#by the way y'all should totally listen to poison

[eviltiddyprodnz]

I love how Mumbai and Goa would seem different countries as how Shivika have moved on to the next day while Rikara are still at the party. I skimmed that the last time but iss bar himmat karke pura dekhti hun 😭

Also, Veer is a mood and a creep for watching Shivika 24x7 (his laughs lmao, we're supposed to take him seriously?)

Every extra on this show is fake 😭 I know they bullied some crew member to act, like what is this. Omkara is shorter than Tej ?? 🧐

Omkara grabbing Gauri. Don't let her go!!! Run with her. I wish the couples on this show fell into this mess together 😭 it's a rare occurrence but it's always better to flop with someone.

Why did I skip this on my first watch. My poor birds got like 2 mins of total screentime and maybe 30 seconds of conversation 💀

I love how 80% of my first watch was for Shivika and one day I woke up and saw Rikara and now I sit through all these scenes again to find crumbs and cry about it. Oh wow it's bad for them.

I love how this ghostlady (veer' real wife apparently) gently held her hand out to Anika and the moment she held it started a weird hand pushing fight with her lmaooo.

Honestly is there a point to the Tia blindness plot or do they just skip explaining it? I don't think I've ever paid attention to it.

Noooo Gauri is about to jump in the trap my baby 😭💔. Since it's going to be stupid I'm muting it Gauri NOOOO. Aah much better on mute.

One thing about Omkara he's at least gentle with her post the nonsense he pulled pre Bareilly. I know the other brothers would've flipped 😭 Poor Gauri though 💔 it's okay

One thing about this show and me that has stayed consistent is my ears grating and my soul leaving my body everytime someone's says ishqbaaz. (also i just realised dadi quit talking to dadaji after episode 1 😹)

Soumya and Bhavya sitting together 💀 Also considering Rudra is already giving explanations to Shivaay to listen to both sides, he's clearly still an asshat my girl needs saving from. #howdoisaveherfromthescreen

Soumya is so #real.

WHY DO YOU LOVE HIM BHAVYA?!? eggsplain 🥚🥚🥚

I think one thing consistent about them is abruptness. Like isn't this random as hell. Like one day they woke up and decided Rudy marriage time. I wish they got a little privacy 😭

Shivaay said Khushi and we pan to Veer ofc who has superhero listening skills.

At least Veer is as observant as us. He knows he doesn't need to do something Anika will make an issue of and make Shivaay do. Time to count the poisoned notes!

Tejsasuma again. Weird how this show makes it terribly hard for anyone to redeem Pinky but Jhanvi gets a free pass for all the shit she pulls or is a part of. 💀 I know the fam has a soft spot for her but we need to let that #go.

Pandit is more professional than these idiots.

Omkara you should be the one hugging gauri. But hey dadi will do too.

How did no one see Tej setting up the puja stuff 💀 The way he could've said she's dead to him and ignored her like Shivaay ignored Pinky but nope, khurafaati dimaag hai inka, shanti se chain kahan miley. Kar diya shradh.

Big on Tej thinking he has any authority making decisions for Omkara. 💀

Hug my girl! Wow I think y'all could've given that poor girl something to say before cutting to Rudra eating a sandwich like someone just performed her last rites 😭

No way we cut to the scenes to listen to Sandwich calorie and recipe talks 💔

Rudy might not know a single thing about his fucking relationship but he's bang on about other people's 😹😭. Him saying his mom and dad still haven't begun the marriage part.

Poor Gauri has to cry every 2-3 business days.

The Pinky actress eats it up. Her saying Oh My Mata still sends it's soooo 😭❤️

Gauri crying in a room alone 😭

On the one hand I absolutely love the fact that Shivri have that thing where if he ensures her, she's calm. On the other hand I would've sorta traded it for a corn chip had I gotten a Rikara one. Also pls we know Shivaay is broken about this. Not the 5 minute conversation on this 😭

Not Anika saying he needs to take care of all this, give my man a break. Yes he's the wall or whatever but damn.

The first time we get to see Omkara put Sindoor on our girl 🧐

(also i wish y'all got at least some legal document signing paper ceremony 😭 or are we still running strong on the temple marriage)

The way Om was lulled out of dreamland by Anika.

for all the nonsense I'm typing here this scene means so much to them and so much to me. maybe more to me.

a very weird scene for me to confess my love for Shrenu but like they've replayed this scene a gajjilion times to the point where I'd be on my deathbed and remember it but it's so !!!! Like everytime I see her close her eyes I'm right there with her for the gajjilionth time. UGH i love her. Shrenu come get your forehead kiss.

he was kinda surprised to give back the plate too 😂

AAAH him wiping her tears

Anika is ME.

the way Bhavya might be the only one of them to get all of this pre wedding niceness before her 1st proper wedding. Had to go through a lot though 😭

Rudy dragging omkara for siding with Gauri 😂😭

how is Shivaay's back not breaking? Not only does he handle all the stress and hate of the family, he's the only one observant enough to see Bhavya tear up and the rest of the 4 are right there 💀

his mini faint will be a little bit of respite

If they have only one room in the house, where were these guys sleeping during the carnival episodes? 🧐

Watched this episode to her Omi Kumari Sharma. ❤️😂

It's kinda stupid how hopeful and wishful I get thinking about what Rikara and honestly all of this show could've been in 2021 when I know how it ended💀. Like watching them bicker a little, i would do with crumbs.

[yvixtrae]

4:17 AM

Taking another sip from your third can of Monster Java for the night to try to fight off the fatigue from the past few days leeching at your bones, you glare down at both your laptop screen of which is displaying your still unfinished fantasy concept project and the study-guide papers with Hangul scattered next to it for your project in Korean. The EDM playlist you’d put on earlier for background noise continues to play, and you sigh as you put the half-empty can down to try and pen down things you want to and need to include in your Korean paper, occasionally glancing back to your still-waiting digital sketches. Though the clock is reading a little past quarter after 4 in the morning and you’re pushing on your third all nighter, you continue diligently, figuring that you couldn’t afford to sleep when the rest of your day hours were spent part-timing at the uni library and attending long classes at uni as well. Ayno sits criss-cross by your side, brushing off his own sleepiness as he looks up at you with concern, floppy golden retriever ears framing his still soft features. Your usual dark circles had only gotten more prominent, and you seemed much more down than usual now that you were swamped with literally half a dozen assignments and projects alongside twice the amount of commissions—down enough to be hardly eating. The stress and anxiety overwhelmed everything else, like your exhaustion for example. Unsure of what exactly to do to help you, Ayno whines under his breath and pouts to himself, wracking his brain on what could possibly get you to take a break and eat and rest to feel even a little better for just a little while.

“Y/N…” He nudges your leg and paws lightly at it.

When the only response you give is a tired smile and a few seconds of running your fingers through his fluffy yet nearly silken navy strands before going back to your work, his pout only grew. With a louder whine, he tries again.

“Y/N… Please come to bed…”

Looking over at him, you simply shake your head. “I’ve still gotta finish my fantasy concept project, start my Korean project, finish my creative writing paper, and finish my part for the group project. I just can’t…”

His ears droop a bit at that, but then a thought hits him. He knows that there’s one thing you never say no to: Chocolate chip pancakes. As you turn back to your work again, he gets up to leave your shared bedroom, pleased with himself for thinking of the idea. The minutes tick by, one by one, but it’s not long before a familiar and pleasant smell reaches your nose. Turning around in your chair, you see him with a hopeful expression and a small plate of chocolate chip pancakes.

“Will you at least take a break now??” He asks hesitantly, handing you the dish and taking his spot next to you again.

“I have to. Chocolate chip pancakes are more important.” You laugh lightly, picking up one of the pancakes to take a bite.

He bounces slightly, glad that you’re finally taking a break. Tail wagging slightly, he waits patiently as you eat. After downing all of the pancakes, you feel full and satisfied for the first time this week and smile appreciatively at Ayno. After downing the rest of your Monster Java, you consider trying to do more work, but then think better of it. Saving your progress on your laptop, you then exit out of everything and close it before tidying up your papers and folders on your desk, figuring that maybe it really is high time to at least rest mentally, even if you’re sure that you’ll be unable to sleep for a fair bit due to both your racing thoughts and the amount of caffeine you’ve had. Grabbing your phone, you change your music to something more chill and turn down the volume by a little before getting up from your chair. Ayno bounds over excitedly to the bed, tail still wagging, flopping down with a small huff before crawling under the covers and disappearing. As soon as you just simply get on the bed and start to slide under the comforter as well to just keep your legs a bit warm while you sit, he’s already wiggling around and moving to press himself into your side. His head now peeking out from under the comforter, he whines and nudges your thigh, giving his best puppy face. You give a sigh at this, abandoning any hope of staying sitting up and on your phone, placing it to the side and leaning down to press your lips gently against his forehead, of which elicits a happy giggle from him, before moving to lay down beside him. After a few moments of shifting around to get comfortable, he scoots to curl a bit and tuck himself against you even more, his back to your chest and head under your chin.

“Y/N…” He starts, voice small, and you hum as a response for him to continue, “Please don’t ever do all of this again. Missing sleep, skipping meals… Just not… Looking after yourself.”

Your heart aches at the sound of worry and hurt in his tone, and you feel a pang of guilt at him feeling worried and hurt over you.

“I get that… That you really take your assignments and projects and commissions seriously… But… But I just…” He starts to stumble over his words before trailing off, a few more moments passing before he starts up again, “Seeing you so bent over those things to where you’re on the verge of giving out due to being so tired and going on to where you’re not eating and you seeming so sad and nervous and stressed… I don’t like it…”

He turns around partially to peer up at you, chocolatey orbs shining with warmth and affection, and even the beginnings of tears. “I love you, and I don’t like it when you’re not smiling and laughing lots. When you’re not being happy and healthy.”

The all too familiar feeling of being lovestruck hits you again over his words and expression, over how sweet of a puppy he really is. As he sniffles quietly, and moves to turn back on his side, you sit up and lean over him to gently wipe away the building tears with your hoodie sleeve.

“It’s okay, Ayno… I’m fine. I just… Sometimes forget that I have to actually look after myself.” You murmur softly, carding your fingers through his hair again at a languid pace, “But I promise… I promise that I’ll do better to take care of myself. So don’t fret.”

You take the time to gingerly rub at his ears, and he leans into your touch with a content hum.

“Also,” You continue with a small bit of a laugh, “Thank you so much for the pancakes.”

“Anytime…” He mumbles, almost sounding shy, but a smile still tugs on the corners of his lips.

You move your hand to lightly rub his belly, and as he rolls onto his back, you adjust to where your weight rests more on your bent arm beside his head. He grins at the belly rubs, but his eyelids have drooped to a pretty sleepy-looking half-lid. Noticing this, your heart melts a little bit at the cuteness, and you continue to rub his stomach as the thought of mayhaps kissing him crosses your mind. Starting to lean in, you hesitate, almost freezing in place as your face heats up a bit with a blush.

“Oh jeez.” He laughs, remembering how this had happened the first and last time you’d kissed, and knowing how he’d have to be the one to close the distance.

Leaning up, he seals his lips over yours in a gentle liplock, trying and failing to bite back the urge to smile into it. A heartbeat passes, then another, and a few more before he pulls away.

“And… Sleep time.” You move back, gnawing on the inner of your cheek to hide your own smile as you take your spot as big spoon again.

He chokes back a cackle at your reaction, knowing well that you’ve shut down from the kiss, but lets it go as he tucks himself back against you. “Yeah, sleep time.”

[hoodharlow]

Too Young, Too Dumb

AN: I present to y'all Part 2 of Cal and Nico. I got inspo from a post @talkfastromance4 made about the guys hyping Cal up but I included that baby Nico hypes him up too. Hope y'all enjoy

Requested? No

Warnings: ANGST bc Cal es un pendejo, Luke being a dumbass(but not in a good way) in the beginning but gets resolved. Baby crying. Mami Mena accidentally ignoring bby Nico. A confrontation between Cal and Mena and Aaliyah confronting her and Cal getting heartbroken when he sees Mami Mena moving on

“Why are you guys playing Ghost of You? You’re supposed to be hyping people up not making them sad.” Aaliyah commented as she saw the whiteboard of their official set list.

“We’re just playing our greatest hits.” Calum commented.

She rolled her eyes and gave him an annoyed look. She hopped up from her seat on the rug where Nico was with her too and grabbed her phone, making her way to the door. “I’ll be right back.” 

“I think it’s bullshit that she’s not talking to me.” Calum said when the studio door shut.

“I mean I would be pissed if I found out that my best friend got heartbroken because the person they had feelings for slept with someone that was supposedly out of the picture.” Luke said, reaching for his coffee cup. He took a sip, gagging because it was cold. He set it back down on the coffee table and looked at Calum. “But that's just me.”

Calum furrowed his eyebrows. “You need to learn to think for yourself. You're so fucking obsessed with what Aaliyah thinks.”

“And you should have learnt to use a condom. Because now you have mistakes that you have to deal with for the rest of your life.”

“Did you just call my baby a mistake?” He angrily pushed Luke, making him stumble a few steps back. “Say that shit one more fucking time.”

"Oi!" Ashton yelled. 

Him and Michael got up and separated them before things escalated. 

"Why don't we take ten?" Michael suggested.

"Fuck that. Me and Nico are out of here." Calum said, shrugging Ashton off him. He looked at Luke. "I'm sorry, I meant that me and my mistake are out of here."

Calum picked Nico from the rug where she was playing with her toy piano and set her in her car seat that was attached to her stroller. He grabbed her other things and her baby backpack. With that he was on his way. He ignored Michael and Ashton as they reasoned with him to stay. 

He threw Nico's things in the trunk and removed the car seat and placed her in the car before he collapsed the stroller to also shove in the back seat. He slammed the trunk door. He frustratedly balled his hands into fists and hit the front of his car. Tears spilled down his cheeks.

He was in a spiral. Was Luke right? Was taking in Nico for him to raise on his own a mistake? Sure there were days where he felt like he was in over his head, but at the end of the day it was worth it. 

Nico was worth it. 

"You okay?" Aaliyah asked as she approached him. "Is rehearsal over?

"Yeah and I'm not sure. Nico and I are done for the day though." He said curtly.

She nodded. A few seconds past and she spoke up, "Listen, I, uh, want to apologize." she said, getting his attention. "I'm being totally unprofessional and petty. Whatever happened between you and Alex is y'alls business and I shouldn't be letting it get in the way of your music."

"It's okay, Al. Alexis is your best friend." he shrugged. "If what I did happened to the guys, I'd feel the same way. I just wish Luke saw it that way..."

"Did Luke say something?" 

"Just Luke being Luke. You know him."

"If he said something about you or Nico I'm going to uninvite him from thanksgiving and kick his ass. I took a kickboxing zumba class with Fiona and Elisa the other day. And when Alexis was preparing for her audition for Poison Ivy, she took me to a stunts boot camp. So I'm prepared to kick Luke's ass."

Calum chuckled. "Don't worry about it. We should get going, someone was supposed to get bathed this morning but swindled me by sleeping."

"Can I say bye to her?"

"Of course." 

Calum opened the back seat for her. 

Aaliyah popped her head in but she got out seconds later, whispering. "She's fast asleep."

"That little shit."

***

Nico was sobbing uncontrollably for the past hour. When Calum handed her a sippy cup that wasn't her usual one, she lifted it up, inspecting it. Realizing it wasn't her sippy cup, she threw it on the ground. She began crying, not wanting to be on her high chair anymore. 

