#boat gas near me

[themenuland1]

Sheetz Menu – Fuel Your Cravings on their Menus!

Sheetz is a popular convenience store and restaurant chain that originated in Pennsylvania, United States. With its unique combination of a convenience store and made-to-order food offerings, Sheetz has become a go-to destination for people on the go looking for a quick and tasty meal. Here is complete Sheetz Menu

[selfaware-bungou-stray-dogs]

Hello! Greetings, it's me again! 🌙! Idk if I sent this request because I think I didn't finished it and accidentally deleted all my questions so I'm redoing them rn.

QUESTIONS ABOUT SAGAU X BSD:

1. What about Rosaria, ga-ming, Dehya, Candace, Cyno, Tighnari, collei, Chevreuse, Diona, cloud retainer, Charlotte, beidou, Noelle, mika, and Xiao? What do they think ABT reader? Btw idk if I saw Tighnari or Cyno in your posts so-

2. Was there ever a time where the genshin impact wasn't self aware at first? Or did they already knew about creator before fake creator was there?

3. Who is more powerful? Fake creator or Reader creator?

4. What powers do the creators have?

5. Are there any more other reincarnations besides, fake creator, and reader creator?

Questions about your works:

6. how many requests do you have rn- if you don't mind me asking that is

7. Do you allow gore, self-harm, dark topics? (Not talking ABT nsfw, incest or any other than that

8.Which do you prefer for readers gender? Male reader, female reader, other reader genders?

Well that is all! Do take some breaks, btw you got lots of motivations I see. Also good job!

Hi, 🌙 anon!

Thanks, I am taking breaks from time to time.

1.

______

Mondstadt

______

Rosaria

*******

She is on Fake Creator's side.

Rosaria didn't like, that Fake Creator returned. For Rosaria, it means more work. Yet, she remains loyal to Fake Creator.

Fake Creator gave Rosaria a permission to punish anyone, who is a Danger to Mondstadt.

Reader arrived.

Fake Creator ordered to capture them.

Rosaria was the one, who chased Reader to an abandoned cottage.

Venti and Knights of Favonius almost burned Reader alive in this cottage.

And Rosaria, knights and Venti looked delighted, when they saw flames.

The same day, it was discovered, that Reader escaped.

After that, Rosaria was searching for Reader. She couldn't find them. Barbara treat Reader's burns, Bennett, Razor and Fischl get Reader to Dragonspine and Albedo got Reader to Liyue.

******

Diona (+ Klee)

******

Diona is on Reader's side.

At first, she wasn't planning on joining anyone, but Klee told her a 'super-duper secret' about Reader, that Klee heard from Alice. That Reader are a good person who was being treated unfairly.

Diona is a kid, and she can't do much to help. Fake Creator insisted on keeping kids close. Diona can't be really active.

But, she and Klee can keep Fake Creator's attention occupied by pulling little pranks and behaving like kids.

*****

Noelle

*****

Noelle is very hesitant.

The scene of a burning house and Knights' grins horrified her.

She believes in Fake Creator. But, when she saw Reader, scared, with some burns, she can't bring herself to attack.

She let Reader go.

Noelle doesn't know what to do next. The whole situation became too awful, too unreal for her.

*****

Mika

*****

Mika is another one, who was scared of the burning cottage situation.

The cruelty in Knights' gazes... It's not how it should be.

Mika secretly helped Reader escape the burning cottage. After that, he gifted Reader his best maps, so they could find a way in a wilderness.

_____

Liyue

_____

Gaming

*****

Gaming is on Reader's side.

Yunjin was the one, who made him see, how horrible the whole situation was.

Gaming helped Yunjin with the destruction performance, that helped Reader to get to a ship to Inazuma.

****

Beidou

*****

She was on Fake Creator's side, at first

But change side after Kazuha ran into Reader and realized, that Reader are Real Creator.

Beidou and her crew were the ones, who secretly get Reader from Inazuma back to Liyue and hide them with Baizhu again.

*****

Xiao

*****

He is on Reader's side.

He immediately knew what kind of monster Fake Creator were. Xiao can't stand near them, his karma goes awry.

But, when he saw Reader, he knew, they were the Real Creator.

He and Adepti were with Morax, when Reader were trying to escape Liyue.

When Zhongli was ready to strike Reader's boat, Xiao plunge his spear right into Zhongli's side.

Xiao gave Reader the chance to escape.

Zhongli survived.

Xiao is captured.

But, he feels content. He saved Reader.

******

Cloud Retainer (and adepti)

*****

She and all adepti (minus Madame Ping) were on Fake Creator's side.

But, after Xiao's betrayal, and talk with Madame Ping, Yaoyao and Xiangling, adepti realized, what kind of monster they were listening to.

Unfortunately, Zhongli is still blind to that fact. After Xiao's betrayal, Zhongli became paranoid. He started loosing trust in others.

When Reader returned to Liyue, Cloud Retainer, Moon Carver, Madame Ping, Mountain Shaper and Ganyu protected Reader during their journey to Sumeru.

______

Sumeru

*****

Dehya

*****

She is on Reader's side.

When Nahida was captured for helping Reader, Dunyarzad was devastated. She asked Dehya to help Reader. Dehya agreed.

She helped Alhaitham and Kaveh in getting Reader to Fontaine through the desert.

******

Candace

******

She is neutral, but not friendly.

She asked Dehya and Reader to leave Aaru Village when they reached it.

Don't get me wrong, she feels sorry about Reader's situation. But, after Nahida was arrested, everyone from Sumeru, who dared to help Reader, will be in even more trouble, than before. She doesn't want to risk villagers lives.

Still, she let Dehya and Reader get water and food.

*****

Cyno

*****

He is on Fake Creator's side.

During it, he attacked Reader, and if it weren't for Aranaras, Reader would be dead or captured.

And Nahida's imprisonment made him even more loyal to Fake Creator. Cyno will think, that Reader bewitched an archon.

He will follow Dehya and Reader, making sure, that their trip will be safe. And observing Reader's behavior.

During his observations, he noticed, that Reader didn't do anything wrong. They were a normal, tired person. Cyno heard, how Reader cry themselves to sleep, missing their home and friends.

Cyno is conflicted.

He helped Dehya fight with a group of eremites, who tried to capture Reader.

He left Dehya and Reader without the word. He has many things to think about.

*****

Tighnari

*****

He is on Fake Creator's side.

Fake Creator gave Forest Rangers a good sum of mora, arranged lectures about forest. They also gave Tighnari permission to arrange any sort of research and publish results.

So, Tighnari is loyal to Fake Creator. He arranged patrols. He tried his best to capture Reader.

But, somehow, Reader managed to avoid every patrol.

******

Collei

******

She is on Reader's side.

She was so devastated, when Fake Creator gave Dottore a title of Personal Physician. She can't understand, why someone like him wasn't punished.

So, she wasn't sure, that Reader did something wrong. Maybe, it's an opposite, and Reader are a good person.

Nahida gave Collei instructions on where to take Reader, when she met them.

Collei managed to get Reader away from Forest Rangers patrols. Thanks to Collei, Reader's 'trip' to Vanarana went almost peacefully, except a run in Cyno.

_____

Fontaine

******

Charlotte

******

She is on Reader's side.

She, out of curiosity, talked to some Fontaine citizens, after Fake Creator got to Teyvat. And she learned, that not everyone are happy for having Creator back.

Charlotte even managed to talk to Furina about Fake Creator. And, let's just say, even commas in Furina's speech were swear words.

When Charlotte met Reader, she almost interrogates them for an interview. Charlotte learned everything about Reader's journey so far. She decided to keep the information for now. If time comes, she will use it.

******

Chevreuse

******

She is also on Reader's side.

She does observe Reader's behavior. So far, Reader didn't break any of Fontaine's laws.

When Neuvillette became more restless is searching for Reader, some people from Fleuve Cendre wanted to hang Reader. This way they would escape Neuvillette's wrath and Reader won't suffer through torture. Chevreuse stopped them, saved Reader and started a meeting with everyone, who lived in Fleuve Cendre. The same meeting, that end in Navia and Spina di Rosula (and Furina) took Reader to Melusines' village.

______

2.

Genshin Impact was always Self-Aware and knew about Creator. Their self-awareness are different from BSD Cast's self-awareness.

BSD Cast are characters, that one day became self-aware and connected to a random reader.

Genshin Impact Game was a virtual window to another world.

______

3.

Right now, Fake Creator. But Reader reached half of Fake Creator's powers when they were captured. If Reader spent more time in Teyvat, they will become stronger.

_______

4.

From basic to advanced

- Longlivety

- Stopping Monsters from attacking. Not working on smarter monsters. (Abyss Order)

- Dragon Whisper (described here) In a nutshell, making any dragon 'imprint'on anyone, who have Creator's powers. Because of that, Dvalin, Azdaha, Apep, Neuvillette and, at some extent, Zhongli, are on Fake Creator's side. Vishaps are on Reader's side.

- Plant manipulation (can make plants grew and cover their tracks).

- Water manipulation (can get water from anywhere they wish).

- Stronger bodies (it will take many efforts to kill Creator) [Reader gained this right before they were captured by Tsaritsa. The last power they got before returning home].

- Regeneration.

- Destruction (can turn anything to dust) and Creation (can make anything, even the most bizarre plant and animal combination).

- Mind manipulation

- Bringing dead to life (lost ability, current Creator's powers aren't enough to do it)

______

5.

No, for now, only two.

There is a possibility of third reincarnation being born, but, they won't have even echoes of Creator's powers and, will probably only have a similar voice or physics to Creator.

_______

6.

Good question, I wish I could answer it.

I am currently looking through my inbox, searching for purely question asks I missed.

Soon, I will post another list of requests I have. Maybe, will open requests for a few days.

______

7.

Yes, I allow dark topics.

Note! I won't describe it in too many details, will try to keep at "T", or PG rated.

_____

8.

I don't have any preference.

But, most of my requests are about Gender Neutral Reader. There are some Male and Female Reader requests.

All requests are equally interesting for me.

________

Tag list: @withered-blossoms , @myluckymoon @cocodrilofeliz @c4xcocoa @vvyeislazzy @whisperingwinters

[staarri]

HIIII, how are you? I hope everything goes well <33 I would like to order gaming x reader, maybe as an accidental kissing session? If it's not too much trouble, thank you very much for reading <33

𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐬   

  —   characters :   ga ming

  —   character(s) are friends with reader, gn!reader, not really an accidental kiss… it had a purpose, mutual pining, this is a work of fiction

      fluff     ,    accidental kiss     ,    modern!au     .      word count : 1.1k

hi there lovely! i changed this up a bit since i couldnt figure out what to write. i hope you dont mind! very extra special tag for @aventurne !!

The movie ends in such a bittersweet way. The protagonist lives her life as a teacher and her sister marries the boy she once loved the most. She looked back at her life in such a happy way now that she also had someone for her.  You sniffle, bringing a tissue to your eyes. Your friend looks at you, eyes filled with worry.

“Are you okay?” He asks, hesitantly bringing his hand to your cheek and wiping away any kind of remaining trail the tear left. You two had planned a little movie date. If you could even call it that–You did it as friends anyway. Yet you never expected the movie you chose to be this… This devastating.

“Mhm–” You sniffle again, cheeks puffing up. You start fanning your face to try and stop crying, but the more you think about it the sadder you get. “That was just. Wow, like I didn’t expect it at all.”

He giggles, laying back comfortably on his seat. He nods, yeah. 

“Think that’ll happen to me too?” You’ve always believed love would never work out the way you wanted it to. For you, of course. I mean, your friends are all in happy relationships–marriages for some and you’re stuck at this golden age, single. 

“With the amount of unrequited love stories you’ve watched? At this point, I’m starting to believe it will.” Ga ming teases you. 

“That hurt a little, `ming.” Crossing your arms pretending to be upset.

“Oh–Oh I'm sorry,” He says sarcastically, laughing. “Let’s not forget what happened with La La Land.”

“Whatever! I doubt you’ll be getting a partner in the near future anyway; So we're in the same boat.”

He grins, “Really now?”

You nod frantically. Going on a short rant about how his personality is so explosive it causes the other people’s social battery to die out immediately, or how he’s so active all the time you never get a break from all the activities you guys do. Or how his smile is so captivating, maybe how his face is so bewitching.

“Don’t know. All I'm hearing is you like me so much it's killing you.”

“I do not!” 

“Sure.” 

Yeah. Maybe you do like him. A lot, maybe a bit more. He’s cast a spell on your heart and you can’t undo it–It’s a curse and a blessing all at the same time. What if you like your best friend? It’s not like he felt the same way anyway. Well he might, with the mixed signals he’s been giving you. But he’s nice to everyone–He’s like that to everyone. And it has always been like that from the very start.

