyway, but the fact that he so carefully works within the limits of the rules— and in fact, I learned in commentary on the arc that some of the rules Ciel takes advantage of were actually changed not long after this period of time, which is a fun detail.

So it could be things feel like they’re moving fast because in a sense they are, but it also could be you’re sensing that urgency from how rushed this last episode was. But I suspect when all is said and done, and you watch the entire thing, it probably won’t feel as off. Book of Murder took place over only 3 days, and Seb and Ciel were not at the circus long at all. I can’t be sure but maybe only a week or two? And ofc the campania adventure was also only a few days. In fact, this may actually be the longest mission in the series to this point. So it seems like most missions don’t take too long.

Hope that answers your question! I’ve been looking through the chapters in this arc before every episode to get a sense for the pacing and they’ve generally fallen exactly where I expect. This episode being one exception since they really did condense a lot.

[orangelemonsstuff]

Oh my gosh. I just finished Child!MC & Child!Malleus fic- and- AAAAAAA OMG ITS SO CUTE! UGH MY HEART- THE ENDING?? YOU CANT JUST DO THAT?? MY HEART??? PLEASE. PLEASSSSEEE WRITE A PART TWO WHERE MALMAL AND MC MEET AGAIN- OR SOMETHING BECAUSE IM IN LOVE WITH THIS AU AAAAA

-🌙 anon? is that available?

HEllo :D hehe Im glad you liked the fic :> this was actually inspired on a chapter of Aharen San where she met raidou as a kid and played together yet she has to move out the day Raidou wanted to play with her the next day :(( but since im basing my fic to tht manga chapter ofc they'll meet again and yes emoji anons are all available here!! so heres ya part two!!

Where We Used To Play

Malleus & Reader

Childhood Friends Au

(sequence to this!!)

Tags: Fluff, Implied Childhood Stranger Friend, Can be Platonic or Romantic

Summary: your life kinda sucks at the moment and it felt too overwhelming for you to handle so you decided to take a break outside, maybe a walk or a breather till you come across a familiar playground filled with you nostalgic childhood memories and friends, you reminiscence through a memory you barely remember.

•••

You groan

You arch your back and raise your arms up in the air as your feet walk on the concrete road, today was tiring, yesterday was tiring as well, but finally you get to catch a break for a hour.

walking around is calming you enough, the afternoon air really releases all the stress clumped up in you, walking around is more than enough of a break for you

Walking

Walking

and More Walking later

You ought to get tired of course so you try to find a bench you could sit on to rest your legs and even maybe meditate since it's been a while since you've done that

upon turning arriving at a centered road, lies ahead a playground nearby a elementary school. the school you used to go to

you prefer getting hit by a sudden euphoria upon seeing the nostalgic playground than getting hit by the feeling of drowsiness, your face curls up to a smile as you stride into its jagged pebbled ground

oh, your elementary days... how've you missed being a child. no problems, no worries, everyday is just fun! but everyone's gotta grow up right? that's what's all of this nostalgia is for, for the adult version of you to remember

you turn your head around to observe the playground, few kids are playing whether it's on the sandbox where you used to buried your profound toys, the seesaw where you used to fly as much as you can while returning the favor to your friend by coming down, or the swing that had you fast up the air to point of seeing the top branches of trees as the rusty metal chain creak with every swing of the seat.

there are lots of other playthings here as well you don't remember seeing before, such as monkey bars, a small climbing wall enough for small kids to climb up to, and oh that curved ladder wasn't there before

how have you missed playing around this place, you are quite jealous since you can't be the children you are as before, it is fun to see younger kids having fun on their own

but as much as there are a lot of playground equipments there are only a few kids playing and trotting around and most of them are in pairs in spaces they are occupying, kinda surprising that they are ignoring the swings, kids from before used to fight each other just to get a turn in it

it is after school for them most had probably went home with their childhood friends or parents like you used to before. and it's not that noisy for you to be bothered either

the children were too occupied playing with themselves they didn't even notice you striding to the swings and sitting down, perhaps you had grown a lot or they just lowered the swings for safety measures but your butt and feet are not that far from each other it feels like you are squatting but this swing is taller to you when you were young till now, it also might have sat on by too many kids that it was forced down low by their weight

though children don't usually weight that much to push down a metal swing right? you remember playing with a older kid before and he is the only kid you struggle to push the swing for because of his inch tall stature

huh? older kid?

you remember your friends are mostly at what grade you are, you don't remember making a friend a few grade more--

oh.

your eyes followed two kids making castles at the sandbox and that's what hit it back like the euphoria from earlier

what was his name again? Mal...Mallyu...Malleus?

yeah, that kid. yeah you remember him. he was that weird mysterious boy who watched you play alone that one afternoon before not even bothering on asking to join you till you asked-- well told him to and just lets you pull him around on different apparatuses of the playground to play with you

Urgh... now that you think about it, he didn't come back the next day after that he probably got weirded out by you and decided he does not want to play with you anymore

your dragon toy and the other thing was still with him too

not only he hated you that time, he also stole your toys because he hated tou. how immature of the side the child you shown, well you were a kid back then of course you'd be immature but still...!!

at least he could've come back to make up with you... you two had so much fun that day you really though he'll come back the next, you brought another pair of shovel and castle bucket too so the dragon could also have a tower

you lean back and lets your head wonder what could've been the actual reason he didn't come back that day, hated you? just wanted your toys? got yelled at and told to never play with you again? or maybe he just forgot about it, maybe you could forgive the forgot reason because you as a child too didn't really thought about it that much either and continue on living without remembering him, not until now at least

you might've leaned back a little too far because your head had hit a soft clothed pole? pretty muscly too... realization slapped the back of your head as you stopped leaning in and turn your head behind you. shit. it's a person.

"uhh sorry didn't see you there"

"..."

your eyes shift back to the playground and turn your head back at the stranger, your eyes focused back to the kids playing on the sandbox again, they were dirty and dusty now but they sure are having fun

feeling you had ignored his presence, the stranger took an initiative to sit on the other swing, and swing back and forth a bit with his foot

"you got a kid here?" you ask as you let your eyes wander the playground to the kids sliding down the curvy slides, to the three children talking at the curved ladder while one of them sits on top

"....no."

"oh i see"

"how about you? are one of them yours?" your eyes scrunched up at his statement do you look that old to be a parent?

"no way, I'm actually a student here" you forgot to mention the "was a student here before" but you're pretty sure he gets it

"you look pretty old to be in a playground let alone be a student." talk for himself what is he doing here too otherwise?

"heh am i?" you chuckle, closing your eyes and letting your ears just feel the noise of the laughter and chatter of the kids around you, maybe even the stranger's reply

"....yes" you burst out a giggle, and started swinging yourself a bit faster than him, that's kind of funny but the stranger seemed genuine with his answer

"Well excuse me sir, some people had just to hold back a grade, some are not born with lots of smart you know" you stated, jokingly of course

"oh." wait, that sounds like he took it seriously is he...? actually being serious right now?

your giggle turned into a laughter and some of the kids around and the stranger too turned to you confused with how you are acting

"that was a joke haha..." you wipe out the laughter tears in your eyes and calming down after a few seconds

"but you know, it might've been better if it's like that, i could be a child and play here forever don't you think?" another thought held you back "maybe even wait for him here forever"

"him?"

"i know you're just a stranger and stuff but i got this friend i made here at this same playground, we had lots of fun and he promised he'd come back tomorrow but the next day, he just didn't" the stranger stayed silent listening to you, you look down and remember the hopeful look at that kid's face, you were sure he'd come back even if he didn't promise to because at least he'd give back your toys

"ah yeah, he took two of my figurine toys too"

"oh really?" The stranger seemed a bit curious now, is he amused by your story? the child you wouldn't take that too kindly

"yeah, he took my favorite dragon figure i got from a penny store and another thing i can't seem to remembe-"

"it was a dice" he interrupted, you look at him with a perplexed expression

"the father of the prince was actually the dragon and the evil dice took over the sand castle" your eyes widened at his words, no way. no fucking way. that just can't be

"oh my goodness is that really you?" the stranger as you call him before knowing, grinned at your baffled face

"I can't seem to push myself alone at this seat, would you kindly do it for me? I'm pretty sure you know yourself how these as you don't need my help to push yourself"

"...Malleus was it? how long has it been?" your puzzled tone turned to a gleeful one as you inch your side to him by force to get closer

"im glad you remembered my name, i thought i would've had to explain who i am again in case you would only remember a few details of that day" you shook your head, of course you remember him you were just thinking about him earlier

"i wouldn't forget you, you were the only kid whom i let off that took my things" you joke elbowing him slightly

"maybe your memory is a bit more jagged. you gave these to me don't you remember?"

