#kinda? it's poorly drawn but better safe than sorry

[specialshinytrinkets]

So that April Fools Sonic game

[youfoundtheocarina]

Been on dnd brainrot as usual (I am playing in 2 campaigns with 3rd one soon) and decided to draw my character bc I am kinda obsessed with him.

His name is Nathanael and he is light cleric and inquisitor of Hyperion. He has so much wrong with him and I love him so much.

[bibbykins]

Some Extra Help (M)

First smut of the series! Certainly not the last lmao! I hope you guys like it! Their soft yandere rlly shows here and I’m excited to expand on that dynamic with such an isolated MC who is so oblivious. As always, please do not aspire for unhealthy relationships that I write irl. These relationships only function (and even barely sometimes) in a fictional world. Stay safe and enjoy!

Pairing: Soft Yandere!Yoongi and Jin x Chubby!Reader

Word count: 2.9k

Warnings: 18+, vibrator gets stuck, cunnilingus, fingering, soft dom! jin and yoongi, sub, kinda brat! reader, crying, some name-calling, daddy kink, sir kink, hickeys, dumbification if you squint, yandere themes, beginnings of an unhealthy relationship, toxic mindset, possessive tendencies

Part of The Household’s Bunny Series 

Clad in a black mesh lingerie set with black bunny ears on your head was the last way you thought you would be waiting for the two oldest housemates, but here you were. You never thought you would meet your demise at the hands of a cylindrical chrome bullet vibrator, but here you were. 

Your body was so warm from the thrashing it had been doing each time you so much as cough and it turns on. Worst of all, you hadn't even cum once. You were getting edged by this evil vibrator and it was not helping your already shitty situation.

In what felt like the longest five minutes of your life, you heard the elevator ding, “Y/N?” He called for you and you sighed in relief, somehow triggering the vibrator again.

"Yoongi-AH!" The man's heart nearly stopped hearing his name crumble into a moan coming from you, "Fuck." You groaned and he was met with you on your bed that you had in your filming area with a tripod in front of you, ring light on, and lingerie still intact. Although, with your body's movements a strap had fallen down your shoulder.

He made his way to you, "I'm right here, don't worry." He shushed you softly as he grabbed your hand, sitting on his knees as he placed himself at your head, "Are you in pain?" He asked worriedly and you shook your head. 

You moved a bit and it turned it off as you sighed in relief, "I keep getting right there, and then it takes it away." You whined, chest heaving, "That hurts, but other than that I'm okay." 

He stroked your hand softly, gentle eyes looking down at you, trying his hardest not to be turned on at the sight of you half-naked with a vibrator inside of you, "Is me being here helping?” His voice was always gentler around you.

You nodded as you nuzzled into your joined hands. You had grown rather close with Yoongi in your time here. Granted, you had grown pretty close with everyone in their own way, but Yoongi checked in on you most often and indulged in your clingy nature.

His heart fluttered at the show of affection. He was drawn to you in a way he couldn’t explain and the PDA only made him feel more and more like an infatuated puppy, “Alright, well, don’t worry, Jin will be here soo-”

"I'm here!" The elevator dinged and revealed the doctor, still in his coat and hurriedly making his way to the both of you, "Are you okay, y/n?" He kneeled at your stocking-clad feet before his eyes snapped to Yoongi.

Sensing the confusion, you spoke up, "I am, and he's here for moral support-OH FUCK!" You moaned sinfully as the vibrator sprang to life, gripping Yoongi's hand and he nearly cursed at the eroticism of it all, but luckily for you, the vibrator stopped just as quickly, "I had pulled my panties to the side and slid the damn thing in, but I was so wet I just lost it-ah!" The vibrator awoke inside of you and you cried out.

Jin tried his best to ignore his growing boner and went into doctor mode, explaining that he would be taking off your underwear, "I just need- I left my gloves in the car oh my-" 

"And you call yourself a doctor?!" Yoongi snapped before you squeezed his hand. 

"If you gotta finger me, so be it, if you're- mmh- okay with it." You squealed and the older man nodded nervously, stripping you of your underwear, inhaling sharply at the sight before him. Your thick thighs opened shyly for him.

You were glistening and when you spread yourself for him, he fought a choked moan at your beauty. Yoongi fairing no better as you moaned helplessly, his hand being your only tether to Earth at this point. Since day one, all the men in the house were entranced by you. You were beautiful, kind, and unabashedly yourself. Not to mention they all were some of the highest payers on you OnlyFans. And yet, you just saw this as them being some of the kindest people you met or obscenely supportive housemates. This made pursuing you difficult, seeing as all of the people they have ever pursued were able to read in between the lines of their gestures or bold enough to pursue them. Either way, the attraction to you was a poorly kept secret as their obsession and fixation with you only grew. Even with the two most composed men in the house, the air was quickly heavy with their growing arousal as you took your bottom lip in your teeth.

Maybe it was the idea of being watched or the desperation of being edged, but you couldn't help but be that much more turned on by these two attractive men watching you get sexually tortured. Your mind was getting muddled with nothing but a want to be dominated by these men still in their suits. Your back arched when you felt Jin's slender fingers go in, the bloomings of pleasure going with it, "Fuck, yes!" You gasped out, and it was just now both of the men realized, because somehow they hadn't earlier, you were turned on.

Jin had to screw his mouth shut when he felt your walls clench around his finger. You were so warm and wet and fuck, he really wanted to taste you, "Bunny, don't move so much, you'll just get it more stuck." He softly warned and you responded with a strangled whine that made him curse under his breath. He recalled from your videos that you were a needy sub, but he figured you were playing most of it up for the screen. Surely, you didn’t fulfill his fantasies that naturally. Yet, here you were, being a bratty sub he wanted to tease.

"But it feels so good." You gasped out and Jin looked to an equally fucked up Yoongi for help.

Yoongi nodded at the older man before directing his attention to you, which he immediately regretted. Your mouth was slightly parted, tongue nearly peaking out, and when he saw your eyes, he knew you had slipped into subspace, "Baby, be still." His voice was soft, unsure how to proceed, but when you shook your head defiantly, he sighed, knowing what he had to do, "Bunny." His voice was stern now, no longer soft, but it seemed you faltered in your movements, "Am I going to have to hold you down, or are you gonna be still like a good girl?" His eyes were darker now as he scrutinized your form and you whimpered.

Before Jin could chastise Yoongi for succumbing to his desire to dominate you, he felt you clench around his fingers as your body became more still. Oh, so it was working.

"I-I'm trying." You wailed helplessly, near tears.

"I know." He cooed, cupping your face gently, placing a sympathetic kiss on your cheek, "Just keep trying. Can you do that for Jin and I?" He was much softer now that you were listening to him and you nodded with a pout.

"You're doing great, pretty girl." Jin cooed at you similarly, restraint slipping as his finger twisted inside of you, "I almost got it, okay?" You nodded wordlessly but screamed when his fingers touched the vibrating toy. Yoongi had to place his forearm across your stomach to hold you down. Jin nearly had the toy and neither of them wanted to risk your squirming pushing it further in.

"I'm-I'm-" You babbled, chasing your sweet release only to have it ripped away as Jin slid the toy out of you, making you cry fully.

"It's out, sweet girl, why are you crying?" Jin asked lightly as he placed the tiny toy off to the side.

"Please." You begged both of them, tiredly but fully aware, "I just want to cum." Tears were running down your cheeks, "I'm sorry..." You were obviously embarrassed but Jin shushed you softly.

"It's okay, sweetheart, we're not mad." He spoke softly and placed a kiss on your thigh, squishing the skin between his hands, enjoying the plush skin he’s dreamt about for so long under his fingertips, "We can make you cum if you want?" His breath was heavy.

"Please." You croaked desperately.

Yoongi nodded, eyes as soft as ever, "How do you want us, baby?" His voice was low as he wiped some of your tears.

You blinked up at him, "H-However… are you sure you guys want to?" You blubbered and turned to Jin who slid the fingers that were inside you into his mouth, never breaking eye contact until his eyes rolled back in ecstasy, making you gasp.

Jin was usually so composed and polite, but here he was, sucking your juices off his fingers erotically. He had dreamt about the taste of you, but it could not compare to the real thing, the real sweetness of you laying in front of him, wet and desperate. His fingers popped from his mouth and he groaned, "You taste so good, little bunny." He breathed, completely overtaken with lust by now, "Can I really keep tasting you?" He asked, hands stroking your thick thighs until you nodded. He spread you for him and groaned at the sight, "Such a pretty girl." He purred.

"We'll take good care of you, baby." Yoongi promised, leaning down to capture your lips in between his as Jin licked a long stripe up your slip making you moan into the younger man's mouth. His hand slid under your flimsy bra, fingers tweaking your nipples, "You're so pretty when you squirm for us." He groaned, now kissing down the column of your neck as Jin's attempts at going slow were hindered by his excitement to taste you.

He hummed into your pussy, reveling in the squeak that came out of you as he ate you out for all he could. His tongue explored every part your sex had, no surface area left untasted. He genuinely could do this all day if you let him, no place other than on his knees making you feel good sounding better. He watched as Yoongi's lips wrapped your hardened nipple, making you moan, spurring Jin on to dip his tongue into your entrance.

You gasped out, on hand threading into Yoongi's hair as the other went to Jin's, making both of the men groan, "Feels so good, Sir." You rasped, bringing cocky smiles to both of the men's faces.

You wanted to squirm but Yoongi held you firmly in place as Jin fucked you with his tongue, "You feeling good, crybaby?" He whispered lovingly, leaning up to nip your ear lobe.

"Yes, Sir, so good." You moaned out, "Please don't stop, I'm so close." You begged and Yoongi chuckled darkly in your ear, fingers still stimulating your nipples.

"Well when you beg so pretty," He pinches your nipple a bit harder, making you jolt, "How can we make you cum just once?" He chided.

This made your eyes roll back as Jin pressed his face into you further before pulling back for a moment, fingers gingerly making circles around your clit, "Alright, pretty girl, you're going to cum on my tongue and then I'll let Yoongs taste you, okay?" His eyes dart to you as you nod, but his eyes narrow, "You can talk, can't you?" He teases, fingers slipping in and pressing into your clit from the inside, "Or are you just going to cum like this." He sped up his circles as he bluffed hut you shook your head desperately.

"No Sir, please!" You cried out, "Please, wanna cum on your mouth- AH!" Before you could even finish, Jin dove his tongue back into you.

You nearly screamed as you felt the long-awaited orgasm creep up on you, "I can tell you're about to cum so pretty, aren't you baby?" Yoongi teased as he leaned into to kiss you, taking your moans into his mouth.

"Can I cum, daddy?" You begged, making the men tending to you moan.

"Of course, baby." Yoongi murmured into your mouth, "Be a good girl and cum so I can clean you up." That was all it took for the coil to snap as an earth-shattering orgasm overtook your body, screaming for the whole building to hear as he kissed your neck.

Jin rode you through the orgasm with blissful hums until it was time for him to pull away, "That was beautiful, bunny." He praised, "Think you can handle another so Yoongs can have a taste?" He asked sweetly.

You nodded, "Yes, Sir." You breathed and Yoongi's tongue clicked, catching your attention.

"I kinda liked us being your daddies." He pouted mockingly and he watched embarrassment creep onto your face, so he leaned over your, "Come on, baby, are you ready for me to taste you?"

"Yes, daddy." You muttered shyly, making him smile before going to switch spots with Jin.

Jin approached you with a kind smile and gentle eyes as he knelt down to give you a kiss, "Hi, beautiful." He mused and before you could respond, Yoongi dove into you face-first like a man starved. You gasped, gripping Jin's forearm, "You taste divine, but it is nice to see your pretty face all twisted in pleasure." He leaned in for a deeper kiss, tongue massaging your own as you moaned into his mouth.

You felt Yoongi spread your lips before he stiffened his tongue to provide pressure on your clit as he drew circles around it. You gripped his hair, trying to pull him closer but he smacked your thigh as a warning. He guided your hand, pinning it to the side as he flattened his tongue over your slit and repeatedly dragging it up, collecting your juices in his mouth as Jin swallowed your moan, his hand going to your exposed breasts while the other cradled your neck.

"So sweet." Yoongi murmured before his tongue slipped inside of you and he moaned.

"Holy shit!" You gasp and tried to fuck yourself onto his face but Jin held you down.

"Don't cheat, sweet girl." He tsked playfully before sucking harshly on your neck, making you gasp, your hand going from clutching the sheets to tangled in his hair, "Fuck, what are you doing to me." He grunted into your neck.

With the sensitivity from your last orgasm and the skilled tongue of Yoongi, your release was quickly approaching as Jin found a sensitive spot on your neck, "Daddy!" You whined, "It-I-Uh-mm…" You babbled, trying to find words as Yoongi's thumb rubbed just above your clit as his tongue fucked you deeply.

Jin laughed wickedly, "We fucked her dumb, Yoongs, our poor baby." He was truly a different man under the spell of arousal and your taste, "You trying to ask to cum?" He cooed as you grabbed onto his hair harder and he let out a strangled moan.

"Yes, daddy, please can I cum?" You managed to beg yet again and both of the men made noises of aroused approval.

"Of course you can, good girl." Jin murmurs into your neck as Yoongi hums.

With approval from the dominating men above you, you gripped desperately onto Jin and came with a needy cry as Yoongi kitten licked until you finish fully.

"Shit, you taste good, baby." He pressed a wet kiss to your thigh before he slid your underwear back up.

"Thank you, guys." You muttered, eyes barely open now that the exhaustion hit you, "That was, like, super nice of you." You giggle tiredly.

Jin pressed a kiss to your head before standing, going to grab you his jacket in case you were getting cold. "Thank you for letting us taste you." He chuckled.

"You guys aren't leaving, right?" The men stop their movements at your question, "Not that you have to stay if you have better stuff to do or if you feel weird-"

"Do you want us to stay, sweetheart?" Yoongi asked and you nodded, eyes pleading, "Then we'll stay." He affirmed and his heart sank at your relief. Why had so many people left you? 

"Do you want to lay here?" Jin asked softly and you shrugged.

"My real bed is over there and I am dead weight, so it's oka- Jin!" You laughed as he lifted you up like a princess, "I'm heavy, you're gonna hurt yourself." You chided.

"I'm no weakling." He quipped back and you rolled your eyes as he carried you to the bed, laying you down gracefully.

Both men laid on either side of you, pressed close, with their arms around you, "I feel bad not returning the favor." You snorted but the guys protested, "I have this urge to say thank you for being attracted to me because it feels nice to be wanted by you." You rambled sleepily, "I care about you all so much, I'd keep you all to myself if I could." You giggle, like it's an absurd idea, before letting your eyes fully close, "I'm glad we can be at least this close."

The men look to each other as slumber takes you. They exchange knowing looks. Now that they've gone this far, they can't bear the thought of being with anyone else, or you being with anyone else outside of the building. You were a rare gem, and they could not bear the thought of giving you away. People could look, sure, but they could never feel you. The world had its chance with you, and everyone turned their backs on you, so they would now be the only ones to be so close, it had to be that way and soon. Although, bringing this up to you would have to wait. They would need to see how you fare with the other men in the house, who undoubtedly want you just as much. No, needed you. They all unabashedly, undoubtedly, and understandably, needed you.

