#she's s bit of a bummer

[moii3]

My Candy Love New Gen Ep.7 Review!

Spoiler Ahead, Obviously

Another day, another short episode. I think off the bat, im dissapointed with how short the episodes are. I really think they need to get it together with the amount of content. It's just not enough and it doesn't help that we have to wait for almost a month every single time for a new ep.

I just had to point this out because since i've been replaying the Eldarya TO, i just started to appriciate how beemov games used to have longer, more filling, structured episodes and stories compared to now. Maybe this is too early for me to say since we are only 7 episodes in. Who knows? Maybe Beemov will actually start to have an enemies to lovers arc between the writers and the new gen game. Anyways..

The ep starts out with Candy complaining to my love Elenda (and soon the whole office) about how difficult it is to live with her annoying mom and sister. Seriously, we see from the flashback that Candy's mother basically insinuates that she didn't think she would have to live with her adult ass daughter in her house. Both Tasha and the Mother(i forget her name) were pretty rude abt it in my opinion. Instead of talking with Candy about house rules they just go on like nothing happened, and make it clear that she is just a guest. Not a part of the household.

Mentioning of TikTok was thrown in one scene for good mesure lmao

As they all hear the story, Devon decides everyone in the office should help Candy look for an apartment. They apperantly don't have anything else to do the whole day.

It almost feels like a little bit Mary Sue-ish. Everyone taking turns wasting their free work hour trying to find Candy an apartment, making it a competition seems comical and unrealistic. (not everything has to be so realistic but it's just ridicilous atp). They are literally racing to find this rich adult woman a place to live...

When it comes to the actual apartment hunting, Thomas's route was a roller coaster 😭. Since apperantly no one rents apartment to stinky stinky singles, LI s jump in to save the day, pretending to be our partners during the apartment showing.

Thomas had both me and the realtor gagged the whole time.

(sorry for the whack screenshots)

I was cringing big time

ma'am please be quiet...

A bit awkward? You're telling me..

Just as we think we are over with this, leaving the apartment, he kisses Candy.

I saw some people saying they didn't like how this kiss came about and i have to agree. He calls it "our little ritiual" , apperantly to convince the realtor. We know that's bullshit and it was kind of an excuse to kiss her. I don't like that Candy is in a cornered position to accept the kiss and it felt kind of unneccesary, no matter how hyped everyone was about it.

Like if this is the dude we will eventually gonna fall in love with& date, it's kind of a bummer that their first kiss had to be "fake". I know they thought of it like a little romantic game Candy had to play to get close to Thomas but i really think even for this it was kinda underwhelming.

I also saw other illustrations from different routes and Roy's has to be my favourite. I wish it was more romantic like that and actually made sense. Anyway..

Anyways, after they leave the house, Thomas gets back to the nonchalant attitude again (obviously) which, gagges Candy again.

Like i said, i don't really like how this kiss happened and i think even for Thomas this was kind of crazy.

If i was the realtor, i would honestly block their numbers and hope that Thomas wouldn't show up at my house to wear my skin the very same night. He deserves some kind of compensation.

I'm gonna keep doing these reviews no matter who reads them, this is for me and my ranting. But i hope you like it! Oh, I also will rate these episodes out of 10.

For my first rating on this series, I'm givinf this episode an underwhelming 5/10

Best part is that this ain't even about the house anymore, even realtor knows he fucked up and they are not gonna choose this house.

Until next time, xx

[sluttywonwoo]

All I can think about is somnophilia with Wonwoo (with consent of course) I feel like he would try not to wake you up but is just so horny and then he goes feral or something but sweet at the same time LOL

you’ve talked about it before, he knows you like it, but it still makes him feel a little pervy. he supposes it is, regardless of whether or not you’re asking him to. you’re unconscious, totally unaware of your surroundings. wasn’t it at least a little wrong?

still, wonwoo’s so hard he can barely stand it. he needs relief and you’re practically offering yourself to him on a silver platter.

he doesn’t want to wake you. if he did, he knows you’d just ask him why he didn’t use you in your sleep.

so, with another self-pep talk (“she’s into it, you’re into it, don’t be a pussy c’mon”), he gingerly pulls back the covers to reveal your sleeping form.

his cock twitches again as he takes in the sight of you. you’d worn one of his t-shirts to bed. it’s long on you but it had ridden up in your sleep, exposing both your panties and a strip of bare skin just above the elastic band on your hip.

wonwoo’s careful as he slips into bed next to you. you’re not a light sleeper but too much movement would likely wake you up, and it’d be a bummer to end this before it even started.

you curl up to him instinctively and he smiles, kissing you on top of your head.

with a bit of trial and error, wonwoo’s able to get a hand down between your legs so that he can begin to touch your over your underwear. it’s agonizingly slow, but it works. you don’t so much as stir but you do start to get wet. he can feel your arousal soaking through the fabric and coating his fingers, and he wants nothing more than to rip those stupid boy shorts off and bury his face in between your thighs.

but since he can’t, he settles for this. for touching you over your panties. for sliding them to the side ever so gently and rubbing your clit in a way that makes you furrow your brows in your sleep. for sliding one finger inside of you and then two, watching with a smirk as you frown in pleasure.

he fingers you until you’re dripping down his forearm (he can’t help but pause to lick it up— he’s just a simple man and he’s only so strong and he really tried to resist but just couldn’t help himself…) and then rolls you onto your back.

you cling to him, even when he pulls away to get his cock out. it’s only for a second, just long enough for him to shove his sweats down under his ass, but you reach for him in sleep-laced desperation, whining like you’re on the verge of tears.

wonwoo shushes you even though you’re dead to the world and takes another second to admire his work. you’re so worked up and you’re not even conscious. he can’t remember the last time he’s seen you this wet… your pussy’s glistening in the darkness of the room and he just wants to spit on it, add to the mess, make you even wetter, but he knows it’ll be too loud so he doesn’t.

what he does instead is get into position and notch the head of his cock inside of you, pushing in slowly until he’s bottomed out.

wonwoo has to bite his lip to keep from moaning. you feel so good around him. you’re clenching already and he knows you’re not doing it on purpose but it makes him want to curse your name and your cunt for rendering him pussydrunk this early on.

he draws his hips back, almost pulling all the way out, and then eases them forward again. it’s experimental, trying to find a pace that’ll get you off but won’t wake you up, but his luck runs out before he can get it locked in.

“nonu?” you ask sleepily, blinking your eyes open to see your boyfriend on top of you. “what’s going-”

“shh baby,” he whispers in response, “go back to sleep.”

“but?”

“it’s okay, angel. just rest. you have to work in the morning.”

you start to nod, then cut yourself off with a surprised moan. “feels… good,” you mumble.