Wordlessly, he picked up the sippy cup and washed it. He placed it on the table attachment of the high chair. She saw that it was the same sippy cup and chucked it. But Calum caught it before it landed on the ground. 

"I know you're upset that I can't find your cup. But don't throw shit on the ground. You have to drink your juice with this one." 

Nico huffed and tried to pry herself from the high chair. He cursed and helped her out of her high chair. He set her down on the ground and let her crawl. Duke trotted over and sniffed Nico then went back to his bed. Calum trailed behind her, texting the guys if they saw her sippy cup in the studio. Michael and Ashton replied with a no. Luke saw the message, but didn't respond. 

It's been three days since he spoke to him and three days since he rehearsed. Michael and Ashton texted him to check in on him and Nico, and if he was going to go to rehearsal. Calum reassured them that he’ll figure it out. He knew the songs by heart so there wasn't anything new to work on other than the transition of Ghost of You to Rewrite the Stars.

He glanced up from his phone. Nico hasn’t made a sound in minutes. He scanned the living room but didn’t see her in the play pen. He got up and nearly tripped over her and Duke. They were both sound asleep in Duke’s bed. He carefully lifted Nico and placed her in her bassinet. She stirred but settled with her stuffed koala. 

Calum made his way back to the kitchen and got started on dinner. He wasn’t doing anything grand. It was just him boiling some tortellini and making a vodka sauce to go with it. He diced some garlic, shallots, and onion, but only added the shallots and onion. While they cooked, he grabbed a can of crushed tomatoes and the tube of tomato paste from the pantry. Once the onions were cooked down he added the garlic and used some vodka to scrape off the brown bits of the onions, shallots and garlic. Lastly, he added the other ingredients. He lowered the heat so the sauce could simmer thoroughly. 

While it simmered, Calum went to go check on Nico. She was still sleeping so he grabbed one of her blankets that he kept in a basket behind the couch. When he went back to the bassinet Nico was awake. She saw him and made grabby hands at him. 

“You better sleep through the night if you’re not gonna nap.” Calum said picking her up. He kissed her cheeks making her giggle. “Let’s go finish dinner.”

He sat her down on her high chair and checked on the sauce. It was almost done. He just needed to strain the pasta and add it in. 

The doorbell rang. Duke’s barks were heard through the hall as the old puppy went to check who was at the door. Calum turned off the stove.

“I’ll be right back.” He told Nico.

The six month old frowned and made grabby hands at him as he walked away from her. He heard her cries from the front door. He sighed when her cries got louder. “Go check on your sister.” Calum told Duke.

The old puppy yipped and trotted over to the kitchen. Calum checked the peep hole and saw Luke. He cursed and opened the door for him.

“What do you want?” Calum said bluntly.

Luke held up Nico’s sippy cut and said, “I saw your text when I was driving over.” 

“Come in. she’ll be happy to see her cup.”

Calum took a step back for him to come in, but Luke stayed at the doorway.

“I’m sorry for what I said the other day. It was beyond fucked up. There was no reason for me to say that about Nico. If I’m being honest, she’s probably the best thing that has ever happened to you. She completes you and—”

“It’s alright. Just don’t ever day it again or I’ll have Aaliyah kick your arse.” 

“She’s just waiting for a chance to take me down to become your new lead singer.” Luke said jokingly.

“If it happens then we’ll have a good singer.”

“Oi!” 

They went back to the kitchen and Calum found Nico giggling as Duke twirled on his hind legs, entertaining her. Nico turned and excitedly babbled when she saw Luke. She made grabby hands at her. 

“What's in the bag?'' Calum found himself asking Luke when he set the shopping bag down on the island.

“Oh,” Luke giggled. “So I went to my tailor to pick up my suit for Saturday and I passed this baby store. And you won’t believe what I saw.” 

He pulled out a small Doc Martens box.”

“You didn’t!” Calum gasped.

“I fucking did!” He opened the box and handed Calum the small boots. “Now Nico can be like her pops.” 

“They’re so fucking tiny!” Calum gushed. He turned and showed Nico her shoes. “Do you like them?”

She took them and inspected them. She gurgled excited as her fingers played with shoe laces. 

“Do you want to stay for dinner? I made pasta in vodka sauce.” He asked Luke. he walked over to the fridge and grabbed a beer for him and Luke.

“Sure, but what’s Nico gonna eat?” He asked when took the beer.

“The same thing?” 

“Isn’t vodka bad for babies?”

“Fuck, I forgot.”

They both set their beers down and pulled out their phones. Calum dialed Dr. Gallardo, Nico’s pediatrician and Alexis Ximena’s dad, while Luke googled if babies can get drunk from eating vodka sauce.

“You have shit wifi mate.” Luke said.

“Shut up.” Calum said. He cursed and hung up remembering that Dr. Gallardo’s office was closed on Thursdays. And there was no way he was going to call him on his cellphone to ask him a stupid question. He pocketed his phone and turned to Luke. “Did it load?” 

“Yeah,” He nodded and walked over to Calum so they both could read it. “It says that, ‘Pediatricians do not forbid the use of vodka sauce in babies' food, because the traditional vodka sauce recipe contains only a small amount of alcohol, which should evaporate out during cooking, so the alcohol does not get into a baby's system.’ I guess that means she’ll be fine? If not she can sleep it off.”

***

“What do you think of this one?” Calum asked Nico as he walked out of his closet dressed in denim jeans and his go-to Nine Inch Nails long sleeve.

The six month old stopped playing with the floating sheep in her rocker and looked at him, confused. She surveyed his look and made a face before going back to play with the sheep.

“Guess that’s a no.” He mumbled. 

He went back in his closet and stripped out of his clothes. He went to the last garment bag in the clothing rack and unzipped it. It was his mesh shirt from the Wildflower music video and a kilt with a few hanging chains. He was nervous. He picked out the kilt to go on theme with the event because he was an actual global citizen. With his roots coming from New Zealand and Scotland, and him migrating from Sydney to Los Angeles, he felt like he was commemorating himself. But now that he saw the kilt, he felt slightly insecure. Not looks wise of course, he knew his calves were going to look phenomenal in it. In reality he couldn't explain why he felt insecure. He just did.

“Fuck it.” he told himself and changed into the kilt and mesh top. 

He walked out and Nico instantly stopped playing with sheep. She giggled and cooed at him. She kicked her feet up excitedly. 

“You like this?” He asked her.

“Ah!” She babbled in response.

“I guess this is the one then.”

Calum changed back into sweats and stored the clothes back in the garment bag. He grabbed his trusty Doc Martens along with the garment bag, placing them in an overnight duffle bag, and walked out of the closet. He set them on the bed and unhooked Nico from her rocker. He carried her and his things back to her room so he could pack her things. He grabbed her overnight bag and packed a few diapers, baby wipes, her rash cream and some pjs as well as her outfit for pictures. It was a black dress, with her koala sweater Joy got her that she finally fits into paired with the Docs Luke got her. 

He took them down stairs. He took Duke outside to do his business then he filled up water and dog food bowls for him in case he got hungry. Though he doubted that the old puppy was going to be hungry any time soon since Nico fed him her scramble eggs. Lastly he went to the kitchen and grabbed Nico’s snacks and her baby bottles. He tripled checked that he had everything made rounds taking everything to his car. 

Once it was all packed and ready to go, Calum and Nico were on their way to the Greek Theater. When they arrived, he showed security his artist pass, and was sent through the back where the dressing rooms were. He parked next to Micahel’s Tesla. He went around the back and opened the trunk and got Nico’s stroller out. When he was putting their things in the bottom basket, he heard a scream followed by a few colorful words. Then Michael monas.

“For fucks sake,” he muttered. He knocked the backseat of Michael's car. “Keep it down there’s a baby over here.”

“You said no one was there.” Calum heard Fiona tell Michael.

“And I told you to be quiet.” Michael said getting out of his car. 

Fiona got out and fluffed her hair out. “Hi, Cal.'' she said as if she wasn’t getting her guts rearranged by his best friend not even a minute ago. She shut the door and went to the dressing room. 

Calum looked at her then to Michael and raised his hands in surrender. “I’m not even going to ask.”

Michael turned to Calum and smiled at him. “Where’s your baby?”

On cue Nico loudly babbled in the car, letting herself be known. 

“Right there.” 

Michael opened the backseat and squealed loudly at Nico earning a few giggles and squeals from her. He helped her out and carried her in his arms while Calum pushed her stroller. 

“Look who I found.” Michael announced lifting Nico up in the air. 

“You’re late.” Ashton told Calum as he unbuttoned his red polka dot shirt. 

“Nico and I got distracted because she was giving me fashion advice and helped me pick something to wear.” Calum said defensively. 

“What are you wearing?” Aaliyah asked, taking Nico from Michael.“Because those three aren’t matching at all.” 

“I’m wearing a kilt.” He mumbled quietly, almost inaudible.

“You’re what?” Ashton asked loudly.

“I’m wearing a kilt.” He repeated.

“Wait, this I got to see.” Luke said looking up from the small table he sat with Ethan, Fiona and Michael’s godson.

“Yeah,” Michael nodded in agreement. "try it on.”

“You’ll see later. Don’t we have a soundcheck?” Calum said in an attempt to change the subject.

“Demi is out there. They have a complex stage setup so we have time to kill.” Ashton said, sipping his coffee.

Calum sighed, giving in to their demands. He grabbed his garment bag and went to the changing room. He came out and the guys all cheered. Michael whistled at him as he walked over to the couch where they all sat. 

“Okay, daddy!” Ashton yelled. 

Luke whooped, clapping loudly. “Look at those calves!” 

***

It was half an hour until show time. Calum was buttoning up Nico’s sweater when a crew member knocked on the door. He scooped her up in his arms and went to open the door. 

“Hi, I have the soundproof headphones that you guys requested.” They said handing him the two boxes. “They’re adjustable so they don’t fit loose.” 

“Thank you.” Calum nodded. 

They jogged down the steps and hopped in their golf cart.

Calum turned back and set Nico on the couch while he went to the bathroom. He heard another knock then an all too familiar voice. Alexis Ximena. 

He finished doing his business and washed his hands. He stood by the door, waiting until he didn’t hear her. But all he heard were Nico’s cries. He bolted out of the door. Aaliyah had her in her arms, swaying her.

“What happened?” He asked. 

“Alex was in a rush and didn’t see Nico so now she’s crying.” she explained. 

“I'll be right back.” He was livid. 

“Cal—”

But before Aaliyah could finish her sentence was out of the dressing room. 

“Hey!” He called after Alexis Ximena.

She stopped in her tracks and turned around. “What?”

“I know I fucked up, but don’t take that shit out on Nico. She's just a baby.”

Alexis Ximena furrowed her eyebrows. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Just now when you were at our trailer. She’s crying because you didn’t acknowledge her.”

“First of all, I didn’t see her; I literally just went and dropped off a dress for Aaliyah. And second, why the fuck are you here yelling at me instead of consoling your baby?” She snapped at him. “If you’ll excuse me I have to finish getting ready.”

Alexis Ximena turned on her head and walked away from him. Angry tears rolled down her cheeks. After everything he did, she ended up being the bad guy. She went back to her trailer and slammed the door shut. She had presented Ozuna before he went out and performed, so they gave her own dressing room. She was thankful because she still had to get ready for the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Gala. If she had it her way, she wouldn't have flown from Milan, but she had to attend since little over a week ago she won her two Emmys, making her the youngest EGOT winner at age twenty-four.

“Everything all right?” Dylan O’Brien asked her. 

“Yeah, I just tripped.” She said, giving him a toothless smile. She grabbed a makeup wipe and fixed her eyeshadow. She turned back and looked at him. “Is it okay if we stay for a bit? I wanna see Aaliyah perform. The red carpet is still going on for at least another hour and a half.”

“Of course, I’m your plus one. Wherever you need me, I’ll be there to hold your purse.” He said.

“Can you hold clutches?”

“I’ll try my best.” 

Alexis Ximena giggled. She changed into her custom Yves Saint Laurent gown that Anthony Vaccarello personally designed for her. Opting to stay in her Vans, so she could jog back to the dressing room, she went backstage to see Aaliyah. She scanned the place and spotted her with Fiona and Ethan. She had Nico in her arms.

“Hey!” She said to them.

“Hi!” Fiona said, giving her a side hug. “Aren’t you supposed to be at that Academy Gala thingy? My brother and Eliza left already.”

“Yeah, but I wanted to see my favorite girl sing.” Alexis Ximena said. She went up to Aaliyah because she was holding Nico. “Hola preciosa, I’m sorry I didn't see you earlier.”

Nico gave her a once over and turned back to see Calum. 

“Is she for real?” She scoffed.

“She’s petty like him, but watch this.” Aaliyah said. She passed Nico to Fiona and wrapped her arms around Alexis Ximena. “Alex!”

The girlish squeals and giggles got Nico’s attention. She turned back and saw Alexis Ximena and Aaliyah hugging. She made grabby hands at Alexis Ximena, wanting to be a part of the hug. 

“Ah, ahora quiere que la abrace.” She said kissing Nico’s cheeks. 

Nico motioned for her bottle. Fiona passed it to her. Out of habit, Nico held the bottle with one hand and the other went straight to her left breast. 

“What is it with you and your papi and my boobs?” Alexis Ximena said, moving her hand, only for Nico to put it back on her breast.

Nico leaned her head on Alexis Ximena’s shoulder. She fixed the soundproof headphones and gently swayed her as they watched Aaliyah sing on stage with the guys. 

At the end of the song Luke and Aaliyah looked at each other for a second too long, making Fiona and Alexis Ximena give each other a knowing look. She came back out on stage and they gave her the same look they shared. 

“Not a word.” Aaliyah said. She tried taking Nico from Alexis Ximena, but she wouldn’t budge.

“I can stay for another song.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yeah.”

The first keys of Ghost of You played. Alexis Ximena’s eyes went to the keyboard and her eyes met Calum’s. Her chest tightened when he looked away. She tightly held onto Nico as the song continued. He didn’t look at her until it was his last line that they’re eyes found each other. 

“To know things like love. Too young, too dumb.” He sang. 

The note change in ‘dumb’ broke Alexis Ximena’s heart. She choked back a sob and sniffled. She smoothed out Nico’s curls and kissed the top of her head. 

“Hey,” Dylan O’Brien called from behind them.

“Holy shit! You’re Dylan O’Brien.” Fiona gasped.

“Shit is not nice.” Ethan said.

“It’s not nice in front of your parents.” She explained to him. She looked up at Dylan. “Sorry, I’m a big fan of the Maze Runner.”

“No worries,” he laughed. He looked at Alexis Ximena. “Your people called my people and they called me wondering why we hadn't arrived yet. We gotta get going.”

“Yeah,” She nodded. She kissed Nico’s cheeks. “I gotta go.”

She passed her back to Aaliyah. Nico pouted and made grabby hands at her. 

“I’m sorry, Nico.” She kissed her once more before turning back.

Nico’s cries turned into full on sobs as the band finished their set. Calum went up to her and took her in his arms. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m here.” He said softly.

He turned to where Nico had her arm out. He saw Dylan O’Brien helping Alexis Ximena into a SUV. 

Calum rubbed Nico’s back and whispered. “I know and I’m sorry.”

