#i have been to THREE shops in town and all of them were sold out

[smolsleepyfox]

I thought the sewing process on a historic shirt was the hard part but no

Getting linen fabric apparently is

[neesieiumz]

brontide || ──────── r. braun.

day three - SPITTING / HUMILIATION / EXHIBITIONISM

『 synopsis 』 ⸻ a night with your friends gets you into way more trouble that you're looking for.

『 warnings 』 ⸻ mafia!au. mafia-boss!reiner. the mafia part is implied but not explicitly mentioned. he also owns a sex club. sm*t. minors do not interact. humiliation. exhibitionism. spitting. emotionally-abusive ex-boyfriend. who happens to be floch. and who also happens to be in prison for five years. he calls you sweetie/sweetness. he's been obsessed with you the moment he saw you and sent your ex to jail so he can have you. one of reader's friends are also a part of the mafia and basically escort her to go to the club so she can get snatched up.

『 writers notes 』 ⸻ first day of kinktober! been planning this since august and I'm gonna finish it! By god's grace, of course!

『 word count 』 ⸻ 6.4k words

masterlist. next part in kinktober.

Laughter echoed into the night, and the entire group huddled together ambled alongside the wet sidewalk. Your arms were hooked around the arms of your friends, walking in sync with them as the rest of your friends followed behind you all. The air smelled fresh, of wet petricor and tar, evidence of the recent rain that fell over the city. You felt light as if your head could fall off your shoulders, the slight buzz from the round of margaritas you all had during your dinner together. The original plan was to continue the party at your favorite club, but you found the line to be too long and it was slowly ruining your buzz. So now you were walking through the town, hoping to find something to continue the fun you’ve had tonight. 

Before, you’d never thought you’d be out like this, with friends, wearing short dresses and a huge smile on your face. Seven months ago, you were a whole different person, quiet, frightened, and controlled by your ex-boyfriend. However, miracles could come in the newest forms as he suddenly found himself thrown into prison, which inadvertently caused your freedom. Ever since then, you found yourself living more and more free, living more and more for yourself. You packed up most of your things, sold what you could of his things, and moved cities and jobs, finding a career or even higher pay. With your ex-boyfriend out of the way, as well as removing him from everything you could, it helped that he was in prison, and it made everything in your life in order.

“You know,” you felt one of your friends whisper into your ear, “I’m glad you could come out with us tonight.”

You had met her not too long ago, the two of you running into each other while you were in the middle of running errands. Since then, you’ve assimilated yourself into her friend group and all of you are becoming really close, really soon. However, swamped with work, at your new job, you hadn't had a chance to step out and have a fun night off with your new friends, who were all pushing for the time with you, especially since you told them about your ex-boyfriend. Learning about how before he went to prison for robbery, and how  he kept you isolated from your friends, family and controlled your money

You smiled at her, lifting your hand up to brush a few of your braids that were blowing in your face, “I’m glad I finally found the time to come out.”

She smiled at you, glancing down at your dress, “and I see the choice of dress you wore. Isn’t this the one I had to convince you to buy on one of our shopping trips.”

The dress was black and short, with a long slit going up the side, with thin straps holding it. On the slit, connecting the two pieces of fabric were multiple bedazzled thin pieces of fabric. It was different from what you would usually wear, but as you glanced down at it, from the fabric to the low-plunging neckline, it held a certain freedom that you hadn’t felt in a long time. The two of you gave each other a smile, as the entire group approached the newest location, a club that had opened up recently. It was brought up by Michael, who was your friend’s boyfriend, and mostly everyone agreed to finish the night out there after dinner. The name of the club was plaster at the top, glowering in a pure white. The rest of it was covering dark red LED tassels, it was opulent in nature, and the towering building had your heart clenching for a moment. You lowered your head, now gazing at the very long line peeking out the door. 

“That line seems… long,” you mumbled, as you all got closer and closer. 

Your friend glanced over to you, squeezing your arm, “no worries, Michael knows people, he’ll get us in.”

“Tessa!” 

The two of you turned to see Michael waving at her, gesturing for her to come to the front. You were about to let go of her arm, but instead, she held onto it tighter, taking you along with her. The rest of the group made way for the two of you as you all reached the doorway. You could hear the jeers of the rest of the line, seeing your entire group waiting at the entrance skipping the rest of the line. You stood right before the bouncers guarding the door. They were huge, wearing tight, black shirts and heavy cargo pants. They held tablets in their hands as they glowered down at you all. 

“We’re ummm…” Michael started, “we’re friends of the owner. He should already be expecting us.”

The bouncer glanced between the group before his eyes landed right on you. His hard stare caused you to slightly flinch, but Tessa’s grip on you only held tighter, keeping you in place. Your heart pounding away in your chest, you saw the bouncer glance down at the tablet before looking right back at you, before turning towards his coworker. The two of them whispered for a moment, and then the coworker picked up his small radio before entering into the dark nightclub. 

“Come in.” is all the bouncer said, before moving out of the way.

You glanced around at the group but you had no time as you were pulled into the building and into the dark space. Inside, it was dark, you almost couldn’t see ahead of you if it wasn't for the white strobe lights constantly moving and flashing around the room. The music was dark, with a huge bass boom, you couldn't feel your own heart beating. You pressed your hand against your chest, hoping for a reminder that you were still alive. Before you knew it, the group broke up all going in different directions, you could barely see where the rest of them went. You could feel Tessa’s arm pulling you away, past all the ladies standing and moving about it.

Before you could even think, you were standing against the bar table, your mind barely getting used to the loud music, and the constant movement all around you. The bar table was the only thing with consistent lighting, with low back wall lights, lighting up the different stacks of liquor, as well as low-hanging black lights as well, causing you to see the working bartenders making different orders. You glanced over to your left, hoping to see Tessa or some form of her standing right beside you but you couldn't. If you held your hand out in front of you, you probably wouldn't be able to see any of your fingers. You let out a shaky breath, soon realizing you couldn't hear yourself breathing. You glanced around you once more, not able to find any semblance of your friends anywhere around you. You felt weird, out of place even, you didn't know where to go. You turned your head around once more, taking note of everything around you. At the same time, an empty stool opened up, allowing you to sit down and rest your feet. You were still looking around, but still, all you could see was the strobing light, now a mixture of blue and gray, and the crowd of bodies.

Suddenly a hand tapped on the one hand you had placed on the counter, causing your already jittery body to jump, your body flying right back around, facing the bar counter. In front of you stood the bartender, with short, blonde hair, and a white towel laid across his left shoulder. He wore the same uniform as the bouncer, with a black shirt and you could see the hems of the heavy cargo pants. 

He stepped back a moment, his hands in the air as he took note of your jumpy attitude, “sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.”

You shook your head, “sorry, I’m just a little jumpy, it’s my first time in a place like this.” You yelled over the loud music, leaning over the counter.

He smirked at you, “Well, I’m sure you’ll have a good time.” That's all he said before sliding you over a tall martini glass. 

It was filled to the brim with brown liquor, with a little bit of foam brimming at the top of it. You tilted your head at you, a questioning look on your face. 

“I don’t… I don’t remember ordering anything.”

The man shrugged, “it’s on the house, for you know… your first night here.”

That was the last thing he said to you before walking away, before tending to others sitting at the bar. You looked at him as he walked away before facing the glass one more. Slowly, you reached over to the counter, picking up the glass by the stem before bringing it over to you. You brought it up to your nose, taking a whiff of the cocktail. You could smell the slow-churned liquor, strong and expensive in smell. You glanced at it one last time, before taking a sip, the smooth mixture sliding down your throat easily. A slow, warm tingle rose up within you as you took another sip. Stepping away from the bar, slowly immersing yourself in the crowd. The crowd was moving all around, dancing in waves and into each other. You stood around, looking into the crowd of dancing people, seeing if you could find your friends anywhere, mixed in with the crowd. 

With nothing, you decided to move on, sipping on your glass as you slowly stepped around the perimeter of the club. You could feel eyes on you, prickly-like needles poking and prodding at your spine. Turning around with swiftness, you found yourself glancing up at what seemed to be the second floor, seeing people standing about up there. There was some level of privacy, with only semi-opaque windows showing off what seemed to be a private party. Your eyes glanced over from the railing of the second floor, your eyes guided to what seems to be a stairwell, located not too far from you. You could see two bouncers standing there, with a velvet rope keeping the general populous away from what seemed to be a more private crowd. 

“Hey!”

You gasped, feeling something cold prodding at you as you turned around, seeing the friend you walked into standing right behind you, her boyfriend not too far from her.

“Hey, I was looking for you!” you yelled over the music, taking another sip of your drink.

She smiled at you, giggling and crashing into you, most likely unstable from however much she drank, “sorry, me and Michael got lost in the crowd and we ended up joining someone’s randoms section! You should join us!”

The moment she said that Michael, the boyfriend, came up to her, pulling her away, whispering something in her ear. Your friend’s joyful expression soon faded, the two of them delving into whispered arguments, furrowed expressions on both of them now. Not wanting to get in between them, your eyes soon wandered towards the stairwell again. Two people, a couple, soon stepped up to the bouncers standing there, exchanging words between them. The bouncer glanced down at his tablet, much like the ones in front of the club, and scrolled through it, before nodding at his partner, who unlocked the velvet rope, allowing the man and woman to enter and soon walk up the stairwell to the more private party. 

“You curious?”

You jumped for the third time that night, your head whisking to the right, before seeing a tall figure standing over you. The first thing you notice about him is his olive green eyes, it was like they shined within the strobe lights. He had long dark hair, which you could tell was pulled back in some kind of bun. You couldn’t help but glance down further, seeing him wear a suit, his hands tucked into his pockets. He tilted his head, before the two of you turned your heads at the same time, staring at the stairwell. 

You shrugged your shoulders, “I guess I am, why? What’s up there?”

He mused, “can’t tell you that, but I can get you in, if you’d like?”

You narrowed your eyes on him, “why should I trust you? I don’t even know your name, and why would you do this for me?”

He shrugged his shoulders, “feel like being nice for a very pretty lady, think of it as my act of kindness of the day.”

He pressed his hands around your waist, before guiding you towards the stairs. At this point the thought of your friend and her boyfriend flying out of your mind as you headed closer and closer to the flight of stairs. Your mind racing with a never-ending stream of thoughts, and your heart pounding away at your chest, you honestly had no idea what you were doing. You took a final sip of your martini, just as you stood with the man in front of the bouncers. 

The two workers took one look at the man, not even bothering to look at the tablet before the one handling the velvet rope unhooked it immediately, allowing the two of you to pass. 

“Enjoy your time, Mr. Jaeger, Mr. Braun is sure to be expecting you.”

Braun…?

That name was familiar to you, you had no idea how, but you heard it before. However, before you could dwell on it, your escort, denoted as “Mr. Jaeger”, pressed his hands into you, guiding you up the stairs. You took one last moment, hoping to catch a glimpse of your friend, but you could no longer see her standing where she was last left, and neither could you see her boyfriend either. You shrugged the thought off, remembering the short conversation with her about joining someone else within the club. The sounds of the club became more muffled the more and more you climbed above them. Mr. Jaeger took his time to take you towards the more privatized area. You saw an empty table, glancing down at your glass before placing it on there, hoping someone would pick it up. 

The door to the area wasn’t covered by bouncers, but it was hidden from where the general population could see the few viewings of whatever was going on within the room. Jaeger is what you’ll call him until you can learn his real name, open the door, gesturing for you to walk inside first.

It was much like the crowd downstairs, but smaller, and with fewer strobe lights. It looked to be a private party taking place. You could tell by the banner that hung up in which you could vaguely make out the words “Happy Birthday.” Everyone was up in a ball in the middle of the floor having the times of their lives, with people scattered about as well. You ignored the white powder on some people’s tables as you maneuvered yourself through the standing people. 

Before you knew it, you had made it out of the crowd, stepping into a cleared-out area.

You took a moment to glance behind you, seeing the heavy crowd, and all the bodies moving about. Turning around, you suddenly found yourself face to face with a door. It was watched over by two heavily tattooed bodyguards. The men guarding the door looked different than the bouncers, each of their arms heavily tattooed, wearing heavy utility belts around their waists. Your curiosity was slowly taking hold of you, as you tilted your head at the men. 

Suddenly, the two men in the center took a few steps to either side, parting like the Red Sea, as the door behind them suddenly opened. Your eyes caught onto the first boot that walked out of the darkness, your eyes trailed up slowly as the rest of him appeared from the pitch-black, darkness into the low, gleaming light. The first thing you noticed was his hazel eyes, they gleamed through the light, capturing your pure attention. His blonde hair contrasted against his dark suit, his hands tucked into his pockets as he stepped down the rest of the way. He stopped, just right in front of you, and the two of you locked eyes. You took in his entire form. Your head tilted just a little, as you looked upon his face, the clean-shaven look, the broad form, realizing that he looks so familiar, that you’ve seen this man before. 

Memories flash before you, tan walls, bright lights, sliding chairs, and tables, black suits, and a mean smirk staring down at you. You glance up, jumping as you realized the man has gotten closer to you, no longer standing on the steps in front of the door.

“It’s been a while, sweetie?”

Braun… 

It was like lightning had struck you, as your mind flashed back to almost a year ago. 

“Babe, what is this place?” You couldn’t help but ask as you looked around the fancy lobby area. 

However, he didn’t answer you as he walked up to the hostess behind the table, talking to her before guiding the two of you somewhere. You tried to speak up again, asking him about this restaurant he took you to, but he only hissed at you, before focusing on the table before you. It was a long table, filled almost to the brim with prim and proper-looking people, all talking amongst themselves. 

“Mr. Braun, I’ve brought more of your guests.”

The scattered chatter spoon became hushed whispers as almost everyone looked up at the two of you. At the head of the table,  hardened hazel eyes looked up at the two of you standing there, the intense stare causing your back to straighten up as he glanced between the two of you. He had his folding in front of him, resting on his elbows and he produced a glare so menacing towards your boyfriend, the only thing you could skin them to was the hard and nasty stares your grandmother used to stare down at you whenever you broke her stuff.

“Mr. Forster, I should have you arrested for stalking,” the man started, waving away the hostess.

Your boyfriend, despite the obvious and sudden sweat that dripped down his face, as well as his shaky hands, spoke, “yes, Mr. Braun, I understand, but I just really need some of your time to talk about this new business venture.”