“yeah?” wonwoo affirms, leaning down to kiss you on the lips now that you’re somewhat awake. “i’ll make you feel even better, okay?gonna take care of you, baby. just be a good girl and rest while i do all the work.”

[the-s1lly-corner]

Hii! Idk if you've ever done something similar, but what do you think about TADC x Skater! Reader? Like, Reader always have their skates on, like it's a part of their digital costume or smth. And i really mean ALWAYS. Someone spilled water on the floor? Reader slips down. They go on an adventure and a part of the floor is inclined? (Like a hill for example) There goes reader down the hill. I think it would be pretty funny lol

Btw, i really love your page, keep it up and don't overwork yourself

TADC cast x rollerskater!reader

Anon I am so so so sorry !! I dont know if I personally got jumbled up or my inbox has been wonky silly goofy or I just got thrown off because of so many people sending stuff in, but I also missed this as well as some other requests 😭😭

This one may be a little short since I've never skated <\3

Written this as more platonic leaning !

CAINE:

Probably poofs himself his own rollerskates, literally the only time you see him on the ground and it's so weird to look at. You guys both slip and fall because bubble wiped themselves across the floor or something

Obviously leads to bubble getting popped

Honestly seeing caine struggle to keep steady while using the rollerskates is... very funny.. look at his lil legs wobble (tell anyone and he will tilt the ground of the next IHA)

POMNI:

Honestly she would probably slip on the floor too if its wet or has marbles. She looks like she would comically fall over, with her legs flinging straight up into the air before plopping down

Looks at you confused as you visibly try to calculate how fast this one little slope will make you go, she probably forgets you have skater feet in the beginning

Subconsciously tries to grab and stop you when you start rolling, but because shes so small you just drag her with you

Theres that squeaky noise as shes being dragged across the floor

Yk the sound

JAX:

Throws marbles on the floor as well as other things that can make you stumble or slip... probably soaps up the floor.. thank god hes just a circus rmemeber and not like, a ringmaster... this dude would tolt the floor in so many different angles just to fuck with you... thankfully, he cant do that!

Though in another timeline... perhaps you werent so lucky...

Not much to be said here, with the bit with zooble in the pilot (the arm thing), jax is more than ready to use peoples unique digital qualities to please him or mess with them, and you being his friend only makes you slightly less likely to be messed with

RAGATHA:

Keeps a hand on your shoulder when she notices the floor is tilted, tends to walk with you while holding your shoulder still. She can only imagine what it's like to be s victim of slopes.. it would drive her nuts.. as long as shes around shes going to do her damndest to make sure you dont roll away or slip... unless jax literally throws marbles in front of you two at the very last second because who can predict that..?

In any case where theres an IHA with a DEEP slope I think she just might resort to carrying you so you dont go FLYING down

ZOOBLE:

Okay you guys might not have the same issues but they can relate to you in the jax department, with him using your qualities to his advantage. Its absolute hell.. I think it would be this shared thing that leads to you guys building a relationship in the first place

That one meme where it's two people at the bar and they overhear each other saying "I hate (x)" then they start making out

Thats you guys ranting about the bunny/j

Offered you some parts before realizing that you cant swap out your limbs like they can

"Ah, bummer"

KINGER:

Has probably asked you why you dont just take them off when you vent to him about jax putting marbles on the floor. Kind of sounds like when people say shit such as "oh you're depressed? Just cheer up!" But like, kinger says it in a genuinely.. not malicious or tone deaf way.. like I dontt think he knows, or perhaps he thinks you're like zooble with detachable limbs and you have another pair of feet hanging around somewhere

Gives a soft "oh.. " when you demonstrate that they are attatched to you

Offers to let you strap pillows to yourself to soften any blows when you fall, let's you have his softest and thickest pillows... what do you mean it throws off your balance...?

GANGLE:

You have probably accidentally rammed into her after misjudging how steep a hill on the ground was

Good news! She stopped your momentum!

Bad news, shes all tangled up in your skates (owie!) And her comedy mask is broken (oh no!)

Please be careful getting her out. We don't want her ribbons to tear or get damaged, we cant have our girl start fraying!

[pristinekanesays]

🦋Life Is Strange: With A Sick S/O

🦋 just like the good ol' title, how the crew react when you become sick

🐺 GN!Reader, no specific pronouns are mentioned!

🦋 warnings: swearing, mentions of the reader having a cold & coughing/sneezing a lot, fluff, cute ass stuff, nathan not giving a rats ass tbh

🎧A/N: hey dudes, i'm back and i've been missin' you, feel free to request somethin'! might be a little short and the writing style has changed, feels gooooood to be back >:D.

🦋Chloe Price:

🤍| she'll joke around with you first like 'hey maybe you caught something from that snotty-nosed kid down the street' or laugh and plead that you don't sneeze on her or somethin'.

🤍| but seriously, she's fuckin' freaked especially if you've got a pretty bad cold or cough.

🤍| props to her though, she might be a bit overboard when you're sick but at least she cares.

🤍| she can't cook all that great but hey, if life ain't going so good for you then she'll somehow convince joyce to let you stay (much against davids wishes) and then you can have all the homemade chicken soup you want.

🤍| will still blast her music as loud as she wants unless you have a pretty nasty headache then she'll turn it down a little. (only a little)

🍂Kate Marsh:

🤍| an angel in disguise with the most beautiful white wings, she's there when you need her and will literally jump when you call.

🤍| will ask if your okay (like you literally aren't basically fighting for your life) then shake her head like a disappointed mother when she hears your hoarse voice.

🤍| if you're still trying to attend class or do stuff while you're sick, then she'll be the girl rushing after you and trying to get you back to your dorm.

🤍| i've said this before, kate can definitely cook but if you're not eating then she'll settle for buying fast food you like (because at least you're not dying of starvation).

🤍| checks up on you occasionally but not every second, she acts like if she even turns a lamp on that you'll die on the spot or combust into thin air.

📷 Max Caulfield:

🤍| kinda like warren, refers to you being sick as a 'total bummer' but she doesn't mean it in a way to bash you for being sick, only really to make you laugh or roll your eyes.

🤍| she texts you a few times a day when your sick, to check up on you or to occasionally..send you memes.

🤍| visits you sometimes after class, either to bring you food or just to see if you're still alive and breathin'.

🤍| when she finally gets some time to spend with you, she'll sit down beside you and show you photos that she's taken of you before you got sick. (including the one of you in a banana suit.)

🤍| if you're chilling in her dorm while she's in class, then she'll leave some music discs out for you in case you ever get sick of the silence.

🎭Rachel Amber:

🤍| she's busy cracking jokes half of the time and when you joke back she'll hit you with a 'i'm not the one coughing and sneezing everywhere, am i?'.

