#i went frame by frame to see if that's true how unfortunate

[resssistance]

Kateřina Mrázková and Daniel Mrázek / RD A Evaristo Carriego; España cañí Junior Grand Prix Final 2022 photo by Marco Mantovani   

[klausysworld]

Hey babes, since you didn't update in 5 days im hoping that nothing bad happened to you and that you are alright:(<333

Anyway If not here is an new idea:

So Y/N is an Omega and her Parents don't like her and always been mean to her and abused her and all that yk? When they hear that Klaus who is an alpha seeks an Omega to be his, they try to sell her to him. (I don't know how to write this without it sounding weird but anywaysss) So they make her "perfekt" for him with putting on nice clothes and make up. And teach how she needs to be with her Alpha, which are all things like she needs to listen to him and do as he says and all that stuff. She is scared of what will happen to her since she heard the stories about Klaus.

But when she is with him he treats her so good and is caring and sweet and tells her that everything her parents said and did to her isn't true and that she doesn't have listen to their rules. She is comfortable with him and surprisingly happy and than there is smut and she even let's him mark her. She is happy with him and never wants to be away from him again and is kind of thankful that her parents sold her off.

Just for him

Klaus had been with his fair share of betas over his time, some other alpha as well but not an omega. Omegas needed tending to, attention and affection that he hadn’t been willing to give until now. He was at a time where he didn’t have anything to do, enemies were eliminated and he was in a somewhat healthy position with his family. All he needed was an omega and his days would be perfect.

And it didn’t take long for the word to spread through the supernatural community, all werewolves were informed that Klaus Mikaelson was looking for an omega to claim.

What they didn’t expect was for him to be so picky.

Elijah had been taking phone calls to arrange his brother meeting with omegas and their families to try and find the one best suited for him and they were both losing hope until Y/n’s father called. They painted the perfect picture, a sweet little angel. So Klaus agreed to a meeting and they brought the girl over.

When they arrived at the abattoir the girl was pushed forward, she reeked of fear and anxiety as her big eyes darted in every possible direction. Her hair was down, framing her soft face, her face was smooth with makeup with a pink blush across her nose and cheeks. Her lashes were long and painted black while her lips were pink and glossed.

Klaus’s eyes travelled the length of her, his pupils dilating as he looked over her pink cami dress. Her smooth legs were on display and her small feet were hidden by ankle strap platform heels.

Elijah could feel his lips quirk up slightly at the sight before them and he glanced to Niklaus with interest. They both gave a subtle nod before welcoming the Y/L/Ns inside.

Y/n kept silent the whole afternoon, just like her parents told her to be. Either her mother or father answered any of Klaus’s questions and both were more than eager to convince him she was perfect.

What they didn’t pick up on was how close Klaus was to tearing their throats out for not shutting up. Throughout the afternoon he could sense that it wasn’t just him that y/n was afraid of. He could see her body twitch and shift whenever either of her parents put a hand on her or looked her in the eye, at one point she had shuffled closer to Klaus himself so that her father couldn’t put his arm around her.

His eyes had been checking her all over and after staring at her soft thighs for a considerable amount of time, he eventually noticed small marks. Her dress had accidentally moved up and it barely covered her pretty panties from his view but unfortunately he didn’t catch a peek. What he saw instead were fingertip shaped bruises on her skin. It was her mother who fixed her skirt, a glare on her face when y/n went to open her mouth to apologise.

So he decided he would like to spend the next morning with y/n, alone.

The poor omega looked like she was going to cry when he told her that she would be having brunch with him and only him. As much as she was afraid of her parents, the ruthless Klaus Mikaelson was surely worse.

Nevertheless the next morning she was up and ready. Dressed to impress and waiting for him to come pick her up.

Her parents stood waiting expectantly for the door to knock and were fast on their toes to answer it, bright smiles on their face. Klaus raised a brow and glanced behind them to y/n who was picking at her freshly done nails.

“Come omega” he commanded, watching as she quickly scurried to his side. Her hand hesitantly went to his outstretched one, her eyes not daring to meet his. He hummed lowly and guided her to his car, opening the door for her and watching as a soft blush covered her face. She got into the passenger seat obediently and within a second he was beside her.

The ride was quiet, she could hear her heart pounding as he drove to a cafe.

He turned his head to her as he parked and unclipped his belt. “You don’t have to be so quiet my love” he mumbled whilst reaching forward to let his hand graze her cheek. Her eyes found his as a small whimper left her on response and his lips twitched into a smirk. “You truly are a sweet little omega” he grins and her cheeks redden further.

He shakes his head to himself and reaches for her hand, holding onto it and pulling her along with him into the cafe. “I’m sure you’re hungry sweetheart, you barely ate a thing at dinner” he muses as he leads her to their table and sits her down before seating himself opposite her.

Her big curious eyes dashed around the lounge type room, following the plates of food that the waitresses wore and to the range of guests, all clearly from money.

Klaus watched as she looked back to him quickly, her jaw clenched shut and her nose struggling to breath fast enough. He turned his head slightly and slid the menu across to her “you can have any thing you like, would you like something sweeter like pancakes or waffles or would you prefer something bigger like a full English or an American breakfast?” He pointed to the different sections for her and let her scan through the contents of each offer. Though his eyes narrow when her gaze landed on the sides

“I’ll just have some toast” she uttered reluctantly but he shook his head

“Choose something proper or I’ll pick for you” he commanded, his tone a little rougher as he felt his wolf pushing forward. A low, barely audible whine left her throat as she looked back down to the menu.

When she failed to make a better choice, out of fear of her mother or father finding out of her ‘greedy’ habits, Klaus simply did as promised and ordered her a stack of pancakes with bacon and syrup while getting a full english for himself.

A vanilla milkshake was put infront of her, despite her claiming to want a water and once more her cheeks went a shade pinker. It baffled her how he seemed to know exactly what she wanted and her wolf was slowly warming to his.

Throughout brunch Klaus was able to pull a few conversations out of her, nothing personal otherwise she seemed to shut down but she liked to hear about him and his interests though he had began to wonder if it was genuine interest or what how she was told to behave.

It wasn’t until after he had payed and brought her back to the car did he mention anything of it.

Just as Klaus clipped her belt on for her to ensure her safety did his hand get ahold of her chin to make her look at him. His eyes flashed gold making hers do the same, his irises bled into orange while hers went a pale yellow. He leant forward to brush his nose along the side of her neck, his wolf hungry for her and his mind wandering at the scent of her blood beneath her skin. The primal urge to sink his teeth in and mark her as his own was overwhelming and the way her wolf was responding only added to it. She was so submissive to him, so ready to bend to his every word.

“How long have your parents been training you?” He whispered gruffly and she felt her heart sink. When she didn’t reply he pulled back and tilted his head at her, daring her to speak “omega…”

“Since you started looking” she murmured timidly

“So they made you just for me?” He hummed and tucked her hair behind her ears as she nodded. “You know you don’t have to be so scared” he told her gently as he watched the panic sink in “you’re a very good girl, a very lovely omega but I’m sure you’re even better when you’re being yourself sweetheart” he explained and she nibbled her lip nervously. “I’d like to keep you my love” he muttered and she glanced to his eyes “to be my omega” he confirmed and she nodded slowly. “But I need you to be happy and comfortable, I don’t want my little omega to be afraid and feeling out of place” he murmured softly.

Y/n fiddled with her fingers as she glanced between him and her hands, unsure how to behave. He sighed lightly and stroked her jaw “alright sweetheart, you just sit and ill get us back” he mumbled a little disappointed.

She looked out the window as he got into his own seat and started the car. Her leg bounced through her nerves as she pictured her parents reaction when he told them she wasn’t the omega for him. As they drove nearer and nearer to his mansion she panicked more and more. Her breathing grew more laboured and she felt like the car was growing smaller around her.

Klaus glanced over to her as he heard her heavy breaths before quickly pulling over and unclipping his belt. He sped round to her side of the car and pulled her out of it and into his arms. She panted for air and he smoothed his hand over her hair

“It’s alright my love” he murmured softly “just breathe sweetheart, nice deep breaths” he tried to calm her but it wasn’t working. He bounced her gently almost like a baby as he shushed her softly. “You’re okay” he hummed “nothing’s gonna happen to you” he whispered but her face only seemed to get redder without air. He cupped her head and pushed her face into his neck, letting her nose press to his scent gland.

As though a switch was clicked she was relaxed, inhaling his scent and huffing it back out. Her eyes fluttered shut and a soft moan left her pink lips. Klaus felt a low rumble leave his chest at the sound she released and his body shivered when her open mouth pressed to his neck.

His fingers gripped onto her hair tightly as she sucked the skin into her mouth.“Omega…” he groaned as he felt the wind whip over them as a car sped past. Her legs were round his waist as he clung onto her tightly. “Such…a good omega” he mumbled as her blunt teeth scraped his neck.

Y/n couldn’t help but want to sink her teeth into his skin. His alpha scent was addicting and being this close to him was sending her into complete auto drive.

Klaus stroked her hair gently, encouraging her to sink her teeth into his neck with a grin forming on his face. None of the other omegas he had met with were like this, nowhere near as perfect as she was.

His wolf had chosen hers and she had submitted to it instantly. Already she was seeking comfort from him and a whining mess.

Klaus’s eyes rolled back as he felt her little canines sink into the side of his neck, he squeezed her tight and pressed her up against the door on his car as he felt the gentle burn of the venom in her gums transfer into his bloodstream.

With much reluctance, y/n pulled her mouth away from his neck and began to drop her legs back down to the ground slowly. Her eyes widened as she realised the marks in his skin weren’t fading and hesitantly looked up to his eyes. He looked straight back at her, pupils blown open and fangs visible against his lip. She felt her belly pool with heat at the sight and she began to tilt her head to expose her neck for him.

Klaus didn’t waste another second before pressing his mouth to her throat, licking and nuzzling the flesh before dropping his fangs into her. Her moan was heavenly and encouraged him to take a gulp of her blood. The taste was intoxicating and his entire body was filled with a pleasant buzz as his hand began to grope alone her thighs.

Both minds fell to autopilot as he pulled back and her legs dropped down from his waist. She was turned around and bent straight over the hood of the car. Klaus ground his front against her soft little ass, his hands dragging the skirt of her dress up to reveal her cotton panties. He let out a groan before sinking his teeth back into her neck from behind, then her shoulder and her back, covering her in bite marks.

Y/n was a babbling, panting mess, her body rubbing itself against Klaus’s dick like a horny puppy. Her omega mind was completely in control as whimpered pleas fell from her lips, begging him to claim her right there.

Klaus wasn’t in any more control to deny her, his fingers snapping the elastic in her panties and throwing them to the road, his darkening eyes finding her bare ass and soaked pussy as he crouched down to get a look at her.

Y/n let out a pleasured cry when his warm mouth pressed to her cunt, her nails dug into the metal she was sprawled over and her legs began to shake. She moaned loudly for her alpha, begging and begging for more.

Klaus lapped like a dog, his tongue twisting and folding to devour her. His hands held her ass to give himself the best access and he sucked and fucked her weeping hole with his his face. Her little nails elongated to form her wolf’s claws as she cling to the car, her moans and cries were echoed out into the road and nearby trees but she didn’t care. All she knew was that whatever this feeling was, she was addicted to it.

Her hips ground herself onto his mouth, her body trembling and screaming for him to keep going. She let out a loud, incoherent sound as she felt something much more urgent flood her, begging to be reached.

Klaus could feel her body struggling to hold onto the building feeling. His tongue plunged into her repeatedly, taking enjoyment in her cries and the way her little cunt would tighten. It only took a few more sucks and licks at her pulsing clit before her legs went out and he help her firmly against the car as a rush of wetness was squirted all over him.

Klaus let out a grunt and a laugh when he pulled his face back to look at the mess, wiping his face with his sleeve and watching her limp thighs drip. “Perfect. Fucking. Omega” he growled as he stood up and ripped his belt off.

Y/n was panting softly, her breath creating a wet circle on the car as she pressed her cheek against the top. A small whimper left her when a car drove past, the drivers eyes wide as they sped by.

She felt his hands hold onto her hips, lifting her so she was bend further over the hood so her toes couldn’t reach the ground. Her lashes fluttered and a breath of air left her lungs as she felt something nice and thick press against her cunt.

“Alpha…” she whined and Klaus hummed deeply

“It’s alright omega, it’ll feel so good” he whispered as he thrust his hips forward. A sharp noise left her at the stretch. Klaus’s head threw back as he forced his cock all the way inside. His hand gently stroked her back as he heard her little sobs “it’s okay” he murmured “you’ll feel better in a moment I’m certain” he soothed.

Her pussy squeezed and pulsated around his cock, clinging to him desperately. She slowly felt the sting disappear and was left with a full feeling. Klaus sensed her calming and gently traced the teeth marks in her skin. “good girl” he whispered as he slowly began to move within her.

Her body relaxed entirety when he started thrusting into her, her cries became soft little moans and her eyes closed.

Klaus could feel his wolf sit right at the front of his mind, claiming her now as his. Klaus could feel the need to breed her full of his pups overwhelm his body.

His hips snapped to hers quickly, her hot pussy swallowing his cock more and more with each thrust. Her moans grew more frequent and her body rocked back and forth slowly to feel him hit deeper.

His hands caressed her hips gently as he groans loudly. “Such a good omega” he praises making her whimper happily.

“More” she whined and he grinned, moving fast and harder, causing the car to shake beneath her. He moved his hand around her waist, sliding it down to stroke his fingers against her slippery clit.

Y/n let out a loud cry at the familiar build up of heat. She looks over her shoulder to see her alpha pounding into her. Dark veins travel under his golden eyes as he looked to her. His lips parted to pant and he smiled to her, his spare hand pet her hair gently. A grunt left his lips when she tightened around him and he pressed his fingers down a little harder as she ground her clit against them.

Her sweaty hands left marks against the hood of the car and her body felt hotter with each passing second. Klaus could feel her squeezing his swelling cock every few seconds, her puffy clit pulsating and her thighs trembling. He could feel the marks in his neck burn pleasantly and knew she could feel the same from her own mating marks as a pleasant purr rolled through her body.

Mumbled moans tumbled from her lips clumsily as her mind completely clouded over. She muttered incoherently as she felt his cock spill inside her. He rubbed her clit quickly, his other hand gently sliding down to her ass as he moving his hips a little slower as his sensitivity skyrocketed.

He smiled lazily to himself at the coked sound she let out as her pussy spasmed around him. He pet her ass gently, gradually reducing his thrusts and pulling himself out. Klaus let her rest against the car for a moment, grinning as another car went by and offering a finger wave to the passengers.

He hummed to himself as he pulled his trousers back up and grabbed his belt from the floor. He fixed himself up before picking up on the sniffles of his omega. He frowned and noticed her still over the car, he quickly lifted her up.

