#i gotta make stuff like this with my ceramics...

[backwzzds]

ೃ⁀➷ spoil you, plug!eren

eren hated when you spent your own money, but you don’t listen.

thinking about the way plug!eren would take you on his drops with him. you were so quiet and in your own world, he never minded the fact that you had your freshly white painted toes resting against the dash of his mercedes AMG coupe. the entire car was blacked out with expensive ceramic tints, protecting you both from your usual…late night activities.

your glasses rested on the cute bridge of your nose as your left leg was sat in eren’s lap while your right rested against the dashboard. eren was lucky that he fucked with most of his customers heavy…you two had been waiting for the dude to meet y’all for nearly thirty minutes now, and had it been someone else, eren would have sped away long time ago.

eren comfortingly rubbed your baby soft feet in the grasp of his tattooed hand, one with beautiful realism art of your own eye. with a turn of his head, he could see you practically nose deep in the bright screen of your phone illuminating through the car. “you growing bored mama?” his voice is concerned. “ian think we was gonna be waiting this long on dude…my bad baby.”

you hadn’t said much since you’d gotten in the car, just wanting to hurry and add all of your things to your shopping cart on the skims website. “nah, ‘m just…trying…to do somethin’ real quick,” you bite your lip as you tap away on your phone. you were trying to add as many things to your cart before it was gone. “before this shit sell out.”

eren being the nosy boy he is leans against your shoulder to see what you were doing. but the moment he’d seen you type in numbers that belonged to what he knew as your own debit card, he kissed his teeth in annoyance. “man how many times i gotta tell you to stop using your card to go shopping bae?” you roll your eyes at his words. “i’m serious, you got all three of my cards on ya phone for a reason. fuck is you typing in your info for?”

don’t get him wrong, eren loved the fact that you were independent and knew how to handle money almost perfectly now that you were in your twenties. but being together with you for so long, he continued to step up with his provider capabilities by always taking care of you. whether it was paying your bills, rent—everything in between.

but of course it was a struggle when ms. i can do it all by myself meets mr. i know you can but let me do it for you

“because i’m spending like 600 dollars,” you point out to his previous question with an obvious scoff. “i’m not asking you for that.” eren mirrors your actions and rolls his eyes again.

eren looks at you as if you’re insane and suffered memory loss for the past four years you’ve been together. “babe…i make that shit in one night. actually—fuck a night—i make that shit in two hours!”

it wasn’t like he was lying either, with the way that eren was one of the only trusted plugs in town, it was very easy that he’d bring at least a band a night on a consistent basis. selling for almost six years was finally paying off.

you two hardly ever fought, but if you did, it was always about money. eren knew how long you’ve had to do things on your own physically and financially. you couldn’t go to your mom for help, you didn’t have a dad to beg, so it was all on you since you’d been 16. but now that he had eren, he’d just wish you’d let him take the burden of money of your shoulders and take care of you the way you take care of him.

after a few minutes, your boyfriend holds his hand out. you give him crazy eyes, but eventually follow orders by putting your phone in his hand. “don’t know how many times i gotta tell yo stubborn ass, forreal,” he grunted. “‘s never a problem spoiling my baby. you don’t ever ask me for nothing. let me feel useful and get you stuff, mama.”

with a sigh, you nod your head, like you always did. there was no way eren was gonna take no for an answer when it came to spoiling his wife.

in response, eren uses his free hand to delete your information and instead place the correct numbers—the information to his amex black card. all the money he has, he sits and does nothing with it, so why not buy you all the things you’ve never had before?

when you hear the chime of your phone confirming your order, eren hands you the phone back and goes to look out his dark window.

with your acrylics, you grab eren by the neck and slowly turn him back to face you. “thanks papa,” you gave him genuine eyes.

eren leans forward and pecks your lips. with a serious face, he pecks you one more time before wrapping his tatted fingers around your neck erotically. with a look in your eyes he tells you, “always tell me what you want, no matter how much, mama. you know daddy gonna get that shit for you one way or another, regardless.”

[toxicanonymity]

getting dressed for halloween: dad's best friend edition

1k drabble one shot / dbf!Joel x f!reader / master

Halloween Anon asked: The gif set of Pedro doing his tie makes me think of like stepdad! Joel or DBF!Joel dressing up as the devil or a vampire for Halloween and it gets hot. I needed to tell someone that. / gif from @pedgito. Notes/Warnings: I8+ mdni, unsafe PIV. unedited. Dad's best friend (dbf) Joel/reader pairing from Silence can never be bought but can stand alone.

You can see the stepdad story for this gif set here.

Joel sees you in the mirror behind him.  "Damn, Trouble. . .this our comin' out party? Cause you know I can't keep my hands off you in that." You knew he was gonna like your dress. It's a charcoal tube dress under a sheer, black long sleeve dress with bats all over it. And of course the quintessential fishnets for Halloween.  

Joel's Halloween party is always a big hit.  You give him a hug from behind as he finishes tying his tie.

"Mmm," he picks up a small, fancy shopping bag off the vanity and hands it to you.  "Wear these instead."

You peek in the bag.  "What? I thought you liked the ones i'm wearing."

"I LOVE the ones you're wearin'. . . These are just a little more . . . Festive." 

"You go to that store just for fun, don't you?" 

He shrugs with a smirk. "Gimme a sec and I'll help ya with those." He nods toward the enormous, perfectly made bed.  You slip your shoes off and go sit on the bed as he finishes slicking back his hair. 

You giggle.  

"You makin' fun of my vampire hair? Close your eyes for a sec."

"Course not," you shrug innocently with your eyes closed. 

 "Careful, sugar. Vampires aren't known for their sense of humor. . . You known what they are known for?"

"You've been making this joke all week," you laugh. "I'm not on my period anymore." 

"Damn."

He fiddles with something at the vanity, then walks up to the bed and nudges your knees apart to kneel between them.   He slides his hands up your thighs with a deep inhale and hooks his fingers into the waistband of the fishnets you're wearing.  You lie back and lift your hips so he can pull them off. 

"Mmmm."

Then he presses his pants between your legs as he pushes you down on the bed, clamping his hand over your eyes. His hardness presses between your legs and swells harder, sending a rush through your whole body.  Your eyelashes flutter against his palm and fingers. 

He brings his mouth to your neck, breathes hotly on it, swirls his tongue, then latches down.  

"Ow!" Your eyes shoot open.

"Oh shit, do they hurt?" He touches one of his fangs with his tongue.

"No, it just surprised me. Kinda hot."

"They're ceramic, custom fitted."

"Of course they are." You check for blood and there's none. "That's pretty hot actually." 

He takes the stockings out of the bag and they look almost the same as the ones you were wearing before. Just slightly smaller diamonds.  

"These are the same."

"Just wait." You start to sit up and he pushes you back down with a hand on your breast.  He clumsily tries to put them on you then the doorbell sound rings on the screen on his wall. "Damnit. Prolly just the caterer but I gotta show’em  where to put stuff.”

“Put'em on, see if ya like'em."

"Okay. . ."

"I'll be back," he says in a vampire voice. 

As you put on the stockings, you realize the real difference is that they're crotchless. 

-

Two hours later, you tell him you're gonna go grab a bottle of wine. You bring your cup of punch down with you to the wine cellar, not very convincing, and sip on it as you sit on the cabinet. You don't have to wait long for him to show up with that horny look. He pauses to lean against the doorway looking you up and down while loosening his tie. A little drunk already.  Then he crosses the cellar and you spread your legs as he reaches you.  He gets up against you, grabs your ass in both hands, and slides you into him so you can feel how hard he is already.   

He unbuckles his belt and you start taking off his tie.   He looks more like a vampire without it.  Once his stiff member is in his hand, he doesn’t  waste any time. You don’t let him.  He slips his fingers through the slit in the stockings, feels how wet you are, and says “hot damn, let’s go.” then nestles the tip  inside your folds and shoves into you.   

Your moan echoes -  you’ve forgotten to be quiet - and he covers your mouth as he fills you with his cock and you wrap your legs around him   You’re sighing into his hand, pulling him into you by the ass, and he fucks you hard. He dips his head down to your neck and latches on, sucking as he  thrusts into you.  The fangs actually feel pretty good. But having him inside you is the best feeling in the world. Months later and you’ve never for a second been bored.   He’s the perfect fit, the perfect stretch, and you’re only content with a quickie because you know you’ll get more later.  He begins to grunt softly each time he buries himself inside you.

The door opens upstairs and he slows but doesn’t stop.   Someone yells down  “GRAB A BORDEAUX WHILE YOU’RE DOWN THERE.”

Unsure which one of you they’re talking to, Joel says “YOU GOT IT.”  then smiles subtly but deviously. His slicked back hair is growing on you. He begins snapping his hips faster so the two of you can get out of there.   

He grunts as he fucks you hard and you try to hold off so you can come together.   Then you see it in his eyes and hear it in his breath and let go, clenching around him, trying not to moan too loud.   Then he makes eye contact with you as he erupts inside you.  You sigh as his pulsations carry you through your climax.  He covers your mouth with his and kisses you deeply as his balls finish emptying. Then as you catch your breath, you lay your head on his chest and he strokes your back.  

“Ahhh, Joel. . .  I love Halloween.”

He pulls out and takes a handkerchief out of his shirt pocket for you.  

“I know you do, sugar.  So do I.” 