🤍| she won't be able to check up on you every second since she's busy with class, drama & the tempest but will still try to make time for you.

🤍| will send you updates about what she's doing though, for example 'at drama lab, still doing good?' or 'class sucks, hope ur okay.'

🤍| she can cook, yeah! but rachel seems like the type of person to eat it out of the tin instead of making it homemade (she's just like me)

🤍| she's kinda like victoria in a way that she loves you but she cannot risk being sick, especially with all the shit she's gotta do.

🎬 Victoria Chase:

🤍| she cares and is definitely worried when you suddenly become sick but tries to pretend that she doesn't, at least not that much.

🤍| she's busy with a lot of stuff so she can't always be there when you need her but she'll try to be.

🤍| so filthy rich that it's mind-blowing, she can buy you whatever, whenever you want it.

🤍| she'll text you after she's done everything she needs to do and her schedule is clear, will ask if you need anything picked up or if you're feeling any better since the last time she saw you.

🤍| okay, if you don't like nathan then i'm sorry!! she's gonna send him to give you stuff or check up on you, even if you guys literally despise each other.

🎮 Warren Graham:

🤍| he's super sweet, so no worries! he'll make sure to check up on you and give you advice whenever you need it.

🤍| doesn't care about getting sick, he's still down to hang whenever and will look at you with an awkward but reassuring smile when you're coughing your ass off.

🤍| he's the type to rub your back bro even if he knows he's gonna catch your nasty ass cold and be stuck in bed for days.

🤍| if you're okay with touch then he'll also hold your hand when he's beside you and tell you that this is gonna pass, so don't worry!!

🤍| he's chill so he might let you get up and do shit but will definitely be scared that you'll just collapse out of nowhere, even if you've only got a painless cold he's still gonna make sure you're okay.

🤍| he didn't get any affection from his father, ever. so it's gonna be hard for him to try and care for you when you're sick.

🤍| sometimes just ends up buying you stuff to make up for not being there when you need him, if you and victoria are on good terms then he'll probably just ask her if she can get you meds or anything else that can help you. (LAZYYY ASSS!!! D:&lt;)

🤍| checks up on you when he can but will try to pretend that he hasn't been fearing for your life the whole time he's been busy, dude it's a cold.

🤍| rich just like vic! he can bring you whatever you want, just ask and he'll tiptoe through that door like a sims 2 burglar with the things you asked for in hand.

🤍| apart from that though, just ask victoria or something if you ever need company because his brain will explode and he'll look at you all dumbfounded 'n shit.

[wildflowercryptid]

V FOR VALEDICTORIAN character introduction :

VICTORIA VALENTINE, the valedictorian & victim.

after dragging my feet on finishing her chara intro, here's some more info on victoria! the basic idea behind her design was "60's girl-next-door meets elle woods & cher horowitz." it's a bummer that she's not really present in the story because i ended up liking her a lot, too bad she got caught up in something much bigger than what she thought it was.

( alt text for vic's bio below! ) ⤵

Victoria Valentine, Also known as Vic

The Valedictorian of Chumbridge College’s Postgraduate Class, known for being a kind-hearted and passionate person who was extremely active in campus life and local outreach projects. She was about to graduate with a Masters in Law.

Found dead at 6:26 in Chumbridge College’s Grand Auditorium by Georgie Grover, hung by one of the stage curtain’s counterweights.

According to her partially recovered Valedictorian speech, she was going to expose someone on campus. Who this was exactly is still unknown.

Her father was a former business partner of Hugh Henly, but was convicted of accounting fraud and embezzlement 6 years ago. Her mother left him not long after his conviction and Victoria hadn’t had much contact with either of them since.

Harris was one of Victoria’s closest friends, having known each other since childhood, as well as her #1 academic rival. The two also dated for a brief time, which ended in a nasty fight, but had since reconciled.

Angie was Victoria’s roommate and closest confidant. Having met in one of their undergraduate classes, the two had become extremely close friends and were rarely seen apart. Though, it seems their relationship was a bit deeper than just friends.

Recently, she had been seeing Dr. Conrad to help mitigate some of the stress related to her role as Valedictorian.

For some reason, she seemed very concerned about J.B.’s safety lately.

Like Drew, she had a very strong sense of justice. Due to this, she intended to work as a Civil Rights Lawyer after graduation.

According to Harris, while Victoria was always well-intentioned, she had a bad habit of getting overly involved in other people’s business (whether they wanted her to be or not.)

[circethesinner]

blueberry ⟐ wally clark

pairing: wally clark x reader oneshot (second person pov - she/her pronouns used for reader - occasional use of Y/N)

warning(s) : mild language, mentions of death, canon character death, mild angst, fluff

word count: 3.5k words

⭑•⊱✩masterlist✩⊰•⭑

═══ -ˋˏ *.·:·.⟐.·:·.* ˎˊ- ═══

summary: adjusting to the afterlife was easy at first, but when something stirs up emotions you need a shoulder to cry on

═══ -ˋˏ *.·:·.⟐.·:·.* ˎˊ- ═══

“This… is so embarrassing,” You groaned as you looked down one last time at your own body as it was zipped up into the bag to be carted away to the morgue.

“At least you know how it happened,” You recognised the voice immediately and turned to see your missing classmate, Maddie. The two of you hadn’t exactly been friends, but you’d worked together during class enough to just awkwardly nod and smile in acknowledgement whenever you passed one another while out and about. Sometimes a stray “hey” would be thrown out there, but that was about it.

“Oh shit, we’re really dead, aren’t we?” You groaned as you scanned her outfit. It was what she had been wearing the day she disappeared. Something in you had hoped she was still out there, alive, but that was clearly just wishful thinking. The words she had said sunk in suddenly. “You don’t know what happened to you?”

“Not a clue,” She sighed. “So I guess you can count yourself lucky.” You turned your head as there was some commotion behind you, only to catch one of the paramedics stumbling slightly and dropping the stretcher that carried your body.

“Yeah… Lucky is definitely what I’m feeling right now…” You shook your head as the paramedic tried to pick you up again, only for his hands to slip a second time. The third time was a charm as they finally hauled your body through the fire exit in the cafeteria to the waiting van outside. “What sort of idiot chokes to death on a blueberry? I mean, I don’t even like blueberries! They ran out of chocolate chip muffins, so I figured the lemon and blueberry would be fine.”

“If it helps, you died really quietly and gracefully,” Maddie shrugged. “No one even noticed until your face was purple and you were on the floor.”

“Surprisingly, that doesn’t help,” You sighed as the lunch ladies started to clear the tables of abandoned trays when the teachers ushered everyone out.