Tip Jar

[joestarsecrettecnique]

I am so very sick and tired of the toxicity that’s been poisoning the snk fandom as of the last couple years. I gave myself time to digest the ending and my feelings on it, before embarking in a journey to debunk many misconceptions and critiques I’ve seen floating in the fandom.

By the way, by no means I think this ending is perfect. I think this is textbook execution by Isayama to tie together every loose end left behind in an orderly manner, and I think that it was a bit rushed and oversimplified. I would’ve wanted more of Eren and Armin’s conversation, more of the squad realizing what his true goal had been, and some narrative choices I don’t 100% agree with. But still, what I saw in other fans’ critiques post 139 frankly appalled me, so I feel the need to make this. Also, this obviously are my own interpretations, I am not Isayama himself lol

“Ew, so Eren did pull a Lelouch after all”

No, Eren did not pull a Lelouch. While his action and the final result may seem similar, I find very different nuances between the two. Lelouch wanted for the whole world to be united in fighting against him, and thus he made himself the world’s greatest enemy. His will to turn himself into a monster was selfless. Eren didn’t give a damn about the world, he had no noble intentions whatsoever. He said it in chapter 122, his goal was to protect Paradis and, more specifically, his closest friends. He turned himself into a monster, killed 80% of human population, and endangered the lives of those very friends he wanted to protect, so that by stopping him, those friends could be safe. Eren had no intentions to break out of the cycle of hatred or unite the world against himself, he just wanted to give his friends a chance to survive, and that is not selfless, it’s selfish. Eren’s goal was incredibly selfish, and biased, and driven by his feelings instead of rationality. Nothing like Lelouch!

Now this, this I myself am not the greatest fan of. I feel like it makes that great scene in chapter 122 loose a bit of its strength, Ymir obeying the king for 2000 years just because she loved him. Honestly, I always thought there was a bit of Stockholm Syndrome going on, but I didn’t think it would be the only reason. However, like it or not, it’s undeniable that it makes perfect sense in the narrative that aot has always strived to tell. Love has been a theme strongly woven in the story, and it also draws a great parallel between Karl Fritz/Ymir and Eren/Mikasa. Ymir was a slave to her love for King Fritz, just like Mikasa was a slave to her love for Eren, in that she struggled to accept reality until the very end despite the atrocities that Eren committed. Ymir stayed bound by her love for King Fritz, until she saw Mikasa break from her own poisoned love, aknwoledge it, and kill Eren despite of it, or maybe because of it. Only Ymir knows that one, heh. But the point is, Mikasa showed Ymir that she could break free of a toxic love, she was that someone that Ymir had been waiting for to finally free her of her burden.

“What? But that makes no sense!”

Now, on my first read, I simply thought that Eren had ordered Dina to avoid eating Berthold, and that he had made her walk down that road unaware that his mother was trapped (because we know that the Attack Titan’s future memories aren’t infallible, there are still gaps), killing her indirectly. I’ve since then read some theories stating that Eren willingly killed his own mum in orther to give kid himself a reason to feel enough hatred to kickstart the whole story. Honestly, I like this version maybe more! But let me explain to you why this is not a plothole, like many people think. In this same chapter, we have Eren explaining how the Founder’s power works in synergy with the Attack’s: “There’s no past or future, they all exist at once”. This means that time travel in aot doesn’t work in a manner where Eren extracts himself from time and space, and from a separate realm he operates on the past. The way I understood it, the mechanics works kind of like Tokyo Revengers’ time travel. MInd you, I only watched episode one, so my understanding might be jackshit.

Spoilers for Tokyo Revengers’ episode one. In the show, the main character loses consciousness and finds himself reliving his past. He interacts with someone in this “new” past, and when he wakes up again in the present, past events had been over-written by the changes he made. I think this is how aot timetravel works, with the exception that, since past and future (and present, of course) all happen at once, side by side, there is no old past to be rewritten, neither a future to return to, and present Eren wouldn’t be aware of the changes that his future self would make. It creates sort of a time paradox, yes, in the sense that there’s a loop where present Eren’s mom has been eaten because future Eren, in the future, operated on the past by causing past Eren’s mom to be eaten, but all these Erens are one and the same, as all timelines exist at once.

“Boo-hoo they ruined Eren’s character, he’s such a wimp!”

I have to confess (isn’t this appalling, that this is a thing that I have to confess, what the actual fuck), I am an Eren stan. I absolutely do not consider myself a Jaegerist, I think Eren’s option was better than Zeke’s, yes, but it was morally wrong and awful and he absolutely was not only in the wrong, but also if he wasn’t dead I’d want him to be punished for his crimes. I didn’t particularly enjoy him pre-timeskip, and I started to like him because I found his evolution fascinating. I wanted to understand his motives, what was going on in his head, he was a puzzle that I wanted to solve. Maybe because I’m a psychologist, who knows. Anyways, if you’re an Eren stan only because he acted like a chad and now you cry his character was ruined, I’m sorry to say, you never understood him. Eren was not a god, he was not a strategist playing 5d chess with perfect rationality, Eren was the same he has always been. He was a young man spun along by his passions. Eren feels things with burning intensity, he lets himself be driven by his emotions. He almost flattened the world because he was disappointed that he and his friends weren’t the only human beings inhabiting it, for fuck’s sake, he’s always been irrational, selfish, and immature. Of course he doesn’t wanna die, of course he want’s to live with all of them. You really expected a 15 year old hot-headed brat to become Thanos after he suddenly found out he killed his own mum and all his dreams had been crushed? Of course he felt conflicted, of course he suffered, of course he wanted to live, “because he was born in this world”. Honestly, when I read his meltdown, I felt relieved that his character hadn’t been turned on its head, it was heartbreaking to see that he really was the same brat he’d always been, that he’d tried to steel himself to do horrible shit for his friends’ sake and that he felt bad about it! It made me appreciate his character a lot more, I felt nostalgic towards the times when I was irritated by his screaming and pouting. Suffice to say, this is also my answer to all those people that believe his internal monologue to convince himself the Rumbling was what he really wanted were bullshit since he “pulled a Lelouch”. How can it be bullshit? Maybe he planned to be stopped, but he also said that he thought he would’ve still done it if they hadn’t. He also said that killing a majority of the population was something that he wanted to do, not a byproduct of the alliance not stopping him early enough, because with the world’s militaries in shambles Paradis would’ve had time to prepare accordingly. Anyways, of course he needed to convince himself to do this awful thing even if he knew he wasn’t gonna succeed completely, can you imagine how horrible it would be to know your only chance is to kill thousands?

I also maybe think it was because of the spine centipede thingy? When Eren says “I don’t know why I did it, I wanted to, I had to”, he gets this faraway look on his face and we get a zoom in on one of his eyes, which is drawn very interestingly and kinda looks like the Reiss’ eyes when they were bound by the War Renounce Pact? So maybe it was also the centipede’s drive to survive and multiplicate that forced Eren to do the Rumbling so that its life wouldn’t be endangered. I don’t know how much I like this, I feel like it takes some agency away from Eren and also makes it feel like he’s not as responsible for the genocide he committed that we initially though, which mhhh maybe not, let’s have him take full responsibility for this. As I said, I’m not defending Isayama blindly, I do have some issues myself with what went down.

“What the fuck, did he say thank you for the genocide?”

Guys c’mon, this is like,, reading comprehension. Yes, it was poorly worded and a bit rushed, but by now you should have full context to make an educated guess on the fact that no, he didn’t thank him for committing a genocide what the fuck you guys. Armin started bringing up the idea that maybe they should have Eren eaten because he was doing morally questionable things ever since the Marley Arc, which for manga readers was like what, 2018? Isayama has been showing for three years how not okay Armin was with Eren’s actions, how could it make sense for him to thank him for a genocide? You see some poorly worded stuff, and your first instinct is to ignore eleven years’ worth of consistent characterization to jump to the worst interpretation possible? Let’s go over this sentences and reconstruct what they mean.

“Eren, thank you. You became a mass murdere for our sake. I won’t let this error go to waste”. Armin recognizes that Eren had no other choice, but does not condone it. He clearly calls it an error, which feels like an euphemism but for all we know the japanese original term used could’ve been harsher. Point is, he clearly states he think what Eren did was wrong. But he recognizes that Eren’s awful doing opened up a path for Paradis to break out of the cycle of hatred. Not a certainty, but an opportunity. He thanks Eren for giving them this chance, and promises not to waste it, even if it was born out of an atrocity. He thanks Eren for sacrificing himself for their sake, even if he doesn’t agree with the fruit of his labor, so to speak. He’s thanking Eren for the opportunity that his actions gave them, not for the actions themselves! Where the hell do you read “thank you for the genocide” guys, sheesh. I’m mad at y’all.

“How could Eren send MIkasa memories if she’s an Ackerman and an Asian, and their memories can’t be manipulated by the Founder? I call plothole!”

Now, here we’re going into speculation territory, so you’ve been warned. I don’t think that that information they gave us was true, about Ackermans being immune to memory manipulation. We know at least that the clan is in some way subject to the Founder’s power, or Mikasa and Levi wouldn’t have been called in the Paths by Eren multiple times. Stories never being entirely true or false, or relativity, better said, has been a strong theme in the story, we know this by Marley’s and Eldia’s different accounts of history compared to the actual Ymir backstory we got. So who’s to say that the belief that Ackermans aren’t manipulable is the truth? Maybe they’re just hard to control, not impossible. We know that by the Founder’s ability Eren experienced past and future happening simultaneously, so he could’ve very well been trying to send those memories into Mikasa’s head ever since the beginning of the story, only just succeeding in chapter 138. It would at least explain Ackerman’s headaches as Eren trying to manipulate their memories and failing. Of course, we’d need Levi side of thing to know for certain, as he had headaches too and we weren’t shown in the chapter if Eren spoke to him in paths like he did with the rest of the squad. We know he didn’t talk to Pieck, but he even went and spoke to Annie who he basically hadn’t seen since Stohess, so I hope he spoke to Levi too. Who knows, maybe he even spoke with Hanji, but she died before she could remember. I wish we were shown that, honestly, I’m sad that it was skipped, especially after Levi said in an earlier chapter that “there was so much he wanted to tell Eren”. Fingers crossed for the anime to expand on it.

“So Historia’s pregnancy was useless”

What? No, it wasn’t useless! Eren told her to get pregnant to save her life, so that she wouldn’t be turned into the Beast Titan. If she became the Beast Titan, then Eren would’ve had to enact the plan with her instead of Zeke, and yeah, Ymir brought the power of the titans with her, so theoretically Titan Shifter Historia would’ve had her time limit removed, but we saw that the only way for the Alliance to stop the Rumbling was killing Zeke, so Historia would’ve had to die. Useless to say, when Eren talked to her about his plan, she was very vocally against it, so I don’t think she would’ve helped Eren with his plan. It was Zeke or nothing, and the only way for Zeke to keep his titan was for Historia to be unable to be turned, hence the pregnancy. Did y’all read the same thing I read? Anyways, she could’ve definitely been handled better, but she wasn’t necessary to the plot anymore, and her being removed from it in such a way was sad, yes, but it made sense.

“They massacred Reiner!”

Yeah, can’t really say anything about this. I definitely understand the sentiment behind this scene, which I appreciate. It’s to show that thanks to his Titan being removed and the times of peace approaching, Reiner was finally able to shed the weight he bore on his shoulders and “regress” to his more carefree persona he had when he thought he was a soldier, instead of a warrior. I am very happy for him, and I think it’s a nice conclusion to his arc, that he’s finally happy, but it could’ve been portrayed in a less comic relief-y way. It just sledgehammers all his characterization. Feels surreal that we saw him attempt suicide a couple month ago in the anime and now he’s sniffing Historia’s handwriting.

Guys, this absolutely sends me. There are people who unironically believe Eren actually reincarnated in a bird? Guys. It makes no sense, it violates every rule that Isayama established for his universe’s power system. How could he even reincarnate in a bird? Guys, c’mon, this is symbolical! Birds have been heavily used in aot to portray freedom, and this is a nice, poetic, symbolic way to show that Eren who lived his whole life chasing freedom and never actually got it, is finally free, like a bird, now that he’s dead. It’s also a pretty explicit nod to Odin, I think. Aot is heavily inspired by Norse Mithology, and I think there were some pretty clear parallels between Eren and Odin/Loki in the later arcs of the story. Eren has been shown to “communicate” through birds like with Falco in chapter 81, or with Armin in chapter 131. Emphasis on “communicate” because again, this is symbolic, I don’t think he actually spoke through the birds, he simply talked to them via paths, but birds are associated with Eren’s character (see also the wings of freedom, y’know?) and the shots were framed so to give the impression that he was talking through the birds, but he wasn’t. Symbolism. Anyway, I really think they were supposed to be a nod to Odin’s crows.

Aaaaand that should be it! Even though I most definitely forgot some other criticism on the chapter, it’s crazy the amount of negativity floating around. Hope I didn’t bore you!

[asingleheart-shapedbraincell]

Parasite (Prologue)

I watched Venom last night, and now this exists. I have co-opted the plot for fanfiction with some added occultism and Halloween flavour for Spice™ .This is part one, basically works as a prologue, and then it’ll split into a chapter for each brother.

tw: implied drinking, occultism and demonic possession

GN!MC

Prologue

‘Twas Spooky Season and you were dressed as a shitty zombie because Halloween parties have the best snacks. A girl with long acrylic nails painted to look like candy-corn passed you a bright green jello shot. It tasted like limeade and cough syrup, yet somehow worse than both of those. She laughed at the face you pulled and passed you a can of lemonade to chase the taste away. When you cracked it open, it fizzed over slightly - not enough for you to suspect foul play, but enough that you were going to have a sticky hand. Still better than another jello shot though. It was quite crowded inside the house and the loud music was starting to get on your nerves a little bit, so you pointed out the door and mouthed ‘I’m gonna go outside!’ The girl gave you a smile and a thumbs up before turning back round to the shots table.

Outside the air was crisp and cold and full of the smell of woodsmoke and apple cider. A small gathering of people were sat around the bonfire nursing steaming mugs and chatting by the firelight. You wandered over to the punchbowl and scooped yourself a mug of cider, pulling the sleeves of your ratty, zombie-fied jumper over your hands to hold the hot mug before heading over to the group and settling yourself down next to them. 

‘- but when she left the tent, she realised that it hadn’t been rain dripping on the tent, it had been blood,’ one of them was finishing a scary story and you settled in to hear the end of it, ‘and above her tent was her husband’s dead body.’

‘What killed the husband?’ You quietly asked the person next to you.

‘Demon,’ he replied.

You nodded and took a sip of the apple cider. It was delicious - not too sweet, well spiced, and the perfect hot drink for an autumn night (though you did have to strain small pieces of cinnamon bark through your teeth).

You leant over again to whisper: ‘Who summoned it?’ 

‘The wife.’

‘That’s one way to collect the life insurance,’ you mumbled back, causing him to laugh into his drink.

Someone flopped down next to you, ‘he’s not telling that stupid demon story again, is he?’ You looked over to see candy-corn nails roll her eyes at the storyteller before giving you a smile - ‘he’s a one track record.’

