#not installed it from scratch in a while lol

[lizclipse]

just realised how weird it is to use my kinda old work laptop instead of my more modern and powerful desktop to work on everything on (ive been ssh-ing in for years now). so i'm installing arch linux in a vm and will report back on how well it goes

[kwanisms]

Kinktober 「10:28」 — k.soonyoung

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➮ weretiger!Soonyoung × fem!Reader wc: 3.3k summary: Normally during his heat, Soonyoung stays as far away from his girlfriend as he can for fear of scaring her away but he can’t help himself when she comes by to drop some soup off seeing as he told her he’s sick. genres/themes/au: smut; supernatural, horror, thriller; non idol au, monster idol au warnings: adult dialogue, female reader, supernatural and horror themes, mentions of: food consumption, cat anatomy; sexual content (18+ mdni), see smut warnings under the cut! taglist has been moved to reblogs join my taglists! kinktober taglist is CLOSED! Strikethrough means I cannot tag you.  MINORS WILL BE BLACKLISTED & BLOCKED. AGELESS BLOGS WILL ALSO BE BLOCKED.

a/n: sorry for skipping two days in a row. I will be tacking those on at the end of Kinktober just like the others I missed so don’t worry. Jisung’s I just lost track of time and Christian’s fell on game day and I didn’t even realize it. I’ll get them done and added to the end of Kinktober, I promise lol anyway, here is our resident cult leader, Soonie and his tiger agenda. Thank you so much for reading! Please let me know what you thought and as always, this is a work of fiction and all characters are not reflective of their respective irl counterparts. for entertainment purposes only.

smut warnings: teratophilia (aka monsterfucking), heat cycles, rough sex, unprotected sex (just don’t do this. Use protection lol), non-human genitalia (like yunho, Soon’s got a barbed d!ck because cat. Don’t like it, don’t read it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ idc), scent marking (f receiving), biting (f receiving), use of pet names (hers: baby, kitten, beautiful, etc.; his: babe, Soonie, baby, etc.), I think i got all of them but let me know if I missed any! kinks: heat cycles + rough sex dialogue prompt: ❛❛ You heard me. Take. It. Off. Now. ❜❜

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“Kwon Soonyoung, I know you're home! Let me in, damn it!”

Soonyoung raised his head as he sat with his back against the door. He'd lost track of how long he'd been sitting there while you stood outside his apartment door, knocking, ringing the bell, demanding to be let in. He'd lost track of how many times he'd almost given.

Almost.

It's not that he didn't want to see you, he did. He wanted to see you more than anything, but he knew if he let you into his apartment, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from jumping you. Especially now that he could smell you.

It was always a rough time for him when he went into heat. Contrary to popular belief, it wasn't just female animals that went into heat, males also went into heat too and as a weretiger, Soonyoung was no exception. He'd spent most of his formative years dealing with it on his own and for a long time, he avoided being intimate with anyone because of the weird physiological changes to his body.

Unlike many werecreatures, Soonyoung's curse was a generational one and he was not bitten or scratched. His was passed from father to son and inherited by blood. The changes lay dormant until a boy started to go through puberty. By the time he was 18, Soonyoung had gone through just under two hundred and thirty full moon transformations.

And now, at twenty eight years of age, he'd been through over three hundred and fifty transformations. His heat always came the week leading up to the full moon. He was always consumed with an insatiable need to fuck something and he was very good at holding himself back.

Until you came along.

The sweet, caring, and unsuspecting girl who lived across the courtyard from him in the same apartment as him but on the other side of the complex. From his balcony, Soonyoung could see your balcony and the windows that looked into your apartment. 

You kept an assortment of potted plants on your balcony and had installed some sort of netting or mesh to sort of close in the area which made sense because as soon as it went up, he saw an orange tabby cat lounging at the top of a cat tree.

Know you liked cats gave Soonyoung the drive to talk to you the next time he saw you in the courtyard with what he thought was little success but his poorly executed joke still managed to make you laugh and get him your number.

From then on, he was hooked and the moment you invited him over for dinner, he was a goner. One date turned into two and then three and soon, he had the privilege of calling you his girlfriend.

You both maintained separate spaces in the building and he found it kind of cute, his girlfriend living across the courtyard from him. Your cats, which he learned there were actually two, were the sweetest creatures on earth and absolutely adored him. The girl, a white one with orange markings and long fur, was named Pad Thai and the boy, the short hair orange tabby, was named Cheezit. 

Soonyoung had taken to calling them his children and joked with his friends that you had full custody and he got visitations. It was a joke you took in stride and accepted fully, sending silly videos of the cats pretending to use your phone and making silly voices for them, speaking to their dad. It often made his day all that much brighter when he couldn’t come visit you.

Soonyoung had yet to tell you about his condition, only mentioning that he wasn’t like most guys, urging that he wasn’t just saying that and that it was a thousand percent true. He just hadn’t found the right time to tell you exactly how different he was. How does one even go about telling their partner that they’re a weretiger?

It was a conversation Soonyoung knew needed to happen but it just hadn’t yet. Which is why he was stuck in this situation now with you pounding on the door to be let in.

Soonyoung had started telling you that his once a month disappearance was just him coming down with something. He started with the usual excuses, the flu, the cold, stomach flu, even covid but he was starting to run out of excuses. He also hated using illness as an excuse because your immediate response was to offer to bring him medicine and food, usually in the form of soup, stew, or broth. He always gave the same excuse for not opening the door.

He didn’t want to get you sick.

At first, you took it as your boyfriend being cautious and caring but soon, you started to get suspicious and he knew he wouldn’t be able to keep up the charade much longer. He was going to have to come clean and tell you the truth much sooner rather than later.

A conversation he had been dreading ever since asking you to be his girlfriend.

The wood behind him shook as another series of loud knocks rang out, no doubt you beating your fist against the door. “Kwon Soonyoung!” you shouted. He sighed, squeezing his eyes shut, as if it might make you leave faster. He felt awful. He hated ignoring you but in his mind, it was for the best when he was in heat. He couldn’t risk scaring you off and losing you.

Another series of knocks shook the door, which was surprising given your somewhat smaller stature. For one so little, you sure were strong. And loud. “Kwon Soonyoung! If you do not open this door right now, we are done!” 

Soonyoung’s eyes opened quickly and he turned his head to look back at the door. ‘She wouldn’t…’ he thought to himself. “I mean it, Soonyoung! If you don’t open this door, consider us through!” Something in your tone made him scramble up to his feet, hastily pulling at the locks separating you from him. He could tell you weren’t kidding.

He kept the chain on, opening the door only a few inches as he looked out into the hall at you. He held his breath as he took in your frame. You’d showered recently, he could smell the scent of your shampoo and body wash, mixing with your natural scent and making his cock twitch in his pants.

On your face was a furious expression and his heart sank immediately. If he had cat ears, this is where they would flatten back against his head in fear. You were terrifying when you were mad. He’d never been on the receiving end of your anger before nor had he really seen it in action.

“H-hey,” he stammered. His eyes dipped down to see the thermos in your hand that no doubt held a homemade soup, stew, or broth of some kind but he couldn’t be sure with how tightly the lid was screwed on nor with how overpowering your scent was.

“Don’t you hey me,” you said, your eyes narrowing at him. “Open the door and let me in.” Soonyoung grimaced. He wanted more than anything to let you in but he knew if he did, there was no telling how he’d react to having you so close when he was aching, burning, to be touched. It wasn’t a good idea on many levels.

“I don’t wanna get you sick,” he murmured, keeping his voice low. You scoffed, placing a hand on your hip and looking every bit the sassy girlfriend he knew and loved. “Don’t try that bullshit with me,” you snapped. “I know you aren’t sick,” you added. Soonyoung’s eyes widened as he looked up from the thermos in your hand to meet your hardened gaze. “Wh-what?” he breathed. 

“I spoke to Jihoon,” you started to explain. “He told me the truth.” Soonyoung’s stomach sank as the realization that his best friend had outed him to you. ‘Well fuck,’ he thought. It looked like he was going to have to have a talk with Jihoon.

“So let me in. We need to talk.” Soonyoung sighed and closed the door, undoing the chain before pulling the door open for you to enter his apartment. He shut the door behind you and prepared for the storm.

You didn’t unload on him immediately, instead sliding your shoes off and walking towards the kitchen where you set the thermos down. He followed, hands tucked in his pockets as he watched you move around his kitchen, pulling out a bowl and a spoon from their resting places.

You placed the bowl down next to the thermos and unscrewed the lid silently, pouring out a very hearty looking stew. It smelled amazing, the scent of meat, herbs, and potatoes invading his senses. “Jihoon said you aren’t exactly sick. Just that during this time, you don’t feel well,” you said as you finished pouring the hot stew into the bowl, setting the thermos down and pushing the bowl towards your boyfriend, holding out the spoon.

Soonyoung glanced at the spoon and the bowl before looking at you. “Here’s what’s going to happen.” you said leaning over the counter. Soonyoung’s eyes dipped down to your chest, the curve of your breast visible down your shirt from where he stood. “You’re going to take the damn spoon and eat while I talk. Sound good?” 

Soonyoung nodded, moving to sit at the kitchen island and grabbing the spoon from your hand. The moment your skin met, electricity and heat spread throughout his body, the urge to pounce on you from across the counter trying to take the reins but he managed to push it down and simply started eating.

You watched him take a few bites before speaking.

“I know you’re a weretiger,” you said softly, drawing his attention as he looked up at you, his mouth full of bits of beef and potatoes. “Jihoon told me everything. I will admit I’m a little shocked you didn’t tell me all of this but I can’t imagine it’s an easy subject to bring up so I’ll give you a pass there,” you explained. “That being said, I wish you would have just told me the truth. Did you think I would judge you? Did you think I would leave or break up with you?” 

Soonyoung swallowed the food in his mouth before speaking. “I didn’t know what to expect, actually,” he answered truthfully. “I was less scared about you finding out about me being a weretiger and more scared that I—” he hesitated, looking down at his bowl of food. You followed his gaze. “Finish eating,” you told him. “I have more to say anyway.

By the time Soonyoung had finished his bowl of stew and ate another at your insistence, you were sitting on the couch, Soonyoung resting over your legs as he hugged around your waist, his face buried in your stomach, a deep rumbling emanating from his chest as he purred happily. You stroked his hair, massaging his scalp with your finger tips.

