#i have done at least one science experiment before i am science

[phoenixkaptain]

From countless hours of research (watching movies/reading comics/reading books/contemplation), I have finally reached the conclusion that the only real benefits to being related to the Force (as in being a Force baby, as in being Anakin Skywalker or being anyone related to Anakin Skywalker) are:

1. You can do all the Force tricks (probably. There may be some Anakin can’t do, but apparently he can even do the one that requires four throats, so I’m pretty sure if Anakin “couldn’t do it” he actually just didn’t try all that hard)

2. You can walk off any and all injuries. Leia gets tortured unspeakably by Darth Vader, still continues to lie to their faces and sass the short Stormtrooper. Luke gets Force Lightning’d like four times and still drags his dad over to a ship and lights a pyre for him and does the while end of the movie as though nothing happened. Not to mention Luke’s hypothermia and the whole of Bespin and didn’t he get thrown into a table in the first movie? And I know falling (jumping) from great heights is a Jedi thing, but how many times has Anakin or Luke crash-landed a ship and improbably lived?

And that’s just the movies! The Marvel comics show Luke getting beaten every way to Sunday and still being pretty A-OK. He just walks it off! He gets tossed around like a hacky sack and then gets up and says “That was a bit rough. Oh well” and continues with his day. In the Clone Wars tv show, Anakin is shown to have a broken leg and still manages to climb a massive tree.

Admittedly, I don’t have that much evidence for Leia. She unfortunately inherited her parents’ abilities to avoid capture and on the rare occasion she is captured, she gets out pretty fast. Somehow, Luke inherited Obi-Wan damsel genes, despite not actually being related to him, it’s a feat scientific wonder-

So yeah. If the Force is your dad/grand-dad, all you have to look forward to is misery, pain, and bones made of rubber.

[penkura]

My friend and I have been talking about the idea of Law ending up with a partner who's scared of Doctors/hospitals. Either as a general fear or they had a past of being used as a lab rat. Think it makes an interesting dynamic

I agree greatly! It would be so very interesting to see Law with an SO who is afraid of doctors or hospitals.

Law would notice something is up when you first join the Heart Pirates and hear that he's a doctor. You suddenly quiet and look worried about it, but he doesn't bring anything up at first. White coat syndrome and fear of doctors in general is common enough, he's not hurt by it or anything. He expects you'll move past it as you spend time with him and the crew, coming to realize they aren't going to hurt you or anything, you'll just have routine check ups when it's time and help you through any illnesses.

But when you start to avoid any check ups, even the most basic ones to just make sure you're doing well, Law knows there's something else and he's almost afraid to ask. His worries for you get worse when you actively fight him and Shachi one day when he's trying to check on a wound you got during a fight against another pirate crew. When he merely mentions possible stitches and sees how your eyes widen, he knows there's something very wrong. The fact you start crying, shoving him and Shachi away, telling them not to touch you. Law's about to tell Shachi you need to be sedated so he can check your wound before the red head takes your wrists gently in his hands and gets eye level with you.

"Shh, it's okay, I promise. Captain won't hurt you, he'd never do anything to cause you pain unless it was absolutely necessary. No one's going to hurt you, I promise."

Shachi keeps talking to you until your eyes start to close and you've slumped forward into his arms, Law wondering for a moment if you've worn yourself out before he sees Penguin’s sedated you like he'd originally wanted. It might make you more upset to know they'd done that without fully asking, but it's better so Law can check your wound and you fight him if you do need stitches.

He doesn't ask anything nor does Shachi tell him what's going on yet, not until he's checked you over and your wound is covered. You made it with no stitches, it wasn't that deep in the end.

"What--"

"She was used for medical experiments by some people who said they were doctors. They weren't, they just lied to her, took her to a fake hospital and all that, but..." Shachi sighs a bit, shaking his head and scratching the back of his neck, "She's trying, Captain, she's just scared--"

"Of doctors," Law nods while Shachi looks down, you're still asleep, and it feels weird to talk about you while you're unconscious, "because people lied to her, she doesn't trust me since I am one."

"But she does, Law, she likes you and she trusts you. She needs more time, and help, to know that everything is okay."

Law stays with you after Shachi leaves to give help Hakugan with something else. His first worry was medical negligence had scared you away from doctors, but knowing you'd been lied to and treated like a science experiment angered him. Not knowing about it until now made him believe you didn't trust him enough to tell him, but he wants to change that.

He'll have to apologize for your sudden sedation after you wake up, but at least you weren't too badly harmed during the fight. He's going to do what he can to help you believe that he won't hurt you just because he's a doctor.

(I might have to come back to this later, who knows. 👀)

[clockwayswrites]

Not Exactly Cinderella Part 2

Part 1

WC: 818

“You have a thing for black hair and blue eyes, huh?” Dick teased, looking at the guy that Wally had pointed out. He laughed as Wally slapped his shoulder for the comment. “What? I’m not complaining. And you’re right, he does have a cute smile.”

Wally just blushed again.

“Well, come on, I think that most of my official duties are done. Let’s go see what he’s like,” Dick said, heading back towards the stairs.

“What if he’s a jerk?” Wally asked.

“Then we just move on and go find someone else to talk to,” Dick answered easily. “This isn’t a mission or anything, Walls, if you don’t click you don’t click. You can think his smile is cute and not want to do anything with him.”

Wally sighed, though, rather than being comforted by that.“You keep talking like he’ll want to do something with me.”

Dick stopped them at the bottom of the stairs, tugging them to the side. He knew he probably looked a little worried, but he couldn’t help it. No, of course he could fake it, he was a damn Bat, but he didn’t want to. Wally deserved to know that he was bothered by this. If Dick had known that Wally was having these self esteem issues, he would have done something earlier.

Wally deserved to know how amazing he was.

“If he doesn’t want you, it will because he’s straight or not into quick romance or doing something physical,” Dick said. “Or because he’s insane and doesn’t like red heads. Never trust someone who doesn’t like red heads.”

Wally rolled his eyes but he looked more relaxed. “Just because you have a thing for red heads…”

“Walls, sweetheart, you’re amazing. You’re smart and funny and fun. And you’re pretty damn hot too between the red hair and adorable freckles and your runner’s body. If he’s not into you there could be reasons for it, but it’s not because you aren’t an amazing catch.”

Wally let out a breath of air and nodded. “Okay. Sure. I mean, I don’t agree but sure. Let’s go talk to him.”

“Great!” Dick said with a grin. He took Wally’s hand but dropped it as they got closer to their target. The guy must have taken a break from his last discussion and was over to the side with a fresh drink in hand. Dick detoured them briefly to get drinks also; it was important for everyone to feel like they were on the same social page. They settled near the other as if taking a break from the crowd themselves.

“Enjoying the evening?” Dick asked, drawing the strangers blue eyes to them.

Oh, fuck, more adorable freckles.

“You know, I actually am,” he said, seeming surprised by that. As an after thought he held out his hand. “Oh, sorry, I’m Danny.”

Not a socialite if he was leaving off the last name. That was a positive.

“Dick,” he said, shaking the offered hand before backing off. “And this is Wally.”

“Nice to meet you,” Danny said, as he shook Wally’s hand. “You two having a good night?”

“Mostly. We’re finally where we can relax and talk to who we want to, which is nice. Wally here always has to track down the other scientists at these things,” Dick answered for them, pleased when Danny perked up at that.

“Are you scientist?” Danny asked

“Chemist, mostly material sciences but some organic too,” Wally said with a slightly bashful little smile. “You?”

“Bimolecular and biomedical engineering,” Danny said.

At least Dick would have an easy excuse to duck out when the conversation got too technical for him.

“Did they do the same thing with you and keep trying to make you pick one?”

Danny laughed and gave a little shrug. Dick could tell Wally almost swooned at the sound— not that Dick could blame Wally, Danny had a really nice laugh and the crooked smile was downright precious.

“Totally. I though that two of them were going to get in a fist fight over me at one point! Which I suppose at least would have been hilarious. I’ve won so far, but it’s going to be hard to pick a doctorate when I get there.”

“Oh man, good luck. I got my masters last year and stopped for now. Want to get some work experience, you know?” Wally asked. “But it sounds like you’ll kick ass whatever you choose. Where are you going to school right now? Gotham doesn’t really do much of that, right?”

“U Penn,” Danny said. “I’m close enough location wise that my godfather called in a favor for me to be his plus one for this event, but it really hasn’t been that bad so far.

“Who’s your godfather?” Dick asked curiously.

Danny smiled that crooked smile again. “Vlad Masters.”

Dick couldn’t help the way his nose wrinkled at that.

Danny just laughed.

--

AN: Just a little bit of Dick's POV! And oh no, Dick thinks Danny is cute too! Whatever will we do...

Wanted to write more of this, but *waves hand at everything*. But this brings us to the end of the 'new schedule'! It was fun to do but I certainly won't be doing it every week. It's back to just trauma Tuesday for now! Stay delightful, darlings.

[planchettewrites]

The Criminal Minds Men While You're On Your Period - Headcanons

CHARACTERS: Dr. Spencer Reid, Aaron Hotchner, Derek Morgan

DESCRIPTION: Headcanons for the Criminal Minds men while you're on your period. Characters mentioned above/AFAB!Reader.

CONTENT: Discussion of Periods, Discussion of Feminine Hygeine Products, Romantic Relationships w/ Aforementioned Characters

A/N: I've been on a Criminal Minds binge recently (when am I not), and I really wanted to write this. I only included the aforementioned characters because I'm only on season three. So, unfortunately, there is no Luke Alvarez since I have yet to learn his character! I hope you enjoy!

- Dr. Spencer Reid

This poor bastard, as genius as he is, would have such little clue on how to handle your period (at least when it comes to being a partner).

That’s not to say he doesn’t try, nor is he clueless.

He’s definitely worked with his colleagues when they are on their periods and has probably been good at support, but in the relationship department, he’s a little…inexperienced. 

Spencer is incredibly observant (it comes with the territory of both the job and being a partner), so needless to say, he knows what brands of period products you use.

If this man isn’t the type to dote on you while you’re on your period, I am calling the Bureau myself and filing a report.

All that is to say, Spencer is still spitting period facts at you while you lie together.

“Did you know that almost half of American women crave chocolate on their period?[1]

“Over ninety percent of women experience premenstrual symptoms; that’s three in four women...”[2] 

Oh, sweet summer child…we know (it comes from a place of love).

Now, back to the doting. 

I want to think that the kind Dr. Reid is a cuddle monster who is absolutely giving you a shoulder or back massage if you’re sore.

