#it's the only way I could manage to post this without ruining the image quality...

[tomotoad]

[nightwingmyboi]

Bruce firing Dick vs. Dick firing Tim

Soooo, I have seen a lot of people comparing the way that Bruce replaced Dick with Jason versus the way that Dick replaced Tim with Damian. (This happened some on my Batfam Replacement Montage post [x], which is what first brought it to my attention.) For some reason, a lot of people come out of this comparison thinking that Dick was not only just as bad and insensitive as Bruce (if they even think Bruce was in the wrong at all that is) but even that Dick is somehow worse. This legitimately confused the heck out of me. I don’t know if people are reading the same comics as me (though honestly with all the retcons and nonsense going on maybe we aren’t reading the same comics), so I’m just going to break each replacement down for you here and maybe you’ll see where I’m coming from when I think that is completely out of left field. 

Let’s start with Bruce. These panels have Dick (as Nightwing) recounting how things between him and Bruce went down (I’ve rewritten the text just below the image if it is blurry): 

Batman #416 

So while I was still laid up in bed, you dropped the bad news on me. No ifs, ands, or buts...I wasn’t to play Robin anymore. You couldn’t continue to assume the responsibility for a child fighting crime. For six years you trained me to be a crimefighter, then denied me that role. Of course, you assured me that it was for my own good. I lay there with a bandaged shoulder and my life in ruins. You smiled. Kicked a great big hole in my life, then walked out of the room. 

Following an encounter with the Joker, Dick is shot in the shoulder and nearly dies. Instead of comforting Dick, Bruce decides to follow up this traumatic event by firing Dick from Robin immediately. Bruce calls Dick a child, disregarding all the time Dick spent training to become Robin and Dick’s own agency, and basically attempts to kick him out of crimefighting all together. This may not be clear because of the image quality, but Dick literally starts crying in that last panel. But it doesn’t stop there: 

I don’t see what option I had, other than to split. Alfred tried to talk me out of it. It was Alfred who forced money on me so I’d have something to live on. You couldn’t even be bothered to say goodbye. 

Despite his concern for Dick being the motivating factor behind the firing, Bruce doesn’t even seem to be aware that Dick is leaving, and so Alfred is the one that tries to convince Dick to stay in Bruce’s stead. And where is Bruce during all this you may ask??

Sorry, he was busy working on a case at the time. And people wonder why Dick didn’t realize Bruce was doing this out of concern rather than distrust of his capabilities. Anyway, Dick leaves, eventually joins the Titans, and becomes Nightwing. Eighteen whole months pass--a freaking year and a half--and not once does Bruce try to get in touch with Dick to sort things out. Then, Dick finds out about his replacement in the newspaper: 

Bruce fired Dick because he didn’t want a child sidekick. Then he goes out and gets a freaking child sidekick, and, even better, makes him Robin. Robin isn’t just a costume to Dick. In many comics, Dick refers to the Robin role as meaning family, and that’s because Dick specifically crafted Robin as a way to remember his parents. 

Robin Annual #4 and The Titans #16

It doesn’t get much more personal than using your dead mother’s nickname for you and your family’s colors (which across comics are pretty consistently some combo of yellow/green/red) as your hero persona. And Bruce, despite knowing the origins of the costume, felt like he could do whatever he wanted with it. And he didn’t even have the decency to be upfront about it. You can see why this drives me crazy. He spends the rest of the issue beating around the bush and not telling Dick why he adopted Jason and made him Robin, and, in the end, he once again kicks Dick out of the house. Nice parenting Bruce. 

Now with Dick. I’ve seen some people accuse Dick of not talking to Tim and just pulling the Robin mantle right out from under him, but that isn’t really what the comics show us: 

Red Robin #1

Dick tries to talk to Tim about it, and, unlike Bruce, he explicitly states his reasons for giving Damian Robin. He validates Tim, and tells him that they are equals. Even when Tim lashes out, Dick makes it clear that he still wants Tim around, even if it is not as Robin. And, once again unlike Bruce, Dick doesn’t proceed to just abandon Tim when things don’t go his way. He sends Tim’s friends his way and when that doesn’t work, Dick goes to find Tim and try to talk things out in person: 

Red Robin #4

So why doesn’t Tim just tell Dick his theory? That’s because, as much as people apparently want to believe that Tim had the whole thing figured out and it was everyone else’s fault that no one was listening, Tim had no actual evidence whatsoever that Bruce was actually alive. He was kind of in denial about Bruce’s death and all he had was a weak hunch.

Tim rides off without giving any explanations, leaving Dick to deal with all the fallout of Bruce’s “death” by himself. Dick had to abandon everything that he built (Nightwing, his various superhero teams, etc.) in order to take up Bruce’s identity. He had to deal with being Batman, running Wayne Enterprises, and raising Damian (a murderous brat who spent literally all his time insulting and undermining him in those early days), all while managing his own grief. And he had no one but Alfred for support. So maybe he didn’t handle Tim as well as he could have (I don’t really know what he could have done differently but hey if you want to let me know feel free), but I honestly think that under the circumstances he tried his freaking best, which is more than Bruce did for him. And when Tim returns, he immediately expects Dick to put everything on hold to help him, once again without explanation, and what does Dick do?

Red Robin #11

He trusts Tim and puts everything on hold to help Tim out. Even though Tim pretty much left him high and dry when he needed help the most. So yeah, I don’t see where people are coming from when they act like Dick somehow singlehandedly destroyed his relationship with Tim. I don’t understand how Tim could possibly trust Jason (ie the person who very nearly murdered him) more than he trusts Dick (ie the person who mentored and acted as a confidant to him for literal years) in such a short span of time.

In my opinion, Bruce and Dick are not even remotely similar in their actions here. I don’t understand how people who can so readily excuse Bruce for his harsh treatment not be the least bit willing to give Dick some slack when his situation was sooo bad and he tried so hard. 

[lovelivingmydreams]

Green eyed Jealousy(2)

So technically part two of chapter 3 because I did a dumb and only posted part of Green eyed jealousy yesterday.

ALSO IMPORTANT I asked for possible fandom names for the nemesis character. I know of 'Andy' for he anxiety from the shorts but this is a different character so he deserves his own name. I thought it might be fun to include you all in that decision. Enjoy!

Part one here if you need a reminder

Chapter 1: Something there.

Chapter 2: The Prince's enemy

"A gift to commemorate one month of friendship!" He declared proudly. Virgil accepted the key speechless. He struggled to voice what this meant to him. It was tangible proof that Roman considered them friends. That the doubts that plagued him were wrong. It wasn't just some wishful thinking. He genuinely cared enough to call him that. To get him any sort of gift at all.

"I -thanks..." he muttered a little flustered. "I'm sorry, I didn't get you anything... I didn't know we were supposed to exchange gifts and..." Before Virgil could spiral, Roman put up a placating hand.

He'd expected Anxiety to do something like this. And he'd prepared his answer.

"We weren't. I simply decided to give you this, the occasion was a last minute addition. Now, if you would be so kind as to open the door?" Roman suggested, vibrating with excitement as he turned Virgil to the room. Problem was, other than his closet door, there were none.

"What door?"

Roman chuckled to himself. "Come on Scooby Boo. Use your imagination," he teased.

Virgil sighed. He felt very silly imagining a door in front of him and even considering to try and open it. But, he'd come to trust Roman. So he gave it a try. And to his surprise he felt the key slide into a lock he turned it and heard a click. There was now a door sized rectangle in front of him made of light. As if it was peering through the cracks of a door. Suddenly his sight was taken by a warm pair of calloused hands.

"Don't freak out. I just want it to be a surprise," Roman explained. A smile evident in his voice.

A smile that grew wider as he heard Anxiety let out a resigned sigh. He was going to play along!

Virgil pulled the key from the lock and the door swung over. Even with his eyes closed and covered he could tell that it was bright on the other side. He could feel a gentle breeze hit his face as Roman guided him over the threshold.

They were walking through low growing vegetation, or it felt like that.

He could hear something... "Is that 'twinkle twinkle little star'?" He wondered surprised.

Roman just chuckled and moved them farther into the world behind the door. Leaving Virgil to notice that it smelled like a candy store.

"Okay, ready?" Roman asked, though he didn't give Anxiety the chance to make a witty remark. He took away his hands and immediately stepped to the side so that he could see Anxiety react without ruining the view.

It was everything he hoped it would be.

Once his eyes adjusted to the light, Virgil was dumbstruck as he took in the purple sky, and the cotton candy clouds. He looked down at the field he was standing in and let out an astonished laugh. He turned to Roman who grinned at his now deep purple eyeshadow.

“A field of paper flowers… you’ve listened to evanescence,” he concluded.

Roman shrugged. They have a way of evolving beautiful images,” he allows.

“You, and only you can use that key to open a door anywhere in the mindscape. To leave you simply use your door to get to your room.” Roman turned and gestured to the direction they’d come from. Now Virgil could see there were 2 doors in the field. One black with silvrvwebs painted on it and one red with golden flowers. The black door was open and showed Virgil's room.

“If you want to visit me or wish to speak with me for any reason, even just for a chat. Simply knock. I will come as fast as I can. I have my. Own key and I will knock on your door should I find myself I. Need of your sulking pretense.” They both chuckled.

“Thank you Roman. You didn't have to do this,” Virgil told him as he tried to think of a good gift in return.

Roman waved him of. “I wanted too. It's a gift for me too. Now we can visit each other and do whatever we want without risking someone seeing us sneaking around.” Roman turned his head to Virgil and gave him a long look to convey how much he meant his next words. “I enjoy your company, Anxiety. And I want the both of us to be able to enjoy quality time without looking over our shoulders.”

Virgil had to look away for a moment to collect his thoughts, and as he did so, he realized what he could give Roman. It wasn't perfect, but hopefully Roman would appreciate the sentiment.

“Virgil,” he said, trying very hard to sound casual but he was sure Roman could tell he was dying inside. He looked back at Roman who was… surprised, awed and moved.

Virgil managed a smirk. “You can call me Virge.”

 You sit in your room working on a little comic inspired by characters made by your favorite online personality.

Thomas Sanders.

You’re not going to post it though. Who cares about a comic about how a prince met his arch nemesis. Your phone  buzzes and you pick it up. Messenger, junk mail. You decide to see what else went on while your phone was charging at home.

You scroll through and realize there is a not from Thomas' vine account. Well speak of the angel and he shall appear in your notices about 8 hours earlier.

You click the note and find the prince, seemingly injured, laying on the floor. Unarmed and helpless staring down the end of his opponents blade.

“This is the end! Hero!” the villain exclaims. But before he strikes the camera seems to move real fast, blurring the world. But then, nemesis is glaring back at the camera which is looking up at him from the ground . Prince POV?

“I’ll deal with you later,” he promises before turning to the villain. The camera changes spot again and is filming the villains in profile.

“That is my arch nemesis. Not yours, so back off!” he growls. Then he looks back. The scene shifts to an empty room. He got away.

Nemesis turns back to the other villain readying a spell.

The villain screamed in fear, the nemesis in rage.

You leave a like and scroll through the comments. As you read you start smiling. You bounce in your seat as you read there are others who love this duo. Maybe you’ll post the comic after all.

Chapter 4: family and identity

@selenechris

[lsmileychanl]

Stray kids scenarios // cuddling

Summary: How would members of stray kids react to you being really cuddly 

Genre: Pure fluff

Warnings: minor swearing (sorry I can't help it T_T)

Pairing: Stray kids x Reader

A/n: Hello everyone! I wanted to say a huge thank you for your support, it really means a lot! Sorry for the slow posting schedule, I’ve been really busy lately. I promise that I will be more active in the future. I hope that this lil scenario can put a smile on your face! Remember to stay hydrated and get enough rest. Ily guys! ♡

_________________________________________

Bang Chan:

Channie, where are you coming home? I miss you ♡

Sorry y/n It’s been really busy lately. I’ll be home soon! Love you, baby!

I love you too!

Seen 11.27 PM

The clock was about to hit late hours of the night, but Chan still wasn’t home yet. You were determined to wait for him so that you could finally have some quality time with your boyfriend. He was working so hard and you really miss him. It was 1.45 AM and you made the critical decision to lay down on the couch. You felt yourself slowly doosing off when you heard the door open.

You jumped in his arms and hugged him so tightly, that you were convinced — any tighter and you would cut his circulation. God, you missed this.

‘’Whoa, hey baby!’’ Chan laughed out. You gave him a soft kiss on the lips. ‘’Welcome home.’’ You looked up to see his tired eyes. ‘’Let’s get rid of those model – eye bags of yours.’’ You took his arm and softly led him to the bedroom. You pouted when Chan didn’t move and gently shook your hand off.

‘’Sorry baby, I need to shower first, I’m all sweaty. Don’t be sad, I’ll be right back’’ Chan gave you one last kiss before heading to the shower.

When he came back, you were already waiting for him with fresh sheets and sheet masks for the both of you. You two ended up talking for way longer than you were supposed to, making fun of each other’s faces with the on and Chan filling you in on all the crazy stuff that happened in the dorms. You realized how late it was when you two heard bird chirps outside. You mentally thanked god that you both have a day off and went to bed. Needless to say you two ended up sleeping till noon.

Minho:

Waking up with lee know by your side was one of the best feelings ever. It was one of those lucky days where he didn't have anything planned for the whole day. Lee know is really touchy with people who he loves and so you woke up facing each other, with his arms securily around your waist and legs entangled together. You felt safe in his hold. While you wanted to stay in his strong hold forever you knew that you have to get up eventually and knowing Minho, he will not be the first one to wake up.

You gave one last look at his relaxed, sleeping face. God, he is perfect. You gently brushed your fingertips along his jawline while thinking of how lucky you were to have someone as precious as him. You gave him a gentle kiss. You felt him slightly smiling against your lips.

"Good morning, baby" you said while gently brushing through his hair.

He let out a slight groan. "Just 5 more minutes..." Lee know said with his slight morning voice. "Or a little longer..." He mumbled while digging his head in your shoulder.

You knew that there was no escape. And so you accepted the faith that you were given and gave into the warmth of his body.

You both loved the feeling of being close to each other and that is exactly what you did.

Changbin:

You looked at yourself in the mirror for the last time, fixing your hair and smiling at your reflexion. You normally didn’t wear anything fancy when going out with Changbin, but today you were really feeling yourself.

Are you ready y/n? I’m waiting for you outside! :)

Just a second, I’m almost done. Can’t wait! ♡♡

You rushed outside to find your boyfriend fiddling with his phone, while leaning against a wall. When he saw you his eyes widened and he almost fell. We love a clumsy man

‘’Whoah, that was unexpected’’ He said while nervously touching the back of his neck. You just smiled and leaned in to give a small, but loving kiss. He deepened the kiss before letting go and leading you to the car.

While changbin was driving, you rested your head on his shoulder. Soft music was playing in the background. You lost track of time and before you knew it, you were already at the location.

You were really comfortable and wanted to stay in that position for a little while longer. You knew that Channie liked acting tough in public and didn't want to "ruin his image". That meant little to no pda.

Changbin gently shook you. "Were here it's time to go!"

"Channie, let's stay like this for a while." You said while playing with his hands.

He just laughed while turning to give you a kiss on the forehead. He was so soft for you. Few minutes passed and it was time to enjoy your date. Changbin held your hand the whole entire time. Congradulations you cracked him

Hyunjin:

Ok, sooo..... phone, keys, food,  water aaaaannnd passport. You were ready. You headed out to JYP's building. Even after all these months the same manager never forgot yo ask for your passport, like you haven't vissited this building hundrets of times already. To be completely honest, you still weren't used to the huge building and managed to get lost every, damn time. With the help of a few workers there, you headed to the practising room.

When you found the right room you noticed that the door was already open. You peeked your head in and found Hyunjin all sweaty, sitting on the floor, while resting his head on the wall. You heard blasting music and a cold breeze of air, which was probabbly because he opened every, single window to let in some air, despite the multiple scolds from you about how he is going to get sick this way.

"He must have been practising there for hours... " you mumbled to yourself. You knew that it was hard being an idol. But when you saw him laying like that you got a reminder of exactly how much he puts in to achieve his dreams.

"You know that you can come in right?" You mentally cursed yourself. You got sidetracked by your thoughts and didn't even notice, that he noticed you staring at him.

"Hiii! I bought you lunch. Thought you might get hungry here." You sat down next to him and handed him the food you ordered before. It really wasn't much, but you couldn't trust yourself enough to touch the kitchen by yourself.

"Thank you, y/n! I don't know what I would do without you." Hyunjin kissed you and opened the food. "OMG YOU BROUGHT ME SUUUSHIIIIII!" Hyunjin's face lit up as he engulfed you in a giant bear hug. You laughed at his cute reaction. After he finnished the meal he put the emptied box down and just layed there with you on top of him.

"I love you, you know that right?" He mumbled under his breath while playing with the strands of your hair. You hugged him even tighter "I love you too, Hyunjinnie!"

Jisung:

,,Please Jisung-ah, I will watch literally anything else!’’

,,Commoon y/n! Please. I promise you it’s gonna be fun! If you watch this with me I’m going to be the one bringing the trash out for the next week.’’

,,Ugh fiiiiiiiiine…’’ You grunted.

You have no idea how he convinced you to do this. You hated horror movies. But there you were on the couch, scared shitless, hiding in the crook of your boyfriend’s neck.

Each time you jumped at the scary scene he laughed even harder. ‘’What are you scared of y/n? It’s really not that bad.’’ Jisung smirked devilishly knowing how much the movie affected you. He secretly enjoyed these moments where he could fill the strong, protective boyfriend role and feel your hands helplessly grabbing on his shirt. Also he just wanted to be able to make fun of you smh

After the movie you mentally took note to never watch a scary movie ever again. You were SHAKING and couldn’t help yourself from clinging to your boyfriend. You basically became a human koala bear and followed him everywhere. At first Jisung just laughed it off but then it started to become a problem when he couldn’t even get to the bathroom.

The tickle battle was on. Using the advantage, he ran and did what he had to do. After returning and seeing you hiding under billions of blankets, he felt bad for just running away like that and jumped in the bed with you.

‘’AAAGHHH you’re so cute, y/n.’’ He said squishing your cheeks and giving you a quick kiss on the lips.

Felix:

You just woke up. You didn’t even realize that you fell asleep in the first place. You were chilling at the dorm with the boys so you didn’t know how you ended up sleeping in Felix’s bed. You sleepily rolled out of the comfy sheets and threw on one of his oversized, comfy hoodies and went downstairs.

You found Felix playing games with the other members. He was concentrated on the screen, wanting to prove that he is a good player, while everyone else teased him.

‘’Didn’t you start playing it 4 months before him?’’ Jisung laughed.

‘’Hey, he just got lucky. I’ll beat him next time.’’

You smiled and back hugged Felix placing your head in the crook of his neck.

‘’I think you did great!’’ You said and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Felix got scared at first thinking that you were Minho trying to tease him, but once he realized that it was you he relaxed in your arms.

‘’Oh, you’re up already, y/n? I thought that you might hurt your back sleeping on the couch like that, so I carried you to my bed. Did you sleep well?’’

‘’Ugh not to interrupt you, but can you please get a room, we have to protect the children!’’ Bang Chan quietly begged. Felix jumped off the map and lead you back to his bed and you ended up spooning each other to sleep.

Seungmin:

"Seungminni, pleaassee! This is getting ridiculous." You pouted. You're boyfriend decided that it would be funny, to not give you any affection for the whole day. Whenever you leaned in for a kiss, he would dodge it. Whenever you tried to hug him, he managed to wiggle out of your grip. "Nu-uh it's only getting interesting now." Seungmin playfully winked at you and gave you a light pat on your head. Gosh you hate this little game of his. "I swear to god if you keep doing this to me, I will find someone else to cuddle with!" The smile on Seungmin's face disappeared as his eyes widened in shock. "Say sike right now or I will throw hands." (it's getting late and I'm so sorry) You didn't respond and just walked out the room. Seungmin soon followed and grabbed your hand. "I'm so sorry y/n. This was all a joke I really didn't mean to upset you." You saw the pain glisten in his eyes. Immediate guilt tripped over you. But then you remembered about his antics earlier. "Ha! Got you! The only one who I was going to cuddle was Mr. Flower bear. (Mr. Flower bear was a gift from Seungmin, for Valentine's Day. You named him that, because he had a flower crown on it's head.) Seungmin's shoulders dropped as a sigh of relief escaped his lips. "Oh my God, you almost gave me a heart attack. From now on I'm never letting you out my arms ever again." Sweet victory.

Jeongin:

Istg he makes me so soft I'm- You stood there with a big, comfy pillow in your arms. Jeongin opened the door and you were immediately hit with his precious smile and his little claps of excitement. "Hi, y/n! You ready?" It was an intense, late night, pillow fort movie marathon. You two just finished the last Harry Potter movie and having a debate over what's the best spell in the movie. "Common, Jeongin, Wingardium Leviosa is iconic. You can't deny that." "Yeah, but Expecto Patronum is still cooler. Would you rather make something float or see your spirit animal? I think that anyone with the right mind would pick the spirit animal." You sighed in defeat. You knew that he is too stubborn and you wondered why did you even start the debate. "Fine you win, let's watch another movie and then let's go to bed, it's getting late." "No pressure, but the last movie matters the most." You lock eyes with him and understand that a battle for the remote control is coming. You kissed him on the cheek, making him flustered and got a head start. Once he realized what you were doing, Jeongin caught you in his grip and started tickling you. You lost your balance from laughing so hard and right before you hit the floor Jeongin managed to catch your head. "Whoah, are you okay? I'm so sorry y/n, I didn't want you to get hurt." "I'm fine, but now I have the advantage of choosing the movie." Jeongin just showed you his tounge and hugged you tighter. "Whatever. As long as I spend time with you, I'm happy." You laughed at his cheesy line. "Gosh, I love you."

[moons-and-stars-and-shit]

omg congratulations on 300!!! you totally deserve it, i mean honestly your blog is amazing 🎉🎉💘

could i request both star and crystal match ups since i love the both ideas. you don't have to do both, and if you do i think it would be too much if you made one post for both...anywho...

for my crystal match up: i honesty think you know a lot about my personality from my requests at this point but we not gon talk abt that so i am a BIG empath like sometimes i even act like people around me, idk i just observe others and maybe take in what they do. also i love making people happy, like giving them random gifts and them getting surprised and happy abt it and I'm like 🥰🥰🥰💓💓 unfortunately i tend to stress a lot about school and stuff that probably don't even matter, and it might be a problem...and bottling up my emotions is probably not the best coping mechanism...also I'm an ENFP if that helps

for my star match up: I'm a pisces and my self ship would definitely have to be kuroo or atsumu

that's all ly!