“It was really impressive how far the blueberry launched when they did try to do the Heimlich manoeuvre on you,” You noticed the boy with glasses behind Maddie for the first time when he spoke, your mind having been preoccupied. “It’s just a shame it was too late.”

“Thank you, person I don’t know,” You tilted your head as you assessed him. “I’ll be sure to submit the results to the dead council of blueberry launching.”

“I’m Charley; I died in the 90s,” He held his hand out for a handshake, which you hesitantly took.

“Y/N; died 10 minutes ago,” You scanned the room again as you let go of the handshake. “So, what? Are we stuck here forever or something? Kind of a bummer.”

“Until we cross over,” Charley explained and motioned for you and Maddie to walk with him. “Come on. We’ll introduce you to the group.”

“The group?” Your eyes widened as you trailed along after the two. “Jeez, I know I used to joke about how much of a death trap this school is, but for there to be an entire group of dead people seems a bit extreme.”

“It’s not like a huge group,” Maddie explained, glancing back at you as you walked. “Half of them don’t even talk.”

“But not everyone ends up with the group. There are some people stuck reliving their final days over and over again,” Charley added. “The group is to hopefully help avoid that from happening.”

“Trust me; I won’t be reliving today,” You shuddered. “I’m never touching a lemon and blueberry muffin again. In fact, I’m never touching a muffin again- actually, no, that’s too far. I don’t have to punish all muffins because one betrayed me- wait, can I even eat muffins anymore?”

“Yes, you don’t really need to, but it's nice to feel normal sometimes,” Charley confirmed with a sweet smile. He pushed the door open to the gymnasium, and your eyes landed on the small circle of people sitting on white plastic chairs in the corner.

“Urgh, I’m getting flashbacks to group therapy,” You mumbled, trying and failing to suppress a grimace. 

“You’re gonna hate this; it is exactly like group therapy,” Maddie laughed a little, but it was more of a sad, knowing laugh.

“Better start pulling out my old excuses for not attending,” You dug back in your mind to find one. “I’m so sorry I can’t attend today, my goldfish just died, and I need to hold a Viking funeral to honour him.”

“Wow, people are really dropping like flies in this school,” A girl dressed in black spoke up as the group turned to look at you. “How did you die?”

“Rhonda, we’ve been over this,” An older-looking man chastised her before standing up to greet you. “I’m Mr. Martin. Would you like to introduce yourself to the group?”

“I wouldn’t exactly say I’d like to, but I suppose I probably should if I’m going to be stuck here,” You sighed and turned to the group while Charley and Maddie took their seats. “I’m Y/N, and to answer your question,” You pointed at the girl who Mr Martin had referred to as ‘Rhonda’. “I choked on a blueberry which, I know, sounds embarrassing but also is embarrassing. I died to a fruit whose name is a lie because they’re more purple than blue, almost as purple as my face apparently went when I croaked it.”

“Right… well…” Mr Martin seemed almost put off by your brashness as you spoke. “I must say, you’ve adapted to being dead remarkably well. It usually takes people at least a few days to accept it.”

“My dad used to say that I’d never make it out of high school alive with an attitude like mine,” You sighed and lounged back onto the only free chair. “And he claims to have never been wrong about anything, so I prepared for this.”

“Sorry, I’m late, Mr M!” A taller boy came charging through the door. “I saw them carry a body bag out and wanted to find out if they had found Maddie, but it was apparently just some girl who choked on a muffin. Do you think she-”

“A muffin would never betray me like that,” You looked up as he froze when he spotted you. “It was the demon blueberries hiding within like a Trojan horse.”

“That’s my seat,” He pointed at you, a small pout on his face.

“What’s wrong, jockey-boy?” You teased. “Not feeling strong enough to go and get another one?”

“Don’t tease him, Y/N,” Maddie laughed as the late arrival ran off to grab a chair. “He’ll end up making us all sit on chairs while he weight lifts them.”

“That’s not a joke. He’s done that before,” Charley added.

“On seven different occasions,” Rhonda rolled her eyes as the guy lifted up five chairs at once and turned with a proud grin on his face.

“Now juggle them!” You called out. A grin spread across your face like wildfire as you watched him seriously consider doing it.

“Wally, ignore her. Sit down,” Charley instructed. You could tell he was holding back his laughter.

“Blueberry is going to be trouble. I can already tell,” Rhonda smirked as she took the lollypop out of her mouth.

“Oh god, please don’t let that be my nickname,” You groaned, putting your head in your hands. “I should have said that I choked on a tiger or something.” Wally placed his chair next to you and sat down on it.

“How would you choke on a tiger?” He asked, looking confused as he pondered it.

“Wait- No! No, no, no! That would imply I was su-” You were cut off by Mr Martin speaking up again.

“I think it's best if we change the subject,” He smiled an awkward smile as he desperately tried to prevent you from continuing that train of thought. “So, Y/N, this is the Split River Afterlife Support Group. We hold meetings to talk through our thoughts and feelings and plan fun activities together.”

“We’ve got enough people now that maybe we can watch something other than the same five movies Wally insists on,” Charley smiled as Wally opened his mouth to protest, but Mr Martin cut him off before he could.

“Let’s start with the basics first, shall we?” He looked around for approval but received nothing but a couple of uninterested nods. “Y/N, while you have seemingly adjusted remarkably well to the afterlife, it may help you to write an obituary. I have some samples that you can review if you need them.”

“Sure, I’ll write one,” You shrugged. “I was born, existed for a while, then I croaked it. Done.”

“It’s more for you to talk about your achievements in life,” Mr Martin tried to explain, but you brushed it off.

“The biggest achievement I have had in life is that I have 6969 hours on The Sims 4,” You scoffed.

“I don’t know what those words mean, but if that’s what you want to write about, then you are free to,” He seemed taken aback by your attitude.

“Really? 6969 hours?” Maddie leaned back, looking mildly impressed.

“No social life, baby,” You did the rock horns with your hands as you spoke.

“We can change that!” Wally swung his arm over your shoulder. The moment you flinched, he pulled away sheepishly with a muttered ‘sorry’.

“The man baby is still learning the concept of personal space,” Rhonda waved her lollypop over in Wally’s direction.

“I’m really trying,” He held his hands up in defence. “There’s just no personal space in football.”

“One of the many reasons I hate football,” As soon as the words left your mouth, Wally took a sharp intake of breath as though he’d just been physically slapped.

“I am going to pretend I didn’t hear you say that so we can still be friends,” He took a deep breath as though he were calming himself down. “People like different things, and that is perfectly fine.”

“I didn’t say I liked other things, though. I just said that I hated football,” You teased, watching him intently for a reaction.