He will also absolutely read to you while you’re on your period to help you distract yourself from any cramps or anything else that may bother you.

- Aaron Hotchner

Out of the three men I present here, Mr. Hotchner knows how to handle a woman on her period like it’s a science.

Incredibly sweet and patient, and doesn’t have to be asked for anything.

Do you want something you’ve been craving? He’s on it. He knew twenty minutes before you started craving it. Have mood swings? Aaron can take all the punches. Need space? He can take Jack out to the movies. 

If he’s home, he’ll lie in bed with you and Jack and watch as many Disney movies as you want. 

If he’s out on the job, he’ll call you so you can listen to him talk about his day (and he totally will send flowers to the house to brighten up your day).

An absolute gentleman at all times when it’s your monthly; he’s never grossed out, and he’s never not what you need him to be.

Let’s say you accidentally get blood on your favorite pair of panties. Aaron will be the first to take them and clean them by hand without question.

He’s seen a lot of gross shit, so your period blood is nothing. 

- Derek Morgan

His sisters and mother have taught him well: this man can absolutely handle you on your period. 

He may not know your preferred brands or preferred size, but he’ll absolutely buy four boxes of tampons and pads and then ask which ones you like

Okay, more realistically, he’d call you at the store, but he’s unafraid to buy them for you.

He will also bring your favorite snacks without having to be asked.

Chocolate? Done. Candy? Already accounted for. Water or a sugary drink? Derek Morgan on the job. 

Derek has absolutely seen his sisters experience PMS, so your PMS is nothing. Absolutely has patience and is willing to talk it out with you.

Super considerate if you don't want to go out! Want to instead have a movie marathon? Sounds good to him. Want to order instead of go to a restaurant? Sounds solid.

If you're clingy on your period, Derek adores this. He is absolutely okay being smothered by you. Comes with the territory of being a partner.

References for the Facts:

[1] Hormes JM, Niemiec MA (2017) Does culture create craving? Evidence from the case of menstrual chocolate craving. PLoS ONE 12(7): e0181445. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181445

[2] “Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS).” WomensHealth.Gov, 22 Feb. 2021, https://www.womenshealth.gov/menstrual-cycle/premenstrual-syndrome.

[phoenixblaze1412]

Heyy may I request dottore with a very sleepy (Fem/gn)Reader who always struggles with nightmares and staying awake

(idk what to do against my sleepiness :<)

Dottore, being a man of science, a doctor himself, has seen people go through various things. Whether it be painful to the person physically, mentally, or emotionally- he has seen it all. Even done it to others.

But when it comes to you, he wouldn't dare put you through that pain nor stress. So when he noticed something weird about your behavior. He has to know why.

Observation is always the first step a researcher must do in order to gather data. With his clipboard in hand, he watched you move around his office.

Subject: Y/N

Observations:

- Subject shows signs of lack of sleep due to the bags under their eyes.

- Subject has a hard time doing their assigned tasks; lack of focus, sluggish movements, constant yawning.

- When the Theta segment recommended them to sleep, subject reacted anxiously before declining their suggestion and stating they don't need it. Subject seems to be scared. Possibility that the subject is afraid of sleeping or something related to sleep?

Comments:

- Subject does not want to sleep due to something that is giving them constant fear. Best to question them on why they do not wish to sleep for almost a week now. Another solution is to give them a sedative that could help them recover the rest they needed.

After reviewing his notes for a second time and making sure he got everything, Dottore went off to find you.

"Darling?"

You hummed in reply, your tired eyes looking up at your partner. Dottore could only sigh when he saw the bags under your eyes becoming more worse by the day.

"Is there a reason on why you do not wish to slumber? I have noticed how you're struggling to even move around or speak due to your lack of rest. I suggest you tell me why, I'm beginning to worry that you might hurt yourself due to your fatigued mind."

You didn't give any replies, embarrassed about your reason. Already knowing that avoiding sleep would be pointless and the fatigue would catch up to you sooner. Your state couldn't even go unnoticed by the doctor himself.

So... how would you tell Dottore that you can't sleep due to your nightmares? Childish as it may, the constant horrific dreams you've been getting each day was the reason why you didn't bother to go back to sleep. Not even a wink or shuteye.

Without further delay, you decided to tell Dottore. The harbinger himself listening to every word, processing, even coming up with various solutions to at least comfort you. It's not really in his nature to do the latter but for you, he would do anything.

"Nightmares? And what, pray tell, are you having nightmares about? Is it due to the screams of the test subjects in their cells? The 'grotesque' view that others would find whenever I am in the middle of an experiment?"

Though the words he used may sound cold and blunt, the hand rubbing your head gave enough warmth and comfort. Dottore prefers to say things whatever it is.

What's the point of sugar-coating the truth when it's already in front of you, afterall? That is what Dottore would think.

Nevertheless, his actions does speak more than his words. He led you to sit on the couch he has in his office, letting you lean onto him as he gently pulled you by the waist to be closer to him while he listened to you vent out your nightmarish dreams.

"Is that so? I have a few suggestions that can be of help to you, darling. You see, I have concocted a little sedative, one that can easily make you fall asleep for.. let's say maybe twenty-four to thirty-six hours. Just enough to recover the rest you needed. I also have melatonin that could help you fall asleep. Hm.. maybe we should use them as a last resort."

Dottore had to be reminded that you cannot sleep due to your nightmares. Which caused him to stop in his rambles before crossing out the ideas he suggested.

He may have gotten a bit carried away.

You couldn't be upset at him, he is trying his best. It's the littlest things that matters, after all. Besides, he's never been in a serious relationship with anyone until you came into his life and you're probably the only one insane enough to even date the second harbinger.

"How about.. you sleep with me? You could use the rest too and I need someone to cuddle with so I don't get any nightmares."

"Cuddle? Darling, I am a doctor, a scientist. I may know the benefits of physical contact, hugging to be exact, to a person but I am not one to do such a thing--"

Dottore could even finish his sentence when you were already clinging onto him. Like a newborn to their parent, your arms were wrapped around the doctor's neck as you cuddled up to him. Said doctor could only lay stiffly on the couch, he really doesn't know what to do, you even pinned him down to the furniture and got into a position where you both would be comfortable. His fingers were twitching to flip the positions, with you laying on the couch instead so he could return to his work.

But you felt so warm and soft and so vulnerable even--

No. Bad. Keep yourself in check, Dottore.

"If you don't want to cuddle then it's alright. I can go back to my room."

Before you could even move away, Dottore kept you in place. His arms circling around your waist to keep you from getting out of his hold as he leaned his chin on top of your head. Luckily he wasn't wearing his mask or else it could have poked your eye.

"If this will be of help to let you sleep easier without anymore nightmares then go on ahead. You do know that the brain could eat itself if it lacks sleep for a long time."

You could only laugh in amusement at the information. Dottore would always tell science facts here and there whenever he is doing something very affectionately. It's an easy way to hide how flustered he is.

Your eyes started to feel heavy as you nuzzled more into Dottore's warmth. You felt something soft pressed against your forehead along with a small hum from the man holding you, causing you to smile as you slowly entered a deep slumber. Dottore's words being the last thing that you hear before entering your dreamland, this time, no more nightmares.

"Go to sleep now, darling. I'll be here till you wake up. I won't leave you alone with your nightmares this time."

[all-seems-no-well]

"Testing...Hello? Can you hear me?..."

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

-Hello. AHEM... Regarding the past events of "Kalloway Kindergarten" , We have decided to hear from the victims 20 years later to get a better insight on what really happened. The following paragraphs will be from our latest interviews with each, separate person. - These will be repeated from what our subjects had said to the interviewers. - Sadly, some people hadn't come to the interview. So please bear with us on this unfortunate mishap. Thank you for listening, Thank you for your patience, and thank you for coming.

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

-Subject no. 1 (???)

"Subject number one was unable to make it today.

-Subject no. 2 (Lilith (Lily) Prescott.)

"Slow and painful it was. At least, that's how it felt for me. But I can't imagine the more brutal things my brother had to go through. He was missing for a while, and...Nobody knew where he went. Until that very day, I and...someone else, had found him...... Under the school. The principal was doing experiments on him. It was all so... horrific. Too horrific for a child to see... If I could go back in time and give my younger self a hug, I wouldn't think twice. As for my brother, I would've done the same, even at the time. I wish In that moment I could've told him how much I loved him, how much he meant to me... But now I can't..."

-Subject no. 3 (???)

"Subject number three was unable to make it today."

-Subject no. 4 (Jerome Kennedy.)

"Hearing about the awful stuff my dad did after he died, broke me as a kid. If I had known what he was doing before, I would've told someone before it got so bad... Sometimes I still blame myself for everything that happened. I know I shouldn't, but he was MY dad. I can't get over it."

-Subject no. 5 (Buggs V. Mallory.)

"Shit sucked. Those other kids were awful to me. And yeahhh, I may or may not have been awful to them back. But YOU would be a dick too if YOU were constantly bullied! Oh, right...that... Well, I wasn't really a part of the whole thing. All I know is one day our principal died, and then another day our other principal died. A lot of principals died that week, man. So uh. I don't know.

-Subject no. 6 (Cynthia (Cindy) Louelle.)

"Okay, well. Kindergarten was kinda blehh... y'know? I met some decent people there, I guess. But I also met the most rudest girl in the world! Ugh... But yeah, like, I didn't really care about the whole "principal experimenting on us" jig. It was kinda just stupid... and annoying.... And I honestly don't even recall half of the teachers there, sooo...."

-Subject no. 7 (Monty Hyde.)

"I lost a lot at that damn school. I mean seriously, they didn't think to fire the janitor after day two?! I lost my legs because of him! And now I've just been stuck with these unflattering girl legs. But y'know what? Kindergarten was pretty fun at times. Cause' I was a little shit, and all the teachers knew it. I was even smarter than the science teacher, which says a lot about how smart I am now as an adult! ....are you recording this? Yeah? Good. YOU HEAR THAT DR. DANNER?! I'M BETTER NOW. IM A SUCCESSFUL MILLIONAIRE, AND WHERE ARE YOU? PROBABLY IN A RETIREMENT HOME...... Uh- Thank you for having me here..."

-Subject no. 8 (Felix K. Huxley.)

"I say... Kindergarten was certainly quite the experience. Younger me would've said it was horrible, but now that I've matured I see just how dramatic I was being. Though, there were some things I did that....I'm not quite proud of.... But! That aside, the experience looking back at it was quite swell. If not for that place, I wouldn't have met my lovely Cynthia...or what's his face- uh- Monty!... He's helped me a lot with my business, and I tip my metaphorical and imaginary hat to him."