"no, I don't remember giving them to you, from what i know is that you promised that you'll come back that's why i let you borrow it"

"really?" you laugh kicking the rocks off the worned out ground as he shuffles his hand through his pocket and you were pretty sure he was about to pull those out so you stopped him

"I wasn't serious Malleus, i was just kidding of course i gave it to you, you are the dragon aren't you?" Malleus smiled and pulled out his hand to clasp it against yours

"although, i have no idea where the prince is now, probably got lost in a ditch somewhere" Malleus frowned in disappointment as you break your hand free from him, guilt washed over you, of course it'll get lost it was lots of years ago, you don't even remember where'd the body parts of those toy figurines you own go most of the time.

you pat his back with sympathy, letting your eyes wander again, you remember the seesaw, this swing and that slide you never get to go to,

"hey, come to think of it you didn't get to go down the slides, when you left i did it alone, it was pretty fun."

"slides? oh that thing over there, Lilia arrived too earlier for us to have use it, i was actually disappointed when we parted our ways that time." you remember who Lilia is, he's that man with the the girly face that took Malleus that time, you wonder how he is now...

but other than that, there's no other people than you, Malleus and few other kids who wouldn't seem to mind if two people used the playground facilities as they are supposed to be used for

"we can if you don't mind."

"huh?"

you pull his hand and went over to the slides you never get to ride that time when he left too early with Lilia. to continue the fun the years he was away and you waiting for him stupidly with a castle bucket

you still hadn't asked him why he didn't return that time but oh well

at least this time you two can enjoy yourselves to the fullest.

a/n: hello :> i know this might seem pretty rushed but i hope you like it, i honestly want to leave the fic an open ending and let the reader decide for themselves for how the ending ends for them. you could still do that and just think of this fic as my own way of how it went after Malleus left :DD

[nyacchiiatos]

my issue with littlest pet shop: a world of our own

hi! as you can see i have a bone to pick with this show, but i'm going to be criticizing the overall premise rather than individual episodes (i can't bring myself to watch any). nothing exactly provoked me to post this, it's just something i felt like ranting about because i always found it pretty strange and sort of like a slap in the face towards those who liked the 2012 series. very long post incoming 😭

first of all, the entire concept of AWOOO (im going to refer to it as that because the title is way too annoying to type out each time) in context of lps' brand as a whole doesn't make sense. hasbro refers to it (in a backhanded way to jab at 2012) as "a pet-only world made by pets, for pets." this premise alone is contradictory to the entire lps brand. it's called littlest pet shop, not littlest animal universe. the 2012 show made this work by having an actual pet shop with a daycamp area like you would expect irl. yes, the show had humans which i agree sometimes took over a bit too much, but it's meant to be a city-based slice of life cartoon. the main cast are actual pets, they have owners, they have their own homes, like any pet irl would. that's... why they're called pets. whatever AWOOO was trying to achieve just completely defeats the purpose of a pet shop existing. i have no doubt in my mind that hasbro felt so inclined to sweep 2012 under the rug by rushing this half-assed reboot out as fast as they could to satiate all the "bring back the old lps" commenters. there was literally nowhere online you could view content of the 2012 series in ANY site, without the comments being FLOODED with "bring back the old lps." it got to a point where fans were borderline harassing the hasbro employees, recording themselves calling them on the phone for views and clout, and encouraging others to do the same. and guess what? it worked. instead of continuing working on the show while easily selling toys that fans were more in favor of, hasbro thought it would be a better idea to just completely abandon 2012 as a whole and then proceed to act like it never even existed. there was no good reason for them to not continue producing the show (iirc it had pretty good ratings and was one of the most popular hub shows next to mlp ofc) while also selling toys that would cater to both newer and older fans (granted they probably can't sell multiple generations at a time, but still). so ultimately, they hurried this little reboot to get it out there as fast as they could and passively shit on 2012 while talking about its premise. seriously? "no humans getting in the way anymore! we have a WHOLE NEW lps cast with no big headed humans named blythe or her ugly friends! no more communication barriers, because thats no fun! isnt this show just SO much better than 2012?" they were so ready to just throw the 2012 series and everything related to it in the trash. AWOOO was not made out of love and respect. it was made as a way for hasbro to try and get their fans back by proving just how much better this reboot was in such non-discrete manners. they thought of the quickest and easiest way to regain their audience and ran with it, without ever thinking about how it completely diminishes what all the previous generations stood for.

i was one of the very few people who loved the 2012 lps series since it premiered. being a child on the internet in the early 2010s definitely brought down my happiness when watching the show because of the overwhelming negative feedback it was getting along with the rebrand in general (something im VERY nostalgic for). regardless, i continued to tune in whenever it was on tv and i saw myself growing up with the characters. to say that this show had potential is an understatement. the producers intended to make more seasons and you just knew they wanted to keep it going (this was confirmed btw). they weren't in a hurry to get something better out there, until the "bring back the old lps"ers finally got their way. but honestly? it's not completely unheard of for large companies to eventually cave in to the public opinion if it means they'll make more profit. they were desperate, and it was definitely showing.

one of the things i have the most issues with is how hasbro proceeds to COMPLETELY ignore everything regarding the show nowadays. as some of you know the show's 10th anniversary was last november, which i and many people had participated in a large art collab to celebrate and honor the show's legacy. want to know what hasbro did to celebrate? nothing. absolutely nothing. what's even worse is that michael kopsa, the voice of roger, had passed away very shortly before the shows 10th anniversary. and guess what? complete silence. that's just incredibly disrespectful to be completely honest. someone who brought his best work to your show and others on the same network (if im remembering correctly at least) and was such a joy to be around, and this is how you thank him? not a single piece of acknowledgement, all because you're too scared to ever talk about 2012 again because of the scary older fans that persuaded you to pull the plug on the whole thing? you weren't even willing to make one little post offering your condolences? oh because you just can't ever mention that show ever again, it'll spark those negative comments just like before. and you've made it abundantly clear that you care more about profiting off these people than having some kind of self awareness.

i apologize that this got so heavy, i've always wanted to properly write down my honest thoughts about this whole thing because ive been unhappy with it for years and years now. if you like AWOOO, i don't care. i wont give you a hard time for liking it, because the show itself isnt inherently bad. just what went on behind it is what bothers me so much. the fact that hasbro can completely ignore their own creation for what... 7 years now? is beyond my comprehension. they can keep pretending it never existed, but small groups of people online have been rediscovering this show and remembering how much they loved it when they were younger. you had a good thing going here hasbro, it sucks that you had to completely abandon it. but i think i can speak for a few people that this show has always and will always hold a special place in my heart and my childhood memories. even if we can't get more from it, we shouldn't forget to appreciate and cherish what we did get. and nobody can take that away.

[eteisvalssi]

ruisrock report 7.7.2024

i'm now back home from turku and what a weekend it was! here are some of my thoughts:

i was a volunteer at ruisrock. i did two 7,5 hour shifts checking other volunteers in and out of their shifts and it was so much fun! an easy job, i got to enjoy one full day and two partial days of the festival, i got free food on the two days i had a shift and would've gotten free accommodation too if i hadn't had one already. all worth it :)

i did go see artists other than joker out. my favorites were definitely fröbelin palikat and robin! fröbelin palikat is something the main target audience of ruisrock grew up listening to so it was very nostalgic and there were so many people and literally everyone dancing and singing along to children's music. and robin is just robin, an amazing performer and literally everyone knows his songs

even on our day off we could use the volunteer bus and the crew entrance, so we did, and went to teltta straight away to check the situation. my friend wanted to stay there to secure barricade, but i gave my spot to a girl who wanted to only see the first two acts there

we had the joblr meetup! i loved meeting you all, it was so much fun, and i hope to see you all soon <3 next meetup in slovenia during the balkan tour? 👀

the others went to see käärijä but i felt bad for my friend for disappearing for three hours so i went to the tent after pehmoaino and the girl who i mentioned earlier gave me the spot back!

we could hear käärijä a bit from the tent and it was nice to hear how loud the audience was when erika vikman and joost came on stage

next up in the tent was ege zulu, i only knew like two songs but oh my god his performance was so good! he's a rapper and he had like a show with a proper band and dancers. at one point he just started improvising and singing/talking directly to the audience members and giving compliments and he truly knew what part of the audience he had to win over bc yours truly got complimented on 😂

after ege zulu the first rows started filling up from joker out fans

next up was alok and speaking as a person who does study event management i feel like there might have been some misjudgement from ruisrock's part on the timetables, because the two front rows were really not feeling it and it was very awkward. it would've worked better with joker out having performed before, but of course i know nothing about what their reasoning was

the 1,5 hour wait for joker out went by so fast. we were listening to pmmp from the niitty stage and during their most-well-known songs everyone who knew them was singing along. because of that the vibe in the audience was so good even before the gig started

katri norrlin and this other guy from ylex came to introduce them and even at that people were screaming so fucking loud. i read from jodel that one security person went to get second earmuffs bc it was so loud

after they came on stage nace looked me straight in the eyes and waved at me even though i didn't wave at him like ok??

i don't feel like i've ever been at a more high-energy joker out concert than this. the audience was so loud through the whole concert, the tent was full of people and you could see they got so excited by it and went completely crazy themselves

this one was truly for the shippers of the fandom with just everything that happened on that day

i didn't even realize jere and the others were on the side watching the gig before vse kar vem and i only heard about joost also being there after the concert

seagulls had somehow found their way into the tent and one of them got really scared during šta bih ja and flew around for a while before flying backstage

didn't expect sunny side of london or bele sanje to be on the setlist, but i'm definitely not complaining. ssol was just perfect for this gig

i've taken a video of novi val from every single gig and i was kinda sad that they didn't do it this time, but i do also get why they ended with carpe diem

after the gig we went back to the centre of turku and had an afterparty with some mutuals at a grill kiosk <3

i feel like i've forgotten something but idk i'll add some stuff if i do remember what i had in mind. thanks for reading <3

[nkn0va]

I hope this isn't too complicated but I was thinking you could do the childhood friends to lovers trope with Tsubaki and a reader that is the adopted son of Hakumen and his apprentice.