“Y/N, don’t antagonise him,” Maddie sighed, putting her head in her hands. She could recall the multiple times you’d been sent out of class for egging people on. You just couldn’t help yourself when the opportunity presented itself in front of you.

“But look at how cute his little red angry face is!” You protested, pointing at Wally as the red deepened and his eyes widened. “Oh my god, his embarrassed face is even cuter! Look at it!”

“Seriously, blueberry, you might wanna stop before he breaks out in hives,” Rhonda looked mildly bemused as she smirked at the sight.

“Well, I uh… Think we may have derailed a little here,” Mr Martin tried desperately to grab everyone’s attention again. “Let’s get back to what we were doing…”

═══ -ˋˏ *.·:·.⟐.·:·.* ˎˊ- ═══

As great as Maddie and Charley had been when it came to showing you the ropes, the biggest help had come from Dawn.

Dawn knew everything and everyone. She knew who you were before you even introduced yourself. She even knew your phone passcode and social media handles, which you decided not to linger on the thought of too long, or you’d get weirded out.

“You sure you don’t want to come with me to the group today?” You asked her as you finished braiding her hair. You’d managed to weave in a string of fake flowers, so she looked like a real flower child of the 70s. In life, you’d never been the sort to hang out with friends, braiding one another's hair and gossiping, but Dawn brought that out in you. It was a nice change.

“No, the class coming out of the theatre are so forgetful. They always leave goodies,” She smiled and hopped down from the lockers, holding her hand out to help you down, which you gladly took.

“Oooh! Save me some mints, please!” You pleaded, pulling her in for a quick hug before you went your separate ways.

While walking down the halls, you tried to ignore the “in memory” poster of you pinned to some walls. The picture that had been used wasn’t great, but you knew it was one of the only ones your dad had access to. He didn’t have social media, and physical pictures got lost over the years. You knew he had done the best he could, but you wished he could have let someone else design it.

“Hey, blueberry, been painting nails with your new bestie?” Rhonda caught up with you, one of her usual lollipops poking out of her mouth. She’d never tell you where she got them from.

“Braiding hair, actually,” You let out a little snort laugh as you saw the disgusted look on her face. “You’re free to join us! You’d look so cute with a flower crown.”

“I’d rather die again,” She groaned, but you could see the smallest smile she was trying to hide. You pushed the doors to the gymnasium and walked over to the circle of chairs, taking the one you’d grown accustomed to over the week you’d been dead, right between Maddie and Wally.

“Right, now that everyone is here,” Mr Martin stood up and looked around at everyone. “Let’s get started.”

The session went on as normal, you didn’t participate all that much, but you managed to beat Wally 2 - 1 in thumb wrestling while no one was looking. The session was unfortunately cut short when the doors opened, and a group of people started filing in. You recognised most of them but got caught up when you saw your dad.

“It looks like your memorial is about to start,” Charley said as you watched your dad help some teachers set up a picture of you. It was the same one that you hated, in a frame that really didn’t match it.

“We’ll cut the group short here,” Mr Martin announced. Everyone got up and started to clear their chairs away. Wally grabbed yours while you stood and watched the people in what was once your life settle down for the service. The other ghosts split up, some filing out of the room, others going to the viewing gallery. You just stayed where you were standing, watching everything unfold.

“Should I leave you alone or-” Wally had returned back to you once he’d put the chairs away. Next to Dawn, he’d probably become your closest friend in death. He was like a puppy in all the best ways and very fun to tease.

“Stay,” You whispered, grabbing onto his arm. “Please.” Using your grip on his arm, he guided you over to the bench on the sidelines. You were close enough to hear and see everyone but far enough away not to feel like you were caught up in the crowd.

“Is your family here?” Wally asked, leaning closer to you than usual so he could whisper. You could tell he was trying to be extra gentle.

“See that man in the leather jacket who looks like he’s just been pulled straight out of a motorcycle gang?” You pointed in the direction, and Wally nodded. “That’s my dad.” “Wow,” He seemed both shocked and impressed. “What about your mom?”

“She’s in the locket he’s wearing around his neck,” You explained. “Well, some of her ashes are anyway.”

“Shit, sorry,” Wally apologised, wincing at himself. “I shouldn’t have asked.”

“It’s fine, really,” You did your best to smile to show you were okay, which was unsurprisingly difficult to do at your own memorial. “It was a long time ago.”

The two of you sat in comfortable silence for a moment as you waited for the memorial service to begin, but something caught your attention.

“I’ve never seen him cry before,” You watched the tears silently roll down his face, trying to hold back your own. You hated crying. You felt weak for it. You knew he hadn’t meant to, but your dad had drilled that lesson of crying equals weakness into you from a young age because he would never cry or comfort you when you cried.

“Not even when your mom died?” Wally asked. You felt his eyes on you, but you couldn’t bring yourself to look anywhere but the podium where your dad was preparing to talk.

“Maybe, but I wouldn’t know,” You shrugged. “I was only three, so I don’t remember it. I don’t remember her at all. I would always pretend I did to make him happy, regurgitate the same stories he’d tell me of her as though they were my memories, but I don’t remember her at all.” 

“So, was it just you and your dad?” Wally had shuffled slightly closer to you. You hadn’t even realised you were still holding on to his arm, but you didn’t let go of it.

“That’s… complicated,” You sighed, finally pulling your eyes away from the podium, only to briefly glance at Wally before returning back. He was looking at you intently. You didn’t have to look long to know he was genuinely interested in learning about you. “My dad was- is- in and out of jail a lot. I ended up in foster homes every other month, but he always managed to get out and get me back again… I know that sounds bad, but… He was a good dad. He did his best with what we had and made sure I was always happy when I was with him.”

“My daughter Y/N was… the best kid I could have ever asked for,” You held your breath as your dad finally began talking. His voice was gruffer than usual. He’d been crying for a while. It broke your heart even more. “I won’t stand up here and say that she was a good kid because if you knew her, you’d know that was a lie.” People laughed at this, and you saw a small smile appear on your dad’s face. “She was a troublemaker. I take full responsibility for that, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. She would always encourage everyone to do what made them happy, even if it got them in trouble, but she would always take the fall if it did. I used to call her Robin Hood because she wouldn’t take the jacket off her own back if you were cold; she’d find someone with two jackets and steal one for you.” People laughed again, and you couldn’t stop the tears from falling anymore. As quick as they appeared, Wally had leaned over to use the sleeve on his other arm to wipe your face for you. You couldn’t look at him, so you just squeezed the arm you still had hold of as a sign of appreciation.