𝔸/ℕ- 𝕀 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕓𝕖 𝕕𝕠𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕓𝕠𝕥𝕙! 𝔹𝕦𝕥 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕚𝕥𝕤 𝕥𝕠𝕠 𝕞𝕦𝕔𝕙 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕥 😅 𝕤𝕠 𝕀’𝕝𝕝 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕔𝕣𝕪𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕝 𝕞𝕒𝕥𝕔𝕙𝕦𝕡 𝕠𝕟 𝕒 𝕕𝕚𝕗𝕗𝕣𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕥 👀

𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕣 𝕄𝕒𝕥𝕔𝕙𝕦𝕡 𝕎𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝔸𝕥𝕤𝕦𝕞𝕦

𝑃𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑡𝑠 🪐

Libra is ruled by Venus (Love) and Pisces is ruled by Jupiter (Luck) and Neptune (Illusions).

These Signs are quite compatible due to the feminine energies of Venus and Neptune working in tandem.

Under Jupiter and Neptune’s rule, Pisces is intensely meditative, philosophical and internal.

Under Venus’s influence, Libra is in love with love. Libra is the Sign of Partnership and always is more comfortable when in an intimate love affair.

𝐸𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 🔥💧🍃🌬

Libra is an Air Sign and Pisces is a Water Sign.

These two Signs together combine their heads and their hearts to solve all problems — a winning combination.

The best decisions are made with both the emotions and the intellect; this relationship tends to be extremely flexible and progressive.

When problems occur, however, the communication breaks down between Libra and Pisces. Libra, who can at times be mentally manipulative, may give Pisces ‘the silent treatment.’ In this partnership there’s always an undercurrent of friction but neither partner will ever truly be the leader.

Although they may disagree often, their differences of opinion don’t last long.

Their only real trouble may result from their tendency to slow down to the point of stopping when they get together.

𝑇𝑟𝑢𝑠𝑡 🤞

They will not understand each other well enough to share much trust.

The need Libra has to be accepted and liked by other people will be wrongly interpreted by Pisces, for they don’t understand how can someone’s self-confidence be that low.

That sparkly, always in love, childish, flirty nature of Pisces will be a huge turn off for Libra, who will not be able to trust someone who openly shows their interest in other people.

The only way for these partners to remain in a trusting relationship is to approach it casually and build their understanding and trust from zero, as if they have never had any relationships prior to this one.

𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 🤝

In many cases, Libra will cherish the optimism and the childish naïve nature of their Pisces partner.

Unfortunately, they will often want to help them grow and change who they are so they could be “happier”.

The problem here is in the fact that Libra doesn’t know or try to understand what would make Pisces truly happy.

This is some basic disrespect and it could ruin the foundation of their entire relationship.

The main challenge here is to remain in a respectful bond, however crazy Pisces might seem to their Libra partner, or however stiff and boring Libra might seem to Pisces.

Their communication can be inspiring for as long as they don’t try to change each other, explain to each other how they should think or feel in certain situations, or even worse, teach each other how to behave.

Pisces partner can be quite direct and spontaneous and this might endanger the image Libra is trying to maintain in the eyes of others.

If they find each other’s actions inspiring in any possible way, they might reach a point in which they will truly communicate without judgment.

𝐸𝑚𝑜𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 😠😔😊

Their emotional connection is mostly presented through the adoration of Venus in the sign of Pisces.

This is an everlasting love waiting to happen, and the kind that could be born between these partners in case they both overcome their ego.

It will be a rare occurrence and their rationalities will weigh them down, for Libra does exalt Saturn, and Pisces are ruled by Jupiter.

Their minds will probably be filled with all sorts of irrelevant information until they decide that it is simply too hard for them to be together.

If they pass the point of disrespect and set strong boundaries, nurturing each other’s individuality and self-sufficiency, they might reach the point of emotional interaction.

As if they didn’t have enough challenges, this will usually happen at a different time.

Libra will rush into an emotional showoff, realizing that they have found love, but Pisces will not feel any love until all the dust settles and they have the time to close their eyes and feel.

If their timing is off, they will probably end their relationship on good terms, not expecting much from each other in the future.

𝑉𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒𝑠 🤲

They will both value love and this is something that will connect them over everything else.

With Venus at focus, they will both need to be loved and cherish those who know how to show it, hot to enjoy life, food ,and how to make their loved ones satisfied.

This could give them a strong foundation for a relationship if they are attracted to each other in the first place.

The rest of their characters will differ greatly and while Libra will value consistency and stability

Pisces will value spontaneity and one’s ability to follow their heart. If they both believe that they have a mission here on Earth, and it happens that their missions cross paths, they could inspire each other to fight for what they value most – their names in the stars.

𝑆ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦𝑠 💪

Indecisive Libra is exactly what their Pisces partner doesn’t need in order not to feel completely lost in life and all of their chosen activities.

The problem here is that by the time Libra decides if they want to do something or not

Pisces will change their minds five times, not sure if this is the best thing for them, for their relationship, for their life’s purpose and mission, etc.

The questioning of Libra will raise suspicions in Pisces with painful ease.

They will manage to find activities they will both like, and if nothing else works they can always turn to any sort of art.

The real question is – will they want to do anything while they are together?

They could drain so much strength and confidence out of each other just trying to make a plan for the night.

𝑆𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑦 💕

Libra and Pisces have a meeting point in the beauty of Venus.

Still, they perceive it in two different ways and they will often not respect each other enough to find the beauty of Venus in one another.

They could have real trouble adjusting to their partner’s speed, and the mutable quality of Pisces often won’t help them open up any faster to build a relationship in the pace that would fit their Libra partner.

Both Libra and Pisces can selflessly be interested in the satisfaction of their partner, and this should help them stay on the good side of their relationship whatever happens between them.

If they move past the disrespect and the unrealistic expectations from each other’s personalities, they might find that they share real love.

[brightbeautifulthings]

Complete Tales & Poems by Edgar Allan Poe

"'For the love of God, Montresor!' 'Yes,' I said, 'for the love of God!'"

Year Read: 2020

Rating: 2/5

Context: Starting two years ago, I’ve picked an intimidatingly long classic to read over the course of a year. I have a problem with trying to read books as fast as I possibly can, so if I set myself a thousand page novel, I’ll try to pound it in a week, and it will just be a miserable experience all around. So, a year is a nice compromise. I’ve hit the major Poe horror stories in the past, and I’ve been thinking about rereading them, but I couldn’t decide where to start. Reread my favorites? Read the ones I’ve heard of? What if I’m missing something awesome? As usual, my go-to answer is to read them ALL. For more thoughts on individual stories, see my monthly blog posts. Trigger warnings: character death, torture, live burial, cannibalism, decapitation, animal abuse, injury, severe illness, racism/xenophobia, anti-Semitism, ableism, slurs, mental illness, bitter ranting from the reviewer.

Thoughts: My edition, with an introduction by Wilbur S. Scott, is probably not the edition I would have picked, since I prefer more notes or even essays to help me out with books that are 100+ years old. Context is helpful. Somehow though, my dad and I ended up with the same edition, so we decided to read it together. My dad loves all things horror (I come by it naturally), and we’re both longtime Poe fans, especially if you happen to put Vincent Price in one of his film adaptations. Scott’s introduction is particularly pretentious for a book we probably found in the bargain bin, and he manages to criticize the horror genre for not being “literary enough”. This is an Edgar Allan Poe collection, right? Way to alienate 90% of your audience right from the start. You can’t snub an entire genre and then attempt to explain why people like it. Like a lot of critical writing, it tells us more about Scott than it does about Poe, and I was circling his typos to entertain myself by the end of the introduction.

It did not get better. In short, I actively hated so much of this collection, and it's my most arduous and least enjoyed year-long read to date. To be even shorter, the only stories I found worth reading for pleasure were the horror ones I had already read and loved, and I'm afraid to examine too closely whether that has more to do with nostalgia and pop culture than the stories themselves. Poe has a way of lingering on pointless descriptions and belaboring a point to its absolute death, alongside an aggressively pretentious tone that suggests the narrator (and, by extension, Poe himself), knows everything there is to know about everything and you're an idiot for even asking. His true talent may not be horror, but in turning what might have been a good story into an intellectual soapbox and hammering it the point of absurdity. It would be different if the stories actually were intelligent instead of ridiculous. I’m happy to talk Aristotelian ethics, but the point is never to intellectually engage the reader–-it’s to show how clever the writer is.

On the whole, it seems like Poe struggles with telling a straightforward story, and I can’t tell if it’s because the short story genre has changed so much since then or because he’s so busy trying to show readers how smart he is that he forgets that stories have very specific components like suspense, exposition, or rising action (or endings). Most of them consist of some narrator speaking the entire time (I have all kinds of problems with this, from, “You just ruined the twist of your own story” to “No human talks for thirty uninterrupted minutes unless some idiot gave them a microphone.”), and few of them have anything resembling action, plot/character development, strong themes, or closure. There’s an essay-like quality to some of them (“The Imp of the Perverse”, “The Premature Burial”) where he seems to be trying to tease out a concept on an intellectual level, sometimes for pages and pages, before he remembers that he’s telling a story with characters and what could loosely be called a plot. I could do without all the intellectualizing, verbal grandstanding, and narrative cartwheels; just tell a good story, please.

And he does, sometimes. It's clear why Poe remains an essential part of the horror canon because those are easily the best stories in the collection, and I don't think that's just because I'm a horror fan. Horror seems to age better than some other genres because certain things remain consistently scary over decades or even centuries--being buried alive, for example. “The Fall of the House of Usher” is permeated by a feeling of bleak foreboding, culminating in some truly terrifying images, and “The Tell-tale Heart” is one of the better examples of Poe’s rambling narrator who thinks a lot of his own intelligence and slowly unravels over guilt. Both scared me to death when I was a kid, and I’m happy to see that they still maintain a high creep factor as an adult. (I also had the Great Illustrated Classics Tales of Mystery and Terror as a kid, because all a story about being buried alive needs is an illustration!) “The Cask of Amontillado” has long been one of my favorites (because there is something deeply wrong with me, probably), and “The Pit and the Pendulum” and “The Masque of the Red Death” are both top-notch horrifying, the latter a classic plague story that's a little *too* relevant to the times just now (but, you know, also one of my favorites). The clock symbolism is some of the best in the entire collection. Why, pray tell, would you be afraid of time?

The tolerable stories are the detective ones and the adventure ones, in that order. I can see why Poe’s detective stories like “The Gold Bug” and “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” spawned a genre. I was getting clear Sherlock Holmes vibes from his character, Dupin. However, it reaffirms that something is a classic because of its effects on literature as a whole and not because it’s still all that accessible. Just because something is the first of its kind doesn’t mean it’s the best of its kind; in fact, it usually isn’t because that was only a starting place. I can’t help feeling “Murders” would have been more compelling as a horror story than a detective story. Murdering gorillas are cool; listening to someone talk about murdering gorillas, much less cool. I was extremely irritated by his hot air balloon stories ("The Balloon Hoax", "The Unparalleled Adventure of One Hans Pfaall"), but apparently Jules Verne loved them, which makes a lot of sense. I was getting a lot of Verne vibes from things like "A Descent Into the Maelstrom" and even the utterly long, boring, and racist "Narrative of A. Gordon Pym." It's clear they had influence on other writers, even if they're not the best examples of their genres.

Which brings us back around to the bad. It's not worth my time or yours to list all the terrible stories in this collection, but I can briefly summarize what I found so terrible about them. First, Poe is tragically, emphatically unfunny. The things he seems to find humorous are either in very poor taste now (his tasteless descriptions of mental patients in “The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Fether”), or they’re outright ridiculous, almost slapstick, like the woman who gets her head stuck in a clock and is subsequently decapitated by it in “A Predicament,” which is an odd sequel to “How to Write a Blackwood Article.” I’m sensing that Poe is making fun of intellectuals or would-be intellectuals here, but with so much time and cultural distance, it’s hard to tell. In any case, it led to a running joke (“I’m going out for groceries!” “Don’t stick your head in any clocks!”). Somehow, I doubt this is the major takeaway Poe was hoping for.

Worst of all, they don't age well on representation either. Poe seems at pains to offend every single minority he possibly can throughout his oeuvre. There are a lot of horribly racist depictions of African Americans, snide comments about Jewish people (or the much more obvious anti-Semitism in “Four Beasts In One” where a mad king has a thousand Jews killed--really?), and blatant ableism (“Hop-Frog”). It's at its worst in "Narrative of A. Gordon Pym," a novella that spans over a hundred pages, that is basically a tedious, xenophobic setup to paint the native population of an island as the most horrific and duplicitous monsters imaginable. (The narrator previously ate one of his shipmates, so can he really afford to throw stones here?) For inexplicable reasons, that story isn't finished, and by that point, I was grateful.

Poe's poetry is a little easier to work through than his prose. I love "The Raven" with its lilting rhymes and dark message, and "Annabel Lee" is very pretty, both ubiquitous in popular culture. I also liked "Dream-Land," "Al Aaraaf" (where Ligeia makes another appearance), and "Alone." Most of the poetry has pretty simple rhyme schemes, the subjects mainly love and loss. There's an excerpt of an unfinished play, "Politian," included as well, but it didn't make much of an impression on me. TL;DR: I stand by my initial opinion, which is to read his horror stories for pleasure and, possibly, his detective and adventure stories for genre purposes, and to skip the rest. I'll probably be looking for a smaller edition of the stories I like. This one is a massive hardcover, more like a book you put on your coffee table to look impressive than a book you actually read (but I don’t have a coffee table, so it’s actually just taking up more room on the shelf than any one book has a right to).

[a-secondhand-sorrow]

dream about that casual touch

just some nice Astrid/McAfee fluff to calm down your Sunday.

read on ao3

McAfee wasn’t ready to listen to James and Alice chatter (or argue) on. It was too early for that. She’d woken up before eight for three years straight without a single exception at Columbia, and she thought she was ambitious and ready enough that she wanted to keep on her streak of four hours of sleep a night into her working life. But the longer she worked with Payton’s campaign, the more she longed for a few hours of silence and calm without the constant debates around which subway station more voters could be swayed in.

If Payton and Skye would just return to the NYU dorm room where they were all awaiting their return from whatever convoluted errand the two of them were running, at least the conversation would be productive. But as it was, James and Alice had decided to rehash the ad campaign that McAfee had been up until three redesigning the night before. She and Astrid met eyes and sighed right as the two began discussing the specifics of the ad placements. McAfee slid down the wall she was leaning against, always too dramatic to ever just sit down on a chair or a bed in her impeccably coordinated pantsuits, and silently gave herself permission to mentally check out of the conversation. She’d designed the campaign, anyway; they could figure it out from there.

She folded her legs under herself, pulling her phone out from an inner pocket of her blazer. She considered her options, choosing to open up Instagram. She rarely used her personal account, as she spent most of her social media time managing Payton’s image and campaign, but opening it made her feel almost odd. It always felt so polished and professional, much as she tried to be herself, but she didn’t trust herself much with her own account. Her only two posts were with her and her dog from high school and a photo with her parents at Columbia graduation. She was always afraid she’d post the wrong thing, but scrolling through other’s posts couldn’t do much damage.

Rather unceremoniously, Astrid threw herself down onto the ground next to her. McAfee nearly dropped her phone from the suddenness of it, her thumb still poised over Payton’s newest photo with his mother, ready to double click. Suddenly she couldn’t think of anything else besides the place where Astrid’s shoulder pushed against her upper arm, and the little bit of blond hair that had flown loose from her ponytail and now was sticking to her own shoulder, or the slight heat coming from Astrid’s ankle as it strayed closer to hers, and the way something in her throat seemed to constrict as Astrid caught her eye and the corners of her mouth quirked up, uncharacteristically sweet.

McAfee tried to smile back without forcing that feeling in her throat to bubble up any more before looking away, back to her phone. James and Alice’s conversation presented itself to her in the form of a distraction (it was a sad day when that became the distraction) while her thumb continued its scrolling. Another good post of a good, round, fluffy dog.

“-posters may be more effective, but only along the student-heavy routes-”

“Which are those? Sure, there’s the designated ‘student’ ones, but since you’re actually a student-”

Another book promo for a comic artist she’d once found mildly amusing.

“It’s not quite that clear-cut, Alice, in a city with this many students. They all have vastly different routes and places where they’re commuting to.”

Astrid didn’t seem to mind that her stray hairs were now resting on McAfee’s shoulder; in fact, she seemed like she wanted her head to follow suit with the hairs and drop onto McAfee’s shoulder.

Which it did, a moment later.

Oh no.

In some futile attempt to stop her body from doing its normal human contact initiated, engage awkward tensing of entire body so as not to disturb the other person dear Lord do not move a single centimeter routine, McAfee attempted to keep her thumb moving, scrolling, going. Past the rows of aesthetic note-taking sets, high school acquaintances’ senior college photos, a few people from her dorm at Columbia, all the way past something that might have been a teaser for a new season of a Netflix show she’d watched in one sitting over the summer.

“I hated that show,” Astrid said offhandedly, angling her head to yawn into McAfee’s shoulder.

Truthfully, she was not offended that anyone wouldn’t like the show, but her brain was malfunctioning with the surprisingly cool feel of Astrid on her shoulder, and besides, as McAfee Westbrook, she had an image to uphold as an obnoxiously opinionated person. Some part of her brain registered Alice refer to her experience in the campaign office, but she ignored it in favor of blurting out a “how could you not like it?”

Astrid shrugged, a gesture that McAfee felt rather than saw. “I don’t know. It’s just, like, kids doing shit with their minds. We all do shit with our minds, it’s just not special.”

McAfee shook her head. “Of course you would belittle superpowers to being ‘not special.’”

The pressure against her shoulder changed at that and Astrid looked up towards McAfee. Their faces were closer together than she could ever recall them being. “Well, yeah, they’re not real, silly.”

For some reason, the word silly coming out of Astrid Sloane’s mouth like that when their mouths were only (maybe) six inches apart was too much for McAfee’s brain to handle. She started laughing before she could put a cap on the thought, her head turning away from Astrid. A moment later, Astrid’s giggles mingled with hers, warm and bright and deeper than she would have expected. She was afraid to look at Astrid’s face for fear of what she might feel, but she could feel Astrid’s shoulder shake against hers, and that was enough.

When their laughter died off, Astrid, without even looking at McAfee’s face, dropped her head to the place where McAfee’s thigh and knee met in an uncoordinated but endearingly fluid movement. Almost without thinking, McAfee dropped her hand that wasn’t holding her now-dark phone to Astrid’s hair. It was newly short, and she froze as soon as her fingertips brush the tips of her blond hair. She was glad Astrid couldn’t see her since she was sure that all the blood that had previously been in her brain and allowing her to function as a human being had rushed to her cheeks. She withdrew her hand, but Astrid grabbed her wrist before she fully could and guided it back to her hair. Hesitantly, McAfee twined her fingers through Astrid’s hair, watching the way her eyes flickered shut with a warming feeling in her chest.

The ends of her hair felt smooth and soft under her fingertips, and she allowed herself to smile. Even though her leg was starting to fall asleep, she didn’t dare move when Astrid looked so calm and relaxed in her presence. Almost every other time, she felt an edge of something sharp and bitter and unrelenting in Astrid’s actions; with a history as weird as theirs was, it seemed inevitable. But this was a different type of Astrid. This wasn’t the girl who had picked up a stupid campaign she didn’t even care about to spite someone she didn’t know that well. This was someone who had hardened in order to learn how to live and had softened to learn how to be around other people. She seemed indescribably gentle and breakable when she was close to sleep in McAfee’s lap, but she much preferred this new Astrid to the cutthroat but unimpassioned one of high school. Her heart was in her throat, but her hand continued its pattern of stroking through her hair.

She heard someone clear their throat across the room. McAfee tore her eyes up and away from the corner of Astrid’s jaw, her eyes locking with James’ automatically. Out of her periphery, she saw Alice quickly look away from her and Astrid and back at her phone unconvincingly, her lipstick-lined mouth curving into a smile. James cocked his head to one side, eyebrows raised. They’d known each other so long that McAfee could read his expression easily. She channeled every bit of intimidation she could (which was quite a lot) into a single raised eyebrow, mimicking his posture. He smirked at her, and she felt even more heat flare into her cheeks but ignored it for pride’s sake. James had the decency to finally turn his head away, but she knew the damage was already done.

She didn’t really care, however. The feeling in her chest was large and expansive enough that she didn’t think even James’ teasing could ruin her mood.

In a sudden burst of confidence, McAfee reached for Astrid’s hand with her free hand. Astrid handed it over willingly, and she rested their now-entwined fingers on her other knee. Her heart nudged the base of her throat at all of their contact. Even though it was just their hands, their entwined fingers felt more intimate to her than any real physical experiences she’d had with any other girls. She was all too aware of James and Alice’s presences before, but with Astrid’s palm against hers and her thumb tracing invisible patterns over her knuckles, the room narrowed until her world was just a golden and white and brown blur, only the detail of Astrid’s eyelashes and her sparse freckles holding any kind of sharp quality to them. She was sure she’d be able to see them when she closed her eyes, and she did. They were all she could see. She tilted her head backward and let it rest against the wall, content to lie there with Astrid’s head on one knee and their hands on her other.

Of course, Payton and Skye returned soon after - she wasn’t exactly sure when, as her sense of time was never great - and Astrid forced herself up and away from McAfee, stretching and yawning before finally standing up. But she winked quickly in McAfee’s direction, and she couldn’t stop smiling as Payton directed the conversation somewhere campaign-related. Later, at dinner, when the two sat next to each other, she’d feel Astrid’s foot tap hers, and she’d tap Astrid’s back. And when the rest of their group huddled around Skye’s phone on the walk back home, Astrid would reach over and grab McAfee’s hand again with her smaller one.

Under the faded sky, Astrid would smile and tug McAfee back, sparing one glance towards their friends. McAfee would think James saw them leave, but he’d just smile and turn his attention back to the group, claiming ignorance of their missing friend’s whereabouts when questioned. They’d stop under the relative privacy of a tree, away from the normal traffic flow.

“Oh, finally. We can’t hear them talking,” Astrid would say, eyes gleaming in the half-light. New York was never dark, but McAfee was particularly partial to the nighttime anyway. Or maybe she would simply be drawn to the way that Astrid looked, her short hair seeming to soak up the light and her blue eyes bright in contrast to the dark circles under her eyes. She had never noticed before, but in that light, she would see the flecks of amber and green that buried themselves deep in her eyes, and she’d look at Astrid’s lips, pursed against laughter, and the gentle way Astrid’s thumb rubbed against the back of her hand, and she’d look back up at Astrid’s face.

“Thank God,” she said finally.

Before she could even think about it, she would kiss her, and Astrid would kiss her back, soft at first, exploring, hesitant. It’d transform into something deeper and imploring, something a little more desperate, something that was rushing out of them all at once. Astrid’s other hand would rope around her neck to pull her even closer and her own hand would find its way into Astrid’s short, soft hair. Their bodies would fit flush together, and as the cool air fell on their cheeks, they’d have no other thoughts than that moment. Astrid’s lips drove away any doubts McAfee had had before, and she would savor the overwhelming waves of affection she felt, pulling back for the barest breaths between kisses before diving back in headfirst.