-Subject no 9. (Theodore (Ted) K. Huxley)

"I believe they should've had much better funding, and staff. Because that place was just...awful. The teachers obviously despised their jobs, and the bathrooms... Oh the bathrooms were foul...! And even thinking about Kindergarten brings back horrible memories of what my brothe- actually nevermind... But anyway, thinking about the pain and suffering those poor students before me must've gone through...it makes me sick to my stomach. They could've done so much better for the students and the school itself."

-Subject no. 10 (???)

"Subject number ten was unable to make it today."

-Subject no. 11 (???)

"Subject number eleven was also unable to make it today."

-Subject no. 12 (Ozzy Harrison.)

"I don't have any good memories of that place. Not one. I'm sorry, but I don't even wanna talk about it anymore..."

-Subject no. 13 (Madison Bonneau.)

"It was like one second I was at recess, and then another I was in some sci-fi looking lab! But me and my friends got saved by some randos, so all was well after that I think! But in all seriousness, that mean lady got what she deserved. I'm glad nobody has to put up with her ever again... oh, oh! And also there was a girl there when it happened...and her head freakin' exploded!! I couldn't sleep for days because of the sight!"

-Subject no. 14 (Alison (Alice) M. Claire.)

"I heard Madi from the other room... I am incredibly sorry about her... excitement? She's never been interviewed before, and quite frankly, neither have i- o-oh, yes...my apologies... The whole situation had really put a negative toll on my well-being. I was scared to go back to school, I had a hard time trusting people, and I was overall terrified of everyone and everything around me. It felt like a bunch of eyes had been laid upon my person, and hands were out to hurt me at any moment. I and my friends were kidnapped by the other school's principal, and to say it was traumatizing would be an understatement..."

-Subject no. 15 (Ronaldo (Ron) Duncan.)

"hey do you have any cheese? No? Okay.. Well anyway. What I remember is like.. kinda crazy. So bear with me. I was just on the playground, swinging on the swings, okay? And then suddenly IM KNOCKED OUT, LIKE BLAM! And then, I woke up in some bunker with a bunch of sciencey stuff in it. And I'm like floating around in this giant tube thingy, right? And then these kids come into the bunker and they're like "well save you!!" And then the evil principle lady turns me into a monster and I'm all like "blehghh" and my friends are also like "blehghh." BUT THEN the principal lady also turns into a giant, ugly monster!! And then the kids kill her like superheroes. True story."

-Subject no 16 and 18 (???)

"These two subjects were unable to come in today due to their own plans together."

-Subject no. 17 (Austin Scarrow)

"I don't actually CARE about the stuff that happened in kindergarten! That stuff was a long time ago, and it doesn't matter to me anymore..."

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

"By listening to our subject's stories, We hope you know how much this means to them, finally being able to speak up about their own experiences from the tragedy. These people are powerful, and strong, and we wish nothing but the best for them."

------

------

"...Jesus...these kids are gonna make me a killing. I've got to get in contact with those other subjects... If I don't, this whole jig is gonna go out of business..."

[definesanity]

Reforge Thy Fate.

(Or, a montage of Darling with the Harbingers in the Fatui!AU.)

Taglist: @barbatoskisser, @gunterdon, @nicebonescomrades, and @chocoenvy.

The Nine of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers: Pantalone, The Regrator.

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

Why yes, you were bored out of your mind, how could one tell?

You had nothing against Pantalone. Although, if you had known he was this quiet when reading through profits, you would have left him to it as to not distract him.

With a sigh, however, he placed the book aside. "Ah, finally. I do hope you weren't too bored, Your Grace?"

"Don't worry, I wasn't." sitting up from your seat, you couldn't help but have a thought strike you. "...Say, I have a riddle for you."

"A riddle?" Pantalone's smile grew at that. "Well, do not keep me waiting, if you'll so please."

"What weighs more: a kilogram of steel, or a kilogram of feathers?"

The Ninth Harbinger's mouth opened before immediately closing again.

"Neither. They're both a kilogram."

You breathed a sigh of relief at that. "You'd be amazed the amount of people who would be tricked by that."

"Well, many don't think on them both be a kilogram, so they'd naturally go for metal, which is typically the heavier one."

You nodded. "Can't fault them there. Not many people look at the finer details. Minus you. If I gave you a thirty page long paper of terms and conditions, you'd read them all."

"Heh. I'm flattered you think of me the way I like to be; a banker. And, while my patience would dwindle... yes, I'd read the full pages."

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

The Eleven of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers: Ajax, Tartaglia, Childe.

"Morning, Your Grace! Mind if I take a moment to ask you something?"

"Childe." you nodded at the ginger-headed bastard. "Something the matter?"

"No, not at the moment; I just wanted to ask a... personal, question."

You knew where this was going. "Zhongli?"

"Zhongli." he replied, his voice not betraying his anger. "Out of curiosity... did he hurt you?"

"No; I had a few close meetings with his spear, but the only thing I had in the end was some mental trauma."

"So, yeah." You concluded. "No need to worry."

Childe shook his head at your nonchalance. "Your Grace, with all due respect... you may not remember it, but when I was little, and fell into The Abyss... it was you who helped me."

"What of Skirk?"

"My Master... I'll admit, she helped me. But only physically, helping me train myself and my body to withstand the darkness. But you, who's light shines even in the deepest part of that same darkness?

"That was what guided my mind. So please, try and have more faith in your followers. If not for I, then at least for the others?"

...After a moment, you sighed. "I will try my best."

"Thank you, Your Grace. Now, onto other business..."

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

The Second of the Eleven Fatui Harbingers: Zandik, Il Dottore, The Doctor.

You still have muscle memory from all your experiments in Triple Science. So, watching Zandik, or Dottore Primus, work was really bringing back those times.

"We didn't have Alchemy, back in my world," you commented offhand, reading one of the few books you had brought with you; a book on Ancient Greece.

And odd choice, but The Doctor was an odder person.

"Truly?" he sounded mildly surprised. "How odd. Erstwhile, it must be strange to return to a world with Alchemy, yes?"

"It is... say, are you mad about the whole ordeal with Buer?"

"I am... indifferent. They were helpful, yes, but in retrospect, it was just I wanting to relive my previous years. In addition, I am the Second in strength, not in numbers."

"...Well," you said. "I suppose you have a point."

"I may be mad to others, but truly; with the things I've done... could a madman have done those?"

'No,' you think. 'Because even then, they had some sort of humility to them.'

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

The Cryo Archon, The Goddess of Love, The Tsaritsa.

The Tsaritsa, while cold, was like snow and ice; on the outside was a frigid, slippy ice that pushes others away. On the inside, she was like snow that, while also cold, was much softer. Like now, for example.

The light of day slipped through the curtains, and though you wanted to move, a large arm kept you in place.

"My love," you whispered. "We can't stay here all day."

No reply.

"I know you're up, my love."

"...Nngh..." The Tsaritsa groaned. "...You truly cannot spare another moment?"

"A moment usually means an hour. But, unfortunately..." you sighed, snuggling closer. "You're too warm."

"Then rest, My Grace." tilting your head up to gaze at the towering God, she smiled down at you. "You, of all people, deserve it the most."

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for convincing a friend to run for an officer position in a club just so someone else didn’t win?

So, this happened a few months ago but it’s been gnawing at my brain and I want to know if I did the right thing. I asked some online friends for advice beforehand and there’s a chance they’ll see this- if you do, please don’t expose my blog, thanks.

Context: I (16F) am a member of my school’s Science Olympiad team, and held an officer position the past school year (my sophomore year/10th grade) and ran again for next year (my junior year/11th grade). I am using everyone’s ages at the time this happened to the best of my knowledge and memory. This takes place in a United States high school, and our Olympiad team is tied to a junior high school Olympiad team from the junior high on our campus, which we do all of our meetings with.

A group of my friends (17F, 16F, 16F, 15F) went out for the 4 out of the remaining 5 high school officer positions, and odds looked pretty good we’d win all of our races, thus having 5 out of 6 high school officer positions total. Usually it wouldn’t really matter who won anything, it would just be nice if we were all officers together. The only issue is that there are two other people on our team who are friends with each other (17F and 15F), but have a history of bullying and toxic behavior including towards people on the team. They ran for literally every single position, as you are allowed to run for multiple, and we were concerned they would use them to abuse power.

As I said before, it seemed likely we would win the positions we wanted, but this would leave secretary open, as the only two people running for secretary were one of my friends who I already mentioned, who was more likely to win president, and one of the girls I had mentioned we didn’t want winning anything in case of an abuse of power, so there wasn’t even a chance of a “third party” winning. The only reason we knew for sure who was running for what before the election started is my officer position (which was officially still held until the results of the election were released) enabled me to look at the sign up form, which I created.

My best friend told me she and another friend had worked out a plot to keep secretary out of this girl’s hands. She wanted me to ask a younger friend of mine (13NB, uses he/they for clarification) who was one of the eighth graders on the junior high school team to run, since he is going to be a freshman on the high school team this upcoming school year, and anyone with a year’s experience at any level who will be at least a freshman is allowed to run for a high school officer position.

I said I didn’t want to ask them, and I had multiple reasons why.

First, I already convinced him to do the high school team in the first place when he wanted to stick to the junior high one for another year (9th graders can be in either the junior high or high school competing divisions in Science Olympiad even though most schools in my area classify 9th grade as high school). Nobody asked me to do that, they’re just a smart kid and I thought it would be a waste of potential for them not to. Because of this I wanted him to choose to go for on officer position or not for himself at least. Second, I feel bad using a kid as a pawn in a drama he’s not involved in, even though it’s for a good reason. Everyone else involved in this was already in high school at the time. Third, they don’t even know about the stuff the girl we wanted him to run against has done, because she is nice to them specifically and they are friends. If he figured out we were plotting for him to beat her I think that would damage his trust in me and my friendship with him.

Here’s where I think I might have been an asshole. I gave in and asked them anyway, because my friends all seemed convinced this was the best course of action and I didn’t want them getting mad at me, and I still strongly felt this girl getting elected would be bad for the team I’ve worked so hard to support and for the other team members’ (mostly people I am friends with and care about) mental and emotional well being.

My friend did run, they took my suggestion to run for secretary and signed up to run for that specific position. The girl we didn’t want winning somehow beat them by two votes, so I guess it didn’t matter anyway.