“My life will never be the same without her. No one to colour code my wardrobe from black to darker black. No one to blast ABBA in the car and sing at the top of their lungs. No one to sit on the roof with in the middle of the night and point at all of the different constellations. Y/N was the light of my life, and now I’m lost in the dark. Wherever she is now, I know she’s causing mayhem and spreading laughter.”

The rest of the memorial was a blur. Teachers stood up to talk about you, and a couple of friends shared stories that you’d forgotten. People laughed just as much as they cried.

Even when it was over, and they were packing up, you didn’t move. You’d let go of Wally’s arm so he could leave, but instead of leaving, he wrapped the arm over your shoulders and pulled you towards him into a hug.

That’s how you stayed for a long time. He held you while you cried, the weight of being dead finally hitting you.

At some point, you must have fallen asleep because the next thing you knew, you were on a couch in the teachers’ lounge with Wally sitting on the floor next to you, flipping through a book. He practically dropped it when he noticed you stirring.

“Morning,” His voice was calm and peaceful, the perfect alarm clock. “I hope you don’t mind. I figured the bench wasn’t the nicest bed, so I carried you here. Dawn stopped by with some mints earlier, and I will admit I did take one, but to make it up to you….” He reached over to the coffee table and produced a CD.

“ABBA Gold, Greatest Hits?” You read the CD through your still sleepy eyes.

“Yeah, when your dad mentioned that you would sing it at the top of your lungs, I knew I’d seen a copy, so I went looking for it,” He handed it to you, and you cradled it carefully as though even breathing on it would break it. “I hope it’s okay.” Instead of answering him, you acted impulsively, as usual. You leaned forward and pressed a feather-light kiss to his cheek as a thank you.

“It’s perfect.” You smiled at him, the grin that spread across his face giving you hope that, even in death, everything was going to be okay.

a/n - uh oh besties... I have a new obsession... get ready because I already have another wally clark x reader in progress

let me know if you want a part 2 for this one!

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

My Spidersona's Fighting Style (in Gifs):

Disco-Spider!Diane

Got this idea from the lovely @hrhmimieucliffe who has THE BEST OC and THE BEST ART jkfgjjkhgdfkg

I know the TikTok Trend is one gif only but i don't respect tiktok and I don't take orders neither does he

Derby Demolition -

This ain't all Disco-dancing and party-prancing - Diane LOVES Roller Derby too. And growing up in a house full of older-'brothas', Diane knows how to tussle.

More into Impact Play, you're more likely to catch an elbow to the teeth rather than a web to the face.

Diane punches, trips, headbutts, elbows, shoves, chokeholds - you name it, she'll do it. And her main weapon are her skates.

Diane is known to fight 'feet-first', with lots of kicks, and her skates are like her brass knuckles.

Getting kicked in the face with the truck (metal part) of her skates, you're 100% coming out of it with a broken nose. Lots of criminals in 1294 has crooked noses for a reason, ouch.

The Speed -

Diane's biggest asset is her speed.

Categorized by Lyla's systems as a 'Speedster Spider', like Jessica Drew - Diane belongs to a class of Spider's known for showing up fast and ending fights quick.

If you're on foot, on bike, in a car - you're not out-running her. If you're on land - you're not out-gunning her. If she wants to catch you, she's on your ass like white on rice.

People don't expect much from the skates - but surprisingly, she avoids much of the typical issues most Speedsters do. No gas tank to worry about, no loud engine, no need to stick to streets, can't be knocked off them - plus she can stick to freaking walls.

She's a speed power-house all by herself.

With Super-strength and training, Diane has legs stronger than Serena Williams on steroids. Using tactics to pick up speed, flips, skating on walls, and holding on to cars, Diane can clock up to 85-100mph (130-160kph) - almost twice as fast as the top speed skater, or a bit over the world's fastest pitch, doing this by using her webs as a slingshot for her.

She's fucking fast.

Style Points -

If you're gonna do it, do it well, am I right?

Diane is all for the style points - often pulling flips, axel spins, and turns from figure skating.

Part function and Part flair - Diane does this to pick up velocity while skating, or she'll attach one of her gold bangles to a web, spinning rapidly to swing it around her.

But it's also for fun. Like most Spider-people, she loves to show off and talk back during battle, and doing flips are her way of running circles around a villain.

You're a hardened criminal with malicious intent but you're getting your ass-beat by a walking Lisa Frank sticker, PLUS she's listening to Rick James on a Walkman, PLUS she's doing Olympic flips and shit.

This has become an in-joke with her fans.

From a New York where the neighborhoods are split into strict 'Police-Managed' and Black Panther territories - the general opinion of the public is pretty split on Disco-Spider because of it. At the very least, J.Jonah - a more militant Black Panther radio host - seems to think she's conceited and a 'lost sista'. Whatever, Hotep.

But one of the symbols of support for Disco-Spider is a simple white sign with a ten on it - like figure skating judges.

Created by Disco's supporters at the Discos and Queer Clubs she protects from police - the signs give Diane 10 out of 10's on style points.

Likewise, Black-Owned shops in the area can display a small '10' sign in their window to show they're under Disco's protection, along with '10' stickers on sign posts that are placed in areas she's considered to watch and patrol.

Disco and her supporters call her territory 'Disco's Haus', often referring to Disco as 'MamaDisco', though - they don't know Diane's really only 20. For their safety, most of them do not know who she is, and Disco might attend queer balls and discos masked. Though she usually just goes as plain-ol (yeah right) Diane.

Isn't it crazy that Diane ALWAYS misses it when Disco is here? Bummer.

10 outta 10 she's a bad bitch

_____________________________________

UMMM If you read this far thank you SO MUCH I LOVE SHARING THIS SO MUCH

And I'd love to see more people do this!

If you're down for it - show your sona's fighting style in 3 gifs (or more, or less, no rules!!)

I wanna see the type of woop ass we gonna release on Miguel

[oneatlatime]

Return to Omashu

Fire nation priorities. Yes, there's a war to win, but first! We must make our colonies aesthetically consistent. Couple of gates, some gold trim, and some spiky bits! Can't forget the gold spiky bits!

Fulfilling the beat up Sokka quota this episode is raw sewage.

That sewer trek must have been long. They went in during the day and it's night now.

I spoke too soon! The quota is in fact filled by tribbles.

"it's so awful I'm dying." I get the feeling that Sokka has been waiting years to use that line. I love how quickly everyone in the Gaang supports each others' spontaneous plans. It's a sign of a good team if you can ream off fake names without blinking and fake the plague without being asked. They all work so well together. Zuko could take some lessons from these guys on lying.

Well this episode's going to land differently post-Covid.

Looks like Zuko Jr.'s going to be in this episode. Bummer. Although tweedledee and tweedledum are intriguing. Who'd ever think to give a teenage girl villain a pair of eighty year old poetry twins? One of the great things so far about this show is how they consistently choose to go with the most out-there option and always make it work. In a show about defeating the firelord, they chose to kill the moon for the finale. And it worked. The plot point, not the killing.