Eventually, they would succumb to laughter that built between kisses, laughing close to each other as they had that morning. Her heart and chest ached from the force of all of it, the laughing and the kiss. And as Astrid’s giggles finally faded off, she would press a kiss to her cheek, feeling a bit lightheaded with affection. They’d still be pulled close together so that it was difficult to tell where one began and the other ended, but neither cared, simply too wrapped up in their shared bubble of joy to notice anything else.

(Even James and Alice walking up just behind them, with Alice groaning and slipping James five dollars before both retreated again, bickering good-naturedly to each other.)

Astrid would shake her head and withdraw her arm from around McAfee’s shoulders, choosing to instead cup her cheek with one hand. She’ll smile again and press one last kiss to McAfee’s lips, soft and radiant and happy. And McAfee would return the smile and the kiss and the happiness. She’d probably give her anything she could, anything she ever wanted, just to see that smile again, just to feel her lips on hers.

[comicteaparty]

June 10th-June 16th, 2020 Reader Favorites Archive

The archive for the Reader Favorites chat that occurred from June 10th, 2020 to June 16th, 2020.  The chat focused on the following  question:

How does poor web design affect if and/or how you read a particular webcomic?

carcarchu

it's a huge factor. if a comic is amazing in every way but the website or app makes it difficult for me to read i'm simply NOT going to read it. there are a lot of great series that i've put on the back burner just because the website is so annoying to navigate

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

i've honestly never run into a website so bad it stopped me from reading a comic i was interested in

carcarchu

FYI the worst comic app i've ever experienced is Aqua Kiss which I downloaded to read a single series. it's the most barebones app imaginable with no search bar. if you want to read something you actually have to manually load each calendar week to find it and some stuff are buried dozens of pages back. and to make matters worse it doesn't have a "history" or "bookmarks" feature either

Deo101 [Millennium]

The worst things with sites that I see often are 1: huge headers, and 2: laggy sites (not really site design, but its adjacent I think) Another is if the pages are too big on the screen, so you can't, for instance, see some panels all at once. Those kinds of things can really ruin a reading experience for me

carcarchu

One example of a website that is hostile to the reading experience is ZMYK which for some reason hosts vertical scroll comics but cuts them up into little pieces as if they were comic format so you can't actually scroll through the entire chapter as it was intended to

That kind of thing grinds my gears so much how can something you have to pay for be that incredibly bad

Deo101 [Millennium]

I've also seen some sites that have graphic design issues, where elements are illegible due to their color, and some have very busy and distracting backgrounds. Those kinds of things won't necessarily ruin it, but they're distracting

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

forward comic's website was doing this weird thing where the further I read the longer pages took to load. Near the end it seemed they were taking 10 full seconds. Still read the whole thing though. Reading manga on shady sites with terrible internet connection as a kid has desensitized me

Oh one comic I was interested in but didn't read because of the site: I was kidnapped by lesbian pirates from outer space. It doesn't have a website. To read it you have to pirate (hehe) copies of the archive.

It's a pretty sad story- the author was young and tricked into giving up the rights to her series

She ended up taking the site down to prevent the company from getting any more money off of it

https://rosalarian.tumblr.com/post/65353128180/its-with-extreme-sadness-that-i-announce-that-my

Here's her post about it

I think it can be a good warning message to us

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

For me, the biggest thing that deters me from reading a comic is if the website isn't well optimized for mobile (as someone who reads a lot on the go). This includes the images loading bigger than the page, or navigation being hidden on mobile, or glitchy scrolling, or any number of ungodly things. Also, too many ads. That'll turn me away in a heartbeat.

Deo101 [Millennium]

Yeah ads are definitely a huge turnoff for me too

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

FYI the worst comic app i've ever experienced is Aqua Kiss which I downloaded to read a single series. it's the most barebones app imaginable with no search bar. if you want to read something you actually have to manually load each calendar week to find it and some stuff are buried dozens of pages back. and to make matters worse it doesn't have a "history" or "bookmarks" feature either

@carcarchu okay i just digested this comment and wtf

no search bar is laughably bad omg

how did you even find out about it

Deo101 [Millennium]

Yeah that's ridiculous hahahaha

carcarchu

it's a shame because there are genuinely good comics on there you can't read anywhere else?? and i found it because an artist i adore did a series for it but it got AXED after only 2 chapters and after that was pretty much scrubbed from the internet. i think it's a shame because it really had so much potential and it ended before the story was really able to start

it's a screenshot from the app. you can see that it is categorized reverse chronologically by week

the point of aqua kiss is to emulate monthly/weekly style manga magazines but in app form. however i think the execution of this idea was horrendous

SteffieMusings

Oh no! It must make reading there so challenging. As for me, if the navigation is so hard to understand/pages don't load properly when you click a link or when the website's colours hurt my eyes so much I can't stay there for too long.

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

Honestly nowadays most of the CMS's out there share the same basic functionality and adaptability, so it's getting harder to screw up on that. Most sites are OK, if only a bit laggy. If the site takes less than 2 seconds to load and it's not so crowded that I have to look for the comic, I'm generally good.

Erin Ptah (BICP | Leif & Thorn)

How much bad/inaccessible web design I'll tolerate is directly proportional to how much I care about the comic.

I've dropped a couple series in the middle of the archive just because they changed the site design to screw up the tracking of bookmarking sites, so I would've had to figure out an alternate way to keep track of it, and it didn't seem worth the effort

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Oh yeah, I've totally had that happen too where I was deep into an archive, had taken a reading break for a month or two, and came back to find the urls had been updated and my spot was lost it isn't so bad if a comic also has an archive page, but ive stopped reading a few stories that it would have been too hard to track down where I was.

DaeofthePast

I haven’t had to experience weird websites in a while, but I do sometimes go to an unknown website to read the comic/manga I’m looking for. Mostly what I’ve had trouble with is unnumbered chapters, of that it’s unclear where/how to start reading in general.(edited)

Like, I get to the page for that specific comic and then there’s no easy “start reading here” button anywhere

And when I do find the chapters list, I don’t know which end of the list is the beginning bc it’s unnumbered

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Is a "First page" button enough or are you looking for a "new readers start here" button? (<- is redisigning her page)

DaeofthePast

Is there a difference? :0

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

hm, sometimes yes.

Some old running comics have different jump-on points (schlock mercenary for example).

DaeofthePast

Ooh I see

Well when I first go on the site, I just want to start reading so idk

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

So, I always try to read every comic that's featured in the book club all the way through. Like even if I don't particularly like the opening, or if the comic is thousands of pages long, or I don't have time to meaningfully discuss the comic, I do try to at least give the comic a fair shake by reading through the entire archive. There have been four exceptions. One was because of content (it was a gag a day comic, and the content was SO horrible for SO long that I just couldn't stand it anymore. real "punching down" type of humor). Another was because the comic was literally deleted before I could get to it. The remaining two were because the site design/organization were so awful that the comics were unreadable. One of the two comics had a custom built, hand-coded site (I assume), and it just... didn't work properly. Like the "previous" button seemingly took you to a random page, the "next" button and the "latest" button led to the same place, etc. I'm not sure the creator ever bothered to test the site. The other one used some pre-built stuff, so it was ok... but you had to scroll to the top of the page to go to the next page. Not only that, but the author was posting all their comics to the same archive - which means one page would be the comic that was actually meant to be read for the book club and the next few pages were a completely different comic entirely. And this wasn't a gag-a-day either - it was a story based comic, so the three action minimum to get to the next page made things absolute hell to keep track of.(edited)

DaeofthePast

Wow

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Uff, yeah, that sounds horrible.

Nyx+Nyssa's page is currently a barebone mess, but I made at least sure the navigation works. :/

DaeofthePast

Having the comic be deleted while you’re reading it sounds like such a weird experience lmao

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

i mean, it wasn't thanos snap style lol

DaeofthePast

Was the website gone too or?

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

it was in between days

nah the website was still there, it's just that the author had decided to reboot their comic and forgot that they had submitted it to the book club

DaeofthePast

Oh okay I imagined Thanos snap style

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Not really a design but a site thing: I can't do comics without an archive of some sort. On platforms like Tapas or WT, the episode list serves that purpose perfectly fine. I personally need to be able to see how many pages there are, and I need a way to go to specific pages easily. It might sound like a small complaint, but it's a big thing for me! There have been comics that piqued my interest, but once I saw that there was no archive of any form, I left forever. Sure, I might be missing out, but there are also lots of good comics out there that have accessible archives. My life isn't long enough to read them all, so I'm letting myself be very picky.

copperine

I can manage a very basic site just fine. But if a site is hard to navigate, or just makes reading the page/getting to the next page difficult - I'd be likely to give up eventually. Doesn't matter about the quality of the comic, but if it's a chore to just read it, it's going to put me off after a while

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

I will note - if you want me to actually discuss your comic in the book club, please do have an archive link, and probably a cast page too. Like the lack of one doesn't stop me from reading entirely, but I can't discuss anything without being able to look back at specific moments. (and one of those archives that just has dates doesn't count - lemme know what the chapter is!)

copperine

For example - when I read webcomics on dA, I was absolutely fine with either the author having a dedicated folder with the pages in order. Another option was to link next and prev pages in the description. But if I had to go find each next page, I just wouldn't.

DaeofthePast

By an archive do you mean kinda like a chapters list?

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

A list of all the pages, ideally

That also list the chapters somehow

copperine

Short version: if I feel like I'm spending half as much time navigating the site as I am actually reading, it's gonna get old real quick

DaeofthePast

And same copperine. As long as it’s organized well, I will probably read it

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Like maybe you click on a chapter link to get to a list of the pages, or maybe it's just a list of the pages with the chapter names as headers

some sort of organization

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Yeah! (I admit my own comic's archive page isn't the prettiest, but it's 100% functional.)

DaeofthePast

I only have a chapter list so far ^^; idk how to go about getting an archive

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Chapter list is totally fine if your chapters tend to be on the shorter side

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

I like having chapter lists around, although coding them can be a handful Not sure if to go for an archive with thumbnails or just with page numbers though.

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

It's also workable if you also have like... a dropdown menu for individual pages on the actual pages? So it only takes 2 clicks to go to a specific page (first click to go to the chapter, second click to go to the page)

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

OH yeah, there was also a dA comic in the book club once that didn't have any next/previous buttons. However, it was a short comic - the bare minimum for getting into the book club - so I still read it all the way through. But it was pretty annoying to do so. (it was also pretty obviously a fetish comic, but that's not really relevant to the discussion XD)

DaeofthePast

I want to post by scene so I’ll be dividing chapters like “chapter 3 part 1” to hopefully that will be better

copperine

I'll always take functional over pretty

DaeofthePast

Haha I’m not sure if I want to know the comic for that one

Also what is “punching down” humor?

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Like, the author was a straight man, and nearly every joke was making fun of people who weren't those things.

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

it's like making fun of people but

copperine

Yikes

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

you're intentially trying to put them down

that's punching down in my imo rip

DaeofthePast

Oh

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

yeah....

DaeofthePast

Well at least I know what to call it when I see it in the future ._.

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Like, occasionally I see a shitty joke in a comic and I keep reading because maybe the author improved (we do sometimes get comics with archives that date back decades in here) But this comic was just so consistently awful for so long that I couldn't stand it

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

oof that aint good

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Though that's kinda off topic lol

DaeofthePast

Oh yeah

So bad site design...

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Anyway, I don't really wanna post the examples of the comics I talked about in here cuz I don't wanna call anyone out

Actually, hold on, lemme check something

DaeofthePast

I feel I haven’t had too much experience with bad site designs, but I might have just forgotten(edited)

K

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

ok yeah

so, the comic where you had to scroll up to the top of each page to click to the next one, and the site was multiple comics alternating pages that made the story rough to follow

copperine

Oof yeah having to scroll up to click next won't stop me but it is a bother

DaeofthePast

I like having the next button both on top and the bottom, even if they update page by page(edited)

It just feels convinient

copperine

Yeah same

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Re: punching up/down, here's an overly simplistic set of examples: billionaires making fun of poor people is punching down. Poor people making fun of billionaires is punching up.

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

's good webdesign pattern for everything with continous content - e.g. blogs, web-novels, webcomics.

Ideally you have one on top, between content and comments and under comments

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

the comic that alternated storylines & required scrolling back up to go to the next page was Antibunny: http://vinnied.comicgenesis.com/d/20061002.html if you see that page I linked and click next a few times, there's no obvious distinction between the main story and the spinoff story (no, like, header change between the two, and the art style looks similar), so you can see how it'd be confusing to follow and the scrolling is just icing on the cake (it used to be even worse) the only reason I feel comfortable sharing that is because the author uploaded the comics to new sites, and fixed all those issues in the process: http://antibunny.net/

DaeofthePast

Oh nice. So they realized the problem

copperine

Aren't they in this server? Or am I thinking of another one

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Yeah, the author is in this server

copperine

I thought so

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Hence why he realized, because we told him that there was a problem during the book club

copperine

I'm not gonna take anything said here as a comment on anyway btw

DaeofthePast

It’s cool that submitting their comic to the tea party resulted in some good feedback :3

copperine

You love to see it!

It always makes me happy when webcomic community stuff helps people out, that seems like the ideal outcome

DaeofthePast

Yess

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

i agree on that yeee

DaeofthePast

It’s like having a friend point out a spelling mistake. Embarrassing but you can live with the knowledge that your work is now a little bit better(edited)

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Yeah kinda off-topic, but I love it when the author of the comic for the book club joins the server. Like not only does it mean that the author could join in on others' discussions in the future (pay it forward 'n stuff), but... it's just really sad when I see a comic pop up in the book club and the author seemingly forgot they submitted it.

DaeofthePast

How long does it usually take to get to a comic? :0 that they would forget they submitted it?

copperine

I always hope I can help others out or support them, and I hope they feel the same

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

The book club had a very very long wait list in the past. These days, not so long.

DaeofthePast

And I guess if you submit a comic with a website, the people here can be your beta testers

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

what's odd is that five months ago, the wait list was six months but now, the wait list is two months y'all need to submit/resubmit your comics

DaeofthePast

I tried going to submit mine yesterday and the site doesn’t let me v.v says you’re booked for July

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

oh yeah, so it is

DaeofthePast

Maybe later :3

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

i guess Rebel doesn't want the queue to get too long

copperine

I would submit mine but I'm only at 10 pages and I believe you need to have 20 to submit

DaeofthePast

Ooh they have a minimum?

Gotta count my pages now

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

I mean it makes sense. Hard to discuss a comic that only has the cover for chapter 1

DaeofthePast

XD

Tru

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

"Let us dissect this cover image for an entire week"

DaeofthePast

It would be a hilarious April fools challenge

copperine

Idk I think it was 20 minimum?

DaeofthePast

shrug

copperine

@snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights) can you shed any light on this

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

The sign up form is where you would normally find that information.

copperine

... very good point

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

But the form is currently unavailable, and it's possible that Rebel might change the requirement when it becomes available again

copperine

Ah

Thank you for the heads up

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

FYI, https://comicteaparty.com/ is where the form will be available eventually

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

They accept resubmissions now?

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I def like arrows on the top and bottom of pages for sites to be more of a thing, as well as clicking the image for the next page too! Honestly there hasn't been a make or break, mainly preferences, and the most complaints i have are with the mobile formatting. I think most comics have been pretty solid in functionality that i've read, and it's clear that having their own website is becoming mainstream enough for there to be help, tips, and tricks to making it work!

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I definitely prefer if I can just click on the comic image to go to the next page especially for mobile.

copperine

Agreed!

Idk about resubmissions tho

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

... Wow. I absolutely HATE clickable images on mobile, because they usually mess with the pinch-zoom.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i've had sites that didnt have image click throughs and the arrow..... was like SO TINY XD

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Didn't think anyone would actually like it, so... huh.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i kept going back and forth

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

yeah, navigation needs to be bigger on mobile for safe tapping.

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Oh, re:resubmissions, I'm pretty sure you can if it's been long enough? I think @snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights) mentioned it recently as an option. But maybe a tangent for #general

boogeymadam

i dont mind the pinch zoom being a little more difficult from time to time cause usually the clickable image is worth it to me

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Same

boogeymadam

am also fond of sites that allow left/right arrows to let you move forward and back on desktop

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Mainly it's just for like Krispy said, reading on mobile and tiny next/previous buttons.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ye my dummy thicc fingers prefer the click through image for sure

ohh yes Boogey that too

boogeymadam

it took me hours of googling to find the very simple comicpress option to just turn that on on my site

copperine

Mmm I do like sites that allow pinch zoom though

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

I also prefer clicking on the image to go to the next page

mariah (rainy day dreams)

My fingers small, but still dummy T-T

copperine

It makes it easier to get a better look at the page

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

iweudhweiu Mariah XD

copperine

Especially if it's got smaller font

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

nyxandnyssa has a seperate navigation for mobile that's much bigger and skipping scene select to make tapping easier.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I've had the hover text def bum me out for some comics, where you click the image and it just displays the text, then you gotta click the tiny next bar def killed me there

copperine

I've never had issues with pinch zoom affecting clickable images but I can imagine it would be annoying

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

but! never breaks me out of a comic for me to stop reading-! i persevere in the face of adversity XD

boogeymadam

i've never encountered a site so bad i couldnt continue reading. maybe stuff where i'd stop reading until i was less frustrated but i'd come back later.

DaeofthePast

That’s something I’ll have to consider for my site then

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I feel like Smackjeeves had a really obnoxious auto pitch & zoom before they updated most recently. I like when I can turn it off on my phone. I'd rather do it myself most of the time and let my phone try to auto it X')

DaeofthePast

I usually read on desktop more often than on mobile so it’s good to hear from other’s experiences

copperine

Idk I've never used a custom site yet

boogeymadam

same dae, except on tapas and webtoons!(edited)

comics with their own website i'll boot up my computer for a single update of

DaeofthePast

Even on webtoons I read on desktop

boogeymadam

omg your power, webtoons feels so choppy on desktop to me

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

im definitely lucky that our site got a mobile friendly version i remember the 'ol pinchy zoomz was tiresome on our site for sure

DaeofthePast

I get headaches from reading on my phone unfortunately :/

Idk what the difference is between reading mobile and on a desktop but my brain doesn’t like it

Like, I can text fine???? But reading a comic for some reason is like “no”

So yeah, comics on desktop for me

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ohh!! it could be the close proximity!

DaeofthePast

Ooh :0 maybe?

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i know i get motion sickness depending on how close/ far i am from screens

DaeofthePast

Maybe it’s something like that... :O

boogeymadam

whatever the reason sorry you get headaches and motion sickness from comics :'0

DaeofthePast

Every once in a while I’ll try again to read on mobile I never learn

boogeymadam

the only reason i dont like mobile is sometimes comics text is a combination of too small there and the font is hard on my dyslexia

DaeofthePast

Rip

boogeymadam

so i see if zooming in on my computer helps

DaeofthePast

The lesson here is that it’s good to have both mobile and desktop options

boogeymadam

yep :'D

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ohhh yea def agree. I know that feeling and i sometimes ... have a Time reading my own work XD (i admit it lol!!)

boogeymadam

sometimes my own comic is hard on my dyslexia for The Effect so i never have hard feelings with other comics

copperine

(brb)

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ewiudhiwue the things we do AT WHAT COST XD

DaeofthePast

Asdfghjkl

Meanwhile I use the same font for everything

boogeymadam

wait im gonna generalize this more so it can be a party

DaeofthePast

Please post that on pillowfort so I can reblog it

boogeymadam

you can post it for yourself if you want dae!

i'm having a hard time logging on asdfgjh

DaeofthePast

Rip sure

copperine

Ah see I have both

Because hand lettering

It's great for feeling right for a comic but also eternally wondering if it's readable

DaeofthePast

Ooh yeah I guess that would count as both

What’s your comic btw :0

Wait, we’re supposed to be talking about website design right

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Yep! If it gets too off topic, you can always continue in another channel that's more fitting.

copperine

Ah sorry! Sure thing

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

Mobile is too small for me

DaeofthePast

Yeah

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

(oHHMYYGOSH BOOGEY XD)

boogeymadam

mm archives were mentioned already, and how it can really turn readers away to simply not have one at all? my favorite archive is https://www.vaingloriouscomic.com/comic/archive 's but i've seen some where they attempted an all picture archive and it backfired by just being a page of all empty boxes. this didn't deter me from reading it and it got fixed pretty quick tho~ mine is one of these and its a very chonky slowmoving page cause i uploaded the first 90ish as fullsized pictures. nobody's ever complained so idk if it's ever deterred anyone from reading but i know i gotta fix it someday.(edited)

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I really dont mind any kind of web design in particular though tbh. I prefer desktop sites but it’s fine if the design isnt great

DaeofthePast

Have you guys ever gone to a comic website (for a single comic) and the colors used in the background were so bright that it felt like they were blinding you to the point it was hard to read the actual pages?

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

My archive is down right now becayse it broke and I dont know how to fix it lol

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i def want a fully view-able archive but we're gonna be hitting 800 pages and i dont know how well that will work XD

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

But I have a navigation bar now

boogeymadam

u could have multiple pages of archive, krispy!

i'm starting a new page for chapter 2

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

Or dropdown menus

boogeymadam

but its probably important to have a dropdown if u have more than 1 page, yeah

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I want to switch to picture archives, but I haven't found a good plug in/way to get my word press to do it :( if anyone has recommendations...

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I wish I knew how to make dropdown menus

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i'll have to bring that up ! we dont do the tech work for our site ( thank gosh seriously) but i love archives that show full pages

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

If I could make dropdown menus I would be unstoppable

copperine

I miss the drop-downs on SJ

boogeymadam

i feel like dropdowns are smth i pretty much only exclusively see on hiveworks comics

i wonder what their secret is,,,

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I’ve inspected the elements on so many hiveworks sites lol

I want to know

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

they use word press I think

for their comic sites

just have to do some digging with the site html and csss

copperine

Right click and inspect maybe...

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

Php stands for my Personal hell pit

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

if i could go undercover for yall i would XD

boogeymadam

also!! @mariah (rainy day dreams) i use elementor for mine

its not perfect and breaks like every time i update it but it works asdfg

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

... I'm currently writing a sparkling fresh wp-plugin for my page (comic easel wasn't doing what I wanted), but I am also a software dev who enjoys coding.

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

My template I use functions in mostly php and xml and its gibberish to me but functions so well I dont know how to improve it to have specific things I want

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

my knowledge with site design is basic at best lmao

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

wordpress is a bit special in that it does most things more complicated than strictly necessary.