“Sweetheart” he whispered, his hand cupping face to see the tears gathered in her eyes. “Oh dear” he uttered, quickly pulling her face to his neck again and kissing her forehead “what’s wrong omega? Does it sting?” He questioned and she shook her head

“My mother’s going to be so mad” she whispered, looking to her underwear that resided on the dirty road. Klaus smiled gently and pet her cheek

“No she won’t my love, she’ll be very proud of what a good girl you’ve been for your alpha” he told her and she sniffed “I’m gonna get rid of those worthless parents of yours my lovely, and then you’re going to stay with me forever” he whispered “gonna look after you and our babies, bet you’ll give me strong alpha pups” he cooed and she smiled slightly while wiping her eyes.

“my alpha?” She whispers quietly and he nods

“All yours little one, yours forever” he confirms as he carries her back into the car and sits her on his lap. “Gonna have to buy you so many dresses my lovely, and so many pairs of panties for me to rip up” he teased and she blushed. He stroked her hair gently with one hand while the other drove the car back to his mansion.

His siblings only smiled as he walked past them with her hidden in his arms, he took her up the stairs and into an empty room. He opened the wardrobe in the corner and dozens of soft materials fell out. Her eyes sparkled at the sight and he set her down on her feet

“You stay here and build your pretty nest and I’ll go take care of your parents okay sweet omega?” He smiled and she nodded with a bright smile as she grabbed one of the fleeces.

He kissed the top of her head before jogging down the stairs to sort everything out for his little omega to live a safe and happy life.

[styxwanderer]

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished |

〚Twisted Wonderland x Elphaba!Reader〛

[you the wicked witch from the west had died, but to your surprise you had woken up inside a coffin in an unfamiliar world. You had also noticed your magic had more freedom and your power seem to mix to those in this world] < FYI : no Fiyero doesn't exist in your OZ world, you are completly alone, >

♱⁺. ⋆˙✧⋆꒷꒦꒷⋆✧˙⋆⊹.♱♱⁺. ⋆˙✧⋆꒷꒦꒷⋆✧˙⋆⊹.♱♱⁺. ⋆˙✧⋆꒷꒦꒷⋆✧˙⋆⊹.♱

you had accepted your fate to be painted as the villain and died by a very underhand method such as being thrown water. That pesky girl who has killed your sister, and the con who had framed you the real magician. You had tried your best to help everybody and every creature from a crueler fate, only for those same people to go against you, going as far as holding a witch hunt for you.

Fated to be scorned just for the green hue of your skin, something you had no control over. Such a heinous thing humanity is. you could hear the party that they will throw over your death, No one mourns for the wicked, save for your best friend, Glinda, who had been wiser than to judge based on appearance, a true friend. Unfortunately, she too was unable to save you from your grueling fate.

Yet here you are, trapped in a coffin.

"Have I finally died?" you thought. What more does God want from you, did They think that punishment is not enough for you?

you scoffed at the thought.

You were startled when the lid was suddenly slammed open by a racoon? Cat? looking creature with fire ears demanding your robe?

' Did this creature think this robe on me is going to fit him?'

'Also where did this robe come from? and did he think that by giving the robe he was going to let a woman bare naked? what a crazy guy'

so, you ran, pulling the hood, as you thought it is better for no body to find out that you are horrendious green from head to toe, and finding yourself in an impressive library. The creature had cornered you Just before the headmage trapped him in his leash using his power.

"Ah, i've found you at last. Splendid. I trust you're one of this year's new students." he then went on and on about how you should've controlled your familiar.

" Woah! we never have a student as... green as you.. how unusual." he said upon seeing your hand. You quickly covered your hand with your robe just as you had covered your face.

" that is alright, Here in NIght Raven collage we accept everybody just as how they are as long as they are chosen by the mirror of course."

He then forced you to go back to the room with coffin. There you found a lot of students wearing the same robe as you.

' is this the same type of school as Shiz University?'

The headmage, Crowley end his bickering with some other students before beckoning you to move to the mirror. You had yourself walk foward to the strange talking mirror. As strange as your original world is you had never seen a magical talking mirror. Sure, a talking face, but it is a mechanic created to be an illusion by that horrible con, Oz.

you hated the attention that is suddenly drafted towards you, you slouch as you reached the Dark mirror.

" The nature of your soul is........ unclear to me."

" what did you say?!"

" sure i can sense a magical power residing on this girl, yet it is unfamiliar, strange, foreign.. i have never encounter this sort of power in my whole life. therefore no dorm is appropriate."

Dorm? Magic power? what the hell is this mirror on about.

" Are you suggesting the black carriage went to receive a Girl?! and with a strange magic? Absurd! the student selection process has not erred once in its century of existence! how could this happened?!"

"HMMPH! ME! Let me have this student place!" the creature who called himself Grim had broken free from the leash. He then started insisting and creating a huge chaos.

in a panic you noticed you still have your grimore with you. odd i thought i had given this to Glinda to protect. you quickly flip over the pages.

you found and recite a spell for the target to follow your word for a brief minute just before the little guy breathe his flame towards a red eyed boy.

"Sit boy, down."

to your surprise most of the students and the headmage himself had fallen down to their butt sitting as they looked bewildred.

" a... i meant that creature not you."

"RAGHHHH!! UNHAND ME UNHAND MEE!" Grim shrilled.

" how... HOW DARE YOU? UNHAND ME THIS INSTANT!" said the red hair boy

" impossible..." said the pretty glasses guy.

" How brazen of you to order Me around, I will rip you into pieces." said the lion eared guy. odd he reminded you of that cowardly lion you had saved, such ungrateful creature whomst had blamed his cowardice on you.

" You! How dare you make me touch the floor!" said the gorgeous blind guy with purple tip.

"Whoaa?!! i am on the floor?!! How??" the boy with the bandana wrapped around his white hair exclaimed.

" Wuh WHAAA.. what is this ssr op power?! scary..." the floating tablet shouted.

" To be casted with a spell how unruly the new student this year is. OH, woe is me... Uncast me this instant!!!"

The other students had started to cuzz profanities at you as well making you more nervous. ' Ah its this again, everytime i tried to help.. i get punished..'

you fumbled around confused as usually in your world the enchantment would only work towards the target intended and usually the enchantment you practied were a permanent one, you hoped this won't last long.

" don't tell me you do not know how to unchant your spell?"

"uhhh..."

thank fully in a moment your enchantment is broken as the headmage start to stand up and dust himself, so as the other students.

The red haired boy spring up and start to point his gem pen? towards you.

" OFF WITH YOUR HE--"

" that won't be necessary Mr. Roseheart. Now you!"

The bird feathered headmage ripped oven your hood as he exposed you to the whole school followed with gasps acrossm the room.

" she is green?!"

" i never seen a green person before."

You grow weary and insecure as you tried to remove the headmage hold on you.

"I'm sorry i didn't mean to, But i acted in panic because this cuz is going to fire his flame to that white haired guy!" you defended yourself.

" haaa.. for now throw this creature out of the game. and the ceremony should end here." he said as you saw students following the guys somewhere.

" now you come with me.."

he tried to bring you back where you came from to no avail so he settle for you to reside in the abandoned dorm, of course that is interrupted by the same creature. although, your impression of him seem to falter as he was obedient towards you and you found his catlu behaviour rather cute, so you dont mind to have him as your companion. Crowley explain the situation to you, but since you are a girl you are still exempt from the courses and sadly are forced towards cleaning duty. He of course didn't hear you when you state that you had died in your world and so his agreement are something you can't refuse.

The next day you are met with Ace and his cocky personality trying to get even with the incident at the opening ceremony, you, not wanting to throw another chaos, refrain from using your spells since you had not learn the extend of the effect of this world to your power, but of course, Grim had to assert himself and created the chaos for you.

You are then met with Deuce who had helped you catch the running criminal trying to run away from his job, this of course before the chase went on and you three ended up breaking the expensive rare chandelier and had to find the replacement stone. and the story goes.

that is the story of how you become a NRC student with your trusty companion or familiar, Grim and how you and grim, with your fellow 1st year whom you meet along the way have an epic adventure to deal with overblots.

>> to be continued<<

≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫

( there will be more parts to this stay tuned, If you wish to be tagged, please let me know)

[ifightformyfriends]

You seem to have some thoughts on the matter. How do *you* feel about Baldur's Gate 3

Not really any opinions on BG3 specifically, except that it's clear that Larian put a lot more effort into balancing the game than WotC ever has, and it's unfortunate for Larian that the game's development was used to harbor Zac S accomplice Mike Mearls so that WotC could state he was no longer on the D&D design team when people were calling for consequences for his roll in bringing on, enabling, and protecting known serial sexual abuser and transphobe Zac S as a heralded consult in 5e's development.

Mechanically I've seen a lot of talk about how...not even true RAW, but improved RAW 5e just isn't as fun for people when there's not a DM to handwave things or allow cool off the cuff "Greentext" moments that have nothing to do with the actual ruleset being ostensibly played and paid for. Even with some added stuff for Martials to do there's no "Describe your attack" or "Make a called shot" that is so often used to downplay that Martials are on a whole different, lower magnitude of agency to exert influence on the world around them. And this is after Larian went out of their way to improve them! Buffed Action Economy, setpiece combat with interesting interactions, some semblance of giving them actual abilities, but it can't make up for the fact they're 5e Martials. It is hilarious seeing people brought face to face with the actual ruleset for the first time instead of what their DM does to make the system a fun experience.

And I just saw earlier today, it's got people talking about how there's so much Fantasy Racism if you play a Tiefling that is just so unnecessary except for the fact that it is RAW and how the game is presented without your DM and table going "But we're going to ignore that".

Which is very much the same in that it is people being brought face to face with the actual system WotC produces and sells for the first time instead of their DM's system they've agreed to give WotC credit for. I maintain that 5e was a system designed for passive revenue generation because D&D is the property Hasbro got as a free gift when they bought Magic the Gathering, and it was designed specifically for DMs who were used to 3.5's brokenness and doing the heavy lifting to run games for new-to-TTRPG players and that's why the true north of the ruleset development was to not look intimidating to new players. And for that narrow purpose, it succeeds! But then it got popular and the system was not prepared for such wild ideas as "New DMs wanting to run games without an internalized encyclopedic knowledge of the system". To use a car as a metaphor, WotC realized they could design a game that used the DM as the engine instead of the driver's seat, saving a ton in development costs in doing so. And BG3 has some people realizing that what they thought was a car was actually just a frame they paid full price for.

TL;DR: No significant thoughts on Baldur's Gate 3 really, same thoughts as always on WotC and 5e that people will awkwardly ignore and sweep under the rug until their NEXT big PR fiasco that they'll shallowly ask forgiveness for and people will somehow give them and the cycle will begin anew.

[shakingparadigm]

Seeing all those analysis posts about how Till liked Mizi because she was gentle while not giving the same attention to Ivan because he wasn't... how Ivan might have made Till uncomfortable because he expressed his admiration for Till through violence because he liked how Till had the courage to fight back...

I was wandering if Ivan ever realized that the way he went about showing his feelings wasn't positive for Till and he fucking did. "I wish I had been kinder" he fucking regrets dude, fuck me man.

(This veered wildly off-topic I am so sorry.)

Coming back to this ask after the most recent R6 update is interesting.

I've always wondered why they chose the title Cure in particular. I was expecting a song title along the lines of Star or something abyssal. Then I thought about Till's affiliation with experiments and drugs and the various ways he was hurt. Cure... It also brings to mind how the content for Ivan highlights his "oddness", how he's framed as someone different, almost wrong in a sense. There's something that he lacks, something that he feels the need to fix, to cure.

In the recent ROUND 6 production post, the true meaning is revealed. You're right on a certain level, but as always, it's complicated.

Both Ivan and Till seek a certain type of "healing", maybe to compensate for their pain, their oddness and their loneliness. They wish to be cured of their suffering somehow and they seek the solution in other people.

QMENG states that Till desires a type of healing that Ivan cannot provide, and vice versa.

It goes without saying, pretty common knowledge at this point, but Till is a lot softer under his rebellious front. As someone who's been beat and abused his whole life, it makes sense that that type of love he'd want is something gentler, something stable. It's incredibly obvious in the way he acts towards Mizi. She's so genuine, so bright, untainted by the cruel reality of the world. Till softens around her, since she has only showed him kindness he in turn shows her the sweetest side of himself. He's had nothing stable to cling onto before, so he immediately becomes attached to this idealized version of Mizi. He believes she's the only person who can provide him with what he needs, the only one who can "heal" him.

It's outright stated that Ivan cannot provide that type of "healing" that Till is looking for. Ivan does try, of course. Unfortunately, he lacks something fundamental. Because of this he expresses himself in rather childish ways, which may involve a little cruelty and attention-seeking. A lot of Ivan's actions are muddled by his complicated feelings as well, as its stated that his true emotions and intentions are difficult to grasp. With Till, Ivan wants to save and be saved, hurt and heal him, keep him and set him free. Live for him and die for him. He criticizes Sua on the ethics of self-sacrifice and then goes on to do the same himself. With Ivan, everything contradicts.

He tries desperately to be the cure that Till needs, but due to his incredibly complex nature that "healing" will never be just healing. It may come with more pain and confusion despite his best efforts.

I don't think Till refused to give Ivan attention because he wasn't gentle enough, rather I think it's because everything was so complicated whenever Ivan was involved. Ivan is there for him in his times of need and causes a fair bit of trouble during the rest. He's strange and hard to grasp, but he's familiar. Calling each other "friends" seemed like such an inadequate label because they're simultaneously too close and not close enough. Ivan does wish he was kinder, though. Not only to Till, but to Sua and most likely a few other people as well. There's a lot of aspects in which Ivan wishes he were different, and it's tragic to hear how he deprecates himself in his final moments for it.

There's the second half of QMENG's statement as well, "vice versa". Till cannot provide what Ivan needs either, but Ivan desperately desires it anyway.

Ivan views Till as his cure. He wants to not only "heal" Till, but to be healed by him as well. This desire can be seen in the lyrics of Cure:

Notice my pain

And mend me right now

To quiet my fears

I'll drown in you

(The wish for "healing" is stated.)

In your gaze, where I’m seen

Consume me, yes, me, oh, oh

(Ivan urges Till to "consume" him like medicine, he wishes to be what Till needs.)

Ivan lacks something, and he believes that Till can make up for that lack which is why he's so fascinated by him. If Ivan is a black abyss, Till is a supernova, bringing life to an empty void. Unfortunately, Till is explosive and rather inept at handling his own extreme emotions, which causes him to either lash out violently or retreat further inward and push Ivan away. He's also a thoroughly destructive and hurt individual, seeking his own cure in another form. He cannot provide what Ivan needs.

Both Ivan and Till are incredibly volatile. That's not to say they don't have their gentler sides, but overall they've been doomed from the start. Ultimately it's no fault of theirs, they did what they could with their complicated feelings and fought through their own respective hells.

In the end, Ivan had to come to terms with the fact that he couldn't get the "healing" he needed and could never be what Till needed, either. That's why he finally acted on his impulses and let his complicated feelings win over, resulting in his death. Despite all the heartache, his final thoughts are a statement of gratitude. Truly a tragedy.