So I'm thinking that orange and yellow must be an acknowledged fashion choice among the four nations outside of an airbending context, because of the number of times fire nation guards have looked right at Aang and not seen him. Also I think his tattoos must have selective invisibility.

It's a crying shame that Hot Topic doesn't exist in the Avatar universe, because this May girl just passed their employment interview with flying colours. I'm siding with what I'm guessing is her mom on this one. Just chill for a bit.

Ok maybe don't chill for a bit. Yeah my bad. This is not a good time to chill.

Reusing the same Naruto run shot literally two seconds later.

How many projectiles can you fit in one pair of sleeves? She's got a whole armoury up there.

Seriously I know she's bored and all but no teenage girl should have access to that many weapons. If I'd had access to an armoury when I was a teenager, people absolutely would have died.

So cute. I'll take 12 please.

Every sentence that Zuko Jr. is saying to this pink girl is some kind of veiled insult or threat. I'd adopt Pink Girl's wilful obliviousness too if I had to deal with that.

Smart Bumi. He knows his people and his element. We've seen more than enough times already that something about being an earthbender makes you too stubborn to quit and unable to change plans even when your original plan is obviously not working (looking at you, Fong). So, knowing that his people are unable to change course, he prevents them from entering on to that course in the first place.

And Aang picks up on this too! Actually, since Bumi knew Aang growing up, do you think he picked up the concept of strategic retreat from airbending?

Tribbles to the rescue! Given that these are sewer dwelling creatures, this fake plague might turn real.

I love how casual Sokka is about touching other people.

Every street in Omashu seems to have a couple of bundles of twigs propped up against a wall somewhere. It's probably an animation trick to fill up the background.

Love the one guy really committing to the bit who just flops on the ground.

"Pentapox! I'm pretty sure I've heard of that." Humans are so suggestible.

I love that Flopsy remembers him. Aang's propensity to make friends wherever he goes paying off again. Also, exactly how much metal to the fire nation have access to? They're doing the floor, walls, ceilings, of the whole city. There must be some crazy budget surpluses that need using up.

This baby has an absurd throwing arm.

Machine gun Momo!

This is what happens when you don't feed your lemur AANG.

I know cartoon physics is a thing, but can this baby secretly fly or something?

Poor Momo didn't ask for any of this. Guy just wanted some berries. Now he's getting his tail pulled and bitten (hopefully no teeth yet).

Add absurd grip strength to this baby's list of other superhuman characteristics.

Baby apparently weighs quite a bit too.

Flying lemur unintentionally kidnaps baby. Did not see that coming.

Tiny nitpick: the circus master introduces Zuko jr. as "the firelord's daughter" rather than as Princess Zuko jr. Does she not have a title?

Nope. He's calling her princess now. Maybe there are a bunch of princesses in the fire nation and he was just being specific?

Thus begins the bullying of pink girl. Imagine going to school with a bunch of fire nation noble girls? There must have been casualties.

I love Sokka so much. Expert hug administrator.

"everything so clever. So tricky." Actually the avatar forgot to feed his lemur and it kind of snowballed from there. Hands down one of my favourite tropes is when one side in a conflict assumes their enemies are master manipulators, then we learn that actually they're just failing upwards through shenanigans. Love that.

Poor pink girl. The only viable strategy, both for her own safety and the safety of the whole circus, is appeasement.

"The universe is giving me strong hints that it's time for a career change." No blame cast, no fingers pointed, but also not giving Zuko jr. credit for influencing her. That's some fancy talking.

And now they're reusing the campsite shot too?

Poor Momo. That's about the face I make around babies.

I spoke too soon again. This episode's beat up Sokka quota is actually fulfilled by Katara's backhand. Because apparently it's a cardinal sin to prevent a baby from chewing on a potentially bladed weapon? Priorities girl.

Well that accidental kidnapping had some unintended positive consequences. Don't you love it when problems fix themselves?

She even paints her nails black and wears fingerless gloves. Seriously. Hot Topic. STAT.

"Well, Asula called a little louder." Hell of a lot of information in that sentence.

How long is her neck?

Ego much?

Zhao was an asshole and unpleasant, but at least he had some good banter. Zuko jr. is just mean. I hope I see less of her going forward.

Bumi! Hi Bumi! I love Bumi.

Pink girl's loyalty was tested with burning nets and released beasts. Now May's loyalty is tested with her brother's life. Zuko jr. is so good to her friends.

Why is no one able to recognise Aang? He's dressed like an airbender. The only one of those left is the avatar. It's not that hard.

Pink girl is lucky that Sokka is quite prone to friction.

More wood bundles. I guess it's for scaffolding?

Gotta give it to Zuko jr., she has excellent balance.

May has leg knives as well as arm knives?

And shirt knives. How does she not stab herself every time she sits down? And if this place is so boring, why does she feel the need to carry 8 billion knives?

Love the Appa tail slap. Underrated and underused move.

So Bumi has no spine left.

Facebending. Neat.

Neutral Jing is a neat concept, but I'll be damned if any earthbender we've seen apart from Bumi ever bothers with it.

Suddenly the 100 year gap between Aang and Bumi can no longer be ignored. Bumi is still Aang's friend, but he's got a century of learning and a city to protect. This is kind of a sad moment.

Do May and Zuko have some history? Is that's what's being implied here?

Wouldn't expect any less. I wonder how these two are going to explain the return of their son without painting the resistance in a really good light.

Zuko jr. is spelled with a Z.

Final Thoughts

Zuko Jr. gets a girl squad, the Gaang gets a reason to spend a season gallivanting all over the Earth Kingdom, and the audience gets to see Superslide part 2. A weird mix of establishing groundwork and having fun this episode.

I totally buy that the fire nation guards and governor fell for the plague thing. Anyone remember "that lemur! He's earthbending!" These guys are not smart.

The plague thing did not bother me at all. I thought it would, since the anti-science idiots in the Fortuneteller really annoyed me. I think since the fake plague was treated as a joke the whole way through, and never actually endangered anyone, it didn't bring up Covid memories.

I think Flopsy's pupils are sideways hourglasses, which contributes nicely to his uncanniness.

I think the stuffy that the baby was throwing is the same animal as the beaver bear thing at the circus.

I love Momo the machine gun. I think those are the same berries as the ones Iroh was going to double poison himself with.

Sokka getting to plan the plague and getting to save the day with boomerang was fun. That's two episodes in a row where he's been the plan guy. Katara got to use some of her new and improved waterbending as well, but she was really pushed to the background otherwise.