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

but I do like fiddling with stuff

^that too lmao

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I know Shiza of osarilho is really good at web designing? she's made some beautiful work with her site!

boogeymadam

i want to ask shiza for more help but not before i have some money to pay her :')

she's helped me a lot already

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I can do html and css at the babiest level

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I'll check that out Boogey, thanks! Even if it does break X') And I guess I'll just make a note to start stashing money to hire shiza XD im definitely at the point where my site needs a general face lift, but I don't have the spoons for it.

boogeymadam

imo i've made some really pretty pges with it. it's a drag and drop that's excellent at galleries, but it doesn't like when you don't have even rows for some reason

the wordpress plugin, Elementor, i mean.

copperine

I've been wanting to try comicpress for ages

I just don't know where to start

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I'm gonna move over to #shop_talk for my response

copperine

I had someone who was gonna help me out but we lost contact so it's on the back burner

boogeymadam

OOPS yeah

copperine

But for websites in general I prefer to have one that feels very basic than one that feels too busy or crowded

I'm not a graphic designer at all lol

If I do try an independent site I'm planning to pay a coding friend to help me

DaeofthePast

yeah i have no idea what I'm doing when working on my site, it's kinda basic, but at least it looks nice

copperine

I just use a premade theme on my ComicFury site

It works and that's good enough for me so far

Oh I guess the other thing that would put me off reading a comic is if the site isn't formatted for mobile, and/or particularly if the site doesn't have adaptive formatting

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

same, but editted it hard core so it looks like it's own thing lmao

copperine

I usually read on my phone because my computer is where I work so I like to get off it for hobbies

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

but for me uh i guess mobile i try to read it either on tapas, webtoon or its own site

I find just clicking the page to the next one helps me a lot lol I don't do a lot of zooming

copperine

Mmm

copperine

It's personal preference a lot tbh!

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I like my comuter because its big

copperine

Valid

Mine is not

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

did anyone talk about paying me please you don't have to do that

copperine

Idk but you can pay me

Idk what for but

I'll take money

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I absolutely would have to if you made my site awesome X') work is work, and you should be paid for it

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

fair enough

Just send me a DM whenever you're up for that and lemme take a look at what you already have

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I would hire someone to do web design for me but I dont have the funds & I dont wnat to make someone do work for me for free

sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead)

I've been meaning to set up my own website for a while now, since the collective i was originally hosting my webcomic with kinda fell apart, but it's so much work and i'm hella intimidated :'''D

copperine

@sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead) there's been some related discussion in #shop_talk and I believe @boogeymadam might be able to advise (I'm sure others can too but I'm going off the convo from earlier)

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

@sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead) depending on how much it is I can help you out

RebelVampire

Admin Reminder Remember this channel is for experiences as a reader first and foremost, so #shop_talk and #general are better if you want to discuss your own stuff.

DaeofthePast

thank you for the reminder :3

RebelVampire

I would say poor web design is something I have a complicated relationship regarding webcomics. On the one hand, outside of a site being 100% completely broken, I'm willing to sit through a lot to read. So in terms of affecting whether I read a comic the first time or not, there isn't much to say there. But it does affect how engaged I am with the comic. Cause if I can't easily go back to re-read a page, easily find things like character names, have to deal with extreme lag cause the host is garbage, have to deal with eye bleeding color schemes, etc. you can bet your bottom dollar 1 time is all that comic is going to get in terms of reading it. I can only subject myself to so much, and if I don't feel like reading a comic again because of the site itself, I'm going to quickly forget it in favor of comics whose sites don't make me cry. I do give more leeway to sites created by creators in many respects. But professional bigtime hosts like Tapas or Webtoons literally have no excuse for some of their garbage design choices. And some of their design choices are super duper garbage.

DaeofthePast

that's true yeah, there's a big distinction of the quality expectations between sites by small creators and those of big companies like Webtoons

RebelVampire

At the same time, though, I know from first hand experience that poor design choices are literally influenced by user data for bigger companies. So for every decision I consider stupid- at the same time they probably did the AB tests that showed crappy design A had better results for their conversion rates than user friendly design B.

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Which boggles my mind

I wonder if there's some kinda causation-correlation thing going on that the A/B tests could not detect accurately

boogeymadam

Rebel mentioned sites that have eyebleedy color schemes and I'm in the same boat; will read the comic, just will be turning down the screen brightness a looot. Sites that have a huge space of extremely neon background that distracts from the comic make me reluctant to read on the site, and I'll look for a mirror before trying. That white background of the 2 big comic hosting sites can at least be affected and turned dark by nightmode when needed, while nightmode doesn't work on half the bright comic sites I've tried it on. u-u

[16ruedelaverrerie]

  [Today, Courtesy of This Diagram Generated by @sebdoesstuff, a Performative Reading of the Natal Chart of Detective Gavin Reed, Born October 7, 2002, in What We Take to Be Detroit, Michigan, at an Unknown Time of Day. All Standard Disclaimers from This Post Apply, Including the One about This Being a Generalization, Because Even with the Natal Chart We’re Not Going to Get into Aspects or Full Houses vs Empty Houses or Anything Like That, I’m Not an Astrologer Nor Was I Meant to Be, Also I Need to Go Eat Dinner Now]  

1. Rising Sign: presentation Sagittarius (blunt, outgoing, independent)

[The rising sign is dependent on the time of birth; it’s Sagittarius here because 12PM is the default time this website uses. My original choice for Gavin’s rising sign was Aries, because an Aries is just a Leo with an inferiority complex THAT’S RIGHT FIGHT ME ARIES but I rather like Sagittarius, actually! Did you know that every man I have ever been into but also simultaneously hated myself for being into had a Sagittarius sun sign? It’s a personal note you didn’t ask for but also it’s a broadly applicable truth.]

“I’ll make my own scrambled eggs,” says Gavin. “You cook like someone who made a deal with the devil to trade in their taste buds for pointlessly overdeveloped fine motor skills, which is exactly what you are. Your food tastes like a fucking instruction manual.”

“Is that any way to talk to your lawfully wedded husband?” asks RK900.

“THE LAW IS NOT JUSTICE,” proclaims Gavin.

Capitulating to the oppressive institution of marriage had provided them with certain tax benefits, muses RK900, but it had not done a thing to socialize Gavin. It's just as well, he thinks.

  2. Sun: personality 14 degrees Libra (diplomatic, superficial, indulgent)

[Again, this post is probably more than enough contemplation of Gavin Reed, Actual Libra. This sun sign continues to be completely absurd and I am on board for this bogus journey.]

“No wait, not-- not from the back,” pants Gavin, struggling to turn himself over under RK900′s insistent hands. “I want-- I want to see your face.”

“Okay,” breathes RK900, startled by the tenderness of the request.

“I mean, otherwise there’s no point,” continues Gavin. “What? You think I’m with you for your personality?”

“...Thanks, you ruined it,” says RK900.

  3. Moon: emotion 01 degree Scorpio (passionate, secretive, committed)

“You... I...” falters Gavin, fidgeting viciously with the zipper of his jacket. “...What I mean is-- that is to say, I... here’s the thing, you’re... I’m in-- I might be in-- ...I-- you--”

“Would you find this ordeal easier if we were both undressed and I was banging you like a screen door in a hurricane?” asks RK900, because it isn’t like he doesn’t know what Gavin is trying to say, anyway.

“Yes please right now,” says Gavin.

  4. Mercury: intellect 28 degrees Virgo (analytical, detail-oriented, perfectionist)

“Reed, this is ridiculous,” barks Fowler. “Your report was due two weeks ago, I can’t have you sit on your ass forever. Just get it done.”

“But have you seen the body text typeface for the new electronic filing system?” protests Gavin. “The x-height on it is hideously minuscule! What it does to the counters-- it’s completely illegible, Captain! I am ASPHYXIATED by its lack of sufficient aperture! I can’t work in typographical squalor, this aesthetic is a disgrace to the force! I QUIT!”

“Your gun and badge,” says Fowler.

  5. Venus: relationship 15 degrees Scorpio (loyal, possessive, adventurous)

“Here’s a handbook of sexual perversions that I’ve compiled for you,” says Gavin. He drops a gargantuan dossier in front of RK900, where it lands with a thunk hard enough to make the table shake.

“I... really don’t think this is necessary,” says RK900.

“Listen, I would literally keel over and die of grief if for some reason you suddenly decided to go slam your cock inside someone else instead of me,” says Gavin. “Tell me what freaky shit you’re into, and I’ll do it. You tell me what it takes to keep you around.”

“Isn’t there a nicer way of saying all this?” asks RK900.

  6. Mars: action 24 degrees Virgo (occupied, particular, critical)

“This folder is for solved cases that haven’t been filed yet,” says Gavin, cursor hovering. “This folder is for solved cases that are partially filed. This folder is for solved cases involving drug offenses. This folder is for all cases east of Woodward but west of Broadway. This folder is for bad crimes. This folder is for cases that when I looked at them, I was like, huh! This folder is--”

“Please, your organizational scheme doesn’t make any sense,” says RK900. “I’ve had to patch up several critical errors during your attempt to explain it just now.”

“It works! I have a system!” insists Gavin. “You know how Fowler feels about me, would I still be here if I didn’t have a system that worked and got cases cleared?”

“Your continued employment at this station is a source of persistent mystery to me,” says RK900.

  7. Jupiter: development 13 degrees Leo (dramatic, proud, demonstrative)

“You requested me?” demands Gavin as soon as the door to Fowler’s office swings closed, too befuddled to let his irritation silence him. “You asked to be partnered with me? What the fuck did you do that for?”

“You have... unorthodox methods, Detective Gavin Reed,” says RK900. “The capacity for improvisation is a quality I find lacking in myself. I intend to learn from your extraordinary proficiency in adapting to unforeseen circumstances.”

Gavin opens his mouth, only to close it again without managing to say anything. He turns on his heels and starts stomping away.

“Come on, you dumb shit,” he calls over his shoulder. His ears are flushed, RK900 notes.

  8. Saturn: limitation 29 degrees Gemini (concrete, inarticulate, intuitive)

“As Democritus said, happiness resides not in possessions,” announces Gavin as he bursts into the bedroom, glasses on the bridge of his nose, squinting at several closely printed pages that he clutches in his hands. “There is an ethical imperative to question whether it is beneficial to hold onto that which can be held onto; if it is not, at times, more salubrious to our spiritual health to cast off that which we let fester by keeping close to ourselves. For indeed, as stagnant water breeds disease, so do we find that the objects--”

“Gavin,” interrupts RK900, “are you... are you trying to thank me for taking out the trash an extra time last week?”

“You have to let me finish,” says Gavin. “I’ve been working on this since then.”

“Hold on,” says RK900, “you spent a week writing a speech because you couldn’t say th--”

“--SO DO WE FIND THAT THE OBJECTS WHICH SURROUND US CEASE TO GIVE US JOY WHEN THEY HAVE OVERSTAYED THEIR WELCOME,” shouts Gavin.

  9. Uranus: freedom 25 degrees Aquarius (scientific, original, technocratic)

“I’m a Gen Z chaos child and proud of it!” says Gavin. “We’re the generation that invented androids!”

“Some might say that you were adamantly refusing to be proud of this accomplishment until very recently,” remarks RK900. “Some might also say that it’s not your accomplishment in the least, that you had absolutely nothing to do with it, and point out that you have trouble operating a microwave on your best days.”

“They all have different ways you need to enter minutes and seconds,” says Gavin, hotly.

  10. Neptune: transcendence 08 degrees Aquarius (humanitarian, secular, modern)

“I’m a Gen Z chaos child and proud of it!” says Gavin. “We’re the generation that replaced religion with unparalleled medical advances and brought us one step closer to a post-scarcity society!”

“Wouldn’t know it from looking at you,” says RK900. “Generation that replaced religion with memes, more like.”

“Who taught you to talk like this?” demands Gavin.

  11. Pluto: transformation 15 degrees Sagittarius (confident, principled, revolutionary)

“I’m a Gen Z chaos child and proud of it!” says Gavin. “We replaced religion with memes and the whole world is better for it!”

“You smoke actual cigarettes and use voice-to-text to take notes,” says RK900. “I’m starting to think you might not even be Gen Z at all. How old are you, Gavin Reed? Are you a Highlander? Can you only be killed through decapitation?”

“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” says Gavin.

  BONUS. North Node: purpose 10 degrees Gemini (interaction, partnership, community)

“Go talk to him,” Tina hisses under the clamor of the bar, elbowing RK900 in the side.

“He has been uncommunicative and belligerent since my return,” says RK900, keeping his eyes fixed on the glass of Thirium in front of him. “Correction, he has been especially uncommunicative and belligerent since my return. I believe attempting to engage with him at this point would only cause him to lash out further.”

“But have you figured out why?” asks Hank. “You know what’s got his panties in a twist?”

“That is an unsolicited mental image,” says RK900, “but I believe it is related to my dereliction of duty while I was confined to Cyberlife for repairs. The damage was extensive and I was unable to assist with Detective Reed’s caseload for much longer than he has been accustomed to. The evidence leads me to conclude that he is still resentful of my prolonged absence.”

“Unbelievable,” says Tina. “Brain the size of a planet and that’s what you conclude.”

“Nines,” says Connor, kindly, “replay your memories from the night of the shooting. My hypothesis is that you may not have taken all the evidence into account.”

The memories from the night of the shooting. Why, when the way that Gavin’s been acting ought to be explanation enough? Why go back to the sound of the gunshot like a cracking whip, the split second of frenzied calculation, the bullet in motion -- straight as the crow flies -- Gavin’s eyes widening as RK900 shoved him away, the sharp brittle crack of his shell coming apart, and then the terrible, painful static filling his head-- and Gavin’s fingers, slicked with blue, shaking uncontrollably as he fumbled to hold the shards of his skull together-- Gavin shouting something at him that he couldn’t hear over the noise, then Gavin’s lips still moving noiselessly when his audio processors cut out, just a deafening silence as the countdown began, and barely visible beyond the angry blur of error messages and critical malfunctions that had filled his view -- only now in the solemn clarity past the moment, RK900 could see -- in the low light of the alleyway, on his knees in filth beside him, Gavin looked--

RK900 glances up from his glass, turns to the far side of the bar where Gavin has been all night. The giveaway flurry as Gavin whips his head away, pretending for all he's worth as though there’s something very interesting on the wall next to him. He knows RK900 is looking, and RK900 knows that he knows because he stubbornly refuses to look back.

“Go talk to him,” says Tina, again.

His ears are flushed, thinks RK900, and stands up.

[firebirdsdaughter]

Random Writing Demo 2 + Edit?…

… No videogame in the world ever released two demos in such quick succession. DX

There goes my metaphor.

The rest still holds, though! This is definitely rough around the edges, and I don’t know if it will be the same in the final version.

Long Post.

This is also known as the moment when trying to refer to everyone got really confusing… ^^;

This Demo occurs after the events of the previous one. But how did we get here?: Before they leave the house, the brothers make Ui promise not to say anything to the others. With their departure, Ui is left to try and get the trio back to their senses alone, as her father is on an extended field expedition. This proves difficult, as the three are quite devastated. As time wears on, she begins to make some progress, but becomes increasingly concerned when they continue not to hear anything from Touwa and Banba. But just when she’s about to forgo her promise and tell the trio everything—despite how painful it would be—there’s a pounding at the door. Ui goes to investigate, but finds nothing there—at least, until something on the ground catches her attention…

Ui stumbled back into the room, wavering on her feet, her face paler than a sheet, hands shaking. She seemed to be trying to say something—her lips were moving, but nothing came out, even as she repetitively pushed something, cupped tightly in her trembling hands, toward them.

Then she stumbled, and started a sharp plummet to the floor. That was enough rouse Asuna to movement, at least, flashing forward to catch the other girl in her arms. After some scrambling, they got themselves in a more comfortable position—Ui leaning frailly against Asuna’s side, still trembling like a leaf, while Pink had her arms wrapped around her shoulders.

“Ui!” Melto’s voice voice was blurry and slow, but it gained urgency as he sluggishly struggled to his feet and moved to her, taking her hands in his. “… You’re bleeding.” Kou shambled over to stand by Blue’s shoulder, peering at what he saw. There was, indeed, red smudged on Ui’s fingers and knuckles, in a familiar pattern they all recognised from scrapes they’d had in the past.

But Ui shook her head frantically, tears brimming in her eyes. Finally, a shred of her voice slipped through. “… Not… Not me…” She mumbled. Then her breathing hitch and she burst into a loud sob. Her hands began to shake so violently that what she was holding slipped from them, falling past Melto’s hands; two small, light objects. On some subconscious instinct, Kou dove forward to catch them—stepping back, he lifted them up to see what they were.

He froze. A necklace and bracelet, each with a pendant zigzagged like a lightning bolt, with a coloured stone set in the side of them, dangling from a braided black cord. The latch of the necklace was snapped and the bracelet cord was ripped—like they had been wrenched off their wearers. And he knew them. Had seen them hundreds of times before, including just that morning, before everything went to hell. He didn’t need the colour of the stones to know who they belonged to.

And as he turned them over in his hands, he realised what Ui meant.

There were dark blotches on the latch of the necklace and on both pendants, of a rusty brown colour; and when the cords brushed his skin, they left dark red smears like the ones on Ui’s hands.

Ui wasn’t bleeding at all. The blood wasn’t hers.

“Those are…” Melto whispered, slowly releasing Ui’s hands to step closer to Kou and peer at the pendants. “Then…” He glanced between the red on Ui’s hands and that on Kou’s. “Then… That’s…” He trailed off in horror.

There was a very long silence.

It was broken by a whimper. “They were… On the ground… On the door step…” Ui sobbed. “… Just… Left… On the ground…” Her breath hitched, and her lip was quivering. “… It’s my fault…” Her voice cracked, and tears began to pour in earnest down her cheeks. “It’s my fault… I should never have… I should never have let them go…” She put her head down on Asuna’s shoulder and began to cry into Pink’s shirt.

“Ui…” Asuna finally found her voice, shaky and weak, squeezing Ui’s shoulders—just a little too tightly, her knuckles paling, though Ui didn’t seem to notice. “… Let them go where?”

“The… The clones…” Ui stammered softly, unable to raise her head from Pink’s shoulder. “They went to fight the clones…”

Melto’s jaw dropped. “Wh… What? Alone?” Ui merely nodded.

Asuna looked between the other two. “… You… Don’t think…” She murmured faintly, “You don’t think they were… Trying to… Protect… Us?” Her teeth sank into her lip so hard it cracked a little, and she blinked furiously—fighting back her own tears in favour of rearranging her arms around Ui, shifting her hands so that they were clenching fistfuls of the other girl’s shirt rather than her arms so as not to accidentally hurt her.

Blue gazed dazedly back at her, realisation dawning on his face. His shoulders slumped, and he leaned heavily against the table. “So that… We didn’t have to…”

Kou just stared at the pendants in his hands in silent horror. Between Touwa’s speed and Banba’s skill, it would be nigh impossible for anyone to get close enough to remove the pendants from them at all. The damage could have meant they were removed in a struggle, but the blood… He couldn’t stop thinking about when the items had been whole, about the last time he’d seen them on their owners—clinging to Banba’s chest, Touwa’s hands on his and Melto’s shoulders. Green’s hand had been warm, and Black’s heartbeat had been strong and steady through his vest. Just a few hours ago, both had been very much alive. And now… Now they had nothing but blood on a broken necklace and bracelet.

Kindness costs.

Had the brothers paid for his, Melto’s, and Asuna’s hesitation with their lives?

Ui’s phone made a sound, and the screen lit up, making everyone else look at it. Ui tried to reach and pick it up from beneath Asuna’s arm, but her hands were shaking too badly and she only succeeded in dropping it immediately. Melto wobbled upright and retrieved it instead, unlocking the screen in the practiced way he’d achieved after watching Ui do it multiple times.

Looking at the notification, he frowned. “A news alert…?” He shot a glance at Ui, who merely shrugged weakly, going back to leaning on Asuna. Melto’s frown deepened, and he tapped the screen to open the link.

It looked like an ordinary news broadcast—except that the banner running across the bottom of the screen was addressing them directly, demanding their attention. Blue touched Red’s elbow to make him finally look up from staring at the Black and Green pendants. For a moment, the camera was pointed at nothing, and then a hand appeared from offscreen, spinning it around, to focus on…

Kou’s breath stopped.

The clone was still a perfect copy of Master Red in image, but the look in the eyes was completely wrong—void of the kindness and affection that belonged there. And even though he couldn’t stop the way his heart still swelled instinctively at even just seeing his mentor’s face again, there was now a cold prick of realisation; from what Ui had said, the brothers had gone to confront the cloned Masters, and never come back.

That meant that this person, with the face of someone he’d loved and respected, was responsible for the bloodied pendants in his hands.

“This is a message for the three pathetic excuses for knights who ran away.” The fake declared, staring out of the screen like he could somehow see them through it, “And you’d better watch, because this will be your only chance to hear it.” Utter silence filled the room, save for Ui’s muted sniffles. The clone heaved a deep sigh, pacing across the screen. “Your cowardice has forced us to resort to more… Extreme measures.” He came to a short stop, spinning on his heel to face the camera again. “Because you have been so… Unwilling to accept your fate, it has become necessary for us to seek out some more effective… Motivation.” He smiled, then—a frightening, sadistic smile that looked so wrong on that face that Kou almost threw up. “I trust that, by now, you’ve received our gifts.” Red’s hands subconsciously tightened on the pendants in his hands, squeezing so hard the metal bent slightly. “Then you’ll be relieved to learn…” The clone stepped toward the camera, and slowly turned it around, away from him, “… That your precious deserters are still alive.”

All of them let out a collective breath of relief. On the screen were, indeed, Banba and Touwa. They were both chained up to stone pillars in what appeared to be the ruins of another temple, and both looked distinctly worse for wear—but they were, without a doubt, alive. Touwa was fidgeting against the restraints, and though Banba was slumped against the pillar he was secured to, even on the tiny phone screen, they could see he was breathing.

“… They’re alive…” Melto managed, reaching blindly for the table to stable himself. “Thank goodness…” Ui blubbered for a moment, almost smiling—then began crying anew, diving back into Asuna’s shoulder while Pink patted her back—looking ready to faint, like a weight too heavy for even her had been lifted off her back. Kou collapsed into a chair, cradling both the necklace and bracelet to his chest, his grip easing slightly, fingers unlocking.

But the relief quickly became tinged with dread. The phone screen was small and a little hard to see, but there was a wound above Touwa’s elbow and one on his head, blood running down his arm and smeared across his forehead—and there were probably other, smaller injuries that they couldn’t see on the video. Banba, meanwhile, was even worse—it looked like the only thing keeping him upright was the pillar he was chained to; there was an ugly stab wound in his shoulder, another large gash across his chest, and they couldn’t attribute how pale he was to the video quality alone.

And the cruelty they could see in the fake Master’s eyes was the opposite of reassuring.

“Well…” The clone in question mused, stepping back onto the screen with his arms folded, casting a faux thoughtful glance at the two hostages, “… Just barely.” His gaze flicked back to the camera, “And whether they stay that way depends on you three.” A few steps brought him back to the centre, staring directly out of the video again. “Meet us at the entrance to the southernmost temple in four hours. If you don’t…” He sent a dark glance over his shoulder at the brothers, the twisted smile creeping onto his face again. “… The next delivery might be even more bloody.” With an equally terrifying chuckle, he sidled back a step “Don’t worry. Maybe we’ll only kill one of them and give you a second chance. Black doesn’t seem like he’ll last much longer, anyway.” For a moment, the clone pretended to consider again. “Though… Perhaps that gives the perfect opportunity to… Reenforce the message.” He gave some sort of hand sign over his shoulder.