Business venture… so this wasn’t a romantic dinner like you thought it would be. YOU could feel yourself deflating as your boyfriend suddenly let go of you. He reached down, pulling out the seat closest to him, immediately, sitting down, leaving you to be the only one standing. Flustered, you began to reach for the seat next to him, hoping to pull it out and sit next to him quietly.

“Stop.”

Everyone froze, as the words echoed through the nearly empty backroom of the restaurant. You looked up only to find his eyes on you, which only caused everyone else’s eyes in the room to look at you. 

“You crash my event and make yourself known, the least you can do is pull out your own girlfriend’s seat, huh Forester?”

Floch, already flustered and embarrassed, only turned red as he stuttered against his words, “Oh, oh right, sorry, Mr. Braun.” Your boyfriend began to move to get, to pull your seat out for you. 

“I’m not the one to say sorry to, and don’t bother moving,” is all Braun said, before snapping his fingers.

All of a sudden, a man wearing an all-black suit appeared right behind, causing you to jump a little. He pulled your seat out for you, making a quick gesture for you to sit down.

“Take a seat sweetness.”

Quietly, you thanked him before sitting, squeaking as he pushed into your chair for you. Glancing up, seeing Mr. Braun’s eyes on you as you settled down into your seat. 

— — —

Seeing those same hazel eyes sent you in a whirl spin. Almost a year passed and you could still remember them staring into your eyes just like that day. 

“Mr. Braun… the dinner party…”  your words tasted acrid as you spoke them, inadvertently bringing up the memories of your ex-boyfriend. 

His chuckle sent electricity down your spine, seeing him step a bit closer towards you, “just call me Reiner… glad to see you remember me, huh?”

“Yeah… I’m surprised you remember me?” You winced at your words, internally yelling at yourself for the awkward choice. If he noticed it, he didn’t say anything about it, only moving towards you even more.

“Can’t forget a pretty face, now can I?”

Your mind was yelling at you to move, but you could barely bend a knee as he towered over you, his hands no longer tucked in his pockets, instead, he reached up, his hand slightly pushing past your long braids that frame your face, before caressing your cheek. You couldn't help the shaky breath, the clench between your legs as you got a whiff of his string cologne. 

“Come with me.”

It was a demand, not a question.

He took you by the arms before leading you up the platform he had once descended from. You couldn't help but glance back at the retreating party behind you, seeing the crowd get smaller and smaller as your vision soon became surrounded in black. The two of you moved through the darkness, the music changing from the EDM-focused club music to something a lot slower, and a lot more sensual, combined with a lot of bass. 

It was as if you stepped into a new dimension. 

The atmosphere was different from the one downstairs. That one was exhilarating, heart–throbbing. 

This one was heart-stopping. 

Your heart felt strained, trying to pump blood throughout this entire experience. Your inner ears constantly vibrated and fuzzed as you took a step into the crowd. Every movement felt like it slowed down, you could barely see two feet in front of you, much like downstairs, but somehow, it felt… different. It felt as if the bodies were closing in on you with every step you take. You rubbed your cold hands against your skin, hoping to warm it up a little and gain a sense of grounding within you. You let out a shuddering breath, feeling the temperature around drop with every step you take. The music was loud, almost deafening even, you could barely hear yourself think. All you can do is take one step at a time, trying to warm yourself through the cold environment. You couldn't help the way you held onto the man taking you deeper and deeper into this new-founded area, digging your nails deep into his arms to steady yourself into this anchor of a man. 

The two of you soon pull up to this table, surrounded by other people as he guides you to a velvet-cushioned seat, before sitting right beside you. All the men sitting around were huge, wearing suits of all different fabrics and cuts. in their hands either held expensive cigars or lit up, causing the area around them to smell like smoke. This caused your face to grimace, moving your hand up to your nose to block the smell. 

“Smoke’s getting to you, sweetie?” A low voice came up to your voice.

An arm wrapped around your shoulder, a hand grabbing at your face before turning it to the right. 

“I always hated the smell, Floch used to smoke cigarettes, and would stink up the apartment too.”

“Heh, you’ll get used to it,” is all he said, reaching out as someone handed over a perfectly wrapped and sealed cigar.

That same person lit it for him, before bowing and taking their leave. You watched them just as he inhaled the first smoke. The smell hit you, your nose slightly wrinkling at the tobacco. Reiner’s arms kept you close, putting you up against the smoke as he looked down at you. 

Before you lost your nerve, as you turned to him, your hands rubbing down your arms to calm the chills that ran up your spine, “Why did you bring me here?”

Reiner glanced down at you, blowing smoke out from the corner of his mouth. He then leaned down towards you, his heated breath from the cigar ghosting over your ear. 

“Look around Sweetness, what do you think this place is?” He whispered into your ear. 

Your eyes glance around the room, landing on the different people moving about. Some people were standing around smaller stages, watching strippers easily glide themselves up and down the pole. However most of the people were standing around couches, you could barely see what they were looking at. Looking closer at one of the couches, seeing one of the bodies move, your eyes widen at the scene. You saw a man—no, two men, one towering over a woman and the other one having her on his lap. You couldn’t see everything, but you knew what was happening, what the other people were watching. Reiner must have heard your gasp when you spotted one of, what looks to be many events, happening on the couches.

Your legs crossed, a dull sensation washed over you. Suddenly, your hyper-awareness activated, feeling Reiner’s hand on your thigh. His hand continued to trace circles in your thigh, his actions causing your head to feel slightly fuzzy, combined with the smoke in the air, from the cigars and the heavy smoke machines. You could only sway with the beat of the music, your body grazing against Reiner’s body. His arm that was once weighing on your shoulder slid off, before trailing up your face, pushing past your braids, caressing the left side of your face. The roughness of his hands grounded you just a bit, your dropping eyes fluttering open a little to look at the man with you. 

“Did you like what you saw, sweetie?” He whispered to you, his lips grazing the outer shell of your ear.

You nodded your head, vigorous in nature, gasping as he didn’t move his head from your ear. Rather, he leaned even closer, dipping down a bit before pressing slow and soft kisses against your neck. It had been a long time since you’d had anyone touch you. Seven months since you broke up with Floch and even longer even since he had gotten arrested. A shaky breath left your mouth, your hands reaching up to his suit, gripping onto it for balance. The hand was touching your thigh slide up, slipping in between your legs, his fingers grazing up against the slightly damp fabric of your thong. The size of his hands, as well as his strength, made your legs begin to spread apart. You couldn’t help but glance around the room, feeling all eyes were on the two of you. Suddenly the hand that pressed against your face, its grip tightened, a gasp leaving your mouth as you suddenly faced him again. The sudden hard stare caused you to squirm, your eyes darting about. 

“Look at me, don’t look at anyone else… just focus on me,” he commanded, before releasing his grip on your face.

Before you could even think, his hand flew down to your hips, lifting you up and placing you right onto his lap. The first thing you felt was his erection, pressing against your barely covered pussy. His legs spread wide as well, easily taking up the space upon the seats you were sitting on. The people around you all easily made space, but you could tell that they were all watching, their eyes felt like lasers burning holes into your psyche. Yet, all you could do was focus on Reiner before. Your heart was racing, and you felt heat flushing throughout your entire body,  from his actions to the people staring down at you. 

“Reiner–” you stared before you were cut off by him suddenly pushing you forward, your lips landing on his. 

He tasted like scotch, with an aftertaste of smoky cigars. Despite your known aversion to anything tobacco, you found yourself deepening the kiss. Your hips began to grind against him, hoping to find that perfect rhythm. Underneath your dress, your clit throbbed again the thin fabric of your thong, your pussy throbbing with every movement you made. Reiner’s hands slide down your back, before cupping themselves underneath your butt, underneath that the fabric begins to rise up and crumble up around your hips. You could feel the air hitting in between your legs and the deep feeling that your thong was on display for those around you to see. 

Spit began to drip down from your lips, evidence of your intense makeout. Slowly, you pulled your lips back, your lungs immediately inflating with air. Reiner’s hands began to massage, almost kneading the flesh he clung onto. By this, your thong was soaked, and the area around his erection was slightly damp with your juices. His finger thumbed at the thin strap of fabric, pulling it as far back as he could before letting it go. The loud snap stung against your skin, your back arching into the pain, eliciting a slightly painful yelp as your pussy clenched around nothing. 

“Reiner!” you shrieked, your hands and nails gripping his back and shoulders, digging into his clothing. 

You could feel him smirk against your skin before his fingers lifted up your thong strap before popping against your skin once more. Every throb of pain had you clenching around nothing, soaking your thong and his pants even more. By now, your dress had ridden up to your waist, so everyone was able to see just what he was doing to you. No one said anything, they only watched as he grabbed at your thong, beginning to pull the thin fabric down your legs. Your nerves wreaked havoc on your hands, seeing how they trembled as you began to slide them down from behind his neck to his chest. You lifted your legs a little bit, helping him get your thong off. 

He held them in front of you, shaking them like a cat toy with a sneer on his face, and an evil grin. You tried to reach out and grab for them but he pulled them back, a chuckle leaving his mouth as he laughed at the way you lunged at him. Reiner pocketed them, before putting his hands right back on your butt, like they belong there. You gasped as his fingers teased along the opening of your cunt. He leaned over, his heavy voice echoing in your ear as he spoke to you once more.

“Second thoughts, sweetness?” he asked you. 

Despite your sudden fear, you shook your head, your hands suddenly gripping the fabric of his suit. 

“Good,” he smirked, “because I’d hate to not be able to give all these people a nice show.”

That was the last thing he said before suddenly lifting you up, letting go of his cock. You squealed as he suddenly turned you around, fully facing the audience you had amassed. Your heart almost dropped, you could barely even see the back parts of the room, with the way the crowd had amassed itself. You hadn’t relaxed just how many people were watching you. Their eyes never left you, you could see their hungry eyes taking in the scene before them. Your dripping pussy, Reiner’s cock, the way you whined and grinding into him, everything. You couldn’t help the way tears welled into your eyes, but at the same time, a forceful tingling heat wracked through you. The humiliation you felt rocked you, yet all it could do was make your pussy even wetter. Their eyes were magnets, sticking to your every reaction. 

He stretched your legs wide, the sticky sound of your pussy easily bringing in more of the crowd. Hips fingers, continuing to tease you, dipping down into your hole, smearing some of your juices at your clit. He spread your lips even further, having no problem to let all these people watching you get fucked. You let out a sharp gasp as you felt his thick finger beginning to prod at your hole, your juices dripping down onto him. Melting as he further plunged his finger into you, hissing at how tight you were. Your eyes glued to his hands, only able to watch the way he slowly began to ravish you, bit by bit. You bit your lip, restraining your budding moans as his finger slid deeper into you. 

“Reiner—“ you choked, your head thrown back as his thumb pressed up against your wet clit. 

Your hips ground against his hands, clenching around his fingers. Rocking against him, succumbing to the way he pulled different reactions from your body and your lips. Your moans echoed through the room, and you could hear the muffled grunting of some of the men watching you. You could hear their whispers, wondering who you were. You could hear the jealousy on some of the women’s lips, complaining about how someone as unknown as you could gain Reiner’s attention. Writhing underneath his hold, you couldn’t help the way their animosity elated you. You cried out as you felt his fingers brush up against your g-spot, your back arching away from his front side. 

“Fuck— I’m gonna, I’m gonna cum—“ your words were high pitched, feeling the sudden building ache rushing through you. 

Suddenly, you were left out cold as you felt his fingers abruptly pull out of your cunt. You had no time to whine or complain as a gasp left your mouth and your body jerked suddenly, feeling Reiner beginning to stand up behind you. His hands slide down to underneath your knees, further spreading your pussy open. You crossed your arms, heart racing as you felt his angry red tip prodding at your entrance. For a moment, you glanced up, and standing behind a couple people, you could see familiar olive green eyes, with his tan hand tucked in his pocket, holding a glass of liquor. 

Before you could fully register the sight, your body convulsed as you felt the tip of his cock easing into your sopping wet cunt. There was no need for foreplay, with the way you had been dripping all over Reiner from the moment he placed you on his lap. 

“Oh my– oh my god,” you whined out, your head thrown back as he pressed his dick into your further, hearing him grunt as you felt yourself slowly stretch around him.  

“Big—“ you cried out, “its too big, fuck, I can’t—!” 

“Aww," he suddenly interjected, “can’t what? Can’t handle it?” His voice was deep and laced with condescension. 

Your body trembled at his words, and despite the humiliation, hearing the slight chuckle in the crowd, your pussy clenched around, sucking him in even further. Toes curled, you could do nothing while stuck in his hold but take it, desperate moans fleeing your mouth. You could feel his hot breath against your neck,, his own deep-seated, needful groans echoing in your ears. Although your eyes were shut you could still hear the makings of the crowd around, still watching you take every inch of him. 

Suddenly, one of his hands left your leg, before sliding across your neck and face. It wrapped itself around the front of your neck, before pulling it and your head back. His face towered over your own, and your eyes were almost jerked open. His thumb was able to reach your wet, plump lips, pulling the bottom one down slightly. 

“Open.”

It was a single command, one you fulfilled lustily, your lips parting and your tongue falling out. With nothing else, he inhaled sharply before a decently-sized globble of saliva dripped down from his mouth onto your own. Most would find the action distasteful, but not you. Your body completely wrecked with lust, could do nothing, squeeze your eyes shut, a large moan leaving your lips as his spit slid down your tongue in your throat. You melted in his hold, your juices soaking your dress, thighs, Reiner’s pants, and even a little bit of his shirt. 

Reiner ravished you, and the feeling of his cock pummeling you continued to push you more and more over the edge. Your entire body jerks, the feeling of your climax building up within you once more. His heavy pants and the heated smell of sex permeated off of both of your bodies, but it was the quieted, hissed sound of a few people watching, trying their best to stay quiet as they reached their own climax. 

“Coming!” Your words were loud but slurred from succumbing to your incoming orgasm. 

With your toes curling, your body thrashed within his hold as your cunt squeezed around his dick. Your body melted further into him as your juices poured out of you, your pussy throbbing. Your hands reached out, clutching onto the air as shaky gasps escaped from your mouth. Underneath you, you could feel Reiner’s actions becoming more erratic, his groans following along with him. With no other warning but a groan, you gasped as he came all inside of you, his cum painting your walls white. Tears streaks stained your face as you heaved in and out. Slowly, you felt Reiner slowly putting your legs down, still keeping you close to his body. You winced at the way your legs felt, seeing how they were stretched beyond their means. The crowd slowly began to dissipate as they realized you and Reiner’s bout with lust was basically over. Some still stayed, keeping their eyes on the two of you as you tried your best to clean yourself up. 