‘Any good story is just as good during a retelling as it is during the first,’ he huffed.

‘That’d be a fair point if you’d been telling a good story,’ she replied.

The group ooo-ed at that.

‘Well, you tell one then, if you’re such an expert.’

She ignored him, ‘Demons are just such a cop-out! The story’s always the same - you summon them, they go on a rampage, then someone sends them back to Hell. It’s too predictable!’

‘What are you talking about?! That’s still a great story!’

‘I refuse to be scared of a monster that can be beaten by a nun.’

‘Oh please - you’d be terrified if you ever met a demon.’

‘No I wouldn’t!’

‘Yes you would!’

Their argument rather revolved from there into bickering, which no-one bothered to interrupt because it was as entertaining as a scary story. You leant over to your neighbour again - ‘my money’s on her to win.’

‘You’re on,’ he said with a grin.

‘Then prove it,’ the challenge grabbed both of your attentions, ‘go get that ouija board from inside,’ the guy said.

‘Ouija boards are for ghosts you idiot,’ she replied.

‘We need to draw a pentagram,’ your neighbour said.

‘Oh, don’t get involved, Solomon!’ Someone sitting across you said, but he just smiled in reply. Well... this was going to be an interesting evening.

~~~

‘I got candles from the kitchen!’

‘Excellent!’ Solomon replied, ‘we need them at all five corners of the pentagram.’

You watched on as Solomon instructed people on what to do for the summoning spell and he seemed pretty confident for someone attempting to summon a demon on Halloween. So someone could win an argument. Some of the more superstitious people had left to go back to the party, but it’s not like you believed in demons and anyway - this was more interesting than jello shots and loud music.

Candles were being shoved at the points Solomon had drawn with a stick from the bonfire - five points, with the bonfire in the centre. It was certainly very theatrical, you had to hand it him.

‘Okay, now you stand here,’ Solomon said, positioning someone behind a candle, ‘and you stand here.’

He turned to look at the other points of the pentagram. There were two left. his eyes fell on you - ‘What was your name again?’

‘MC.’

‘MC, you stand behind that candle for me?’

You obliged, making sure not to kick it over, and Solomon walked over to the final candle next to you.

‘Do we hold hands or something?’ You asked.

‘Why?’ Solomon asked, smirking, ‘Are you scared?’

You rolled your eyes, and Solomon started murmuring in what sounded like Latin, but is was very faint and it wasn’t like you were fluent enough to know if he was faking of not. You turned to look at the bonfire at the centre. Just beyond it you could see candy-corn nails flipping off her storytelling friend, but then something in the bonfire caught your eye. Or maybe it didn’t? The bonfire didn’t look any different, but it had captured your attention fully. Probably Solomon’s showmanship. Was it bigger? A log collapsed inside and a shower of sparks and woodsmoke plumed out to stain the night sky - the wood inside popping and snapping like breaking bones and for a moment you thought you could hear strange music...

Your vision felt hazy and you tried to clear the smoke from your throat - your overactive imagination and those gross jello shots were mixing together poorly. And the heavy smoke wasn’t helping. You felt queasy and dizzy and no longer in the mood to play pretend for the sake of someone else’s argument. You scrubbed your sleeve over your eyes - not caring about the Halloween makeup - you just wanted the smoke out of them long enough to feel steadier. But it didn’t work. In fact, you felt decidedly unsteady.

‘I think I’ve had too much,’ you manage to mumble out, before everything went black.

~~~

When you woke up, you were in an unfamiliar bedroom, the sound of the party still going slightly muffled. The girl with the candy-corn nails was sat at the foot of the bed, she had put a pair of small costume horns onto a teddy bear and was half-heartedly playing with its little paws. You shifted and she jumped slightly, looking at you and breaking into a grin -

‘You’re awake!’ She said, sighing in relief, ‘How’re you feeling?’

‘Still a bit dizzy, but a lot better.’

‘The wind was blowing the smoke right into your face - I probably would have passed out too. I got you a glass of water, by the way,’ she said, pointing to the bedside table.

‘Thanks,’ you said, talking a long drink - your throat still felt itchy from all the smoke.

‘I’m sorry, by the way - it was all because of me and Jessie, I shouldn’t have let Solomon drag us into that whole ritual, not without making sure everyone was safe.’

‘You scared of demons all of a sudden?’ You asked with a half-hearted grin.

She snorted, ‘No. Demons aren’t real. But people getting hurt - that’s real.’

‘Apology accepted.’

‘Can I call you cab? I’m guessing you want to head home. I’ll pay for it - it’s the least I can do.’

