#how many nice expensive instruments they own

[fabulouslygaybean]

oh! they're rich kids. that explains things.

[astolfofo]

TW: NON CON, power abuse, al haitham just being al haitham (he's a red flag y'all), power abuse, choking

bruh I just realized I wrote this at 2am last night, while being boderline drunk and high and there's probably spelling mistakes in here. I believe I deleted all the parts where my hand kept slipping but this is not proofread so heads up for that.

so.

yandere kaveh and yandere al haitham with an unaware darling that is oblivious to their hints. like doesn't see that they like them at all. only thinks they're being nice.

but then, they eventually see darling with another man. and it enrages them a lot. because, how dare you hold hands or talk to another man while they've been so kind to you? and all you did was reject their advances? do you really hate them that much?

obviously, they've got different ways of expressing their... envy. Kaveh's much more direct about it than Al Haitham. Kaveh wants to directly kidnap you and wants to punish you directly for this. However, Al Haitham otherwise. You see, Al Haitham thinks about everyone equally, but he's also the kind of guy that would expect whatever he gave to be returned. This obviously includes affection. Not only that, but you embarrassed him, you know? You don't need a punishment. You need a lesson taught to you.

And after much bickering between these two, they finally compromise. They'll take you (that was inevitable from the start), in the most excruciatingly painful way possible.

First, they'll ruin your academic reputation. Rumors went out that you were being scandalous with your current boyfriend. At the same time, you're accused of faking many of your papers (a blatant lie on Al Haitham's behalf) but people believed it either way. and once your reputation is ruined, you find yourself in Al Haitham's office.

You're expelled.

You stand there in shock. You couldn't believe it. The rumors were fake, you argue. They were made up, and Al Haitham knows that. Still, Al Haitham scoffs and tells you that there's no changing the current course of events. If you didn't want to be banished from grounds, you shouldn't have done the things you did.

"What did I even do?" you asked. The shock was still in your mind, numbing everything else from happening. You'd need a plan on what to do next.

"You should be clearly aware of what you did to yourself. This is only the result of your own actions."

You and Al Haitham both knew he was abusing his power, but you were in no position to argue about that. So, while now being jobless, you go back to your dorm and pack everything up. Your mind is so filled with negative thoughts while simultaneously wondering what to do next to notice Kaveh inside your dorm.

As you're packing up, you don't notice Kaveh walking into the room. you're painfully oblivious to your surroundings since you're lost in your own mind. the anger, rage, anxiety you felt made everything else impossible to sense.

And them the emotions that were boiling inside of exploded, and then turned into nothing. You felt tears running down your cheeks, you felt an immeasurable amount of dread for your future. What the hell. were you supposed to do?

At the same time, you felt an arm wrap around your neck. You attempt to look back and see who it was, but found it impossible.

The grip gets tighter and tighter over your neck, until you almost black out. You hear five words: this is your own fault. and then the world goes black.

When you wake up, your head feels terrible. You don't know where you are, or how you got here. The dorm looks similar to your own, albeit a little larger with more expensive instruments inside it.

you take a glance around. and then it hits you again.

you were kidnapped.

At this very moment, Kaveh walks into the room, and you swore to yourself this situation couldn't get any worse.

TW FOR HARD NON CON DOWN BELOW

Kaveh forces you onto your knees while you're sobbing, since you know that he was the one that kidnapped you.

You look at Al Haitham that's sitting in the corner watching this all happen.

Meanwhile Kaveh's going a mile a minute about how much he loves you, and how you ignored all their advances, just to be seen with another man, and that this is the least you deserve for doing that. Not only did you ruin their faces, you dare flat out deny their affections to you?

You deserve this. if anything.

---

Kaveh forces his entire length down your throat, which causes you to choke. But that doesn't stop him in the slightest. In fact, he was enjoying your suffering. Every second of it.

Not to mention, how good your mouth felt around his cock, how could he stop? So he kept going, not giving two damns about whether you were struggling to breathe, or what he was doing.

And while you were fighting for the oxygen to go to your lungs, while uncontrollably sobbing, you saw out of the corner of your eye, that Al Haitham was getting off to this. And then, a wave of dread washed over you. Fear, if anything. You had a sinking suspicion of what was going to happen next, and you didn't want to let it happen.

Al Haitham walks towards you, eyeing how helpless you are. You really... really, can't do much without him or kaveh, can you?

He eyes your bare figure for a second, and you desperately try to close your legs, but he forces them open.

And your worst fear comes true.

Al Haitham slowly puts one finger inside your hole, causing you to sharply inhale from the sensation. the sensation feels extremely unpleasant, due to the friction, and being dry beforehand.

and then he slowly starts moving that finger, causing you to moan, very muffled, since Kavehs cock was still inside your mouth.

It hurt. A lot. Your throat felt like it was going to break in on itself from being pounded by Kaveh's dick, and the friction stung from Al Haithams fingers.

And then, Al Haitham inserted another finger. You were trying your very best not to give the men a reaction, but they seemed not to care either way. The sounds that filled the room made you wince in digust, but it wasn't like you could stop them from happening.

And you also felt something building building up too. Something like a string that was being pulled harder, and harder, until it would...

and then all motions ceased.

Kaveh and Al Haitham both stopped stopped their actions, and you felt something. Frustrated? Confused?

You weren't sure.

But all you knew was you were physically and mentally exhausted. and that you could no longer stay conscious. Too exhausted to process or feel traumatized but what just happened.

And so you passed out from exhaustion, yet again, clueless to how Kaveh's and Al Haitham's facial expressions darkened as you did.

[pope-neuro]

What I would get the tf2 mercs for Christmas

(Assume I’m not broke in this scenario)

Scout - A sketchbook with really nice quality paper bound in leather, the good shit, and also those awesome micron pens

Pyro - These unicorn themed lighters

Soldier - This jacket cause he would look fucking awesome wearing it

Heavy - I would get this man the biggest e-reader tablet I could find! Bro has some huge hands so I would imagine it’s difficult to enjoy his books if they’re too small to hold properly. This way he can read whatever the hell he wants way easier!

Demo - I would find this guy the craziest, rarest, most expensive and fancy drink that has ever existed. I’m talking like some secret recipe that’s been passed down for centuries within a secret scrumpy society because that’s how good and high quality this shit would be fr

Engi - These really awesome boots that function as steel toed work boots, but look like cowboy boots, cause we all know he values practicality!



Medic - Some really cool ass antique surgical instruments in a fancy case!! You and I both know I would clone my own heart in a jar for this man but I’m actually planning that for Valentine’s Day lmao (my legal team has advised me to inform you that this is a joke)

Sniper: One of those super over the top, badass hunting knives you see in magazine ads, cause he would use the shit out of this thing I mean come on look at this

Spy - Solid Australium butterfly knife. I don’t care how many mvm tours I have to suffer through I’m GETTING this fucking knife for him cause I wanna get him something he’d actually use lmao

[crguang]

I feel like there’s a lot of sacrificing for a joke in hsr, which is definitely annoying especially when it just…doesn’t make sense, tonally and just logically. And I really do wish we found out more abt the TB, and I would’ve like even like a tidbit from firefly since we talk to her sm, we even play as her at the end. Or maybe get an offhand mention abt how she’s not supposed to tell us bc of the script or smth . I def agree w you, I cannot take the ipc seriously, bc there’s all this stuff abt how they’re doing stuff for their own benefit and profit but idk the stuff w the stellaron hunters and them is just so goofy, like it doesn’t make any sense.

ok so, I was looking thru ur blog and I realized I sent a message abt two-ish weeks ago, tumblr probably ate it smh. I was just saying how it was silly that Kafka’s wanted poster literally says she likes coats on it, and her bounty, like that’s it. Shes so sjsjshbsbddbbewv. And I also came up with another fic idea, like Kafka in an idol/band AU, but also I think her being an actor w the other stellaron hunters would be funny. But yk if I ever get around to writing anything instead of Kafka just living in my brain, who would she be in a band with, I was think abt using some of the characters from the animated before the show starts thing, but the instruments just don’t go together. Also I think I need to work on writing Kafka in general, bc she’s so complicated and it’s fun but I also overthink things too much.

And the leaks were unfortunately right abt 4 characters on one side. I’m not as devastated as you ofc, but hopefully I win my 50/50. Hjskalskskskndn I will cry if I loose.

also, no need to apologize for ranting, your rants always make more sense than mine, and I really enjoy your thoughts. -🌠

i agree with you 100%!!! missed opportunity with firefly and the tb reconnecting it could have been so nice. and omg i think i read that ask, it sounds familiar but i have so many (most are really old reqs, the recent ones are the event reqs i keep to answer eventually) and sometimes things get lost or i’ll click on the notification, answer in my head, then go do something else and forget to actually post my reply, im sorry😭😭 but YES i was thinking of kafka’s description in the game and while i know its the objective writing of the game and not the ipc, i find it funny to believe that whoever was in charge of her wanted notice thought she was hot as fuck because “dashing” and “beauty” in the same sentence is crazy work. her bounty is even funnier bc im wondering how they found out that she loved coats like😭 did she steal a bunch (she did), are they rlly monitoring her credit card and seeing all the purchases of expensive coats, is she always found in a store— what is it?!

actor au stellaron hunters would be really fun… you could also just put then in a band together for the idol/band au because i do think they’re the people who understand her best. the thought of kafka and jingliu practicing together is so funny because jingliu would hate that woman like GDJFBFNG her arrogance would have liu clenching that instrument so tight

i dont think you should worry about overthinking when it comes to writing, it can be a weakness because then you focus too much on details and forget the big picture, but personally i also think j too much into things when i write characters like kafka especially. when every genuine emotion is in the twitch of a finger, there’s kinda no choice lol

“im not as devastated as you” is killing me but its true… im the biggest victim of this banner system bc if i dont get my swanie i’ll @)&$(&)@)£<£#%. i hope u win the 50/50, unless i lose mine in which case i hope everyone else also loses <3

[commander-krios]

OC Interaction Tag

Rules: describe an OC and pair how they would interact with the given OCs from the people who tagged you!

Tagged by @writernopal & @daisywalletchains

Tagging (no pressure- also if you do decide to do this, feel free to use only one of my girls. Or both. Your choice): @my-favourite-zhent, @eluvisen, @aroserinosman, @barbwillbrb, @dutifullylazybread, and @darkurgetrash

First up is @writernopal!

Your OC:

Wilkes Evos Sikthax-Seymour of Tlanxla, otherwise known as The Son of the Moon, is the current quartermaster of Mirage, Fay's husband, and an old war veteran/hero of The Holtep Empire. In terms of appearance, he's a red-eyed, albino Lizardfolk, standing at 7ft tall, with two sloped horns on his head and ruby mounted into his forehead. He prides himself on his sense of valor and righteousness and on being impeccably dressed, often sporting many bracelets, necklaces, rings, horn and tail ornaments, and dresses in incredibly expensive embroidered silks despite being a pirate to flaunt their destruction and quick replacement in the face of those who would look down on him for his profession. He is incredibly loyal and allows himself (read: enjoys) to be used as an instrument of destruction by those closest to him. He's covertly manipulative, despite coming off as stoic and reserved, especially if he perceives someone is advantageous to him or those he cares about. This makes getting to the "real" aspects of him is basically impossible but if you do get there, you'll find he's pretty soft and pathetic.