He looks at you in a way that squeezes and twists at your chest; He smiles at you in a way that causes all the butterflies to fly from its cage in your stomach and you feel so lightheaded when you two laugh together. You’re lost in the way he’s so caring, and it makes you feel sick and selfish wanting him for all yourself.

But that's just how you feel. For all you know–He might just be leading you on, and you’ll find out once you admit your feelings to him right now at this moment.

It's so difficult not to blurt it out. The love from your heart is escaping and taking this tension between you as its new home. You just look at him as he takes in the surroundings of your venue, with the warm fairy lights emitting a glow that makes him look more ethereal by the moment, and with the couch that has his hair all fluffed up. But it’s just now that you notice how bright his eyes look, how the shine compliments the red hues so perfectly. Just now that you see the little fangs on his teeth and how his face scrunches up so right whenever he smiles widely. You wonder how he’ll look when you two grow old, how much will change within those years.

You can’t be his, it’ll ruin you in more ways than one.

“You’re awfully quiet, was the movie that bad?” His concern is enough to melt the walls you’ve worked too hard to build around your heart. He will ruin your inner peace, is it weird that you would let him?

You don’t dare answer.

“Hey, look at me.” 

He brings his hands to your cheeks, making you face him. You feel stupid in love, it's like you just can’t get enough air to your lungs because even that is filled with the scent of him.

“Talk to me, what’s wrong?” 

His eyes wander from your lips to your own eyes, looking for any kind of sign that you don't feel good. You place your hand on top of his and gently press your cheek against him more. You warned yourself, this is a bad idea. But you never listen, not once. 

Now he’s kissing you in a way that’s going to screw you up forever.

It’s soft, the way he handles you so gently. As if you’re some kind of porcelain that’s a little too fragile. You’re regretting everything that brought you to this moment but you’re not complaining one bit.

And it was short-lived. It wasn’t even a kiss, it was a peck on the lips. He was scared that you wouldn’t feel the same way, because somehow maybe you didn’t fall in love with your best friend who you’ve had multiple dimsums with. The friend that held you in your darkest moments and the friend who wished for all your partners to somehow quit playing with your feelings so he could be the one to be there for you instead.

Oh god, you were inlove. And so was he–and maybe even more than you.

“I didn’t mean to do that.” He stammered. Cheeks red and yours the same. You two were affected under the same spell you put on each other. “I swear–You just looked too pretty. I couldn't help it.”

It feels like you’ve just discovered love. Like you were the only one to know how it feels to be in love with someone. The tension is gone and all you’re feeling is pure adoration from him, from the way he stares at you with an expression you’ve never seen before.

Someday, this will end. But for now? You’ll be treasuring the moment in a way you’re sure no one else has.

characters belong to their respective companies. everything is written by staarri - do not steal, reupload, translate, modify or feed my work to ai.

[thecreaturecodex]

Terochilus

Image accessed from the Ultraman Wiki here

[Terochilus is a monster that makes a big impression in Return of Ultraman (being the star of a two-part episode), but with very little impact on the franchise outside of it. Which is a shame. It feels like Ultraman's Rodan the way that Arstron feels like its Godzilla. It has a weirder power set than Rodan, though, with its toxic webbing and shooting lasers from its nose. It kind of reminds me of The Giant Claw, in the sense of being a superficially simple flying kaiju that is totally bizarre on closer inspection, and I designed its stats intentionally to be a counterpart to my cacagnea.

In the show, its webs emit toxic gas on exposure to automobile exhaust, making Terochilus another pollution-themed kaiju. Since cars don't exist in Pathfinder, I changed the trigger to the webs getting extra dangerous to fire, which is the typical adventurer solution to webbing. That, and it makes the Terochilus' lairing in volcanoes synergistic, and very dangerous.

Also, I can't prove it, but I suspect that Terochilus' pterosaur with feathers look inspired the winged fakeosaur that came in the same set as the ones that inspired the rust monster and bulette]

Terochilus

CR 19 LN Magical Beast

This creature resembles a strange cross between bird and pterosaur. It walks on two elephantine legs, and has membranous wings growing like a cape from its human-like arms. It has a head and neck covered with feathers, and a long straight bill.

A terochilus is a bestial, vaguely avian predator, something like a roc writ even larger. They are found lairing on volcanic islands and are extremely territorial—a terochilus patrols the water near the island for whales, large fish and the occasional sea monster to eat, and drives away anything else entering its hunting grounds. This territoriality extends to their volcanic lairs as well. A terochilus usually lives near the caldera and lines its nest with thick ashy webbing. This webbing is flammable, but burning it produces a highly potent toxic gas that causes immediate unconsciousness followed by systematic organ failure. The terochiluses are immune to these noxious fumes, and encourage periodic fires to burn the webbing and fumigate their lairs.

Terochiluses usually do not see creatures of human size and shape as prey. The danger comes from their territorial instinct—they attack boats that steer too close to their hunting grounds. If forced from their lairs by a stronger monster, they may settle closer to inhabited areas and wreak havoc enforcing their new territorial boundaries. In combat, a terochilus usually opens by spraying opponents with webbing, and then closing to melee with entangled enemies. A terochilus possesses a powerful breath weapon, which manifests as beams of deadly force fired from its nostrils. This breath weapon does not recharge quickly, and most terochiluses use it as a weapon of last resort only.

Terochilus CR 19

XP 204,800

LN Colossal magical beast

Init +9; Senses darkvision 120 ft., low-light vision, Perception +22, tremorsense 30 ft.

Defense

AC 34, touch 12, flat-footed 24 (-8 size, +9 Dex, +1 dodge, +22 natural)

hp 346 (21d10+231)

Fort +23, Ref +21, Will +12

DR 20/magic; Immune poison; Resist fire 30, force 30; SR 30

Offense

Speed 40 ft., fly 150 ft. (average)

Melee bite +27 (4d6+14/19-20 plus grab), 2 claws +27 (2d8+14), 2 wings +22 (2d8+7)

Space 30 ft.; Reach 30 ft.

Special Attacks breath weapon (150 ft. line, 1 minute, 19d10 force damage),hurricane hover,swallow whole(AC 21, 34 hp, 4d8+21 bludgeoning),toxic webbing, webs (+22 ranged, range increment 30 ft., 150 ft. range, DR 10/-, 21 hp, DC 31)

Statistics

Str 39, Dex 28, Con 32, Int 4, Wis 21, Cha 15

Base Atk +21; CMB +43 (+47 grapple); CMD 63

Feats Acrobatic,Blind-Fight, Combat Reflexes,Dodge, Flyby Attack, Greater Vital Strike, Hover (B), Improved Critical (bite), Improved Vital Strike, Mobility, Power Attack, Vital Strike

Skills Acrobatics +21 (+25 when jumping), Climb +26, Fly +13, Perception +22; Racial Modifiers +8 Perception

Languages Ignan (cannot speak)

Ecology

Environment warm land

Organization solitary or pair

Treasure incidental

Special Abilities

Hurricane Hover (Ex) A terochilus gains Hover as a bonus feat. When it uses the Hover feat, it creates hurricane force winds in a 60-foot radius, regardless of its distance from the surface.

Toxic Webbing (Ex) A terochilus’ webs release toxic gas when they take fire damage. This gas fills a 30 foot radius from the webbing, and lingers for 1d4+1 rounds before dissipating. This toxin has the following properties

Web fumes—inhaled; duration 1/round for 4 rounds; save Fort DC 31; initial effect unconsciousness 1 minute; secondary effect 1d6 Con damage and unconsciousness 10 minutes; cure 1 save. The save DC is Constitution based.

[nxghtstxne]

"like a date"

Warnings: None

Pairings: JJ Maybank x reader

Word Count: 1392

Summary: JJ and y/n had been instant best friends since she moved here from the UK, feelings have been growing until a night on the boat changes everything.

Y/n had moved to Outer Banks a couple of years ago from the UK, moving in with her grandpa in his little house nestled somewhere between The Cut and Figure Eight; not quite pogue but not kook either. After a walk on the beach and running into Pope and Sarah, she soon became inseparable from the group called the pogues.

It was a cool Tuesday night and y/n and JJ had found themselves wrapped up in blankets with snacks and a beer or two on the HMS Pogue, floating softly by the makeshift dock at the back of the chateau. Music was playing from y/n’s phone, a mixture of her favourite songs and some that JJ had forced her to add to the playlist, claiming that she needed to ‘broaden her music taste’, the two had a special relationship, ever since they had first met y/n had calmed JJ down, making him rethink all of his insane plans and he had bought her out of her shell; being more on the introverted side, he was one of the few people that instantly made her want to talk and be herself. After having a crazy few days of picking up extra shifts at work at the gas station, or petrol station as JJ and the other pogues teased her for calling it, and other stuff, the best friends had made plans to hang out, just the two of them, wrapped up and comfortable on the floor of the boat. The sun was just starting to set, JJ chugged the rest of his beer down, making y/n laugh as she saw a bit dribble down his chin causing him to laugh, covering his mouth, eyes flickering over to her. Her head was back leaning against the edge of the boat, hair tucked behind her ears, she had a light blanket over her lap and was wearing his hoodie, sleeves pulled over her hands holding her own beer. JJ hadn’t told anyone but his feelings towards the girl had changed over the years, at first she was just a friend, a good addition to the group, her light and calm energy had fit in perfectly with the chaos that came with the pogues, he wasn’t quite sure when it all had changed but now whenever shes near him, his heart beats a little faster and his stomach fills with butterflies whenever she touches him or they hold eye contact for maybe a little too long for just friends. And seeing her like that, relaxed, with the golden light from the setting sun shining somehow just right on her skin and spending time with just him was making those butterflies reappear. 

JJ didn’t realise he was zoned out until a soft hit to his thigh and then another to his arm brought him back, “huh?” he murmured, running his hand through his hair and looking at her. 

“Where’d you go? I was just talking about this lady that came into work today.” she giggled at the way his nose scrunched up and he shook his head, his hand coming over to grab her legs that were by his side and pulling over his lap, her body now facing him still leaning against the side of the boat.

“Nowhere! I was jus’ thinking..”

“Oh you know how to do that?” she teased, giggling at the way he scoffed and shook his head.

“Yknow what? Give me that-” he reached for her phone and unlocked it, his face id working on her iphone, smiling at the fact that she even wanted to set it up with him. He changed the song and watched as she started smiling big, “Oh I love this one!” He knew all of her favourite things, as did she with his favourite things. Instantly she started to softly hum and sing along as JJ was drumming along on her legs, still on his lap, they were both giggling and laughing at each other as the singing got more serious and louder, y/n now using her hand as a makeshift microphone and JJ doing the same, forgetting about his ‘drumming’. The sun had set fully now, a soft blue tint covering the OBX, birds and bats alike flying about overhead. The two of them now serenading each other, pointing and mouthing the words, laughing at each other. 

The song finished and the playlist carried on, JJ and y/n still laughing as she rested her head on his shoulder, he placed his hands back on her legs on his lap after fiddling with his shark tooth necklace. “JJ we should do this more often, I love the others but I love just us too.”

“Yeah we should, like once a week or something for sure?” 

“It’ll be like a date! Once a week.” JJ took notice of the excitement in her voice and in her eyes but his head only replayed that one word a date, surely she didn't mean it like that? y/n would never want to go on an actual date with him would she? In her eyes they were just friends, JJ was sure of it. That didn't stop the slither of hope in his heart that just maybe she would want to go on an actual date. 

“What's wrong J?” she whispered, lifting her head off his shoulders and tangling a hand in his hair, lightly scratching his head. She had noticed how quiet he was, quite the opposite to how JJ usually is.

“I- I jus’- I don't know.” He sighed, he wanted this moment to last forever, no chaos, no gold chasing, just him and his girl on the HMS Pogue, on a nice cool night. And if he told her how he truly felt then maybe she wouldn’t want to do this anymore. But what if she did want this?

“I want this to last forever y/n, jus’ you and me. I don't think I've ever wanted anything more actually.” He looked at y/n, her eyes looking straight back at him, a small smile on her face when they locked eyes. He swore he felt his heart and mind calm down at that, “I like you y/n, more than I've ever liked anyone before and I was always scared to say anything cause like what if you don’t like me like that and I ruin everything and-” he was cut off by a soft giggle and a squeeze on the hand that was rested on her legs, now in her other hand. 

“J I like you too, I have for awhile and I really thought I was being obvious but clearly not-” Another giggle escaped her lips at the look on his face, eyes locked on hers and his mouth hanging slightly open, “I couldn’t imagine liking anyone else as much as I like you, you make me feel the kind of happy and loved that I never thought I’d ever feel.” They were facing each other now, y/n cross legged and still holding JJ’s hand.