-

Trouble au: @jbcalway @daddy-din @angelmenace @silkiers @axshadows @legs0pen4dilfs @fan-fiction-floozy @grnherbs @icuminurbutt @likeanimagepassingby2 @witchy-jadda @mxtokko @missannwinchester @cannolighost @anxiousankylosaurus @montenegroisr @97cityy @lillyrob @billyloomiswhore4 @cloudroomblog @boysddontcry @twsssmlmaa @call-me-doll-face @ausamocee @skythighs @jasminedragon @leeeesahhh @blushynini @momia2910. LMK IF YOU WANT OFF NOW THAT THEIR MAIN STORY IS OVER.  I just assume you want any follow-ups on them.

All joel: @ethanhoewke @silkiers @eiviea @evyiione @xdaddysprincessxx @queerly-anxious @chernayawidow @ambassadortotrilliusprime @not-a-unique-snowflake-blog @jasminespringtime @romanarose  @fandomsfallnomore @djarinxore @lokanda @blackvelveteen1339   @manazo @wolvesandvampires  @taeslarityy @str84pedro @kyloispunk @filthfairy @fieryglutenfreechickennoodles

[neoymm]

Batman beyond’s suit isn’t a full nanotech suit, it’s definitely not armoury but bulletproof material

the suit is made of multiple layers which can be seen in the episode where Terry crash bc of the spellbinder

the suit is FUCKING MADE OF FABRICS

now what fabric is bulletproof if the suit is made like what, our time? 20 years old suit, and the year Terry become batman was the year 2039? so 2019 was when Bruce finished built it.

And what is bulletproof of our time?

this fucking materials, which is Kevlar, Steel, Polyethylene (PE) or Ceramic. Definitely not Ceramic.

the reason i think it’s bulletproof bc i think 2019 still use bullets instead of LAZERS (obviously) But it do stands against the lazers…ish

I wouldn’t say it’s completely bulletproof like how Superman’s skin or Wonder Woman’s skin works. But it protects Terry some certain attack. Like it still conflicts pain but no hole

And I don’t know if Bruce even use any other alien material or the DC universe original materials (if they even had one)

I also think it has to be a mix of Kevlar and Polyethylene. It can’t protect Terry from electric attack but still keep him some safety.

And because it’s layered, now pause, I wonder why the fuck can’t it change it’s size when Terry changed into a bat. But whatever 😭

It got torn bc of sudden size change…

Polyurethane is probably also used since it can be used in plastic car parts

or this bunch of fucking shit to stands heat like electricity, fire, and some shit. Also it’s waterproof? and against radiation (WHAT CAN GO AGAINST RADIOACTIVE STUFF, ANSWER IS LEAD, CONCRETE AND WATER, so the suit gotta have lead in it)

im literally so tired, im freaking goin’ off the line rn

Kevlar and Polyethylene is definitely being used.

So one layer is Polyethylene, then kevlar with those mechanical elements or something, then a mix between them with some other elements.

the mask is well, weird.

it has an HUD

with multifunction systems

I gotta say that the full suit has to make Terry’s build look a bit bigger with those mechanics bro

but here’s some of my guessing of the mask

the mouth is still mysterious for me so i got no clue 😭

How do the nature of the suit give the person wear them increase strength, stamina, endurance, agility and etc. Yeah it was explained on the wiki by exoskeleton circuits and servomotors made by Peter Corso. No Peter Corso didn’t know the servomotors is being used for making the suit, I think.

and the cloaking, turning invisible is probably inspired by light refractive polymer which is linked to the wiki. but it’s debatable since we still hasn’t got to that part yet, but the polymer of the suit has to be somewhere 1.3-1.7 (if Bruce use something to make the materials to be light refractive polymer) for the common refractive materials.

why the fuck am i even reading those shit, I DONT UNDERSTAND ANYTHING.

ZnO, ZnO2 - Zinc Oxide

TiO2 - Titanium Dioxide

But it’s probably got build in to the suit later since 2024 and we still hasn’t got any other materials that can make us invisible

unless we are talking about this

Invisible Cloak from 2023, introduced by Chu Junhao under the event Super Night of Science

I got no clue if it’s true or nah, couldn’t find the og source either

but perhaps the servomotors can change the materials’ reflection by manipulating the light making Terry invisible.

But if it’s nanotech then i got no answer

literally

like we got no nanotech irl so what do i even say 😭

Anyways that’s some of my thinking, im not an engineering expert or anything so i can say shit completely incomprehensible.

and no i dont know how the wings works

like they sometimes stick to Terry’s arms, sometimes it just an independent wings

so

no clue.

but it’s a fly-able wing

then it will be similar build to how wingsuit flying sport works expect only the wing part, or maybe hang gliding 🤷

anyways thats the end of this bs post

i got nothing

spare me from your questions

[enchxanting]

our love is god [ethan landry] pt. 5

read part 4 here || all parts

pairing: ethan landry x fem!reader

warnings: major character death, depictions of murder/suicide

a/n: okay here we get to see the toxic psycho behavior start to come out! this part is so different from the last that it gave me whiplash to write. n e ways hope you like

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

Even before I turn over, I can feel Ethan’s eyes on me. 

He grins. “Hey, good morning,”

“Hi,” I say, sitting up against the backboard. “Have you been up very long?” I check the alarm. It’s relatively early still, only 8:15.

“No, no,” he says. “I just didn’t want to wake you. You looked so peaceful.”

There’s an awkward tension between us, neither quite knowing what to do now. Eventually, Ethan clears his throat. “So I, uh, I had a really special time with you last night, and I kinda want to keep hanging out? If you want to, I mean.”

“You mean like, go on some dates?”

“Um, yeah? If that’s cool?”

I don’t know if he’s ever asked a girl out before because he absolutely cannot look me in the eye, but his expression is so sweet that I lean over and gently kiss him. 

“That would be great.”

He smiles, and I almost lose myself in this moment, until I remember the rest of last night. 

“Shit, shit, shit,” I say, untangling myself from his arms. “I gotta go see Tara.”

Ethan frowns. “Wait, why?”

“I have to apologize. She’s all alone right now, Sam left last night.”

“I don’t see why it’s your job to tell her you’re sorry, though,” he says. “She literally slapped you.”

I pull on some discarded jeans and a t-shirt. “It’s more complicated than that,” I sigh. “I don’t want this to become a big thing. Easier to just apologize now, you know?”

He gets up and wraps me in his arms, resting his chin on my shoulder. “Alright. At least let me drive you? It’s too far to walk right now.”

I know that it’s a bad idea to bring Ethan, but the feeling of his arms around me and the faded scent of his cologne is intoxicating. I can’t help but be persuaded.

“Fine, okay,” I say. “Thank you.”

He gives me one more quick kiss on the neck before pulling away to get dressed.

***

Usually, the drive to Tara’s is ten minutes long. Thanks to Ethan’s driving habits, we make it in five.

Pulling up to the house, a wave of nausea and jitters passes through my body. I’m considering turning around until Ethan takes my hand in his. The non-verbal reassurance calms me down, and we walk into the house together.

I’m surprised to find that the door is slightly ajar, deadbolts forgotten without Sam in the house. I know that she’s still gone– her car is missing from the driveway– but my theory is confirmed when I find a note on the kitchen table: 

At gmas. Don’t text. Call when you can have a real conversation -Sam.

“That’s brutal,” Ethan whistles.

“Yeah.” I remember how Sam looked at all of us last night, and it sends chills down my spine. I push it away. “I think I should bring her something.”

Ethan laughs. “Don’t you think that’s over the top?”

I roll my eyes at him. “Oh, whatever. I just want this to work.”

Opening the fridge, I find a bottle of orange juice that Tara once mentioned was her favorite. “Hey, that’ll work.”

Ethan grabs a ceramic cup from the cabinet and hands it to me. “How about making it special? Got any mixers?”

“Like Sam keeps any alcohol in this house,” I scoff, pouring the juice into the cup. “Plus, a mimosa isn’t the best hangover cure.”

“I don’t know… I was thinking something more like this.” He reaches underneath the kitchen sink, pulling out a bottle of drain cleaner. 

I laugh, thinking he's kidding, but he doesn’t crack a smile or put the bottle away. “Come on,” he continues, pulling out an identical cup. “She’ll puke her guts out and you’ll get a little revenge before you apologize.”

He pours in blue liquid and mixes it with equal parts orange juice. I can’t lie, I’m a little horrified. “Don’t be a dick, Ethan, that stuff could kill her.”

He pauses for a second, and I can’t read his expression before his face softens. “You’re right, Y/N. I’m sorry. I didn’t think about that.”

He leans in and kisses me unexpectedly, and even though I’m still weirded out by his suggestion, I melt into him, letting the moment take me.

“Is okay,” I mumble into his mouth. “We gotta go. She’s probably waking up now.”

Without looking, I grab the cup from the table, distracted by Ethan’s eyes raking over me. It feels good to be wanted like this. I smirk at him and turn on my heels. 

He follows me up the stairs, and together we approach Tara’s door. I know she’s in there by the sound of her sleep music playing softly, even though it’s past 9:00 at this point. Tara’s usually an early riser, but I’m willing to bet that the hangover is preventing her from starting her day.

Out of courtesy, I knock gently on her door. “Tara? Are you in there?”

No reply. Not wanting to give up, I turn the knob and let myself in. She’s laying in her bed, facing away from us. “Hey, Tara?”

Tara turns over, and I can tell she’s not happy to see me. “What are you doing here, Y/N? And with… Ethan?”