“This is nice,” you said softly as you combed your fingers through his hair. “Mhm,” Soonyoung hummed. Silence fell over the two of you for a few minutes before you couldn’t stop yourself from asking a question that was at the forefront of your mind.

“Soonie,” you said softly, gently tugging at his hair. “Hmm?” he asked, not lifting his head or opening his eyes. “Can I ask you what you meant earlier about being scared?” You felt him stiffen under your touch before he finally lifted his head, looking up at you. “Wh-what about it?” he asked.

You brushed his hair back from his forehead, cupping his cheek at the same time. “What are you scared of, babe?” Soonyoung took a deep breath before pulling himself up to sit. “I’m scared of frightening you,” he finally answered, glancing at your hand before reaching over to take it in his.

“Of frightening me? How would you frighten me?” you asked, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze. Soonyoung looked down at your joined hands before speaking. “You know how when we’re intimate?” he asked softly, not looking up as you nodded. “Yes,” you replied, a small smile on your lips. “Well, when the week of the full moon approaches, I start to… change,” he continued.

“My body starts to change.”

You sighed, rolling your eyes as your smile spread. “Is this about your heat?” you asked nonchalantly. Soonyoung’s eyes widened as his gaze snapped up to meet yours. “Y-you know about that?” he asked incredulously. You nodded, your smile only growing. “You think I’m going to learn that my boyfriend is a weretiger and not look up what all of that entails? I know everything, baby. Your heat, your transformation cycle, all of it. I also know your curse is familial and not transferred by bites or scratches. Jihoon told me that part though,” you said, reaching up to brush his hair back again.

“And I already know what happens to your cock, so there’s no need to explain that to me.”

Soonyoung’s eyes widened comically. “I learned that on my own by reading. Jihoon did not inform me of that part,” you added, reaching up to bop the end of his nose with the tip of your finger. “I know all about the sexual changes, the heat cycle, the penile spines, copulation, all of it. I know everything.”

Soonyoung wasn’t sure whether he should be impressed, alarmed, or relieved. He felt a mixture of all three as he sat there on his couch with you. “Do you also know about the insatiable urge I have to be buried inside you whenever you’re around?” he asked, noticing how your eyes widened slightly. “No,” you answered softly before a smirk started to form.

“But now I do.”

Soonyoung could feel heat creeping up his neck towards his face at the same time heat settled in the pit of his stomach. A new smell invaded his nostrils. The smell of arousal but it wasn’t his own. He glanced down quickly before looking back up. “Can you smell me?” you asked, tilting your head to the side, the smirk still present on your face. He nodded slowly, holding your gaze.

You leaned back against the arm of the couch, spreading your legs slightly. Soonyoung’s eyes fluttered shut as the scent hit him stronger. He could feel his cock painfully hard in his pants. “Baby,” Soonyoung said softly as a shiver ran up his spine, that insatiable need to bury his cock inside your warm cunt starting to take over. “If you don’t stop me,” he continued, opening his eyes to meet your gaze.

“I won’t be able to stop myself. I’ll…” he trailed off as your hands moved, sliding down your body. “I don’t know what I’ll do,” he said, swallowing thickly as his eyes followed your hands. “Maybe that’s what I want,” you said softly. “Maybe I want you to pounce on me.”

Soonyoung turned his head, averting his gaze as he tried to steady his erratic breathing. He felt the couch move and then your hand under his chin, turning his head to face you. “Don’t look away from me,” you said in a low voice. “I don’t want to hurt you,” Soonyoung whispered, reaching up to cup your cheek. “I promise you won’t,” you replied, leaning into his touch.

“I want you to let it take control. You need this,” you continued, taking one of his hands and guiding it between your thighs, pressing his fingers against your cloth covered crotch. “Pin me down, Soonie. Fuck me like I know you want to.”

Soonyoung let out a sound between a moan and a growl as he closed the distance,  the hand on your cheek sliding to the back of your neck to pull you into a bruising kiss, his tongue immediately sliding into your mouth. You moaned as he pushed you back onto the couch, pinning you down with his weight alone. 

You could feel his erection in his pants press against you, rutting slightly. “I don’t think I can wait,” he murmured against your lips, hands moving to pull at your shorts. “Then don’t,” you urged as he pulled back, fingers working to undo the tie of your shorts. He made quick work of them, pulling them and your panties off. “Shirt off,” he grumbled as he pulled his own off.

You watched him instead as he undid his pants. He glanced up at you. “What’re you doing?” he asked, his hands stilling. “I’m watching you,” you replied. “He glanced down at your shirt. “Shirt. Off,” he repeated. “What?” you asked, feigning ignorance. “You heard me,” Soonyoung growled as he stared you down. “Take. It. Off. Now.” 

You let out a giggle before complying, pulling your shirt off as he resumed undoing his pants and pushing them down, kicking them off before leaning over you, lips kissing a path up your chest to your neck. “Turn over,” he whispered in your ear.

You did as he asked, rolling over onto your stomach as he leaned over your back. You felt him rub his cheek against your shoulder. “What are you doing?” you asked with a chuckle. “Marking you,” he replied simply. “Don’t worry about it,” he added as he grabbed one of the pillows and guided you to lift your hips, placing the pillow under you.

With your hips raised, he guided the head of his cock to your slit, gathering your arousal on the tip before starting to push into you with a guttural moan. You gasped as he stretched you, the spines on his cock creating a rough but not entirely unpleasant texture as he bottomed out.

“Oh shit,” you gasped as he pulled back, the spikes raking your walls slightly. He thrusted into you harshly and you cried out. Soonyoung leaned over your back, covering your mouth with his hand. “The neighbors will complain, kitten,” he whispered in your ear. “You have to be quiet.”

He gave you another harsh thrust, slamming into you roughly as he set a brutal and unrelenting pace. “Is it too much?” he asked breathlessly. You shook your head, biting into your bottom lip to keep from screaming out in pleasure. You couldn’t hold back when you felt his teeth sink into your shoulder. “Fuck, sorry baby,” he panted as he pounded into you.

“S’okay,” you gasped, walls spasming around him as he send you hurtling towards your orgasm which hit you, the strength making your legs shake as he continued to fuck you through it. “Are you okay?” he groaned as your cunt continued to flutter around his cock. You nodded in response. “Y-yes,” you gasped. “I’m – ah! – M’fine — oh god, Soonyoung!”

A second orgasm washed over you and still he kept thrusting, not showing any signs of slowing down. You knew by the end of it you were going to be a bruised, panting, sticky mess but you couldn’t be bothered to care now that he wasn’t holding back and showing you a new side to him you’d never experienced. As he sent you toppling over the edge of your third orgasm, he finally came without warning as he sank his teeth into your shoulder again as his load exploded inside you, painting your walls in his sticky white essence.

“Fuck!” he growled as he buried his face in the crook of your neck. “Sorry,” he murmured, pressing wet kissing against your skin. “Didn’t mean to yell in your ear.” You merely chuckled as you shook your head. “It’s fine, babe,” you replied. “Was I too rough?” he asked suddenly and again you answered with a shake of your head. “No,” you answered. “That was great. In fact,” you said as you lifted your head.

“I’m coming over more often to help with your heat if it means you’ll fuck me like that.”

©️ kwanisms 2024 | all works on this blog are protected under copyright. Do not repost, continue, or translate my works. All graphics made by me.

[bitchslapblastoids]

Do you have any dnp fic recs that feel like home? Any length or topic, just those kind of fics that reading gives you the feeling of being home

wahhhh this is so sweet. asks like this always make me wish i used bookmarks on ao3 more. i'm forgetful about them and it always bums me out that there's no way to see every story you've left kudos for. (ok after typing that sentence, i went and installed a script that does show you the fics you've left kudos on as you scroll through your reading history, but it's definitely not perfect, so i can't rly recommend). i also don't re-read fic all that much; the few major re-reads that i return to semi-frequently and that truly feel like coming home bc they're so familiar are from diff fandoms. and truthfully, i don't actually read all that much phanfic. i'm so particular and have to be in just the right headspace for reading fic and have to have just the right stretch of time laid out in front of me and blah blah blah. which is to say, i feel like my recs can get repetitive because i know there are so many works i haven't explored yet, and i always have back-catalogues or new works that i want to catch up on.

but! here's what i put together: New horizons by @cityofphanchester. i'm sure i've recced this before, but I feel this fic in my bones and I think about it so, so often. it feels so cozy to me and i feel really at home in the author's writing style. i'll also add envelop the lonely places, which is literally about dan coming home from tour. it takes my breath away. and and the days after that, which is about phil visiting dan on tour. also lives in my bones. both feel like i, the reader, am coming home to their relationship.

@alittledizzy has countless fics that are so domestic and lovely, but i'll rec two bedrooms, in which dan goes to florida with the lesters. it's a fic i think of often and that makes me feel warm even though dan's fully experiencing a crisis in it lol.

@bassband's not in nottingham is also about dan finding a home in phil and ooooooh boy does it fucking get to me.

i'll also add an islet fic, because their work is all so lovely: make the yuletide gay (haven't read that one in a while but it still gives me a fuzzy feeling when i see it, so i'm gonna trust my gut)

here's a lovely one by dandrogynous that is so sweet and home-y: just need a light

@calvinahobbes has so many sweet fics, but here's one that has an especially soft space in my heart: bright

and honestly as silly as this sounds, i re-read bits and pieces of like a bowl of oranges sometimes. when i'm able to quiet my inner self-critic, their love story makes me feel very warm and at home in my own verse.

hope this scratches the itch you're looking for!

[captainnameless]

Any thoughts on little lando, Oscar and Max hanging out? Would it be soft and full of snuggles or just pure chaos for poor Dan.

🐨🧡

ooooooh, there’s so many ways this could go lol. there’s a scenario where Daniel’s certain he breaks the record of most time outs dished out in a day but i’m feeling soft so here are some soft thoughts:

Daniel’s only slightly worried he’s bit off more than he can chew when he’s got all three boys in the car, feeling severely outnumbered but still confident. They’re fed, and clothed in appropriate outfits and for the moment well behaved.

Taking them to indoor padel turned out to be an amazing choice, the boys had a blast and are rewarded with a drive thru lunch for good behavior and are, most importantly, entirely worn out by the time they get home again which means getting the three of them down for a nap goes better than Daniel could have wished for.

He’s not ashamed of the baby monitor that he had installed and keeps checking, the three of them in the same room unsupervised too much of a safety risk, but as planned the boys are worn out enough for a long nap.

