#ever since I've embraced my “silly” I'm having fun!!!!

[dootznbootz]

lkjsf just wrote a scene tyfuihgujhkl Penelope being the Water Wife™, plays with Argos like this.

[ahgasegotarmy116]

Faking It | Jeon Jungkook | Chapter One

Summary: Being divorced by the time you're thirty isn't the best feeling in the world but what happens when your parents find someone from your past that's in a similar boat? Pairing: f!reader (30) x Single Dad Jungkook (33) (Arranged Marriage Slow Burn?) Word Count: 11.3k (oh man holy shit) Warnings: Troubles with conceiving/seeing pregnancies to full term, Jungkook's first wife passed away in childbirth. (These themes will be spoken about throughout the fic and I will add extra warnings when need be in future chapters) a/n: Okay this one is gonna be a long one (in terms of chapter length, idk how many parts there will be) I'm really really in love with this story line so I hope you'll come along this cute, silly, awkward, heartwarming and heartbreaking journey with me 🥰 p.s. I've been brainstorming with @kkusadmirer (ofc 🤭) about this fic for a while now and I've just fallen in love with these characters too much that I had to get at least one part out. Okay okay enough from me. I hope you enjoy! (barely edited per usual I'm sry 😅)

"You should start dating again" my mom says to me, a dinner with a table for two this time since she said she wanted to talk to me about something important. If I would've known it was to nag me about something like this again I would've declined the invitation.

"Mom I already told you, I just got divo-" "You got divorced last year" she cuts me off and I sigh, knowing I'll probably get no where with this argument but continue on nevertheless.

"Point being, it hasn't been that long since Robert and I got divorced. I need time and space to figure out what I want out of life. I'm not interested in rushing into another marriage just for it to fail again" I explain and she simply downs the rest of her champagne in response, polishing it off in record time.

"You don't want to end up an old maid who didn't give me any grandchildren do you?" she says, repeating the same old argument again. "Mom I'm thirty, not forty five. I still have plenty of time to worry about babies and getting married again" I argue and she rolls her eyes before asking for another glass when the waiter passes by.

"You should at least try. Don't you like going out on dates?" she asks and I sigh, hating having this conversation over and over again.

"Dating was fun in my twenties but now that I'm more interested in finding someone to settle down with, it seems like all the guys that are remotely my age and happen to be decent human beings are already married" I explain and watch how she immediately takes her glass of champagne off the table once it's placed in front of her.

I'm glad she's drinking because having this conversation with her when she's sober is even more painful.

"You're exaggerating honey. I'm sure there is a fine young man just waiting for you around the corner" but before I'm able to respond to her, her eyes suddenly light up and she quickly gets out of her seat.

"Is it really you?" she says and another woman around her age that I've never seen before comes up to greet her. "How are you? It's been so long!" the mystery woman says and they quickly share an embrace before she turns to face me.

"And who is this beautiful young woman here with you?" she asks, making me shy away from them. "Oh this is my daughter y/n. Y/n this is Mrs. Jeon" she introduces us and tells me all about how they used to go to college together.

"Oh wow I think I remember my mom mentioning you before. You used to come over when I was little right?" I question, now remembering seeing her face in some of the pictures in my baby album.

"That's right! Little Jungkook and I used to come visit you all the time when you were just a teeny tiny little thing. You were the easiest baby I've ever come across, always sleeping and when you woke up you were as happy as can be" she rambles and I get a warm feeling in my chest, loving to have met someone who clearly cared so deeply for my mother and I.

"Who's Jungkook" I ask, looking back and forth between the two of them. "Jungkook is my son, he's just a few years older than you. I remember he was so fascinated by you, always wanting to come over and would watch over you as you slept, never causing a fuss as long as you were around" she says and I blush at the fact that her son would care about me just as much if not more than she does.

"How is he? Is he doing alright?" my mother asks and Mrs. Jeon gets a somber look on her face eyes fluttering to the floor before responding.

"Actually, he lost his wife a few years ago. She passed away after she gave birth to their daughter" she mumbles and I feel my chest tighten up at the thought of someone so young losing their life to something that is supposed to be so beautiful.

"My condolences to you all" I say, my eyes going glossy and she smiles in return, the memory bringing a tear to her eye as well. "Thank you love, that's very kind of you" she says, placing a hand on my shoulder before she clears her throat and blinks back her tears, wanting to put on a brave face in public.

"Why don't you come visit us at our home tomorrow evening? I would love to catch up and it would be good if the kids got reacquainted again" my mother suggests and I glare at her, knowing exactly what she's doing but also knowing there's no way I could stop her. 

"I would love that! Our husbands might enjoy catching up too since they used to get along so well" Mrs. Jeon points out. "Then it's settled! How would you feel about making it a dinner instead?" my mother questions, digging us deeper into this evening we'll all be spending together. "I think that sounds perfect!" she agrees and I tune out the rest of the conversation, already trying to mentally prepare myself for the scheming I know my mother has planned.

~~~~

Kicking off my shoes and walking into my apartment I'm greeted by the serene sound of silence. 

My black tuxedo cat meows as he jumps down from his cat tower and stretches for a second before coming over to greet me. "Hi Salem" I say, scooping him up and carrying him with me into my bedroom where I plop him down in the middle of my bed. "Mom only invited me to dinner because she wanted to tell me to start dating again" I relay to him, while I walk around my room, grabbing all the things I'll need to get ready for bed.

"I should've known she was up to something when she decided to invite me out on a random Wednesday night to go to my favorite restaurant. If the previous glances I had of the totals on those receipts didn't clue me in enough I don't know what would" I say in disbelief, having convinced myself hours earlier that it might've been about something good instead of another chance to nag me about something.

"I don't know why I even bother sometimes. She just has this worst case scenario mindset that I'm going to die alone and not leave a legacy. I understand that I'm their only child but with the way she talks, you would think I was well into my forties already" I say, verbally processing to him while he curls up into a ball, his eyes watch me walk back and forth until I walk into the en-suite bathroom to turn on the shower.

"Thanks for always listening to me Salem" I say, walking back over to him and scratching his head, "Don't know what I would do without you" I mumble before walking back over to the bathroom and closing the door.

Looking in the mirror I study my features, my hair styled just how I like it, my brows perfectly shaped but when I get to my eyes I notice it. I notice why my mother has gotten so worried about me.

It's as if the light's gone out of them. It's more than just 'Hey it's been a long day and I'm tired' no it's 'I don't even know what I'm doing here anymore' and for the first time, I admit to myself that I truly feel that way.

I reach for my cleanser and quickly wash off the little makeup that I still have on, lips completely plain and gone back to their natural color and some how my cheeks don't seem to be as rosy anymore after I had made sure to put on some more blush today to bring some color back to my face. Maybe it's not the makeup that's been washing me out, but the way that I've been living.

I will admit my days consist of going to work and coming home and doing that same thing over and over again. I don't really go out much and I only have a few friends but ever since I got divorced I just end up politely declining any sort of invitation I get from them. Doesn't matter if it's dinner or drinks or clubbing or even just a shopping trip.

I just can't get myself wanting to do anything anymore.

I step into the shower and I flinch slightly at the burning sensation the hot water brings to me but adjust it and step further under the stream once it's just to my liking. While going though my shower routine mindlessly I start trying to get to the bottom of what has got me living like this.

Robert wasn't the best husband in the world, mainly because he cheated on me but before that things were good between us. He made me laugh and was a perfect gentleman that always made me feel special and when we got married I swear I thought I couldn't be happier. 

It felt like my life was falling into place, our life.

Until it wasn't.

I'm knocked out of my train of thought when I hear Salem pawing at the door and remember now that in my whirl winded state of mind I forgot to feed him. "Sorry Salem I'll be right out!" I call out for him and he meows in response. I swear that cat is more intelligent than I am most days.

I finish up my uninteresting night as I always do, turning out the lights and cuddling up with Salem until I eventually fall asleep but it took a little longer tonight. Thoughts full of what my future might look like if I don't start living instead of just existing. 

As the 'what ifs' plague my mind they eventually drown themselves out as that same welcoming feeling of calm finally lulls me to sleep. 

~~~~~~

"Hurry up they're almost here" my mother says, yanking me inside the house before I even have a chance to knock on the front door. "Nice to see you too mom" I say under my breath and she's wound up so tight it doesn't even phase her. I can tell she's been working hard to make sure everything is perfect once the Jeons arrive.

"Did you get that wine I told you to get?" she questions, her eyes lighting up at the sight of the wine bottle carrier in my hand, quickly taking it and rushing into the kitchen. "Yeah no problem mom you're welcome" I say, talking to the air in front of me still waiting for her to show any sign of gratitude.

"Go place your things in your old room so they're out of the way" she call out, leaving me sighing and trudging off to do as she says.

Once I retrace my steps and walk past the door to go to join her in the kitchen I'm stopped in my tracks when the doorbell rings.

"Oh honey can you get that? My hands are tied here" my mom yells and I take a deep breath in and out before doing just that.

"Hello y/n! It's so nice to see you again" Mrs. Jeon greets me as I step aside and let them in, soon after her is her husband who holds out his hand in greeting. "It's been quiet a long time hasn't it? I remember when you use to be-" "Grandpa! Grandpa! I wanna meet the pretty lady too!" a little girl no older than five years old says, walking around her grandfather's legs to get to me, greeting me with the most adorable bunny smile.

"And now who might this be?" I ask, already melting into a puddle from seeing how absolutely adorable she is. "I'm Juni" she laughs when I go down to her level. "Well it's very nice to meet you Juni and how old are you?" I ask and she lights up when I continue taking an interest in her. "I'm four! Well Daddy says I'm turning five soon but it feels like it's taking forever. Right Daddy?" she says and looks back towards the man now left standing in the doorway.

"That's right Juni" he responds and the deep tenor of his voice sends a slight shiver down my spine, so full of love and admiration that is obvious to anyone who might come across the pair. "Oh!" I say, quickly straightening back up to meet this mysterious Jungkook and my throat goes dry once I've laid eyes on him.

Tall, strong build, dark brown hair that's well taken care of and styled perfectly, strong jawline accompanied by the contrast of the softest look in his brown almost black galaxy eyes that are still focused on his beautiful daughter.

"I'm sorry" I say but he shakes his head before he turns his head in my direction, taking in the sight of me as well before speaking. "That's alright, Juni kind of grabs everyone's attention right away" he says giving me a soft smile. "I'm Jungkook" he says, holding his hand out to me. "Y/n" I say shyly and shake it, his hands being much larger than mine is comforting in a way.

"My mom told me we used to come see you when we still lived here" he says once we let go, Juni now quietly watching our exchange. "Used to?" I question, curious to know more about why our mothers had lost touch. "We went back to our hometown for a while and then moved back to the city soon after Juni was born" he says and I nod my head, accepting that as an answer for now but wanting to know more.

"Sounds like I was just an infant though so I don't really have any memory of it" I admit while rocking back and forth on my heels, a nervous habit I've picked up over the years. "It's alright, I didn't expect you to remember" he chuckles, "I was only three so I don't remember much of it either" we laugh at his returned confession and a more comfortable air settles between us.

"Well it's nice to finally meet you" I say and he nods his head. "Likewise" he replies and we stand there for a moment, not really knowing where to go from here then, thankfully Juni breaks the silence.

"Daddy I wanna talk to the pretty lady" she says and grabs my hand and pulls me away from him. "Be nice Juni" he warns and she pouts, leaving me crouching down to her level and tilting my head to meet her gaze. "There's enough of me to go around little one. Don't worry" I say, booping her on the nose and making her giggle again.

Jungkook walks in a bit more and closes the door behind him, watching our little exchange before my mother comes out to check on us.

"Y/n why don't you take Jungkook and..." she says trailing off, not having learned his daughter's name yet. "Juni" Jungkook says and my mother smiles at the sound of the adorable name. "Jungkook and Juni outside. I'm sure she'd love to run around a little bit before dinner is ready" she suggests and I agree while Juni starts jumping up and down, excited to explore an unfamiliar place.

Jungkook follows closely behind as I lead the way but I ultimately end up getting dragged along by Juni who is surprisingly perceptive and has already mapped out the door that we'll be going through. "Come on Daddy keep up!" she calls after him once we've reached the door, looking back and seeing that he's fallen behind.

"I'm right behind you Juni" Jungkook chuckles and once we step outside Juni lets go and runs back and forth all around the yard, looking at anything and everything she can find.

"Be careful!" I say, worried that she could hurt herself but Jungkook comes over and stands next to me and reassures me she'll be fine.

"It's alright, if she gets hurt it'll be a little reminder to pay attention to what she's doing next time. That's the only way kids really learn right?" he says turning towards me, granting me with a soft smile, almost as if he's looking for validation on his parenting choice.