[mosaickiwi]

Nails, TV, Moving

Rendacted paints your nails and 'asks' you to move in. 1.3k words, GN reader c:

14 Days With You is an 18+ Yandere Visual Novel. MINORS DNI

~

"Unfortunately for our contestant—" the host’s words get cut off as you press a button on the remote.

"Booooo," you jeered at the TV from your spot on the floor and changed the channel. 

Ren hummed softly at your voice, but didn't look up. Despite the dark bangs that obscure their eyes, you can tell they’re focused. He was happily painting your nails—the same shade of black as his own—at your request. He insisted you sit as close as possible on the blanket he laid down, instead of across the coffee table. He'd only ever painted his own nails after all, so the angle was very important to keep him from messing up. You were certain he just said that because he wanted the closeness.

The screen barely flashes a few frames before you're changing it again. A football game, a cartoon, a drama, and then—you finally stop. There's a couple wandering through a cabin, with a disembodied voice narrating all it had to offer. One of the many house hunting shows that came on every so often.

"Oh, this one's pretty." You put down the remote to watch. The couple head upstairs where the master bedroom is and your excitement quickly dies. "Maybe not. The bathroom is a huge let down."

Ren casts a glance up at the TV as the camera pans over the room once more. He took in the slanted ceiling, with the tub stationed on the lower end, lit up by an angled skylight. He didn't really see whatever problem you had. "What's wrong with it?" he asked.

"The ceiling is already so low. You'd have to fold yourself in half to get in that tub, tall as you are. And you'd probably hit your head every time you got out. We couldn't live there," you grumbled and rested your chin on your free hand, eyes never straying from the screen. "No way I'd put you through that."

You didn't notice how he perked up when your concerns involved him—you even said ‘we.’ A miniscule drop of polish fell on the paper towel under your hand. He wasn't sure if you were being considerate, or if your perfectly normal relationship was at the point of buying a home together. He hoped it was the latter. Either way, including them already planted ideas in their mind. "So then, what's our—your ideal home have?"

"My ideal home…" You’d only really thought about things you didn’t want, thanks to your current apartment. "I can't say I'm very picky. No holes in the walls, enough room to breathe, no rats," you paused for a bit—now they were in a rather awkwardly shaped second bedroom. "When I was little I wanted to live in a bounce house. Or have a freezer dedicated to ice cream."

Ren smiled while he carefully painted the nail of your pinky. "One of those is doable."

"True, but I'd rather not blow up my house every day," you joked and continued pondering. "The location is probably the most important, right?" He silently nodded in agreement as you went on. "Corland Bay's nice and all—having everything so close together makes things easy. Except sometimes I wanna fall asleep without hearing cars pass by or Violet playing games. It's much quieter here. Plus your bed is comfy."

"You're more than welcome to live here, Angel," he innocently offered. “Although maybe you’d enjoy somewhere more secluded.”

“Like just out of town? Not too far from civilization. I'd still wanna be near the beach." You watched the couple fuss about the kitchen in another house before you really processed what he just said. You turned to look at him for the first time since the show caught your interest. "Are you asking me to move in with you?" 

"Oh, is that what it sounded like?" His tone was full of shock, but you could see the way his snake bites pulled up in a faint grin. He examined your nails and lifted your hand once he deemed it finished. "I do have all this space, though. The library’s close by. Beach is a short walk away, too. No neighbors, no noise. I've never had a rat problem. I guess it hits all the marks f’you, doesn’t it, Angel?"

"Ren…" You rolled your eyes at his antics. 

"If you really want to move in that badly, I'm not opposed," he said teasingly. "Other hand."

You didn't respond just yet, merely giving them a playful side eye and placing your hand flat on the table. Gently, you blew air on your wet nails while he went to work. The noise of the TV faded into the background as you thought about his offer.

It was a big step to take. You already spent a fair amount of your time at his place. The ever-dwindling amount of laundry you did at home served as proof. Cohabitating with them wouldn't be much different from now. Ren always gave you space when you asked, even with his clingy personality. He was tidy, quiet, and never made a fuss—the perfect roommate on paper. The real issue was money. A place like this would cost way more than a librarian’s salary could pay.

"As much as I want to, I have to consider rent first," you thought aloud, causing him to stop and look up.

"Angel, you don't need to pay anything." His answer was almost immediate and it surprised you how firm he sounded about it.

You shook your head. "I know I probably can't do half, but I’d like to do my fair share. How much is your rent each month?"

"Well, actually," he stalled and idly rolled the nail brush in his fingers before putting it back in the bottle. The rent was one thing he couldn’t be bothered to keep track of. "...I have no idea?"

"How—what?"

"It's an automatic payment so I never think about it," he admitted, explaining further at your incredulous expression. "I mean I definitely saw it when I found the listing—and when I signed the lease. But I can't remember it off the top of my head."

You had a hard time believing what you were hearing. You knew your own rent by heart—it mocked you every time it took a chunk out of your bank account. A question about how he budgeted weighed in your mind, although the rather calm way Ren spoke clearly answered it: he didn't. It seemed obvious now; he'd been a frivolous spender from the beginning.

The blank look on your face made him a little worried. "Honestly, Angel, it’s not an issue. I’ve been paying it on my own just fine," he insisted. "You don’t have t’worry about any cost if you stay here, I promise.” He’d be happy as a clam to pay triple whatever he already was if it meant you'd move in. Hell, he’d even pay for you to live in one of the empty units next door.

"Fine then," you sighed in defeat, glancing towards the TV screen for a moment. The show was already ending. "If I tried to give you money you'd just find a way to give it back anyways.”

Ren let out a faint breath as if he was holding back laughter, but didn’t disagree. "So, how about it? Gonna move in?” he asked with a sincere smile.

You couldn’t help but smile the same in return. “Yeah, why not? I’d be crazy to say no. I can talk to my landlord and be out in a few weeks, probably.”

His excitement only seemed to grow at your words. He was radiating silent joy, fingers tapping rhythmically on the table as he uncapped the bottle of polish once more. You could almost imagine a tail wagging behind him as he tried to make steady brushstrokes over your nail.

“Are you really that happy?” you laughed and he nodded. “Maybe I should just move in tomorrow.” His hand barely slipped, leaving the tiniest streak of polish on the side of your ring finger.

“Oops,” he muttered.

[baby-yongbok]

hiii since you were asking for suggestions, may i request bf!chan being pissed by bumping into their s/o chatting with their ex? i’ve been thinking about this scenario for a while since i don’t know if he would play cool and then be mad for a whole week or would alfa the situation

Thank you for the ask, bestie! When I think of Chan seeing you talking to your ex my first thought is Jealous!Chan. I feel like he's a bit of a possessive person even if he doesn't really mean to be but he does it from a place of pure love and a bit of fear. I feel like he wouldn't know what to do with his emotions until some time has passed... You'll see what I mean lol anyway, Hear me out...

Jealousy, Jealousy

Word Count: 1099

Genre: Fluff with a sprinkle of angst? like just a tiny sprinkle

✨Masterlist✨

Chan wanted to surprise you. You had been having a rough time balancing work and classes lately so he wanted to do something special. He had it all planned out, he was going to get food from your favorite place and your favorite flowers to make you smile. He knew that if he went to a particular strip mall that he could pick everything up in one go and get home before you got back from studying. He crossed the busy street stepping onto the curb when he saw it. Honestly, he wished that he was hallucinating, he wished that maybe it was just a girl that looked a lot like you - too much like you. 

Unfortunately, his wish wouldn't come true today. You stood there with your backpack hanging on your shoulder as you casually chatted with your most recent ex. The two of you didn't end on bad terms but that didn't matter to Chan, he didn't like the way your ex looked at you and ghosted a touch to your shoulder every time you would say something the slightest bit amusing. Everyone knew that Chan was a bit possessive but what he felt in this moment was a bit more than that, there was a small pool of anger bubbling inside of him that he couldn’t seem to control. 

Before he knew it he was stalking towards you, shoulders back and chest slightly puffed out to assert his dominance. He reached the two of you before you even saw him coming, his hand possessively finding a home on your shoulder and pulling you back into him. He took you by surprise and from the look on your ex’s face he was quite taken aback too.

“Baby, I thought you were coming home after studying.” Chan says not completely looking at you. His gaze was semi fixed on your ex and the way his eyes scanned Chan’s frame, he hated every second that the two of you stood in front of him but what he hated even more is that you welcomed it.

“Oh, yeah I - uh just ran into an old friend. Chan this is -” You’re cut off by Chan’s voice, his tone assertive and uninterested.

“I know who this is.” He looked down at you with burning eyes and you knew exactly what that look meant, he was angry. “We should really get going, come on y/n” 

Without another word or glance from Chan he tightened his grip on your shoulder and guided you away from your ex not even giving you the chance to say goodbye. It’s not like you would anyway, you knew better than to get on Chan’s bad side and since you already seemed to be there you didn’t want to push it. 

“Chan what was -” He glared at you and you stopped mid sentence deciding not to try to talk to him just yet. This was a conversation to have at home and nothing in the world could explain how much you dreaded what was to come. 

“So we just talk to our exes now?” Chan asked as he closed the door behind you both. You hadn’t even gotten to take both of your shoes off yet and the dreaded conversation was already beginning. 

“Baby, we just ran into each other as I was leaving the cafe. He was literally telling me all about his new girlfriend and I was telling him about you, my lovely and very jealous boyfriend.” Chan’s face twisted at your statement. His arms crossed and his gaze was fixed on the hardwood floor for a second before he spoke up. 

“I am not jealous, y/n” He stalked past you and took a seat on the couch avoiding eye contact with you. “I’m angry, I’m not jealous.” 

You followed him, taking a seat in the free space next to him. “What exactly are you angry about?” You ask with furrowed brows. You lay a hand on his shoulder and smooth reassuring circles into it.

“I’m angry that you were speaking to him! I’m angry that he looked at you, that he smiled at you. I’m angry that you were standing there with him instead of being home with me… I’m.. I’m just..” Chan’s voice got smaller and smaller as he processed the words that were coming out of his mouth. A small sympathetic smile ghosted your lips as you allowed him time to process his emotions.

“Fuck.” He whispered sharply before laying his head back against the couch. “ I am jealous… aren’t I?”

“Yeah, baby, I think that you are.” You lay your head on his shoulder and his hand finds its way to your thigh giving it a tight squeeze that you know is meant to be apologetic. You appreciate it as the two of you sit in silence for a minute or two. 

“I’m sorry…I’m not usually the jealous type I just… when I saw you talking to him it felt like all of my defenses went up and I just couldn’t stand the thought of him trying to get you back. My imagination went wild and I just didn’t want to lose you.” You shifted a bit, placing yourself in his lap and snaking your arms around his neck as he lifted his head to look at you. His lids were low and you could sense a bit of shame in his voice. 

“I understand, Channie. I probably would’ve gotten a bit jealous if you were talking to your ex too, but that’s okay cause you know what that means?” He looked up at you with furrowed brows and shook his head. “That means that you love me and I love you too, more than you will ever know. People get jealous sometimes, it’s natural, we just have to make sure that it doesn’t consume us and we have to trust that our other half won’t hurt us.” 

Chan shakes his head, taking in your words and processing them slowly. “ You’re right, y/n… I’m sorry for all of that. I trust you with all of my heart and I promise I’ll get better with that.”

“I forgive you, Channie, everything is fine.” You lean down, resting your head in the crook of his neck as the two of you hug and share some deep breaths. 

“But like, next time I’d rather you walk right past him. Kinda like he’s invisible ya know?”

“Don’t ruin the moment, Chan. We were getting somewhere.” You smile against his neck and he lets out a faint chuckle. 

“Okay okay, I’m just kidding… kinda.”

[bon2bonn]

This City

2022!F1 grid X female!driver!reader

Daniel Ricciardo, Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, Charles leclerc X female!driver!reader.

Words count : 1.2k

*the song belongs to : Sam fisherr , and the version I chose features Anne Marie , it's one of my favourites, and in a way it reflects how the female!driver felt through her 22 season and I saw that it fits with both Charles struggles with Ferrari through 23 , and Danny's through his journey after red bull till he went back in 23 , so I hope you enjoy it ✨. If you have anything to say, add or thoughts on this au! share let me know .

*First side/extra chapter of Weathering Your Storm au! (WYS) ✨

Lando sat back as he returned from refilling his drink for the second time that evening , the chatter of his friends going around him as they conversed and joked with eachother , not long ago they had dinner , all of those who could attend argued on who'll do the dishes and he unfortunately lost the rock paper scissors to both Daniel and Max, along with Charles who lost to Carlos and y/n . Both of them grumpled under their breath as y/n (the host for the night) teased them about breaking her dishes .

Their monthly dinner started off as a spontaneous get-together but extended to turn into an ongoing tradition , everyone took turn to host it once a month for whoever is available to attend , hosting or going out in lando's case (he almost burned his house down, twice) except for Christmas where it's almost mandatory to attend the end of year dinner .

This month it's y/n's turn and she did not disappoint, a decent homemade meal along with desert's and everyone's favourite drink of choice . now they scattered around catching up on what's everyone is up to , Carlos and Charles along with Max, Daniel and himself were the ones who stayed back as Seb , Lewis , Mick ,Lance , Pierre and yuki left earlier all having flights to catch the next day , but the rest opting to stay and enjoy the rest of the night night .

After few drinks Charles took a seat at her Grande piano, playing some tunes but still engaged in a conversation with Max and Carlos , arguing while they both shook their heads in denial, Daniel had his guitar (that he always leave at her place and she'd always jokingly say that she'd sell it to a junk yard if he keeps on leaving it behind) strumming it mindlessly as he and y/n who sat next to him with her feet kicked up on the table before them were talking about something that Danny nods at , his eyes are focused on her as she went on explaining before turning to Charles who started off a new tune getting his attention along with the others as he called "I know this song" before humming for a moment then strumming the stings following up the tune Charles started .

He turned to y/n who started humming along to the music stopping to nudge her to sing along "com'on , it's one of your favourites " , she shook her head " I can't sing to save my life" he gave her an eye roll scoffing as he say " you keep saying that but we all know that not true , and anyone who can sing better than lando is a great singer " earning a cushion to the head from the offended driver as everyone around fell into a fit of laughter agreeing to Daniel statement , but also ushering their friends to sing . As she finally obliged they restarted from the top . Lando took it as a chance to set his phone on one of the shelves adjusting the angle to get everyone in the frame " I'll send it to the group chat later" before sitting down .

Daniel started the first verse softly :

"I've been seeing lonely people in crowded rooms

Covering the old heart breaks with new tattoos

It's all about small screens and cigarettes

Looking through low lights at silhouettes

But all I see is lonely people in crowded rooms"

Nodding at her to start the chorus along with him :

" This city is gonna break my heart

This city is gonna love me then leave me alone

This city is got me chasing stars

It's been a couple months since I felt like I'm home

Am I getting closer to knowing where I belong ?