You gasped as you felt him slowly pull his cock out of you, a cool emptiness filling you. With whatever strength you could pull, you grabbed the hem of your dress, covering the mess the two of you made. You could feel both his and your cum dripping down your thighs, ignoring the way it trailed down your smooth legs. As you sat beside Reiner, waiting for him to get situated, you felt a wave of tiredness rush over you. You stretched, letting out a yawn. With no other warning, Reiner suddenly stood up, taking you into his arms. You could not fight him off as he held you tight. Through your teary and droopy eyes, you could see the crowd parted for the two of you. He walked deeper and deeper until the smoke and darkness fully covered the two of you. Your body had no strength as your body went limp, falling into a deep slumber.

taglist: @collectionofdolls @sanxuus @ryutosukai0824 (if you wisheed to be tagged, comment on my masterlist!)

[specialagentlokitty]

Arthur(Merlin) x reader - in the snow

Hi! If you still write for BBC Merlin would you be able to write an Arthur x Merlin sister Reader? With the dialogue “Can you use magic?” “I feel unsafe answering that.” (from your 2024 prompt list). Thank you if you do write it! <3 - Anon💜

A/N: I realised I had spelled Gaius wrong after finishing this, but I’m really lazy and don’t wanna correct it 😂😭

You had no real interest in following your brothers footsteps to work for the royal family, you didn’t want to work for anybody else.

You were happy living on your own, away from the world with your house and your dog, your horse, your flowers.

You loved the way you lived.

And yes, every so often the knights would come to pick up your money you had to pay for your land, but since you grew your own food and sold your crafts in towns and villages it didn’t matter all that much to you.

Today was the day that they came to collect your payment, so you made sure to stay home.

Kneeling down in your garden, you were working on your flowers, carefully tidying them up and trimming them down.

You heard a bark, and you looked up.

“Rufus?”

Standing up, you brushed your hands on the cloth and looked to the dirt path where a few horses were coming down.

You grinned brightly when you saw a familiar face.

“Merlin!”

You quickly set everything down and made your way over, the moment your brother got down from his horse your crushed him into a hug.

“Hi!” You beamed.

Merlin laughed quietly, hugging you back.

“Hey, this place looks amazing.”

You pulled away, grinning proudly at him.

“I take pride in my work.”

You turned around to the knights and the prince that was with him, offering him a bow.

It was swift, elegant, you held a hand behind your back and one over your stomach as you leant down, lowering your head.

“Sire, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m (Y/N), I do hope my brother doesn’t give you too much trouble.”

“Nothing I can’t handle, thank you. It’s nice to meet you.”

You stood up, gesturing to the home.

“Rufus is no harm, I’m sure Sir Lancelot knows that.”

The knight smiled softly at you.

“It’s good to see you again.”

“You as well, I’ve got that tea you asked me for, would you like me to make you some?”

“Yes please, honestly you could open a tea shop because you make the best tea.”

You laughed a little bit, leading them all inside.

Only those three came inside, the other knights waited outside for them.

You sat them at a table, bringing over some bread you had made, and you made them all some tea, setting their cups down in front of them.

“Make yourselves at home, I’ll be right back.”

You went into your room, bringing up a floorboard to gather the money you owed before returning and handing it over.

Then you turned to Arthur.

“May I ask what brings you by sire? Normally this is not a matter for a Prince.”

“Merlin had been begging me for weeks to come, i guess it was curiosity to finally meet his sister. You’ve done wonderful things with this land. It was rundown the last I saw.”

“Thank you, the home itself was in good shape, it was a simple matter of getting some men from the village nearby to help clear it then set everything else up.”

Arthur nodded his head.

“How is it going? Have you been selling those crafts?” Merlin asked.

“Oh yes! People love them! They’re very helpful as well, especially for the farmers and the bakers, plant based baskets are easier to replace rather wood, and harder to break.”

Merlin nodded his head.

“You make things out of plants?”

“Yes sire, it is easier to get ahold of around here, they’re easier to work with as well. Especially Ivy. It is easy to manipulate the way it grows, and you can cut some away with the rest coming back.”

That was what caught his attention first, how compared to Merlin you were calmer, you were respectful to everybody even though you didn’t know them, and your craft.

Then there was your house, minimum decorations, just basic things you would need.

But outside was covered in flowers of all colours, the great wolfhound you rescued wondering in and out, and the horse outside just happily grazing in her paddock.

Arthur found himself coming back when he could, pretending to buy things that they needed in Camelot.

It was an excuse to see you, and he could try get there at least once a week since it was only a few hours there and back.

Arthur had to admit he was concerned when it drew to winter, because winter was harsh, and he couldn’t see how you would be able to survive there during the brutal winter.

“She’ll be fine, she always is. She knows how to get survive.” Merlin said.

“Merlin we are looking at the worst winter we’ve seen in years. It’s not even winter and we’re already getting snow. Your sister will be isolated out there for months if this carried on.”

Merlin paused what he was doing for a moment before he carried on.

“She won’t come here.”

“Excuse me?”

“(Y/N), if you ask her to come she won’t come.”

“Why?”

“Because she likes her own space, she doesn’t like crowded places like this and wouldn’t be able to live here for that long, a week or so would be fine.”

Arthur didn’t say anything, he carried on reading the book that was sat on the table in front of him.

“She’s also coming next week, to visit Guis.”

Arthur snapped his head up.

“Really?”

Merlin smirked a little, lowering his head as he carried on working.

“Yes sire.”

Arthur threw the book at Merlin who just barely dodged it and he left the room.

You arrived a few days later, staying mostly with Guis or Merlin if you could.

Arthur finally managed to find you while he was heading back inside the castle, you were stood outside with Rufus catching snowballs you threw.

He made his way outside, standing next to you.

“It’s far too cold to be outside.”

You turned around, offering him a smile.

“It’s nothing I’m not sure to this time of year, I was actually thinking about taking a walk. Do you know any good trails?”

“There is one, it’s possibly the safest. I’ll accompany you if you don’t mind? If anything happens to you I won’t hear the end of it from Merlin.”

You laughed softly at him.

“Yes fine by me sire.”

“Right, come wait inside.”

You followed him, and waited in the hallway.

It took a short while for him to come back, and he held out a thicker more elegant cloak out for you.

“Wear this.”

“Sire I can’t, that’s much to rich for somebody like me.”

“(Y/N) put the cloak on, and call me Arthur.”

You didn’t want to disobey him, so you put it on and he led you outside.

You could see that a few people walked the trail, but not many, and you two held light conversation as you walked.

It was nice for him to not have to act so important, and you were talking to him just like a normal person, as if you two were from the same town or village.

You enjoyed stopping to look at simple things, animals in the snow, the way the sunlight gleamed on the snow making it sparkle.

Arthur was just entranced by you, and how you just seemed so happy.

“You’re always so happy when I see you, why?”

“What is there to not be happy about? I have a home, a brother, a mother, I have friends, food. There is always something to be happy about.”

Arthur hummed a little, nodding his head.

“You wouldn’t want more in life?”

“Not when I already have everything. You don’t need to be rich to be happy, as long as you find something or someone that makes you happy it’s alright.”

Arthur glanced at you, and he smiled a little.

“That’s a very different take in the world.”

You beamed brightly at him, kneeling down to make another snowball for Rufus.

“Hey, look out!”

Arthur went to grab you but it was too late, you slipped down the hill, and he was rushing as fast as he could behind you.

When he reached the bottom he knelt down.

“Hey, hey (Y/N)?”

You grumbled a little, lifting your head to look at him.

“Hey, are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“My leg.”

Arthur nodded, looking down at your leg, gently touching it and you winced in pain.

“Here, come on, let’s move you up.”

Arthur helped you up, and you guys slowly walked along the bottom of the hill to try and find a way back up.

After a while you had to stop, so he took his cloak off and laid it on the snow and sat you down.

Rufus laid next to you letting out a whine.

“I’ll try find a way, I’ll be right back.”

You nodded your head, watching him leave.

You knew there wasn’t going to be one, a hill like that there wasn’t going to be a way back up that wasn’t covered in snow.

Making sure it was safe, you held out your hand, whispering something under your breath, and a small trail in the snow fell away, creating a path up.

You ran a hand over your dogs head, scratching behind his ears.

Arthur wasn’t gone long, and he came back, shaking his head.

“I couldn’t find one, I’m sorry.”

He knelt next to you, looking at your leg again.

“I did find some sticks though, do you have anything in that bag to help me make a splint?”

“Oh, of course.”

Opening it, you pulled out your scarf, handing it over to him.

“It’s not the best, but it should help. We’ll sit here and rest, then keep going. I think there’s a storm coming in.”

“I think I saw a path just over there, could you look?”

Arthur looked at where you were pointing.

“Yeah, of course.”

He got up, checking.

He made sure it was stable before grabbing you, helping you up it, then he crouched down.

“Get on.”

“I can’t do that, a Prince can’t be seen carrying someone like me.”

“I don’t care, you’re hurt, get on.”

You sighed, climbing on his back and he stood up, making his way back where you guys had come from.

“I’ll take you to Guis, hopefully you leg isn’t that bad.”

You nodded, resting your chin on his shoulder.

“How did you see the path, I didn’t see it.”

“Maybe in the panic you missed it? Or it blended in the with snow?”

“No, no it definitely wasn’t there.”

Arthur went quiet for a few moment.

“There’s only one thing I can think off.”

“What’s that Arthur?”

He paused walking, crouching down to set you on the ground before turning around to look at you.

“Can you use magic?”

You tried not to react.

“I feel unsafe answering that.”

“(Y/N), can you use magic?

“If I say yes you’ll have me killed, if I say no you’re not going to believe me, and have me killed. I’m sorry but I can’t answer.”

Arthur narrowed his eyes a little bit, and he spun around to a noise behind him but there was nothing.

Turning back around his cloak and yours were on the ground, and you and Rufus were both gone, leaving not even a footprint in the snow

[fatherforgivethem]

Hotd meets the Hunger Games 🫢

“I keep wishing I could think of a way to show them that they don’t own me. You know, if I’m gonna die… I wanna still be me.”

Alicent Hightower had never expected for her name to be called at the reaping. She had never expected to talk to Otto Viridis as a crowd laughed at her sweet words. She most certainly did not expect to win her games and make it back home to Distract 4 when she was only sixteen years old. Her life seemed to be full of surprises; and it had not ended there. She had met Criston Cole by chance when she was walking down the docks in town. He had been bringing baskets of fish back to his shop when Alicent had bumped into him. And after a few words of apology, her life had changed once again.

She had taken a job at his shop where he sold the fish he caught. She needed something to do after moving to Victors Village. From there they got to know each other, and it was in that little shop that they fell in love. They had married and before she even knew it, they had three children, soon four, running around the docks.

Her life had continued to change when her son’s name was called at the reaping, when her eldest son at volunteered for him, and when it had happened all over again two years later. She had to watch them again and again go through what she went through, watch the way that they became killers like she did. Her arena had been so different from there’s. It was hot, dead, unlivable. She had only won when she had found poisonous berries that she forced two people to eat. The sound of their cannons going off still rung in her ears. And now it wound ring in her children’s ears for the rest of their lives as well. It was a cycle, and it would take a certain kind of person to break it.

Criston Cole never would have thought that he would have four children and wife that he called his. He hadn’t even expected to live past thirteen, let alone twenty. But he did, and he met the love of his life and they brought the most beautiful children into the world. A world that would take them away from their parents.

He had been forced to watch his two oldest boys kill others to stay alive. On most nights, he was either waking up in a cold sweat, or trying to get Alicent to wake up from one of her nightmares. Since winning their own games, Criston had been traveling down the hall to help Aegon and Aemond as well.

His life was full of horror as he watched those he loved crumble before him. When it would end, Criston would never know. What he did know, was that he would find a way to make it end, all of it.

Aegon had always been told to keep his head down. His mom made it clear that he was to never say the words “I volunteer!”. Those were words for careers, and Aegon and his siblings were not careers; they were the sons and daughter of a victor and a fisherman. And, if his mother could help it, it would stay that way. But it hadn’t; not when Aemond, who had only been thirteen, was called at the reaping.

Aegon had never raised his hand and said words so quick before. It was so quick that it almost felt like a thought that had slipped through his head. But it had happened, and before he knew it, he was being pulled to the stage and asked what his name was. He had tried his best to ignore the look of horror and unshed tears in his mothers eyes.

The capital had loved him. They loved his confidence, the risky jokes he would say. They saw him as a flirt, someone with a dashing smile. It worked, and before Aegon even knew it, people were placing their bets on a fifteen year old Aegon. He had hoped for an arena full of something similar to what he grew up with, maybe trees and water, but when he was shoved into a suit meant to keep him warm, he knew it would be an arena meant to kill. His hopes were crushed even further when he rose to an arena full of snow, a frosty forest, and a frozen and freezing ocean.

He had been the son of a fisherman, and it showed. He had set traps made out of rope that would strangle the other tributes. He had only won the games because he was a good swimmer. And so, when a boy from 2 and Aegon were in the water, Aegon was able to keep the other boy under as he continued to tread above the surface. Aegon had almost died from the cold. When Aegon was on the train back home, he swore he would find a way to make it all end, to stop the games.

Helaena hated each reaping with every fiber of her being. She hated the way that parents cried and children clung to friends and family. She hated seing videos of her mother, who was only a little girl, forcing another child to eat poisonous berries. She hated them more when her brothers were taken away from her, changed and never the same. She hated so many things, and it was because of the games, because of the President. Those however, were words never to be spoken out loud. Not if she wanted to have her family live to see another day.

When Aegon had won, stylists from the capital had come to their home in District 4 to force Helaena into puffy clothes and pin her hair back until her head was pounding. The times that she did love were when the games, the PR that her family did, were over and done with. It was a time that allowed her to sit by the water and sketch her designs. Or where she could bake in the kitchen as Aegon and Aemond taught Daeron how to play chess.

Her name had never been called, and for that she was incredibly grateful. It spared her parents more pain than they needed. It spared herself the pain. So, for now, in between games, she would simply be with her family.

Something was brewing, she could feel it in the air. She could see it when Aegon and their mother went on long walks in areas no one was allowed. Something was about to happen, a storm, and Helaena would try her best to be ready for it.