Even though she’s trying to ice me out, she’s clearly interested in whatever happened between us. I clear my throat. “Yeah. Listen, Tara, I know both of us said a lot of stuff we didn’t mean last night–”

“Did we?” she interrupts. “I don’t know, you seemed pretty fucking sure of yourself when you got in the middle of my family business.”

Her words hurt, and I can feel Ethan shift uncomfortably behind me. “I know. Can we just forget about it?”

I hold out the cup and she eyes me suspiciously. “What, did you spit in this or something?”

“Jesus, Tara, no,” I sigh. “I came to say sorry or whatever. You said it’s your favorite.”

This seems to persuade her. She takes the cup from me, sitting up in her bed. “If this makes me feel better, I’ll consider accepting your apology.”

This makes me smile slightly, and I can see a glint in her eye that tells me she might not be as mad anymore. She lifts the cup to her lips and drinks, and I relax a little, thankful she accepted my peace offering. 

But something is wrong. Really, really wrong.

As soon as she swallows, her face scrunches up. She drops the cup, spilling the contents on her comforter.

“Tara?” I say, “What’s going on?”

She’s hacking now, and I see her start to convulse. I’m full-on panicking now. “Oh my god, Ethan, call 911!”

He’s completely checked out, watching Tara choke. “Fuck, Ethan, just do it!” I scream.

This seems to wake him up, and he grabs his phone from his back pocket. “Jesus, it’s fucking dead!”

This can’t be happening. I take her head in my lap, trying to elevate it so she doesn’t choke, but there’s no use. Tara wheezes and wheezes, then suddenly goes still, blood starting to trickle from her mouth.

I’m frozen. I can’t do anything but stare slack-jawed at Tara’s gaunt face in my lap.

Then it hits me, and I start screaming.

“Oh my god! Fuck, fuck, how could this happen, how could we kill–”

Ethan suddenly slaps his hand over my mouth, frighteningly out of character for him.

“Y/N, stop, please, stop! Someone’s going to hear.” He retracts his hand, and I feel my eyes welling with tears. I’m shaking. 

“Jesus Christ,” I say. “I just killed my best friend.”

We sit in silence for a second until the reality of the situation dawns on me. “Holy fuck, what are we going to tell the cops?”

I can see the cogs in his brain turning, and he stumbles around the room. Suddenly, Ethan stops and picks up a copy of The Bell Jar from Tara’s desk.

“Okay. Now, we did a murder, and that's a crime. But, if this were like a suicide thing…”

“A suicide thing?” I don’t follow.

“I mean, you can do Tara’s handwriting just as well as your own, right?”

I suddenly understand what he’s asking me to do, and the thought makes me sick. But we have no other option. 

I gently lift Tara’s head off of my lap so I can get up and rip out a piece of paper from her half-full history notebook. “Fuck, what do I say?”

Ethan thinks for a second. “We have to tie it back to last year. Make sure to talk about her fight with Sam last night.

It feels impossible, but I force myself to start writing.

Dear world,

You might think what I’ve done is shocking. To me, though, suicide is the obvious answer to the impossible challenge life has given me. 

Though Richie Kirsch and Amber Freeman did not kill me last year, they stole something much more valuable– my will to live. 

The absence of my father and sister, the deaths of some of my closest friends, and then the departure of my mother, all combined, made me realize that there is no one left who really knows me, no one who really cares. 

I can’t live like this any longer, alone and afraid of an enemy who isn’t there. I died knowing that there was no other option for me. I hope you can understand.

Tara

By the time I’m done, I’m shaking so hard that I drop the pen. The page is stained with my tears, but there’s no time to rewrite it.

I collapse on the ground, and Ethan wraps his arms around me. “I know, I know,” he says.  “It’ll be okay. We’ll be okay.”

taglist: @miawastakens

[whumpsday]

Kane & Jim #44: Sweet 116

Masterlist

content: recovery, comfort, vampire whumpee, whumper turned whumpee, whumpee turned caretaker, fluffy compared to my usual

-

Kane woke up one hundred and sixteen years old.

It felt like it had been ages since his last birthday, since he hadn’t been aware of its passing since his 110th. He’d honestly thought he was older than this, back in his cell. It felt longer than five years.

He hadn’t celebrated his birthday in a long time, even the ones where he’d been aware of the day passing. They were a bitter reminder that his family didn’t care, after the extravagant parties he’d been thrown as a young child turned into not even being wished a happy birthday. He and Bellamy used to have their own little events, just the two of them, but those stopped after Bellamy left.

He wished he could apologize to Bellamy for treating him so badly. Kane knew he’d been a bad friend. But it was probably better this way: Bellamy had his own life now, he was flourishing, and Kane was okay now too. He had to just appreciate their childhood friendship for what it was, and accept that it was over.

Jim wasn’t his friend, certainly. Kane had abused him for years, and now he was currently held captive in the man’s house. But he was something almost like a friend. More than a friend in some ways, a god-like savior who’d dragged him out of a torturous nightmare.

He was okay. He didn’t need a friend, and he didn’t need a birthday. He just needed to be safe, and he had that, now. He smiled at the thought. His first safe birthday in five years.

Jim came downstairs with a fresh bowl of blood. “Hey, man. Happy birthday. Hundred sixteen now, right? Sheesh.”

“Oh. You remembered.” Kane said, a little shocked.

“’Course I remembered. Gotta be on top of that shit if you’re gonna be staying here. Speaking of which...” Jim held out the bowl, but it was a new one, one Kane had never seen before. A ceramic bowl designed to look like a cake, a human food he knew was traditionally used to celebrate birthdays. Jim had taught him that.

“Saw this and thought it might be fun to use on your birthdays, since obviously you can’t eat actual cake.” Jim said with a goofy grin.

Birthdays. Plural. That could only mean one thing, that Jim intended to keep him for years. Kane’s heart soared, elated. He was being promised safety for years.

“Thank you so much.” Kane gingerly took the cute little bowl. “I love it. Thank you for the bowl, and the blood, and, and for letting me stay. Thank you for all of it.” He teared up a little, overwhelmed with emotion.

“Aw, well, you were always nice to me on my birthdays.” Jim pointed out. “You always got me cake and a present. Never hurt me or anything, ‘cept for the bite, even if I was doing stuff you’d normally hit me for. It was the only time I really felt safe.”

Guilt flooded him. Jim only felt safe five days out of the five years Kane had him, and he still made every effort he could to make Kane feel safe now despite it.

“I’m glad you’re safe now.” Kane said softly.

“Right back at you.” Jim patted him on the back. “Laken’s coming over later and we’ll have a little party. Assuming that’s cool with you? There’s still time to cancel it if you’re not into the idea.”

Laken was a hunter. It was hard to get out of the mindset that humans were dangerous by default, let alone hunters, but they’d been over to visit Liz’s a few times when he and Jim had stayed at Liz’s place a few weeks ago and they’d only ever been friendly toward him. He supposed that the only options Jim had to invite to his vampire’s birthday party were them and Liz, and Liz was definitely not a fan of him.

Kane hadn’t had a proper birthday party since he was ten years old. It seemed almost childish at this point, but... unbelievably sweet.

“That sounds great. Thank you.” He held the bowl to his lips and drank.

-

Jim’s present to Kane served two purposes: it was something he knew the guy would love, and it would give him time to decorate. It was a strategy he had employed for Liz on multiple occasions. Give her a gift she’d have to leave the house for, then set everything up while she’s away. He could have just done it while Kane was asleep, but he wanted to make sure he actually wanted something. Jim knew he was weird about birthdays.

He had to get creative this time, since he couldn’t send Kane to the arcade or roller rink. Kane was over the moon about the fancy bath stuff Jim got him, breaking out in a delighted fanged grin.

While Kane spent what Jim was sure would be an hour in the bathroom trying out fancy soaps, he strung up some simple decorations. Some balloons, streamers, and in a moment of unprecedented genius, a ‘SWEET 16′ banner he’d drawn an extra ‘1′ into to make it say ‘SWEET 116′. He giggled as he tacked it up.

He was sure it was nothing compared to the kinds of parties hundred-millionaire vampires would throw. Hell, it’d be nothing by human party standards, the guy couldn’t even eat cake or get wasted. But hey, Kane seemed pretty jazzed about it so far.

It was a good distraction. Jim tried not to think about it, but tomorrow was the anniversary of the night Kane took him. He realized it a few minutes after Kane had told him his birthday. Was that what he was? Kane’s birthday present to himself, a shiny new human?

He pushed the thought out of his head. It didn’t matter. He didn’t want to think about the fact that tomorrow was the 15 year anniversary of the day his life ended.

Jim was glad he had the excuse of Kane being scared of Liz to not invite her: she’d definitely try to comfort him, because she knew him way too well, and then he’d have to think about it, and maybe even talk about it.

And then he’d be a terrified 19 year old boy again, back in that lonely little room in Kane’s house where nothing was safe, and he didn’t want to be that anymore.

Now Kane was in his house, and neither of them were miserable. It was fine. Though it was hard not to think about it at least a little bit, with what Laken wanted to give Kane as his present.

Kane came downstairs smelling like roses. “You weren’t waiting to put the cuffs back-”

He looked around, taking in the decorations. Another smile. Kane had been smiling a lot more these days, he noticed.

“You did all this for me?” He sounded choked-up.

“Yeah, man. It’s your birthday. First one you’ve celebrated in five years, right? Gotta do something.” Jim patted him on the back. “And no cuffs today. We can be a little lax once in a while.” Plus, there’ll be a hunter here most of the time just in case.

“One hundred and six.”

“One hundred and six what?”