In case this influences anyone’s opinion, I will tell you that we were probably right that this girl should not have been an officer. I was hoping she would mature in an officer position, but she didn’t. She’s still been saying nasty shit behind people’s backs (so has the other girl we didn’t want to win, though she didn’t win anything as we correctly predicted our wins in the other five positions). She’s been half-assing all her officer responsibilities and complaining about them constantly even though she signed up for this, and I have already been forced to do some things that were supposed to be her job.

I know it doesn’t matter now anyway, but I still kind of feel bad for using a (at the time, he’s 14 now) 13 year old as a pawn in a plot especially one that’s a good friend that I care about. Was I the asshole for doing that?

What are these acronyms?

[yoke9494]

*Originally written for the fic Songbird. (Over and done with) *Teen Nanami*

*Geto had planted a big smooth on you after you were stolen and then brought back after a mission gone wrong.

* Y/n doesn't know how to feel-- about anything? It was her first kiss after all. Plus she's basically Gojo's future wife that he doesn't want!.. but he gave Geto permission to like her? Ruffle her feathers? Yep. it's messy.

*Nanami has a crush and so does Geto. (Fuck Geto) *Not really..*

*Hibara likes drama.

Crack one shot

___________________________

Hibara put his finger under his chin in thought. "I can't see it. Show me again?"

You gave him a droll look and held out your hands in front of you. Pretending that you were Geto and the empty space between your hands was your own head.

You puckered your lips before opening them and sticking your tongue out.

Haibara snorted.

You got embarrassed and dropped your hands and put your tongue back into your mouth. "Then he started wiggling it and I got scared.."

Haibara fought back his laugh. It was obvious Geto liked you but he seemed to have forgotten that you had no experience with the opposite sex. It was cute--- but Hibara also knew a secret that you didn't--

He sighed. "I still can't tell you what it means. You're not showing me right."

You let out an exaggerated groan. "I'm trying my best here. It's not like I have the balls to go ask him to help me recreate it."

Haibara scoffed and began to think again. "We need to find you a dummy or something--"

Soft footsteps rounded the corner. "Y/n. The vending machine is out of that melon soda you like so I just got you a Coke.-- Why are you looking at me like that Hibara?"

Perfect. Just the dummy he was thinking of.

Nanami wore a bored look as he walked up to the both of you and handed you both your drinks.

Haibara wore the biggest smile. "Show me how Geto kissed you on Nanami!"

You gasped while Nanami choked on the soda he had just started drinking.

(Nanami) "I beg your pardon?--- wait, Geto kissed you?! When?"

(Hibara) "Laid a nasty one on her last night.--"

Why didn't you think of that! Nanami was perfect!

You held your hands together in a begging motion while Nanami looked at you with pink cheeks. "Please Nanami. May I violate your mouth? It's for science!"

Nanami felt like the air was getting thicker. But he kept his cool. "Absolutely not. Your thirst is showing Y/n. Drink your coke."

Ouch.

But Hibara wasn't giving up. He knew Nanami was fighting himself right now.

"Come on Nanami. It's not like you're getting girls to pucker up anytime soon... Especially with that hair."

You turned away to laugh under your breath while an irk mark appeared on Nanami's forehead.

"That's rude. Not only you judging me about my hair but the fact that you guys think I'm a whore."

You choked on air while Hibara's eyes went wide.

You caught your breath. "We don't think you're a whore! I asked you because I know for a fact you aren't one. I know where you've been and who you've been with.. Here with us! And the only dicking down you do is on some bread."

Nanami didn't know how to feel about that. And he did love bread.. just not that way?

He crossed his arms. Might as well go with it.. His poor dumb asses. "If you're using me as some lab rat. I at least need to be wined and dined first. What kind of girl do you think I am?"

Hibara laughed. "Clueless. You're pretending to be Y/n remember?"

You nodded but then got it a few seconds later. "Hey! I'm not-- okay maybe a little.." Your shoulders dropped. "Okay. I'm dumb..."

Nanami rolled his eyes. "You're not dumb. You were just deprived of simple pleasures and locked in a cage for who knows how long. And right now, I think Geto is just taking advantage of you. Since he and Yaga were the ones to find you and he thinks---- Did he even ask to kiss you?"

You couldn't really remember if he did?

Again Hibara knew. "Shoko said, that Gojo said, it was like in the movies when they just run to one another and start eating each other's face. I think Geto was just happy his girlfriend was back."

Your cheeks began to sting. "Girlfriend?! I'm not--"

Hibara cut you off. "Yeah. Okay. But I mean like-- How do I say this without being an ass." He scratched his head. "You sort of lead him on? Gosh that sounds awful.. I know you don't mean it but.--"

Nanami sighed. "He means! You and Geto hang around a lot... Touch a lot. He obviously likes you and probably thinks you like him too. "

You shrugged. "I do like him, I like everyone? And we touch a lot cause we have to? We both summon curses so he's helping me train. And helping me with hand to hand combat on the side since I suck at it and Gojo's just mean to me when we're supposed to spend time together.."

They both hummed.

(Hibara) "It's a different kind of like. The way you like him is different from the way you like us right?"

(Y/n) "I don't get it.."

Nanami felt a small pinch of jealousy in his chest. Geto wasn't a bad guy but-- He was so much older than you-- or should he say more experience? He was just trying to find every excuse to make him seem not right for you.

Nanami scoffed. "How do you feel when you're around him?"

You thought for a second. "Safe?"

Nanami almost laughed. "Even when Gojo's bullying you and Geto just stands there?"

Damn, it got quiet... Even the birds outside stopped singing.

Hibara cleared his throat.

But you spoke before he could. "I don't think he has a choice on that. The Gojo Clan basically bought me for that jerk so he can do with me as he pleases.. Even if he wanted to, Geto can't do anything about it."

Nanami shrugged. "Or he's just an asshole like his best friend Gojo. He wants to pluck the pretty flower instead of letting her flourish in a garden."

Hibara tilted his head. "Damn that's a good one."

You on the other hand were still lost? The last thing on your mind was falling in love anyways. Would it be nice to feel it one day? Hell yeah! But again, you belonged to the Gojo Clan, promised to be Satoru's wife one day. And you'd never love him the way you read about love or watched it in a movie..

Nanami just wanted to change the subject. He doesn't know why he's being jealous. Even if he did have a crush on you, that didn't mean you felt the same. And if you ever did-- Y'know, like him or Geto.. You couldn't be with either of them for long anyways. Once you turned 20 you and Gojo would be married..

He sighed. This was as good as it was going to get. "So are you going to kiss me or not?"

You looked up. "Oh right! I almost forgot what we were originally talking about."

Nanami leaned in and closed his eyes-- but Hibara's hand stopped his face from going any closer to yours.

Nanami opened his eyes. "Disgusting."

(Hibara) "Rude. My hands are clean!"

You and Nanami shared a look.. (Sure they were.)

Hibara was hurt.. "Anyway! We need to set the scene! Y/n didn't just lean in a pucker up."

He stood up. "Okay. Nanami picture this! You were on your very first mission and just got done being man handled by a first grade curse! Then BAM! You were stolen and brought back!... I don't want to go through the whole story.."

He then turned to you. "Y/n. Imagine you're one of Jujutsu Techs attractive Playboys and the girl you probably love has finally returned after the school was turned upside down from her being missing!-- You just got done blaming yourself and literally losing your shit."

You tried to cut him off. You didn't hear about that last part. "He did?"

Hibara waved you off. He'd tell you about it later. "Not important right now... Action!"

Nanami rolled his eyes but this time he sat still. You weren't the one to make the first move anyways and he was pretending to be you... Right?

"Um okay." You felt nervous all of a sudden. You shouldn't be! It was just Nanami-- He and Hibara were your best friends..

(Hibara) "Come on Geto. Get on with it."

You scooted closer to Nanami and grabbed his head. A lot softer than Geto originally did to yours but--- Nanami's hair was really soft.

His face was warm due to his blush. He was really handsome up close... Even with his emo screamo haircut.

The closer you got the faster your heart raced. Was this normal?

Nanami closed his eyes and you copied the second your lips brushed against his. Again it wasn't the same way Geto kissed you, this was much softer.

Nanami had this surge of bravery and lifted his hand to hold your cheek. Slowly moving to the back of your neck to deepen the kiss.

(Hibara) "Do you guys need to breathe yet?"

Neither of you hear him..

Your brain was short circuiting and you completely forgot what to do. What did Geto do next?

Oh right.

Your tongue touched his bottom lip and Nanami hesitantly let you in. But this is where you didn't know what to do..

So Nanami took over. Slowly swirling his tongue around yours. He's read about kissing like this in books so he understood it a little more than you did.

Though you both were still a bit lost and messy with it...

Oh, did I forget to mention.. This was Nanami's first kiss too? Oops..

Hibara smiled but it quickly faded. Was he really watching his two friends learn how to kiss while smiling like a creep? Wtf...

"Uh, you guys im gonna like, go get something from the vending machine. Don't make babies while I'm gone."

Again you two didn't even hear him. The only thing Hibara heard when he rounded the corner was.

(Nanami) "Breath through your nose idiot."

(You) "Sorry!"

Before it got nasty with the wet sounds again..

Hibara chuckled to himself when he finally reached his destination. "They're both hopeless... But am I a good wing man or what?"

He didn't expect anyone to answer. Well they didn't but a familiar deep voice called out to him.

"Hibara. Have you seen Y/n around?"

He turned to smile at his upperclassmen. "Sorry Geto. But I'm on my way to go find her now. Pretty sure she's with Nanami in the rec area."

Geto stood there while Hibara looked at the bag in his hand. "Did you bring stuff back from your mission? How was it?"

Geto gave off a smile. "It was fine. Over and done with pretty quickly." He sort of swayed on his feet. "I brought her some stuff she likes back-- Y'know.. As an apology for what happened the other day.-- Did she mention anything about being angry with me or?"

Oh Hibara loved drama. He pretended to think. "Hm? Not that I know of.. But again she's been with Nanami a lot so maybe ask him?"

Geto nodded."Should we go find them then? I think I need to explain myself."

No shit..

Hibara snorted. "Sure! Let's go!."

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

[soundcrusher]

Me: *reads somewhere that Sephiroth's 30* Me: "Heh... funny." My Brain: "Reeve's 35 years old." Me: "... You know what would be funny?"

Either way, that's how this little drabble came to be.

Short Summary: What if Sephiroth and Reeve met when they were both young and working at Shinra?

Animals are kind creatures, if you treat them with respect and a careful hand. Something Sephiroth learned during his time in Rhadore when meeting Rosen’s dog for the first time. 

He was never judged by the dog, nor did it ever force him to be something he didn’t not feel like. Instead, it accepted him as just another kid, and even when Rhadore was destroyed alongside its people, the dog still was kind to him. Even as Hojo made him kill it, after keeping it a secret from him for a few days. 