Max wakes up first, which surprises Daniel slightly, he would have put his money on Oscar, but the camera alerts him of movement and he watches Max stumble out of the room, still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

“Hi, buddy.” Daniel smiles when Max appears in the doorway, putting his laptop away and opening his arms, enough of an invite for Max to come over and bury himself into Daniel’s chest with a whispered. “Hi, Daddy.”

Max is a cuddly guy most of the time, but Daniel especially adores the soft post nap cuddles, with Max all soft and warm from bed, noodle-y body flopped onto Daniel.

Eventually Max’ll complain about being hungry and their cuddle time is ended as Daniel has to get up and make him a snack. It turns into 2 snacks when Oscar appears slightly disheveled, hair sticking out and both giraffes tugged under his arms and held tightly against his chest.

“Hey bubs,” Daniel hums, pressing a kiss to Oscar’s head as he walks by to put Max’s cubed up fruits down for him, and a cup of lemonade. “Good nap?”

Daniel can see the flush of pink rising to Oscar’s cheeks, deepening the pink that was already there from the nap as his eyes dart from Max to Daniel, still getting used to the dynamic.

“You’re ok.” Daniel soothes under his breath, moving back over to wrap Oscar up in a hug and allow him to hide away in his chest for a bit. They sway until Oscar reappears, is awarded with another kiss and his own fruit bowl.

Lando’s only slightly disgruntled when he wakes up last, a little upset about it and grumbling about missing out. Daniel soothes the frown with a good cuddle and the reminder that the day is far from over.

Post nap and snack the boys’ energy has been renewed and Daniel’s house is turned upside down but they mostly manage to avert any fights. Lando’s entirely too excited about two of his favorites being together and is bouncing through their games.

It’s nice to see Lando so excited but Daniel’s keeping an especially close eye on Oscar who seems to be getting a little overwhelmed with everything that’s going on.

“Osc,” He calls out when he can see the youngest start to struggle a bit. “Come here for a sec.”

“You’re not in trouble.” Daniel says when Oscar’s pushed himself up and has made his way over, a slightly worried look on his face. “Come sit with Danny, hm?”

He pats the space next to him and waits for Oscar to sit down, wraps an arm around his shoulder and smiles when Oscar fits himself into his side.

“Figured you could use a little break.” Daniel says softly, scratching his hand into Oscar’s messy hair. “You ok?”

Oscar sighs, relaxes into Daniel and nods. “‘m ok, Danny.”

Daniel uses his one free hand to type emails, the other occupied holding Oscar and only a short while later, Oscar stirs, thumb dropping from his mouth as he tries to slide off the couch, looking back at Daniel questioningly.

“Go, bud.” Daniel nods, patting Oscar’s hip and watching him scurry off to join the other two.

He snaps a picture of the three of them, messages the group chat with a

“Not to brag but I’m pretty good at this.”

[mookymilksims]

Hey first of all I wanna say thank you for all the help you provided the sims 3 community with <3. I love how thorough your videos are and how you test!!!! I was just curious about something, do you still prefer the get out mod over the ld population mod? I'm so conflicted, while what you said is true, I feel like the fact that ld's only impacts performance if you zoom in a lot it would make it run better, I'm doing my tests and it feels better, but like you said parties etc don't work, idk lol

So, the main issues I noticed with the Lot Population mod are:

Overused Sim Pool – The same Sims get teleported between lots too frequently. If one of my actives is on a lot, and another active is on another lot, an inactive I saw on one lot might suddenly disappear and be teleported to the lot my other active sim is on. This really broke immersion, especially when I was using that Sim for storytelling. I’d have to pretend they were never there to begin with, which was frustrating.

Prop Glitches – If a Sim was using a prop when teleported, two things could happen:

The prop would teleport with them, breaking the interaction.

The prop would stay in place, floating mid-air. This led to weird objects appearing around the world—like the Olomaya kettlebell showing up at the jazz club or a street performer’s keyboard getting stuck in front of a bakery door, causing routing failures.

Sims Never Being Home – This affected both regular visits and parties. I enjoy dropping in on my Sims’ friends and family when they’re home, which is an important part of my roleplay. But with this mod, that was no longer possible. Guests at my parties would also randomly disappear unless I stayed on the lot the entire time.

Increased Stuttering – The most significant issue was performance. After installing the mod, I experienced way more stuttering than usual, before installing the mod I barely had any stutter after installing the mod it became really noticeable.

In contrast, the Get Out mod, which combines XML edits with Arsil’s Leaving Home script, worked better for me. It simply encouraged more Sims to leave their homes naturally instead of forcing all of them out. There were no stutters. No large script heap or bloat. No prop glitches. Sims would still be home. It didn't break parties.

Eventually, I tweaked Arsil’s Leaving Home mod for personal use. As I got more comfortable with XML modding, I started modifying existing mods, combining them, or creating my own from scratch. I actually had to do this because some other XML mods in my setup conflicted with the Get Out bundle.

So, while I no longer use the Get Out project mods, I’d still recommend them over the Lot Population mod. But if you’re comfortable with XML editing, consider tweaking the Arsil Leaving Home package yourself—it gave me much better results in my mod build.

Sorry for the long response, but I wanted to explain everything thoroughly! Hope this helps!

[pixeldistractions]

20 years ago semi-vanilla save while I get everything reinstalled and reconfigured again.

Lou is 10, Maria is 7, and Leo is 2.

Did you guys forget they even had a little brother? 😂

So I guess the Mochino camera can take a photo of more than two kids at a time now? That must be new, because I know it couldn’t do that before. Not that we could get Leo to look at the camera, lol!

It might take a little bit before I’m up to speed enough to do story pics again. This has been and continues to be a whole ordeal. First we couldn’t get the monitor to even cooperate with the PC, then I had to do battle with OneDrive to put my files where I want them to go (still having trouble with that…). I had to redownload GIMP, which is several versions ahead of the one I was using, and it feels like starting from scratch. I also don’t have Reshade installed yet, and that might be complicated because it took me forever to figure out how to install it the last time. Then later this week, I’m waiting on a part to be delivered to extract my most recent files off the old hard drive.

But, in the meantime, I thought it might be fun to dabble in a little semi-vanilla gameplay while I figure things out. And I can grab some childhood photos for their walls, too!

[sungbeam]

𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐔𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐓𝐎𝐂𝐎𝐋 — teaser!

nonidol!kevin moon x f!reader

another summer break, another annual trip to the lake! except, it seems like when you and kev get there, you'll have to make some tweaks to the original rescue protocol.

▷ genre, teaser warnings. childhood friends 2 lovers, fluff, summer break au/college au, hurt/comfort, humor, implications of motherly meddling and matchmaking

▷ projected release date. october 10th/11th

▷ estimated word count. 20-26k

this is the sixth installment of the love in unity series! rescue protocol takes place after all the events of the main storyline, and you shouldn't need to read any prev fics to understand this one. any prev yns will be referred to as _!yn

a/n: i swear i'm (half) alive 🧍🏻‍♀️ but yeah, i've been punching out words lately and it's probably a bad idea to post this at the end of the weekend when no one will see it, but thank u again @justalildumpling for being my hypewoman ily

TEASER BELOW THE CUT (APPROX. 500 WORDS)

“It’s a warm morning out,” your mother murmured, then quickly added, “hey you.” She knocked her hand against your arm.

“Hm?” You asked as you finished up Alice’s braid and tied it off with the blue Cinnamoroll hair tie she’d chosen. You patted her back with your hand. “You’re done.”

Your little sister hopped to her feet. “Thanks!” She dashed away and out of the room—to where, you had no clue. You figured she knew where the food was if she was hungry.

You angled your body to squish your side against the couch cushions and face your mother. “What were you saying?”

“Ah, I was going to talk to you about the Joshua Hong boy.”

Joshua Hong. You didn’t realize you could hear a man’s name so often within twelve hours.

You made a gesture with your hand. “What about the Joshua Hong boy, Mom?”

“Well, isn’t he a handsome one?” She asked you enthusiastically, straightening. It was alarming how bright her face just got. “I spoke to his mom while Kevin and I were walking just now, and he’s only a few years older than you, you know.”

You heard a metaphorical record scratch. What? There was so much in that one sentence that you needed to unpack. You raised your hands to signal her to pause. “Wait, since when do you and Kevin take walks together?” What could they have been talking about? You knew Kevin was an exceptional conversationalist, but never in your time at the lake had you known of this interaction.

Your mother blinked. “Oh, we started the tradition when you didn’t come up with us that one year.”

“Tradition?” So this happened more than once? You didn’t know why you were so scandalized by this information—it was just Kevin after all. You knew your parents, and even your siblings, were all fond of him—of course they were. You were arguably even more fond of him, but that wasn’t the point. You hoped she hadn't said anything about you and him as an item at any point in time… you trusted that Kevin could handle that though; that was what the pact was for, after all.

“Why are you making such a big deal out of this?” She arched a brow. “But anyway, yes, so we bumped into Josh’s mom on the last leg around the lake, and she mentioned that he’s majoring in chemistry and planning to go into medicine. You guys might have something in common."

You pursed your lips. Perhaps the two of you might have something to talk about, but your track was pre-veterinary rather than pre-med. There was probably a middle ground though... Maybe you were just being stubborn.

“Just make friends or something,” she said to you while standing up from the couch. “You need more of those.”

Your eyes shot wide open. “Hello? Mom?” Now that was simply uncalled for.

She chuckled impishly as she walked away and disappeared down the hall, leaving you to yourself. You were lucky neither of the twins were here to hear that burn.

a/n: if i am being so fr i don't even really like the part i chose for this lol but i haven't written the juicy parts yet 🤕 so stay tuned pls ... haha

permanent taglist: @flwoie @vatterie @seomisaho @hqrana @ja4hyvn @tinkerbell460 @kaaimins @hyunjaespresent-deobi @otterly-fey @zzoguri @floatingpluto @winterchimez @ethereal-engene @gyulfriend @polarisjisung @jaehunnyy @shakalakaboomboo @loveliestfelix @bless-311 @zhaixiaowen @leaz-kpop-life @amourdsr @pxppxrminty @kqyutie @sseastar-main @kxthleen14 @fluorescentloves @mosviqu @justalildumpling @jaerisdiction @super-btstrash-posts @jundundun @http-gyu @mvvnsseul @outrologist @vernonburger @maessseongs @ericlvr

[spidey-bie]

I actually don't do requests but since you asked so nicely (and I also already had this in my drafts for like the longest but I never finished it.)