“This is the first birthday I’ve celebrated in one hundred and six years.” Kane clarified. “Or, ninety-nine years if you count the little celebrations that were just me and Bellamy. Just shy of a century.”

“Fuck, man. You’re making me too sad.” Jim shook his head. Guess that explained why he was so cagey about his birthday. “Well, good thing I snapped you up before it could get to a round hundred. We’ll fit a birthday party in here for you yet.”

“Thank you, Jim.” Kane said, sounding touched. “That means a lot.”

-

Laken arrived shortly. Kane froze up as they hugged him, not having expected it, but relaxed once he realized they weren’t hurting him.

“Happy birthday, you little grandpa!” they laughed, glancing at the banner. “Excellent.”

“Thank you for coming.” he replied. Laken’s hug was different from Jim’s. There was no tension, no fear that Kane could sense. They just held him, carefree. He wanted it to last forever, but they pulled away to hug Jim next.

They strolled inside and turned back around. “Jimmy, get outta here. I’ve gotta give Kane his present.”

Laken didn’t appear to have brought anything with them, Kane noted with confusion.

“Y-yeah.” Jim was suddenly nervous. “Just, just come get me when it’s done.” He scurried up the stairs to his room.

Kane was growing more anxious by the second. Jim being nervous was bad, but being apart from him was worse, and being alone with a hunter even worse than that. Even if they were the nicest hunter he’d ever met.

“Chill out.” Laken ordered, patting him on the head. “Jim’s just a little sensitive about this stuff. I’m not gonna hurtcha.”

“O-oh. Um, then, then what?” he asked.

Laken held out their arm. “Go on and feed some. Double portions today, and this one’s straight from the source, nice ‘n fresh..”

Kane stared incredulously at their outstretched arm. This had to be a- a trap of some kind, it had to be.

He could still remember the searing licks of the sun on his skin, in his mouth, unable to get away, burning burning burning for an entire week, the nights never long enough to heal more than the smallest bit before the next day devastated him again. And that had been for just trying to bite.

There was no way a hunter was telling him to bite them.

“I’ll be good, s...” Kane thought about it a bit, unsure what the proper title would be for a ‘them’. “...sir?” he decides anyway. “I’ll be good. I know better, I, I’ve learned. You don’t need to test me.”

“I’m not gonna pull pranks on you on your birthday, dude.” Laken shook their head. “Or ever. That sounds about as good of an idea as pulling pranks on Jim. Maybe even worse. Nah, I’m serious. Go for it. Have a little treat.”

They were serious. Kane glanced up the stairs. “Jim’s okay with it?”

“Yup, got pre-approved and everything. Listen, if you don’t want it, I can use the blood draw and you can drink it out of that bowl Jim was so giggly about on the phone, or we can just forget about the whole thing if you wanna. It’s your call. You’re the birthday boy. But hey, I’m offering.” They waggled their eyebrows.

Blood did taste really good straight from a human. It didn’t get any fresher than that. And... it could be his test, too. He was starting to really trust that Jim wouldn’t send him back, or hurt him on purpose. If he did this, he could see if Laken is really telling the truth, and maybe he could trust them, too. If he refused, he’d never know.

“Okay. Yes, please. Um, have you ever... been bitten before?” he asked.

“Pssh, oh yeah. A billion and a half times.” Laken assured. “I’ve been hunting for like, a decade. You guys’ve got like 5 things for combat, and teeth are one of ‘em. Never been really fed from, though. But I’m curious!” They waved their arm in front of him again.

Kane was glad they were offering their arm. He was sure that Jim would have an intensely negative reaction to seeing his mark on Laken’s neck.

He nodded trepidatiously. “Please let me know if you want me to stop.”

He bit into their forearm, sweet, delicious blood flowing into him. The base taste wasn’t as good as Jim’s abnormally-delicious blood, but it was so fresh that it truly was a treat. He had already had a meal today, but he fed enough for an entire second meal. It was his birthday, after all.

When he was done, he licked the wound closed. “Thank you. That was, that was wonderful.” He waited anxiously for their reaction.

“Haha, so weird. Glad it did it for you.” Laken said casually.

They’re really not mad. They’re not going to try to punish me.

“I’m gonna put a bandage on this so Jim doesn’t flip his shit.” they added. “You wanna go get him? Knock first.”

“Okay!” Kane agreed, invigorated by his apparent success. He jogged up to Jim’s room, initially minding his ankle chains before realizing they weren’t there, and knocked.

“Jim? It’s done. Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yeah.” Jim opened the door, looking a little less than okay, but not awful.

“I-”

“If you’re about to say you’re sorry, can it. It’s your birthday and you didn’t hurt anyone. Was it nice?” Jim asked.

Kane was surprised by how he’d predicted what he was about to say so easily. He guessed Jim just... knew him better than anyone else, at this point.

But that street went both ways. Seeing Jim look all nervous, he was suddenly reminded that he’d taken Jim the day after his 100th birthday.

“It was nice. Thank you for allowing it.” He hesitated, hoping he was saying the right thing. “Um, I know that tomorrow is probably... an uncomfortable day for you. I’m sorry. Just let me know if there’s anything I can do? Like if you want me to stay downstairs or something.”

Jim startled a bit, then smoothed his hair down. “I dunno. I kinda just wanna do everything like normal. Don’t wanna make it weird or anything.”

“Okay. Whatever you want.” Kane agreed.

“Hey, did Jim faint up there or something?” Laken called.

“C’mon, don’t turn into Liz, I’m not that fragile! I wasn’t even the one who got bit!” Jim called back. He bumped Kane on the shoulder, racing back down.

Kane laughed, following behind him.

-

sorry i’ve been slacking on posting new chapters / november was kind of a wash! you can expect a lot more activity in the latter portion of december.

drabbles posted in between #43 and #44:

Drabble: Mirror

Drabble: Fuck you

also started K&J x MMSS, a series of crossovers between my guys and the guys of Magnanimous Moonrise & Savage Sunset! there’s like 30k words of writing in there now

taglist:

@annablogsposts

@badluck990

@barebarb

@cc1010foxy

@ceph-the-writing-spook

@cicatrix-energy

@crying-wings

@crystalquartzwhump

@cupcakes-and-pain

@cyberneticfire

@darlingwhump

@deluxewhump

@down-in-the-whumps

@elrysdoesstuff

@emcscared-whumps

@extemporary-whump

@extrabitterbrain

@iamtheshriekingguineapig

@icyheart-and-friends

@inpainandsuffering

@interdimensional-chaos

@kira-the-whump-enthusiast

@lactose-intolerant-egg

@lilac-and-lemon-whumps

@littlespacecastle

@little-whumpee

@lost-in-labradorite-halls

@magziemakeswhatever

@melancholy-in-the-morning

@morning-star-whump

@myhusbandsasemni

@mylifeisonthebookshelf

@neverthelass

@nicolepascaline

@nine-tailed-whump

@no-terms-and-conditions-apply

@not-a-space-alien

@nyooom

@octopus-reactivated

@oddsconvert

@onlybadendings

@owencarvourenthusiast

@pigeonwhumps

@pumpkin-spice-whump

@quietly-by-myself

@quirkykayleetam

@ramadiiiisme

@redwhump

@scp-1296

@secretwhumplair

@the-whumperfly-effect

@the-whumpers-grimm

@thecyrulik

@thegreatwhodini

@themarlo

@thingsthatgo-whump-inthenight

@t0rture-me

@vehan-tikkun-olam-and-stuff

@whuarri

@whump-blog-reblogs

@whump-cravings

@whump-for-all-and-all-for-whump

@whump-me-all-night-long

@whump-my-heart-away

@whump-queen

@whumperfully

@whumpthisway

@whumpilicious

@whumpshaped

@whumpwillow

@whumpworld

@whumpy-writings

@whumpycries

@whumpyzombie

@whumpzone

@wits-and-wrongs

@wolfeyedwitch

[bugbyte]

Recent discoveries from the land of Bug lives with a chronic illness and is tired all the time:

This is probably obvious to everyone but holy shit, crock pot. I used to use this thing mostly for a few very specific recipes because I feel like there’s something about the cooking method where things can tend to lose flavor or texture (might just be a me thing) but lately it’s been a lifesaver when I am hurting and exhausted, which has been a lot.

I’m trying to cut back on premade or processed stuff where I can because I don’t think it’s good for me personally or for our budget. (No judgement from me if that’s what’s easiest for you, we all gotta eat somehow.) Cooking has become a mega effort for me when I’m having a flare up and it’s been tough. I used to do all the cooking for us because I genuinely love to do it, but it’s gotten so hard for me recently and I’m trying new methods.

More chatter and recipes under the break~

This is all kind of a medium effort (unless you have someone to help, which I am lucky to have) so it might not work for everyone, because the ceramic piece of the cooker is kind of heavy to get out and clean if you’re prone to dropping things (I am) but it can go in the dishwasher. Also chopping things can be a pain; I have a little chopping thing that helps when I’m cooking alone, it looks like this:

Anyway, if you can get past those hurdles via tools or help or buying pre-chopped veggies, you’re halfway there. You can also prep veg when you’re having a good day and freeze it so you have it ready on a bad day.

Here are a few of my favorite recipes, all are kinda chicken-based and the method is basically the same but you can probably substitute another protein, this just works for my budget and dietary needs. The only thing I might not use is ground meat; something funny can happen with the texture of it, I think because you’re not necessarily stirring all the time. It can cook kinda weird if you’re not attentive, and we’re going for as hands off as possible here.