This city is gonna break my heart

She's always gonna break your heart"

Letting her carry on with the second verse :

"Monday through Friday I don't do so well

I wanna call you but I stop myself

And you're the only one I wanna run to , yeah

Cause I've been drinking lately , so I forget

Wondering what this place will give me next

Cause all I see are lonely people with broken hearts"

This time Charles joined in the chorus all three sang in harmony :

" oh This city is gonna break my heart

This city is gonna love me then leave me alone

This city is got me chasing stars

It's been a couple months since I felt like I'm home

Am I getting closer to knowing where I belong ?

This city is gonna break my heart

She's always gonna break your heart".

Her and Daniel joined together in the third verse :

" She's got a hold on me

I got a hold on you

She got me wrapped round her fingers

Yeah, yeah , yeah

She got a hold on me

I got a hold on you

She got me wrapped round her fingers".

She hit every high note with ease as everyone joined them in singing the last chorus :

"This city is gonna break my heart

This city is gonna love me then leave me alone

This city is got me chasing stars

It's been a couple months since I felt like I'm home

Am I getting closer to knowing where I belong?

This city is gonna break my heart

She's always gonna break your heart

I didn't mean to break your Heart"

Letting Danny strum the last note before adding softly:

"I didn't mean to break it ".

They all applaused at the end whooping and whistling as she joined them before covering her face as they turned to her with compliments and praise , groaning into her hands as lando passed her to grab his phone back .

Danny nudged her with a playful smile " if racing didn't turn out well , we could flip a coin and start a band , what do you say ?" she shoved him away "like hell I'd let anyone hear me sing in public!" Then turning to lando who looked like he saw a ghost tilting her head in question" what's wrong?" For him to look at her with guilt then showing her his screen that displayed an Insta live going with her own face now looking back at her , with comments flooding the side of the screen , frowning for a second trying to process what occurred before snapping her head to lando in disbelief , the rest came to take a look in curiousity all fitting in frame as comments rolled up before turning to lando who backed up in attempt to flee the scene .

The screen shook before it changed to Carlos holding the phone along with Max both trying to shut the live down (more like them reading comments and greeting fans instead) , lando is seen screaming for his life in the background where he got tackled by y/n on his way to the door , Danny and Charles trying to prey her off his back .

Max turned to them after reading some comments a hand on his hip as he called aloud over lando's screaming "y/n! Seb said You can't kill him , the live is still on! " Carlos added a second after "Fernando said do it" turning back to the screen right before it's turned off.

[simpforboys]

loving you was never a regret

neteyam x fem!metkayina!reader

summary: when the sully’s came to your village, the oldest son flipped your world upside down in ways you would have never expected

warnings: some angst, fluff ending, obvious x denial trope, you and neteyam are 19

based on prompt “I didn’t mean to fall in love with you, but that doesn’t mean I regret it one bit” by dumplingsjinson!

you never really believed in true love, despite tsaheylu.

it was just something you didn’t plan in your future, not seeing a point in having a mate or children.

you stuck to your plan for 19 years, until, the sully family had arrived at your village.

the oldest sully was immediately drawn to you, like a magnetic force pulling him towards you.

your piercing greenish blue eyes, natural curls, and teal skin made him feel infatuated. he wanted to know you.

and while you couldn’t deny that he was attractive, when he met your eyes you ducked away and left.

this made neteyam’s brow bone furrow, his eyes following your frame as you dove into the ocean.

it wasn’t until a few days later where your paths would actually connect.

“tsireya, have you seen my-“

you stopped, looking at the group to see the sully kids standing there with your good friend.

“y/n!” tsireya grabbed you, making you stand next to her.

“y/n, this is tuk, kiri, lo’ak, and neteyam.”

neteyam.

the boy was looking directly at you, his pupils dilated with a small smile on his face as you looked away, giving the group a small wave.

“well i guess i better get going-“

your friend cut you off once more.

“actually, do you want to help me teach them how to swim with the ilus?”

tsireya was like a little sister to you, and unfortunately, you would do anything she asked of you.

she had a pleading look in her eye and you couldn’t help but cave in.

“fine.”

she sent you a massive smile.

“follow me.” tsireya started walking, lo’ak following closely behind her as kiri and tuk walked together, leaving you and neteyam.

“hello.” he greeted you as you both began to walk.

“hi…” you said shyly, still avoiding his gaze.

“i saw you the other day, when my family and i arrived.”

“yes, i saw you too.”

“why did you leave?”

his question was so sudden and so harmless it made you grow nervous.

“i had chores to get done.” your feet began to walk into the ocean where tsireya was starting to educate the other sullys on ilus.

neteyam went to open his mouth, but got stopped when tuk asked if he could hold her.

you called your ilu, rifa. she swam up to you, nuzzling her head against your leg before surfacing her head.

“she’s so cute!” tuk awed from neteyam’s arms.

you smiled, feeding the girl a fish.

“ilus are very wonderful creatures. highly intelligent, have good personalities, and excellent first bonds. they are not as loyal as your ikrans, but they are amazing animals nonetheless.”

you spoke, sending rifa to circle around the kids as rifa splashed them, causing tuk to laugh. neteyam smiled at you, kiri curious about the animal as lo’ak watched tsireya.

ao’nung emerged out of the water with rotxo, eyeing the sullys and you suspiciously.

“ao’nung! help us with the demonstration, tsumakan (brother).”

ao’nung rolled his eyes, and you noticed the way rotxo stared at kiri with big eyes.

ao’nung called to the ilus, many coming up to the surface and inspecting the forest na’vi with curiosity.

“if you are going to live here, you have to learn to ride.”

neteyam put tuk down as you held onto another ilu, holding the excited animal from diving.

“who wants to try?”

none of the sullys stepped up.

“i will.” neteyam shrugged, walking over to the ilu as he pet the creature.

“make the bond gently,” you guided him, and slowly everyone started breaking up into groups.

tsireya and her brother helped lo’ak and kiri as tuk stayed with neteyam and you.

“feel her energy, her breathing, her heart beat.” neteyam sucked in a deep breath through his nose.

“you will hold here.” you grabbed his hand, unaware of the way it suddenly flustered him, and put it on the small hand holder.

you wooped at the ilu, causing the animal to dive under the water with neteyam going with it.

tuk gasped as she lightly bounced in the water. “i want to try!”

you grabbed another ilu, this time a younger one, more fit for tuk. you guided her hand to where to hold on, when neteyam’s head popped up.

you giggled as he looked out of breath, probably falling off the animal. neteyam’s cheeks grew warm.

➽─────────────────❥

days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months.

you grew close to the sullys, showing them around the reef and sometimes joining them for dinner in their marui pod.

neteyam’s feelings grew also. he wanted you, needed you, in a romantic way. but every time he tried to show interest, you would shy away.

it was no secret around awa’atlu that neteyam liked you.

you would never admit it, but you enjoyed spending your time with the boy. he made you laugh and feel safe.

and you weren’t a skxawng (idiot), you knew of neteyam’s feelings. but the fear of the commitment put you off.

“rewon (morning), y/n.” neteyam’s tail slapped the back of your thigh playfully as he came up behind you.

you jumped from the sudden action, a smirk coming onto your face.

“you are lucky i felt that with your tiny tail.” you teased, showing off your thicker one as it splashed a wave of water at neteyam.

he laughed, making your stomach turn into knots. you looked away, trying to return back to the chore you were completing.

neteyam leaned against a wooden rack, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched you intently. you could feel his eyes burning into the back of your head and it made you nervous.

“take a photo, it will last longer.” you joked, looking up at the boy.

“i would if i could.” he shrugged, making you flustered. you grabbed the bucket of fish and began to walk to the beach when neteyam followed you.

“you follow me around like a baby.” you commented.

“do you not enjoy my company, y/n?” neteyam smirked at you. you looked up at him, sharp eyes onto his playful ones.

“i enjoy your company very much.” neteyam added, seeing the way you shifted your weight onto your other leg.

“neteyam-“

“oooh! are you feeding the ilus, y/n? can i join?” tuk came walking down, bouncing on the balls of her feet. you mentally thanked her for saving you.

“of course, tuk.”

neteyam ruffled tuk’s hair as she grabbed a fish. you called rifa, the animal nuzzling against you.

“piak si (open), rifa!” you instructed.

➽─────────────────❥

when the season came back, tsireya had woke the village. the tulkuns had returned, jumping out of the water happily.

you got out of your bed, diving into the water. your spirit sister, herwìva, was just as excited to meet you.

with a smile on your face, you called rifa as the ilu appeared. she took you to where herwìva was, the tulkun doing a twirl.

“my sister!” you signed.

how have you been?

“these past few months have been challenging. there is a boy.”

herwìva cut you off. a boy?

her tone was teasing through her noise and you playfully rolled your eyes at the tulkun.

“he likes me, very much.”

are you two mated?

“you know i cannot, herwìva.” you signed back.

try, my sister. you deserve someone.

herwìva went into detail about her own mate she met. catching up with your spirit sister was something very dear to you.

her words left you wondering.

➽─────────────────❥

and maybe you didn’t realize how much the forest boy meant to you, until your life came crashing down.

the sky people were coming, quickly.

you were on rifa, chasing after tsireya and neteyam since lo’ak went to warn payakan.

you arrived within minutes. lo’ak was calling out for help, neteyam climbing on top of the tulkun with tsireya swimming towards them.

“shit.” you mumbled, hopping onto the animal as ao’nung, kiri, and tuk had arrived to help.

“attach this on!” neteyam tossed a rope.

you took the initiative, helping lo’ak tie the rope to the tracking device as neteyam took an ilu and tried to force it off.

“they are coming!” tsireya screamed.

“pull harder, cmon!” lo’ak shouted back.

the six of you sat there and tugged onto the orange device until it finally came out of the tulkun. but by then it was too late, the sky people were coming towards you.

“dive! every body get into the water!” you instructed. the teenagers followed your orders, diving into the water as neteyam took off with the tracking device.

rifa swam up to you as you grabbed on, following the kids with neteyam coming up behind you.

suddenly, submarines began to attack you all, sending you into panic mode as the group had split up.

neteyam had stayed with you, following you into an air pocket.

“what happened? where is everyone?” neteyam asked.

“i don’t know, we need to find them.”

your voice cracked in fear. neteyam reached his hand out of the water, caressing your cheek comfortingly.

“we will all be okay, y/n.”

you nodded, diving back under the water. when you peeked out, kiri was using plants to fight off the submarines.

“follow!” you signed to ao’nung and rotxo as the boys grabbed kiri. you called out to rifa, your girl coming towards you. only she didn’t get to make it before one of the submarines came around the corner, piercing the ilu through the neck.

you accidentally sucked in a deep breath from the shock, beginning to choke on the water. the screeches and whines that came from rifa made your mind go blank, seeing the way her eyes rolled to the back of her head.

you couldn’t move or think. neteyam, watching the scene, grabbed onto your arm and forced you to get away on another ilu.

you didn’t resurface again for a couple minutes as neteyam held your thigh against his body, making sure you were coming.

you approached an island, neteyam helping you onto the rocks as you cried out for your ilu.

“they murdered my rifa!” you wailed. neteyam held you against his chest, letting you cling onto him as you mourned.

“mawey, y/n. mawey (calm).”

the boy stroked your curls in a comforting way, his movement stopping when he saw lo’ak, tsireya, and tuk on the sky people ship.

“listen, y/n. they have taken my siblings and tsireya, and i need you here with me. okay? you have to have a strong heart.”

your lip quivered as more tears left your eyes, but you needed to save tsireya.

“we can attack from under the sea, while my father goes above.” neteyam said, seeing the metkayinas go into battle with jake.

but you two didn’t go so far before payakan jumped out of the water and onto the ship, beginning to battle the sky people.

“c’mon!” neteyam dived into the water.

without thinking, you jumped in after him. another ilu picked you up, and it felt wrong being with another animal that wasn’t rifa.

nonetheless, the ilu helped you onto the ship where neteyam was cutting free tuk.

“tsireya!” you alerted, running up to the teen as you hugged her tightly. she noticed your sad eyes.

“what is wrong?” she asked.

“they killed rifa.” you explained sadly, voice broken.

“y/n! take the girls and get off the ship!” neteyam said as lo’ak ran off.

“lo’ak!” you shouted, but it was useless as neteyam took off.

“come here, tuk.” you grabbed tuk’s hand as you dove into the water with tsireya.

“are you alright?” you asked the child when she resurfaced.

her chest was rising and falling, flushed cheeks with fear evident in her eyes.

the sound of guns firing made you grab onto the younger girls, guiding them to a spot where you were all hidden.

you lifted your finger to your lips, making a shh noise. tuk clinged onto you, but let go when she saw an ikran holding her sister.

“they have kiri!” she shouted.

“tuk!” you and tsireya called out after the child, but tuk climbed her way back onto the ship.

you and tsireya didn’t get the chance to follow because lo’ak, a human, and neteyam jumped into the ocean.

“i’m shot.” neteyam gasped for air and you felt as if pandora stopped.

tsireya called an ilu, and the last few minutes went by in a blur. you held neteyam’s hand while the ilu took you to a rocky island, the one you and neteyam were at moments prior.

your head was ringing but all you could focus on is saving neteyam.

he laid on your lap as lo’ak applied pressure to his wound. you comfortingly stroked his cheek, much like how he had done earlier to you.

“neteyam…” you croaked out.

“i see you, y/n.” neteyam’s voice was shallow and you could see his eyes draining.

“no, no, no, stop.”

you took your queue, and without thinking connected it to neteyam’s.

“y/n!” lo’ak gasped as ronal came rushing onto the island, tsireya close on her tail.

your eyes rolled to the back of your head as you felt neteyam’s pain, his feelings, his memories.

and each happy one had you.

“move, children!” ronal snapped as she sat next to neteyam, beginning to do a prayer to eywa.

“why would you do that?” tsireya asked you when you came back from your daze, the queue still holding on to neteyam’s.

“i need him, i cannot lose him.”

lo’ak and tsireya looked at each other as ronal continued on with her prayer, calling out to eywa as jake and neytiri approached.

“what happened?” jake asked, but neytiri shushed her mate.

neteyam laid weak in your arms, your own tears falling onto his cheeks.

“come on, neteyam. come back to me.”

as if it was a signal, neteyam sucked in a deep breath as ronal and eywa healed the boy.

“thank you great mother!” neytiri gasped, taking her son and holding him close.

you finally felt like you could breathe as everyone surrounded the boy.

➽─────────────────❥

days went by. you held a private funeral for rifa, neteyam attending as he was the only one you invited.

a flower was tucked into your pointed ear as you cried, neteyam comforting you as eywa took rifa’s energy back.

“my sweet rifa.”

while most ilus were not very loyal animals, rifa and you had a connection that could only be described as fate.

rifa did not ride with anyone else, unless you allowed it to be done.

and neteyam knew how much the animal meant to you.

when your emotions had finally calmed down, eclipse dawned over awa’atlu. you and neteyam stood on the shore in the cove of the ancestors, cold sand between your feet as you stared off into the ocean.