My OC:

Alyril'fryn. She a drow, understands completely what it feels like to be seen for what you are or do and not who you are. She's rough, not entirely nice most days unless she absolutely trusts you, and she has a thing against magic thanks to some past trauma. She's an assassin, a thief, a mercenary, and actually enjoys killing when she has to do it. She has no qualms about the things she does and can be pretty ruthless when necessary. She has a soft side, but only if you are one of the few people she trusts.

Honestly, I feel like these two would either get on amazingly or want to murder each other immediately. No middle ground lol I guess it would depend on when and how they met, if they were working together or against each other, and other circumstances, but the two of them as friends would be absolutely lethal, I'm sure of it.

And for @daisywalletchains!

Your OC:

The Meadowlark of Baldur's Gate, or just Lark to her friends. Lark is half wood elf on her father's side, not that it ever meant anything to her. Having spent all over her life so far living in cities and only deigning to look at a forest if she had to pass by one in her travels, all that heritage granted her was a lovely mossy hue to her skin. She wears only the highest fashions, but doesn't care overly much for jewelry, preferring silk scarves and fancy belts. Lark is a bard, and a damned good one too. She plays a mean fiddle (and by all the gods she would challenge a devil to a contest to prove it.) She's revels in the attention of course, as any good bard should. The tricky thing about Lark is that while she's got a head-in-the-clouds romantic mask on, she's actually got quite a mean streak and a terrible distaste for commitment. She has, rightfully, been accused of being both a manipulator and a homewrecker. She has also been accused of being a black widow but those allegations haven't been proven. He was simply very old, that he left her his vast fortune in his very recently updated will is nobody's business but her own.

My OC:

Juniper, my beloved Juni. She is also a bard, but a wild magic sorcerer as well. A tiefling made from a deal made with a devil (so funny about the fiddle thing) and she's genuinely kind, loving, helpful. Tries to do the right thing even if her luck is bad. She loves romantic flings, doesn't tend to get tied down, travels quite a bit for her job. She's silly, people immediately thinks she's a bit stupid by the way she acts, but she's actually intelligent, persuasive, perhaps lacks a bit of wisdom at times, but she's not stupid. Loves pranks and music and good food. Overall, a good person.

These two are so funny because I think they would make a good team for like a heist or something. If they wanted to gain something, or steal something, the two of them would be impossible to stop. Well, as long as the wild magic doesn't do something to fuck it up lmao I can see them getting along as coworkers or co-conspirators, but maybe not exactly friends. Maybe a brief stint as lovers.

[slothquisitor]

Invisible String: Chapter Two

A Baldur’s Gate III Modern AU.

Chapter Summary: Mystra makes a match.

Read from the beginning.

Read on AO3.

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

It took Liv a depressingly short amount of time to unpack her things, especially with Lae’zel’s help. They had moved quickly on from unpacking to making a list of things Liv needed to truly settle in, including groceries. Astarion hadn’t reappeared at any point, and Liv knows she really shouldn’t have said a damn thing about vibes to Lae’zel. But now she lingers alone in the hallway, arms aching from toting her many purchases back up to the apartment. 

And she can’t quite convince herself to go inside. 

Perhaps she shouldn’t have been in such a hurry to get out of Lae’zel’s place and met Astarion first. Perhaps she shouldn’t have assumed some comfortable texting banter would transfer to real life. 

It’s fine. She’s fine. She’s done far more difficult things than this in the last few weeks. She can go into the place she fucking lives, make dinner, and become friends with her roommate. It’ll be easy. And in a few weeks, she’s going to look back at this moment and laugh at how silly she was being. She just has to get through this moment and open the damn door. Right?

The hardest thing about this move, about what made it necessary, is that she no longer trusts herself or her own perception of things. She’s always been a bit of an anxious person, prone to overthinking, but now it’s much worse because even if a situation or interaction went well, she’s no longer sure she trusts her own feelings or insight about it. So she’s pretty sure meeting Astarion didn’t go terribly well, but she’s not sure exactly how bad it is. Is he regretting allowing her to move in? Did he just think it was funny and didn’t care what a stranger thought? She doesn’t trust her read on it at all. But she can’t stand out here forever. Besides, her arms hurt, so she opens the door and steps inside. 

All of the anxiety of walking in the door to the apartment is apparently misplaced because Astarion’s door is still shut tight. Either he’s left entirely or he hasn’t emerged after their ill-fated meeting. She’s not sure which option she prefers, actually. 

She makes a mental checklist of what needs to be done and in what order, and promptly wishes she didn’t have to do any of it and that she could simply crawl into her new, unfamiliar bed. She begins with the groceries. 

Her first impression of Astarion’s kitchen was that it was immaculately clean and therefore he must do a great job at keeping his place clean generally. But after a cursory look through the cupboards and finding that he owns almost nothing in the way of cooking instruments. She quickly realized that it’s not clean as much as entirely unused. Which is what inspired her first attempt at inroads and a sort of apology: she’ll make dinner tonight. 

As embarrassing as Lae’zel’s comment to him and his subsequent retreat was, she’s fairly sure that her favorite pasta recipe will go a long way to patching it all up. So she gets to work, and as expected once she starts getting really into the cooking, Astarion’s door opens.

Astarion is beautiful in a sort of cooly distant way. She’d stalked his socials before committing to moving in, but his face had been strangely absent. Most guys who looked like that would capitalize on it. Instead, his socials had been nicely framed still-life images without captions. He hadn’t been at all what she expected, but she supposes he does look like he fits the label of fashion consultant in his expensive-looking sweater and designer jeans. 

“What are you doing?” he asks, looking at her with genuine confusion.

She gestures at the kitchen island laden with food and the stove behind her. “Cooking dinner?”

He looks at the clock on the stove as if realizing for the first time that it is a reasonable hour for dinner. “Oh.”

It’s as good an opening as any and she seizes it. She’s been thinking of exactly how she can offer him dinner while keeping it casual. “Would you like some? There’s plenty for both of us.”

Astarion looks at her as if she’s grown an extra head before schooling his expression into something less affronted. “I’m afraid I’ll have to pass.” 

Oh. Well, then. That’s…disappointing. She shrugs and forces a smile. “No problem, there will be leftovers if you need something later.”

He offers her a nod and shifts awkwardly. “Okay.”

“Okay,” she repeats idiotically. No other words are coming to her, and rather than staring awkwardly at him, she turns away to stir the pasta that definitely doesn’t need to be stirred. But it gives her something to do with her hands. 

She hears him move from the doorway, but he’s simply re-entered his room. At least the door isn’t shut between them this time. She tries to appear busy, but she’s entered the wait-and-stir portion of the dinner preparation, so it’s a lot of making up things to do like beginning to clean up and getting dishes out. 

When Astarion reappears, he’s got a jacket in hand and a sleek black bag slung over his shoulder. “I’m going to head to my office and get some work done.”

He’d told her in their initial text conversation that he tends to be most productive at night and that he maintains a coworking space a few blocks away. For all she knows this is his usual routine most evenings, but she has a hard time not reading it as avoiding her. 

“Alright. See you later.”

“Try not to burn the place down,” he trills as he leaves.

Was that a joke or some ill-constructed dig? Liv isn’t sure. She stands in the kitchen staring up at the ceiling and wondering what the hells she’s done with her life. 

Later that evening, dinner eaten and cleaned up, Liv calls her sister. “I’m almost positive that my new roommate is a sociopath,” Liv tells Brelia in lieu of hello. She stands at the tall now-open windows overlooking this slice of the city. 

“I thought you said he seemed alright,” Brelia says, voice suddenly filled with alarm. 

“It’s been so awkward and he didn’t have any condiments in his refrigerator,” Liv explains. 

Her sister sounds unconvinced. “Okay. So what, he eats out a lot?” 

“He didn’t even have salt in the house! And I made dinner, my most tried and true recipe, and offered him some and he said no. It’s weird.”

“Maybe he has dietary restrictions or he’s doing one of those fad diet things where you only eat raw vegetables.”

“So, a sociopath.”

“Maybe he had other plans for dinner or he was trying to give you space to settle in. As for the awkwardness, you just met the guy today and moved into his apartment. Are you really surprised?”

Liv steps near enough to the windows that she no longer sees her reflection in them. The apartment building isn’t terribly high, but it’s high enough that she has a pretty view of the city, of the glowing windows of other apartments and the steadily shifting lights of cars below. “I don’t know…maybe. Things seemed so easy when we were texting. We’ll figure it out. Just need to like…get to know each other, but it’s hard when he seems to be avoiding me.”

“More or less than that first night with Lae’zel?”

Liv collapses into the comfy chair near the windows and laughs. “Less, definitely less. She also made Astarion really uncomfortable today.”

“Oh?”

“She told him she was here to ensure he passed the vibe check,” Liv explained. 

Brelia laughs. “Did you ask her to do that?”

“Yes! But I didn’t think she’d come right out and say it. I was so mortified.”

They talk like that for a while, Liv recounting the afternoon and telling Brelia about her work day. Rekindling her relationship with Brelia has been the sole bright spot in the tangled mess that is her family. Brelia had left home years ago and never looked back. Liv understands now why she did it…why she didn’t call. There were some truths Liv deserved to hear, but it was never Brelia’s place to share them. They still don’t talk about Cormyr or why Liv left in any real way, but having someone to talk to…someone to turn to while she blew up her life…she’s never been more grateful for her sister than she is right now. 

“And you’re putting yourself out there? Meeting people, going out?” Brelia asks. 

Liv sighs. “I’ve been here two and a half weeks, let me settle, Bre.”

“Remember how before you moved you were like ‘don’t let me sink into the same routines and habits’. I’m just following instructions.”

“I’m in my thirties; how does one even make friends these days? I have no interest in going out and drinking and partying every night.”

“Start with the coworkers, maybe? I mean you’re already friends with Gale.”

“And don’t forget my roommate who doesn’t use salt or condiments.”

“You have to give him a least a month before you determine he’s a sociopath.”

“The lack of condiments is weird!”

She can hear Brelia’s smile even through the phone. “Be sure to tell Lae’zel so she can ask him about it next time she’s over.”

The image is funny. Also mortifying. Liv laughs anyway. 

“Hey, I gotta go. Erin just got home, but take some chances! Keep being impulsive. Do drugs or something.”

“Wow, I’m getting very opposite messages from when I was in high school.”

“You listened too damn well when you were a kid and never broke the rules. You’re in your thirties. Live a little.”

Liv rolls her eyes at the tired pun. “You’re very funny. Give Erin my love.”

“Bye!”

Liv hangs up and sits for a long time looking out at the unfamiliar city that is slowly becoming hers. Awkwardness with Astarion aside, she’s actually grateful for the solitude. It had been difficult while staying with Lae’zel to carve out moments of true alone time, but now she’s got it. And a part of her relaxes as she realizes that though it’s not perfect, she's got a place to live, and a job, and she’d done it all on her own. She’ll figure the rest out too.

Probably.