TAGLIST:  @calumscalm​ @karajaynetoday @wastelandcth  @cherryxwildflower​ @ashtonsunflower​ @calpops​ @idontneedanyone​ @findingliam-o​ @5-secondsofcolor​ @mulletcal​ @polycashton​ @sunshinebabycal-deactivated2021 @another-lonely-heart​ @fckingpernico​ @2fangirl4u​ @suchalonelysunflower​ @hoodhoran​ @aquarius-hood1996​ @in-superbloom​​

Special guests: @twilightmomentswithyou​ @sensitivecth​

also tagging @pixiegrl​​ bc I sent em(ily) a teaser lmao

[ravenkinnie]

TW: Drugs, substance abuse, murder, violence, the Punisher

Another potentially unpopular opinion I've seen on here (and one that I'll actually rant about) is that, Jason is the only good vigilante in the Batfam because he kills people (think the direct quote is "unlike those other feckless bitches" and something like "when you get saved by Red Hood, you know that you'll never have to worry about getting attacked by the same person again". I don't know how to explain to people that killing the type of criminals Jason killed in canon is wrong and harmful (thinking about the 80 Blackgate prisoners he poisoned - hmm you know the American prison system is pretty fucked up i'm sure they all totally belonged there /s). Like. Jason killing the Joker is one thing, but he literally hasn't killed the Joker - Dick did that, Bruce tried to, but Jason hasn't. But like some people make it out like oh, Jason being a killer is fine because he only kills people that deserve it - who, tell me who he's killing? Sex offenders and drug dealers seems to be the most common reply. And I won't touch the sex offenders but drug dealers? Have you heard of the War on Drugs? Have you seen what happens when people in power decide it's okay to openly promote the killing of drug dealers? I don't understand why people think it's fine for Jason Todd to go around killing drug dealers, as if they don't have families, don't have other things that put them in a bad situation. There's a reason why cops in the US (idk if they do this elsewhere) use the Punisher skull as their emblem - and if you advocate for a Jason Todd that punishes criminals, don't be surprised when the right wing weaponizes him against minorities and the red hood helmet starts to get painted on cop cars.

I wrote a paper on the Norwegian prison system which rehabilitates and releases even the "worst" of criminals and just... I live in the US and it seems like we (specifically white people) have such little compassion for anyone who commits crime. Even after the War on Drugs, even after we learned it was a scam, people fall for the crime and punishment rhetoric time after time. Like I live in a suburb where people are so scared of drug dealers my mom literally called our neighbor because someone cut through our yard (and she thought he looked high or something idk). Which I get it, my cousin died from a fentanyl overdose, I understand you don't want that near your kids. But incarcerating or killing drug dealers is not the answer, and I can't stand it when people take that stance on Jason. You can try to explain the 8 drug dealer heads in a duffle bag any way you want, but at the end of the day, I think the batfamily fandom needs to be more careful addressing this issue because demonizing drugs/drug dealers/drug users is literally one of the ways the American government destroys black communities.

And to think, the Jason Todd stan that this opinion came from replied to me because I commented on how Jason likes to run around in Dick's old clothes - something that has absolutely no bearing on his morals, other than he's thrifty which is a good thing actually, something like 85% of clothes ends up in landfills. Sorry for the rant, you asked for it. Sorry if anyone who sees this likes Jason Todd and is offended, you're not bad for liking him, he has an interesting story, just please don't advocate for murdering common criminals, specifically drug dealers.

AAAHHH NOO BUT IVE SEEN SOME OF MY MOOTS DISCUSS THIS BEFORE

sorry it's late and fucking hot I don't have the most comprehensive reply dbdnhd and I do acknowledge that at the end of the day this is fiction but opinions real people hold come from SOMEWHERE - and I think we have a very ingrained belief that crime/bad deed has to be punished and that there are good and evil people and good people only do bad things when influenced by evil people which is exactly the core of jason's belief - and that's interesting for a batfam character, a former robin!! I like when him and bruce are contrasted based on ethics but I don't like when it's meant to show that jason is right and bruce is wrong

batman is an extremely popular and fascinating character because at his core lies the idea that systems that are in place to 'protect' people are corrupt and it's down to individuals who can do something to go against them and look out for others - that's something that will resonate with people even if irl solution can't be to dress up as a bat and beat tf outta people shdhhshs

I have two points to make here:

a) I'm straight up a fucking anarchist who lives in the woods, thinks aliens are listening, and doesn't trust the government but I don't believe systems are corrupt, I believe they operate the way they are meant to operate to punish and control the populations that the system needs to be controlled to keep up the status quo - war on drugs is such a good example for that. drug dealer also exists as this boogeyman, this idea of an evil person waiting to corrupt and destroy the good people but the fact is: people don't get addicted to drugs bc drug dealers exist, people get addicted to drugs because something, not someone, compels them to do drugs, because something (literal us gov) introduced drugs to their communities and drug dealers are just tiny pawns in that game. additionally, many dealers are addicts themselves who got roped into selling to pay for their own use or who got pushed into the margins of society so much that drug trade is the only way to survive they can find

there are like, whole papers and books and thesis done on this so I'm not gonna act like I can analyse it in a tumblr post dhshsjsj but yeah people who think jason is right usually show this weird superiority of 'oh batman doesnt get how to fix gotham like jason does' and like... no, jason gets played like a fiddle by the system the way people he kills do, and whatever he does will always just hit the other pawns and never reach those actually at the top, those who are profitting from finding scapegoats

and like, batman comics don't have to address that bc it's comics, you can write small lmao but don't argue that jason is somehow more enlightened than bruce for killing

b) this brings a question of, if we decide that there has to be punishment for every crime, who gets to decide what punishment is right for what crime? cause there's not a single person who's infallible enough to dictate what the best approach is in every situation

and batman works best as a traumatised man who's loves his city sm he tries to work however he can to protect people from corrupt systems and offer them second chances wherever he can bc that's who batman is at his core - batman is not a punisher he is a protector and he should never be pushed into a role of the punisher bc he's not edgy enough

also bitches are so hard acting like they would kill every villain cause rip to batman but I'm different, y'all are too scared to tell the waitress your order is wrong shut the fuck up lmao the closest any of y'all have been to being batman is getting your ass beat behind the club on a saturday by brenda in her boohoo jumpsuit

[that-peach-anon]

Did no one say Sam and Max coraline au? Ahaha i wrote for it anyways (:

Almost 3000 words of Geek angst because i adore her character kahshdkshs

This was written based on @lesbialien 's coraline au and i hope y'all enjoy it!

---

Geek had never been one to depend on others. She had grown up in the basement after all, and being a kid genius, she knew how to take care of anything necessary for survival.

Not that she had been taken care of before. Not many people are interested in adopting the kid that was busier studying bugs' corpses rather than playing dolls with her peers. But that was okay too. She'd much rather be left in the orphanage where there were no parents to smother her and distract her from her studies, she was a person of science after all.

And then came Sam and Max. A duo that called themselves “freelance police" but had much too twisted morals and messed up ethics to be considered any sort of responsible and trustworthy employees. And that was okay. Geek didn’t have that many worries about ethics and morals, after all, to learn things, sometimes morals and ethics get in the way. If she had been adopted by normal people, they would have insisted for her to stop with the dissections and chemically hazardous experiments because that's “not for kids", and that would have been awful. But no, Sam and Max didn't care about that, in fact, most of the times they were the ones in danger, where Max would eat dead animals or consume poisonous chemicals, and Sam would just laugh it off and never get angry at Geek for them allowing Max to do so.

And that made sense. They weren't her parents, so why should they berate her for doing whatever she wanted. She more or less worked for them, only seeing them every few times that they needed some wacky gadget for another case. And that was totally fine with geek. Yeah. They didn’t care if Sam and Max were always busy, they were just her employers, more or less. So it was fine that they didn't spend that much time with the duo, she was only there to make stuff for them, and that was okay. Or at least she liked to pretend so.

But then something changed. One day, the rabbit and dog approached her looking rather embarrassed, which wasn't common for them, and asked to talk to her. That had triggered some alarms. They never were serious or mature enough to have talks instead of just being ignorant to everything, so this meant they were about to do something drastic that involved her. And that wasn't bad, per say. They were glad to finally be able to spend some time with the two, but she wasn't sure if this was going to be time spent doing something enjoyable.

Maybe they had decided that her services were no longer necessary? Or they had found another child genius that was happier and more energetic than Geek will ever be, and they were about to trade her for them? The possibilities were endless. But nothing had prepared them for what truly happened.

Across from them sat a beaming Sam and Max, signed adoption papers on top of the table that stood between them. Adoption papers for them. They had adopted Geek. They were her parents. This wasn't really what she expected out of all the unpredictable things they could do.

“You two… adopted me?” Her voice had been quieter than she wanted it to be, barely able to fight back the nausea slowly crawling up their throat. “Officially? As in, legally?”

“Well, yes.” Sam looked rather calm for what was supposed to be a tremendous occasion for her. “Me and Max were talking during a case and we thought it would be a good idea to adopt you, so we did.”

“Plus, the orphanage was being annoying as hell and kept bothering us about if we were gonna adopt you or else you had to go back!” Max added, apparently picking something off the sharp blades he had as teeth. “And we don't wanna look for a replacement, so this was the least troublesome thing we could do.”

If she didn't know Max better, they would think he didn't care at all, but she could see how his left foot was bouncing in place, a nervous stim he had whenever he was anxious. Max always had a soft spot for kids, so she knew he was just trying to look calm while he panicked on the inside.

“Am… am I supposed to call you two dad and father from now on?” She asked, bunching the end of her skirt in one hand.

“Do whatever you want, kid.” Max answered dismissively, Geek ignoring the way he had one of his hands holding Sam's, another telltale sign of nervousness from him. “We don't care.”

“Okay.” Their usually strong voice was now soft, barely leaving their tongue as it weighed down like lead. “I'm going back to the basement if you don't mind.”

“We'll be here if you need to talk, alright, kiddo?” Sam had asked, already stretching as he got up from the chair. Geek had done nothing more than give a dismissive hum, already having their mind in a turmoil, thoughts thrashing around like a hurricane, making her head spin and stomach tighten.

  That conversation had happened a few days ago, already just a sour memory she kept repeating in their head as her thoughts bothered and invaded her mind. Not much had changed noticeably. Now they would sometimes check up on her before grabbing a gadget and leaving, or tell her about a case before already going to another, leaving her alone for hours on end. Now Sam used more nicknames like kiddo and champ, and Max had taken to calling them kid instead of Geek. And that wasn't bad, Geek just couldn't bring herself to act with them as if everything was fine and nothing changed.

Were they going to stop her from doing her experiments because it was too dangerous and they had to make sure she stayed alive? Would they not let her do anything dangerous in case she could get hurt? Or maybe they would try putting her in school, even if she had already attended college at this point. Or they'd simply stop her from being herself and make them act like a normal child.

That would be way out of character for Sam and Max, but maybe this wasn't something she was scared of, but rather something she hoped for? Perhaps she longed for the two of them to worry about her and care about her instead of only herself being the only one that actually cares about what happens to them. Maybe she wanted a break from having to take care of herself while still a child and have someone else be the one caring for her.

But she couldn't ask that from Sam and Max, they had reckless personalities. They only really showed direct worry when something truly bad happened, like when one of the duo went missing and the other went mad trying to find them. To be honest, she didn't think they truly had showed any direct worry. Whenever they asked about how she felt they always dismissed her answer because they were more entertained by something else. They truly did try to care for them, but the two of them just weren't used to not being in tune with someone's feelings like they were with each other’s. She doesn't remember the last time one of them had to ask the other how they felt, they just usually knew.

She knew they didn't do it out of malice, they just didn't really know how to communicate. The two had never been the most in tune with feelings, barely acknowledging their own in favor of living a blissfully ignorant life. Their attempts at “parenting" Geek never quite worked out. She supposes it’s because they don't really know how to take care of something that has the capability of human thought. The most difficult thing the two had truly raised up until now was a crocodile, and he had had to be left in someone else's care in the end, so maybe it didn't count. But they tried, or at least tried to try.

The blame couldn't be placed only on the two, though. Geek's internal conflict also served as an incredibly unhelpful existence. While she did long for this whole family thing to be normal, it never did feel quite right. She felt like an intruder in the dynamic of the duo, like her only reason to interact with them was to provide a place where their gadgets came from. They felt… like a side-character, like someone who didn't belong. Maybe Sam and Max forgot about her whenever they weren't talking to her directly. I mean, the two barely knew she existed half of the time, so it was a possibility.

Anyway. So, listening wasn't their strong suit. But that's okay, at least they cared to ask, even if it did upset Geek when they found out none of them had truly listened. But that was alright, she could deal with being ignored, she already lived with that for 13 years. It was fine. She could just care for herself.

Which, wasn't something she was currently doing while dissecting a bass. In fact, she was so lost in thought, reminiscing over the words that kept playing in her head, that they had no time to notice as the scalpel slid and cut open a gash in their palm.

“Ow! Goddamn it!” They shouted in pain, the cutting tool falling on the tray next to her, letting out a loud bang as metal met metal.

Using a nearby tissue, she pressed it against the palm, grumbling at how much blood was seeping out and how annoying it would be when trying to move their hand. It was a bit deep; she probably would have needed to bandage it up but that was fine. They had created a gadget meant to cauterize wounds, so it would be healed pretty quickly.

Rummaging through the gadgets in their desk, she ignored the blood dripping and staining the tiles beneath her feet, sighing loudly when they remembered where the gadget was.

Max had taken it a few days ago to test his theory. The gadget looked like a simple butter knife, but it heated up dangerously, so the lagomorph had wanted to see if by stabbing someone with it, the wound would cauterize and it would be a good torture method. She hadn't been able to get in a word before Max had run away with it, a manic smile already on his face.

And just like with all the other gadgets they got from her that they didn’t end up destroying, it was most probably thrown half-hazardly into their closet, added to the junk pile they had, ranging from memoirs from their cases to just random crap they found and decided to keep.

Arriving to the office, she opened the door with her elbow, already prepared to apologize for all the blood falling from her hand, but just like every time Sam and Max left for a case, the office was empty, the only noise coming from the still on ceiling fan. Closing the door with their back, Geek looked around to examine the room, cringing at how everything was either littered with bullet holes or just plain destroyed.

Opening the closet with her foot, she pulled on the string that hung from the ceiling, closing her eyes as the artificial yellow light invaded their vision, fluorescent shine illuminating the room. Blinking to adjust, she stepped further in, eyes jumping around to try and spot the object she was searching for. Where would a gadget hide in such a messy-

The object she was looking for fell in front of her, startling them as it rolled away a bit. Sighing, she knelt down to grab it, eyes snapping up as she realized that before her stood a small purple door with a gold doorknob. It was one of the memoirs from a case that Sam and Max had gone on, a fight against a gigantic banana slug in a mostly inhabited building. In the end, the owner of the building, a nice woman named Coraline, had decided to destroy the place, claiming it had too many child disappearances and was no longer safe. Since the slug had left nothing, they both stole a door that was in the wreckage, just chucking it into the closet and forgetting about it.

But now, instead of being fallen as it had been before, it was vertical, attached to the wall, with a dim blue light coming from beneath it. Geek had seen stranger things in her life, so they simply shrugged it off and turned to leave.

“Geek.”

Freezing in place, she turned around as a lulling voice came from the door. How did it know their name? Putting the gadget down, seeing as the wound had already stopped bleeding, she stepped closer, already grabbing the knob to slowly pry the door open, tilting their head as inside there was only a long blue tunnel, similar to those fabric tubes cats and young babies played in.

This was new. It definitely wasn't her making, and Sam and Max aren't smart enough to make a whole dimensional portal, so this wasn't part of their knowledge. Crouching down, she started crawling through the tunnel, only looking back when the door clicked in place as it closed by itself. At the other end was a door almost identical to the one she had gone through, except this one held what looked to be like claw marks.