“neteyam…” you trailed off.

the patient boy looked at you, love and sorrow in his glowing yellow eyes.

“i gave you so many reasons to walk away from me, and you never did. why?”

the topic change caught neteyam off guard, but your emotions were going off the charts.

“there has been many things i have walked away from, y/n. things that have filled me with tìlapx (regret). and i didn’t mean to fall in love with you, but that doesn’t mean I regret it one bit. getting to spend time with you made all of it worth it.”

neteyam wiped the tears off your cheeks as your lip quivered, you went to hold onto his wrists as he caressed your cheek once more.

“i see you, neteyam.”

neteyam’s lips curled into a smile as he placed his forehead against yours.

“i see you, y/n.”

you grabbed your queue, connecting it to neteyam’s once more, but this time, a stronger tsaheylu. neteyam became your mate in the eyes of eywa.

you pressed your lips to your new mate, him cupping your jaw and pulling you closer to him.

if someone were to tell you months ago that you would be standing in the cove of the ancestors, kissing your mate, you would have told them they are lekye’ung (crazy).

but meeting neteyam was the best thing that has ever happened to you, and you hated yourself for not realizing it earlier.

but all neteyam could think that after months of flirting, feelings, and seeing you through the good and the bad, he was beyond thrilled to be your official mate.

[nottoonedin]

An ALNST Theory/Hypothesis/Over-analysis/Interpretation of events

AKA: Me slowly descending into madness over an animated web series-

(Btw this is mostly just for fun, don't take it too seriously lol)

(TW: Death, Blood)

Long post warning:

I assume we've all seen the newest posts that Vivinos has put out on their YT community tab (or wherever you get your ALNST updates), and the one that everyone is obviously talking about is the post titled <CURE>

And.. yeah, of course, just goes to show that Round 6 is just around the corner (I am screaming internally) and the attention is going to be focused on Ivan and Till, and how their story will progress (or end, depending on if someone's gonna die, which seems likely, unfortunately).

But the post that really caught my attention.. was this fucking post:

When I first saw it, in my mind I thought ''Haha, how cute and goofy! This is exactly how I saw their dynamic!'' and went on with my day.

But after thinking about it for a while, my brain decided to think up this wonderfully awful thought:

''What if Hyuna (unintentionally) had a hand in what happened to Hyun-woo?''

Now, at first, this sounds fucking crazy. The general consensus (from what I've seen) is that Luka killed Hyun-woo. But I do see some parallels between this post and the incident in Round 5 which might help explain what actually happened, but first:

Why I don't think Luka would have been able to kill Hyun-woo:

Luka is DEFINETELY not known for his muscles or strength, I mean look at him:

He's like a sickly Victorian child, not to mention his asthma, chronic migraines and heart disease. I don't believe Hyun-woo has any health problems (not that I know of anyways), so I feel Luka would have a hard time trying to push Hyun-woo over so he'd fall onto a rock. To put it simply, Hyun-woo could most likely beat Luka in a fight, unless someone interfered in some way...👀

Luka's ''fighting'' tactic:

With the parallels between The Trio doodle and Round 5, I've noticed there's a pattern with how Luka gets rids of his ''opponents'', be it on stage or outside of it (*cough* Hyun-woo *cough cough*).

He initiates the attack, it being mentally or physically depending on his opponent. He's subtle about it however, the only one being aware of his antagonism being the one he's antagonising, preserving his perfect, can-do-no-wrong persona.

2. Obviously, the opponent retaliates. But, of course, Luka expects this, it's what he wants, after all. He knows he'll be seen as the victim by onlookers. How could anyone hurt such a precious, weak, defenseless little guy??🥺🥺He doesn't even bother to fight back at all (may be too weak to).

3. A stronger force, seeing Luka in ''distress'', steps in and takes care of the attacker (the opponent), avenging Luka, who they see as the victim. He isn't the type to do it himself, letting others do his dirty work.

Now, let's apply this to the flashback in the All-In MV..

What may have happened to Hyun-woo:

Luka may have said something to Hyun-woo that deeply distressed/angered him, or perhaps Hyun-woo knew about what Luka did to Hyuna.

2. Angry, Hyun-woo attacks Luka.

(I'd also like to note that in this frame, Luka looks more like he's just had someone pulled off him, rather than he's just attacked and pushed someone over onto a rock.)

3. Hyuna finds Hyun-woo attacking Luka and, naturally seeing Luka as the victim, tries to break them apart (which would have been hard if Hyun-woo was super pissed). There's a struggle, and.. well...

Hyuna accidentally kills Hyun-woo, which doesn't bother Luka. Just means his opponent has been eliminated. As far as he's concerned, Luka wins.

Final Thoughts:

Does this theory leave a lot of questions? 100%. For example, if this theory was true, why would Hyuna be so angry at Luka? Does she later find out about his manipulative nature? How? On the stage perhaps? I find this unlikely, however, since I don't believe Hyuna ever went on stage and escaped beforehand, due to a post Vivinos made a while back:

Can this theory be easily debunked? Oh, ABSOLUTELY (I hope it is debunked in canon, to be honest lol). But it does give ideas for some angsty fanfics, I believe hehehe-

For real though, Alien Stage is all up to interpretation. Some questions may never be answered. It leaves room for different ideas, which is one thing I love about the series. <3

Thank you for reading my batshit little ramble/theory!! Hope ya'll have an awesome day/night!

[thyandrawrites]

On "dream doping", or the lesson to be learned from despair

Alteratively titled: why breaking up with your high school sweetheart is vital for a career in soccer (with or without said sweetheart. Signed: Ego Jinpachi)

buckle up, this is a long one

We know that Reo went into this match with several hungups as to why Nagi would leave him behind, even going as far as asking Chigiri and Kunigami why they'd pick him

And his voice shaking (notice the wobbly speech bubble) as he repeats the validation, like he doesn't quite believe it to be true anymore. And then during the match he kept alternating between talking himself up and trash talking Isagi with increasingly frantic urgency. He needed to test his worth against Isagi and come out victorious to prove that he was worthy of being the genius' partner, yes, but one important factor is that he did all of this specifically seeking Nagi's approval. He needed to hear it from him, because it's Nagi's departure that crushes Reo's confidence in the first place. Before that moment, Reo was self-assured and cocky, even looking down on other players he felt were beneath him. But we could argue that confidence was born from a shaky foundation—the idea of staying a team with Nagi until the world cup and their eventual victory together for Japan.

I think a factor that doesn't often get brought up in Reo commentaries is that Reo derives a lot of his winning self-image from tag-teaming with a genius

And it's from "borrowing" his talent that Reo feels he lifts their collective value to genius level

And in the process, Reo also tends to undersell his own skills by comparison, and letting them stay an accessory to Nagi's brilliance,

despite how it's been remarked that Reo's a bit of a genius in his own light. If he honed that potential, he could be a big threat, too. Alone.

This is by design, of course. He foils pre blue lock Rin for this reason, too. Reo and young Rin are similar in that they both consider their soccer partner the true star of the show, subordinating their own skills as just a fancy accessory to make their partners shine and become world's best with them right at their heels.

The unfortunate consequence of this is that they end up internalizing that their dream is not achievable without their partner(s), because they ingrained being a sidekick so deep into that plan that they simply see themselves unwilling or unable to chase it on their own.

Hence why, for the continuation of their dream, it becomes vital to have their partner's approval. They just don't see the point in going on alone. Losing the partnership means losing the reason to play altogether.

Now, of course this mindset is incompatible with blue lock. Nothing really new there. Reo was always framed as the delusional oddball for signing up for the program with the intended goal of using it to make Nagi the best, rather than himself. In other words, for trying to bend the system into accommodating his dream rather than accepting Ego's philosphy and playing by Ego's rules. And of course, that plan was bound to be put to the test when Reo&Nagi got the first taste of "despair".

The series posits that despair is the feeling you get when your dream doesn't measure up to reality and threatens to crash and burn. Ego posits that there's only one way out of it that doesn't involve self-destruction. And that's avoiding the trap of the so-called "dream doping".

But what does "engraving despair" even mean in simple terms? I think Ego's point is that after experiencing a crushing, frustrating defeat, some players (the normies, or those who don't go very far) simply think "next time we'll win" without putting any active energy into changing their playstyle and rebuilding it anew to face the growing challenges and "devour" them along the way.

Think of Barou, and how he managed to come back after Isagi and Nagi made him effectively useless in the field. What Barou did was evolving into someone even more chaotic and unpredictable, and devouring them right back. Barou himself cites the despair he felt during that match as the catalyst of his growth and winning goal. In other words, instead of dream doping, Barou adapted and survived in a battlefield that would've otherwise left him in the dust.

But not every player has the presence of mind to pick themselves back up as the match is still unfolding, and when the defeats rolls around, they fold under the weight of that despair. We see this in action. When Sae evolves so rapidly in Spain and eats Rin for breakfast during their 1v1, Rin's reaction to despair is dream doping (at least at first). So is Reo's when he loses to team white. Faced with opponents that had an explosive soccer growth, they struggle to keep pace, and then refuse to face reality and admit they also need to change their playstyle to keep staying in the game.

In Reo's case, he even goes as far as saying he doesn't have "the courage to let himself be destroyed and reborn." And that defeatist attitude is what leads team white to choose Chigiri instead. A real egoist doesn't think "I cannot do it" but instead keeps fighting tooth and nail until the end.

But Reo isn't there yet. If you analyse his body language at the end of the match, it's clear he expects a rejection before it even comes. Notice his posture

Having just had a taste of the limits of his skills against strong opponents, his reaction is resigned. His stance is defensive and closed off. His arms and legs are crossed, he's the only one on the ground, his head is hung in defeat and avoiding Nagi's eyes. Even the camera angle looks at him from above, like he's already doomed himself by deciding to stay on the ground, not picking himself up. Remember, it's Kunigami who lifts him from his collar. Reo doesn't have that strength alone.

This transition here also shows it well imo. True to fashion, he only shows a reaction when Nagi's directly addressing him. A part of him is still wishing for things between them to mend, to go back to how they were. There's hope written all over his face in that second panel, but the moment he hears what Nagi has to say, it abruptly morphs into pain.

Nagi echoes the words Reo wanted to tell him when they split, but to Reo it doesn't come across as the approval he was seeking. Rather, as the opposite: while Reo couldn't bring himself to encourage Nagi to go ahead in fear that Nagi wouldn't look back (that is, in fear Nagi wasn't as attached to him and their dream as Reo was)... Nagi says them easily enough. And to Reo, that's more crushing than the loss itself because he misconstructs it as indifference towards their promise.

It all circles back to Reo's insecurity. While Nagi just showed him he's able to change even without Reo as his partner, Reo is insecure about being able to do the same because he sees them as his biggest weapon, not anything inherent to Reo alone. Thus, once Nagi mines the foundation of Reo's confidence (their team up), any step Nagi takes in an effort to get them closer to the world cup in Reo's eyes is just another step away from it (and from him). Reo always assumed they'd crossed that finish line together, that he'd build Nagi up into the world's best striker. He wasn't prepared for a path where Nagi teams up with other people, leaving Reo powerless in the sidelines—their combo (and thus himself) a weapon that outlived its usefulness.

Much like Rin declaring that he'd lose his reason to play soccer if he can't chase his dream with Sae the way they had agreed to, Reo metaphorically sees his future as the "abnormal monster duo" crumbling away (notice the decaying effect on the square with his internal narration). Instead of taking steps towards ensuring their dream still has a chance of happening in the future, he sees it as already doomed.

The thing is, Reo isn't ready to give up on it, though. He doesn't want to. I could be wrong about this but him seeking out a clean cut from Nagi came across to me less as if he was blaming Nagi for leaving, and more like he seeked a fight as self-punishment for his thoughts during the match. In the previous chapter, he tried stifling Nagi's potential and then resented himself for it. Now, his internal narration is almost goading Nagi's anger. I think it's still up in the air whether he was lashing out because he was overwhelmed by his conflicting feelings or if he was seeking out Nagi's rejection because he hated himself for not measuring up to his own standards during the match. Maybe a bit of both.

Point is, Reo is refusing to face reality. By saying "then pick me", to cite Ego, he's denying that he was powerless in the match, and putting the entire brunt of his loss onto Nagi's shoulders for not choosing him. Simply put, he's relying on Nagi to open up the door to go further in blue lock instead of growing into the player that gets to choose who to pick.

And Nagi recognizes this and feels hurt by it, cause if Reo refuses to evolve, switch up tactics and try new things, he's also implicitly refusing to go further in the program. From Nagi's perspective, it's Reo that's breaking their promise by being unwilling to put in the effort to keep staying in the game. Remember, the consequence for failing blue lock is no longer being allowed to play professionally for Japan. If Reo quit putting up a fight, his dream would be over for good.

And the story tells us, the measure of a great striker is how they react to the challenges thrown in their path. Nagi's growth happens specifically because he doesn't tie his success to Reo, but knows when to throw in other variables and when cooperating with Reo makes them stronger. In Nagi's eyes, their dream is not reliant on their combo, but their combo is a weapon that makes their dream achievable. Whereas Reo based his plan to get the world cup around his partnership with Nagi, and let his own skills lay dormant and underdeveloped cause he always defaulted to passing to Nagi to score.

But when Nagi leaves the equation for good, Reo's forced to address where his own strengths really lie and how to weaponize them to avoid elimination. That's why the chameleon awakens for the first time. It gets roused by Reo's despair, which gets "engraved" only when it dawns on Reo that their combo is not an option anymore, and it's on Reo and Reo alone to fight his way back up, evolving and devouring rivals along the way. And much like Nagi's talent for trapping, Reo's stregth was also inherent, and never just reliant on them being a team.

[qqueenofhades]

Once you get offline, Biden’s doing ok with everyone but Republicans and racists. Unfortunately, that’s a pretty big voting bloc, but it should be manageable. More unfortunately, Harris is. Not popular. With anyone. Like, we’re talking Dan “To not have a mind is being very wasteful” Quayle levels of dissing. You can blame some of it on sexism and racism, but enough women and people of color have jumped on the “Kamala’s letting The Team down” bandwagon that there’s got to be more to it than this. Any thoughts?

Yeah, uh, I don't think that's fair OR accurate, and deserves quite a bit more reflection and pushback than is implied here (since your question frames it as thinking there MUST be something wrong with her and invites me to expand on it). First off, I am not comfortable comparing the first female vice president (AND female VP of color) to empty suit Dan Quayle, and especially when there's such a disparity in their background, social perception, and accomplishments, not to mention their role in the administration. So:

"You can blame some of it on sexism and racism, but -- " Okay, but how much? Are we actually assigning a weight to that and taking it into consideration, or hand-waving it aside in search of the "real" cause? Online Leftists are already disposed to irrationally dislike Kamala because of the "she's a cop!!!" business that went around during the primaries, which was likewise inaccurate and misleading, but showed how women, especially women of color, are often treated in white leftist spaces (including by leftist-identifying women). That very much WAS down to sexism, racism, and perceiving her as "shrill" or "there's just something I don't like about her." Okay, what is that? WHAT is the thing you don't like about her? Would you notice it in a male politician? Would you critique it in a male politician? If the answer is any part unclear, this needs more work and is in fact reflective of that dynamic, whether or not anyone is aware of it or thinks that's the reason why.