***

Astarion sits at his desk in the place he calls his office, but in reality, it’s just a coworking space he rents a corner of. It is nice, actually, it gives him somewhere to go ‘to work’ and feel a bit like a real person. It’s not a luxury he’s often enjoyed. The management company they all rent their space from does their best to make the place feel like a traditional office with weekly activities and office games which Astarion conveniently misses most of since he works primarily at night. 

He’s not the only one. And everyone is friendly, if not a little bit distant, which is exactly what Astarion prefers. 

This evening he sits at his desk and wonders if he’s made an incredible mistake in allowing a roommate. It’s already not going very well. 

Which he probably should have foreseen. He had considered the kitchen conundrum and had ensured that it looked as though he ate food at least sometimes at the apartment. The nice thing about his apartment was that he’d bought it fully furnished, that had included some measure of kitchen equipment which he assumed was complete, but never needed to worry about. He had known that getting a roommate would mean that there would be someone in his space, but it was one thing to know that on a logical level and another to see her cooking in his kitchen. Or rather their kitchen, since she lives there now too.

There was nothing wrong with Liv. In fact, she seemed nice despite her friend being scary, but not telling her about his condition was going to lead to more awkward moments like this evening’s when she’d offered him dinner, and he’d left the house. He hadn’t even known what to say to her or how to interact with her in a normal way. His list of friends is short and most of them he’d rather lucked into by virtue of failing to seduce them, and since Liv lives with him….he can’t seduce her. How does one get to know another person without flirting?

So he’d made a tactical retreat…to work. It had seemed like a good choice at the time. But the big problem with leaving is that now he has to go back, and instead of making things less awkward he’s made them more so. Which is fun, for him. 

Most of the time he doesn’t allow poor social interactions to be ongoing things, so this is likely to be a learning experience. Coincidentally, that’s his least favorite kind. 

He spends the evening actually getting work done. He’d started the anonymous Chirper account on a whim years ago, taking the moniker GlamReaper. He had desperately needed the escape, a place where his mind could wander. He didn’t think it would also be the key to his freedom. It was fun too. He posted critiques of certain male politicians' and celebrity’s outfits he found to be personally affronting and was immediately rewarded with attention and adoration. Vitriol too, but what is love under any other name? His first viral Chirp had been about a disgusting patriar no one liked and how every single one of his too-tight suits didn’t actually fit him. He’d managed to be rather cutting while also providing timeless fashion advice. The followers and money started to flow after that, slow at first, but then it slowly became a full-time job complete with blog and other corresponding social accounts and now, a slow-growing fashion consulting business. As far as jobs went, accidentally stumbling into something he actually enjoys is really all he could ask for. 

He spends most of his evening mapping out content, responding to ad sponsors, and scouting the internet for incriminating photos, which is usually the most time-consuming part of his job. He’s rather admirably productive for a few hours, but then his phone pings. 

HeartacheHero : So, I’ve really enjoyed talking with you, but I’ve been thinking…what if we met up for coffee sometime?

Astarion sighs as he glances at the message. He’d genuinely been enjoying talking to HeartacheHero in the safety of the Weave, but now he’ll have to drop them. He could unceremoniously ghost them, but that always feels mean unless they’ve been overly pushy, and they haven’t. He could let them down gently, let them know he’s enjoyed talking with them, which is true, but that he isn’t interested in meeting. Or he could be bluntly honest and tell them he never meets anyone from the app, and he never intends to. 

The world has changed drastically since he was turned, but it is still not a kind place for a vampire. His sire, Cazador, had ensured a healthy fear of the larger world, of what it would mean to be a vampire without a coven. And so he’d served, dutifully and miserably for too long in his thrall. There had been fear and pain and violence wrapped up in it all too. But he was free of that now, and most of what was left was a bone-deep desire for attention, admiration, even revilement…so long as it was undividedly focused on him. 

That’s what makes the Weave so perfect. The anonymity protects him. Puts a distance between him and whoever is on the other end. He can get them to say almost anything he wants to hear, it is so easy that sometimes he wonders if the person on the end is actually real and not a dismally curated AI especially focused on him. But there is always the cut-off point, and that point is as soon as the person on the other end insists on meeting, on making it real. But it never was. 

FangtasticLover: I’m quite flattered you’d want to meet, but I’ll have to decline. It has been wonderful talking with you, but I’m not interested. 

His finger hovers over the send button, some part of him is a little sad. But that’s stupid, so he hits send and then severs the match in the Weave’s options menu. HeartacheHero will get his message, but they won’t be able to reply. It’s better that way. He’d rather maintain a good opinion of them anyway, and blunt refusals almost always lead to someone saying something they regret. This isn’t his first time doing this after all; he’s learned a few things. 

But Astarion has no other matches right now, having dismissed them all in the last week. It leaves him feeling a little bit bereft without some stranger to message banally throughout his day. It’s a sad state of things he’d rather not interrogate. 

He manages to work a few more hours until the late night bleeds into early morning and he packs up to head home through the empty streets of Baldur’s Gate. He likes the city at this time of night, how empty it feels. Sometimes it makes him feel like he’s the last person in the whole city. 

He arrives home and beyond the lingering smell of whatever Liv had cooked earlier, it feels almost as if nothing has changed. Her door is shut, it is the middle of the night after all. But instead of hiding out in his room again, he picks up his e-reader and settles in to read the latest of his friend Shadowheart’s book club picks. This month’s book is a surprisingly smutty heist adventure, and he’s thoroughly enjoyed it. 

He loses track of time in the best way until Liv’s door quietly opens in the pre-dawn light. Her long, dark hair is a messy tangle, and she’s dressed in a blue matching pajama set that reveals the long bare line of her legs, which he is definitely not looking at. She wordlessly goes to the coffee maker, and he’s honestly shocked to hear that the contraption is working at all after going untouched since he moved into this place. It comes to life under her attention, and then she disappears back into her room while the smell of coffee fills the apartment. It reminds him of his favorite bookstore.  

He returns to his reading until she appears again looking a little less bleary-eyed. Her hair has been tamed a bit anyway. He watches her make her coffee, as she pours cream and sugar into one of the mugs he belatedly remembers he owns. Well, this is as good a time as any to strike up a conversation. “Good morning.”

She stiffens before glancing his way as if noticing him for the first time. She doesn’t reply immediately and instead glares into her coffee before taking a sip. “Morning.”

Oh, she’s one of those people who doesn’t want a lot of conversation before coffee. Too bad. She’s here, and he’s determined now. “Did you sleep well?” he asks lightly. 

She regards him for a moment from behind the bastion of the kitchen island, but then she surprises him by coming into the living room and folding herself into the chair on the opposite end of the room. “I did. You didn’t sleep at all, I take it?”

He shrugs. “Perks of being your own boss. I can work whatever hours I so choose.”

“You’re a night owl,” she replies. 

“You’re not?”

Liv shakes her head. “I used to be until I got old…and a job.”

She’s not old at all. Only thirty-two. She hadn’t posted about her most recent birthday, but there had been a pretty picture of her smiling in the glow of birthday candles for her thirtieth on her social media page. “A terrible decision really.”

She half-smiles and sips her coffee. “The job or getting old?”

“Both.”

“It’s unfortunate that neither can be helped. What are you reading?” 

He’s not sure how he wants to answer the question. His initial desire is to impress her, but then he remembers she’s literally a librarian, so there’s little chance of that. He settles on honesty. “Book club book. Whispers of Midnight  wasn’t my pick, but I’m enjoying it.”

She brightens and smiles. “You’re in a book club?”

“My friend, Shadowheart, insisted I join one with her.” He’d met Shadowheart by chance at the group therapy class Karlach had dragged him to after…everything. Like Karlach, he’d failed to seduce her but had rather surprisingly found a friend who understood him. Shadowheart had grown up in an entire fucking cult, and part of recovery was trying new things. Like book clubs, apparently. 

“And do you always read smutty adventure novels?” she grins. 

He tilts his head, she’s suddenly more interesting. “Oh, you’ve read it.”

She nods. “I have. I don’t only read really old, boring books.”

“I would have expected a librarian to have moved in with more books.”

“Archivist,” she gently corrects. “I brought my favorites, but books take up a lot of space in luggage.”

But most people don’t move to brand new cities with only luggage or without plans of where to live. “You were in a hurry to leave Cormyr.”

She stares down into her coffee mug. “I was.”

He recognizes that the polite thing to do would be to tell her that she doesn’t have to divulge anything she doesn’t want to, but he’s too nosy for that, so instead he just waits her out. 

She stares beyond him out the window. “You have family?” she asks instead. 

He shakes his head. “Not really.”

“I had to get away from mine, and I knew if I didn’t seize this opportunity I would get sucked back in. So yeah, I left in a hurry.” She glances back at him, and there’s something that looks like sadness for just a moment, and then it’s gone. She finishes her coffee. “I need to get ready.”

He’s surprised to be a little disappointed, honestly. “Have a good day.”

“You too.”

***

Over two weeks into this job, and there’s still something magical about walking into the library courtyard. People gather in clumps and tour groups, snapping photos of the architecture,  craning their heads to see inside, and Liv gets to walk past them all. She recognizes security now and they her, so she doesn’t even need to flash her badge to get through the throng of people. Instead, she’s greeted with smiles like she belongs here, and well, she’s starting to believe that she does. 

As usual, Gale, Rolan, and Lae’zel have all beaten her into the archives today. They all stand in a half circle at Gale’s desk having what appears to be a heated discussion. 

“I just don’t understand why we have to turn everything over to technology, even love!” Gale says. 

“But that’s the beauty of it, it’s still based in reality! You might know the person,” Rolan replies. 

“I do not have any of these social medias,” Lae’zel says. “But Gale is simply pressed because the AI has the same name as his ex.”

Gale reddens a bit but nods. “It does make it a little odd, don’t you think?”

As Liv approaches Rolan grins. “Liv will be on my side.”

“About?”

“The Weave,” Gale says with much exaggeration.

“What’s the Weave?” 

Rolan’s eyes widen. “You don’t know what the Weave is? Are you serious?”

“You don’t need to know what it is,” Gale replies firmly. 

“It’s a dating app, but not just any dating app. It takes your location information and matches you with people you’ve come into contact with in the places you frequent. Coffee shops, work, your apartment building.”

Liv laughs. “Sounds like a weird breach of privacy.���

“That’s what I said!” Gale crosses his arms.

Rolan shakes his head. “As if all our personal information isn’t already out there for anyone to grab at any point. Besides, it’s all kind of romantic. You match with someone and then you try to figure out where you might have seen each other. Kind of the best of both worlds. And everyone in Baldur’s Gate is using it.”

“Not everyone,” Gale protests. 

“Are you?” Liv asks Lae’zel. 

“I made an account for research purposes, just to see what all the fuss was about. I promptly deleted it,” Lae’zel says with no room for compromise which makes Liv desperately want to check her phone to see if the app is in fact deleted. Why does she only learn about this after she’s moved out her Lae’zel’s place?

What had Brelia said? That she should put herself out there? If anything, she might meet someone else in this city to talk to. Liv pulls out her phone. “Well, if everyone in Baldur’s Gate is using it, I better get on it.” 

As expected, Gale makes a sort of strangled noise at her remark. “Don’t listen to Rolan, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

Rolan looks pleased. “My powers of persuasion remain unparalleled.”