"Of course," I respond, returning the smile, "even some adults need to crash and burn before they learn their lesson sometimes" I point out and it makes him relax a bit more, thankful to see that he's right in his dealings with situations like this.

"She's a good kid" I say after leading him over to the patio set we have out here so we can sit down and watch her. "Thanks, it's been difficult raising her on my own so I'm never really sure if I'm doing a good job or not" he admits and I nod my head, taking a second to think about my response since it's a sensitive subject.

"I can tell that you love her very much so I have no doubt in my mind that you'll always do right by her" and I can tell that my words bring him a sense of comfort. Being a single parent can be extremely difficult especially when you lose the love of your life as soon as you become a father. 

I wouldn't wish that pain on anyone.

"Y/n?" I hear him call out and realize that my mind had drifted off for a second. "I'm sorry what did you say?" I say, my cheeks heating up from having been caught daydreaming. "I asked if you had any children of your own" he chuckles and I again try to figure out the best way to word this but figure the best way to go about it is to be honest. 

I've got no reason to hide from him.

"No, I got divorced last year and my ex husband and I were never able to have children" I say, looking down at my lap, embarrassed to have admitted it but also feeling a certain weight lifted off my shoulders.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know" he trails off and I panic, realizing I might've made him feel uncomfortable, telling him something so personal so soon. "No don't be, I honestly dodged a bullet with that one" I chuckle, hoping to lighten the situation a bit which thankfully it does as I see his body relax a bit.

"Our relationship had been on the rocks soon after we got married and I don't think we were a good match for each other so I think it was the universe's way of doing me a favor in making us somewhat biologically incompatible" I chuckle and he softly does the same.

"Biologically incompatible" he questions, a deeper meaning obviously hidden behind those words. "We both got checked out and everything looked completely fine but I guess it wasn't meant to be, thank God" I sigh, sincerely thanking whoever might've been in charge of making that executive decision for us.

"I'm not exactly sure what to say to that but I'm glad it worked out?" he states almost as if it was a question and I laugh, in response hoping I can recover this incredibly awkward conversation. "I'm sorry, that was a huge overshare that I probably should've kept to myself" I say, clearing my throat in hopes it would aid in clearing the peculiar air that had settled between us.

"You have nothing to apologize for, I asked and I feel honored that you felt comfortable enough to be so transparent with your answer" he says, the warmth in his tone giving me an ache in my chest. How could someone be so kind to someone they've just met? It's as if I could tell him anything and he would listen to me as if I was the only person in the world.

"Daddy!" 'Well me and Juni', I say to myself and watch as his attention now shifts to his daughter who is running up behind me. "Daddy look!" Juni says, holding out her hands that are now thoroughly caked in mud but hold a rock that is almost a perfectly shaped heart in the center of her palm. "Oh Juni" Jungkook chuckles, the ends of her dress now matching the state of her hands and neither Jungkook nor I can hold in our laughter.

"That's a very beautiful rock Juni! You're so clever" I say and I can see a sense of pride straighten her posture a little bit. "Juni your beautiful dress" Jungkook chuckles, clearly not minding but also trying to figure out what to do. "I'm sorry Daddy" she say, that pride slowly dwindling after seeing the mess she's made of herself.

"Hey Juni" I say, turning her attention back to me and I can see her spirits lift a little. "Would you like to see some of the clothes that I used to wear when I was your age?" I ask and her eyes light up at the thought. "Did you wear pretty dresses too?" she asks, clearly excited about seeing more new things. Her childlike wonderment makes my heart ache. Must run in the family.

"I did, but none of them were as pretty as yours. If you like, you can borrow one of mine while we wash this one" I suggest and the way her head nods up and down so fast makes me chuckle.

"Let's go to my room then! Hopefully we can find something you'll like" I say, standing up and straightening my dress while Jungkook reaches out for Juni's foot.

"Let's take your shoes off before we go back inside baby. We wouldn't want to track any mud into the pretty lady's house right?" Jungkook says, flashing a soft smile at me before looking back down to complete his intended task and Juni complies right away. 

My breath hitches as he purposefully uses the nickname Juni had given me and I quickly walk past them and open the door to go inside, trying to clear my head for a second, willing myself to keep it together.  

"Are you coming with us?" Juni asks and he nods his head, "I gotta go clean your shoes off first though" he says and I walk all three of us over to the bathroom so Jungkook can do just that as well as wash Juni's hands off.

"Wow!" is the first word that comes out of her mouth when we walk into the butterfly themed bedroom, mesmerizing her from the first glance. "Your room is so pretty!" she says, quickly running around here and there, being careful not to get too close since we haven't gotten a chance to change her dress yet.

"You like it?" I question and she's quick to nod her head again. "I wish my room looked like this" she says, spying all of the little butterfly details from the dainty embroidering on the bedspread to the knobs on the dresser, all of them working in harmony.

"We can go look for some butterfly stuff next time we go to the store if you'd like" Jungkook says while he walks into the room and right up to her while she stares up at the ceiling where there are a couple scattered across it. Nothing is too over the top but there is clearly a theme going on that she is captivated by.

"Really?" she asks, confirmation of what he's said being important to make sure she's hear him right. "Promise" he says holding out his pinky that she quickly wraps her's around as best as she can with her little ones being so tiny in comparison to his. She looks at the two of us before beckoning Jungkook to come closer so she can whisper something in his ear.

"Can the pretty lady come with us too?" she 'whispers' in his ear almost as loud as her speaking voice and I try to hold back my laughter, pretending like I didn't hear a thing. "Why don't you ask her?" he whispers and when he leans back she looks him in the eyes and he nods to further encourage her.

"Um, would you like to go shopping with us to get butterflies for my room too?" she asks, walking up to me shyly. Jungkook looks at me with a soft smile and I notice how the tips of his ears have almost gotten a little pink, his expression soft and charming but his body still showing tell tale signs of nervousness.

"Sure Juni, I'd love to go shopping with you" I say and she giggles in response while running back to her Daddy. "Can we go right now?" she asks jumping up and down. "We'll go another time don't worry baby, we've gotta set up a time so the pretty lady can go with us too right?" he reminds her and although she's sad she has to wait she nods in agreement. "Good, now let's get you out of this so we can make you all nice and clean again" he says, unzipping the back of her dress and revealing the cute little white tank top and tights that she wore under it.

I focus my attention on opening up the closet and grabbing a couple of dresses out for her to choose from. "These ones should fit. Which one would you like to wear Juni?" I say and her eyes flitter back and forth between all of them before giving her a Daddy a devious smile and hugging them to her chest. "I want all of them" she giggles and my heart melts, thinking about how fun it would be if I had a daughter just like her.

"Pick one Juni" Jungkook chuckles and she pulls back flipping through the selection I've made before her eyes light up and find the one she's dying to wear. "This one, this one!" she says, lightly holding onto the skirt and jumping up and down. I shift my grasp on them and hold out the one she chose for Jungkook to take and once he does there a static jolt of electricity that shocks us leaving the both of us pulling away slightly.

"Sorry it's probably from all the fabric of the dresses" I explain and he smiles in response. "Don't worry about it. A little spark never hurt anyone" he says and it's almost as if his voice had dropped a bit with that remark, leaving me widening my eyes a bit before turning back around and placing the dresses back in the closet. 

Why does he make me so nervous?

"Lady, lady look!" I hear from behind, and watch as Juni turns this way and that once Jungkook has finished putting the dress on her. "My goodness Juni don't you look adorable!" I say and she runs up to the the mirror in the corner of the room, watching the skirt swish this way and that. "Say thank you Ms y/n" Jungkook says, correcting Juni and finally telling her my name. She sounded too cute calling me 'the pretty lady' I just didn't have the heart to tell her otherwise.

"Thank you Ms y/n!" she says, running up to me and wrapping her arms around my legs since she is still  too small to reach anywhere else. "You're welcome Juni" I say, smiling down at her and smoothing her hair down. "Remember Juni, we're just borrowing it so we can wash your dress. We have to give it back to Ms. y/n before we leave" Jungkook says and I can see her excitement dwindle a bit but is no less thankful for being able to wear it tonight.

"Thank you for letting me borrow it Ms. y/n!" she says and I smile again, falling more and more in love with this adorable little girl with every smile she graces me with. "You're welcome" I say and she lets go of me and twirls around in it before stopping.

"Oh! I promise to be really careful and keep this one clean" she says holding out her pinky to do just as she had done with her father moments ago and I kneel down to her level and do just that before booping her on the nose causing another fit of giggles to spill out of her.

"Y/n, dinner is ready" my mother says while poking her head around the corner and I can tell she is completely satisfied by the scene that she's walked in on. "Oh Juni what a beautiful dress!" my mother says, noticing it right away, remembering it was one of my favorites. "Ms y/n gave it to me!" she says, swishing around in it again before doing a full twirl for us.

"Well aren't you the most darling little girl I've ever seen! Are you ready to eat? I heard that mashed potatoes are one of your favorite foods right?" my mom says, holding out her hand for Juni to take and she gladly does.

"Did my grandma tell you that?" she asks, clearly surprised that this complete stranger already knew something about her. "Yes she did. I hope you like them!" my mom says and Juni rushes down the hallway dragging my mom behind her. "Juni be careful!" Jungkook calls out to her but my mom just laughs it off.

"Why don't you show Jungkook where the laundry room is so you can put her dress in the washer" my mom offers up and I nod my head and look up at him. "That's okay I can just wash it when we get home" he says, politely declining the offer. "It's alright, it's best to wash it right away so it doesn't stain" I say, holding out my hand for the dress and he smiles before handing it to me and following my lead.

"You have a lovely home" he says shyly, looking this way and that taking notice of the small details just as Juni did. 'Like father like daughter' I think to myself. "It was my childhood home as you could probably tell from my old room" I say and he hums in response as I stop at the door to the laundry room.

"I know Juni is never going to stop talking about it" he chuckles and I smile at the loving tone that is always present in his voice whenever he speaks about her. We stand there in silence for a bit while I gather the various cleaning products I'll need.

"If you like, I can show you how to get stains like this out? If there was ever a day when I was her age that I didn't get some sort of dirt, mud or grass stains on my clothes my mother would write that down as a national holiday" I say and he laughs at that before accepting the offer.

"Sure, I'd like that" for some reason I can't seem to find the right words so I simply turn around and rinse off the mud in the little sink we have in here. "Do you think you could get that one for me?" I ask, nodding toward one of the stain removers. He wordlessly does as I ask and helps apply a drop or two of it to each of the areas I point out.

"I could've done that" he says now realizing how he's just standing there watching me clean his daughter's dress. "No, that's okay I offered!" I say, reassuring him that I don't mind. I wordlessly ask for the next stain remover before rubbing it in and ringing out the excess water. He opens up the washer lid for me and I toss it in and look this way and that for the laundry detergent.

"Looking for this?" he asks, pulling it off the shelf above the washer. "See, that's a perk of living on my own now. I don't have to worry about things being up too high for me anymore" I chuckle and quickly scoop in the appropriate amount and start the washer.

"Well let me know if you ever need anyone to get something that's out of your reach, it's one of the perks of being tall" he jokes and I laugh but almost shy away from the fact that he expects to see me again. "So I've heard" I say and try to put the detergent back on my own but it soon tips back over and is close to crashing down until he catches it, which in turn ends with him trapping me between him and the washer.

He slides the detergent back in it's spot and takes half a step back, giving me the smallest bit of space. "Why didn't you let me help you? I was standing right here?" he asks, tilting his head at me. "I don't know, I guess I'm just used to doing things on my own now" I chuckle awkwardly. "Well hopefully you'll get used to letting me help you soon" he says, finally taking another step back and giving me a bit more space to breathe.

"Sorry about that" I apologize awkwardly, leaning my back against the washer now with him leaning up against the wall directly in front of me and giving me a crooked smile. "Don't apologize, there's nothing wrong with being independent" he says and quickly scans my body but he does it so fast that if I would've blinked I would've missed it.

"Daddy it's time for dinner" Juni says, her soft steps not having been heard by either of us over the sound of the washer, breaking us out of the little moment that we had been having. "Okay Juni we're coming" he chuckles and holds out his hand for her to take but she giggles and dodges it, reaching for mine instead.

I squeeze past Jungkook as this little room is only wide enough for one person to walk through and the front of our bodies brush up against each other only for a moment until she's tugged me halfway out the door. "Let's be a train Daddy! Grab onto Ms. y/n's hand so you can be the caboose!" she says, turning this trip down the hallway into a game.