“I wanna do this J, if you do too?” JJ nodded with no hesitation, grabbing her hand back tightly,

“More than anything yeah I do” He leaned closer to her moving his free hand to hold her face, waiting for y/n to show that she wanted it. Y/n moved forward slowly and he pressed his lips to hers for a gentle kiss that they both have waited years for. Y/n pulled away first, laughing when JJ whined and chased her lips for another quick kiss. 

“So does this mean I can finally take my girl on a real date?” He asked, his thumb still softly stroking her cheek, 

“Your girl huh? I like the sound of that” 

“You've always been my girl but now it’s like official official y'know?” He smirked and watched as a blush covered her cheeks.

“I like that” Y/n whispered.

“Yeah?” JJ whispered back, “Yeah” She replied, putting her head back on his shoulder as his arm wrapped around her shoulders, holding her to him. The smirk never leaving his lips but only growing when the playlist shuffled to a song that caused y/n to gasp and start singing along to again. They were definitely going to be doing this more often. 

[theboywithburninghands]

Here goes nothing. Arranged Marriage Funnybunny. Mostly worldbuilding and setup in this one. It was... something to make, that's for sure. Uh don't expect like... Jane Austen, but I went for a more... uh I guess... feel that was more old school? Just imagine a British narrator. Anyway here take it- T/W: Mentions of miscarriages, sexism, fantasy casual racism Primum Peccatum Chapter 1: You Don't Own Me

Primum Peccatum was an island a half-mile off the southeastern coast of Blackshell Bay, New Hirnantia. Inaccessible by any method other than ferry or private boat, Primum Peccatum was known throughout the county as a haven for the wealthy. Though Blackshell Bay was hardly a shantytown, those living in the coastal city often found themselves gazing wistfully or covetously at the island whenever they were on the southeastern beach in summertime or in the fish market near the harbor. Close enough to see, but far enough to never quite touch. Unless they were lucky enough to strike oil, inherit a good amount of money from a wealthy relative, or marry into one of the families already living on the island.

The Shutnyk family had lived on Primum Peccatum for two generations now. Originally a family of woodsmen, Nikolai Shutnyk broke the previously thought impermeable class barrier through, as said before, dumb luck. Nikolai, while living at a lumber mill in Telychia, would often go for long walks in the thick Telychian woods to try and curb his insomnia. While out there, he stumbled upon an as of then undiscovered natural gas reserve, and, under the nose of the logging company, managed to keep it a secret. Nikolai was talented with numbers and knew how to read and write despite his lower-class background, and drafted up a series of documents that he sent to several different gas companies along with some samples. In the documents, he offered to reveal the location of this reserve if he was given 100,000 crowns up front, and 5% of the profits from the reserves.

Although he was initially ignored, one struggling company by the name of East-West Renewable Energy sent an inspector to Nikolai, and they met in secret in the nearby town of Perrault’s End. Nikolai took the inspector out to the woods, and, when it was found to be very much real, the company gave Nikolai his up front payment, and began drilling. Nikolai quit his job at the end of his shift the next day, and moved to Perrault’s End. East-West’s earnings exploded overnight, and even though he had only asked for 5% of the earnings, it was enough to keep him sustained without the need of a job for a good two decades.

Newly wealthy and with a steady income, Nikolai Shutnyk caught the attention of several  prominent families in Perrault’s End. He was soon married to the daughter of one Cartofolio Marconi, a magistrate for several industrialists in the much larger neighboring city of Angel’s Peak. Nikolai’s skill with numbers made him a valuable asset to his father-in-law’s corporate clients, and he was given a share of the company’s earnings for his hard work. 

Nikolai and his wife, Clara Shutnyk, took the opportunity to purchase some land on Primum Piccatum, and had their manor built there. Nikolai continued his work for his father-in-law, and had a son with Clara, who they named Vladimir. Nikolai continued working until his death from a ruptured spleen when he was 61. Vladimir continued in his father’s stead, looking after his mother at his island manor and eventually finding a wife, the daughter of a surgeon named Amadeo. Her name was Mirella, and together they had a child of their own, a daughter, named Pomni. Her name was unique, taken from the Telychian word for “forget,” after Mirella’s favorite flower, the forget-me-not.

Pomni was the only child of Vladimir and Mirella, not for lack of trying. Mirella had miscarried three times before managing to have an underweight baby girl 4 weeks early. Luckily, her parents had access to high quality care thanks to their standing, and their newly born daughter lived. Pomni grew only somewhat larger in the following 25 years, never reaching any taller than 5 feet. 

Had she lived in more modern times, there would be better and more scientific terms to describe the way her mind worked, but her parents and teachers only referred to her as “a bit odd” or “not quite there.” She was intelligent, that couldn’t be denied: she was writing full sentences at six years of age and read ravenously, but her social skills left much to be desired. She had few school friends, rarely speaking at all unless spoken to, and didn’t smile unless she was actually happy.. However, her taciturn nature was never to be mistaken for weakness, and she had an intensely stubborn streak. 

When she was nine years old, a young lady in her class named Fredericka and her sycophants, seeing Pomni’s diminutive stature and hearing her unusual name, surrounded her desk one Monday before their lessons. Pomni looked up from her collection of Telychian short stories when the girls called her all manner of things, most of them pejoratives they’d overheard from their nationalist relatives. 

Pomni looked back down at her book, her face placid. Fredericka, confused and angry that her usual routine appeared ineffective on the quiet young lady, turned back to her friends. 

“She’s not just ugly, she’s deaf!” she declared.

Her laugh became a shriek as Pomni lunged for Fredericka’s arm, burying her sharp little teeth into the taller girl’s hand. Blood oozed from the punctured skin between her thumb and index finger and onto the polished hardwood floor. 

Despite the headmistress’s best efforts, Pomni couldn’t be made to apologize. Vladimir had to be summoned to her school, but even her father couldn’t persuade Pomni to apologize to her classmate. She said this to Vladimir. 

“She isn’t sorry, Papa. So neither am I.” 

Pomni was forbidden from the manor’s library for a month for her churlish behavior, but privately, Vladimir was impressed. His own father would never have obtained his fortune without steely resolve. Had he followed the herd, the lumber company would have sold that natural gas reserve to line the pockets of the already wealthy board of directors, and Nikolai wouldn’t have seen a single crown. 

Pomni’s classmates wisely decided to leave her alone after this incident, keeping their insults well out of earshot. Pomni graduated near the top of her class with excellent marks, a sure sign she would make a fine schoolteacher or court stenographer. Indeed, she inherited her father’s skill with numbers and attention to detail, and even began assisting her father with the heaps of paperwork from some of his weightier cases. 

Mirella loved her daughter as any mother should, and just like most mothers, she worried about her quite often. Oddness aside, Pomni had almost no interest in finding a husband. A little independence was important for any young lady, it was the sign of a healthy brain, which Pomni certainly possessed. But whenever Mirella asked her daughter if she saw any young gentlemen that caught her eye when she was across the reach running errands for the family, or in the library or the city park, her answers were unsatisfactory. 

“Oh yes, I did see a man with two different colored eyes. One blue, one brown. I believe the term is ‘heterochromia,’ did you know that, mother?”

“I saw a man who had lost an arm. I suppose he must have been a soldier, or perhaps a mill worker. It’s just terrible that someone’s livelihood can cost someone a limb, don’t you, mother?”

Mirella worried. Pomni was a pretty little thing. She had her father’s snowy fair skin and her own raven black hair, cut into a short little bob. When she smiled, which wasn’t often, it was illuminating. But she was 25, and that beauty wouldn’t last. In New Hirnantia, it was agreed that if a woman wasn’t married by age 30, she was destined for spinsterhood. Just five years… If Pomni wanted to carry on her family’s legacy, she needed to find a husband. She was their sole heir. Mirella couldn’t put herself through another miscarriage… and with her own advancing age, a failed pregnancy was all the more likely. 

There were many young men around Blackshell Bay that would have suited Pomni perfectly well had she just given them the time of day. University professors, magistrates, authors and poets… men who held the same appreciation for learning and the arts that Mirella’s daughter did. And they were steadily decreasing in number as other women Pomni’s age, some younger, took them to be their husbands. 

She confided in her husband one Spring evening before bed, collapsing into tears as her worries burst out like water from a crumbling dam. Vladimir held his wife and listened to her woes, stroking her hair and letting the torrent run its course. By the time Mirella’s sobs had waned into hiccups, Vladimir smiled at her. 

“Darling, I’m so terribly sorry you’ve kept all of this inside. The pain must have been monumental. And yes, I too have worried that our daughter may carry the family name to her grave. But, you needn’t worry any longer, lisichka. I believe a solution is within reach. I simply have to write a few letters. Our daughter will be happily wed by her 26th birthday.”

—

Pomni stepped off the ferry onto the dock, sturdy oak wood imported from the monolithic forests of Ediacara out west. 

“Be careful on your way home, Ms. Shutnyk.” the ferryman said. 

“You say this whenever I exit the boat, sir. I assure you, no sheer cliffs or bottomless canyons have suddenly appeared on my commute home.” Pomni replied. 

The sun set from within the treeline, coloring the horizon a bright tangerine. Pomni walked up the path to the Shutnyk estate, a weighty book under her arm. It was a collection of fairy tales, complete with color plates. Pomni typically preferred her fiction with a touch more verisimilitude, but she had already gone through her father’s library and most of the library in town, so she needed to wait for her favorite authors to actually produce new material. This would satiate her for a time. 

Pomni wore a plain white dress and matching white shoes. She also wore her favorite straw sunhat with the black hatband, although it had been rather overcast today. Not that she minded. She did burn rather easily due to her Telychian blood. 

She continued up the hill past the Rooker estate. She would have stopped to say hello to Mr. Kinger on any other day, but it was getting late, and summer was on the horizon. Mosquitos and other biting insects would surely be emboldened by the evening dark and emerge from the trees soon. 

She saw the manor up the dirt path, second on the right, just after the Rooker house. In the dim light, she could see her mother’s immaculately maintained flower gardens in front of the delicate pink walls of the manor. It was just becoming summer, so the gardens were lush with hot pink roses and silky white gardenias. Pomni had thought about taking up gardening as a hobby, but she found the entire affair tedious. At least with books, you wouldn’t have to wait six months to read them. 

She took her key from her pocketbook and unlocked the manor door, skirting inside and closing it behind her to keep the bugs away. 

“Pomni, is that you?” her father called from the dining room. 

“Yes it is, good evening, Father.” she called back, locking the door behind her and hanging her handbag and sunhat on the foyer hooks. 

“Come and join us, supper is ready,” said Vladimir.

“Just a moment, I haven’t gotten out of my shoes…” Pomni sat on the floor and slid off her shoes, placing them neatly on the shoe rack and peeling off her socks, dropping them down the laundry chute. She set her book down at the foot of the stairs and she briskly walked into the dining room. 

“Good evening, darling, so good to see you!” Mirella said from her spot at the table. Pomni returned her salutation, looking at the plate set out for her. Honey-glazed garlic salmon, her favorite. Usually she only had this for her birthday or to celebrate the start of fishing season.

“Oh, goodness. Thank you, what’s the occasion?”

“No occasion, dear, we just had Zooble cook your favorite tonight. Come, sit, enjoy it!” Vladimir said, motioning her to come and sit at the dining room table.

Zooble stood in the corner of the room in their usual tuxedo, nodding wordlessly at Pomni. Zooble was a shape-person, their head a magenta sideways triangle with no visible mouth and mismatched limbs. Shapefolk originated from a harsh desert kingdom known as Dovicia, found across the southern sea. While they had a much different diet and anatomy from humans, no one shape-person was built the same way, humans and shapefolk had been close allies for centuries. Humans offered them much needed resources that couldn’t be found in the beastly Dovician desert, and the shapefolk in turn offered manpower, often moving into more temperate areas to escape the extreme temperatures. Zooble had been the caretaker of the manor for 3 years, ever since the previous caretaker, Lidio, retired to Blackshell Bay at the age of 70. So far, Pomni liked them a lot, even if she never enjoyed change that much. Zooble didn’t allow her mother and father to walk all over them like Lidio did. Sometimes her parents needed someone to tell them “no” that wasn’t her.

Pomni cut into her salmon filet and sampled it, giving a contented hum. “It’s delicious, Zooble. My compliments.” 

Zooble nodded. “Only doing what I’m paid for, Miss.” Their tone struck Pomni as oddly somber, but she ignored it.

“So how are you feeling, darling? Did you have a pleasant day?” Marella asked.

Pomni took a moment to chew and swallow, looking down at her food. “Yes, mother. I went for my usual constitutional in the park, and-”

“Eyes up, Pomni,” her father said. “Talk to your mother, not your dinner.””