The app is easy enough to find and is already downloading. “Do people actually meet people on these things? I feel like everyone I know is on dating apps, but not actually using them. Except to hookup, which is fine, but isn’t exactly long-term commitment.”

“The app hasn’t been around for more than a few months,” Rolan explains. “So who knows.”

“Have you met anyone?” 

Rolan blushes a bit. “Well, there’s someone I’ve been talking with for a while…but…”

“But he is too much of a coward to meet them,” Lae’zel finishes matter-of-factly. 

Rolan attempts to shrug off the remark. “It is a delicate sort of thing. It will happen all in good time. Not that you’re likely to be put off by that, you moved in with someone you hadn’t ever met.”

“That’s different,” Liv replies. “Gale had arranged it and there were mutual friends involved and all that. And I still dragged Lae’zel with me.”

Lae’zel smiles dangerously. “I think I scared Astarion.”

“How was the first night?” Gale asks rather anxiously. 

“A little awkward,” she says, honestly. “We’re both a little unsure about each other, and I think he might have been trying to give me my space yesterday…and I made it weird by inviting him to eat dinner…it was a whole thing. But we chatted this morning over coffee and it was fine.”

This morning had seemed…fine enough. It had been pleasant even. More of what she had expected as opposed to the day before. She’d read his leaving as something bad, but in retrospect, Brelia was probably right: he was just giving her space.

“That’s to be expected, I suppose,” Rolan says. 

“I’m sure we’ll be the best of friends by this time next week.”

“Keep us updated on the app,” Rolan replies as he and Lae’zel drift away to their own desks, leaving her and Gale alone. 

“You really don’t have to sign up for the app,” Gale says with a roll of his eyes. 

She laughs. “Even Lae’zel has tried it, so I’m curious.”

She opens up the app, the main page is an ethereal purple and pink with a heart at the top and the first thing it wants is an anonymous username. “So the whole thing is anonymous? You don’t know anything about who you’re talking to?”

Gale sighs and sits down at his desk. “Apparently. The only information you receive about your match is their username and pronouns.”

“You seem to know a fair bit for someone who doesn’t use the app.”

“Rolan isn’t wrong. It’s almost everywhere and all my friends use it.”

“But not you?”

“I don’t exactly want to see updates all about ‘Mystra’ on my phone when that’s the name of my ex. Besides, I’d rather meet someone in the wild so to speak,” Gale says. 

“I’m sorry everyone is obsessed with an app that reminds you of your ex.”

He shrugs. “It is what it is. What is your username going to be?”

Liv glances down at her phone. “I was thinking ‘I like books more than people’.”

Gale taps his chin. “I like it, sets clear priorities. You need something pithier though.”

She considers that and then types ‘Books>People’ in the box on the screen and shows her phone to Gale. “How’s that?”

He smiles. “Much better.”

Simultaneously excited and highly skeptical, Liv finishes setting up her account at her desk and then sets her phone aside. The app had said it might take a few days to get a first match now that she’s letting it track her location around Baldur’s Gate. She is curious more than anything, but there’s just that little bit of hope alive in her chest…maybe she will meet someone great or she’ll just end up deleting this app like she does the others after one too many unsolicited dick pics. She thinks Brelia would be proud either way. 

***

The dregs of the dinner rush are long gone by the time Astarion walks into The Blade and Stars. Which is just as well since he doesn’t eat. He wanders over to the two women sitting at a table near the window. 

“Good evening, ladies,” he says as he slides into the empty chair beside Shadowheart. There’s already a glass of red wine waiting there for him. They do know what he likes. 

“Look who deigned to grace us with his presence,” Shadowheart drawls, tossing a lock of silvery hair over her shoulder. 

Karlach grins and elbows him in the side a little harder than is strictly necessary. “Fangs! You made it!”

“ Someone, I won’t name names, didn’t check the sunset before setting a meeting time, so I simply had to wait,” he says a bit waspishly. 

Shadowheart’s mouth falls open in disbelief and she snatches her phone up off the table, immediately going to her weather app. “That’s not…I couldn’t have…” It’s clear when she finds the time confirming he is correct because she looks distinctly un-thrilled. She sighs. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine, you can simply pick up the check on my drink and we’ll call it square.”

She glares at him but doesn’t disagree. 

“Sooooo….how’s the new roomie?” Karlach asks, practically bouncing in her chair. 

“Oh yes, I’d love to hear how concealing your condition from a person who lives with you is going.”

He swirls his wine in his glass before taking a sip. “Oh, it’s going swimmingly. She doesn’t suspect a thing.” 

And it’s true. He’s pretty sure she just thinks he’s an ass, which isn’t incorrect but isn’t the reason he keeps turning down invitations to join her for dinner. Beyond the annoying friendliness, she’s a good roommate. She’s tidy and quiet and generally doesn’t bother him. They’ve shared a handful of conversations over her morning coffee and he’s managed to learn more about archiving than he ever believed possible and almost nothing about her personally. Which is fine by him, he hasn’t exactly been the most forthcoming either. Otherwise, he hardly sees her. 

“Kind of how Karlach didn’t suspect a thing when she first met you?” Shadowheart asks, looking entirely unconvinced. 

“That was different, she was frequenting a nightclub run by a vampire and was surrounded by them.” And he would prefer not to talk about it anymore which he hopes Shadowheart catches from his tone. 

“Is it really going alright?” Karlach asks. 

He sighs. “Yes. I’m sure she’s offended I won’t eat any of the food she’s constantly offering me, but otherwise, no issues.”

“I’m more shocked she hasn’t been run off by your incessant flirting,” Shadowheart teases, resting her chin in her hand. 

The flirting that both Karlach and Shadowheart had seen through immediately. “I’m doing my best to avoid flirting with her.”

“Really?”

“You don’t shit where you eat,” Karlach replies with a shrug. “Besides, she’s not really his type. Didn’t you say she created a shared calendar or something?”

Liv had created a shared digital calendar for them to keep track of events or if they wanted to bring people to the apartment. So far it’s a place where Liv keeps track of everything and he does nothing except check it a few times a week to see where she’s at when she’s not at home. 

Shadowheart laughs. “A shared calendar! That’s actually sort of useful.”

“Calling Liv meticulously organized is a bit of an understatement,” Astarion concedes. But he doesn’t mind it, in fact, her schedule and organization make living with her rather easy. It’s only been a week, but so far he thinks he might have lucked out on the whole roommate deal. 

“She’s friends with Gale, so I’m not terribly surprised,” Karlach shrugs. “Still a whole calendar seems a little overkill. Just talk to each other.”

Astarion takes another sip of wine. “Well, we hardly see one another.”

“Suddenly that explains why things have been going so well,” Shadowheart says before turning her attention to her phone. 

Astarion seizes the opportunity to twist the conversation onto her. “Is that SomeSunnyBae?”

Shadowheart rolls her eyes. “And if it is?”

“Gods woman, are you ever going to just meet up with her?” Karlach asks, raising her hands in exasperation. “I swear the two of you have so much success on that stupid app and here I am with no matches to speak of.”

“I haven’t gotten a match in almost a week,” Astarion replies. It’s his longest dry spell in well, ever since joining the app. The surprise on both Shadowheart and Karlach’s faces is at least gratifying. “It’s weird. Maybe you’re right, Karlach, there’s something wrong with it.”

“Shut up,” she grumbles, turning her attention back to Shadowheart. “Ask her out. It’s been almost two months.”

“It’s not that simple!” Shadowheart insists. “What if she doesn’t like me in person…just this online version of me?”

“Then at least you got a good bang out of it,” he replies and both his friends glare at him. 

“Just because that’s all you use the app for doesn’t mean the rest of us aren’t serious, Astarion.” 

He avoids responding by examining his nails. Letting his friends believe this convenient fiction is much easier than telling any of the uncomfortable truth. 

His phone vibrates, bright and clear and full of promise. As if summoned by the conversation. 

Mystra, new match alert: Books>People. 

“Well, well, well. As if summoned,” Astarion triumphantly holds up his phone, showing the notification to both of them. 

“Ugh,” Karlach collapses heavily onto the table. “The gods hate me.”

“No, darling,” he replies with a smile. “Just Mystra.”

[inkofamethyst]

March 3, 2024

It's so weird to already know what instrument I'm going to learn next (and also to have purposefully selected a time to learn it). Like, I didn't know I was going to want to teach myself the saxophone in high school, it just kind of happened (though these days I do lowkey wish I had gone for alto rather than tenor (will not make the same mistake with the bass, will prob go for a short scale)). Same with the uke--I was just bored one summer. But knowing that the bass is coming up (but that I'll be waiting over a year for it still (not a bad thing, as I'll be able to use this summer to learn more about my community at large)) makes me a bit antsy to just start playing. I'll be listening to music and will have to make a mental note of a cool baseline I'd like to learn (the "Life Will Change" bridge !!!!!!!!! (though I'll prob have to learn something like "Mask" from P5 before that if I want to play while singing (supposedly notoriously difficult on bass which is lovely)--slower, more repetitive)) but like, that's over a year away. I mean the wait gives me time to save and plan, sure, but I also just want to play something sometimes.

Speaking of planning, when I get to that fateful day next May of picking a bass (not sure if I want to go the cheap route and grab something used online or the Main Character route and have some hot guy in a guitar shop help me pick one out based on his expertise and then offer to give me lessons and then we fall in love (can you tell that Hadestown has pushed the dial right back over to R??) (though the guitar shop plan makes more sense for my first one (of one? of many? who knows) since I don't know any bassists and I don't know what I'm doing (yet))), I'm also going to have to decide whether I want to go for lessons. Honestly? I'm considering it. I know my whole deal is like "hur hur hur im a self taught multi-instrumentalist" (!!!! I'm a multi-instrumentalist !!!!!) but also if I can't find good videos on/am unsure about technique, might as well talk to a professional.

God I'm so excited to learn that instrument. Can you tell?

Speaking of saving, one thing about my savings goals notion page is that I wish it was more.. dynamic. In that, sometimes I save extra towards a goal one month, and it'd be nice if the suggested monthly savings amount went down to reflect the new minimum needed to reach that goal by the desired date. Or alternatively, change the end date based on the amount saved if the minimum payment stayed the same. I don't know how to code either of those, but they'd be a nice touch.

Though, kind of on a similar note, saving so aggressively in January and February has meant that, after typical spending habits, I've been left with basically nothing at the end of the month lol. Everything else taken into account, I've got ~$200 for random discretionary purchases monthly. That's been perfectly fine (aka just enough) but it also feels a little tight? Idk. I suppose I can rationalize it by the fact that it will keep me from overspending and will allow me to reach other goals quicker but it still feels like I'm livin paycheck to paycheck hehe. But this will only last as long as my ultra-aggressive saving strats do, so for about another year, then I start letting up (if all goes to plan).

Also, went ahead and did the per-day calculations because I've always heard that it's cheaper to make your own food than to buy it, and I am actually saving so much by making my own meals every day*. Like, so much. Now, at my uni, getting breakfast or lunch a la carte isn't terribly expensive, but it certainly can and likely would add up.

*Granted, I do benefit from the occasional free lunch or dinner.