Holy shit anon, this idea is super cool. I'm totally down for this. Hakumen's CS story made me fall in love with their dynamic.

Though not nearly as much as I'm hopelessly in love with her, why the fuck can't she be real...?

(LONG ass post incoming, I had way too much fun with this.)

-For the sake of this ask, canon will have to be changed around a bit. Hakumen never went into the Boundary, he was able to force Terumi into it without having to do a hail mary. Also, Tsubaki sees Jin as only an older brother, as is confirmed by in-game dialogue.

-For all the curses and inconveniences of having to wear the Susano'o Unit to be able to fight, there were it's upsides, such as being pretty much immortal, or at the very least a drastically increased lifespan, likely longer than mages.

-One day, by pure chance, Hakumen ended up finding a small child while wandering through a barren, quiet part of the city of Naobi.

-At first, his instinct was to pay this child no mind. But, getting a good look at you, something...seemed to awaken. Or rather, re-awaken. The humanity he thought he'd thrown away a long time ago when he put on the armor. What little of Jin Kisaragi remained after all this time.

-Hakumen was cold, yes, but he wasn't cruel. No kid deserved to be condemned to survive on their own out in the lower levels of a Hierarchical city where seithr poisoning was a possibility if one wasn't careful.

-...Perhaps he could give this boy at something of a life, a childhood that he never got to have, that was taken from him by that damn bastard Terumi.

-It wasn't long before the Duodecim caught wind of the leader of the Six Heroes adopting a child. The Yayoi family had taken a particular interest in such news, inviting the two of you over to their manor.

-There weren't kids your age you could see there. Hakumen had told you that you didn't need to stay, and to feel free to wander the manor at your own leisure as long as you stayed on the property. That was how you eventually found yourself in the garden outdoors.

-It was when you wandered out that for the first time, you'd found someone your age. A redheaded girl dressed in traditional clothing.

-She seemed to freak out, in a good way, when you told her that you were taken in by Hakumen. She was apparently a huge fan. The two of you became fast friends, being the only kids in the manor and the girl, who called herself Tsubaki, seeming ecstatic at just finally finding someone her age, not having any siblings or cousins.

-When the time came to leave you told Hakumen about your new friend. It was hard to really tell what he was thinking most of the time, mostly due to the fact that he had that mask always covering his face, but he seemed almost...nostalgic, longing. He didn't really do much, saying it was good you'd managed to make a friend and left it at that.

-He did make it a point for you to see Tsubaki as often as you could from then on, though. Whenever the Yayoi family was going anywhere, he'd make sure to follow mostly so you could see her, and accepting their invitations to the manor, which was quite a surprise considering none of the other families could say the same. When questioned on this, Hakumen refused to give an answer.

-Fast forward a long while, and you and Tsubaki both find yourselves in Torifune together to attend the academy. It had taken quite a bit of convincing to allow Hakumen to let you go (mostly because he knew the NOL's true nature), but he eventually gave in, on the condition that you'd "make the right decision when the time came." There were a lot of ways for that to be interpreted and he didn't seem to be in the mood to elaborate.

-As you go through your years there together with Tsubaki, you make memories, friends, and eventually the time comes to graduate and join the NOL. For the most part all seems to go well. That is until...Continuum Shift.

-Something changes inside Tsubaki, you heavily suspect it has something to do with Jin, and possible jealousy of Noel being his secretary.

-Of course, being as perceptive as your master/father had trained you to be, it's not long until you figure it out, and your worst fears come true. She had fallen under the Imperator's curse, and had become nothing more than a mindless slave to her will.

-You find yourself soon being swept up in Kagura Mutsuki and the Grimalkin's plans to overthrow the Imperator, though the main reason you join is to assist in saving Tsubaki from the Mind Eater curse.

-You join the operation inside the Eclipse Field with Makoto, Noel, and Jin. Once she'd materialized the Zero-Type Izayoi it was up to you and Jin to snap her out of it. Jin was to hold her off and weaken her a bit before tagging you in. You desperately held her off with all your might, trying to encourage her to resist the Mind Eater.

-Her breaking point is your reminding her of the promise you made as children. That'd you always be there for each other, no matter what. If you had to die for Tsubaki's sake, you'd gladly do so. The thought of you dying for her was the push Tsubaki needed. That's not what she wanted, she didn't want you to to be taken from her. At the very least, not without being able to tell you how she felt. Unfortunately for her, the Imperator had other plans.

-She stabbed you head on with the Immortal Breaker before passing out. Hakumen, or rather a vision of him appeared to Tsubaki as the curse broke, encouraging her to confront her true feelings.

-It was then she woke up and realized that thankfully you were unharmed. It was when your will was strongest, when you wanted to see Tsubaki safe and happy even more than you wanted to draw breath, that you finally had finally mastered Hakumen's teachings. The power of Order had manifested from your strength of will and protected you from the fatal blow.

-Tsubaki quickly breaks down into tears seeing you're alright, apologizing profusely for everything she's done. Makoto, Jin, and Noel thankfully have the tact to realize you two need some privacy.

-It's a long conversation of apologies, and reassurances between you two, and eventually you two realize you can't afford to hide from the truth anymore.

-Tsubaki's the first to confess. Ever since that fateful day you two had met, she'd felt some...special connection to you, even ignoring the fact that you were the son of her childhood hero. And you admit that you had fallen for her back. The tears of sadness and regret soon turn to ones of pure joy.

-That night you find yourself unable to sleep. Too many emotions were going rampant through your mind. Most were good, thankfully, yet some were of worry. There was still a lot to do. You wander through the city late at night, when out of nowhere a voice startles you out of your thoughts.

-Your father was behind you, arms crossed and back turned to you. Despite his closed off body language he congratulated you for what you'd done.

-It was then you realized what he'd meant those years ago. He wanted you to make the right choice, and save Tsubaki. To not leave her in her darkest hour, when she needed you most.

-An awkward pause permeates the air for a few moments. Hakumen seeming to try and come up with the words to say what was on his mind. He makes his way to leave, but not without saying something. A few short words that you never thought you'd actually hear from him in a million years.

-He was proud of you.

-And deep down he was, he really was. You were better than him when it mattered most. You stayed by Tsubaki's side and never gave up on her. Because of you, she'd live on.

-Hakumen of the legendary Six Heroes...no...Jin Kisaragi...

-He'd finally found peace.

[sincerely-sofie]

I love seeing your voice claims! It's so entertaining to hear how you would envision someone's voice, even if it isn't perfect!

But now i'm curious if you have any 'themes' for the characters. Like, something that would fit while playing in the background during a scene that focuses on them.

If you don't know what im thinking about (I REALLY hope that doesn't sound condescending) Thinking of your interpenetration of Skuntank makes Groose's theme from Skyward Sword play in my head. Something like that?

:00000 !!!! A FELLOW GROOSE’S THEME SKUNTANK IMAGINER!!!

Thank you so much! I catch your drift, and it wasn’t condescending at all! I have such a hard time choosing themes for characters because I have a very specific vibe for them all in my head, but its hard to find pre-existing songs out there that check all the boxes. I tried to pick songs (specifically instrumental songs because if I went into songs with lyrics we’d be here all day) that encompassed the general “feel” of the characters well enough. However, I’ll include some notes on what I’d try to include for the characters’ themes of if I were to make them from the ground up!

Also going to hide all the links and stuff under a cut because this post got big hehe

Twig

Twig's theme would be light and peppy for the most part— a fast, jaunty tune that would be difficult to play in real life. There'd be points in it where it sounds like the musicians are struggling to keep up the pace and would fail to play the same notes as previously used— giving it a desperate element, like she's struggling to keep up with her own happy appearance. I think she'd have an acoustic guitar or mandolin as a major part of her theme, and maybe one of those toy pianos that give a very chaotic, enthusiastic vibe to songs? She'd have a stretch in her personal leitmotif that would form a beautiful melody when paired with Kip's.

Kip

Kip would have a generally happy sounding song that incorporates the ukulele and maybe ocarina. He'd have a stretch in his personal leitmotif that would form a beautiful melody when paired with Twig's.

Sen

Otherworldly voices harmonizing are a must for her, as are audio glitches disrupting and changing the flow of the melody that they're harmonizing in.

Dusknoir

Dusknoir's theme would start off proud and almost boastful sounding when he's first introduced, then turn dark and intense when he's revealed as a villain, and would finally mellow out into something mournful yet soothing to listen to. I think he'd have cellos as a major piece of it.