Movement in the background made them suddenly realise that the fake Master Blue and Master Pink were in the scene too; they had been standing in the shadows, but at the clone Red’s signal, they both came forward. The fake Pink produced a RyusoulKen—one of the brothers’—and set it against Touwa’s chest as if to ensure he would stay still. Green was clearly as bewildered as they were—at least, until the fake Blue moved threateningly toward Banba.

Touwa went insane. They could hear him shouting for the clones to stay away, and he began kicking and struggling; but the chains and the sword edge against his chest kept him in place. The clone Blue ignored him completely, nudging Black in the arm with his foot once, like he was checking for a reaction—because when their other hostage shifted slightly and winced, he seemed satisfied. Moving closer, he proceeded to set his foot directly on Banba’s injured shoulder and stepped down on it sharply.

For a moment, nothing happened. The only sounds were Touwa’s protests—though Kou would swear he could see Black’s teeth gritting and his hands clenching as he held it in. But then the false Blue twisted his foot and stepped harder, and even the Majestic Knight’s will broke.

They’d seen Banba in emotional pain before, when Touwa had been hurt. But this was different. Equally awful to hear, but also somehow more horrible—an agonised, broken scream that sounded like it was being dragged from his lung by claws. A cry that all of them knew was going to be permanently burned into their memories as one of the single worst sounds they’d ever heard. The fake didn’t let up, either, and the sound continued, pausing only sporadically when Black tried to breathe.

Ui clamped her hands over her ears and tried to hide in Asuna’s mantle, while Pink closed her eyes and ducked her face into the other girl’s hair. All the colour drained from Melto’s face, and his eyes nearly popped out of his head in horror, but he didn’t look away, even though his hand was shaking almost too badly to hold the phone. Kou clutched the pendants in his hands so tightly, it felt like they were cutting into his palms. On the screen, Touwa had resorted to begging them to stop, his voice cracking.

Finally, the fake Red made another gesture, and the Blue clone moved back, taking his foot off Black’s wound. Banba slumped against the column even more than before, trying to catch his breath while his brother called his name. The fake Pink stepped away from Green as well, tucking the RyusoulKen she was holding back under her arm.

The clone of Master Red turned the camera around to focus on him again. “Four hours.” He reminded them impassively, “Or it’s going to get much worse.” The malicious smirk flashed once more. “Do try not to be late?”

Then the feed cut.

There’s more to this, but demos are supposed to cliffhang to keep people interested, right?

Am I cliffhanging right? I hope both the Demos did cliffhanging right… DX

[taeheyhey]

Close to Normal

Chapter 13 - Not Today (Part Two)

Taehyung x Reader - Fluff/Angst - 3.5k words

A/N - Hi everyone! Hope you have all had amazing weeks and are looking forward to an even better weekend. Me, I'm just trying hard not to get stupid giddy over the fact that Taehyung has dyed his hair dark again just in time for me to see him next week!! I mean, our Taetae looks incredible however his hair is but something about dark-haired V makes me WEAK!! Anyways, I apologise in advance for the angst which is about to follow! Thank you as every for all the lovely feedback and support, I really don't deserve it and I am so grateful for all your kindness!! Enjoy!!!

One ~ Two ~ Three ~ Four ~ Five ~ Six ~ Seven ~ Eight ~ Nine ~ Ten ~ Eleven ~ Twelve ~ Thirteen ~ Fourteen ~ Fifteen ~ Sixteen ~ Seventeen ~ Eighteen ~ Nineteen ~ Twenty ~ Twenty-One ~ Twenty-Two

Not really knowing the reason why, you stood in the street and watched Taehyung’s cab get smaller and smaller as it drove away. It was as though you couldn’t bear to go back inside the bar, as if that would be drawing a line under the time you’d spent together, officially bringing it to a close. Kind of like the in-person equivalent of “you hang up first”.

As the cab finally turned out of sight, you stared at the empty road it had previously occupied and envisioned a car bringing Taehyung back to you the same way later that day, hugging your arms around yourself and allowing a smile to take over your face as you thought about the past few hours and speculated what future hours together may involve.

Finally turning to push open the bar door, you could see Ronnie examining an imaginary smudge on the window with a level of faux-concentration so intense that it made it glaringly obvious he had been keeping watch on the two of you as you said your goodbyes.

“Everything okay there?” You pushed the door closed behind you and hopped on the stool facing the one Ronnie perched atop. You sighed dramatically in response to his heavily loaded question and rested your chin in your upturned palm, grinning widely at him. “I’ll take that as a yes then, should I?”

“I just honestly didn’t believe that people like that existed.” You knew that if you could see your own behaviour you’d most likely be sticking your fingers down your throat and making pretend gagging noises. As it was however you simply sighed again and touched your fingers to your lips, as though to seal Taehyung’s touch to them, only partially noticing Ronnie's offended facial expression.

“How can you say such a thing,” he raised his hand to his chest and pressed just his fingertips to it, the very image of affronted “when you know I exist?”

You leant forward and tapped the top of his hand fondly. “Of course Ronnie, that’s precisely why: you’ve given me such unrealistic expectations.”

“Understandable.” He seemed content with your answer and shifted in his seat, his face serious again, eyeing you questioningly with unspoken worry lining his face. “So...is this guy going to be around for a while?”

You sat back in your seat, turning your gaze to stare out of the window, the smile on your face becoming wistful. “No,” you began, and in your periphery you could see his shoulders relax. “He has to go home in a couple of days.”

“And where is that?” You noticed for the first time that he was drinking coffee rather than beer as he lifted his mug to his lips and peered at you over the rim.

“I’m not really sure.” You answered honestly and forcibly bright, reluctant to admit to yourself the gravity of the truth in your reply. Of course you had managed to work out what country he was from and the language he spoke, but that didn’t necessarily mean that was where he was travelling back to.

Ronnie had been a positive force in your life for as long as you could remember. You knew this inquisition was coming from a place of love and a desire to protect you after you had been failed so often in the past, however you could feel yourself becoming tense as he struggled to keep the relief from his expression at your answers to his questions.

He placed the mug back on the high table and rested his hands flat on the surface either side of it. It was obvious he was trying to formulate a sentence, one that you were unlikely to want to hear, as he inhaled deeply before opening his mouth. “How much do you really know about him, y/n?”

You huffed and rose from your stool to pour yourself a coffee from the pot Ronnie had left on the end of the bar by the phone. Your eyes lingered on the handset in the cradle as the dark liquid filled the cup and remained there as you brought the drink to your lips, wondering how the last couple of days would have gone had you not used it to locate your own phone. Your musings were broken as the bitter drink hit your tongue, and it suddenly became apparent why Ronnie usually opted for beer. “You are not good at making coffee,” you informed him as you tipped the contents of your cup and remnants of the pot down the sink at the back of the bar and set about brewing a fresh batch.

Ronnie followed your movement away from the window and handed over his own mug, silently acquiescing to the poor quality of the drink, still keeping his eyes on your face through the mirror behind the bottles lined up on display. The only sound in the room was the gentle clinking of the crockery as you poured out two mugs, pushing one across the bar’s surface towards Ronnie, still avoiding his question.

He sipped the drink and made a light smacking noise with his mouth in appreciation for the improved taste. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt again, y/n,” he tried to explain. “I saw you with that idiot for four years and it literally ended the day before yesterday. And this...this boy appears out nowhere and – well, you would have to be blind to not be able to see how taken you are with him.”

You could feel your heart sink a little at his words, but hearing the genuine concern in his voice reminded you of how important his opinion was to you, and that he had always had your best interests at heart. “Do you think I’ve read more in to this than there really is?”

You saw his eyebrows draw together as he shook his head emphatically. “No, not at all, I – God, Hannah is so much better than me at this stuff.” He rubbed his hand over the back of his head, clearly frustrated at his lack of eloquence. He took a deep breath and waited for you to meet his eyes. “He looks at you the way I imagine I looked at Maggie.”

You softened at the mention of Hannah’s mother’s name. He rarely mentioned her, and the slightly pained look which crossed his face was confirmation of the weight of his words. You stepped around the bar to wrap your arms around him, ashamed that your actions had somehow caused him distress at the memory of her. “Ah, I’m sorry Ronnie.”

He returned your hug briefly before clearing his throat and checking himself for his minor display of vulnerability, patting you on the back in both reassurance and as an indication that the moment had mostly passed. “Listen, I think whatever is going on between you two is more than just a bit of a fling. Really, I do. But you’re not stupid y/n, you know as well as I do that sometimes things just can’t happen, no matter how well-intentioned the people involved start off. I can’t see you be let down again, okay?”

You understood perfectly why he was worried, you had already told yourself the same things dozens of times since you met Taehyung. You knew that if you tried to explain the sheer intensity of your feelings for him you would only cause Ronnie more concern. Instead, you decided to attempt to express how good you had felt about yourself in the last couple of days, despite everything that happened with Mark and all the upset there. You tried to explain how easily you could make each other smile and laugh without even really speaking the same language, and how – given the amount of lies you’d been subjected to throughout your life – being able to speak the same language may not always be as much of a benefit as it was perceived to be. “And honestly Ronnie,” you began to feel the butterflies flutter around in your stomach as you spoke about Taehyung, and you felt the smile on your face grow wider and wider with each word. “He just makes me feel totally, ridiculously and unbelievably happy.”

He seemed at least partially satisfied with that, apparently convinced by the blatantly ecstatic look on your face as you spoke about your new-found romance. He held his hands up in mock-defeat. “Alright, alright, I’ll lay off. For now. But if he does anything to hurt you – ”

“I know, I know,” you cut him off and mimed a throttling action with both your hands, before kissing him on the cheek and heading back to your room to prepare for your visit to Mark's, confident that not even your ex could ruin this feeling for you.

 ~~~

Taehyung stood motionless in the doorway, his heartbeat pounding in his ears as he could feel the blood drain from his face. He clenched his fists at his side and shifted his gaze between Sang-hun and Seong-min, the eyes of the latter of the two trained somewhere above the top of Taehyung’s head.

“What do you mean, home? We haven’t finished the shoot yet. There’s two more days scheduled. That’s right isn’t it hyung?” He directed his questions to Namjoon, desperately seeking reassurance from their leader.

Namjoon stood and moved next to his dongsaeng and placed a hand on his shoulder, smiling sympathetically as he did so. “They said they can finish it in post, Taehyung-ah. They already changed the flights.” He squoze his hand around the top of Taehyung’s arm in an attempt to comfort and placate him.

Taehyung whipped his head round to Seong-min. “Why are you doing this?” He tried and failed to blink away the petulant tears he could feel beginning to well up in his eyes.

In the corner of his field of vision he saw Jimin rise from his seat and start to make his way over. Seong-min held up a hand to halt his movements and spoke for the first time since his return. “Come and speak with me.” He was evidently surprised by the vitriol present on the young man’s face as he walked towards the door to the bedroom and opened it, gesturing for Taehyung to enter. “Please, Taehyung-ssi.”

Before deciding to comply with his manager’s request he looked over to Jimin, who remained motionless stood in front of his seat, who nodded with a pleading look in his eye as a way to urge him to follow Seong-min.

Sighing deeply, he walked towards the other room, sensing all the member’s eyes on him as he passed. He began to feel guilty at any trouble he had caused for his brothers through his rash decisions over the past few days. This fear was rapidly assuaged however when he felt a soft pat on the back of his leg, and he was surprised to find Yoongi smiling up at him warmly in a clear attempt at consolation; and as he vaguely heard a low “hyung, fighting!” somewhere from Jungkook's direction.

Taehyung perched on the end of the king-size bed as Seong-min closed the door. His eyes followed the manager as he leant his weight on the dresser that was facing him. The older man looked down to his shoes for a moment as he began to try and explain. “I didn’t want for it to happen like this. I need you to understand that, okay?” Taehyung didn’t respond and simply stared at the strangely patterned rug beneath Seong-min’s feet. “When I found that girl in here, I thought we’d had a security breach. I thought someone had broken in to your room and that your safety was at risk. By the time Jimin explained some of what happened everyone was already on alert. I tried to play it down as a misunderstanding after the...erm...footage from the CCTV but there wasn’t a great deal I was able to do about it, the company had already started putting things in place to wind the visit up.”

Taehyung considered the amount of stress he must have put everyone, particularly Seong-min, under by allowing you to sleep in his room and the events that followed as a result of that decision. He was more than aware that – in retrospect – he obviously had not been thinking clearly in your presence, so taken was he with the fantasy of normality with you by his side. He chewed on his lips and raised his eyes contritely. “Hyung, I’m –”

But Seong-min wasn’t finished, and his expression was as determined as it was regretful. “I need you to give me your phone, Taehyung-ssi.”

He placed his hand over the pocket where the device rested reflexively and sat with his mouth agape, blinking dumbly at the manager’s outstretched palm. This couldn’t be happening, could it? The thought of having to leave without saying goodbye was hard enough, but at least he could have called you to offer some semblance of an explanation once they had arrived home and he had some privacy. “Hyung...” he trailed off quietly and felt frustration burn behind his eyes.

Seong-min’s voice lowered to match the softness of Taehyung’s, and he stepped forward to crouch in front of him. “I’m sorry, it’s not my decision. You’ll be given a replacement when we get home but I have to take your phone right now.”

He couldn’t understand how it had gotten to this point. He knew he had acted impulsively since they got here, but they had all done that at some point, they were human after all. Was it really just because you had slept in his room? He tried to remember if that had ever been explicitly forbidden in any of the multitude of agreements he’d had to sign over the years.

As though reading his thoughts, Seong-min spoke again, walking towards the window and pretended to be taking in the view. “After you disappeared last night, everyone was trying to get a hold of you. You vanished alone in a strange country and no one could reach you. The company has decided that allowing you to maintain contact with this girl is too...problematic.”

“Y/n.” Taehyung muttered under his breath as he felt a combination of rage and impotence at this turn of events.

“What?” He was clearly devastated to see his charge so obviously in distress, and even through his anger Taehyung could tell the words the manager spoke were not truly his own.

He walked towards the window to stand beside the man and touched his arm to encourage him to look his way. “Her name is y/n, and she hasn’t done anything wrong. She doesn’t even know who we are, who I am.” He swallowed thickly and licked his dry lips, and he felt his voice crack under the strain of his words. “I’ll give you my phone, okay. I’ll go home and I’ll do everything I’m told to. But...please, hyung, don’t make me leave without saying goodbye to her.”

 ~~~

Something Taehyung said must have struck a chord with his manager, or maybe he had decided this would be the best way to get them all back to Korea with as little resistance as possible, either way his plea was heeded. This was how he found himself – not two hours after he had left you – speeding back towards the bar, this time with Seong-min in tow rather than Jimin, as the rest of the members and staff made for the airport.

His head throbbed and his pulse raced, his heart in his throat. He could see Seong-min glance over at him occasionally, worry etching his face, and as angry as he was he knew he could only really hold himself responsible for this eventuality. His mind alternated between replaying the time you had spent together and presenting him with alternative outcomes based on a variety of different actions he could have taken throughout that time.

When the driver pulled up to the front of the bar, it occurred to him that he didn’t have any idea what he was going to say to you. How on earth could he explain his sudden departure, and for it to make sense, without telling you absolutely everything? Seong-min had told him in no uncertain terms that he had two minutes and not a moment longer, when two hours wouldn’t be enough to explain the whole situation.

He swung his long legs out of the car and quickly strode to the front door, not wanting to waste one second of his brief opportunity to say goodbye and to tell you how wonderful it had been to spend time with you. He squinted through the glass and saw movement behind the bar. He rapped lightly on the door and waved at the figure on the inside, who he immediately established to be Ronnie as he approached the entrance.

“Where is she?” he asked breathlessly as he stared up at the large man opening the door.

“She’s not here.” He simply informed him, before elaborating in response to Taehyung’s blank expression. “She’s gone to get her things. Her clothes and...her other things. From Mark’s.”

At the mention of Mark’s name he understood and he sighed at the poor timing. He nodded rapidly, his eyes darting back and forth as he attempted to formulate a solution. His eyes fell on the phone resting on the corner of the bar and his face lit up. “I can call her?” he asked carefully, walking over to the handset and pointing to it.

“What exactly is going on?” Ronnie saw Taehyung’s line of sight shift to the man leaning on the car parked outside the building looking at his watch, and he felt a twinge of compassion towards the panic-stricken young man, despite not having a clue what was happening. He waved his hand in agreement. “Fine, fine. Go ahead.”

A grateful yet strained smile spread across his fine features and he lifted the handset from the cradle and held it mutely for a moment before realising he didn’t know your number, and he held the phone out towards the puzzled looking older man who was switching between watching Taehyung and Seong-min outside as though spectating a tennis match. “Please will you...her number?”

As confused as he was, to his credit Ronnie stepped forward without asking anything further and punched your number into the keypad. There seemed to be an odd anticipation also present on his face as he watched the younger man lift the phone to his ear, his foot tapping restlessly.

The phone rang and rang and each time Taehyung heard the sound he felt his heart sink a little bit further, and as your voicemail message clicked on Seong-min approached the large window and lifted his left arm to display his watch through the pane of glass.

Taehyung exhaled loudly as he hung up, before beginning to turn on the spot to look around the room for inspiration. He turned to Ronnie who still stood dumbly in the middle of the room, looking utterly bemused by the strange young man spinning around behind his bar. “Do you have a pen?” he asked frantically as his eyes landed on a pile of napkins, immensely thankful that 'pen' was one of the words that didn’t require any translation.

Ronnie reached in to the pocket of the apron he wore tied around his waist and produced a pencil, handing it over to Taehyung and watching as he leant over the napkins, the pencil motionless in his hand as he frowned and tried to work out what to write.

A persistent tapping began from outside and a frustrated groan left Taehyung’s lips. So far he had only managed to write your name, having already practiced the letters and spelling when he left you the note back at the hotel.

Further than that however, his mind refused to cooperate, and – not for the first time – he wished he had paid more attention in the numerous English lessons he had been subjected to. He reached behind his head and unhooked the necklace that rested there most days and slid one of the pendants from it, securing the chain back around his neck once he had done so. He took hold of the pencil again to complete the note, before pressing the red tiger pendant in to the paper and folding it securely inside before handing it to Ronnie, his eyes wet with unshed tears.

He had wanted desperately to tell you much he regretted leaving you. He wanted you to know just how insanely grateful he was that you had pressed the wrong button in that lift. How he wished he could stay here with you and make you understand just how much your time together had meant. Lastly and most importantly, how - no matter what might happen - all he wanted was for you be happy, even if it isn’t because of him.

But there was simply not enough time and he lacked the necessary knowledge to articulate everything he wanted to say. Instead, he had written two words and one letter:

“I’m sorry. V.”

A/N Chapter 14 to be posted next Friday!!

[stillthewordgirl]

LOT/CC fic: Nemesis (Ch 1)

The sequel to "Thief & Assassin," my CaptainCanary/Arrowverse fantasy AU. Leonard and Sara are content as lovers and heads of their respective Guilds in Centralis. However, newcomers to the city may ruin all that-and the peace of the kingdom itself.

I highly suggest reading "Thief & Assassin" before you read this. (Find it here on AO3 or here on FF.net.) Many thanks to LarielRomeniel for the beta and Pir8grl for the title.

Can also be read here at AO3 or here at FF.net.

Sara woke in warmth, wrapped in a pair of strong arms, content. It took her a moment to register the context, helped by the scent of mint and leather, but when she did, she relaxed again, sighing into Len’s collarbone, tightening her arms again, reminding herself that it was just a dream.

Even as blue light flickered along the edges of her vision.

After a few moments, though, she glanced up again, judging the faint light as it shone on the wall opposite the window, then sighed.

“Len,” she whispered.

“Mmfh,” was the result.

“Len.” Sara smiled a little against his collarbone. “Remember. It’s your first day on the Council.”

A long silence.

Then, muttered, “Was dead when you all agreed to that.”

Sara snorted, hiding the pang the words caused. “You weren’t dead. You were just…elsewhere.”

“Still didn’ agree.”

“Well, then you shouldn’t have waited until…” She lifted her head a little, squinting. “…less than two candlemarks until the meeting to argue.”

Another muffled noise. Definitely profanity.

Sara waited a moment. Then, smirking, she leaned forward and nibbled, delicately, on his collarbone.

The sound Len made was satisfying incoherent. He opened his eyes just enough for Sara to see a sliver of blue, then closed them again.

So she did it again.

The noise this time was even rougher. Hands wrapping around her shoulder blades convulsively, nearly spanning her back as he just barely kept his blunt nails from digging into her skin, Len tightened his arms. He stretched against her, and oh holy hells, maybe that was a bad idea. Sara dragged in a rough breath herself, attempting to keep herself from wrapping her legs around him, then tried to find her voice again.

“Len,” she said raggedly. “You don’t have court clothes here. You have…”

There was that glimpse of blue again, beneath lashes, just a flash. And that…that jerk smirked at her!

“Well,” he purred. It was definitely a purr. “Guess I can’t go.”

Sara narrowed her eyes at him. “Leonard…”

“Ah, it’s ‘Leonard’ now, is it?” Abruptly, he ducked his head and kissed her, deeply, soundly. Sara gave in, moving convulsively against him, moving her own hands to go flat against his lower back, pressing him closer.

Given their activities of last night, the ones that had led to Len staying there where he probably shouldn’t have, neither one of them is precisely clothed. OK, they’re not clothed at all. And it doesn’t take much, not so much at all, for her to squirm around underneath him, pulling him on top of her, and…

He was definitely going to be late.

Leonard was, quite technically, late to his first Council meeting. He sauntered into the palace room as if he wasn’t, though, looking remarkably well-put-together, he thought, for someone who’d borrowed the Assassins Guild’s fastest horse, been chased by guards on his way here (until Barry had called them off—he’s going to hear about that later) and had a hasty wash-up in his rooms before pulling on the spare court outfit there.

To his amusement, Rip wasn’t there yet—which meant, of course, that Len was only technically late. The smirk on his face grew as he made his way to an empty seat, hearing the talk in the room pause briefly. Well, so far, they’ve dealt with Harrison, Sara, and Martin in the new Guild seat. They’ll manage with him.

He’d forgotten, however, that his role as the head of the Thieves Guild wasn’t the reason they were staring. Or, at least, not the only reason.

Although he was abruptly recalled to it when he heard someone whisper “Druce.”

And then “time stone.”

And then “resurrected.” Uttered in a tone of utter reverence.

Len turned his head casually toward the last speaker, a young man from the Declan family. The fellow colored as he saw Len’s gaze, but didn’t look away and…ah, hell, what was he going to do with a Council member with a bona fide hero worship case/crush on him?

He wasn’t the only one staring either. Not all, or most, of the looks were like that, thank gods, but there was also wonder, awe, fear. He was the man who vanished into time and came back, and although he didn’t remember a damned thing about it (except maybe in his dreams), apparently the tale had made an impression.