Can you tell I'm rationalizing anxiety with over-strategizing? I truly do not make enough money to be so focused (rationalization: start good habits early). The moneydiaries subreddit has fried my brain I think.

Thinking about putting on some fake tattoos at the end of spring break. Partly because they make me immensely, unreasonably happy, partly because I'm curious if anyone would ask about them hehe. The last time I did a full sleeve and met up with some friends (years ago) they were a lil shook.

Today I'm thankful for.. a lazy weekend. And nighttime rain storms.

[omaenanimonoda]

9 Fandom Peeps to Get to Know Better:

Tagged by @theworldisabrokenbonebutitishome and @forerussake - thanks guys!

3 Ships You Like: my brain could go in 10 different directions here in addition to the most obvious course, but most recently, hmmm - Ye Liuxi/Chang Dong (West out of Yumen) they were awfully cute together. I'd rewatch if the Youtube version wasn't such a mess. And still somehow surprisingly to me, pingxie- every time a post pops up it reminds me that oh yeah I do really feel them. And recently, fanghua (really!) after reading a fic that tossed me unceremoniously over the line. I'm not done making noise about that either.

First Ship Ever: I guess the first one I was really conscious of (and read fic for) was Mulder/Scully. damn that feels like an aeon ago, another life

Last Song You Heard: Kendall Tavern/Dancing in Allihies by Jenna Moynihan (it's a tune technically but I think that counts). as someone who plays a lot of music (instruments) I tend to listen to things I play or want to play, which means I'm usually listening to some odd shit.

Favourite Childhood Book: it's difficult to remember I blew through so many, although a lot were my mother's books and not necessarily for kids ..maybe Island of the Blue Dolphins? I cannot remember whether it was assigned to us in school or if I read it on my own, or both. Probably both!

Currently Reading: rereading クスノキの番人 by Higashino Keigo, so I can absorb more vocabulary than I did the first time around. Last time I was in Japan I didn't have a list of books to find and was aimlessly looking around- this one was on display and just sounded interesting so I grabbed one. It was cute, just slightly supernatural and sentimental - wouldn't be surprised if it gets animated or made into a short tv series. That and at the same time also 二百二十日 by Natsume Soseki because I love being at least mildly confused and challenged at all times.

Currently watching: Rewatching MLC just for the feels and also trying to figure out how to watch Ying Yang Master without having to give Netflix my cc number. Also would like to know where people are accessing the unofficial copies of Spirealm since the recent barrage of gifsets of a frighteningly young-looking Huang Junjie suggests it's around somewhere - anyone know?

Currently consuming: blueberries and just a little cabot plain greek yogurt - expensive but so good. I figure if food is gonna cost over $10 every time then I'd might as well eat something healthy that i'll want every day.

Currently craving: at the moment I'd love these clouds to clear up. It's Saturday in late February and the sun would be nice on my day off. Would love to go on a hike to look for oyster mushrooms though I never have good luck finding those. Update: went for a short jog and it felt like I woke up with someone else's legs today, in a bad way. I want the energy I had on Monday. Probably the fault of the junk I ate yesterday - trying broccoli and brown rice tonight, will try again tomorrow and see if it helps (usually does).

Tagging: As usual I think my mutuals are in on this already - anyone interested in a new set of questions? Maybe I could come up with something

[athensandspartaadventures]

Yes that meme's what im referring to many thx! Oh I love your answer Corinth running to Syracuse (i guess) for help is so cute and Persia's reaction is definitely the coolest (cooler than all Greeks) but watch out for your beloved subjects Persia :-D Also love the awkward way Sparta reacts to whatever immediate crisis lol. Would you mind also do 17 for Athens and 18 for major characters in aasa as well? I'm curious for your characters and really find your headcanons lovely.

for sure! and thank you :) i'm glad you enjoy them!

17. Is your character holding any grudges? Are they likely to stop?

I guess in a way the plot of AaSA is Athens's grudges, haha, he will remember something minor from the bronze age that doesn't really matter, but then he's also kind of flippant and forgets a lot of things, both his own actions and those of others. I think he's more likely to make up a grievance almost on the spot by chapter 5, though he doesn't really keep track of them (as opposed to Persia, who had to remind Darius at every meal not to forget his grudge against Athens, lol)

18. If your character were trapped on a deserted island, what three things would they want to have with them? Which person would they absolutely hate to be trapped there with? Which person would they enjoy being trapped there with?

Athens, salesman that he is, would want tons and tons of olive oil (multi purpose! long term storage! shiny skin and hair!), which of course comes with pottery, so a stylus to scribble on any potsherds (accidents and ostracisms would of course happen!) would probably come in handy, and the delian league members are kind of like objects rather than people right? and...

Sparta would want his comb (and begrudgingly borrow some of Athens' oil), probably the thicker of his two cloaks (you never know), and a musical instrument of some kind (likely his pipes).

Corinth would probably want a weighing scale (someone is going to have to set up a currency on this island), her hair dye or at least her bleaching hat (hours and hours of sunlight on a desert island? she couldn't waste All of them), and she'd probably take some expensive bauble in her collection to barter for passage off that rock.

Ionia would probably want something to read (not practical, but at least no one can enforce what she can or can't do on a desert island), maybe some kind of navigation device antikythera mechanism?, and maybe some seeds or something? idk if she actually knows how to plant things but I think she'd have like, Too Much confidence.

Persia would probably want like, a nice drinking cup or bowl (hes not going to be humiliating himself drinking with his hands), uh, does his bow and arrows count as an object? at least the bow, what if there's wild game on this island etc. Much as he loves his cats, i don't think he'd want them there to end up as food, so he'd probably want something practical like a pot to make stew or tea with for his little bowl, haha. I think despite his reputation he was quite self sufficient in his youth.

Everyone would hate being stuck with Athens, but I think he wouldn't mind being stuck with the others because he thinks of most of them as "friends"...(though with Persia it's like "if you die, i'm going to eat you!"). Sparta and Corinth would initially not mind each other, but then they'd get into such big arguments about whether to wait for help or to try to do something that they'd be at each other's throats in no time. Persia would probably like someone like Sardis or Ionia there to talk to (the others would be too busy arguing or being petty to work with him).

[alectoperdita]

What creative hobbies does your interpretation of Joey and Kaiba (in general) have or do? Like for example, drawing, creative writing, 3D modelling, sculpting, woodworking, etc

I do remember reading one of your chapters from the gundam crossover series where joey did sketches lol

I don't think I really have a consistent view of creative hobbies for these two. In fact I don't seem to write a lot about them having creative hobbies unless it's directly plot relevant. Ironic, given 90% of my life outside of work revolves around my creative hobby.

Canonically in the manga, Jounouchi is mentioned as enjoying plamos. Which makes a lot of sense to me that he likes making stuff with your hand. It's also hard to have a lot of creative hobbies when growing up poor. So I can see Jounouchi wanting to make a lot of stuff like plamos and kits, but that shit gets expensive fast if you do the whole painting bit too. One of the pleasures of growing up and making your own money for Jounouchi will be getting to explore those hobbies he might have always wanted to but couldn't because of financial reason. That opens the door to related hobbies like painting/sculpting/woodworking.

(Related, I love making Jounouchi a carpenter. I think it's an excellent trade for him to pick up, giving him both room to grow and decent financial security).

Conversely, traditional sketch art/doodling is relatively inexpensive and a much lower barrier to entry re: tools. So that's why I think drawing/sketching is a nice hobby that Jounouchi could pick up and enjoy earlier on. In the Gundam crossover, that combination of a love for plamo and sketching definitely informed his career choice.

I think Jounouchi enjoys singing too, but he probably thinks of it less as a hobby than as a way to goof around. He's pretty good too when we take into account his Japanese VA's singing career.

Kaiba, on the other hand, lived a life of (relative) financial security. However, given how strict his education was, I dunno if he was ever given much of the mental space to explore creative hobbies. Art might have been seen a frivolous waste of time within his home schooled education. The one exception to that might be music. I can see Gozaburo insisting on Kaiba learning an instrument or two. But at that point it's more about developing a skill set to show off (and maybe me projecting the Asian experience of your parent forcing you to pick up an instrument because that's classically considered part of a well-rounded education in many East Asian cultures). Violin or piano are the most likely candidates here. Kaiba is good at them, because he has to be. He can't not learn it well if Gozaburo is invested in that part of his education.

How much he personally enjoys it is up for debate.

Definitely one of those things that I imagine falls quickly to the wayside once he's out from under Gozaburo's control. But that also offers opportunities for him to maybe rediscover it later in life, after his skill set had rusted a bit from lack of practice, and learn to enjoy the hobby for itself while relearning the ropes.

A lot of the creative hobbies I've written for Kaiba follow the same development model, including tea ceremony and calligraphy.

I guess that makes them both kinda comparable, because they've each lived a life of scarcity in their youths (more financial for Jounouchi, and emotional deprivation for Kaiba) that robbed them of opportunities to explore their creative sides. As they heal and grow, they can begin to explore those possibilities for themselves.

[thefrogdalorian]

Hi, Spud!! Firstly, I would like to thank you for your amazing stories, they really help me get through tough times and always brighten my day!! 🥰 I love the way you write, every time I read your stories featuring Din I can literally feel his comforting presence through words and through the way that you describe everything in small details that make up a beautiful and heartwarming story. I think you’re very talented and such an interesting person to get to know better!! I’d really love to 🥺

If you don’t mind, can you answer 4, 13, 11, 22 (What’s your favorite drink??), 27, 28 (What’s your favorite music genre? Perhaps you have a favorite artist?) (it was really hard to choose, I wanted to ask you every one of these questions and more!). How did you get into writing??

Thank you for answering them and absolutely no pressure at all, you can choose the most comfortable ones!!!

Hello friend! Wow, what a lovely message to receive, thanks so much for taking the time to write and send this to me. You made my entire day 🥺

I'm SO happy that you enjoy my writing and my version of Din brings you comfort aaah. That means the world to me and messages like yours are why I love writing so much. To know that something you create means something to another person means the world.

Anyway, gonna answer your questions underneath the cut since you sent quite a few! It means a lot to know that you'd like to get to know me better. I am just a Din Djarin loving loser with an internet connection and far too much time on my hands but it's really nice to hear that you'd like to get to know me better!

4. mythical creature you think/believe is real?

I've got to go with Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster. I believe in my heart she is. I remember seeing a film when I was a kid about her being real and idk she seems friend-shaped even if she'd probably rip my head off without a second thought.

11. anything from your childhood you've held onto?

Trauma Nooo seriously: physically I think a lot of books and a fridge magnet collection I started back then. But intangibly: my love for Star Wars, playing musical instruments and a passion for writing and reading that have never truly left, even if they were dormant for a few years while I was at University.

13. first thing you're doing in the purge?

Too much of a coward to do anything really bad or violent, so I'd drive myself (well I don't have my license yet so that would already be one crime... but I think I could manage it hahah) to the nearest toy shop and clean it out of Lego. It's so expensive and there are so many nice sets I'll never own so that would solve that problem.

22. do you have an emotional support water bottle? (and my fave drink)

I do! It's actually a Mando one hahah it's this one I got from Primark and I love it. As for fave drink: it is 100% iced coffee. I don't drink alcohol anymore but tbh I haven't saved that much money since I gave up because of my slight iced coffee addiction.