Celebi

Celebi’s theme would be very light and peppy— almost bouncy in sound, and definitely extremely cutesy. I can see the hum of insect wings or cicadas singing being used as a kind of atypical instrument that could be used.

Grovyle

I'm not sure about instruments for him, but he'd have a very distinct leitmotif that would start off very aggressive and erratic sounding, then be slowed and softened in a way that makes it sound almost nostalgic later on.

Ark

His theme’s instrumentation evades me— maybe a violin or clarinet? A harp? It would need to be an instrument that isn’t typically played alone. Either way, it would have several points where it would go oddly quiet and mournful. It’d be an all around very mellow, vaguely sad tune.

Cresselia

Her theme would comprise of a piano— an instrument that is largely seen as a standalone in most compositions— and would layer perfectly over Ark's to make a complete song, the quiet parts of their individual themes allowing the other to stand out when they step back.

Opal

She'd have music box-esque instrumentation for sure, and twist her parents' themes on their heads in a way that they become something unique— Twig's frantically happy notes would change key in such a way that they'd sound genuine, and Ark's quieter, melancholy stretches would be filled in by a lighter accompaniment.

This was such a fun ask hehe. I’ve always loved making pretend OSTs for my projects out of pre-existing songs, complete with alternate titles that would replace the original if the soundtrack were real— I should get back into that hobby and make a full one for TPiaG!

[airi-p4]

On the ice - Chapter 3

Chapter 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Ch 5 | Ch 6 | Ch 7 | Ch 8 ….

_________________________________________

Summary:

Ice girls AU

After failing a double axel in her last competition and getting injured as a result, Marinette quits ice skating and moves to her paternal grandfather’s city with her mother. Seeing a blond girl performing at the local ice rink and becoming her friend, makes her start thinking about skating again. Thankfully, she’ll find the help that will grant her a second chance in figure skating and to follow her dream, finding friendship, rivalry and love in the process.

AO3

_________________________________________

Chapter 3

After counting the days down, Wednesday finally arrived for Marinette. It was time for her to skate again, even if only to teach some kids the very basics. With her skates in her bag, she arrived too early. There were still a few minutes left to start the lessons, but some children were already getting ready putting their skates and protections on.

A lonely melody called for Marinette's attention. Walking towards the source of the music, she saw a half-opened door, and peeked inside. There was the boy from the day before: Luka Couffaine. She couldn't recognize the song he was playing on his guitar, but she could tell it was a sad and lonely one. She stood there, listening for a minute, until the boy noticed her.

Marinette smiled and raised her hand shyly at him. Slowly, and looking at her, he stood up and walked in her direction. Marinette's greeting died in her throat the moment he closed the door in her face.

"Luka is very reserved," a voice said from behind. "Don't take it personally. He's been dealing with a lot recently and appreciates having some time alone" Marinette returned the look at the closer door in sympathy before Candeloro spoke again. "I'm glad to see you again. Are you ready to get on the ice?"

"Yes! I think so. Thank you for this opportunity" she bowed in gratitude. "I'll be ready in a minute"

"Good. The kids are excited to meet you" he smiled. She beamed in response and rushed to put her skates on.

________________________

Teaching kids was fun. So much fun that Marinette got carried away with her skating. Some of them couldn't even stand on the ice properly, so she taught them her tricks on how to keep their balance. Marinette's experience babysitting her cousin Manon had come in handy and it was obvious how the kids liked her.

Furthermore, Candeloro had been right all along: skating was addictive.

So after practice, when she was asked to exhibit some of her skills, she couldn't turn it down. She skated fast under the kids' excitement-which she couldn't help but internally share.

She loved to skate.

She had been missing it.

And she couldn't stop.

A sudden foot moved to point forward to get some impulse with her other leg and… she didn't finish her planned jump. A turn and a beautiful spin followed to end her improvised program.

The kids and their parents clapped excitedly at her performance as she shyly bowed to her audience.

________________________

When class was over, Candeloro summoned Marinette to his office.

"Here you go, 30€ for how well you've worked. The kids love you. They expect you again next week"

"Thank you very much," she beamed, reaching for the money.

"So- how was it, skating again? How did you feel?"

"It was very nice skating again..." She answered, nostalgic.

"I told you it was addictive," Marinette nodded in agreement before Candeloro continued "Why didn't you finish the axel? You were aiming for it, but you didn't finish it. Is it because of your injury? Or something else, maybe?"

"My knee is still hurting… and I got injured when I failed to land a double axel… I guess I'm still a little wary..."

"But you want to jump again." It wasn't a question. "You want to try and succeed with the axel again" Marinette lowered her head and Candeloro smiled at her shyness. "I think you should see a specialist doctor," he suggested.

"I don't have the money, Sir. I can't afford it..."

"Just one checking. He's one of the best and he's my friend. I'll take care of it"

"But-!" she protested.

"Miss Bustier asked me to as well. She's the one who convinced me. And the doctor, too."

"Caline asked me to as well. She's the one who convinced me. And the doctor, too."

"Coach Bustier did…?" She was clearly moved and Candeloro nodded.

"We can go, if you want to. He's usually busy but I'll make sure to get an appointment"

"Okay... Thank you very much" She bowed as she thanked him.

Marinette left the office with her heart racing. She didn't want to get her hopes up when it was just a check up, but she couldn't help but smile at the thought of, maybe, being able to skate again. Certainly, she couldn't refuse that offer.

After she had left the ice skating stadium, Candeloro dialed his former ice rink partner's number.

"Caline? …. She accepted" his smile widened at his friend's 'I'm so glad' and 'thank you' cry.

[blaperile]

Hi all,

I suppose I owe you all this post after my absence the past years.

Like I mentioned at the time, when Homestuck^2 went into its indefinite pause, I got upset. Upset due to the reasoning behind the pause. Specifically due to how the creative team felt they were being treated by the fandom.

And it kind of reflected my own feelings on the topic. I've been a Homestuck fan since December 2010 and was greatly involved at the time with the MSPA Forums and a bunch of creative projects. But over time I noticed the fandom becoming more bitter. Where previously I mostly saw positive emotions and reactions to updates, I started seeing more and more negative things. ESPECIALLY since John's retcon powers were introduced.

And of course anyone is free to share their own opinion on matters! It's just, I could personally never comprehend it.

For me personally, entertainment has never been linked to any negative emotions or opinions. To me, entertainment is the very definition of positive emotions, and if there's anything bringing up negative emotions for me, I can no longer call it entertainment and would never continue doing it for fun.

And over time, I kept being confronted with more and more negative opinions on Homestuck, and it began souring the experience for me.

I sincerely hoped the end of Homestuck would bring everyone together, so I created the Omegaupdate forums to try and bring everyone together.

But I failed.

There were still so many negative emotions, and it never really stopped. I tried 'ignoring' the negative things and continue to enjoying the postive things.

But when the negative part of the fandom caused Homestuck^2 to be paused indefinitely, something snapped inside me. One of the things I loved most in this world, was forcibly taken away from me by 'fans' acting horribly.

And I was sad. Sad because deep inside me, I feared Homestuck^2 might never be finished properly.

From that moment onwards, almost anything related to Homestuck made me feel sad. So I couldn't bear it any longer. I stopped doing my Dutch translation of Homestuck, I stopped doing the Omegaupdate forums, I stopped doing Homestuck From The Perspective of, I stopped listening to Homestuck music.

I moved on, at that moment. And for a part, it's been a blessing. I had so much time for other interests, like Pokémon, Disney and Marvel. Me and my brother looked into moving out of our parents home, and we did.

As time went on, I could slowly allow myself to feel nostalgic again about the good old times of Homestuck. Especially in terms of music, I started listening again and slowly I could enjoy it again.

But still, I couldn't think about Homestuck too much, or I would feel sad again.

Fast forward to 12 days ago. On the 19th of October, I got an email from Patreon (just to be sure, I never cancelled my Patreon subscription even though it wasn't charing anything anymore).

I was surprised to see a post by James Roach, and I was so surprised!

Surprised to see that Homestuck^2 was starting up again, and posting new updates!!

I hadn't dared dream this day would come, where Homestuck^2 would return. But there it was anyway.

It made me feel so happy, and I could finally allow myself to start actively thinking about Homestuck^2 again.

So, the past 12 days me and my brother have been rereading the Homestuck Epilogues recap, as well as the 407 pages of Homestuck^2 (AND the bonus stories!) that had already been published before.

To get back in "the flow", to remember what came before, and prepare ourselves for the new updates.

Now I've caught up again to that point, and my brother's almost there as well. Once he's also reached that point, we'll start reading the regular updates again.

I'm not sure yet what will come after that, for me. But I don't think things are ever going back to the way they used to be.

At this moment, I don't see myself going back to any forums, or active community. I don't see myself continuing the Dutch translation.

I'm not even 100% sure if I will still be making reaction posts to the updates.

Anything I do, for now, will be what feels good to me. We'll see as we go what exactly that is.

Right now, I think it's pretty likely that I will continue doing the tally for "Homestuck From The Perspective of". I still love seeing that overview, myself.