As soon as his little brothers name was called, Aemond had done the same thing his elder brother had done. He’d volunteered. He had done the one thing his brother had to go to the games for. It was as if they were in a cycle, like someone was testing to see how strong their family could hold. Well, whatever it was, Aemond was falling into the trap like the fish he caught each day.

With Aegon as his mentor, Aemond had felt prepared, something very rare when going into the games. His brother had prepared for almost everything. On how to survive the night if it was cold without attracting other tributes. He even taught Aemond how to appeal to the capital. They had loved his confident, yet shy, demeanor. People had commented on how much of a mix Aemond was with his older brother and mother. With Aemond entering the games, they had become obsessed with his family, and Aemond had tried his best to hide his distaste for their awing behavior.

He had hoped each night before bed that his arena would be nothing like Aegon’s. And when he had risen into an arena full of mountains and flowing waterfalls and rivers, Aemond had tried his best not to smile. Throughout his games, he did all he could to survive. He avoided the cornucopia and instead stole a backpack from a boy from 7. The way that Aemond’s flying knife had logged itself into the boys chest still popped into his head before he went to sleep every night. The boys name had been Luke, and Aemond would always remember that after having to give a speech to the boy’s family.

Aemond had won his games staying up and catching the smoke of the last four tributes. He had climbed high into the trees and had skillfully let his knives drop onto them. He had done it to get home. And when he had been pulled into his brothers arms on the train ride home, he knew that it had been worth it. To survive is to kill.

It had been hard to watch her little boy die by the hands of another child. Because Rhaenyra knew, within her heart, that the boy from 4 had no choice. And if her own son, if Luke, was given the chance, she hoped he would have done the same. She supposed it was better for Luke to go in the beginning than for her to watch him die as he got nearer to the end. Almost close enough to reach out for and touch, before being ripped from her. No, the boy from 4, Aemond was his name, had done her a kindness. However selfish it might have been. She had seen the sadness, the regret, when Aemond had come to district 7 on his victory tour and had given his speech.

She thought that she was given peace after her sons death, but as the games went on, another boy’s name was called. Her boy, her Jace. Another son was taken from her, Though, Jace had fought and he had lived. She didn’t know what was worse, watching her son die, or watching the other live yet die inside of himself. He had never been the same, it had taken months for him to sleep in his own bed. He had, after some months, finally been able to chop wood without having to cover his ears and sit curled into himself on the ground. He wasn’t a victor, he was a victim of the capital’s wicked games.

So, when her son, after coming home from another game of mentoring, had taken her deep into the woods to discuss a brewing rebellion; she had listened, she had agreed. It would end, it had to.

His brother had been killed and now he was sent to do the same thing to other children. Children like him who only wanted to survive. But only one was allowed, and everyone wanted that to be them. Jace included. It had only been two games since his brother had been killed, and now, at eighteen, Jace too had been chosen at the reaping. Not a soul had volunteered. All of the boys around him had stayed quiet, had looked down at the ground. Jace didn’t blame them. If it wasn’t for the shock, Jace would have laughed. It was his last year to get picked, and after seven years of not, he was chosen. What a joke.

His mentor had only taught him one thing, and that was to never team up with others. No matter what they offered, Jace was to refuse them. Luke had made the mistake of being naive, and Jace wouldn’t do the same. He wouldn’t let his mother lose another son. After their father had died, it had only been the three of them. And then Luke had been taken away, and then Jace. Each smile he graced the wretched capital with, he did it for his mom.

The arena he landed in had been a shock. After being able to finally open his eyes against the light, Jace had looked upon a land of sand. Only sand. It had taken more supplies than he wanted to find an oasis. He had been lucky in winning his games. He had gone against what his mentor had said and he had teamed up with others. When the rest of them were asleep, four cannons had gone off, and it had been Jace that had slit the throats of the other two tributes whilst they slept. It had been an easy win, is what the capital said. However, like the majority of other victors, it hadn’t felt like a victory.

It didn’t take much convincing to join the rebellion. After returning home, his mentor had taken him out into the woods, away from prying ears, and had told him everything. How there was a plan, how the famous Hightower family from District 4 was in on it. That after this coming games, they would bring an end to the Hunger Games and the conniving capital once and for all.

….Part 1 of 2

[heartfullofleeches]

Male lui with a reader who helps out at the shop, maybe one day they're working the counter and a customer starts yelling at them and Lui comes out meat cleaver in hand with some blood on them

Watching the sun rise from the shop window, his arms hold tight around your waist; fingers locked with yours at your hip. A morning ritual for you both as your partner bragged about the scene your first day. Grey locks fall against your cheek as his lips follow suit.

"You sure you gonna be fine by yourself?"

"Been here a while already. I'm sure I'll manage."

The butcher plants another kiss to your temple, kind eyes cast down at you like you're the center of the world. "Still getting used to having you on board. Not that I mind. Just a lot to take in. Don't push yourself too hard, Cher."

He squeezes your shoulder, reaching down to double tie your apron as you flip the welcome sign to open. With everything else in order you part ways for the time, Liu heading to the back of the shop while you head over to the counter. It's been about a month to the day since he asked if you would like to work in his shop. He was hesitant at first with all the equipment and scars he got himself, but the business had always been family orientated plus it meant he could keep a close eye on you.

You got used to things pretty quick. Your job was simple after all. Manning the register and giving Liu the orders, sweeping before closing. With the size of your town, business was steady and you met your fair share of regulars and friendly faces. Though you had yet to tie the knot, Liu had asked you to wear the ring he bought you so you wouldn't get as many wondering eyes.

Today was your first encounter with a rude customer. Some guy you could tell by looking was from out of town from his clothing down to the way he carried himself. He seemed annoyed before he even walked up to the counter, face scrunching up at the red meats behind the glass. You throw on your best customer smile and turn to face him, the curtains behind you parted ever so slightly.

"Hello, what can I do for you today?"

"You sell this, right?" He lifts up his phone, showing you a picture of what looks to be Liu's noodle soup. A staple in your home when you got sick. Your smile wavers.

"Yes, but-"

"Give me four bowls of it, and can you change your gloves before you get it?"

"That I can do, but we... actually don't have the noodle soup today...." Your voice trails off as anger flickers in his eyes. Every day of the week was a different soup based meal on the menu. Just to have a little variety and use up the excess meats before they spoiled. Noodle soup was three days ago, and Liu's dishes were so popular in town they sold out that very day.

You scramble to pick up the conversation. "It's chili day, if you'd like that instead."

The man's face grows redder the more he raises his voice. "Are you fucking kidding me? Do you know how out of the way this town is? I've been driving for three hours to get here."

You back away as he leans against the counter, thankful for the glass wall separating you. "I understand how frustrating that is, but we don't have it right now-"

Spit flies as the man begins to shout. "Well maybe you should make that clear next time! I swear, if I miss my boat I'm going to come back here and.....and.."

All color drains from his face, skin pale as a sheet in the face of whatever he was staring at. So used to the smell of blood and focused on calming the man down you didn't hear him leave the back. Looming behind you, clever in hand, Liu stares the man down. If looks could kill he'd be twenty feet under. The amount of blood drenched into Liu's apron dyed the pure cotton a deep maroon. It drips off the flat blade, hitting the floor with a wet splat. Liu's voice comes from his throat in a low grumble completely unlike him. Growling like an agitated animal in warning.

"And do what?"

The man tries to take back his words, flinching and ducking to the floor as Liu swings his arm outwards - planting the cleaver in the chalk board beside him.

"If you looked to your left, you would've seen today's special. It ain't polite to harass people for a simple error, but you won't do it again, right?"

The man nods.

Liu tears the cleaver from the board and points it at the door. "I know you won't. Leave."

The man picks himself off the floor and rushes for the door. Liu mouths something to him that makes his eyes go wide.

"See you soon."

You lean against Liu's chest, welcoming the stench of cold blood. "Thanks for the help...."

His eyes soften. Liu places the knife down and wraps his arms around you, leaving small kisses in your hair. "Nothin' to thank me for. Just doing what's right. Your safety will always be the most important thing to me, Y/n. Should we close up early today?"

"You don't have to do that for me.."

"No sweat off my shoulders. I got a few things to do back home too. Go get your stuff. I'll take care of everything else."

"... Okay." You take off your apron as you head out. Liu looks down at the register. The man's stench and his finger prints are all over it. Shutting his eyes, Liu can still hear his frantic heartbeat about two miles out. Still in town - likely at a gas station. If he hurried he could catch him on foot so you could take the car home. As you return, Liu offers you an apologic smile.

"Hey, would you be fine heading home yourself? I have more work out for me than I thought. I'll make it up to you as soon as I get home."

[floralembarrassment]

Ours (1/1) (jegulus)

"I I'm I know it's not much Reg but well... what do you think?" James said as he showed Regulus around the small cottage home. He had been fixing it up for years with his father, always the plan for them to retire in but now that Effie needed to stay closer to town and her doctors, the cottage belonged to James.

He and regulus were planning on moving in together and they were shopping around. Regulus of course could afford any option they wanted, but James thought maybe they both could have a piece of his family as a place to start theirs. Of course that line had Regulus sold before he ever even saw the place.

It was rather quaint, but all redone and James loved all the special touches from his father in the kitchen, the old doors from his great grandfathers' home, and carvings on the railing stairs that James remembers took an entire summer for them to do. He loves all the furniture hand-me-downs his family had collected over the years and his mother's handmaid curtains and quilts in every room of the house.

And Regulus loved every inch of it.

He walked with James' hand in his as he moved about the place. Room by room he took it all in. Room by room he couldn't feel anything other than home. The perfectly warm living room with the fireplace regulus was sure he would never want off, the kitchen with the big windows over the sink looking out toward the sea, the three bedrooms up the creeky stairs, one small one he was so sure he could hear a little boy jumping and laughing in.

As they walked back down to car Regulus turned to James whose lip was caught in worry between his teeth. Regulus kissed James, and when he pulled away he whispered, "Darling this is it. This is our home."

[desertdollranch]

Welcome to La Grande Pâtisserie

Grace Thomas is excited to announce that today is the grand opening of La Grande Pâtisserie! Everyone in Grace's hometown of Bentwick, Massachusetts, has been eagerly awaiting the debut of this authentic French pastry shop. There's nothing else like it anywhere in town! Bentwick prides itself on being a quaint little village with a high standard of living for its residents, so this is the perfect place for Grace to see her dream come to life.

In her third book, Grace Makes it Great, it's been a few months since Grace returned from her summer trip to Paris. In that time she has been working hard to make her bicycle-delivery-based baking business successful, but she realizes it may need to start growing much faster! Her grandparents' bakery may have to close down forever if it doesn't stop losing money and business to the local grocery store bakery. So, using what she learned while working at the patisserie in Paris, Grace teams up with her grandparents to turn their bakery into a beautiful, unique French pastry shop.

As for my part in all of this...... like Grace, this opening day is a dream come true. For inspiration, I based this on the bakery playset that was sold as part of her collection when she was the Girl of the Year in 2015. Her bakery was notable at the time for being the most expensive doll item ever released by American Girl, at $500.

(Later surpassed in 2020 by Joss Kendrick's surf bus, at $650).

Now, of course, nine years later, it's still very expensive when bought secondhand, even when it's sold without all the small accessories. I certainly couldn't ever justify spending that much on one single doll item. And why should I, when I can build something like this with my own two hands, for a lot cheaper? I've already built Caroline's parlor, three arcade video games, a skee ball lane, Kanani's shave ice stand, Grace's pastry cart and bistro set, bedrooms for Josefina and Kirsten, a greenhouse, Rebecca's phonograph, a few small pet habitats, and lots more for my dolls. I like having creative control that lets me expand on the things that interest me the most. I like making or collecting small accessories to supplement my projects. And I like that my renditions can be built at a more realistic scale. The bakery in Grace's collection is scaled so small that it looked more like a child's playhouse than a legit bakery, and so I was shooting for something scaled larger.

I've had Grace in my doll family for four years now, but it's only recently that I've felt like I have enough small accessories accumulated to make the whole thing look top-notch and full of detail. I also can't get out of my head the idea of making a little breakfast joint for my dolls and me to share breakfast and coffee with them on weekend mornings. I'm thinking maybe that will be accompanied by occasional videos showing Grace making breakfast for me and another doll. So keep an eye out for that!

If you haven't seen it already, you can browse Grace's hashtag to check out all the other things I've made and collected for her.

And here we are...... it's opening day!

So let's take a closer look at La Grande Pâtisserie. Grace is so eager to show off what's inside, and while she does that I'll explain how I made everything (not to take the magic away, but I always hope to inspire other crafty readers who may want to make their own doll stuff). This you see here is only a small part of the pâtisserie! I'll show you the front of the shop, the kitchen, and then the outdoor seating area.

When you walk in, the first thing you'll notice is the pastry case.

On the top row are the fancy cakes and macarons. The middle shelf has croissants, cupcakes, eclairs, and beignets. The bottom shelf has jelly donuts and petit fours (back row), plus a square of frosted gingerbread, cherry cheesecake, chocolate tart, raspberry tart, and madeleines.

These were all made by me, mostly with clay and puffy paint. A lot of them were based on the little pastries that were part of Grace's collection, some I made for other dolls and other occasions, and a few were based on real bakery treats.

The "glass" pastry case is clear plastic that comes from packaging material, including a few 18 inch-sized doll boxes. Whenever I buy something with this sort of strong but flexible clear plastic, I hoard it for future projects.

These three cakes were made from layers of foam board. This is a great material to work with because it's easier to cut than wood, very lightweight, can be shaped with sandpaper, and takes paint very well.

The jelly donut, eclair, and cupcake, all made from clay. The heart sprinkles were not made by me.

The cherry cheesecake. Those are wooden beads on top of the slice. I used a mixture of glue and food coloring to make the cherry sauce.

And the little berry macarons. The berries are made from seat cushion foam that I cut up and soaked in red paint.

The to-go bags (the small one has a croissant poking out) are printables that came from AmericanGirlIdeas.com. I made the croquembouche on the right, originally for Marie-Grace and Cécile. It's pretty big and doesn't fit in the pastry case.

I promise I will show off more contents of the pastry case when the dolls and I start having breakfast together!

Looking past the pastry case, here's the behind-the-counter setup.

The walls here are a large cardboard tri-fold that I spray painted aqua blue. Everything hanging on the walls is held there by Velcro that I superglued onto the tri-fold, so I can take them down and switch them around. You'll see why very soon.