Pomni bit her lip. She was a grown woman, and her parents still reprimanding her for her struggles with eye contact always touched a nerve. Maybe in grade school, but… 

She looked up at her mother. Even looking into Marella’s brown eyes made her feel itchy, prickles of heat running up her arms and down to her toes.

“-and I got a book from the library. I finished the last one.” 

As soon as she finished speaking, she put her eyes back onto her food, scratching her left foot with her right. 

“Molto bene, darling. Well, your father has some exciting news.” 

Marella looked over at her husband, who idly swirled the red wine in his glass. Vladimir glanced at his wife before clearing his throat and setting the glass down.

“Er- yes. A former client of mine has fallen into dire straits. You remember the Krolik family?”

Pomni thought for a moment as she chewed her food. She swallowed, had a sip of water and then spoke. 

“Yes. Yes, they had the embezzlement case. Their business partner, their name was… Dombrowski Worldwide, was charging a non-existent handling fee for their grain shipments and then pocketing it. They took around 60,000 crowns, and the Krolik-”

“Yes dear, exactly right! Your memory is astounding as always.” Vladimir said, the pride palpable in his voice. 

“What about them, father?” Pomni asked, working on cutting herself another piece of fish. 

“Well, as you know, we won the case. But unfortunately, the judicial expenses left the Krolik family in something of a financial rut. Even with all the Krolik siblings working on the family business, they haven’t quite been able to scrape themselves out of debt.”

“I see. How is that good news?” Pomni replied.

Zooble let out a louder than normal cough. 

“Well…” Vladimir took in a lengthy breath. “Their fourth son, er, Jax, is 22 and unmarried.” 

“Oh, I see. So he’s marrying into a wealthy family. That is good news!” Pomni replied. 

“Y-Yes, he does intend on marrying into a wealthy family. A-As a matter of fact-“

“Master Shutnyk,” Zooble suddenly spoke up. “Please. The longer you prolong the issue-”

“I don’t believe I requested your input, Zooble.” Vladimir said. The authority in his voice bordered on draconian. He never spoke to their caretaker like that, even during his foulest moods. 

“Apologies, sir.” Zooble said, bowing shortly. 

Pomni looked from Zooble to Vladimir. Her food sat momentarily forgotten in her cheek, before she chewed hastily and swallowed.

“Papa, is something the matter?” Pomni asked. She rarely referred to Vladimir as anything but “father” since she was twelve years old, only using “papa” when she was deeply anxious or in the midst of tears, be they of joy or sadness. 

“No, piccola, nothing is wrong at all.” Marella interjected. “This is all good news. Your father and I think you should marry that Krolik boy!”

Pomni put down her fork. She picked up her glass of water and quaffed the entire thing. 

“We have everything in order, you won’t have to worry about a thing! Your father spoke with the patriarch of the Krolik family- and what a fine man he is, larger than life, truly!- he’d be more than happy to have you wed his son. Oh, and you should meet his son! I’ve never met a more charismatic beastman! And-”

“Mirella!” Vladimir barked.

“I’m sorry but it’s true! He’s a gentleman, a real ambassador for his kind! And he’s only 22! You’ll love him, Pomni!”

Pomni prodded her filet with her fork. “I’ll… love him.” she echoed. Her eyes stared ahead, at nothing in particular. 

“I’m sure of it! He’s smart as a whip, just like you! He and all of his siblings. And goodness, he’s tall and handsome…”

Pomni picked up her plate and whipped it at the wall behind her. It soared through the air like a clay pigeon before shattering helplessly against the wall, Mirella yelping and Vladimir rising to his feet instinctively. Her half-eaten salmon adhered to the wall for a moment before peeling off and plopping onto the imported carpet, brown glaze stuck to both the wall and the carpet. 

Pomni turned to her parents, her blue eyes crystals of icelike fury. 

“What have I done wrong..?” she whispered. “What sin could I have committed that would motivate you to sell me off? Am I no better than a mare or a sow? Answer me! What was my transgression?!”

“Pomni, you’ve done nothing wrong…” Mirella began delicately. 

“Then I’ve always been nothing more than a commodity?!” Pomni cried. She looked to her father for aid. “Papa, what about your firm? Wasn’t I supposed to take over for you..? You always said I was so talented…”

“And you are, dear! You’re brilliant! But… clients would turn their nose up at a firm run by a woman. I’m sorry, but it’s the truth of our society. It’s why I want you to marry this man so you can-”

Pomni’s eyes lost the spark of fury in them, darkening with grief and betrayal. “…Papa.”

“So you can run the firm in my stead. You just need a man to serve as a figurehead. And believe me, Jax Krolik is charismatic enough to serve as a figurehead, I met with him only yesterday, and-”

“I haven’t! I don’t even know what this man- no, beastman looks like! How could you possibly think I’d be okay with you making such a rash decision behind my back? Are you really that heartless?!”

Pomni turned away from her parents once again. Zooble shook their head. 

“Fiends… heartless, deceitful fiends…” Pomni whispered. 

“Pomni, this was for your benefit.” Marella said stoically. “You’re 25. Time is running out for you. All the men who might have caught your attention are moving on to other women. Or even other men! We acted in your stead to make sure you had a fair shot at finding love, starting a family, being happy-”

“I am happy! Rather, I was happy until you thrust a knife into my back! Who are you to say what brings me joy and what doesn’t?!”

“I’m your mother, Pomni! And I was in your situation once! I was lucky enough that your father came along when he did-!”

“That’s enough from both of you!” Vladimir boomed. “Mirella, Pomni, sit back down.”

Mirella took her seat, but Pomni remained standing. 

“Pomni. Sit down.” 

“I won’t,” she said.

“We’ve already arranged a meeting with the Krolik family tomorrow afternoon.” Vladimir continued. “I assure you that once you meet Jax, your concerns will be assuaged. This wasn’t a decision made impetuously. Now, sit down, please.” 

Pomni’s lips quavered. She gradually slid back onto her chair.

“Good girl. Zooble, please clean that up before it stains the carpet. And the wall.” Vladimir motioned to the detritus on the carpet.

“Right away, Master Shutnyk.” Zooble said with another short bow. They hurriedly stepped out of the room, glancing at Pomni before going to get the dustpan. 

“We know how you feel, Pomni. It’s daunting to get married, but it’s part of a young woman’s life.” Mirella said. “And think about how much more you’ll have to do with a husband! An entire house all to yourself, new family to get to know… it’s an adventure! Besides, it trounces just going to town and back every day, wouldn’t you say?”

“No, mother. I don’t.” Pomni spat out the word “mother” like a poison. “I quite enjoy my time in town, thank you.”

“Well, now you can live in town! We’ve been to see their manor, and-”

“Well if you enjoy it so much, why don’t you live there in my stead? Clearly you’re infatuated with the man.” Pomni snapped.

“Pomni Shutnyk! You do NOT speak to your mother like that!” barked Vladimir. 

“I did not suffer the loss of three children to be disrespected by my only daughter!” Mirella exclaimed.

“If you’re going to treat me like this, then I wish I had died right along with them-”

Pomni put a hand to her mouth, immediately wishing she could reel the words back into her throat. Her mother’s face blanched, and Pomni felt tears well up in her eyes. 

“Pomni..!” her father gasped.

“I-I’m sorry…” Pomni managed to say. “I’m sorry, mother…” 

“You’ve said quite enough.” Vladimir asserted. “To your room, now. And you aren’t to come down until we tell you.”

Pomni, her pretty pale face damp with tears, rose from her chair and went into the foyer. Sniffling, she ascended the first step. She stopped, and turned, and hurriedly put her shoes on, sans her socks. She grabbed her pocketbook from the foyer hook. 

“Pomni?” her father’s voice came from the dining room. “Pomni, I instructed you to go to your room.”

She found her house key despite her blurred vision and unlocked the front door, easing it open. The sky was a dim orange and the trees mere black silhouettes, evening insects chirring. 

“Pomni!” her father called. There was the sound of a scraping chair. 

Pomni slipped through the door and shut it behind her, locking it behind her and pattering down the steps onto the dirt trail. She ran through the garden of the Shutnyk manor, wiping her eyes and nose and not looking back, even as she heard both of her parents shouting for her return. As far as she was concerned, it was no longer her home. 

Soon, she reached the main road, and turned left, hurrying further up the island and towards the church. 

[boreal-sea]

"We can just send robots to the poles to make new ice! This is a reasonable solution!"

No it's not.

Can we send boats to the poles to make more ice? Yes.

But tell me, tell me: why are they melting in the first place?

Because the ice caps do not, on their own, keep Earth cool. They help, because of albedo (which is not a word I think anyone on the post I'm vagueing about even knows). And personally, if you don't actually know why and how the ice caps help keep Earth cool and why them melting is bad, if you don't understand positive feedback cycles... then stop talking about ice robots.

Because making more ice using solar-powered robot boats isn't like... harmful, theoretically. But it's not fixing the problem.

Example:

Imagine you have a bathtub. You want to keep the water in the bathtub cool. In the past this was easy to do because the thermostat in the house was set to a cool-warm cycle and it maintained itself just fine. Part of the bathtub was permanently frozen, and some ice froze and melted regularly throughout the year. You didn't have to do anything! Life was great.

Now imagine someone has gone down to the basement and cranked the house's heat onto high. The ice in the bathtub has started to melt, and even when the house goes through its cool cycle, not all of the ice comes back. Over and over, more and more ice is melting.

Can you run downstairs, go to the fridge, grab a cup of icecubes, run upstairs, and pour them into the tub? Yeah, sure. You could do that. Meanwhile, the average temperature in the house is getting warmer and warmer, so each trip you need to grab more ice, until you're carrying two buckets at a time. And you can keep doing that until your legs get tired and you can't possibly go on. But eventually, you're going to hit a point where you can't carry enough ice on each trip to keep the tub cool - all the ice melts in between your trips up and down the stairs. You spent all that time and all that effort on an activity that did not fix the actual problem, which is the fact that someone turned up the thermostat.

That is what "let's send ice robots to the poles!" will do. It will, temporarily, help maintain ice levels near the poles. But it will not remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. It will not stop countries from emitting more greenhouse gasses. It will not remove subsidies from the oil and gas industry worldwide. It'll probably make someone like Elon Musk a shit ton of money, and it'll make you ~feel good~.

But it won't fix the problem, which is global warming due to human-driven emissions of greenhouse gasses.

[alex51324]

Spring Cabin Trip Report!

This time I stayed at Clear Creek State Park. It's right near Cook Forest--basically attached to it, except the parts that are attached don't have roads in them, so to get from one to the other you have to go the long way around, unless you happen to be in a boat. Anyway, it's in the northwestern portion of the state; same general area as where I was for the eclipse, just not quite as far.

Here we are on the approach to the cabin:

This park has several cabins arranged along the bank of the Clarion river, and thenuphill from those there's another row of four, which are the ones that allow dogs.

Here's the front view:

I picked this cabin in part because of its very convenient situation--you have the water point right there, and then the little building in the background, if you look between the cabin and my minivan, is the latrines. It also has a lot of stonework, inside and out, and the other best feature is the outdoor fireplace:

This ended up not being as important as I would have thought, because I had the best weather I've ever had on a spring trip. The only time it rained was after midnight going into Saturday morning. So I could have used the regular fire ring every night--but it worked out; it was pretty chilly the first two nights, and it was warmer than it would have been in the open, on the porch with that wooden settle drawn up to the fire. And then on the third night I made chicken and dumplings (thanks @griseldagimpel for the suggestion!) which required me to build up a big fire and let it burn all the way down to coals, so it was handy to be able to use the fire ring for cooking and the fireplace for sitting at.

Going inside, there's two rooms, a main room and a bedroom. First thing when you go in is the table:

And that's the bedroom you can see there on the right. Keep turning to the right, and here's the kitchen area:

These are the "rustic" cabins, which have electricity and kitchen appliances, but you have to tote water from outside. Continue rotating to the right...

This cabin is particularly well-provided with storage, with the dresser next to the stove and then the hutch beyond that. Rotate a bit further, and here's the fireplace:

This park has converted the old fireplaces to gas, rather than the woodstoves that they more often have, which is less picturesque, but a great deal more practical on cold nights. I also like the little stone ledge they have sticking out on the side there. I used it for my dishes & cutlery & tea things hamper:

And over on the other side I put my dishwashing station:

And here's a bit of environmental storytelling for you:

Really makes you wonder what people were doing with the beds! This cabin has one bedroom, containing two double beds and one set of bunks--not an arrangement I've ever seen before, in a state park cabin!

The bunk beds are there on the right; we'll turn a little that way...