"Oh that's okay sweetie why don't you-" he starts but I hold out my hand for him to take, him only having refused for my sake, not wanting to make me uncomfortable with any unwanted skinship. "Grab on Daddy!" Juni giggles and I look up at him and see that he's looking down at me. He chuckles before grabbing onto my hand and the both of us are soon trailing behind Juni as she drags us to the dining room.

Once we get to the dinner table Juni lets go of my hand and runs back to where Jungkook's mom is so she can continue to help her eat her mashed potatoes. 

When everyone notices that Jungkook and I have arrived, we're greeted with four sets of eyes, all of them extremely happy to see us. It's then when I realize that we were still holding hands so I gently slide mine out of his, almost wishing I didn't have to.

He looks down at where our hands had been connected when I do and I can almost see that he's also disappointed that I let go but his expression is quickly replaced by an awkward smile aimed at our parents. 

When I look at the table I see that Jungkook and I are meant to sit directly across from each other. Which I'm sure is another one of my mother's ploys to get us to keep glancing up at each other, this time though I don't really mind.

When I go to walk to one side to sit down next to Mr. Jeon, Jungkook follows right behind me. 

"Oh did you want to sit on this side?" I ask him and he shakes his head, "No, I just wanted to pull your chair out for you" he says and I feel butterflies in my stomach. "Oh, okay" I say quietly and watch as he does just that and slides the chair in behind me once I've sat down. "Thank you" I reply, smiling up at him and he does so in return before rounding the table to take a seat in his place.

"So y/n, your mother told us that you work in photography, is that right?" she asks and I take a drink of water before responding. "Well not really, I've done a few freelance jobs here and there. Enough to keep me afloat so to say but I hope to do it full time soon!" I say and I see Jungkook perk up at that.

"Jungkook has always loved photography as well! He's always been tinkering away with cameras since he was just a few years older than Juni" his mother says while Jungkook cleans off Juni's face as it seems like she's gotten more food on her face than in her mouth.

"What subject do you usually shoot?" I ask, curious to see where his interests lie. "Mostly editorial, but I tend to enjoy the shoots a lot more when they have to do with nature. I believe beauty can be found in almost anything so I tend to just capture whatever inspires me at the moment" he says, his answer being very similar to mine.

"I feel the same way" I respond simply before shying away from the topic as I feel our parents are studying our interaction.

Once they notice the silence they decide to pick up the conversation just throwing facts about Jungkook and I back and forth, pretty much doing the getting to know you game for us without giving us much room to get a word in edgewise. Which leaves the both of us to just follow the conversation and occasionally making eye contact when either side makes a slightly embarrassing comment.

"Hey Dad" Jungkook calls out to his father over the never ending conversation they're having about us. "How's that new project at work going?" he says and I can already tell that it's one of those kinds of topics that once you get him started on it he won't stop and that's just the case as we now watch the conversation take a turn that is thankfully so far off from the two of us.

As time ticks by and the subjects change a few more times I notice that Jungkook has started to get up and clear the table to which I jump up in response to help him.

"Oh Jungkook don't worry about that I can do it later" my mother says but he shakes his head. "It's the least I could do after you've provided this wonderful dinner for my family and I" he says and I can almost see my mother swooning from his response. "Well thank you very much, sweetie can you show him where to place them, just next to the sink is fine" she says to me and I nod, looking up at him and nodding my head towards the direction of the kitchen.

Once we've gone there and back from the table a few times I decide to just start loading up the dishwasher, trying to escape that mortifying conversation for as long as I can. "I brought your glass for you. Wasn't sure if you were planning to finish it or not" he says, walking over and placing my wine glass on the counter next to me. "Thanks" I say quietly, neither of us having said a word to each other since the very beginning of that dinner.

"Your parents are really sweet" he says, breaking the ice and clearly acknowledging how obvious they all were about their motives. "Yours too. I'm sorry about tonight" I say and his brows furrow, clearly not understanding why I would need to apologize. "I knew my mom would end up doing something like this but once her mind is made up there's no stopping her" I admit and he gives me a crooked smile in response.

"Don't worry, I knew what all of them were up to too. My mother was praising you so much and telling me how beautiful and smart and respectful you are so I had an inkling that this was their plan all along" he says and I turn away from him, trying to hide my flustered expression.

"She's right you know" he says, coming around to stand next to me, leaning against the counter while I face it, cleaning up the inside of the sink and grabbing the towel next to me to dry my hands.

"Right about what?" I question, now turning to face him and noticing just how close he's gotten. "About how beautiful you are" he says and I have to blink a few times, trying to figure out why this incredibly handsome man in my kitchen is flirting with me.

I just wanna thank past me because whatever I did in my last life must've been incredible if I'm being offered up a man as remarkable as he is.

"I-" I start but am soon interrupted by my mom walking in on us. "Y/n could you- oh! I'm sorry, as you were" she says, taking small backward steps out of the kitchen, keeping hers eyes on the two of us before turning around to walk back to the living room that they had moved to.

"I'm sorry about her" I say, taking a drink of my wine but he laughs it off. "It's alright, I don't mind" he says watching me with curious eyes as I polish off the rest of it. "Juni has taken a real liking to you" he says and my heart melts at the sound of her name.

"Really? She's probably the happiest child I've ever seen. I really like her too" I say and he smiles, no doubts memories over the years flashing through his head.

"You've done a really good job raising her Jungkook" I say, and his eyes flutter back to mine, this time being the first time I've spoken his name and it looks as if just that alone brought him so much satisfaction. "Thank you y/n" he says, and I feel my heart flutter, the deep baritone of his voice sending a shiver down my spine.

"Daddy can I have some cake?" we hear as Juni walks into the kitchen, "Can I have some cake..." Jungkook says, trailing off and waiting for those magic words. "Please?" she says, realizing what he had been getting at.

"Sure baby, Ms. y/n and I will bring it out in a second okay?" he says making her smile as she runs out of the kitchen "Thank you" she calls out over her shoulder leaving the two of us laughing at her enthusiasm.

"That's probably what my mom was coming in to ask us for" I say and he nods in agreement, helping me carry everything out so we can all have a slice of the small cake my mom had gotten for tonight. "How much you want to bet that they sent Juni looking for us earlier too?" he whispers to me as we make our way over to where everyone else has gathered. "You might be right about that one" I whisper back, quickly catching onto all of their little games.

After setting the cake and all of the plates and forks down on the coffee table my mom takes on the task of cutting it up and serving it, with the very first piece going to little Miss Juni. "Thank you!" she says, eyes wide as saucers leaving all of us cooing at her. "Eat slow Juni" Jungkook reminds her, no doubt having troubles with her eating her desserts too quickly.

I take on the task of helping my mother hand out the slices and once I give one to Jungkook I finally notice that the only empty seat is right next to him and he looks down at it before looking back up at me in a silent invitation to sit down and I take it cautiously.

The couch that we're sitting on is kind of a love seat ironically, seeing as the whole theme of tonight is trying to set us up with each other.

Once I've sat down I realize that I've sat right next to him to the point of where my shoulder ended up bumping into his. "Oh! I'm sorry" I say, scooting away from him but with the size of the couch I don't really end up moving all that much. "It's okay I don't mind" he says, before taking a bite of his cake and turning to face the rest of the group.

The seven of us continue talking and talking until we notice that Juni has fallen asleep in her grandma's lap. "Here mom let me take her" Jungkook says, standing up but both my mom and his stand up and wave him off. "That's okay, we're just gonna go put her down in y/n's room" my mom says and before he's able to say otherwise they've disappeared down the hallway.

"Does she have school tomorrow?" I ask once he's settled back down. "No, she's on spring break right now until next Monday" he relays and I nod my head. "And what about you? Do you work tomorrow?" I ask and he gives me a shy smile before responding. "I had a shoot scheduled in the morning but we went ahead and pushed it to the afternoon so I don't have to worry about going home anytime soon" he says and my heart skips a beat.

"No, I mean, well I don't want to keep you for too long. You probably have other things you'd like to get done tonight?" I ask and he shakes his head. "No, this is the only thing I have planned for the night so I guess you're stuck with me" he chuckles. "I didn't mean to make you feel like I wanted you to leave I just-"

"It's okay I know what you meant" he laughs and I now take notice that we're the only ones left in the room. "Oh! Where did my dad go?" I ask, my eyes darting this way and that, not even being able to hear his voice.

"I think I heard something about them setting up the fire pit? I'm not sure but he's outside with my dad right now" he says and I spy both of them looking through the glass door before quickly ducking out of view once they realize they've been spotted.

"Maybe we should head out there" I say but he cuts off that thought by asking me a question that keeps me frozen on the spot. 

"Is there a reason why you don't want to be alone with me?" he asks, arm now having been draped around the back of the couch a while ago, completely unknown to me making this all seem a lot more intimate than before.

"Who said that?" I chuckle nervously, clearing my throat before sinking back into my seat. "You just did" he says, nodding towards me and I feel like I want to crawl in a hole and die. I thought I could escape this night without being awkward like this but I guess not.

"You trying to get rid of me?" he teases and I shake my head right away, "No I'm sorry I just-" "It's okay, I'm only joking" he says and I laugh nervously. "So why don't you tell me about yourself?" he says, giving me the most open ended question ever and I scramble to find something but I just can't seem to come up with anything interesting enough to mention.

"Well, my parents pretty much said everything there is to know about me over dinner earlier" I say and he shakes his head. "I want to hear something about you from you. Like what are some of your hope, your dreams, something you're passionate about" he says, being a little more specific this time.

"My dreams?" I trail off, thinking for a second and he watches me as I wrack my brain for something notable. "It's kind of silly" I admit once I've settled on something. "Good thing I've got a sense of humor" he replies, trying to encourage me to continue. 

"Well, I've always wanted one of my photos to be on the cover of TIME magazine" I admit and see his eyes light up. "I have a similar dream" he says and my eyes widen in surprise turning my body to face him, wordlessly asking him to share his too. 

"I'd like one of mine to end up on the cover of National Geographic" he relays and I smile in turn. "That would be perfect for you! Well, since the subject you love to capture the most is nature I could definitely see your work fitting right in!" I say, excited to see someone else who's trying to aim as high as I am.

"And I could see yours being a shoe in for TIME as well" he says, and I shy away from his praise. "Okay and what's something you're passionate about, and don't say photography" he says, interrupting me causing me to slump down, having to take another second to come up with an answer. 

He chuckles a bit at my reaction and I glare at him causing him to smile at me even more so look up to the celling as if it had the answers to something interesting about me. 

"Well, I really love reading. I know it might not seem like a passion but when I read a really good book and I find someone who has read it or will at least let me talk about it it's as if I gain a boost of energy and can't contain my excitement. That's definitely the nerdy side of me showing but that's all I can really think of at the moment" I say honestly and when I look back at him it's as if he thought I was the most fascinating thing he's ever seen. 

"Sorry, I think I got a little carried away there" I say, getting shy from being looked at like that, his soft gaze an expression I'm not used to, especially from someone I just met. "Um, your turn" I say, hoping to get some of the spotlight off of me. 

"I know this might be cheating but I do enjoy taking video and editing them. Even if it were as simple as filming Juni for an afternoon, it's something that if given the chance, would be something I could be extremely passionate about" he says and although it is cheating since it's somewhat similar to photography, I'll let it slide. 

"Have you thought about switching up your profession to include video as well as pictures?" I ask and he nods before answering. "I have but I haven't taken enough time to seriously consider it. Juni is still young and I want to make sure I have a stable income in order to take care of her and if I'm being honest I feel almost as if a career change could jeopardize that" he says and I watch him with the same intent that he had given me and he too seems to shy away from it. 

"It's silly since it would probably be a seamless transition but I can't help but feel reservations towards it" he says and I place my hand on top of his that's in his lap. 

"It's normal for a parent to worry about providing for their child. I don't think it's silly at all and it shows how much you truly care about Juni and her well being. She's lucky to have you as her father" I say and he cringes only for a moment before his expression goes back to a softer one. I want to ask what would've warranted a reaction like that but I leave it alone. 

"Okay your turn, what is something you hope for?" he asks and I already know the answer to it but I'm hesitant to say. I take a second to try and figure out how to formulate it properly but decide to just go for it. 

"I hope to be a mother and have children of my own someday. Doesn't matter if it's naturally or through adoption, I just hope to have someone I can love and care for unconditionally and watch them as they grow and change and pray I'll receive that love and care back from them" I say and he gives me a wary expression and I quickly try to backtrack, not knowing if I've messed up or not. 

"I'm sorry that was probably extremely insensitive of me" I say, pulling away my hand but he holds onto it and gives me a sad smile before responding. "I think you would be a wonderful mother. If you were to give your children even half the time and attention you've given to Juni today they would still be incredibly lucky to call you their mother" he says, reassuring me that it's okay to talk about these topics around him. 