The art on the walls all came from Pinterest, except for the painting of Provence on the upper left. That was made by an AI image generator. The red display shelves are foam board I painted. I made the menu in the middle (if I haven't said so already, I really love making my own printables/labels/packaging etc. It's the thing I look forward to the most when making doll stuff).

The three under-counter refrigerators are product pictures I found through a web search. They're glued onto a panel of foam board, which is glued onto a cardboard box to give it strength to hold the accessories on top. If you look closely, you can see little squares of Velcro in the upper left and right corners. That's there to attach another panel, which you will also see very soon.

The coffee maker was a thrift store find, but it originally came in a set of three toy appliances. This is so fun to play with. It really "brews" coffee; if you fill that little reservoir (covered with a sticker) with liquid and hit the button, it will dispense the liquid into the cup below while making coffee brewing noises. I made the coffee pot using this tutorial. Directly above the coffee maker is a shelf of white mugs, which I bought from Amazon.

On the left is the toaster. It makes real "toasting" noise and pops the toast up when the timer is done. The sticker on it and the coffee maker came from Farm and Feast: Gather Together with Friends and Food, an activity book & kit published by American Girl.

In between the toaster and the coffee maker is the waffle iron. I made that from a makeup compact.

I made the waffle from painted clay. And I only realized now that maybe the waffle should be lined up with the hinge and not at an angle....

Grace is demonstrating here how her machine can brew both pots of coffee AND shots of espresso!

Over here is the blender. The toy appliance set did originally have a a blender in some versions, but I've not found it at any thrift store and so I just made my own. This is made from two clear plastic cups, one for the base and one for the blending part. The lid, which by a beautiful coincidence was the perfect size, came from a fancy container of gelato, and there's a smaller metal lid on top of that. The little blade inside is just a metal wingnut glued to a metal washer. The base is painted pink and it's glued to a mason jar lid ring. I designed the button panel, and the buttons are pony beads painted black.

The little box of chocolates on the red shelf were made by me as well from clay and puffy paint.

Grace can make blended coffee and smoothies in the blender. The milk and orange juice containers are printables I found somewhere on Pinterest and can't remember where. I made the little yogurt from a Keurig coffee pod filled with clay and topped with some white puffy paint. The little plastic containers of blueberries and cherries came from a Make it Mini set. The bowl of fruit contains berries, peaches, and bananas, which I made. I did not make the grapes, but found them at a thrift store attached to a set of plastic napkin rings.

On the top shelf on the wall, Grace has displayed three baguettes and a bag of biscotti, which are twice-baked long cookies that pair nicely with coffee. These are all made by me. I designed the paper bags holding the baguettes, while the biscotti bag was a printable from American Girl Ideas.

I also made Grace's dress, based on the Opening-Night Outfit from her collection. (And if you notice that my Grace looks slightly different from other dolls, it's because I enhanced her freckles a bit).

Above her right shoulder, on the bottom red shelf, you can see the little pineapple cake that I made from a Make it Mini set. The little pineapple rings and cherries came in those tiny plastic containers next to the blender.

Now that you've seen the front of the shop, let's check out the kitchen!

As much as she loves working in all parts of the shop, Grace's favorite place to be is in the kitchen, using her hands, making the magic happen.

It was in the process of creating that Grace found her passion. She considers baking a form of artistic expression. Here she is trying out a new recipe for pain au chocolat, which is like a chocolate-filled croissant. I think this is what she might be serving me the next time I stop in for breakfast.

Some common ingredients she uses are flour, sugar, eggs, butter, vanilla, baking powder, nuts, and jam.

I made pretty much everything here, except the text on the labels, which also came from Farm and Feast. I also didn't make the label for the butter box. The little containers of baking powder and vanilla are my favorites. The vanilla extract bottle came with a Miniverse Make it Mini surprise package. I made the label for it as well. And the baking powder is just a tiny glass jar from Dollar Tree, with a label attached, which I did not design.

Here's a wide shot of the kitchen counter. She's got two ovens, a proofer/holding cabinet, and a few shelves for stainless steel dishes.

The counter here is actually the same one seen in the previous pictures, behind the pastry case. This panel with the ovens and dishes attaches with Velcro to the refrigerator panels. I just printed out the three pictures and glued them to the panel. The left side and middle panels were generated by an AI image maker based on my prompts, since I couldn't find a real picture of exactly what I was envisioning. The right side panel is a product photo of industrial double ovens.

On top of the counter, I've put a few mini kitchen tools: a stock pot, a colander, a box grater, and a stand mixer. Hanging on the wall are mixing spoons, spatulas, and an oven mitt.

All of these dishes and tools were thrift store finds, with the exception of the oven mitt, which came with Farm and Feast.

On the left is a stove top (another printed image) that attaches with Velcro onto the pink marble countertops, and that's her crepe pan in the picture on the left. It's a real cast iron pan that I was gifted this past Christmas, and as I thanked the giver all I could think of was how cute this would look in my doll-sized kitchen.

Grace's adorable cupcake shirt and black apron were not made by me, but are from her original collection.

Let's go look at the outdoor seating area.

This is the other side of the cardboard tri-fold. I spray painted this red and then printed out the windows and door image.

I also made Grace's shirt and skirt. It's based on Grace's Sightseeing Outfit from her collection.

The shop has an outdoor seating area where customers can bring their pastries, breakfast, or coffee and enjoy them in the open air.

This table is a revised version I made a few years ago for Grace, based on the bistro set from her collection. It is seriously such an easy craft, anyone can do it. I used an inexpensive marble-print cardboard cake board from Michael's, glued it onto a cardboard tube taken from a roll of paper towels, and glued that to the base which is made from a black plastic takeout container. I gave the tube some extra stability by gluing it inside of a prescription drug bottle. Then I painted the tube and bottle black; the base is black plastic.

The chair was a lot trickier. I made this a few years ago with flexible plastic-covered wire, and the seat is cardboard with a cushion glued to it. I really had to force that wire into shape, and used floral wire to hold it together. Then I spray painted it red.

Putting the red chair in front of the red storefront kind of makes it disappear, so I'll bring back some pictures of the first version of her bistro set that I made in 2020 (one of my earliest pandemic projects).

These pictures are from Grace's trip to Paris! She got lots of inspiration there for how she wants her own shop to look. Here she is eating at her aunt and uncle's La Pâtisserie.

The turquoise menu board is just foam board that I painted, with a dowel as the pole. At the time I made it, I didn't have a printer, and I usually just did all my printing at the library. But the library closed during lockdown, and so I had to freehand paint and draw everything! The tabletop here is painted as well, but I like the cake board version better.

The croissant, brie cheese, and berries are made from clay. The little Eiffel Tower is a foam board base and some of that rigid clear plastic for the menu holder. The cup came from Dollar Tree, and the green straw is actually a small leftover piece of that flexible wire the bistro chair is made from.

So that's everything! I spent very little money on all the supplies, and used upcycled materials as often as I could. This won't be the last you'll see of the shop. This was definitely a huge time investment, and so I'll be using it often from now on.

[mademoiselle-red]

The Inheritance

Once upon a time, sometime around 1948 to be precise, in a place far far away, in a small wine town in a place called Sichuan, in the middle of a civil war, a man said to his wife and baby son: “I have to leave with the army for a while. I’ll be back before Chinese new year.”

The wife said: “Then we’ll try to survive long enough until you return.”

The new year came and went. There was no trace of the man. No letters, no messages, nothing. Where did he go? Did he die on the road? She didn’t know. And when the new government set up shop in her town, she decided it was better to assume he died in the war.

The wife kept her promise and survived. She went to live with her brother’s family.

“Auntie, where is uncle?” My young grandmother would ask.

“We lost him during the war,” her auntie would explain.

Several new years came and went. The young son grew up in his uncle’s house, knowing only that his father had been a simple bookkeeper who’d perished in the war, and the adults did not like to speak of him.

According to my grandmother, her cousin lived a good life, but died young from a sudden illness, unmarried and childless.

After her son passed away, the mother continued to live in the house he bought for her, just a few streets away from her niece, until she passed away too. She went peacefully, my grandmother said, after a long battle with cancer.

My grandmother buried her aunt next to her cousin, and then moved on with her life. Over the next few decades, she met and married my grandfather, raised three daughters with him, and retired in her late-fifties after a long career as a school teacher.

And when all her daughters left home one after the other to pursue their own careers and start their families, she and my grandfather sold their old house and moved to a more spacious one across town.

And then one day, some time in the 90s, a man from a place far far away showed up in a suit in this little wine town, looking for an address written on an old crinkled piece of paper to a house that was torn down decades ago.

The old neighbors on the street didn’t remember where that family —a single mother and her young son —had moved to.

But he still had a few days left on his visa so he kept asking around town. And on the last day of his trip, he found an old lady who remembered that the young mother’s brother had a daughter who had been a school teacher at her local elementary school.

And with the help of a retired teacher from the same school, the man found himself knocking on the door of a house on the other side of town.

“Hello, my name is ——, I come from Kaohsiung, and I’m looking for the niece of ——. He left this town in 1948 during the war. He was my father’s best friend.”

~

In 1948, a bookkeeper for the army left his mountainous hometown on a truck, got on a train, and then on a ship, and sailed to a foreign place called Kaohsiung. There, he was given a room to sleep in, and told he would be back home before the new year.

Several new years came and went, and the army discharged him, gave him some money, and told him he was free to do what he wanted. But he was not allowed to return home.

And so he bought a truck with the money and started a delivery business with a buddy from the army.

The decades went by, the buddy started a new family in their newfound home, but the man remained alone. His buddy’s children called him “uncle” and he doted on them like they were his own. And when the children were all grown up, they looked after him like he was indeed their uncle. On his deathbed, the man said to one of the children who called him uncle: “I have a wife and son in a small town in a place called Sichuan. I saved up some money for them over the years, but could not find a way to contact them. Please find them for me and give my son his inheritance.”

And so this is the story of how my grandmother was visited by a stranger one day out of the blue, who sat down for tea, told her a story, paid his respects at a grave, and left her with a rather hefty bundle of cash and gold, all within the span of one afternoon.

The end.

[cilogram]

Sparks Japan Tour 2023 Recap

(silly personal edition; unfortunately the only kind I'm capable of)

Saturday July 22nd, Tokyo

(Duo Music Exchange)

This is the standing venue I've mentioned before as being crazy for having massive pillars in line of sight of the stage. It was a sold out show, so unfortunately some people had to be back there...

I was unbelievably lucky with my ticket numbers and my friend and I got to stand in the front row, keyboard siiiiiide. I don't think I can express how happy I was to be there. The show was phenomenal and being in the front able to jump around and dance and experience the music Up Close was just... something else.

I really enjoyed the film score soundtrack to our waiting time before Sparks came on, too. So atmospheric.

Obligatory pre-show keyboard photo number one:

Over the loudspeakers before the band came on, the venue announced that photos and videos wouldn't be allowed during the performance, and there was a hilarious, audible reaction from the crowd as ~600 people quietly reacted like, 'whaaat?!'

(I see there were some rule-breakers in the house, though, so there are some clips and pictures on instagram and elsewhere for those who want to see!)

The stage was really shallow with the band set up and Russell could barely fit behind the keyboard to reach that side, but it was so nice that he made the effort to come and sing to those people up close, and somehow without knocking Ron over.

Also we definitely witnessed the escalator dance!

And oh man, Russell did so many dramatic leaps into the air, it was (as they say) rad.

Out of all the songs we heard that night, I think it brought me the most joy to hear Angst, and The Toughest Girl In Town. I love Interior Design and it's the album I usually put on when I'm coming home from the city at night, so hearing a song from it IN that city at night was just the best. But every song was done incredibly. Particularly Beaver O'Lindy which of course I'd never heard live before (I am sadly not a 21x21 veteran)!

And I love when a song ends and Ron does some little pose when he lifts his hands off the keyboard :')

The crowd was absolutely on fire, in SUCH good spirits! Everyone I saw was just smiling through every moment, or singing along looking elated to be there and lost in the music.

And as I'm sure we've all seen by now, encore Ron wore an Air Jordan hoodie with JAPAN written on it. Extremely appreciated.

Oh, and retrospectively I think I have to conclude that the Shopping Mall Of Love 'yeah's from this night included the hottest 'yeah' of the three tour dates. I don't make the rules, I merely observe them.

This show was everything I could have hoped for and more.

(To my friend I went with: if you're reading this, ugh, what a cherished memory it is to have seen them front row together ;_;)

Monday July 24th, Osaka

(Namba Hatch)

I went up very high to take this photo and the venue is sadly not in it, but please look at Osaka anyway just for some ~mood context~.

(And yes, person trying to see if you could peel one of the Sparks posters off the wall of the venue to take home, I saw you and I support you and I'm sorry you didn't manage to succeed!)

By the way, this venue has an impressive plethora of escalators...

Obligatory pre-show keyboard photo number 2:

You can tell how early I was by the unoccupied seats.

This was my first seated show but 99% of people were on their feet from the moment the band came on and for the entire duration of the show. Absolutely became a standing gig... I was so relieved!

I brought a non-Sparks-fan to this show and it couldn't have been a better introduction. It was just so incredibly well performed and so fun, we had such a great time.

Russell's voice was possibly somehow even better than on Saturday; I don't know, but especially his high notes had so much POWER and he looked super happy with the performances after each song :D

And omdhfhdgdg there was just so much energy from the crowd.

Being a much bigger venue than Saturday, the applause and cheering was incredible :') The audience participation in general was just brilliant!

I really like a lot of the live arrangements of the songs, too, they're so much more powerful than usual. I know with some other bands, live shows are a muddier, albeit wilder but much less listenable rendition of the album tracks, but Sparks really elevate their songs when done live.

Russell also used a few words of the local Osaka dialect when talking to the crowd which was very cute and got big cheers.

The previous venue was too small for the lighting setup I've seen in other 2023 tour photos, so this night was when we finally got to see that in action. As is Sparks' way, it was really well thought-out, so I'm very glad I got to see this more visually dramatic version of the set. I especially loved the rainbow lighting and French flag lighting moments.

This was also our first time hearing A Love Story in Japan. So fun live!

Encore Ron came out wearing a pair of novelty Osaka dialect sunglasses (which he had to lift up to see the keyboard settings 'cause they were obviously too dark, and the crowd giggled at that and so did Ron, it was... fucking cuuute.

