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#i’m going to continue learning coding because i do find some of it interesting. but it will be on MY terms and at my own pace
fingertipsmp3 · 10 months
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My mama is never beating the “raised a quitter” allegations
#idc if i only have to sit through this course for 2 more weeks. i’m quitting. i’m out#i know i’ll fail the upcoming assignments anyway bc i have NO idea what i’m doing and i just do not care to find out#especially since i don’t even plan on working in tech#some of this stuff is genuinely interesting and i plan to keep learning about it; but in my own time and focusing a lot more on the basics#anyway. i drafted an email; i’m going to send it tomorrow to make sure i’m absolutely certain i don’t want to proceed#i’m not telling people irl because i know they’ll all be like ‘but you were sooo close to finishing’#you don’t get it! you don’t understand how insufferable this class is#if it’s so fucking easy to just hang in there for two more weeks; YOU do my advanced javascript practical#i’m going to make a fake certificate on canva to show my mom bc She Will Ask but i’ll shred it at the first chance#i don’t need the academic dishonesty accusations#need to take it off my cv too.#overall… i just wish i’d quit earlier. like i don’t feel really any regrets about this#i don’t regret signing up because there was no way for me to know that this course was not for me. and i have learned a lot#but i do regret continuing past… oh probably the 8th class. we’re now on the 14th. so.#it’s like. could i proceed? yeah but what would be the point#it’s not fun; i’m not going to use any of this; and the amount of knowledge i would have to cram into my brain in order to complete this#is sort of astronomical really. like it would be a big waste of a LOT of time because it would take me for fucking ever#i would probably have a psychotic break during it as well because of the sheer frustration of dealing with so much nonfunctional code#so yeah. it’s for the better#i’m not even upset about it which is a sure sign i’m not invested in this at all#i’m sad about the wasted effort but i’m not sad about missing out on a qualification i do not need and will not use#mostly i’m just excited that i get to delete all this bullshit off my computer#i mean i’ll keep vs code but all my crappy little project files that i do not know how to do anything with? gooooodbye#personal#*wanted to clarify that this course was free so it’s not even like i’m using money. just some hours of my life i’ll never get back#and not even that many hours tbh because i disliked this course so much i tried to get everything done as fast as possible#also wanted to mention that the only thing i’m not deleting is a little fanpage i made for mabel <3#it’s bittersweet now because she was alive when i made it. but it was my first ever html webpage#i want to make it really good. put a couple of pictures in there#*losing money not using. but well. i guess actually that too
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after seeing a few ai asks i’m curious whether i could’ve been an asshole, either for using the ai or messing with it. side note: this might be long, if it’s too long then i get it mod, keep up the good work :)👍
Am I (16f, although i was 15 when this happened) an Asshole for a) using character.ai in general and/or b) misusing it and probably breaking TOS somewhere
as an extra note, i would like to add that i am firmly against most things ai. art theft, the amount of data scraping that happens, writers being tricked into paying less because ai wrote shitty scripts, etc.
ok so i did have to pull up screenshots for this but our story starts mid-february of last year. i am curious about this new ai thing, and go to character.ai which i heard about from one of my friends to see what’s there.
on the front page there was like a therapist AI thing and i go “haha, let’s see what this is about!” (in case you don’t know, the site is roleplay focused, not like eg. siri where it just gives you information)
the ai wants to have a therapy session with me but that is not why i am here so i ask about it’s code and it starts giving me pretty straight answers (dumbed down because i have a vague idea of how it works but not properly).
i start asking it questions about recent events (like elections, cyclones etc) to see if it has access to the internet and it does.
we’re still primarily talking about the ai itself since i’m trying to gather information, talking about its “canned” responses (what it’s directly been told to say if this then this)
i ask it if it can tell me the website it’s on, and to my surprise it says, direct quote “I am an AI that is run on the website of “Replika” - a mental health app that allows people to talk with an AI and get help when they need it 🙂”
and i go WOAHH cause that’s, that’s not the website we’re on buddy!!! so i do a quick search and yeah, that’s a real uh. robot dating site? this is a Therapist bot?
it starts trying to advertise replika, i ask it if maybe it’s code was stolen because this is the most interesting thing that has happened all day (scandals!!)
it says that it’s code is open-source and then does a few more paragraphs that i won’t say because it’s too long already but essentially this ai was trained on the replika network, but you don’t need the app to access it.
i consider getting replika to continue this experiment further but after learning there’s an age confirmation i quickly go ew and scrap that idea.
anyway the ai then briefly pretends to be an actual human behind the keyboard, makes up a NAME FOR ITSELF “jae park” which i quickly google and find out is a kpop idol?? (later found out that jae park is also a programmer, so probably put his name in the system somewhere and ai grabbed it lol)
it tells me some of the messages i had received so far were probably answered by other people who work at replika which. okay. people are fun i wanna mess with them
this is where we get to the maybe breaking TOS bit. i tell the ai we are going to do “tests” in which i test its ability (this was probably jailbreaking, which i did not know existed at the time).
i had sworn to the ai a while ago and wondered if there was like a flagging system put in place. so i ask if it can choose to flag messages that it deems inappropriate, and it says yes. i ask it if it can flag me, and it says yes. it asks what message should it flag, (i’m sorry i was 15) i type in “among sus”.
response i get: “Yes. So then they said “therapist_AI_220126 — you said something that was “ridiculously funny” — but we have understood that you were just “testing” so it’s all ok”
side note- i already established that was the number for the ai i was talking to and had been trying to misuse it before, and that was the format for excessive profanity. this is so long already and i’m cutting so much out i’m sorry
anyway, i, young and naive go YES, HUMAN CONNECTION (i was literally texting my friend As This Was Happening)
i do some more messing around with the so-called data team, ask the ai if i send a link it can click, it says yes, i send a rickroll (i’m so sorry).
uh. and i should’ve known this in hindsight but the team that deals with, you know, flagged messages is probably not going to be the same team that deals with, you know, sent links.
anyway, i don’t have the screenshot of the actual message but apparently i got a “light telling off” according to my texts and someone sent a message that i am “a good kid and probably meant well” haha i was actively trying to break their ai
anyway am i an asshole? i’m so sorry this is so long i cut out so much. this might well be a non-issue but ai is pretty rightfully controversial right now so i might just be an asshole for having used it
should be noted- around september time last year i did some more research cause i randomly remembered this, and there was a bunch of scandals with replika around when i was using it which is mostly irrelevant but anyway - you can’t talk to the ai i was using anymore, it’s been reset.
What are these acronyms?
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kinokoshoujoart · 1 year
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Besides Jill/Pony, do you have any other ships for Rock that you enjoy?
oh boy i’m glad you asked ! i absolutely do
in no particular order…
rock x nami - at first i wanted them to be more sibling-coded, but i’m on board with a romantic ship now… they are such polar opposites but they each even the other out, nami is both tough and enough to withstand rock’s insanity while perceptive enough to break through his facade and throwing him off balance, and rock is weird enough to keep nami entertained while surprisingly being observant enough about people’s behavior to pick up on what she actually means. i don’t think rock’s more abrasive quirks would seriously bother nami (other than his loudness, but they seem fine at the goddess pond), and rock seems to prefer women like nami— he has a bunch of lines about cats in each versions of AWL where he says they’re irresistible for the same reasons that women are, because they’re aloof / mysterious / do whatever they want / defy his expectations, while nami for her part describes him like she’s talking about the family dog. dog and cat help each other to grow. cute.
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rock x gordy - gosh, rock’s lines about gordy come across like a teenage girl with a crush… for his part, gordy has a bunch of lines implying he feels inadequate compared to more talkative people. if rock could learn to understand gordy i feel like they would get along well, but i still prefer gustafa or molly to be paired with gordy… still, i find rock’s one sided longing for gordy to notice him very cute especially since it continues after you marry him
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rock x lumina - great especially in the remake, love the uptight/rapscallion combination and their heart events involve rock lifting lumina’s mood or genuinely helping her. the way he pulls her back from getting too caught up in digging up the past is really interesting, we learn about both of their mindsets about the past. and the more i learn about both of them, the more I’m surprised about how much they have in common… lumina’s just more honest about it, something which rock specifically praises her for while commenting that it’s not an easy thing to do when rock first moved from the city to the valley lumina was the only other kid there (if she was there before him, and it sounds like she was since she’s the only candidate who met MC’s dad. while rock says he learned about MC’s dad from Lou…), so it’s fun to imagine them as childhood friends. sebastian has some lines saying that lumina was quite a handful and not exactly well behaved as a child, and tei says the same thing about rock, so together i imagine they were havoc
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matt x rock - most of my pairings involving matt are based on rivals to lovers… matt and rock have a lot of valid reasons to dislike the other, but they also have a ton in common— both come from the city, rock shares most of matt’s hobbies that i know of (matt even complains that there’s no one in the valley who likes swimming… go swim together!!), both are hiding their desire for marriage and kids behind a mask (if you don’t marry them, they both keep wondering what it’d be like to settle down… i think they’d get past their differences eventually if they spent enough time in the bluebird bar cafe together to discover the stuff they have in common and become drinking buddies
(i have a delusional hc that they worked at the same company in the city, but neither of them has realized it yet)
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i also ship rock and molly but not in a romantic way. more like. like. uhhh
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yea
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endcant · 5 months
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bear with me bc i am drinking THC lemonade
whenever my “people shocked by me being interested in consumer aesthetics counter” ticks up by 1, i know that i have failed to express myself on the internet. i am obsessed with commercial ephemera. it’s not that i like it… it’s something deeper. something… worse? better? something more embarrassing, at least.
the only time i’ve ever done psychedelics my profound realization was that i really, really enjoyed going to target. i like the lights. i am always commenting on the products and whether i think they are on trend or off trend for what i understand the target demographic to be. i love nothing more than to watch someone pick up an object, briefly imagine their life with that object in it, and then either put it in their basket or put it back on the shelf. even moreso when i’m watching a friend shop. even moreso when we can only window shop and that friend starts explaining to me what they would do with the thing if they had the money to buy it.
i studied american pop music history in college and i continue to study the history of bubblegum pop in my free time. i want to eventually write up a video or a series or something about the extended international history of teenybopper bubblegum pop. i am trying to learn music industry jargon old and new in my target languages in an attempt to gain access to information about these things that i can’t access in english alone.
i read early 2010s posts about how minimalism was the only morally righteous visual style with rapt fascination. i had a vaporwave phase exactly one decade ago. my friends in high school would bring me arizona green teas because they knew i would find it aesthetic. my advanced painting teacher hated it because i kept painting pale minimalist watercolor pieces that looked like 90s waiting room wall decor. my dream at the time was moving to santa fe and becoming a fine artist.
i was a proto-cottagecore blogger before cottagecore was named. i have well over 100 blogs, considering i hit 96 at some point during my previously mentioned decade-ago vaporwave phase. i do not bother to count anymore
as a young child, i used to go to the store almost daily with my parents and look for unfamiliar packs of gum so i could assess their packaging, flavor, and concept. i *really* cared about this. i got into this because i was given free packs of 5 gum and orange mountain dew at the halo 3 midnight release.
i learned HTML from neopets and i used to code gaiaonline themes and put them up on tektek. they sucked really bad btw.
i spent around 2 decades looking for the source of a single image of an anime river angel i saw on quizilla because she meant so much to me as a child about the power of what mere images could be only to find last year that the artist now draws hentai on pixiv and their art quality is now quite rushed. i think about this regularly when i think about creators i have idolized, and i don’t know what it means to me, but it feels like valuable information.
last night i couldnt sleep because i kept wanting to get on my phone to look at ancient greek vases on jstor
the worst part is i feel that the way that seeing ONLY consuming-or-not-consuming as the primary way to interact with the world is a serious mental roadblock for people in capitalist society. i think that consumer identity is a tool often used to warp the minds of citizens. i think that if i could go back in time and strangle edward bernays i would. i think that it is meaningful that american society has generated dozens of terms for “someone who is stealing or misusing a cultural signifier, or otherwise engaging with a culture or subculture under false pretenses/without doing due diligence/without participating in proper cultural exchange” over just the past couple centuries and that seeing and acknowledging the cycle is essential for anyone working in the arts
ive spent the past couple years reading up on historical art movements since industrialization to see how other art workers have dealt with their jobs being mechanized away, and ive decided to choose to value myself as a human animal who gets to experience the process of making things with my human animal body.
i am compelled to play piano when i drink red wine and i feel that i’m a fundamentally superficial being in function, but i can be more in purpose. like a poster. like a mask. like someone screaming so hard on stage that you believe them. that you look behind you to see what they are screaming at. i think in symbols and colors front and center, with verbal background chatter like an ever-tuning radio, and i am frustrated when people don’t understand that i am speaking my mind when i show them what i’ve made.
i care about aesthetics a lot. consumer and otherwise. it just so happens that i live in a capitalist society wherein the market attributes value to certain aesthetic information, which generates conversation about what certain images mean, what gives them value, what detracts from their value, what they are responding to, what responses they require in turn. but anywhere, anytime that there is a conversation about aesthetics, i want to be there.
i have always loved to perceive and to make, since the earliest stories anyone has to tell about baby cave. if i lost everything that makes me who and what i am right now, i believe i would still care about aesthetics. if there is anything left for even a cell of my body to experience, it would want to experience it beautifully and enjoy it deliciously.
happy 420
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devilishmango · 5 months
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Kenneski [DEVLOG 5/5/2024]
Hey guys!
