#in even a semi-decent manner

[northbndtrain]

Another day like every day.

[hysteria-things]

MY EYES ONLY

𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: dom!chris x fem!reader

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: a look into chris’s my eyes only…

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: PURE FILTH, p in v, unprotected sex (nuh uh!), swearing, choking, stomach bulge, oral (female & male receiving), praising, degradation, daddy kink, jealousy, squirting, spanking, possessiveness, overstimulation, dumbification, cream pie, semi-public, ROUGH

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 888

𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞: sorry for all the chris stuff lately i’m just so down bad for him but matt will make an appearance (hopefully) soon!

also… the last one will be turned into a fic😉

mattress digging deeper into your back every second, the hand around your throat only tightens. your small palm doesn’t even fit fully around his wrist. moans and pleas of ‘don’t stop!’ aren’t the only sounds echoing off the walls. the headboard bangs rapidly against the wall, a chuckle coming from chris every so often at your fucked-out state.

you two were extra horny this day, it seems, and of course, you had to take advantage of it. the video is taken from your drooling mouth down to the bulge in your stomach, chris quite literally balls deep inside of you. tits bouncing at the rapid pace he’s going, your nails dig deeper into his flesh. “yes! yes! yes!” you scream like a mantra, cum then coating his dick.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ❦ ⋆⁺₊⋆

to him, his finger slipped and “accidentally” pressed the post button. it starts casually with the desktop displaying fortnite, then he flips the camera to his face. a smug look is plastered on it before the camera flips again.

this time, it’s of you — under the desk with your boyfriend’s cock stuffed in your mouth. his other hand is wrapped around your locks in a makeshift ponytail, controlling the way you bob your head at a decent rhythm. all you have to do is sit there and take it.

looking at the camera with tears threatening to spill from your eyes, you smile, spit dribbling from the sides of your lips. he pushes your head down further to where the tip of your nose touches his pelvis, a gulp and gag going through his headphones before his face comes into view one last time. chris smiles smugly, with a caption that reads: we’re live! come hang out :)

⋆⁺₊⋆ ❦ ⋆⁺₊⋆

legs draped over his shoulders, your fingers massage lightly at the brunette between your plush thighs. the phone is propped up on the nightstand to make sure your entire body is in view. his tongue laps agonizingly slow on your puffy cunt, but it feels so good.

you’ve been a good girl all week; no attitude, no talking back, good manners, etc. you were in for a reward. this is your reward. he wants to eat you out like no other. until you see stars and that’s it.

soft moans fill the air, eyes fluttering closed and your mind blank. just how chris likes it.

growing closer to your high, you get impatient before rutting your hips forward, your moans growing louder. he hums disapprovingly, leaving your dripping hole empty. “no need to get naughty now, baby. i thought you were a good girl for me?”

“i am.” you whimper. “i’m sorry, daddy.”

thrusting his hips subconsciously into the mattress because of the nickname, he delves back in to suck on your clit. that alone washes the first of many orgasms through you. you end up passing out at the end.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ❦ ⋆⁺₊⋆

an argument sparked this beauty, which is also chris’s personal favorite. for context, you guys argued over something stupid before going to a party. because you’re so petty, you decided to purposely talk with a random guy at the function to get chris’s blood boiling. giving him those ‘fuck me’ eyes from across the room.

before you knew it, you were holding on for dear life on a pillow in a random bedroom he dragged you into. the velvet dress you’re wearing is bunched above your ass, and your panties are ripped in half and thrown to the floor. crying out apologies into the blanket is no use, skin stinging with his handprint on it. the video is hard to make out because of how fast the phone is shaking in his hand.

“fucking brat.” he spanks you again, a sob leaving your throat. “you think he can fuck you stupid like this? huh?”

his hand makes contact at least three more times during that sentence, and your body shakes uncontrollably. he already ripped two orgasms out of you. “that’s right. take it just like that — whose pussy is this?”

“yours.” you exhale, squirting without warning from the overwhelming pleasure and penetration.

gripping the top of your hair, he lifts your head. “scream it, slut. they can’t hear you.”

“yours, chris! it’s all yours!” you gasp, knuckles white from your grasp on the sheets.

looking down at the way his cock brutally thrusts in and out of your tight pussy, his jaw slacks at the sight. you clench around him as his tip repeatedly hits your cervix, eyes rolling when you cum harder than ever before.

he arches your back further to get as deep as he can with a grunt. his hips stop, long ropes of cum spilling the farthest it goes into your womb. pulling out, he takes two fingers to help his seed stay inside you, the rest dripping down your legs the rest of the night.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ❦ ⋆⁺₊⋆

it’s dark. the photo is barely visible but visible at the same time if you look at it long enough. the table in front of you has a reflection of the moon, your tits that are painted white take up half of the screen. the other half is of your face, a smile peeking through your lip bite. a tatted arm snakes around your neck, the selfie angled up high.

be careful leaving your things behind, chris. the text says.

𝐭𝐚𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭!

@bunbunbl0gs @lexisecretaccx @thy-mission @angelic-sturniolos111 @sophssturn @mattsneezing @janiellasblog @blahbel668 @meg-sturniolo @mattslolita @sturnbaby @imwetforyourmom @tillies33ssss @sturnifyed @raysmayhem-72 @ripmattitude @p1xieswrld @alorsxsturn @txssvx @sttzee @multiluvr @delilahprentiss @matthewsspecial @sturnolio-luvs @sturniolho @suga-daddy-69 @tworosesblackthorn @luckistar-posts @gnxosblog @junnniiieee07 @sturnioloslurps @tylerthecreatorsrealwife @flowerxbunnie @imaslut4kehlani @sturniolosandmoree @hertvgirl @asluttttforanakinskywalker @hearrtsturns @stars4matt @freshsturns @loverrsposts @sturnlcvr @elliesturniolo1 @tpvmz @user283926392 @lalalands86 @sukiipjs @sturniologirl813 @leahrab @chrissturniolosslut @h3arts4harry @sturnioloblogs @creamoncreamoncream2 @luv4kozume @ivyyyyyysposts @mirxcle1 @iluvm4ttsturni0l0 @catalina-island @mbsbaby @mattsdollie @pinkfarts @slut4mattsturn @thesturniolos @vickeyzloserz @nononopenono1 @bitchydragonparadise @gdsvhtwa @hrt-attack @bellasfavbisexual @dwntwn-strnlo @venusbabysblog @meerkatzthings @crazychrisl0v3r @maggieflms @strtuniolo @mutualsafe @riasturns @sturniolowhore @antpile00 @ashley9282828 @stingerayyy2 @sturnsjtop @luverboychris @yapperchris @imaslutforoldermen @madisonlovesyouu @poetatorturadaa @chr1sgirl4life @hiimolivia @jo-777 @sturnskiss @st4rgrlll @mattyblover07 @sm-ec @mattluvsmarni @knowingnothingnoel @mattsgirlfrieeend @bambi-slxt @sturnstvr @sturnclouds @bernardsbendystraws @maryx2xx

[0mystic]

Toxic Werwolf Ex.Bf X Gn. Reader

Decided to get back into writing but more into stuff that I’m into because I think im like maybe semi decent… idk you guys tell me

Tw: Toxic relationships, Blood mention, Nsfw mention, Drinking, slight yandere themes.? Think that’s about it

You had been broken up with your ex for awhile. It wasn’t a shocker to most he treated you like trash and and made it his goal to bully you in front of his pack mates at all time, that paired with the fact that anyone around you could see you were unhappy with the relationship people were just counting down the days till you guys broke up.

Which lead you to where you were right now wearing your skimpiest outfit your friends could shove you into and sitting at this bad with your friends. Don’t get it wrong you were all for the free drinks this cute harpy was providing you with but it just didn’t feel the same. With a bit more encouragement from your friends you find your grinding up against him in a secluded corner.

You were laughing a bit your body feeling light with the alcohol in your system. You turn to face him your arms draping over his shoulder feeling his hands roam over the nice landscape of your ass. Feeling a bit more confident you let go and decide to have some fun you deserve that much at least. You mange your pull his head down placing a soft kiss on his lips. He smiles a bit before diving back into the kiss.

Maybe you were absorbed in the kiss or maybe it was the alcohol but you didn’t hear the step until he was behind you. You jump at the sudden feeling of a hand on you wrists a hand you know all to well. You turn not at all surprised to see your Ex looking as pissed as ever. The smell of alcohol came of him in waves; you scrunched your nose a bit attempting ti pull your arm back.

“Well looked what we have here, should have known a slut like you would take the first chance available to whore yourself out” he leered looking down at you through clenched teeth. You looked to him more specifically his canines looking just as sharp as ever, you could almost feel a phantom pain on your neck just looking at them.

The harpy standing behind you decided to finally intervene with a a leisurely tone he spoke “woah hey man, let’s not call people names now” he reached over and attempted to remove his hand from you only for a deep snarl to be released from your Ex’s throat. “Shut it bird brain this has nothing to do with you why don’t I go give you something shiny and you go fuck off” he growled squeezing his hand around you tighter his nails breaking into your skin a bit.

You let out a whimper as you move to squirm out of his grasp only for him to let out a warning growl. Refocusing in you. “Why don’t you just fucking come back already, you had your fun already whatever stupid shit you’re upset over right now I’m sorry now let’s go” he spoke in a low tone. “I’m done with you, you don’t even know what you’re apologizing for” you seethed wrenching your arm out of his grasp and cradling it towards your chest.

“You heard them knot head why don’t you just go chase a ball or better yet your tail” the harpy mocked pulling you closer to them as they went to inspect your wound muttering out soft words as the use feather light touches to check. You stand there almost in a peaceful state at care the harpy was showing you completely forgetting about the werewolf.

Until he lounged at the the harpy, pouncing and and holding down the male as he thrashed around trying to get the upper hand. All while your your Ex smiled in an almost sadistic way feeling the way the harpy blood cover his hands. Once he felt as though he had his fill he stood up turning towards you with a glint in his eye.

“Oh cmon don’t tell me your scared” he spoke as you backed up a bit looking up to him in fear. “You were speaking in such a righteous manner just a second ago where’d that go” he smirked look down at you. “Poor poor little mate I’ll excuse you this time maybe you just don’t know your place yet” he quickly threw your frozen form over his shoulder placing a quick seat over your ass as he walked out the bar.