27. what's your favorite or go-to outfit?

I definitely chose comfort over style. Usually just dress in jeans and a nerdy t-shirt with a comfortable sweater or hoodie on top. And always a pair of Dr. Martens! Comfiest shoes ever when you get past the blisters. I've never been one for fashion really but as long as colours don't clash, I don't care!

28. last meal on earth?

Ooh good question! So, so many foods I love but if I had to pick the last thing i could ever eat, I'd definitely go for a Korean barbecue. Such a good meal and the whole experience with a group of friends is the best.

What’s your favorite music genre? Perhaps you have a favorite artist?

Honestly the basic answer but I'll listen to pretty much anything. My top genres according to spotify wrapped last year were: pop, rock, modern rock, pov: indie (what) and soft rock so make of that what you will! My top artist was Taylor Swift last year and I love her but I have so many other artists I adore too! The other top 5 were blink-182, Lana Del Rey, Coldplay and The 1975 so that gives you some idea of what I'm into hehe. I'm so bad at describing my own music taste but it's sort of middle-aged dad core (also love Arcade Fire, The Stone Roses, Fleetwood Mac and Queen) plus Taylor Swift and Lana. AND 80s CHEESE LIKE ABBA!! Can't forget the cheese.

How did you get into writing??

I've always loved writing and done little bits here and there, but never had much confidence in myself until I did NaNoWriMo for the first time in 2020. I've completed it three times since then but it was really a combination of watching Mando s3 again and reading a book called Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell which I picked up for cheap in a charity shop last summer that made me think.... hey I could write fanfiction! And here we are! I love doing it. It's done so much good for my mental health and allowed me to chat to so many lovely people like you! I'm very grateful to have discovered writing when I did. Not sure where I'd be without it tbh!

Thanks again for all your questions, hope that helped you to get to know me a little better! If you feel like you want to, I'm more than happy for you to message me privately and chat too. But equally no pressure, thanks for your message and I hope we'll speak again!

Ask game

[traumasurvivorshelpingsurvivors]

How do I get rid of my envy?

This afternoon there was a report on tv about a young girl with a high iq, who had parents who supported her and she did amazing things as a child and was very fulfilled, you could really see that. And she reminded me of myself. I too have a high iq but it was discovered pretty late, so I got a scholarship on a private university but at that point I was mentally so ruined, that I couldn't graduate. I have very abusive but also distant parents, who left me with a did. I see this girl, who says out loud what I thought as a girl her age, and I can't stop thinking "why can't I be her?". I am 23 now so, I should be done crying about missed chances as a child. And, while I am usually a very empathy person, when I am hit with envy, I can't see further than my own issues. I have to force myself to be nice.

Envy is a very familiar feeling for me. I grew up very poor in a very rich city. And I always felt like "I deserved it more". Because I would appreciate it more. One example is, I always wanted to go horse riding, as a child. But we never had the money (and if, then my parents wouldn't have spent it on me). When I was 11, three of my classmates got their own horses for their birthdays. And they seemed so... uninterested. "Yeah, I got a horse for my birthday. Whatever." Or, I was using my birthday money to pay for flute lessons and always had to lend flutes. One day, the parents of a friend casually mentioned "Yeah, we bought our son (my friends brother) an expert-quality flute. We want him to start learning it and maybe this expensive instrument will motivate him." And ofc it didn't, he wasn't interested in it. There were some such situations.

I assume by now you see were my "I deserve it better" feeling comes from. And back then it was, kinda, valid. I was only envious when it seemed like, the person wasn't appreciating it enough. But that had switched. I don't begrudge people, who have what I want. But I am so fucking envious. And, since my mental health left me crippled, it is a lot that I am envious about. People with loving parents, who are healthy, who were able to graduate from university, who have a fulfilling job, a nice hobby etc pp. I missed out so many chances because of our poverty and later my mental health. And I know I will never be able to make up for everything I never had. Some chances are just lost.

It's not like I am all the time envious, because most ppl have loving parents. But when I hear a former classmate talk about how they love their job, I am. And I have a hard time saying "Good for you" though that's the truth. But I am too busy with my own envy. It kinda mixed with the hate you feel once you realize you've been abused and missed a lot of opportunities. But it isn't just that. I have those feelings seperated too.

How can I overcome this? It leads nowhere and hurts myself and makes me a bitter person. But it hits me so hard, it makes rationality so impossible and what to be rational about? Some people just aren't lucky and I am one of them? I just can't accept that some things are lost for me forever, I assume.

Hi anon,

You're definitely not alone.

Something my therapist tells me is to try to identify what specifically is causing those feelings of envy, and try to do some introspection and see if it's bringing up a past experience. I often find it's because there have been people in my life who look like that minimizing my trauma. So now when I see people who look like they did, I immediately think "they probably wouldn't understand, they wouldn't care" without actually knowing that.

This may not be effective for you, but I know it helps me to try and remember that you don't know what someone may be struggling with behind the scenes and could have had similar experiences as you. I find that it helps humanize them because we've been through difficult things, even the people you least expect. They may not have the exact same experience as you, they may have more privileges than you in some ways, but knowing that they understand your pain on some level can help normalize and neutralize those feelings. I even sometimes look back at my childhood home and feel guilty for being traumatized because I am somewhat well off. But in reality, the advantages that you or I may have don't trump the fact that we've been hurt too, you know?

I have faith that you'll overcome this. Please let us know if you need anything.

-Bun

[oubaitoripsychotherapy]

Breaking Free from People-Pleasing: The Path to Self-Acceptance Through Therapy

People-pleasing, a behavior pattern where individuals constantly put others' needs above their own, often stems from a deep-seated desire for approval and fear of rejection. While being kind and helpful are admirable qualities, chronic people-pleasing can lead to emotional exhaustion, anxiety, and even a loss of one's identity. Fortunately, therapy offers a structured approach to unraveling the roots of people-pleasing behavior and creating healthier relationships with oneself and others.

Understanding People-Pleasing Behavior

People-pleasing isn't simply about being nice or cooperative; it's an ingrained habit where individuals excessively accommodate others at their own expense. This pattern often originates in childhood, where approval from parents or caregivers may have felt conditional. Over time, individuals may learn to seek validation and affirmation by constantly pleasing others, sacrificing their own needs, desires, and well-being.

People-pleasers may struggle with setting boundaries, expressing their own opinions, or saying "no," fearing it might lead to conflict or rejection. While these tendencies might seem harmless on the surface, they often result in internalized stress, low self-esteem, and an ongoing cycle of self-neglect. Therapy For Panic Attacks can be instrumental in breaking this cycle.

How Therapy Helps Address People-Pleasing

Therapy offers a safe space for individuals to explore the origins of their people-pleasing tendencies and develop strategies to build self-worth independent of others' approval. Here’s how therapy can be a powerful tool in addressing and overcoming people-pleasing behavior:

Identifying Root Causes

A key part of therapy is exploring the roots of people-pleasing behavior. Through techniques like cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) or psychodynamic therapy, therapists can help clients uncover childhood experiences, past traumas, or learned beliefs that contribute to their need to please others. By understanding the origins of these patterns, individuals can begin to break free from them.

Building Self-Awareness

Therapy encourages clients to become more self-aware, allowing them to recognize situations where they are sacrificing their own needs for others. By learning to identify these patterns, people-pleasers can start to make conscious choices rather than automatically defaulting to pleasing behaviors.

Establishing Boundaries

People-pleasers often find it difficult to set boundaries, fearing that it will lead to conflict or rejection. Therapists work with clients to develop effective communication skills and strategies for setting boundaries in a respectful but firm manner. Learning to say "no" and assert one's needs can be empowering and is crucial for maintaining healthy relationships.

Challenging Negative Beliefs

Many people-pleasers harbor negative beliefs, such as "I am only valuable if I make others happy" or "If I say no, people will not like me." Therapy helps to challenge and reframe these beliefs, guiding individuals to understand that their self-worth is not dependent on others' approval. This shift in mindset is vital in building self-confidence and promoting authentic self-expression.

Practicing Self-Compassion

A significant aspect of therapy is teaching self-compassion. People-pleasers are often overly self-critical and struggle to prioritize their own needs. Therapists help clients practice self-kindness, emphasizing that it is okay to prioritize their well-being and make choices that honor their own values and desires.

The Journey to Self-Acceptance

Therapy for People Pleasing is not about becoming selfish or disregarding others' feelings. Instead, it is about finding a balance between caring for others and caring for oneself. By uncovering the roots of people-pleasing behavior, building self-awareness, setting boundaries, and cultivating self-compassion, individuals can break free from the cycle of constant approval-seeking.

[mmorgshopper]

Write your own midis mt power drum kit 2

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Pyle-Pro Pdkm7 7-Piece Drum Mic Kit: Amazon.ca: Musical Instruments, Stage & Studio. D'Addario NYXL Nickel Wound Light Top/Heavy Bottom Electric Guitar Strings (10. weird part was how it seemed like my voice was almost stuck in a voice crack. And the pad numbers make no sense, MT PowerDrumKit 2 thinks I have 58. FL Studio's FPC: clicking the component you want to set MIDI for (eg, kick main. I have a 25-pad MIDI drumpad which I would like to map the drums to based on my. In case you do for some reason, then just get a new key with your. and though I don't have EZ Drummer 2, their song builder looks an. MT Power DrumKit REAPER General Discussion Forum. MT Power Drum Kit 2 - AU and VST Drum Plugin - NEW VERSION. It's a nice sounding kit and the good thing is if you have other drum plugins you prefer you can use the. You don't need to register or donate to use the. Note: The activation screen is skipable with the 'SKIP' button in the right bottom corner.

#Write your own midis mt power drum kit 2 free

The MT Power Drum Kit is a free drum sampler offering the powerful, high-quality sounds of an acoustic, realistic.

#Write your own midis mt power drum kit 2 software

The download button will take you to the Manda Audio website where you can download the software direct.Multi Layer Drum Sampler AU / VST Instrument. On the right-hand side, you can listen to demo tracks for an impression of the results. This is especially clear with our hi-hat samples, for instance. Then, we cut most of the necessary sounds out of the beat, in various velocities, and processed them to deliver as realistic a drumbeat as possible. Although doing so is almost impossible, we broke with tradition in sample recording, which calls for capturing every sound individually instead, we had our drummer feed in various beats. In particular, the innovative functions for creating fills generate very smooth and realistic drum tracks (see video).īecause we used high-quality cymbals and microphones for the recordings, the crash, ride and hi-hat cymbals sound especially refined and pleasant at various velocities.Īs early as during microphoning of the set and recording of individual samples, we took great care to replicate realistic circumstances. You can choose from thousands of assorted rhythms in the comprehensive Groove Library and compose your own drum accompaniment. The compressors built into the channels give you even more control of the level of compression. Its kick and snare drums come through clearly in any mixing situation – and still sound natural and not overly compressed. But this is exactly where the MT Power Drum Kit is strongest. Either the kick drum suddenly sounds much too slack or fuzzy in the mix, or the snare drum, which initially sounds so natural and dynamic, in solo mode suddenly gets lost in the background in the overall mix, drowned out by the guitars and other instruments. Some of the expensive plugins available on the market deliver a highly natural and dynamic drum kit sound as a solo instrument, but many fail as soon as they are supposed to be used for a complete mix in a powerful pop or rock production. That’s important since this is precisely where many drum sample programs are weakest. The MT Power Drum Kit Sampler differs from other, expensive drum samplers in that we have already pre-processed the sounds with compressors and EQs to make them a perfect fit for any mix. Samples have been specially recorded and processed to make them ideally suited to use in pop, rock and metal productions. The MT Power Drum Kit is a new drum sampler offering the powerful, high-quality sounds of an acoustic, realistic drum kit.