Of course there was also a brief glimpse of no-glasses Ron when he swapped them for his normal pair later. Those of you who know me will observe my restraint in the mentioning of this)

When they were saying their final goodbyes to us, someone at the front handed Russell an art piece they'd made (it looked like a standee of him and Ron) and he did a little pose like 'I will cherish this' and then put it on the keyboard, and Ron picked it up and did a little pose with it like 'ooooh'

So cute. So lovely.

Such a stellar show! I wish I could thank everyone else in the crowd for making it so special. I'd never seen so many hands in the air.

Tuesday July 25th, Tokyo

(Line Cube)

(The second brand-related renaming of Shibuya Public Hall has given it the above amusing name. It used to be called CC Lemon Hall and I don't know which is funnier)

It's really nice inside, very modern and spacious and the seats were SO comfortable,

but this time EVERYONE immediately stood up. I didn't detect an ass in a seat for the whole show. It was beautiful. Wonderful. Unbelievably good!

(Unrelated, but in front of me was a maybe-11-year-old boy in subtle russell cosplay; wearing an exact replica of his 'having fun around Japan' outfit from the documentary (complete with the right length of trousers and legit marimekko bag in red))

Obligatory pre-show keyboard photo number 3:

Just before the 2nd or 3rd song there were some technical difficulties, during which Russell tried stalling but then obviously didn't want to stall alone for the whole time and forcibly handed Ron the mic

and Ron said,

"... the voltage in Amurica is 120, and in Japan it's 100... so sometimes things like this happen. We apologize. ^w^"

(yes he did make the face of this emoji)

(and yes I did... phonetically spell out the way Ron says America because it's just... so endearing)

The rest of the show went smoothly though! It was so, so

so

so good.

I could get into some of the moments in the songs that really move me, but I am easily embarrassed.

Okay, I will try (look, I am being so brave)

-When I'm With You: there's a beautifully-held note or two or three in this song that I'm sure all Sparks fans die at when hearing it live. That, and the 'I almost feel normal' line, really get to me.

-It Doesn't Have To Be That Way: I think we all know how rare it is for Sparks to make a song specifically in order to express a message, and I'm really glad they doubled down on that and did this one live. It hurts but it's also so simply triumphant. I love how Russell almost laughs on certain lines because it really is both absurd and exactly what artists have to deal with.

-Number One Song In Heaven. This is just one of the first Sparks songs I ever heard and it blew me into another dimension. It's ominous, it's ethereal, it's weird and perfect, and it's incredible to hear live every single time.

At the end of the show, Russell said how sad it was for them to be ending the tour

but how happy they were to have the last one be here ;__; 'we genuinely really love your country'

Awww Russell ;_;

I left the show so much better off than when I came in, by which I just mean there's something about seeing a band that means so much to you, where it just turns up the metaphorical dial on the enrichment of your life. Thank you Sparks and thank you other Sparks enjoyers!

Well, that was my rambling show report complete with absolutely none of the information anyone usually wants to hear about a gig.

I'd like to thank @adreamofroses for finding me and saying hi, and I'm sorry we didn't get to talk much!

I'll leave you all with a photo of the official merch I got, including some by the art team Tectecs whose adorable art was irresistible. They've got a gallery show going on with all their Sparks work at the moment, too.

and one last photo because I saw my bag looking like this when I stopped to do something, and laughed:

[liloinkoink]

silly. Would they meet the same way and are there any differences? also is anyone free to draw for this asking for a friend :)

yeah anyone who wants to draw for this can feel free!

this roleswap au started out as a convo in discord server a few weeks ago (contributors i remember being Cherri, L, Ghast, Ilex, Crafty, Celestial, Korre, Lime, Daisy… i’m definitely missing names, but it’s been a bit) and then this week cherri and i (and haunted, tho he’s been very busy) circled back to it and fleshed the whole thing out much more

as for what is the same and what is different…. uh, i’ll put this under a cut, i think.

Ren wasn’t always an adventurer. he still hardly counts himself as one—he’s certainly not taking dangerous quests or anything like that. he has no party, only carries a bow and a knife to hunt food on occasion. if he’d had a choice in the matter, he doubts he’d have even left home.

Ren used to live in a city of a decent size, the sort of place it’s easy to disappear. he was well-liked among his neighbors, but not particularly close to many of them. he ran a little shop enchanting items with small blessings—an incredibly rare magic he sold for a fraction of its commercial worth.

he had made a bit of a name for himself, entirely on accident. the city would have adventurers traveling from two or three towns over to repair their weapons or buff up their armor. he had a little boom in his business and a steady market of quest-takers passing through to improve or repair their gear.

but with the fame his name found its way to the wrong people, and Ren’s shop is discovered by… honestly, Ren isn’t entirely sure what their deal was. they called themselves adventurers, but there was something off about them. they were a lot more cruel than the righteous or the thrill-seeking sorts he’d met already, and that only became more apparent when he closed his shop down for the night and found a few of them still gathered outside.

their terms were pretty simple. they’d heard that enchantments could be gradually improved over time, stacked with more and more magic to create blessings like you wouldn’t believe. so ren could go with them, or be struck down where he stood. he’d enchanted the weapon pressed to his chest just a few hours ago, and he knew better than anyone else how sharp it was.

so he does. he packs a bag of some clothes, which they’re so kind as to let him stop and take. a few mornings later his neighbors realize he’s gone. the city searches and mourns, but most of them not particularly hard.

Ren spends a few weeks following the party around, enchanting weapons and improving gear. he sees up close exactly how cruel they are, and so he starts whispering new magics into the blades.

“this blade will never dull” becomes mixed with “this blade will never break the skin of someone undeserving,” “this blade cannot be raised against someone weaker than its wielder,” “this blade cannot spill the blood of one unarmed,” little blessings to mitigate harm. and soon, every blade that passes through his hands has the same quiet spells. his tampering isn’t noticeable immediately, but they figure it out soon enough. Ren has meddled with the magic somehow, and they’re not happy.

the thing about magic is that it’s very fickle. his spells can stop the adventurers from picking on random citizens, but he isn’t careful enough.

Ren, for all his powerlessness, isn’t weak. he’s lied, gone behind their backs. and he had been given a bow to hunt. he is not undeserving, nor weaker than them, nor unarmed.

so when they turn on him, their rage outpacing his usefulness, all he can do is run

the place Ren runs to is familiar, though not to Ren. he shoves open a heavy door, stumbling over half-dead vines tangled across the floor and into a dark room below the earth. there’s a plaque there explaining what the room is—a tomb to the god remembered only as the deserter, cursed to put down roots.

this, too, is familiar—Ren is desperate, and in his desperation prays to a god no one has thought of in 20 something years.

Cherri has dialogue for the oath, which she’s given me the okay to add, and so i will!

“I bet it gets pretty lonely down here… it looks like no one else has come to see you in years.”

"You and I are in pretty similar situations right now. I don't know what happened to you, but there are people chasing me. They want to trap me and force me to enchant things for them. And I... I can't go back there."

"If I must, I will devote the rest of my life to serving you as a paladin in exchange for my freedom."

slowly, and then all at once, the room comes to life. once-dead vines lurch off the floor and attach themselves to Ren’s wrists, urging him forward. Ren doesn’t have a lot of time to be concerned about seemingly awakening a lost god before he figures out what the god wants—there’s a basin in the center of the room boasting one small plant, still a healthy green even in complete darkness.

it’s pretty difficult not to get the message. Ren takes the little plant, careful not to damage the roots, and he flees

[other major differences are… 1. this god and paladin duo have a bit more difficulty communicating than Lamplight, as flower language is a bit more finicky. 2. unlike Lamplight Ren, Martyn’s power requires upkeep from his paladin to be effective—water, sunlight, good soil. 3. Martyn has a much more physical form, so he can actually interact with Ren even while a plant (he can also feel touch, unlike Lamplight Ren, which means he can also feel pain). 4. Martyn is cursed, and his curse can be broken—he spends much more of this AU with a human-looking body than Lamplight!Ren does. 5. there��s a few more major differences that come to mind, but they’re spoilers for Lamplight]

[writerwithbrainrot]

Chapter three: Attack of the Kargarocs!

Warnings: A bit of violence, and some swearing.

｡☆✼★━━━━━━━━━━━━★✼☆｡

"Man, why do I have to be unlucky?" [Reader] huffed, annoyed, looking around the market full of people- Hylains to be more precise. Everything from the wares for sale to the fruit looked so much more full of vitality and life. It wasn't dull, the items weren't made of plastic and thin fake metals all for the sake to save money and sold at high prices, and the fruits and veggies grown with only the soil and no pesticides and the water clean of pollution and sickness. They looked so big and tasteful. . .

But [Reader] had NO rupees, not a single green one. All they had was paper money, which was worthless here. It would work better as fire starter than actually currency here. And the stares that they were receiving. . . Was unnerving, a painful reminder of elementary school, when other children would pick on [Reader], pull their hair and mess with them.

Fidgeting with the sleeve of their sweater, [Reader] thought of a way to obtain rupees. In Breath of the wild, you could sell things, perhaps they could sell something here. There were a few vendors stalls that looked like they could sell there. . . but what could they sell? What they had was either worthless here or too important to even think of giving away. Then, it hit them.

𝙶𝚕𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞'𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚗' 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚖𝚜 𝙸 𝚐𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚊.

[Reader] immediately took their long dream catcher necklace charm off. Thomas wouldn't mind if they sold this, they may need the money!

"Hello." the young hylain man said, not looking at [Reader], who just walked up to the stall. "Anything catch your eye- OH GODESSES!" he exclaimed seeing [Reader], who pinched their nose, huffing. "Godesses! Your skin! Your hair! What happened to you?!"

"It's a skin condition. Stop acting like a monster." [Reader] hissed. "If your going to be so bitchy, and point it out then I geuss you aren't interested in my talisman." They turned on their heel, moving to leave before the man spoke in a rush.

"Hold on! Wait! I'm sorry, I was taken off guard! I'm interested!" He exclaimed in a panic, causing [Reader] to smile before hiding the grin and turning with a frown. "You have a talisman?" he asked.

[Reader] approached the stall again. "Yea. I do. It was given to me by a priest in my home country, because of my apperance." They explained, despite it being a lie. "It truly has given me a wonderful amount of luck. Earlier this week, see, I found myself attacked in Snowpeak mountains, only to survive and be found in the canals. My survival is proof of this talismans power."

The man took the necklace, examining it. "It doesn't look like much. . ." he muttered, examining it with. [Reader] spoke up "It was created in a spring that the Goddesses blessed, and it was made ro be subtle so it wouldn't fall into the wrong hands."

"This is quiet the find. You must be in a tight spot to be selling this." he placed it down, before pulling a box on the table. "How does 80 rupees sound?" [Reader] made a sound, and after making a face that told the man it wouldn't do, he raised it. "100."

[Reader] smiled and nodded, shaking his hand. "Deal. Thank you."

»»————-　★　————-««

"Is this what a scammer feels like?" [Reader] muttered, having around 60 rupees left after a bit of shopping, and guilt in their stomach. "I feel awful, lying to the man. But I need the money." They reasoned with themselves, biting into an apple, and letting out a groan at the heavenly taste that exploded in their mouth. "Woah, this is great." They hummed, taking another bite.

[Reader] walked along the path in Hyrule feild to Kakarico. It had been an hour since they left Castle town, and they had already taken two breaks. "Aren't I pathetic?" they chuckled in a self deprecated tone, "I'm supposed to be exploring the Waterworks, not lost in a fantasy world. . ."

However, a loud screech was heard, and [Reader] froze. Turning, they spotted a HOARD of flying beasts, and in a second, [Reader] started sprinting as Kargarocs swarmed [Reader], who screamed in terror and ran faster, getting clawed at.

They skitted under some large rocks, with a cover on top. Many of these littered the feild, more than what the game had previously depicted. Maybe they could dart and hide?

[Reader] had no time to think, as the shifting of the rock was heard above. Looking up, panicing, they watched as the Kargarocs pushed the rock away, and one started squeezing its way in ro grab [Reader], who screamed as it grabbed them and ripped them out of the rock, slamming their head against the stone, knocking them out cold. . .

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The group of 9 Relaxed at camp at night, the first crackling as they ate their wildest member's cooking, chatting with one another. However, the one with brown hair, Twilight, felt the hair on the back of his neck stand. He sat up straight, causing Time to look over.

"Something the matter?" he asked, frowning. Twilight looked around, before shaking his head. "No. . . thought I felt something off. . . it's nothing."

"I wouldn't brush that off so carelessly." Legend said, sitting with his legs spread open on his stump, arms resting on his knees. "When your freakish senses go off, they are usually right. Or your hunches are at the least."

Wind, who was shoveling the meaty stew I to his mouth like a starving sailor, grinned. He swallowed before speaking "Do you feel the spirits of the dead?" he asked, earning a playful punch on the shoulder from Four. "Hey! It was a joke!" he laughed, a happy smile on his face, that made one appear on Four's own face.

Warriors chuckled and stood. "Well, I'm gonna go take a leak. Be back in a minute." he said, passing sky who looked half asleep while eating, and into the woods.

Warriors shuttered. what was wrong with the forest? it wad too creepy to be normal. They had no idea where they were, but it was suspected that the group was in Wild's word, due to the massive amount of forests. He took care of his business, a ways away from the group and started to retrace his steps to camp when he heard the unmistakable sound of Kargarocs in the air.

Warriors, alarms, drew his sword, looking up, shield in hand as he looked towards the dark sky, now lit by the moon. He saw a small group flying over head holding in one of their claws. . .

"A person?!" He exclaimed, shocked. Wild's time didn't have Kargarocs, and even then, Kargarocs didn't carry such heavy weight. He pulled out his bow and aimed and fired, only to miss, causing crys of anger and panic to come from them. They flew faster, the person limp in the claws.

"Guys!" Warriors yelled, reaching camp. "Kargarocs! They've taken someone!"

In a heartbeat, the atmosphere changed from lighthearted ro alert as the group stood in alarm. Twilight spoke first "Are you sure?!"

"Yea! they looked like they were from your time." He said as the team got ready for a chase.

Time spoke "That isn't normal Kargaroc behavior."

Four spoke up "You think it's the shadow?" Warriors darted way, yelling "It doesn't matter! We need to save that person!"

The group started their dash through the woods, catching the sight of the person carried by the kargarocs, and Wild was the first to start firing, shooting down one, but missing the other two, to which the one empty clawed screeched. It turned and darted towards them, only to get shot down by Wild again.