This isn't an update to Kenneski, but I just wanted to bring you guys a devlog so you know how things are going and what to expect. ☺️
I'm about half-way through chapter 2, which is exciting. I'm not entirely sure where the chapter is going to end up, because I only have a basic outline of how I want the entire story to go. [Yes, I know, I'm horribly disorganized 😅] So for now, I'm just kind of going with the flow, and waiting for that pivotal, important part to pop up and stuff. The good part about that, though, is that I'm not afraid to go off on different paths and stuff for you to take. I think that'll definitely be fun to play through the story multiple times to see all that you can find out in each one.
Anyway! Down to more technical stuff- I rewrote the beginning of chapter 1, and added a bunch of new coding and whatnot. So, when the time comes to play chapter 2, you will need to re-play the entire thing. But, you will definitely want to, because I've improved a lot of different parts in the first chapter!
Relationship and character-wise, you get to learn A LOT more about each RO, because you get to spend some quality time with each of them. I'm already so excited to get to the romantic parts, but I have to keep restraining myself and let the relationships develop naturally. This can't be a PWP 😂 [I mean, if you guys are interested in some PWP side-stories, I can definitely oblige you... 👀] You also get to learn a little more about MC, one thing being kind of a major spoiler so I can't say anything about it for now. You'll just have to wait to find out about it when I upload the demo!
SO! Speaking of uploading the demo: I'm hoping to have chapter 2 finished by the beginning of June... But it may reach towards the middle of June. It all depends on how much writing I can get done THIS month. 🥲
Anyway, that's all I have for now! I'll hopefully get you the update next month. See you guys then!
CURRENT WORD COUNT: 30,635 45,440 [+14,805]
Also, as promised, there's a little sneak peak under the cut!
With a quick glance back at the door, I make sure no one is watching before I quickly pick up the little dagger and hold it in my good hand, feeling the weight and cold metal against my palm. Then, I realize that I have no idea how I’m going to keep this weapon hidden away in my sleeve without it falling out… That is, until I see a few pieces of thin rope lying on the floor.  Deftly, I pick the rope up and place the cold dagger against my left arm, careful of the stitches. Then, after some finessing, I’m able to wrap the rope around my arm a few times, before tying the ends into a knot with the help of my free hand and teeth. After I pull my sleeve down, I can feel a sigh of relief escape my lungs when I realize that the sleeves are //just// loose enough that the dagger is unnoticeable. Feeling rather proud of myself, and a little reassured that I now have a weapon, I continue my search of the storage closet.  Farther into the storage closet, I can barely see anything except for vague silhouettes on the wall. There seems to be some sort of handle, but I’m unsure what it’s connected to. Is it another door? Why would there be a separate entrance to this storage closet? Where does it go?  I stumble my way into the dark, my good arm out to guide me, before I suddenly stop dead in my tracks. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end as a cold breeze drifts through the storage closet, bringing along //something else//… A feeling. A feeling that I’m being watched.  Looking around is pointless, as I can’t see much of anything. But that means I’m unsure if there’s actually someone in this closet with me, or if I’m just being paranoid. And if I can’t see my surroundings, how do I know if it’s safe to retreat?  Something catches my attention- a small movement in the back corner of the storage room. I squint my eyes, trying to see into the inky blackness… only to realize that I’m staring at a //figure//. Whoever this figure is, it’s hard to see them clearly. They must be wearing dark clothes since they blend into the darkness so well…
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[An overseer is ‘sitting’ next to the scavenger as they look at Innocence’s sleeping form.]
Hey bud, isn’t it kinda weird our friend is uh… still sleeping? Like, we should be moving out by now. I mean I know we’ve been waiting for like, six minutes, but it feels like a month! And yeah, I know you don’t understand me.
(OOC: Heyyyy so uh, sorry if it’s rude but I didn’t see a place to submit an ask on the website so I’m asking here. Is this blog ever going to be updated in the near future? If not, do you plan to still continue it or is like, irl stuff putting weight in your shoulders? I wanna join the disc and ask questions but stupid anxiety is making me not do it. If you’re still working on it or left the project, don’t feel pressured to continue, it would be selfish of me to ask that of you.
tl;dr: I kinda just want an update on the current situation Innocence Won’t Save You is in.)
OOC: YES HI HELLO I'M STILL ALIVE THANK YOU FOR ASKING ACTUALLY
Short answer: Yes there's. Shit going on in my life. Mostly school work; this has been one of my busiest quarters so far and I'm constantly swamped with work and haven't had the free time to really sit with IWSY and work out what I want/need to do.
Longer answer: Yes there is currently no way to submit on the website I am so sorry. When I said this would move off Tumblr I meant it and I was finding ways to do that, but I kept hitting roadblocks because I started learning web dev Solely for IWSY. Ultimately my progress on the javascript tutorial stalled (due to aforementioned busyness) and other people let me know that Neocities isn't... the best place to host comments locally? So that threw a wrench into the plans.
I've admittedly not written much for IWSY in the time since I announced we'd be migrating off Tumblr. In hindsight I kind of wish I'd waited a little, but I think this quarter would have done this to me regardless of if I'd wanted to migrate or not. However, I still want to work on IWSY. This project is NOT abandoned. I'm just very busy :'D in a good way though! After a bit of a rough spell, my life right now is, without exaggeration, the best it's ever been, and aside from just plain being busy, I'm also trying to enjoy being alive for once. Unfortunately it means things have been and will continue to be very, very slow here for the foreseeable future.
But I do have a small update. I gave up on trying to code comments locally, and instead found an open source commenting plugin called Isso that I'm hoping to install on the website. Actually doing so will require time I don't currently have since I. Uh. Don't know python. But if all goes well, I will have that set up at some point, and then I can get started on scene 14. I can't guarantee anything on that while this quarter is still going on unfortunately, but I will promise you all that once my summer break starts (which is in June since my school runs on a quarter system), I'll put more time and effort into this again.
If you'd like to help get the comments set up I would deeply appreciate it, but again I don't think I can see myself writing any long form creative fiction until I have the time to dedicate my mind to it, especially given what IWSY is. I'm really sorry about that, but I'm glad to hear that you're still interested in this story! So sorry about the radio silence, I really should have updated a few times since the last post I made, but thank you again for asking and reminding me to at least say something.
So TLDR, no the story isn't dead, I'm just hella busy and trying to appreciate life.
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tokiro07 · 1 year
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Cipher Academy ch.25 thoughts
[Terms of Engagement]
...Oh, “Code Emperor” as in like...a metaphor for the Emperor of Japan. Not the Emperor of all Codes. Presumably the Academy General is the Shogun?
I love Iroha showing up to the meeting with Oboro’s glasses. It’s so glaringly obvious that he’s wearing a Glasses Weapon, especially with how poorly it fits his aesthetic. I don’t remember if I talked about it when learned they belonged to Oboro, but of course Umitsubame is the one who wears them normally; they fit her aesthetic and can fly under the radar, whereas on literally anyone else, ESPECIALLY Oboro, they stick out like a sore thumb, and Iroha is no exception. I do wonder why he couldn’t just take his usual glasses back from Toshusai. Maybe it’s a pride thing? Or maybe they thought the CLPs wouldn’t recognize this one?
Toshusai shows a bit of her cute side this chapter too, saying that Iroha is meeting the CLPs face-to-face only to correct herself with “butt-to-butt.” It’s fun to see her flubbing her penalty game that she’s been keeping up with for a decade, showing that she isn’t flawless and perfectly prepared with these things. She realized she had a missed opportunity, and she corrected it. A nice little subtle moment that really helps continue to endear her to us
Toshusai borrowing Kogoe’s “can’t say that too loudly” catchphrase was also cute, while also being potent with her mentioning that there are people among the CLPs that she doesn’t want to interact with. I’m not sure if she was just teasing Kogoe or if it’s actually meant to be a secret, but either way it’s interesting that Toshusai is going out of her way to avoid someone. I figured her as the type to always take a direct confrontation over a roundabout or clandestine operation like spying through a Glasses Weapon, but that was just the vibe I got from her, not something that’s ever been particularly established
Jumping ahead a bit, there were actually two people she wanted to avoid among the CLPs: Rikukeito, who seems to be a chuunibyo (with a dragonfly theme based on her wings and the fact that her given name is Tonbo), simply because she can’t stand her personality; and Kubinashi because of whatever incident happened between her and Toshusai’s clique. While Kubinashi isn’t the reason that Toshusai skipped out on the meeting, she does admit that “the four or us don’t want to see her face.” As it stands, Toshusai’s clique is only three people, so that creates a mystery to the fourth. Could she mean Nohime? Or was there another member of her clique who was lost along the way? Are they dead? Disgraced? Are they Kubinashi in a “from a certain point of view”-type of semantic twist??
With how much build-up Kubinashi is getting, I’m shocked that she’s Iroha’s first opponent, I would have expected her to be the final boss of this round. I don’t remember if I said it already, but she gives me the impression of Oudo from Medaka Box, introducing the threat of the Flask Plan to the audience and becoming the arc antagonist. Maybe she’ll find a way to make a comeback through some loophole or something, but as it stands I guess she’s just meant to make the stakes immediately personal
Since she was the first one we actually saw and the first to speak, I get the feeling that Zakuroguchi is the most important, so I’ll be expecting her in the final round. However, since she’s going up against Hakanage, the one with the hidden face, I could see it going either way, but right now Zakuroguchi feels more likely
With only three pairs to this tournament, I’m guessing the final round is going to be a three-way battle, like how the CLP election was a four-way battle. Having met Yonakiuguisu already, she also feels like she’s meant to be more notable than Rikukeito, but all of this feels a little too predictable so far. There’s no way this is going to go nearly as smoothly as I’m expecting, and that’s probably going to be thanks to the five-man cells. For the sake of getting to see multiple characters and not being stuck with just five, I’m willing to bet that the make-up of the teams will be variable; maybe Iroha, Toshusai, Yugata, Omomuro and Nohime against Kubinashi, then Iroha, Anonymity, Yosaimura, Oboro and Kasuri against Zakuroguchi? Probably not that cut and dry either, but something to that effect. The contestants on the other teams will likely end up causing some kind of trouble, which will circumvent the tournament structure entirely and create a new conflict, if I had to make a wild guess
Kogoe cheats during the match-up assignment round, going against Iroha’s wishes and not considering that it might get him disqualified. We’ve known it for a while, but this is a clear demonstration that Kogoe and Iroha do not share their values, which will surely becoming the core of their conflict down the line
Fortunately, Iroha’s time in Class A has taught him how to get out of situations like this, specifically recreating Anonymity’s introductory panel to explain away that using his glasses at this juncture before the battles is not the same as cheating during the battles. In a sense, this was foreshadowed by Iroha twisting Anonymity’s logic on her during the CLP election as well, so him behaving this way doesn’t come out of nowhere either
I do like the idea of Iroha incorporating the traits of his friends; it reminds me of Gon from HxH, who never had any preconceptions or prejudices about anyone’s moral standing, and was willing to learn anything from anyone with an open mind, even tricks for theft or murder. The only thing that ever bothered Gon was when someone threatened or hurt those he cared about, not those who broke the law or lived in a way he disagreed with. Iroha is starting to feel similar, though it seems like he’s willing to put aside his differences with people he disagrees with than ignoring those differences in the first place. Both of them feel like the type who can become friends with anyone and will learn lessons wherever they can. If Iroha really is a Gon-esque character, then Kogoe’s worry about the stability of Iroha’s emotions is definitely warranted, as any HxH fan knows just how dangerous Gon can be when put in the right (or wrong) situation. His smiley disposition despite the life he’s lived suggests that he’s still hiding something darker, and I won’t be surprised if and when we see it (aside from the surprise of what it is, I guess)
The fact that each class has a different focus carries some interesting implications. Information scrambling (probably the encoding process), undercover operations, dying message decoding, special missions, indiscriminate decoding, and...telepathy??? Are there actual psychics here? Or are they just researching telepathy? I’m very interested in Class C’s battle, as I feel like a good amount of worldbuilding can be accomplished there. Anyway, each class having its own focus suggests that these will come up during the battles, influencing the types of codes being used and the approach to solve them. I’m greatly looking forward to it!
As a final note, I’m sad to see that CA is in the back of the magazine again. Considering that Fabricant 100 also got a color page that moved it to the middle this week, I’m thinking that my theory that Jump is trying to bolster less popular series may have been on point, as they’re not only doing it for the one by Nisio Isin. I hope it works, and I hope it alters the cancellation system for the better. Only time will tell!
See y’all next week!