Hobie x Black G/N Reader

TW: Physical Touch

Hobie Brown is a proud aroace relationship anarchist who's constantly sticking a middle finger up at amatonormativity. Idc idc.

You wanna have a qpr? Try and stop him. (Don't do that he's got Spidey strength.)

If or when you start living together you both either take turns cooking or you cook together.

(Also I feel like he can't bake for anything but his food is the bomb)

If you wanna share rooms he's cool with that.

If you want separate rooms he's cool with that too.

But either way y'all definitely have a big sleepover/movie night in the living room at least once a week.

"Mate, you just had to get in the car. You'd still be alive if you just used your head."

"Bie you know they had to kill the black guy first. It's a horror movie."

You hang out in the back stage during his shows and he takes you with him to go pub hopping afterwards.

You both infodump to one another. He can go off on tangents for hours about a lot of different things. Whether it's something political or just his favorite artists.

If you're not British then he teaches you British slang so you can understand what he's saying. (In turn you teach him some AAVE and y'all mess with Miles and Gwen by using both simultaneously.)

His love language is physical touch but not in like the traditional romantic sense. He's the type to just lay his entire body weight on you while your both lounging around. Or he'll drape himself up against you if your both standing.

If you don't like the word love he finds roundabout ways to tell you that he appreciates and cares for you. Or he just shows it via his actions.

Both of you go out on weekly outings together. (they're not dates because you aren't dating)

He either takes you to really obscure places or he sneaks you into his favorite artist's shows.

Let's you steal borrow his clothes. He knows if he's missing something he just has to go looking for you.

"Is that my jumper on your bed?" "If you mean our jumper then yes."

I just know that he knows where to find the best cheap hair products. (If you don't like to steal. Lame.)

I personally feel like he doesn't do much with his own hair. He got his locs installed one day and has just never touched it ever again but after hearing you lecture on about hair health he joins you on your wash days.

"I don't see why we have to feed into the idea of black hair being neat so that we can be palatable to those in power." He was leaning face first into the kitchen sink. "True. It doesn't have to be neat to be beautiful. But it at least has to be clean and watching you scratch makes me itch. Now close your eyes so i can rinse."

Edit: I modified the last one because I didn't agree with it anymore.

A/N: The autism won't let me hyperfocus on anything aside from Hobie at the moment. It's a curse but you don't hear me complaining lol. I looked into the difference between locs, dreads, and wicks for this and now I'm contemplating growing my hair out again.

[theproverbialpen]

ok first of all. SEA DEITY SANDWICH HAS MY GAY ASS FUCKED UP!!!!! I USED TO PRAY FOR TIMES LIKE THESE 🙏🔥 second of all, son of the sea is WILD but now u just have me worrying about siren's parents 😭 i was assuming she wasn't getting 🤰 thru divine interference idk BUT NOW I'M WORRIED ABOUT MY GIRL!!!

also if i may, i would like to know about the weaver's temple 🫣

advance happy independence day btw kababayan -fairyfalls

ANG MAMATAY NG DAHIL SAYOOOOOOOO 🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭🇵🇭

Ahem. Happy Pride, aking kababayan lol 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Listen. I’m trying so hard not to spoil things but ALL IM SAYING is that I have laid out a very specific set of circumstances in this current installment and not even a god is free of the consequences of his actions.

Anyways, The Weaver’s Temple—so, our dear siren is working on a tapestry, yeah? Thing is, she’s been so wrapped up in all of her adventures with Poseidon that she’s neglected to pay respect to the patron of her craft. Closer to the end of her working on the tapestry, she goes to the Temple of the Goddess of Wisdom, War, & Weaving. While there, she encounters a notable worshiper of Athena:

“Oh my stars, I’m so sorry!”

“Oh, no no it’s okay! Sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going, I got way too close to you.”

The man is slightly taller than her, but not by much. He has dark brown hair, almost black, that cascades down to right below his ears in textured waves. He’s pretty young, maybe early twenties? He’s just about lost the youthful roundness of his face, a strong jawline emerging that’s dotted with subtle stubble. You notice he’s wearing some gold jewelry and oh fuck he’s from the upper class. Oh fuck, your libation-

The young man’s chiton is now stained with the dark liquid of your honey wine. From one glance alone, you can tell the linen is high quality, the layered threads set and sewn with intention. Oh gods that’s probably so expensive.

You open your mouth to say something, anything. You consider apologizing, begging for forgiveness, offering to pay for the damages—wait, scratch that last one, there’s no way you can afford that—but he notices you staring at his chest before you can decide on the best course of action.

“Huh? Oh. Oh! Oh no… I-I mean, no! No it’s okay! No it’s alright really, you don’t, don’t worry about this,” he stuttered, realizing how much his alarm had caused all the color to drain from your face. “It’s really no big deal, I can have it cleaned. I just…it was a gift from my father, that’s the only reason I was a little startled.”

This boy does not realize how much that just makes you panic even more.

[undefinedscribble]

My DA:O Modlist

(this post is likely to keep changing. I don't imagine if anyone's looking at it, but in case you are and it's been less than a month since it was posted)

It is 2024, and I'm starting a new game of Origins after almost 8 years, and I'm starting from scratch on mods. A good part of this is just for future me to look back on, tbh, to stop me from looking at all these redundant mods I've been combing through just because "well, I remember I used to use that." It's messy and I'll clean it up as I go, I hope. I'll be using Kinlochhold's list (who I'll be referring to as "kh" if it's necessary to do so later on) as a jumping off point. Historically, my intentions have been to fix things and add mostly-lore-friendly stuff (I'll be trying to adhere to the visual style for hair and things - probably) as well as trying to keep from making the game too easy (via either avoiding certain tweaks or trying to add difficulty-increasing mods - though if anyone ever creates a "skip the wilds" mod, I'm jumping on that one cuz early-game nightmare mode is hell).

I'm noting things I would not even start the game without installing with 2 asterisks.

Tools: **Not a mod but LAA patch to allow the game to use more than 2gb of memory and the unencrypted game exe to allow LAA to work.

**DAO Modmanager - I tried the DAUpdater that comes with the game this time around, and it was not being friendly, so here we go. For installing .dazips.

DragonAge Face Replacer - I haven't tried this yet, got it from kh's list. For, uh, replacing your face. And also you can extract the morphs from your saves, which sounds cool.

CharGenMorph Compiler - was gonna do stuff manually, but I'm burned out rn, so screw that. Be smart and not stubborn, folks.

Fixes: **Qwinn's Ultimate Dragon Age Origins Fixpack - Renders most dialogue fixes redundant (or incompatible). Fixes, not tweaks. It fixes and restores content that the author believes was meant to be in the game but was cut for time, etc vs because it was intentionally cut content. Does not include DLC fixes. **Dragon Age Rules Fixpack - A modular combination of gameplay bug fixes and annoyance/QoL tweaks. Renders the "helmet hack" and "party command - unlock" mods unnecessary (along with many other fix mods). Includes auto-looting. I've deleted a few tweaks (XP on all deaths and VFX tweaks) but may add them back in if those effects start to bug me, lol. I also deleted the autoloot tweak (kept autoloot kills but not the basic autoloot) bc I wasn't sure it was working correctly.

Golem Registry and Shapers Life Reward Fix - fixes no-reward bug.

UI:

**FtG UI Mod - Doesn't change much in terms of overall UI usage, but it is good for such an old game as it allows you to have the menus change size for higher resolutions so you can read them as well as allowing you to change the placement of the subtitles More Detailed Tooltips - Extension of Detailed Tooltips, which gives in-depth info on what abilities actually *do.* Includes DLC. Note: Not installing the fixpack included in the description as comments have noted incompatibilities with QUDAOF.

FtG Quickbar - Can't remember if this is what I used to use or not. Shows all 50 quickbar slots at once. Is stated to be compatible with other UI mods.

Easier to Read Font for DAO - Enchantment for your eyes? Enchantment for your eyes! How do you not download something after reading that? Makes the over-stylized font simplified while still fitting in theme-wise. Specifies compatibility with FtG UI. I chose the serif version.

Gameplay: Advanced Tactics - Fixes some party AI bugs and gives extra options for the tactics system.

**Advanced Party - I always used to race to the mage tower even if it didn't make sense for my character to do so because I didn't want Wynne auto-leveling. This lets you level up abilities manually so you can roleplay without worrying about it ruining things.

**Two Specializations Sten - Gives Sten a second specialization point so that he gets two specializations like everyone else.

Quality of Life, etc: Camp Storage Chest - Puts a chest in camp to get rid of the need for the one at Warden's Keep. Keeps the limit on storage capacity (bc otherwise I'd keep everything I'd ever found).

**No Ladder Comments - "CAN I GET YOU A LADDER SO YOU CAN-" NO. For the love of all that is holy, please stop. A mod to keep you sane (removes this line from the game). I refuse to use the violent voice without this mod installed.

Lore Fixes, etc: (I have not installed any of the lore fixes but the codex one yet cuz I was just eager to start the game) Accurate Codex History of Ferelden Chapter 2 - Changes this codex entry to align with the events from the novel TSM Connor Epilogue Fix at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com)

TSM Elfy Ghost Boy at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com)

TSM WTF Lyrium Dust at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com)

Misc: Non Alcohol Oghren Gifts at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com)

TSM Better Bannhammer - Teagan tweaks and fixes at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com)

maybe list:

Auto Swap Quick Slot Bar at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com)

Statistic Fix - Bosses Killed at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com)

Second Drain life bug fix at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com) - gets rid of a duplicate skill that doesn't do anything (need to see if this even is a problem first)

Less barking dog at Dragon Age: Origins - mods and community (nexusmods.com) - May end up needing this

will probably install later (after remembering what the original looks like)

[rowanoke]

My Dear Mutual,

I am soooo bored at work rn. I want to read more Murderbot diaries but I just finished them! I’ve gone back to finishing another book, Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki, which I must also recommend to you, but it doesn’t scratch the same itch. I must implore you to speak about the great things that happened in your day, if you’ll humor me. Also, go make some large sea shell pasta with Alfredo sauce. I promise it easily satiates hunger.

Sincerely,

General B

Hello General o7

I kinda noticed you just finished Murderbot Diaries, I've been learning a lot about it from my dash! For the great things that have happened in my day, I got to talk to my favorite brother for a little bit earlier, I played some video games, and I just back from a walk with my boyfriend (who moved in with me last week!!!!)