‘Yeah, okay,’ you said, finishing that water - you still felt kinda dizzy, ‘thanks.’ 

~~~

Who’d you get possessed by?

Lucifer

Mammon

Leviathan

Satan

Asmodeus

Beelzebub

Belphagor

(Links will be added as the chapters are written - be patient, I have no concept of time, and also university work to be getting on with, but feel free to send me a reminder if you feel like it. I shamelessly thrive off of audience engagement)

[amberskywrites]

My Everything

“This Love” Collection

AO3 Link || Masterpost

Fandom / Genre: Nanatsu no Taizai (The Seven Deadly Sins) / Hurt/Comfort (leaning more towards comfort)

Pairing: Meliodas/Liz

Warnings: Injuries, Near death, Character almost bleeds out, Mention of slavery (Liz's past), lmk if anything needs to be added!

Notes: “This Love” Collection is a series of one shots that all take place in the same... AU? In this story people have marks which represent the strong bonds people make with others. It’s kinda like a soulmate AU, except it’s not pre-destined love and the marks can fade. Relationships will vary, from both romantic to platonic to familial. Imma attempt to post one of these weekly until I feel I’m happy with how many of these stories I’ve made!

.

.

Liz never understood the only bond mark that stained her skin.

It looked to her like a poorly drawn dragon, or some kind of shadow that was supposed to look like a cruel beast but a child had made it look cute and harmless.

She didn't know how or who she had the mark. She had never formed a strong bond with anyone. She was a slave, an object essentially, forced to do whatever her master wanted. She'd never had the chance to make friends or stay with family, and she didn't try. She had given up on trying a long, long time ago.

And when she had been taken captive by Danafor, she was almost relieved. The worst that would happen was she was put to death, but that didn't seem as bad as being forced to return to her previous life.

Then he had shown up, making a scene that was utterly ridiculous and infuriating. The kingdom he was loyal to, made his enemy if they tried to put her to death? He didn't even know her!

Still, he welcomed her into his home and she was just so confused. He was patient and kind to her, tried to cook for her (she had insisted he never cook for her again after one bite of his food, and she found herself cooking for them both). He welcomed her as a knight, a fierce warrior to protect the kingdom and helped her make friends with the other holy knights in the kingdom.

Not that she needed much help, but the little nudge to be open about getting to know people helped.

They had lived together for awhile, and had fallen into a routine she liked. Train for most of the day, go out drinking, come home, have dinner, then Go to bed. Sometimes they'd go to the meadow and enjoy the nice day, and other times they'd both stay home.

They also had an unspoken rule, one where they didn't mention bond marks. It was an odd rule - to Liz, at least. The people of Danafor made a show of their marks, boasting about their lovers or friends or family. Although a welcoming community, strong bonds meant to last years were difficult to form, and people wore their marks proudly.

Meliodas seemed even more like an oddity, keeping not only the marks of others hidden away on his chest but his own mark was kept out of sight. His sleeves never slipped down past his wrists and Liz had never once even seen him need medical attention that would require the removal of his shirt. She was curious as to what the marks could be, what they looked like, and figured she'd jump at the chance to see them.

She had been very wrong.

Liz realized pretty quickly she didn't care about the chance of seeing his bond mark, not with Meliodas curled in her lap and gasping for breath. Blood stained her trousers and shirt as she moved him as carefully as she could, freezing at the hiss and small whimper that followed.

"You're so goddamn stupid," Liz hissed, ignoring the tears welling in her eyes as she took a quick look around to try and find their healer. The tears slipped out as Meliodas' breathing only grew more ragged and she held him tighter, finally spotting the healer's tent in the distance and she began to sprint towards it.

She met the healer half way, who took Meliodas from her arms, panic clear in their expression. It wasn't everyday Danafor's grand master was on death's doorstep, after all.

The healer requested that Liz remain outside, letting the entrance to the tent fall closed. Liz cursed profusely under her breath and scrubbed at her face, trying to get the tears to stop flowing.

She was covered in blood that wasn't her own and it was because Meliodas was so goddamn stupid as to jump in front of her when someone was attacking. He hadn't even tried to block! He had taken the sword to the stomach and Liz had been sickened to see the bloodied sword clatter to the ground along with the idiot who had attacked them.

Liz was furious, and now that her anxiety that he wouldn't make it in time was receding because he was safe now, she allowed herself to be angry. Meliodas was smarter than this! He was a formidable opponent even without a sword, and he never once got injured this badly in a battle. Never.

She paced the entire time she was outside, glaring at the ground and tugging at her sleeves harshly every few seconds. It felt like hours went by before the healer opened the tent.

Liz clasped her hands over her chest, praying to the goddesses that what she was about to hear was good news. She didn't think she could handle it if Meliodas died.

The healer smiled slightly. "He's still asleep, but… he's healed completely, and just needs some more rest." Liz sighed in relief, her shoulders sagging at the news. "Maybe you can take him home?" Liz nodded wordlessly, following the healer inside the tent.

She spotted that he didn't have any shirt on, and averted her eyes instinctively. The healer helped her get Meliodas onto her back without waking him, and Liz thanked the healer before leaving.

The sky was already a deep blue dotted with stars by the time Meliodas stirred. Liz was by his bedside, dozing off on the floor on his side. She didn't want to settle in the bed, fearing she may have hurt him if she did. Liz knew that while the healers could heal wounds incredibly well, more often than not people still felt pain afterward. Specifically, they'd be really sore. And Liz didn't want to test if he was sore just yet.

He groaned softly, and Wandle made a loud noise which startled Liz awake. She looked up at the bird with a light glare, before looking to Meliodas, who was slowly blinking awake. Liz's heart jumped to her throat as she bolted up to check on him.

Meliodas looked almost dazed, and he stared up at the ceiling for a moment before glancing around, shoulders tensing. He seemed to relax when he spotted Liz, a small smile appearing on his face.

They stared at each other for a few moments in utter silence, until Meliodas broke it in a whisper. "I'm glad you're okay."

Liz felt her heart squeeze and she couldn't help but move closer and wrap him up in a hug, pulling him close and choking back a sob. Meliodas froze at the sudden action before melting into her arms, wrapping his own around her tightly.

"You moron," Liz muttered, burying her face in his shoulder. "You know better than to pull that kind of thing!"

She heard Meliodas snicker, his hands rubbing her back soothingly before she pulled away to glare at him with watery eyes.

"I knew I'd be fine," he reasoned. Liz's glare intensified, and the amused smile fell from Meliodas' face. Instead, one of confusion crossed it. "... Were you really that worried?"

Liz took a deep breath, and wiped away some of her tears with one hand while the other went to Meliodas' chest. She had seen the mark there, had seen her own mark on his chest already, and now she placed her palm above it. Meliodas' eyes widened slightly as she brought her other hand to her own chest, tapping over his mark on her lightly.

"You're my everything, Meliodas. Seeing you bleeding out… it was terrifying." She sniffled, not meeting his eyes. "I… I can't… if I lost you so suddenly, I don't… I don't think I could handle it."

She tried to take a deep breath. Meliodas brought his hands to hers and clasped them tightly, reassuringly, drawing their hands away from their chests to rest between them. Their fingers interlocked and Meliodas gave her hands a light squeeze. Liz glances up and he catches her gaze.

"I'm sorry for worrying you, Liz." His voice had taken on a new tone, and Liz thought he looked as though he may cry as well. He tugged her closer gently, and she followed his lead, settling into bed beside him. He buried his face in her chest and she huffed, though wasn't too annoyed. "I can't lose you either, you're my entire world… I don’t-" he took a deep breath, “I’d do anything to make sure you were safe.” 

Meliodas glanced up from her chest, his cheeks tinted a light red and Liz felt her heart melt. She brought her hands to his jaw and wiped away a stray tear, and she tilted his face up. She leaned a little closer, but waited for him to give a nod before pressing a gentle kiss to his lips.

Meliodas hummed softly into the kiss, almost a purr, his hands wrapping protectively around Liz as they kissed slowly. Liz began to run one of her hands through his hair before eventually just cupping his face.

"Will you make me a promise, if I make you one?" Liz asked softly when they pulled apart. Meliodas nodded, careful not to bump their heads too hard. Liz caressed his cheek as she thought. "If I promise to be more careful in battle, will you promise me you'll be more careful too, please?"

His heart squeezed at her words. How many times had he made that promise and then failed to keep it?

Meliodas smiled almost sadly, bringing his own hand up to her face. "I promise."

[bitchardhendricks]

Well I’ve Never Been to Heaven (But I’ve Been to Oklahoma) pt 15

My best friend was a public school teacher in Oklahoma for 10 years until this past Monday when she quit her job. It wasn’t even due to the complete lack of a plan the district had for Covid stuff, it was just the relentless messaging over and over and over again that our state doesn’t care about her or her colleagues or her students. I’m proud of her for advocating for herself while also being so sad for her students, who are losing an incredible teacher and role model. Those competing feelings are at the root of so much of what I feel about my home state and my hometown. I want to believe it can be better than it is, and maybe that’s what Tulsa fic is about more than anything. As always, I’d love to hear from you - your thoughts on the fic, on your own hometowns or the places that shaped you, the places that disappoint you and make you long for better, the people you know who are trying to make the world a better place, ironically or not. Catch up on previous entries here, and stay safe out there, my friends.

***

The rest of dinner passes without incident, although Diane asks Richard if he’s feeling alright seven times until he finally snaps, “Jesus Christ, Mom, I’m fine, will you just drop it?” 

Steven scowls and points a forkful of mashed potatoes at Richard. “Don’t talk to your mother that way.” Richard mumbles a hurried apology, and Caitlyn pipes up in a voice filled with false cheerfulness, “Hey! Did I tell you guys we’re thinking about getting a puppy?”

On the car ride home, Richard asks Jared to sit in the front seat alongside Steven so he can take the back; he looks pale and far away, his fingers fidgeting and eyes darting to and fro. It’s the look he gets during 4 A.M. code sprints, or after his fifth Red Bull when he’s trying to debug a particularly hairy bit of code. “Of course, Richard,” Jared demurs, and on the brief ride back to Richard’s parents’ house he fills the silence by telling Steven the details of their sightseeing. Steven hums or grunts to indicate he’s heard, but otherwise he seems a million miles away too as he navigates past street after street of chain restaurants and squat, lifeless office buildings. He must get it from his father, Jared thinks, and there’s a brief squeeze behind his ribs. What that must be like, to know where the parts of you come from! 

Once they get inside, Diane and Caitlyn chattering about possible names for the new puppy, Richard immediately says, “I’m still feeling kinda queasy so I’m just gonna um. Head to bed early. Sorry, uh...sorry.” 

“Oh! Well, okay honey, do you want me to get you--” Diane starts, but Richard cuts her off, “I just need some sleep. Jet lag, I guess.” He nods at Steven and kisses Diane on the cheek quickly, then hurries down the hallway. 

“Don’t forget Caitlyn’s in the guest room tonight!” Steven calls after him and Jared watches as Richard huffs and does an about-face to a small linen closet where he pulls out a set of blankets in lurid green and blue then stalks back down the hall. The door to Richard’s bedroom thwacks loudly against the wall. Seconds later, Richard strides into the guest room and brings out his suitcase, hanging open and shedding balled up clothes behind him like leaves coming off a tree in a sudden summer thunderstorm. Diane and Steven are in the kitchen, filling glasses with cold lemonade and chopping up fruit for a light summer dessert. Jared stands rooted in place, looking after Richard, hands clasped in front of him - caught between wanting to follow, to ask how this wonderful day could have ended so poorly, but dreading causing offense to Richard’s family. The door to Richard’s bedroom shuts with a hollow finality; Jared’s fingers flex involuntarily at the noise, wanting to reach out, not knowing how to proceed.

Caitlyn takes pity on him and comes over to loop her arm through his. “He’ll be okay, he just needs a bit to cool off,” she says to him sotto voce, and a swell of affection spreads through him at her reassurance. Of course, he thinks, who could know what Richard needs better than his own family? He looks at her, surprised and abashed that his concern has drawn attention to himself, but she nods in understanding before Jared can open his mouth. “It’s okay, really. He told me about how much you’re helping with the company stuff, all the stress. But he’s always been this way with family stuff. Why don’t you have some dessert with us while he unclenches, hm? I’m pretty sure that’s a fresh Rush Springs watermelon,” she adds in a conspiratorial whisper. He doesn’t know what it means, but it seems as if they are now in on a wonderful secret together. 

“You a hearts man, Jared?” Steven asks, carrying a bowl piled high with strawberries, honeydew, and watermelon to the kitchen table while Diane sets out small plates and spoons - four place settings, as if Jared were automatically part of the family. Disoriented, Jared blinks at him, uncomprehending.

“The card game,” Caitlyn supplies, and leads him towards the kitchen table. Her eyes are so kind, and Jared allows himself to be led. 

“I - I don’t know,” Jared replies, sitting at the table. Diane presses a tall glass of lemonade into his hand and smiles at him before she sits down and begins shuffling a worn deck of cards. 

“Well we’ll teach you, sugar, don’t you worry. C’mon, let’s see if you can shoot the moon.”

[sunflowerhae]

Linger

Episode • 7/8

Mobile Masterlist •

♡ ☾

Authors note• the next part will be the last part I promise guys

Warnings• language, mentions of death I think at this point I can’t remember

Songs• Something - the Beatles/linger - the cranberries/possibility- Lykke Li/ requiem on water - imperial mammoth

•never

•in your entire life

•were you more surprised than when you opened your locker one morning

•and saw a little note float out, and rest itself in the floor in between you and the locker.

•you honestly didn’t want to pick it up.

•what the hell did that asshole have to say to you now?

•you finally lean down and pick up the note

•and you have to hold your hand over your mouth once you open it to stop the crying

•bc you’re in the middle of school

•that’s

•so embarrassing

•lol don’t even ask what school was like the Monday after prom

•right there

•on the page

•is a poorly drawn sun.

•but this sun was different

•it’s eyes were closed

•and it had tears running down its cheeks

•Jaemin wrote you another note for a number of reasons

•the main one being

•he just wanted you to feel beautiful in your skin again

•he regretted everything he said to you

•but the one he regretted the most was telling you you’re not beautiful

•bc wtf

•who

•wtf

•Jaemin had known you for 8 months

•he knew your insecurities

•he knew what to use against you

•and he used it

•and that made Jaemin worse than some of the worst ppl he’s ever talked to

•and he literally can’t look at himself in the mirror anymore

•one time he got so mad he just fucking punched his mirror and it like, shattered

•really fucked up his hand but he didn’t even care at that point

•he was drunk

•felt numb

•so the letters were a way for him to feel something again

•and for him to express his love for you still

•bc no matter what he says to literally anyone

•all he does is love u

•he like truly believes ur his soulmate

•and that he’ll die alone

•and to top it all off

•his parents loved you so they’re always asking where you are

•and vice versa but you told ur mom what happened

•and Jaemin tried to keep it in but one night at dinner his mom is like “i really miss y/n! I told you what we were having earlier bc I knew it’s y/n’s favorite and I wanted you to invite her!”

•and Jaemin starts eating quietly but then starts remembering the first time you met his parents and you ate this so mid bite he just breaks down and starts sobbing

•bc hes like kept this all in

•he doesn’t want anyone to know he actually cares abt u

•but these are his Parents

•so he tells them

•and they are like “bro what”

•and they ask him if his reputation as a high school student was more important to him than love

•and he already knew it wasn’t

•but he was already 10000% sure u hated his guts

•and you did

•but you also still loved him and u hated it

•so you open the letter

•”Sunshine, it’s been a while. I know what happened between you and Jaemin, and I’m so sorry. I’m doing this again, not because I want you to be with me just because you’re single now (you don’t even know me) but because I was there that night. And I heard him. And y/n, I have never heard a more wrong and idiotic being in my life. And I need you to know he was wrong. I need you to know how beautiful you are; inside and out.

First things first, I didn’t get to say it to you that night, because I’m an idiot, and I wish I had, but you looked so beautiful at prom. You’re hair was curled and hanging over your shoulder, and your pink dress with the flower heals; I wanted to marry you right then and there. You took my breath away, even more than the first time I laid eyes on you. But even then you were absolutely stunning. You are so gorgeous in everything you wear. It doesn’t matter to me. I wanted to kiss you, and hug you, and tell you how much I loved you.

But I didn’t.

And I’m so sorry sunshine. I wish I had. I really do.

If you don’t want these letters, then throw them out without ever looking them, I get it. I just want you to have self confidence again; to feel beautiful and smart again. Because I think - no, I know - that you’re the most stunning person I’ve ever seen, and the smartest. And you teach me everyday how to be a beautiful person inside and out.

I love you sunshine.

Always and forever”

•knowing it was Jaemin

•his letters used to make you so happy

•now it upset you so much

•bc what was the truth

•but you didn’t tell him you knew

•you wanted to see what he had to say

•and if you were being honest, you craved his affection still

•bc u were in love with him

•unfortunately

•but it ended up hurting u more

•he would write more letters than he used to

•before, you would get maybe three of four a month

•now you got at least three a week

•and they were all about how amazing you are

•and in a lot of them

•Jaemin would subtly tear himself down