"Last one?" I question, seeing if he's up to telling me something he's hopeful for. "I just hope that no matter what my family and friends stay happy and healthy. It might be simple but I enjoy the simple things in life" he says and I smile, seeing how truly kind and compassionate he is just from his simple answer. "That's a good answer" I say and we both chuckle a bit before we're broken out of yet again another moment by the sound of our mothers stumbling into the room. 

"Oh don't let us bother you we're just going to head outside with your father" Jungkook's mom says to him and I can see now from the warm glow shining through the glass door that they've finally started up the fire pit. 

"Oh we'll come outside too!" I say and try to get up off the loveseat. I'm able to stand but immediately lose my balance and feel a strong set of hands on my hips and end up falling into Jungkook's lap. "I-" I start, turning towards him and trying to get out an apology but stop short when I see how close his face is to mine, our noses almost touching. 

I hear our mothers head outside quickly and close the door but neither of us pay any mind, both focused on each other to the point where neither of us move for what feels like forever but was only a matter of seconds. When I do try to get up I feel his grip on me tighten. 

"I'm s-sorry, this couch is always difficult to get off of" I explain and he smiles. "Like I said before, you have nothing to apologize for" he says, his voice a bit deeper than before and it takes every fiber of my being to stop myself from looking at his lips but when I see his flutter down to mine I can't help but do the same. 

"Daddy, why is Ms. y/n sitting on your lap?" we hear Juni say and I immediately get off of him and throw my face in my hands, trying to hide the embarrassment written all over me but Jungkook handles it like a champ. 

"Ms. y/n just fell down Juni and I caught her. You know how I catch you sometimes before you fall?" he offers and she walks over to us, rubbing her eyes and immediately climbing onto Jungkook's lap. "Oh okay" she says, yawning again after Jungkook places a kiss on the crown of her head. 

"Do you wanna go see the fire that grandpa and Ms. y/n's dad made?" he asks and she hums in approval, still half asleep but wanting to go outside with everyone. "Okay let's go" he says, standing up with Juni in one arm and holding his hand out to help me up. I glare up at him and he smiles, knowing he's added to my embarrassment but I take his hand anyways and he makes no moves to let go once I'm up on my feet, walking us all towards the back door. 

Once we're outside though that's when he lets go so he can hold Juni properly while he walks down the patio steps so we can get to the fire pit. 

"Juni woke up?" his mother asks and Jungkook nods. "Yeah she wanted to come outside with everyone even though she is still very very sleepy" he says, talking in a silly sweet voice that makes Juni pout although her eyes are still closed. "I'm not sleepy" she says mid yawn causing me to coo at her and when she realizes I'm still close by she sits up off of Jungkook's chest and reaches towards me. 

I look between her and Jungkook for a second and he nods his head in approval and hands her to me, grabbing a chair afterwards for me to sit on and pulling up another one next to mine and looks over at Juni to see she's practically sound asleep again. "Are you okay with her?" he asks and I hum in approval leaving him placing another kiss on Juni's head before leaning back in his chair. 

"So Jungkook, what do you think of my daughter?" my mother asks and Jungkook chokes on air, not expecting the straightforward question. "Mom!" I scold and she chuckles, "What? It's a simple question. No need to give a complex answer, unless he wants to" she teases and I swear I can even hear Jungkook's dad chuckling at my mother's antics. 

They couldn't make it more obvious that they're trying to set us up even if they tried. 

My dad luckily somewhat comes to Jungkook's aide and hands him a bottle of water to hopefully help him stop coughing which it does thankfully.

He takes a second to clear his throat and I would be lying if I said I wasn't on edge, waiting to hear what his answer might be. "I think she is a very kind hearted and very intelligent young woman" he says simply and the echos of him calling me beautiful earlier on tonight attach to the end of that. 

"And would you like to see her again?" she continues and he then looks over at me, giving me a soft smile and glancing down at Juni before looking me in the eyes again. "We've already planned to see each other again" he says, memories of Juni's invitation to the butterfly shopping trip fluttering through my mind again. 

"Did you hear that? Jungkook has already asked to see her again" my mom says, calling over to Jungkook's mom as if she hadn't been listening the whole time. "Well technically Juni asked if I could go shopping with them" I explain and Jungkook chuckles. "Juni is a very smart girl" my mother compliments and Jungkook and I can't help but laugh. 

The rest of the night flies by and before I know it we're already standing in the doorway saying goodbye. "It's was so nice seeing you again y/n! I hope to be seeing you again soon" Jungkook mom says, winking at me. "Oh come on honey leave the girl alone" Jungkook's dad says, coming to my aide and saying his goodbyes as well. 

Jungkook's parents say a quick goodbye to Jungkook and Juni as well since they came in separate cars and I notice after that my dad pulls Jungkook aside and says something that I regretfully can't make out. Luckily he doesn't seem bothered by it as they smile and shake hands before my dad pats him on the back, sending him off with I can only assume is well wishes. 

Jungkook says goodbye to my mother and I can tell how much she's praising him, he thanks her for everything and makes his way over to me a few moments later and it's almost as if it was a ghost town with only Jungkook and I in the entryway now, with him holding a still very sleepy Juni in his arms. 

"Thank you for coming, I know this was probably a lot for you" I say, rocking back and forth on my heels and he smiles before answering. "I had fun, and I know Juni did too" he says and I can feel my heart skip a beat, "I did too" I reply shyly. He reaches into his pocket and unlocks his phone before handing it to me.

"Do you think I could have your number? You know, so we can set up that shopping day soon? I know Juni won't be able to stop talking about it until we go" he says, turning into what I could only describe as a shy teenage boy, asking his crush for her number. "Sure" I say, putting it in and calling my number so I have his too. 

"Let me know when you get home safe" I say and place my hand on Juni's back and whisper a quick goodbye which regrettably stirs her awake and I mouth a quite sorry to Jungkook but he smiles in response. 

"Wanna say goodbye to Ms. y/n?" Jungkook asks and she nods her head before opening her eyes and leaning towards me to give me a kiss on the cheek leaving me speechless. "Goodnight pretty lady" she mumbles before laying back down on Jungkook's chest. He chuckles after seeing my reaction and gives Juni a kiss on her head in response. 

"Goodnight y/n" he whispers to me and I send him the same sentiment, walking him to the door and watching as he walks over to his car while he puts Juni in her carseat. He looks back to see if I'm still watching and smiles at me again before getting in his car and driving off. 

"So should I schedule an appointment with the caterers tomorrow or...?" I hear my mother say behind me, making me jump before taking a few steps back into the house and closing the door. "Very funny mom" I say, walking over to the living room and plopping down on the couch Jungkook and I had been sharing a couple hours ago. 

"What's wrong? He's a nice man isn't he? Plus his daughter seems like she loves you! Why don't you give it a shot?" she asks and I sigh, sinking further back into the couch. "I don't know, I just don't want to get my hopes up" I mumble and she sits next to me, placing a comforting hand on my thigh. "What makes you say that?" she asks curiously.

"It's almost as if he's too perfect. He's handsome, charming, charismatic, a great dad and I don't know, he just seems too good to be true" I admit and she nods her head, understanding my hesitation. "Everyone puts their best foot forward when they're meeting someone for the first time. Just go out with him and Juni in a few days and keep an open mind. It's not the fact that he has Juni that's holding you back right?" she questions, trying to figure out what exactly has got me doubting. 

"No not at all! If anything Juni is an added bonus" I say truthfully and she smiles at me. "Good, because I think she's already become very attached to you" she says and I nod my head. "Yeah I think I have too" I mumble and she claps her hands, jolting me out of my train of thought. 

"Now all we have to do is get a ring attached to that finger and the three of you can live happily ever after" she says, getting up to clean up the cake plates that sit on the coffee table in front of us. 

"Mom" I groan and she laughs, "I want some beautiful grandchildren and if that handsome young man can't help you give them to me then I don't know who could" she continues leaving me sighing, not bothering to argue back since she is definitely right about that one. 

I hear my phone chime in my purse moments later after I walk into my bedroom to gather up my things to go back home and see a message from an unknown number but check my call log and see that the numbers match up from when I called myself off Jungkook's phone. 

I quickly add him to my contacts before opening up our chat and see a short but sweet message from him. 

'Home safe and sound. Thanks for having us tonight. Hope to see you soon?' he sends with a question mark at the end, clearly still wanting to double check on if I'll actually want to see them again. I wait a few seconds, my thumbs hovering over the keyboard before finally composing a message and hitting send before I chicken out. 

'See you soon Jungkook. I really enjoyed getting to know you and Juni. Looking forward to shopping for butterflies together!' I say and cringe once I reread it. 'Ugh could I possibly sound more desperate?' I say to myself and toss my phone on the bed, sitting down at the computer chair across from it. 

A minute later I hear another message come in and I practically lunge for the phone, praying I didn't weird him out but moments later I feel heat rushing to my cheeks and have to will myself into not squealing.

'We're counting down the minutes until we can see you again. Let's talk tomorrow and set up a date and time'  he says and I rush to respond. 

'Sounds great! Goodnight Jungkook'  I say, ending the conversation before I end up embarrassing myself even more but before I can even lock my phone his message pops up. 

'Goodnight y/n, sweet dreams' the message is so simple but it still makes me smile. 

"Is that Jungkook texting you?" my mom asks, poking her head into the room and I quickly lock my phone and grab my purse. "Yes it is, goodnight mom" I say, walking past her and straight to the front door with her trailing after me. "Oh come on sweetie you know I'm just teasing you. I really think he's going to be a good match for you" she says and I turn to face her before I leave. 