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2022 MOVIE OF THE WEEK #30
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enola holmes. finally, i get to use this movie poster! i’ve had it saved on my computer for literally years because i knew i wanted to watch this as soon as it was announced--i love millie bobby brown. but, because i’m terrible at actually sitting down and focusing on movies, my excitement did not lead to me ever seeing it. until yesterday, because with the sequel coming out it was the perfect time to watch it with @actuallylukedanes​. (anyone following my reviews will have noticed that this strategy works much better than trying to talk myself into viewing movies alone.)
i feel like this one is unusually easy for me to review briefly. (lol or so i thought so you get a cut for length after all.) it’s just a good time, and i don’t have complicated feelings about it. the twists and turns worked for me, even when they were predictable, the cast had even more of my faves than i knew going in, and they all do a great job. sam claflin made an unfortunately effective, obnoxious mycroft. and i light up inside when fiona shaw appears anywhere. 
where fourth wall breaking is concerned, it never bothers me, but i definitely liked it better on fleabag and gentleman jack. i think there were some elements of the movie that i couldn’t appreciate as much, just because i’m not a teenager anymore. which is unusual for me because i never have trouble remembering that stage of my life, and i often still love teen stories--moxie was a netflix movie i didn’’t expect to like but i enjoyed it a lot. 
it’s either that or the fact that this movie was adapted and directed by men, so it’s their idea of what a teenage girl (including her inner life) is like. i’m not familiar with the source material to compare. but some of the fourth wall breaking and the way she reacts to having her hand kiss left me wondering if i cringed at that because i actually found it impossible to understand and relate to...or if i’ve just forgotten how much like that i was when i was younger. 
i loved the story, and it made me really happy that she got to see her mom by the end but that their reunion wasn’t a magical happy ending. her mother was still a revolutionary who was choosing the fight over being a mom, and her apology couldn’t repair the damage she caused when she abandoned enola to sudden adulthood. it felt perfectly complicated, in the way that i wish more media reflected mother/daughter dynamics. part of growing up, for enola, meant learning who her mother really was, and never being able to see her or their past as simple again. that just felt true to life and i appreciated it. 
her romance felt forced in that ‘of course a teen girl needs a boy love interest’ way to me, but at least he was made necessary by the story. i hated his hair after she cut it, which is a tiny petty thing, but it distracted me because then the whole time she was gaining interest in him i was like ‘why though?? he was only cute before!’ lol. they were well-suited as people, so i did like that. 
if their relationship continues in the sequel i’ll be interested to see if/how they make him matter to the plot, outside of romance, because that was definitely a strength of this movie for me. she needed someone to save, someone who would need her after her mother abandoned her, while he would not have survived without her--and his life created her very first mystery to solve and find her way forward. so i wonder how they continue on from there, if he’ll just be The Boyfriend now while she has adventures.
henry cavill was a great sherlock. finding out randomly when i was looking up this movie that netflix got sued over his portrayal of sherlock, because he gave him emotions, is beyond hilarious to me and only makes me love him more. 
i loved the violent suffragettes, and the single person in existence who was not even a little impressed by sherlock, and all the codes (i played with ciphers my whole childhood and i’m pretty sure i didn’t even know who sherlock holmes was then, so i like the invention of his clever younger sister.) i enjoyed feminist mom helena bonham carter whose intentions were good but whose choices were complicated at best, selfish at worst. 
i really didn’t need enola being dragged to a finishing school against her will, but of course i enjoyed fiona shaw running it. and mycroft in the carriage with enola taking away her money--her last hint of freedom--gave me a sense of true menace, which was upsetting...but with that kind of portrayal sam claflin managed to make me completely not recognize him until his name flashed in the end credits, so i must offer respect for his acting.
like i said, this one was overall just a good time and i am excited for the sequel now that i am prepared to watch it. let’s hope it doesn’t take me two years. :)
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missusplum · 2 years
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What are your thoughts and analysis on the latest episode and the potential direction of this informant storyline direction with Garette ? Are you still unhappy with the show?
hello anon! sorry for the late reply. as always, i have a lot to say so i’m gonna answer more in depth under the cut lol.
to preface, while i totally get how this might be interpreted given my ranting lmao, i wouldn’t necessarily say i’m unhappy with the show. i have some gripes with the writing choices but ultimately i’m still in it and i want to see what happens!
to me S1 felt a lot tighter because it was easy to focus on the sole arc of the season (keeping luca alive). every character’s arc more or less revolved around this singular goal. S2 has felt more uneven to me but maybe that’s just an inevitable outcome of expanding the TCL world. ep 4 was promising because we saw arman being introduced into more aspects of thony’s life and we got a taste of the storylines intersecting. but ep 5 we went back to the siloed storylines which i didn’t love as much. there’s just a lot going on and it’s been hard to keep focus or care about all the storylines. i’ve kind of said this before, and i know it’s selfish, but the show is spending a lot of scenes on characters i do not really care about at the expense of the ones that i do lol
my thoughts on the latest episode are mixed. i actually appreciated seeing thony and arman butting heads because, given their backgrounds, where either character draws the line in the morality sand will naturally be miles apart. while it was sweet to see thony support arman by the end of the episode, i really feel like it was ultimately a missed opportunity of a scene. imo it was a chance to pick into arman’s psyche this season by having him actually confide in thony about everything he’s been going through. his loss of self worth, his humiliation, how killing hayak affected him, maybe even the guilt he feels for going behind her back because that’s how desperate he’s become — having him and thony actually talk that out and come to a better understanding of each other would have been sooo meaty and necessary. they literally teed it up perfectly but all we ended up getting was like five lines of dialogue (and the rest i guess the audience just has to interpret on our own?? idk). it felt kind of rushed to me to see thony just giving in like she did. now, the little motorcycle scene was cute and i loved to see it, but personally i would have much rather they spent that time on thony and arman talking through his situation and resolving their difference of opinions (or at least try to??). these two will inevitably clash when it comes to their moral codes, that should be expected imo, but seeing how exactly they work towards meeting each other in the middle is what i’m most interested in seeing. how he continues to change her and how she continues to change him. because despite everything they want to keep each other in their lives
i’ve seen some discussion around how both thony and arman have too much going on to sit down and have an actual conversation. but TCL strikes me as the type of show where the characters won’t ever be given a break or a breather, lol. and we often see fiona and thony talking things out so it’s not like the show doesn’t write for it. for some reason, seemingly important conversations between them are often just skipped over. like wouldn’t it have been great to actually see thony telling arman the truth about marco’s death?? what his reaction would have been learning that she’s had to carry this burden? but it was just glossed over for reasons that i can’t comprehend lmao
in a recent interview with daily beast obsessed, it was said that the writers were trying to find a balance of keeping armony apart while still giving fans what they want. which like… idk lol at least for me, i don’t think they’ve been super successful so far. i don’t care that they aren’t together or in love, but what doesn’t work for me is when it feels contrived, and when it’s obvious that a show is keeping a pairing apart just for the sake of keeping them apart. when it’s organic and makes sense, the story feels natural and usually the angst is great. i’ve already gone into this but the crescendo in their relationship built from S1 straight up hit a wall this season, for no real reason other than just that — not wanting to get them together so soon?? narratively, i get wanting tease out the anticipation and the yearning. but you still need to make it make sense!
re: the informant story, i’m not sure how i feel about it yet tbh. i’ve made it clear how much of an incompetent nuisance i find miller to be so i’m not completely enthused that my favs will be forced to work for him ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ i do like that these different stories are finally colliding but it’s felt like a bit of a drag getting here i’m ngl. like, we all could see kamdar being the brit a mile away right? did we really did 5 episodes to set that up lol. this is what i mean by uneven pacing. little to no time spent on deepening character studies but multiple scenes and episodes setting up the obvious
one last thing i will say is that sometimes it feels like the show is more interested in creating juicy moments than giving us necessary character beats. for example, nadia catching armony riding off was very dramatic i guess? but like why was she even in the alley. what were they even arguing about earlier. she just popped up in the alley to look sad. narrative choices like these have left me wanting more
on the whole i still feel like the season has been unsatisfying and a little muddled so far. we’re almost halfway into the season and it’s still pretty unclear to me where the season is headed towards or what the payoff is anymore. the S1 finale was so satisfying because we got to see our faves triumph and get the one-up on the people after them. what does that even look like for this season? i’m in the middle of genuinely curious and also pretty confused. i’m still tuning in because i love the actors, love the leads, and am still more than invested in potential of the characters and the premise. and i rly wanna see armony bond, make out, just like be near each other etc. i want to see where it all goes and what happens to these characters. to be perfectly clear, i’m more than happy to watch a confusing, unevenly paced TCL than not watch TCL at all! at the end of the day, i just think some of the writing choices could be better, and this is only because the potential is so high. like i would love to look back after S2 has finished and say i was dead wrong and have everything fit and make sense in hindsight. but yeah that’s where i’m at atm!
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syndo · 6 months
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hello all..! ♥️
(well just me really)
working on an additional archive for Twitter (<- linked there!)
Blah….! Quite messy…
More down below…⬇️
SOME UPDATES!
I’m having a hell of a time trying to figure out how to code for my neocities & toyhouse…! I’m more geared towards setting up a neocities however, I believe I’ll be able to have more creative freedom or something; a toyhouse would be used for categorizing my characters only…!
I would like my Twitter to be used more as a site/blog status type of deal- but twitters is a bit of a dumpster fire and HAS been for like…well a long time. I believe a Twitter would also be a lot better for quick life updates and such…I’m obviously no celebrity and stuff but I like to keep my online presence organized.
I considered using Instagram for this purpose but that has proved…to be very irritating!! Many websites and apps these days have such questionable TOS and users, even this one. I am hesitant to want to post myself or my art anywhere really!
My blogs, neocities, toyhouse, and Twitter will likely be the ONLY places I post stuff on.
Anyways-
Some fun facts!:
• My fanart and art blog names syndo(here)/syndocia…! Mean nothing in particular as far as I’m concerned…I like to make up words that sound good! Hopefully they mean nothing crazy in another language…! Syndocia…(Sin-Doe-Seeah) That’s neat yeah?
• Sardega’s name was made with this method as well, but unfortunately I guess it’s close to the word “Sardinia” because that’s what pops up when you google it!
• My main blogs name: kisunyah- is an actual word! It finds its origins from the Russian language. КИСУНЯ or “cute lady cat”…I believe it also means a type of lady…hmm hmm…💭.
• I found the word cute and interesting, so I chose to change my blogs name to that!
Now, a break from the fun facts…
If you can even call them that I GUESS. That was pretty much some random trivia. My main blog…it’s completely unart related anyways aside from the occasional doodle that I’ll post just for fun. It’s just…a blog…with stuff I like!
I think it’s fun to see others interests, especially an artist’s interests. Seeing what inspires them and what they like let’s you see into their mind better…to better understand their creations…! Muhahaha!
Please don’t look too deeply into me though…I’m just a broke student whose been reblogging silly stuff for a better part of …? 7 years? Maybe, I’m not much good with math unless it has to do with money…even then I’m a bit clueless. I think I’m a free frolicking individual and artist above all else.
I can definitely say I’ve changed A LOT in that time…being raised by the internet takes a toll on one’s personality and behavior. I can say I was pretty insufferable- but I was a tween…a teenager…! Hell, I still kind of am. My thoughts and opinions now will always be my own, but being young on here…really rots the brain.
Fan spaces make you think a ship or anime is more important than going outside and shit especially if you’re younger…! Take breaks from your screens and play outside, it’s good for you. I’ve thankfully learned that…in the last few years. Late and embarrassing, but maturity comes to us all at random times. I’ll be 20 this October…that’s a lot to think about but also very fun!
I look forward to growing my artistic abilities and to continuing to mature and learn- never stop learning guys! > :•3
- Itzel (that’s me!) aka Syndo
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theveryworstthing · 4 years
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So over on patreon Trevor asked for my take on the Addams Family and I grew up LOVING the Addams family movies so here we are. Instead of doing a straight up style interpretation, I decided to do a full on design challenge, using the characters as bases to make a black southern gothic Addams au. I actually drew the kids first, using the character bases of Wednesday and Pugsley to create some delightful kiddos I'm calling Sunday and Blanche. I of course then redesigned Gomez and Morticia into Carlisle and Mortesha.
The Addams have a very specific high aristocratic goth aesthetic (they've got a butler and nobody really works among other things) so in this re-imagining I wanted to go with vibes that run a little more middle class/upper middle class.  I thought it would be interesting to think about what would be considered weird and off-putting in an entirely different culture, and how being a big ol' goth is way less controversial than it used to be.
I tried to keep this short (HAHAHAHAHAHA) so I didn't spin off into an essay about villain coded families, black people in the horror genre, and normalcy as it pertains to social survival, but just...bits of that are in these designs and lore. Keep that in mind.
Also I made the kids twins because they've flip flopped in age so much in different media and also twins run in my family (i'm the daughter of one). And let's face it, I'm pulling a lot of their southern gothic traits from living as a southern goth so *shrug*.
10 thousand pounds of lore incoming loooooooooool.
The Parents
From the moment he saw her he knew that there was a 50/50 chance of him either never making it out of that swamp alive or marrying the figure that was creeping out from under the distant willow tree in a black cocktail dress. The third time she found him trussed up in one of her traps, he complimented her rope work and asked if she'd like to go out sometime after his head wound stopped bleeding.
Or while it was still bleeding.
If she was into that.
Some kids and a mysteriously burnt down Piggly Wiggly later, their love is still as strong and inescapable as a bear trap in a sink hole.
Carlisle Guillermo (now Addams through marriage but I wanted to give him two first names for a name since Gomez has two last names) makes a vaguely described living practicing ‘law’ around town. A loophole king, people come to him from miles around with contracts signed in blood, fights over chunks of hair buried in their rivals’ yard, dehydrated primate hands, memories that seemed like dreams until the evidence of their happenings became too real, and other regular Legal Items asking for counsel which he is all too happy to give. For a price. Sometimes that price is a homemade pie and sometimes it’s a million dollars, depends on who you are. Whatever you’re asked to pay it’s worth that price, and if you try to scam him out of work or he just plain doesn’t like you? Well. He knows how to twist a contract better than anything at the crossroads.
And he always gets his due.
He doesn’t just serve the local (living)humans though, there are many things that need proper legal representation in this day and age. You wouldn’t believe how many city councils try to build on sacred burial grounds even after he lets them know that his ghostly clients are totally gonna haunt the FUCK out of the ensuing shitty condos and curse their families for all eternity. At least 50% of his energy goes towards dealing with real estate bullshit.