No, seriously. If someone professes that they "just don't like" Kamala or "there's something about her that rubs me the wrong way" or whatever else, my immediate next question would be "Why? What don't you like about her?" And keep drilling down through whatever excuses about "unlikeability" or "personality" or whatever else is offered. If this can be persuasively articulated in a way that a) exposes a substantive policy reason, b) can be differentiated from what any male vice president or other person in her position would do or what should be expected of them, and c) isn't just about "offputting vibes," then sure, we can have a discussion about that. Otherwise, yeah. That's not convincing me that it's anything other than the constant, long-running, ever-present discomfort with seeing a powerful and accomplished woman of color, who started her career prosecuting sex criminals, was the first Black woman in the Senate, and is now the first female vice president, actually state her issues and own her role.

"Enough women and people of color have jumped on the 'Kamala Is Letting the Team Down' bandwagon that there must be -- " Really? Must there? First of all, it's damn near impossible to find any Online Leftist who's willing to give Biden accurate credit for his accomplishments -- see the "Biden is bad and uninspiring and anti-trans but we should I guess vote for him anyway" rhetoric which is the closest they can possibly get to acknowledging it. (None of which is actually true!) When that's the case with the top of the ticket, it's orders of magnitude easier to project that irrational dislike and distortion onto "shrill" or "dislikable" Kamala. So who are these "women and people of color" who don't like Kamala? Are they in the room with us right now? Do they actually care about/vote for the Democrats, support their policy accomplishments, and realistically understand the progress that's been made and what remains to be done, or do they want to use Kamala as yet another convenient stick to beat the Democrats (since they won't give them accurate credit to start with?)

Even if this was true, sexism and racism somehow magically wasn't a factor (which uh, it is not) and Kamala had some terrible personality defect that was unique to her and her alone and not any of the far worse vice presidents there have been in the last 20 years alone: what is this kind of question intended to accomplish? Are we supposed to fear that by voting for Biden, we might vote for Kamala as well? Well, she was on the ticket last time too, and they won the election. Don't know what else to tell you.

[queenie-official]

Chapter Four: ‘The Groom To Be’ Bridgerton Au!Anakin

part 1, 2, 3

a/n: hey guys 🤭 so as per usual the pictures used all correlate to the story so do keep that in mind while reading🥰 Also Thank you so much for 200+ followers i love you all 💋💋 Hope you enjoy this chapter loves🫶🏼

To your delight or rather relief you’ve been told that Anakin would be joining you in the castle a day before the wedding along with his mother and brother. the royal council deemed it necessary so that they could ensure everything went smoothly and the possibility of the groom not arriving on time would be one less worry. unfortunately you had received this news from Barclay right before you were about to head to sleep. so now you find yourself on your balcony staring off into the night sky unable to sleep. thoughts of what’s to come plaguing your mind, fighting the urge to pace around- a typical nervous habit of yours- when a soft voice came from behind you. “your majesty you should sleep”

“i would if i could Eleanora but my thoughts betray me” you say with a sigh, not bothering to turn around. instead you kept your gaze on the moon as the cool night breeze blew over your face. “shall i make you some tea to help calm you?” she suggested as you leaned against the railing, resting your head in your palm. “tea would be nice but i am quite alright” you answer airily.

“very well” she replies but does not leave, instead standing still in the doorway behind you. finally you turn to acknowledge her properly “shouldn’t you be sleeping?” you ask curiously, seeing her with night garments of her own on. “i find it hard to sleep when you cannot your majesty. i worry for you” she says with knitted brows, concern written all over her. you felt bad for causing her worry. “i promise i am fine. i just cannot seem to rest knowing that he will be here again in the morning, this time i properly have a chance to speak with him and yet i haven’t a clue what i should say.” you vent, walking into your room and allowing Eleanora to close the doors to the balcony behind you as you sit on your bed to speak with her. “a simple greeting is always a good start, considering you didn’t last time.”

“that’s because i hadn’t been given the chance” you said a bit defeatedly. “you could try now” simple and true but for some reason it didn’t seem so easy to you. “i find it strange how much i want to talk to him, maybe im just curious as to what his voice sounds like” you wonder out loud, fiddling with the lace curtains attached to your bed frame. “it sounds perfectly reasonable to me, you want to get to know him he is going to be your husband after all.” you sigh whilst letting yourself fall back onto your bed, laying with your legs hanging over the edge. “i can only hope he wishes to get to know me too, but if his silence is anything to answer i fear he may not.”

“perhaps he’s just shy” she suggests and the idea makes your nose wrinkle. you hadn’t known many princes to be shy, most of them had egos too high for that to be a possibility. “i suppose that is a perfectly reasonable explanation, but what good is a shy king?”

“won’t that be easier for you then your majesty?” you turn your head too look over to her, she’d sat down at the ottoman in front of your bed so that she could be closer while you voiced your thoughts to her. “how so?” you ask with a raised brow, unsure how him being shy could possibly be a good thing.

“well there won’t be much of a power struggle between the two of you” she says and the statement made you laugh. she wasn’t wrong and you weren’t laughing at what she said specifically, but you where laughing at the mere idea of a power struggle happening. ���there would not be a power struggle regardless, i get enough of being told what to do by the men in the royal council. i shall not allow that in my marriage” you state firmly once your laughter dies down, a small smile on your face as you spoke.

“of course your majesty” she says in response, a similar smile mirrored onto her face. “i think i will have that cup of tea Eleanora” you say softly, sitting up and moving to sit against your pillows.“yes your majesty” she responded, happy to be of help and to see you in a lighter mood.

the sun was shining brightly in the sky as you waited rather impatiently for the carriage to arrive. the only thing stopping you from pacing in a circle was Padme on your left and Eleanora on your right, so instead you walked up and down the length of the castle hallways. they where supposed to arrive already, late by over an hour now. the idea they might not show at all has crossed over your mind multiple times now but both girls beside you where quick to shut that down each time you brought it up. of course they where right but if that is the case then what possibly could cause such a long delay.

“y/n we really need to work on some different coping skills” padme said sounding quite winded as she did. the poor girls where practically jogging to keep up with your fast pace. "yes or at the very least you ought to get a slower walking speed" Eleanora added quickly, struggling to catch her breath as well. "sorry" you say and pause your actions allowing the two girls to catch up to you. “i don’t know why i’m so worried, it would be perfectly understandable for them to arrive late. it’s not like our kingdoms are close.” you didn’t realize how quickly you rushed those sentences out of your mouth until you saw the look on Eleanora’s face. thankfully Padme seemed to understand what you said, probably used to deciphering sentences from her own children. “exactly so let’s take a deep breath and calm down, if anything this is exactly why they are coming a day early. no need to work up a sweat over this” She says softly, a gentle hand resting on your shoulder to help ground you.

“Ah your majesty there you are, the carriage has arrived” a breath of relief exited you at Barclay’s proclamation. “thank you for letting me know i’ll be down in just a moment” Barclay nods at your response and heads back down the hall probably to go greet your guests and properly invite them in. you turn back to the girls and Padme gives you a soft smile. “i’m guessing that’s my cue to leave” she says with a laugh and you give her a hug silently thanking her for always being here for you. as you pull away she gives you one more look that says you’ve got this before she leaves through the gardens again. “i’ll busy myself in the library your majesty” Eleanora adds so that you don’t have to worry about her, she gives you a smile of her own as well before heading off.

Taking a deep breath you turn to look into one of the mirror panes in the hallway, making sure you hadn’t messed up your hair. flattening your hands along your dress to smooth out wrinkles as well as rid the sweat from your palms. today you where going to make it your mission to talk to Anakin- even if he was reluctant to speak with you or even look at you. turning on your heel you walk down the hallway at a reasonable pace as you mentally prepare yourself for however the next couple interactions go.

as soon as you entered the room they where waiting for you in, you immediately greeted them with warm smiles. only something was different this time. instead of the side of a tan face you where met with the last time you where in a room with Anakin you where instead met with the beautiful pair of blue eyes you had only caught a glimpse of, the sight made your stomach swirl.

forcing yourself to tear away from his eyes as you walked up to them, you look at who you presumed was his mother. “your majesty a pleasure to meet you” you gave the queen a low bow, in terms of status she outranked you. so it only seemed right to bow properly before her.

“a pleasure to meet you as well your highness” she says with a soft smile giving you a quick bow as well. “you’ve already met my sons” she says with a gesture towards them and you nod before greeting them. “yes it’s good to see you both again” both boys give you a nod in turn but only Obi-Wan speaks “thank you for having us” you smile politely but you can’t help but wonder why Anakin still refused to speak. at least he was looking at you this time, that’s progress.

“it is still early and im sure you all are hungry, i’ll have Barclay here lead you all to the dining room” both the queen and Obi-Wan seemed pleased with that suggestion and happily nodded, the only person who didn’t give you any indication of what they where thinking was once again Anakin. it was beginning to frustrate you, why wouldn’t he speak to you. Mad or not you’d rather him talk to you and tell you off then stay in silence.

“feel free to make yourselves at home” is what you said instead of voicing your thoughts, making sure to keep up the happy facade until they all left with Barclay. you did not let this falter you though, growing more determined to get him to talk or at the very least to find out why he wouldn’t speak to begin with. maybe he had an impediment, you wouldn’t judge him for it- in fact when you where younger you had quite the difficulty saying words with the letter R and sometimes you swore it came back whenever you where extremely nervous.

pushing your thoughts aside you decided to busy yourself with some work, so off to your study you went.

it had been a few hours since you’d last seen them all and you’d finished most of the work you needed to do for the day, according to Barclay Obi-Wan went to the library to read and the queen went to the room she’d be staying in for some much needed rest after the long carriage ride. as for Anakin well he wasn’t quite sure where he’d run off too, so you had taken it upon yourself to find him. this was the perfect moment to get him to talk.

the only problem was where ever he had disappeared to had made him next to impossible to find. you’d spent the last 15 minutes searching for him before you almost gave up.

sighing as you looked outside a window is when you saw him- or at least what you could only assume was him. quickly picking up your skirt so you didn’t trip, you sped through the castle to get to the side exit closest to where you had seen him.

sure enough there he was, sitting upon a half wall and resting against a pillar with his eyes closed peacefully. you slowed your pace as you approached him, trying to seem as casual as possible. “you seem comfortable.” you watch as he peaks an eye open to look at you before he answers. “i believe you said we could make ourselves at home.” he closed his eyes again right after he finished speaking. you couldn’t help but smile brightly once you realized he actually spoke though. “ah so he speaks” you say jokingly but it definitely came off more as a revelation.

“of course i do” he said now opening both of his eyes to look and address you properly, clearly realizing you weren’t going to leave him be anytime soon. “well i’ve yet to hear you say a thing up until now” you defend yourself, feeling like what you’d said was justified. “did you need to hear me speak?” he asks and that question confuses you. of course you didn’t need to hear him speak, but why would you not want to.

“i suppose not… is there a reason you didn’t” you ask curiously. “yes” he responds, and you nod waiting for him to continue but he doesn’t. you shift slightly in your spot as the silence continues before realizing you’d have to press further if you wanted a answer out of him. “will you tell me the reason?”

“if you wish to know” you resist the urge to roll your eyes at that response, so this is how it was going to be. “if i didn’t, i wouldn’t have said anything at all” you point out the obvious. “it was a choice i made to annoy my brother” he stated simply. the bluntness of it throwing you off for a moment. “what?” he smiles slightly at the question and your reaction, was he just teasing you? “on the first carriage ride here i was given a firm lecture on how i was to say and do nothing so that everything would go smoothly.” he says and although you got a proper answer this time you couldn’t help but raise a brow in concern. “should i worry why you speaking would cause things to not go smoothly?”

“not at all” he said with another smile, he was definitely pulling your leg. “not very reassuring” he simply shrugs at your statement. “so the reason you did not speak to me was out of spite for your brother?” you ask again to reconfirm his answer. “that is what i said yes” he crossed his arms as he spoke, leaning back against the pillar again as he waited for your response. you roll your eyes and think over that fact. okay so he was a petty person, that could go either way considering you’re also quite petty.

“but why didn’t you look at me” you ask curiously, being petty and refusing to speak was one thing but not even acknowledging your existence was another. “i’ve been told my stare can be quite intense” that certainly wasn’t the answer you had expected. “i don’t understand you.” he gives you another shrug.

“you’re really casual about all of this” you opt for a change of conversation. “what do you mean?” he says whilst he shifts so that he’s sitting with his legs hanging over the wall and his body facing you. “i mean about this whole marriage situation, you don’t seem mad or even scared”

“should i be?” he asks with a tilt of his head. “you aren’t scared to marry me?” you ask incredulously. “i’m getting the feeling you want me to be”

“i’m a stranger” you point out to him, how could he not be scared of marrying a complete stranger. “are you scared of marrying me?” you blink a few times not having expected him to throw the question back at you.

“how could i not be, i don’t know you” he seems to ponder over your answer for a brief moment. “so we’re both strangers that means we have common ground” he answers with another shrug. what was going on? had you been overthinking this situation entirely, or maybe he just wasn’t as easily distraught about his entire life being changed practically overnight- neither of these seemed like the correct conclusion.

“i’m confused” he raised a brow at that. “i feel im being very straightforward” you scoff once again resisting the urge to roll your eyes at his statement “this conversation is going nowhere”

“where would you like it do go?” he asks you and you aren’t quite sure what to say to that so you shift the conversation again. “i prefer someone to speak their mind to me.” he’s nods in acknowledgment but remains silent again looking off to the side like he was thinking something over.

you look him over again in this moment of silence taking note of the clothes he was wearing- they where a little over casual for a prince especially compared to what his mother and brother had been wearing, he could of been easily mistaken as a stablehand. “you know to be a king you are to dress the part” you say boldly and watch as he looks back over to you. “i prefer comfort over luxury” he retorts. “most people would consider luxury comfort” he laughs at your response and it made your face flush slightly, unsure why he was laughing until he calmed down and spoke again. “let me ask you then, is that corset you’re wearing comfortable?” alright fair point on his end but it’s not like he had to wear a corset.

“if the people saw you they’d think i’m marrying someone of poverty. it would be a scandal” he rolled his eyes at that- you weren’t being completely serious mostly just wanting to see if you could get a reaction out of him the same way he had been doing to you, having to resist the urge to smile when it worked.

“everything leads to scandals.” you snort a laugh and you could of sworn you saw a smile form on his lips again when you did. he wasn't wrong though just about everything did lead to a scandal. “you cannot be seen in public dressed like that.” you add still wanting to tease him.

“good thing the public is not here then” you smile, he was funny. “fair enough” was all you could think to say and he chuckled “that’s all you got then?”