Taking a deep breath, she pushed it open, sighing in disappointment as it led back to the office. Stepping out, she gasped as they realized that Sam and Max were there now, both looking to their respective tasks as they worked away, Sam typing while Max carved something onto his desk. Above them hung a “welcome home, Geek!” poster, slightly crooked to the left as it held on by two thin nails, one in each of the top corner.

Hearing the door close behind her with a slam, both Sam and Max turn to her, Geek immediately turning around to look at the small, purple, closed, door.

“Geek! Where were you? We were worried sick! We were waiting for you to tell us about your gadget you're making but we couldn't find you anywhere!” Sam spoke, stopping his typing as he pushed the chair away from his table, already standing up to greet her.

“Yeah, I wanna know if I can kill someone with it!” Max shouted, jumping up from his chair as he tried scrambling after Sam, in a spider like way, crawling onto his shoulder.

“Sorry about disappearing, I was just going through that door in the closet.” She explained, turning back around and looking down at their feet. “I'm sorry.”

“That's okay, kiddo! Just tell us next time so we don't worry so much.” Sam ruffled her hair as he spoke, Max jumping down from where he had perched himself to hug Geek, making her tense up.

“Yeah, we missed you lots!” Max spoke, seeming not caring about how tense Geek was in his arms, or the way she was barely breathing.

Looking up at Sam, she let out a shout of surprise as they spotted the black buttons that substituted his eyes. Pushing away from Max, she stepped back, looking at him in horror to find Max, too, had button eyes.

“What's wrong, kid?” Max asked, tilting his head at them. “Got something in my teeth?”

“You're not Sam and Max.” She affirmed, backing away and already grabbing the doorknob once again.

“Well, of course not! We're Other Sam and Other Max!” The tall dog replied in a duh tone, as if it was obvious. “We're just like them, except better in every way! Now come on, tell us about the gadget.”

“Okay.” Even when talking only to what seemed to be imitations of Sam and Max, she couldn't bring herself too not be polite. Kids were supposed to obey their parents, according to all the movies and series she watched as a way to know how children normally behave. “It's a neutron destabilizer-"

“Ooooh, neutron destabilizer, huh? Sounds fun!” Max exclaimed, hanging off of one of Sam's shoulders, smiling.

“Do you even know what neutrons are?” She asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

“It's a part of the atom just like electrons and protons and all that sciency stuff.” He waved her off, and if he had actual eyes, she was sure he'd be rolling them.

“Yeah… anyway, I think the name is pretty self-explanatory so you must know what it does and-"

“But how does it work?” Sam interrupted, leaning back against his desk.

“You… actually want to know?”

“Of course, we like hearing about your day!”

“Oh.” She absent mindedly let go of the door, giving her full attention to them. “Well, it works by-"

And this was how she spent the rest of the evening. And sure, this Sam and Max weren't the real ones, but it actually felt nice to be heard once. Besides, they didn't seem to be hostile, so it didn't look as if they would be dangerous. So yeah, they did end up convincing them of sitting down to talk about other projects, but it was okay. It's not like she was going back. Visiting them was a one-time thing, right?

[eldaryasharbinger]

just finished the third episode and here's my thoughts on it, I bet some of y'all will strongly disagree with me after the few posts I saw about it haha.

I personally will take the side of everyone else but Erika, I totally understand why she acted the way she acted but seriously guys you have to think that it's been 7 years and about 6 years since Lance started his "redemption". No one is insane, just like HuangHua said if we forgave Leiftan who was the same as Lance then why shouldn't we forgive him as well? Especially because HuangHua saw through him just like she did with both Leiftan and Chrome.

YES, his crimes were atrocious but let's not forget that Leiftan killed/injured lots of people as well

I saw a lot of people calling HuangHua stupid which I'll have to disagree with, her choice wasn't a bad one cause Lance is one of the most reliable warriors at the end of the day and he's done many things for the HQ, hasn't he?

Don't say "they should've tried to see things from Erika's perspective! She literally saw Lance killing Valkyon in front of her!!" cause the characters ALL said that it was as hard for them as it is for her to accept him, it's just that's been so long that now there isn't anything they can really do even if they wanted to (like Karren said) and they don't actually want to do anything because it's fine as it is.

Everyone was trying to make Erika understand but she was too blinded by hatred to even listen. I'm glad at the end she chills about it and starts to think rationally.

One thing that I'll have to say is that I agree with Erika when saying that they should treat her more like the adult she is, I didn't appreciate that Leiftan already knew about him while she was still in the dark.

When she met Lance at the market and did what she did I felt really sad for Lance. Don't get me wrong, I'm not making Erika the villain, just saying.

Also, I disliked Erika'a attitude in this episode, being all aggressive and angry but yeah it's ok since it wasn't her fault but the poison's (haha rabies goes brr)

I loved the interactions between Jamon and her, and I really enjoyed the night with Karren, Koori and the others.

Some people complained that nothing really happened but I liked the ""peace"" and ""good vibes"" we got from this episode, it was nice to go back and spend some time with our new and old friends.

Loved the interactions with Leiftan a lot, it's getting harder and harder to chose between his or Lance's route sigh,, He's been with me for 5 years... but Lance's character is very tempting (I don't want to make a second account)

overall I'm happy with how this episode went, it was nice

I've written so much I wonder if anyone's going to actually read this haha

[m143ui]

A MESSAGE TO THE PJO FANDOM

so hello friends on the other side

I understand some of the major concerns regarding characters like piper and the feather and hazels description but when you bring Leo and Reyna into the fucking conversation I have lost all respect.

ANYONE CAN BE ABUSED, ETHNICITY HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT

LATINO CHARACTERS

Reyna is not a negative stereotype, she isn't defined by being latina and neither is Leo, he isn't a stereotype simply because he’s latino and was abused. also him being called an elf was because he was short, which had nothing to do with him being latino. also the mamacita comment like y'all hide under the label “progressive” but ignore that mamacita has been a thing in Latin American communities for a fucking while. its not an insult dammit. its something that happens in our communities!!! its like saying muchacho y'all don't see men bitching about that.

also shocker I read the mamacita comment and I can proudly say I didn't go

“RICK YOU RACIST BITCH”

things that actually happen in communities aren't racist

and before any of y'all come at me with the usual you’re white excuse, hello friends im Peruvian and Paraguayan.

I don't think he’s perfect but bitching about characters like Leo which gave many of my Latin American friends hope for similar characters destroys your “listening to minorities” argument

also the lol “hes Mexican taco bad” argument like I live in Mexico we eat tacos like every fucking day. its literally a fact. and Leo isn't just defined as taco man.

believe it or not us latinos respect rick because he gave us role models and characters like us. we don't define a character by one line and instantly call discrimination. like yes a asian character can be snobby it has nothing to do with ethnicity. y'all are making this about ethnicity. an asian character can be anything, just like a white character or a black character or a gay character. people are not simply defined by their labels like ya’ll think. y'all are just a bunch of easily triggered snowflakes that can't live with that. they can be influenced but in the end labels are labels we are all human and should be treated as such.

LGBT REPRESENTATION

another thing Reyna was never officially a lesbian that was YOUR interpretation not riordans. IF HE DIDNT STATE IT , SORRY HONEY IT ISN’T CANON! I don't care about how she was “lesbian coded” if he didn't state it it isn't canon. 

I am so sick, as a lesbian, to see people use ALL QUEER DEATHS as a bury your gay tropes, what happened to seeing us as humans? why can't we be treated like any other character? if we die we die, it isn't always “haha gay evil boom death”. sometimes fully fledged characters have to die friends.

Nico isn't a bad gay character, he’s just a normal character who happens to be gay and has suffered major trauma. HIS TRAUMA WAS CAUSED BY HIS UPBRINGING, Nico isn't a 2000′s character, he’s from the 30′s, so obviously he woudn’t be perfect with his sexuality for gods sake it was the 30′s. the exact same thing happens with hazel, she isn't a modern black woman, she's a 30′s black woman. Nico’s coming out isn't him as a 21st century teen its from the time when the GOVERNMENT KILLED YOU FOR BEING GAY

also saying there are no lesbian characters? like wow look emmie and jo don't exist. Lavinia doesn't exist. poison doesn't exist. thanks fam you really make yourselves look smart here. simply because rick never said the word gay doesn't mean the gay characters don't exist friends. they are just labeled as what gay characters should be labeled as.... human.

LESBOPHOBIA & RACISM

im not educated in muslim or black culture so I won't mention characters like sam and hazel and piper because I respect and I am highly critical of what rick put in his books to describe these specific minorities.

HOWEVER saying rick is a lesbophobe, a homophobe, a racist a sexist cis guy is like do y’all wanna be taken seriously? use arguments don't hide behind words.

rick isn't a perfect writer but y'all really don't know how to criticise, y'all just hide behind big boy words and back it up with no evidence, just opinions.

rick doesn’t have the best minority rep out there but he is damn well trying and I respect that unlike all you fucking idiots.

SHIPS

now onto ships.... yay

frazel: im not gonna censor it like you pussies, believe it or not 13&16 year old relationships exist. they might not always be healthy but they exist. to deny this is to be stupid

solangelo:  another ship that is censored..the main argument I've seen is that it isn't developed and will isn't even a character... he was in last olympian and lost hero not my fault y'all have fish brains. I don't care if you dislike it but don't be like “ANYONE WHO SHIPS THIS IS AN ABUSIVE WHORE” like wow you always preach about accepting all ships and then throw this? also if you hate solangelo because of the “abuse” but ship percico like hi friends Nico is 4 years younger than Percy.. if y'all hate frazel because of the 3 year age difference y'all should hate this too.

CONCLUSIONS AND SHIT

not every character minority or otherwise is gonna be the way you want them to be, believe it or not any character can be anything, black characters can be loud, white characters can be loud. if they're only loud because “haha black” then THATS an issue not the simple existence of a loud black woman who has a loud personality.

y'all be here bitching about drew and I've never heard the asian perspective of this? just a bunch of black and white people telling asians they should be offended. was that just an uno reverse?

also last point stereotypes aren't always a negative thing and y'all need to get that in your heads.

anyway stay mad hoes <3

from a sane Peruvian <3

EDIT

I saw this beauty and had to comment on it

“having LGBT characters experience abuse and violence. nicos forceful outing rubs me the wrong way, especially because hes called a coward for being in the closet. its violent and kind of disturbing to make your gay character come out of the closet by force. maybe write better. additionally, alex's abusive father and subsequent homelessness because of her being trans is badly written.”

oh noooo gay characters can't deal with homophobia anymore ! like I can tell you have never been punched for being gay. is it bad to showcase how trans and gay ppl are 40% of homeless youth? or is even mentioning that discrimination? believe it or not some of us live in countries where people try to kill us. you have an advantage and it shows. about the coward thing... 

was FUCKING CUPID A GOOD CHARACTER? NO? I REST MY CASE. CUPID IS NOT SEEN AS A GOOD PERSON THEREFORE HE IS NOT A GOOD PERSON GET THAT IN YOUR THICK SKULLS.

 YOU HEARD IT HERE FOLKS LGBT FOLKS DONT GET FORCED OUT OF THE CLOSET 

#NEVER HAPPENS IN REALITY. 

JUST BECAUSE YOU WERENT FORCED OUT OF THE CLOSET DOESNT MEAN OTHER PEOPLE HAVE THAT SAME LUXURY. 

maybe stop spewing bullshit <3

(so I get that this scene can remind people of being outed and it can hurt them however this scene was never intended to be a good thing it literally says Nico is scared of facing his emotions)

EDIT NUMBER 2

oh boy rick really pissed off the snowflakes that I share a fandom with

“give Nico to the gays” no? he would be a femboy and they would yeet his trauma like ssrsly?

also hate rick? bitch no one is forcing you to read his tweets.

death of the author is such a toxic thing like the mans is alive boo he aint going nowhere..like What the fuck 

EDIT NUMBER 3

anyway final thoughts on this :

nico insn’t Uwu gay and its an insult to his character

Reyna is not a lesbian canonically (neither is Thalia)

Leo and Reyna are not racist

none of ricks characters are  written as insults to their communities

and if I see one more “but ....phobia/ ...ism I will do very illegal things

peace lol

RICK RIORDAN UPDATE:

congratulations rick antis! you have successfully harassed a  56 year old man into leaving social media! wow so progressive!!!! this totally won't backfire or anything!!!

all jokes aside all of you who harassed rick to the point of someone else taking over his social media should feel ashamed

[protag-rantaro]

"Confusion and Familiarity" Prologue [PART 4]

Written by the fantastic Mod Tai!

Ding Dong- Bing Bong!

A bell? Rantaro and Kirumi looked at the monitor in front of them and 5 little bears were sitting on the couch. 

"Everyone, make your way to the gym, please! The opening ceremony can finally begin" and with that the monitor turned black once again.

What the hell? what ceremony are they talking about?

It didn't took long for everyone to gather in the gym. Soon the chatting started and the gym became pretty lively.

"Hmm, it's pretty amazing seeing all 16 of us Ultimates gathered together" Kaito showed everyone his thumbs up with a carefree grin.

"Pardon me, but… we should be on our guard. We don't know if and when danger will strike" Keebo reminded everyone and the group became silent for a few seconds.

"D-Don't say that… I'm scared, so scared! I don't know… what to do..." Kokichi sniffed and Rantaro carefully watched him.

"You don't have to be scared! Atua will protect us all!" Angie smiled brightly and Kokichi's mood quickly changed.

"Ohhh, that's a relief! Pheew!!" Kokichi noticed Rantaro's stare and stuck his tongue out with a funny grimace. 

What a weird child. But in the end Rantaro couldn't help but laugh about the grimace.

"Seriously, is y'alls heads full of weed or somethin'? I'll whack them out of your skulls if you need me to!" Miu called out annoyed from all the noise and different chatter in the gym, but suddenly a loud, familiar noise could be heard in the gym and then huge robots appeared before us.

"Wow, Keeboy! Are you related to those monsters?" Kokichi pointed at those monsters with a mischievous grin. 

"O-Of course not! That's robophobic! Stop those comments right now, Kokichi!!" Keebo was angry and Kokichi was laughing, but the fear was clearly visible in everyone's eyes, even in Kokichi- and Keebo's eyes.

"These aren't monsters! These are Exisals!" one of the monsters- no, Exisals spoke. 

"They're highly mobile, bipedal weapons platforms" they continued proudly. "Weapons?" Someone called out from the back of the group with a panic.

"Alright, chill out, no need to panic… We're probably not in danger, because if they wanted to kill us, they would have done it by now" with that Rantaro casually walked over to the Exisals.

"You clearly want something, that's why you have the guns, right? Wait, let me guess… you're gonna force us to do something and if we don't do it...we will get hurt" Rantaro continued with a hand in his chin. "Well, you have our attention. So what do you want?"

"Huh, aren't you a clever guy..." Monosuke spoke in a mocking way.

"I will start! Listen up! Here is what we want you dumbasses to do-" 

"KILLING GAME" suddenly Monokid was cut off from Monodam, who didn't said anything until now.

"Hell yeah, It's a-"

"KILLING GAME" Monodam interrupted Monkid again.

"H-how DARE you, Monodam!" Monokid yelled angry and upset.

"Hey, if I-I heard him correctly-" Keebo whispered to himself.

"My sweet little cubs~" a new voice was echoing through the gym and Rantaro felt a shiver down his spine. 