"I really hope so. Say goodnight to dad for me" I say giving her a kiss on the cheek and getting in my car to drive home. 

~~~~

Once I walk in I'm greeted again by Salem and he walks up, waiting for me to pick him up. "You're such a little baby you know that?" I chuckle and he meows in response. 

I follow the same routine as I always do, carrying him with me into my room and rambling off to him about my day before hopping in the shower but this time I have a lot more to say, leaving me wasting half the hot water and causing me to have to finish up the last bit of my shower in a freezing cold stream. 

After finishing up and finally settling into bed I lay down and Salem curls up next to me. "Things might be changing around here boy. I only hope they're for the better, what do you think?" I ask after having told him everything and I'm met with the feeling of him purring and if that isn't a good sign then I don't know what is. 

"I hope he likes cats" I say, giving him one last pet before turning off the light and for the first time in a very long time I can finally say I've gone to sleep feeling content. The last thought that runs through my head is one that helps me fall asleep with a soft smile on my face. 

I can't wait to see him again...

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[jaytalking]

Okay okay.

NAOOOO—

*inhaaalE*

So your Plasmius design.

*claps hands together multiple times*

Where do I even BEGIN to appreciate it OML I would fail at doing so-

Okay so.

Numero uno *cough*

The whole thing about him looking younger to embrace the vampire part. Yes. Yes I love that. That is now canon in my heart because it just WORKS. SO MUCH.

Because I feel like it could also tie into the fact that Vlad in the show is so obsessed with having lost everything and wanting all of it back, his youth included-

So he'd look younger as Plasmius EEEEEEEE

Also I LOVE how his eye shape changes as Plasmius and he looks more. Hostile and dangerous if you will—*explodes* eyes are the windows to one's soul I love eyes sm-

THE FANGS. THE FANGSSSSS—*taps the microphone* HE'S A VAMPIREEEE—

The way you turned the top of his cape into flames??? That is literally so so SO cool and amazing

Makes me wonder if he can maybe. Change the shape of it/make it appear and disappear whenever he wants?

Also his hands constantly looking like they have blood on them??? AND IT CAN SPREAD ONTO THE SURFACES HE TOUCHES??? TEN OUT OF TEN ISTG THAT IS JUST SOMETHING ELSEEEE/POS

Your young Vlad looks so huggable idk why

(Sorry kinda unrelated but I feel like younger Vlad was SUCH a timid person. And he'd get shy fast but he'd also be quite confident whenever he wanted.)

THE LOWER PART OF HIS HAIR BEING WHITE. I WILL—*holds head* "yes officer it's this design right here—"/silly

AND THE SCAR

Gosh my favorite part EVER

THEM GLOWING

OH MY DAYS THAT IS AWESOME

He looks like a fiery demon from the pits of hell I love it

I'm here for it

I'll put him in a freezer so he can cool down—/silly

I think we should give him pomegranate sorbet I think he'll like it

Cuz like

It's sour, but also has a sliiiight sweetness to it, and it has a bitterness in its core because of the pomegranate seeds. Idk I feel like that is just. So Vlad. Shfjfkvkvkv—/silly

Also very randomly: Vlad be like:

"Oh look, a sophisticated business man!"

"Oh, he’s a little bit messed up, actually..."

BUT YEAH I JUST ABSOLUTELY LOVE YOUR DESIGN FOR HIM I'LL HOLD HIM IN MY HANDS LIKE A LITTLE CREATURE/POS

Jophofhchvv thank you I never know how to respond to but know that we're screaming together!

Here's some fun facts about EctoScience Vlad:

-I really wanted to give him a dangerous vibe, ghosts can eat other ghosts to grow stronger extremely quickly in this AU and that's partly why he's as strong as he is, the other part being... halfas are just very powerful. Simply. Anyways everyone in the Zone knows and fears him; at the start of the series he's almost a boogeyman of sorts there until Danny starts beating him.

- Vlad didn't have a ghost form at first! His becoming a Halfa actually took a long time due to how it happened, and that's technically how it'll go for Danny too, he's just further along due to his own death being wayyy more violent than Vlad's. The progression into full ghost has slowed down a lot in Vlad's case, but for the reason I just mentioned, Danny's progression is fast.

- The "I hate you!" "You're like me!" Exchange is something I've had in mind since the start. In this AU specifically the circumstances of their "deaths" are extremely similar, but above all Danny fears turning fully into a ghost will make him lose his humanity and turn him evil due to, you know, actually listening to the "all ghosts are evil" bogus his parents believe. Vlad can sense that insecurity and in this AU he latches onto it like a vice to make Danny think him joining Vlad's side is inevitable in the end.

- Yes, he CAN make his cape disappear if it starts getting in his way in a fight, but I would also like to highlight his fire core making him very warm. Cats love him.

- His general behaviour as a ghost has been changed a little, he acts and fights fairly normally at first, but if the fight drags on for too long or his opponent runs away he's going FULL HORROR MOVIE VILLAIN. That first fight in the mansion was a lot longer and made Danny genuinely fear for his life. Let Vlad be MORE unhinged when he's pissed off I say.

[atlantis-is-burning]

Dead Boy Detectives Cancelation

So in light of the heartbreaking news of Dead Boy Detectives getting canceled, I decided to write a letter to @netflix It's the first time I've ever felt compelled to reach out to a major company regarding their services but I wanted them to know how much the show means to us as fans and what they're taking away from us by canceling it.

For me, the show was a literal life-saver. Without going into too much detail, I was in a very dark place prior to its release and it was the only thing that helped me through it. That and meeting all of you =)

I don't know what impact it will have, if any, but if you would like to write a letter to Netflix as well letting them know what the show meant to you, I would definitely do so. Our community may be small compared to other fandoms but we are passionate and devoted to this show and they deserve to hear from us.

I've attached the letter below the cut for anyone who would like to read it and believe me, I'm not trying to medal in the tragedy Olympics with the intro, it's just a fact of what happened.

Maybe the show helped you in ways you couldn't imagine. Maybe it made you feel better about yourself or something that occurred in the past. Maybe it was just a fun comfort show for you that you really enjoyed. Whatever the reason, this show brought out the best in people and made the world feel just a little bit kinder for a while and I will never forgive Netflix for taking that away.

To whom it may concern,

On April 29th, I sat down and watched the first episode of the Dead Boy Detectives. 

I had heard good things about the show since its release a few days earlier, that it was fun and campy and easy to watch, but for me I was hoping it would be a distraction. A very close friend of mine passed away without warning on December 30th; she was just there one day and gone the next. The first half of the year was spent helping her family get her affairs in order while trying to process our shared grief and figure out how we could move on without her. 

I didn’t begin to feel like myself again until late March and by then it was only a fraction of who I had been before her passing. So when I sat down and pulled up the first episode of the Dead Boy Detectives, the only goal I had in mind was to pass a few hours watching a silly supernatural mystery show and think about something other than this sense of loss and imbalance that had settled over me.

It was the first time I smiled in nearly three weeks and it was the first time I laughed since December.

I watched the entire series, start to finish, in one night. Then I went back and watched it again the next day. And again a few days later. And for the first time since her passing, I felt like my friend was still there somehow, like we were watching it together. It was exactly the kind of show she would have loved when she was alive, flamboyant and silly with a touch of romance and mystery, so on my fourth rewatch of it, I sat on my couch with a picture of the two of us cradled in my lap, watching a show I know she would have enjoyed and feeling just the tiniest bit of my grief fade.

It was through the Dead Boy Detectives that I found a community online, a group of people who loved the show just as much as I did. We traded theories and ideas about the episodes, we excitedly welcomed new members who had just finished it and encouraged others to watch it in the meantime. We set up forums and threads on Reddit, we messaged each other, we embraced this silly, quirky show so much that it became a safe haven for a lot of us, it became a comfort series. We saw ourselves in this show and these characters and for many of us it gave us a sense of fellowship and belonging in a world where that feels more rare by the day.

And then it got canceled and for many of us, it felt like a slap in the face for the fans.

While I don’t claim to know the metrics on which a show’s success and renewal odds are based or what formula is used to determine ratings, I do know you didn’t see the fandom we created for ourselves because of this show. 

There are artists who make the most breathtaking art pieces you’ve ever seen, writers who bring you to tears with their works, and creators who painstakingly and lovingly created playlists and mood boards for each of the characters, matching them with songs and snippets of poetry that fit so perfectly it felt like it was made for them. There are fans who cosplay so well it looks like they borrowed the costumes directly from the production team and some who make jewelry and charms and trinkets that sell out almost before they complete them.

We engaged with the stars as well, wanting them to know how much we loved the show and these characters and how grateful we were to have watched them. We set up Q&As and asked them questions through Cameo, all the while thanking them for their work in bringing these characters to life. This show meant so much to us and we wanted them to know just what an impact they had had on more people than they ever could have imagined.

We were well aware of Netflix’s reputation of canceling shows based on poor viewership so we went in and organized weekly watch parties in an effort to increase the number of new viewers. We promoted it on Facebook and Twitter and Instagram, creators made videos for it on TikTok, and we created an entirely new tag on social media to bring more attention to this show we all loved so much.

Early on, there were several comments from people who said they were hesitant to even watch it; they had been burned before and didn’t want to get deeply involved with a new show that would turn into yet another “one season wonder.” We did our best to reassure them and convince them that this time it would be different; it wouldn’t be like all the shows that had been cut down before it could ever really develop. Since it was tied in with DC and The Sandman Universe, we promised them that maybe this time we could save it, maybe this time it would be enough.

And it was still canceled.

On Friday, August 30th, ten minutes after the news broke that Dead Boy Detectives had been canceled, I canceled my Netflix subscription. Netflix was the first streaming service I ever signed up for and today it is the only streaming service I have ever canceled. And, after watching the fallout in our little online community, watching the actual grief people were experiencing because of the cancellation, and scrolling through pages upon pages of outraged fans who swore they would never watch another program on Netflix and vowed to cancel their subscription that day, I can see that my decision was justified.

You have no idea the impact this show had on its viewers and you have no idea the impact you had when you took it away. We had people admit that the show helped them come to terms with their sexuality, helped them process deep-seated trauma, helped them love and accept themselves for who they were. We knew the Dead Boy Detectives would never be a runaway hit like Stranger Things or Bridgerton but we hoped and prayed that it would stick around just a little while longer, that we could enjoy these characters and their stories for even one more season before they were gone for good. 

For you it may have been just a silly little ghost show that was little more than a blip on the radar but for a lot of us it was so much more than that, it meant so much more than that.

I am under no illusions that this email will make a difference or that it will bring the show back from cancellation but I wanted you to know what an incredible and amazingly talented fandom you are leaving behind in its wake. These are people who put their heart and soul into the art they create and the words they put on paper and all we wanted was a chance to see that continue.

We are tired of being drawn into a program and falling in love with the characters with no guarantee that our viewership and involvement actually means anything. We are tired of begging for complex characters and the representation we crave in media only to have the rug jerked out from under us once we finally get it. We are tired of hoping and praying and campaigning to save a show that should easily be renewed for several seasons or, at the very least, a season two. 

We are tired of feeling like we’re being taken advantage of as fans, that the passion and excitement we have toward these shows and their stars, the kind of involvement you claim to want, is dismissed with little regard toward the fans of the show itself.

We are your audience and we are tired.

We will continue to love and cherish this show and these characters, without your involvement, and give them a much longer life than they ever had on your platform. This show, the cast and crew, and the fans deserve better than what you gave them and I hope you understand the tremendous amount of talent and passion you’re throwing away in your fan base.

With regards,

-M

[cheezeybread]

I feel no matter the character development, Kalim is still gonna struggle with doing what needs to be done to protect his family from everybody who wants him dead. I headcanon that his obliviousness is his coping mechanism for all of this and that he is in fact just as observant as Jamil, but that won't really be enough for this sunshine to face the evils of the Scalding Sands. So could I request Kalim with a lover who is just an absolute badass. As in before coming to twst they were the child of a diplomat/politician, so they're already very aware of how messy things can get and have no qualms about hurting the people who hurt them first. With Kalim and other loved ones they'll be cheerful and playful, but with enemies they go full maverick.

Specifically I'd like a oneshot of Kalim taking his lover to visit his family and papa Asim is asking them what they could provide for the family (since unfortunately they can't just let anyone marry into the Asims cause they're so rich and so powerful). All the s/o asks for is one month. They spend their vacation chilling with Kalim, bonding with his siblings, and chatting up fellow nobles.

Cut to one month later and the reader dumps this mile long report of every single person that wants them dead, all the evidence compiled against them, and plans for how they could be "handled" lethally or non-lethally. What was that they did in that one month? Create the Asim equivalent of the FBI and get dirt on just about everybody. They grew up in a modern day equivalent of the Imperial Chinese Court (meaning plots, scandals, endless assassinations, and just sooooo much drama), the Scalding Sands is like child's play for them.

I'm all for Kalim being more self-aware than people give him credit for! I mean, come on, he may be a silly little guy, but I believe 100% that he's choosing to be that way on purpose as a coping mechanism! I do the same thing, honestly.

───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰ ───

The head of the Asim household could be very imposing whenever he wished to be.