•u read in between the lines to see it

•and you were honestly scared he was gonna kill himself

•you knew all the pressure he had on him; football captain, honors and AP student, the popular boy, the good kid (although that on was a bit tarnished after prom lmao)

•he used to sit with u for hours venting

•and then you would be there to help him

•he no longer had that support

•bc he was such a closed off person, he didn’t tell his friends much of his problems

•well

•no matter what, you were not having it

•it wasn’t that you were weak. you like to think of it as you being strong. bc even though everything he had done, you still wanted to make sure he was okay in the end. you still had the courage to say something to him.

•so you left a note in his locker

•”Dear my secret admirer,

Not so secret, huh? I was bound to find out, what with all the notes you used to give me in third period?

I’m not writing to you for any reason other than to make sure you’re okay.

I can tell when you’re stressed, I think you forget

I don’t particularly like you. But that doesn’t mean I don’t love you

And as someone who loves you, it would be in your best interest if you don’t put yourself down in the letters you write.

No matter what you say Jaemin, you will always be a good person.

You are an amazing captain that your team members are lucky to have. You lead them in a way that they learn to take pride in the accomplishments AND their failures, and to grow from each.

You are a beautiful friend, Always looking out for the dreamies and making sure that they’re happiness is above your own. You listen and you give advice.

You’re a beautiful son, as is no surprise due to the beautiful people that raised you.

You’re one of the top students in the class, you don’t even have to study and you get A’s.

And no matter how much I want to fight it in my head, you were an amazing boyfriend. Until the end LOL.

What I’m trying to say is life is going to continuously beat you down.

So stand up and swing next

It’s going to want to silence you.

So scream.

Fight back, because it’s what you deserve.

And please, stay safe.

I will always love you,

Y/n

Ps. Please stop with the letters. They hurt too much. “

•so

•you slipped that in after the last bell

•and Jaemin didn’t go to his locker right after school, he rushed to practice

•he did have to get a book from his locker afterwards though, so he was in the hallway alone when he opened his locker and the note floated its way onto the floor

•Jaemin was thankful he was alone, bc he sobbed like a little baby

•you were such a beautiful person, so kind and such such a good soul

•and he hurt you so bad

•and yet you still felt the need to tell him all of that

•he started off by sobbing into his locker

•but after about 5 minutes of that his knees gave out and he slipped onto the floor

•and just put his head in his hands and sobbed

•you

•you were at school

•just down the hall actually

•you were in the music club, and you had a meeting after school to bc you had to write a song for the school club banner parade

•(side note. remember previously when i said that you had this club w mark? tell no one, but you were actually still regularly talking to mark! on the first meeting after prom, mark practically ran into the room and when straight to you, and before you could even open your mouth, he was word vomiting how sorry he was and that he had known you longer than any of those assholes and you were an amazing friend and that “ifyoudontwanttobemyfriendanymoreiunderstandcompletely-“ but you had to literally cover his mouth and you were just like “um, well. let’s just start writing the next assignment together, okay?” and before you knew it, you and mark were laughing again together. he actually made you feel a lot better, a lot closer. you both refused to talk abt any of the other dream members, or yerim and miri, but sometimes, something would slip. those were secretly your favorite moments, when mark would joke about something that happened that day, or when he would bring up an old memory of all 10 of you. over the course of the two months since prom, mark had made you laugh the most, and was your biggest reason to smile, honestly.)

•for a timeline, your meetings are about an hour long, sports is two hours long

•you stayed in late to finish some stuff up, as you were the leader of the club

•so you were walking out with ur bass in hand when u heard someone crying really loud in the hallway next to the one you were in

•you went to check and

•who do u see but Na Jaemin sitting on the floor sobbing into his hands

•you didn’t want to pry but you knew it was about u

•so

•you felt like u kinda had to

Continue here

{taglist}

@ivietea @fiveguysgoodbyeguys

@comically-sleep-deprived @woosans-sann @mozartwasajungkookstan @littlefluu @cxcxlxlee @jaesluvklub

@uyuzo @sweetie-yoongi7 @marklexleaf @infatuated-with-you

[rt8815]

OC Ask Game

I was tagged by the amazing @illegalcerebral

I put a Keep Reading link because this is looong.

1) Name (and why you chose it if you like) McKinley Campbell Durand. I named her after McKinley Morganfield, better known as Muddy Waters. However, the “in universe?” reason that will be given - which I haven’t written yet - is that McKinley and Campbell are family names from a few generations back.

Campbell comes from the Gaelic words for ‘crooked’ and ‘mouth.’ I just like the name. Here’s a post (that I had to rewrite because Tumblr’s a dick and wouldn’t let me edit the typos in the original. The rewrite had typos too! Blargh!) that discusses her first and last names. I thought it would be funny for her full name to consist solely of last names.

2) Fandom and how they fit into the story Criminal Minds. She works at a D.C. museum practically around the corner from the J. Edgar Hoover building (as indicated in “Let It Bleed”). That’s a tiny hint that it’s the National Museum of African American History & Culture, but I don’t think I’ll mention it very often, if for no other reason than I’ve never been to the NMAAHC and don’t want to describe it inaccurately.

The official story is that Spencer and McKinley met at the museum (again, in “Let It Bleed,” which is probably the least favorite thing of mine that I’ve written). However, they’d met once before, and texted a few times after that. Because my brain is all over the place, and because I’m telling the story in non-chronological order, I haven’t written their first meeting yet. The only details I’ve revealed thus far are that it was nighttime in a park, McKinley caught Spencer off guard and made him fall to the ground, and whatever they talked about set Spencer straight and lifted his spirits. Also, a swingset was involved. Beyond that, I’ve inserted McKinley into the plotlines and events of the show, with necessary alterations, and there’s a ton of domestic Spencer and off-duty team stuffs.

3) Do they have any family? Biological family: daughter Sophie and son Jason; her Mom (no name yet); maternal grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins; and her estranged father (no name yet). Chosen/found family: husband Spencer; the BAU.

4) As a child, what did they want to be when they grew up? When she was a toddler, McKinley wanted to be a pediatrician (a doctor just for kids?! Cool!) or an ophthalmologist (she’s worn glasses practically her whole life). As an older child she aspired to be an entomologist or herpetologist. In her teenage years she considered a career in forensic pathology or criminal psychology. While earning her BA in English, she discovered that Public History was her true calling.

5) Their greatest dream To be a good Mom. To inspire learning in others.

6) Their worst nightmare Losing her family; having to see her father again.

7) Strengths Empathy, insight/self awareness, forgiving nature but knowing when to cut her losses

8) Weaknesses McKinley struggles with imposter syndrome.

She can be very mean. I mean, downright nasty cruel, verbally. This is rare though because, and I’m paraphrasing a future bit of dialogue here, anyone whose behavior could arguably warrant such a response is beneath her notice and not worth the effort. She’s more likely to close the door on someone. When she’s removed a person from her life, she is done. They become literally nothing to her. McKinley will rightly claim that this is about self-preservation and boundaries, but she really takes it to the next level.

9) What would they chose between: morning and night, sweet and savoury, beaches or meadows, cities or countryside, winter or summer, Christmas or Halloween (sorry, Spencer!), movies or TV shows, action or rom-com, clowns or vampires, stars or the moon (both!), cocktails or pints [Neither. McKinley doesn’t care for cocktails or beer. Scotch, brandy, rum, and dry wines are her poisons. She’s been known to add Kahlúah to vanilla ice cream, Baileys Irish Cream to coffee (she wants to try Drambuie next), or make hot toddies when she has a cold (obviously not mixing any alcohol with any medicine)]

10) How do they relax? Reading, or having Spencer read to her; knitting; listening to her records or playing her guitar; exercising with Boogie so she’s exhausted enough to sleep that night; baking and cooking

11) What makes them angry? Injustice, apathy/indifference, ableism, willful ignorance

12) What makes them afraid? The awful things she’d possibly do under duress; her family getting hurt or worse; spiders and other bugs that bite and/or sting

13) What is a moment from their childhood that has shaped who they are? It’s not a single event, but growing up with an abusive parent has certainly had a lifelong impact on McKinley. You’ve heard the expression “once bitten, twice shy?” She’s “once bitten, there’s no twice because you no longer exist.” She’s working on that. It’s also cultivated empathy, though, and is part of the reason she volunteers in the hospital’s rehab wing.

14) Do they have a sense of humour? Intellectual humor, pop culture references, puns/Dad jokes, science jokes. Sometimes morbid.

15) What do they value in their friends/loved ones? Honesty and empathy

16) Do they have any pets? An Aussie Collie/Border Aussie named Boogie-Woogie. He’s her first child.

17) Worst memory? Probably the day Meadows shot her and she thought she’d never see Spencer and Penny again.

18) Best memory? The days Sophie and Jason were born. Minus, y’know, the agonizing pain of labor and delivery.

19) Do they have any tattoos? (If no would they get one?) Nope and nope

20) If you could write them into another fandom, which one would you choose? If I knew the MCU better, I’d love to write her in as a Stark Tower employee! She’d be an anthropologist and would study alien societies the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. have encountered. She’d naturally be drawn to Loki, initially in a professional capacity (they quickly discover they relate to each other on a personal level as well).

He’d first find her annoying: “Why are you pestering me, Mortal? Surely you’d rather interview my oaf of a brother?”

“No, not even remotely. He only ever wants to discuss battles he’s won. There’s so much more to Asgard and the other realms than that. I want - I need - to learn your literature, your science, your culture and history. You’re well versed in all of these subjects and you’re an excellent teacher.”

He stares at her impassively over his mug of tea, but his heart - that Judas of an organ - flutters slightly at the compliment. And how can he say no to a fellow scholar?

“I prefer your company to Thor’s too. You have this calming presence. Thor’s sweet but he’s also obnoxiously loud and brash and he always hugs me even though I keep telling him I don’t like it. And he’s constantly swinging his hammer around, which makes me think he’s overcompensating for something.”

Loki nearly chokes on his tea. Yes, this mortal is considerably more tolerable than others.

“Very well. Friday evenings at 6:00, my chambers. Arrive late and suffer my wrath.”

From that day forward, whenever Thor tries to hug her, he gets mildly electrocuted.

Did I accidentally sorta kinda write a drabble? Would anyone be interested in making this a collab? That’s what they’re called, right? (Can you tell I’ve given this some thought? Haha! I have even more details in my head.)

21) Do they like their job? (What else would they do if they could?) She loves it! Hmmm, what else…? A librarian maybe. Or animate and produce an educational cartoon series.

22) What is their sexuality? Demisexual

23) Do they believe in love at first sight? Soulmates? One true love? McKinley believes in “seeing the potential for a good relationship at first conversation.”

Yes, although she feels that term has become overused and poorly redefined.

People can find love again after it’s been lost.

24) What music do they listen to? Has that changed over time? I actually recently answered an ask about this. Yes, she grew up on what passed for country in the ‘90s. God help her, she had a boyband phase in junior high.

25) Can they cook? What food do they love? McKinley does pretty well in the kitchen. She loves a wide variety of food. She grew up in the south, so tons of carbs/comfort foods. She loves Thai, Japanese, and Indian food. She cooks up Middle Earth-inspired dishes (ha! nerd). She’s especially proud of a seed cake she bakes.

26) What are their hopes for the future? For her family to be healthy, safe and happy. To be debt free.

27) How do they react to being threatened? It’s a coin flip. McKinley might curl up like an armadillo and hope the predator gets bored and leaves, or she might kick the stool out from under them and cause their chin to slam into the bar and crack several teeth.

28) What is their love language? McKinley and Spencer both exhibit the Acts of Service love language, because just saying “I love you” isn’t enough. You ought to show it. She’ll randomly bake doughnuts for Spencer or play guitar for him in bed, and he’ll take care of laundry, dishes, and any other chores he sees need doing.

Quality Time is important for them too. Once a month, Luke and Penny babysit so Spencer and McKinley have a day alone together. It doesn’t really matter what they do. The point is it’s just them.

It caught McKinley by surprise how much she enjoys physical affection, given that she can be touch averse but holy moly she was more touch starved than she realized. She lives for snuggles and makeout sessions and playing with each others’ hair. When one of them doesn’t want to be touched, they hook their pinkies together.

29) What do they find most challenging in relationships? At work? In general? At work she struggles to gain her colleagues’ respect (think “Boy Genius” treatment except she has lady bits). In general, she struggles with trusting people.

30) What do you as a creator love best about writing this character? Giving her everything I wish I had but don’t.

Bonus: Include a link to your favourite work with this OC or write a small drabble.

October 12, 2021

Warm sunlight filtered through the curtains, gently rousing Spencer from a pleasant sleep. Just when he’d decided to get up, he felt the mattress dip behind him and his wife’s breath fanning over his ear.

“Who’s the birthday boy?” whispered McKinley.

Spencer smiled softly but feigned being asleep.

“Who’s the birthdaaay boooy?” she repeated, bouncing slightly.

“The good-looking guy to your left?”

“Happy Birthday!” she laughed, pressing kisses along his neck, suddenly shifting the mood from playful to sexy.

“Would the birthday boy like his birthday present?” she asked as she lifted the covers.

“Well, look at that - it’s already unwrapped!”

[wroughtbetwixtfanfic]

A Place To Call Home, Ch 5.

Fandom: Rosewell, New Mexico.

Summary: A canon divergent take on Roswell, New Mexico, and the relationships  between Isobel, Noah, and Rosa; later parts will shift the focus to  Michael and Alex, as well as Michael and Noah. What is it like to share a  body with another alien? Can broken trust be mended? Do the ends really  justify the means?  

Rating: M.

Tags: Canon divergence, minor  character death, not really character death, body sharing, polyamory,  hurt/comfort, addiction problems, sickfic, revenge, fix it, friends to  enemies to lovers, lovers to enemies to lovers, Noah is complicated, cw:  dubious age stuff for a little bit considering Nasedo/Noah is  who-the-hell-knows how old.

Word Count: 2902

The drive to the turquoise mines was long, and silent.

It was late by the time they got there. Without a doubt, people would be looking for them both before long. Neither of them seemed to care, and why would they? Rosa's family didn't seem to understand. Isobel's brothers seemed callous to Isobel's distress. It was just them, the desert, and the stars glimmering to life above them. What more, who more, did they need?

"You're not gonna like, murder me and bury my body here are you?" Rosa asked as they hiked towards the tunnels. "That'd kinda suck."

Nasedo frowned. "I'd never hurt you, Rosa." He paused at the entrance of the mine, the one where his pod-- and true body-- were hidden. Taking Rosa's hand, he gently turned her to face him. "I need you to believe that. Okay? I love you, and I want to keep you safe. Alright?"

Rosa tilted her head. "I love you, too. Izzie, are you okay?"

"We'll see."

He led her into the cave, those four words giving him some sort of hope. I love you, too. There were a few twists and turns, but then the darkness gave way to the soft, silver and gold glow of the pod. Rosa stopped in her tracks when she saw it, her grip on his hand tightening to an almost painful degree.

"Izzie... What... What is that?"

"Nasedo."

"What?"

He closed his eyes a moment, steeling himself. "My name is Nasedo. In 1947, a spaceship crashed in Roswell. I was one of the only survivors, along with Isobel and her brothers. That is a stasis pod. Theirs eventually opened. Mine was damaged, and the only way I can access the outside world is through the mental connection between me and Isobel. We share her body. That's why sometimes she seems different. Because it's me, not her."

No answer. Nasedo risked a glance at Rosa; she was staring at the pod, lips parted and her breathing faster than normal. But she didn't move. She didn't scream, or run, or lash out. She... looked. When she finally moved, it was to step towards the pod. He let go of her hand as she did, watching as she oh so lightly rested her hand on the pod. The light wavered, and for a split second, it was possible to see his body inside.

Rosa let out a gasp and yanked her hand away, spinning around to look at him. "You're an alien. An actual alien."

"Isobel and I both, yes."

"You... You're aliens sharing a body."

"We are."

"For how long?"

"Five years."

"So, this whole time that we've been..." Rosa stopped, pressing her hands to her forehead. For a moment, Nasedo felt a surge of fear. But then she exhaled a long, slow breath and sat down on the cave floor. "Explain again. Start at the beginning."

Well, that was something he could do. Nasedo sat across from Rosa. He started with his people fleeing from war and violence, the stowaway, the crash. How the military came in and killed, as far as he knew, everyone. How he hid the three children away, and managed to hide himself, but withered and decayed with time. Finally hearing Isobel, and trying to save her. Realizing he could enter her body and mind, control the body when Isobel retreated into herself. How they learned, in time, to work together and share a life. How they had both fallen in love with Rosa.

"And here we are," Nasedo said quietly. "I'm sorry that we didn't tell you. We were worried that if we said anything, you'd think we were crazy. Or worse, that you'd believe us and turn us in."

Toying with a loose thread at the corner of her jacket, Rosa stared down at the dirt. She didn't speak at first. When she did, her voice was shaking. "I don't... I need some time to process." Her eyes wandered to the pod. "I won't tell anyone. I'll keep your secret."

It was tempting to ask about their relationship, but Nasedo knew better than to try. She needed time. "Thank you," he replied. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Can we get out of here?"