Today we chopped up a bunch of veggies and dumped them in with chicken breast, a bunch of seasoning (curry, garam masala, garlic, ginger, a little Trader Joe’s sriracha seasoning for a little heat, I mean, I don’t think you can really add too many spices here?? Add and measure with your heart, as they say), and a jar of tikka masala sauce. Then we just have to make rice later and it’s all set. 4-6 hours on high, 6-8 on low seems to be the standard and works for basically everything I’ve tried so far. Yeah, it’s kind of premade with the jar sauce, but having something hot with real veggies and chicken when you’re not feeling good is a real morale boost at the end of the day. Plus, a ton of leftovers.

Another easy one I love is chopping up an onion and a bell pepper or two, pour in either a jar of tomato pasta sauce or a big can of crushed tomatoes + whatever garlic/basil/etc seasonings you like, and throw a couple of chicken breasts on top with some seasoning on those too. Same timing as above. By the end the chicken just shreds apart by pinching it with tongs really easily (I have hand grip issues and I can do it) so shred that and stir it all together. This stuff is great on pasta, probably also would be an amazing sandwich on a bun with some mozzarella?? Last time we used a can of tomatoes so there was a ton of extra liquid and I just dumped in a package of farfalle at the end of cooking (or 30 minutes to the end, ish) and mixed it well, gave it 30 minutes to soak up the sauce, and it was really tasty. You really only have to pay attention at the end to make sure the pasta is the way you want it, not over or under done.

Lastly, tacos. Chicken, in whatever quantity you want. We are 2 people and 2 breasts is enough for a bunch of tacos and leftovers for lunch the next day. Add a little olive oil (just a dash to help stuff stick) and half a packet of any taco seasoning you like (save the rest for the end). Mix in one of those little cans of chopped green chilies plus about one tiny can of water or chicken broth if you’re feeling fancy. Cook either high or low (as above) but I find low on 6-8 hours actually does come out better on this one. When it’s done, shred the chicken like the tomato recipe. It should just fall apart with very little effort. Then add in the rest of the seasoning packet and mix; it helps thicken any liquid into sauce. If you still end up with too much liquid somehow, just scoop some out with a ladle. Then just put it on tortillas with whatever taco stuff you like. This one also works pretty well with a big chunk of pork, like pork shoulder. You may need some extra seasoning and stuff because it’s bigger, and I would also add some garlic to the pork version for better flavor. If you have the energy or assistance this stuff is also great shredded up and thrown under a broiler for a couple minutes for crispy edges, but that’s totally optional. Still tasty without it.

Anyway, just thought I’d share some of the easy stuff I’ve come across and liked because I love cooking and I hate how much trouble I’ve had making good food without running myself to exhaustion since I started having health problems. It’s a learning curve for sure.

[littleladymab]

OC in 15

HELLO NEW TAG GAME tagged by @wintherlywords thank you!

Rules: Share 15 lines of dialogue from an OC that capture their character, personality, or vibe. Bonus points for using dialogue without other scene details, but you’re free to include those as well!

Sorry for any of the formatting looking funky I gotta run but wanted to get this up before heading off to gaming!

I'm doing this for Best Girl Ayn Starling -- it's a combination of stuff from her POV, her texts, the blog she writes, and from other character's POV

Please consider this an open tag!

“What makes you think I know?” Both Ming and Carmel give me A Look, and I release a sigh and an overly dramatic shrug. “Okay, so, I do, but I don’t like that you automatically assume that I do.” 

If it’s a come-on, he’s getting docked for such an obvious line. He is handsome though, in a sort of I played Hamlet in a college production sort of way, with dark, artfully styled hair, amber eyes that look like they could use another dose of caffeine, and tinted glasses perched on a broad, flat nose. Not to mention, he’s somehow managing to pull off all black without making it look weird, even though his natural tan speaks of an indoor pallor.  Oh, yeah, he’s definitely the type to hold a skull and Alas, poor Yorick me. It’s fine, I could be into it.

I would be that person in the library until they have to drag me out kicking and screaming. Silently, of course, because it’s still a library. 

From: Ayn Starling  I understand that, but I’m also going to ask that you respect me as a person and consider, maybe, answering me properly.  From: Ayn Starling  Maybe not now, and not about this, but at one point.  From: Ayn Starling  I’ll let you decide what to do about Zone because you’re right, he isn’t my concern.  From: Ayn Starling  Everything else is up to you.

“Christ, I hope that there’s not more than one Jonas Quinn.”

“I turned thirteen and you gave me some of your whiskey. You told her that you thought it would be funny.”

And, with equal angelic poise, Ayn answers, “Of course not. I don’t think you peg many women.” 

“Holy shit, Lysander, she made me do them until I left the house. I know she had her own plans for you when you lived with us, trying to clean you up and turn you into a functioning member of society and all that, but I was being groomed to be a miniature version of her. She was probably secretly arranging a marriage between one of my father’s coworker’s sons or something.”

 My fellow citizens: We speak for those who cannot. The voice of the hallows and haunts. The voice of the abandoned, the lost, the forgotten — all hope abandon ye who enter here.  We will not be silenced. We will not be cowed, corralled, cornered.

“Someone is calling out ALICE — specifically, the Program Manager — on their approach to the game,” Ayn adds. She turns to Fletcher, eager, since he understood her reference. “We were promised a way out of this city, right? Then why play a game when they should be that benevolent being and let us go without having to participate in their missions?”

“I thought...” The fingers of her free hand drum over the ceramic surface of the mug, revealing the logo in flashes. “I thought that I could be good enough for you this time.”

“Do you think what we’re doing is even worth it?” Her hand lifts and gestures to the shop around us — to the rest of Eminence. “Meliora. This is beyond you and me, I think. We never... We are two different shapes that tried to fit together.”

“I thought it was obvious, Darling,” she says with a pretty smile that is altogether very sweet and dangerous. “I want the people of Eminence to start fighting back.”

“I’m mad because we’re still fighting. Are you angry because I’m not wearing any pants?” 

Having chosen to participate in Meliora has proven to ALICE, to Patrick Mercer, to everyone reading this blog, that you were worthy. Not only of the truth or a way out, but worthy of being able to make your own choices.  You made the right decision, whatever it was.  No matter what has happened over these past few months, never, ever, regret that. 

[figula]

ok im gonna just talk about it anyway :D

he announced earlier that next year he's gonna push me more, and i was like ? wat? why? and he was like i think we're both undersocialised atm and i was quite annoyed by this and also a bit hurt bc i feel like that's more untrue in the past 6 months thn it's been sice the pandemic (and maybe before - bc most of our friends now are people from discord we ended up becoming irl friends with)

maybe *you* feel undersocialised ben but *i* actually find basically all social activities something to endure rather than enjoy

also don't forget that ana is my soulmate and I feel very happy just hanging out with them and Ben

i feel like he has still this shark feeling of gotta keep moving or ill die :) like he is doing much better than he was from sept-nov but yeah i think he doesnt need to make that an Us problem lol like i dont share that feeling at all lol like if you want to do more things than i do you can do some stuff separately, and some stuff with me! as is normal!

i did feel quite frustratedand annoyed with the way he brought it up , which he did apologise for later bc he agreed we're doing the right things etc and he didnt really mean he wants to push me MORE just that he doesnt want to BACKSLIDE. which is fine i guess but it was a bit annoying to hear anyway bc i am not planningon going intoi a big isolationist hole

like the implication that next year some REAL change is gonna happen and totally ignoring the fact that we got married a few months ago (objectively the biggest social event either of us have ever done), that we hung out with Boops and yuka at an art installation, that we've had clare over a bunch of times, that we've had boops over, that he's done a few irl dnd sessions w/ lucas clare boops, that we've been ice skating a few times, that we've done escape rooms together, that we've done some family trips, we did that ceramics class, we've done a LOT of pokemon walks - all of this in teh past 2 or 3 months apart from the wedding - im just like god damn how much stuff do i have to do to satisfy you lol like i simply dont find the same kind of drive to Do Things that he has and I have still done all this shit REGARDLESS

i was also annoyed i think by the implication that he's the one who needs to push me when actually half of the above shit was my idea!!! the ice skating was me! the wedding was my idea! the escape rooms were my idea! i was the one who restarted teh pokemon go! i was the one who created the server in the first place, where he found his friends!!!! these are all my friends i let him share!!! i was the one who arranged the halloween party w/ boops and clare literally bc he was so sad i wanted to do something nice for him

i do read him charitably - as i legit think is important to do in all relationships with someone you like and respect on a very basic level lol - and i dont think he meant to suggest that im massively inadequate lmfao (i mean - i know he didnt) and he apologised for coming in too hard about stuff, and i know he's traumatised by covid (who isnt?) and is terrified of going back into that tiny world where it was just us and we didnt see anyone else for 2y. but that's not on the cards anyway so i felt a bit wrongfooted by the whole talk

also i was so cross i went mute and under my blankets until he sort of to put it bluntly fucked me back into communication lmfao !! me hissing "im cross with you" while he was actively fucking me </3 looool (this is 100%% fine by the way, just for the record, i was way less annopyed by the sex than the conversation, the sex cheered me up even and it was the right move)

anyway whatever. i think we're actually on the same page in terms of not wanting a particularly quiet 2024 (we're planning on going to Iceland in the winter and also there will be a chess meetup abroad somewhere) so we move. i was just annoyed by how he framed it but he did apologise anyway and i know he didnt really mean anything!! but it was annoying lol like omg I try sooo hard. so fucking hard!!!