But then Rip swept in to the room, looking a bit harried as usual, Gideon trailing serenely in his wake, and the Council members stood. And Len decided to leave it be. For now.

Sara wasn’t unhappy that she got to have a slightly more relaxed morning, although after Len’s hasty departure she’d still chosen to get out of bed, washing and dressing and having a semi-leisurely breakfast before letting the apprentice at the door know she was available.

She also had a few scheduled appointments, with people who wanted to contract a member of the Guild. The first was a major “no” nearly immediately, as it became clear that the intense man with the abrupt manner wanted someone to eliminate the man who’d married the woman he “loved.” Sara ascertained quickly that the woman had married the other man willingly, even happily, and turned the would-be patron down flat with a warning—and then dumped him out on his ear when he’d reacted badly. That’d been fun.

The next appointment had been with a high-end jeweler who wanted to hire particularly lethal-looking protection for the opening of his new shop in the noble district. Sara took a shine to him, and they’d quickly hashed out a contract for two members of the Guild, to be chosen by her.

And then there was the third. The quiet woman, well dressed and wearing a ring betokening her mastery in the Artisans Guild, told Sara that her former spouse was effectively stalking her and her two daughters, terrifying the girls and saying he was going to take them away, warning people away from her business of making and selling handwoven shawls with false claims of poor quality, and threatening her with death or worse whenever he could find her without witnesses.

The Guard had warned him multiple times and posted a detail outside her shop, but they couldn’t be everywhere…and while they could and had taken him into custody before, they couldn’t hold him forever. Not unless he did something more…at which point it could be rather too late.

Sara would do further investigation first, of course, but she was already inclined to take the contract the other woman, desperately, delicately, offered. Perhaps personally.

“No woman should ever suffer at the hands of men,” she told Master Anna seriously. “Come back in a few days. And we’ll talk again.”

After all that, she spent an hour or so continuing in her project to renovate Darhk’s former quarters, with the eager apprentice Sin helping her haul out the things she deemed safe enough and setting aside any items she wanted to have a representative of the Mages Guild check first before disposing of. Sara was just considering a dagger she’d found in an oddly elaborate box, found in a hidden compartment in the closet, when she glanced up at a noise at the door.

She climbed to her feet immediately, smiling, setting the box aside. “Amaya!”

The other woman smiled and happily accepted Sara’s hug. “Oh, come on. It hasn’t been that long!”

“Well, it feels like it.” Once Sara had settled into the Assassins Guild, her friend had decided to take a set of rooms off Guild row and investigate the other Guilds, trying to find where she fit in in this new environment. She had been spending a great deal of time with Len’s old friend and second in the Thieves Guild, Mick, but the big man rather notably hadn’t been mentioning her lately and Sara hadn’t seen her in her own visits to that Guild hall.

She paused, studying Amaya, who was wearing her traditional Zambesi garb today and looking amused and curious. “Are you and Mick…”

“Ah.” The other woman glanced away. “I haven’t seen him. Recently. Is he…well?”

“Well enough, from what I’ve seen.” Sara regarded her a moment longer.  “The historian?” she said with a sigh. “Is that it?”

Raymond Palmer A’Stella, the head of the city Artificers Guild, had introduced Sara and Amaya to his friend Nathaniel, the city historian and an instructor at the University, when they’d been trying to learn more about Zaman Druce in the aftermath of…of the Oculus incident. Sara had noticed that her friend and the historian had hit it off, but she’d been rather distracted herself at the time…and Mick and Amaya, she’d thought, had been approaching something, although Sara herself hadn’t had the heart to inspect it too closely at the time.

Amaya smiled at her, but her expression seemed uncertain, a bit. “He’s a good man.”

“I’m sure, but…” Sara let her voice train off. “As long as you’re happy.” Amaya still seemed uncertain, though, and Sara decided to change the subject. “I think I need a break.” She brushed off her tunic, smiling at her friend. “How about some lunch?”

Amaya seemed a little relieved. “That would be lovely. There’s a new place near city center that’s actually supposed to have some Zambesi-inspired dishes. Would you be willing…”

“Sounds great.” Sara turned and saw Sin, sitting on the floor surrounded by discarded papers and watching them wide-eyed. “Sin? Would you like to come with us?” She smiled at the girl as Sin bounded to her feet. “A thank you for all you’re helping me with.”

“Really? I can?” The girl looked ecstatic, then clearly tried to regain her calm. “I may, I’d like to very much, Master Assassin. If that is OK.”

“I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t mean it.” Sara briefly wondered if the Council meeting had let out yet, then smirked to herself, imagining Len’s reaction if it hadn’t. “OK, ladies. Let’s go.”

The Council meeting lasted far longer than even Len had feared. He’d hoped, with the old Council gone, that things were going to be a little less…well, long. Drawn-out. Combative.

Well, they weren’t really the last. But the newcomers wanted to talk about everything, including ways to make sure a Druce situation didn’t happen again. And new rules. Lots of rules.

So. Many. Rules.

With a sigh, Leonard walked back into the Guild hall, nodding to the apprentice there…and nearly walking right into the man who rose from one of the armchairs in the entry chamber.

“Greetings,” the man said smoothly. “I’m looking for Guild Master Leonard Snart.”

Len buried the flinch he felt. “I don’t use that name,” he told the stranger, knowing that his tone was a little harsh. “Just Leonard A’Centralis. And you are?”

The other man, brown-haired and fairly unremarkable, gave him a thin smile. “Eobard Thawne.” He paused, as if Leonard should know the name, then continued. “I knew your father, once. And…”

But Leonard had held up a hand. He had a feeling this was a conversation he wanted to move to his office. Anything involving Lewis tended to be. “Let’s take this elsewhere.” He motioned toward the stairs. “Follow me, please.”

Eobard—Leonard hadn’t missed that he hadn’t provided a patrial—did so amenably enough, and once they were there, he declined to take a seat, watching Leonard closely. So, Leonard did the same, standing, considering him.

“Lewis has been gone a while,” he told the other man, trying to keep his own distaste out of his voice. “And I will admit, I’ve never heard of you. I’m not sure if I can help you.”

Eobard gave him another one of those bland smiles. “I understand that he is now…deceased,” he said. “But…my associates…and I are looking for a talented thief, and I understand that you are, to all accounts, far better than he.” He tilted his head. “So. Are you interested in a job?”

Leonard gave him a thin smile in return. “Not that interested in anything Lewis was, personally,” he drawled. “But you want to tell me more about it, perhaps I can find someone who will fit your needs.”

The other man’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t lose that bland smile. “We shall see,” he said after a moment. “I’d hoped to keep this just between us.” A shrug. “Well, then, I think before I make any further requests, I need to look into another piece of the puzzle.” He paused. “Is the Assassins Guild still down the row? The red brick building?”

All the alarms went off in Leonard’s head.

“It is,” he said promptly, hiding them. “But I don’t think they have appointment hours today.” They did and he knew it, but if he could just stall this oddly unsettling man a little longer, they’d be over. And he could warn Sara first. He considered Thawne thoughtfully as the man frowned.

Sara could deal with things herself. Len knew that. But that didn’t mean he was that inclined to ignore the ripple of instinctive alarm that this Thawne caused in him.

“You know, I think I need more information before I can truly turn down the job myself, if it’s that important,” he said before the other man turned away, layering cold confidence and utterly justifiable ego into his voice. “I am the best. But the price would have to be worth it.”

Thawne’s expression changed again. It became almost smug, as though he figured he had Leonard hooked for reasons he hadn’t revealed yet.

“Oh, it is,” he said simply, stepping back toward one of the chairs. “Shall we talk?”

Lunch, with its Zambesi spices, was pleasantly hot, and while Sara had to get poor Sin an additional carafe of water (or two) after even her milder meal, they all enjoyed it. Sara and Amaya, still catching up, decided to go for a stroll in the marketplace after, watching Sin go from stall to stall while eagerly looking at all the wares.

“I don’t know,” Amaya was saying, smiling as she watched the girl looking wide-eyed at a mask-makers stall. “I thought about joining the Mages Guild, but it’s just not the same…the same sort of magic, not really.” She touched the totem at her throat. “Still, I’m intrigued about the work they’re doing there. And there’s not a true Warriors Guild here. There’s the army and the Triple Guard…and the Assassins Guild, which really does need a new name, you know.”

Sara smiled a little, thoughtfully. “I’ve thought about it. You’re really right; it’s not what we really do. A holdover, really, from when the League started the Guild…” She laughed as Amaya turned to her, eyes wide. “Ah, you didn’t know that, did you? Most people don’t. Many years ago, in this very city. Then it spread.” She shook her head. “But the connection’s not really there any more, not in most cases. And, well, that’s not all or even most of what the Guild does anymore.”

Amaya raised both eyebrows but smiled and didn’t ask. “That’s true. Well, I’ve been at the University a lot too, lately, reading in the library, which is how I met Nate again, and…well.”

“It’s Nate, is it?” Sara tried to keep her thoughts from showing. She liked Mick. “Well, if he makes you happy.”

“He does.” But Amaya’s smile didn’t seem to meet her eyes this time and she shrugged, stopping to look at a mask herself, a lioness worked in rich brown and golden leather. “How’s Leonard?”

“Well.” Sara knew the smile on her own face might be a little foolish, but that was OK. She reached out to run a fingertip along the smooth surface of a mask that had caught her eye, a white falcon with black-edged feathers, fierce-looking and beautiful. “He’s well. Although he filled in at his first Council meeting today and he wasn’t all that happy about that.”

“Ouch.” Amaya chuckled. “Yeah, I can see that. How…”

But Sara had looked away at that moment, toward a flicker of motion that had somehow caught her eye, and her breath caught in her throat as she saw what seemed to be a familiar set of features.

It couldn’t be.

Still, she started that way, needing to know, needing to know if her mind was playing a particularly dirty trick on her, if this particular ghost of her past was still a ghost or if it was all too real.

She heard Amaya ask a question, heard Sin’s voice rise, but Sara was already gone, pushing through the crowd, chasing the figure in black. It stayed just ahead of her, and she thought he…it…was gone a few times, but she kept going, trying to ignore the pounding of her heart and the questions she couldn’t avoid.

And then she burst into an open area, saw a dark figure to her right, and turned that way…and there he was, right on the shore of the canal that wound its way through the city, looking as casual as if he’d been waiting for her.

“Well, well.” Malcolm Merlyn smirked at her, leaning against a tree, looking unsurprised. “If it isn’t the woman who wouldn’t stay dead.”

Sara glanced behind herself involuntarily, but Amaya and Sin hadn’t caught up to her yet, and she looked back around to glare at Malcolm. “What the hell are you doing here?”

The dark-haired man continued to smirk at her. “I’m here with a…a colleague, of sorts,” he said, studying Sara. “Though I guess I should warn him off his visit to the Assassins Guild.” He nodded to the emblem she wore openly. “I’m guessing Damien is dead. Pity.”

Sara didn’t dignify it with an answer, taking a step closer. “You’re not welcome here, Malcolm.”

Merlyn shrugged. “Oh, but I am. I’m on business.”

“And you were responsible for a large number of deaths in Stella, not all that long ago. I’m sure the Guard would be very interested to know that,” Sara shot back. “As would the king.”

The man lifted his eyebrows dramatically. “Oh, does little Sara have friends in high places these days? Interesting.” He shrugged again. “Well, I know plenty about you as well. I suggest that you hold your tongue. And I’ll do the same. M’kay?”

Sara took in a quick breath, but then she heard “Sara!” from behind her. She spun, seeing Amaya and Sin round the corner, heading in her direction.

“We completely lost track of you,” Amaya said, studying her as she came to a halt. “What were you doing?”

Sara turned back around…but she was too late.

Malcolm Merlyn was gone.

“I saw...a ghost,” she told them numbly, staring at the place where he’d stood. “Just a ghost.”

[emathevampire]

uploading as a real photo post this time... and in somewhat better quality. Rough sketch of my plans for paintings for him, whether I get around to that or not has yet to be seen, but if I don’t at least there’s these!

The tragic tale of Amanthos Panideios as told by Tarot: his life, death, undeath, and ultimately his corruption into an Archfiend. Hopefully, I will earn him redemption and a true happy ending before his story is over... but have the meaning and such behind each of these under the cut.

The Lovers: Amanthos was at the middle of a polyamorous triad for roughly 500 years, the other two being Psamion (a dashing sailor who often visited his library on business for Kíhyué) and Arekos (a gifted necromancer who had been Amanthos’ best friend since they were children). Psamion seduced these two individually, and thought little of it until Arekos asked him how he managed to get Amanthos’ attention romantically, since he had been trying for centuries to no avail. Psamion simply laughed and told him to be blunt, as he knew Amanthos wanted a more committed, constant companion to fill the void Psamion left while he was away, but was afraid his feelings would not be reciprocated, or worse, that he would be made to choose between the two, so he kept to himself to avoid ruining his most valued friendship. Fortunately, the three of them came together to sort out that fear, and were quite happy together until fate called their foundation away.    It also represents how he was (and still is) a useless multiclassing bastard. He could never choose between one path or another, dabbled in a little bit of everything, and it held him back for a long time until that choice got made for him. He could have been so many things with an Intelligence score that high, a wizard, a death master, anything else, but instead chose to pursue monkhood, martial prowess, and more doctorate degrees than any sane being ever would, content to be a librarian for the rest of his days... but it was not meant to be. Eventually, he would be chosen to serve his god of knowledge in a way only he could... and it wasn’t a chance he could refuse.

Nine of Swords: The Ritual of Crucimigration. In order to travel the stars to receive the answers he asked of them, Amanthos would have to die. And it would be no ordinary death, either. He would need to be transformed into an undead. Ordinarily, unless the proper funeral rites are performed, his race of elves become ghosts bound to their corpses when they die, rapidly deteriorating mentally while their bodies rot away, and they cannot become undead any other way unless specially blessed by their gods with Lichdom, or unless they turn their backs on the gods entirely. A Lich would be too powerful to leave the universe, but a Necropolitan would be able to escape it. Their gods have no influence outside of their universal sphere, and if he were to leave it alive he would rapidly age and die as he turned into a normal elf and his soul would be lost. So, the only way the gods could continue to protect him outside their sphere would be to allow this ritual, simultaneously blessing him with what protection they can give, and cursing him to be forever banished from their afterlife.    The ritual required a Death Master to oversee it, and he begged his sister Nikiti to request the position, not wanting to be alone, needing someone he trusted to be there for him. She turned him down when he asked, as she couldn’t bear the thought of doing what had to be done to him, but the Ruby Knights selected her for the task anyway as she was the most skilled for the level required... and she could not refuse the demands of her order.    As per the ritual, Amanthos is affixed to a pole with cursed nails and subjected to grueling torture for 24 hours, before the last spike is driven through his heart. The physical pain pales before the spiritual agony of glimpsing Aetherius, feeling the precious release, Lady Death’s sweet embrace, and being dragged back into his corpse away from it all, watching the gates close to him forever before opening his eyes once more to the world he was destined to leave.

The Hermit: After leaving his home planet, it is difficult to calculate for certain how long he spent exploring the galaxy before he left, but it is somewhere between 100 and 200 years. Alone, with nothing but his books and his wits about him, and the faded, worn scraps of paper containing messages and memories from his loved ones. While he learns a great deal, ultimately he runs out of uninhabited planets and empty expanses of space, and decides to test his theories and explore the Black Hole.

The Devil: Going through the Black Hole was a bad fucking plan.    I kind of want to just leave it at that, because really, I feel like that’s the best summary I can give, but I’ll go into details anyway. Essentially, he got spit out into a different universe: the remains of a collapsed timeline where the Blood War spilled out onto all planes of existence, and it is Hell On Earth with Asmodeus and a replacement for Dispater as the last two Lords of the Nine standing against the endless tides of demons, doing everything in their power to keep the hordes at bay.    The Lord of Dis is simply a warforged doing his best to be a good person, despite the vile deeds he is contractually bound to commit. He created Sanctuary: a place on the second layer where those who weren’t evil in life have a chance to escape the horrors of the Blood War and live in peace for as long as they can, before ultimately their souls are harvested and condemned to Hell. There is, however, if enough people work together, a chance to escape once and for all: an ever-changing maze full of clockwork monsters, puzzles, and tests of mettle.    Amanthos, knowing none of this, but being trapped in this artificial paradise, knows he must escape it by any means necessary if he wants to return home. And escape he does: he rallies maze running parties, teams up with each gate’s party, and after a long year of hard work finally manages to unlock the way out. Only, as with all things Infernal, there is a catch.    Unit Two, as the Lord of Dis calls himself, wants to die. He thought he could help, fix things, make Hell better from the inside and fight the system, but Asmodeus tricked him into believing this could be done. He doesn’t have enough power to do it on his own, but if nine people kill him, Asmodeus is in a right mess without a council to do his bidding, and they might be able to succeed where he failed. It’s the only way to save the friends they had to leave behind in Sanctuary, and the only way to have a hope at finally ending the Blood War once and for all, which is what Asmodeus has been trying to do all along... by making Hell On Earth, ruling the material plane with an iron fist, he can simply take all the souls and make fiendish evil the law of the land. So, Two offers the group a choice: take his private spaceship and flee this hellish world while they still can, or take the scroll that makes him mortal and end his torment.    The group promises to come back for him, taking both the scroll and the spaceship, and adventures in search of things they might be able to use to win the fight, as naturally they were all intimidated by the 30ft tall hunk of solid adamantine with godlike power. But no matter what they did, they were bound to return, as they could not justify condemning their friends to Hell... and eventually came back to fight with a few tricks up their sleeves.    The battle was hard-won, with many casualties, Amanthos among them. But when Asmodeus showed up to inspect the wreckage, the party demanded he be brought back to advocate on their behalf. The party was made an offer they could not refuse, the chance to end evil forever, if they had the guts to do what had to be done to end it... and thus Asmodeus walked free, and the world itself rewritten as Tetsu became the new Asmodeus, Belle became the new Dispater, and the rest took seats on the Council of Nine, steeling themselves for the damnation that awaited them as they would fight, by any and all means necessary, to end the cancer of the Abyss forever.

   Amanthos is, legally, chained to his position as an Archdevil. He can send avatars out into the world and even other worlds, but he himself must remain, doing all he can to resist temptation and stave off the inevitable corruption that awaits him. So, in truth, what returns to his homeworld is but an image of what he wishes he still were: undead, but uncorrupted, untouched by the knowledge that in truth he lost his soul, believing that he won. He only hopes that this avatar will return soon with someone who is truly capable of doing the job he must do in the interim, since truth be told, he really doesn’t have the stomach for it. He may not be a saint, and honestly, not even a good person... but by all the gods he loves so dearly, he could never be an evil one.

[sweetiepie08]

Long Road to Forgiveness (Chapter 6)

Another story originally posted on FF.net.

Ninety six years is a long time to hold a grudge. Imelda carried her anger into the after-life and never thought she’d let go. He left her. He made her raise her daughter on her own. And worst of all, he forced Coco to grow up without her beloved Papa. No matter how much he begged, no matter what his excuse was, she would never forgive him.

Chapter 1. Chapter 2. Chapter 3. Chapter 4. Chapter 5. Chapter 6. Chapter 7. 

Despite her best efforts to erase her husband from her life, He kept popping up in one inescapable way. She and Héctor had a child together, and from there her family grew. Héctor’s genetics flowed through her family tree just as much as hers did. She loved her family, both those she met in life and those she visited after death. But every so often, she’d notice one trait, one quirk, one distinct quality, would crop up in her family members which was undeniably Héctor.

She saw him everywhere. He was in Coco’s irrepressible love of music (despite the ban), in Victoria’s perpetually thin build, and even Elena (who was most like Imelda personality-wise) had Héctor’s overly-affectionate ways. Part of her was glad Coco only had girls. It lessoned the risk of facing his spitting image in her own grandchildren.

When she visited the later generations every Dia de los Muertos, he continued to show up. Berto had his love of horrible puns (and wore the same cheeky grin when someone groaned in response). Gloria had his rebellious streak and ability to easily knock back a shot. Enrique looked like a mix of Franco and Héctor (the ears-to-nose ratio was Héctor’s for sure) and displayed the same gentle care towards his family that Héctor did once upon a time. Abel had his clumsiness and Rosa had his sharp wit. But the most egregious offender of all was her great great grandson, Miguel.

The boy didn’t look much like him in the face. In fact, Imelda thought he most resembled his mother, Louisa. It was his manner, his very way of being. The others all had a trait or two here or there. Miguel was the complete package. Imelda didn’t know Héctor as a child, but she heard plenty of tales, enough to know he was a trouble maker. It seemed the same for Miguel. The dead side of the family often tried to guess what trouble the poor boy got himself into that year. More than once, Imelda visited the ofrenda to find Elena sighing about what to do with that boy.

At age 6, he ate the sugar skull meant for Rosita and spent a good hour pouting on a bench in the corner. (He was only supposed to be in time out for a few minutes and write an apology letter to Rosita, but he decided to be dramatic instead. Rosita appreciated the letter, though, especially the skull he drew as a replacement.) At age 8, he fed a few table scraps to a street dog on their way to the graveyard. The dog then followed them and ate up half their offerings. At age 10, he placed a candle too close to a sting of papel picado and it caught on fire. It was a complete accident and Enrique managed to put out the fire quickly, but Miguel still spent half the evening hiding in his room out of guilt. More than once, Imelda visited the ofrenda to find Elena sighing about what to do with that boy.

He really was a good kid despite his troublemaking. He never meant anything maliciously and was so sweet once he decided to give up the dramatics. In fact, Imelda saw plenty of evidence of his big heart, especially with how he treated his Mama Coco. He was friendly, lively, and clever. He just didn’t always think things through. (Sort of like some other person she knew).

That night he wound up in the Land of the Dead, when she had the rare opportunity to interact with her living relative, she couldn’t help but see all of the nuances that just screamed Héctor. His sheepish grin, the way he grabbed his arm when nervous, the dimple that winked at her with every changing expression, all belonged to Héctor. And then, of course, there was the music. Oh the music! One might think she threatened to take away his air supply the way he reacted. So dramatic, so rebellious, it was like she was raising Coco all over again.

He managed to cut her deep, though, just like Coco once did. When he accused her of ruining his life, she let it roll off her back. He was at that age. Just adolescent dramatics. Everything was a matter of life and death. Never mind that getting him home really was a matter of life and death. He really thought music was the only thing to live for and losing it felt like the end of the world. He was just being a silly kid, she thought. She was sure he’d see it her way once he got older. But first, she had to make sure he had the chance to get older. Desperate to earn his trust, she sang. She sang for the first time in years, for the first time in decades. She was right. He stopped and listened. He listened to her story and her reasons. He’d understand now, surely.