“for now anyways, yes” you look back over to the castle deciding you should probably speak with the other two guests as well. “i’ll let you get back to what you where doing before i got here” he nods in response and you begin to walk away only to stop a few moments later by the sound of his boots hitting the ground and jogging over to you “wait i have something for you.” you turn towards him tilting your head to the side unsure what he could possibly have to give you “i’m sorry?”

“a gift” he says and holds up a small box in his hand, holding your hand out he gently places the box into your palm. “what is this?” you tilt the box to the side trying to see if you’d hear something move around. “open it” and so you did just that, gently pulling the box open to reveal a silver ring with beautiful tiny flower details on it and a big yellow diamond on the center that glimmered beautifully in the sunlight. “my mother suggested i get you an engagement ring to make it seem like we’ve known each other longer and love each other to the public eye” you carefully pull the ring out handing him back the box and placing it on your left ring finger. holding your hand out to look at it on you, it truly was pretty.

“clever idea… i’ve never seen a yellow diamond before” you look up into his eyes not surprised to see him staring down at you, having felt him watch over your entire reaction. “they’re quite rare most places but in Tatooine they are common.”

“thank you” you smile at him, there was definitely worse people you could of been forced to marry and so far Anakin seemed like the lucky straw to pull. you could definitely work with this.

part 5

Tag List: @luvvfromme @bimbo-baggins86 @gatekeepingirlboss

ima tell you guys this now cuz i want you to pick up on the change but pay attention to how reader copes with anxiety and stress now just for future reference 🌝🌝 anyways next chapter is going to be the wedding and ball (because is it really bridgerton without a extravagant ball?) hope you huns enjoyed this chapter Xx<3 🤭

[lets-try-some-writing]

I love your hc in which Op got attached to the tfp!kids to the point that he sees them as his own sparklings (besides Bee).

Imagine that because of some weird relic the kids get turned into sparklings. They are adorable as they are little hellions, and the moment Op sees them, its game over

His coding already grabbed them from their metaphorical scruff and went "Don't talk to me or my three, very weird but MINE still, new sparklings ever again or I shall tear your face off. Have a good day" while they were still humans, but now it's a thousand times worse...

They have the whole team cooing at how adorable they are with hearts in their optics, and they are pretty much wrapped around their tiny chubby fingers

This would be super freaking adorable and I can't not build on this thought.

After the Initial Transformation

Literally no one would have any idea what to do after three sparklings turn up where the human children were moments ago. However it wouldn't take long for Optimus, who already accepted the children as his own sparklings, to hurry over and lovingly begin coaxing them over to him. He would call out to them by the Cybertronian names he had given them and sing at a frequency too high for human ears but very clearly meant to sooth fearful sparklings.

The others, both human and bot, would be far too wrapped up in processing what was happening and watching the whole event go down to interfere. As such it wouldn't take all that long for Optimus to collect the three newly made sparklings and begin cooing at them in a way he had only ever done so to Bumblebee when he was small.

Of course, then the panic would hit. June would flip out upon seeing her son turned into a Cybertronian and demand both an explanation and a solution. Agent Fowler would develop a migraine immediately upon realizing that he would have to deal with the fallout of three human children going "missing" for a while. Not to mention having to explain all the nonsense to the military.

As for the bots, Ratchet would find himself awestruck upon seeing not one, but three sparklings millennia after the Well went dark. Then he would have a similar migraine as the realization that he would be responsible for figuring out the stupid relic hit him.

Smokescreen and Bumblebee would be worried momentarily but then be positively thrilled at the concept of younger siblings. Bulkhead would be more concerned than anything else because of his lack of knowledge on how to handle sparklings. And Arcee would be shocked but ultimately be more worried about having to cover up the kids disappearances to their families who were out of the loop. Ultra Magnus would be mostly confused with the situation in general but intrigued by the thought of having sparklings running around again after so long. And lastly Wheeljack would be ecstatic at the concept of having Miko be tough enough to play rougher games.

But no matter how simple Optimus can manage to make it look, sparklings are by no means easy to handle. Especially sparklings without any memories to work with.

The Sparkling's Shenanigans

Rafael

Rafael's Cybertronian form is that of a minicon, which is thankfully bipedal and not animalistic like Soundwave's cassettes. His scans indicate that his new form is only a few days old, a true infant by Cybertronian standards despite his new, and far stronger body. Due to this, his colors have only barely begun to show up on his frame. But based on what can be observed, he is likely to end up being primarily orange and rust colored.

His scans also indicate that he is an outlier of sorts, although his ability is mostly dormant due to his physical age. So far all Ratchet and Optimus can guess is that his ability is likely a mental one not too dissimilar from Soundwave's ability to download copious amounts of data and not die. However not everything about Rafael's new frame is good, his impaired vision unfortunately transferred over and so Ratchet was forced to give the sparkling a vision enhancing visor, much to his displeasure.

Rafael being a Cybertronian equivalent of an infant means he does not spend much time with anyone besides Optimus. He generally spends a good chunk of his day recharging in a makeshift baby carrier that Optimus fashioned and wears. And when not recharging he is either refueling or having some supervised playtime with the two other human turned sparklings.

Of course he still manages to wreak havoc even as such a small bot. As he is only slightly larger than he was as a human, Rafael is the perfect size to get everywhere he really shouldn't be going. This includes but is not limited to, Ratchet's workstation, the ventilation system during the one instance where Wheeljack left it accessible, and the small nooks and crannies around base. Optimus nearly had a panic attack when he couldn't find Rafael for over an hour. Thankfully he was later found by Ultra Magnus in Smokescreen's secret stash of rust sticks, although not many of the treats were still untouched by that point.

Rafael is loved by all in base, and when Optimus is finally forced to put him down for whatever reason, the right to sparklingsit him is one that is highly sought after. Not only is Rafael cute, but he is also an incredibly mild sparkling, well behaved, and willing to babble adorably when prompted. So long as he isn't allowed to wander off on shaky little pedes, he is the most lovable thing on two legs. Whole brawls broke out for the first few days after the transformation until the concept of bribery was introduced. The rules are simple, do something nice for Optimus and prove your capabilities as a suitable caretaker and the bot most successful gains the right to watch Rafael.

Even Ratchet fights for the right, unfortunately for everyone else, Bumblebee is Optimus's firstborn and has so far been the undisputed winner a majority of the time.

Miko

Just as Optimus predicted, Miko's Cybertronian form is that of a flier's, one with adorably oversized wings. Her scans show that she is around half a vorn old, essentially a toddler for Cybertronians, a fact that is both despaired over and loved by nearly every bot in base. Her colors are still slightly muted but she is primarily a deep purple with pink accents around her helm and wings and blue ones on the rest of her frame.

Her scans show no disabilities or anything that would otherwise set her apart from other sparklings besides her human origin. However she is a flier, and she has coding that differs from grounders in that she feels the need to attempt to take to the air whenever the opportunity is presented. This has led Ratchet to sparkling proof the whole base and Optimus to put Miko on a leash so she doesn't do anything stupid.

Miko is a true menace and will take any and every chance to get into things in order to satisfy her curiosity. The moment Optimus takes his optics off her, she tears off her leash and takes off. The very first thing she does is get to the highest spot she can reach and look over the base triumphantly with happy little chirps and a few garbled words. She will then attempt to glide down from her pedestal, sometimes succeeding, and other times requiring the nearest bot to dive to save her from hitting the ground.

When actually allowed to be off her leash for supervised playtime she likes to play battle/house with the Cybertronian toys Wheeljack and Optimus cobbled together. Bulkhead will build her little structures to place her toys and Arcee, while generally steering clear of the sparklings, will play the part of the enemy for Miko's toys to fight against. Their battles are legendary, and Smokescreen always makes sure to play dramatic music and give commentary on the whole event. Bumblebee will also sweep in and assist Miko in her battles, sometimes lifting her into the air with her toy so she can feel like she is flying.

Meanwhile Optimus and Ratchet watch the proceedings fondly and try to keep the other two sparklings from getting hurt by Miko on accident. When no bot is paying too much attention Wheeljack will try to slip Miko something "fun" in place of one of her normal toys, more often than not resulting in a mess of glitter, foam, confetti, or some other sparkling friendly substance. However since the explosion generally assosiated with Wheeljack's ultimately harmless meddling, he has since been forbidden from joining playtime unless he has been patted down first. Ultra Magnus, ever worried about the safety of the sparklings, is the one to do this when he isn't searching for Rafael who inevitably wandered off.

Overall Miko is a happy little sparkling, a little excitable and likely to accidentally hurt herself or others, but lovable all the same.

Jack

Jack ended up embodying yet another of Optimus's predictions and gained a powerful looking frame. His scans say that he is around a vorn and a half old, a child between the ages of 3 and 5 if one were to use human terms. However he looks quite a bit older than he actually is because of his bulkier and more combat oriented frame. Those around base were initially unnerved by Jack's colors and frame type which were a little too similar to Megatron's build for anyone's liking. With his colors being primarily tones of gray and black with light blue accents, the slight fear was understandable but quickly put to rest by Optimus.

Jack's scans did not indicate that has any issues frame wise, however much like Miko, his coding differs from the norm in that he has a combat based frame type. The desire to protect, guard, and engage in combat is deeply rooted in his programming ensuring that while he can be trusted with the other sparklings, he cannot be allowed to feel too threatened lest he go berserk. He is also exceptionally clingy with Optimus and extra protective of the other sparklings in large part due to his frame type.

Jack is old enough to speak semi-fluently and only talks in Cybertronian in large part due to how Optimus refuses to speak in anything else around Jack and the other sparklings. His words are still choppy and a not all that eloquent leading him to have a slight lisp which every member of the team finds adorable. Also due to his age he does not want to play with the other sparklings, instead he prefers to follow Optimus and occasionally others around and watch what they do. He likes to watch Ratchet work and seems to have a fascination with the idea of becoming a medic, something Ratchet is rather giddy about.

When he isn't watching and questioning Ratchet, Jack spends his time with Optimus learning to read, write, and speak in Cybertronian. He is fond of listening to Optimus's stories of Cybertron and the history behind their homeworld. After such stories he gushes about and draws pictures of what he imagines Cybertron and the characters in the stories to be like. The pictures are always collected and pinned to a board for the whole base to appreciate. Jack also really enjoys hanging around with Bumblebee who he sees as an older brother. Bumblebee in turn loves to spoil Jack rotten, getting him treats, letting him get away with little things, and telling him all about his own adventures.

Although most of his time is spent around the grown bots, Jack does check in on the other sparklings, his siblings, regularly. Miko worries him as there is little he can do to protect her from her own insanity and as Jack is still a bit too small, all he can do for Rafael is point out to a bigger bot where he has wandered off to. It is a bit stressful for Jack trying to keep track of his siblings but he loves them and the rest of the bots nonetheless.

Extra

Optimus and June do not get along well when it comes to Jack and the other kiddos. June wants to take care of her son and return the kids to their human forms whereas Optimus wants to keep his newfound family and is willing to go to nearly any lengths to do so. After so long without any sparklings, both he and the Matrix are loath to give up the three that were tossed upon them.

June desperately wants her son back and Optimus is perfectly fine with the new state of the human children. His usual empathy and general agreeableness towards humans up and dissipates when the topic of his sparklings being restored to human form is brought up. The thought of his sparklings returning to being human is appalling to him and he refuses to speak on the subject whenever June or Agent Fowler bring it up.

In his mind, the human children were always his sparklings, but now wreathed in living metal and within his loving embrace they are perfect, they are as they were always meant to be. His parental coding and the encouragement of the Matrix make it near impossible for him to think about returning his sparklings to their organic frames without feeling intense revulsion.

Throughout the whole sparkling dilemma Optimus and June are not on good terms.

However if Ratchet somehow finds a way to reverse the effects of the relic that caused the whole mess and the time comes for the children to be returned to their human forms, the situation could unfold in one of two ways.

Optimus gives up his sparklings with no small amount of reluctance to what in his mind, might as well be mutilation.

Optimus becomes aggressive and refuses to hand over his sparklings and needs to be sedated until the process is over.

Either way, Prime is not happy.

[pricescigar]

Love bites pt1

Elvira Wolff X John Price

Summary: Elvira Wolff, one of the most powerful Vampire hunters. After her father was driven by madness after turning into a Vampire, she made an impossible choice. A choice that had to be done.

Vampires are a plague, a plague that has been a part of human history for a long time. It all started in Medieval England, a man driven by madness. The legend of Dracula was spread through generations, let it be legend or folklore. Or a story to tell children before bed, all of the stories were true. If it wasn't for the Wolff Family to form the Hunters regime all those years ago, humanity wouldn't have survived the undead army.

Long live Reinhard Wolff. The man who Dracula away, for good. But the young sorcerer knew that was just the beginning.

With his great vast knowledge he and other allies formed the Hunters regime together as one. To protect the innocents from the creatures of the night, and all other supernatural creatures.

In foreign lands, Dracula found his new home. With his new found knowledge of science and magic, he built his new Castle. Free to do whatever he wished, in the midst of building his undead army and Vampire allies… What he mostly did. Was waiting. Waiting for her… After all, Dracula had all the time in the world now.

The Wolff family became a strong willed family as the generations went by, chasing Dracula to the foreign lands he presumably fled to. The family eventually settled into Wallachia. Soon, other hunters joined them and made their settlement there. And in 1455, Dietrich and Mia Wolff had a beautiful baby girl. And they named her Elvira Wolff. Unfortunately, due to the severity of the birth, Mia passed away.

Growing up Elvira had a difficult and strained relationship with her father, despite that Elvira wanted to become a Hunter like her father. And also because since it was what her family was known for, she didn't have any other choice. And so when she was old enough, she trained with him.

Elvira spent her days reading Supernatural books, training in the courtyard, knowing what spells to conjure to protect herself, to attack as well. And knowing when to catch a Vampire and kill it.

“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”

That's what her father always said to her the moment she became a Vampire Hunter, but how ironic he drove himself to madness because of his own work? Within a small time frame, Elvira had to bury her uncles and her godparents. With a heavy heart, she carried the burden of the fact her father now became a monster. She didn't dare to tell her other fellow hunters.

“He's just dreadfully sick.” She'd say.

“I do not know what it is.” She'd say.

“Perhaps in a few days he would be much better.” She'd say.

Nor could she even back up on what happened to her God parents now her uncles, Elvira felt her hear break every time when they were mentioned. But she had to keep her head held up high, wanting to be strong for the other hunters. Not showing one mount of emotion at all.

Elvira knew what it was. This was her problem, her problem that she had to deal with on her own. She never liked asking for help, and if anyone knew her father was a Vampire… The scandal It'll cause.

There was one thing she would never forget. How his eyes quickly changed to that crimson colour, to how his skin became pale as snow. His teeth became sharp like daggers; The thirst of human blood began.

A Vampire.

Her father always had a thirst for power, being a Vampire wasn't enough for him. He craved more and more each time, the claps and cheers of recognition wasn't enough. He always wanted more. Even if it meant becoming a Vampire with unlimited power and immortality. The monster Hunter becomes a monster himself.