Nodding, Nasedo led Rosa back out of the cave. At least she let him take her hand; she didn't seem afraid, so much as deep in thought.

Isobel was nowhere in sight. It seemed that he would have to handle the rest of the night on his own, and deal with Isobel's likely anger in the morning; they hadn't discussed this, hadn't planned for it, and he knew that would play poorly with Isobel's anxiety. Not that he blamed her. It was a risky move. At least for the time being, things were okay. Maybe not ideal-- understandable, considering most humans would probably need time to adjust-- but they didn't seem to be in danger.

They were back in the car and heading into town when Rosa glanced at him. "Hey. Do you wanna go to Sander's Auto? He lets me paint up his old scrap cars sometimes. I just... Need something average right now."

He couldn't refuse. The junkyard was familiar, and art was Rosa's release; if it made her feel better, who was he to say no? Nasedo murmured an affirmative, and they pulled into the yard soon after. It was late. No one was there. It didn't matter much, since the man who owned the property was notoriously lax with security, and Michael worked for him in exchange for parking his truck there. Isobel being there wouldn't be suspect at all.

Light from the full moon cast a milky glow over everything it touched. Nasedo looked around as they got out of the car, seeing little hints of Rosa all over as they wandered inside. Flowers doodled on signs, a heart carved into a wooden post, poetry and quotes painted onto rusted out cars. It was a bit like the desert itself. Barren, filled with erosion and decay, but scattered with small moments of beauty.

Rosa found a big van, yellow with dented side doors. She opened the van and set her knapsack inside, pulling out spraypaint. Nasedo sat in the van, watching. Watching and listening. Rosa began to talk about art, her favorite artists and her favorite mediums, what paint she liked best and how some places spoke to her in a away she didn't really understand. The longer she spoke, the stronger she sounded. Less afraid, more passionate. Intoxicating.

"What?"

Nasedo blinked, realizing that he'd been caught staring. "I'm sorry. I love hearing you talk about this stuff. Have you considered going to art school or something?"

"Actually..." Rosa ducked her head and smiled. "I have thought about going to Paris and studying art there. It's a silly dream I've always had."

"It sounds like a beautiful dream."

"Yeah? And what are your dreams?"

"Oh, I don't know." Nasedo brought his knees up to his chest. He peered up at the stars. "My old home, I was a sort of... defender, but I've lost my taste for war. Maybe I'd be a lawyer instead."

"And Isobel?"

"She wants to be an event planner. She watched 27 Dresses as a kid and saw herself in it."

Rosa came back to her knapsack, choosing different paints. Black and red. "Well, who knows. Maybe we'll all make our dreams come true."

Nasedo smiled up at her, then looked to what she pulled from the knapsack next. "You brought a UFO stencil with you in your runaway supplies?"

"Maybe it's silly, but it means a lot to me."

"It's not silly at all. What's the story behind it?"

"When I was little, my friend's mother talked about aliens all the time. We thought she was sick. Maybe she wasn't." Rosa eyed the van, finally finding a place to work. Nasedo followed; he held the stencil in place while she painted. "Mimi would always say that we're not alone. That's why I made this stencil, I guess. And why I wanted to take it with me. As a reminder."

"You're not alone, Rosa."

Rosa sighed. She dropped her arms, eyeing her work before turning to Nasedo. There was conflict in those deep brown eyes, but she just sniffled and shrugged. "Wanna try?"

"She'll kill me if I ruin her dress."

"Blame me."

"Rosa..."

They looked at one another, and for a moment, Rosa stepped closer. But then she stepped past him and headed to the other side of the van. Nasedo followed and chose the red paint, drawing the same symbol he'd drawn on the gazebo post. Circle, circle, circle. Lines connecting.

Rosa leaned against his shoulder, taking the can of spraypaint when he was done. "What does it mean? Really?"

"It's a map of our home. I've never told anyone before."

"Not even Isobel?" Rosa asked. Nasedo shook his head; it was better to not tell her, to give her a chance at a normal life. Sitting in the van, Rosa patted the space next to her. "Tell me about it."

Nasedo curled up next to Rosa, telling her everything he remembered of home. Antar was one of the main star systems of their government, along with Shau and Sarga. Their home planet was in the middle, a picturesque world at one time, ruled by wise and fair leaders. The planet had lush, sprawling gardens, filled with bright flowers and birds and insects. But then a young king took over. Well meaning, but irresponsible. Selfish. He was so blinded by his own way of doing things, he didn't pay attention to the unrest. Finally, he and his siblings were murdered by a rebel leader. Their cells were cloned, and their family fled with the cells maturing in stasis pods.

Somewhere along the way, they had sprawled backwards, holding hands and watching the sky. Every so often, a meteor would breeze through in a shower of green and white. When he spoke of the deaths, Rosa squeezed his hand.

"Died and resurrected, like the holy men of old," Nasedo whispered to himself, squeezing back. "And they have no idea. None. It's why they have no memories. They were a desperate attempt to save our royal line."

"That's awful. Do you remember them, from before?"

"Rath was explosive. Temperamental, stubborn, but protective and good hearted. Vilandra, she was elegant and beautiful. She was powerful. Intense. And Zan, our King... Well, as I said. He was ineffective. There was another, Ava. His wife. But she..." He thought back to the night of the crash and shivered. "She formed a pact with the rebel who murdered the rest. What happened to her, I have no clue."

Rosa nestled closer. They kept talking into the night about his world's music, fashion. Good memories. Happier times. Somehow, Nasedo ended up drifting off; the next time he stirred, Rosa was nudging him with her shoulder. Sunlight streamed through the open doors of the van. It was morning; they had stayed out all night, and Isobel was slowly stirring. God, their neck...

Rosa stroked their hair, pushing it our of their face. "I'm gonna go get us some breakfast, okay?"

"Mmhm..."

Shimmying out of the van, Nasedo could hear the car start and the motor fade away. He sighed, closing his eyes and trying to stretch their back. It had only been five minutes when he heard another car approaching. A familiar rumbling engine. Suddenly, he found himself shoved out of front and to the side as Isobel surged into control. He could feel her panic as she shot up, scrambling for some sort of explanation as Michael and Max approached. They weren't supposed to be there, they shouldn't have been there, why--

"Isobel?" Max yelled. "Oh, what the hell?!"

Michael stopped, pointing at Isobel's hands. "Wait. Is that...?"

Isobel looked down. Their hands were stained a bright red. "No. I think it's paint."

Max narrowed his eyes. "Were you with Rosa?"

"Are you on something right now?" Michael asked at the same time.

"No!" Isobel denied. Her voice was strained; Nasedo tried to get around her, wanting to help, but she pushed him away. "I don't know how I got here."

"Stop lying! That's Rosa's art. We know she sells drugs." Max was clenching his hands. He was loud, too loud. Too demanding. "Just tell us the truth."

Isobel grit her teeth. Panic was being replaced by fury. "You know, my life is none of your business, Max. You've made that very clear."

"We just spent all night--"

"You're leaving me! You're going halfway across the planet. What about me? What am I supposed to do?"

"Live your life!" Max threw his arms into the air. "Grow up! We're not abandoning you."

Grow up. Isobel blinked in shock, trying to process what she'd heard. They had heard Max and Michael say she was just after attention. They had heard Max scoff and dismiss Isobel's problems and worries before. But... Grow up? For years, she had been trying to survive her trauma, keep their secret, deal with their parents, try and try and try to find a place in the world with few people to rely on but her brothers. Grow up? She'd grown up that night, at fourteen.

She got up and fled before Nasedo could wrestle control back. How dare he, how could he, what did I do to deserve that, I've only ever tried to be a good sister, what am I supposed to do. Her thoughts were swirling too fast for him to get in a word. She wasn't listening, storming down the dirt road without aim, until a car came their way. Rosa.

"Hey, what..." Rosa poked her head out the window. When she saw their state, she reached to the passenger side and opened the lock. "I was coming back to get you. Hop in."

Isobel slid into the car and slammed the door. The smell of coffee and hashbrowns filled the air; they were starving, but Isobel crossed her arms and folded in on herself, refusing to talk. Rosa didn't press. She turned around and headed back into town. As Isobel started to relax, her rage at Max simmered down to an annoyance at Nasedo; he had shared only enough of his memories to explain, leaving out exactly what had been discussed in the junkyard.

Rosa parked in a quiet lot lined with trees. She unwrapped her breakfast sandwich, nibbling on it and glancing at Isobel in her peripheral vision. Isobel picked up the one Rosa had brought her and stared down at it, trying to calm her mind.

"So," Isobel finally said, "he told you."

"He did."

Isobel tried to reply, but all that came out was a choked sob. "He didn't even ask. No one asks me about anything anymore. I'm sick of everyone deciding my life for me."

"Woah, Izzie. What's going on?" Rosa reached out, resting a hand on Isobel's shoulder. Isobel slumped over, pressing her face against Rosa's shoulder and crying. "It's gonna be okay. I'm here, alright? We'll figure this out together. Promise."

It was difficult to eat, and Isobel didn't allow Nasedo to do it for her. He was, officially, in the dog house. Still, she managed to get it down. Once they were both done, Rosa fired up the car and drove to the Evans' home. No one else was home. It was safe. Rosa walked them to the door; she offered a hug, and Isobel took it. So smelled like dust and sagebrush, and Isobel allowed herself to relax a little.

"Nasedo said I wasn't alone," Rosa whispered. "You're not gonna be alone, either, Isobel."

"You say that now."

"I mean it. I'm not leaving you. Either of you."

Isobel pulled back, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand. She tried to smile. It felt flat, but Rosa stroked her cheek and things seemed a tiny bit less dire, anyways. "Thank you, Rosa. For everything."

"I know what it's like to be judged. It's totally not punk, you know?"

Rosa gave Isobel a kiss on the cheek. They said their goodbyes and Rosa headed to the diner, while Isobel headed inside to clean up. Nasedo hung around in the back of her mind, waiting until she felt like addressing him. It took hours, but once she slumped into her bed after a long shower, she sighed and turned her attention to him.

"I wish you would have warned me."

"I'm sorry. You weren't responding and she was going to leave."

"I know, I know..." Isobel closed her eyes and leaned back against their pillows. "She seemed to take it pretty well."

Nasedo fell quiet again, then remembered a tiny bit of conversation that puzzled him. "Isobel, why does the name Valenti sound familiar?"

Isobel opened her eyes. "Valenti?"

"Rosa said some man named Valenti was going to help her get clean."

"All this time and you don't remember? Valenti. Kyle Valenti. It has to be his father, but that's..." Isobel swallowed. "Why would she be involved with him?

"Isobel?"

She bit her lip. "Kyle's father is-- was in the military. He's friends with Alex's dad, that homophobic military bigot. Their ancestors were at the Roswell crash."

Nasedo felt his heart sink. "Do you think she knows?"

"I don't know, but we need to find out. Fast."

[machudson]

@bup-oh​ said:

Hey, sorry if this is a little weird, a random person in your askbox, but with talk about tammy and her shortcomings as a writer, I wanted to interject. While I DO believe tammy isn't a fantastic writer, imo her main issues are; she seems to favor quantity over quality, and has bad time management. She works on multiple comics, and strictly commits to her once a week updates. She posting pages before the comic is fully complete(?), shes on a time constraint to get pages drawn, and (1/3)

most likely be forced to rush to get them out the door at some point. On top of this, she has to keep in mind that we only see one page a week, and I feel like it effects the pacing. IMO, tammy doesn't necessarily lack skill with character development and proper character interaction, she just doesn't give herself time to do it. Throughout CCT and ESPECIALLY OE, it feels like some of the pages are missing panels and are spaced too far apart (2/3)

You can see in some of the pages she wants to do more, but doesn't have the room to do it. Pair all this with the fact shes so excited with starting BUP (which I don't blame her) and even more time is taken away from her. Tbh I feel like if she got better at time management, and when shes down to one comic for continuous updates, she could greatly improve and put more thought into her writing, by. giving. herself, ROOM. (3/3)

ok so im gonna try and sum up your points just for my own ease of understanding this: 1. you agree that she’s not great re: time and 

actually wow im so bad at reading comprehension rn. thot you were trying to start discourse not just add your own point of view LOL im so good at this

personally i feel like she is good at time management, she’s just... idk... i wanna say she’s just focusing on bup way more than cct. because she was able to keep up four comics at a time (rd, ice climbers, cct, and the private nsfw cct comic i think), but she finished rd a while ago and ice climbers is almost finished on the patreon side. she basically has half as many comics going as she used to. (and a bit off topic but now that i think about it, i don’t think her writing re:character development declined from where I felt it was at while reading first match two years ago, it’s just becoming more relevant and visible now.) so it’s not rushed because she just doesn’t Have time, but she’s probably managing it poorly

ok so i came back to this after i wrote the above bit at 11 pm last night and wrote like three paragraphs and then tumblr crashed on me and deleted them so uhhh im gonna. rewrite all that. remember kids, when writing long tumblr posts, write them in the drafts page and save often. or just write them in word or gdocs or something just make sure you wont let tumbly fuck u over

so. personally I believe she’s not really having a time management issue. she has fewer running comics than she used to - she’s finished RD, ice climbers is nearly done on patreon, and the nsfw comic she once had going has been long over - and even when doing four comic updates a week she still managed to be successful. ice climbers is fully sketched and just three pages away from finishing on patreon. cct is 8 pages ahead on patreon and tammy sometimes leaves responses like ‘oh just wait till next page’ so I think it’s safe to say she has a couple pages sketched in advance. she’s been doing comics for at least a decade, i think she’s pretty experienced in that area by now.

i agree she’s rushed, but not in regards to bad time management. she’s got a good work schedule for herself, but with her focus shifted to bottled up, she’s rushing herself in terms of comic progress. she clearly wants to start bup as soon as possible, and that means finishing her other comics as soon as possible. and to nobody’s surprise, rushed comics are lower quality! she plans to start bup before the end of the year. there’s expected to be ten or so more  patreon pages in cct, or about 19/20 publicly, and there’s twelve more thursdays this year. and ice climbers is gonna stretch into the new year too, ending on jan 8th i think. (so unless she decides to give another slot to one of those two she’s probably gonna give the former RD update day to bup if she wants to start it publicly this year.)

though I do think she has an issue with writing. she’s said before that for cct, she never writes down her plot lines in advance. she just keeps them in her head until she sketches the pages. and i feel like this really screws with pacing and also just the writing in general. idk if you’ve seen it but a while ago there was a post floating around of pixar’s writing tips - one of which was “putting it on paper lets you start fixing it”. which I feel really applies to tammy. if she wrote down her plans before sketching them, i feel like she could work them out at a better pace and with better quality. she also tends to think of a lot of stories and plotlines she wants to get to, but ends up with way too much on her plate and never manages to get around to covering most of them. also the one page a week schedule definitely affects pacing too. i feel like since we have to wait a week to see each page, it’s kinda common for them to end on cliffhangers to keep readers hooked (like yesterday’s public page)

also related, she doesn’t…. stay true to her word. i had another example for this but its mostly regarding future comic stuff thats currently patreon only rip. but you know for tetrox’s story. she’s recently been talking about how tetrox was the octarian soldier who attacked whinter back in HoI. and i think at one point she had a more in depth story planned for tetrox (and probably also arnick) regarding that, but since she wants to get onto bup soon she made the decision to skip it over and just move onto final match, and how her original plan was to have tetrox be an infiltrating soldier who planned to take the zapfish again. and she’s been saying that since she isn’t going to do that tetrox arc, that she might change tetrox’s backstory to be more like octo expansion’s story - watched the match against Octavio, decided to run away to the surface to join inkling society. And personally I feel like it’s … really telling of tammy’s character (as in, how she is as a writer) that she decided to just change her backstory because she knew she wouldn’t get to writing the comic.

a while ago on patreon she answered an ask of mine with the sentence “My stories and especially my mind changes all the time. So, holding me to things I say months back isn’t really the best idea.” and that’s really…. bothersome to me because while I love stories that develop and bloom as they move along, like cct (and also ovw’s lore), it’s incredibly disappointing when you practically memorize the lore and then the writer decides to retcon major details. and it shows how she hasn’t been planning well enough to keep what she’s already said in the past as canon. going back to the third paragraph, she might not have this issue if she wrote down her stories before sketching them, But Alas. :(

tldr: i believe she doesn’t have an issue with short-term workloads, but instead has trouble with long-term planning and writing her story.

[keepyourpantsongohan]

Standing on Ceremony

Isn’t the Hokage inauguration ceremony kinda like a wedding between you and Konohagakure? (Kakashi Hiden Ch. 2) | AO3 |

When Naruto arrives the training grounds, he feels a distinct sense of déjà vu.

Firstly, because Sasuke and Sakura are already there. Secondly, because Kakashi isn’t, in spite of the fact it was definitely him who’d sent the vague summons asking him here.  

“You guys too?” asks Naruto, holding up the note. It contains only three lines and a poorly-drawn depiction of one of his sensei’s dogs. 

Sakura and Sasuke nod, and fish notes out of their own pockets. “‘Training grounds. Morning. You’ll want to be there,’” reads Sakura in a drawling tone that must be an impression of their teacher. “Who sends this kind of message?”