Anyway, thanks for reading this, and take care.

[momochiachan]

.｡.:*♡ Pop-Confetti Legacy ♡*.｡.:

As a millenial person, I love 90s-2000s aesthetic! Also, I needed a gameplay where I can do stuff that I never did on the sims 4 before, so why not combine them into a brand new legacy challenge? Pop-Confetti has a nostalgic sound to it, that’s the only reason why I chose this name lol, well, also it sounds cute i think~

.｡.:*♡ Let’s get started! first things first... ♡*.｡.:

Home decoration and outfit style of the sims should suit with the fashion of the decade.

There is nothing like “if you fail one rule, you fail the whole challenge” in the Pop-Confetti because I’m terrible at following rules and I understand if it’s too hard sometimes lol. These are rather like guidelines.

Yet, don’t use money cheat I’d say. It ruins the fun.

The decade specific guidelines:

1990s Challenge: Use only the worst computers or use typewriters (there are nice CCs). No social media, no selfies, no funny videos. Use the worst camera to take photos.

Optional Activities: Game at the arcade, go skating. Send postcards on holidays. You can also build a drive-in movie lot and watch films and eat popcorn (we don’t have cars in sims, but well, we can pretend).

2000s Challenge: Slightly better computers. No simstagram, no selfies, no social media profile. Use a camera to take photos.

Optional Activities: If this gen can see the winter and can get the chance to celebrate the new year, it should be perfect. Throw a huge party! If they can see summer only, create a new new year holiday in summer (like in the south pole) and throw a perfect party again. Send postcards on holidays. Also, spend hours on MSN (chat with friends via computer).

2010s Challenge: You can start using laptops. Selfies? Hell yes. You can create a social media profile. Get fast internet lot trait.

Optional Activities: Update your social media profile every day. Take selfies every day. If you see a street protest, attend. Also, you can use the Simda DatingApp mod and find dates online!

2020 Challenge: Well, the nightmare begins: Social distance. Avoid crowded places. When many people come and try to talk to you, use the mean interaction “go away.” Get the fear of crowded places if possible. Do not leave your neighborhood. Live in a lot with simple living and keep your fridge always full.

Optional Activities: Gain weight! The rates of divorce increased during the pandemic IRL, so you can also break up with your partner maybe. Choose your partner as someone totally different than your identity group (for example: if your sim is a white straight woman, marry a black bisexual man).

2025 Challenge: Environment suffers… You can live in the dirty neighborhoods of Sulani or Evergreen Harbor. If you live somewhere else, get some/one of these lot challenges: filthy, landfill lot, and wild foxes (my reasoning is that because wild animals lose their home in forests, they have to find food in urban areas ;-;)

Optional Activities: You can do environmental activities if your sim cares enough. Use gaming mats. And uh… maybe go to space! What else..? if you get an idea, let me know ^^

#1. 1990: Ripped Jeans

(TW: Child neglect)

Because you were a neglected baby, you were taken away by social services and grew up in an orphanage. The orphanage was no good in terms of education, you got no skills, and you didn’t even get the skill to gain skills! But who cares? You believe in yourself. Now you are a young adult, ready to build your life from scratch.

You hate bad parents. Just the idea of it drives you mad! You believe that life taught you how a good parent should be in a harsh way. Well, you aren’t a parent yourself, but, uhh… is that important? I mean, you have been a child…? Anyways, who would know it better than you do! You the best! So you dedicate yourself to informing people about good parenting. Well, you become a parent at some point anyway, but you are so busy criticizing other families that… you lose your baby to social services.

IMPORTANT!: So, normally, when your child gets rescued by social services, they disappear. This shouldn’t happen in this challenge (See Gen #2). You can use MCCC to prevent it and have them adopted by another family.

Scenario: No Skills, No Problem Aspiration of your choice (you don’t have to complete) Traits: hot-headed, self-absorbed, outgoing Career: Education

Start with the “No Skills, No Problem” Scenario on.

Argue about parenting with the other parents and whenever you can’t win the argument, write an article or book about the issue.

Write 3 books on how to make children happy and good parenthood (because you don’t have skills, you have to write in children’s books genre lol)

Have at least 2 kids

Lose 1 toddler or child to social services (the “die in accidents” option for the other households in the neighborhood stories settings should be off)

After losing your child, complete/cancel the scenario and start getting skills along with your 2nd child does.

Leave your career and be a perfect parent to the 2nd kid: Have them the top-notch toddler trait. Knit clothes for your children, cook healthy food for them, have a special activity with them every week (such as watching movies, reading books, eating out, or going on vacation), always assist with the projects, etc.

Max parenting skill.

#2. 1995: Postcards from the Past

You grew up under the wings of perfect care. You are kinda spoilt, your life is excellent, and the world revolves around you. Your parents gave you whatever you wanted until now (or you knew how to take it). Same for romantic relationships.

However, when you are a teen, you eavesdrop on your parents one day and learn that you have a sibling who got taken away years ago! You can’t believe that your perfect parent neglected a child in the past! You desperately want a reunion. No matter what, you are going to find your sibling. You can get whatever you want, right?

Scenario: Well-Rounded Sim Aspiration: Serial Romantic Traits: Self-assured, family-oriented, one of the traits inherited from the previous heir’s partner Career: Interior Decorator/Police Officer (basically any job that enables you to visit random people’s homes) Gender Options: Can’t impregnate nor become pregnant

Complete the aspiration

Complete the Well-Rounded Scenario

Complete your career

Travel house by house and try to find your sibling

Complete postcards collection.

Once you find them, cheat the relationship to the -100 because they hate you and your parents at the moment. You need to gain their love!

At some point, move in with them, or you can also get them as roommates or live in a residential rental together. They will be the parent of the next-gen, and you will help to care for their child (you are not fertile. you can adopt a child if you want, but the heir will still be your sibling’s child. you are free to marry but you should still live with your sibling and their family).

#3. 2000: Shiny Face of the CD

You grew up in a crowded, happy family. You have an aunt/uncle with a serial romantic past; but your parents are nothing like them. They are way more conservative. Your parents are judgmental, especially about people’s love life. They want you to make an “appropriate” marriage within “moral” norms like no sexual relationship out of marriage, if you date someone they better be your spouse in a short while, and it has to be a heterosexual marriage. Will you able to give them what they want or will you follow your heart?

Scenario: Finding love after breakup Aspiration: One of the location aspirations Traits: Proper, Romantic, one of the traits inherited from the previous heir’s partner Career: Shopkeeper (you can additionally be freelancer or enter a job you can work at home)

As a teenager, you are invited to participate in an exchange program. Pick any other household in the save that has another teenager and swap them in manage worlds. Befriend the exchange student. You can have them stay as long as you want (This rule is actually one of the rolls written for the random legacy challenge which is full of amazing ideas! check them out!).

Complete the aspiration

Have a highschool sweetheart, preferably a bad boy/girl.

Have a very well-managed retail shop as a young adult.

Expect a baby with your highschool sweetheart! but they refuse to take care of it.

Make a marriage of convenience with one of your employees before your family notices that you will have a child soon.

Have an isolated room for the baby.

Die as an adult.

#4. 2005: Bankruptcy

You had a pretty interesting childhood... that pushed you to make interesting choices in life. You are definitely not the favorite of your family. You keep making mistakes, but you always laugh them away. You hate school, but also you couldn’t care less. You love eating and cooking even though you cause fires all the time and everybody hates it. You lost your parent so young and now you live with someone hating you and your half-sibling(s). You want to be independent and show everyone that you are actually full of capabilities! You are the star chef of the future!

Oh and also, you want to be rich in easy ways. You love gambling! Too bad that you will lose all the money your family hardly earned...

Scenario: Trouble Maker (optional); Unlucky Chef Aspiration: Fabulously Wealthy Traits: Lazy, Clumsy/Glutton, one of the traits inherited from the previous heir’s partner Career: Chef/Mixologist

Start playing cards as a teen and create a gambling club. Have club gatherings every week.

Once you are a young adult lose either family house or retail shop and then set household money to 0$.

Be kicked out of the household. You can get a tent and maybe 100$ with you while moving out. You can use freerealestate cheat but the lot should be empty. This will be a kind of rags to riches.

Enter the chef career while going on gambling by playing cards, don’t wake up llama, and the like games (I guess there is a gambling mod but you can also play it like +50$ when you win the game and -50$ when you lose the game).

Definitely buy the lottery tickets when you get the option.

Complete the career and unlucky chef scenario.

#5. 2010: Twilight

As a child, you loved being in the scouts: getting badges, camping, telling ghost stories, and all! Dark nights you spent in the forest while camping made you love every possibility of occults and mystery. You just would never guess that your story is going to be one of them as well.

Aspiration: The Curator / Outdoor Enthusiast Traits: Child of the islands, Geek, another trait inherited from the previous heir’s partner Career: Paranormal Investigator / Sell stuff you find

Join the scouts as a child & teen

Complete your aspiration

Move to the first gen’s house. Make the house haunted (if you don’t have the pack or you don’t want to play in a haunted house, give the house these lot traits: gremlins, spooky, quake zone). You can use freerealestate cheat if needed.