[gretavanlace]

Lessons

Jake x reader

18+ only! Minors do not interact!

Warnings: graphic sexual content, swearing, masturbation, oral sex (m receiving), dirty talk, pure smut people

"Jake, I'm never going to get this." You'd like to swing the guitar against the wall in frustration, but settle for plopping it down on the crazy quilt that covers Jake's bed instead. "I'm wasting my time. Worse, I'm wasting yours."

"Babe," he waits until you glance in his direction, still wallowing in self-pity. "Number one: Time you enjoy wasting, is not wasted time. Lennon said that. Number two: This isn't a waste of time. Take a deep breath and then pick it up."

The man has the patience of a saint, and you tell him so.

"No," he counters with a flashing wink. "I just know you're gonna kick ass someday soon."

"I obviously wasn't meant to play. Apparently there's only room for one guitar god in this relationship."

Jake simply raises his brow and points at the Gibson lying beside you.

"Look at those fingers." he reaches out and strokes your wrist as your hand rounds the neck of the guitar you're once again reluctantly holding. "See how pretty they look? Tell me you weren't meant to eat it up. Bullshit."

You feel a warm blush fan across your cheeks. He always knows exactly what to say to make you feel capable and beautiful. Not that those two things have to go hand in hand, but it's nice when they do from time to time.

"Go on then." he urges with an encouraging grin. "Try again, you're getting better, baby — I don't know why you can't hear it."

Your spine straightens, summoning any and every ounce of talent that might be hiding out somewhere in your veins. You want to make him proud, but more than that, you want to play the fucking guitar.

You've wanted it since you were small, but your mother said it wasn't ladylike calling it a classless instrument. Instead, you spent two evenings a week learning to play the piano...badly.

As if mommy's three martini lunches and four vodka tonic dinners were ladylike and dripping with class.

The first time you mustered the courage –or possibly, stupidity, you had feared– to bring Jake to your childhood home was the day you realized how deeply in love with him you had fallen. Most strolled the grounds wonderstruck. Marveling at the expansive square footage, gaping at the art and the Italian marble floors that shone because unseen staff members polished them quietly in the early morning hours.

Every boyfriend you had ever brought home wanted to kiss your father's ass in the hopes that financial success might be contagious. They tried too hard, unaware that by doing so, they held the shovel to dig their own grave. They wanted to eat meals with too many forks, and sip wine out of glasses cut from fine crystal, to swim in the black bottom pool and fuck in the expansive pool house afterward.

Jake had been wonderfully charming, (even though you'd expressed a desire to watch him get wasted on brandy and curse, just to see the look on your parents' faces), but the first opportunity that could be deemed appropriate he got you both the hell out of there.

"I don't know how you did it all those years." He'd said, grabbing your hand, finally looking wonderstruck for the first time that night as he pulled down the long, winding drive. "It's like there's no love in that house. You looked so sad."

He'd seen through it all, seen it for what it really was. Which meant you'd be spared the task of explaining that the last thing money could buy was, indeed, happiness– it meant he understood. He saw the dysfunction behind all the expensive, shiny distractions. He saw you.

"Babe." he pulls you from your thoughts. Holding his Les Paul, ready and willing to help guide you slowly through a scale. "C'mon, let's try again. Remember what I said...you aren't trying to play a song, don't think of it that way. It's overwhelming. You have to think of it chord by chord, picture each note in your head, how your fingers should look and feel and then let your muscle memory kick in a little. You're in the delayed gratification stage right now, but you won't be forever. I promise."

"Delayed gratification?" You eye him skeptically.

"Yes. And don't give me that look." he leans in a bit and drops his voice to a taunting whisper. "Unless you'd rather put down the guitar and go find Sammy and his keys. You could play something elitist just like mommy dearest."

"I hate you!" you laugh so hard you feel your nose wrinkling up, a trait you loathe, that Jake claims to find irresistibly cute.

"And I love you, too, beautiful girl." he nips his pic between his teeth and tweaks your nose gently. "Now play that fuckin' guitar already."

Once more, you begin curling your fingers the way he's shown you more times than you care to admit, plucking rhythmically at the strings, fighting to place your hand along the neck as instructed. Eyes darting from his hand and then back to your own over and over for comparison.

A note rings out, flat and wobbly, but he merely shakes his head calmly and starts over, doing his best to walk you through using music, not words.

Several tries later, things have gone nowhere, and you're left feeling inept and clumsy. He makes it look so effortless...it's as easy as breathing for Jake, and watching him makes it seem that it ought to be just that simple.

"Ok, I'm done." The instrument in your grasp lands in a huff on the bed for the second time tonight.

"Why do you think that this should be cakewalk?" he asks, surprising you with his nearly aggressive tone. He almost never loses his cool, but he sounds...irritated. Exasperated. Maybe even a bit angry. "I mean, it's kind of insulting."

"What?" you press, genuinely confused. "Why?"

"Because, I worked my ass off to be able to play the way I do...you act ready to give up just because you're struggling with a few chords. Don't be a baby."

"Don't be a baby?" you repeat, still slightly stunned by his display.

"That's what I said. Now pick up that goddamn guitar..."

You realize you are staring silently, watching him watch you. You pull your bottom lip between your teeth with a shallow sigh, and he tilts his head to the side, considering you carefully.

"I said pick up the fucking guitar, quitter." his tone rasps so subtly no one else would ever pick up on the change, but you do, and you want more of it, so you challenge him.

"No."

"No?" he tosses the word back to you, making sure he's heard you correctly.

You nod slowly. "You heard me."

A quiet, humorless laugh floats out of him as your fingers begin nervously fidgeting with the patches on his quilt. "Are you trying to cause trouble for yourself, baby?"

That tone, rich and full of hungry depth...my god. That edge of authority...the promise of being put in your place in the only way you would ever stand for it. He turns you inside out, spins your head in circles until you've lost all sense of direction, until only he can guide you out of the fog.

"I wish I could play like you, Jake." You whisper in his ear when he closes the space between you and pushes you back down on the bed, crawling over your body after sliding the guitar carefully off the bed.

"Yeah?" he mumbles, sucking soft blooms of warmth into your neck just below your jaw.

"You look so sexy. You're like a fucking god. And when you get really into it...fuck..." you draw in a hiss of breath when he slips his hand into your jeans to sweep two knowing fingers over the damp lace between your thighs. "When you get really get into it, you look just like you do when you fuck."

A lopsided smirk forms on his lips, you can't see it, but you can feel it pressing into your throat. "I look like I do when I fuck?" he laps lightly at your skin, tasting you. "And how's that?"

Hips raising away from the mattress, searching for added friction, you whine his name once, twice, and then find the wherewithal to answer him. "Pretty, Jake. You look pretty when you play and you look pretty when you fuck."

His fingers desert your soaked panties and curl under your chin to hold you still. His hips begin grinding his hard, still hidden away cock, into your center. "You think it doesn't turn me on to watch you? Watching you slowly but surely making that shit yours? You're going to be a mother fucking force, baby. You think that doesn't get me hard?"

You're stunned by the revelation, but also, a bit skeptical. "Really?" a moan punctuates your sentence, his cock is growing even harder and more insistent against you.

He nods, yanking the neck of your shirt down in order to sink his teeth into your collarbone. His hands are everywhere. Sweeping down the curve of your hip, tugging at the buttons of your jeans without actually unbuttoning them yet, Traveling down the curve of your throat, fluttering his fingertips up to your mouth, dipping them inside for just a blink of a moment.

When his grip tucks into your legs to yank them up around his waist, a quiet yelp escapes you, followed by a groan in response from him. "God, I fucking love the sounds you make." his breath warms the shell of your ear when he whispers into it. "All those sweet little sighs and whines...those helpless, soft moans when you can't stop cumming. You make me ache, baby."

Your fingers are urgently scrabbling with the buttons on your shirt, and then the buttons on your jeans when he takes over your shirt and shoves it down your shoulders. The second your fly splays open, his calloused hands are there, tugging your pants down, while your fingers begin fumbling with his belt buckle, desperately trying to get your hands on his dick

"I want it." You beg, lips moving against his own, soft as silk. "I want to touch it. I want it in my mouth."

"You wanna suck me off?" his teeth bite down on your bottom lip and then he sucks it into his mouth. Fingers drawing slick circles over your clit now that you're free of your clothes and spread out for him.

"So fucking bad..." you ghost your nails over his scalp, raking through his tangled waves. "Put your cock in my mouth, where it belongs."

His eyes flash with untamed desire, but also a glint of a smile...he's having fun. With a stunned squeal and a giggle, your bodies are flipped, with you now atop him, straddling his waist. "There you go, baby." he coaxes, flopping his left arm on the pillow above his head while his right hand plays gently through your hair. "Now you can put my cock anywhere you want it.

Starting slow, his pants are first to go, and then you're dragging his boxers down swiftly before reverting to a calmer pace. His head, so swollen and slick, leaking precum, nudges passed your lips to meet your tongue, so you flatten it to play in steady circles just beneath his tip, while upping the suction His breathing accelerates rapidly. "That's my girl, you know just how I like it, don't you?"

You nod around him and allow more saliva to dribble down his shaft so that your hand can stroke over what your mouth can't reach.

"That's so good..." his words of praise shake almost imperceptibly, as does his hand in your hair. His hips are beginning to buck, pushing into your mouth deeply as he grows louder by the second, until suddenly...

"You'd better stop, babe." he warns "I'm about to cum."

As much as you'd love him to do just that, the insatiable need to feel him inside of you, hard and hot and stroking in and out, taking you, fucking you, wins out, and you pull back, still twisting your palm up and down his length until, with a firm hand over yours, he stops that too.

"Come up here, baby...lie down."

While you shimmy your panties down he pulls his shirt off and then reaches out and pops your breasts out of the cups of your bra. "So soft." he murmurs, more to himself than to you, as he caresses them and squeezes delicately.

You find yourself poised on your side, his warm, slight body curved around, spooning you as his mouth searches over the nape of your neck. "You smell like the sun, and lemongrass..." he purrs into your hair. "...and sex."

"Please, Jake..." you whimper, reaching back to grip his thigh.

His hand slips between your legs, sliding into you from behind for just a second or two before tapping your hip "Lift up, baby...let me in."

You part your legs enough to allow his cock to slip between them. Right away he begins toying with you, teasing the head through your folds and over your clit.

"You want it?" he teases before licking at your earlobe. You nod in earnest. "Ask nicely, love, and make it pretty for me."