“Don’t worry we have all night for you ti get just where your place is”

—————————————————————————————

How was that I literally haven’t like written written in what feels like ages so this was fun. I have tons of thoughts so I would be open to doing more of this they all need names though I do have some appearance ideas for both of them though and ummm yah that’s all I guess toon in for more ^^

[anti-katsuki-lounge]

You know, I can’t help but wonder if any of the Bakustans would actually like Bakugo if they’d met a person like him in real life.

Because I’ve met a couple of “Bakugos”. I grew up in one of the most affluent counties in my country- so you can imagine there were more than a couple spoiled rich kids. But the “Bakugos” stood out from apart the rest. You could tell they were never properly held accountable for anything in their entire life. So they believed they had a right to do anything. To anyone. At any time. Especially if that person didn’t fit in for some reason. And there always was this��rage simmering underneath. Some hid it under charm and charisma, some wore it with pride. But it was always there. It was as if they felt that, despite having access to some of the best opportunities this world could provide, the universe still owed them something they weren’t getting. As if their sense of entitlement had grown so big and all-consuming that it had become a colossal black hole inside them, one that could never be filled.

Sound familiar?

And, let me tell you something: that behavior is NOT funny or endearing if you see it up close. At best it’s obnoxious and frustrating. At worse it’s downright terrifying.

I DO see how that attitude might appeal to some young teens. I remember being that age. You’re hormones have just kicked into full gear. You’re angry all the time, sometimes for no apparent reason. Every semi-bad thing feels like a world-ending catastrophe, or a grave injustice. Now, MOST teens move past this phase, mature, and learn to manage their emotions. But, until then, seeing Bakugo rage at people and not get consequences for it, and even seeing him be rewarded by the universe in spite of it….I imagine that would feel validating.

My fear is that some teens will take away from MHA that it’s okay to treat people like shit if you’re unhappy for some reason. And that’s just…no. Whether you’re angry or sad or jealous or insecure or any emotion in between, you are still accountable for your actions. You are still required to treat people decently.

What do you think?

So when it comes to asshole/evil characters and their Stans, there’s two groups. The first one knows that if such a person existed in real life, they’d hate them. Due to the fictional nature of their favorite character, they’re able to enjoy their behavior because it’s fiction. I’m not going to focus on them.

Sadly, I do believe that he would have a lot of followers/Stans. Andrew Tate, Sneako, Keemstar, and the like have platforms built on their toxic manners. People find them appealing, whether it’s due to entertainment or because they genuinely believe the bullshit these guys spread. Katsuki’s got “talent” and people might see Katsuki’s lack of manners as inspirational.

[greatwyrmgold]

More updates on the factory!

First, a weird problem I was having: Attacks from the rear. Allow me to diagram how I expected things to go with my iron outpost.

("Rockup" is the stone brick pick-up station for that stone outpost I mentioned needing to build.)

Here's how it actually went.

Experienced Factorio players can probably guess where this is going, but I didn't see it coming.

It turns out, Problems will just path to whatever machines caused the pollution they're reacting to, instead of attacking whatever miners or pumpjacks they come across. If I'd figured that out before covering the backside of the iron outpost with turrets, I could have just fortified that path Problems would need to take, which would have been a more elegant solution. But I had other problems.

First, power outages. Second, plastic shortages. Third, copper smelting. Fourth, grenades (for military science). What do all of these have in common? Coal.

Part of the problem is, unsurprisingly, power. The power outages came shortly after I expanded power production, ironically enough. And since I did so in a slightly spaghetti-ish manner...might as well share.

Anyways, the coal outpost is simple. Miners, laser turrets, a few gun turrets I slapped down in case biters came before I plugged in the laser turrets, train station. The interesting bit there is that I ran out of rails before I could finish the train.

I had some semi-automated rail production at the old stone mine; I had to feed it steel and iron manually, but it handled the rest while I wandered around doing other stuff. That was fine for a while, but I'll need to automate rails soon for purple science anyway, so I might as well set up a proper solution. Especially since stone and iron products are so far from each other.

I was going to set up a train car to deliver iron and steel to the stone outpost, when I noticed something.

There's iron on-site. And an advantage of using this iron ore instead of shipping in metal is that I can put aside some iron ore and stone to make concrete! Of course, for the actual rails I'll need to smelt a lot of that iron ore into iron (and most of that iron into steel), and concrete needs water, and this is quickly turning into a big project that will bring me even closer to biter territory...

...but before I think of setting up a decent defensive perimeter of some kind, I need to remind myself why I'm doing this. I need to make rails, so that I can connect the coal to the main base, which has barely enough coal to maintain its power supply but not enough for production.

I don't need to set up a big defensive line to protect a multi-product outpost to support large-scale rail production. Right now, what I need is enough rails to fix the coal supply, and feeding a temporary assembler array with all the steel in my inventory and half the iron makes more than enough.

Though feeding it all my steel and not returning to the main base to resupply has consequences. Like not being able to put chests in the coal loading station.

The inserters are doing fine for now, I guess. I can fill in the chests once I've finished the dropoff station.

To the left is the preexisting coal dropoff system, to the right is iron. In the middle is the old copper patch, still supplying the base with more copper than it needs. Certainly more than it could smelt!

With these basic resources, plus oil and bricks (not displayed), the base has everything it needs to produce the first four tiers of science pack. And while I'm sure I could bolt the last three into the spaghetti somewhere, this spaghetti was supposed to be a starter base.

And blue science unlocks most of the basic production stuff. There's still Kovarex enrichment and better modules and weapons and power armor and numerical bonuses and space, but for the core factory-designing stuff? I've got it all.

So I guess I need to start designing a real base.

[mhaynoot]

[ch 2]

just finished ch2 and got sick so excuse the ramblings of an only partly functioning brain HAHAHA but anyways some thoughts so far:

i think while he was dead, wei wuxian was semi-conscious or at least aware of time passing? he has a few direct thoughts like "I've actually been dead for many years" (p.14) and indirect "Wei Wuxian had already lost count of the number of years it'd been since he last heard a live person speak ..." (p.13). It can help explain his rather vaguely cavalier attitude towards his traumatic death and his, well, peculiar attitude towards his reverse non-con body possession which is honestly a sentence I really never thought I'd write. I also believe wwx was active in choosing not to "haunt the living, for one, and he'd never saught vengence, for two" (p.17) which makes me think about where he was? I guess he could be in the underworld or something, waiting for his soup of oblivion and reincarnation cycle but there's really no mention of the afterlife and I assume there won't be either but I'm really really curious and could be fun to explore. Also this whole chapter has such a flippant tone and a very easygoing, almost jokey manner. Like calling wwx the most "decent and honest" (p.17) ghost there could ever be -- there's really lots of exaggeration and hyperbole and it's just so very wwx.

but also it's not completely lighthearted of course, you can tell when the narration becomes serious like when wei wuxian becomes incensed about mo xuanyu's life. he insults mo xuanyu at first, lots of "madman" and "lunatic" (p.20), but he continues reading mo xuanyu's horrible eye-straining letters, listens to this poor dead boy's words, and eventually his rhetorical questions become mocking towards the mo family, his narration becomes gentle towards mo xuanyu, ultimately questioning "what kind of hellish life was he fucking living" (p.21). it is forgiveness despite the reverse non-con body possession, and it starts the novels characterisation of wwx really well, a subtle moral declaration of standing with the weak and the helpless, of revealing his great and deep empathy. like i believe wwx genuinely felt bad this tortured boy destroyed his soul to fulfil his last wish only to get an evil ghost that wasn't even evil. like it just made me so sad reading this part, you can feel the tragedy of a life cut short because of cruelty. really, wwx so called trecherous, wwx the mad. wwx, forever righteous and just.

i adore foreshadowing and comparisons that can be made between mo xuanyu and wei wuxian, and especially how mo xuanyu's backstory sets up like a miniature version of wwx backstory vs the cultivation gentry, already establishing an anti-classism/aristocracy theme. "It appeared that, despite how the cultivation world had demanded Wei Wuxian's demise, they nevercheless had no qualms about making use use of of his his inventions." (p.33) truly what righteousness, what orthodoxy and what single broad path? only hyprocrisy and the insular gentry, a world soaked in the blood of the weak, gorged on by the powerful.

also wwx is so smart? i love how he questions and deduces his way into knowing how to fulfil mo xuanyu's unknown wishes. like him publically putting out a spectacle and humiliating the mo family was very funny but it makes it rewarding when it's also revealed as an information gathering situation of the mo family, the village, the servants, as well as finding out who the cultivators invited are, AND if this level of revenge was enough to fulfil the contract was just ingeniusly written into a very fun interaction. this plus the flag "stealing" scene really shows how wwx can really think on the spot to achieve his covert goals while masking it as fun mischief and like his understanding of social dynamics and utilisisation of prejudice/preconceptions is extremely proficient.

and he canonically meditates a lot even within the first few pages so I don't really understand where the fanon "he can't meditate" thing comes from alskkfl

also i like how wwx really didnt want to kill the mo family even if it meant like not dying but even worse dying this time cause his soul would be destroyed which allskdd huh maybe the traumatic death was an indication of smth but also wwx really isn't into killing or escalating situations at all. and then he's all like 'not like it'll be all that hard' about the killing too but still refuses to do so and compared to the whole massacre, blood, supreme evil lord stuff, it really reveals to not trust what the ears hear and only half what the eyes see (butchered edgar allen poe quote btw). and i really like how explaining the summoning also set up the spell backlash concept for later. and wwx really risking it all for the lan disciples because it was the good thing to do.

also i never really thought about it but mdzs is a really cool contrast to most transmigration/time stories I've read? mdzs is a really great reversal of the transmig/time-reversal genre tbh which should be expected of mxtx considering svsss i suppose! but like setting it 13 years into the future instead of the past, having the body snatching be intentional from the original owner, explaining the rules and that there had been previous and recorded historical accounts of this type of body trading, making the protagonist accidentally fulfilling the contract instead of actively, and many other things! it's great, it really is!

okay!! my brain is melting right now and i still have so much more to say like the lan disciples!!! and lan sizhui!! omhygod my boy!! but yeah! brain melt! so see you next time!!!

[illarian-rambling]

Thanks for the tags @tildeathiwillwrite @drchenquill @sabewebb!

OC Questionaire

My questions:

If you were a cocktail, which one would you be?

You’ve been chosen to represent your home/planet/country/etc in a global competition. What sport or activity are you doing?

What’s the last thing you did for the first time?

Is money important to you?

What is the worst nickname someone gave you?

Are you an early bird or a night owl?

What genre of story would you rather be in? (as opposed to the one they are currently in)

Do you think you'd survive the movie A Quiet Place? (must stay as silent as possible or alien creatures hunt you down)

What's your idea of a quiet get-together with a close friend?