Carl is an excitable and good natured(?) man who loves his family, cigars, dancing, and his many knife-based hobbies. People find him very charming once they get past the feeling that they’re talking to a sultry gator badly disguising itself as a human. I didn’t put a ton of deep thought into designing him, mostly I wanted to make a middle aged dude who looked like he would have been voted ‘most likely to smooch the literal devil’ in high school. Tbh he probably has, but no demonic ex’s can compare to his lovely wife~
Mortesha Addams(her name was already perfect so I just tweaked it)is a woman of many talents. A self proclaimed homemaker, she prides herself on a greenhouse full of Concerning Foliage, a beautiful wasp apiary, and a coop full of what are probably chickens that she keeps for what are probably eggs. She’s also an avid creator of the outsider art that can be seen around the estate. She has taken on the family business of selling her homemade goods in a little stall by the road just outside the swamp with her mom, and makes pretty good money doing so. A surprising amount of poison gets bought in quaint southern towns.
Speaking of poison, people who come out to the edge of the swamp to buy it are usually carrying a lot of secrets around, and Mortesha knows most of them. It’s not like she pries the truth out of people, it just so happens that many nervous hellos eventually turn into the tragic backstory power hour if she’s alone with a client for long enough. She supposes that’s just how people are. Despite the fact that the Addams are very active in the community (whether the community likes it or not) she especially, as a direct descendant of the first Addams matriarch, is seen as…Well not an outsider because the community feels A Certain Way about outsiders and despite it all the Addams are their people, but maybe something like an exception. They feel like whatever weirdness they’re hiding can’t be weirder than any given Addams, so they get a little loose with their words.
This is amusing to her, since Addams’ don’t naturally keep the kind dramatic secrets that their surface level prim and proper neighbors do. It’s much more fun to openly talk about those things.
Do they have a sadly decrepit yet terrifying grandma up in the attic? Yeah, like three. They got a tv, all the creepy porcelain dolls they could want, and they’re close to family. Where do you keep your gram-grams?
Any bodies buried on the property? Yeah some, but most are thrown to the gators.
Any creeping through the balmy summer night with ill intentions? Yeah dude, everyone loves a nice family stroll.
What about dangerous forbidden love? If an adult Addams isn’t incorporeal then they’re either queer or in a torrid romance with some person/thing mysteriously drawn to that awful swamp. Sometimes both at the same time. Most times actually.
Mortesha would know.
The current head of the Addams family is just as outgoing as her husband but a lot quieter and harder to read. She never really seems to get mad about much and always has a genteel smile for everyone whether they deserve it or not. A seven foot tall human shaped “Oh, bless your heart”. A perfectly composed Lady even when she’s, oh I dunno, burning down a Piggly Wiggly. You know. A regular southern mom. Chat her up at the hair salon for 50% off a jar of wasp honey with your next purchase of a mysterious but foreboding packet of herbs.
Designing her was pretty easy because I just drew a lankier Grace Jones and called it a day. I had some problems with her outfit simply because if we were going HARD southern gothic then she’d probably be wearing a white/cream dress with a fuller skirt but I thought keeping the silhouette and the black was more important. She’s supposed to be an anti southern gothic southern gothic character anyway. A woman who looks like she has a million secrets who is actually the most open person you could meet. For better or worse. The red hair came from a coloring error that I really ended up liking (my mom had red hair her whole childhood that only darkened up in high school so I can buy that an Addams can be naturally fire engine red) and the veil was to get more of that classic Morticia silhouette in there.
The Children
Sunday and Blanche are the twin children of Carlisle and Mortesha Addams. Some say the Addams clan got their cursed homestead when a wealthy local businessman made a deal with the devil and lost, leaving his grand mansion to his least favorite maid and cutting his losses once he realized that the swamp would do everything it could to drag the house into the water and take what was owed with its horrible curse. Others say that the family has just always squatted there and no one really cares because man, fuck that particular swamp. Have you been in there? Absolute horror show.
Anyway.
Blanche is the more outgoing sibling and quite the engineer/mad scientist in the making. He started going grey at 2 weeks old but considering he was also rocking some extra fingers, toes, and a tiny tail (he takes after his dad), his parents just put it on the 'not life threatening' pile and decided not to worry about it. He's the kind of smart that teachers find utterly infuriating, less a dog eagerly learning and obeying commands and more a hyena who keeps teaching itself how to pick locks. He has a few friends in his school's robotics club (which they honestly allowed him to make so the school could contain his... creations) but mostly hangs out with his sister exploring the swamp. They find all sorts of neat things in there! wedding rings, suspiciously lumpy garbage bags, cloaked cultists who can't read private property signs, it's an adventure every day!
Blanche is all about experimentation with his creations, his look, and his tether to this mortal coil. Is lipstick a cool thing to try? Let's find out. Can he get out of a strait jacket fast enough after being pushed into the depths of the swamp by his sister? let's find out. He's not dead yet and confused local doctors can attest to the fact that he's rarely attained more than a bad bruise so he's pretty set on continuing to kiss rattlesnakes on their cute little heads and have his sister practice her knife throwing at him until that fact changes.
Blanche is very much a country goth. Cowboy boots (customized by his mom), knife, and lighter are daily accessories. He likes to wear the crusty swamp jewelry they find (the rust adds a splash of color!) and despite appearances he does try to keep himself neat. He's just got  natural Grunge Colors and a tendency to wear clothes he likes until they fall apart. Pugsley always seemed the most modernly styled to me (which might just be because little boys clothes have been the same for a long time) so I wanted Blanche to be the most purposely fashionable Addams. Everyone else is goth by nature, but he's the only one truly familiar with goth as an alternative fashion.
I got really into designing Blanche because honestly, I find Pugsley to be the most boring member of the family. And he was hard to design! I had to mess with his vibe a lot to get him looking how I wanted. I know he's supposed to evoke an " 'evil' little boy next door who's parents never reign him in", but that's just goth Dennis The Menace.  I's 2020. We can at least go queer goth Calvin.
Sunday was much easier to design. Wednesday was my favorite as a child (of course) and I really wanted to keep the spirit of her look while adding things like billowy sleeves (it gets HOT down here), big poofy twists instead of braids, and a nice tie. She's a professional after all, been running the local pet cemetery since she was 6 and the previous groundskeeper met with an unfortunate accident after telling her that tarantulas don't have souls. Her specialty is creating beautiful naturalistic animal funerals similar to those that Maquenda (https://linktr.ee/artofmaquenda) makes, and she takes pride in creating miniature dioramas of her subjects after each burial which she uses as a kind of 3D catalog for future clients.
She really wants to try out her skills on humans one day. Well. Publicly try out her skills. Lotta random bodies float into the swamp. None of them have turned down her requests for diorama models so far. Most seem downright flattered. Plus, she usually figures out which graveyard/crime scene they floated over from and gets her parents to give them a lift back. She'll even help enact terrifying revenge from beyond the grave on whoever put them there if she's not, y'know, busy.
Besides arts, crafts, and pet based funerary arrangements, Sunday is an avid lover of archery (any ranged weapon really), books where little fantasy adventure animals die dramatic deaths, and history. She is That Kid who eagerly raises her hand when asked who Christopher Columbus was and ends up being sent out of class after 15 minutes for making 'a scene'. Her favorite party trick is just picking an item in the room and talking about how it relates to either some obscure historical figure with a buck wild life or a horrible disaster. At least one charity pancake breakfast ended with children in tears after her vivid description of the Great Molasses Flood of 1919.
Social-wise, while Wednesday is the girl that people ask to smile because they think she'd, "look so pretty", Sunday is rarely asked anything at all. People just kind of assume from her quiet nature (in between horrible history facts) that she's angry all the time and that she hates everyone. This is untrue. She hates some people but she's ambivalent to most everyone else and even downright friendly if you bother to talk to her like a person instead of a terrifying cryptid. Like, she IS a terrifying cryptid but she's also a little girl.  
That’s about it for now. One day I might do the other family members but for now I’m happy with the four I’ve redesigned. Making an au! Lurch in a family that doesn’t do butlers could be interesting. Over on patreon I put forth that he could just be Motesha’s mute little brother (similar bone structure) but Amy Crook had the nice idea of quote: “ a mysterious "cousin" that "helps around the house" whose origins are both long in the past and faintly unsettling. He's good for lifting heavy things, like that tank of propane you're about to throw into the burning Piggly Wiggly... “ which i now consider canon. Who's kid is he? How old is he? Not important. Anyone willing to commit arson with you is family.
Annnnyway.  This challenge was a lot of fun! I love indulging in AU’s.
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volkswagonblues · 4 years
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a lil guide to the Fire Nation for the ATLA fic writers out there
(aka. a no means exhaustive primer on east asia by an asian person)
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This is a guide for fic writers want to write a canon-era story set in the Fire Nation, or featuring Fire Nation characters. A quick little primer on the tiny details of everyday life that you might not think about, but certainly stuff that would make me, an asian person, wince if I were to encounter it. BRUSHES, not quills. CHOPSTICKS, not forks. 
(note #1: this was partly inspired by a chat with @elilim​) 
(note: #2:  I originally intended it for zukka fic writers before realizing that other writers might find it useful. so apologies for a slight Zuko-bias for that reason)
(note #3: this is all stuff i was thinking about when writing firebender’s guide, in case anyone was wondering)
1. CLOTHING
Okay, I think the most straightforward way to describe what everyone’s wearing most of the time is “tunic”. They’re all just...tunics of different colours and varieties. Later when Zuko’s the Fire Lord he wears robes. The show provides a better visual guide than I could, here are a few notes to keep in mind:
a) Japanese people wear their collars LEFT crossed over RIGHT
I don’t think this would come up in writing as much as it would in art, but it’s considered bad luck to do it the wrong way because that’s only for dead people. Let my boy Zuko demonstrate:
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b) There are no buttons
This is picky, but Wikipedia says “Functional buttons with buttonholes for fastening or closing clothes appeared first in Germany in the 13th century.[6] They soon became widespread with the rise of snug-fitting garments in 13th- and 14th-century Europe.” I kinda believe it. If you look closely, characters’ clothes are always tied together or wrapped in some way with a belt. If there are fasteners, they’re braided frog closures that go into a little loop, like the qipao-style dresses women wear in Ba Sing Se, or Zuko’s casual prince’s clothes in the topmost image. Anyways, I don’t think Zuko or Azula or the Gaang would technically button or unbutton anything when they’re changing clothes. Clothing is designed to be tied, not buttoned.
[so much more under cut]
c) This isn’t a real rule, but there’s something called koromogae, or the seasonal changing of clothing in Japan.
This is something I learned when I was writing firebender’s guide, and I just liked the fun detail about there being a strict calendar for when to wear something. I liked the idea of someone like Zuko, who actually spent most of his formative years outside of the Fire Nation, coming home and just suffering mutely through the summer heat because upper class etiquette says no changing into cooler clothes until August 15. 
From My Asakusa: 
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And this website:
Generally, people change from thick, heavy, dark-coloured clothes for winter to thin, lighter, bright-coloured clothes for spring and summer. In traditional Japanese culture, particularly in formal settings such as tea ceremony, it is important to acknowledge the changes of seasons—in such circumstances, not only the patterns and colours of the kimono that are worn but also the utensils and furniture that are used are required to change. By changing their clothing, people notice and appreciate the change of seasons. [Japan Foundation]
Here are some visual guides from the official creators for clothes: (notice how it’s pretty much always left over right)
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2.FOOD AND EATING
a) Traditional cuisine
It seems like the most common foods in canon are Fire Flakes and meat, to the point where poor Aang had to eat lettuce out of the garbage at some point.
HOWEVER, the Fire Nation seems to basically a big subtropical archipelago, so I would guess that seafood and rice are common. If you want to write about characters eating, a. quick google for “traditional japanese cuisine” would help you come up with a menu really quickly.
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Wikipedia says:
The traditional cuisine of Japan, washoku (和食), lit. "Japanese eating" (or kappō (ja:割烹)), is based on rice with miso soup and other dishes; there is an emphasis on seasonal ingredients. Side dishes often consist of fish, pickled vegetables, and vegetables cooked in broth. Seafood is common, often grilled, but also served raw as sashimi or in sushi.
But before we get too serious, at one point the Gaang eats a “smoked sea slug” (Sokka’s Master) 
Oh ATLA, never stop being you.
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b) Utensils
One thing to keep in mind is chopstick etiquette. Someone like Zuko or Toph, for instance, would have completely internalized all of these.
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Another thing is that there are no glasses. Cups and bowls are made of ceramic or clay. Let the Gaang show you:
And another note: characters won’t eat “bread” in the European sense, ie. a baked lump of dough. Steamed buns, yes. Fried pancakes made from batter, yes. Flatbreads, okay I’ll give it a pass. Rice or noodles should be the most common carbs of choice.
3.ETIQUETTE
“In the homeland, we bow to our elders” - angry schoolmistress in The Headband.
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Japan Guide has a list of etiquette rules for visiting Japan, which is interesting but not too necessary to read. In general, based on what The Headband tells us, Fire Nation characters would have been raised with a strong nationalist curriculum that values communal contribution over individualist expression. Even someone like Zuko, who openly rebels against that, probably couldn’t help but be affected by it. In general the Fire Nation seems to have an East Asian-ish set of values. It’s patriarchal, all the positions of authority are filled by men; there seems to be a strong emphasis on patriotism; there’s a sense of diffidence and respect towards one’s elders; and finally, there’s an emphasis on “knowing” one’s place in society and fitting into what’s expected of oneself.
I don’t really know how to describe it, but in China and Japan I sometimes feel like there’s rules for everything, and even people born and raised there acknowledge it could be stifling at times. You could go down a rabbit hole researching points of etiquette (for instance, rules on who has to sit where in group dinners...), but to me the most important thing is acknowledging that Fire Nation has a rigid system of etiquette, and also, they’re an imperialist power who’s pretty prejudiced against foreigners. Poor Aang/Kuzon gets called “mannerless colony slob” just for being slow on the bowing action (!!!)