Live with a ghost. Don’t move out until the ghost achieves something big in their afterlife with your help (for instance get mentor trait and help them maxing 3 skills out, complete a scenario or complete a quest together; if the ghost is a child or teen help them to get 3 positive character values or be an A student; if the ghost is a toddler, max all skills).

Once the ghost is saved, remove them from family and make the house residential again.

After the ghost leaves, change one of your traits into erratic.

Max the medium skill and host a seance every week (if you don’t have the pack, max handiness).

Complete the sugar skull collection (optional)

#6. 2015: Selfie Stick

As a teenager, you hate how you look. You want to be one of those beautiful popular sims at school, you have cool friends but your body insecurity makes you less confident among them. You are obsessed with taking selfies, you want to capture your best look but you can’t find it. You have a bestie from your class and they find you very beautiful already, yet you can’t be convinced.

Despite everything they say, once you are a young adult, the first thing you do is having plastic surgeries. Now you are who you want to be! You start to work as a fashion photographer, meet famous attractive models, and your bestie works as your assistant though you doubt if they still like you as you are. Are they too judgmental? Aren’t you the same person, or did you change? Who does love you for your looks and who for who you are?

Scenario optional Aspiration: Party Animal Traits: Jealous, Art Lover, another trait inherited from the previous heir’s partner Career: Freelance photographer / Style Influencer

Complete the aspiration & career

Max photography skill

Have a photo studio in a public venue

There must be 3 different sims you are attracted to. Try to get out of this love square with the person you finally choose as a partner

Have at least two children and they should be science babies (because you don’t want a pregnant body)

Have very weak relationships with your children.

When you are an adult, you go through a midlife crisis. Do all or some of the following:

Secretly leave home one day and have a vacation alone

Choose a new hobby and max the skill

Change one of your traits

Meet new friends

Make big changes at home decoration

Cheat to get uncontrolled emotions or if you are famous, get emotional bomb quirk

Have some arguments with the family members

Change your fashion style

#7. 2020: Pandemic

You have a competitive, ambitious, career-focused life since your childhood including your relationship with your sibling. You have a very romantic side too, but you always wanted to ignore it. Your heart wants a cute, cozy, loyal marriage while your mind is, embarassed, seeing these feelings as the virus of your success plans. How will you manage your inner conflict?

Scenario: Engaged in Conflict Aspiration: Soulmate Traits: Ambitious, Materialist, another trait inherited from the previous heir’s partner Career: Business/Salaryperson/Law

Grow up as rivals with your sibling and have a competitive relationship with them

Become an A student at school

Complete a part-time job as teen

Study and finish university with honors

Join the Braniacs/Debate Guild and attend at least 3 events of them

Date someone from the guild and catch them cheating on you

Have a freelancer job as a university student

Complete the aspiration, career, and the scenario

After graduation, pandemic begins. Live in a lot with the simple living trait.

Gain weight to the max.

Live with your fiancé who is romantic.

Often have arguments with them about the wedding.

Don’t leave the neighborhood until you are an elder.

#8. 2025: Heat Wave (subjected to change)

Scenario: In the moodlet Aspiration of your choice Traits: Good, Gloomy, another trait inherited from the previous heir’s partner  Career of your choice

Move out as a teen and live in air-bnbs (which means other sims’ houses), rental lots & camping areas.

Learn at least 10 different local recipe (San Myshuno, Sulani, Selvadorado, etc.)

During your trips, meet/get closed with your love of life

As a young adult, live in a house made only by pre-made rooms of EA (you can make some changes but keep the general frame and style).

Start the scenario

Your love has a kind of disease that stems from environmental disasters and requires an organ transplant. Yours is compatible with their biology. They will die once they age up.

To be able to save them, you should get the never weary reward trait before they age up (for some reason lol). If you can’t, only choice left is to sacrificing yourself for them. Before doing that, set them up with someone else hoping that they can have their happily ever after.

If you die, play as the partner and organize funeral for your sim. Also name their child after your sim.

If you can save them, get married and move to a lot within a natural paradise. Adopt a child and name them after the first gen.

I hope you enjoy it! Please don’t forget tagging me if you play this challenge, I’d definitely love to see your posts and reblog them ^^

[firsttarotreader]

For a reading, how does Pedro feel about being single for so long? What are the things he likes and doesn't like about it?

Hello! That’s an interesting question. I did a few pulls to answer it and broke it down in separate questions. First, I asked how he might possibly feel being single for so long. The first pull was the King of Teacups reversed, Page of Teacups and 6 of Teacups.

You see, the King of Teacups reversed has his cup empty, with nothing to give. He might be selfish, cold, ruled by ego and using his emotional intelligence for his own desires only. The Page of Teacups followed by 6 of Teacups points to him actually feeling like a boy, like he is not even mature enough to NOT be single. He feels like a young spirit, kind of naive, navigating through life with the eyes of a child, sometimes nostalgic, intuitive and creative, always fresh and renewed. It reminds me of his teenage years and that feeling of discovering life for the first time. We can also think of those children who are not open to others, who are still enjoying their childhood and not really caring about making meaningful connections that could lead to romance further down the road, they’re still “selfish”, living in their own world and thinking of having fun and discovering new and exciting things in life.

The next pull was the Ace of Teacups reversed, King of Hedgehogs and Knight of Hedgehogs. That is another interesting aspect of the situation. Again, Ace of Teacups reversed shows him with an empty cup, no love to give, disconnected from romantic emotions, ignoring them if he has to. The King of Hedgehogs is worried about building his stability in life and this is very much linked to the material, work, career, money. He wants to be in a situation where he can feel stable, confident, reliable, wealthy and prosperous. And the Knight of Hedgehogs points to him working for that. That man is working everyday to get what he wants in life and he is focused on that.

Then I asked what he might like about being single. The cards were the 7 of Spears, 7 of Teacups and 8 of Spears. 7 of Spears is curious because it represents a few different possibilities. One of them is Pedro doesn’t have to face dishonesty, lies and deception or be dishonest himself. Another possibility is he might feel like he’s able to sneak away from any situation he doesn’t want to stay on. He can go solo and casually leave by the side door. We know he doesn’t like to commit anyway. 7 of Teacups means he likes to be able to have all the possibilities available to him. This card is about being able to choose whatever, if he wants to go for someone he can, if he doesn’t want to he also can choose to not do anything, and he can also thirst freely on whoever he wants. He has ALL the opportunities and possibilities open to him. 8 of Spears is basically the opposite of the 7 of Teacups, it’s about feeling trapped, smothered, suffocated, tied up, and honestly it might be that he doesn’t want that, the feeling of having no choices. I would say this man is SO afraid of cutting down his options in life and being trapped to whatever.

I asked next what he doesn’t like about being single, and the cards were the 10 of Flowers, 8 of Teacups and 8 of Flowers reversed. 10 of Flowers means it might be a little overwhelming to be always single, like he has to carry way too much weight on his own and he has to decide everything and he has to take all the responsibilities, which may be tiring at times. 8 of Teacups means he could possibly feel kind of frustrated for never staying, always leaving everything (or everyone) behind, like there is nothing that makes him want to stay and that is overwhelming too. 8 of Flowers reversed means this hectic pace of his life can be kind of confusing and anxiety inducing. Some things go too fast but others go too slow, sometimes he needs to slow down but sometimes he needs things to change and rock his world.

So we can see that he is really not emotionally ready to not be single, he’s building his material life, he likes the way he is free while being single and he could dislike having to decide everything on his own, along with that need for a change that doesn’t really happen.

[poisonouswritings]

THE CARNIVAL IS IN TOWN FOR ME THIS WEEK AND I HAVE LIKE INSANE ADHD SO I KEEP FORGETTING THAT IT’S THERE AND THEN I LOOK OVER AND IT’S A BUNCH OF PRETTY LIGHTS AND I JUST STARE AT IT FOR LIKE FIFTEEN MINUTES (might be 15 seconds idk time is weird)

ANYWAY IT GOT ME THINKING SAGE WOULD FUCKING LOVE A CARNIVAL OR FAIR THING AND LIKE OKAY SO YOU KNOW THE DISNEY TEACUPS??? THE CARNIVAL THAT COEMS TO MY CITY HAS THAT EXCEPTNITS SPINNIGN BEARS AND J THINK SAGE WOULD 10000% SPIN AS FAST AS HE FUCKING CAN IN ONE OF THOSE—

ANISA!!!! WITH!!!!!! FUNNEL CAKE!!!!!!!!!! IDK I THINK SHE WOULD REALLY LIKE FUNNEL CAKE WITH LIKE STRAWBERRY SYRUP AND STUFF IDK WHY

Tulsi and Sage at one of those shooting games where you’re supposed to shoot the little paper star thing and if you get the whole thing you win and she gets the biggest fucking elephant and I specify Tulsi AND Sage even though I think Tulsi would be more interested because I’m thinking of Tulsi kicking his ass and winning the Biggest Fucking Elephant and rubbing it in his face (why are there giant stuffed elephants as the prize for this? Because that’s a prize at the one in my city rn don’t ask me why it just is)

I have Absolutely Nothing for felix because I have no idea what he’d be doing at a carnival anyway unless the other two dragged him I mean it’s loud it’s bright and fuck dammit I want a funnel cake now

Also curious about how Rime and the Griefers would do at a carnival

idk last legacy brainrot is going Ping Ponging in my head like tigger from fuckin Winnie the Pooh

TW very vague mention of alcohol/weed, throwing up

Hehehe,,, I love carnivals,, or I guess it's more accurate to say that I love the vibe/aesthetics of carnivals. It's nostalgic and wholesome and full of heart, y'know?