I'm not really sure how else you could arrange the beds, if you were to decide to defy the three separate signs telling you not to, unless maybe people were moving one of them into the other room.

Now we'll head back out:

Oh look, there's a sleepy Sophie!

I will do another post tomorrow about Activities, but before we go, let's take a quick look at the river:

This was a short hike that we did on the first day, after we arrived and flung all of our stuff out of the car. You walk upriver for a bit, and there's this interesting little...I would call it a sandbar if there was any sand involved? A narrow strip of land about a yard/meter or so from the bank:

That's the upstream end of it, which comes to a point, and then the downstream end widens out like this:

I walked up and down there for a while, trying to figure out how something like that would form, and why it would stay there. Did not come to any conclusions.

Then on the other side of the trail there's the hill/mountain, which is a whole lot of this:

If I remember correctly, this particular section is one that Sophie found nasally fascinating; I don't really know why, but my best guess is deer. That night we took a nighttime walk down to the playfield next to the shower house to look at stars--here's what that looks like in the daytime:

And startled a very large group of deer who were grazing between the playground and the river. I first saw their eyes reflected in the flashlight, and thought there were maybe four or five, but then they decided they ought to run away--uphill and upstream, and away from the cabins and campground. They went more-or-less single file, passing through the beam of my flashlight, for what seemed like a very long time. I lost count of how many there were, and the sound of all of them bounding away through the leaves was like a much bigger and more active river than the one that was actually there.

Anyway, there aren't any pictures of that because it was dark, but this is approximately where it happened. I think that's why I took this picture, anyway.

[killacharacterbingo]

Prompt Master List

(Updated as prompts are added)

If any prompts don't make sense check this post: A prompt explained

Switching Places

Near-Death Experience

Drowning

Dumb Ways To Die

Blood Loss

Suicide

Your Worst Fear

Sacrifice

Sickness

Lightning

Fire

Hard Choices

Dead On Their Feet

Hero/Villain Swap

Torture

Crossover

Covid

Tomorrow Isn't Promised

Car Accident

Falling

Presumed Dead

Storm-Chasing

Canon Compliant

Never Meet Your Heroes

Stalker

Dictionary Death

Friendly Fire

13th Reasons Why

Musical Death

Survivor's Guilt

Conversation With Death

Collateral Damage

Test Subject

Pulling The Plug

Yandere

Betrayal

One Punch Can Kill

Medical Malpractice

The Blip

Cast It Into The Fire

"I Have The High Ground"

Deactivated

Once Bitten Twice Shy

Bleeding Blue

To Be Or Not To Be

Stabbing

Car Crash

Mugging Gone Wrong

Into The Woods

Death Of The Soul

Dormammu, I’ve Come To Bargain

The Cake Is A Lie

Even Heroes Die

With Great Power 

Sacrificed To The Gods

“Sometimes Death Is Better”

"I Finally Have Something To Leave Behind"

Natural Disaster

Mistaken Identity

Bucketlist 

Ten Years Later

Not So Secret Monologues

180 - The Character Doesn't Die

Final Destination

Raped To Death

Chronic Illness

Outed As A Spy

Bulletproof Vest

Sung To Sleep Forever 

A Soft Epilogue 

Wait For Me In Valhalla 

“I Was Saving My ten” - pain scale

“There’s A Boat Jack” 

Married Life Montage 

“You Have Your Mother’s Eyes” 

Russian Roulette

Guinea Pig

Defenestration

Karma’s A Bitch

Toxic Gas

Murder-Suicide

Famous last words

"Hey, i think we're going to be okay after all!"

"I'll always come back!"

In another's arms

Accident

Revenge

"You can rest now..."

A long time ago

Falls through the Ice

Asthma attack

Shock

Hypothermia

Pushed to the Limit

Commotio Cordis

Death row

Breaking the 4th wall

Wikihow to Die

Time loop

“If I can’t have you…”

Cardiovascular collapse

Allergic reaction

Erased from existence

Dead all along

Dying alone

Gunshot

Blood from the mouth

Patient zero

Old age

Overdose

Fatal Weakness

Assassinated

Infection

Suffocation

One moment stretched into a thousand

Origin story gone wrong

Area 51 raid

Trapped in a tiny space

Poison

Hanahaki / Hanakanjo / Hanauso

Tenshibyou

Kousekibyou

Shinshoubyou

Bouaishoukougun

Hoshinamidabyou

Death by ordinary illness

Hit and run

Starvation

Stroke

War

Cancer

Mercy Killing

Plane crash

Brain death

Fireworks

Death by seduction

Death bed confession

Organ Transplant

Their Legacy Is continued

Bound By Fate

Running out of time

Can’t breathe

Apocalypse

Shot down

Sepsis

Saving Throws – DnD

CPR

Self-harm

Smoke inhalation

Death by coconut

“Help me!”

Climbing accident

Blood-stained tiles

“You weren’t meant to be there”

“I love you”

“No… not like this”

Dug their own grave

Undead

Bees

The AO3 Curse

Deathly kiss

Going through hell

Meeting at the gates

Return from Hiatus

"watch out for the flying blades!"

5+1

Roofie

Left for dead

Strapped to a bomb

Hunger games

Zombification

Order 66

Aneurism

Executed

Lobotomy

Murder on the dance floor

Come to terms with death

“It’s okay”

Keeps dying

Letting go

Coma

Appendicitis

Neuromuscular blockade

Unfriendly pet

Explosion

Aftershock

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy

Faking their own death

Post traumatic amnesia

Schrödinger's paradox

Arbitrary hilarious death

Lack of Oxygen

High altitude

Diving deep

180 - the character becomes the killer

Angel of death

"You're going down with me!”

Never got to say goodbye

Graphic gore

Haunted

Calamity

The end of the world

Immortalized

Uploaded to the server

Reincarnated

Deleted

Sheep in wolves' clothing

Electrocuted

Adrenaline crash

911

Alternate universe ending

Radioactive

Acting on instinct

Collapses

“I miss you…”

Those left behind

Wind phone

Life support

Time Paradox

Temporary character death

[pikahlua]

MHA Chapter 375 spoilers translations

This week’s initial tentative super rough/literal translations under the cut.

1 奥渡島　「麗日・蛙吹 VS トガ」 オクトじま　「うららか・あすいバーサストガ」 OKUTO jima 「Uraraka・Asui BAASASU TOGA」 Octo Island - Uraraka & Asui vs Toga

tagline 1 美しき南の島でーー‼︎ うつくしきみなみのしまでーー‼︎ utsukushiki minami no shima de---!! On the beautiful southern island---!!

tagline 2 No.375 滅茶苦茶　　堀越耕平 ナンバー375 メチャクチャ　　ほりこしこうへい NANBAA 375 MECHAKUCHA   Horikoshi Kouhei No. 375 A Mess   Kouhei Horikoshi

2 フロッピ‼︎ FUROPPI!! “Froppy!!”

1 姿を晦ます技術はミスディレクションの類！恐らくとても複雑で微細な… すがたをくらますぎじゅつはミスディレクションのたぐい！おそらくとてもふくざつでびさいな… sugata wo kuramasu gijutsu wa MISUDIREKUSHON no tagui! osoraku totemo fukuzatsu de bisai na... The technique to hide her appearance is a type of misdirection! Perhaps it’s very complex and subtle...

2 それ故に一度で掛けられる人数には限りがある筈 それゆえにいちどでかけられるにんずうにはかぎりがあるはず sore yue ni ichido de kakerareru ninzuu ni wa kagiri ga aru hazu Therefore, there’s a limit to the number of people she can hide from at once.

3 感知系統のヒーローと常に４人以上でマークし続けてフォローし合う かんちけいとうのヒーローとつねに４にんいじょうでマークしつづけてフォローしあう kanchi keitou no HIIROO to tsune ni 4nin ijou de MAAKU shi tsudzukete FOROO shi au With 4 or more heroes with sensory systems, keep marking and following her together.

4 止まってトガヒミコ！ とまってトガヒミコ！ tomatte TOGA HIMIKO! “Stop, Himiko Toga!”

5 こいつ…！「超再生」が入っていない‼︎ こいつ…！「ちょうさいせい」がはいっていない‼︎ koitsu...! 「chousaisei」 ga haitte inai!! “This guy...! He doesn’t have Super Regeneration!”

1 敵の数も減ってきた‼︎ニアハイエンドを抑えれば行ける‼︎ ヴィランのかずもへってきた‼︎ニアハイエンドをおさえればいける‼︎ VIRAN no kazu mo hette kita!! NIA HAI ENDO wo osaereba ikeru!! "The villains' numbers are decreasing too! If we can suppress the Near-High Ends, we can go!"

2 この島でこいつらを制圧することが俺たちの使命だ‼︎ このしまでこいつらをせいあつすることがおれたちのしめいだ‼︎ kono shima de koitsura wo seiatsu suru koto ga ore-tachi no shimei da!! "To suppress these guys on this island is our mission!!"

1 こっちの数が減る程 こっちのかずがへるほど kocchi no kazu ga heru hodo As our numbers decrease,

2 逃げられなくなってってる捉えられ始めてる にげられなくなってってるとらえられはじめてる nigerarenaku nattetteru toraerare hajimeteru I'm starting to become not able to escape and will get caught.

3 仁くんの血液量だと30〜40分の変身が限度… じんくんのけつえきりょうだと30〜40ぶんのへんしんがげんど… Jin-kun no ketsuekiryou to 30~40bun no henshin ga gendo... With this volume of Jin-kun's blood, my transformation will be limited to 30-40 minutes.

4 今飲んで数的有位をくつがえせても"哀れな行進"はこの離島で終わる いまのんですうてきゆういをくつがえせても"サッドマンズパレード"はこのりとうでおわる ima nonde suuteki yuui wo kutsugaesetemo “SADDO MANZU PAREEDO” wa kono ritou de owaru Even if I drink this now to overturn the numbers advantage, the Sad Man's Parade will end on this remote island.

5 これまでトガヒミコの行動原理に これまでトガヒミコのこうどうげんりに kore made TOGA HIMIKO no koudou genri ni Until now, due to Himiko Toga's acting principles,

6 大局的な戦術思考が用いられることはほぼなかった たいきょくてきなせんじゅつしこうがもちいられることはほぼなかった taikyokuteki na senjutsu shikou ga mochiirareru koto wa hobonaktta she almost never employed big-picture tactical thinking.

7 そもそもココで逆転しても そもそもココでぎゃくてんしても somosomo KOKO de gyakuten shitemo In the first place, even if I reverse [the situation] here,

8 戻りの船をわざわざ島に着かせてるとは考えにくい… こっちのワンチャンをわざわざしまにつかせてるとはかんがえにくい… kocchi no WANCHAN (read as: modori no fune) wo wazawaza shima ni tsukaseteru to wa kangae nikui... it's hard to imagine they'll go out of their way to let me bring our one chance (read as: return boat) to the island...

9 分断と隔離…ヒーローはもう"仁くん"のこと知ってる？ ぶんだんとかくり…ヒーローはもう"じんくん"のことしってる？ bundan to kakuri...HIIROO wa mou “Jin-kun” no koto shitteru? Separation and isolation... Do the heroes already know about Jin-kun?

10 どの道このままじゃ何もできないで終わる どのみちこのままじゃなにもできないでおわる dono michi kono mama ja nani mo dekinaide owaru Either way, at this rate it'll end with me not being able to do anything.

1 しかし shikashi However,

2 なら…！ nara...! Then...!

3 敵意と てきいと tekii to animosity and

4 諦念が ていねんが teinen ga resignation

5 スピナーくんに懸ける！私は私の為すべき事を！ スピナーくんにかける！わたしはわたしのなすべきことを！ SUPINAA-kun ni kakeru! watashi wa watashi no nasu beki koto wo! I'll bet it all on Spinner-kun! [I'll bet] what I should do [on him]!

6 トガを"敵"として完成させていた トガを"ヴィラン"としてかんせいさせていた TOGA wo “VIRAN” to shite kansei sasete ita have completed Toga as a villain.

1 来た！ きた！ kita! Here it comes!

2 血のストック！ ちのストック！ chi no SUTOKKU! Her stock of blood!

3 AFO⁉︎死柄木⁉︎誰の血だろうと オール・フォー・ワン⁉︎しがらき⁉︎だれのちだろうと OORU FOO WAN!? Shigaraki!? dare no chi darou to All For One!? Shigaraki!? No matter whose blood it is,

4-5 それをさせない為の‼︎ それをさせないための‼︎ sore wo sasenai tame no!! I won’t let you do that!!

6 梅雨ちゃんは冷静… つゆちゃんはれいせい… Tsuyu-chan wa reisei... "Tsuyu-chan's level-headedness..."

small text そこね soko ne “That there”

7 だからそれはフェイク dakara sore wa FEIKU "That's why that is a fake."