That's a looootta questions. I'll answer for Ivander :)

1) If you were a cocktail, which one would you be?

"Hmmm, what a curious question. I suppose I'd be a gin and tonic. Bitter, with a certain air of limelight elegance."

2) You’ve been chosen to represent your home/planet/country/etc in a global competition. What sport or activity are you doing?

"If I'm representing Illaros for anything, then we're truly in dire straits. Oh gods, what even are my talents? I'm a decent detective, I suppose. There aren't really competitions for that though. Given that, I'll go with sharpshooting. I'm no Shuari deadeye, but I've got a fair sense of aim."

3) What’s the last thing you did for the first time?

"Don't call me out in such a manner. I... I guess I tried orcish food for the first time a few weeks ago? I'm not really the Go Out and See What the World Holds type. It's hard enough to find comfort within my routine, so why would I go out of my way to break it?"

4) Is money important to you?

"Very. The pursuit of it might’ve ruined my life, but that's the funny thing about money; you always want more. To be perfectly frank, I grew up in the lap of luxury and I don't think I could survive anywhere else."

5) What is the worst nickname someone gave you?

"Do you know how many times I've heard someone call me blueboy? I swear, that was all I heard for my first three years at the BAI. I'm not even blue, really - I just have blue blood. Usually, I'm in too high of a tax bracket, but I've also heard a good old-fashioned cripple from time to time."

6) Are you an early bird or a night owl?

"Night owl. My curse gives me trouble sleeping, so I tend to stay up late reading rather than stay up late laying miserably in bed. I'm about the furthest thing you could get from an early bird. Left to my own devices, I'll usually drag myself up sometime after noon."

7) What genre of story would you rather be in? (as opposed to the one they are currently in)

"This whole 'Mystery' of the Mortal God stuff is bull. I have one chapter of detective work, and the rest is adventuresome nonsense involving far too much camping for my taste. Give me a real mystery, preferably with lots of juicy secrets and semi-legal meddling."

8) Do you think you'd survive the movie A Quiet Place? (must stay as silent as possible or alien creatures hunt you down)

"I'm not surviving any apocalypse, I assure you. Not making sound wouldn't be easy, but I could wrap the end of my cane in something soft and be fine. Once I can't order take-out anymore is when I starve to death. Monsters are one thing. Societal collapse is another, far more frightening, thing."

9) What's your idea of a quiet get-together with a close friend?

"Oh, I suppose that's the only sort of get-together I really enjoy. Ceyrel and I go out for dinner quite frequently. We talk shit over appetizers, then move on to baseless rumors by dessert. When we're both caught up on some choice gossip, we'll go out to see a play or opera or somesuch. I usually have to explain the opera to her - the uncultured meathead - but she sneaks in popcorn, so it's alright. By then, I'm usually rather exhausted, so she drops me off at my apartment, and we part ways amicably. ...These nights really are the highlight of my week, but I could never tell her that. I'm sure she'd rather be out dancing late into the night. It means much that she humors my limited stamina."

I'll tag @theink-stainedfolk @elsie-writes @honeybewrites and anyone else who wants in :)

Your questions:

What's your favorite summer activity?

What does home smell like?

What's your favorite thing about your favorite person?

[national-sorscha-fanpage]

first time trying to post writings on tumblr... and you guessed right its kaesaria i have been whipped for them since day one

fair warning i wrote this at 2am and its actually incoherent

also credit for the idea to @viperiti's og fic it was so good it just stuck in my mind until i HAD to make my own rendition! (wc: ~1.3k)

tl;dr rosaria gets injured and kaeya bandages her angst style

***

Rosaria groaned as she clutched at her side and hobbled across the central cobbled streets of Mondstadt. Why was he so hard to reach? Why did his hefty paychecks have to go into maintaining his little oblong house, perched mockingly above flimsy stairs? Those were the few thoughts that ebbed and flowed with the same rhythm as the vibrating pain of her wound.

By the time she spotted the slanted building, she was practically dragging herself out of sheer determination. Perhaps, to her, there was something calm about the place. Something that said: You’re safe now. Maybe that was why she allowed herself a seated position on a stair and to feel the relief radiating from her feet to her calves to her tightly clenched abdominals. The right palm applying pressure to her wound relaxed in sync with the sleepy droop of her eyelids.

When her eyes flew open, she was unmoved on the step. For a second, she felt only a pang of disappointment, and then her only sensation was pain once more. That, and the head of blue hair approaching, his pace quickening into a jog when he caught sight of her until she was eye level with his legs. He corrected this by crouching down in front of her, giving her a perfect view of his worried frown. In a silent answer, she lifted her left arm to expose the worrisome gash and watched as his jaw fell slack. Rosaria winced in response, instinctively moving to cover the wound once more.

Fortunately, Kaeya did not allow her to do so—assisting in draping her right arm over his shoulder so that his torso was pressed against her uninjured side. He offered her a whispered “sorry” upon her grunt, but not much more until he was sure she could manage a semi-walk.

“So… can I ask, how?” he began: an attempt at hiding the worry in his voice behind his trademark mischief.

“You may not,” she struggled to rasp out. He gave her a breathy laugh, both to relax her and to appease his own amusement. Kaeya was half-carrying her and half-guiding her to the entrance now, pulling her through the brief hallway to his bathroom. It was dark, but she did not feel lost. He tugged on her as gently as possible until her back was to the counter.

“Could you jump for me?” he spoke in the most natural manner she had ever heard him. Though she did not quite understand why, she obliged with the worrying obedience of a lamb. He used the momentum to prop her on top of the empty countertop next to the sink, where he’d take his eyes off her for a moment to switch on the low-humming lamp. It wasn’t bright, by any means, but would suffice placed next to them. Here, she watched him fumble through the cabinet above the mirror to her right and pull out a pristine wooden box. She could not miss the ethereal glow of his skin accredited to the warm lighting. Before touching anything, he took out his usually loose ponytail and opted to pull as much of his hair as he could into a tight updo. His eyepatch offered even more stark a contrast against his princely features when it was not disguised under bangs. He hurried to wash his hands, and, finally, get a decent look at the wound.

“It’s not bleeding too badly…” he mused, though still appearing concerned.

“Yes, we’re past that stage now,” she mustered through gritted teeth. “If only you’d closed out your tab…earlier…you could’ve—”

“Shh… you’ll be alright,” he tried his best at being reassuring while he brought out a small glass bottle of what she knew would be incredibly painful ethanol. She wanted to scream I know in his ear. It was a treatable wound, perhaps she would even get out without stitches. She supposed, while watching his long fingers make elegant work of pouring it over a round of cotton, that it scared her to know that he was her only solution to being in trouble. “Get ready,” he mumbled, the sound reminding her of her predicament once more.

She shut her eyes tightly and did her best to make no sound once the putrid blue liquid made contact with the wound. She failed, naturally, but decided to permit herself a hiss this time. Kaeya, instead, tried not to focus on the panicked rise and fall of her breath as he dabbed at the blood and grime, or the rhythm at which her collarbone would peek out under her milky white flesh, or—

Once he’d been sufficiently thorough, he pressed a cloth dipped in cold water to the wound and wiped as gently as possible to leave only the fresh blood and tissue.

“You’re lucky it was a slash and not a stab, you know.”

“Thanks," she huffed almost contemptuously.

“Could you take your shirt off?” he inquired nonchalantly, as though he was asking her about the weather.

Despite this, she nodded, offering no protest. Though it was obviously an effort to pull her arms over her head, she noted he did not make any effort to help until she was left in her bandeau. He pressed a compress against the wound, guiding her to hold it in place while he fumbled with the roll of bandage. The wrap began at her wound, and passed a few times around her torso and twice around her right shoulder in a diagonal to the wound. 

“How bad does it hurt now?” he asked with what seemed to be genuine interest. Like he expected a compress and a bandage to cure her.

“Just enough,” she managed a soft smile.

“Good,” he drawled. “Maybe you’ll be more careful next time.”

“Anything to wipe that smirk off your face, Captain.”

“Yeah, yeah, and what if I hadn't found you in time...”

“What happened to being alright?” she began to chuckle at him; a decision she quickly regretted when she was reminded of the sting in her side. He pursed his lips (perhaps to hide his amusement) and extended his arm to her in an invitation, allowing her to get off the countertop with minimal pain (considering her situation). Still clutching on to his arm, she allowed herself lead down the dark hallway, felt the gentle creak of the floors under her feet: the silent swing of his bedroom door and an oil lamp being lit on his nightstand.

Rosaria did not hesitate to make herself comfortable on his bed, kicking her shoes off and swinging her legs over the side. She was tired. And yet, as she tucked herself into the comforter, she allowed herself this time to really look at his face— purely due to the brighter light in this room, and the ridiculous state of his hair with awkward strands falling here and there. And that eyesore of an eyepatch. She contemplated speaking and ruining the calm silence; her self-destructive nature winning this time.

"When will you show me your eyes, Kaeya?"

He seemed startled by the question, hand lifting to ensure the cover was still on. He stared at her for a moment, perhaps most startled by how comfortable and... content she was. However, Kaeya Alberich was nothing if not a smooth talker.

"When you tell me how you did that," he pointed his chin to her body on the bed. So he had figured how sensitive the event was to her. She cursed him mentally, but held his gaze determinedly. His lips pared, as though to say something, but he seemed to think better of it and leave her. Alone again, with nothing but darkness and a dull ache in her side— but finding solace in the knowledge that he would not probe, for now.

Perhaps unwillingly, she felt herself dozing herself concerningly quickly.

[velaraffricate]

Kaiaŋ! Now that I've got a couple of pretty well-developed conlangs I've been focusing more on the worldbuilding of Kena'ar, and in this post I'd like to share how the religion and magic system works. Any foreign words you see are in Ke'eloom, as it is the lingua franca of this world as well as the language universally used for magic spells and in religious contexts. Be warned that this is a very long post.

The elves were created by a 4+ dimensional infinite divine entity that split into sixteen aspects or minor gods. Each god-part rules over certain parts of nature and daily life. I won't go into too much detail about the different gods here, but the point is that every elf has a piece of this deity inside them, which is what allows them to perform magic. Because of this, magic is basically semi-sentient, and can react to the user's emotions, intentions, and environment. Magic is called samal, and is synonymous with our concept of a "soul", and magical stamina, or what is commonly known as "mana", is called naia. Naia is depleted when someone uses a spell, and takes a while to recharge. With training, one can decrease the amount of naia that is needed for each spell and the rate at which it builds up again, but even the most powerful wizards will run out of it at some point, and some spells are naturally more tiring than others. Most people can perform decently powerful spells, but only with extensive training and focus can one reach legendary levels of power. "Power" and "strength" in relation to magic mean that a spell lasts longer, takes less naia to cast, or is in some way more effective, but this all depends on the individual spell.