Now I'm waiting for Skyrim to finish installing on my switch while he makes us mac n cheese. It's not exactly shells with Alfredo, but it will certainly satiate my hunger lol

[chipped-chimera]

Uh ... Cyberpunk 2077 modding update? I guess?

So I'm actually playing the game now, like for realizes (instead of somehow sustaining myself via modding and not touching the game for a period of months because I'm just like that™) - thankfully I got enough of Ven's custom tatt done that I can actually take screenshots and enjoy things provided I don't show her back or legs ever hahaha

I am aware I've kind of been hoarding content I'm making but it's also an aspect of just learning polish I guess while I get to a level I'm comfy with sharing. I am contemplating releasing the Venatrix hair but it still needs work, as I am highly aware I am getting by with it looking great to me because it's dark as fuck lol. But in the lighter tones? mmmm not so much. Also playing around with screenshots has shown me while my rigging was for the most part near perfect, there is a little jank to sort out still, which will take a bit of fiddling to work with the rig it's based off.

I've ALSO finally figured out why my recolours were just flat out not working despite following the tutorial over and over again step by step to check if I was fucking up. What had actually happened in the transition to 2.0 and my fresh mod directory I'd forgot about the heckin' Material and Texture Override mod which I hadn't installed and isn't mentioned in the guide either so it did not click for ages sooo now I'm kind of going ham. No really, I have a whole folder of screenshots of clothing I don't like so much that I'm probably gonna recolour just so I can use it. Case and point - that Valentinos vest. It's amazing but the colours always made me think of McDonalds (that super bright red and plastic-grade yellow, eugh. Not very classy). Idk if people would want a mod of highly-specific recolour replacers?

Also completely clowning over here considering trying to get the cyber-chimera artwork as a patch on a jacket buuut it's just way too wide to work well for this jacket (my favourite one too) so now I'm considering making one from scratch or something why am I like this

Uh also putting it out there if there are any mutual modders out there who'd like to chat on discord, troubleshoot, yell about shit, exchange notes etc. I'd be very down for that since I'm not really into big modding discords. I just basically use them as forums at this point and ctrl+f my problem in the relevant channel. I'd maybe be better with something smaller and more casual modding discord too (like idk, 20 people, tops).

Anyways that's the latest, hopefully more (and maybe something release-able) soon!

[thedigs]

Trip to Tucson.

Max gettin ready for the trip to Tucson. He is a lot of help.

We had to go get an adjustment on our slides at the Vroom Factory. They ended up rebuilding them from scratch again. But that is OK because they really did a great job.

(All New Sewer Hoses before leaving though. )

For anyone that does not know, this motor home had Schwintech slides which are the poorest design of anything I have ever seen.

If you Google problems with them,,, there are hundreds of people complaining about total failure.

We had several failure and had them completely replaced 3 times, and that is very expensive to do. VERY! So we had the entire system replaced with the Vroom System. So much better! But also very expensive. We are now right at $20k into just the sides on this Motor Home. Ugh ! ! !

Schwintech uses these little small gears and plastic parts to move the entire slide in and out. And it is way under designed. The little plastic guides break and they had to take the whole system out to replace them. SO Stupid!

Our slide on the passenger's side which is almost the full length of the Motor Home, has the washer, dryer, refrigerator, dishwasher, stove, couch pantry, the kitchen, and most heavy of all,,, Kim's clothes. (Which broke the closet bar with only about 1/4 of them in there. (I had to replace it with a steel one.) )

The old little 1 Inch slide rails only lasted a dozen or so times and then the whole system had to be replaced. At the time of the 3 failures, the only option was full replacement.

The new system uses no plastic parts, all large in gears, with ball bearings instead of plastic rollers, with super beefed up parts.

We went down a day early and parked out in front of their very nice new shop.

You can imagine the weight of that whole side of the Motor Home coming in and out with all that stuff in it. And it has to come in and out perfectly straight. So the motors on both sides need to be in sync and moving freely.

We parked in the lot thinking they would be able to adjust it in one day, and we could leave the next.

But they ended up re-installing the entire system with the latest upgrades and parts.

So we ended up in Hotels for 3 nights.

The first night was unexpected so we just picked the first Hotel we found. It was a Red Roof Inn, and NOT that nice, but dogs stay free.

After that night I said "No more cheap Hotels for me!" So the next two, we upgraded each time. ha ha. Each day, we didn't know if we would get the Motor Home back or not that night.

Max might not have minded the experience, but it kept costing $50 just for him. Thats $5 a pound.

The last Hotel had an Automated Pancake Maker. You press the button and in 2 Minutes, out pops 2 pancakes.

While we were in Tucson we took Max to the Doggie wash. He didn't like it, but they had some chews that he loved. He is a pretty picky eater (I wonder where he gets that from?) so its fun to find chews that he likes.

We went to Cracker Barrel and Kim got embarrassed by how much food she ordered.

Her Pancakes were Apple Cinnamon with lots of butter and whip cream.

We met Julie and Doug at this restaurant. (I worked with Julie at ARCO for many years.)

It is the fist time I have switched tables 3 times. ha ha. The Arizonan's of the crew were worried they might get frost bite. LOL.

[weaimtomaim]

I know we've been discussing them elsewhere, but wanted to ask here, what are the headcanons/ideas you have for FOC Stunticons and how the Combaticons have come to dislike them?

I'd query about the Constructicons too, as well as Aerialbots, but I don't want to have this ooc ask extend out too far lol.

// lol you KNOW I'm down to talk about combiners anytime, any place 😂 Feel free to ask about the Constructicons later if you want to, I will happily share my headcanons and ideas for them too! (maybe not the Aerialbots though since I don't actually know that much about them shhh)

But! We're not here for either of those teams! This is about the Stunticons. Specifically, the Stunticons from the same universe as these guys. I'm actually changing some of my previous ideas about how/when they came about.

They were 100% put together while the Combaticons were in the Detention Center. I think Megatron was (perhaps grudgingly) satisfied with just the Constructicons, as the Autobots only had the Protectobots as their singular gestalt. Maybe he also didn't want to risk having that sort of power go unchecked so close to him; the Combaticons did try to assassinate him, and had gotten much too close to succeeding. So maybe in the meantime, Megatron had Shockwave working in the background on ways to ensure the loyalty of his more powerful and destructive soldiers.

Anyway, at some point, along came the Aerialbots, and now the sole Decepticon combiner was outnumbered 2 to 1. And Megatron was having none of that. He wanted another combiner on the front lines asap. Only, there weren't many volunteers, and certainly not ones that Megatron thought worthy of such extensive and costly upgrades. So why not make the team entirely from scratch? Forge a set of soldiers, to his specifications, as a combiner team? "Made-to-order" soldiers were definitely a thing, and this was just taking the next logical step.

And maybe... maybe to avoid another Combaticon incident... they had loyalty programming installed in them along with the gestalt coding.

So now we have the Stunticons, freshly made soldiers ready to be thrown into combat, with the bonus ability of being able to combine together. Except, of course, it didn't go as smoothly as Megatron had hoped. The Stunticons struggled; they were not the ultimate gestalt that Megatron expected them to be. The Decepticon leader was clearly growing more and more dissatisfied with their lackluster performance in the field.

Then an opportunity seemed to land right in their laps: the Combaticons had escaped from the Detention Center. If the Stunticons were to defeat the other gestalt and bring them to Megatron, surely he would see that they were the superior team. So they did just that, expecting the Combaticons to be severely punished (or even executed) for their previous crimes.

Instead, Megatron brought them back into the fold.

Of course, we all know that that wasn't exactly what happened. But the Stunticons didn't know about the loyalty programming, so from their point of view, Megatron had just openly decided that a group of traitors were preferable to them. So the animosity between the Stunticons and Combaticons started then, and just continued to grow throughout the years they had to serve side by side.

On the flipside, the Combaticons witnessed how much of a mess the Stunticons were firsthand. They didn't get why Megatron would keep such disgraces around, and found it insulting that they had to continuously prove their own worth while the clearly inferior gestalt team got away with everything. The Combaticons knew if they made one misstep, it'd be back to the box, or a death sentence for them. The Stunticons had nothing but missteps and failures, yet they were merely reprimanded and that was that.

To be clear, a lot of their views on each other are not accurate. None of them have all the information, and they don't actually know how Megatron personally feels about both teams, or how he deals with them. There are a lot of assumptions and clouded thoughts and feelings that fill in the gaps of their missing information. And the result is two teams who hate each other.

With the reveal of the loyalty programming, and the purging of it, the Combaticons can see things more clearly now. I'm not sure they realized just how young the Stunticons are, or that they weren't just a new gestalt, but entirely new bots too. And they're definitely thinking that other Decepticon soldiers may have been installed with loyalty programming, too. The Stunticons would be likely candidates.

Oh boy that is a lot of text 😅

[cisthehuman]

CisLunar DevLog #5: Ginga

Aiyetoro Madzimoyo III

Another instalment of development posts is here! Today we are going to be discussion the last side character of the group--Prince Ginga Aiyetoro Madzimoyo III. Out of all of the characters, his design had the least amount of drastic changes. I refined some of the details of his character and his style.

His design stems from a doodle session I had on 4/1/22--I only know the date because I actually dated these doodles lol. As you can see, he was always thought of to be princely, but was originally just going to be a subject for a painting and never used again. It was when I decided to make CisLunar a bigger story that I thought of including him in. The idea of three shady individuals (Lunar, BonBon, and Champs) happily socializing with an extremely high ranking person intrigued me so Ginga was added along with his status.

Even at this stage, I had already given him the name Ginga. I off and on study Japanese and one of my favorite words is ginga, which means galaxy (and I believe it is used for the Milky Way as well but don't quote me on that). I just like the phonetic sounds of it. However, I wanted a strong African influence to him as well. To make a long story short, in my younger years of creating I've been embarrassed and made fun of writing things about my race. It's only in my 20s that I started finally reclaiming that part of me and embracing writing/drawing black characters. With that being said, I wanted his middle and last name to be African to tie him to the culture. Plus like afrofuturism is really cool and I wanted to dabble in creating in that genre. This is where we get his middle and last name: Aiyetoro (Nigerian meaning peace of earth) and Madzimoyo (meaning nourished by water; unfortunately I couldn't find specifically where this name originates within Africa).

He's also the 3rd because I like giving my royalty character suffixes like that.