8 AFOさんがくれた"脳無を引きつけるお薬"です オール・フォー・ワンさんがくれた"のうむをひきつけるおくすり"です OORU FOO WAN-san ga kureta “noumu wo hikitsukeru okusuri” desu "It's a medicine that attracts noumu that All For One-san gave me."

1 そしてまだ油断はしない そしてまだゆだんはしない soshite mada yudan wa shinai And then, I still won't let down my guard.

2 フロッピー‼︎ FUROPPII!! "Froppy!!"

3 確実に仁くんの行進を遂げる為に かくじつにじんくんのこうしんをとげるために kakujitsu ni Jin-kun no koushin wo togeru tame ni In order to surely achieve Jin-kun's march,

4 刹那の二択‼︎ せつなのにたく‼︎ setsuna no nitaku!! for a moment there are two choices!!

5 ちう chiu (Note: This is a verbalized sound effect Tsuyu makes when she sticks out her tongue.)

6 そして soshite And then,

1 敵意は奇跡を起こす てきいはきせきをおこす tekii wa kiseki wo okosu [her] animosity will cause a miracle

1 シガ…ラキタチヲ救ケル… SHIGA...RAKI-TACHI WO tasuKERU... “I will save Shiga...raki and the others...”

2 トガヒミコ… TOGA HIMIKO... “Himiko Toga...”

3 アナタハドウシタイ？ ANATA WA DOU SHITAI? “What do you want to do?”

4 …ホークスはじめ……全てのヒーローをせん滅 …ホークスはじめ……すべてのヒーローをせんめつ ...HOOKUSU hajime......subete no HIIROO wo senmetsu “...starting with Hawks......annihilate all the heroes”

5 私を拡散して黒霧さん わたしをかくさんしてくろぎりさん watashi wo kakusan shite Kurogiri-san “Scatter me [around], Kurogiri-san”

1 待てええまだーー！ まてええまだーー！ mateee mada---! “Waaaiiit, not yet---!”

2 私まだあなたと わたしまだあなたと watashi mada anata to “I haven’t yet

3 恋バナしてない！ こいバナしてない！ koiBANA shitenai! “talked about [my] crush with you!” (Note: This is the same word Toga used back at the summer training camp when she said it was fun to talk with Ochako about their loves/crushes.)

4 お茶子ちゃん…‼︎ おちゃこちゃん…‼︎ Ochako-chan...!! “Ochako-chan...!!”

1-2 できたらよかったね dekitara yokatta ne Literal: “If we could, that’d have been good.” Contextual: “I wish that we could.”

3 群訝山荘跡 ぐんがさんそうあと Gunga sansou ato Gunga Mountain Villa Ruins

4 トガだ！分倍河原の血！ストック⁉︎解放軍潜入時にその類は徹底して洗い潰した！戦闘後の痕跡も全部ーーー…！ トガだ！ぶばいがわらのち！ストック⁉︎かいほうぐんせんにゅうじにそのたぐいはてっていしてあらいつぶした！せんとうごのこんせきもぜんぶーーー…！ TOGA da! Bubaigawara no chi! SUTOKKU!? kaihou-gun sennyuu ji ni sono tagui wa tettei shite arai tsubushita! sentougo no konseki mo zenbu---...! It’s Toga! Bubaigawara’s blood! [She had that in her] stock!? When I infiltrated the Liberation Army, I thoroughly washed away anything like that! Even all the traces from after the battle---...!

5 ……！荼毘か⁉︎ ……！だびか⁉︎ ......! Dabi ka!? ......! Dabi!?

6 もう遅い もうおそい mou osoi “It’s too late”

1 無限増殖 むげんぞうしょく mugen zoushoku Infinite Doubles

2 哀れな行進 サッドマンズパレイード SADDO MANZU PAREEDO Sad Man’s Parade

3 こんなたたみかけられる事あるノコ…？ こんなたたみかけられることあるノコ…？ konna tatami kakerareru koto aru NOKO...? “Has anyone ever piled up like this before, MUSHROOM...?” (Note: Not fully confident on how to translate this one.)

1 また見失ってたまるかァ‼︎ またみうしなってたまるかァ‼︎ mata miushinatte tamaru kaA!! “As if I’d lose sight of you again!!”

1 あなたがしまっておいた気持ち… あなたがしまっておいたきもち… anata ga shimatte oita kimochi... The feelings you put away...

2 お茶子ちゃんあなたは… おちゃこちゃんあなたは… Ochako-chan anata wa... Ochako-chan, you...

tagline 最悪が止まらない‼︎ さいあくがとまらない‼︎ saiaku ga tomaranai!! The worst [mess] won’t stop!!

[fandom-addict404]

Anxiety’s One Hell of a Problem II

It’s the fourth and everyone’s there. Julia, Adam, Jeremiah, Conrad, Laurel, who also brought Cleveland, Belly, Steven, and even a couple of Belly’s deb friends were in town.

The party is bustling with some in the pool, conversation taking place all over the property, and their catered food—since Susannah always did all of the cooking—being shared amongst the people.

Everyone knows it’s different. They all can feel it in the air, the tension, the awkwardness. But Conrad wasn’t only feeling the tension in the air but in himself. He keeps thinking back to Steven saying, ‘have you ever thought of therapy?’ That singular comment has been taking up his mind for days and he can’t seem to shake it.

“Hey, Conrad! What’s up, man?” Cleveland greets, handing Conrad a plate of crackers and various cheeses.

“Oh, hey, Cleveland! How are you? How’s that…uh…book coming?”

“It’s good! You know, those sailing lessons or yours are really coming in handy. Very informative.”

“I uh…I didn’t know you’d be in town.”

“Laurel actually invited me and I thought I’d stop by and say ‘hello’ and see how it’s going.” Cleveland says. Conrad sees that Cleveland has started growing his beard back, with the little stubbles of gray hairs coming in along his mustache and chin area.

“Oh! Laurel, huh.”

Cleveland lets out a nervous yet amused laugh. “Yes, Laurel. I don’t know yet but—“

“Well, you didn’t hear it from me but I’m really rooting for you guys.”

“Are you now?”

“Yeah! Laurel likes you and you clearly like her too.”

“Clearly?”

“Yeah! You’re all goo-goo-ga-ga over her.”

“Says you! I’ve been seeing you stealing glances at Belly all day—“

Conrad’s heart stops for a moment as he clenches his hands onto the platter. “It’s not like that. She’s with Jeremiah.”

Cleveland clears his throat uncomfortably, a pang of guilt hitting his stomach. “Hey, I’m sorry, man. I didn’t know.”

“No, no it’s okay. I’m just going to—“ Conrad sputters looking in the opposite direction towards some people near the pool.

“Hey, Conrad?”

“Yeah?”

“If you ever need to talk, you can always call me. You know that, right?”

“Yeah, I know that. Thanks, Cleveland.”

“You know, when I was dealing with really bad depression, talking to someone—just being able to vocalize that… pain—was really helpful. Losing someone is really hard and—“

“Yeah, I know, Cleveland. Thanks.” Conrad says, cutting Cleveland off. He couldn’t take hearing one more person trying to be his personal psychologist and overanalyze him. Sure Cleveland helped him through his first panic attack during that hot summer day on the boat—one of his weakest moments in Conrad’s opinion—but he wasn’t about to make this all about him. He knew he meant well but he wasn’t about to abandon Jeremiah and Belly when they needed him. Not now and not ever.

Conrad nods and nervously walks off. He takes a breath, rubbing his chest with the heel of his palm and heads for inside where he sees Steven talking with Taylor. Steven is slyly smiling with her as she throws her head back laughing.

Conrad was planning on just walking past them, as they seem to be preoccupied but then Steven spots him and waves him over.

“Hey, man! Sup?” Steven greets, handing him a glass of some beverage, noticing Conrad’s hand rubbing his chest. He hands him his cup of water. “Thirsty?”

Conrad takes it, noticing that his throat has suddenly gone dry.

“Yeah. Thanks, man.” He takes a sip, letting the water cascade down his throat. “How are you? Getting ready for college?”

“Yeah! I’ve been shopping and visited the campus a couple of days ago with my dad. You ready for Stanford?”

“Yeah, yeah. Gonna drive over a couple of weeks.”

“Babe, I’m gonna go find Belly but I’ll see you later, ‘kay?” Steven nods giving Taylor a quick peck before she walks off.

“So, uh…how are you doing, man?”

“I’m good—“

“No. How are you really doing? Like, for real, man.” Steven asks. “You seem…nervous, worried.”

Conrad forces the muscles around his mouth into a carefree expression, though his eyes telling a very different story.

“It’s okay— to feel on edge. The fourth has always been Susannah’s thing and I—“

Conrad leans in swiftly, his muscles in his jaw tensing. “Can you stop? Please. I really can’t do this right now.”

“Conrad—“

“I have been having essentially a 2 hour long anxiety attack, trying to get through this day, okay?! I really can’t take this right now.” He lets out a shaky half-of-a-breath, breaking eye contact with Steven.

“Exactly. Which is why you should at least consider therapy! This isn’t healthy. This suppression, constant anxiety. It’s okay to ask for help, Connie.”

Conrad froze.

Connie.

His mom used to call him that. And at that exact moment, he felt his breath stop. The tremors in his hands become visible, his vision blurring.

Though his mind is in a fog, he feels his feet carry him. To where? He has no idea. Just out of there, away from that conversation.

He ran up the stairs. He felt himself bump into people as he stumble into his bedroom, slamming the door behind him. He leans his body weight against the wall, muttering to himself, “It’s okay, it’s okay. Just breathe.” He attempts at a deep breath though it fails, only making him weaker. “Dammit. C’mon, c’mon. It’s okay. It’s just a-a. A—“ He begins pacing in his room. As his hands begin curling up he spreads his hands as wide as he can, to prevent cramping later. God, you can’t even say what it is! If, you can’t say what it is how are you supposed to stop them?! They’re never gonna end. They’ll just get worse and worse and worse and worse. And Jeremiah will find out and you’ll know how weak you really are. You aren’t any role model. You’re a weak, weak, coward who can’t even breathe—

Conrad’s spiraling was cut off by the sound of someone’s voice. At first, he doesn’t hear, however when they touch his shoulder he feels himself practically jump out of his own skin.

“Conrad? What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”

“T-Taylor?” He sputters, his voice shaking like crazy.

“How about we sit down, yeah?” She gently guides him to the bed behind him. “What’s going on? Do you know what’s happening?”

“I’m having a p-p-panic attack-k.” He stutters over the word and Taylor smiles and nods sympathetically.

“May I?” She asks, hovering her hand over his chest.

Conrad nods and she places her hand over his heart.

“Just try to take some deep breaths, okay?” Conrad nods, following Taylor’s exaggerated breathing. “See? Your heart rate is already slowing down.”

“Yeah.” Conrad replies, his throat scratchy and shaky.

“So have you had that happen before?”

“Um…yeah. A lot, actually. I really should’ve seen that coming.”

“How long?”

“Since last summer.” Conrad pauses to look at Taylor. Her usual snarky smile has been replaced with a calm and sympathetic expression. “I only had one last summer but when I got to school, they got worse, and the longer I was away from home, the more frequent and severe they got.”

“Conrad, I had no idea.”

“How would you? I didn’t want anyone to know.”

“Am I the only one?”

“No. Steven knows, helped me through one earlier this summer and…Belly is aware of one but she doesn’t know…”

“How often they are.”

“Yeah.”

“You gonna come back down or?”

“I think i’m just gonna stay up here for a bit.”

“Yeah, of course.”

“Oh, and if you ever need to talk to someone or feel your anxiety get worse, you can always talk to me but I would highly recommend talking to a professional.”

“Like a therapist?”

“Yeah. It really helped me through my parents’ divorce. Working out all my shit and stuff.”

“I‘ll think about it.” Conrad says. “And Taylor?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for helping me. I know you’re not my biggest fan so it means a lot. Truly.”

“No sweat off my back. Plus, this kind of helps.”

“How?”

“Well, now I know you’re not just some random dick, you’ve got shit.”

Conrad chuckles, almost smiling. “Yeah. I’ve got shit for sure.”

Taylor leaves, closing the door behind her, leaving Conrad in his bedroom.

After a moment or so, Conrad looks up “therapists near me” in the google search bar and starts looking through the results.

He then changes his search to “therapists near Stanford University.” and finds a therapist that’s not only near the university but works through the school so he gets it free of charge. Part of the school’s mission and such.

Though there’s still a slight pull on his chest. A new feeling starts to form. Hope. Hope for a happier future, lighter heart, and hope for freedom from all the shit that’s happened to him in the past year and a half.