Everybody is born with magic inside them, and it can never be taken away. Even children can technically already cast spells, but, unless they have a rare special talent, they will be extremely weak and short-lived. One's magical ability strengthens slowly as one grows older, gains more experience, and starts worshipping one or multiple gods in a more serious manner. Disabled elves of all kinds can use magic, too. As mentioned above, it's basically alive in a way, and thus can be very accomodating to the individual user's needs.

There are many dozens of spells, but each is connected to only one or sometimes two specific gods. The stronger the user's connection to that god is, the stronger the spell will be. This god connection is called ronsu. One cultivates it by engaging in certain activities related to their god of choice and practicing mindfulness. For example, flowers are associated with the god Shati. Tending to a flower garden, focusing on their smell, texture, and colours, meditating near them, studying their life cycles, drawing them or otherwise incorporating them into artworks… all strengthen your ronsu with Shati and in turn make you more powerful in the spells associated with it. But this also means that no one elf can simultaneously be powerful in many different kinds of spells - you can only allot so much time in the day to worship, and if you try to devote yourself to too many gods your ronsu will only be very shallow and you will remain weak. The mightiest wizards are monks that devote every minute of every day to only one god, and as a result become immensely powerful in only a handful of spells. Everyone (except monks) can freely choose and change who to worship. Most elves worship different gods throughout their lives as their needs and preferences change.

Spells are triggered by a specific phrase that must be said out loud (deaf/mute elves can use sign language or write them down (if someone can't speak and also can't use their hands, they can just think about them very intensely or perhaps find some other way to express them)). Simply saying the phrase won't automatically cause anything to happen, you have to put all your focus into every word, every syllable, and visualize the spell's desired effect. Strong emotions and the influence of drugs can be both a hindrance and an asset when casting spells. Channeling your emotions into a spell may make it more powerful than usual, but they may also serve as a distraction or blockage and prevent you from using magic - it just depends on the situation. During the casting of a spell, the wizard's eyes, horns, veins, palms, and other areas with thin skin glow in the colour associated with the spell's god.

Some examples of spells and their phrases: kikh korukhaakha huf alaŋatam, "let me see through the darkness", gives one the ability to see in the dark; kikh loñaŋatam, dare okorehalaŋabar, "let me smell what I can't see", enhances one's sense of smell; kikh vitslane kikaŋatam, "let me run with the wind", increases one's running speed; kikh huf zhiksukhe saikhe ŋgi saaŋaŋatam, "let poison flow through me like water", gives immunity to venom and poison.

You can technically have as many spells active at the same time as you want, but each spell becomes weaker and weaker with each additional spell. Having three or more spells active will only get you very minor effects and is basically not worth it unless you're incredibly powerful. This would also drain you of naia much quicker than a single spell would, so it's not a very sustainable state. Spells only last for a certain amount of time, again depending on one's power. Elves can instinctually feel when their spell is about to run out. Afterwards, especially if the spell depleted all or most of one's naia, one might feel tired, groggy, sick, and confused, but nothing that can't be fixed with some food and sleep. You can end a spell yourself with the phrase samalkhe kil mbadëbëŋ kil tshi shiŋatam, which means "let my magic return into my body".

Spells can also be transferred onto another person. This is a rather advanced technique and requires a special phrase, and a transferred spell will typically be weaker than a regular once used on oneself. This is most often used with healing spells. Both the transferrer and the transferree can cancel the spell at any time.

But spells aren't all there is to magic. There are also "talismans", called mondarisa. They're small objects that come in many sizes, shapes, and materials such as wood, metal, clay, or glass. But they must be sculpted into or otherwise depict something associated with a specific spell. This spell must be focused on during the entire process of creating the mondaris. Once it's finished, the spell is enchanted onto it using a special phrase, which infuses it with a tiny piece of samal. It then acts as an unlimited external beacon of magic, giving an elf that holds it close the effects of its spell.

But of course, its effectiveness is highly variable and depends on both the mondaris's maker's and the current owner's power. Most mondarisa are still weaker than an average spell, but their magic never runs out until it is broken or otherwise destroyed. Many mondarisa can be worn as jewelry, and are usually kept close to the body part associated with their spell's god. As with spells, you can wear multiple mondarisa at once, but the more there are, the less effective they become. Mondarisa can be used in conjunction with spells without either one being weakened in their effects, as their sources of samal are separate. In fact, if you cast a spell and are also wearing a mondaris with that spell on it, their effects stack up. Elves can instinctually feel if an otherwise ordinary-looking object is actually a mondaris and which spell it's enchanted with.

Some examples of what a mondaris might look like: a glass eye or a piece of wood with a painting of an eye for the night vision spell; a clay sculpture of a nose for the smell enhancing spell; a sculpture of feet or legs or a carved footprint for the fast running spell; a sculpture of a snake or poisonous plant for the venom immunity spell. But do keep in mind that this is all very flexible, these are just common examples.

As mentioned above, some elves choose to become monks and live in monasteries. They devote themselves fully to only one deity, and in turn become immensely powerful in its related spells. Their duties are twofold: thanks to their power, they can produce very effective mondarisa which they then distribute among the masses. And in times of crisis, their powers may help hundreds of people. They're also scientists of sorts, spending a lot of time studying natural phenomena like the stars, the weather, and different plants and animals, and developing tools and appliances. Monks are very highly revered in elven society, and whatever material needs they have that they can't take care of themselves, they are given by nearby townspeople. The monasteries' locations depends on their associated god. Not all of them are solitary temples in the middle of nowhere, some are in fact vibrant community centers and workshops, museums, theaters, schools etc. Commiting to a be a monk is a very serious decision, as should one later decide to forgo this path, they will usually be ostracized by their community, forcing them to start a new life far away.

In conclusion: Magic is everywhere in Kena'ar and deeply affects everyone's lives, even if someone isn't particularly religious. It comes in many shapes, ranging from trifles like creating a small flame on your finger to act as a lighter for candles, all the way to huge feats like wind and storm bending, and everything inbetween. Magic is a gift from the gods, and never using it at all or even purposefully avoiding it is seen as a grave insult to them. Devoting yourself to it can be deeply spiritually satisfying, connect you to your inner self as well as your environment, and allow you to help yourself and others in both small and big ways.

We've finally made it to the end! I hope I didn't forget anything lol. More worldbuilding posts sharing further details about the monk lifestyle, the deities, and specific spells are hopefully soon to follow. Feel free to ask any questions! Thank you for reading, I hope this was in some way inspiring or interesting, and khosa tshon ekerebëlaŋa - may the gods be with you!

[callsignbaphomet]

I've decided on something that I'd been contemplating regarding Jela's attack. I've wondered if having Jelani come across the 7 assailants (there were 8 but Loke killed one of them, we'll get back to this in a bit) again would be ideal. Of course this second time around he'd be able to get closure in the form of revenge for what they did. I mean, usually in a story when a character is wronged, and in such a brutal manner to boot, the story often leads to the character that was wronged getting their revenge. I know it's not always the case and it doesn't always need to happen and in a way I don't really feel like this is headed in that direction. Who would benefit from Jelani being exposed to Christian and the other 6 assailants? Who would feel a sense of satisfaction in spilling their blood for what they did to a seventeen-year-old who was just doing the right thing? Not Jelani that's for sure. As his parents Loke and Uthorim would feel vindicated and avenged even though it didn't happen to them. Angelus sure as shit would revel in slowly killing off the sick bastards that assaulted his boyfriend and left him severely traumatized.

Being exposed to them, especially Christian, would more than likely unravel the little bit of recovery Jelani has had in the months following the assault. All that shit and trauma is still affecting him even almost a year later in ways that not even Loke, Uthorim or Angelus even know. The last thing Christian did after he was finished with Jelani was threaten him. If he told Loke who did it he would find both of them, kill Loke in front of him and do it again only that second time Chris was gonna "not be so merciful". So while, yeah, Jelani's spent plenty of sleepless nights just fantasizing about brutally killing them all or at the very least Chris it's one thing to fantasize about something. It's a whole different thing to actually be there and do it. Seeing Chris or any of them would literally be opening up semi-healed wounds and pouring salt on them. And honestly with how traumatized he is he'd probably just freeze on the spot. The little bit of recovery he'd done would just burn away.

Getting back to one of them getting killed. Loke got lucky. One of them, Nathaniel, had left the group after the assault. He was the only one that refused to do that but only because Jelani was a minor, don't think he's a decent person just because he refused to at first and "took it easy on him" he still did it anyways plus he's done other terrible shit to other people. He just didn't want to because Jelani was a kid at the time it happened. Loke just so happened to find him and tore him to pieces. Yeah, there was some satisfaction but killing all 8 of 'em wasn't gonna magically take back what happened or make Jelani instantly better. This is also coupled with the fact that Chris is a vile piece of shit and wouldn't go down without a fight or at the very least hurting Jelani again. He's as vile and evil as Iain is.

Basically everyone (Loke, Uthorim and Angelus) except for the actual victim (Jelani) would benefit from this clash and he's been through enough already not to mention that recovery is its own type of hell so it'd just be adding more to it.