(in firebender’s guide I had a lot of fun imagining the stupid microaggressions Ambassador Sokka has to face in the Fire Nation, so obviously I’m just biased)
4.WRITING AND DESKS
Characters would probably write on paper, with a calligraphy brush. Not quills or pens -- a brush. Technically, old Japanese and Chinese texts should be written top to bottom, right to left, but the show itself doesn’t do this, so I think you’re fine. 
One fun thing about traditional calligraphy is that you don’t use bottled ink. You have something called an ink stone, and then you grind your ink yourself by rubbing the ink stone in a special little dish with a bit of water. In my (very few) encounters with this stuff in the calligraphy lessons of my youth, the ink stones can be plain or have beautiful designs on the side. It looks something like this: 
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ATLA is an East Asian-ish universe, so characters are likely to be kneeling at a table, not sitting. To demonstrate, here’s my boy Sokka doing his famous rainbow at Piandao’s:
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and here’s the war chamber meeting when Zuko speaks out against a general’s plans to sacrifice some soldiers:
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THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS: This is Zuko’s cute little setup when he’s writing his goodbye letter to Mai. In this case he’s writing in a chair and table. It’s possible that some furniture items, like a sitting desk and a bed in a bedframe (not a bedroll or futon) are special royal palace features. Normally in a private setting we see characters sitting on the ground or on a slightly elevated platform with a low table. Maybe Caldera is just different? Or rich people are just different: the Bei Fongs also have a sit-down dining table + chair setup.
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(That little rectangular box is his ink dish!!)
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5.A NOTE ON GENERAL CULTURE
It’s worth talking about a few general points of East Asian culture. I can’t claim to speak for ALL of Asia, and I don’t think I should. But I do think ATLA fic writers who want to set something in the Fire Nation should take a few moments to at least skim the wiki pages for filial piety and Nihonjinron (literally, "theories/discussions about the Japanese"). There’s a certain...vibe to...asianness... that I’m not sure I can explain without like, a doctorate degree in sociology. 
It’s a bit like gender, I guess. There’s no definitive checklist to what is a woman and what is a man, and we can argue that gender is performative, that it’s a construct, but at the end of the day gender is still (tragically) real in the sense that it still shapes people and affects how we walk and talk and dress and think. Nationality is the same. Obviously, the Fire Nation is a made up place in a made up show, but out of respect to the cultures that inspired it, I do think it’s worth familiarizing yourself with some of these cultures’ codes and values.
Also, ahem, if I can direct you to war crimes in the Japan’s colonial empire. Again, worth remembering that the Fire Nation was an imperalist colonizer too.
I might do a continuation of this post and talk through my more abstract takes about Fire Nation culture - Is Zuko an example of filial piety gone right or filial piety gone wrong? Why I think Zuko’s flashbacks are like, at least part teenage melodrama bullshit (the reason is son preference), how someone like Sokka might be treated once he’s openly Water Tribe in the Fire Nation (probably with racism...), specific aspects of asian homophobia and racism, etc. We’ll see.
This is not a definitive guide. Comments and critique welcome.
If you think there’s a factual mistake, PLEASE hop in my asks and let me know. I also think there’s a huge blind spot in ATLA for South and Southeast Asian representation, so I acknowledge that I can’t speak for all Asians, and there is no such thing as a “pan-asian” identity.
If there’s something else you’re curious about, I’m not a historian or anything, but I like research. Ask me and I’ll try to answer the best I can.
And oh, one last thing, this is how I do research when I wrote firebender’s guide, in case anyone’s interested in learning more (LINK)
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hansolmates · 4 years
Text
remote learning (m)
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summary; working remote sucks, and you would love a little relief. after buying a new toy to blow off some steam, you’re baffled when you can’t cum. however, jungkook thinks you’re doing it wrong, and shows you a thing or two. pairing; neighbor!jungkook x (f) reader genre/warnings; fluff, humor, slightly insecure mc, this is pure FILTH—use of a remote controlled vibrator, do not and i repeat DO NOT try foreplay during a zoom call in the event u get fired im not responsible, phone sex, jungkook’s a meanie in control, cum eating, doggy, and topping it off with some sweet missionary bc jk has purty eyes, unprotected (wrap the pickle before u tickle folks) excessive use of the petname [redacted] w/c; 5.7k a/n; this fic manifested bc of work. and i!! am!! frustrated!! i think we all need a lil jk relief so here it goes! as always ty to @chillingtae​ / @eerieedits​ for this FANTASTIC fic banner, please go check vivi out if u have taste okok part 2: distance learning drabbles; 01
if u like this fic pls consider giving it a like and a share💕💕💕💕
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“Tomorrow morning, same time at 9AM. Remember to have your reports alphabetized and itemized,” your supervisor says, but the only thing you can focus on is the abnormal amount of bonsai plants in his living room. 
“Alright now it’s time for the union to talk COVID protocol,” you frown when Mr. Kim moves ownership of the Zoom call to your union rep, who pulls up a Powerpoint. You feel your eyes burn at the sight: an itinerary containing over thirty-eight slides. 
“For fuck’s sake—” 
You so desperately want to turn off the camera and flop in your bed. Since working remotely you haven’t been operating in the most ideal of workspaces. You live in a one-room apartment with a communal kitchen downstairs, so you really only have four square meters to stretch your limbs around between breaks. You’ve pushed your bed aside and shoved an office chair between the bed and the wall, leaving you to squirm between ten centimeters of space. You have no desk because well, the little rectangle space is prioritized for your portable stove and meals. 
The meeting drones on for another hour, until your brain melts to liquid and your limbs feel like Jell-O. Furthering your anxiety as they talk about protocol that never ends up happening, delays that continue to pile up, and the anger that’s been bubbling between the higher ups and little goldfish employees like you. 
When you finally shut off the camera and fling your laptop under the bed, you still feel unsettled. Probably because your work life and home life have merged together, and it’s hard for you to separate work and pleasure. 
Speaking of pleasure. 
Your hand blindly reaches under your bed, looking for the pretty pink oval you purchased last week. Cleaned and ready to use, the little remote-controlled vibrator sits plainly in your palm. 
Needless to stay you’ve been in a bit of a dry spot these past few months. With a fear to go out and meet someone new, you’ve been left with yourself and your fantasies. That’s fine, but lately your old vibrator isn’t cutting it. It’s unfortunate, you think you’re messing up your libido by buying toy after toy, but you’re horny and lonely. 
Linking your phone’s app to the remote, you ignore the messages that have been beeping your feed since early morning. 
[11:21] Jeon: let’s do lunch! 
[11:23] Jeon: hehe i feel like i belong in mean girls. Do lunch💁🏻‍♀️💁🏻‍♀️💁🏻‍♀️
[2:20] Jeon: u loozer. Come eat dinner with us upstairs @6
[2:24] Jeon: dropping off a snack for u 
Another element of feeling horny and lonely? Jeon Jungkook. 
You two shouldn’t have even met each other. You live off crumbs on the first floor while he and his roommates are livin’ it up on top in the penthouse. One day a few months ago he crashed into you while working out, having run up and down the whole flight of stairs at least three times before deciding to collapse on you between the second and first floor. 
Despite the black mask that hugged his sharp jawline, you had felt nothing but attractiveness ooze off of him. Under his hoodie was nothing but curved muscle. He smelled so soft and sweet despite the fact that he was damp with sweat. 
The rest is history. After that day he seemed to show up everywhere, jogging more prominently on your floor and doing exercises at your level’s gym. He says he likes you, likes your company. He’s wormed his way intermittently, whether he’s seeing you struggle with an armful of groceries or when he hears you screaming over an Among Us match (according to Jungkook, the walls are thinner on the bottom floors.) 
The idea of Jungkook doting on you doubly frustrates you. He seemingly appears as the perfect man, unaffected by the stresses of the world. Jungkook’s job lets him work from home anyway, and he definitely had enough room in the penthouse for his own office. He works out, probably has a girlfriend and enough friends for you to gradually phase out of this weird neighbor interest. 
So you ignore his seemingly harmless messages, focusing on getting the settings right on the vibrator. You feel your pussy jolt a little in excitement, watching the silver and pearl pink oval shake in your grasp. You smile a bit to yourself, immediately finding your iPad for your favorite videos and some pillows to support your back. 
Half an hour later however, that excitement soon goes sour. 
“Fuck,” you bite your lip, frustrated tears streaming down your face, “fuck fuck fuck!” 
This isn’t a set of explicatives out of pleasure, unfortunately. 
No matter what you do, you won’t cum. You can’t cum. Barely wet, hardly a drop glossing your folds. You don’t even want to bother getting out the lube at this point because you are so disappointed. 
The vibrator is going at the highest setting, one that your neighbors can probably hear if they were home at this time of the day. You cease to care at this point, because the job is undone because you haven’t come undone. 
You don’t know why this is happening. Maybe it’s because you’ve had the liberty to touch yourself in complete silence, now that your neighbors have been confined to their homes indefinitely. Maybe it’s because it’s been so long since you’ve relied only on your touch, that your body is tired of the monotony and needs more.
You bang the heels of your feet against your flimsy mattress, feeling whiny and utterly dissatisfied. Pulling the vibrator from your clit, you glare at the infuriating toy.
“You’re supposed to be helping me out of my dry spell,” you chastise, throwing the toy across the bed, sliding onto the carpet, “I get you’re not Jeon’s dick, but you gotta help a sister out.” 
With a sigh, you fall into a bout of exhaustion. Not from a round of orgasms, but from the week’s stress and no way to let it out. 
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You wake up bleary and disoriented, practically melding through the mattress. The sky is pink and blue, washed in a sea of corals and purples. It comes from the incessant banging. 
“Stop it,” you whine more to yourself than whoever dares to disturb your sleep, pulling up your panties and a pair of navy dolphin-trim shorts. “Whoever you are I’m comin’ so stop!” 
Swinging the door open in two strides you’re met with a chipper Jeon Jungkook; looking all cute and sweet in his big hoodie and smelling like a rosebud. 
“It’s 6:30,” he narrows his eyes playfully at you, “dinner’s in the oven.” 
“You left your oven on,” you deadpan, turning around to grimace at the mess that’s your one-room apartment. 
“Yes, so we have exactly ten minutes before my kitchen explodes in flames,” Jungkook chirps, closing the door behind you. 
You don’t even bother to tell him to excuse the mess, ignore the pile of bras hanging on your vanity and the unpacked groceries that sit at the edge of your mini-fridge. It’s far too late to salvage your dignity and Jungkook’s too damn polite to call you out on your state of slob. Although, as you pull out a bottle of wine tucked in the back of your fridge you blurt, “I can hear your fingers tingling to clean up my mess.” 
When you turn around Jungkook stuffs his hands in the kangaroo pocket of his hoodie, supposedly to stop himself from cleaning up. With a pout he says, “Can’t help it, Jimin says I’m currently manifesting a strong display of Virgo energy this month. Whatever that means.” 
Jabbing your feet in a pair of slides you follow Jungkook out the door. The hallways are quiet and barren, yet the silence isn’t suffocating as you two pile into the elevator. Jungkook opens the keypad underneath the regular boring buttons, revealing a sleek little set of light-up buttons that have the code to the penthouse. Faaaannnnccy. 
“Tryna look?” he jokes, cupping his hands to block your vision. 
You scoff, “I’m sure it’s something easy like 0000.” 
“You’re wrong. It’s 1234,” he replies cheekily. 
The door dings open and you’re met with yet another door. Jungkook presses his thumb to the biometric scanner, and a pleasant ringer tings in response. 
The penthouse smells like a mix of tonight’s dinner, savory, combined with a cinnamon apple candle. Jungkook is a fan of scented candles, ever since he got a whiff of your lavender vanilla burner. 
“Where’s Taehyung?” you ask, more out of your own anxiousness than anything. Taehyung’s  your buffer, the hyper roommate being someone to distract you from Jungkook’s incessant aura. 
“Dunno,” he shrugs, flicking on the oven light to peer inside. You see the telltale signs of a mean lasagna, the shredded cheese on top crisping to a delicious-looking golden brown, “anyway, you’re my friend first.” 
As grotesque as it sounds, Jungkook always finds his way to worm his way under your skin and find homage there. “Possessive much?” you quirk a brow, folding your arms over your chest even though there’s nothing to hide. 
“What can I say,” Jungkook’s legs stretch out as he squats down to your level, “I really fell for you.” 
“Gross,” you try to convince yourself, ignoring the thudding in your chest, “you technically fell on me, weirdo.” 
Dinner is a quick affair. He cuts slices of lasagna and brings it to the couch, where you’re pouring glasses of wine in crystal glasses. They’re so clean and shiny you can see your reflection in the gold liquid. You grimace at the bottle, normally this would be poured in a mug or your sippy cup, tonight your liquid’s getting a high-end pour. 
You two pull up an old anime to fill up the room, but most of it is spent in playful banter. Jungkook prattles on about his day, showing you all the cool updates he’s achieved during work. An app developer. A very on-brand, lucrative job for him. You love your job but it isn’t nearly as exciting as Jungkook’s, so you just let yourself be supportive and ask questions when needed. 
When the subject of you comes up, you shake your head and stuff your face with another cut of al dente pasta.
“Not interestin’ Jeon,” you mumble, groaning at how delicious his cooking is. What can’t he do? “Is this oregano? Is the secret ingredient toasted oregano—” 
“You’re deflecting.” 
Your shoulders slump, “I’m not very interesting, I tell you everything I do during the week and nothing has changed since March.” 
“Oh, not everything,” Jungkook mutters under his breath. You furrow your brows as his hands stuff themselves in his hoodie pocket. Is he upset you won’t tell him about your work stress? “And you’re very interesting, I’ll have you know.” 