The dog even looked at him, as if it knew that its death wasn’t fully his fault. That this was the only way, and it was okay. It was okay for Sephiroth to kill it, but still. The death was still on his hands, and so, the young soldier refused to interact with animals again. Mostly because he didn’t want to be responsible for another animal's death, nor did he want Hojo to get any ideas about including innocent creatures in his experiments. After all, monsters were one thing, dogs, cats, and other pets were another. 

So, it came as quite a surprise when Sephiroth entered an empty office and found a small, black and white cat stacking chairs to try and attempt to climb back into the vent it obviously fell out. 

And when the stack fell and the cat subsequently with it, Sephiroth quickly rushed over to help it up. Picking up the small thing and getting quite surprised by the cartoonish proportions, together with the cruelty made cape, gloves, and crown. 

The cat, perhaps a toy, looked like the creation of a child itself. Or, at least its clothes looked like it. Its body, face, and fur looked well crafted. Perhaps it was a prototype of something that hasn’t come out yet? Then again, why would a prototype run around freely? Or, maybe, the cat was one of Hojo’s newest creations, sent to on an errant no-one knew about, and it fell out of the vent while trying to return to the science floor. Then again, this office wasn’t anywhere near close to the science floor. In fact, they were closer to the Urban Development floor, than anywhere near Hojo’s domain. 

“Aye, laddy, if it’s no’ too much tae ask. Wuid ye let me go?”

The cat spoke, and it left Sephiroth look as bewildered as he felt, because, why would a cat that’s clearly not a cat, be able to speak? And in such a funny way too? It didn’t make any sense, and at the same time ruled Hojo’s involvement completely out. 

“Laddy?” Asked the cat, as it tilted its head to the side. Somehow managing to look concerned for him, despite its tightly shut eyes and lack of any human facial structures. Then again, the ears and mouth of the cat were quite expressive. 

“I… am sorry.” Was the first thing that came to the young soldier's mind, before carefully sitting the cat down on the table. “I didn’t expect you to speak.”

“Ye’re no’ tae first.” Chirped the cat happily, while raising its big gloved hands up slightly and shaking its head. “Then again, no’ many see me. So, ye’re the first tae meet me, laddy.” The cat quickly jumped up. Which caused Sephiroth to reach for the sword that should have been on his back, if it wasn’t for the fact that Shinra forbid him from being armed inside their building. A rule the teenager didn’t understand, considering a state of emergency could always happen. Then again, the cat didn’t look like a threat. Not with how it raised its paws, maybe hands, in a placating gesture. Quickly shaking its head and telling Sephiroth that it didn’t mean to startle him. It just wanted to get going, because it didn’t want to get caught. 

A sentiment Sephiroth understood all too well. 

But this was Shinra, and no matter what, someone will find out about where you went or what you’ve done. And in a pout of childish rebellion, as Hojo would call it, Sephiroth let the cat go. He even helped it back up into the vent, before cleaning up the office and leaving for his next assignment. Expecting to never see the cat again, or, at the very least, hear that it was caught and destroyed to ensure no-one would ever find out that the building was infiltrated by a toy. 

So, Sephiroth was very surprised when he saw the cat again. Sitting in the corner of the elevator he was supposed to use to get to the lower floors, as if no-one would suspect a thing. It was strange, to say the least. Especially with how unresponsive the cat was. Slumped over, as if all energy has left it. 

 It was concerning, but at the same time, Sephiroth tried no to think about it that much as he selected the correct floor. Eyes ever so often darting over to the small thing, until it decided to finally move again. But it never did. The cat that, so far, has been the only nice thing in this place, wasn’t responding when he softly poked its pink nose, nor when he carefully played with its paws. It didn’t even flinch, when he re-tied its scarf. No, but it did start when Sephiroth accidentally pulled on its ear. 

And so, the teenager did it again. Moving quickly backwards, as the cat jumped up. Claws extending out of the soft gloves, before quickly retracting at the sight of the frightened youth. Not that Sephiroth would ever admit to being frightened by a small toy. 

“Ay, laddy! Why wuid ye do ‘at?!” Shouted the cat angrily, while stomping one of its feets in frustration, perhaps? Or, maybe, the cat was disgruntled from being woken up from its nap?

“I am… sorry mister cat… I just… I was worried.” Hojo would have admonished him for even thinking about feeling worried for a simple, insignificant, toy. But Hojo wasn’t here right now. The cat was. And the cat seemed to calm down at the sight of the silver haired boy’s open expression. 

“Ye’re just like… Well! Ye dae look like a lot’s on yer mind. Wanna talk about it?”

It was a kind offer, all things considered, but then again, Sephiroth didn’t know how to feel about it. On one hand, he wanted to talk about somethings, especially Rhadore, but then again, how would the cat react to him spilling some truths? Maybe it was all a test and it would report back to Hojo, or, it wasn’t. 

But what was worse? The cat being a spy for his ‘father’, or it deciding to leave him, the second it knew just what kind of monster he was?

However, before Sephiroth could give his answer, the door to the elevator opened, and a boy older than him stepped in. Dark brown hair that was previously slicked back, but now disheveled, falling into tired brown eyes, while he clutched a document folder to his chest. Mumbling something about a missing cat, before looking over at where Sephiroth was kneeling down to better talk to the cat. 

At first, the older boy’s expression didn’t change much. His eyes looked just as tired as they did before, but the second they landed on the cat, the boy’s face lit up brighter than Midgar’s neon lights. And with a happy shout of “Cait!”, the boy dropped his folder in favor of scooping up the toy cat. Squeezing it tightly to his chest, as if he was scared it would disappear again. 

“Where were ye?! I was so worried!” Sobbed the boy, and Sephiroth found himself in an awkward position. How was he supposed to react, when the cat he thought didn’t belong to anyone, belonged to another boy? It was obviously his toy, from the way the brunette clung to it like a lifeline, and from how the cat patted the boy’s back. 

“I was jus’ looking around. An’ found a friend.”

The boy looked over at that. And all he found was the wide eyes of Sephiroth staring into his own bright ones. Never once had someone called him a friend, and even if they did, they soon enough left him. It was something that would surely happen this time around too. The boy would take Cait. He would take him, and never let them see each other again. 

He would lose a friend, without even getting the chance of becoming friends in the first place. It's unfair, but Sephiroth shouldn’t have expected anything else. And yet, he really wanted this time to be different. He wanted to make a friend, and be allowed to keep them. Even if they were nothing more than a robot cat toy. 

“Thank ye fo’ finding Cait.” 

“What?”

“A-ah… I said… Thank you for finding Cait…” 

Did Sephiroth say something wrong? Why was the boy looking so lost all of a sudden? Was it because he asked ‘What’? Should he have said something different? He should have said something different, he knew it, but at the time, Sephiroth was just too surprised at being thanked that he couldn’t think of something else to say. People don’t usually thank him, especially for things that are as mundane as finding a lost toy. Even if said toy was clearly more advanced than most. 

No, most would be condescending at most, but the other boy didn’t look like that at all. On the contrary, he cried when finding Cait, looked over at Sephiroth, as if he had never seen a fellow child, and then proceeded to thank him for doing the bare minimum. 

This boy didn’t act like any of the adults, and Sephiroth found himself liking his new acquaintance for that. 

But instead of telling the boy that, Sephiroth asked the boy why he repeated his thanks, to which the boy let out one long sigh, before telling him how people think less of him for using his accent. “I’ve been training to speak like everyone else, instead of how my parents and Cait do. It’s… been hard, but! People started to treat me nicer! So, it’s a win!”

The boy sounded so hopeful, and Sephiroth couldn’t help to wonder how unfair it was for the boy to not be allowed to speak in his natural accent. It sounded nice, even if it was a little strange. And he told him so, which caused the boy to blush and hide his face behind Cait’s body. 

“Ye’re jus’... just… You’re just saying that to be nice!” Muttered the boy. 

“I’m not.” Responded Sephiroth, before looking over at the floor display. He’ll have to get off soon. Or, perhaps, he could stay longer on the elevator with the boy and Cait? There was nowhere he had to be, and Hojo’s tests weren’t starting anytime soon. Sephiroth could stay with the boy for a little while longer, and so, he did. 

They moved past his stop and left the elevator at the older boy’s stop. And with nothing better to do, Sephiroth followed him all the way to the office of the Director of Urban Development -Reeve Tuesti, if he wasn’t mistaken-, and watched his new friend drop off the folder, before showing him around the floor. 

It was nice to just listen to the boy ramble about the things his co-workers did, and how their office was often full of chatter and the occasional drama, when someone misplaced a pen, or when someone decided to pull a prank on someone else. And when time for lunch came, the boy grabbed Sephiroth’s hand and pulled him towards the canteen. Smiling brightly, as he yet again got to show off more and more of the Shinra building. But when asked if the boy had seen every floor, he grew quiet. Muttering a few things in between the small bites he took of his sandwich, before admitting that he always tries to not go anywhere near the science floor. 

“Hojo scares me…” Admitted the boy, after finishing his orange juice. “He… I don’t want to be near him. And I don’t want him to be near Cait either…”

“Why?”

The boy was quiet for a moment. Looking at Sephiroths with uncertainty in his eyes, before scooting closer to him with his chair. Making sure that no-one was looking in their direction, or paying attention to them. “I can bring things to life.” Whispered the boy quietly. Eyes focused on Sephiroth, as he tried to decipher the confused look on the silver haired boy’s face. “I… don’t know how. But I can make toys move and act on their own…” He continued, but stopped when Sephiroth failed to give an answer, or say something in response. 

And how could he? Bringing things to life sounded like something straight out of a fairytale, and yet, the boy didn’t look like someone who would, or could, lie. So, Sephiroth decided to believe him, and to not tell Hojo anything. What he doesn’t know, could never interest him after all. Also, Sephiroth didn’t want to lose a possible new friend. So, he promised the boy to keep his secret. To which the boy smiled in relief and continued to tell him about other mundane things that happened around the Shinra building. Only getting up, when someone in a suit walked over to inform his new friend that he was needed. To which the brunette let out a sigh and got up. Smiling at Sephiroth, while picking up Cait and thanking him for finding his toy. 

It wasn’t until later that the young soldier found out that his friend’s name was Reeve. 

Reeve Tuesti, Director of Urban Development, and youngest board member. 

[ohnoitstbskyen]

Reflecting on my work in 2022

As this official Hell Of A Year™ draws to a close, I guess it is appropriate to both reflect on what I've been doing this year, as well as do a bit of plugging for work which I am proud of.