ETA: fucking. also. he wasn't even making ANY comment on this stuff and he's fully been my biggest cheerleader lol but I've also been so busy work-wise (my "chess career" is reaching new heights after all) and taking care of him these past few months and doing my doll job as well I think I just want someone to be like omg cham you are actually soooo impressive I'm soooo obsessed with you !!! don't worry you don't need to find anything else inside you you are doing sooooo well!!! (Ben is actually usually like this but I want him to say it now as well) like I've been working on job stuff AS WELL AS doing loads more shit with him lately and I feel like I should get extra credit for that

all this to say that this would be a good time to send me a message with how great you think i am. lol

[phantom-of-the-501st]

Episode 13 Thoughts

Spoilers for TBB Season 2

I very nearly spoiled myself for this episode because the clocks in America changed and it meant that this episode came out earlier than expected. Managed to scramble off Tumblr quickly enough this morning that I missed anything major. 😅

But let's get into my thoughts!

I forgot that Phee existed. How did I forget Phee existed??? 😭

Cute ceramic tree.

Love Phee teaching Omega how to bargain. 😂

Hunter grabbing the guys wrist when he tries to steal the credits. 🤣

Hunter's senses have had a little more attention this season and I love that. A lot of it is just for small moments but they're nice little additions that actually give us a chance to see how he uses his mutation.

Fun fact, centipedes can actually be venomous! Not so much to kill a person, but they can be carnivorous and use venom to catch prey. So these centipede-y things that they set after people are actually not too dissimilar from what we find on Earth! (Just more dangerous).

BAR FIGHT!!!

Where's Tech at? 🤔

Okay, Phee pushing herself off the table like that was very cool. 😄

OMEGA DROPPED A BELL (-shaped thing?) ON A GUY??? Well done. 🥰

Tech's just playing a game by himself???

"It is the only time this game is a challenge" TECH 😭

Phee's right, Omega needs more friends her own age.

Tech pointing out that they didn't have any. 😭 Tech, honey, I can't say clones are the most socially adept group of people and there's a reason for that.

OH FUCK OFF CID

I'm definitely concerned that she's gonna dob them in to the Empire. 😬

Pabu's pretty!!!

Looks like we were right about it being a safe place for the Batch to camp out.

Wrecker has my heart this entire episode. 😭

"You've got some competition" WRECKER OMG 😭🤣

After everything that happened last week, I needed this episode. It's so wholesome. 🥰

"I have not heard her laugh like that in some time" IT'S STILL GONNA MAKE ME CRY THOUGH 😭

ALSO MOON-YOS?! THAT NAME IS SO CUTE! 🥰

Hunter's dad vibes are strong this episode.

Wrecker being appreciative of different cultures is so sweet

Wrecker being full and Tech making a note of it. 🤣 Ffs, I love them all so much.

They weren't kidding. This episode is so pretty! 🩷

I'm not one for unnecessary romance but I gotta say that the whole thing going on between Phee and Tech is so wholesome. 😊

Is there some island monster that we don't know about???

Oh great. It's a tsunami. 😨

Avalanche last episode, tsunami this episode. WHAT'S WITH ALL THE NATURAL DISASTERS??? 😭

I love moments where we get to see the Batch help people without the need to shoot a place up.

Wrecker carrying Mr Eenta! 🤣

OMEGA! LYANA! RUN! RUN VERY VERY QUICKLY!!!

I was very concerned that something was going to happen to Shep for a second. 😭

All the lights from earlier compared to all the dark rubble...

These poor people are all refugees. They've already lost their home and now their safe place has been destroyed too.

And to be taken out by an uncontrollable force as well. It brings up the question of whether or not there is a place anywhere that is truly safe.

But I love how Sheb says that they are resilient. These people can keep on fighting, even after they've been through so much.

(Reminds me of a very specific cyborg, who I am missing very much at the moment 😭).

But after the defeats we've seen this season, I love that we have an episode that is so strongly grounded in hope. That even in the face of tragedy, they can keep on fighting.

And hope is a key concept in Star Wars which is why this episode works so well thematically.

Aaaaahhhh!!! So I really liked this episode. After the absolute misery that was The Outpost, I really enjoyed having a much more wholesome episode. Even though the middle wasn't particularly action heavy, there was some nice exploration of themes in Star Wars. It was super sweet and I loved it. 🥰

No doubt that there's gonna be "it's filler" comments but it really isn't! It's a deeper look into the Batch and stuff that's happening in parts of the galaxy that people don't think about. I love it for that.

And while I'm really not a fan of unnecessary romances, this thing going on between Tech and Phee is adorable. Even if it doesn't go anywhere, she's still helping him open up a bit and appreciate things in life from a slightly less analytical perspective. It's cute and I can't be mad about it. 🥰 (Although I will start having an issue if it starts getting in the way of the story but I think we're good for now).

Saying all of that, it's been another week without Echo. 😭 That man would've been in top form this episode as well. We know how he is when it comes to helping people. AND WE COULD'VE HAD WHOLESOME MOMENTS OF THAT MAN ACTUALLY GETTING TO RELAX FOR ONCE IN HIS LIFE! Hopefully they get to come back here and bring Echo along because he really needs a vacation.

But overall, solid episode! The animation was beautiful and the soundtrack was great as always. 🥰

[scibot9000]

top discovered albums this year. as in, top albums from not-2023 but that I found in 2023. i dont have spotify so i gotta do this manually.

rankings approximate. links and thoughts under the cut

hizmi - Soak (2021)

sometimes it's the technicalities that blow my mind. this is…… unmodified X68000 music????

Yeah listening to this has expanded my mind on what's possible with old FM chips. None of this sounds like the artist found any restriction with any aspect of the system.

"Rivulet" blows my mind every time. It's just an ilkae song. Like cmon.

---

SDEM - ZNS (2020)

After AE_LIVE 2022, I went on a little bender, looking for anything else ae-esque.

I pretty much immediately struck gold. I had been digging through SDEM stuff anyway but man this is another level.

"dysp 0m" in particular is one of the tracks of all time. I keep coming back to it. it's HEAVY on headphones.

---

Ssaladd - Ssaladd (2020)

This is a funny selection to land on a TOP8 because it's so understated. It even kinda feels distant.

But damnit that's why it stuck with me.

The use of wow and flutter is crazy good here!

It feels like carefully applied vibrato, an application of the expression MIDI CC. But completely unlike any other vibrato I've heard.

It feels like a pioneering mix of techniques. And I can't stop thinking about it.

---

Cryptovolans - Passenger (2022)

Is it possible to have a wall of sound in MIDI?

No, not Black MIDI. Something prog.

I keep coming back to "Board Room" in particular because it's so... weird? Slightly beyond just SC, but not by much. Heavyweight album.

---

Kid606 - GQ on the EQ++ (2000)

The textures on this absolutely blew me away.

"My Kitten Went To London" sounds insanely fresh. I can't believe it's pushing 23 years old!

That and "Dandy" really stuck wth me. The latter sounds a bit more era-appropriate somehow (maybe because of oval?), but still vibes really good.

This was actually me revisiting the album. I initially listened to it about a decade ago and didn't like it. Crazy to think I turned away from such gold back then.

---

nagz - Good (2020)

nagz has been a longtime favorite and inspiration of mine. He's been making music from the future for years and years. Blowing my mind since 2006 or so.

One of his earlier releases, hringur, stuck with me for years. It had an atmosphere that I had never heard before or since.

…until now.

It's not actually a sequel, but it's got a flavor that I just. Don't know where else you can find.

If I were to highlight a single track: "I Like You But Not Too Much" hits astoundingly hard. It's what I imagine Earthbound music might be like if it were made today.

---

DJ Technorch & 九十九音夢 – Strong Anthropic Principle (2016)

An absolutely mind melting early (found in January) favorite. Hard, hardcore, and psychedelic. And a bit silly.

"猫の気持ち 〜Cat's Mind〜 (Masayoshi Iimori Remix)" and "解熱鎮痛一撃必殺 〜Critical Arts〜" in particular stuck with me as great experiences.

I really really like the preview video, too. (nsfw warning?) (flashing lights warning?). It truly captures the vibe.

---

AE_LIVE / elseq 6-10 / onesix

I had already listened to some of these, but around march, I found fanmade CUE sheets, and that brought a whole new level of love for this release.

And then I found fan edits with another set of fan titles. Two names for all of my favorite bits? Sure!

"ceramic / clipcon" i love that percussion! the ringmod in "(drunk) / probat emp2" is some of my fav ae work ever. having splits made me fall in love with the density of "sentinel / sinistrail casual"

and then I discovered the onesix sets and fan-cuts, giving a more ambient dive which I'll only mention briefly here. But man, "reflected / seven of twelve" is one I revisit OFTEN.

[kiwibes]

It is late and im ill at home so hyper specific rant coming up!

Shout out to field archaeologists who measure, those who conquered the gps/rts/total station. You are the backbone that is making it into a science.

I dont know how it is in other parts in the world but here, there is sometimes a stigma that the measuring pal is not doing real archaeology or as heavy a job as other fieldworkers because we are not constantly churning the dirt.

I would also like to scratch in the ground and scream out when I find cool stuff but I have less oprtunity cuz I´m too busy screaming at people to put their finds in bags and write down where it came from. Cuz guess what, your cool complete ceramic vessel? Useless, without its exact provenance. Throw it on the dump if you cant be bothered to care about registration!