Another thing Ginga always has is his horn. I've always found horns very magical and mystical and as the Prince of the Cosmos, I imagine Ginga to be a very magical guy lol

Ginga also has human ears. When I set him in this animal appendaged world, I didn't realize that he is the only one in the cast (outside of Cis the Parasite) that has human ears. So I came with an answer as to why: cause he's magical.

At this point, I made him BonBon's boyfriend because I thought it would be cute to have 2 couples in the story. Plus there's an opposites attract thing and I like that trope. It's my story and I get to do whatever I want lolol

Another thing was him being a run away from home for very dire reasons. I'm very poor at writing action stories, so I scratched that out. He still leaves home a lot, but now its because he won't be ruling for a long time so he's just living his life lol. I also went back and forth on his eye color. I finally settled on blue as I liked the contrast against his skin.

As I continued drawing him, a new thing started happening--I began giving him what I can only call a lizard like smile. I did it once for some reason, but I just thought he looked cute with it. So Ginga also has a little reptilian in him as well because, you know, magic. I like to think his birth is peculiar because he's ruling over the stars you know? You kinda have to have a lot things happening to rule over several planets and galaxies. At this stage in his design however, I was already ready to change some things about him. His color scheme matched with Champs, and while they are foils, I didn't want them to wear the same exact colors. I also didn't like that I didn't really try to make his royal attire look regal. So when I started redesigning everyone, I jumped at the chance to make my prince look princely.

Which brings us to our first final sketch! I based his attire based on traditional Nigerian clothing. I made the sleeves a bit puffier to add the grandeur along with a flowy sash. As you can tell, I switch colors around. It was originally orange! I'm very aware that I like using cool colors with a lot of my drawings because I favor them, and I was going to use warmer tones to add some more brightness to the group. However, the orange didn't feel like Ginga to me so I changed it to this really lovely turquoise. in this sketch I loosely mapped out where all of his embroidery and detailing is, but when I do more detailed art I'll add it in. I'm very happy with this! I wanted it to be very special but also easy enough for me to do over and over again. But we don't stop there with Ginga. He wouldn't always hang out with his underworld pals in his robes, plus he needs to blend in or else crowds will follow him. So he has two designs!

Yaaaay!

And surprise! The pearls are a headdress he wears! I made this decision before writing this post actually! For the longest time, the pearls were actually his hair, because magic, but when I sketching out his casual outfit, I really liked him without the pearls. So headdress it is!

Speaking of his outfit, I decided to base it off of some Japanese street styles I saw pics of on pinterest. Ginga is an aquatic type of alien, and I like to think his kinds needs to have some coverage to keep from drying out. I also see him as the type of guy who dresses the complete opposite of how he has to dress while attending royal things. The color scheme came about because we were missing some pastel colors in the lineup, and I think pastels show a sense of peace, calm, and naive cuteness to a character which describes Ginga to a tee. His headphones are from his magic, by the way!

Whoo! We did it! The characters for this part of the stream lore (yes there are more parts planned) are complete!

It may be a little while until the next dev log as I need to make things for it, but it will probably be about some of the artists I created that plays on Cosmic Canary radio! I'm going to actually spend some time working on one now. Here's a preliminary sketch as a teaser~

Thank you so much for reading~

Seeee youuuuu next time!

[seitmai]

“I’m so fucking glad I installed those cameras last week when you were at Pilates,” Chad chuckles darkly as you drop the suitcase, backing away in terror.

I literally feel sick 🤢

She stands and gently wraps you in a hug, letting you cry for the next few minutes. She hands you a tissue before taking one for herself.

🥺🥺🥺

“Here’s your discharge papers,” Dr. Akins hands you the stapled stack after they leave, “and a little something from a few of the doctors here. We haven’t forgotten you, Shae.”

So glad she has people in her corner 🥹

“Shae!” He cries when he reaches you, placing his hands on your shoulders, afraid to hurt you, “oh your beautiful eye,” he whispers, tears filling his eyes as he scans your face. “I happened to see him come home, and I knew he wasn’t happy the way he slammed his car door. I’m sorry I called 911, but I heard you yell and then a crash.”

Ed 😭🥰

“Come inside,” Ed asks when you finally relax, “Just for a minute. I’ve got a slice of apple pie with your name on it. You’ve gotten too thin.”

Apple Pie to sweeten the mood 🫶🏻

“It was Jean’s idea,” he smiles sadly, “she knew you’d get out someday and we both wanted you to have a cushion.” “Ed,” your voice breaks and you start to cry again. Your head was pounding, your ribs screamed with every breath and you were getting more anxious as more time passed. “Take it and use it,” he says, putting his hand in his pocket so you can’t hand it back, “hire a lawyer, get that dog you always wanted, take a nice vacation, whatever you want, honey. Besides, he can’t track cash like he can a card.”

😭😭😭

All these people taking care of her 🫶🏻

Your lip still quirks in satisfaction when the wheels of your suitcase drag the sharp pieces of glass over the floor, scratching the hell out of the hardwood he loves.

The way I would have dragged it back and forth a few times more to leave some extra scratches lol

So you had taken a few weeks to find an apartment and hit the beach while you healed; physically at least.

Spending time at the beach is good for the soul

“I���ll take him,” you hear yourself saying as you pull out your wallet and pull out all the cash you have in your wallet; around $500. She begins to refuse but you insist, “Please. I know the vet wasn’t cheap, and your daughter will need help getting back on her feet.” Tears fill her eyes but she eventually nods, “Thank you.”

🥺🥺🥺

The rising tension inside you falls when she gives you a choice.

Such a small thing but can be so impactful for some people

Hank lays down beside you, setting his head in your lap as he senses your distress. “You’re such a good boy,” you whisper, stroking his soft fur.

Hank🫶🏻🥰

“They can come too,” you say, more anxiety setting in as you look at the clock, “if they want to, I mean. I…I think I need all the help I can get. I’ve got to be out in about an hour.” “Okay,” she says, murmuring something before coming back on the line, “they’re happy to help, Shae. Text me the address, we’re getting in the truck now.”

She deserves all the help

A Little Bit Stronger

Part 1

Bradley Rooster Bradshaw x OFC/You

Summary:

Fear is the only thing Shae Williams feels after years of abuse at the hands of her ex-husband. After an encounter where he nearly takes her life, she’s finally free of him…until he finds out where she’s staying. Fear forces her to take the help of the only person who’s offered and is introduced to Bradley Bradshaw in the process.

The last thing Shae needs right now is a relationship and the fact that Bradley understands and respects her wishes makes him that much harder to resist.

Warnings: Just like everything else / write/post: this story is for 18+ only. MINORS DO NOT INTERACT. It will contain smut, adult themes, situations and language. Please also note this story may be triggering due to the topic of domestic abuse (physical, emotional, sexual) violence-feel free to message me with any questions before reading.

*This is the Bradley from All of Me (Jake and Reese’s story). You should be able to be read as a stand-alone but it doesn’t hurt to start there.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

2 months prior.

“Why don’t you stay here for a few minutes,” Chad sneers, pushing his seed back inside you that’s beginning to leak out. He’s not gentle; it hurts, causing tears to prick at your eyes, but you refuse to wince, “give my swimmers a few extra minutes to find that egg,” he laughs.

They won’t. The Depo injection you got a few weeks ago at Planned Parenthood after Chad had found your hidden birth control pills will prevent that. It would be a cold day in hell before you brought an innocent child into this mess. The bruises from that beating were nearly healed now.

“Okay,” you reply, cold and numb.

“Dinner reservations are at tonight 6, so I’ll be here at 5:30 to pick you up,” Chad says from the bathroom as he starts the shower, “wear that black dress with the low back I like.”

“I will,” you lie.

If all goes to plan, you’ll be a few hours away by then, where he can’t find you.

•.•.•.•.•.���.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

You get up as soon as he leaves, wanting nothing more than to get out of this hellhole but needing to wash the evidence of his abuse off of your body.

Your heart is pounding as you pull your suitcases out from the bottom of your closet, already packed and ready to go. Your sweaty hands tremble, barely able to pick up your last-minute supplies to toss them in a tote.

You lift the mattress and reach under where you made a slit, locating the cash you’ve been hiding there and pulling it out before packing it too.

With that cash and the money you transferred into a secret account when you had been working, you should be set until you find a job.

You set your phone on the kitchen table and take a slow, deep breath before walking towards the door.

The handle turns as you reach out to open it; your stomach does too.

“I’m so fucking glad I installed those cameras last week when you were at Pilates,” Chad chuckles darkly as you drop the suitcase, backing away in terror.

He grabs your ponytail when you turn to run, and you cry out loudly at the burning pain in your scalp as he yanks you back. “You’re not going anywhere. Not today, not tomorrow, not ever,” he seethes in your ear. Your stomach rolls in disgust as you can feel him hard against your ass; he’s getting off on this. “You belong to me.”

He pushes you into the table by the door, causing the flower vase atop it to fall and shatter.

“Stupid, ungrateful bitch,” he seethes, stepping over the mess before kicking your hunched form in the ribs, stealing the breath in your lungs from the sharp, searing pain as you land on the hardwood.

It only takes two steps before he’s on you again, gripping your shoulder and turning you to face him. His eyes are full of rage, his pupils dilated from the line he snorted in the car as he spits, “I thought you’d finally learned after the birth control incident. I should’ve known…”

Your head whips to the side and you taste blood when he backhands you, splitting your lip.

You can’t catch your bearings as you try to appease him with an apology; pain radiating from your cheek and there’s a deafening, high-pitched ringing in your ears, “I’m sorry Chad, let me explain-“

Pain explodes in the left side of your face a second later as he punches you as hard as he can before the world goes dark.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

“Shae?” says a familiar voice, sounding so far away. “Shae, honey, wake up.”

Your right eye slowly blinks open to the bright fluorescent lights; the left is swollen shut and pulsing painfully. The beeping of the heart monitor increases and the pain in your ribs makes itself known as everything comes rushing back.

The police officers arriving, the EMTs putting you on the stretcher, the chilling look in his eyes as you were rolled past, the favorite doctor you worked for giving you a sedative when you arrived in her ER panicking.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Dr. Akins murmurs, putting her hand on yours, “he’s not here, he can’t hurt you.”

You slowly nod. “Where,” you croak, tongue feeling like sandpaper, “where is he?”

“Sitting in jail,” she replies.