But no, just like Coco he had his own ideas. He said he didn’t want to pick sides. He said he wanted her support, and he let a tear fall because he thought he’d never get it. It sent a sharp pain through her chest. He believed it. He truly believed she wouldn’t support him and, in a way, he was right. He had no reason to believe she would. His entire life, to that point, was built around their family’s ban on music, a ban that lasted nearly a century. He thought she would let him die over something as silly as music. He thought she didn’t love him enough to see past that. He was wrong, of course. If it came down to the wire, she’d send him back conditions or no conditions. What hurt so much, however, was that he had no reason to believe she would. He did, however, have every reason to believe his own great-great grandmother would let him die. She said it herself. “You go home my way, or no way.”

Regret and fear settled in the pit of her would-be stomach as she continued her search. As she flew through the air on Pepita’s back, she berated herself in her mind over and over again. How could she put conditions on her blessing? How could she imply that the music ban was more important than his life? Of course he’d run from her. What kind of mother denies her children their lives? For what? To stop him from playing music? It was just a phase, for all she knew. Coco went through similar phases at his age and she turned out just fine. She just didn’t want him to make the same mistakes her husband made.

Eventually, Pepita spotted the little Xolo dog who followed Miguel around. It’s barking led them to a cenote where they finally found him. Miguel laughed when Pepita roared and he smiled when their eyes finally met. She wanted an explanation as to how he got down there, but there’d be time for that later. He was still flesh, they still had time, and he was apparently done running away.

But then her eyes found him. Héctor, her useless husband. She should have figured Miguel would find his way to that musician. Oh, it was all coming together now. She didn’t know how or why, but whatever the reason they wound up in that sinkhole, Héctor had something to do with it. She growled as she said his name. He grinned his sheepish grin, nervously grabbed his arm, and threw out a compliment, as if that would soften her. He couldn’t melt her heart now, not when his carelessness nearly got their great-great grandson killed.

Reluctantly, she let him ride Pepita out of the cenote. She couldn’t very well get an explanation out of him if she didn’t. Besides, she couldn’t just leave him down there. She wasn’t heartless. When they landed, that idiot tried to help her down. As if she needed help dismounting her own alebrije. As if she ever needed his help for anything. She proved she didn’t long ago. With a scoff, she made point of dismounting from the other side.

“M’ijo, I was so worried,” she cried as Miguel launched himself into her arms. This was right. Her family was together again. Miguel was no longer afraid of her. Somewhere along the way, he learned to see reason. It was a near miracle too, considering his company.

She stepped forward, ready to unleash every harsh word she had for Héctor. She almost lost her great-great grandson tonight and she wasn’t sure how, but she knew Héctor had to be at fault for something. But then, Miguel cut in. He defended Héctor and claimed everything was his own fault. He even claimed Héctor told him nothing was more important than family. She couldn’t believe that. How could he claim to value family after abandoning his own? She was about to argue this point, but Miguel interrupted her again.

“He wanted to go back to you and Coco, but Ernesto de la Cruz murdered him.”

Imelda stopped as, suddenly, everything clicked into place. The last 96 years finally made sense. Why the letters stopped so abruptly, why Ernesto had the guitar, why no one, not friends, not family, ever heard anything from Héctor again. Why he still looked so painfully young… Ernesto claimed there were other girls, but that had to be a lie. She could see that now. Ernesto lied to cover up his crimes. No, it was more than that. He lied to keep Imelda from asking questions. And it worked. Her fury rose. She’d been made a fool of the whole time and she didn’t even know it.

But…but no. This didn’t change anything. Héctor left, even if he did try to come back. He let her for…how long was it? The letters stopped at nine or ten months. That must have been when he was… “So what if it’s true?” she shouted. “You leave me alone with a child to raise and I am just supposed to forgive you?”

Before he can answer, his body shimmered gold and he collapsed. Instinctively, she knew what it was. She’d never seen the final death before, but now it hung like a shadow over her husband. His words confirmed it. He explained it was Coco and Imelda knew right away what he meant. Coco never let her father’s memory go. Now she’s the last thing keeping him tethered to this world. He would have faded long ago if Imelda had her way. The guilt washed over her again. “I wanted to forget you,” she began. Somehow, without a throat, she felt it tighten. “I wanted Coco to forget you too, but-”

“This is my fault, not yours.” His eyes were gentle and sincere, just like they were the last time she saw him alive. “I’m sorry.”

Something strange happened in her, then; like a weight suddenly lifted. This, she realized, this sincere apology, was all she ever wanted. Every time in the past, he tried to woo her like he did when they were young and she took it as a cheap gimmick to win her back. She turned him away before he could get too close. What might have happened, she wondered, if he came to her without his usual theatrics, if she let him get explain himself, if they just sat down and talked about what happened…

No, it was too late for what-ifs. She made her choice long ago to go on without him. If he didn’t want her, she didn’t want him. But that wasn’t really the case, was it. He loved her, and he loved Coco. He loved them though decades of loneliness. He loved them despite being denied the chance to see them. He still loved them and never stopped. He deserves to see her, she admitted to herself. He deserves to see her at least one last time. And yet, she couldn’t let it go. She built her life on her independence, on her need to be the sole pillar of support for her family. She built it all on the belief that she never needed him, that his abandonment couldn’t bring her down. She vowed long ago never to forgive him, and she still couldn’t break her vow.

“I can’t forgive you,” she said. His face crumbled, Miguel crumbled. Even her family behind her seemed disappointed. It was true. She wasn’t ready for forgiveness yet, but she was ready for something else. “But I will help you.”

[-]

The plan started off smoothly enough. They managed to sneak back stage undetected and everyone seemed clear on the plan. After confirming everyone had a petal, they started off. Although, they barely made it around a corner before she nearly ran into Ernesto. The rest of her family stopped and hid in a corridor. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Héctor put a protective arm out in front of Miguel. At least, with this, they were on the same page. Miguel needed his protection far more than she did.

She looked up at Ernesto with his artificial smiled and arrogant swagger. How dare he flash that grin at her? He tried to kill her great-great grandson tonight. He had no right to the ease he carried himself with. Was he just as calm and collected on the night he murdered her husband? Did he smile then?

All her fury and bitterness over the years finally had a clear target, the correct target. He was the reason her husband never came home. He was the reason Coco grew up without her beloved father. He was the reason for the anger that stuck with her for nearly a century. The image of Coco crying herself to sleep on her fifth birthday came to her in a flash. Her boot found her hand just as fast. She’d smack that grin off his face.

His head spun multiple times. “That’s for murdering the love of my life!” She declared, brandishing her boot.

He looked dumbfounded and stammered stupidly. He really had the nerve to not know what she was talking about. You know what you did you coward.

Héctor jumped to her side. “She’s talking about me.” He gave Ernesto a glare then turned his melting eyes onto her. “I’m the love of your life?”

“I don’t know, I’m still angry at you.”

“Héctor?” Ernesto growled. “How did you-”

Oh how cute. He thought he could intimidate them. Imelda smacked him again. “And that’s for trying to murder my grandson!”

“Grandson?”

“She’s talking about me,” Miguel said, stepping out of the shadows.

“You? Wait, you’re related to Héctor?”

So the big superstar was finally putting it all together. They didn’t pause for explanations. Miguel pointed out the photo in Ernesto’s pocket. The rest of her family came out to stand with them. Together, they loomed over Ernesto.

He ran. The coward.

[-]

It was done. Miguel was back where he belonged. In some ways, they accomplished much more than they meant to. They sent Miguel back to the Land of the Living. That was most important. But they also managed to reveal Ernesto as a murderer and a fraud to the whole Land of the Dead, or at least they had more than enough witnesses to spread the word. News like this would spread like wildfire. Ernesto’s days of profiting off of her family’s pain were over.

But they still failed at one very important task. Héctor would fade. That much was inevitable, despite Miguel’s assurances that he’d make Coco remember. At no point was saving Héctor truly part of the plan. All they could do, all they tried to do, was let him finally go home to his little girl. But they couldn’t even give him that.

He shivered violently as the gold shimmers enveloped him. He was hanging on. For whatever reason, he still clung to this world. There was no hope. Why did he hang on? Why didn’t he let himself pass peacefully? Why didn’t her stupid husband just go easy on himself for once?

She’d hold him, though. She’d hold him till the end. At the very least, she could give him that. When he shimmered, he felt like barely more than nothing in her hands. Her family gathered round. Julio took of his hat respectfully. They all knelt around him with mournful looks on their faces. She couldn’t help but notice how similar it all looked to her own death. But one very important person was missing.

Just like her own death, there was so much to say, but not enough words. She wasn’t sure what she could say. That she missed him? That she wished they had more time? That she wished she didn’t waste what they got? That she loved him, even after everything? Would he even be able to hear her? Words didn’t work so, like her own daughter did for her, she hummed softly. She hummed the same melody that Coco hummed to her.

The sun rose around them. It looked cheerful and it angered her. Unfair is what it was; unfair that the his last sunrise was beautiful when he couldn’t open his eyes to see it, unfair that he loved his daughter so much but never got to watch her grow up, unfair that she was about to lose him again just when she got him back. Life wasn’t fair. She knew that. She told Coco and her granddaughters that countless times. But they weren’t alive.

After several agonizing minutes, the shimmering stopped. Her eyes were closed, but she still felt weight in her hands. Still, she didn’t let herself hope. There was no sense in hoping against the inevitable. She felt two hands fall on her shoulders and her brothers said, “Imelda, look.”

She opened her eyes to see Héctor, still whole, slightly even more solid in her arms. He slowly opened his eyes. “Imelda?”

“Héctor?” She couldn’t believe it, didn’t want to believe it. She didn’t want to be wrong. “What happened to you?”

“I’m not sure,” he answered. His eyelids looked heavy and his voice sounded raspier than usual, but wasn’t fading. “I feel…better?” He sounded like he couldn’t believe it himself. But, from the look of it, he was right. On closer inspection, his bones weren’t so brittle and didn’t look quite as yellow as they did just moments before. “I think…our boy did it.”

His eyes closed again and went limp. She waited for him to start shimmering again, but he never did. He was simply passed out, drained of energy. A brush with the final death would do that to you. But he was whole, he could recover, and he was still here. He is still here.

[wherespacepooh]

Yuzuru Hanyu x Ice Jewels Special Interview (Vol. 7)

Translated by gladi. Please do not repost without permission. Thanks! (Aaagh need to catch a train D: Happy birthday-in-north-american-timezone, boy!) 

Post-Autumn Classics

––––  Reflecting upon your first competition, what were the positive things that came out of the Autumn Classics?

YH    I learned many different things. Recovery alone isn’t everything – that was something I felt keenly. Especially because, in that competition, all the point-getters were in the second half; in that sense, from the second half onward there was a driving sense that I must somehow [recover]. And since, at the time, my second half layout had started to become considerably stable, I also had confidence. Out of that, I ended up making a mistake on my first Toe Loop, and while I was thinking I had to do something one way or the other, I messed up my second [Toe Loop] as well. That sort of chaos and confusion is something unique to competitions, so while I think it’s good that I got a feel for that in the first competition, at the same time, I thought I must [manage to recover] one way or the other and, because of that, I ended up leaving behind a lot of points. I only did one Axel this time, but it was just that I had originally been constructing this program with my ideal layout. I didn’t want to ruin that program itself, so I was reluctant to change the layout. In that sense, it’s not a give-or-take but, in the worst case, when a lot is happening, attack alone is not a way to gain points––“to attack = to score” is not the case––this was a competition where I really felt that.

––––  With what aim in mind did you approach this first competition?

YH    I had wanted to do the 4Lz in this first competition. To do the quad in the free, and the 4Lo too, then three quads in the second half plus 3A––my biggest goal was to try out this layout properly in an actual competition. Actually trying it out, I could learn positively how much burden this layout brings (to the foot) and how it’s necessary to be careful. Additionally, through training with the competitions in mind, my technique is improving immensely, and I’m also mastering many ways to jump. So, although I couldn’t do all the jumps, I was also able to study the process of reaching [mastery].

––––  There was the announcement that you would be proceeding with caution due to a knee problem, but have you also considered withdrawing from [ACI]?

YH    I have this memory––almost trauma––of injuring my knee; [back] in the 2013 World Championships, and it ended up taking two months to heal this knee. You could say I was young and rash, but at the time, it got to a point where I couldn’t walk. I continued to do the Salchow, as well a lot of other things [thinking that] I must also raise my skating quality, and eventually I was left with this regret of injuring my knee. This time, if it were to get as bad as it was then, I wouldn’t even make it in time for the first event of the Grand Prix Series in October. If I don’t make the Grand Prix, then I will only have one shot with the Japanese nationals. And when the Pyeongchang Olympics is the competition following the Japanese nationals, definitely it would be too much to adjust. That was the greatest worry, so the decision to attend the competition this time wasn’t actually so easy.

World’s highest score ever in the SP

––––  Even so, you rewrote the world record score in the SP with a layout of lowered difficulty. How did you feel?

YH    In a sense, I felt relief. In the worst case, if my physical condition weren’t great and the Loop didn’t fit as I had wished, but it was a competition that I absolutely must win––and that may be the Olympics or the Japanese nationals––if the time comes and I must win this solidly, I think I can win the short with this layout, I think I can lead… for an instant, I did think that. But in the end, looking back after the free, I just don’t have motivation without challenging myself after all. And that is something I felt immensely.

––––  You hit the world’s highest score ever with just the 4S. Even though it’s fine not to go for the challenge of a [more] difficult layout and that thought has crossed your mind, as an athlete, [you choose] to challenge.

YH    Yes, of course. As a mental image in my head, beginning from the opening melody of “Ballade No.1,” a spread-eagle goes straight into a 4S that connects to [another] spread-eagle, after which I do the spins. It’s not that I can’t imagine this layout in and of itself, but it’s that I think it was being completed [then and there] as it was. Though, it may possibly have been completed in this competition. 　　But to my current self, “Ballade No.1” is 4Lo after all, and there are things you see only because of the Loop, or probably things that are different somehow. Although I think everyone perceives and feels in a different way, right now, that piece [stands] to me because of the Loop, and executing it without the Loop is out of the question. Whether I do 4S or not, do I feel that way or not––these are entirely irrelevant because that spot [in the music] has by now become 4Lo in my head, and my heart is completely set.

About the Quad Lutz

––––  After returning from the Autumn Classic, did you restart training with your original layout, with the 4Lz incorporated, right away?

YH    It wasn’t immediate. First I had to confirm whether or not I was able to jump the 4Lz, and although I was also doing the 4Lo at the official practice, at most it was about once per day. So first things first, getting back to a form capable of pursuing [these things] was a must. After that, I’ve been gradually building up on training; because I hadn’t been jumping – couldn’t jump – for too long, I had the sense that I was quickly losing my mental image.

––––  The work of regaining [your jumps] must be difficult.

YH    Although for the 4Lo, the feeling is close to “regaining,” in terms of the 4Lz, my body had pretty much no memory. In my mind too––I haven’t memorized the feeling [of the jump] to such an extent yet, so probably it felt more like “rebuilding” it.

––––  You were jumping clean 4Lz’s during this year’s ice show practices, weren't you?

YH    I trained with good mental images during the summer and there was good technical support; I was able to practice my jumps with focus. At that stage I wasn’t yet in a hurry, feeling like I must run through the entire program or that I must do something, and since my drive to incorporate the Lutz was strong, I was able to focus. In a way, I think it was because all these conditions were present that––not only technically––I was also able to have the image [of the jump] in mind.

Post-Rostelecom Cup

––––  You took on your programs, returning to the original layout [you had in mind] at the Rostelecom Cup. What do you think about the FS with the new layout?

YH    That it’s difficult, after all! Although, if I were to name one point of compromise (t/n saving grace?) in my mind, I think it would be  that, great! Given around two mistakes, I still managed to be in first place. After [landing] the opening 4Lz, although I started to pop the 4Lo, I thought I saved it well with a triple. And regarding the 4S, I was glad that I didn't pop it despite the axis getting slightly misaligned. 

　　I completely missed the timing of the second half 4T and doubled it, but that couldn't be helped. The three jumps that came after (4T+3T, 3A+2T, 3A)... in my impression, I finished them off in good form.  

　　This felt completely different from how my first events have always been. This time, before the Autumn Classic, that I will be up against Vincent Zhou, or Javier Fernandez, or against Nathan Chen for this competition... I practiced with these assumptions in mind. We were crafting the programs really early on, and I think that led to this result.

　　Every single year, I tend to fall into the pattern of hastily starting out at the first Grand Prix event; I am aware of that. Also because of that, I understand that this is the period when most injuries happen, and I think it's really quite difficult to manage both training and preventing injuries, maintaining a good balance between the two. But, because I've been able to get somewhat further along into my skating compared to my usual, there is this feeling that my programs have slipped into my body.

––––  While you created your programs early, there was a lot of news coming in––other competitors getting great scores at the Lombardia Trophy and US International Classic of the Challenger Series, [so-and-so] did a quad, and so forth. How did you react to that?

YH    I think there was anxiety. Because from my experience having skated for all this time until now, like it or not, I have been made to realize that I am a slow starter. But what I am really thinking about is the approximately 30-point increase here compared to my past first Grand Prix events thus far. Taking that into consideration, the quality of this season's training is completely different from anything thus far, and I think the significance of what I have so far come to accumulate is entirely different.

　 Be it training or my private day-to-day, I have been continuously pondering about how to direct everything for the sake of skating. Of course, there are also times, say, when results don't follow and it's agonizing. However, of what's been accumulated, there is this feeling [of certainty] that, without doubt, it's all building up.

Heading towards the Olympics

––––  Are there things that are different from usual particularly because this is the season going into the Olympics?

YH    I keep thinking, let's build up the body soon. It was also the case in the Sochi Olympic season, but I feel that matching my peak to the World Championships in March is out of the question (t/n too late).  If it doesn’t go well at the Olympics, [it could be] that I haven’t directed/thrown enough of myself into the skating and the lack of efficiency, or inefficiency in the way I raise the precision of my jumps too; I think there are many possible causes. The way it was when I was 16 or 17––Ban-ban! Jumping and falling and jumping and falling, but it’s fine because from then on the body will remember––something like that I must no longer do. I have to do what suits my current body after all. But I’m doing more difficult things than I was before. My ability to recuperate is also completely different. It’s essential to train while facing [the way] the body [is], and it is how well one will train that is crucial––something that I am sensing this season.

––––  Hanyu-senshu’s body has grown. Did the way you build up muscles change as well?

YH    I haven’t been thinking about it though…

––––  There is the impression that Hanyu-senshu is slim, but you’re actually quite muscular and firm.

YH    I haven’t been doing anything at all to bulk up like in weight training. 　　I’m slim in terms of build to begin with, and it’s perhaps exactly because I am not the type to build muscles that I have a narrower axis, resulting in beautiful jumps. But if we speak of stability, I think it is the type of skaters with a solid build and a low center of gravity who are advantageous in jumps, such that they are able to contain it with their core even when they are somewhat off-axis. 　　If I start doing that in jumps, although I’ll be stable, I’ll also have completely lost my own merits. My lack of stability is my weakness. My being twice more nervous than others, and feeling twice the pressure of others too, stem from the challenging conditions––how should I put it, the low precision at the actual event? Or more precisely, [the way] my jumps don’t come to be unless everything falls into place. 

　　Even so, after worrying myself sick over many, many different things, what I’ve finally arrived at is that there is also strength in [what I am] after all. It works out somehow––putting together the conditions [that make it click]. Training my mind, taking care of my body, properly advancing and improving and so forth. In order to accomplish that, so many people take care of me. I thought that, should I change my build and give up on my own style of jumps in search of stability, most probably I would no longer be able to return to where I started.

––––  Do you go for stability or [your own] strength… it’s all about the balance, isn’t it?

YH    It’s imperative to always keep balance in mind. Before I really used to forget myself. Until around last season, I would forget myself. But this time, when I decided to jump the 4Lz, I thought that I must seek stability after all. Watching various skaters’ performances, reflecting on questions like, when is a Lutz perfectly fitting in? The conditions are only too tough after all.

       　My own way of expression is [like] pieces of glass.  Really beautiful when they fit [together] successfully, but if they don’t, I could even break myself, and actually I have had the experience of injuring myself. If [these pieces] don’t fall smoothly into place, mentally I become a mess as well, and I can’t fully trust myself. But, without such shortcomings, I couldn’t have become stronger, and I think it is in overcoming this that I am strong. My own physique and the foundations of skating that I’ve learned until now… no matter how I struggle, these aren’t things that change within months. What I can change is in how far I could [knock at] these unsparing conditions, little by little, and make them easier. If I make them too easy, then I end up heading [solely] toward the direction of stability. So, even under unsparing conditions, to what extent can I stoically preserve my own self while acquiring, building up on various things––I think that is, to my current self, the most crucial point at the moment.

––––  You successfully landed the 4Lz in the free skate of your first competition. Did you feel relieved?

YH    Thankfully retaining a 100% success rate in my first event (t/n - challenging a new jump), it feels like fate. (4T in 2011, 4S in 2012, 4Lo in 2016 – he has been successfully landing the various jumps in each season’s first event) I just really felt the joys of being able to go for something resolutely, after all. Different from a skate where I am thinking  about something while skating––must hold back here, don't do this, must do that––being able to go decisively for a skate, being able to skate resolutely with trust in my own body,  that really is a moment when I am glad that I am participating in this sport. 

       I was able to land the 4Lz in the free skate; and I have yet to skate clean in my short program with 4Lo in the layout but, actually, I’ve been continuously landing the Loop in the later half of last season. Since there’s no longer a sense of challenge in that (t/n landing the Loop in and of itself), I’ve a strong urge to go clean on this layout.

His experience in Russia

––––  It’s been a while since you’ve competed in Russia. What is your best memory from Russia?

YH   My best memory was attending training camp (in the 2011-12 season). I have the impression that I went through very intensive training. It was during a really cold time, and my physical condition wasn’t so great either. But the scenery, Russian signs, or whenever I hear conversations in Russian, I think, truly, I’m glad I worked hard then.

       If it weren’t for the World Championships then (2012), I definitely wouldn’t have gotten where I am now. Even now, when I skate to “Notte Stellata,” my exhibition number, I recall [those] lessons––express it this way.

       I wasn’t even there for a full month, and I was only taught for about 20, 30 hours or so, but truly, truly, [that experience] is one of the bedrocks of my skating today.

––––  Do you feel that there is Russian tradition in [your skating]?

YH    Is it Russian––or perhaps it is the fundamentals of coaches Natalia Bestemianova and Igor Bobrin’s way of thinking? I think I was able to learn a lot about the fundamentals of expression from them.

––––  What are the aspects where those lessons remain, even today?

YH    Since I moved base to Canada, and because the Canadian and Russian ways of expression are completely different, I’ve been thinking what sort of expression suits Asians, who are neither Canadian nor Russian.