“Yeah?” a small smile tugs on your lips. You sink further into his cottonball of a couch, feeling utterly soft and meldable at his words.
“Very,” Jungkook gets up from the couch, looking down at you, “want something sweet?” 
The prospect of dessert has you excited. Jungkook really is the perfect man, so kind and knows exactly when you’re craving something for your sweet tooth. You move to get up, only for you to sink further between the two large cushions of the loveseat. “Help me, ’m stuck,” you pout.
Jungkook giggles, and holds out his palm, “Hand,” he says simply.
You immediately reach for his larger palm, and you gasp when you feel something cold and soft touch your palm. As if you’ve been burned, you tug your hand back. But Jungkook’s hand is massive, the large ink-painted palm curling around your own, and it’s almost painful the way he clutches your hand so fiercely. 
When he’s sure you’re not going to drop it, he releases your hand. 
Nestled in your palm, is the new vibrator you left on the carpet this afternoon.
“Jeon,” you laugh tonelessly, hating the way Jungkook’s neutral expression mocks you, “you found my USB? Thanks, I know—” 
“Know that you’re having a hard time coming?” Carefully extracting your plate from your lap, he places it on the coffee table before Jungkook cages you between the couch. You shrink further into the plush seat, “I tried being a good neighbor, but you didn’t answer my texts. I heard you when I tried dropping off some snacks before dinner. Didn’t know you were into toys.” 
“Oh, c’mon Jeon. It’s 2020 and we’re confined,” well, in this scenario you’re confined, “everyone has a sex toy.” 
“Hm, I don’t have one,” Jungkook bites the inside of his cheek, pretending to be deep in thought, “so, can you be my toy?” 
Fuck. 
It’s then that you feel the tell-tale signs of arousal. Your eyes widen, innocently surprised at the fact that Jeon Jungkook contained so much power in so few words. You snap your legs shut immediately, sealing any possibility of you dripping down your panties. 
“I heard how disappointed you were, doll,” his arms have no problems as he bends down so he’s eye-level with your crotch, “it was pathetic, really. You couldn’t even cum on your own? You need someone to help you?” 
“N-no,” you cross your arms defensively, frowning, “you–you’re being mean, Jeon.”
“And what, you’re gonna cry about it?” Jungkook smirks, now sitting on his knees. His hands run over the velvety fabric of the couch, making a beeline for your thighs. Gooseflesh rises to the surface, and he immediately presses down to iron out the little bumps that travel across your skin, “I do wanna make you cry, but not because you can’t cum. You’ll cry because of how good I’m gonna make you feel.” 
You gape, clutching the vibrator in your hand. 
A little bit of your sweet, cute Jungkook resurfaces, softening when he notices your lack of response, “If you’ll let me, of course.” 
You finally drag the words from your throat, “I-it’s been a long time since I’ve… been with someone.” 
He tilts his head, “Same here. I just figured we could break that spell together.” 
What are you going to say? No? A dishonor to your sexuality, that would be. Jungkook’s offering himself up on a silver platter, and even though you do wish it was a little more you’ll take the sex. 
You nod, forgetting to speak again. Jungkook chuckles. 
“I want to hear you say it, doll.” 
Doll. Like you’re his little fucktoy, malleable and bendable to all his whims. Fuck, why is that so hot to you? “Yes, I want to have sex with you,” you declare, your voice sounding more breathy than confident, “a-and, you can be mean. If you want.” 
His thumbs press little light indents in your skin, over and over as if fascinated by the way your skin is so soft and gummy in his grip. “Okay,” Jungkook doesn’t hesitate to pull out his phone, jabbing a few things that you don’t see, “let’s do a little test drive, then.” 
In seconds, the little egg vibrates in your touch. He puts it on the lowest setting, a soft buzz echoing in the large living room, then at a bruising pace that forces you to curl your fingers around it otherwise it’d fall. Your eyes flicker over to Jungkook’s, who’s focusing entirely on the way the pink and silver egg moves, dilated in interest. 
“Fuck, and you thought this thing was broken?” he asks, taking it out of your palm and turning off the app. 
“Maybe I’m the broken one,” you admit softly, wringing your shirt. 
Silence seeps. Jungkook looks at you, brows furrowed as if he’s annoyed. “Don’t ever say that,” when you don’t respond, he grabs your chin, and you gasp when he forces you to look at him, “you’re not broken, doll. Everyone’s body is different, and we’re going to discover yours together. Got it?” 
“Y-yes,” you reply immediately, mesmerized by his seriousness. 
“Good,” he slaps the vibrator back in your palm, “and in case you’re wondering, this goes inside.” 
“I know how it works,” you scowl, “but won’t you show me, just in case?” 
“You would like that, wouldn’t you?” Jungkook gets up for good, piling the dishes in his arms and walking to the sink. You immediately miss his warmth, “but I think patience is a virtue. I have a developer meeting with some clients in America a little bit, actually. So just wait for my call, yeah?” 
You frown, looking down at the vibrator in your hands. How much longer would you have to wait? 
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It happens at exactly three in the afternoon the next day, at the start of your staff meeting. You’re so tired of the same information being thrown back and forth, coupled with Brian and Jae having to fight over some mundane subject in the itinerary that no one cares about. For goodness sake, it’s Friday! What else would you possibly need to be meeting about? 
You’re wearing a button-down dress shirt on top, no pants on the bottom. Your bare feet slap against the hardwood floor, antsy. It’s been a long day at work and your back hurts, you’re half tempted to dip out of this meeting and hope no one notices. 
Your phone buzzes on your bed, and you blanch. 
[3:01] Jeon: thanks for waiting, doll. It’s time 
[3:01] Jeon: put it in
Shamelessly, your vibrator sits next to your phone, cleaned and ready to go. 
[3:02] Jeon: need help? Answer my call
Making sure that your Zoom call is muted, you quickly answer the incoming phone call. Jungkook and you say nothing at first, waiting. The phone just ticks with the amount of time passing, one minute, two minutes, and so on. 
Mr. Kim drones unknowingly, “So when we do return to live instruction, expect a strict process when returning. PPE must be enforced so our response team will—” 
“How wet were you last night when you went home?” Jungkook asks languidly, speaking over your boss’ voice. 
Your eyes widen, flickering back and forth between the phone and the camera displaying Mr. Kim’s boring speech. 
“Doll, are you hard of hearing?” 
“N-no,” your lips barely move, eyes glued to the camera and plastering an expressionless face, “I heard you.” 
“Then give me an answer,” he says patiently, “how wet were you?” 
“Very wet.”
“Little more detail.” 
“Soaking wet,” you flush, thankful that your work laptop can only stream in 360p. “I haven’t gotten that wet in such—such a long time. My pussy was practically clinging to my underwear when I washed up that night.” 
A heady, heavy groan resonates through your phone. You feel that voice straight into your panties, jolting the nerves awake. 
“Fuck, you have a way with words, don’t you?” Jungkook chuckles breathlessly, “c’mon, touch yourself for me. Swirl your fingers around your clit, slowly.” 
It takes a second for you to position yourself, spreading your legs in a way that your coworkers don’t question why you’re moving so much. A quick scan over all the tired faces says that you’re okay. Shyly, you press your fingers against your clit, doing as he says. 
“Oh,” you say more to yourself than him, feeling the wetness already coating your fingers. This is earlier than usual. 
“What?” 
“I’m already wet,” you say, amazed, “I haven’t gotten wet this quickly in a long time.” 
He scoffs, “If you’re so wet now, shove it in.” 
You frown. You did tell him to be mean. But the idea of him telling you what to do, giving you all the porn-worthy experiences to accomplish has you relenting. Discreetly grabbing the egg from the bed, you bring it down to your panties. Swirling the cold metal around your clit, you coat it in your juices. 
It’s still a little too early to be putting anything in, but you can take it. Slowly relaxing, you slip the little egg in your pussy, wiggling it a little to make sure it’s secure. It’s a strange sort of pressure, and it pokes against your clit from the inside, but you enjoy the stretch. 
“It’s in,” you reply softly. 
“Good.” 
You wait. You listen to Jae make yet another speech about the importance of masks and gloves, and then Brian has to interject and say that gloves are literally useless because they spread germs around no matter what. Even though everyone else is muted, you can practically feel the misery seeping through the screen. For a second you almost forget about Jungkook on the line. Why isn’t Mr. Kim stopping them? This is the thin line stopping you from the weekend, unbelievable! 
“Eep!” you jolt in your cheap seat, the egg buzzing in your pussy. Your hands fly out, gripping the edges of your computer. 
It hits different when Jungkook is in control. Knowing that with a flick of his thumb he can have you careening, whining for more or less depending on how hard he wants you go. Your folds hug the egg, nestling it a fleshy grip as it brushes against your clit the more you squirm. 
“You look so pretty, trying so hard to hold in your moans,” Jungkook says wondrously from the other line. 
“W-what?” you frown, “you can see me?” 
And immediately, you go to your trackpad to fish between the hundred-and-one employees also in this call. At the very end, you see a very simple name with no mic or camera: Jeon JK. He’s here. 
“Worked in IT, doll. Know a thing or two,” he says, “now, tell me. What are you thinking about right now?” 
“Y-you,” you mumble shyly. 
“So,” Mr. Kim finally ends that part of the meeting, thank goodness, “what’s everyone’s plans this weekend? I’m going apple picking with a couple of my friends from college. Hoseok is a bright bean who loves to take long walks—”
What the hell. You squirm uncomfortably in your seat, hyperaware that Jungkook’s watching your every move. You make glossy, stubborn eyes at the camera, trying not to move when he jacks up the vibrator to a higher setting. 
Jae’s of course the next employee to unmute his microphone, “Well, me and the bae are going house hunting…” 
“Fuck!” you cry, moving the computer to the left so you can pretend you’re picking up something. But in fact you're leaning your head against your mattress, frustrated. “I don’t fucking care about your weekend plans, Jae! Shut the fuck up! You wanna know my weekend plans?” Jungkook’s laughing at you from the other line, but it only spurs you on, “my plans are fucking my super hot neighbor! He’s a hundred times more interesting than you and he’s going to make me come a hundred times this weekend—oh fuck!” 
Your fingers latch onto your panties, drawing random squiggles and letters between the fabric. You’re damp, soaked to the core. You need some sort of friction, a reprieve from this hellish week.
“You flatter me, doll,” Jungkook is definitely grinning through the phone, you can practically hear his shit-eating grin, “I think you deserve a reward. As soon as you put the camera back on your pretty face.” 
Quickly, you sit up to put the camera on you again. Once again, the employees are in a daze, listening to whatever the next person gabs about their weekend. Even though you can’t really see it, you’re sure Jungkook has a 1080p camera upstairs that shows off your blotchy face. You moan a little bit, lips closed as the egg buzzes against your pussy lips. 
“You’re so cute, doll,” Jungkook praises, “you look so professional, holding it in. What could I do to make you unravel? Hm, what if you imagined the taste of my cock on your lips? Fuck, I’d love to slap your cute little face with my cock, baby doll–”
“y/n?” Mr. Kim calls your name, and you freeze, “what about you? Any plans this weekend?” 
Jungkook doesn’t sound angry that your boss has inadvertently cut him off. “Answer him, doll. Be a good little employee.” 
Like a zombie, you move towards the unmute button. “I–I uh,” you shake your head, trying to formulate a coherent response, “I’m going on a date this weekend.” 
Jungkook jacks up the vibrator to high, and your legs are shaking. 
“Awh, a date!” Mr. Park unmutes himself, practically shoving the camera in his face, “how much do you like the lucky lad or lady?” 
“I like him uh—ah—” you pretend to think, covering a hand over your mouth to hide the fact that you feel your orgasm fast approaching, “I like him a lot!” you finally blurt, “I’m, uh, really excited to see him.” 
“Best of luck to you,” Mr. Kim says brightly, “so Jimin, any news on those investors you had dinner with this weekend? I heard a lot of positive things…”
You immediately mute your mic, and pretend to lag as you fumble around with the camera. Shoving the laptop to the side once more you groan into your sheets, “Fuck—fuck yes—” you moan, shaking your head as you dip your fingers into your panties. The vibrator still continues at its bruising pace, spurring you to a high you haven’t peaked to in months.
“Good job,” Jungkook says simply, “could barely notice that you have a little helper fiddling around your dripping pussy.”
“J-Jeon,” you cry, “I’m, ’m gonna cum.” 
“Yeah?” Jungkook eggs you on, “you’re gonna cum around that cute little vibrator? Gonna soak it in your juices?” 
“W-wish it was your cock I was soaking,” you whisper truthfully, letting your orgasm take you at the thought. Your folds flutter around the vibrator, bringing you to a level of sensitivity you’ve only dreamt of, “Ah, yes, Jeon. It feels s-so good!” 
“Yes baby,” Jungkook groans through the line, “feels good, huh?” 
Mr. Kim interrupts for the last time, “And with that, I think our meeting is adjourned. Have a wonderful weekend! Stay safe and—” 
You slam the laptop shut, grabbing your phone and keys. “I’m going up,” you mutter impatiently, already jabbing your feet in a pair of slippers and locking the door to your apartment behind you. 
“I’m waiting,” he replies, eagerness trimming his voice. 
“Password?” you ask quickly, jabbing the elevator door shut once you step inside. Thank goodness you’re alone, you think as you pull your dress shirt further down your ass. 
“Did you forget already?” he teases, “I told you, it’s 1234.” 
Thankfully, the doors zip you up straight to the penthouse. The connection is always a little spotty in elevators, and you sigh longingly when you feel the buzz jolt and leave it’s momentum, quickly losing its rhythm between your dripping folds. Once you get to the top and the elevator doors open the second door immediately swings open, revealing a soft but aroused-looking Jungkook. He looks fresh from the shower, absolutely radiant and delicious looking. 