Elvira had to make a choice one person shouldn't make, to save her own skin. She would burn the wolff estate down, with her father in it. When the clock struck midnight, her plan began.

Gathering every weapon she could possibly use to her advantage to defeat him. Knowing her father wouldn't be sleeping, she walked around her room getting her crossbow ready along with arrows dabbed in holy water. Elvira tied her hair back so it wouldn't get in her face, hearing flapping against her door Elvira glanced over to see a bat.

A large bat flapped it's wings against the window, Elvira did her best to ignore it knowing it was just some dumb bat. Or a Vampire who had transformed into a bat, waiting to be invited in.

“Shoo, go away. Filthy thing…” Elvira gestured her hands near the window, muttering under her breath in frustration. Watching it fly away from her window.

Elvira grabbed a stake and a hammer. She felt her heart thumping against her chest, quietly speaking to herself before walking over to her father's bedroom. From a manor that was always beautifully lit up, allowing sunlight in now became dark as the night with dimly lit candles dotted around. It would become a fire hazard if someone would accidentally bump into it.

Approaching her father’s room Elvira slowly opened the door, conveniently she saw him resting for once. Vampires rarely rest, unless in broad daylight. So she found it strange why he was “resting” tonight.

Elvira approached her father's bed, putting her stake where his heart should be. Just as she raised the hammer, Dietrich's eyes opened. Elvira's eyes widened too, before she could even blink her father quickly grabbed her neck. With such speed he shoved her against the wall, gasping for breath Elvira looked up at him.

“You foolish child. Haven't I taught you nothing?” Dietrich seethed through his teeth, holding onto her neck tighter.

Elvira gasped for breath feeling him holding onto her neck tighter, having no choice but to drop the stake. She chuckled faintly. “You've taught me many things…” She managed to say.

With her free hand she grabbed her silver necklace and pressed it against his cheek hard, Dietrich let out a hissing noise hos shape canine teeth showing.

“It's something about a young born Vampire, always arrogant.” Elvira spoke, she kicked the Candles that were standing on a small stand watching it fall, watching the fire catch contact with the furniture and it caught on fire.

“This ends now, I won't tolerate this any longer.” Elvira spoke, she used the chance to quickly exit the bedroom. Dietrich had a mark on his cheek due to the silver necklace, sneering his teeth he went after her.

Elvira knocked down most of the candles that were around to produce the fire even more, she covered her mouth as smoke began to form around her, coughing slightly accidentally inhaling the smoke.

At the staircase, Dietrich tackled and the two of them fell down the stairs. He quickly regained his balance while Elvira got up after him, a groan left her lips as she used her crossbow on him and shot him.

Dietrich quickly caught the arrow and broke it. “Useless. You were always useless.” He spoke, with his vampiric speed he tackled her to the ground. His fangs became visible.

“Transforming you will do you good, you'll know the true power of immortality.” He held her down so hee neck was exposed, and he bit down onto her neck.

Elvira groaned out loud in pain as she felt bits of her life force being taken from her, she had to think quickly. Managing to grab one of her stakes, it would only do minimal damage but she didn't care. She stabbed him in the back.

With Dietrich groaning in pain, Elvira pushed him away. She quickly got up and grabbed her crossbow once more, ignoring the blood running down her neck.

“I'm not scared of you anymore.” Elvira shouted back at him, she concentrated as Dietrich kept dodging every single attack she made. It became more difficult to see as the Estate began to burst up in flames, one of the pillars fell and Elvira quickly jumped and dodged it just in time.

Dietrich looked up and the pillar fell on him, pinning him down to the ground. She glanced over to Dietrich who was under the pillar, quickly going towards him she aimed her crossbow at his head.

“This is for killing the people I care for. My family!” Elvira struck the arrow in his eye, he was hissing and screaming in pain. She felt her heart beating faster. Leaving him trapped under the pillar, now she needed to find a way to escape.

With bits of wood falling down and blocking the main entrance, Elvira looked around. No doubt someone would've caught wind of smoke forming from their location, help would be coming soon. Elvira went over to the window, using her elbow to break the window. She quickly climbed out and ran away. Running down the dirt road to get away, in the distance she heard a group of horses.

Elvira caught her breath, and put her hands on her legs for a moment. She knew the Hunters would be approaching soon, all she had to do was wait. What didn't help was that she began to feel faint due to her father biting her neck. She fell down on the stairs and her eyes closed.

By the time the other hunters approached, they saw Elvira was unconscious and in danger. One of the men quickly picked her up, and put her on his horse. The man of men quickly fled back to the main building of the Hunters regime.

“She has a bite mark on her neck, though it doesn't look lethal enough for her to be turned.” The man spoke looking at his Captain.

“Good. When we get back, patch her up and when she wakes up I'll question her. All of those centuries of work, burning down to the ground mow.” The Captain spoke in a solemn tone, shaking his head.

One of the Hunters placed Elvira in a spare room, laying her body on the bed. Making sure she was comfortable enough, before leaving her to rest. Elvira's chest was rising up and down calmly, outside the window the moonlight shone. The same bat again, hanging above her window.

[historicallyaccuratecheese]

I’m now halfway through The Magnus Archives’ 1st season, so I thought it would be cool to just post my thoughts on each episode so far :). (Spoilers, I like all of them, and this podcast is going to be all I care about for a while.) Also NO SPOILERS PLEASE!!!

Link to Masterpost (contains all of these thought posts)

- Episode 1, Anglerfish 🚬

Statement of Nathan Watts, regarding an encounter on Old Fishmarket Close, Edinburgh.

Really strong start, not the scariest episode so far but definitely unnerving, and it gives a good first impression and layer of intrigue. While the story is simple in comparison to the later ones, it was still enjoyable, and I was just appreciating the atmosphere and framing device of the episode as well.

- Episode 2, Do Not Open ⚰️

Statement of Joshua Gillespie, regarding his time in the possession of an apparently empty wooden casket.

This is still one of my favorites. The whole time I was on edge, and this was the first episode that really kept me up at night. I went from wanting to know what was inside the coffin desperately, to wanting to stay away from it as much as possible. Joshua’s insuring dread and creative solution to his problems was fantastic, and it ends with some intriguing plot threads being set up.

- Episode 3, Across The Street 📓

Statement of Amy Patel, regarding the alleged disappearance of her acquaintance Graham Folger.

I think I share a common sentiment when I say that Amy stalking Graham was almost as creepy as the actual horror lmao. Overall I don’t have that much to say about this one, but it was very enjoyable, and I feel really bad for Graham in retrospect :(.

- Episode 4, Pageturner 📕

Statement of Dominic Swain, regarding a book briefly in his possession in the winter of 2012.

I…feel like I should hold off on talking about this one for now. While it was definitely well written and creepy, it just seems to be so full of setup for future plot lines that I almost don’t feel like I can form a concise opinion on it until I really get what’s going on. Honestly, my only complaint with this episode is that maybe it’s setting up TOO much in one go, but I still had a good time with it overall.

- Episode 5, Thrown Away 🗑️

Statement of Kieran Woodward, regarding items recovered from the refuse of 93 Lancaster Road, Walthamstowe.

This one actually did a pretty good job at getting me to think about waste disposal workers lmao, I never really thought about them like that before. This one was just really creepy, but also kind of fun in a weird twisted way. It did a great job keeping me on edge as well.

- Episode 6, Squirm 🪱

Statement of Timothy Hodge, regarding his sexual encounter with Harriet Lee and her subsequent death.

I am simultaneously horrified, and unfortunately aroused by what happened here.

- Episode 7, The Piper 🔫

Statement of Staff Sgt. Clarence Berry, regarding his time serving with Wilfred Owen in the Great War.

Having an episode set nearly 100 years ago is a really fun idea, and it’s executed perfectly here. It was interesting how it also featured a real person, and I liked how the paranormal activity felt more metaphorical here, it really did feel like it was showcasing the horror of war.

- Episode 8, Burned Out 🌳

Statement of Ivo Lensik, regarding his experiences during the construction of a house on Hill Top Road, Oxford.

I found this one to be very nerve-wracking, since not only was the whole scenario with the tree just, like…three creepy things happening at once, but the fact that the statement was given by someone with schizophrenia did a good job making me question it’s validity, even though I’m certain it’s true after listening to a later statement. I also hope that I get to see how the history of the house is unveiled in the future.

- Episode 9, A Father’s Love 💡

Statement of Julia Montauk, regarding the actions and motivations of her father, the serial killer Robert Montauk.

This one made me feel really sad :(. I really felt Julia’s despair in this one (Jonathan Sims does such great voice acting for every statement btw, both the character and the actual person), and I was even more saddened by the implications of why Robert did what he did. If my assumptions are correct, then…SCREW THE MOTHER! It was also the first one that got me thinking about where exactly all of the paranormal stuff comes from, and later episodes only add to my theory that it’s all due to demons/cults/higher powers.

- Episode 10, Vampire Killer 🧛🏻

Statement of Trevor Herbert, regarding his life as a self-proclaimed vampire hunter.

Much like Episode 8, this one did a really good job at making me question the validity of the statement, although I became more sure of its truth a bit earlier. I also just love how nonchalant Trevor comes off as, compared to all of the other traumatized horror victims. (Also, I’m guessing that the name Trevor and the episode title are meant to be a Castlevania reference?) While vampires aren’t the most creative thing for an episode, at least in comparison to everything else, the beast-like execution here more than made up for it in my opinion.

- Episode 11, Dreamer 💭

Statement of Antonio Blake, regarding his recent dreams about Gertrude Robinson, previous Head Archivist of the Magnus Institute.

Yeah…Gertrude Robinson did not die a normal death. My guess is that she was caught by ✨the horrors✨, but I’ll wait and see. This was another very tense episode, with the prophetic dream world being really, REALLY creepy. I do hope we get to see more of “Antonio” in the future, as I think he could be quite important. (I also hope he gets punched for DUMPING GRAHAM IN HIS TIME OF NEED-)

- Episode 12, First Aid 🏥

Statement of Lesere Saraki, regarding a recent night-shift at St. Thomas Hospital, London.

OMG GERARD KEAY HI HI HI HI HOW ARE YOU!!! Yeah I audibly gasped when he showed up again, it was such a cool moment. Anyways, hospitals already creep me the fuck out so this was pretty effective. Definitely some great setup here, and it helped to make a bit more sense of Pageturner, now that I have a better idea of what Gerard’s whole deal is. It also added some good fuel to the whole cult idea, and my god this poor nurse. Having to deal with all of this in a single night sounds like hell.

- Episode 13, Alone 🌫️

Statement of Naomi Herne, regarding the events following the funeral of her fiancé, Evan Lukas. Statement taken direct from subject.

Having a new voice in this episode was really cool, and Katie Davison did an excellent job as Naomi! It was also cool to see how Jon interacts with other people, he was…nicer than expected. This episode honestly felt like it was calling me out, as I am also someone who’s confident in my independence, but if I was in Naomi’s place I would also probably be scared shitless. I really hope she’ll get a happy ending :(. Also, The Lukas family is quite intriguing, especially since we now know they have a connection to The Institute…

- Episode 14, Piecemeal 👆

Statement of Lee Rentoul, regarding the murder of his associate Paul Noriega.

Firstly, this is probably my favorite of Jon’s vocal deliveries. His performance of Lee Rentoul just feels perfect. (Once again, this applies to both the writer and the character, I’m genuinely convinced the latter is an ex-theatre kid.) Outside of that, THIS ONE CREEPED ME OUT. The body horror was very effective, with the only thing holding it back being the fact that Lee isn’t the most likable protagonist in the podcast, but if this happened to someone else I’d be even more upset. Still though, it was a very creative concept, and the whole vibe and execution of the episode made it great.

- Episode 15, Lost Johns’ Cave 🕯️

Statement of Laura Popham, regarding her experience exploring the Three Counties System of caves with her sister Alena Sanderson.

What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fu-

- Episode 16, Arachnophobia 🕷️

Statement of Carlos Vittery, regarding his arachnophobia and its manifestations.

The way they tackled the concept in the title was really well done. Arachnophobia is seen as an irrational fear by a lot of people, so having it portrayed as an effect of childhood trauma was a good call. And as someone who is not arachnophobic, this episode got me close to feeling that way. What ever force was making Carlos relive his trauma is a sick fuck. Also the cat was a real one, glad he survived the whole situation. (Also THE WORMS, HOLY SHIT IT’S THE SEX WORMS!!!)

- Episode 17, The Boneturner’s Tale 🦴

Statement of Sebastian Adekoya, regarding a new acquisition at Chiswick Library.

This episode really compelled me to get out the rubber bands connecting images lmao. I really liked all of the connections to past statements here, like the presence of another book from the library of Jurgen Leitner, to the mention of Micheal Crew. The body horror here was once again very creepy, (outside of the flat rat, that was morbidly funny), but my favorite part of the episode was the introduction of Elias, which was a humorous, but also very intriguing scene. Also, the themes of books containing power was great as well. Great stuff all around.

- Episode 18, The Man Upstairs 🥩

Statement of Christof Rudenko, regarding his interactions with a first floor resident of Welbeck House, Wandsworth.

…ew. Ok in all seriousness, this is probably my least favorite episode so far. Still very far from bad, but after all of the extremely interesting themes and plot threads, having an episode where the idea was just “What if a guy had a house covered in meat? Wouldn’t that be fucked up?”, felt just a little bit underwhelming. Which like, the fact that my least favorite episode’s biggest problem is that I find it slightly pales in comparison to previous ones is just a testament to how much I’ve been enjoying the podcast. Still though, there were definitely a few things I really liked. The reveal of the room was creepy (especially considering the meat that seemed…alive…), and as someone who has had to deal with upstairs neighbors making noise for hours during construction, this episode definitely scared me.

- Episode 19, Confession, and Episode 20, Desecrated Host ✝️

Statement of Father Edwin Burroughs, regarding his claimed demonic possession.

This, alongside Lost Johns’ Cave, was one (or I guess, two…) of those episodes that seriously fucked me up. While I am not religious, I have always had fears of how religion can negatively affect me and the people around me, despite the good that it seems to do for so many people. So seeing Edwin be charged for every “sin” he committed by a higher power that wishes to steal its faith, and then not get judged by it, but by the people around him for his one true sin, was absolutely haunting, and I hope he turns out ok in the end. Outside of the horror, the episodes were fantastic. Listening to the events of Episode 8 from Edwin’s perspective, and seeing how Ivo’s actions saved him, was really cool, and solidifies in my mind that Ivo’s experience was real. The connections to demonic magic and Latin script thickened, and it was overall just a great mid-season finale. In conclusion, I hope that Martin feels better soon, and if he isn’t actually sick and is being plagued by ✨the horrors✨, well then I hope he survives :).

Thank you for reading my silly little thoughts if you’ve made it this far, it really means a lot to me :). I’ll probably update this every time I finish half of a season, so hopefully my thoughts on episodes 21-40 will be here in the Reblogs soon. :)