It fell and dissapeared in a blast of smoke. The group chased the one carrying the innocent person away. In a flash, time whipped out his bow and shot a fire arrow. It hit the Kargaroc's wing, making it screech, and drop the person. Twilight on Epona, rushed over to catch the person, just barely making it as the unconscious person landed in his arms, Epona stopping and whined in distress. Twilight patted Epona's side to calm her and got a got a good look at the person that fell in his arms, his breath hitched.

The grey skin immediately reminded him of a lost friend, a love he had lost long again. But he pushed taht aside hearing footsteps approaching him. He looked over and frowned "I caught them. But something is wrong with them."

Time walked over first, and looked taken aback by the strange looking person, before speaking "They're injured. Let's take them back to camp." he said calmly. Twilight nodded and soon, the group proceeded back to their fire a distance away, [Reader] unconscious in the ranchers arms.

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Well, there's chapter three. Hope you enjoy it! Reader finally meets the group! Kinda. . . I may edit this later on to be honest. But all the same, I hope you have a great night/day!

[mariacallous]

This summer, a Vancouver car mechanic named Max got a perplexing ping on his phone: Betty White was in Ukraine and needed his help. This was surprising because she had died on a Canadian highway back in January.

When Max last saw Betty White, his nickname for his Tesla Model Y Performance, they were both in rough shape after getting sideswiped on the highway. Max’s rotator cuff was torn in several places. The small SUV had bounced off multiple concrete barriers at high speed and was bashed in on all four corners, its wheels ripped to pieces. Coolant appeared to be leaking into the battery chamber. From his own work on EVs in the garage, Max knew that Betty was done for. “No auto shop would put a repair person at risk with that kind of damage,” says Max, whose last name isn’t being used out of doxing concerns. A damaged EV battery can become dangerous due to the risk of shocks, fire, and toxic fumes. His insurer agreed, and Betty was written off and sent to a salvage yard.

Months after he had last seen the car, Max’s Tesla app was now telling him that Betty needed a software update. It showed the car with an extra 200 kilometers on the odometer, fully charged, and parked in Uman, a town in Ukraine’s Cherkasy Oblast, midway between Kyiv and the front line with Russia’s invasion force. Minutes after that first ping, the app showed the car in service mode, suggesting Betty was undergoing repairs. “I thought it must be a mistake,” Max says.

There was no mistake. WIRED tracked Betty down to a Ukrainian auto auction website, looking good as new, maybe even better, with newly tinted windows and rearview mirrors wrapped in black. Betty 2.0 was being sold by “Mikhailo,” who wrote that the car had suffered “a small blow” in Canada and been repaired with original Tesla parts. The price, $55,000, was roughly the same as a new Model Y Performance costs in the US.

Betty White’s intercontinental resurrection was impressive but not unusual. For a long time, cars written off in North America have found their way to Eastern European repair shops willing to take on damage that US and Canadian mechanics won’t touch. In 2021, the most recent data available, Ukraine was a top-three destination for used US passenger vehicles sent overseas, close behind Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates. And Ukraine’s wreck importers and repairers are particularly known for their ingenuity. Some have made fixing EVs written off across the Atlantic into a specialty, helping to drive a surge in the number of electric vehicles on the country’s roads, even as the war with Russia rages.

Though few automakers sell new EVs in Ukraine, the share of newly registered vehicles that are fully electric, 9 percent, is about the same as in the US and nearly double that of neighboring Poland and the Czech Republic. Most of Ukraine’s refurbished EVs come from North America, and many arrive with major damage.

There’s a ready supply of crashed North American EVs in part because electrics are becoming more common, and also because in recent years, relatively new EVs with low mileage have been written off at a higher rate than their gas-powered equivalents, according to data from insurers. US and Canadian repair shops and insurers see them as more dangerous and difficult to fix. Scrapyards find it hard to make money from their parts and instead ship them abroad.

Ivan Malakhovsky is not afraid to work on cases like Betty White. His five-year-old repair business in Dnipro, in eastern Ukraine, fixes about 100 Teslas a month, roughly a fifth of them from overseas, and employs a staff that varies between six to 10 people. He’s currently away from home, serving with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, but he manages his workers, and sometimes makes software-mediated repairs, remotely. “We have problems in our lives and can fix them, whether a battery or a full-scale invasion,” says Malakhovsky. “Electric cars, electric car batteries—it’s no problem.”

An electric vehicle battery is made up of thousands of individual cells, which store and release energy. Sometimes, Malakhovsky says, he and his coworkers will break up large EV batteries damaged beyond repair and repurpose the cells to power electric scooters or even drones for the war effort. He says the vast majority of Teslas on Ukrainian roads were once involved in wrecks in North America.

The war has even boosted Ukraine’s EV resurrection business at times, by driving up gas prices and making electrics more attractive to drivers. Ukraine has a public charging network of some 11,000 chargers, according to Volodymyr Ivanov, the head of communications at Nissan Motor Ukraine—that’s more than the state of New York, and double the number in neighboring Poland. Since 2018, Ukraine’s government has removed most taxes and customs duties on used EV imports. In the US, electric vehicles tend to be expensive, and the average EV driver is still a high-income male homeowner. North American wrecks, Ukraine’s EV incentives, and its relatively low electricity prices have created a different picture. “There is a joke here that all poor people are driving electric cars, and all the rich people are driving petrol cars,” says Malakhovsky. “Tesla is a common-people, popular car because it’s very cheap in maintenance.”

That’s a relatively recent development, says Hans Eric Melin, head of Circular Energy Storage, a UK-based consultancy that tracks the international flows of used EVs and batteries. He began watching the Ukraine market in particular a few years ago, after he noticed more ads for Nissan Leafs on auction sites listed in Ukrainian than in English. At the time, the Leaf, a pioneer among EVs, was essentially the only one that had been around long enough to develop a healthy used market. Over time, Ukraine’s electric fleet grew to encompass the full range of EVs sold around the world, including Teslas, as more cars hit the roads and aged or got into crashes.

Melin had suspected Ukraine’s EV boom would end with the war. “I was completely wrong,” he says. By this summer, Ukraine’s EV fleet had doubled since July 2021, to 64,312, according to data compiled by the Automotive Market Research Institute, a Ukrainian research and advocacy group.

Roman Tyschenko, a 25-year-old IT worker who lives in Kyiv, decided last September that he was sick of his Jeep’s $400-a-month gas bill. Friends had purchased used, damaged electric cars on an online auction website called Copart, a US-based public auto reseller with 200 locations around the world. He logged on and spent $24,000 on a gray 2021 Tesla Model Y that had taken a solid blow to its passenger side in Dallas, Texas. Its bumper was almost fully detached; its hood was tented; some of its airbags had deployed.

That Texan Model Y was likely declared totaled by an insurer. From there, it probably moved to a salvage auction in the US, where licensed exporters, salvage shops, and repairers tried to figure out how much value they could squeeze out of the wreck. The winner, or perhaps the insurer itself, listed the car on Copart, which made it available to anyone around the world who wanted a smashed-up Tesla and was willing to pay for shipping.

If Tyschenko hadn’t brought the Texan Tesla to Ukraine himself, it had a good chance of being shipped there anyway by someone who professionally flips cars to countries like Ukraine. These exporters look for wrecks potentially worth more than their scrap value, but little enough that an expensive US repair and resale wouldn’t make sense. Some ship vehicles directly to Ukrainian repairers and pay for the fix, while others import damaged cars and relist them for sale to Ukrainian buyers who can figure it out for themselves.

It takes a damaged North American car between one and five months to reach a nearby port. Before the war, wrecked cars headed to Ukraine’s Port of Odessa on the Black Sea. Since Russia invaded in 2022, they come through Klaipėda in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea, or Koper in Slovenia on the Adriatic, and are brought to Ukraine by truck. A shop like Malakhovsky’s can fix a Tesla in somewhere between one week and one year, depending on the damage.

Tyschenko arranged for his Model Y to be shipped to a local repair shop in Kyiv, where it arrived in February 2023, five months after he hit the Buy button online. The technician sent him videos of the EV’s ongoing revamp every few weeks, and Tyschenko stopped by to visit a handful of times. By May, he had paid the technician some $25,000 for his work and was driving the Model Y around Kyiv.

Two months later, the battery died and Tyschenko spent another $4,000 to replace it—a demonstration of the risks of electric vehicle rescues. Still, he’s happy with how things worked out, and now pays just $10 to $100 a month to refuel his car, depending on whether he charges at home or at public stations.

Finding parts to repair Teslas and other EVs can be a challenge. On Facebook and Telegram, groups like “Renault Zoe Club Ukraine” host thousands of EV owners who barter with each other for spare parts. Oleksandr Perepelitsa, a 25-year-old electric vehicle repairer in Kyiv, says that when he first began his work three years ago, he and his business partners would buy two wrecked Teslas from overseas to create a single working vehicle to sell to local Ukranians. “Even that was profitable for us,” he says. Now, business connections can send Tesla parts from the US or Europe, or repairers buy cheaper Chinese reproductions.

The success of Ukraine’s EV resurrection industry is the flip side of the failure of insurers and manufacturers in North America to figure out what to do when a shiny new EV becomes roadkill.

US insurers are more willing to write off vehicles of all kinds that in the past may have been fixed. New vehicle repairs have gotten more expensive, in part due to vehicles getting more complex and computerized, as well as a shortage of vehicle technicians. In the past decade, the damaged cars up for auction “are better and less damaged,” Copart CEO Jeff Liaw told investors on an earnings call this year.

Industry-wide data is hard to come by, but numerous sources suggest that EVs are more likely to be written off than gas-powered cars, and can be declared unfixable after even minor crashes. A Reuters analysis this year found that a “large portion” of damaged EVs sold for scrap were low-mileage, nearly-new vehicles. While one in 10 new cars sold in the US and Canada this year are forecasted to be electric, the infrastructure and expertise needed to assess and fix damaged EVs can be patchy. “In an ideal world, electric vehicles are as easy to repair as internal combustion engine vehicles,” says Mark Fry, research manager at Thatcham Research, which crunches auto market data for insurers and other clients. It recently found British EVs get written off at disproportionately high rates.

The main reason EV repairs are so tricky comes down to a lack of agreement on how to handle EV batteries after a crash. Worldwide, there is no industry standard for measuring battery health. Vehicle manufacturers sometimes refuse to sanction battery repairs because of liability concerns. “If you repair the battery, what's it going to be like after another two, three years and another 50,000 miles?” Fry says. It’s easier to let nearly new vehicles be declared dead than to find out.

The North American scrap industry is also somewhat leery of EVs, says Megan Slattery, a researcher at UC Davis who studies what happens to damaged EV batteries. Scrap businesses generally make money by taking cars apart to extract the most valuable widgets to resell. But dismantling a battery takes dedicated workers, equipment, and—most important of all—space, due to the fire risks of storing lithium-ion cells. Many mom-and-pop dismantlers don’t have any of that.

Plus, EVs tend to have simpler drivetrains, with more plastic and large, prefabricated body components that can’t be easily pulled apart. In some electric vehicles, the battery is built directly into the car’s structure, making it especially difficult to dismantle or repair. All of that means that exporters looking to sell to eager buyers abroad have less competition when bidding on totaled cars.

In the US, there’s increasing pressure to keep broken EVs from heading overseas. Regulators are concerned about safety, hoping to better track broken batteries through shipping channels as fears rise of fires sparked by used EVs, including on cargo ships. Another is to avoid dumping e-waste on countries without the means to recycle or repurpose, and instead keep the valuable minerals inside batteries local. Battery recycling startups have received vast amounts of private and public investment—both in Western Europe and the US, with funds from the Inflation Reduction Act—with a promise to help shore up raw material supply chains. But so far, they have received only a trickle of used batteries.

Policies that wind up choking off the export of EV wrecks would in some ways be a shame, Slattery says. More stringent European Union export rules for used cars and EV batteries in particular are one reason why the supply of Teslas to Eastern Europe is so dependent on North American wrecks. Without them, the electric revolution would be much less advanced in places like Ukraine, where US and Canadian write-offs have helped support the emergence of charger networks, trained repair specialists, and a wide familiarity and acceptance that electric propulsion is not just green but also practical.

In North America, there's a widespread belief that “people don't want electric vehicles and that it's just laws and regulations that push us to buy them,” says Melin, the used EV analyst. “There are other markets that want to have electrics.” It’s a testament to a system that is working, Melin adds, that used EVs end up in places like Ukraine, where new models are difficult to come by.

For Max in Vancouver, Betty White’s reappearance overseas did cause some headaches. The car was still logged into his Google, Netflix, and Spotify accounts, potentially allowing the new owners to access his personal data. When he asked Tesla support, he was advised to change his passwords, Max says. (Tesla did not respond to WIRED’s questions.)

But looking back on the crash, and now driving a new Model Y—named Black Betty—Max says his old car’s resurrection is the best possible outcome. “I’m happy to see that Betty White has lived to see another day,” he says.

[shipcestuous]

Christmas Movies 2023 Digest

There are still a lot of new Christmas movies this year that I want to watch and haven't, but there were three I have seen so far with shippable bro/sis relationships thought I would mention.

Family Switch: There was some discussion about this movie before it came out but I didn't get any asks after it came out even though I thought it delivered far beyond what I was hoping. This is a major Netflix release, so it has familiar faces and a decent budget and all that. The premise is that a dysfunctional family switches bodies at Christmas - the daughter and mother switch bodies, and the father and son switch bodies. The two relevant kids are both teenagers, mid high school (there's also a baby). I do think it's shippable, but the incest jokes are what make this movie worth the time. First, the brother and sister, in their parents bodies, wake up in bed together. Later, their friends are worried about their marriage and force them to kiss in front of them. (Which is doubly crazy, because they were each kissing their sibling in their parent's body) And then the parents, in their children's bodies, start reconnecting at a party and the other people at the party are like, "Aren't they brother and sister?" The son has a love interest but the daughter doesn't.