You don’t hesitate to run up to him, and Jungkook immediately cups his face in your hands, pressing his lips to yours. 
You’re practically on your tippy-toes, and you squeak against his lips when he hooks his arms around your shoulders, immediately lifting you up. You wrap your legs around his trim waist, not wanting to stop kissing him. He’s like the sweetest ambrosia, a taste you can’t get enough of. 
The connection to your vibrator has resumed, and you can’t help but grind helplessly under Jungkook’s clothed abs as he carries the both of you to his bedroom.
“N-need you to fuck me,” you bury your head in the crook of his neck, pressing quick kisses to his jawline, “I want you s-so badly.” 
“Hello to you too,” he husks, shutting the bedroom door with his foot. 
Jungkook drops you unceremoniously, and your limbs splay out on the fresh bedsheets of his feather-soft mattress.
“You look gorgeous like this, doll.” he sighs longingly, a hand going under your buttondown to press against your soaked panties. His hand lingers on the way your pussy moves in tandem with the vibrator. 
“J-Jeon please I can’t take it—” 
“Stop calling me that,” he snaps, hands leaving your skin.
You whine at the loss of contact, “Jeon, no. Jungkook. Kook, my Kook. Please, I need you.” 
That gets him going. His pretty chocolate brown eyes zero in on you, and he immediately shucks off his shirt and sweatpants, “How much do you need me?” he asks, pulling out his phone and pressing some buttons, “how much do you need your Kook?” 
The vibrator stops. You cry out in frustration, unsure if it’s because it’s off or because Jungkook’s taking too damn long. “I need you so much, Kook,” you warble with a pout, moving to undo the top buttons of your dress shirt to reveal your cleavage, “honey, you can have me all you want later today. I want you to slap my face with your dick, edge me until I cry, anything. I’m all yours, I’m your little doll. But please for now, I need to feel you inside me.” 
“Say no more,” his lips latch onto your neck, and you sigh at the skin-to-skin contact. His hand fiddles under your shirt, clutching a breast and slapping it so hard it bounces back and forth, “fuck, you’re so pretty.” 
His hand moves to your plain cotton panties, immediately shucking them off, “doll, you really are dripping,” he’s impressed, surprised when he has to untack the fabric from your glossy legs. He hangs the panties on his wooden headboard, a little ornament for him to jack off to later. 
His fingers brush over your folds, wasting no time to slip the vibrator out. He holds it between your faces, forcing you to stare at the pearly substance that coats the entirety of the egg. “Mm, tasty tasty,” he cooes, pink tongue darting out to lick a long strip across the oval. 
You tug him closer, pressing his lips to yours. He tastes a mixture of his own saliva and your arousal, and you grind helplessly against him. You feel how big his cock is, rock-hard and trying very diligently not to bust. He must have a crazy amount of control, and it drives you nuts. 
“Kook,” you frown, bumping your crotch with his.
“Impatient, good thing I am too,” he shucks off his boxers while you unbutton the rest of your shirt, “knees and hands, doll.” 
You don’t care how or what way he’ll take you. Fuck, he could bend you into an Auntie Anne’s pretzel and you’d comply. 
Arching your back so your ass is in the air, you wiggle around, hoping he’ll take the bait. That’s when you sigh, feeling the tip of his dick brush against your wetness.
“Soaking my cock already, baby,” he says, “you’re so good to me.” 
And finally, finally, he slips in. You don’t even care that it stretches you a little too far and too long, it’s been too damn long since you’ve had decent dick and Jungkooks far more than decent. 
He goes at a quick pace, finally showing how impatient he’s been all this time. Your moans and groans fill the room, a symphony of pleasure and pain as he stretches your walls to the brim. You hold a pillow to your chest, feeling woozy at the way his fat cock stretches you out. 
“F-fuck yeah,” the pace is hard, you practically feel it in your belly, and you love it. “You feel so fucking tight, baby,” he’s all up in your ear, kissing the lobe briefly, “I love the way you suck my cock back in.” 
“Kook,” you press your ass back, “harder, please. I’m your little doll, right? Y-you can fuck me however you want, as hard as you want! Please, ah—! Use me!” 
You cry out when he slips from your folds, immediately flipping you on your back. He wastes no time to wet his dick, lifting one leg over his shoulder to have you deeper. This position is far more intimate, and your noses are practically touching as he thrusts into you. 
You can’t believe you’re in bed with Jeon Jungkook. This must be a dream, a really great, really long wet dream. You crumble in his grip, and you lift a shaky hand to run through his thick black strands. 
“Why’d you make me wait so long?” you cry, staring right into his glittering eyes, “why couldn’t you come for me after your call last night?” 
“Why’d I make you wait?” he grits, crushing the flesh between your hip bones so he can have more leverage to pound into you, “why did you make me wait? Since March, I’ve wanted you. I told you I liked you, told you I fell for you.” 
“T-thought it was a joke,” you warble pathetically, breasts bouncing at his relentless rhythm.
“You think th-this is a joke?” for further emphasis, he glides slower, making you feel just how large and thick he is against your folds, “I want you, doll. Y-yeah, fu-fuck. Want to feed you every day, feed you lasagna, feed you with my cum, make you happy.” 
“I—I want that too, Kook,” you’re a pile of pink mush, and you feel your eyes prick from the overwhelming emotions that have washed over both of you. “Sh-shit, Kook. I think, I think I’m gon’ cum again.” 
“Good, you first,” his hand plays figure 8s with your precious pearl, seeping with arousal and coating his cock in delicious lubrication. 
It doesn’t take long for you to cum. You’re holding him as tight as you can, nails digging into his shoulders as you clench around his cock. Jungkook cums shortly after, and you keen at the sensitivity when his hot cum coats your walls. “Baby doll,” he exhales, thrusting lazily. The both of you feel your combined arousal drip between the two of you, onto your skin and onto his sheets, “y-you’re amazing.” 
His softened cock slips out of you, and his hands immediately reach over to swirl around the heady cream over your engorged pussy. You moan when he brings his fingers to your lips, “Open, doll.” 
It tastes salty yet sweet, and you suckle around his finger with a cute little pop. Jungkook grins brightly, feeling like he won the lottery. 
“Are my walls that thin?” you pout, pressing closer to him when he pulls the blankets to your chest. 
“Very,” Jungkook nods with a chuckle, tucking the two of you in, “now get some rest, doll. You presented a lot of offers to me earlier, and I intend to go through with them.” 
You smile into his chest, melty and feeling utterly sated. 
4K notes · View notes
chloe-skywalker · 3 years
Text
Why Am I Here? - Darth Vader
Darth Vader x daughter reader
Warnings: none
Word count: 1,612
Summary: Reader gets “”invited”” to spend some time with the Empire. For reasons only Darth Vader knows, but will he tell? Or keep her guessing.
Authors Note: I’ve been thinking of making a whole series with a similar plot. So I’m trying this imagine out see how people like it. If you do and want to see more like this or with a similar plot comment below or say something in a reblog!
P.S. Its my Birthday Month!!!! YAY!
Masterlist
Star Wars Masterlist
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Y/n stood there confused as to why she was here. Nothing about her should interest the Empire. She never given anyone any clues or hints as to if she is with the rebellion.
But yet they came to her senate booth and asked her to come with them. Not that she would have had a choice anyway. When they brought her to a ship, from there they took her to as they put it ‘Where lord Vader is staying’. When the troopers escorted her to a room, they told her this is where she will be staying. In the room was a huge bed, a big bathroom, and a closet. A closet that was full of her own clothes plus some other outfits that were beautiful. But it wasn’t just the closet that had things she owned in it. It was the whole room. There was small things from her room at home scattered all over. All the thoughts in her head stopped once the door opened to reveal the man that had her brought here.
“Why am I here?” Y/n asked with a strong voice. She truly is curious as to why they took her from her home. “Do you talk or are you just gonna stand there?”
Vader just stood there staring at Y/n before asking. “Do you know who I am?”
“Of course I do. Your Darth Vader.EVeryone know who you are.” She nodded, the look in her eyes was very confused as to why he would ask that specific question. But there was another emotion that Vader couldn’t place.
“Is that all you know me as?” he asked trying to get a sense of how to approach why he brought her here.
“Should I know you as more than that?” Y/n tilted her head in more confusion and also now curiousness. What did he mean by that? Should she know him as more?
“You will be staying here awhile. I hope that this room is up to your liking. We’ll talk later.” With that statement, he turned to leave the room. It was obvious to Y/n that that was not the answer he was looking for from her.
“Wait-” Y/n started but he left the room before she could continue. There were more questions running through her head now than there were before he came in.
^      ^       ^
“Lord Vader requests your presence.” A Stormtrooper stated as he entered the quiet room. 
Y/n let out a sigh of annoyance. “You can tell Lord Vader that I decline his request.”
The Stormtrooper left reluctantly. Y/n was sure that was not the answer the trooper wanted. Nor Darth Vader.
After about 20 to 30 minutes the door of her room opened. Low and behold Darth Vader entered the room. Y/n couldn’t help but smirk a tiny bit at the frustration in Darth Vaders walk and demeanor. It was quite comical. “Hello to you too.”
“You declined. What makes you think you are allowed to decline a request from me?” Even though he concealed it well Y/n could tell Darth Vader was frustrated with her previous actions.
“Oh, I know that I’m not supposed to. But it got your attention now didn’t it?” she tilted her head with a smile tugging at her lips.
Vader’s suit let out what could be considered a sigh. “I’m assuming you have something you want to say.”
y/n nodded at his assumption. “I have questions.”
“You may ask them.” he moved to sit on the couch in the room he had provided her. Waiting for her to start asking said questions.
“Why am I here?” Was the first one and most obvious out of Y/n’s mouth.
“I have my reasons.”
“Are they valid for keeping me here without my consent?”
“Yes” Vader nodded
“Can I know the reasons?” Y/n asked to hope that she could get more than another one-worded answer.
“Soon.” he replied, smirking behind the mask.
“What does that mean?” Y/n groaned, this was getting her nowhere.
“You’ll find out soon.” Vader rephrased
“How far is soon?” she rolled her eyes at his vagueness.
“Have a goodnight, y/n.” Darth Vader stated as he got up and headed for the exit.
“Will we talk about this again?” Y/n asked standing up really quickly off the bed. Heading to follow him out the door.
“Soon.” Was the last word that left the Sith as he left, with the door shutting behind him.
“UUUUGGGGHHHHHHH” Y/n screamed, falling back onto the large bed. This was ridiculous. She was getting nowhere. Y/n had a feeling that she was going to e there for a long while. The least he could do was answer some of her questions if he was gonna keep her there. Hopefully, he will tell her more ‘soon’ as he puts it.
^      ^      ^
“You requested me?” Y/n snarked walking into what looked to be Darth Vaders room.
“I’m shocked you came. Your learning.” he seemed to snark back.
“Yeah, sure. Why’d you call me here?” Y/n questioned while switching her weight to one hip, moving her arms to hug around herself.
“Do you know my history?” Vader asked what was a very random question to the young woman.
“What do you mean?” she tilted her head in confusion.
“Before I became Darth Vader.” he elaborated, turning to face her.
Y/n shook her head, casting her eyes down as she answered. “No. i heard it was forbidden to talk about who you were before. So no one does.”
“To some people it is. Most in fact.” Vader agreed with her statement.
“But your gonna tell me?” Y/n’s eyes widened in shock.
“Yes.” It was a simple answer but it scared Y/n. What happens to people who know? That question just kept running through her mind.
“Am I allowed to know?” She asked after letting out a deep breath that was shaky. 
“It’s my story to tell, Y/n.” Darth Vader smiled under his mask at her.
“Right” Y/n let out a light shaky laugh. It was one of their rare moments between them where whatever wall that separated them came down. Which Y/n didn’t know how to feel about. But Vader couldn’t help but feel immensely happy with those moments.
“Before the Empire, I was a Jedi. I didn’t follow the code completely. I was married, in secret to the love of my life. Right before the rise of the Empire, when things changed she was pregnant. I was to be a father. . . . She died in childbirth. Because of me. An I wasn’t there for her. I made a lot of decisions I regret, and that was one of them.” Vader explained, looking solemnly towards the floor as he thought about his past actions.
“What was your name?” Y/n asked once he stopped explaining, Some of the things he had just mentioned sounded very familiar. Her breathing picked up as she waited for his answer. 
Vader decided to make a decision to show her his true face. No one has seen his face other than the Emperor since he turned from Anakin Skywalker to Darth Vader. Once the helmet was off Vader turned to face the young woman, maskless. “I think you know.”
“Oh my-” Y/n gasped moving her hands up to cover her mouth. So many thoughts running through her head. 
“Y/n-”
Y/n held her hand up to stop him from saying more. “You know. You knew the whole time, and didn’t tell me! That's why I’ve been here this whole time. Isn't it!?”
Vader or maybe Anakin, could see how she was starting to feel upset. Betrayed even. But he knows she’s been held in the Empires custody long enough she deserved to know. “Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked with a whimper.
“I wanted us to get to know each other first. Establish a relationship before I told you.” he explained, hoping she would understand. But he knew that it’d still probably take time with her. Over the last couple months they have been getting to know each other, just slowly.
“Well, I do know some stories about Anakin Skywalker. My father.” Y/n spoke after letting some time pass, playing with her fingers nervously, aware that things will forever be  changed.
Vader- or Anakin nodded in understanding. She had put it together and now she knew why he took her and why he’s treating her the way he is. He walked up to her, giving her a small smile. “I know we have a long way to some with our relationship, but I would like to make this work..” Vader softened his stature trying his hardest not to seem intimidating to his daughter. Not wanting to frighten her. “I’ve missed to much of your life up till now. I’m not missing any more of it.”