[bbiwon]

heyy all ♥ name's lola, here presenting the misunderstood character prompt, moon jaewon; who looks like a badboy, walks like a badboy but is a soft-hearted individual in reality. under the cut i've provided information about him in a bullet point list. if you'd like to interact, i'm available through both IMs and discord, latter which i strongly prefer, but i don't mind either platforms at the end of the day. thank you for your time! ♥

9th february 1999, born and raised in seoul

father teacher at an elementary school, mother working at a supermarket only fair to say that jaewon has lived an average life, sitting on the lower scale of the middle class. has a sister younger than him by few years. always was the type who was drawing; there's so many childhood drawings back at their home done by him alone that one could probably make a whole new house out of it. however, he played football mostly, since kindergarten all throughout the start of high-school, due to his parents' wish. decided to quit at the start of high-school, under the excuse that he wants to focus on studies.

in reality, he's spent his free time returning to his true passion... which quickly spirals into him drawing all the time, filling one too many sketchbooks all too fast; studies of value, anatomy, charcoal, graphite, cheap (dry) pastels. he develops a liking for a flowy touch of charcoal, alike breathy strokes of ink, quickly gaining a personal style. it's all done through naver and whichever book he can dig up from the local library, though, because his parents aren't really supportive of him following the path of an artist. after all, they are all struggling to put bread on the table and they don't want their son to be like that too.

semi-decently liked in high school, hits puberty early and has that boy crush vibes to him; with him being generally nice to everyone there are a few dates here and there but nothing serious ever happens. he had a lot of acquaintances and a few good friends though.

during this time, alongside a somewhat unlimited access to the internet and its wonders while his parents work, he finds a liking to tattoos in a way that's more complex than saying oh that looks pretty on their skin. he starts copying work done on skin of western celebrities at first, then starts coming up with his own design. gets stick and poke material from a friend of a friend of a friend and starts doing stuff on his legs mostly, thankfully most of which is now covered up

in a way, his parents have been right. his hyper-focus on it, mixed with the rebellious "i'll do what i want to do with my life" phase leads jaewon into not really studying when he's meant to be studying, so throughout high-school, his grades tank a lot. unfortunately, it's not enough to be hardworking re: drawing and talented to enter university and in spite of the evident talent, jaewon fails to enroll.

his parents aren't happy with it obviously soo he almost goes for his mandatory service right away instead, but in that same rebellious manner he says no (for now) and spends next two years... working night shifts at one of those 24-hour convenience shops while also doing an apprenticeship, attending conventions, pestering and listening to whoever wants to speak to him of the work. safe to assume he did in fact look like a zombie 18-20 and he's been barely-contact with his parents during that time

dedication, time, skill, tears, suffering have him landing a job in seoul straight out of apprenticeship, at a rather smaller place where he spends a little over a year, still looking up to his seniors; though he doesn't stay there long.

a friend of a friend (plot!?) recommends him barracuda, even if it's a city away. it's better in every way, with it being at a mall rather than some side alleyway on outskirts of seoul's city centre, and apparently the pay is better. he travels to daegu to check it out, carrying his portfolio, and it's like both ends have hit a jackpot at that moment. it's also a change of environment that he thinks would suit him well mentally so...

he becomes a full time artist @ the place. really enjoys his work and the shop, earning himself a respected name in the span of next two years (and ongoing) that he's there. (if my timeline is wrong ignore that)

gone complete no-contact with his parents due to all of this (distance also helps) but his sister thinks he's cool and that's all that matters to him in the end. tends to sleep over inside barracuda often after staying in late, which doesn't bother him much in the end because he lives in a really small studio apt anyway

his work can be seen on ig (@bbiwon) as it stands as a online-portfolio (sketches, flashes, healed tats; persona is anonymous). without going into detail describing his style, i will simply say that his work is similar to work of moku (a forewarning that he tattoos butterflies in case anyone is icked by them); with that flowy, almost freehand looking strokes. i envision his "signature tattoo" being variations on koi fishes, done in that same 'brushy' stroke/airy style. one day when i'm not lazy i'll draw an example of this

personality wise, jaewon is very soft spoken and thoughtful of others, the type that is comforting even if he doesn't say anything. calm, scarcely angry (but really spiteful and grudge holding if you manage to piss him off), the type who starts conversation about anything and everything without being embarrassed about it. carefree to an extent, holding the belief that everything will work out well in the end; though often prone to making spur of the moment decisions in his personal life. compassionate, casual & easy-going, sociable, very much caring even in moments when he should be putting himself first. the type to notice if someone isn't talking in a group of people and try to involve them. tries and isnt opposed to small talk during sessions but also reads people easily and their comfort levels

some other tidbits: — plays league of legends, maintaining a masters rank for past several seasons — the type to have "loves long walks on the beach/by the river/lake and watching sunset" on tinder but still can't make it past the second date (he actually doesn't know what he wants out of a relationship) — likes to drink, friends know how physically affectionate he actually gets when drunk — vapes... strawberry flavour... i'm sorry — dresses baggy, streetwear, comfortable — his first personal instagram kind of blew up which made him uncomfortable, so he deleted that one and made a new one. now, it is actually private and really small selection of people — trying really hard to learn how to play the guitar but also not really successful at it. will play it however to everyone's misfortune — drives a motorcycle, skateboards — lover of alt music, fan of cigarettes after sex and collects their vinyl releases despite not owning a turntable — his hair is crying but he keeps bleaching it — carries his ipad with him 24/7, always sketching something in free time — aquarius sun scorpio moon scorpio rising but you see idk what any of it means — mitski - i bet on losing dogs.mp3

if i ever think of anything more re: him (and i'm always thinking about him i love my #NotEmo boy) 'll be adding it!

i prefer brainstorming for plotting, or taking up other people's wanted plots as my brain is pea sized, but some ideas i have are: a failed tinder date who happens to actually work at the same mall , store right next to barracuda and it's kinda awkward seeing you every day or alternatively lets try again; someone who's a fan of his work; someone who he helped with a hangover after one of those forbidden parties at the mall; somehow every saturday you bump into one another when he's skating next to the geumho river and omg again? third time you're paying for a drink; mysterious person he's in a high-score war with at xpixel; coworkers; someone who thinks he's bad influence bc of his work & appearance... etcetera

[grapecaseschoices]

Hii <3 If you're still answering questions for the relationship ask, Self, Mentor and Friendship for Val? No pressure, though!

I almost missed this! So sorry, @serenpedac! From this ask game.

Self: How is your OC's relationship with themself? Does your OC like who they are? Is there anything about themself that they would change?

Haha. Not as good as they pretend it is. I know this about SELF but trust me this is related. Val's approach to OTHER'S is very 'take me or leave me' [sometimes in a shruggy/uninterested manner, sometimes in a hostile or daring manner], but they expect to be left.

And that is sort of how they see themselves? Someone not worth sticking around with. I think asking if Val likes themselves begs upon more introspection than Val wants to give the subject/than Val feels the subject deserves. They are very 'I am who I am, deal with it' as much to themselves as they are with others. So, any change Val does is semi-subconcious. It's like they might notice something they say hits wrong with someone they care about and they may brush it off at the moment, but I feel later on if a similar situation occurs they might tone it down a tad. Val is more of a reactor, I feel. So I feel tho they act automatically [and obnoxiously], they take in things just the same. It's like in the back of their mind.

In short, Val is one of my egoists with low-self-esteem. My Jake Peralta. LMAO. Val knows they're good at their strengths. And they probably overblow it. They know. They think they're stylish and their hobbies are cool. But they also think they're trash [and not the way I call them my trash gremlin]. They know they don't process or react to emotional things the way most people do/people believe they should. And they don't come off as 'decent' and 'kind' or 'hard-working' and 'dedicated' and 'mature' as people believe they should. So in their mind they know they're not as valued or taken seriously. But that's a YOU problem. Deal with it.

Mentor: Does your OC have a mentor? Have they ever reached out to anyone for guidance or teaching, or been taken under someone's wing? How does your OC get along with their mentor?

No. LMAO. Val has no Raymond Holt. BUT, in THEIR OWN WAY, they do respect the Captain a lot more than one would think given how much they're sardonic @ him. And his opinions weigh a touch more on them than one [probably even him] would think. A good job from the Captain has Val feeling unnaturally peppy. LMAO. He is their dad, woogie boogie.

I don't think Val would ever call the Captain. But if he was there, and he said something useful ....

Strangely though, if Val WERE to reach out to someone for guidance it might be Adam. And for advice/teaching it might be Felix.

Don't look into it!!

Friendship: What's your OC like as a friend? How are they at making new friends? What are the most important friendships in your OC's life?

Awful. LMAO. I don't know why Tina and Felix are still around. Honeslty, Val has probably said quite a few things unintentionally and intentionaly to shut that down. But als. That said, once you have Val as a friend, I think they're great for laughs and not a bad shoulder to cry on. I don't see them loyal in the traditional sense but they are more protective than they believe. They aren't a BIG hugger but they actually are pretty goodat it for someone so teeny/slim. Physical touch is their love language [one of them] but it's more broish.

All their new friends, including Adam, sort of just came upon them. Though with Adam it was a mutual coming upon. Adam, Felix, and Tina are the most important friendships [probably in that order lmao.] They are very fond of Verda tho. It's grown that way. And they grow fonder of Mason as well.

Thank you for the ask! Apologies for the super delay <3

[sinkableruby]

do you think any of the other characters from Monogatari would be able to beat Ougi in a bmx race, and which of them do you think would cheat in the most interesting manner while trying?

KALKDFALKFDA i love how you phrased it like it's already understood that people would have to cheat to do it

ok the objectively correct but also boring answer is tsukihi. but shes a shoo-in so i dont wanna talk about her. she doesnt count she's unbeatable! realistically, if ougi were to be doing a bmx race and be faced with her, they would simply Not Race lol

ok first i will talk about the people who wouldn't cheat. (spoilers up to nademonogatari under the cut meaning nademonogatari is included)

kanbaru would not cheat she would want to do it fair and square. she would train for the occasion but she doesnt know how to ride a bike (semi canonically? idk how canonical the audio commentaries are) so she’d probably struggle, and even though she’s athletic i can’t imagine she’d win or get close to it (rip). karen would have the best chances of winning legitimately. i’d imagine she probably knows how to ride a bike bc shes got easy access since koyomi is always riding them. and her level of fitness is absolutely insane, so she could pull it off. but ougi has lots of bicycle experience, and does like tricks and stuff for it. and they can do crazy stunts without worrying about damage to the user. so its a toss up here, but karen could win. hanekawa would not win. ougi would not allow it, their pride would not allow it. hanekawa would try to win, as part of her rivalry with them. but ougi would probably rather die than allow her to win especially when it concerns a hobby of theirs so they dont its as simple as that. i dont think hanekawa would be too much of a challenge, but she’s very powerful and unpredictable so ougi would take no chances. eliminate with extreme prejudice. now for the last of the non-cheaters, koyomi (surprisingly). dont get me wrong he would absolutely cheat against like at least half of the other cast if he felt like he couldn’t win easily or if he started losing. but he would be way too terrified to cheat against ougi. and there’s absolutely no way he wins against ougi without cheating, i mean come on. ougi can do cool little tricks and knows all his weaknesses. i think he would keep up decently at first but ultimately be completely destroyed near the end of the race.