It threw you off guard, at first.

Kalim had been telling you about how great his father and mother was ever since he first proposed the idea of you coming with him over the break, saying how fun it would be, and how much his parents were looking forward to meeting you. He had hyped up the trip so much, emphasizing how nice and kind his family was. As soon as you walked through the door, you saw firsthand how right he was.

His mother embraced you with open arms, quite literally, wrapping you in a bone-crushing hug that would make Floyd jealous. His father slapped you on the back with the same bright, sunny smile that Kalim had- the same smile that first made you fall in love with his son. And the kids, by the Seven, the kids! The older ones were friendly and kind, but stepped away after initial greetings. But the younger ones were hyper and jumpy, all hopping in your arms and fighting for your attention. Even the youngest of them all, a small toddler who could just barely walk, managed to waddle up to you and tug on your pants until you picked him up.

Kalim was very pleased by all this, to say the least.

But then Kalim's father asked to speak to you in private, assuring your boyfriend that it was only to get more acquainted with you. So you had no unease about following the large man into a well-decorated room. As soon as the door was closed, the bright smile adorning his face vanished, replaced instead by the hardened, weathered look of a man who has seen horrors beyond comprehension. Or, at least, that's the vibe he gave off.

"I'm going to give it to you straight, Y/N," He said softly, his eyes narrowing as he looked at you with a calculating stare "In this family, there are...a great many dangers. I can't count the times my life has been in danger, and anybody who enters our family needs to be able to not only protect themselves and their spouse, but any potential children. I've had to kill men with my bare hands in these very halls...men who wanted to hurt my wife, my children."

He put a calloused hand on your shoulder, and you felt your stomach drop with a sudden well of nerves "I need my son to be protected, and I know that he can protect you, but I need to know that you have a...special skill set, let's say, to keep him alive and well."

At the end of the month, he said after a long spiel of the family's history, he expected to be shown what you could provide to the family and their wellbeing. If you did so, he promised, he would accept yours and Kalim's relationship with not only his blessing, but with the pride and acceptance of the entire family. Although, of course, you shouldn't speak of this conversation with Kalim, lest he attempt to help you in this endeavor.

After speaking with you, the bright and cheery look returned, and the two of you walked out of the room.

After the two weeks of break were over, you and Kalim (unfortunately) had to go back to the NRC campus, but you continued on in your personal endeavor. Two weeks after that, you nagged Crowley to give you permission to go back to the Land of Scalding Sands.

You stepped through the mirror with a sense of purpose, a thick folder stuffed with paper held protectively under your arm. To the house of Asim you went, requesting an audience with the head of the house to the guards standing outside. It took a while for one of the guards to go inside and fetch Mister Asim, all while the remaining guard kept his gaze fixated on you. Like you were here to hurt the family or something.

"Ah, so you've returned!" Greeted Kalim's father, ushering you to join him on the other side of the gates. At his approval, the guard opened the entrance, and you stepped inside gratefully.

"So," he began, placing a hand on your back as he began a slow walk around the estate, you assumed for privacy reasons "Tell me what you've brought."

"Let me first begin, sir, by telling you something that Kalim apparently forgot to mention that my family understands the plights that your faces. My father was a politician in his prime, and although he is retired at this point, his opinion still holds a great influence on those in higher positions of authority," You flicked a finger over the folder under your arm "As such, those who'd like to be rid of his influence, or simply disagree with the values he upheld while in office and the policies he enacted have had a great effect on the lives of me and my family. Homicide attempts were not uncommon growing up, although we didn't have the pleasure of being able to afford such high security," you chuckled, sticking a thumb back towards where the guards at the entrance were. You glanced over at Kalim's father, hoping to gauge some level of his emotions. But his face was unreadable.

"As such, I've gained some valuable skills to keep myself alive, and ones that may come in handy for yourself, as well, sir," You held up the folder, allowing him to take it.

As he flicked through the pages in the folder, his eyes narrowed, and his mouth opened slightly "What..is this?" he asked, although he feared that he already knew.

"I was in this land for two weeks, sir," You said, your voice gaining more confidence by the minute "During that time, I went out to eavesdrop and peruse through the marketplace. You know how much gossip is spread there-? Anyway, I learned of some names of those tossed around, claiming threats that didn't sound like they should be taken idly. Those who had plans set and in effect to take the lives of the Asim family."

"But these aren't just their names-" He started.

"I had two more weeks, if you recall," you interrupted, giving him a satisfied smile "Two weeks to find suitable...eh, let's say... punishments, for those listed. Ways to easily dispose of them without causing panic to the public nor cause any undue distress on their own families. As well as methods of getting them to talk and divulge information on any more conspiracies against you."

The head of the Asim household took a few more minutes to look through the papers before he began laughing, a deep, hearty sound. He looked up at you with a genuine smile, nodding his head gratefully.

"Welcome to the family, Y/N."

[mothric]

this resurfaces in my consciousness every so often and quietly bothers me like a pebble in my shoe, so let me tell you all about a small, formative memory.

I was playing smash bros melee with my two older brothers. the game came out right around my 9th birthday, so I was solidly 9 years old. I picked Luigi, and while waiting for the others to select their characters I idly scrolled through his outfit skins and landed on a pink shirt and cap with bright red overalls. "oh! he's pretty!" I said.

immediately both my brothers sprang at me with "woah! no he's not, he's a boy."

"well, then he's a pretty boy," I said, and they pushed back harder. "boys aren't pretty. don't ever call a boy pretty," they scolded. "the correct word is handsome." and I remember thinking something like, um, I'm looking at a boy right NOW and he IS pretty, so yeah they CAN be, stupid, but I was 9 and impatient and wanted to play viddy game, so I said "okay" and dropped it.

but he was pretty. Luigi was plenty handsome in green and the other palettes, but "handsome" wasn't the right word to me when his outfit made me think of strawberry milk and shortcake. why couldn't he be both? why was "pretty" a bad word only when applied to boys? why couldn't a boy be any descriptive word under the sun? why were we gendering adjectives?

I remember feeling weirdly ashamed in that moment, not because I'd done anything wrong but because the responses of those around me told me that I'd brushed up against some unseen social rule that was not to be touched. I knew, on some level, that the shame didn't come from me, but I couldn't make sense of why it was there at all.

it was such a small, fleeting moment, one that my brothers have probably long since forgotten about, but it's telling that I remember it, and specifically the feeling of wrongness about it that I couldn't articulate but felt in my bones.

at 9 years old I understood gender neutrality, a concept that seemed so simple and straightforward to me it baffled me that my brothers didn't get it. at 9 years old I learned, not that boys can't be pretty, but that grown-ups make up nonsensical rules about words, and about beauty, and about gender, and they get really sensitive about it if you challenge them. at 9 years old I understood boys could be pretty, and not long after I took it a logical step further and realized girls could be handsome, and my little world expanded.

as I grew up I observed men and boys in my life getting hung up over such small things. my brother lost his black umbrella and refused to borrow my pink one. my dad scorned high school boys he observed with painted nails, even though it was the in thing at the time with the influx of emo and scene culture. my partner in college bristled when I told him his eyelashes were the prettiest I'd ever seen. I observed that "man = pretty?" was used as a punchline in shows and movies and laughed about in real life. and I remembered Luigi and his strawberry outfit, and I thought, what a dull and restricted world you have all chosen to live in.

not everyone needs to like to be called pretty, and that's okay. it's important to respect how individuals want to be addressed. but time and again I've observed that the men who bristle most against it seem to live in a rigid world of insecurity and shame. and that stuff isn't inherent. it's learned and taught and reinforced.

Luigi would love to be called pretty. he would love to be called cute and adorable. if you are any shape of man or boy and want to be those things, Luigi supports you. it's all a bunch of silly grown-up rules anyway, so why not have fun and embrace joy?🍓

[tmmyrp]

hi everyone, tommy here! not tmmyrp, but tommy aka bell from metfell's system. I run tmmyrp and have for a year now! that's pretty fucking crazy like holy shit. i didn't expect this silly roleplay blog to turn into one of my favorite projects ive ever worked on, and i've been able to do it with some of my best friends!!

ive been having creative burnout with tmmyrp for a bit. now- now before you get all fuckin concerned n shit i'm not stopping the blog!! i just thought id let you all know. me n fern- our cranboo- are a bit more active on latenightmining right now, since this blog's plot has pretty much been resolved in a way im happy with. i'm still gonna be roleplaying on here, but i'm moving away from any huge serious conversations. there will be a few more, there's still some stuff id like to resolve with songbird, and of course october and november 16th are coming up. but overall i want tmmyrp to finally have some peace. he's okay now, he's happy. so send asks prompting him to go hang out with tubbo or techno or wilbur or quackity or even phil- hell even ranboo we can figure that out!! ask him about his knitting and sewing projects, his favorite things he's made and favorite places to go. ask him about his favorite time of day or weather or give him an idea for something to do! he's here to have fun :)

we've had so much fucking fun and so many memories. there was the start of finding gertrude, carving pumpkins with songbird, ranboo dying and dream escaping, the gala, getting tulip, ranboos SECOND death leading to the creation of petalsbrough with tubbolul, the shapeshifting or stress shitting lol, the reconciliation with technoblade, getting to interact with casinoroyale and then bring charlie back home to him, live roleplaying while the queen died, exile 2 and the scary shit with bestnightmares, when bestnightmares got fuckin terminated mid thread and it was so goddamn funny everyone lost their minds, tommy locking beeduo in a room to sort their problems out, tommy embracing puffy making him the server therapist and trying to therapize people but needing it more than anyone, the way everything changed november 28th and bedrockverse branched out to be its own little thing.

i love everything ive written with everyone, and its kind of crazy that this is my first experience roleplaying ever. there's nearly 1000 of you now, and i don't know what i have planned for the anniversary! im writing this a couple days early because i got so emotional. you've all seen me grow and get better at writing and now i feel so satisfied with the product ive made here with everyone else. it's a group effort, we all worked so hard trying to make something memorable, something that represents how much we love these characters from this silly minecraft roleplay server.

you all mean the fucking world to me <3 sorry i'll be a bit less fuckin sappy and emotional n shit uh. women primes fuck you get bitches die. or something.

[224bbaker]

I just found this podcast today; I've listened to all of season 1 straight through, and I'm listening to the Q&A right now. I'm really enjoying listening to the cast and writers talking about the characters and their approaches to them. I mean, everything just hits perfectly.

There are ways in which I relate to all the team members, but Madge especially reminds me of my younger self, with her high level of sexual energy, which she shares so generously. In the Q&A, they seemed to be having trouble coming up with terms to describe her sexuality. The word I used for myself in those days was "ambisextrous."

Most of the series has been light, and funny, and fun. The latter part of episode 8 was a whole other thing, with the breakdown of the characters and the relationships, and the beginning of their reconstruction. Props to everyone involved, because it was absolutely harrowing and absolutely accurate. As someone who's experienced that kind of emotional trauma, there was a part of me that wanted to just bail on the episode, but my experience also knows that the only way out is through. And I'm glad I stuck with it.

I'm really looking forward to season 2, and meanwhile, I'm glad you're promoting so many other cool stories to listen to.

Thanks for everything.

PS: I love that Ambrosius is being played by an actual cat. I grew up in a house that was literally full of cats, and ever since, no place is home that doesn't have cats in it. 😺

Oh wow. We’re just never quite prepared for getting lovely messages like this, to be honest. The greatest thing in the world for creators is knowing that the thing you made reached someone and had an effect—especially the stuff you were really worried about trying creatively!

You can probably tell in the Q&As that we were really torn about the tonal line this very silly comedy was walking toward the end of the season, wondering if we were, as we were trying to do, using comedy as a tool to allow our audience to open up to these characters and their internal lives to then go a bit deeper, or just pushing it over the line from comedy into something decidedly less fun. We always worried we might lose people in episode 8, and we’ve been so touched to hear that hasn’t been the case. The widespread embracing of these silly characters and their hopes, fears, and insecurities is something we will treasure forever—especially because so much of it stems from our own hopes, fears, and insecurities. And Madge is so much an extension and catharsis of

We promise things will still be very silly in season 2, I don’t mean this to indicate we’re not a comedy anymore because there is SO much silliness. But one of our mission statements as creators, and something the medium has allowed is to explore, is that we believe comedy has just as much to say as drama, and that just because you’re laughing doesn’t mean you can’t feel seen, or experience catharsis, or learn something about yourself. It’s all an experiment that you’ve joined us on the ride for, and thank you (and the rest of our listeners) for being so open, curious, and kindhearted.

Also, ALL IN ONE DAY???? Insane respect thank you for your dedication!

[magnuficent76]

"Love?" A voice called out from beneath heavy sheets, mellow and tired. It startled me for a moment, but I calmed down seeing her face.

"Ah, honey. Go back to sleep dearest, you've a shift in a few hours-" I said, still keeping my distance. It's not her responsibility to handle my own anxieties. I hear the shifting sound of cloth, and feel her embrace around my chest. Warmth.

She presses kisses on my neck, then goes down my back, each one making me shiver just that little bit. Before I knew it, I melted into her arms. I see her face. God, what a woman. How could I even compare? Is it even fair to think it?