"Please, Jake..." your voice is airy and breathless, decidedly feminine without effort. "I want your cock inside me, please don't tease. Don't make me beg."

Without further torment, he slips into you. Filling you deliciously in one gliding thrust through the wetness that has drenched your cunt and inner thighs. "Oh my god..." you moan, drawing your head back to tuck into the crook of his neck from behind. "So deep."

"I know, baby." he hums quietly, kissing the side of your neck as his palm circles around to press flat against your belly, creating an exquisite pressure. "I know. Can you feel me all the way up here?"

You lace your fingers through his in response. The way he makes you feel with his heart, and his touch, and his words, and his beautiful cock, you might stand a chance at putting it into words, were you a poet.

He raises your hand to his mouth, kisses it and then nips at the pad of your thumb, fucking you a little harder. "Touch yourself for me, babe. I guarantee I'm way closer than you are. You're so fucking sexy.”

You don't doubt him for a second, you can hear how rapidly he's coming apart in the way he breathes, the way he's grown even stiffer inside you, so much so it's hard to believe he'll ever go soft again. His tongue is now moving continuously over anywhere on your body he can readily reach...warm, beautiful mouth consuming you as panting puffs of breath cool the wetness his kisses leave behind. Fingers now dancing rapidly over your clit a moan rips out of your chest, so loud it's nearly embarrassing.

"That's it, baby..." his praise makes your back arch in pleasure "Make yourself cum while I'm inside you."

Fucking you slowly he pets at your hair and sweat glistening skin, whispering sweet and dirty words into your ear and against your shoulder. Biting you lightly, then sinking his teeth in a little deeper when you moan your appreciation.

"Shit," he groans, digging his fingertips fiercely into your hip "You're squeezing...it’s so fucking tight, baby...I'm about to explode. I'm so fuckin' hard it hurts."

You call his name and a strangled cry rips through him raggedly "Please hurry, come on. Cum. Cum for me...fuck, baby, please."

Listening to Jake beg will forever and always be your kryptonite, the way he whimpers and pleads is so sexy you have no words to form an accurate description. And just like you knew it would, all that moaning and urging in your ear sends you plunging over the horizon...you free fall into him, and yourself, and who you two are together. The love you make fills the room and wraps up snug around you, blocking out the world. It holds you, intertwined and writhing, together, synchronizing your breathing, your movement, your hearts, your souls, until it's as if you are no longer two separate beings...you are one with each other and with the universe.

What you wouldn't give to ensure this feeling never had to end, that you and this beautiful man of yours never had to come down from this tiny piece of the heavens carved out just for the two of you.

Jake knows that you get this way sometimes afterward, that if he isn't careful with your heart, you'll cry at the unfairness of not being able to live in these moments forever. "Do you think you understand how much I love you?" he whispers, moving slowly in and out as his cock begins to soften. "Because I don't think you do."

"No, I know." you smile even though he can't see your face. Your hand reaches to grip his forearm. "I love you too, Jake. You're the whole wide fucking world."

He laughs and flips you on to your back, leaning over to peck at your lips "I love you more than rock and roll."

Pulling you up into a sitting position, he wraps a hand around the back of your neck and draws you into a deep, lingering kiss, suckling the tip of your tongue as your mouths slow. "First we're gonna finish that half a blunt over there in the ashtray, and then we're gonna play some guitar, naked. You've got chords to run through and I can't wait to watch your pretty tits sway while you do it."

A protest begins to form on your lips but then you watch Jake settle in. The way his soft cock rests gently against his legs when they pretzel under him cross legged, steals any argument that may have been marching through your mind. You can't explain why it melts you, but it most definitely does.

So, as you begin passing the blunt back and forth, you watch Jake, astounded (as always) by how much you love him...more than you've ever loved anyone. And again, you want to make him proud, so you gather your resolve and mentally psych yourself up to pick up your guitar once more and allow Jake to (as his brother would put it) be your rock and roll Sherpa.

[d-andilion]

nice things

@witcher-bows-and-arrows day 4: gift

(geraskier, gift giving, modern au, established relationship, fluff, 1.4k)

read on ao3

One of the first things Geralt learned about Jaskier was how badly he wanted a piano of his own. He had an electric keyboard that he used to tutor his students and to work on his own music when time allowed, but that thing was old when he bought it. He wanted a proper, professional instrument, something grand and stately.

He’d had one as a child in his parents’ house. Jaskier told Geralt all about his beautiful grand piano, so large it had a room all to itself. He started learning to play it when he was only four years old. Geralt could picture it; little Jaskier’s legs dangling from the bench as his tutor positioned his tiny hands on the expensive ivory keys.

Of course, Jaskier hasn’t seen that piano since he severed contact with his parents. Geralt had been there for that adventure. Jaskier struggled a lot the first few months without his allowance. He had an abundance of firsts—his first job interview, his first pathetic paycheck that barely covered rent, his first off-brand clothing purchase. He almost cried when his fancy Parisian face cream ran out and he couldn’t afford a new bottle.

He was generally a spoiled brat about the whole thing at first. Geralt told him so to his face after the face cream incident, and Jaskier didn’t talk to Geralt for a good three days after that conversation. But Jaskier’s grown a lot in the years since. He’s basically a normal person now, cheap trainers and all.

Geralt knows Jaskier doesn’t regret the decision he made about his parents. It was the right thing for his wellbeing and he’s only been better for it. Geralt also knows that going from a fully furnished brownstone and a vacation house on the coast to a four-story walk-up is a big adjustment. Jaskier doesn’t miss his parents, but he does occasionally miss their lifestyle.

He doesn’t say it in so many words, especially since he and Geralt got together. He never wants Geralt to feel like he isn’t enough. Geralt knows Jaskier loves him, that he’s satisfied with their life together. Still, when Jaskier casually mentions the year his parents rented out a ski lodge in Switzerland for Christmas, it’s hard not to feel a little less than adequate.

Geralt has always been a provider at heart. Jaskier is fond of reminding him that there are other ways to provide, ways that Geralt excels at, and Geralt believes him for the most part. But knowing there are things Jaskier wants that Geralt can’t give still gets to him sometimes.

Every now and then, Geralt will save up for a smaller luxury; a watch or a sweater, or an overpriced pair of shoes. It’s never anything too extravagant, but Jaskier is always over the moon, making Geralt swear the gifts didn’t put him out too much.

This time, however, it’s a bit bigger than some nice accessories. It’s Jaskier’s birthday today, and as Geralt watches the movers carefully attach polished black piano legs to the body of the instrument in their sitting room, he wonders for the hundredth time if this isn’t completely fucking insane.

It’s no grand piano. He looked them up and choked on his tea for a good two minutes when he saw the prices. This one is a baby grand, on the small side from what Essi and Pricilla told him. It still cost an arm and a leg. He was only able to swing it because the sweet old lady who sold it to him knocked a few hundred off when she heard it was a gift for his boyfriend. Geralt wouldn’t typically have gone for something so expensive, but they’ve had a good year. A great one, actually.

They’ve been making good money since Vesemir decided to retire from the garage, leaving Geralt to take up the lead. Enough for Jaskier to step back from giving lessons and focus on his own music. He’s even playing open mics on the weekends the way he used to. Space is no longer an issue now that they moved in together, to a house with plenty of room for them and for Ciri when she stays over.

Things are really looking up for them. The rest of their lives are finally getting started and Geralt just wanted to celebrate that. Making one of Jaskier’s dreams come true seemed like the perfect way to do it.

The piano movers work efficiently and they’re out the door more than an hour before Jaskier is supposed to be home. Yen took him out for brunch and manicures this morning. She tried to extort Geralt for a few bottles of good wine when he asked for her help getting Jaskier out of the house, but he knew good and well she was enjoying herself. The two of them did manicures every few months anyway.

Geralt steps back and looks over the instrument, nestled into a sunny corner of the sitting room. He knew it had to be this one the moment he saw the listing. The rim is decorated with a delicate swirling design, carved into the polished wood and painted gold, and the cushion of the bench is embroidered with bright yellow flowers. It has character. Personality. It’s creative and interesting and joyful, just like its new owner.

Jaskier is going to love it. He is. Definitely.

The sound of the lock turning startles Geralt from his thoughts. He hadn’t even heard Yennefer’s car pull into the driveway. They must have finished early. Fuck, she was supposed to text him when they left the salon.

Geralt swears and his heart races as he fusses with the piano’s bench, pushing it in and then pulling it out again. He thought he’d have some time to plan the whole presentation bit before Jaskier got home. He even bought a big bow, which is currently sitting upstairs on the bed.

The front door swings open. Fuck.

“I’m home!” Jaskier sing-songs from the entryway.

“Have fun?” Geralt calls back, positioning himself awkwardly beside the piano. He has a brief moment of panic about what to do with his hands before shoving them into his pockets.

“Oh, it was divine, one of these days I’m going to get you to a manicurist, it really is the most relaxing—”

Jaskier’s sentence is cut off by a gasp as he turns the corner into the sitting room. His keys and sunglasses hit the floor with a clatter and he covers his gaping mouth with both hands.

Geralt puts on a smile. “Happy birthday, Jas.”

“But— But when did you— How did— How, Geralt?” Jaskier stammers, face flushed and hands flying everywhere. It could be the light, but Geralt thinks he sees tears welling up.

“I’ve been saving up, and the seller let me pay in installments,” Geralt tells him as Jaskier steps closer, eyes never leaving the piano. “It’s not new and it’s not the big one you always talk about, but it’s nice, I think.”

“It’s beautiful, darling.” Jaskier runs his fingers reverently over the lid, mouth pressed into a thin line and eyes blinking a touch too rapidly.

Geralt understood the waterworks at first. Jaskier is an emotional person, prone to tears of joy at the slightest provocation, but he doesn’t look to be getting any happier. A lump forms in Geralt’s throat. Maybe it’s too small, or the bench is too much?

“But?” Geralt asks tentatively.

“But it’s expensive,” says Jaskier woefully “I’ve told you, I don’t need fancy presents.”

Geralt breathes a sigh of relief. “Don’t worry about that,” he says, taking Jaskier’s hands in his. “We’re doing good, Jaskier, better than good. You’re always telling me to enjoy nice things.”

“Nice things for you, this is a gift for me.”

“And I enjoy giving it to you.”

Jaskier sighs heavily. “Geralt—”

“It can be a nice thing for us, then,” Geralt interjects. “Ciri can practice on it too. I’ll let you teach me if you like.”

That earns a laugh. Jaskier has been trying to teach Geralt various instruments essentially since the day they met. Geralt cups Jaskier’s cheek and runs his thumb along the line of that smile.

“Let me do this for you,” he says softly.

Jaskier gives the piano a longing look and for a moment, Geralt thinks he’s going to argue the point further. But when he turns back to Geralt, his blue eyes are soft. “Well, if you’re going to twist my arm about it.”

Geralt snorts. “Thank you for your noble sacrifice.”

Jaskier leans in for a kiss and throws his arms around Geralt’s neck. “Thank you so much, my dear. I really do love it.”

“You’re welcome,” says Geralt, holding Jaskier tight against him. “Play me something?”

Jaskier pulls away with a squeal and a grin on his face. “You have no idea how much I love it when you say that to me.”

~~

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