A Merry Scottish Christmas: This has Scott Wolf and Lacey Chabert playing adult siblings (in a Party of Five reunion) who stay at a Scottish castle at Christmas at their mother's request and learn they're actually heirs to the castle and the dukedom that goes along with it. I think the writer made a lot of things up as far as being a duke goes, but this movie has really lovely scenery and if you can believe it, the bro/sis relationship is actually the focus of the story and the most prominent relationship in the movie. They were really close as kids but have grown apart. Not quite estranged but very strained. They run into each other at the airport at the beginning and the vibes totally smacked of exes. I love it when siblings act like they used to be in a romantic/sexual relationship that ended badly. The movie seems to think that they can both become duke and duchess and it makes it sound like they're going to marry and rule together. The brother is married already but I wasn't sold on any great love there. And then the sister's character seemed totally lukewarm about her love interest and it seemed like she could either take or leave the relationship.

A Season For Family: I saved the least for last. The focus of this movie is not on the brother/sister relationship, however, our leading man is a widower with a young son who is very close with his sister. They live in a ski resort town. He owns a ski shop and she teaches skiing, so they have similar careers and probably a lot of overlapping business. One of the first scenes is them attending the son's recital together. She's always over at their house and cooking at their kitchen. What really sold me on it was their three stockings at the fireplace. (The parents have been dead for a long time.) There were two other great things - she does have a love interest, but it's his best friend who works at the ski shop with him. She and the friend kept it a secret for months because they were worried about how he would react, and he's not happy at first, though of course he's fine with it before too long. Second, towards the end, the brother is considering moving to take a job offer because the ski shop is failing and other things, and it's an out of state move, and the sister was pretty mad that he was even considering it, and she said the decision didn't only affect him. But the main story is the brother's love interest and this whole thing with their adopted sons being brothers.

[midwesternorcprincess]

so my evil uncle, as i've called him for several years now, well, it's complicated, i guess. i called him my evil uncle because he was very nasty for a while about ten years ago to my parents and my sister, who did him no wrong. he accused them of stealing from my great-grandma, which i take as an almost unforgivable insult. we were so poor we could barely afford food at the time, my parents were both going through major health issues, and my great-grandma would buy us groceries of her own volition when shopping. but my uncle is such a controlling hardass who has to have everything his way, that to him that was stealing i guess because HE didn't want it done, never mind what my great-grandma wanted to do with her own money. and he changed the locks so we couldn't get into her house or my grandparents' house (again none of us has ever stolen anything in our lives and we had nothing but great relationships with these relatives)

and that was the last straw for me, but it didn't come out of nowhere. he's always just started stupid ass arguments wherever he goes because of that need to control people who are minding their own damn business. he'd cause problems at almost every big family gathering, he sold real estate in town for a while until literally no one was willing to deal with him because he'd do the same there, he had pretty much only one friend from college who was still willing to stick by him, and even then he was constantly trying to rein him in. couldn't keep a woman around obviously, until about fifteen years ago he finally got one to marry him, god knows how they pulled that off

but, up until the incident a decade ago, i'd always have mixed feelings. he was very fond of me - he's my godfather - and we'd have a pretty good time when it was just us, or like us and my grandma or something, you know, a small group with someone he actually respected, which is very few people. he and my mom are the only people in the family with higher education (and now there's one more, me), and he was the only one who cared about science and things like that (he had a biology degree), so we kinda had that in common when no one else in the family did. so we'd bond and have fun sometimes. and then he'd turn around and start these dumbass fights and i'd get mad at him, but then we'd have fun again, and this was a neverending cycle

but as i said, in the last 10-15 yrs, i'd given up, started avoiding him, and after he did that to my parents, cut off contact and blocked him completely (he also provoked me by being nosy and wanting to know shit that wasn't his business) and refused to see him or speak with him. and also he was homophobic and went way down the Trump rabbit-hole. idk if he knows about my gf, but i can't imagine he has any good thoughts about trans ppl so i wanna keep him far away from that info.

but my mom and eventually even my dad came back around to him, far too easily at first, if you want my opinion. but he has by all accounts been good to them in the last two or three years or so. and he and my mom had to sort out all the shit with my grandparents' estate, since the other two siblings are even bigger dumbasses and caused all kinds of problems for everyone, so maybe there was a factor of my uncle and my mom having to be a team and deal with them.

my mom's always been too forgiving. especially to her siblings and their clans, who emphatically do not deserve it and don't even try to appreciate it, they just treat her like a punching bag. she's just the hug it out and cry type who always thinks there can be love and harmony again no matter how many times she's proven wrong. so for the last few years she's been trying to get me to come around and forgive my uncle too. and i've kind of been my own hardass, which i think at first was healthy skepticism. i had no reason to believe he wouldn't stir up shit just as soon as i turned around. but after so many years i think now it's my pride too, not wanting to give in, so i've refused contact still. he has reached out to me a few times and apparently really wants to repair our relationship (we never even had direct conflict, i voluntarily broke it off because of how he treated my parents) and i wouldn't.

but then come a year ago, my grandpa died so there was no avoiding it, i'd have to see everyone for the first time in almost a decade. and when i saw my uncle i found him suddenly very hard to hate. and he lit up a little in his way and i remembered the old affection i used to feel. and i think maybe i found him a bit pitiable. it's his own fault he's run everyone out of his life, but he lost his job and his wife left him and he started getting health problems and then the other two dumbass siblings started hating him for executing my grandparents' will and not letting them squat on my grandparents' property anymore because it needed to be sold. so my mom's right, i do kinda have to feel bad for him. certainly i feel much more inclined toward him than toward the other siblings.

but anyway my mom is pushing it way too hard, i am trying to come around and soften up and be forgiving in the best way i can. i guess she wants me to go about it like she does, all emotional and heart-to-heart and touchy-feely and all. but i can't be that way. idk if she understands that softening up my way, at a distance, is the only way i can start. my uncle's starting cancer treatment and she wanted me to call him and wish him good luck. fuck no i can't do that. but i genuinely want to extend an olive branch. or like, accept the one i've been repeatedly offered. so i think i'm gonna sew him a bear? i even got nicer fabric for it. and send it with a get well card or something. i kinda don't even want to tell my mom i'm doing it. my pride again i guess.

anyway character development. i think. i hope i don't regret this. but idk, maybe i should not be regretful if he starts acting like a jerk again. i guess i should only worry about the way things stand now and what's in my own control.

[dunne-ias]

Well, my beloved BaCC, Brightshroom Islands, got corrupted (just as I'd unlocked university too!), but I wasted no time and quickly restarted. This time, I started with six families, and the second generation has just started growing up and heading out on their own, so I made them some family photos, for fun.

Once again, I use a name generator to give me random names from all over.

On the left, the O'Hannigans.

Cash, the redhead is the Mayor, and together with his townie husband, journalist Keith, he has four children, one set of triplets, from the left, Veronica, Alfred and Lysette. Lysette also had a teen pregnancy but it's time for Lin's other mommy to have custody now, so you'll see her in a later photo. Cybelle is their fourth child. The triplets are almost adults and while I think Veronica is going to be the one to stick around, I haven't decided for sure yet.

On the right, what's left of the Buckolz family.

Well that sounded ominous, but I mean that there's only one kid from gen2 living here now. Shania, the blond, is the town's Architect and also runs the electronics store, while her wife, Carolina is the town medic. They had the first kids of the hood, but Ester and Ivan have moved out, and left is only Nessa, who will take over the store when she ages up to adult.

On the left, the Atterberry family

Jie, pale man, is still unemployed after he closed down his fledging home art business, and we're waiting for a lot point to open up so he can run a gallery for his pottery and art. His husband Robert is still unemployed, and also still in his clothes from when he moved in because he hasn't gone to the clothes shop when it's been open yet. So this family survives on Jie selling some of his pottery and Robert occasionally refurbishing a car.

They had one of those double pregnancies at the same time, and the boys, Valère (in purple) and Hamid (in red) were born as twins mere hours before Niamh was, so effectively they're triplets. If I remember correctly, Hamid is actually pregnant with Ismael Werther's baby, so that'll be fun in their tiny house with no income.

On the right, the Werthers.

Margareta, in yellow, has the second angriest face in this whole hood, and I love it. She's the town's first carpenter and runs a toy shop (crafted toys can be sold to buy and upgrade furniture according to my rules), and her townie wife Chloe is a chef. They have two kids, that again, are the result of a double pregnancy. Margareta had bad luck when she birthed Ismael though and died. Luckily, one of her neighbours missed her on the same day a Genie lamp arrived, so she was brought back to the joy of everyone, especially Chloe who hours later gave birth to Ernst. Ismael works for the clothes shop, so I think Ernst will be the one to take over the toy shop one day. Soon actually, I think. Ismael, as I've said, has a baby on the way with Hamid Atterberry, but they're only one-bolters, so I don't think there'll be any long-term relationships there.

On the left, the Kohouts.

Freya Kohout was so damned pretty as a teen that I packaged her, aged her up to adult and let her be one of the founders for Brightshroom Islands Mark 2. She runs the town's clothes shop with much flair. Gordon, her townie husband, is the town's only Criminal so far and brings in some much needed dough. They have three children. Georgiana, the eldest has a baby daughter with Jillian Leighton, Madge, who now lives with the Kohouts since it's Georgiana's turn to have custody of her. Little Abraham is almost a teen, and there's also little Erik, who is a baby. I don't like posing babies, so they're not in this picture.

On the right, the last bit of the Leightons

Indiana Leighton is an artist, but a struggling one. His townie wife Brenda, a teacher, has the most severe resting bitch face I have ever seen in my entire life and it's a huge struggle to make her look like she's not pissed off at her entire family in these photos.

Together, they had four daughters. Not pictured: Livia, the eldest who has moved out and Siobhan one of the twins, who moved out with Livia. The only redhead is Jillian, the other twin, who recently birthed Madge with Georgiana Kohout. She sadly died from the childbirth, but the die was on her side, and Georgiana had a genie lamp, so now Jillian is back alive. Her daughter Madge, as mentioned, is currently under her other mother's custody. Last in the family is Diana.

And lastly, the newly founded households of the second generations!

On the left, two Leighton sisters. I let Livia bring one of her sisters since Shiobhan isn't far from adulthood because of this town's housing crisis. Neither of them have any definite plans regarding dating or careers, because there are no jobs right now unless they can beg for a job from one of the local businesses, but Livia has plans to restore cars until she can open a car dealership.

On the right, the eldest second generation, Ester and Ivan Buckolz, brother and sister. Ester is the manager of Freya Kohouts clothes store, and Ivan recently started working for Margareta Werther in the toy shop. He'd like to open his own furniture store at some point in the future though. They also have Ester's teenaged mishap Lin living with them, as Lin has already spent a season with her other mother, Lysette O'Hannigan. I don't tihnk anything will keep happening between Ester and Lysette once they're both adults though, because they only have one bolt, but Ivan has a townie boyfriend from his teen years that I aged up and I'm just waiting for him to start having some wants in that direction soon.

And that's it. Lots of teen pregnancies, but well, there are rules regarding birth control and I very recently unlocked it for teens, so hopefully we can have less of them in the future.

[moshintheteagaiwan]

T. Kettle Part 11: The New Year & The Missing Stock

It was a new year and we had successfully gotten through our first Christmas season as a new store. As you would expect after Christmas, the shelves were bare and stock was scarce. We still has a handful of Christmas infuser mugs left and some left over tins of Christmas blends, but overall we sold out of nearly everything. I had to give it to the company, they really did deliver on excellent Christmas tin designs and gift boxes. The teawares left something to be desired but overall, I’d seen worse.

As January slowly passed, we spent the final remaining weeks with our seasonal staff. They really had come through for the store and delivered on everything I had taught them. Around this time one of my original team members had come to me with his two weeks notice as he had gotten a full time position in his field. I was sad to lose him as even though he wasn’t the biggest fan of tea, you would never be able to tell from watching how he sold it. He was a good kid and I wished him well. I initially took this opportunity to extend his soon to be open position to Maggie, but she turned it town because she didn’t feel she could handle two jobs at the time which was fair.

I then extended it to Zack who accepted. I was grateful to have him with us permanently as he was hard working, always early no matter how many times I told him not be arrive an hour early, and he was great to work with and was great with customers. Initially I decided not to extend the offer to him first because I knew Maggie really wanted to have a permanent position in a tea shop again, but she end up circling back around later.

Soon the store was back to three people, but because mall hours had extended and our sales were high I was able to schedule more hours and didn’t have to work alone four days a week anymore. At this time we were focusing on selling off the remaining Christmas stock and awaiting the arrival of new stock to replenish the shelves. But it never came....

Managers were submitting stock orders weekly, trying to push for more stock to refill our shelves, but as time passed and the shelves became more bare, we waited on word of when to expect our orders. But it wasn’t just teawares, ordering the actual tea became an issue too. We placed orders weekly but like the teawares, nothing was coming. Then one day a shipment of tea did arrive, only it was not what we had ordered, but was instead the new Valentine’s Day blends.

It was something but didn’t fill much space. Finally though we got word of the missing teas and teawares on our next conference call. We were told that due to supply issues, as many retails stores were going through that at the time, stock orders had been placed but that when it would arrive was unknown due to lack of supply. This seemed believable at the time but as I’m sure your not surprised to hear by now, this was a bold faced lie.

The actual truth was that the company had become fed up with their teaware supplier failing to fulfill orders and thus decided to cancel their contract with them. However, before doing so they had failed to first obtain a new contract with a new supplier. This meant that not only did they no longer have their old supplier, but they now had no supplier at all, which meant teawares and stock was never coming. As for the tea itself which was supplied through a separate company, the delays were due to the company’s new manager of operations deciding that store managers were not properly capable of keeping track of and ordering their own tea stock.

This was due to an internal issue during the distribution of the Christmas stock. At the time, some stores received large amounts of Christmas stock, while other stores received less stock, and few received almost nothing. This issue was no fault of any store manager as we did not have the option to order Christmas stock, instead it was shipped to us automatically. In either case due to this error the manager of operations decided he himself must sign off on all tea orders made by stores, and he would compare the orders to recorded stock, and decide from there if he wanted to sign off on the orders.

Not only did this create more delay but it came with an extended delay because just before Christmas, Toys R Us was going out of business in the United States and the company had bought the rights to Toys R Us Canada. This meant the same team that was already responsible for our brand as well as three other bigger brands now also had to run operations for Toys R Us Canada. And as you can imagine this meant the new manager of operations had no time to look over and sign off on tea orders.

And so day by day out shelves became more bare and the tea wall became more empty. On occasion we would get random mixed stock from stores the company had decided to close, but this stock was usually very little and last no time at all. And with this everyday my faith in the company diminished and I couldn’t help but think to myself, I need to get off this sinking ship.

To be concluded...