       What I get from speaking to many different people is that, since I train in North America, there is a bit of “North Americanness” in me, but my way of expression isn’t purely North American in style. If anything, it’s Russian. I guess I’m in the Russian vein in terms of systems of expression, but it also isn’t that I’m only specializing in that. After all is said and done, it’s great [the way I am] because there is a fineness/suppleness in my jumps that are characteristic of Asians, and because every one of these [traits] are leveraged––so I’ve been told by quite a few people and for which I count my lucky stars as a skater. In a sense, one can be glad to have been born as a Japanese. Personally, I began my training in Japan, and my teachers in Japan have their various methods of teaching, so I have those teachers to thank as well; then after that I went to Russia, went to Canada… because I’ve really been soaking up a variety of things, I think there is a lot of different elements incorporated within me.

––––  You chose the Rostelecom Cup for your first event in the Grand Prix Series. It’s a different start to the season than usual.

YH    What I’m most glad about––isn’t that I’ve landed the 4lz, nor that I’ve found issues to work through due to mistakes made in the short program. Rather, it’s that I got to skate before Bestemianova & Bobrin, who had taught me at training cap in Russia, and Tarasova-san, and then the fact that I was able to skate here in Russia.

       Although I didn’t do well at all, nor was I able to meet with the three of them. Tarasova-san has been taking care of me, even now, and coaches Bestemianova & Bobrin are two people who’ve created my foundation. Without their mentorship, I wouldn’t have been able to get this far. In a season’s first event where I must bring out everything I have acquired so far, performing before such people––I could do more of this. I must also do more of that! I must pay attention to things like this! –– I was really sensing this all over again.

       In both “SEIMEI” and the short program, I had to focus on the jumps. Especially since it’s the first event of the season, I myself was also [generally] highly focused toward jumps. But, speaking of the exhibition this time, I redid its choreography after the end of the free skate event. I was thinking to myself that I wanted to further develop my interpretation, and to bring it even closer to the artistic culture of this land that is Russia. To this extent, I learned and I was immensely stimulated. I really can’t help but to be glad that I got to skate here.

––––  There was so much applause during the exhibition.

YH    I am so glad to be skating––the thought comes up when my challenges against boundaries and difficulties in jumps go well. More recently, though, people are clapping not only at jumps but also during other parts, and I am still so happy about that. The feeling during the spins, the feelings that are imbued in each movement in the performance––this may be something I learned from Mansai Nomura-san, but I really have this feeling that because there is meaning in each and every [expression], people responded with sensitivity, reacting candidly to it. In such moments, I think of how truly glad I am to be skating and, to me, Russia is probably the starting point of my being able to think this way.

[nardaviel]

Part 4 / ?, now with pets and vampire stalkers.

Once again this is a long and image-heavy post, but at least this time some of the images are of a cute Sim kitten. I finally bought all the updates for Sims 4 so goodbye to all my spending money for this month, but now I can play it again.

I was super excited about getting Kinatsuen a cat, but I wanted them to have the exact cat I picture when I imagine them having a cat so I couldn't adopt any of the stray kitties or any of the ones on the computer. So I just made her as a kitten in Create A Sim from the Manage Households option, since there was no other way to do it... but we can say, for story purposes, that they went out and adopted her.

Their new gallery portrait. En looks like he's about to pass out. She's too cute for him to handle.

I also changed Atsushi's aspiration to Master Chef and Kinshirou's to Soulmate, because I felt bad having En make progress on his aspiration while they were stuck longing for a family. (Also they weren't getting all the useful satisfaction points you get for doing aspiration things.) Once they've finished these aspirations, I'll give them the original ones back.

I start playing the household and

this is what I find. Don’t abandon Hou-chan like this, she’s just a kitten ;-;

She’s so adorable, though. She is an affectionate, clever, and friendly kitty!

Atsushi admires her cuteness. This seems like a place for a Lion King joke, but I don’t want to detract from the cute.

It's late so they all go to sleep. Hou-chan follows Atsushi into the room to sleep near him even though she has her own bed al;sdkf I'm just... really charmed... I love her...

She's so needy... wow. My other Sims' pets aren't like this at all. The affectionate trait is powerful. (But it's cute!)

Kinshirou fixed a broken sink, and now he's rummaging through the discarded bits for useful parts. I took this screenshot just because it's such a strange sight.

He’s pissed off that he had to do something so disgusting. Poor baby.

There’s a big market for Kinshirou’s thoughts on etiquette.

I wish I'd bothered to come up with custom names for the other two books now because it's funny to see things like this but oh well, I guess. He was still learning! His titles weren't very good yet.

This painting perturbs me. Hou-chan is the only saving grace of this screenshot.

Fuck. I hate chance cards. H a t e. ...All my legacy Sims and my City Living girl would set up in the street (if they were in the painter career), because they're all that type. But I think En just wants to give up... An excuse not to work, what could be better...

En's laziness worked out for the best this time. It's a shame about the money, though. They're a bit broke.

Before work, Atsushi makes a bunch of quick salads so his boyfriends don’t have to cook. (That is to say, I’m working on his new aspiration.)

Kinshirou and En have a date scheduled, but En comes home tense from work (even though he earned his salary, despite what that chance card result said). So he goes to join Kinshirou in meditating the tension away before they leave.

Sadly, Kinshirou gets bored, and the TV bores him even more because the action channel just isn’t cultured enough for him. You can’t make this stuff up, I swear... And by the time he’s over it, En is asleep. So their date is postponed. There are no screenshots because I was hoping they'd get it together and I wouldn't have to go into so much detail lol

But Atsushi gets promoted! So the night isn't a total waste. He's a mixologist now.

Yes, darling, we’re all very proud.

I don't know why he doesn't have glasses in his work outfit, by the way. I didn't design it.

His hours are even worse than before, from 6pm to 2am. But he gets three days off now instead of just two, which is a relief.

Meanwhile, Hou-chan loves her little toy bird so much that she wants to take it with her everywhere, even if that means she has to glitch and walk around stuck in it.

Atsushi, savior of kittens.

Atsushi wants to play with her with the wand, since that seems safer, but she wants to use the litter box. So he follows her into the bathroom... Let her have some privacy, Atsushi...

Meanwhile, En paints a masterpiece-quality painting! Aside from being necessary for his aspiration, that's just really cool!! I'm proud. Not sure whether to keep it because it's pretty or sell it because it'll sell for a lot...

Nothing really to say here. This is where the camera ended up when I exited screenshot mode, and I thought it looked pretty so I took another screenshot.

I put it in Atsushi’s bedroom because his bedroom is a bit bare. It can live with the Enatsu painting.

Gross, Hou-chan.

Okay, well, En is off to work, but Kinshirou and Atsushi can go on a date, at least. They decide on a nice, classy dinner date at a restaurant I built for them. It’s as boringly built as everything else I’ve done before now (I’ve learned how to build cooler things but it came too late for some of the buildings in their save...) which is why I didn’t take a screenshot but it looks okayish on the inside, I suppose.

LMAO... I forgot I gave him that suit... oh my god... he looks so proud. Atsushi is politely keeping his thoughts to himself.

They're shown to the one semi-private table in the establishment. Probably because Kinshirou is from a good family, even if they themselves don’t have much money.

Gosh, they’re cute.

(I am really, really sorry for those little lightbulbs and plus signs and sparkles. They signify that a lot trait is having an effect on a skill that a Sim is building. They’re incredibly annoying in screenshots, but there’s no way to turn them off. It eventually occurred to me to get a mod for it, but only after the end of this post...)

It takes their food some time to arrive, but at least it gets there, which is more than I can say of the last time I tried to go on a restaurant date in TS4. They don’t mind. It gives them lots of time to talk! Something about Kinshirou’s drink puts him in a flirty mood...

En comes home from work while they’re out. He got a promotion, so he’s in that bizarre outfit again. Luckily, I don't have to see it except in his little portrait at the bottom left.

To put the finishing touch on an incredible date, they kiss passionately on the top floor of the restaurant.

Kinshirou makes this face when Atsushi first grabs him, but he gets into it.

Looks like I spoke too soon.

Kinshirou got sick on his date, and now he's itchy. Hm.

Their reward for such a good date! It’s just decor, not actually drinkable. If all goes well, they'll have these littered around the house eventually.

Kinatsuen receive an evening visitor, a friend of Atsushi’s in another save where I recreated demon AU but emphatically not his friend in this one. Fortunately, they're smart! They know not to invite a vampire into the house.

Less fortunately, Kinshirou is outside expanding Atsushi's garden. Maybe, he thinks, if he stays off to the side of the house, his dazzling gold suit won't catch Vlad's eye.

But the medicine has made him energized, and he needs to get all that energy out somehow. Kin-chan, sweetheart, not in your nice suit... although maybe ruining that suit would be for the best.

En and Hou-chan just became friends! She must have been giving him advice on his painting. ...Also I forgot to change him out of his promotion clothes.

Now that the vampire has left, Kinshirou is free to return to his kitten.

She is honestly unbelievably cute.

Atsushi comes home from work, exhausted and reeking from a night behind the bar, only to find that he can't even sleep in his own bed. His boyfriends missed him so much, they went to sleep there themselves.

En's bedroom may be messy, and he may not ever put the condoms and lube away, but it's closer than Kinshirou's.

Must have been a rough night. En still thinks he looks hot, though. Sometimes having a slob for a boyfriend is a plus.

Enatsu and Hou-chan morning domesticity. En is addicted to painting, I swear. Mixologists and bars aren’t as bad as En and his easel.

His second masterpiece is even prettier than his first. They're both impressionist paintings so I suppose Sim En is an impressionist painter. That suits him, I think. Unfortunately, painting a masterpiece means he'll go to work in a confident mood when he'd be better off inspired, but you can't have everything.

Again... Why is it always En who gets in trouble at work...

My headcanon is actually that En wouldn't judge, but, since that's not an option here, he would want to talk about his passion. En is always ready to share his thoughts.

THAT'S RIGHT. Although it's a bit sad because I still think En would defend her, if anything.

Atsushi needs to improve his mixology for work. Instead of making yet another drink for himself or wastefully practicing and then throwing out the results, he makes a pet drink for Hou-chan. :D

The window for Kinshirou to sell his books to a publisher. A screenplay about the magical boys’ revenge will definitely fly off the shelves, I agree.

No story value, just cute.

With Atsushi at work, En and Kinshirou decide to check out a community lot (not as a date). I actually made it for Atsushi, but... he'll get here someday. Basically, one of the expansions introduced all these food stalls and a bunch of recipes (honestly like 20+ in total) that you can learn how to cook only after tasting them. But it's hard to track them all down in the places the game initially put them because they rotate, so I just made a foot stall lot.

Unfortunately you can only have so many stall vendors on a lot at a time, so it'll always look like half of them are closed... But I'm still proud of it? I think it's a cute lot with nice Kinatsuen colors, and it'll help Atsushi to have this one place to go to. I'm proud of all the lots I built for them, actually, even if they’re often not very interesting-looking.

The moment they arrive, Kinshirou goes straight to the Japanese food stall without the least bit of prompting from me. En chooses some spicy Vietnamese food, but by the time he gets to the table, Kinshirou is already halfway done with his dango. I want En to get used to spicy food ASAP because it's out of character for him not to be able to tolerate it. It wasn’t until I started watching them eat that I remembered Sims also have to learn how to use chopsticks... En, I don’t think that’s now they work.

Getting used to spicy food.

En: Kinshirou, help! Help me, it hurts! My mouth is on fire!! Kinshirou: Ahh, that was so good... such delicate, mild flavors... :’D

En is grumpy because he wants a vacation, even though they literally got back from one like a week ago. I think this is one of my all-time favorite screenshots just because it's the opposite of what would be IC for them.

Luckily, I put some bubble blowers on this lot, so he can relax a little. Don't make that face at me, En. This is for your own good.

...En put in the flirty flavor that makes you angry if you choke, and Kinshirou choked on his very first blow. I guess it's not such a surprise, though. The bubble blowers are basically just game stand-ins for drugs, and Kinshirou would be the absolute worst person to get high with.

Kinshirou: Ow ow ow ow ow! That hurts! En: Yeah, how's it feel, asshole?

En: Wait, shit, ow! Kinshirou: You deserve no better for taunting me.

Kinshirou’s face is adorably pinched and angry here. But En is angry now, too, so they go home and go to sleep, after losing some friendship points. That didn’t quite go according to plan. Tomorrow night will be better.

A Hou-chan’s-eye view. Kinshirou was in the middle of eating breakfast, but she was too cute to resist.

En took some pictures of Hou-chan and put them up on Simstagram (lol) and !!! I've never had a pet get so many followers immediately like this. Everyone loves Hou-chan.

I shouldn't have complained about En always getting in trouble. Now it's happening to Atsushi too.

Atsushi is annoyed that his coworker would steal and put him in this position, but he would rather just keep quiet to avoid a confrontation. Maybe someone else will handle it...

Still better than causing a scene.

They're finally out on a date! Making identical pleased expressions. Kinshirou's taken En out to a museum because he's a cutie deep down and he knows En will like it. I didn't build this one orz I meant to make them a museum but I turned it into an arts center instead. En will enjoy that more, but he needs to look at things in a museum right now for his aspiration, so...

Their animations continue to be creepily in sync as they admire the artwork.

It looks for all the world like Kinshirou's just made a dirty joke about the painting they're looking at, but...

...this isn’t the sort of work that would make Kinshirou think naughty thoughts. It would take even En several seconds to make an innuendo out of this.

But then Kinshirou autonomously offers En a public massage... Maybe he's just in a mood.

They spend the rest of the date in that room, mostly on that couch, sitting and talking. So there’s not much to say about it. But it’s awfully cute.

Sadly. they have to go home early, because En has to work the next morning. He would rather just quit his job, but Kinshirou won't let him.

He doesn't want to let on to En, which is why he's walking behind him, but he’s ready for the date to end. He’s exhausted.

The collection grows.

(I know one is more forward on the bar than the other. It's not my fault. I don't understand the rationale behind slot placement in TS4.)

Guys! Guys! stop eating! Pay attention to Hou-chan! She's just a little kitten and she's lonely!

Kinshirou is writing my fanfiction for me so that I don't have to. Although I suppose that means he's writing about an alternate world where he and his boyfriends live in a fantasy setting with some dude named Arima, and this Arima guy gets romantically involved with them all.

(I don't actually intend to have a sequel to Veil named Kidosen. I just wanted him to write a sequel and that's the title that came to mind.)

Their house, the most boring-looking house in the world, but now with two boring stories! I promise, when they move onto a bigger lot, I’ll do better.

The triad decided to spend some of their hard-earned money on a home addition. Their bedrooms are on the second story now and they have a bathroom with an actual bath in it (this was half the purpose of the remodeling; it’s a tragedy for them not to have a bath). Atsushi's kitchen is slightly nicer as well, with a better fridge and some aesthetic improvements. But the household now has exactly §301 to its name. No interior screenshots because the only really new thing is the bathroom and it's not exciting enough to be worth a screenshot. The bedrooms are almost exactly the same and the upstairs landing is completely empty because they ran out of money. The most interesting things here are the sad, neglected plants...

Atsushi, savior of plants (as well as kittens). He still needs to work on his herbalism. He’ll get to that at some point.

This is the problem with the goddamn bar. You tell a Sim to start mixing drinks and suddenly it's all they want to do. As soon as he stops needing to level mixology for his career, that thing is getting sold.

Even Atsushi himself dreams of a day when he can rid himself of the bar. He is trapped.

At least Hou-chan is proud of him. Or maybe she just wants another one of those pet drinks.

Atsushi suffers from a moment of self-doubt. Is he doing the right thing, encouraging Hou-chan to drink? She's only a kitten...

But she looks so happy.

Yeah. He made the right choice.

...no story value, just cute.

She reached 250 Simstagram followers with this very stylish pose. Her charms are irresistible!

But her love is reserved for Kinatsuen, and for this toy. She can’t stand to be parted from it.

LMAO

Not only does Atsushi barely even know his name, but he's also already married?? Nah, dude, if you want to cheat don't drag Atsushi into it.

Atsushi: Eheheh... *nervously ignores phone*

Atsushi doesn't have work for a couple of days, so he has time to relax and chat with Kinshirou while Hou-chan communes with her ball and takes a nap.

Atsushi: (Okay, time to try that pickup line I read...) So, Kin-chan... what underwear are you wearing? Kinshirou: Atchan. Please, spare us both.

Meanwhile, that lady who makes weird art bothers En at work again, and he comes out on top again. Maybe she should give up. Luckily for her, he should get promoted today.

Atsushi is sick. :C He's trying to meet his death with brave stoicism and honestly judging from how he looks I don't blame him for thinking the worst.

But all he has to do is take some medicine! All better. Time to go find Kinshirou and celebrate his return to good health, if Kinshirou has forgiven him for that pickup line.

Why is he making that face in the middle of WooHoo... Dare I even ask... Kinshirou, I would have thought you'd be more experienced by now...

Then again, Atsushi is completely satisfied afterwards. So maybe he liked it.

I feel like I go on about how cute Atsushi's Sim is but honestly they're all adorable. Also, this screenshot made me realize they just WooHooed with a window wide open looking down onto their street.

Like... he doesn't even go to work in those clothes. I don't get it.

But as you can see he got promoted! He's now an Imaginative Imagist, whatever that means. The painter career doesn't have the most informative job titles.

He honestly doesn't even want to be in the official painter career. He can't wait to get given a super nice easel so he can work from home like Kinshirou, who, by the way, is making the most money by far out of the three of them right now. I suppose that's fitting.

...He and Atsushi wanted to have a date tomorrow, but now that he's been promoted, he has to work. :\ Atsushi's due for a promotion too, so I guess they’ll see in a couple of days what his new schedule is like.

On the other hand, En gets off work an hour earlier now, and Atsushi still doesn't work at all tomorrow, so maybe they can have their date anyway. They were just planning to hang out at home anyway, in true Enatsu fashion.

It was at this point that the My First Pet stuff pack was released, and, well, long story short, they have a hedgehog now. Guess what its name is?

Don't do it, Kinshirou. Don't fall for it again...

orz.

But he goes to find Atsushi afterwards, just so that Atsushi knows he still cherishes his friendship more than he does a hedgehog.

Hou-chan has something to say, loudly enough that Kinshirou is startled.

Kinshirou: What's wrong, Hou-chan? What is it? Hm? Hou-chan: *sad meowing ;-;*

She needs attention, it turns out. Kinshirou is happy to oblige her whenever she wants. Unfortunately, En is lost in his art and barely even noticed her meowing.

Atsushi has made his first foray into gourmet cooking! He's pleased with the results, but he wishes his boyfriends were here to enjoy it with him.

Better late than never. Look how happy he is! It's like in episode 11 when he's feeding the defense club his curry.

I didn't quite manage to get a screenshot of Lilith at the door, but why do vampires keep knocking on the front door after dark?? It's scary. Maybe the boys just smell delicious or something? At least there hasn't been a vampire break-in, I suppose.

Hou-chan is suspicious of Zundar...

...and WISELY SO what the fuck??? What did they do to Zundar? What does this mean???? I have literally no idea. It popped up just as I left the home lot, so if he did something to trigger it, I'll never know...

While En is at work (orz), Atsushi is taking a trip to the newly-opened Arima Community Garden. They need some people to help do some preliminary work like planting before anything can be harvested.

(This is my way of explaining away gameplay limitations in terms of storyline. I made this lot so that Atsushi didn't have to run around the world finding things to plant, and also so that I had a place to put my modded insect spawners. You need insects for herbalism, but I didn't want to fill their home lot with bugs. But you have to have your Sims plant things on community lots, even if you put the seeds there with a cheat.)

While Atsushi works on the garden, Kinshirou learns chess from a very red individual named Kengo Fujita who's a member of what is essentially a chess club. Maybe they'll become friends! Atsushi wants to hold a dinner party soon to show off his cooking, so the three of them need friends, or at least people who'll accept an invitation.

Atsushi is working hard, but it’s a big task.

Eventually, Kinshirou resigns himself to getting dirt stains on his clothes and steps in to help.

Gardening boyfriends! Kinshirou looks like he's ready to stab himself with that spade. The light has changed and the shadows are longer. They’ve been here for a while. En is home by now, hopefully having a nice nap.

It’s late by the time they’re done. For dinner, they have hamburgers from a plate some stranger left on the table. That’s not what I would do myself, in their place, but they both survive it.

A solid day’s work! But it’s past midnight now and they just want to go home. Don’t judge me for the terrain paint, I did my best.

En is a sweetheart and waited up for them. In the background, Hou-chan remains vigilant.

That painting right there is a masterpiece worth almost two thousand Simoleons. En has an amazing talent.

These are, hands down, the best screenshots in the post.

At work, Atsushi once again refused to report that the cash in the register was low, and it once again got taken out of everyone's tips. Whoever did it the first time must have learned that they could get away with it.

Wtf he's back

They know they're being hunted.

Kinshirou: Perhaps he'll go away if we pretend that we didn't hear the bell. If he has no hope of getting inside... we need to act as though we think we're alone. En: Sure. But how do we do that?

En: Oh, I get it... I like the way you think.

Vladislaus: *watching through the door* They're completely oblivious to my presence. Amazing.

En: We might as well make it convincing, right? Right? Kinshirou: Is this something that interests you, then? Being watched? En: What if it is? Vladislaus: I can't believe they haven't noticed me. Their front door even has windows.

En: What are you into, then? Boyfriends should talk about stuff like this, right? Kinshirou: Oh, well... there are a few things, I suppose... Vladislaus: This is absurd.

En: Mm. Actually, why don't you tell me later? Kinshirou: Wh— oh... Vladislaus: *peers through the door, trying to get a better view*

Vlad is a pervert. Wow. I never knew. No wonder he and demon AU Atsushi are friends.

It worked!

Kinshirou: Oh, thank goodness. Maybe we should invest in some garlic braids. En: We can talk about it later.

This is such a sweet screenshot. Kinshirou can already tell that En is planning some sort of mischief, but he's so relieved that the vampire left before Atsushi got back that he's just amused and indulgent.

Oh, no... with all the vampire scariness and relieved WooHoo, they forgot to refill Hou-chan's food bowl...

(Don’t worry, Kinshirou came downstairs and did it. I just forgot to take a screenshot.)

Atsushi is a line cook now! Look at his fancy clothes! He must wear contacts at work. (That's my excuse for why he doesn't have glasses in his work outfits, and I'm sticking to it...)

His work days haven't changed, although he starts and leaves work four hours earlier now, so he won't be getting home at 2am anymore. He and En won't have a day off in common for a few more days, assuming En doesn't get promoted again in the meantime and get another schedule change. But they'll get their date. They’re determined, and so am I. If all else fails, Atsushi can take a vacation day and En can call in fake sick, and they can hang out with Kinshirou all disapproving in the background.

With the day's salary and his promotion bonus, they're able to expand their house again!

A boring deck to go with their boring house.This is the real reason for making a second story. More than the bath, I wanted to have room for a deck so that they could have a hot tub. :D They now have a grand total of §10 so it's a good thing they have lots of leftover food.

When will they move into a new, less ugly house? When will En get to quit his job? Will En and Atsushi ever get to go on a date? Will there ever come a day when I don’t end one of these posts with a question about En and Atsushi? What in God’s name did that notification about Zundar mean? I don’t know the answer to any of these questions, but we can find out together next time.