“Kakashi,” says Sasuke, shaking his head. 

“What do you think he wants?” asks Naruto, sitting down beside them. “Not another bell test?”

Sakura laughs, and throws a skeptical look at the two boys. “I don’t think he wants to be responsible for the damages.”

Sasuke and Naruto meet eyes, and Naruto grins. Sasuke gives him what passes for a smile in Sasuke expressions, which mostly consists of his mouth twitching at the corners like his lips want to turn upward but they’ve forgotten how.

Though Sasuke isn’t residing in the village currently, Kakashi does ask that he make regular, if brief, in-person reports. Yesterday, he’d delivered one such report, and it appears that he has yet to leave. Naruto suspects that Sasuke is getting lonely in his travels, and that Kakashi has caught on. He doesn’t think Kakashi would go as far as staging an intervention, but perhaps this meeting is meant as a reminder that he has something waiting for him in Konoha.

Either way, it’s nice to have the three of them together like this, so Naruto can’t be too mad at Kakashi for being vague about when he’d arrive. He’s the Hokage now; he finally has a legitimate excuse.

“Could be a mission, you know,” muses Naruto aloud. Excitement flares up. The three of them haven’t been partnered together since the war.  

Sasuke raises an eyebrow. “He’d just call us into his office for that.”

“Maybe he just wants to spend time with his old team,” offers Sakura with a smile. “He’s kind of a sap, when it comes down to it.”

“If it was all about spending time together, you’d think he’d actually be here,” says Naruto, flopping down on the grass. His arms form a headrest beneath his chin.  

Sakura and Sasuke both let out long-suffering sighs. “Same old sensei,” says Sakura.

They sit there for like this for a while, chatting idly as they wait. Naruto tells them about his most recent date with Hinata and his shadowing of Kakashi as the Hokage, Sakura informs them about the progress of her children’s therapy centres and the vegetable garden she’s started with Yamato’s advice, and Sasuke tells them about the rumours he’s been following and, surprisingly, a tea shop visit with Jūgo, whom he’d run into while passing through Kusa. 

After an hour and a half has passed, Sasuke pulls out a pocket watch. “It’s afternoon now,” he says, not sounding surprised in the least. 

Naruto groans and stands. “I can’t sit still like this forever, you know. I’m going to go get him.”

“Get who?” asks a voice from beyond the trees. 

“Sai,” exclaims Naruto, upon looking at the new arrival. “Did Kakashi-sensei ask you to meet him here too?”

“Yamato-taichō did, actually,” Sai tells them as he approaches. “Though he stated that he would not arrive until shortly before two in the afternoon. I thought I’d come early to do some sketching.”

Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke all exchange looks. It cannot be a coincidence that Yamato and Kakashi would send messages for a meeting at the same spot on the same day. And since Yamato’s instruction tends to be much more precise than Kakashi’s... “We’ve been waiting here for hours for nothing,” concludes Sakura, exasperated. 

“Sensei,” says Naruto crossly, eyes in the direction of the Hokage tower as if to somehow project his annoyance on Kakashi from a distance. 

“Hn.” Sasuke folds his arm across his chest. 

Sai pulls a sketchbook out of his bag and sits down. “This is an unusual occurrence,” he comments idly, flipping to a blank page. “To have both versions of Team Kakashi come together. It is rare that all six of us are in the village at once, these days.”

Naruto’s sour expression is replaced by a smile. “That’s right! All of Team 7 will be in one place. That’s pretty exciting, you know!”

“Don’t forget Team 10,” pipes up Ino, bounding up towards them with Shikamaru and Chōji in tow. 

Sai smiles at her, setting down his sketchbook as she finds her place between him and Sakura. “Hello,” he says sociably. “Would you like to hold my hand? Sakura tells me it is common practice among new romantic partners.”

Ino laughs. “Only if you want to,” she says, and seems pleased when he grasps her fingers. 

“What are you doing here, Ino?” asks Sakura, prodding her friend. “Do you and Sai have a date after our meeting?” 

Shikamaru is the one who answers, coming to stand at Naruto’s side. “If you mean the meeting with Kakashi-sensei, we’re here for it too. Ino made us come early because she saw Sai headed this way. Troublesome,” he adds, sighing. Ino aims a stray kick at his ankle. 

Naruto’s brow creases in thought. “So it’s not a team meeting then,” he says. “What do you think they want?”

“They?” asks Chōji, confused. 

“Yamato-taichō will be here also,” explains Sai. 

Shikamaru’s eyes narrow. “Both of them? It’s strange that they’d call us all here on our days off.” 

“Speak for yourself,” says Ino. “Sakura and I just got back from a mission at dawn. Overseeing children’s therapy centres isn’t a simple task.”

Naruto and Sasuke stare at Sakura in surprise. “I slept for a few hours when I got back,” she says, shrugging. “And I’ve got the next week off, so I figured taking one meeting wouldn’t kill me.”

“Will you kill Kakashi, if he doesn’t show up?” asks Sasuke. His comment is for Sakura’s benefit, but it goes unmissed by the rest of the group.

They all turn to stare at him. It is, Naruto realizes, glancing at his expression, Sasuke’s attempt at humour. Involuntarily, Naruto lets out a snort. Sakura giggles. Ino and Chōji look conflicted, and Sai only shakes his head.  

“You’re not allowed to make treason jokes,” says Shikamaru, unamused. Sakura is the one who kicks Shikamaru this time, and her blow lands. Wisely, he offers no further admonitions. 

“The two of them have got to be up to something,” declares Naruto. “Why else would they gather so many of us here?”

Thoughtfully, Sakura asks, “Do we know if anyone else is coming?”

As if summoned by the question, three new figures approach the grounds. Four, if Naruto is being technical, but only three of which are likely to have received a message about this meeting. Naruto recognizes each of them in different ways. Hinata, by sight, since he’s learned to spot her across crowded rooms. Kiba, by sound, since sure enough, he is in the middle of saying something to Akamaru loudly enough to be heard even from this distance. Shino, by the presence of the other two, and the unsettling feeling of having bugs nearby. 

“Hinata-chan!” Naruto calls out to his girlfriend, waving. 

Hinata smiles and returns the greeting. When they are close enough for Shino’s calm voice to be heard, he tells Naruto, “It is common courtesy to greet all members of a group when they arrive. Why? The reason is because we are also your friends, Naruto.”

“Sorry,” says Naruto sheepishly. “Hey Shino, Kiba.”

Kiba laughs. “That sounded sincere. Why are all of you guys down here? Me and Akamaru could smell everyone gathering. You got the same note too?”

“Yeah. Actually, can we see yours?” Naruto asks eagerly. “We’re trying to figure out what this is all about.”

Kiba pulls out a crumpled note from his pocket. On it, the neat scrawl of their former captain states, ‘Please come to Training Ground 3 at two in the afternoon. There is an important matter to be discussed. Your presence would be much appreciated. Yamato.’

“‘Important,’ huh,” muses Naruto. “Wonder what it could be.”

Only more questions are raised as their party grows beyond just the rookies of their year whom Yamato and Kakashi have been teamed up with before. Tenten and Lee are next, the latter pushing Gai’s wheelchair at a pace which cannot be safe for either of them. Gai seems to know better than the teenagers about what’s going on, but when asked, simply says with shining eyes, “My rival has surpassed me once more!”

Kurenai joins them too, balancing a growing Mirai on her hip. A few more jōnin Naruto recognizes follow, like Shizune, Aoba, Genma, and Anko. And some he doesn’t, like a woman with long purple hair and a man with sleek brown hair, though Naruto must assume they know Kakashi or Yamato based on the way they keep referring to a ‘taichō.’ Iruka shows up a bit later among a handful of chūnin, and Naruto tries to bargain with him for answers only to find out he doesn’t know anything more than him. 

Finally, exactly ten minutes before the scheduled meeting time, Yamato himself shows up. He stands by the posts where Team 7 was first officially formed. Strangely, he is not wearing his jōnin uniform or face plate. In fact, he is in nicer clothes than Naruto has ever seen him, looking like he wouldn’t be out of place at one of the Daimyo’s fancy events that Naruto has started being invited to since the war. 

“Taichō!” Naruto says. “What’s with the outfit? Where’s Kakashi-sensei? Why’d you make all of us come here?”

“I think we’d better wait for Kakashi-senpai before we get into the details,” says Yamato.

Sakura groans. “We’ve been waiting, Yamato-taichō!”

Yamato smiles. “He’ll be here.”

The younger members of the group try to convince him to explain, but years of ANBU training have made him plenty able to withstand questioning. He starts by shooting down questions politely, but eventually turns to them with a ghoulish expression that silences the most vocal of his interrogators. 

As it happens, they don’t have to wait all that much longer, because fifteen minutes after the agreed upon time, Kakashi indeed arrives, dressed just as properly as Yamato. With him, he brings his predecessor, Tsunade, who is donning the hat she passed on not long ago with pursed lips as she hauls around a bag that makes a suspicious sloshing sound. 

“Sorry I’m late,” says Kakashi, sidling up next to Yamato. “I had to collect a very important guest.” He nods at Tsunade. 

“Guest for what?” Naruto demands. “What’s this about, sensei?”

Yamato turns to Kakashi. “Shall we start?” 

“Right. As you know, Tenzō and I have known each other a long time. I consider him to be a very important person in my life,” Kakashi says, nodding at the man beside him. “So, we wanted to announce it to you all.”

“Announce what?” asks Ino, folding her arms. “That you care about each other?”

Kakashi shrugs. “Sounds about right.” The group begins to sigh and exchange murmurs, until Yamato adds, “Legally.”

“That’s not a legal procedure I’m familiar with,” says Sai, pulling a notebook from his pocket. He skims it, and then frowns, looking to his peers for answers. “There isn’t any formal custom for simply declaring one’s importance to one another, is there?”

“Sure there is,” jokes Kiba, throwing his hands behind his head. “Marriage.”

Kakashi snaps his fingers. “That’s the word.”

A stillness falls over the crowd. For a moment, everyone just stares at the two men, who have remarkably calm faces for people who’ve just announced a lifelong commitment. They don’t seem inclined to elaborate, simply smiling (or in Kakashi’s case, hiding a smile) as they look out at the faces of their loved ones. The silence drags on, until Naruto shouts, “I knew they were dating!”

“Well, yeah,” says Sakura. “They were holding hands at the ramen stand last week. What did you think they were doing? Practicing hand signs?”

“Naruto was on a mission then,” Sai reminds her.

Naruto looks between Sai and Sakura, betrayed. “You went for ramen without me?”

“I think there are bigger questions here than about ramen,” interjects Sasuke, eyeing Kakashi and Yamato as if they’ve suddenly caused him to reevaluate his world view once again. 

“You’re getting married?” asks Hinata. “Have you decided on a date for the wedding?”

“Today,” says Kakashi affably. 

“We knew you’d all be free,” Yamato adds. 

Dozens of eyes turn to each other, looking for the same flabbergasted expression on their neighbours’ faces as there is on their own. By the looks of it, almost no one but the pair at the front had prior warning. Except...

“Did you know about this, Gai?” asks Aoba.

Gai beams, putting up a thumbs-up and a wink in the direction of the two men. “Kakashi knows that he cannot hide anything from me.”

Kakashi chuckles. “We needed witnesses for the legal filing. Gai is my best friend.”

The clearer it becomes that this is not some kind of joke, the more eyebrows go up. “But Kakashi-sama, as the Hokage, shouldn’t your wedding be an event for public celebration?” asks Shizune. 

Kakashi and Yamato share a look, as if they’ve been expecting this question all along. “Not if no one is aware of it,” says Kakashi. 

“I told him it was a nonsensical idea. But then, that’s never stopped us before,” says Yamato, doing a poor job of suppressing a smile.

“They have my blessing,” says Tsunade, shrugging. “Sarutobi-sensei’s wedding wasn’t a big event. I don’t see why Kakashi’s has to be. Besides, we’ve still got Naruto’s wedding to look forward to if we want something to bring the villages together.”

Hinata and Naruto catch each other’s eyes and then turn red. Luckily, Sakura saves them from having to address the comment by aiming a reproachful look at Kakashi. “You could’ve told your guests at least, Kakashi-sensei.”

“What would be the fun in that?” asks Kakashi with alarming sincerity. 

“We could have dressed appropriately,” says Sai, with a glance down at his bare midriff. He notes something down on his sketchpad, which Naruto is willing to bet is a question about wedding attire. A few more voices offer their assent to Sai’s words.  

Yamato waves them down. “What you’re all wearing is fine. We didn’t want to waste anyone’s time with having to prepare.”

Kakashi nods. “I know some of you have just returned from missions,” he says, a bit more seriously, “and some of you will be leaving in the morning. We didn’t want to take up more than an afternoon.”

“For your marriage,” says Sasuke, still sounding startled.

“Wedding,” corrects Kakashi easily. “Marriages usually last longer than an afternoon.”

Yamato nudges him, raising an eyebrow. “We’ll see.”

“Have a little more faith, Tenzō,” says Kakashi, grabbing hold of his hand. “Our marriage should survive at least until next week.”

“Next month, optimistically.”

“I bet we could even make it until the winter.”

Naruto gets the feeling their exchange could go on for some time, but a cleared throat brings their attention back to the crowd. 

“Where will the ceremony be?” asks the purple-haired woman. She is one of the few who doesn’t seem very caught off-guard by the antics of the two men. 

“Oh,” says Yamato, as if remembering himself. “Here.” He lets go of Kakashi’s hand in order to form the signs of the mokuton, and from the earth, several rows of benches rise up. With a few more gestures, an altar has formed, and several fruits have dropped down from nearby trees to adorn it. Tsunade pulls out a bottle of sake and three cups from her bag to join the display.

“Please sit,” says Kakashi, gesturing to the impromptu arrangement. “We’ll begin shortly.”

There is a general shuffle towards the seats. Naruto wonders if he should be sitting with Hinata, but he’s still a little bit sheepish about the wedding comment, mostly because it has been on his mind lately. Either way, his decision is made for him when he finds himself squished between the other members of Team 7 in the seats closest to the altar. 

“This is crazy, you know,” says Naruto, as his former team leaders begin to move into place. “Is the Hokage allowed to do this kind of thing?”

“He’s ranked higher than anyone else in the village,” says Sai, “so probably.”

“I still can’t believe he was late to his own wedding.” Sakura sighs, but then laughs. “I guess I can’t imagine him getting married in a normal way.”

“Marriage,” repeats Sasuke, shaking his head. “He never struck me as the type.”

“I don’t think you need to be any particular type,” says Sakura, with a gentle smile, “as long as you love the other person.” Sasuke stares at her for a moment, and then nods. When Sakura turns away, Naruto smirks and pokes Sasuke in the leg. He receives a slapped hand in return.

It seems as if they’ve tasked Tsunade with filling the role of master of ceremonies, if the way she stands in front of them is any indication. Naruto supposes it’s fitting. Kakashi isn’t much one for pomp and circumstance, and Yamato has always been a staid, if stalwart, presence. So they would’ve chosen a ceremony as simple as possible, without the numerous steps required with a priest. 

They exchange vows, which Naruto hears but understands very little. There are mentions of ANBU and a boy named Kinoe, whom Naruto has never met but of whom Kakashi seems to be very fond. He figures it can’t be another nickname, since Kakashi already calls Yamato ‘Tenzō.’ They reference locations that Naruto isn’t aware of Kakashi ever having gone, but he supposes they are old. Yamato even mentions the word ‘Tsukuyomi,’ which sets Sasuke on edge beside him. If Naruto didn’t know any better, he’d think they were speaking in code.

What Naruto does understand comes at the very end of their speeches. 

“Kakashi,” says Yamato. “I would be honoured to spend my life with you.”

“Good,” Kakashi replies warmly. Tsunade huffs and gestures at the scroll in front of her. Peering down at it, Kakashi adds, “I accept.”

As Kakashi and Yamato begin to offer each other sake, it dawns on Naruto that this is actually happening.

Kakashi, his sensei and Hokage, who has taught him almost every important lesson he knows, is marrying someone. Kakashi, who has spent more time at the memorial stone at this training ground than half the people present combined. Kakashi, who buys their team ramen, and pretends to like Sakura’s food experiments, and strong-arms Sasuke into displaying human affection, and accepted Sai into their team without a word. He has someone to hold him up, in the same way he holds their team and the village up.

It makes Naruto smile. He’ll have to thank Yamato later. 

Though Naruto hasn’t been to a wedding before, he knows enough to understand that the exchange of sake is among the last of the rites performed. He watches as Kakashi somehow manages to take a sip without lowering the fabric on his mouth, and then gives the cup to Yamato. When the motion has repeated itself, they shift beside one another and the movement sets off a thought like a light bulb in Naruto’s brain. 

Naruto suddenly leans forward in his seat, and elbows Sasuke in the side, jostling him into Sakura. “What was that for, dobe?” Sasuke complains, elbowing him back. 

“They’re going to kiss, you know,” whispers Naruto, staring forward intently. 

Beside him, Sakura and Sasuke frown at each other. “And why are you so excited about it?” asks Sakura, giving Naruto a concerned glance. 

“They’re going to kiss,” Naruto repeats, eyes trained on Kakashi and Yamato as Tsunade begins to conclude her ceremonial duties, “and Kakashi-sensei will have to take off his mask.”

Both Sasuke and Sakura immediately look at Kakashi and Yamato. As Naruto predicted, their sensei and captain are moving closer to one another, and each of them inclines their head as far as they can, hoping to get the best angle. Tsunade says the last of her speech, and all three are frozen in anticipation. 

And then Yamato takes a large step forward, placing himself in front of Kakashi with his back to the onlookers. He puts his hands on either side of Kakashi’s face, so even those sitting on the side can’t get a good look at him. Kakashi’s hand rises to pull down his mask, but all they can see is the back of Yamato’s head, leaning into the person he is marrying. 

“Come on,” says Naruto, at the same time Sasuke says, “What the hell?” and Sakura says, “Really?” 

And then they’re separating, and turning to the crowd with bright and pleased faces and the mask already back in place. Kakashi spots the dejected faces of his former students, and he winks. 

Sai seems confused by the behaviour of the rest of his team. “I don’t understand what the fuss is about,” he confesses. “Kakashi-senpai took his mask down when we had lunch last week, Sakura.”

“He did what?” ask Naruto and Sakura simultaneously. Sasuke narrows his eyes. 

When Kakashi and Yamato move away from the altar, hand in hand, to join the crowd, Naruto asks, “Did your really let Sai see your face before us, sensei? We’ve known you longer!”