"That voice!" Monophanie called out, the other cubs stopped fighting and the lightning in the gym shut off.

"I am the God of this world!" a new bear, similar to the Monokubs appeared on the stage.

"It's the one and only Monokuma! Nice to meet ya~!" He announced himself, ignoring all the confused looks from the students.

"Even when the prologue is going wayyy too long and is very tiresome to read and write- I will allow it, because you cubs are sooo cute!" Monokuma seemed like he talked with himself, but to be honest… who knows who he is talking too?

"Well, that may be, but I'm more concerned about the "Killing game" you have mentioned earlier" Rantaro walked up to the front, but Monokuma only chuckled mockingly.

""I want you students with your Ultimate-level talents to participate in my killing game!" Monokuma stared down on us, waiting for a reaction.

"Gentlemen not hurt people!" Gonta shouted,but Monokuma was unimpressed by that.

"The academy is surrounded by a huge wall. You can't escape and as long as we have the Exisals… you can't defy us. In other words I have the power of life and death over each and everyone of you! Muhahaha!" and again Monokuma laughed hysterical as if all of this was the funniest joke he ever heard.

"Y-You gotta be kidding me! Why would friends kill each other?! You're totally insane!" Tenko yelled with all her courage she possessed.

"... Who said you guys were friends? You are all enemies out to kill each other! But the point is that it's not enough to simply kill someone. You also have to survive the class trial" Monokuma talked very close to the microphone he was holding.

"What is the punishment if you get exposed in the so-called class trial" Kiyo asked and Monkuma smiled satisfied.

"Simple- it's an execution! If you do a crime, you get punished. That's the most basic rule-  up this is a Killing game so the punishment should be a bit more… permanent and that's all… so let's start this heart-pounding killing school semester already!"

"Ohh, before I forget- youre free to murder however you like too… stabbing, strangulation, poisoning and then we have: shooting, drowning, crushing your victim to death. I don't care, you can use any method you want and you can kill anyone you like… That should be all- I wonder how it will turn out, puhuuhuhuu~" Monokuma added and with that a big chaos started in the gym.

"Risking our life in a killing game… how absurd" Kiyo crossed his arms unimpressed from Monokuma's speech.

"Well, it doesn't seem like it will be boring, though!" Kokichi had this mischievous look on his face again and didn't seemed to be care at all.

"That- That has to be a lie, right? Right??" Tsumugi was trembling near the corner of the gym. She looked really scared.

It was so loud that Rantaro couldn't concentrate on who was talking in the first place. Impossible to keep track, he took a deep breath.

"We won't participate in your game, Monokuma! Nobody is interested in your game about killing or getting killed" Rantaro spoke up and Keade quickly joined him.

"Yes! We won't accept that! We will never accept that!"

"Well, as the headmaster it's my job to force you to play…but a resistance makes things always way more entertaining for everyone~"

What? Everyone? Who is he talking about? 

Rantaro thought for a second, but he got cut off by the squealing laughter from Monokuma and the Monokubs in the Exisals.

Everything is so messed up!

The academy is surrounded by a cage,

16 Ultimate students are trapped in this academy…

talking stuffed animals and deadly weapons.

new friends forced to play some kind of killing game!

and against our will… we became characters in this totally messed up story.

[burned-gucci]

(Your) Friendship Reaction: Friday Night With The Girls!

A fairly casual Friday night sleepover with your best friend(s)

Karina:

She had asked you to come over tonight to play games, eat, drink, sleep. Maybe some scary movies. However, the plan seemingly changed when showed up to her place and found her in the bathroom bleaching her hair with a box of burgundy hair dye on the sink in front of her.

Karina definitely isn't shy about dying her hair, she changes hair colors like one would change out a load of laundry. It feels like every time you see you she has a new hair color, so this really isn't new. It's also not new for her to switch plans last minute cause truth be told, she never knows what she wants to do until that moment hits and an idea springs into her mind.

As she continued bleeching her hair, you hoped up on the sink counter and watched her while you talked. She said you could use her nail polish, mess with her makeup, do whatever you wanted. Play whatever music you wanted. If you liked, she even offered to dye your hair as well since she has plenty. It was up to you!

You guys ended up talking about a number of things. Discussing the latest episode of your favorite tv series and guessing what would happen next using logic from what has happened thus far. She laughed at random jokes and lines you repeated from the show, knowing exactly what scene you were refering to as she commented back with the next line. Afterwards y'all talked music videos, celebrities you both like and dislike maybe. Filled each other in on the news (celebrity or politics). Once the bleach was in and her hair was held up in a plastic bag, she went to grab her keys so you could both go grab some food, she let you choose the place.

It was always kinda weird how shameless she is but at the same time, her confidence about it is inspiring and one of her best qualities. Anywho, hoping in her broken apart damaged black car that no-one knows how it's still running, Karina drove you guys to the restraunt and put in your order picking up the food and driving back JUST in time for her to wash out her hair.

You ate as she washed her hair and attempted to eat little bites of her food as she applied the hair coloring, not wanting to waste time in between. As you low-key called her gross and made jokes you still helped her eat while feeding her little bites of food, teasing her sometimes and making her chase the fork/spoon/iteam. Overall, the eating process was full of laughing and her threatening to dump the hair dye on you just for you to threaten dipping her food in the hair color changing soup in return.

As her hair dye had to sit in for 45 minutes, the two of you watched music videos and played kids monopoly, or jenga. As they're the only games she currently owns! Karina being the not-so-well-focused girl that she is, ended up losing for silly reasons. In jenga she lost because she didn't realise 2/3 of the blocks in the middle row had already been pulled out, since she was eyes glued on the video, and she ended up pulling the last block and knocking the whole tower over in the process. During monopoly she simply had bad luck of sitting in jail throughout half of the game, allowing you to buy the majority of the properties. The other half the game she was paying you and the bank causing her to go bankrupt with only one or two properties being owned by her.

After the game you end up helping her wash out and dry her hair upon her endless begging you to just for her in the end to decide she isn't sure how she feels about this color. After spending about 4 hours total on her hair, she kinda wishes it was still black but she decides to leave it anyways. Insisting she'll clean up the bathroom mess tomorrow (she won't) she pulls you back to the living room and puts on your favorite movie for you guys to watch in the backround while sharing random stories back and forth.

Ciara:

Ciara isn't entirely sure why she invited you over at night knowing well enough she isn't a night time person. She's usually asleep before 11pm. However, she's really missed hanging out with you lately and your presence alone gives her so much energy and makes her happy.

When you arrived, she was eating a bowl of cheerios and drinking some gatorade while scrolling through instagram looking at denim skirts. The first thing she said to you as you walked inside the house was 'what do you think of this?' As she held her phone up to show you a light blue denim knee length skirt with a yellow sunshine on the bottom right side. You gave your opinion on it as you sat across from her at the table. "You're welcome to the kitchen. I don't care what you eat as long as I don't have to make it." She pointed towards the kitchen as she continued to scroll. Almost dropping the phone in her bowl of milk, as you made your choice on what to do, Ciara ended up slapping the phone back at herself and hitting herself in the face with it. Laughing and half crying, she placed the phone on the table and held her nose. "Maybe I should put that down for now!" She stated fairly loudly before getting back to her food.

After eating and placing the dishes in the sink for her to wash later, Ciara headed to her room with you close behind. Forgetting she had washed her sheets earlier, Ciara had to now make her bed. She asked you for help putting the bottom sheet on, let you choose your own blanket from the closet, she made the rest of the bed half efforted. Wrinkles covered the sheets and the pillows were simply thrown at the top of the bed but she didn't care much since you guys were both going to be laying in it immediately anyways!

Crawling into bed to lay on the side closest to the window, Ciara situated herself before tapping the bed beside her for you to lay down. Knowing you well enough, she handed you a book you love/turned the tv onto your favorite channel and let you do your own things as she scrolled through instagram once again occasionally asking for your opinion on certain clothing iteams.

If you have any to share, she listened to you share your thoughts, about whatever was on your mind. She gave her advice and shared her honest opinions in return. If you just wanted to lay there and watch your show/read your book she was fine with that too. She just wanted to be with you and hang together. Not necessarily do something together, that's what tomorrow is for!

At some point, your unsure of when, she managed to fall asleep facing the wall using her arm as a pillow, her actual pillow tossed to the foot of the bed. She was curled up halfway in a ball half stretched out, taking up half the bed space. She looked peaceful, almost dead she was so still and quiet, but peaceful.

Monse:

She had everything planned out! Dinner: Taco Bar! She made different kinds of main fillings based on your tastes and hers. Included little things she knows you love and she set the table up in a very aesthetic and neat way. Drinks: at the store she made sure to buy a few of your favorite drinks as well as a case of water. She also made homemade punch using sherbet ice cream and 7up/Sprite. Outfits: She had your guys matching Marvel/DC robes ans pj sets pulled out and on her bed. Hers was a Nebula/Poison ivy (depending on which one you prefer) set while yours was Gamora/Harley Quinn (dending).

Once you got there, you guys would eat then change. As you ate, she asked all about your day, let you rant and get everything off your cheat if need be. She told you what you wanted to hear and what you needed to hear as you guys discissed several topics. After eating she let you use the bedroom/bathroom to get ready first while she cleaned up the mess before going to change her own clothes and get ready for bed.

Afterwards, she set up the table with posterboard, construction paper, assorted art supplies, ect because tonight you guys will be making your own board game! Whether it be a toally made up game based on shared thoughts between you two or a remake of an already owned and made game. EX.: Marvel/DC based monopoly. Twister using memes. Your own version of battle ship or LIFE. Whatever it may be!

As you both divided up the jobs of who does what parts and as you agreed upon one main idea for the game/gave ideas for the game, Monse played your guys 'Alien Dreamz' playlist AKA the music playlist you guys made last time you spent the night. The whole time y'all were making the game she kept making really bad puns. As she was measuring the cardboard she came up with 'whos the King of school supplies? The RULER!' Before laughing at her own joke. She asked: 'Whats a frogs favorite art supply? Ribbon-t, Ribbon-t' and actually sounding like a frog as she cut ribbon for decoration. The list is endless honestly.

While working on your guys project, between her bad jokes, she complimented you on random things that she genuinely adores about you. Like how pretty/handsom/cute you look when you're focused. Or how she loves the way your hands look as you use a pair of scissors. How soft your eyelashes look. How much she loves your laugh/singing voice. Ect. If you compliment her back, she'll blush and giggle feeling shy but so happy under the surface.

Eventually, she gets really tired and asks if your ready to go to bed saying y'all can finish the game in the morning. You end up laying on the bed she made on the floor out of twelve dozens blankets and pillows, stuffed animals and sheets. While you lay together you share a bowl of popcorn/snack of your choice while watching the Simpsons or any tv show you want if you don't like the Simpsons. She tries so hard to wait for you to fall asleep first so you won't feel lonely but she was so tired she ended up falling asleep a few minutes before you do.

Question of the Day:

Can you/do you stay up late or fall asleep at a decent/early hour?

My Answer:

Depends on the day! Some nights I'm asleep at 7pm some times I can stay up for 80+ hours. It just depends!

[antwine69]

Beetlejuice x Male!Reader in denial

I wanted to write more fanfic-y type stuff so here y'all go!

Also, sorry for inconsistent uploads, haven't had the most creativity lately aaa-

Male Reader!

Fluff with a little bit of angst

°•~☆ ○ ☆~•°

You sighed, faceplanting into your bed, crawling onto it fully and curling up. A sigh escaped you as you turned to face the door, watching it like a hawk, searching for any signs that somebody might be wanting to come in. You had just been in an argument with your best friend, and involuntary "roomie", Beetlejuice over something very trivial. He had been blabbering about this chick and how hot she was and that she was totally into him, and you had just gotten so jealous out of nowhere. You had yelled at him to just shut up about it, and he'd just been... so chill about it. Like it was no big deal that he was talking about girls. ``I thought you liked girls?`` he had asked. The question still stuck, ringing in your ear and sending a disgusting feeling to the deepest depths of your stomach. You buried your face in your hands, giving a low groan. You liked girls, just.. Not in the way you should. You liked them as friends and thought they were great and smart and amazing, but you didn't like them in the way all other guys did. Especially Beetlejuice, it seemed. He'd constantly talk about girls to you like some sort of weird bonding ritual, and you always played along, but you just couldn't do it this time. For some reason, this was the straw that broke the camel's back, or however the saying went.

Suddenly, an almost hesitant knock capme at your door. You sat up and touched a hand to your face. No tears, luckily. ``Y/N?`` an all too familiar raspy voice sounded from the other side of the door. You let a cold poison seep into your voice as you answered. ``Yes?`` your voice was a lot more meek than you'd like it to be, but you ignored it, staring daggers at the door. ``I'm coming in, Y/N. You'd better not be nude again!`` The demon replied, a sort of joking tone to the second statement. Just because he had walked in on you once when you had just gotten out of the shower. Once! It wasn't your fault that he didn't know the meaning of the words personal space. Beetlejuice slowly opened the door, and upon seeing you fully clothed and in your bed, opened it fully and stepped inside. At least he learned his lesson with the whole not just barging into your room thing. You scanned him for a quick second, him kind of awkwardly standing there looking a bit aloof. He was wearing his tie very loosely and his jacket was off, probably in the living room somewhere. It was clear that he was confused and a bit troubled by the current situation. You knew that he didn't do well with feelings, and a light sting of regret rushed through you. You had been a bit mean back there. ``You wanna tell me what the fuck happened back there?`` he asked, his voice soft and actually a bit concerned. You just gave him an "I don't want to talk about it" look, turning a bit away from him. He sighed lightly, walking over to the bed and sitting down a bit away from you. ``If you don't tell me I won't... Improve?`` the demon seemed to struggle to find words, pausing and re-thinking. You let him take his time, you owed him as much. You knew he didn't care a lot for bettering himself, so him using the word improve was a nice surprise. ``It's nothing, Lawrence.`` you replied, bringing your legs up onto the bed, sitting criss-cross applesauce on the duvet. You didn't even have to look at him to know that he was taken aback by you using his first name. You only did that when you were mad. Honestly, you probably got mad at him too much. It just sort of hurt to listen to him talk about all the girls that were so into him, when you couldn't relate.

``Y/N, just... Tell me if I did something wrong. I promise I won't do it again! Just stop ignoring me!`` the demon said after a little while of painful silence. His voice was a bit panicked, you finally giving in to your soft spot for the demon. You were just friends, though! You didn't like guys. You just hadn't found the right one yet. But, as time went you started to believe that you'd never find the right girl. ``It's just that...`` you started,, taking a deep breath. You were really gonna do this, huh? ``You talk about all these girls and I can't... I can't relate. You always say that they want you and that you want them but I just don't.. I don't see it.`` You had started turning to him while you talked, but never looked him in the eyes. You couldn't bring yourself to it. You could feel Beetlejuice's gaze on you, though. He must think that you were disgusting. ``Girls are great but I don't like them like you do... The only thing I have in common with them is that I like you. I mean- You know what? You think I'm weird already, so let's just go for it. Okay, I think I like you, and it's weird and wrong and you most definitely don't like me because I'm a guy-`` you got cut off by Beetlejuice putting a hand on your shoulder, giving a smile. ``And I'm Bi.`` he replied, looking you in the eyes, excitement filling your eyes. Suddenly you just burst out laughing, the adrenaline of this while situation getting to you. He crawled up to you and wrapped his arms around you, enveloping you in a hug. You laughed into his chest, wrapping your arms around him. He looked down at you, you meeting his gaze. He gave a chuckle and dragged a thumb across one of your cheeks, wiping away a tear. Were you crying? Eh, it didn't matter. ``There's nothing wrong with this, Okay, Babes?`` he said, his voice soft, if a bit stern. ``Don't ever let anybody shame you for who you love, and if they do, they'll have to deal with me, Your super awesome, very scary and dashingly handsome boyfriend.`` he added, a joking tone slipping back into his voice. You burst out laughing yet again, hugging him a bit tighter. ``You're such a doofus, you know that, right?`` you laughed, him just laughing along. Yea he was a doofus, but he was your doofus. Your.. Boyfriend. You smiled at the word, snuggling into him as your laughter died down again. It didn't take long before Beetlejuice got restless, though. ``You wanna come downstairs and watch a movie? I've heard of this great one called "The Lion King" or whatever. Not a horror movie, but I've heard it's good.`` he asked, seemingly a bit nervous. You smiled and nodded, reluctantly letting go. You knew this would be difficult to adapt to, but as long as Beetlejuice stayed by your side, you knew it was going to be okay. It was all going to he okay.