Could Conrad be…happy? free?

There’s only one way to find out.

[bubblygiggles]

A best friend thing (CAROLXDARYL TICKLE FIC) Season 10 SPOILERS WARNING

as per requested, i hope you enjoy <;3 @rwateringcan03

The revving of the motorcycle’s engine roared through the forest. Upon Carol’s request, Daryl and she were on their way to a spot where they could hunt. She rested her head on his back, wrapping her arms around his waist, trying to engrave this moment into her traumatized memory. Being away from him for so long felt strange, lonely almost, even though that’s what she intended to find comfort in when she sailed across the sea on her small boat. Their friendship, his presence, and dog made her feel safe. Lost in her thoughts, she played with the folds of his shirt, hugging him from behind. She would have never thought the redneck squirrel eater that she shared a camp with would become her closest friend. What would he have done to her ex-husband if he was still alive now? Would they have been friends had he lived? she felt Daryl move her hand away from his stomach. 

“Don’t tickle me when I’m driving woman” he barked over his shoulder.

“Sorry” 

She forgot that he was ticklish there. One of her favourite things was to tease Daryl and make him crack a smile. He’s always so grumpy and serious, especially since losing Rick. She didn’t blame him, they lost so many people along the way, it would drain anyone from their last drop of joy. 

They finally arrived to a spot near a river, where they hunted for little critters and fish. Carol spotted a deer which she hit with an arrow, but it escaped into the territory of the Whisperers. Daryl had to stop her before she crossed the invisible line. She had so much vengeful hate for that horrible woman, calling herself Alpha like she’s someone important. Daryl had to bring her back to reality, away from the enemies’s ground. 

They sat down on a fallen tree, surrounded by shy bird songs and the echo of the forrest. 

“Let’s runaway together.” Carol broke the silence.

“On your boat?”

“Yes, you and me.”

“And dog?”

“And dog.”

“The sea ain’t my thing… You could come home instead?” He glanced at her reaction, which saddened at the thought of going back to the place where she lost her son. She shook her head as to shake out the bad thoughts from her head. 

“Fine, let’s take your bike instead. Drive into the unknown!” 

“We ain’t got enough gas for that. We’ll just end up stranded somewhere.”

She rolled her eyes. “Since when did you become such a party pooper?”

“Since I haven’t seen my best friend for too long.” 

They looked at each other, exchanging a slight smile. 

“Are we going to have matching bracelets?” She teased.

“Shut up.” He playfully pushed her, chuckling.

“We can make a matching one for Dog too.”

“Yeah, we could.” 

The silence returned, making itself comfortable between them. She felt the distance that she created in their connection by leaving him for so long. He has been alone, and so has she, it’s almost as if they forgot how to be around each other. She didn’t like that, not at all. 

“Why are you so quiet?” She kicked her legs slightly, saying it while she looked at the ground.

“What do you want me to say?” 

“I don’t know..”

“Yeah, my point exactly.”

“Well, you can sing or something..” a smile formed on her face from the thought of him singing 

He looked at her with the most dreadful look possible. It’s the silliest thing he heard her say in a long time. 

“Or laugh at least!” She poked his stomach, making him crunch up in defence. 

She kept on poking with one hand until she slipped in her other, now clawing at his sensitive belly. The sensation was too overwhelming for him to handle, forcing him to bring his knees to his chest, hoping to block her evil fingers. But all that did was make him lose his balance and fall backwards onto the ground, legs hanging over the fallen tree. She laughed out loud in surprise. Oh how she missed their tickle fights.

Dog got up and delivered an abundance of wet kisses onto Daryl’s face, giving Carol the perfect opportunity to attack. She lunged at him, clawing gently at his exposed stomach, his shirt rid up a little from the fall. 

“NAHAHA CAHAHAROHOL STOHOHOP!” He desperately tried getting a grip of her hands, but she was too quick for him to catch them. He wiggled around like a worm on a hook, throwing her off and getting up as fast as he could. 

“Oh no we aren’t done here” she got up too, a playful grin on her face.

“Carol…” he backed away slowly, as she followed his steps.

“Do you remember how I used to wreck you back at the prison?”

“It’s not fair… You’re not ticklish.”

“Well, sucks for you.” 

At that, he made a run for it, using the trees to pivot faster and try to throw her off his trail. But she was in a playful mood, there was no winning for him and he knew that. She chased him around a little more until he slipped on muddy leaves, landing right on his back. Next thing he knew, her weight pinned his torso down and he felt his shirt being pulled up.

“AAAAH HAHAHA”  his husky scream was followed by a hoarse laughter.

She blew a raspberry right on his belly button, making him kick his feet in the air. God he hated when she did that. 

“Another one?” She teased.

“NononoOnoOnono PLEASE just gentle tiCKLes” his voice jumped with every tickle he felt.

“Okay Pooki” She resumed her attack, lightly scratching his stomach underneath his shirt. He bucked, he rolled from side to side, he squeaked and yelped and kicked, but he never stopped her. Seems like he missed their tickle fights too.

His raspy laughter soon went silent, laying on the cold ground as waves of tickles tormented his body. He couldn’t even open his eyes he was laughing so much. Carol eased up on him, pushing his sweaty bangs covering his eyes. He wrapped his arms around his stomach, exhausted laughter gradually stopping. She lay down beside him, resting her face against his arm. 

“I missed you.” She gently said.

“I missed you too.” 

[thenewgothictwice]

Refugee By Remi Kanazi

I.

she has never

seen the sea

sunlight imprinted

on her father's skin

waves crashing

at his feet

smile tattooed

underneath boyish grin

snapping pictures

with closing eyelids

her father's face

flush on recollection

the same waves that had

clenched like an angry jaw

at his mother pushed him

forward like a train car

watched his neighbor drown

tears streaming

eyes connecting

screams muffled

as inhalation

suffocated lungs

muscles weary

skin pruning

barely a boy

knowing he would

never return

his neighbor

an older man

born in Akka

looked dapper

at dinner parties

looked helpless that day

his body revolting

against death

a pool intent

on swallowing him

so many stroking

to get on boats departing

who'd have known this gulf

would be their deathbed

II.

she has been beaten

ID checked

body thrown to the ground

fists and feet pummeled

fractured hip, shoulder broken

heart, too many times

tear gas inscribed on her lungs

she wrote back on her breath

that the canister's defeat is near

III.

these fields are ours

she told me

before the Europeans

and Brooklynites

before the swimming pools

army jeeps and barbed wire

before the talks, roadmaps

and Swiss cheese plans

before declarations rewrote history

those hills met footprints

and that can't be erased

like village massacres

can't be erased

like broken bones policies

can't be erased

like the screams ringing

in her father's ears

can't be erased

we are the boat

returning to dock

we are the footprints

on the northern trail

we are the iron

coloring the soil

we cannot

be erased

[saint--claire]

Invitation to the Deep  - Term Glossary

Hi Everybody!

I was blown away by people’s interest with Invitation to the Deep, and to continue sharing the love (and because I’m a nerd) I wanted to continue the glossary in a more readable form.  The term definition overviews were really blowing out some of the end notes, so I decided to shuffle everything here, where I can make a nice tidy list.  It’s in alphabetical order per chapter, because to do it any other way would have annoyed me.

As I say in the story, please, please take everything you read with a grain of salt.  The story is fictional, some of the scenarios I put everyone in are blown well outside the bounds of plausibility.  I don’t specialize in diving, much less tec diving, and my marine license has been expired for a good few years.  Someone who has a metric ton of dive experience is J_Bailler, who wrote the outstanding ‘Thermocline’ in 2020, and whose technical experience inspired me to get my hands dirty with this fic.

I won’t continually reblog this post, but I will edit and update it each time I update the story itself, which will contain a link to this. 

**I am apparently now editing this post with the final additions of the story, only to acknowledge that many of us have now had a crash course in imploding submersibles.  I only have two main comments on this - the first being that I originally began writing and later publishing this story early this year, and the second is that the entirety of this story occurs less than a kilometer below sea level.

Chapter 1

FIFO - fly-in-fly-out.  Usually applicable for people working mines, oil rigs, or certain other trade jobs where the site you work on is highly remote.  You might work a 4-on-2-off schedule, which is where you’d fly out and work on site, staying in provided accommodation for 4 weeks, and then you’d fly home for 2 weeks before rinse and repeating.

LKP - last known position.  Think vessels (or submarine pods) lost at sea, or who’ve sent up distress signals before become non-contactable.

Lucet Tenebris - an entirely fictional underwater cave labyrinth set somewhere off the Indian ocean, near Indonesia.

Ring of Fire - Too long to explain in a post.   A very real and not made up geographical feature of the globe.  https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/ring-fire/

VHF - very high frequency (radios used at sea).

Yamaha - in this setting, a boat engine.  Noisy.

Chapter 2

Neoprene - The material wetsuits are made out of, to help people keep insulated and stay warm under water.  

Chapter 3

Fenders - big squishy things you put between ships to stop them damaging each other if they bump together.  Also used to stop boats banging into the wood/metal of marinas.

Chapter 4

Blood bent - a version of a slang term used to refer to decompression sickness (DCS) where pressure changes alter and form bubbles of the gases naturally inside human blood vessels.  DCS can often cause air bubbles to settle in and around major key joints and cause people to bend over in excruciating pain, which is how it got its name, the bends.

Embolism - In diving contexts, a gas embolism or an AGE would usually refer to a bubble of air in the blood.  This is really, really bad - it has the potential to shut off blood supply to major organs including the heart, brain, or lungs.  There’s no short or simple way to explain how they form, put if you look into barotrauma embolisms it’s a fascinating matter.

Equalising ears - Underwater at changing atmospheric pressure, water pressure bends the eardrum inwards.  You equalise this change by a variety of techniques, the same way you might in an aeroplane.  If you keep going deeper and don’t equalise your ears, you run the risk of damaging them or blowing them out completely.  Hurts like a bitch.

External airway - a measure of first aid and emergency resuscitation - if there is risk to an individual’s own airway collapsing or not being able to be maintained in the middle of an emergency scenario, intubation or an external airway implementation will be performed at speed.  An intubation tube is semi-rigid -the aim is that when you’re connected to oxygen, we want full confirmation that the air is traveling down the trachea and into the lungs, not stopping in its tracks because the airway’s collapsed.

Hyperbaric chamber - would suggest searching for a picture.  In a hyperbaric chamber, air pressure is increased higher than normal air pressure so a person’s lungs can pull in more oxygen than they would under normal circumstances.

Chapter 5

Klick - kilometre.

Neoprene ratings - Wetsuits come in varying thickness.  You might see them referred to as a 3:2 or a 5:3 or a 7:5 - this would indicate the material is 7mm thick over the chest and torso, 5mm thick on the arms and legs.  The thicker the material, the warmer you'll be.  The deeper you go, the thicker you'll want it!

Chapter 6

Buoyancy vest - also known as a BCD. It allows you to control your buoyancy in the water, allowing you to easily float on the surface without sinking under all the weight of your gear, and maintain neutral buoyancy while submerged (so you don’t sink further than the depth you are aiming to go to).

Dive computer -  a meter or device used by divers that measure elapsed time and depth during a dive, and use this data to calculate and display an ascent profile which will aim to prevent DCS.  Most will also monitor real-time ambient pressure input, some allow for gas switching during the dive, other features include water temp and compass info.

Gas blending - To dive at the depths of this fictional reef, you can’t just use straight oxygen or atmospheric air.  Gas blending mixes very specific concentrations of a variety of gases to create a breathable component.  It’s very specialised work and you have to undergo highly specialised training to do it.

Tec diving - I’m going to borrow J_Bailler’s explanation and hope she does not mind, which explains it far more concisely than I can.  The key differences between regular recreational scuba diving and tec diving:– scuba divers use air or air mixed with oxygen and generally stay at depths shallower than 40 metres.  Tec divers use various mixed gases to be able to go deeper and to stay there longer.  To breathe pure oxygen at deep depths can kill you.  Technical diving also includes cave diving almost as a default term, because you need advanced training to dive in an enclosed environment that has a ceiling.  In a normal dive, if something goes balls to the wall wrong, at least you can come up, whether you bend your blood or not.  In cave diving...

Trimix - Put simply, trimix is a blended composition of oxygen, helium, and nitrogen, used on deep descents.

Safety stops - planned stops as you reascend from the deep to decompress and allow your blood the chance to off-gas the excess nitrogen forming, and hopefully prevent decompression sickness.

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Cleat - The metal, wooden, or plastic part that protrudes from a jetty that you tie off a boat to.