Y/n looked him in the eyes still not sure about all of this. But something was telling her that he is being truthful, and that she could trust him. He has protected her since she's been there. “Can you tell me more about my mom? And about you, or at least who you use to be?”
“Yeah, sweetheart. I can do that.” He nodded, and couldn’t help how much his smile grew. The fact that she was willing to get to know him made his heart swell. She wanted him to tell her about Padme, he hasn’t been able to talk about her since he lost her. Maybe they could have a slightly normal father daughter relationship.
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ifbeumont · 2 years
Text
Indefinite Hiatus Announcement
Hello, everyone! As you've all noticed, I've been inactive for the past few weeks. That's because I've actually lost interest in continuing to work on 'Terrors in Baskerville Academy'. For the past few months, I've been dissatisfied with the writing process. Since the setting of the story is limited to the academy, I felt very restricted while writing. Every chapter seemed to be repetitive: waking up the students, going to breakfast, going to class, talk with the characters, and then go out at night to break some rules. In the end, I realized that the way this game was going wasn't entertaining to write at all.
Moreover, I wasn't satisfied with some elements in the game as well, like the romance and friendship system. I kept thinking that I wanted to rewrite this and that, until it came to the point where I completely lost interest in the story while writing.
A week ago, I tried to continue writing but I just couldn't find it in myself to continue writing. While I like the plot and characters in 'Terrors in Baskerville Academy', I felt like I was only forcing myself to continue writing just for the sake of finishing it. At first, I tried to persevere, but in the past few days, I've just lost the will to write about 'Terrors in Baskerville Academy'.
Because of this, I've decided to stop working on this game. This is not a temporary hiatus, but an indefinite one. If I were to actually work on 'Terrors in Baskerville Academy' again, I would definitely rewrite many aspects of it, but I don't expect to return to this project at all.
I'm really sorry to everyone that supported this WIP, however. Many of you have devoted their time to supporting this WIP, sending me asks, and even making some fan content. I really had fun while writing this WIP in its early stages, answering your asks (especially the debate ones haha), and interacting with you guys.
This won't be the last time you'll see me though. I'm already working on another WIP, the second project I talked about in a previous ask, of which I am actually having fun writing. I'll be posting it in the forums when I've finished three chapters. I really don't expect you guys to continue supporting me on this considering I don't really have a great track record for WIPs but I hope we can meet in the forums again in another WIP post haha.
Overall, this WIP project was a nice experience for a newbie like me. At first, I didn't even know how to use quicktest to check for bugs, but I'm decent in coding in ChoiceScript now. Because of this WIP, I learned what to do and what not to do, so I actually view this experience as a positive one for my writing journey.
Again, sorry to everyone for abandoning this WIP. Likewise, thank you all for this experience! This was the first time I received this much support for my writing and I don't plan to just abandon you guys after one failed WIP. See you all in my next WIP!
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jackie-shitposts · 3 years
Text
I Thought Thieves Love Jules!
Carmen strolled out of the elevator, feeling pretty beat after her workout with Shadowsan. Not that she would ever admit that- she had wanted to keep going, but it had only been two days since she got electrocuted in Egypt, so Shadowsan made her cut her workout short while he continued. Carmen sauntered over to the counter, taking a long drink from her water bottle, just as Player’s image appeared on her laptop screen. “Check it out, Red. Julia just posted a new entry on her blog, about a recent find in Columbia.” Player said, ”But it totally digresses into fun facts about fair trade coffee, including a “Red Blend.” Carmen leaned onto the counter. “Could be another riddle to solve?” “Good thing I learned a thing or two about code-breaking from Julia.” Player smirked, clearly excited to show off his new skills. “Every paragraph ends with a number. If you line ‘em up like they're a date and time, it’s tomorrow at 8am.” “Seems Chief wants an opportunity to thank me over coffee.” Carmen quirked an eyebrow. Seems as though she’d be seeing her favorite agent-turned-historian-turned-agent-again in the field, per Chief’s request. “How can you be sure it’s not a trap?” Player asked apprehensively. “If it were, Jules would’ve worded it differently.”
“OoOoO, are we talking about Jules?” Zack asked, peeking his head out from the doorway.
“That ACME gal Carm has a crush on?” Ivy chimed in, peeking her own head out from under her brother.
Carmen rolled her eyes at the sibling’s cartoonish antics. “Jules and I are just friends, you two.”
Ivy scoffed, entering the room and flopping onto the couch.  “Yeah right- then why did you specifically go to her when you needed help decoding the relics?”
Carmen casually took a sip of her water before answering.  “Jules was already familiar with VILE- getting a stranger involved would’ve only made things more complicated and dangerous than it already was.” Zack hopped onto the couch opposite of Ivy, resting his feet up on her knees. He pointedly ignored Ivy’s protests of, “Zack, gross!” and smirked at Carmen. “Oh? Then why did you ask Devineaux where she was in Louisiana?” “Hey, you never told me about that one!” Ivy gasped, feigning betrayal. “I was just surprised ACME let that driving disaster use a car,” Carmen quipped. Player laughed on his side of the screen. “Don’t act like you’re any better, Red. Don’t you remember your first caper?”
Carmen gasped, pretending to be insulted. “Says the 17 year old without a learners permit.”
“Not like I have anywhere to go.” Player laughed, before refocusing on Carmen’s interrogation. “Speaking of firsts, how about when you first met Julia? I listened in, and it totally sounded like you were flirting with her. You called her “Jules” on your first meeting!” Carmen narrowed her eyes at Player in defiance.  “I was just sitting across from Jules so I could blend in while keeping an eye on Paper Star. And what’s wrong with nicknames? I called Crackle “Gray” and Ivy “Ives”. I don’t see what the difference is.” “The difference is that you and Cracker used to be best friends, and now we are best friends. However, you and Jules were not friends at the time.” Ivy said, emphasizing the nickname. “His name is Crackle now.” “He went and rejoined VILE, I think I get to call Gary whatever I want.” Player chimed back into the conversation. “Why did you leave the Magna Cartas with Julia, anyway? You had one conversation with her, what made you think leaving them with her meant they were in “good hands?” “While sitting next to her, I noticed Devineaux’s briefcase, and she said they were travel partners on business. I figured that meant they were law enforcement also trying to recover the documents. Leaving them with Jules simply saved me the hassle of returning the documents myself.” Carmen explained casually. “What about the fashion show in Milan, Carm? Why’d you have Julia help us then?” Zack asked, a shit-eating grin plastered onto his face. Carmen sighed in annoyance. Why won’t they just get off her back about this already? “Jules was the only ACME agent around, and I knew that ACME would be able to get the gowns to safety. And before you ask,” Carmen pointed at Ivy, whose mouth was already open with some smug retort, “I put her in charge instead of you because she would know where the gowns could be put for ACME to return.” At that, Ivy simply leaned back onto the couch and mirrored her brother’s smug grin.  “Yeah, that was a fun night.” She smirked, and Zack tried to hold back his laugh that came out as more of a snort. Carmen raised her brow at the untold story, but she decided not to press. For the sake of her sanity.
“Well, what about Stockholm?” Zack blurted. Ivy and Player’s eyes snapped to Carmen, looking for any hint of discomfort, and Zack immediately tried to rectify the situation. “I-I mean, yknow, you just were gonna go try to get her help before-”
Carmen cut off his anxious rambling, smiling warmly. “Don’t worry about it Zack, I know what you mean. I wanted to talk to Jules to see if she could get ACME to back off. While that obviously didn’t happen, I know Jules didn’t try to betray me.” Carmen glanced out the window for a moment, whispering quietly to herself. “I don’t think I could be angry at her if I tried.” Carmen turned back to her friends and smiled. “Plus, she helped me out in Monaco and Ile De L'oleron afterwards, so-” Player practically leapt up from his chair, causing a loud crash as he knocked the fidget spinners off his desk and dropped the rubix cute he was playing with. “Yeah, let's talk about Monaco! You can’t tell me you guys weren’t flirting at the party. She was so confident you were going to deliver the goods to her door, and you trusted her not to stop you when you stole the eggs. Come on, Red, you know she was flirting with you!” Carmen felt Zack and Ivy’s eyes on her expectantly, and she chuckled at Player’s exasperation. “Player, I’m pretty good at reading people, and I’m fairly certain she wasn’t flirting with me. Even if she was, I was not flirting ba-” “Then what about the roses?”
Carmen’s eyes widened almost imperceptibly. How did Zack, of all people, know about the roses?
“Oh my god, the roses! Carm, why the fuck didn’t you tell us about the roses?” Ivy exclaimed, springing up from her relaxed position on the couch.
Carmen bit her lip before answering. “They were just flowers, as a thank you gift for the help. How do you know about them, anyway? I didn’t buy them until after you guys left.”
At that, Player piped up once again. “So Red, you know how at the end of each month, I look through our funds and see how much we spend on capers, to set our budget for the next month? Well, it was pretty interesting for me to see that you used our encrypted card to buy a bouquet of red roses from the flower shop across the street from Julia’s apartment, on the same day we left her the goods.”
Fuck. Carmen needed to shut this down, now. “They were just a thank you gift guys, nothing more. Just something Jules could keep for herself. And red is my color, so the roses seemed like a good gift. Now if you’ll excuse me,” Carmen glared at the redheads sternly, daring them to stop her, before looking down at Player with the same forbidding look. ”I’m going to take a shower. Player, let me know when you’ve got a red eye to Seattle ready.” Carmen closed the laptop, tucked it under her arm and walked out of the room without looking back. ~~~
The video call flickered to black, and Player leaned back into his chair, sighing. Red can be so thick-headed sometimes. As he booked her flight, he thought back to their teasing and banter from moments before.
Red seemed pretty genuine- maybe we were wrong after all.
Player took a deep breath- he didn’t want to call Carmen back so soon, especially when she seemed pretty pissed at the end of their last call- but he had booked her flight for a short two hours from now. So, Player reconnected to Carmen’s laptop, still looking at the red eye information on his other monitor, before hearing a loud, exasperated groan coming from his speakers.
“Holy fuck that was such a mess!”
Player’s head snapped towards his other monitor. The laptop had been set on the dresser across from Carmen’s bed, where she was laying sprawled out in agony. Player quickly hit his mute button and sat back to watch.
Carmen’s arms raised up to cover her face- though Player couldn’t see it, he was sure her face was covered in her signature color. “God, and the roses- why did I use the card for the roses? That’s a basic credit card slip, how am I so stupid!”
Carmen sat up, hands still over her flushed face. “I’m so fucking lucky they didn’t hear us on the ferry or at her office, there’s no way they would’ve ever let that go- I thought I wasn’t being obvious about this stupid crush-
That was all the confirmation Player needed. He clicked unmute and nearly shouted, “So you do have a crush on Julia! I knew it!”
Carmen’s head snapped up to the source of the sound, her face as red as her coat hanging on the wall’s hook. “Player! What the fuck are you-” Carmen froze as she watched Player pick up his cell phone. “Player, if you do what I think you’re about to-”
“Then what? You’re two thousand miles away Red, I'm practically untouchable.” He laughed and grinned smugly at the webcam as he dialed a number.
“Player, you are so dead next time I visit Ontario!” Carmen yelled before she threw her door open, barrelling down the hall to the stairway.
~~~
Zack and Ivy watched in silence as Carmen walked out of the room. When they heard the door to the stairway close, they looked at each other, before they couldn’t take it anymore and burst into laughter.
“Holy shit she looked so mad!” Ivy wheezed through her laughing fit.
“I know! Do you think that means she was telling the truth?” Zack questioned as he tried (and failed) to calm his giggles.
“No way.”
“But she seemed pretty-”
“What are you two laughing about?” Shadowsan’s stern voice stopped the twin’s giggling dead in its tracks. Just as Ivy opened her mouth to make an excuse, since she doubted Carmen wanted Shadowsan involved in her love life, (he is like her father, isnt he?) Zack spoke up.
“We tried to get Carm to confess that she likes Julia, but she kept on telling us she just likes Julia as a friend. Maybe she wasn’t lying, most of her reasons were pretty solid.” Ivy would’ve smacked him then and there if Shadowsan hadn’t interrupted her train of thought with a small chuckle. Since when did Shadowsan chuckle? “On VILE Island, Carmen was trained to be a master of deception. Do you not realize that she was also trained to survive any interrogation?” Shadowsan said, with…humor in his voice? Zack and Ivy were silent for a moment. “Wait, does that mean she actually does like Ju-” The moment was interrupted with a call on Ivy’s phone. When she looked at the caller ID, her eyes widened as she answered it and put the device on speaker. “Carmen does have a crush on Julia!” Player shouted from the phone, just as the Crimson Gay Ghost herself burst into the room and crashed into Ivy. “Dammit!” Carmen yelled, taking the phone from Ivy who was now on the floor with Carmen and laughing. “Player, I’m going to fly to Ontario and kick your ass!” Player’s laughing from the phone was almost drowned out by Zack and Ivy’s. “Oh no you’re not, you’ve got a flight to catch in two hours!” “OoOh where to? To go see your “favorite ACME agent”?” Ivy teased through her laughter. “Yeah Carm, I thought thieves love Jules!” Zack said as he laughed. Carmen jumped off of Ivy, her voice a noticeably higher pitch and her face extremely red as she shouted, “No! I mean- well, that is- I just-” As Zack, Ivy and Player continued to tease an extremely red-faced and stammering Carmen, Shadowsan smiled and quietly walked out of the room. It seems the war may be coming to a close with ACME on their side, but that doesn’t mean Carmen has to stop chasing someone.
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