I think Sage and Elowen (and possibly also Lucan) would get super distracted staring at lights. It's the cat in them. And if Sage and Lucan are buzzed/drunk? Absolutely will go on the Ferris Wheel just to look out at all the lights and chill. My stoner's agenda insists I mention that they would prooooobably do an edible or something beforehand. Balsam might do one too but he also might try to be the sober babysitter. Although if Elowen is gonna be staying around them for the majority of the time then she probably gets to be the DD.

Sage would go as fast as possible! If you get dizzy easily then he'll try to keep it slow but honestly he gets overexcited and still ends up going very fast. If you aren't up to it, send him with Lucan and Balsam. They'll go as fast as possible because they wanna see 'who's the toughest' and can go the longest without barfing. Balsam wins because he has an iron stomach. Lucan and Sage have to sit down and sip some water for like twenty minutes. Dorks.

Funnel cake! Cotton candy! Kettle corn! Caramel apples! Anisa is trying all the snacks and splitting them with you. Doesn't matter how long the line is. Imagine,, you're splitting a funnel cake,,, and she goes 'oh this is really sweet' and you lean over and kiss her cheek and go 'not as sweet as you! :3' and then her cheeks go warm and her hair poofs and she squeaks and ehehehehe I love her so much

Yes Tulsi and Sage doing the water game but. Also. Tulsi and Elowen doing the water game. Elowen having sharpshooter skills. If the guns are the kinds that let you freely move them around then they will shoot at Sage. Either way Tulsi is winning a giant elephant. She's naming it Peanut.

If there's any sort of 'Tunnel of Love'-esque ride, Felix is checking them out. And if there's any sort of live shows or performances, he's there. Magic shows??? Please. Felix who practices street magic and can't help but point out the mistakes the magician is making so the magician is like 'okay you do it then' thinking Fe is just a heckler but then Fe actually does some really impressive tricks and it's like !! He's having fun in his own ways. And if there's any sort of haunted house, he's dragging everyone through it.

Rime,, doing,,, photo ops? I feel like he would be very particular about his selfies. He'll go on rides if you ask him too, but a carnival just isn't his type of scene. He will make some sort of joke about Sage being a clown though. Also remember in (I think?) Chapter 12 when Rime was like 'I'll show you something super scary like clowns?' Rime is scared of clowns. So if there's any clowns around, he'll be very antsy and liable to just fast-walking out of the area to try not to be obvious about it.

[autisticempathydaemon]

hello! for your redacted matchup!

some basic things about me is that i'm just an intj-t and a reserved person and have a lot of difficulty opening up to someone. i also am the stubborn type, trying to solve my problems alone and head on with no breaks. it does lead to a lot of issues where people think i'm too hyper-independent, but we ball and we vibe!

as for your whimsical questions (that i adore btw):

i adore long video essays on youtube! usually about books, drama and social issues around the world. mainly because it's cool to hear about how different people perceive the same piece of media!

i spent most of my life hating my name, so you'd have to put me on gun point to change it. that being said, there was a point in time i wanted to change to something similar to my current name so people can pronounce it easier.

the recent avior video is definitely one of my top fives now! i also adore sam and aviors' healing videos, vega's first video with warden and all of vincent's videos where he gets to act like a dork.

i hope i don't get crucified for this but i really can't see the appeal in lasko. he's too jittery and jumpy and i'm way too impatient to deal with someone like that. i'd still want him as a friend, thought.

as for who i am attracted too platonically, all of the DAMN boys, milo, asher and vincent! they're all too best friend shaped for me.

oh god, when i get tired, i tend to ramble about how people annoy me. i'll be shit talking people in my sleep and i think that's funny!

my go to gas station is circle k and i'd usually get either coffee or a peach quencher!

my favourite playlist rn is my darlin' playlist because it's filled with nostalgic songs for me! (a lot of 90a and early 2000s rap and rnb)

ooooh, my guilty pleasure media would have to be redacted audios! i'm a very basic person when it comes to my media choices so this is literally the "weirdest" thing i listen too!

thank you sososo much for having this event open! do take your time and don't feel pressured to have all of these done! i love you and i hope you have a good day! 💞💞💞

Your INTJ-T (the Turbulent Architect) nature gives me fun Aaron vibes- not that I’d necessarily pair you with Aaron but that you remind me of him… and you know what you and Aaron could use? A cute, bubbly pizza Guy.

The beauty in yours and Guy’s relationship would be the lovely, charming ways you contrast; where you might be introverted and stubborn, Guy is extroverted and open- maybe a little opposites attract sort of thing? He seems the type who could easily draw you out of your shell and become, if not your rock, your safe, happy space.

Also, I think Guy would be so tickled pink to hear you be sleepy and grumpy and gripe about the people who irritate you. He’d love laying next to you and encouraging your mumbling, probably recording silly, nonsensical snippets of it for when he misses you. Guy’d think it’s so cute and sweet how garrulous you can be when it’s just the two of you, and he’d be so proud that he is granted the privilege of experiencing you that way.

Song:

Some people want diamond rings/ Some just want everything/ But everything means nothing/ If I ain't got you, you, you

You just know, without a doubt, that Guy would be a sucker for a good, nostalgic, shower jam, and is there any better than this? It’s classic, it’s simple, it’s cheesy as hell, and Guy absolutely sings it off-key in the car, knowing you’d never skip the track and throw him off his groove when he’s having fun.

Runner-ups:

Leaning more into comparisons than contrasts, I definitely considered David and Aaron for you. David, who is also independent and stubborn, would make himself very available as a rock and foundation for you; he is incredibly dependable, which is very attractive in a partner. Aaron strikes me as having the same MBTI as you, as being similar in that way that would make you fast friends.

Note: I am having a fantastic day, thank you ❣️ I hope you are as well and that this, god willing, made it just a touch better 💖

Want a match-up of your own? Read this post, and tell me about yourself! 💌

[dany36]

now that i've S-ranked every stage in the DLC and also completed the map, just have some final junk thoughts from the sonic frontiers dlc (plus me raving some more about the music) before i move on to another game :)

i know i mentioned that playing as amy is the best out of the new playable characters, and i still stand by that opinion, but MAN is tails' MAX rings cyclone flying ability fun as FUCK. like, i kind of have a hate-love relationship with it. on one hand, who the hell doesn't like flying around the island at max speed? like, oh, there's something all the way over there, let me just ZOOM right over in a few seconds!! AND the fact that you can control its height unlike knuckles' flying is just insanely cool. on the OTHER hand though, yes it cheapens tails' flying ability because honestly once you get the cyclone ability, you don't even have to do any of the set-paths that the game wants you to follow to get to the map kocos or skill kocos. you can just fly up to them and boom, didn't have to do the set path. which is kind of sad because those can be really fun and satisfying to complete, so what i'd end up doing was get to the area where the map koco would be, and instead of just flying up to it, try to follow the path and get the map that way to not just suck the fun out of the entire thing

but also, that one M-puzzle where it lit up 3 or 4 red beams of light all across the island and you had to reach all of them under a time limit??? MAN i think that was my favorite puzzle of all!!! i first bumped into that one when i was playing with amy, and at first i thought i was gonna have to come back to it with sonic since i didn't think i'd get another character that would be as fast as him (also didn't have the spin dash ability yet since this was early in the game). but holy shit once i unlocked that ability and saw just how fucking fast you could fly around the island (skells from xenoblade x my beloved), i immediately went back to that puzzle and just completed it as tails. just so damn awesome!!

and SPEAKING OF the spin dash....wow. amy, knuckles, and tails may not be as fast as sonic, but they become just as fast as him with this skill. and i can't believe i went through the entire main game without using the spin dash more often. spin dashing around the island and abusing the hell of its physics was just something that never got old, even in the sonic stages. i don't think i ever used the fast travel with the portals since i mean....spin dashing everywhere the island is just like a damn dream come true: it's always something i'd do in sonic adventures' mystic ruins but at a smaller scale, but this time? the ouranos island is fucking huge and gorgeous and then with that beautiful music playing in the background and just rolling around everywhere at high speeds AAAAAAAAAA this game is honestly just the perfect sonic game!!!!!

i think i already talked about this earlier but the new stages were super fun and actually challenging to S rank, unlike the main game. there were some i wasn't too fond of (like that one where sonic's speed as "gears"?? what was that lol) but overall they were a joy to replay over and over and try to bring my time down. i think my favorites were definitely 4-A (with the rocket boosters and beehive-looking things) and 4-B (the one with the hologram tails and the falling platforms).