°•~☆ ○ ☆~•°

Woop! That was a bit longer than I thought it would be aaa-

Hopefully y'all liked it! If you have any requests or ideas you would like to see, feel free to send it in! I don't bite!

Okay, see y'all in the Neitherworld! Peace!

[blessyourheartdharps]

And Then There Were Two || Max&Dani

Who: Max Souza @maxellissouza & Dani Harper

When: Tuesday, 07/24/18 - After 9 pm

Where: The Pub

What: Max and Dani decide to keep drinking after Abel leaves

Notes: alcohol || continuation of Three Mopes At A Pub

Dani huffed and watched him walk out, shaking her head before making a beeline for the bar. She ordered a double shot of Fireball and downed it, before she headed back to the table, her senses still burning. She sighed, picking up the whiskey Max had given her and sipping it. "So, pretty boy, like it?" As much as she wanted to be angry, leave and go home, tear Abel a new one, it wouldn't do them any good, not tonight. They both had things they needed to drown but they needed to do it in different ways. She'd promised herself she wouldn't add to his shit and if this was how she had to do it, then so be it.

Max hesitated, keeping his glass close to his lips. "I... Should we like, go after him? Make sure he gets home okay?" He felt bad, continuing to just sit here and drink while the guy was clearly feeling miserable.

"No, he needs the space. Been going through a lot. This was for me and he doesn't want to fuck that up." She sighed. "Now, I do believe I asked you a question, pretty boy. I do want an answer." She raised her eyebrow at him, trying her best to not give in to the urge to leave and go home. Dani knew Abel needed room to breathe, at least for the night, but she didn't want to give it to him.

Max nodded, deciding not to press the issue. "Like what? The drink? Being called 'pretty boy'? Because yes, and yes." He grinned and took another sip, finishing off the drink. "I'm starting to get all loopy, and it's awesome."

Dani laughed a bit, shaking her head as she sipped the whiskey. "Glad to hear it." She smiled as he finished off the drink. "Now if only my taste in women was as good as my taste in alcohol. Though, I would be careful with those, particularly if you don't want that Rubix cube Uber you were talkin' bout."

"Hey, if you're into strippers at all, I could hook you up with some great ladies. Or, you know, myself, if you're ever interested in experimenting." Max pouted a little at her warning, ordering another drink from a passing waiter. "Ah, I'll be fine, I can always stand outside until a cab comes by, that's the beautiful thing about this city."

"I ain't into anyone right now. I meant what I said, I'm staying away from women, for the foreseeable future. I can't deal with another relationship. And until I get my living situation under control, I ain't lookin for hookups either." She finished the whiskey and ordered an angry orchard, deciding she needed something that wasn't hard liquor. "Still, pretty boys like you gotta be careful, and besides, I sure as fuck ain't lettin you get so bad off you gotta do that. If I gotta order you an Uber, I order you an Uber."

"That's fair. I don't think I could every not hookup, though, I like sex too much." Max shrugged again and took a long sip of his drink. "You'd do that for me? Aw, you're too kind, really. I don't know how I ever lived without you." Max laughed and patted Dani's hand, leaning back in his seat again. "So. Tell me some hot gossip. I feel like I'm at a girl's night out or something."

"I get off well enough with my toys, no need for another person." Dani shrugged a bit, rolling her eyes. "Think it's a southern thing, or maybe I just tell myself that." She laughed a bit and sat back, taking a sip of her drink. "Where you expect me to get gossip from? I ain't been in town long enough. Unless you want stories from the last time I was here."

Max chuckled, spreading his legs out under the table. "Maybe, because people from Philly are mean as fuck. I don't know, just any kind of gossip is good. I could tell you some, but the majority of it is just a long list of guys who want to cheat on their wives with me."

"For a ladies night, we have the worst posture." She commented with a laugh. "I wouldn't know. I ain't got gossip. I got stories, but I ain't got gossip. So either you spill or you accept a story. Though, I'm not even sure if any of em are worth anything to you."

"Yeah, my mom's always telling me I'm going to have terrible back problems when I'm older. But that's a future Max problem." He shrugged, sticking his finger in his drink to mix it. "I'll take a story. Also some nachos." Max looked around for the waiter. "Do you think they have nachos here? "

"Fuckin everything you do in life is gonna fuck your back up. Don't matter what you do, might as well be comfortable." Dani took a sip of her drink, eyeing Max over the rim for a bit. "I have no idea on the nachos, but you could ask?" She thought for a moment, trying to think of what she could possibly tell. "Well, what kind of story would you like? You seemed awfully interested in my love life yesterday. Or there's random stranger stories, or roller derby. Pick your poison."

"You are so right!" Max raised his glass in a mini-toast for Dani's statement. "Do you think I could flirt my way into getting a waiter to go get us some? Like, from a place down the road, if not from here?" He took a sip and shrugged, looking at the waiters to try and figure out which one would most likely be into him. "Love stories. Those are my favorites."

Dani laughed, shaking her head. "You could always try and if not, we go for a walk and get fuckin nachos." She sipped her drink, thinking. "I mean, I only had one girlfriend worth noting. Not saying the others before her weren't nice, but she's the only one I managed to write music about. So I'm not sure what kind of story I even have worth telling, 'cept the break up, really. And that's just depressing."

"You are so smart. So smart and so wise." Max shook his head slowly, in admiration. "You're telling me someone broke your heart? You, Dani? The girl who's so hot that she breaks hearts just by existing?"

Dani shook her head, laughing at his words. "No, I'm just not as drunk as you are." She sighed. "I wasn't who she wanted. At the end of the day, there was someone who held her heart and all I really did was help her along til she realized that. She's made quite a life for herself and I'm happy for her."

Max frowned, shaking his head again. "That's not right. You don't deserve that. And she's probably miserable without you. If i had knew any single lesbians, I'd totally send them your way. But all I know is my cousin Santana, and she's married, so." He shrugged and finished off his drink, slowly standing up. "I'm off to get us some nachos, be right back."

Dani stared at Max, blinking for a bit. How the fuck? What kind of small world bullshit? Granted, she knew way too many people who lived in New York that were from Lima, Ohio but the fact this random, adorable, pretty boy was related to her ex girlfriend, it was a bit much. She didn't really know what to say and found herself simply nodding when he mentioned going to get nachos, suddenly becoming far to interested in her drink.

Max came back a few minutes later, a small plate of nachos in his hands. "Ta-da! Don't ask how I got them, because it's not as interesting as you think." He sat back down across from Dani and nudged the plate towards her. "Okay, you wore me down, they sell them here."

Dani laughed a bit when he returned, shaking her head, still trying to comprehend everything now going through her head. "I figured as much." She leaned forward and set her drink down, picking up a nacho and taking a bite. "So, you ever get around to listening to Stone Cold? Cause if not this story ain't worth anythin."

Max dug into the nachos, giving Dani a confused look. "The ice cream? Wait, no. That's Cold Stone, right?" He smirked and shook his head, wiping his hand on a napkin. "Kidding. Yes, I listened to it. It nearly made me cry, honestly. You're so talented. Like, for real. Not just because I think you're hot."

Dani shook her head, rolling her eyes at his joke, a smirk on her face. "Okay but now I want ice cream, you're a bitch, but we knew that." She laughed a bit, taking another bite of nachos. "Well, that was written about the fact one Santana Lopez broke up with me after a trip back to Lima fuckin Ohio, when she realized she was still in love with her now wife. So... I've got an inkling you aren't the only one in your family that song made emotional. You're also not the only one in your family who can say they've hit on me." She laughed, shaking her head. "Your cousin sure has a thing for blondes..."

Max stared at Dani with wide eyes, as it took way too long for her words to sink in. "No way, that's my cousin's na- ohhh." He winced, feeling awkward. "Shit. Sorry about that.  That's really shitty. But you have to admit, my family has great taste, right?" He looked down at the nachos. "But, yeah... sorry."

Dani watched as it all processed through his head, laughing a bit. "Don't be sorry, hun. I got over her a long time a go. Love is fuckin weird and I ain't gonna hold that against anybody. Like I said, I'm happy for her, and her wife, and the life she's built. I ain't got a reason not to be." Dani shrugged. "Y'all really do, even if you don't like whiskey."

Max nodded, chewing on his lip a little. "Do you want to hear an embarrassing story? It might make you feel better."

Dani raised an eyebrow, looking at him carefully. "Not if it'll make you feel worse, darlin. I'm alright, really. Gotta admit, the look on your face was kind of worth it."

"No, that's okay, I'm over it now, and I discovered a passion for something in the process, so..." He shrugged and looked back up at her. "I'm sure it was pretty funny, I know I make goofy faces sometimes."

"Oh? Do tell then." She smiled, taking a sip of her drink and sitting back in her chair again. "Maybe one of these days I'll see more of them."

"If you're lucky." Max chuckled and took another sip. "So. Basically..." He sighed, sitting up a little straighter. "A couple years ago, my friends and I went to Sassy Nights, for one of their birthdays. I got a lap dance from this absolutely gorgeous woman. I fell for her instantly. The next day I came back, and applied for a job to get closer to her, only to find out that she was married." He shrugged and finished his drink. "What are you gonna do?"

Dani rolled her eyes at his comment but said nothing. As he continued she raised her eyebrows, laughing a bit. "And I thought I was a mess. Damn, pretty boy." She finished off her drink and sighed. "I mean, I've fallen for plenty of straight women and done stupid shit to get closer to them, but takes the cake."

Max smiled and pushed his drink aside. "Yeah, it was pretty humiliating. Luckily I moved on, but... it did sting, for a few days there. So, if that makes you feel better, a member of the Lopez family has gotten their heart broken before."

Dani shook her head, laughing. "Not really, but it was a funny story." She looked at her empty glass and scrunched up her face. "We wanna get out of here? I feel like if I'm here much longer I'll just drink until I can't remember my own name and that's far more depressing than I want to be tonight."

Max nodded and stood up, leaving some cash on the table for a tip. "Are you trying to pick me up? Because I don't know how Santana would feel about that." He winked at her and held his arm out. "Come on, I'll be a gentleman and get you home, and not even ask for a goodnight kiss. But, I mean, if you want to give me one anyway, I wouldn't, you know, hate it."

Dani laughed, standing, also tossing some cash onto the table, linking her arm with his. "I'm tryin to make sure a pretty boy gets home safe, is all." She smiled, rolling her eyes. "If you keep talkin pretty I might just give you a kiss on the cheek, but we'll see."

"Uh-huh, sure." Max teased Dani, leading her out of the bar. "Then I'll make sure to talk the most beautiful talk you've ever heard, my dear."

She shook her head, laughing, letting Max lead her out of the bar. "We'll see how you do. I'm hard to win. Mind going for a walk? I'm not entirely ready to head home, honestly."

"You can stay over at my place, if you want." Max looked over at her as he walked, or more accurately, stumbled, down the sidewalk. "I have a pull-out couch. I won't try any funny business, promise."

"How far from here you live? Cause I definitely think if anyone is takin anyone home, I'm takin you." She laughed, doing her best to not trip as he stumbled. "Cause pretty boy you are drunk. And I think your cousin's wrath is enough to keep you from even thinkin of it and I can definitely take you on in this state."

"You could take me on if I was fully sober, I think." Max laughed and looked around at the buildings, trying to remember how far they were from his place. "Uh.... like... two miles, I think.”

"This is true." She looked over at him and raised an eyebrow. "Okay, which direction? Or should we just order an Uber and let them get us there?"

"Uh..." Max pulled his phone out of his pocket and handed it to her. "Uber. But you need to do it for me. Passcode is 1234. And my address is in there under my contact info."

"Alright." She took the phone and, after trying her best to get an approximate location, for where they were, she ordered the Uber and led him over to a wall. "We've got like ten minutes to kill 'fore it gets here, might as well chill for a bit."

Max smirked and stood against the wall, leaning in closer to Dani. "I can do a lot in ten minutes, you know..."

Dani laughed, rolling her eyes. "Being a naughty pretty boy, are you?"

Max chuckled and nodded, leaning away from her again., looking up at the tall buildings. "I feel like now would be a perfect time to smoke a cigarette, but I don't smoke."

Dani laughed, following his gaze. "Yeah, I feel you. I love this city at night, it's so different from Mississippi. The chaos of it all, brings me peace."

"It's not all that different than Philly, though in some ways it is, I guess." Max hummed, closing his eyes. "I wouldn't make it anywhere but a city, I don't think. I'd get too bored."

"Never been, myself so I wouldn't know." She looked down at his phone, keeping an eye on the Uber, just in case it picked up time someplace. "Most people wonder how I thrive in both places. How I can take the city and it's chaos just as well as the slow moving reality of a small town and honestly, I don't know, but I do."

"You're a woman of many talents, Dani." Max glanced over and gave her a small smile. "Adjusting to different climates is just one of them."

"How is it you talk pretty even when you're drunk? It's truly unfair." Dani nudged his shoulder gently with a laugh. "I wouldn't call it a talent. I just know how to work at different speeds. I learned how to channel my energy the right way, is all."

"What can I say? It's one of my talents. Smooth talk and the ability to move our hips in ways that are pleasing to the eye are just two things that members of my family are born with." Max's smile grew, bumping his shoulder back against hers.

Dani laughed, shaking her head, looking down at Max's phone in her hand. "I'm fully aware of this. And the Uber is almost here. Should be here any second." She looked towards the street, just as a car matching the description on Uber showed up. "Speak of the devil."

[mobius-prime]

103. Knuckles the Echidna #15

The Chaotix Caper (Part Three of Three): Picking Up the Pieces

Writer: Ken Penders Pencils: Manny Galan Colors: Barry Grossman

This issue kicks off with a rather disgusting series of panels showing the surgeon at the hospital from an unconscious Charmy's point of view, as he cuts into him and weird blue-purple… blood? sickness liquid? squirts out of him onto the surgeon's mask. The surgeon proceeds to go vomit, but at least before that he lets his assistants, and therefore us, know that Charmy is going to make it. Uh… thanks, I guess?

From there, we immediately jump back into Julie-Su's predicament. As she falls, she pulls out a grappling hook gun and shoots it upward, catching herself just in time to swing toward the building she was thrown from and crash through a window.

Bimmy will never believe her.

On her way out, Julie-Su runs into Remington, who has run inside to look for her. Together they rush back to Harry's cab and yell at him to "follow that car," so they can find out where Ebony and his crew are headed. Ebony's plans, as we hear him yell into the phone, are to shut down the operation and lay low until the heat has died down. Meanwhile, back in the hospital, the rest of the Chaotix are happy to hear that Charmy is okay after his surgery, but immediately find they have more pressing concerns on their plate.