Kakashi laughs, his dark eyes alight. “I believe the customary greeting is ‘Congratulations,’ Naruto.”

“Oh,” says Naruto, cheeks turning pink. “Congratulations.” His teammates repeat the sentiment. 

“Thank you,” says Yamato, with a broader grin on his face than Naruto has ever seen. Turning towards the rest of the guests, he tells them, “For those of you who are available, there will be food and drink at my home this evening. No ramen, I’m afraid,” he adds teasingly to Naruto. 

There are some cheers among the attendees. Gai and Lee decide to race to Yamato’s house on their hands, and a disconcerted Tenten is left behind to bring Gai’s wheelchair. “How do they think they’re going to get in without either of you to open the door?” she asks. Kakashi shrugs, and she sighs, going after her team. 

“Will you be taking time off from your duties?” Sai asks, as the crowd disperses. 

“A few days,” Kakashi affirms. “Tsunade-sama has agreed to look after the administrative affairs while I’m gone. Though I told her she could pass a few tasks on to Naruto.”

Naruto’s mouth drops open in surprise. “Really, sensei?”

Kakashi nods. “I trust you.” Then, his gaze turns to Sasuke as he pulls something out of his pocket. He places the object in Sasuke’s hand. “You’ll be minding my apartment at the Hokage’s residence,” he declares. 

Sasuke blinks at the key in his hand. “I didn’t agree to that.”

“Think of it like a wedding present,” says their teacher, patting him on the shoulder. “Besides, I can’t have you sleeping on the roof of the tower whenever you spend the night in the village.”

Naruto and Sakura look at Sasuke, alarmed. He shrugs. “I needed somewhere to camp out. Naruto was already asleep. It seemed as good a place as any,” he explains. 

“We’re getting you an apartment in Konoha,” mutters Naruto darkly. Sakura nods. 

Sasuke opens his mouth to refute them, but Yamato cuts across the protest. “We’ll talk about it later,” he says lightly. “For now, we celebrate.”

At that, the group can offer no further argument. They move along with the rest of the guests in the same direction as Team Gai. Sakura starts telling Sasuke sleeping on roofs is bad for his back, and Sai asks Sasuke if any respectable landlord will rent to him. Naruto lags behind his teammates, still looking at his sensei and captain. 

“Naruto?” prompts Yamato quietly.

“Congratulations,” Naruto says again, hoping they know what he means.

He thinks they do. Because they smile at each other, and then at him. Kakashi throws an arm around his shoulders as he replies, “Thank you.”

[colour-outside-the-liness]

First of all, I'm glad you didn't just drop your whole birth chart here, cuz that's kinda dangerous (??) in a way that is very personal haha personal information about you. So I'm sorry for even asking for it. Idk people might want to use that information against you in wtever way, so it's best to keep it to yourself really lol. (I know it sounds ridiculous but best be safe than sorry).

Second of all I think taurus people are very interesting, I feel like there's an air of "don't really care if you think I'm living my life wrong" about yall that is very alluring. All earth signs (virg, taur, cap) are like that tbh but yall are kind hard to reach I think, like it takes some effort to really get to know you. So I think that's why you might think that people don't usually have a formed opinion when you tell them you're a taurus. I feel very drawn to earth signs but yall always break my heart and vice versa lol, like that compatability bs is kinda real (I'm a saggitarius btw and apparently earth and fire do not mix well). And the whole good and bad thing, well we all have light and shadow sides, doesn't mean we're inherently good or bad. And I have to say it's totally fitting that you're a taurus and are not that into astrology or know much about it bc earth signs are most of the time the ones who say star signs are bs and not real or just generally don't care about it lol.

And then your moon (which is your more vulnerable side, emotions and how you navigate that) in taurus might tell us that your pretty like chill and a bit passive. Just down-to-earth and likes the secure and stable aspects of life. Your gemini placements might stir things up at times lol but generally you have like a fixed energy. And like I said before, you enjoy the good things and take pleasure in just relaxing (don't think there's anything wrong with seeking pleasure and enjoying that, that's one of the things I like most about yall).

Ah gemini rising! Sounds like you're a fun one. Your ascendent is how people perceive you so if you're at a party right, people might look at you and say that you're talkative, curious, can talk about anything really like you have many different interests and is very smart and witty. Thing about gemini placements is the duality of your mind, people say Geminis have like a split personality cuz they tend to have like opposite desires (like wanting to socialize and to be alone at the same time). But I personally think that people just don't understand how complex humans can be haha anyway I absolutely adore geminis, it's one of my favourite signs. Sorry if this sounds really general but I'd have to know more about your houses (not hp houses hehe) to be more specific.

Sorry for the uh delayed response, I got my second dose yesterday and I've been just really poorly as it purges all the sickness in me lol. Hope you're doing well and enjoying your weekend!

No don't apologise about that I'm a pretty open person like I wouldn't even think something like that would be personal about me like I said I really don't understand start signs so would've never thought someone could use my chart against me... I'm really hopeless when it comes to things like this but I find it all so interesting and always want to know more about what my chart says about me... like I said when I show people around me my chart it's always the same "Ahh yeah makes sense" and then they never tell me why it makes sense, I have a cousin that's really into this and we both once got talking about the co-sign app and she told me a little about stuff but not much all I know is I have a lot of repeat signs in my chart but I would've never thought people could use this information against me at all but thanks for the warning I appreciate that!! I think what you've said about taurus here is really fitting for me I do have a "I don't care if you think I'm living my life wrong" air to me because my life is my life and if I'm happy and not outwardly hurting anyone then to me I'm living my life right (I have one sibling who likes to judge my life a little but I really don't care what she thinks)... I get along with some fire signs easy enough my ex was an Aries and we actually got along really well and are still friends now and my best friend (my roommate) is a Sagittarius and so is one of my sister's and I get along with her so well... I am sorry that earth signs always break your heart or vice versa... I've heard Earth and Fire signs don't mix and that for Earth signs other Earth signs or Water signs are better- don't know how true this is maybe you can confirm or deny that? Honestly you saying this does make sense for my moon being in taurus I am a pretty chilled person and I do just like things to be secure... I'd like to think I'm down to earth and quite passive but I am sure the people that know me in life would be able to confirm this better than I can I do enjoy good things and take a lot of pleasure in them and I have no shame in saying what I enjoy and what I like and when I like something it's usually in excess but I'm fine with this. Again my rising sign makes sense when you explain what that means, I am a very curious person and will talk to people about anything. My roommate is always shocked because anytime we go anywhere... concerts, clubs, plays, anything I will always leave with new friends because I will talk to anyone about anything no matter where I am... I don't know about being smart or witty but I would like to think I am haha Yeah I have heard the split personality thing about gemini and that's something my cousin and my sisters that are really into it commented on when they saw my signs and that's why I was a but unsure about having this sign in my big 3 but seeing what you've written here about it that makes sense and I am fine with it and it's great to see someone say it's one of their favourites because that never happens really haha Well like I said I'm happy to tell people any of my signs in my chart I didn't realise it was dangerous to do so but I would be very interested to know what all of it means haha Oh no I hope you feel better soon!! I know my first one made me so ill... I had the Astra Zeneca one before people found out it was dangerous to give to people under a certain age so that was fun when all the news broke about that Really hope you start to feel better soon and that you're able to enjoy what's left of your weekend!! I'm doing great thank you and so far can't complain about my weekend it's been a nice relaxing one ☺️

[survivormidwayatoll]

RITES OF PASSAGE (JURY)

Andrew

sorry for voting you out but it had to be done or my other potential allies like ash and sara and ricky could have potentially prioritized you over me and I’m strategically needy so ya ass had to go but ily <3

Ash

MY DUO. MY LOVE. You were a shady bitch sometimes you know that ? Honestly had I known you were getting blindsided I probably would've voted you too. But you're my best friend and I loved being your duo

Billy

Dude… wtf happened? I know what you can do, and I’ve seen how you can talk your way out of any situation. So how in the world did you get out this early? I’m sad that we didn’t get to play together sans being on a tribe (that meant nothing) together. But I’m glad we did get to play again.

Shea

I was so happy to see you go because it was you or me, and man, to see you walk out was just like validation, like LOOK AT THAT SHEA, YOU CAN DO SOMETHING IN THIS GAME! I'm sorry it had to be you but it was great to have the blindside of a strong veteran player under my belt. Love you!

I wish I could have stayed in a lot longer, but I’m proud of what i was able to accomplish. It was so much fun crushing dreams every round in the warzone like… Billy you missed out! I’m also glad I made some new friends WOOOOOO

#ItsAWarzoneItsAWarzone

Andrew

im not gonna get all sappy with ya but playing this game with you for the time that we did was kinda super awesome. we did THAT finding the pistol and idol and keeping them hidden from these shady mofos. I wanted to be chaotic duo with you so bad but I’m hoping we get another chance in the future. getting to finally play a duos season with you was super fuckin awesome and i couldn’t have asked for anything more, but we will co-win our next season <3 giraffes RISE

Ash

I'm not gonna lie I don't remember why we voted you out and I also don't remember if I even went to that tribal so sorry

Billy

Awe, this was our chance! My Malibuddy! We were FINALLY going to play together and actually do the thing, but divine intervention took a turn for the worst. Another time I guess, keep being cool bud.

Shea

I'm very sorry for how you had to leave this game, I got filled in on the circumstances and it was probably the only time in this game I was actually emotional, because I felt for you. I hope you're doing better.

Andrew

rip i wasn’t even there but i aint gonna lie I’m glad you were severed from jordan. was i hoping it would be jordan and not you? yes! was i mad y’all got separated anyway. no! but you did get done dirty tru. ily wife <3

Ash

your blindside hurt. A lot. That was when the game really fell apart for me. I did manage to pick up the pieces but your presence was severely missed

Billy

I love you as a person, everything about you is everything I look for in a friend. I’m glad we have each other, and I was so excited that we finally got cast in a PI season where we had the possibility to play together the whole time. I think lines were drawn pretty early, and you and I fell into a weird cross area, and unfortunately, others saw you as a bigger threat than I saw you and they pulled the trigger while I watched. I’m not so innocent, as I consciously helped, but it was not something I ever want to do again, and I hope you understand why I did what I did, even though it was just a vote.

Shea

I love and adore you, I had such a strong connection with you on a personal level and I was so pissed when you got voted off. I hope you're doing well, love you girl, and I can't wait for this game to end so we can TALK MORE and I won't feel like I'll get in trouble

Andrew

i know you had to leave for your own reasons and you know we all respected that <3 you’re amazing and ily and I’m glad we got to align for the time that we did. you’re a star and amazing and deserve the world and if there was one thing that brought this cast together for even a second, it was all of us coming together to show our love and support for you <3

Ash

I love you and I'm beyond glad that you seem to be doing okay

Billy

I don’t have words for how amazing you are. I wouldn’t have asked to have played Dynamic Duos ™ with anyone else, from any other game I had ever played. You’re my best friend, and you’re AMAZING at Survivor and you were making it to the end of this game. There weren’t many people who didn’t want that, and the people who did want you gone would not have gotten past your friends. Had situations not been the way they were (which come first, and you’re so strong and amazing and I love you), you would still be here. Know that. I love you with all of my heart, and I’m so glad that we have a PI legacy together that’s not only iconic, but it’s ours. <3

Shea

Again, really sorry for how you had to leave the game. You were a super nice person to talk to and get to know and I hope you're doing better.

Andrew

GOODBYE SPONGEBOB GOODBYE GOODBYE ngl that blindside where you had an idol in your pocket was WILD but you were playing a really good game that wasn’t even that messy so you were a major contender to win if you got to the end at that point. sorry friend but JORDO OUT!

Ash

Practically my other duo. Thank you so much for being my closest ally throughout the game as well as my closest friend

Billy

You and I had a very similar pre-merge situation. We both didn’t really have to do much, and we were never really in danger pre-merge. While I would have enjoyed working with you, because we found that you and I work well together sometimes, it was apparent our games didn’t match up. I appreciated you keeping me safe, but the problem was there was no trust between us. You were still lying to me (poorly may I add, lol) and I knew that while you had kept me safe the times you did, and I tried to as well, you would have turned on that deal faster than intended. I’m sorry, and ONE DAY we will work together in PI. But you have to trust me for me to trust you…

Shea

I was surprised that you went home, and despite my immediate reaction, It was a good thing for my game because you didn't have my best interest in mind. You're way smarter than people give you credit for and I really enjoyed gaining a friendship in you during this game.

Andrew

THATS WHAT YOU GET FOR PLOTTING AGAINST ME AND THE QUEEN STAYS QUEEN

Ash

You're lovely and I apologize for your blindside

Billy

Karen I love you, you know that. I had your back, and you know that. Until a little birdie told me that you wanted JP in this game and sold out your friends for seemingly no reason. I knew you were coming for me the round you left (and I truly am sorry we didn’t get to talk, I actually was at the movies seeing GOTG2) But I know once your mind is made, especially when Ricky wasn’t there to help talk to you, I knew that once you were set on me leaving, I was leaving unless I targeted you. But outside of the game, you’re absolutely one of my favorite people ever.

Shea

I'm sorry how your vote went down, unfortunately the cycle I really started getting close to you was the cycle where you had to go. I didn't intend it to be like that, I just knew I rather you go than Billy and had to push for that because I didn't think I could ever beat you in the end.

Andrew

okay so i can’t believe I’m saying this but WE ACTUALLY WORKED TOGETHER FOR A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF TIME ! ever since carson had gone i knew you had my back, but the thing was i don’t think you ever believed i had your’s? seeing as you’re gonna see these after the season, i will say first thing that your suspicions were incorrect. i wish you had trusted me more and i am sorry for flipping the vote on you, but you was a threat.png. i am glad we got to play together again tho and ily <3

Ash

I cannot express how much I hated voting you out. Like, people can vouch. I actually cried. You're so so wonderful and I wish we hadn't been on opposite sides

Billy

Your elimination wasn’t even remotely something I saw coming. When you initially thought you were leaving, you weren’t and I knew that. I didn’t want you scrambling and potentially ruining your chance. But a the rainbow idol bitch slapped you and it was out of left field. I was so glad we got to finally play together, and play as close as we actually got to play. I think it’s good that some of our more “one sided” friendships (Like Kait and Brian) went out early, because it made sure that we stuck with us and not with others. Ilysm, and I’m so so so glad that we finally got our time together.

Shea

You're the reason I'm sitting here, You pushed for me to get on this season and there was a lot of pressure I put on myself, because I didn't want to let myself down but I also didn't want to let you down. We didn't work together, we just couldn't unfortunately, and I knew I wanted you gone and the moment that idol got played and it turned out to be Rose Quartz, I was overjoyed. I'm sorry you had to go out like that, but you had the most twisted tribal I've ever seen and that will never be forgotten. I hope I didn't let you down.

Andrew

WELL FUCK. this is the one thats the saddest and the one that i hate the most. i know we’ve talked everything out so I’m not gonna repeat the super emotional baggage here. you know that i love you to the moon and back and you know that i wanna see you succeed but this game got a really messy blurred line when i heard you wouldnt have minded seeing me go. writing your name down to eliminate was a really surreal experience i hope i never have to feel again. but i am glad our friendship is surviving through this. if a survivor game ever ruined a friendship as good and valued as this one for me i probably wouldnt be able to live with myself knowing i lost someone like you in my life. love ya dood <3

Ash

Honestly I love you and I'm not sure why I was so terrible at talking to you but oh well ! That's what hoenn is for !!

Billy

Our relationship this time was much different than the one in Johto. We were together, on the same tribe, (do the first couple days in the Warzone count?) and playing together from the very first day. I knew what you were thinking (at least I hope I do) for most of the game, and I watched you play and AMAZING GAME. You ran the pre-merge, whether you think you did or not. That was YOUR Warzone, and everyone knew it. You are just as much of a social threat as the rest of us were, because until the last round (The ugliest round) I don’t think anyone saw you as that big of a target. You had a solid alliance, with various people that wanted each other out over you. Which was smart. You knew what to say to what people to pit them against each other and it was an amazing strategy. I solidly believe that you were winning this game. It’s unfortunate that the round you left was a knife fight, and I know we’re good. But I can’t feel bad about writing your name down, when I gave you another option and you still wrote mine down. Nonetheless, I’m so fortunate to have watched you evolve from Rakiura to here. You’re such a great player, and one of my favorite people outside of the game.

Shea