ok now for the cheaters 😈 (spoilers: none of them could win)

nadeko would cheat here because she would know that she has no chance of winning whatsoever if she doesnt, and she doesnt really like ougi all that much so she doesnt feel too bad about it. now the WAY she decides to cheat varies. nadeko would much rather rely on her own abilities instead of asking yotsugi or tsukihi for help, so she might draw a shikigami of anti-nadeko (or a more cooperative version with the same strength) to throw/boost her instead, which you could argue is technically not cheating because its still her own power moving the bmx. senjougahara really cheats? no dignity! she would act like shes gonna do it fair and square and then totally shamelessly cheat bc she doesnt think she can win at all. i think she would race normally, and then once ougi got far ahead enough she would try to cut ahead by going off the tracks and taking a shortcut. i think i can picture a universe where sodachi cheats so heres what she’d do. and she’s probably the most creative one about it. i think, given her penchant for careful and precise planning, she would add obstacles to the course. its hard to do and it would take a while, but its also hard to check for if you do it right. she wouldnt even necessarily have to buy materials either, assuming the race doesnt happen somewhere built for the purpose of bicycle racing. she could just move stuff from the general terrain around the course to make it look like it was something that happened by accident, while having knowledge of where the traps were and how to get past them. think like moving around rocks and boulders, small logs and dirt piles and stuff like that. stuff that could put the bicycle off balance, or would require slowing down or rerouting, especially stuff that looks deceptively harmless. shinobu would cheat, but not intentionally, she just has no interest in the rules and doesnt intend to learn what they are. so the moment the race starts, in order to “get to the goal the fastest” she goes off track. yotsugi ABSOLUTELY cheats, but probably not in an interesting way. she just uses unlimited rulebook to boost her bike into the air. i think she potentially maybe could use it to just speed up, but i think she wouldnt have the patience for that at all and would rather just skip the whole race asap. mayoi is unable to ride the bmx. she just isn’t good at it. she’s small and its kinda big and unwieldy so its just hard to do. i think her cheat would be the kind of cheat that doesnt really have much practical chance of succeeding long term, like tying her bmx to ougi’s so she can get pulled along. i think she’d try to frame it as like a cooperative thing like let’s get to the finish line together type deal. but i cant see her having the heart to actually betray someone right at the finish line, so she would just lose. she probably wouldnt care that much anyway

but the reason why not just hachikuji but none of the cheaters would have a chance at winning is because while ougi could potentially be miffed at losing, there’s no way they’d let a cheater slip by. and they’d have a lot of fun catching the cheats and working around them. they would examine for possible cheats based on the opponent and prepare countermeasures far in advance-- all in all, cheating is bad against ougi because its like when you pirate a game and the final boss becomes impossible to beat on your copy. youre ramping up the difficulty to such an extreme level that its better to just do it legit. ougi’s ability and desire to win probably increases exponentially if their opponent is cheating, as well as their enjoyment of the race.

here’s how they would deploy the countermeasures:

ougi would definitely anticipate the shikigami move and have some countermeasures in mind. i imagine they might try to convince anti-nadeko she’s being used for a silly purpose (she is) and make her not want to help, OR the much more Fun way they would go to the drawing in the notebook right before nadeko brings it to life and erase the arms without nadeko noticing. so it has no arms and can’t help her. oops! senjougahara’s move... it’s just kinda silly. i think it’s too silly for ougi to prepare anything really crazy. if anything they prolly just pick to do the race at a time + place where the shortcuts aren’t actually helpful at all. like construction blocking the way, rocky terrain, that sort of thing. and then they’d just do the race and win normally sodachi’s planning is her own downfall as usual :( ougi is very cool and just uses the added obstacles as like ramps and shit. and uses the ramps to go over harder obstacles, or just fucking lifts the bmx up somehow like in otorimongatari. and sodachi just doesnt have that kinda technical prowess, or the ability to predict that someone would be able to do that (which is reasonable). rip as for shinobu, she’s instantly disqualified so ougi just goes off track with her for the hell of it (and wins anyway, of course) yotsugi’s impatience gets the best of her here-- she’d have had a lot easier time if she had just tried to speed herself up, but by attempting a leap she leaves herself wayy more open to counterattacks. i think ougi would choose the most slapstick way of going about this so i’d imagine that, understanding that unlimited rulebook involves a lot of explosive force, they would bring a slingshot to the race. and they’d wait till yotsugi tried to use the rulebook and then with one perfectly placed projectile, knock yotsugi’s foot to the side juuust so, so that the angle of the leap is altered, and she goes careening away at high speed. teehee shouldnt have cheated! of course yotsugi would be fine even after a crash bc shes a doll, so its okay to go for more dangerous counterattacks in ougi’s mind. for hachikuji, she wouldnt have the opportunity to not betray ougi bc she wouldnt get to the finish line tow truck/three legged race style in the first place. she would be like “lets get there together” and ougi would just pull out a pair of scissors and be like “nope ✂” even though they know she probably wouldnt even try to win. they are just devious like that

so yeah none of the cheaters would win. ougi would want more of them to cheat so they could win anyway and have fun with it. like ooh youre cheating now i can be evil. honestly same

[vespersposts]

Reap what you sow

Second chapter, which reveals a little of the story's plot.

Ah, I just hope you enjoy it! Maybe it's been a while since I've said this, but thanks to everyone who reads, comments, likes or sends me criticism: you make me happy and you really help me a lot. A hug,

V.

It all began when you did something stupid.

Something very, very stupid. 

April is prank month. You would not have expected anything serious to come out of that innocent moment of vanity, when that gentleman stopped you to leave his business card. Little did you know that this would be the start of a career that would allow you to live a decent life: you could pay your fees in advance and live in a small but new flat in a semi-central area, close to the university and the clubs. All this without having to go without meals, work three jobs or ask anyone for money. 

Not least because, unlike Kuri, you no longer have anyone to turn to.

You have confessed it to her almost immediately, that awkward, dark secret of yours that you have been so careful to keep hidden, because she is different, she understands. Satsuki knows what it means to sacrifice, knows what it means to stand aside when what she wants has value. That's why she peppered you with questions, made you doubt, pestered you with worries, all of which shared a common denominator: you.

Would you be safe? Would you not regret the choice you were forced to make? Would you have been able to cope without shame? If it had come out, what would have happened? What would have happened if you'd fallen for a client and he'd used you? A whirlwind of questions you tried to answer. Questions that only stopped when you read the agency contract and the terms and conditions.

No sex, no private pictures, no contact outside arranged times. No exchanging of personal information or private details. Your job is to be attractive, polite, to have impeccable manners and to support a powerful person on public occasions or in his or her private life. "A personal assistant, a reliable shoulder, a hired friend, a partner in crime... Whatever you want. Anything but a prostitute" you had been told by your agent, a man as elegant in his manner as he was in his speech. You had signed those legally binding papers guaranteeing you privacy, peace, exclusive dinners, holidays in exotic places, personal security and an enviable monthly salary. You had taken an elocution course. You had studied the rudiments of economics, engineering, traditional arts, history, sumo wrestling and calligraphy. Every six months your skills were tested at agency headquarters, an elegant office in a major hotel chain, where you were measured, weighed, inspected and rewarded with cash bonuses: tips your clients left to express their pleasure with your service.

"Isn't it humiliating?" Satsuki had asked you when you told her to speak up. She did tell you what she really thought. "It's not the worst thing that could happen to me, so it's okay!" you'd replied, earning a hug so tight you almost knocked over your dinner. She had given you a sweet smile and promised to keep your secret for as long as you needed it, and you had fallen a little in love with her, because for the first time you had felt accepted.

But Satsuki had a much more pressing duty than being your best friend. A duty that kept her busy every day of the week, juggling meetings, training, sponsors, travelling and player tantrums. An all-encompassing job that was almost a mission for her, an absolute passion that made her eyes light up almost as much as it did for her boyfriend, Tetsuya. A thread that held them together and that nothing seemed to break, not even you.

You smile and welcome her. You can tell right away that she is tired, and maybe even a little bit annoyed: you can see it in the way she rolls her eyes as soon as she hears the buzz of her mobile phone. She turns it off, tosses it to the bottom of her bag and hugs you, genuinely happy to have some time alone. "Take a shower and I'll make dinner, you've done enough for today!" you comfort her, stroking her cheeks and letting her snuggle up against you, just enough to hear her say you smell good.

You order sushi and when it arrives, you pour water into the kettle: there's wine and beer in the fridge, but you're actually going to have steaming green tea. As you eat, you listen to her voice, like a melody, telling you about a day spent between many people, between many thoughts, between the needs of old friends and those of the large company that provides everyone with a much higher standard of living and demands the same attention as a possessive lover.

"Ryouta is an angel. He also helps me convince others with photos and fan meetings. Shintaro grumbles, but in the end he knows it's his duty and..." she stops herself, noticing that you are distracted, probably fascinated by all the notifications on your phone.

"Comments on that damn picture, Kuri has let the dogs loose" you say bitterly as you pick up a thick slice of salmon from the sashimi tray. Satsuki grabs your phone and you don't have time to stop her. You can't even speak, just watch her face grow more and more serious as she scrolls through the comments in the class chat.

"Assholes " you hear her hiss as she rummages through her bag in search of her mobile phone. You grab her hand before she can turn it on, before she can express her discontent and get targeted herself. "Leave it " you say, inviting her to continue eating. "It won't help. The vice-principal is Kuri's uncle. She is of the opinion that nothing and no one will be able to save me from her wrath, but..." you conclude, leaning your chopsticks back and looking at an indefinite point in the room.

"What?" your friend asks with a heartbroken look. 

"What this idiot doesn't know is this: my scholarship project is sponsored by a subsidiary of this man's company. What could be more generous than to invite the Cinderella student that you are sponsoring to the gala dinner where you will be honoured as the best manager of the year?" you ask, bringing a smile back to her face. "Sensei Shun has assured me that the matter has already been dealt with, and I believe him. I just wish I could have seen the look on the faces of those creeps when he told them that he would not renew the donations in case I had a problem" you smile, but in your heart you know that you are causing her a little pain. Because it is obvious that Shunji would have wanted something more concrete, than a polite thank you in return for that call.

Her eyes drop, and you know you have disappointed her. She tries to say something, but you don't think she wants to get involved in a discussion that ends with you confirming that you'll have to pay back what you owe. Her fingers drum on the table and touch the mobile phone, a reminder of the absolute necessity of a phone call to Tetsuya. You quietly clear the table as you hear her laugh, the blush of a little girl on her face. You don't have a clue what the boy's words are to her, you don't even care, because this isn't your life anyway.