So here's a list of some of the videos I made this year, along with some thoughts on their creation and how I feel about them, some self-criticism, some behind-the-scenes, and a little self-congratulation where it is appropriate.

I struggle somewhat with memory and a clear sense of time - to me, time is more of a continuous stream than a series of delineated moments. This is often frustrating - I get lost in it, and when I look back on a list of my work and activities, it is less an experience of "oh yeah, ha ha, that happened" and more of a "wait what do you mean that happened then? And before that other thing? But after that one? What the hell?"

Worst case scenario, it can be kinda distressing, honestly. It feels out of control, anxiety inducing, like I don't have a handle on my life.

... which is an absolutely fantastic tone to strike for a New Year's list of my favourite videos. 2023, woo!

The Boss Designs of Bloodborne Finale (February)

It took me nearly three months after the penultimate episode of the series to finally put this video out. My The Boss Designs Of series is some of the best work I've ever created, at least I think so. It's certainly some of the most creatively fulfilling work I do, and some of the most challenging too.

I try to walk a line between providing a fresh perspective on the games I've played for the series, but not getting contrarian or off-the-wall just for the sake of it. With Bloodborne, I do think I managed some really good critical contributions to the readings of the game, like my reading of the Blood-starved Beast as a self-sacrificing martyr for the beast community of Old Yharnam, which was apparently quite novel, or my crackpot Parasite Theory of Bloodborne's madness.

And I do think I've gotten better and better at editing gameplay footage too, I think I've managed to learn a good balance between joke-edits and continuity and story editing. I always kinda fret on the one hand that the gameplay footage and my live commentary is too boring to stand on its own, and on the other hand that editing in too many jokes and gags would just be obnoxious and tedious to sit through.

The thing Bloodborne nails more than any other horror game I've seen is the sensation of the nightmare. And not just in its visuals or its monster designs or the surface storytelling, but in the push and pull between extremely specific imagery and story beats and complete ambiguity the moment you scratch at the surface. Bloodborne is on the one hand a fairly obvious story about the abuses of organized religion and unethical science, but then underneath that there's also this deep obsession with the violence done to women's bodies specifically, and how that violence spills out and caustically eats into the humanity of everyone who is complicit in it.

And then underneath that there's an exploration of birth trauma, where the Great Ones are parental figures as incomprehensible to the player as parents are to a newborn child, pushing you here and pulling you there and inflicting incomprehensible violations of your bodily autonomy out of apparent sympathy.

And underneath all of that... it's also about how cool it would be to transform into a werewolf, actually. The themes of self-creation and transformation and claiming monsterhood as self-empowerment are incredibly queer and especially apt for trans readings.

It all flows together in this soup of imagery and meaning that I cannot crystalize into a unifying Theory of Bloodborne, no definitive reading, no comprehensive hot take. Which is frustrating when you're trying to create a video essay, but infinitely compelling when trying to think about it.

I don't know that I managed to capture all of that in the The Boss Designs of Bloodborne finale, but I do know that I tried to, and I'm proud of that.

Melina, the Maiden - Boss Designs of Elden Ring #1 (March)

Staying with The Boss Designs of, here's a video about which my feelings have become decidedly mixed. Not because of anything that is in the episode, mind you, but out of a certain disempowered bitterness I've developed about Elden Ring over the course of the year.

I cannot overstate how excited I was for Elden Ring, and how desperately I enjoyed finally getting to play it back in March. It's a brilliant game, an incredibly immersive world, and one which I badly want to return to.

... and then I didn't get to play the game for nine months. It was partly my own mistake - I tried recording an absolute ton of footage for episodes early, playing as much of the game as I could while it was still fresh, hoping to put out a lot of episodes of the series early while the game was fresh and Relevant In The Algorithm™, and also just out of sheer excitement. In so doing, though, I ended up shooting myself in the foot, because as I began to edit episodes together I also found myself feeling more and more distant from the experience of playing.

The pile of footage in front of me, begging to be converted into episodes, became a roadblock of work looming over me, a source of guilt and stress and frustration, that put extra stress on my mind every time I tried to make any other video and which stood between me and getting to play more of the game I have anticipated more than any other for years.

In 2023, I will get back to Elden Ring, I swear to god I will, but in the meantime I am quite happy with how the three episodes I've made of this series so far have turned out.

Also, the new intro song I commissioned from @trewatsonmusic absolutely slaps.

What's the deal with Zeri and Neon (June)

My ambition for the What's the Deal videos has always been to expand them beyond League of Legends (and I have done videos on characters from other things), but being a YouTuber is also my job, and League of Legends is the moneymaking subject on my channel, at least for now.

Not that I resent that. For all that League deserves the criticism it gets, I still insist that it has one of the greatest casts of characters in modern gaming, underserved and ignored though most of them are by Riot Games. There's so much to talk about once you get even a little bit under the surface, and I do feel like I've been doing a better and better job at doing that in the What's the Deal videos over 2022. Zeri, for example, is a fantastic addition to the class warfare dynamics of Piltover and Zaun, especially in her conflict with Renata Glasc and the themes that could be explored through that conflict. And it's not lost of me the extent to which she was a direct response to the xenophobic attacks on Asian-Americans that have surged out of American politics in recent years, either. There is value to proclaiming that someone like Zeri belongs in the worlds of big pop culture institutions like League of Legends, even if (as always) it is the workers at Riot Games making that proclamation, and Riot Games Inc. allowing it because it serves their commercial goals.

I brought in Nickyboi for an assist on this one as well, which is something I want to do more. I want to do more collaboration. First of all because it's nice to offload work to someone else, but also because this job is fundamentally kind of lonely. I'm just a guy in his office making videos 99% of the time, and collaborating with a fellow creator feels like being part of a creative community in a way that solo work and shitposting at each other on Twitter simply doesn't.

And I am proud of the little fanfiction snippets I've started writing in the The Future segments. One of the points of the What's the Deal videos is to communicate to an audience why I'm excited about a character, why I feel like they're worth giving a shit about, and I think those fanfiction segments have done a better job at getting that across than almost all of my character design and animation chatter. Plus, it's nice to flex a bit of creative muscle in that way now and then.

Speaking of which, I still need to write that happier ending for Kai'sa and Taliyah, don't I? I have A Plan™ for that, it's just about finding the time to make it real...

The 15 Most Beautiful Splash Arts in League of Legends (September)

This one is easily the biggest surprise of the year for me. In the latter half of 2022, I took quite a lot of sponsorships - first of all because they were offered (good lord there was a rush of them in August!), but also because I really wanted to save up and pay down debts.

One of the consequences of that was the extreme delay of Elden Ring, but another was that all of a sudden I had to get content out on a very set schedule. Most of my work is done on the steam of Whatever Catches My Creative Attention At The Time, but with a deadline hanging over my head, suddenly I had to find video ideas whether they presented themselves naturally or not.

I feared that a list-video would be a turn-off for my audience, I feared that it would be seen as shallow and tacky, like a 2010s Buzzfeed listicle. I feared that people just wouldn't be interested in the kind of art analysis I like to do, or would find it pretentious to seek meaning in what is - let's be real - commercial artwork meant to promote game cosmetics.

The benefit of a sponsorship is that the video has already made a profit, whether it does well or not, and I thought that in making this video, I was being self-indulgent and "ignoring" the desires of my audience.

Instead, it's one of the best performing videos ever on my channel, and people have cited it as a favorite among my videos quite a number of times.

Which was really... encouraging, honestly. I didn't expect it, but this video really did give me a confidence boost that the things I care about and find interesting do have an audience, even extra-nerdy rambling about League of Legends cosmetics.

Building a Better Soraka (September)

Building a Better is a series title I sometimes regret a little bit, because no matter how much I try to explain in the videos themselves that there is no such thing as a perfect character design and that my revisions and ideas are not meant to be definitive in any way, I always get comments from people accusing me of declaring myself The God of Character Design and sitting in holy judgment over the work I'm critiquing.

To an extent, I guess that's unavoidable on the internet, but... maybe the series title was a bad gamble on that front.

I do stand by, though, that my designs have a reasonable argument that they are improvements over the originals. Arguments that can be interrogated and criticized, but valid, reasonaed arguments, not mere polemics.

Building a Better Soraka was an experiment in creating the series, as instead of working with a single artist to iterate on design improvements, I ended up commissioning more than a half dozen people for artwork and using different renditions to make my argument. It did hurt the coherency of the video a little, I feel, but it did open me up to a much more flexible way to produce videos like it in the future, which I'm happy with.

Plus, I really do like what I came up with here, and I adore the ways that @sabtherobot, @sinizade and @lekyrin executed my ideas and brought their own visions of the character. Soraka is a character who deserves a lot better than the basic design she's stuck with, and whose story can do so much more visually than Riot is willing to allow it to do.

"Not Without You" - the story of Nasus and Renekton (November)

Of all the writing I did this year, this is by far what I am most proud of.

The video itself did not perform very well, nor did I expect it to, but the reactions I saw from the audience on this piece... yeah. That filled a very hungry part of my heart, I'm not gonna lie.

Writing a novel is a life ambition for me, as it is for many people. Actually writing it is a lot more elusive, though, in part because I struggle to feel confidence that my writing would ever hold up to the scrutiny of an audience. I struggle to feel that I would ever be able to connect emotionally with people, that I would be able to make what I feel sensible through writing.

This story proved that I can. Not to a big audience, perhaps, and I certainly don't have any delusions of genius or grandeur. I do not ever expect to be a famous or fêted writer, nor an important one. But... I do feel like with this story, I proved that I can at least be a competent one, which is frankly all I want.

And Nasus and Renekton were grateful subjects, too. Their story is naturally deeply emotional, albeit strangled by Riot's chronic indifference towards their most compelling narratives, and a lot of what I ended up exploring in there did come from a very genuine place in myself. It was nice to touch that part of my soul, and make something out of it, even if it's only silly fanfiction for a silly video game.

I am cautiously optimistic about 2023

Looking back over the videos I made this year, while I have a lot of work that I am proud of, I also see a lot of videos that I think I made less out of a desire to make them and more out of a fear of not making them. Videos that I made because I felt like the audience expected it, because the algorithm demanded it, because rent is always coming due and I am petrified of ever being broke again.

This is normal and natural, it is to some extent just the nature of the creative process under a capitalist market system where your work must always have some sort of price tag. But... I don't want to keep doing it. If I have an ambition for 2023, it is to make more of the videos I want to make, more videos that I only I can make. To give myself a little bit of a break and ease up on the self-recrimination and stress.