"You're stressed out, aren't you? What's on your mind?"

"I just– It's these long work days getting to me, I guess." I lie through my teeth. I lie and the words slither out my mouth, cutting my tongue on my teeth in the process. Forcing a smile, I try to get up from the bed. She holds me down with little force.

"Honey..."

"Lamb."

My smile falters. Her eyes bore right through me, through my brain. She gently strokes my cheek with her thumb. My eyes close. It's almost instinctive, at this point. She's always had a way to crack through me in more ways than one.

"Lamb, dear, please. Something ails you, does it not?"

"Since when do you speak like that?"

"Since when do you lie to your wife about your health huh?" She jests, flicking some of my hair to the side. It gets a laugh out of me. "Come on now. You've been a little off. Tell me?"

I contemplated it again. No, she has a point. She deserves to know. It can't be fun, having to guess how your partner feels, even when they say they're okay. I take a breath, and it almost immediately leaves my lungs. This is going to sound stupid, but,

"I... just had a really, not very good, dream."

She looks confused.

"So? What happened?"

"It's really silly. You have a shift soon, you need sleep honey."

"Lamb."

...

"You're not tricking me now. Was the dream about me?"

There she is. I looked into her eyes too long, and she ended up in my head. In the middle of the brain, digging with her nails like fresh soil.

"...Maybe."

"Lamb..."

"I know, I told you it was silly-" She sits me up against the bed's headboard. She doesn't struggle. For a moment, I see myself as a doll being propped up for a conversation. And I wouldn't be wrong.

"It's not silly, I've told you that before. What was the dream about? Was it anything like the last?"

"Kind of? I just– I don't know. I guess I've just had um, questions about you."

Her eyebrows furrow, maybe in anger, maybe in confusion, maybe she just hates me now for waking her up at 2 in the morning on a work day to bother her about my own insecurities. This can't be fun. She hates me now. I might as well get it over with.

"Look I just-"

"You what? Tell me. You don't need to make me play a mind game to guess what you want me to say. You need to help me here too."

................

She sighs. Loudly.

"Lamb."

Her hands against my cheeks feel warm. So terribly warm. Warmth I didn't earn.

"I'm not mad at you, nor do I hate you, nor am I ever going to be mad at you for waking me up. I want to take care of you. You don't need to earn my love, dear."

But how can I—

"—Be sure? Well, I can tell you it a thousand times."

But-

"Lamb dear, tell me your dream."

"...I dreamt you got tired. Like you just didn't want to have me anymore. The dream you... said a lot of mean things. Things I know you'd never say, but that still got to me, somehow. I don't want to make it seem like you're obligated to deal with how my brain makes me view you, nor should you feel responsible to refute anything, I just-" Before I can finish rambling, tears roll off to my cheeks. The same she holds with her soft hands. Burning hot, welling in my already tired eyes. She hugs me close and I sink.

"God... I don't deserve you do I. I don't–" I'm clutching at her back, my nails almost digging into her skin, and I don't want that to happen. I can't hear myself whine, my thoughts too destructive to describe. And yet, she hugs me.

"You do. You really do, Jonah." She says, her voice so mellow, so gentle, "I've said I've loved you before, and I will keep loving you. You deserve my affection because I say you do, and you don't need to question it any further than that."

It's quiet for a moment. Everything is really quiet for a moment.

"...honey,"

"Jonah,"

"...Do you like how I look?" I say, resisting the urge to just hit myself really hard. How can I even ask this right now? "In the dream, you were-" Why am I still talking? Just shut up— "You said a lot of stuff about my body." No she didn't, you idiot, oh my god.

"Like what?"

"Um, you know. The usual. The belly, the… everything else. I don't know, just– I'm not exactly a good looking guy and you said it in the dream."

"Were those meant to be my words, or were they yours?"

"Huh?"

"In the dream, silly lamb. You just projected hate you hold for yourself on me. And that's a little mean, don't you think?"

"It is, I'm sorry."

She runs her hand through my hair, then down my back, slowly. Repeatedly. Gentle strokes that calmed me down, made me quiet.

"Don't apologise. You don't control what happens in your dreams."

"What about lucid dreaming?"

"Oh you know what I mean." She says, jokingly annoyed. "The point is," She kisses my forehead, "That I," She kisses my nose, "Looooove," She kisses my lips so softly, I try to linger onto it as long as I can, "ALL of you." Finally, she cups my face in her hands again, smiling at me. She's so pretty when she smiles. She's so pretty all the time.

"And that isn't gonna change ever, okay? I fell in love with you on purpose. And I would do it again, if I could. Because you're my little lamb," *oh-* "and my pretty boy, and my everything," **oh-!**

I'm smiling too hard. I feel my face burn with embarrassment (in a good way) with each word she says.

"And my booboo, and my teddy bear, and my stud muffin, and, especially," She leans a little closer to me, whispering in my ear," my wonderfully good boy." ***oh,***

I can't even cover up how flustered I am anymore. A weak whine comes out of my lips unprompted, and she kisses it back in. I hold on to her, my eyes closed, and am so sure that at this point, all is fine in the world. Her hands keep going up and down my body, feeling me up through my clothes, making me shiver. Then, she pulls away, with a satisfied smirk on her face. Part of me wishes she had me there for longer, testing just how long she could keep me breathless for, but that could wait.

"Do you still have any doubts that need some 'taking care of'?"

"Oh, no, I'm all good now doctor. Thank you so very much for treating me."

We both laugh. What a beautiful sound. What a wonderful, fuzzy and beautiful feeling. How I ever doubted it is unclear now.

"But Mel… Thank you, seriously. I know sometimes it's obnoxious on my end, but this genuinely helps me a lot."

"I know Jonah, I do it on purpose. I care a lot for you, you know."

"Haha, I've noticed by now… and, I'm thankful for it. It's still wild to me that I'm with such a lovely woman. Like… wow, that's my girl? Forever? I can't believe it sometimes."

She smiles wide.

Our little moment gets interrupted by the sound of an alarm clock ringing. The pesky beeping indicated it was unfortunately time for her to go.

"Aw, I've got to get going now," She mumbles disappointedly, "I was planning on medicating you a little more."

"You can do that later honey,"

"Oh, I will, don't you worry about that." She kisses my lips again, and finally lets go. I sadly go back under the covers, hugging a pillow to still have something to keep me company.

"I'm gonna miss you though, work is so boring without my little lamb"

"Looove…" I whine, "Don't tempt me like that, you're gonna be late to work,"

"I know, I know. But I can't help it, you're too dang delicious." One last kiss on my forehead later, and she finally gets up from the bed. "Okay, serious now. I'll see you later, okay Jonah? Stay safe here, I love you."

"I love you too, and same for you. I'm gonna keep your spot safe til' you get back from work."

"Can't wait to get back to it!"

I hear her laugh one last time, and she leaves the room for good this time. Chuckling quietly to myself, I close my eyes, hug the pillow closely, and drift off to sleep.

[bistaxx]

T0ont0wn crossover writing consultation ask: do you think capitalistic robots seeking world domination will feed a young child (aged ~5) they plan on indoctrinating? If yes, what quality do you think the food will be? Will it be nutritious enough for a young child to survive?

-@minecraftrelatedrandomness

I had to think about this one for awhile because I'll be honest I don't even know if toons need food to survive (And I'm assuming that by child you mean a toon child of course), they can certainly eat if they want to but I think they really just need laughter and joy to truly thrive.

But for the sake of argument let's say that they do- I'd imagine that healthy and nutritious food for a toon is probably pretty different from our human standards- toon food would probably lean a lot more saccharine or just silly childish food in general- comfort foods and desert sort of things.

Given that several gags that injure COGs are food related I highly doubt they'd be keen on handing those over willy nilly to their toon captive- it'd be too much of a risk- growing child or not. Not to mention that doing so would go directly against their M.O.- COGs want to make the Toons and T0ont0wn in general more corporate and serious like they are I really doubt they'd let this kid enjoy fun toon food that they'd need to develop into a happy healthy battle-ready toon.

Now I keep on going back and forth in my head on if COGs would even eat anything resembling organic food cuz.... well they're robots lol. I've done a bit of research and found that during the Bossbot HQ Clubhouse battle there is a part where the Toons have to pretend to be waiters for the COGs banquet and it's stated that COGs love oil- but if it's too greasy they'll straight-up explode! ... HOWEVER- the card art for the Bloodsuckers and Bottom Feeders DO show them eating organic material (a lollypop for bloodsuckers and.... literal trash for bottom feeders lol)- so if you take the card art as hard evidence then Yes, COGs do eat organic material! So I'll cover for both options just to be thorough.

I'd imagine in both circumstances it'd be a hard switch from whatever food this captive used to eat to whatever the COGs want them to eat- since Toons don't go by our rules I could see them being able to ingest things like oil or fuel- but it'd definitely make them very unhappy :( As for organic food, I'm picturing either the most boring bland typical meals you can think of like plain toast and black coffee, or maybe even just whatever they'd find in vending machines during lunch breaks- I think Higher-Ups would get more fancy food though like a nice steak or something, whatever fits that rich business man aesthetic y'know.

The quality of the meals given to the Toon would probably be low by COG standards- I can't imagine them ever considering wasting their higher quality goods on some Toon- Hell they'd probably even make them work for it, no free handouts- Sorry kid you have to start at the bottom of the ladder like everyone else! But hey maybe if the Toon in question proved themself to be a hard disciplined worker and loyally embrace the soulless capitalist lifestyle the COGs would be willing to reward their newest employee with some better nourishment- maybe even start giving this Toon a paycheck to further push them into being a good little worker! (... not sure how much the toon would appreciate it all though- especially if it's just more oil and junk like that lol)

(... Also I feel like even if the Toon were to start ahdering more to COG lifestyle they'd still be alienated by other COGs- probably jealous lower level COGs- and always reminded that they'll never truly be one of them- they will always just be a Toon in a COG society)

I can't imagine it would be good for the Toon long term- whether it's boring bland food or literally oil, but I do think they could survive- Toons are hardy beings. I don't really know how severely it'd affect a growing toons development, they could end up weaker or less joyful then an average toon- but maybe in turn not as badly affected by attacks from COGs. If they were to escape or be rescued maybe they'd struggle to get back into eating what they used too, having now grown accustomed to what the COGs would feed them. There's a lot of different ways you could go about how this could affect a Toon longterm!

I hope this was a good answer, it was fun to think about!

[bite-the-bloody-hand]

5, 20, 25 for Zell?

For the Pathfinder Knight Commander Game

Do they have a family? If so, what kind? Do they miss them? Do they still have hope to see them again?

Zell is pretty sure he has a family out there, somewhere. The human side, anyway, were nomads from Hongli. He remembers early childhood with them: learning how to ride horseback and eagle hunting, the vast steppe, the occasional journeys South into the big cities. He doesn't remember a mother, but he does remember plenty of people around, and being loved. Part of him wants to find them again, but they would remember a sweet, silly little girl with an odd dietary restriction. He doubts they'd recognize the blood-hungry beast he's become now.

He was taken from all that around age 10 by his Father's people, the Hellknights order of Hellsing (I'm sure we're all in on the joke by now), ostensibly for his own good. He hasn't met the King of the Vampires; from what he's been able to determine, His Majesty is 'around' but out of commission. The rumor is that they're keeping his corpse in a basement somewhere for an indeterminate amount of time. Whatever the reason, Zell was never allowed to meet or interact with him.

The head of the order maintained a strictly polite distance with Zell; while under their care Zell was beholden to endure what was essentially military school. He hated it, ran away at around age 16, and never went back to Ustalav. He still feels some complicated way about his absentee father, but is unsure of whether he actually ever wants to meet the guy. He's heard they have a similar sense of humor; doesn't know what to feel about that.

Which event of the crusade traumatized them?

Half-joking answer: The Eyeball Hail. What an absolute fucking nightmare that turned out to be.

Actual answer: Losing control in the Shield Maze. It wasn't just that he went berserk, it was the collateral. It was learning that his one moment of giving in to the fear and rage meant that an entire group of people were doomed to madness and death. It was learning that none of the methods he used as a half-vampire to curb his bloodlust would work for them; he'd harmed them irrevocably and could do nothing to help. In that moment he decided, no matter the material circumstances that had put him in that position: giving in meant that he was a Bad Person, that he was Wrong, and that Wrongness is inherent, and he will always be making up for that lack. This is not a standard he holds anyone else up to, by the way.

How did they welcome the physical change that came with their mythic powers? Did they embrace it/reject it?

Since the text is rather vague about what those physical changes are (aside from what shows up on your player avatar) I've honestly been wondering about this one.

Since I like to take life-dominant soul around the levelup where you chose your Mythic Path, I say yes he absolutely embraces becoming an Azata because he's suddenly in the least pain he's ever been in his life. In fact it's the closest to being actually, truly alive he's ever felt, and it's intoxicating. It's my pipe dream power fantasy of 'what if the medications worked all the time' lol.

I think, for the sake of fun, aesthetically the way becoming an Azata manifests for Zell is slightly different from how it shows in-game.

Since he's a Bloodrager with Celestial ancestry, I like that the wings would manifest more like the traditional 'angel' wings you can get with that subclass, but the feather patterns are like the butterflies he remembers from Hongli - such as the Alpine Black Swallowtail - which conveniently fits the colorscheme! On his skin there would be some faint iridescent scaling as well, I think. I haven't seen if there are any further changes (I've not yet gotten act 5) but that's the extent of it in my head for now.

[styxnbones]

I'm going to start a vtm campaign with a friend soon but I know fuck all about this series aside from what I've gleaned from your blog so. do you have any advice for me

one of us one of us one of us