“But-“

“For 24 hours,” she assures you, “even with his connections, he won’t be getting out early.”

You nod, still a little dazed and disoriented as you take a drink of the water she offers. “Thank you.”

“He’s why you quit, huh?” Dr. Akins asks. Not judging, just observant.

You nod again.

“What happened? Today I mean,” she clarifies.

“I was leaving,” you whisper, wincing when you look down from the pain in your eye from the movement. “He came home.”

“How did he know? Did you tell anyone?” She asks gently.

“No,” you reply, “not a soul. He said something about installing cameras last week.”

“That’s not legal in the state of California, Shae,” she says softly, stroking her thumb over your hand, “neither is beating your wife half to death.”

You nod once again, gasping from the pain in your ribs when you sit up, “I’ve gotta get out of here before he’s released.”

“Where will you go?” She asks.

“I’m going to rent an Airbnb in San Diego,” you wince as you try to smile, quickly reminded of the split in your lip, “My parents met there when my dad was in the Navy. I visited after college and fell in love. It was the first place that came to mind the…” you trail off.

“The what?”

“The last time this happened,” you whisper, “he found out I was secretly taking birth control since we started trying for a baby…he thought being a family man would help him get a promotion at work…as if that canceled out the alcoholism, drug use, and anger problems.”

“Oh Shae,” she replies. Your eyes fill as you look away when you hear the tears heavy in her voice.

She stands and gently wraps you in a hug, letting you cry for the next few minutes. She hands you a tissue before taking one for herself.

“So…you’ve got an orbital fracture that thankfully doesn’t need surgery, no concussion but you’re gonna have a helluva headache, 3 broken ribs, a split lip, and a few other bumps and bruises,” she says finally, not sugar coating it.

You close your eyes, knowing they’ll want to keep you overnight for another observation.

“There’s two officers from Sacramento PD waiting to talk with you,” she continues, “but I’ll get you discharged when they’re done. As a nurse, I trust you know what signs and symptoms to watch for?”

You open your eyes and nod, “Thank you.”

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

You’re tight-lipped during the conversation with the officers with the entire police department in Chad’s back pocket.

You do ask for a restraining order, knowing it’s just a piece of paper, but it gives you a little peace of mind. You don’t press any further charges either; nothing will come of the ones already existing and you refuse to add fuel to his fire.

“Here’s your discharge papers,” Dr. Akins hands you the stapled stack after they leave, “and a little something from a few of the doctors here. We haven’t forgotten you, Shae.”

“Dr. Akins, you-“ you start but she interrupts.

“Just be safe, okay? My number is in there too, please let me know when you’re settled.”

“Okay,” you whisper, ignoring the shooting pain in your ribs as you pull her in for a final hug, “thank you.”

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

You try not to, but you can’t help but cry when you open the envelope in the Uber that Dr. Akins ordered. A letters of recommendation from her and two other doctors you worked with also, and enough bills to make you feel light-headed.

“Here’s fine,” you tell the driver when he pulls onto your street and is a few houses from yours.

You feel paranoid, but knowing Chad, he’ll check the Ring as soon as he gets released. If he sees a man brought you home, you wouldn’t put it past him to look up the license plate and have his cronies at the police station pull him over; it doesn’t matter that it’s just the man’s job.

“You sure?” He looks skeptically over his shoulder at you.

“Yeah,” you sigh when you try again to smile, tasting blood again when you open the cut in your bottom lip, “thanks.”

Ed, your sweet old neighbor, comes running when he spots you gingerly getting out of the car. “Shae!” He cries when he reaches you, placing his hands on your shoulders, afraid to hurt you, “oh your beautiful eye,” he whispers, tears filling his eyes as he scans your face. “I happened to see him come home, and I knew he wasn’t happy the way he slammed his car door. I’m sorry I called 911, but I heard you yell and then a crash.”

“It’s okay,” you begin to cry too, hating how distressed he is. You’d had quickly befriended him and his wife, Jean, when you moved in. They reminded you so much of your late parents and that’s exactly why Chad put an end to the relationship. “I’m glad you did, Ed.”

“I’m so sorry about Jean,” you continue, guilt overwhelming you. “I wanted to go to the funeral so badly.”

She had passed away nearly a year ago from cancer. You earned a slap across the face when you asked Chad to go to her funeral.

“It’s okay, honey. She knew you loved her and she loved you too,” he replies, pulling you in for the most gentle, tender hug.

The gesture breaks the dam inside you and you begin to sob; body-shaking, from-the-soul sobs.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

“Come inside,” Ed asks when you finally relax, “Just for a minute. I’ve got a slice of apple pie with your name on it. You’ve gotten too thin.”

“Okay,” you whisper, letting him take your hand.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

“Do you have my number in your new phone?” Ed asks by his front door after he feeds you not one, but two pieces of his homemade pie. It was your favorite and yet another thing Chad didn’t let you have.

You insist Ed stays home while you get your suitcases, not knowing the whereabouts of Chad’s cameras. The last thing you want is someone else getting hurt, especially Ed.

You nod, “It was the first number I put it, I still have it memorized. Promise you’ll come to see me when things settle?”

If they ever settle. Your heart sinks with the thought that this mess will never stop; not until he’s in prison or one of you ends up dead.

“I will,” he kisses your forehead, and hands you an envelope from his pocket, “here honey, take this.”

“Ed, no. I can’t,” you argue, eyes widening as you feel the wad of cash inside, “Really, I’ll be okay. I’ve been planning this for a while.”

“It was Jean’s idea,” he smiles sadly, “she knew you’d get out someday and we both wanted you to have a cushion.”

“Ed,” your voice breaks and you start to cry again. Your head was pounding, your ribs screamed with every breath and you were getting more anxious as more time passed.

“Take it and use it,” he says, putting his hand in his pocket so you can’t hand it back, “hire a lawyer, get that dog you always wanted, take a nice vacation, whatever you want, honey. Besides, he can’t track cash like he can a card.”

That thought crossed your mind too before you finally nod. “Thank you,” you whisper, giving him a final hug and heading back to your former home.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

You step over the drips of your blood and avoid the dead flowers and broken glass, feeling nauseous from anxiety and the pain pulsing through your body when you pick up your discarded bag and right your suitcases.

Your lip still quirks in satisfaction when the wheels of your suitcase drag the sharp pieces of glass over the floor, scratching the hell out of the hardwood he loves.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

Ed watches from his front door as you struggle to get your suitcases in the back, but you discreetly shake your head when he opens the door to help. Chad is going to take his anger out somewhere, and you don’t want to make Ed more of a target.

You suppress your groan as you lift the floorboard in the trunk to find your secret cell phone hidden by the spare tire and turn it on after plugging it in while you fasten your seatbelt.

After typing in the address into GPS, you take a deep breath and pull out of the driveway, waving goodbye to Ed and starting your new life.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

A few weeks later (current day).

“Friday at 11,” you confirm, “I’ll be there, thank you again,” you say before hanging up with the recruiter.

You smile softly; things are looking up. You have an interview scheduled for a nursing position with a general practitioner at the Naval Base, you secured a nice apartment that’ll be ready to move into in a few weeks and Chad would be served with divorce papers any day now.

With the money you saved, the generous gift from the doctors you worked with at the ER, and the downright obscene amount from Ed and Jean, you didn’t need to rush into finding a job. So you had taken a few weeks to find an apartment and hit the beach while you healed; physically at least.

Emotionally though, you were struggling. Most nights you woke up soaked in a cold sweat, shivering in terror from your nightmares. Loud noises made you flinch. You were constantly having to remind yourself that it’s okay to go out and do what you want.

Dr. Akins checked in with you twice after letting her know you arrived. Ed texted or called almost daily; it was so nice to be able to talk to him freely.

You decide to walk a few blocks to the hole-in-the-wall restaurant you discovered on your first week here for dinner.

Taking a different way back, you come across a large, brown, and white dog tied outside a clothing shop.

The sign in the window above him reads, ‘Dog is for sale. Inquire within’.

His big, fluffy tail begins to wag when he realizes you’re approaching him and he lifts his head when you kneel, “Hi buddy.”

“Hi,” an older woman with a kind smile comes out when she sees you, “are you-“ she cuts off with a sneeze when she gets close.

“Bless you,” you smile.

“Thanks,” she sniffs, “I was trying to ask if you’re interested in him?”

“Oh,” you say, “I can’t…” you trail off as you realize there isn’t anything stopping you. The Airbnb listing said pets were welcome; same with your apartment. “Well…maybe?”

She laughs, sitting on the bench by the door, inviting you to sit beside her. “His name is Hank, he’s a 2-year-old, Great Pyrenees mix. He belonged to my daughter but…she can’t take care of him anymore; she checked herself into rehab,” she sighs sadly, “and will be for a while; she asked me to find him a good home since I’m horribly allergic and there’s too many kill shelters around here,” she answers before you can ask.

“I’m sorry,” you murmur, petting his big head when he rests it on your knee, “he’s so sweet.”

“He is,” she confirms before sneezing again, “he listens well, I’ve never heard him bark and I think he’s house trained-I’ve had to keep him in the garage at my house or I can’t breathe-but he hasn’t had any accidents there. I guess he’s a little leery of men too, but she wasn’t hanging around the best crowd either. I took him to the vet-in my car which was a terrible idea, I still sneeze when I open the door,” she laughs, “but they gave him a micro-chip and updated his vaccines. He was given a clean bill of health, I have his records in the store.”

He looks up at you with those big brown eyes; staring into your soul while tugging at your heartstrings.

“I’ll take him,” you hear yourself saying as you pull out your wallet and pull out all the cash you have in your wallet; around $500. She begins to refuse but you insist, “Please. I know the vet wasn’t cheap, and your daughter will need help getting back on her feet.”

Tears fill her eyes but she eventually nods, “Thank you.”

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

It doesn’t take long at all for you to fall in love with Hank; his personality is as big as he is. He just had one accident the first night and hasn’t barked a single time.

“How do I look?” You ask him, spinning in front of the mirror as he watches you from his spot on your bed. Dressing up felt nice, even if it was just for a job interview.

You did your best to cover the healing yellow bruise under your eye, but it was still noticeable in certain light.

He hops off the bed and nudges your thigh with his head before looking up at you in the mirror.

“Thanks, I think so too,” you smile down at him. “I’ll be back in a little bit, you be a good boy.”

He’s asleep on the bed before you shut the door.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

“Hi, you must be Shae,” the pretty woman greeting smiles as she offers her hand. “I’m Reese, nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too,” you reply.