I have so many projects I want to get to, and being in my 30s I am becoming more and more conscious that while I (hopefully) have something like twice my current lifetime left to create the things I want, time is a finite resource, and spending it trying to please a website algorithm probably won't do me that much good in the end.

Anyway, some other things I did which I am quite proud of:

Played through God of War: Ragnarök while telling stories about the mythology of my childhood.

Ran around the world of Eorzea, accompanied by some of the funniest, silliest and most generous FFXIV players a man could dream of.

Finished a Pokémon HeartGold Nuzlocke with possibly the most nerve-wracking finish I have ever had to a Pokémon game

Reviewed every single Gen 1 Pokémon

Finished Great Ace Attorney Chronicles 1, probably the let's play with the most voice acting I have ever done. Some of it is even good!

If you've read this far, thank you so much for your time, your attention, your interest and your indulgence. Your 2023 be a good year, and may the tides of history wash gently over us all.

[misslavenderlady]

I'm here with some questions about our girl Bree~!!!

How did she find out they were vamps in the first place? I mean, did she figure most of it put on her own, or did the boys show their true side to her?

And what are the Frogs + Sammy's thoughts on her? If the Frogs know her at least. 👀

CHERRYYYYYY!! This is my first ever ask about Bree!!! I'm so excited! Rest assured, I will have an actual side blog up for her soon but in the meantime I am more than happy to answer any questions about her here

🥺🥺❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

So Bree is a registered nurse, meaning she has plenty of medical knowledge from her studies and experience. It's easy for her to figure out when something is wrong. She met the boys the first night they ever popped into the doctors office she works at. David asked for her to examine his wrist because he crashed his bike while doing a stunt (a little callback to the injury kiefer got before they started filming)

Obviously during the exam Bree noticed there was no pulse in his wrist, and feared something was wrong. She tried to listen for his heartbeat with her stethoscope but found nothing. When she excused herself to get another stethoscope and try again, David and the boys had mysteriously vanished.

They returned again another night. She tried to ask questions, but the boys lead her in circles with their mysterious words (that or they just didn't answer her, opting to just giggle playfully). Dwayne, Paul and Marko all got checkups too. Whether it was asking for a flu shot, getting a cough checked or just making up some disease to get her to touch them, they adored playing games. Each time they did, she found something new wrong. The biggest kicker was when she drew blood at David's request, and was shocked to find the blood was glittery and dark.

She fainted from the shock, and was found and cared for by Michael after she woke up. The boys had left by that point.

At first she thought there had to be some logical explanation. She's a bright woman that values science and research. In a way, she was more fascinated than she was horrified. She thought they were all some kind of medical anomaly. Four boys with an unknown illness.

But then the visits started. Or rather, the "dreams" as she thought they were.

Bree would have moments in the dead of night where she'd hear voices whispering to her. Images of the boys in her room, asking if she wanted to be one of them. To know what they were. They told her to turn away from her medical journal and look more to her beloved monster books. When she awoke, she did just that. She poured over all her favorite stories, particularly Dracula and Camilla. Everything began to make a lot more sense.

At the moment, David and the boys have not outright said what they are, as they're biding their time for the right moment (especially with Michael still a part of their game). But there's this unspoken agreement between them and Bree. A bond made by a shared secret. She knows what they are, but she's not frightened. She's interested. Curious. Attracted to them.

She wants to get to know them more, and they feel the same about her~

Since Michael works at the same doctors office, the other Emersons pop in to say hi to both him and Bree. During the summer Sam and the Frogs come by for the school physicals, which are done by Bree. She thinks Sam is a nice kid, but find the Frog brothers a bit odd. They give her cryptic warnings about monsters and that they suspect the return of vampires they once slayed. When she tries to ask Sam about it, he tells her that Michael isn't very comfortable with sharing that story.

To her, the Emersons are just as mysterious as the Lost Boys. Granted, they're very kind and wonderful to be around, but she wishes they would open up to her. She really likes Michael and he likes her. It breaks her heart to see him and his brother struggling with their demons from the past.

Little does she know that such a thing is more literal in the sense.

In the meantime, she's happy to chat with the kids, so long as they behave. She also gives them stickers as a little gift. They claim they're too old for stickers, but secretly love them.

[copperbadge]

Hey Sam, any chance you can talk a bit more about saffron at some point? I've not encountered it as a possible ADHD treatment before and am curious what you meant about finding it not helpful at higher doses. Does it just not work, does it kinda work but have an annoying side effect or two, etc etc. Thinking I might give it a go, but I'm on 60mg of rubifen a day (2 pills in morning, one early afternoon) and want to have an idea of where to place my expectations :)

The saffron thing is pretty new overall as well as new to me, and I tend to side-eye "natural" cures because generally when natural cures work they, you know, become medicine. There's also very little regulation on natural remedies/vitamins so it's always a toss-up as to what's actually in the capsules; when I went looking for saffron pills, all of them seemed sketchy, made and sold by the kind of place that'll sell you gunpowder tea for weight loss. (I ended up going with Nootropics simply because they put most of the info on the bottle.)

I heard about saffron as an ADHD treatment from a woman I was speaking to who's got three kids with ADHD, all under 15, and was having trouble getting their meds. We originally started talking because I was offering tips on how to find pharmacies that might have larger stocks of Adderall during the shortage, and she tuned into the conversation since trying to get three 30-day scrips for Adderall filled at once really sucked. She told me she'd tried saffron after hearing about it on an ADHD Parenting community, and that it was helping her kids with the hyperactivity element, though she wasn't sure if it was helping them with focus and executive function. The study here seems to be the main source of data on it, and it's admittedly a small study, but the fact that it is being studied by actual scientists is somewhat reassuring.

The recommended dosage is 30mg/day of the saffron, which I've been taking for a couple of weeks on top of the first dose of Adderall (and daily vitamins). I really only have my own experience to go on but it seems to me to act as an enhancer for the Adderall; gives it a little kick, at least it feels like. It doesn't seem to do much on its own for me. On the one hand, the placebo effect can be mighty, but on the other, I'm a reasonably skeptical person who hasn't been subject to placebo effect during drug trials in the past, so I think what I'm feeling is a real effect, it's just very mild. (A while back I tried Rhodiola, which is another commonly-recommended herbal supplement for ADHD, and didn't feel like it did anything.)

On top of 10mg of Adderall, the 30mg Saffron works pretty well, seems to intensify it a bit. I do take 20mg of Adderall on occasion but unless I'm super tired or stressed, it's too much -- it pushes me through productive and back out into scattered -- so the saffron intensifying 20mg is way, way too much, even if I need the 20mg. If I'm taking both doses at once I leave the saffron capsule in the pill box.

Overall, the science is still a bit shaky, but less shaky than a lot of non-prescription cures out there, and Saffron's pretty safe to use. Even if it's not doing anything, the only real consequence is I'm out $22 for the bottle. I might go off it for a bit once the bottle's done and see if I notice a downswing. All my data is pretty highly subjective, so all I can recommend is trying it out for yourself.

[nerdylizj]

Ms Stem anon here. I received my BS in Biology. As you can imagine the past couple of years have been… fun (is it really when people think you’re part of a big conspiracy, but jokes on them because have they EVER been part of a group project?) Now after working and volunteering for the past 3ish years I’m going back for, hopefully, family therapy. I like helping people face to face. And a lot of my volunteering involved pointing disenfranchised communities and those affected by C19 to resources and services they would otherwise be unaware of. The program I volunteered through also participated in fairs, provided vaccine clinics/gave vouchers, provided testing, amongst other services. My work with children involved a lot of guiding them on how to self regulate and validating their emotions/experiences while also helping them find ways to deal with them in a healthier manners. A big part of it is guiding them towards the safer choices but making sure they feel as if they came to that choice all on their own. It can be mentally taxing at times due to some having some bad home lives but it’s overall very satisfying.

Having a bio degree allows me to better advocate for myself and others medically as well as being able to better understand/scrutinize media reports on research. While I understand why there is a barrier to reading studies to avoid people without the background to misconstrue it, we also allow for misinformation to persist as there is significant scientific illiteracy going on. There should be a way to better communicate with those lacking the education and training we receive.

Spiel aside… the babies will continue to suffer and I support… it makes me a well rounded individual. I’m excited to see what will ultimately happen with them. There are a lot of implications for their, and kids, future. Not only did girly pop marry and procreate with the enemy, he is technically heir to the thrown as will be her children. But hey maybe one day they’ll have all their memories and remember that they were into each other pre-brainwashing. What with their awkward flirting and katara “keeping an eye on him.”

Ooh I did read the fic that inspired yours. Hopefully one day that one will be continued (i hope the author is doing, and does, well regardless of whether they do or don’t continue it).

omg you’ve done so much meaningful work <333 i don’t think the General Public really understands just how hard covid hit already-disenfranchised people/those who experience health disparities. and it still is hitting hard!!! btw one of my besties is a family therapist (liv, tell me i'm right..) and i always admire her tenacity to provide meaningful sessions to her clients even when she’s burnt out or compassion fatigued <3 it is not easy work

i’ll be honest i’m not a fan of (doing the) research but at least i can read and interpret it 😭💞 imho, it is a privilege to be health/scientific literate. i agree with you 100% about misinformation... health and scientific illiteracy is a hugely multi-faceted, societal problem that will take generations to truly change (and a lot of work). not to mention that there are valid concerns for some communities to distrust medicine/science

i think zk may need ur counseling services, a feelings wheel, and time/space to process... too bad there’s a war going on and they are both so dumb JKFEFVJKNMEO

i love catie_writes_things’ fic soo much. i hadn’t read a memory loss fic before so it haunted me many a nights after i first read it. then the zk ghoul took hold of me and here i am... like 220k+ later 😭😭😭😭

I love that you’re considering this career, i wish you all the best of luck in ur grad school apps 💗

[authoralexharvey]

INTERVIEW WITH A WRITEBLR — @nanashi23

Who You Are:

Eon || They/them

I am an ancient hermit living in the suburban deserts of Colorado. Before becoming a hermit, I've did time in the publishing industry, but mostly greasing wheels, not the fun stuff.

What You Write:

What genres do you write in? What age ranges do you write for?

Action, adventure, comedy, contemporary, drama, fantasy, horror, paranormal, psychological, sci-fi, thriller, and tragedy. New adult and adult.

What genre would you write in for the rest of your life, if you could? What about that genre appeals to you?

Science and Speculative fiction. As a queer person in the ADHD propaganda generation, something needs to remind people there is still hope, anger and passion in the world and that experiences cannot be commodified.