first off, and this is generally just good advice for any game but especially with world of darkness' track record, feel free to throw out any bullshit you find in the lore. there's a lot of Yikes stuff still in there, even in 5th edition, and even more the older a resource you're drawing on. that said, there's also a lot of lore that is genuinely really cool that gets glossed over in more recent material, so if you read something in the core book that you want to know more about there's a good chance you can find more on the white wolf wiki (which, while unfortunately owned by fandom, does actually have a lot of good articles and at very least can point you at the book you actually want to look at).

Also, while vtm is often a very intense dramatic game of personal and political horror, it also very much has the range to be a bit campy and edgy as well. So, if you're making a character and you find yourself thinking "oh my god is this cringe" you should 100% lean into it and embrace the cringe. you're pretending to be a vampire pretending to not be a vampire- the world is terrible and awful and either you are or will become a tragedy, but also as a premise it's a little silly inherently and that's part of the fun.

circling back to the personal horror part- and this is again another "good advice for any game but especially in the case of vampire specifically" thing- try to make sure that everyone in the group has a really good understanding of eachothers lines and veils (hard and soft limits on what may take place in the game) and that everyone is on the same page about what kind of story you want to tell and what people want out of it. vtm will inevitably involve putting your characters through horrible things, but those horrible things should be mutually enjoyed by everyone at the table. in my experience, if you dont have a strong session 0 and regular check ins with your fellow players it can be very easy for people to overstep or simply misalign/misunderstand and end up with others getting seriously upset irl. vampires are often not good to eachother, but their players should still try to be.

one last thing- regardless of what version you're playing (since some of these are mechanical aspects in some editions and not in others) try to put a lot of thought into your character's Convictions, Ambitions, and the Nature and Demeanor of their personality. vampire is a social game more than anything else, and those aspects are really the most important part of the character- far more than what their clan or disciplines are. before anyone is ever embraced they're a human person with beliefs and goals and a way that they present themself to the world (which may or may not be true to the way they actually are), and the way that the remnants of that human person adapt and carry on through existence as a kindred are what make them really interesting.

[hedgypeng]

Trying something new

I want to get these thoughts out but have no idea where to put them. So why not dump them on the world wide interweb? I don't have to worry about anyone close finding my written notes, I have no one who physically knows me on tumblr. I can just leave it here and probably no one will even notice. (if you do, that's fine! 😂😂😂 Like, feel free to comment if you want? Even if it's to say I'm annoying or whatever. Everyone can have their own opinion.... Just don't be a dick)

I just turned 26. And a lot has been changing in my life. I've always been 'alone'. I didn't have many friends, I didn't go out. Didn't want to go out. I had 0 self confidence. I was hiding behind series and books and such. (Still do 🤫 it's less)

But now, only quite recently I've become more open... More self confident. I still have a long way to go. But I'm getting there.

I am more myself at work. And things are actually pretty great at the moment. And I am grateful the people around me support me and acknowledge I changed.

But... This change also comes with new insecurities. About the future. I am daring to think of what could be... And I am also daring to think of what I'd like in life. Usually I put those thoughts locked up in a box deep deep down. Because ''I'd never get to experience those things. It wasn't for me''

But lately, because of a silly turn of events, I am warming up to the idea that I do deserve those things... And maybe one day I could experience them. The silly turn of events is A FICTIONAL MENTAL HOSPITAL AND SOUP . 🙈 LET ME EXPLAIN!

I got into a show called Takin Over the Asylum. And I found an amazing server with Amazing people on discord. (Special shout out to the McKenna Family ��️) I felt so welcome and accepted. Even with my weirdness. I learned to embrace my weirdness and saw it as a plus, instead of a flaw. ("We are loonies, and we are proud"). And one silly day, we had this whole discussion about soup. Do you eat or drink soup. And that lead to me talking about this at work. And one thing lead to another.

Then there is soup guy, and he has the same humor as me, and ever since this soup thing, we've been joking around and just having fun all the time. And well, I've never ever felt so comfortable around anyone so quickly.

And that also made me think further. People are saying we would make a great couple and some say we act like a couple already and such. And I may or may not feel something... But that's not the point I'm getting at actually

It made me wonder what I'd want in a relationship... And that was actually what I wanted to write down. Just silly things I'd love in a relationship. People always ask me what I'm looking for. I never was able to answer that question because in my mind I didn't need to try? It was unnecesary, because I'd end up alone with 7 cats anyway.

So, what are things I'd like in a relationship

- someone I feel comfortable with

- someone who can handle my silly sence of humor and who likes making jokes

- someone who's happy to see me when I get home, or when they get home.

- I'd like handholding and a lot of hugs

-I'd like to be able to ramble about stuff I like, and listen to them ramble about stuff they like.

-I'd love doing mundane things together. Cooking, dishes, cleaning, ...

- little handwritten notes on unexpected times.

- I always said I didn't want to marry. But I suppose I said that to hide the fact that I thought I'd never get to marry... I do think I'd like a wedding. Not too big. With a meaningful opening number.

- someone you can have serious convo's with, but also silly ones.

- listening to music together, singing together... Spontaneously dancing through the livingroom

- someone who is there for me when I am having a hard moment. (anxiety or panic). Who listens.

Things like that...

I know they're silly. And maybe I'll never experience them... But we'll see? I suppose...

Thanks for reading. 🫶🏼

[layanasstories]

Oblivion

TWENTY-SIX

I quickly remove the towel from my head and hide my bandaged hand in it, then I stand next to Jake. He puts his arm around my shoulder, looks at Alan and then at me for a moment.

Alan didn't see it, but I did, the look Jake gave me said he wasn't happy with me showing up. "L...Layana?" Alan stutters. "It has been such a long time since I saw you. What are you doing here, in a town in the middle of nowhere?" I ask him in my nicest voice. Still completely taken aback, he stammers "Uh...I...I work here". "At the motel?" I ask him acting confused. Before I can make even more fun of him, Jake interrupts us "Do you know him?". "Of course I know him silly! He's my ex." I give Jake a forced smile. "Oh! That's really great! So on our honeymoon your ex is at our door. Fantastic!" He couldn't have said it more sarcastically.

There was silence for a moment, which made it visibly uncomfortable for Alan. "Are you married?" he looked genuinely surprised. "Yes, a week and a half ago. He is so sweet and understanding. I can't imagine a better partner." I put my good hand on Jake's belly and stroke it lovingly. "And then you go to Duskwood for your honeymoon?" the disgust at that choice was evident in Alan's voice. "Well that was actually a coincidence, we do a cross country. And came here. It looked so quiet and serene that we decided to stay for a few days so that we really have a chance to enjoy each other. Right sweetie?" I look at Jake, a little panicked because I've gotten too carried away with this acting. "I think this small talk with your ex has gone on long enough." Jake sounds stern. "He just accused you of assaulting someone a few minutes ago!". "What?!" I look at Jake shocked and then at Alan "Are you serious? Do you really think I would do something like that, let alone dare?" I give him my most innocent and weakest look. Alan lowers his eyes in guilt. "Of course not, Layana. My apologies. I'll leave you two alone now. Congratulations on your wedding, my apologies again and enjoy your honeymoon.". He turns and walks away with slumped shoulders. Jake and I watch him until he is far enough out of sight to go back inside and close the door behind us.

"What the hell Layana!" Jake is visibly irritated. "What's the problem? It went well, didn't it?" I say calmly. "Yes, but that could have gone differently. I don't want you to do things like that." his irritation only seems to get worse. "You'd better stop doing that Jake!" I look at him disappointed. He is startled by my reaction "What do you mean?". "That you tell me what I should or shouldn't do. I will never knowingly endanger us. We should work as a team, and we did. I know Alan, I know him very well, unfortunately. That's why I did what I did, not because I don't trust you." I'm not angry, but I do feel a little let down by him. I see him standing there thinking about what I just said, which eases his irritation. "You're right, I'm sorry." his apology sounds genuine, and what makes it even more sincere is that he pulls me into a hug. "But please, if you become my wife, don't ever sweet talk like that about me." I feel his body shake a little because he has to laugh. I look up at him "Your wife?" while I ask the question I feel the butterflies in my stomach raging. "Have you never thought about that?" he sounds curious. "Yes, of course I did." I answer him, hiding my face in his embrace. "Good! Because so did I." he holds me even tighter. I wriggle free a bit to look up at him again with a playful smile. "But really, I'm not going to do a cross country honeymoon! I want that deserted island!".

He just has a smile on his face and looks at me. His stare is long and deep, making me soft inside. He leans forward a little and kisses me, a passionate kiss, full of love. I claim the kiss by kissing him back with the same passion and love. I slide my hands over his back whereupon he places his hand behind my head, so I can't escape. Our kiss last long enough to make us panting, we part our lips, a sly smirk appears on both our faces. He lifts me up, I wrap my legs around his waist and kiss him again, a little more lustful to pull him over the line to go a lot further than only kissing. Not that he needed any encouragement, because I could already feel his lust for me.

[bellarkeselection]

Mikaelson Bestie

Request from @sessa23 The reader gets stood up on a date so her best friend Rebekah decides to help her have some fun.

Wiping away tears I down another shot of alchohol needing to get rid of the horrible feeling. The Grill's door gets kicked open for me to whip my head around to see Rebekah storm up to me. "I've been calling your phone for an hour wanting to know how the date went." Matt comes around the corner seeing the broken door running his hand through his hair. "Rebekah seriously the door." Rebekah flips her blonde hair snapping at the blonde quarterback she fancies. "I'll fix the bloody door later Matty. Y/n my bestie needs me right now." She gives him a look that said leave us and he goes.

She brushes my hair seeing my face red from tears eyeing the twelve shot glasses in front of me. "Us girls have to stick together, always and forever. Now let's talk about how you want this bloody idiot to suffer." I released a sniffled laugh at my best friend and she lightly smiled back. "1 is compel him to act like...say a chicken, 2 drain him of his blood, or 3 go to say Las Vegas and get drunk on alchohol or fresh blood. I'd even be up to doing all three if that'll make you happy."

I'd met the Mikaelson girl at the Mikaelson's ball after being spun into her brother Klaus's arms until she pulled me in so we could dance silly together. She's always wanted a sister and ever since that day we've been insuperable, almost always together. Since I'm human she's slightly jealous of everything I can do that she can't. But I'm more jealous of all abilities she got with being an Original vampire. So whenever one of us wants to do something the other will go along without a second thought.

Tonight I just wanted to drink my feelings away and so she joined in. "Bex look who I am?" I questioned stumbling ontop of the bar tables a drink in my right hand. "I am stronger than anything and can control everyone." I mock her brother Nik who I secretly have a crush on while I howl to the ceiling. She takes a long sip from an open wine bottle in her hand. "Obviously my narsastic brother Klaus." I pointed a finger at her taunting her throwing back my like 20th shot.

"Nah, nah, you mean you're hot narsastic brother Bex." My cheeks flushed when she teases me playfully. "Sounds to me my bestie has it bad for my bad boy brother." I misstep down from the table but she vamps catching me before I hit the floor. "Okay I think that's enough for tonight Y/n." I throw my head back winning like a child once I'm on my feet once more with her arm over my shoulder helping me. "Please don't tell Nikky what I said Bex, pleassse!"

She shakes her head thinking of a revenge plan for us and Klaus to take action on tomorrow. Rebekah hadn't told you yet that her brother was fancying over you quite a lot. That he'll make this boy named Lucas pay for ever hurting you. "Don't worry my sweet bestie. It'll be our little secret. But mark my word we'll cause him pain tomorrow." We ended up back at the mansion Klaus opened the door before I collapsed into his arms. He picked me up bridal style and I snuggled into his embrace passing out from all the drinks.

"Sister why does she smell of alcohol?" Rebekah brushed your hair back eyeing her brother with an annoyed face. "Some bloody moron named Lucas stood her up, Nik. But don't worry I assured her we'd get revenge." Klaus smiled at his sister wanting to make her best friend happy. "I vow that no one will ever hurt you again, love. It's a promise Y/n." Klaus whispered planting a kiss to your hair both siblings leaving you too sleep in the guest room.

Comment and reblog 😊

[transfemstarscream]

I've just got to know, what do you think about the other Seekers in the main Seeker trio? What do you think about their relationship with Starscream?

ooooo hm. i can't say i've ever been a huge fan of the "trine" trio idea, as in a lot of installations they have little to no relationship with each other other than all three being seekers and working under megatron because they're the flyers of the faction.

i'm rather fond of skywarp, mostly because i pity that she doesn't have a lot of content separate from either starscream or thundercracker. she's mostly depicted as beside them in some way; starscream and later thundercracker would be explored more as separate characters, but skywarp isn't really lucky in the regard. she's a cool guy, don't get me wrong--i love how she managed to become sort of a reluctant member with the humans in the idw series and gradually loosened up her loyalties to the decepticon cause. but i think she should've been more. cool dude but i don't really have any strong feelings towards her.

thundercracker is SO good, though. he's always been considered the "silly" one of the trio, and it's actually one "fanon" interpretation that i do not mind since he is rather hilarious. whether it be the cybertron iteration or the idw interpretation, he's so enjoyable onscreen. i love him embracing earth and being friends with the humans, and even becoming a movie director and movie star! it's so unexpected but it's also so fun and gauuugh he's so great.

i don't mind the concept of skywarp and thundercracker being starscream's brothers, whether biologically/metaphorically/etc., but i'm just not of big fan of the weirder "also they can talk to each other ~telepathically~ and are very, very close" that it spirals into like no stop that. if you want starscream to have a weird brother then you have sunstorm. but i do think the two balance starscream out as a comedic trio, and i find myself giggling and kicking my feet up when the three team up together and actually interact with one another.