"I will face Kuri! " she tells you after the call. You're ready to spit out another snide comment about the girl, but Satsuki isn't done yet: "Tomorrow afternoon, during training, I'll explain a few things to her, it's time to get it over with!" she exclaims with a bravado that surprises you, just as it surprises you that the princess and Momoi share some kind of athletic activity. "Is she also chasing you around the gym, that crazy bitch? Does Tetsuya know? " you ask her in all sincerity, astonished at this revelation. She turns and looks at you with a questioning look, as if she failed to understand what you meant.

"It's for Dai-chan" she tells you "She's crazy about him, it's so obvious it's ridiculous. She literally drools on him every time." she explains, following your face, as it rests on her hand. You make yourself comfortable, because all of a sudden the conversation has become interesting.

" Do you think there's any chance that these two... I mean ... " you ask, smiling at your friend's increasingly confused expression.

"Well, Dai-chan is ... You know what happened to Daiki, I told you" she admits, letting you connect all the dots.

Daiki Aomine, her childhood friend, the source of all her worst headaches: the latest being a full declaration of love, although she was engaged. It was a brilliant move, indeed. It became necessary when he realised, in his basketball-obsessed mind, that it is not normal to have a crush on your best friend's girlfriend. Twenty-five comfortable years of fraternal friendship made poor Satsuki the centre of the worst love triangle imaginable, forcing her to make a simple but painful choice. It led her to treat her former best friend with the same scientific precision with which one handles a primed grenade.

"He will have to let it out, the poor man... Kuri should have what it takes" you urged her, noticing how her lovely face was pulled into a wrinkled expression.

"I will not give Dai-chan to someone like that! He wouldn't like that kind of girl either!" she protests vehemently.

You laugh, which makes her even more annoyed, but you can't help it: all this self-denial seems to be a waste of energy.  

" Of course not, he is in love with YOU! " you explain, drawing the sums and focusing your attention on her, as a strange idea begins to find its way into your mind. It's a mean idea, but fascinating. One that could teach Kuri her place once and for all, and make you look like an angel of mercy in your beloved friend's eyes.

" Leave him to me " you tell her, gazing into her eyes. "Wait... am I OK?" you urge her, knowing that if she thought about it for even a minute, she would get to the point of your sudden generosity.

"You're more than okay, you're too much! " you hear her snort "But Dai-chan isn't as stupid as you think, when he realises we're fooling him ..." she can't even finish the sentence, upset by the thought.

" I don't want to fool him" you correct her "I'm going to ask him if he can help me to play a trick on Kuri. With a little luck and some flattery, I should be able to distract him from you, and then ... " you open your arms to underline the validity of the plan, which Satsuki might not have fully understood. 

"Oh, it would be perfect if the two of you got together!" she giggles, covering her mouth with her hands and responding to your puzzled look with dreamy eyes.

"That's not going to happen!" you cut her off, trying to ignore the smug look on your friend's face, who was obviously taking this fantasy of hers far too seriously " Once he realises that there are other women out there besides you, he should have no problem finding his soul mate."

"I love this idea" she tells you, suddenly brimming with energy "and I love you more, you know?”.

 It doesn't matter if you spend the rest of the evening arguing about a future that only she can see, it doesn't matter if you always thought her best friend was a shady, overbearing type: as long as your best friend is hugging you, laughing at you and telling you she loves you, you know you'll be happy too.

[sustraiii]

TEAM ZRCN ARC 1 REWRITE - CHAPTER 3

A game night with friends - what could possibly go wrong?

Zelde

Zelde slowly turned the page of her book, doing her best to ignore the voices in the room, and instead focus on the words written on the pages in front of her. She needed to get further into the book than she already was. It was a recommended book for her Remnant History class and she was already further behind than she would have liked due to a few missions that had gone on longer than she had anticipated.

Unfortunately for Zelde, her desire for a quiet night catching up with coursework had been ruined by the arrival of Xanthos and his friends.

She had been reading quietly on her bunk when Xanthos barged in, dragging a foldable table in with him. Behind him came Kinu Matsumoto, Hamnet Kerbel, and Zinnia Winfield, of whom only Zinnia waved hello. Slightly irritated about being interrupted, Zelde had peered over her bunk and demanded to know what was going on. Xanthos cheerfully reminded her that it was his bi-monthly game night, during which he and his friends played lengthy games of Remnant: The Game. Zelde asked if they could play elsewhere, but Xanthos insisted they stay where they were, citing that it was his turn to host and would be bad form if he avoided his turn. Zelde relented after a moment, holding them all to a promise that they would be quiet so she could read in peace.

Unfortunately, that promise was swiftly broken.

Swept up in the excitement of the game, the four of them began loudly cheering and yelling, and Zelde's quiet evening was ruined.

For a while she was able to power through, focusing on the content of her book rather than the voices of Xanthos and his friends. Things took another turn when events in the game got a little heated. Zelde didn't really know what had triggered it, but Hamnet quickly went from mere yelling to jumping to his feet and pointing at his fellow players, accusing them of all manner of things, and complaining about a move Kinu had played. When his blustering was largely ignored, Hamnet waved a hand and promptly left the room declaring he was done for the night.

Zelde watched him go with a raised brow, surprised at how such a game could elicit a response like that. Though she supposed Hamnet had always been hot-headed and prone to bursts of anger such as that. When she had first joined the academy she had found Hamnet quite attractive with his golden curls, dazzling blue eyes, and easy smile. His attitude had quickly shown itself however and her infatuation had quickly faded.

"Yeesh, Kinu, what kind of play was that?" Zinnia asked, turning back in her seat to face the remaining players after watching Hamnet leave. "I've never seen him get that mad before. I think I saw actual smoke coming out of his ears."

"It was called the Sandstorm Gambit," Zelde explained, answering for Kinu. "It is a sequence of moves favoured by fools and gamblers." Her response earned her a curious look from the two girls in the room, and she closed her book, sensing an impending flurry of questions.

"I didn't realise you played," Zinnia noted.

"She doesn't," Xanthos answered with a chuckle. "At least not with me anyway but Zelde knows all the moves and gambits."

"My father used to play semi-professionally," Zelde explained. He had made a decent chunk of money at it before his own father - Zelde's grandfather - had pushed him to settle and start a real career. "When I was a young child, my father taught my brother and I how to play. I have little interest in the game but I recall the moves and gambits quite well."

“You should join us!” Zinnia said, clapping her hands enthusiastically together.

“Yes, please join us,” Kinu said in agreement, her green eyes appraisingly looking Zelde up and down. “It would be interesting to play at least one match against an opponent with a modicum of skill.” She blinked and then looked at Xanthos and Zinnia, before adding in her familiar monotonous tone, “No offence.”

Zelde hesitated for a moment, debating whether or not to decline and continue reading her book. However, after deciding she had lost her place in the book, she shrugged. “Just one game.”

“One game,” Kinu echoed, nodding her head in confirmation. She extended a hand and gestured to the now vacant seat that had briefly been occupied by Hamnet. Zelde placed the book on her bed and hopped off the bunk. She calmly slid into Hamnet’s former seat and waited whilst Zinnia rounded up the action cards and began to reshuffle them, careful to split the kingdom-specific cards into four neat piles. Once the cards were reshuffled, the four players were randomly assigned one of the four kingdoms in the game. Zelde got Vale, Kinu got Atlas, Xanthos got Mistral, and Zinnia got Vacuo.

As was usually the case, the game began slow, with most of the players making small moves to progress their armies and build up their supplies. By ten rounds in, however, things had taken a dramatic turn. Zinnia’s Vacuan army had been halved when Kinu played a Giant Nevermore card and she was further struggling after Xanthos took two cards from her hand on his turn, both of which would have allowed her to repair and replenish her army. Everyone else’s armies seemed to be faring well, though Zelde’s Valean army was beginning to flag. It took another five rounds for Zinnia’s army to be wiped out completely. By that point, Kinu’s Atlesian army was also starting to struggle, having failed to attack the wall of Zelde’s kingdom and then losing a portion of her army to a tornado trap card.

Amazingly, as they hit the twentieth round, Kinu somehow managed to continue to survive. Zelde thought she either was an incredibly talented player or imbued with incredible luck.

Kinu finished her turn by collecting some supplies, before turning to Xanthos so he could begin his turn. Zelde peered over her hand, watching as Xanthos seemed to mull over his cards, going back and forth between which cards he would play.

“First of all, I’m going to play a Resourceful Raider,” Xanthos announced, setting the card atop the play pile. The card allowed him to take a card from one of his opponents' discard piles, and he chose to raid Kinu’s pile, plucking a repair card from the top. Shuffling that into his hand, Xanthos then considered his card again, debating over which card to play for his final move. When he did eventually pick a card, he gave Zelde a sheepish expression before putting it down. “Sorry, Zee.”

The card in question was an Alpha Megoliath, a card notorious for wiping out whole armies due to how hard it was to avoid them. Even Kinu winced when she saw it get played.

“Well, as you know Zelde, you need to roll a fifteen or higher in order to avoid the attack and for me to take the hit instead," Xanthos said.

It was small odds but Zelde remained cool. She grabbed the two ten-sided dice, shook them in her hand, and then dropped them on the table. The first landed on the number eight which meant she needed seven or higher to avoid the attack. Her silver eyes shifted from the first dice to the second and her shoulders sagged slightly when she saw the number. Six. Which meant she had rolled a fourteen, leaving her just one off the number needed to avoid the attack.

With a defeat, Zelde knocked the remainder of her wall down and deposited her last seven cards onto the discard pile. Now that she had been knocked out of the game, Zelde could leave, but she thought it was poor form to leave whilst Kinu and Xanthos were still playing.

Another round went by and it became increasingly likely Xanthos would storm away with the win. Kinu had managed to get a good hit on his wall with her Atlesian Air Support but at this late in the game, it didn't seem like it would help much.

"Well, I hate to say it Kinu, but unless you have some miracle card up your sleeve, I do believe you've lost," Xanthos said smugly, as he played a raider card, allowing him to pilfer the discard pile, before he slapped down a Prowler Pack card to follow.

"Oooh that's a doozy," Zinnia said.

"Hmm, I suppose it seems only fair I should counter with this," Kinu responded, placing down an Atlesian Knight card.

Xanthos groaned. "I thought you'd used those all up!" He complained.

"I have played two throughout this game and one I was forced to discard thanks to Zinnia," Kinu responded. "You should remember there are four available for me to use at my discretion."

Xanthos nodded his head in defeat and moved to grab the two dice. He needed to roll a ten or higher in order to avoid the attack. Unfortunately, it seemed his luck had run out as he proceeded to roll a two and a five. And with his army at only a quarter of its starting strength, his army was swiftly overrun by the Prowler Pack.