S&S34 - A fibreglass monohull sailboat, primarily designed for cruising and racing.  For those of you who are interested or know the name, this is the yacht Jessica Watson sailed around the world in, at age 16.  

Hope everyone enjoys reading!  Let me know if there are other terms you’d like to see laid out.

[kristannafever]

A Sky Full of Sun - 6

Kristanna Modern au Rated: M WC: 2054

Chapter Index

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

After the sun set and they finished their cocktails, the four friends all walked into the town for dinner and ate at the Italian place Anna had told them about earlier, then went back to the condo for the rest of the evening.

Liz proposed going down for a night swim before the pools closed, but Kristoff wasn’t in the mood.  He politely declined even though Anna was going, and was actually looking forward to having the place to himself for a bit to gather his thoughts, when Sven announced he’d skip it as well.

As soon as the ladies left, Kristoff took off down the hall to his room with his drink before Sven could say anything.  His friend was right on his heels and followed Kristoff into his room despite trying to shut the door in Sven’s face.  He trudged past Kristoff and examined the space.  

“Dude, I have a half a mind to kick you out of here.  This vacation was all my idea!  Not to mention we’re paying for a room and that empty one too because we couldn’t find anyone else.  Double the cost of what you paid should buy me an ocean view.”

“I told you not to eat that gas-station sushi.  You would have had first pick if you got down here with us.”

“Dude, just switch with us.”

“After what you pulled tonight? Fuck you.”  Kristoff pulled the glass door open and went to the chairs on the deck to finish his beer.  

Sven followed him and sat in the other lounge chair.  “Ah, come on! That was just a bit of fun.”

“Your fun is always at my expense, you know that?” Sven had kept up on his bullshit over dinner, making Kristoff edgy and nervous.  

Sven seemed to mull it over and appeared unbothered by it.  “So… you and Anna have been occupying yourselves huh?” He smirked.

Kristoff shot his friend a look, which of course, was ignored.  

“You two certainly do seem cozy,” he muttered as he pulled his beer bottle up to his mouth and took a sip.

“We’ve become friends,” Kristoff offered, not really knowing what else to say.  He felt protective of his feelings all of the sudden.

Sven hummed amusedly. “That’s… nice.”

“Okay, enough!  Knock it off.”

“I’m not doing anything.” He threw his hands up, feigning innocence.  

“Seriously, just drop it, okay?” Kristoff’s shoulders sagged.  He was too tired to get into this with Sven right now.

The reason Sven was his best friend then became apparent, should he ever forget with the near constant teasing he endured when Sven was having a good time.

“So, you like her, huh?” he said gently.

Kristoff stared out at the black ocean, then nodded.  

Sven was quiet a moment. “Well, that makes me feel a little less shitty about missing the flight on Saturday.”

He sighed.  “Doesn’t mean anything if she doesn’t like me back.”

Sven snorted. “Oh, she likes you back.  The way she looked at you all night was nearly criminal.”

Kristoff felt himself blushing. “What do you mean?”

“She didn’t think I was looking, but I was because I figured something was going on with you two. When Anna thought no one would notice, her eyes were all over you.  And I mean, all over.”

“You’re creepy, you know that?”

Sven laughed and Kristoff couldn’t help but grin.  He’d been checking her out too when he thought no one was looking and he decided right then and there that he was going to ask Anna out.

-------

To Kristoff’s chagrin, they spent the better part of the next day at the beach.  When he finally got to the shower in the condo after, there was sand everywhere.  He detested the gritty feeling against his skin, which he supposed was weird considering he never minded being dirty… it was just something about sand that he disliked. Perhaps it stemmed from his childhood in some way.  They never went to the beach often, and when they did, he found that he would always rather be camping in the woods.

The banana boat ride had been fun, he would be the first to admit that, and he really did enjoy walking in the surf, although he would have preferred his and Anna’s quiet conversation to Sven and Liz’s boisterous comments on this and that.  When the reached the other end of the beach they saw a little gondola going up the cliffside to the condo’s above.  Sven asked someone about it and they mentioned there were some really nice places up there to eat with a view of the entire beach.

Kristoff had been racking his brain all day for a way to ask Anna out, and hearing about the fancy restaurant with a view was like a lightbulb in his head.  It would be kind of weird to just straight up ask her out, they’d already been out a bunch of times, but if he reserved them a table and just took her there… he was sure he’d be able to find some words that made sense.

After everyone had themselves a shower, Sven and Liz had decided to grab dinner Zihuantanejo and then go to a club.  Kristoff was the first to opt out.  It almost looked for a moment like Anna was going to join them, sending him into a near panic over the reservation he’d already made for them after he googled the place, when she declined, saying she’d rather just stay in since it had been a long day at the beach.  

He wondered if she meant that, thinking he might have to slip away and call to cancel that reservation after all, but when Sven and Liz took off for their night out, Anna asked Kristoff if he wouldn’t mind just walking her into town for dinner since she didn’t really feel too much like cooking.

He nodded, gulping a little at the sultry smile she was giving him, like she had plans of her own on what was going to happen over dinner.

“Actually,” his voice nearly cracked, “I was wondering… if you wanted to get a cab to one of those places with the view?  If we leave soon, we can catch the sunset from up there.  Then we could even walk back on the beach, if you’re up for it?”

Her face lit up.  “Sure.”

They both hurried to get ready, Kristoff slipping on the only button up shirt he brought even though it was slightly wrinkly, and his nicest pair of shorts.  Anna delighted him once again with another dress, this one seafoam green that brought out all of the blue in her eyes.  He let out a slow and steady breath, readying himself before they went down in the elevator and walked to the street to catch a cab.

The ride was quick which was a relief, because Kristoff didn’t know what to say and he was nervous as hell. Perhaps Anna was nervous too, she was unusually quiet.  They were dropped off at the door and Kristoff offered Anna his arm as they walked up to the maitre’d and were taken to their table.

Their table was right on the edge of the balcony that perched on the ledge of the cliff.  The view was stunning.  They both awed over it until a waiter came to deliver a basket of bread with strawberry butter and take their drink orders.

Anna turned to him when the waiter left.  

“Kristoff, isn’t this place is romantic?”  Her eyebrows raised slightly in question.

“It is,” he answered, looking into her eyes.  “I thought you might enjoy it.”

“I do,” she breathed, smiling brightly.  “Very much.”

“Anna, I had something to ask you.”  She nodded eagerly, smiling even wider and Kristoff lost all of his nerves despite not knowing exactly what he was going to say.  “I have had more fun with you on this vacation than any other trip I have ever taken.  Hell, I think these past couple of days have been some of the best of my entire life. I really like you.  I… would like to call this our first date.  Can we… I mean…will you… or rather, may I be your boyfriend?”

Anna let out a delighted little squeal.  “Yes! Yes, Kristoff!  I would adore you to be my boyfriend!”

They looked deep into each other’s eyes.

“We sound incredibly corny, don’t we?” Kristoff chuckled.

“Oh my God, so corny!” Anna laughed with him.

And that was it.  He was in love.

*******

He kissed her as soon as they made sure the had the condo to themselves, and oh God had she been waiting for him to kiss her.  All night long, the longing had been building up between them.  It was in every glance, every flick of the eyes to each other’s lips. By the time Kristoff paid for the meal, they hailed a cab, both too impatient to take the gondola down and walk back on the beach.

His lips were every bit as wonderful as Anna had imagined and she completely lost herself in his embrace as they staggered into her room.   The kisses became more urgent as she pulled him down onto the bed, needing more but not ready to give up on his lips yet to try and undress him.  He was a fantastic kisser, easily the best she’d ever had. Anna just knew that his kissing wasn’t going to be the last best thing she ever had before the night was done.

Kristoff stopped abruptly a few moments later when she tried to take his shirt off.

“Anna, we don’t have to rush into anything physical here.”

“I know.”  She kissed him again but he pulled back quickly.

“I just want to make sure-”

Anna looked pointedly at him. “If I have to see you in your bathing suit one more time without knowing what your body feels like pressed against mine, I’m going to go insane.”

“Fair enough,” Kristoff said through a chuckle, and resumed kissing her a moment before they underdressed each other, somewhat frantically, and crawled between the sheets.

Anna never knew that sex could be so sensuous.  Just the feel of his skin under her hands, the softness that encased his hard muscles, flexing delightfully under her palms when he moved.  The way he touched her, leaving feeling gratified and wanting more at the same time.  The way he felt against her, his body pressed tightly to hers, then how he felt inside of her… she had never felt anything so wonderful in all her life.  

Normally her mind ran away with all sorts of thoughts, like what she should be doing or how she should be doing it, and then making requests on what she liked to make sure she was going to have as good a time as her partner.  But with Kristoff it was effortless.  The only thing consuming her thoughts was the sheer pleasure he was giving her.  There was nothing she had to ask him for.  He knew what he was doing and he was doing it magnificently.   Her body fell into rhythm with his easily.  She was already so aroused by him in every way, it didn’t take long before she was shaking in climax.  Easily the best sex she had ever had.  The whole thing was mind-blowing.

After catching her breath, taking a moment to kiss him softly, they resumed making love.  Kristoff brought her to another orgasm and she almost wondered if she would reach a third when she felt his body tensing against her.  She relished the feeling of his release in her center, her body tingling in response as he moaned softly into her ear.  He held her gently against him after, kissing her neck, her cheek, and then her lips a moment, before they parted.  

It was euphoric, curled up next to him on the bed, basking in the afterglow.  Anna was almost beside herself with how wonderful it was being with him.   It was the first time in her life that she had actually felt true contentment.  Kristoff was the best person she’d ever met in her life.  She knew she was incredibly lucky to be the one with him in her bed that night.

-----

Previous 

Next 

[sofiiel]

To the anon who asked about virgin!Eddie factors... of course! -Damn near everyone in his age group outside of Hellfire saw him as a freak and a satanist when they thought about him at all -He was in a band, but played at a bar that from the sounds of it was a dive that didn't see a lot activity of any kind, and he said himself they have a crowd of about 5 drunks so no groupie types are likely to be hanging around -He shows himself to be a gentleman toward the ladies (the way he was with Chrissy, the way he stood back to let a pair of cheerleaders go by who didn't even look at him that we saw, the way he helped Nancy into the boat), but he's also on the socially awkward side when he's not showboating around the cafeteria or running a D&D session -He's a snarkbunny to anyone outside of his friends group with very few exceptions ie Chrissy, and doesn't let his walls down easily so he wouldn't likely let them down enough to get laid or even just a blowjob, handjob, or make-out session -With the bullying he'd face and the bitterness he's shown about being labeled a 'freak', it's likely he'd be too wary of people using him for sex alone for a 'walk on the wild side' so to speak (piss off their parents, piss of a boyfriend or ex boyfriend, etc) and not wanting anything to do with him after or in anything even close to long-term -He told Chrissy 'cash only' when it came to buying drugs, and despite what popular media likes to push... a drug dealer isn't likely to want to take anything but cash in payment unless it's maybe an item they can sell easily and quickly for a decent amount of cash... unlikely in Eddie's case, given he's in a small town not a major city. Also unlikely to take items because people could and would accuse him of theft and it's not like he can say "I accepted this as payment for some weed" or something. Plus, Eddie seems like the type to want to help his uncle financially if he can (in addition to wanting money for guitar accessories, gas, concert tickets, band merch, tapes, etc for himself). Which means no trading sexual favors for drugs even if anyone were to offer. -Eddie strikes me as the type... under all his blustering and showboating, based on the high value we see him place on the few friendships he has and how much his uncle obviously loves him, and based on what little we know about how his shitty father... to want meaningful connections with people rather than a bunch of empty 'hit it and quit it' type interactions with people who don't want to stick around him long term -And most importantly... Joseph Quinn himself said in an interview (which I can't find now or I'd link it) that basically Eddie had no "game" which means he wouldn't be getting any kind of action in the romance department, especially not on a regular basis. He certainly wouldn't be the level of sexually active that Billy was, as some people write Eddie being.

Yes, he has the condoms on his table that we see in the BTS video. Wayne likely got them for him 'just in case' but Eddie is more likely to have let them expire or have used them for goofing off in a moment of boredom (water balloon, seeing how much he can stretch one before it breaks, etc... typical bored teen boy shit) than to have used them for their intended purpose. Maybe he'd jerk off into them at most, but that's about it.

Yes, he has a set of handcuffs. Those seem to me to be more of a decoration or something to play with when he's alone and bored than anything for sexytime fun.

As for the bandana in his pocket... that's just metalhead culture, and unlikely to have anything to do with 'hanky code'. James Hetfield still wears one in his back pocket to this day, for example, when he's performing at concerts. And flagging wasn't something people just randomly walked around doing, they tended to only do that at events and certain bars and such.

~Sweet concerned anon~

~💜