´oh no i shant touch the gps, i´ll break it' well you wouldnt if you would take time to learn it. Might also make my job easier if you knew what goes into it all. ´cant you measure any faster?´ no i can measure as fast as technology allows me. Either you wait or you figure out the site without any carthographic data? no? Thought so.

Couple weeks ago a coworker came to me saying ´as the one measuring a site, i feel as the lowest lifeform present on the dig. No one asks if it´s going well or if i need help or how much time i am going to need. They just want everything done at once as fast as possible even though they forget to properly label shit half of time´. And i could relate to that. Since very few people know what you are doing exactly, nobody cares or offers help. They are just digging, throwing open bigger and bigger patches of dirt so they can say they excavated the largest amount of m2. At the end of the day they put away their shovel and expect everyone to do the same but the measurer? Still gotta work cuz you kept going till the last minute and there 10+ m2 left to register and 5 finds have no labels. Can´t leave them here for every passerby to just pick them up. And measure the rest later? What if it rains? What if a treasure hunter shows up digging holes in the night destroying the level with nothing left to register?

Where would you be without accurate measuring and registration? Right, nowhere cuz you would have lost all scientific validation.

So please, shows some appreciation for your local gps-archaeologists. They work just as hard and are just as tired or cold as any other fieldworker. Show some patience if things go not as fast as you´d like and ask if there is anything that might help like changing the excavation partition or asking someone to precheck all finds and features so they don´t lose time, hold an umbrella if it rains on a finnicky touchscreen, etc.

Is there anyone here who can relate? How is it in other parts of the world, im really curious!

[carmenpeach]

not sure im gonna b able to finish my comic chapter by end of month like i want considering its halfway over (was visiting ppl for a week so very busy and only drew a little but got a little more figured out for it) and i still need to script out the last 4 or 5 pages. usually the scenes in it are only a page or 2 but trying to have a longer scene/ convo in it without it being too compressed or taking too long plus finding what all jokes i need to fit into it too. like the meat is all there but the small chunks need to be filled in, plus the task of drawing a full 8 or 10 pages and i gotta pack all my shit again to move again but i dont wanna keep delaying my comic like i always do, and having a bit of art block last like 2ish weeks and think i should do the requests i got from deviantart and here done to break into that. and wanna finish up some ceramic stuff since it might be a while until i get to do that again. but think im making it more daunting than it needs to be when its like i just gotta sit down and draw the damnt thing. no jdea how im always so busy despite not really doing anything a lot. i can only imagine what i would get done if i had adderall. im a little torn on how i want it to end since theres what i want but it doesnt fit the story thats been crafted and i feel there is really only one way for it to go and i am very excited to share it. ive made a sideblog where i wanted to catalogue what everything is in reference to since like 90% of it is in jokes between my friends and i really do loce sharing funny things 2 the world

[peppermint-moss]

Who/what is your biggest inspo for poetry or art?

aagh i dont think i'll ever have one biggest inspo for poetry n art i just have a lot of lads which i like specific things about + those likes are still always ongoing and changing lol (which btw ty for askin bout poetry cause i LOVE it n i never get asked abt poetry hehe)

I have a big ol google doc where i have lines of fav poetry i write down when i come across them (usually when im just scrollin the internets) and atm I've been noticing that a lot of lines i keep enjoying are all by Mary Oliver even tho i've yet to read her collection of poetry!!! so that's on my to-do list C: other poets who's names keep poppin up in that google doc are ocean vuong, richard siken, chen chen and uhh flatsound? they do more music but they've done some spoken word stuff and their songs just feel close enough to the realm of poetry to me u know

Art stuff... lol which medium?? /lh I really like thomas jordan's photography (the COLOURS my DUDE) mmm shelia berger's kinetic sculptures and KICKASS "Bird Show" encaustic paintings (i watched the rlly short like 5 min documentary on her and i was enraptured) Spencer finch has got a lot of cool conceptual art stuff like i think CIE 529 418 (CANDLELIGHT) is rlly cool!! Holly warb and @/vchienart both got some lovely lovely illustrations/paintings with soft beautiful colours... @/emilienunez has some really pretty and elegant yet v cute ceramics!! and @/soonthemoon some really like cute warm n cozy ones... Oof there's so many digital artists i love ;-; and i keep finding new cool lads aghh @catnippackets has such a good grasp on like form n shape if that makes sense?? like drawin people in these rlly fluid poses in like silky lineart aaa i found @milkdudz 's art recently and i LOVE their art style and their cats are just. perfect balance of spiky and soft n very very Cat which is so good @everydaylouie u gotta know louie right ?? how can someone make such lovely 2d and 3d art and music and also know how to code n make lil games. that is too much power for one soul to possess nifty-senpai's art n animations and designs ofc!! are incredible!! and i REALLY love their concepts for what the wc clan territories look like (this moonpool are you kidding me???? gorgeous) @thunderc1an's lineless art style my beloved...... yall clammorin about my lineless art style u GOTTA check out theirs so good (also the everchanging never the same designs for wc characters is so good so freeing so interesting to look at!!) SmallButera's animations omg... literally speechless (also have u seen their series baman piderman?? its so precious it might be on indefinite hiatus im not too sure but its still my favourite thing) chadisms, Riley Ellis, Asha Phaedra and Cherrydusk also got some BANGIN animation skills and o my god this post got so long n theres still so many ppl ive gots to stop and do homework LOL

[adviserbylove]

Uh, sis...

I can't let go that yet, and I don't remember getting your opinion on that... but it really bothers me, and I'd like to hear what you think as an older person, as a mother and, after all, my close friend.

is it really justifiable reason to dislike and even bully/verbally neglect your classmate/groupmate (I think it's classmate even if you're in college or university and I've been using the wrong word lmao) if they're... not properly cleaning their workplace after themselves? like I know it's annoying, and I really tried my best, I'm just, you know, amusingly not good at it, but... is it really worth bullying? like talking lowly, acting disrespectful, mean towards that person, without trying to, you know, figure it out... threatening to talk to a teacher or tutor. maybe I was a little aggressive while trying to defend myself, but like... I was texted by my monitress at 7-8 pm after tiring ceramics classes, when she threatened to talk to our tutor if I won't "clean after myself" in future. and thought it's, like, nothing wrong with texting a person that late, and expecting a proper reaction, and making me the villain here.

or Katya. like I think you know enough of that nosy bitch.

is it really justified

for a reason as simple as that?

I'm usually a firm believer of "Two wrongs don't make a right". This is no exception. It's important to approach stuff like this with understanding and empathy. Some people just have different strengths and weaknesses and are just not good at certain things. Especially texting you late at night. Proper communication is key, not just in romantic relationships, but like...any relationship tbh. Especially in college when you're still adjusting to the world

This reminds me when it was my second day as a lawyer and I fucked up on the computer cause I was still new. A client yelled at me, asking my superior why they even hired someone that doesn't even know a simple task. I cried. I actually had to run out of the room and cry in the break room. A 26 year old woman that is supposedly mature. There's always a reason for everything, so we gotta be kind to someone, even if they're doing something wrong

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #55

I have been working on something all day today. Because the thing I ordered yesterday arrived today! Behold!!

So you remember that bowl that my klutzy ass shattered yesterday? Well guess what:

The pictures do NOT do it any justice. This thing is SPARKLY!! 🤩

It's not quite finished yet. Again, I am dyspraxic; this is going to take me a while. My hands are clumsy as hell because the idea of my body moving exactly in the way I intend is a distant fantasy for me; being dyspraxic fucking SUCKS. And I'm REALLY SUPER MEGA GLAD that you don't gotta deal with it. Clinical clumsiness is really not a fun time. For ANYONE involved. But whatever! I make it work!!

So the kit comes with this stuff:

You've got paper dishes with black gloves crunched up inside. You're supposed to use gloves because uncured epoxy is supposedly poisonous, but I didn't use the gloves because I can't afford to lose any more points in DEX, and when my fingertips are covered, my DEX score (which is already very low) gets set to -50.

Underneath are two containers of "gold dust" (it's really just extremely fine sparkly gold glitter, but still!). Then you've got the tube of food-grade epoxy (it's made of cashews, I guess? but it smells vaguely like shrimp).

I wasn't able to get you too terribly many pictures of the process, because this stuff sets FAST, holy cow! But I can give you a rundown of the steps:

First, you squirt an amount of the epoxy into one of the paper dishes. Then you add "an appropriate amount" (verbatim from the instructions) of the gold dust to the epoxy and stir it around with the wooden sticks provided. Then you use the stick to glorp the epoxy onto the edges of one of the pieces you're joining. Then you press the pieces together, and wait for a short time, and be VERY careful not to touch the epoxy until it stops being tacky, because the stuff has the stickiness and consistency of partially-melted caramel, and it WILL prioritize sticking to your skin over sticking to the ceramic (go on, ask me how I know! haha!). Keep doing that until all the pieces are joined together. Then you use the handy-dandy... chisel... knife... thing...??? to scrape off any excess epoxy. It looks like this:

...Or uh. That's what it looked like towards the end of doing this, anyway. I've been at this for... 6 or 7 hours now? But still, it's VERY sharp (again, ask me how I know!), and very good at scraping excess epoxy off of ceramic.