What genre/s will you not write unless you HAVE to? What about that genre turns you off?

Mystery, because I just feel like I am not smart enough to make it mysterious. YA because I'm not sure how. Younger children's books because… I like to say fuck. : )

Who is your target audience? Do you think anyone outside of that would get anything out of your works?

Lost, lonely, angry people who like space queers and the occasional jackass. Yes, I think people will get it, especially if they just walk in expecting a good time and not a world shaking adventure.

What kind of themes do you tend to focus on? What kinds of tropes? What about them appeals to you?

Apparently hope? The more I read my own writing the more I realize I write about 9/11, culture wars, fighting against an enemy everyone thinks is dead because 'you won' some arbitrary battle. Tropes are hard for me because I am old. Disaster duos are my favorite one that I can say for sure.

What themes or tropes can you not stand? What about them turn you off?

Very little turns me off - especially if done with taste.

What are you currently working on? How long have you been working on it?

Second book of what might end up being a trilogy. Book is called Starrender, coupled to Silvermoon. I started writing it in 2021. Book 2 I started in May of 2022.

Why do you write? What keeps you writing?

Creativity is compulsory, is my understanding of it. "I just work here," is how I describe it to other writers. I wish I could explain, but for me it's… therapy, escape, fun, joy. What keeps me writing? Me.

How long have you been writing? What do you think first drew you to it?

This is a hard question because I have written as long as I can remember. What first drew me too it? See the above answer. Creativity feels compulsory. I have hyperfantasia, my day dreams are vivid, strong and indulgent.

Where do you get your inspiration from? Is that how you got your inspiration for your current project? If not, where did the inspiration come from?

The easiest answer to this is dreams. My current set started as a dream and was fleshed out with my co-author. Something brand new, shiny. It's evolved a lot beyond that, especially since that dream was from 2013. Other inspiration comes from spite, I suppose? Did I write a trans wizard novel for obvious reasons? Yes. I still haven't made peace with that decision though, I wish I had spent that year working on something I loved more.

What work of yours are you most proud of? Why?

The one I'm publishing in March 2023 - Terms of Light. Above all other things, I feel like it's a love letter to myself and to my spouse. It took me so long to find what home should feel like and I think this really embodies that journey.

Have you published anything? Do you want to?

Yes - and yes. Self published Terms of Light (March 2023). I have been querying and trying to hook an agent since 2013 - no luck so far.

What part of the publishing process most appeals to you? What part least appeals to you?

Trad pub - A marketing team. Self pub - control Both - A physical book in my hands and the ability to hand a book to someone. It's a strange phenomena but when you tell people you have been published and aren't able to hand them a physical book, they get strange. They've done whole studies about it. The perception of something available as free is lesser, even if the content and quality is not. I truly don't care about the money, I care about accessibility to stories that might not make it because they're not "on brand." (Read in 2014, LGBTQ+)

What part of the writing process most appeals to you? What part is least appealing?

Writing is appealing to me. I love it. I hate editing. I don't know why, but much like I dislike revisiting shows, books and other media I've visited before, editing has the same kind of yuck to it. Trying to get over that.

Do you have a writing process? Do you have an ideal setup? Do you write in pure chaos? Talk about your process a bit.

Process is not something I think I would call what I have but… Since most start as a dream, I have a Dream Theater folder. Outline usually comes with the initial brain dump, and by outline I do me, high level, not too detailed vagaries about what's happening, cool things, and notes and thoughts. From there, I wait for a first line to hit me and… write until I'm out of steam. I can usually rock out the first 10 - 14 chapters of something in a month to two months depending on how hot the writing fever is… the middle slog does take it's toll on me. After Draft 1 is done, I force it on some poor alpha reader, and come back in a year when I'm potentially ready to edit it. Editing is it's own thing. I have no process for this, I don't know if I ever will.

Your Thoughts on Writeblr:

How long have you been a writeblr? What inspired you to join the community?

About a year. @winterandwords inspired me, I'm in a Discord server with her and she told me it was "better now."

Shout out some of your favorite writeblrs. How did you find them and what made you want to follow them?

@winterandwords - Because they are an absolute delight. They write everything I've always wanted too and it is a visual and emotional FEAST in my mind. @sergeantnarwhalwrites - That guy rocks, what an encouraging soul! With a great sense of humor. Delightful. No idea how I found them, but glad I did.

What is your favorite part about writeblr?

Interaction!! Even if it's light, it's nice to see some things get notes. I feel less alone, even though I am also able to control my experience a bit more so I'm not inundated with activity.

What do you think writeblr could improve on? How do you think we can go about doing so?

This is a hard one because… short of having more time in everyone's day to read and respond, I don't think things can be improved with what we have.

How do you contribute to the writeblr community? Do you think you could be doing more?

I react, I reblog, I respond when I can. I follow writers that have the same vibe and try and lift them up when I see they may not be doing great. Can I do more? Sure. If I had the emotional energy and time.

What kinds of posts do you most like to interact with?

Writing. Publishing info.

What kind of posts do you most like to make?

Any kind. I'm not particular. I usually do snips, reblogs of fun things as well as writing things, and of course, a little bit of SJW nonsense - because it's Tumblr. Ya gotta.

Finally, anywhere else online we may be able to find you?

Anymore? No where. Twitter disappeared as soon as I started having privacy concerns. I'm building a website but… I'm a slacker ; ). TBC.

[shirefantasies]

If mashups are still available, I'd love love love if you could write one for me (never done this before)! The Hobbit is my favourite so preferably a (male) character from there if that would be ok!

I'm from Scandinavia and I love anything to do with Norse Mythology and going on hikes in the woods to act out adventures of my own creation. I am naturally very curious and love to go in-depth to study different topics, such as the natural sciences and different mythologies. I am quite short at 164 cm with blue eyes and blonde hair. Slightly on the curvier side. Thank you so so much I'd really appreciate it! <3 <3 <3

That is ok indeed as I match you with…

Óin!

(Warning: minor injury/blood mentions, hints at misogyny from unseen characters, minor alcohol/drinking references)

Maybe he isn’t the most conventional of the dwarves, but hear a silly old narrator out…

Your search for new species of plant has led you deep into the woods, deeper than they have yet undertaken. Success, though, has colored your journey, your prior experiment with the fertilizers of your crafting proving quite telling. Ducking past a very low-hanging branch that almost cuts a scar across your cheek, you press on, spurred by victory. The pursuit of science, after all, is the noble calling that moves you to painless battle with the forces set forth so many years before by the Valar, or in the eyes of your people quite possibly a different pantheon altogether. Even if none of it was true, they had been your favorite stories for years.

A world crafted from a corpse, now home to such life. Earth as flesh, seas blood, clouds brains of all things- dark, perhaps, but infinitely captivating. Or perhaps a song as the people in this land say, discordant notes sowing the very nature of sin and chaos as if as invisible waves in the air.

Such are your thoughts when your foot is roughly yanked, momentum pitching your body forward as a nasty loop of tree branch holds your lower appendage in place. More roots await when you fall, cutting and scraping various exposed areas of your skin. Pain arcs up your leg when you rise and try to return weight to the foot that got caught. Your ankle is sprained. You barely know where you are. Blood trickles from several smaller wounds, this blood no great sea, only drops upon dirt shed in solitude.

A long walk lies ahead of you. Sighing and biting back pained tears, you limp as best you can in the direction you’d come. You aren't certain how long you even have been walking for when you hear the voice, a bit gruff in nature but soft in tone and volume, pleasantly accented and reassuring despite its strangeness. "You're hurt," it says simply, and as you turn around- no, swivel at the hips, more like, your weight fighting a shift without a thought- it reveals a dwarf. His beard is pleasantly symmetrical, satisfying your eyes with its gravity-defying braids. Not a hint of malice shines in his dark brown eyes, only concern. "I come out this way to collect herbs, but I'll confess it isn't often I see another soul. Please, let a healer do his job." Exhaustion deep in your bones already, you simply nod.

Oin, as you find the dwarf's name is, is more than just a healer, at least in your eyes; his knowledge of nature and its properties are fascinating even if he is just rambling a bit about each thing he applies to your ankle, touch gentle as a feather despite the strength and girth of his hands. He knows exactly what everything he applies to you does and why. “‘N what were you doin’ out here anyway? I can see it- you’ve a good head on your shoulders. A lass like you has got a reason.”

He sees you. At least moreso than plenty of others you have run across, the ones who dub you too fair for your pursuits or reduce the way you track the stars to a pretty fancy of lights. Dwarves, you forget, prize women with a depth and respect that has yet to shine upon some of these lands. Your savior sees you as an equal even in your infirm, and thus you have no qualms explaining your experiment with the soil and the other which required the accursed herbs you twisted up your ankle over. You have tracked the world's revolutions and he has learned how to save mothers and babies from dangerous deliveries. Written many a medical record that piques your love of delving into knowledge enough that you don't just allow Oin to walk you back to society, you come home with him and spend the night in a lovely drown of parchment...and maybe a stiff drink, too! "It'll help with your pain, after all," he adds with a wink.

Perhaps you prefer the company of dwarves, or perhaps drink and offers of knowledge are far too seductive to pass up, but as you make for Oin's doorstep you feel an aching in your heart that your meeting was fate, and certainly not your last. Oin, you suspect, feels the same, shyly fiddling with his fingers as his gaze darts between the threshold and you. "'m glad I found you." "As am I," you reply, "for how else would I have learned someone so special was tucked away so close to my own home? Are you certain you want to listen to me drone on about old myths for hours?" "If it'll get you to come back here," Oin says, "Aye. Again and again." The warmth of your imbibing, and quite definitely something else, rushes through your veins as you lean to close the gap between you two, inhibitions burned down. Perhaps a part of you was tired of being so methodical, relying on long processes and choreographed steps. And judging by the wide, spellbound smile on Oin's face, your rescuer is taken by the same instant connection you thought only happened in old stories.

By the time his hearth is yours, your shelves of healing and botany and the mischief of old gods alike a complete blend of you both, the same way strands of your golden hair are united in the braid Oin gave you. Your healer husband dotes on you more than you ever imagined, dubbing you more beautiful than Freyja and worshiping your curves every chance he gets. Beyond your body, the way the sky shines in the blue of your eyes, he loves your understanding, having another soul move in perfect tandem with his and sit with him in the haze of fascination. A companion at his side for even the smallest tasks of watering the garden or washing one's hair and yet someone who poses the most difficult questions and waits with such patience if her words are not heard the first time. Perhaps he healed you long ago setting your ankle back right, but you, dear, healed him just as much.

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