"Well, Xanthos, I do believe you just lost," Kinu said, using his earlier words against him. "An unfortunate move to play when your own army was so weak."

"It was my own fault believing you used all those cards up," Xanthos conceded with a laugh. He shook his head. "Damn robots…"

"Well, I will admit that was quite entertaining," Zelde said, once the immediate chatter of Xanthos's loss subsided.

"You should play with us more often," Zinnia suggested. "That's the most fun I've had in the game since Kinu and Hamnet sat one out and we had to get the twins involved."

"The twins?" Zelde asked, raising a brow. It completely slipped her mind that they were referring to Zinnia's teammates until Xanthos clarified for her.

"She means Isolde and Noah," Xanthos explained. And then his eyes moved to Zinnia and he pointed a finger at her playfully. "Don't get ideas about inviting them again, Zin. I don't think I've recovered from the thorough thrashing they gave us."

"Gave you," Zinnia countered with a smirk. "From what I remember I fared quite well."

"Teammate bias," Xanthos offered as an explanation for this thrashing.

Zinnia rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh, sure it was."

"Well, this has been delightful as always, but it is time for me to retire to my own quarters," Kinu said, slowly rising from her chair. "I do believe Hamnet is our next host?"

"Yep," Xanthos responded. "If he'll even play with us again."

As they were beginning to pack away, Zelde lifted her head at the sound of commotion outside her dorm, noting several students heading in the direction of the common room in a hurry.

“What’s that all about?” Zinnia asked.

They would soon get their answer when Kinu’s twin, Nishiki appeared. He had clearly travelled with some speed to get here, as he was panting a little when he stopped. “Oh good, you’re still here,” He said, quickly leaning on the doorframe to catch his breath.

“Nishiki, did something happen?” Kinu asked, stepping around the table to reach her twin. Zelde was certain the only time she ever saw Kinu’s expression change was around her brother.

“Yes, it looks like something happened at the Vytal Festival,” He answered quickly. “The news is still pretty hazy on what happened but it sounded bad. I think you should all come and see.”

One by one they all agreed to go and followed Nishiki back to the common room. Unsurprisingly, the majority of the Atlesian students had all gathered to see what was happening. There were a few party supplies scattered around on the chairs and tables from where students had been watching the matches earlier, and judging by the chatter of those in the room it seemed no one really knew what was happening. Whilst Kinu and Zinnia broke off to find their friends, Xanthos moved towards Neela, and Zelde found herself drifting towards Cordovan. Her red-haired teammate was standing near the back of the room, studying the currently blank screens with a serious expression.

“Any idea what’s going on?” Zelde asked, giving him a little nudge prior to speaking so as not to startle him.

“Not a clue,” Corodovan responded. “They were playing one of the matches and then suddenly they cut the feeds.”

Zelde nodded her head in understanding and before she could ask anything else, the screens flared back into life, revealing they were about to cut to an urgent news bulletin. A hush fell across the room as an elderly news presenter appeared and began to speak. He started with the usual formalities of greeting the audience watching before revealing they were about to cut to some video footage from Vale, quickly warning that some scenes they were about to show might be distressing for some viewers. A few mutters of concern could be heard from the students but everyone remained focused on the screens. What they showed next was shocking; waves of Grimm attacking Vale, interspersed with scenes of civilians fleeing in panic as the city began to burn around them.

The footage quickly got a reaction from the students gathered and Zelde heard shocked gasps and words of disbelief exchanged.

“As you can see from the last moments of footage, it appears as though the festival has been attacked,” The reporter continued once the screen cut back to him. “Whilst we are unable to get any further footage from the area at the moment, we are still receiving up-to-date reports from military officers on the ground in Vale. From what we know, waves of Grimm have been seen approaching the city, and we strongly believe that Beacon Academy has fallen.”

Yet more gasps were heard and a few students were visibly crying and shaken by this news. Zelde herself even reacted strongly to this, subconsciously making a grab for one of his hands for comfort. As she gripped his hand, she was faintly aware of him looking at her from out of the corner of his eye, before he gave her a reassuring squeeze.

Looking back to the screen, the reporter gave a heavy sigh, his shoulders sagged as he uncharacteristically broke character. “The civilian and student casualties are as of yet unknown, though reports indicate it could creep into the hundreds.”

At the mention of casualties, Neela let out an anguished cry, and Zelde turned to see her teammate struggling to keep standing, supported by Xanthos. Quite a few of the students were now yelling and in clear distress. The panic that was settling in was quickly dashed by the sudden arrival of Professor Velour, who had likely been called in to see to the students and potentially settle them down.

Upon seeing the chaos around her, Professor Velour was quick to try and field them out of the common room. “That is enough! Everyone back to their dormitories, now!” She ordered her tone firm but not unkind. When a few of the students moved, she clapped her hands together and started waving them about to get them to move. “Back to your dormitories!” She repeated, finally succeeding in getting the students to file out of the room. “Go, go!”

Moving with the rest of the students, Zelde and Cordovan made it back to their room, though along the way they had somehow lost Xanthos and Neela. In fact, Zelde wasn’t even sure if the two following them.

As they waited for their teammates to join them, Zelde sat down on the lower bunk belonging to Neela, and Cordovan stood at the foldaway table admiring one of the pieces still set up for their earlier game.

“I forgot Xanthos would be playing tonight,” Cordovan mused, turning a piece in his hand before setting it back down. “Who won?”

“Kinu. Technically they never finished the first game properly, but she was the clear victor in the second.”

“There were two games? I could have sworn I saw Hamnet glowering in the common room earlier.”

“Oh you definitely did,” Zelde confirmed. “He lost his temper in the first game and stormed out. I was convinced to join their second game.”

Cordovan smiled faintly. “I’m surprised you didn’t win in that case,” He said earnestly.

“Xanthos played an Alpha Megoliath card,” She explained.

“And that’s bad?”

“Very,” Zelde nodded. Although this line of questioning helped take her mind off of things, Zelde couldn’t help but frown as the thoughts about what was occurring in Vale crept back into her mind. “It all seems so trivial compared to what’s going on in Vale…”

Cordovan looked at her with an understanding expression. “Do you think-”

Before he had the chance to finish his question, the door opened and Xanthos stepped inside.

“Where’s Neela?” Zelde asked, immediately noting their teammate was not behind him.

“Oh, I had to take her to see the nurse,” Xanthos explained, swiftly taking a seat next to Zelde on her bunk. “Professor Velour thought she might need a sedative of sorts. No doubt you saw how she was after the news bulletin.”

“Understandable, of course,” Cordovan said. “Her girlfriend is in Vale currently, as are Team PCAN who are close friends of hers.”

Team PCAN was actually friends with all of them, but their leader and Neela had known each other from childhood.

“I hope they’re alright,” Xanthos said, letting out a soft sigh. “As I was coming back here I heard rumour the CCT is down too, so we likely won’t hear anything for a while either.”

Cordovan sighed and Zelde shook her head. What a terrible situation they found themselves in, but even worse for the people in Vale having to go through it first-hand. Although in bad taste, it made Zelde feel quietly relieved she and her team had been unsuccessful in getting the chance to go to the Vytal Festival. Zelde could only hope that whatever was happening there would be resolved soon and that normality - or as close to it following such a tragedy - would quickly be restored.

[absensia-archived]

charlotte has good visual memory & not withstanding the warping of her perception and memories as a result of the presence of dark matter, is usually able to replicate actions and mannerisms after seeing someone else do the same. in a similar vein, she's also good figuring out the working parts or necessary steps needed to get to an observed end - result; a simple example is if she saw someone wearing a particularly fancy up - do, she'd likely be able to replicate it either on herself or someone else within a couple tries.

charlotte's knowledge of pop culture and media continues to be woeful. the one area of media culture she knows anything about all is music. otherwise, if you ask her about television or make references to even the most famous of movies, there's a very small chance she'll know what you're talking about. she'll still get that you're making a reference to something, she just doesn't know the specifics of it at all. char simply isn't into sitting down and just idly.... passively.... watching tv or movies for the sake of entertainment. if there happens to be something on, she'll probably get caught up in doing at least two other tasks and not pay attention to the screen at all.

it follows that if charlotte is going to watch anything, it's going to be something she finds worthwhile such as documentaries, movies based on true stories, or something which she has an ulterior motive to actually sit down, watch, and study. otherwise, she's just going to read about, go ask people about it, or go find about it for herself first - hand.

the only time she ever watches other types of movies is when she's with someone else. in that case, you should know that charlotte does very badly with horror films. she's that person who's watching through one slit between their fingers, looking away and plugging their ears when they're anticipating a jump scare, and screaming when the jump scare inevitably gets her anyways.

charlotte enjoys wearing denim, corduroy, and cotton. this preference, like many of the other few actual preferences she has, has roots in practicality. she likes denim for its durability, but also for the way that it makes it easy to blend in with the crowd, as there's nothing ever too exciting about jeans and not too much keen - eyed people might deduce about her from the jeans alone. corduroy is also durable but also warm.

of all the ways charlotte has developed into a clearer picture of an individual, one of the aspects of her own identity that even she has come to appreciate as a way for her to express herself is her style. whereas in the beginning when she would've worn pretty much anything that was still wearable just to have something to wear, and also wearing whatever style was necessary to fit in wherever she was, she now is more insistent on sticking to her own individual style even when does have to switch it up a bit for whatever reason. her style? a very specific combination of practical, semi - casual, sporty yet bookish california - girl moves to the east coast.

although dresses don't comprise a big or even decent fraction of char's wardrobe, she does like to wear dresses and skirts, especially during the summer. that being said, she tends to be particular when choosing dresses and skirts to wear casually to semi - casually: short skirts, slitted if longer --- all so she can still move easily, no big details like ruffles or decorative sleeves, it can be fitted but not tight to the point where, again, she can't move easily.

despite being able to replicate most hairstyles she sees on other people with a few tries, char rarely does anything fancy with her own hair. it's either down, in a ponytail, or half - up half - down. the ponytail, in particular, is the usual look for when she's in the middle of working. if you see char and her hair is up in a ponytail she's either coming from a crime, in the middle of a crime, or on her way to a crime. that o r it's a hot day or she thinks it goes with her outfit. good luck figuring out which ;)

last one: when she has the time, charlotte likes to go to batting cages. char without a baseball bat is like having apple pie without ice cream -- it's good, but it could be better ( and worse for your health )