How Vector managed to effortlessly tune into the police radios we may never know, but as they head out to find Julie-Su and Remington to give them a hand, the two in question sneak into Ebony's base of operations, knocking out a few guards on the way in. They get to the center of the place in time to see Ebony's supplier being a total idiot and not listening to his boss' orders, something which we know Ebony isn't afraid to kill people over. Seriously, blue-nosed red weasel dude, you're walking a fine line here.

That's… ugh. That’s just not how drug deals work, man. At least I'm gonna go ahead and assume that's not how they work. I don't have experience with this kind of thing, but dosing everyone on the island up like this just seems like a recipe for disaster. How long until people start wondering why the inhabitants of the island are all painfully addicted to some random chili dogs in a random theme park? Y'all have already accidentally killed at least one person with this scheme and now the police are on your tail. Great work, assholes. Outside the base, the Chaotix arrive to find Harry waiting on the scene like the secretly sweet and helpful guy he is. With a gun!

Inside, Julie-Su and Remington are foolish enough to not wait for any backup, and instead accidentally clang around while sneaking, causing Ebony to immediately draw a gun and demand they come out, complete with the whole "we can do this the easy way or the hard way" schtick. Remington tries to knock Ebony's bodyguard out with a blow to the head, but only succeeds in getting himself knocked aside instead. Ebony, in response, starts firing wildly into the air at nothing in particular, and Julie-Su jumps down from her hiding place with apparently no plan of action beyond that. Ebony, after a moment's surprise at her survival, prepares to shoot her directly in the head as she stands in front of him unarmed. Seriously, girl, what were you thinking?

Good thing for you that Espio is here to save your ass! With the help of the Chaotix, they're able to subdue the criminals successfully, including grabbing the random fox lady Ebony's had on his arm this entire time, who speaks for the first time with what I assume is meant to be a Boston accent and is basically the "mob boss' lady friend" stereotype. It's honestly unnecessarily stereotypical, with every criminal being a roughed-up male and the only female being the status symbol trophy girlfriend to the male leader, but whatever. We already know Kenders has a complicated relationship with feminism.

Good choice, Renfield! Although if we're being honest, Remington should have arrested him anyway, cause yeah, he definitely made the main calls that resulted in Mello's death and everyone else's poisoning.

We get one final look at what Knuckles has been up to, of course with Locke and Sabre watching his every move. He wishes out loud to go home, and immediately a golden tunnel of light forms in front of him, which he walks directly into.

It disappears with him inside in a flash of light, leaving Locke and Sabre to discuss worriedly what such a grand display of accidental power might mean, ultimately figuring that they should bring the matter before the "entire Brotherhood." But enough of that! Now that everything is mostly over on the Floating Island, the Chaotix and Julie-Su escort a healed-up Charmy back to the Goldenhive Colony, his home. He tearfully greets his parents and little sister, and then attends Mello's funeral, having brought his friend's body back home. It turns out he's planning to stay and claim his birthright after all.

The Chaotix and Julie-Su attend his belated acknowledgement ceremony, Charmy has made up with his family and accepted his role, and all is well! Next arc, we'll be back to following Knuckles, but we have more of Sonic and Tails' adventures in between then and now.

[mr-kamiyama]

So I went to a store called Dollar Store today. Next to the name, it said "1.25$ and up." Most items had no price, and were actually 1.75$ Even the saleslady seemed to realise how disingenuous it was, and I bought nothing.

See my last post--the dollar has been in freefall for decades.

It's not just that store. 99Cents Only stores have also not only shrunk the size of their 99 cent goods (e.g., cream cheese went from a normal 12 oz. pack to somewhere between five and eight ounces. I haven't been in one in a while), but now sell many goods at the 1.99$ (aka 2$) and 2.99$ (3$) price points, and even higher.

At this point, I think calling them "dollar stores" is just false advertising. Call them Value Shops or Bargain Shops (which the reason all supermarkets can claim to have the best value, an advertising trend that began in the '60s, is because things like "best value" are vague and completely subjective) But calling them dollar stores, even if they can legally get away with it, much the same way F*X News can legally get away with that just being a name even if it's just a mix of handwringing about how dare poor people have refridgerators and blatant white supremacists, and say "oh, that's just a name," it is just *false.*

I get where companies like BP are going with different brands of gas station marketed as different lifestyle brands ( e.g. Amoco appeals to the muscle car crowd, AM/PM is relaxed West Coast and always there with coffee, day or night, etc) Lifestyle branding isn't something that can be true or false, just like you can have a depressive disco dancer or a ridiculously optimistic and bubbly punk rocker.

But when you're blatantly misrepresenting the type of product you sell, like "dollar stores" have become or F*X News may have always been ( they definitely are now, but I don't know if they were always like this or not), there really needs to be a line drawn that prevents this.

The Better Business Bureau used to, and had its teeth taken out to save abusive and tyrannical megacorps like Wal-Mart, Papa John's, or McDonald's (McDonald's in America is *evil* to its employees, explanation because they're global, and in some countries, their behaviour would be instant corporate suicide)

I dunno if they'd have domain over media. I mean, you can easily find the racism and lies that newspapers spread about internment camps for Japanese Americans, but it also remained uncontested. Even today, racism against Asians is totally cool with the rest of y'all. And y'all smother our voices and gang up to gaslight us when we do speak out. So I can't really look at that and ascertain anything from it.

But my main point is that while yes, advertising in its particular modern shape of things like lifestyle branding was actually literally Freud's nephew experimenting with peacetime uses for propoganda, it's not like Pepsi associating itself with hip youthfulness makes it any less of a cola. It's the advertisers trying to get you to associate a certain feeling with their product. But it doesn't make their product any less what it is or alter the actual product in any way. It's deceptive in a way, if you lack any sort of critical thinking, I guess, because I can drink Pepsi until I'm passed out from sugar spike, but I'll never bring my hairline back to where it was ten years ago or not have arthritis again?

But they're also not actually claiming a youth serum or anything, so I guess it's more like going to a roller rink looking for what you felt in your local one in '82.

But all these so-called "dollar stores," which mostly used to actually be "everything is a dollar," since the branding is considered to mean that, even though it's arguably legacy naming, it's not that anymore, and so, I find it deceptive enough to cross a line. Just like F*x News, which is entirely bigoted hot-takes and not actual news.

(Note that I'm not saying that decieving about what you sell and Nazism are equated, but that both have names that lure people in by easily disproven falsehoods. That's why I'm comparing. Not a whole lot does that. I'm really just putting this here because most of the English internet is made of bad faith actors who will deliberately twist others' words)

There really needs to be something done about outright easily proven deception to lure people in. Even if we consider the legacy branding aspect of the stores at hand, it's just no longer true, and they really need to rename to "Bargain Shops" or something.

But even if it's somehow just too gosh darn hard for people to, yanno, not hate everyone who's not exactly like them to care about the people making your McDonald's orders or people dying of blood poisoning like it's 1803 because of lack of insurance, people generally want stuff that's not made to break and be irreparable after two years. When I tell young people about the shrine to 1987 I live in and all of this stuff being made to be maintenanced and repaired, it always sounds so wonderful to them. And every repairman left is super depressed because buying a new unit is cheaper than bare cost of parts, and they can't complete. I don't think anyone's happy about modern technology being intentionally flimsy. Americans are also beginning to realise American food makers take more chance on variety in overseas markets. There are things the average American consumer is upset about, even if the treatment of the people who serve them isn't one of them.

But the US is just such an oligarchy. A few big companies rule everything and pay off the government like a mob.

So these companies can get away with luring us in with lies. And we're more split up, isolated than ever. I'm Gen X. We were eraced into the shadows. And I'm also Asian American and trans male, two other demographs that's happened to. Mixed is a fourth one I am. As I am pointing out,erasure of a demograph makes its members become very isolated. But I do see Millennials talking about being lonely and having trouble socialising a lot. So I think the movement of socialising to the internet did *something,* and it's actually a lot of people that are having trouble reaching out.

Never mind that 21st Century society's rule is "it's wrong to hate me but fun to hate my neighbour." Divides have gotten worse/become the rule rather than just oppressor Vs. all oppressed, and that *is* fed by social media. We should also be taking action against this! Even *I* get far-right v-logger recommendations on YouTube, and the only thing I use YouTube for is music that came out before any v-loggers were born! I watch zero v-logs. It tries to shove v-logs so massively known for being hate screeds that even *I* know those names are bad news, at me. We should be protesting Tumbler... doing a lot of things, and all sites letting Nazists flourish net-wide while I've literally seen some cartoon fish meme-style joke about white cops get people banned on Twitter.

But every so often, people do band together and still get something done. Remember the internet blackout? The "pipes" are still "dumb"!

Just like that post I have about the ways voting does still matter even though gerrymandering, rigged voter machines, etc., are all true, consumer action still matters.

But no one's ever listened to me, because I'm a mixed, Asian, immigrant, disabled, trans, ace Xer. No one wants to be forced to admit I exist. So you probably won't either. You would rather contend with a lousy hand than admit I'm right.

(I literally called the US The Ring when it came out, and subsequent similar movies "unnecessary blond hair versions" over a decade before people really started saying these things were "whitewashed." Just one example)

[wyrmguardsecrets]

To people complaining about Blood Elf RP.

**MOD NOTE: Placing this under a cut because jesus christ dude this shit was fucking long**

Dear players who continually complain about Blood Elves,

I came to Wyrmrest Accord from a dead server, completely alone, no contacts, no friends. I was elated to find a Silvermoon that actually had people in it, I moved my priest over before my main and sat on the edge of the fountain in Silvermoon while alt tabbed finishing my last night of raiding with a guild before transferring my main.

I tabbed back in to jump and noticed there were people roleplaying at me. My first roleplay experience on Wyrmrest Accord. It was a pair of Orcs who had come to Silvermoon specifically to antagonize and hate on Blood Elves. So here my dude was, sitting there minding his own business, gazing at the fountain, and being the recipient of hostility. What made so little sense about it was that they were antagonizing my character because there are too many Blood Elves in Silvermoon. I think my character gave them a look as if they were wearing their pants on their head because that’s like going to France and complaining that too many people are speaking French.

Over the years I’ve witnessed a non-stop bombardment, mostly from Orcs, Trolls, and Undead, but from everyone to a lesser extent, hating me despite not even knowing me simply because when I made a Blood Elf Paladin in Burning Crusade I found I like playing Blood Elves. I like their animations, I like their jokes, I like their voice actor who was also responsible for playing many characters I enjoyed on television when growing up. I liked their background story, being a zombie apocalypse survivor for whom the ends justify the means is really cool. What kind of pain, what kind of suffering must this character have gone through? How has he coped? How does he think, how does his experiences shape him? Who has he lost? How has he survived? That’s some nifty lore.

But this hate has come from all sides and is constant. I see it on Forums, Tumblr, Facebook when I bothered, Discord, OOC in chat channels, IC by people who have decided to come to Silvermoon just to pick on the elves. It’s everywhere and it’s inescapable. I watch as almost daily RPer bashes people for playing elves. Every. Day.

I’ve begun to just see images of indignant children shouting in shrill voices, “STOP LIKING WHAT I DON’T LIKE” and “STOP NOT LIKING WHAT I LIKE” when I read complaints about Blood Elves. And no, it doesn’t matter how you frame it, it’s still complaining.

You can try to frame it as a “diversity” issue but when push comes to shove you aren’t paying for anyone else’s subscription so you don’t really have a say in what they play. You could go to Blizzard and demand that they put a limit on the number of one class you can play but I can tell you right now that they will never enact such a limit. In reality we will probably see further relaxation on race/class choices as time goes on. When Blood Elves can be shamans and druids my Horde roster will consist entirely of Blood Elves.

And before you start questioning why I play Horde if I just want to be pretty, I’m going to point out that I’ve been playing Horde for a long time, probably longer than you, since November of 2003. I remember what it was like before Blood Elves, I remember the massive faction imbalance that Blood Elves helped solve. I remember how much harder it was to do things like Blackwing Lair with Shamans instead of Paladins, how we were stuck with Resto Shamans having to heal while not having the best class set allocations while having priests dispel on Baron Geddon while Alliance had their Paladins cleanse and their priests heal. I remember having to learn to stance dance to get out of fears while tanking Magmadar while Alliance had fear ward. Blood Elves and Paladins coming to the Horde was the absolute best game balancing step Blizzard has EVER taken.

I remember after Majordomo, we’d all kill our characters and corpse run back to the raid to go kill Ragnaros. Everyone would get naked and hop on domo’s hotplate. Everyone but me. I couldn’t stand the look of my main naked, so I ate a repair bill so I didn’t have to look at the shriveled hunched body of a male troll as I ran naked across the Searing Gorge. The shape of the male troll reminded me of haunting photos I had seen of emaciated people (“Muselmänner”, living corpses) rescued from Auschwitz. Even though trolls are buff, their mass compred to their length and their posture was just too uncomfortabe. Have you ever stopped to think that maybe non-blood Elves aren’t everyone’s RP style, and sometimes for very good reasons?

I’ve seen a lot of complaints about Blood Elves that are homophobia driven. The males are too gay. Why yes, their voice actor is an openly gay voice acting legend, problem? Blizard actually made them ‘buffer’ than elves should be because of homophobia. To this day I think that having mildly pretty men by contrast to other men in the game triggers homophobia. Perhaps Blood Elves weren’t made for the straight male eye, perhaps they were made for the female eye. They were made for the queer eye. They were made because the Horde races lacked mass appeal, and their designs made it very hard for the average player to empathize or immerse themselves into these characters.

Do you have any idea how uncomfortable it is being made to think that everyone who doesn’t play a Blood Elf hates you just because you happen to play one? Can you imagine being the recipient of hate being your very first experience on this server? Oh I know you’re going to say, “It’s just IC” except for, it isn’t really. This hatred is a constant bombardment across mediums, this is self-insertion of the author’s opinion into characters in a way that makes no sense. Stop it.

Now here’s my point: You blame Blood Elf roleplayers for there not being enough of other things, you blame Blood Elves for the dearth of good guilds or communities that center around other Horde races. What race people choose to RP on WOW is not zero sum.

If this site had the ability to do pull quotes (where you take a sentence, separate it out with horizontal rules and make the text very big) I’d totally pull quote that. But I can’t so I’m going to repeat it a few times for emphasis.

What race people choose to RP on WOW is not zero sum.

What race people choose to RP on WOW is not zero sum.

What race people choose to RP on WOW is not zero sum.

What race people choose to RP on WOW is not zero sum.

The popularity of Blood Elves is not taking away from the creation of other guilds, groups, and communities. The popularity of Blood Elves is not taking players away from other guilds, groups, and communities.

Blood Elves are not the problem. Would you like to know what the problem is? Take those crooked little fingers you’re pointing and rotate them 180 degrees on the horizontal axis. Where are those fingers pointing? Why they’re pointing at you. YOU are the problem.

There. I said it. You are the problem. Every single person who is blaming people who RP Blood Elves for their problems, every person passive-aggressively screaming “STOP LIKING WHAT I DON’T LIKE,” every person denigrating people who RP Blood Elves as shallow, uncreative, unskilled, bland, superficial, in it for the ERP, boring, or whatever. You are the problem.

One more time. You are the problem. Yes you. If you yourself haven’t engaged in this behavior, then the behavior of others around you. When was the last time you told your Belf bashing friends to shut the fuck up? I bet you don’t like blanket statements being made about you but you sit by quietly while your friends do the same damn thing.