“Please,” she gestures to the chairs across her desk as she sits, “have a seat.”

Your eyes squint when the sunlight catches your face as you sit before giving her your resume. “I also have letters of recommendation from my nursing instructor and a few of the doctors I’ve worked with,” your cheeks heat as you hand them over next.

Your stomach sinks as her gaze pauses on your concealed bruise before she scans the information given.

Your nerves settle as she asks questions and gives you different scenarios. Dr. Kerner is confident, witty and you get the impression she doesn’t take shit from anyone; which is needed when the majority of her patients are cocky men.

“Well, I’ve seen enough,” she smiles, “you can expect to from HR soon for the formal offer,” your heart soars and then sinks when her brow furrows slightly when she glances down again at her resume, “Oh, is this current?”

Your nerves come back full force and your hands twist nervously in your lap, “Yes, it’s current.”

“It’s okay,” she replies softly, picking up on your anxiety, “HR will ask why it's been 2 years since you worked last. What should I tell them?”

You feel yourself dissociate as you look out the window. “My husb-I mean, ex-husband…he didn’t want me to work.”

She nods, looking at your healing eye and piecing together where it came from. “Shae?”

You flinch slightly as you snap out of it, before meeting her eyes.

“I’m just going to tell them it was due to family reasons,” she says, watching as you sag in relief. “Are you safe though?”

“I am,” you reply, touching the slight discoloration under your eye, “I am now. He’s…a few hours away, and I have a dog now.”

“Okay,” she replies with a small smile, reaching for a pen and notepad. “Here’s my number if that changes okay?”

“Okay,” you whisper, touched by her gesture. You had very few people in your corner, and they all lived hours away. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” she replies, rising to her feet. “Hope to see you again soon.”

“I hope so too,” you smile genuinely for the first time.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

“HR will be in touch soon,” Dr. Kerner says as she escorts you from her office, smiling down the hall. “Have a good weekend.”

“Thanks, you too,” you reply, eyes following hers to two men approaching.

The blonde gives you a friendly smile before locking eyes with Dr. Kerner. While he’s attractive, it’s evident he only has eyes for her.

The darker-haired one with a mustache is downright hot. The way he gives you a quick, appreciative once over before flashing you a grin has you blushing like a virgin.

You quickly head outside, feeling an odd mixture of emotions; unnecessary guilt for looking at another man, excitement that someone so good-looking finds you attractive, relief that you can still feel attraction, and nervousness that you might/might not see him again if you get the job.

Once inside your car, you blast the AC to cool your heated cheeks as you make your way back to your temporary home.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

A few days pass before receiving the call that you have the job and you agree to start the following Monday.

You hardly sleep the night before and arrive before nearly everyone.

“Ready for your first day?” Dr. Kerner smiles when she sees you at your desk.

“I am,” you answer, “I looked over your preferences while I waited. It all looks familiar so I shouldn’t have any problem getting caught up to speed.”

“I didn’t figure you would,” she replies, “let me give you a quick tour and we’ll get the day started.”

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

By lunch, you’re already getting the hang of things.

“I don’t know how I’ve survived this long without you,” Dr. Kerner smiles as she checks the time, “seriously, you’re doing a great job.”

“Thank you,” you murmur, flushing as you look down at your shoes, so unused to compliments.

“You’re welcome,” she replies, “I usually have lunch in here with Jake, my boyfriend, and Rooster, an old friend of mine. They’re both naval aviators.”

“Rooster?” You ask, looking up confused.

“Ah, sorry, that’s his callsign,” she laughs, “his real name is Bradley; you can call him either. You’re more than welcome to join us.”

“Thanks for the offer, but I’ve gotta let my dog out. I haven’t found anyone to walk him yet; I’m pretty sure he’d be fine all day but I’m staying at an Airbnb until my apartment is ready in a few weeks so I don’t want to risk any accidents,” you reply. It’s the truth, but you’re still unsure and uneasy about a lot of things.

“Understandable,” she replies, “the offer stands if and when you want to.”

“Thank you,” you reply with a smile of your own.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

“Some friends of mine are having a get-together for the 4th at their house on the beach,” Dr. Kerner says at the end of the first day, “you’re more than welcome to come if you’d like.”

“You don’t have to answer right now,” she continues when you clam up, “and there’s no pressure, either. You can say no.”

The rising tension inside you falls when she gives you a choice.

“I’ll think about it,” you answer truthfully, “if that’s okay?”

“Of course. There’s no rush; Penny will be plenty of food and drinks either way,” she gives you a reassuring smile as she picks up her keys. “Have a good night, I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Thanks,” you smile back, “you too.”

•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>

The next few weeks pass quickly and June turns to July.

You were still in the rental and hadn’t had lunch with Dr. Kerner yet, but you could feel yourself slowly opening up to her.

“See ya after lunch,” she calls as you pick up your keys to head out, “tell Hank I said hi.”

“I will,” you laugh, “be back in a bit.”

•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>•<•>

Something is off when you unlock the door to the rental.

Hank, who’s normally asleep on the bed, is restlessly pacing.

“What’s up, buddy?” You ask, crouching to kiss him.

He’s distracted though, aggressively sniffing the welcome mat.

“Gotta go potty?” You ask, grabbing his leash, “Let’s go.”

He sits down right beside you when you get to the grass, sniffing the air and looking around.

“C’mon bud, go potty,” you coax.

He eventually takes a few steps to do his business but comes right back when he’s done.

“I’ll see you in a bit, okay? Be a good boy,” you murmur as you close the door while he stands there and watches, again so unlike him.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

“Hey,” Dr. Kerner says when you come back from lunch, looking down at her phone, “the last patient canceled, so we’ll be done early today. How was Hank?”

“Acting a little weird, but good,” you reply, brow furrowed, “he’s usually asleep when I get home, but he was up and pacing by the door. I thought he had to go potty really bad but he didn’t go without some coaxing. Who knows, probably just heard a squirrel or something.”

“Probably,” she agrees, her tone giving away that it doesn’t sit right with her.

It doesn’t sit right with you either.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

After saying goodbye to Dr. Kerner, you head home a few hours later.

Hank is again, or still, by the door.

You order food to be delivered while he eats his, sitting down on the couch with a beer while you wait.

You mull it over in your head before pulling your phone out to compose a text.

Shae: Hey Dr. Kerner, I’ve thought it over. I’d be happy to join you tomorrow if the offer still stands.

But there’s a knock at the door before you send it.

You rise to your feet, Hank gets up too, surprising you as he growls in your presence for the first time.

“It’s okay, just the delivery driver,” you coo before calling, “just a minute,” as you grab some cash for a tip.

“Wow, that was fast-“ you start to say as you open the door, but your head whips to the side. You hear the sharp slap to your cheek and eye before the pain can register.

The force of his backhand knocks you back a step and Chad follows you, gripping your arm so tightly you cry out in pain. He’s full of rage, his breath reeks of bourbon as spits in your face, “You think you can divorce me?! After everything I’ve done for-FUCK!”

Chad screams when Hank latches onto his clothed arm with a low growl. The force of his lunge pushes Chad back into the doorframe but you grab Hank’s collar to haul him off before he sinks his teeth into something more vital.

“Leave,” you say, voice shaking and barely audible over Hank’s snarls, “now.”

“This isn’t over,” he says, holding his arm as he takes taking a step back, “and that dog is dead.”

You slam the door closed behind him, locking it before falling to the floor with a sob.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

Hank lays down beside you, setting his head in your lap as he senses your distress. “You’re such a good boy,” you whisper, stroking his soft fur.

But he starts to growl again a few minutes later when a loud knock startles you both.

“San Diego PD, open up.”

You hold Hank’s collar as you crack the door to verify. “Just a minute, I’m going to put my dog in the bedroom; he’s a little worked up.”

The host of the AirBnb shows up shortly after, holding the bag of your forgotten food.

Adrenaline wearing off, your face begins to throb in time with his fingerprints on your arm as you explain what happened to the officers. You feel numb as they take pictures of your injuries, but you don’t hold much hope when the officers say they’ll find him.

The Airbnb host gives you more bad news before leaving too.

You try to compose yourself as you start to pack but hopelessness of the situation begins to set in, and you feel suddenly feel completely overwhelmed. Your thoughts begin to race before you pick up the phone; feeling as if you have no other choice but to turn to the only person that might help.

Your heart races as the line rings.

“Shae?” she answers, “what’s up?”

There’s faint music in the background.

“Hi Dr. Kerner,” you say, trying to sound calm, “I’m so sorry to bother you.”

“Please, call me Reese,” she reminds you gently, “you’re not bothering me. Is everything okay?”

“No,” your voice breaks, “it’s not. Chad…my ex, he found me.”

“Where are you? Is he there now?” She asks, anxious now.

“No, he took off when Hank bit him,” you sniff, zipping one of your packed suitcases closed, “I’m still at the Airbnb, packing my stuff.”

“Okay,” she sighs, her relief evident until your last words sink in, “Okay. Packing your-wait, why are you packing?”

“The police came a few minutes after he left; one of the units heard the commotion. The unit owner came while I was giving my statement,” You answer, walking down the short hallway to the living room, “I guess the other tenants complained to him and are scared-understandably so-but said I needed to be out…tonight.”

“Oh Shae,” she says, “I’m so sorry. Let me come help you?”

“Okay.” Both of you are surprised when you agree.

“I’m at the Hard Deck-which is a bar-with Jake and Bradley. Oh shoot, I forgot we rode together. Hang one sec,” she pauses, “I’ll order an Uber.”

“They can come too,” you say, more anxiety setting in as you look at the clock, “if they want to, I mean. I…I think I need all the help I can get. I’ve got to be out in about an hour.”

“Okay,” she says, murmuring something before coming back on the line, “they’re happy to help, Shae. Text me the address, we’re getting in the truck now.”

“I will, oh…” you cringe when you catch a glimpse of your reflection in the mirror above the couch. Your right eye is bloodshot from the trauma, below on your cheek is puffy and still red, and his fingerprints already purpling your arm. It’s nothing compared to last time, but it’s still startling, “and Reese? I should warn you, I look…rough.”

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

A/N: Well…what do you guys think? Did everything make sense (especially for those who haven’t read All of Me).

As always, any interaction is appreciated but I love hearing what you think in the comments/reblogs! Seriously, feedback helps me more than you know.

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