the music. GOD how does sega keep doing this!!! every single new character theme is just so on fucking point, but i gotta say amy wins this one as well: there's something just so hauntingly beautiful about her theme that just honestly fits the overall mood of the game. but honestly, all just so good. i neeeeed to get my hands on the ost, especially since i'm late to the party and realized that now they have a GORGEOUS BEAUTIFUL AMAZING remixed version of the windy and ripply (emerald coast 2) song AKA a song so dear and beloved and nostalgic to my heart that just thinking about it makes me want to cry tears of joy. like, running around the islands with that music playing in the background is just so freeing and beautiful and exciting that just makes you feel glad that you get to experience a sonic game like this.

oh shit got sidetracked talking about this game's overall out-of-this-world soundtrack again um um um what else. i mean, i really don't know what else to say except frontiers just knocked it out of the park and surpassed my expectations in every single way possible. as i was playing the game and would just be exploring the island and completing puzzles/paths, i'd just keep saying to myself "this game is fucking amazing" every once in a while. sega just fucking nailed the 3d sonic formula and any doubt i had about an open-world sonic game was just thrown out the window: i couldn't stop thinking about this being a MUCH larger, more fun, and more gorgeous version of running around mystic ruins than i could have ever imagined, and it's exactly the type of exploration freedom that i had been itching for in a sonic game.

and it goes without saying that sega bringing back amy, tails, and knuckles as playable characters was just soooo fucking good and refreshing to see, and my god did they do them justice. last time they were all playable was, what...sonic adventure?? really?? like, holy crap. sonic frontiers really was a love letter to 3d sonic games and ughhhh i just can't stop saying good things about it. EVERYONE NEEDS TO PLAY THIS GAME!!!

anyway!!! can't wait to see where the sonic 3d series is headed after this, but for now, time to wait for sonic superstars (holy shit that's soon!!!) since that looks fun as hell too, and that's me saying it as someone who prefers 3d sonic vs 2d sonic!

[skyler10fic]

that's why i love fall: Ch. 3

Summary: Carol is a park ranger in a growing mountain town. Daisy is a cybersecurity city girl in town for a job interview at the town’s biotech lab. Under the autumn leaves, fate brings them together (aided by Daisy’s parents, Phil and Melinda). As sweet as a PSL and with as much plot as apple pie.

Notes: This one is pretty canon-free. Basically original fic but with the personalities, names, and faces of my ships.

Read on A03

This is chapter 3/4, so subscribe on Ao3 to make sure you don't miss the end!

----------------------

The next morning, Carol met Daisy at the diner with to-go coffees, and they walked around the town square, going in and out of businesses. The antique shop held the most fun, with funny hats to try on, weird nostalgic knick-knacks that provoked stories of childhood, and a bag that was just Daisy’s style, which led to a long conversation with the shopkeeper about the bag’s eccentric previous owner. 

On a longer stretch between notable landmarks, Carol brushed her hand against Daisy’s. Daisy returned the gesture, and Carol took it as permission to hold her hand. Daisy smiled when she did, but otherwise continued on as if they walked through town hand in hand every day. 

They took silly pictures together by some tall abstract “modern art” sculptures that Carol wasn’t sure how to explain, and Carol noticed Daisy specifically took selfies of the two of them, not just alone, though Carol took a few good ones of Daisy farther away with the full sculpture. When Carol showed her the photos, Daisy tried to self-deprecate, but Carol insisted she was perfect. This earned Carol a fast but sweet kiss on the cheek. Carol thought about kissing her fully, right there in public, but decided to wait for a more romantic moment than a sidewalk with cars whizzing by. 

It didn’t escape her, though, the way Daisy took her hand when they walked this time. Carol allowed herself to acknowledge maybe Daisy wasn’t just a kind, flirty, charismatic person. Maybe she was falling for Carol just as Carol was falling for her. But the problem was Daisy didn’t have the job yet. She kept this fact in her mind like a life preserver ring in the ocean. Flirting and imagining possibilities in the dreamy autumn of her hometown was one thing, but if Daisy didn’t get the job, if her move didn’t happen, it would break both of their hearts. 

They ordered takeout from Carol’s friends’ cafe and ate lunch in the town park at a picnic table. 

Daisy was suspiciously quiet. She absently picked up a chip but put it back down again after a minute and picked up her sandwich.  

“What’s on your mind?” Carol prodded gently after a few moments of silence. 

Daisy seemed to awake from her distraction. “Oh! I’m fine.” 

Carol sent her a look of doubt but didn’t push. “Okay. We could see the library next. They have a little museum about the town’s history.”

“That sounds good.” Daisy nodded but went quiet again.   

Carol opened her chip bag wider and offered it to Daisy. “Cheeto for your thoughts?” 

“It’s just,” Daisy began before taking one, “what happens if this isn’t it? What if all of this is just a teaser of a life I won’t have?” She waved the Cheeto for emphasis. 

“One, you graduated from MIT,” Carol listed, counting points on her cheese-coated fingers. “Two, they brought you all the way out here. Three, you’re an obvious choice with family in the area. And Jemma said the interview went well from what she could tell on that side of things.” 

“Yeah, I think it did.” Daisy had stopped gesturing with the Cheeto and ate it. A good sign, from what Carol could determine. 

“But this is all so wonderful.” Daisy said it as if it posed a dilemma. 

“Failing to see the problem there,” Carol admitted.

“It’s…,” Daisy sighed. “Before I came, I didn’t really think I was going to like it, so I didn’t put as much into my application and earlier interviews as I would have. And that sucks because now I’m nervous about getting the job. I think I could really have a future here. With the lab and this town… and you.” 

“There you go again.” Carol teased, “Charming me with your powers when I’m the one trying to reassure you. How do you do that?”

Daisy laughed. “C’mon, I was promised a library tour.” 

They cleaned up their trash before continuing their plans for the day. 

Eventually, after the library and museum and sharing more of their stories prompted by the town’s history exhibits, Daisy admitted she had an addition to their plan.

“My parents are getting dinner at the Golden Arrow and said I could invite you,” Daisy rushed out. “Okay, actually, they insisted you come.” 

Carol grinned. “I’d love to.”

“I know you’ve already met, but if it’s too soon, with all of us together, or if it’d be awkward, or if you have plans…” 

Carol stopped their walking and turned to Daisy. “Hey. I’d love to.” 

“Good.” Daisy exhaled. “That’s good.” 

Carol realized they were back at the diner where they started the day. “We could go back to my place until then.”

Daisy raised an eyebrow. 

“To see it!” Carol explained. “And hang out with Jemma. Jemma will be there. You two can talk. We can all talk.” 

Daisy smiled at Carol’s verbal fumbling. “That sounds good. I’ll follow you there?” 

Carol found herself reluctant to drop Daisy’s hand but gathered her willpower and succeeded. The road home had never felt longer.

To Carol’s delight, Jemma and Daisy bonded over mutual MIT friends and music and fandoms. Jemma was able to offer some housing options from her research, and she and Carol showed Daisy around their current place. It was comically fast, but Carol hoped Daisy would feel at home enough to move into Jemma’s old room once Jemma left to live with Fitz. And Daisy just seemed to fit there—the music of her laughter in their kitchen, the sight of her relaxed on their couch wrapped in Carol’s blanket, the warmth of her beside Carol on the wood balcony looking out at the forest view with a peek of the lake to the right…  

Even if things didn’t work out romantically between them, it just felt right to have Daisy nearby as a friend. Like the sun breaking through the clouds once a grey day was done, just in time for a firey sunset. 

Daisy drove home before dinner to get ready and ride with her parents, and Carol promised to meet them at the restaurant. 

Jemma leaned against the bathroom doorframe as Carol did her hair and light makeup. 

“You really like her, don’t you?” Jemma wasn’t teasing, but she wasn’t discouraging. It sounded more like empathy. 

Carol met Jemma’s eyes in the mirror. 

“Yeah, ‘fraid so.” She smiled weakly. “There’s something about her. It’s magic. I can’t explain it.” 

Jemma observed Carol’s reflection, pausing for a moment before adding, “She looks at you the same way.”

“Yeah?” Carol surprised even herself with how young and hopeful it came out. 

“Yeah.” Jemma let out a little laugh at Carol’s puppy love. “I’m really happy for you. You deserve something good like this after so long. I hope it works out for her with the lab.” 

“Thanks.” Carol held her gaze a second more before returning to her task, all the struggles Jemma had seen Carol through passing unspoken between them, from Carol’s family issues to failed attempts at dating in the past. 

Carol did get a little nervous heading into the dinner with the Johnsons, but all went swimmingly. Melinda was kind and witty, but Phil was the more outgoing and talkative of the two by far. The rapport Daisy had with her parents tinged a little place in Carol’s heart, but they didn’t let her feel sorry for herself for a second, always explaining their inside jokes and stories until Carol was drawn in as part of the family. It was a bit like she felt returning here to Mountain Skye after being away for so long. 

Everything about this day felt like home.