Players of non Blood Elves are to blame for the dearth of non Blood Elf RP, not Blood Elf Roleplayers. All y'all’s actions, your behavior, and your choices are the poison that has stunted your community growth.

When you people sit there and denigtate people who RP Blood Elves, you need to understand that other people are doing it too, and that if we’re listening we find a symphony of hate from theother side. I know why you do it, you’re hoping to discourage, to pressure, to force, to make Blood Elf RPers feel bad so they will decide to stop liking what you don’t like and start liking what you like so you can have more RP partners.

Except it doesn’t actually work that way. What you’re actually doing is painting yourselves as hostile and it makes people who main Blood Elves. It makes us think that if we decide to make an alt and go play with you, that you’re going to be hostile to us the moment you find out we main a Belf. This deters us from wanting to play with you. Why would we subject ourselves to such hostility?

I had a male orc prot warrior that I played as an argent aligned male orc prot paladin, a character with all of the ferocity and strength of an orc combined with a stalwart defender who may or may not actually be able to use the light. It was a fun character. I deleted it because I realized that I could never RP it among other orcs because I main a belf. I made a pair of male blood elf hunters intended to be dark ranger bards. 80s metal wailing manshees in undead elf bodies with red eyes, big hair, and sun lutes. But I realized that while the idea is cool and fun that undead RPers would likely hate my characters for having belf models let alone being male instead of female, even though manshees were added in Legion. I repurposed the characters into something else. While these things are weird and quirky, they’re examples of some of the ideas, possibly fun ideas, that non-Belf RPers lose out on when they constantly bombard other creative people with endless hostility.

The only non-Belf groups that I’ve ever seen try to reach out and engage others has been a group of really nice Tauren. If I was going to RP something other than a Bloof, I’d probably RP a Tauren because I’ve seen that there’s at least some circles of Tauren who likely won’t shit at me for maining a Belf. They’re doing it right. Learn from them.

No one will listen to the Blood Elf RPers’ critiques of what you all need to do and change. Change must come from the inside.

If you want to see things get better you need to start being excellent to each other, you need to be the change you want to see, and you need to quit yer bitchin’. Then you need to tell the people who are being passive aggressive, or outright aggressive, to people playing Blood Elves just because they’re playing Blood Elves, to have a nice glass of shut the fuck up.

Change comes from making a stand. Let me tell you that when these people start getting bombarded by a couple dozen scoldings from their peers for being a jackass they’re going to learn that it’s uncool and stop being a jackass. Then the community healing process can start. 

When hating on players for playing Blood Elves becomes uncool, then players who have decided that all y'all are hostile may consider trying to interact with you, put alts in communities, and help you grow and nurture your own communities.

[mysplaced-pen]

a submission from tex!

this is literally word for word, I just need to show yall how cute this is lmao also, tex..knows me so well???  -ams

#MakeMysPlaced-ZenCanon2k17 okay but y'all would legit be so cute???

Karaoke 24/7, singing duets constantly, especially Paramore, also y'all would always be trying to out-quote the other in musicals (You showed him In The Heights and y'all battle to see who can remember the most lines starting from the beginning of the play) (y'all actually made it all the way through once and immediately started doing this with every other musical ever)

-You sang the entirety of the Cell Block Tango, complete with choreography and facial expressions, and he was a mix of impressed and terrified (his favorite one is the Arsenic one)

-You changed his ringtone for Jumin to There! Right There! and the poor boy cried so hard from laughing that Jumin ended up having to call you (whoops you’re laugh crying too)

-You still don’t know how but somehow he always manages to harmonize perfectly with you???

-He sang Evermore to you once and you c r i e d

-He gets you backstage passes to every musical you two go to (even the ones he’s not in??? How did he get these w t f)

His flirting becomes too much for you? He tones it down immediately. He goes from 100 to like 50 instantly. He just wants to make you comfortable, and if he is part of the reason you’re Uncomfortable™, he will fix it Immediately.

He doesn’t like having a whole lot of junk food in his fridge (*side glances at his beer and water phase*), but he will ALWAYS have all your favorite ice creams and fruits.

-In the same thread, he used to never have basic ingredients like??? Buddy didn’t know the difference between regular and powdered sugar s m h

-He got better when he found out you like to bake

-Now he always keeps the pantry stocked with sugars, flours, and he even gets you the really expensive candy coatings???

-He has to taste test everything to “make sure it’s not poisoned” (SURE)

He will Spoil You™ to the best of his abilities.

He likes to ride his bike up into the mountains and hang out up there and he takes you along with him one time. He heard you’ve never been camping and his jaw dropped (listen. He ran away from home at a young age so he probably slept on the streets for a while. He considers having a tent over his head lucky.) Y’all ride up there on his bike (SLOW DOWN ZEN IDC HOW EXCITED YOU ARE J E E Z), and have a Blast™ setting up the tent and exploring the surrounding area.

-He calls you over at one point while wearing the biggest shit eating grin just to point out a piece of amber on a tree

-he’s sleeping on the couch when you get home

-You absolutely make him sing The Campfire Song Song

-he hates it R E V E N G E

-you point at everything even vaguely resembling a wolf and say “Look out it’s The Beast!”

-Zen is Not Amused™ at first, but then he goes along with it and tries to protect you like the princess you are

-“I’ll save you! The only beast that can have you is me!” (You hate him) (You love him)

You two have matching outfits. Fight me on this one he would do it.

-His favorite part of your wardrobes is your couple’s leather jackets and matching helmet sets. You have each other’s names and hearts and roses embroidered on the backs of the jackets and always wear them on bike rides.

-Your helmets are complementary colors (N E R D S)

-You know his white party outfit? You have a hella cute black dress with chains that match the ones on his jacket

I know this is in every Zen matchup ever, but it’s still true. You two take SO. MANY. Pictures together. Except you always try to find him in unflattering positions (JK its impossible)

You’re his lock screen, and a pic of the two of you cuddling is his home screen. He legit almost made a phone case out of the two of you (you stopped him two seconds before he ordered it).

Remember when I said you two had matching outfits? Your phone cases match too smh (y’all are so embarrassing) (its great)

He found out you like to go swimming and loses it.

-“We should go swimming together!”

-Remember how he’s basically an albino? He comes out of the apartment smelling like 3 bottles of sunscreen. you go to indoor pools from then on

-Bc of this, he is always on top of re-applying sunscreen on time and such so you never get burned

-He loves helping you put it on your back (he tries to be smooth and kiss your shoulders as he does) (he gets a mouthful of sunscreen and nearly gags)

-You’re still laughing when you get to the pool

-He totally does the “here, wear my shirt to cover up” thing. But it’s just as much to shied you from other guys as it is to protect you from The Beast™

-C O N T R O L T H E B E A S T

-Can and will carry you around the pool on his shoulders

-He tries to impress you with a graceful dive (but he ends up bellyflopping instead)

-save him

-You start a pool noodle and water gun war (you win) (you never let him live it down)

-Y’all get kicked out for being too rowdy s m h

-Afterwards, you go out for ice cream bc it’s still Hot As Hell outside

-You finally get home and help each other scrub off the sunscreen and get it out of y’all’s hair *wink wink*

He asks you out in the cheesiest way ever. It’s after one of his musicals. He invites you backstage and you find that his dressing room is filled with roses, and taped to the mirror is a note that says “Here is a rose for every day that I wished you were by my side. Amber, will you grant my wish and be mine?” You turn around to find him holding a single rose, which he offers out to you with a “Please?” You run into his arms, hugging him tight. To this day, he can’t walk by a rose without smiling.

For your birthday, he has a bouquet of roses delivered to your apartment (he had mandatory rehearsal he couldn’t get out of), and a small card. “I’ll love you till the last rose dies.” You look through the bouquet, expecting to find a fake rose hidden in there somewhere, but find none. They’re all real, and while fresh, probably won’t last to the end of the month. Your heart sinks to your stomach, and you spend the rest of your day in a slump. Regardless, the two of you had plans to go out to your favorite restaurant that night, and you pulled yourself together to get ready. You were nothing if not true to your word, and even if he did break your heart, you’d still enjoy a final meal with him. You arrive at the restaurant and are escorted to your table, not looking Zen in the eye. You order drinks, and then he pulls out a thin, rectangular box, adorned with a ribbon and bow, and hands it to you.

“What’s this?” you ask, but he just smiles and nods towards the box. You oblige and open it carefully. Inside is a golden rose, glinting in the dim lighting. You gasp softly, holding the flower delicately.

“It’s the last rose, my love. Happy birthday.”

[whimsically-ominously-auspice]

Marc Antony and Mercury expect terms to be met by Friday. 3 days says Mercury. Possibly by Friday says Marc.

So then listen. Stay inside.

We have 3 more planets along with planet Zulululu.

2 said "just kill them we don't want them"

2 others said they want their dead. So Marc and Team said they would send by air to certain meeting place. Marc warned them if they didn't find it acceptable there would be no war. He and I will kill the rest and they won't get any bodies at all and we will evaporate what we gave.

Beggars can't be choosers.

I will destroy a fucking planet that pisses me off. I'm very good at giving blind explosions of what is deserved. Sometimes they get good shit. Sometimes i blow up and destroy shit.

And so they are asking for something in my opinion don't deserve. Dead bodies? Fuck you. Youre lucky it was Marc. Im beyond pissed. But I'll let him do what he wants then I'll destroy shit cause i can.

I'm fucking pissed about this shit.

So yall Just stay inside. Don't get kidnapped. Don't get beaten up. Don't get molested. Don't get raped. Don't let an alien peep in your shower when you're nude and wet and soapy.

And just be extra cautious for the next 3 weeks.

This Friday he should be done with Mercury.

Then he will do each of the 4 planets one at a time.

After each planet is supposed to be complete he will wait 1 to two days to ensure everything is going well before he starts on the next task

He will make sure that Tree details y'all about progress.

So a total of 5 planets are left.

Now Mars is picking up its "sexual studs" trees are watching very closely and other than Mars our atmosphere is clear of aliens.

After all the 5 planets are completed we will then attack any UFO that enters our atmosphere.

And kill it. They're all on warned. So.

6 billion UFO are 900 billion kilometres away from the atmosphere of Earth. Not the land but the highest cloud/air layer we have.

They are Just spectators. 726 million UFOs are prepared to protect our planet with warnings and/or violence.

They are the closest to our atmosphere. As they have learned so much regarding aliens and relationships from Eaerth. So for their appreciation and desire to watch more progress we benefit from their love.

Still we will watch and protect. And even so.

Follow Quarentine.

Marc Antony has told Tree and asked him to write the underlying most important points of the reasons of Quarentine. And tree has also filled in the blanks. So. That is pinned up. So it's all about being at the top for your sake and ease.

So focus on those things. 85 points and reasons to focus on. How to retrain our minds. Allot of good information. We all really need

So remember to laugh at the memes i reposted two tonight.. One made Marc Antony really laugh - the gorilla. And the joke about the woman eating cats made me laugh more but he laughed too. I was worried about the Gorilla. Where was he? Did someone take care of him? Was he just playing?

But I appreciated the joke. I thought it was cute and I know at zoos that is actually a normal behavior.

Unfortunately...

Some people after 3 weeks pass. Will lose their animals. Some are possessed by aliens. There are 782,569,857 planets that will have their creation returned to them and possessing aliens will die.

What happens is an alien will share a body with an animal. Its prohibited and all planets know.

Then there is oysters. Which will be all dumped in the most luxurious of neighborhoods like it is a landfill.

Zebras. Ostrich. Orangutans. Chihuahua dogs (he literally sheds a tear. We know so many love that breed. But we will try to help you after your loss). Prarie dogs -- which we found dead in the yard todsy as a death threat against me. My 16 year daughter found it and pointed it out. So i loooked and asked it what it wanted and it said nothing. So i said don't look at me with your beady little eye which made my kid laugh. It was a bloody wet mess. Fuck y'all. I ain't scared I'll shove dead and living ones up your ass. Fredrick's grandma's best friend's daughter. Try a claw trying to come out your ass hole. Bitch. Coward bitch at that.

Some snakes like rattle. Coral. Most poisionous. No one would claim the King Cobra for example but they are part of a historical culture so we will save them for their owners as the poison is very hard to eject because it's midway down the body and not in teeth or head. We didn't know but I asked tree and he says it was a competitive snake Christopher Columbus made. He said please don't bully him. I have one on my wrist. So they are the ones that dance.

Grass snakes are made by Mercury as an apology. They will take.

We want only what Earth created. Its not about the apology we have enjoyed and used them for billions of years. So we gift them back as a thank you.

So they remember their sorrow in killing Cleopatra and Jesus 20 years later. (Me)

And as a request to please leave us alone in the future. They also made a poisonous snake called the Goldan Coerel. We eradicated it in the 1970s after it killed a sleeping infant. We just killed them all. They were mostly in Vietnam.

Dingo in Australia are not ours. But hey kangaroo is!!!

Rabbit is not. We will replace with either ducks or a chimpanzees. Or both. We use a distinct intuition. Like Santa Claus. Literally.

Like how i find space ships to blow up.

Now ALL animals are trained to use the toilet. And are infants. They come with a special cabinet and 1 year supply of food. And play toys and so on.

Chihuahua are replaced with chimps and/or a dog breed of choice.

There is a website you can type your animal into.

You can type your address like if you're like my dog is a mutt Idk how to find out... Well you put your address.

A Chihuahua of 25% breed and more will go

So if you have a small dog with only 3% Chihuahua. It stays.

Putting in the address allows you to create a family link. So you want a chimp. You pick the color.

So mom wants Orange

Dad brown orange.

Daughter 1 wants electric yellow.

So then tree will review... And make a bright orange with yellow when the hair is brushed a certain way and the brown like streaks

So he will decide and inform your family in the link then you can have other options.

If you don't preorder he will surprise you which he really likes to do.

So that is about 5 weeks away. You'll board the ship and say good bye. You may drive with them to the dock to drop off

All other animals stay home under Doctor Tree care where he trains it to use potty and speak and eat at the table,using fork ans spoon.

I have a list of 57 items that must be trained to each animal by tree. Now you can specify "no I do not want my dog asking more than 2x to borrow/drive car. In one day or 1 full trip on errands, or family road trip" otherwise he csn ask 35 times. But it's fun. He will sulk. Get angry. Beg happily. "Well I'll beat you up if You won't let me drive!!" "I hate the back seat why wont you let me drive?? I don't care. I don't wanna know. I just wanna Drive. Seesh parents don't understand anything!!"

So realize he may be speaking feelings but mostly its just acting and playing. Its a Trick or Treat.

Just yo Keep things lively. Fun. Kids will laugh and learn bullying and threatening does not work. They love it even teenagers.

Its play acting to develop healthy psychological prograss. So remember manners and don't let him drive because he intimidated or annoyed you. Unless you say trick or treat and have a family discussion

When he is violent in asking to drive he will have offensive driving skills. Fast and digging through traffic. And road rage m which is hilarious!

If you say yes to "but I'm an old gramma i know how to,get there m don't take away my rights I'm a perfect driver and omg watch out, just kidding." He will be super cautious and double checking. Driven 6-10 mph under the speed limit.

Its fun. Tree will train it to be humaneyezed.

So he will give advice. Like "watch the fuck out!" In road rage mode. While granny will say "hey there little dearies you almost wrecked. Slow it down buster"

My pill is saying time to sleep.

3-5 weeks to spend with your pet before we evacuate.