Though I didn't get many pictures of mixing the epoxy, or of the pieces after the epoxy was applied to the edges, I did snag a few images while taking quick breaks:

Anyway. Ideally, for a non-dyspraxic person, this process is simple enough. But that is not my lot in life, so... 6 or 7 hours, several sliced-open fingers, epoxy spills and glitter spills on my hands (and in my fresh cuts, fun fun... knowing my luck, I'm gonna have gold-colored scabs until those mend, good grief...), too many instances of accidentally touching still-tacky epoxy while trying to put another piece on, and needing to thus reapply the previous piece, and various spills all over my pants and all over the table I was working on later, I'm....!!!! ...still not finished. 😖

It's together, but I gotta go over each crack one more time with the epoxy goop; Not all of the cracks are thoroughly covered, so I'm still seeing spots where water can get in between things and cause problems. It's not because the kit is bad; the kit is very good! But rather, it's because this is my first time doing something like this, and my hands are clumsy even for things that I do well.

I'm maybe a little cranky about it at the moment because throughout this I mostly forgot to eat and drink (although we did get pork soup dumplings and some other stuff, which prompted me to eat, and that was good!); hyperfocus is a thing, and the time zooms by and I have no idea what happened (what even IS time, anyway? why do we have it? why does it gotta be linear? who decided that this was a good idea? seriously, what the fuck).

But I still had a lot of fun with it, even though my fingers are now ouchy from many accidents with the sharp implement and I've probably accidentally inhaled enough gold dust that my snots are probably gonna be gold-colored every time I blow my nose for the next week. You can bet your bottom that I'm gonna be back at it tomorrow. And then after that, it'll need 48 hours for the epoxy to fully cure and set. After that, though, the bowl will be better and more beautiful than before! It will be a wonderful vessel for that pumpkin soup! Just you wait!

Hey, Sephiroth!!! You go around acting like you're some kinda weird abomination and thinking that a normal life is out of reach for you because of it. And I don't agree with that!!! Not even a teeny tiny little bit!!! You are a "monster" in the same way that I am "furniture"! Which is to say, NOT AT ALL. And I know that this probably seems unrelated to the bowl right now, but I promise you it's not! Just listen:

Even if you were a monster, you can still do normal human things if you want to!! You can do them just because you decided it!! Sure some people might look down on you because of how you were born, but that's because they're insecure and judgmental, and you don't have to listen to those ones! There aren't gonna be any "monster police" coming to get you just because you're deciding to grow a garden at your house, or just because you decide to cook yourself a meal, or just because you're sitting on a sofa on a rainy day with a warm, fuzzy blanket, enjoying a hot mug of tea! And even if there were "monster police" who would be foolish enough to try to disturb your peace, you can just summon up some of that "I'd like to see them try" type of attitude you showed us before and send them a-runnin' with their tails between their legs! You are allowed to not give any fucks towards any arbitrary social rule that says you're unlovable or that you're not allowed to enjoy your life because of how you were born, the way you were raised, the horrors you've endured, the mistakes you've made, or whatever challenges you live with as a result of it all! You are not a lost cause! You are not broken beyond repair!

Sephiroth, I was a viciously abused autistic/ADHD child that absolutely no one wanted to have around. I know what it is to feel subhuman! I know what it is to feel out of place! I know what it means to be raised with the idea that, "if I'm not perfect or if I don't do what they want, I'm going to be considered unlovable and everyone is going to hurt me." And I have hurt people in the past who did not deserve it, too.

But you know what? Here I sit in my silly little house with my silly little things, awkwardly putting back together a pretty bowl that my clumsiness destroyed. I am putting it back together despite the difficulties that being AuDHD/dyspraxic presents. I am putting it back together even though my traumatized brain absolutely refuses to give me even a moment's peace, as all my instincts scream at me that the end result is gonna suck because I'm the one doing it, that the bowl is a lost cause, that I should be doing something "more productive" with my time, and that I'm a bad person for the fact that I'm making a mess in the process, and a bad person for the fact that I struggle with things like these to begin with.

But, my limitations and old conditioning that I'm trying to overcome aside, one fact remains: this bowl is going to be BEAUTIFUL when it's done, regardless of how loudly my brain tries to tell me that it's gonna be ugly because it was shattered in the first place, or that it's gonna be ugly simply because it's MY hands trying to fix it.

I've been told my whole life that no one's gonna love me because I don't think or act like most other people. But I'm sitting here with people who absolutely adore me, not despite the fact that I'm weird and abnormal as hell, but BECAUSE I'm weird and abnormal as hell! I'm considered "other" and "monstrous" and "socially unacceptable" by many, just for freaking existing. And here the fuck I am, DOING NORMAL HUMAN THINGS ANYWAY.

Because here's the thing, Sephiroth: only I get to decide whether or not I am allowed to have a normal. Other people are gonna try to tell me that the nature of my existence means that I don't deserve a normal, or that I'll never have a normal, no matter how hard I try. But I don't gotta listen to those people! Because a clumsy, awkward normal is STILL a normal! Just like the bowl, it doesn't have to be perfect to be worthwhile! There is strength in imperfection! There is beauty in imperfection!

All of this can be true for you as well! You are a human being! And even if you weren't a human being, SO FREAKING WHAT? You're still a person! And as a person, you don't gotta listen if broader society tells you that you're not allowed to have a normal for whatever stupid fucking reason. So just be you. Be the you who laughs and cries and reaches for your locket when you're troubled. Be the you who says what you're thinking and feeling. Be the you who does not stifle his emotions. Be the you who asks for help when those emotions threaten to consume you. People who benefit from keeping your self-esteem low and from encouraging you to dehumanize yourself will tell you that things such as those are weaknesses, but they're not; rather, they're the source of any human being's natural strength.

So, like any human, be like a glorious stained glass window. Be like a beautiful bowl that was pieced back together with intentionality and love. Be like any shattered thing that was put back together. And then go on to put other shattered things back together, even if you do it clumsily. Because shattered things that were repaired are some of the most beautiful things in this world you'll ever find.

If you only knew just how much courage it takes me every day to write to you. If only you knew how much resolve it takes to do the work of putting the shattered pieces of my own voice back together, after years of being silenced and being told who I'm supposed to be by people who didn't have my best interests at heart. If only you knew how much strength it takes, after decades of abuse and decades of being taught that my "stupid, weak-ass thoughts and feelings don't fucking matter to anyone", and decades of being taught that nothing I say or do makes any difference anywhere, to put my still-awkward voice in spaces where I know I'm gonna get hurt or ignored.

If you knew, then maybe you'd understand why I write about repairing broken things as though it is the most important thing there is. If you knew, then maybe you'd understand why I hold out my hand to you and call you so fervently to get up off your knees and do this work upon yourself; the darkness doesn't suit you, and there are plenty of people around who would help you. I'm such a one.

I don't know if it's hard for you to understand. So instead I'll show you that shattered bowls can still hold soup. Just you watch. Please stay safe until I get to show you. Please remember that you are loved; otherwise I wouldn't be trying so hard every day to reach you.

I'm going to write to you again tomorrow, with the same shaky, awkward voice with which I've been writing to you so far. Because it doesn't have to be perfect to be worthwhile; shattered minds, hearts, and voices can still hold goodwill, compassion, and love.

Your friend, Lumine

[sugurushimura]

I know it's not technically ONE ship, but - best and worst Shimura ship in your opinion?

(For the brutally honest ship opinion ask thig)

Send me a ship and I’ll give you my (brutally) honest opinion on it

oh man. ok, i have never actually seen a shimura ship floating around that i don't find somewhat interesting or didn't have a hand in creating. in total, there's shimuchi (shimura/higuchi), namura (shimura/namikawa), ooimura (ooi/shimura), midomura (shimura/mido), takamura (takahashi/shimura), and hatomura (hatori/shimura). so... every yotsuba member except kida. i've yet to see any shimura ships that involve anyone outside the other yotsubas.

for the best, i've gotta say hatomura, considering it's probably my otp? it's partially a sentimental thing; my boyfriend and i have been shipping them since we were in middle school. but i think there's a lot of interesting stuff going on there, including stuff i haven't really thought about until this past year, so we really keep developing this one!

the entire premise in canon is basically "shimura and hatori love each other but never express this to each other or realize it's requited, hatori dies, shimura is guilty and traumatized forever." it's the tragedy of having a hand in killing the person you love and being too cowardly to do more to stop it -- and, worse, the tragedy of killing someone who loves you and being too cowardly to do more to stop it.

there's more to it than just hatori's death, though. i also think they have something interesting in common, in that neither of them is really right at yotsuba. shimura was raised poor, and that alone makes him different from the other executives. hatori is the president's bastard son, so he's not very well-respected. shimura was a sports star; hatori was a literature major with a ceramics hobby. they just don't fit in. i think shimura went into business to try to raise himself above his birth status, and i think hatori went into business to attain the normalcy he never had as a child, which he never would've achieved as an author or an artist. ultimately, it gets them both killed, but maybe they could've found something better together. they also have a nice contrast in personalities and in design.

as for the worst ship, that's hard to say because i really enjoy each of them in their own way, be it unrequited or unhealthy or what have you. canonically speaking, i guess the answer is shimuchi. shimuchi does not work in canon, period. higuchi treats shimura like shit, and shimura thinks higuchi is a bad person. they don't like being around each other.

i do headcanon higuchi is attracted to shimura deep down and externalizes this by being a dick to him, which is similar to how i interpret higuchi -> namikawa, but it's not at all requited or even realized on higuchi's part. shimura just wants nothing to do with the guy. i only ship them in no-kira AUs where they have some reason to interact in a more positive way because i do think their personalities could mesh and they could even cause some positive growth in each other, if things were different. but the shimuchi manifesto is a post for another day

thanks for the ask!