I think pink Girl, whose name I still haven't caught, is quite good at reading people. I caught more than one 'shallow-on-the-surface-but-actually-way-deep' statement from her. Also she can Vulcan pinch people's bending? I'm guessing it's temporary or else Katara would be really freaking out.

May was just too much. Too overdone. Yes, there are teenage girls like that, but it felt a bit on the nose. Actually, way too much on the nose. I get that she can't show any emotion in front of Zuko jr. for her own safety, but "can I offer you an egg fireflakes in this trying time?" is not exactly an appropriate response to your little brother's disappearance.

I'm still not liking Zuko jr. But I'm someone who never likes the villain anyway, at least not when our heroes are this likeable.

This episode was not easy on Aang. It was an interesting mix of bringing home the reality of the war and the reality of the time passed. Even when he seemingly got to save his friend in the end, he actually didn't because things are more complicated now. He untied the damsel from the railroad track and she tied herself right back on.

Further evidence for my 'entire fire nation is colourblind' theory this episode. Aang was not disguised apart from a hat made from a very incriminating colour. He had a giant blue stripe down the back of his head! Come on!

No Zuko this episode. He was last seen stealing a perfectly nice lady's bird horse, and it'll be a while before I forgive him for that, so good call by the writers to not have him around.

Now that I think about it, there was a lot going on this episode. Sewer break & enter, assassination attempt, fake plague, hostage exchange, water v. knife fight, fire v. air fight, vulcan pinch v. bending fight, Boomerang & bison v. knife fight, earthbending philosophy, girl squad assembly, lemur harassment, and baby restoration. This episode felt long in a good way.

How about, instead of learning the elements, Aang learns pink girl's vulcan pinch and just does that to the fire lord?

[girl-in-the-chairs-void]

Okay I got one! Sending letters back and forth while one party is deployed, with Rooster? It just seems like something he'd do. If it matters, I'd prefer female reader.

Ooohh I like this one!! Rooster is just a softie.

I miss you.

I don’t know why that was the first thing I wrote but it’s the truth. I haven’t seen you in…what? 3 months? Gosh it feels longer than that. I got your letters, by the way. Of course I got them, you are reading this letter as a consequence of me receiving those letters. Also, is it true? I thought Mr. Jones was settling in a care home or something? Please do tell Mrs. Jones that I’m sorry for her loss and that I won’t be there for the funeral.

Yeah…they are extending my stay. I know, my love, I’m sorry. I wish I could have a say in it but admiral Harris wants me to carry out another team mission here.

How are you? I’m sorry, I should have asked at the start of the letter but I’ve started this letter so many times and Bob will kill me if I steal from his stack of paper again. He has a wife…did you know that? There are so many things I don’t know about him, but we are working on it. He says hi; I’m sorry I’m rambling, well, writing rambling.

How are Millie and Lana? I hope they aren’t giving you too much trouble. They can be a little fussy when they want food but if they are fed, just let them out in the park or back yard for a bit. They’ll be fine.

I miss you, like a lot. I don’t know how to explain it. Did you know that your skin cells regenerate every 15 days? I have lost the feeling of your touch. There had been and still is a part of me that is completely foreign to your touch, the feeling of your skin; how your breath feels on my skin when you kiss me or hug me or… I can’t wait to show you how much I have missed you. I much I have craved your touch (I know it’s cheesy, but it’s the truth).

I hope I get to you see you soon. I look forward to your next letter sweetheart.

Forever yours,

Rooster Bradley

You clutched the tear stained paper in your hands. Hanging onto it for dear life as salty tears slid down your face. There was nothing in the letter that was entirely sad…true, it was a bummer that he was being held back for what would possibly be s few more months, but it wasn’t that, that was making you cry.

You had read over it multiple times in the past few days. Reading it before bed every night. Sometimes falling asleep in one of his shirts, clutching the piece of paper in your arms.

You stood at once, making your way to your desk and writing up another letter to send off.

Hey Brad Roos,

I miss you too. It’s okay though, you enjoy your job, right? And you are out there, saving lives! How exciting is that?

Sophie is doing okay. I think she kinda knew that James wasn’t doing completely fine no matter how much he made it to be. She says ‘it’s okay, tell him to come home soon’. Oh and she wants you to play something for her on the piano when you come back. One of James’ favourites, she thinks you know it.

Bob has a wife? I did not know that… sorry I fully knew that, I got a call a few days ago before I received your letter, she introduced herself. We are meeting up for lunch this weekend, actually.

I didn’t know that actually. Both of our skins have regenerated, so my skin has lost your touch too. Your shirts don’t smell like you anymore, you know? Been spraying your cologne on it every night, but even that doesn’t help.

Millie and Lana are fine. I think they enjoy my company more than yours. I’ve been taking them out for walks everyday, morning and evening; I think they enjoy it. I take them to Sophie’s every now and then. She gives them those little bone treats? I don’t know what they are called, but they like it.

Don’t sulk too much by the way. I know how you get when you don’t get your daily kisses haha. Seriously, don’t be sad or angry, it’s your job and no matter what I will be here, waiting for you, every night, no matter what.

Forever yours,

Y/n

Rooster read the letter once, twice, then once again. He read each word, syllable, over and over again. Admiring the way your writing, smooth cursive, precise writing. Imagining those sweet words being spoken out of your mouth instead.

He wanted nothing more than to leave everything and run home to you. This was the longest time he had been away from you. It felt like a lifetime.

“No matter how much you stare at that letter, it will still stay a piece of paper. It won’t turn into her.”

He snapped his head towards Bob, who was lying on the bottom of the shared bunk, admiring a small picture of his wife in his wallet.

“Same goes for you,” he smiled, a small bittersweet smile that mirrored on Bob’s face.

“We really are whipped right?”

“At least I married her. It’s about time you marry her too, Roos.”

The statement hit him like a brick. Marry her. He hadn’t thought about that. The thought has crossed his mind before but he never gave it too much thought, thinking you weren’t ready.

But now, being away for so long for the first time in your relationship, he feels as though you are the one. That maybe, just maybe, you are it for him.

A/n: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!! I had a lot of fun writing this. I hope you enjoyed this and I hope I did it justice 😭😭. Let me know what you think!!

Taglist

@blue-aconite

@lemur46 @harrycherrylove

@elicheel

@fandom-life-12

@arson-tm

@fandomunite2107

@tongue-like-a-razor

@bussyslayer333

@roostersrooster

@roosterbruiser

(I’m tagging a few mutuals (you know who you are) just cause I know they are fans of Roos as much as I am)

[twstjam]

Break in the Clouds (One-shot)

Characters: Malleus Draconia & Yuu. Mentioned Heartslabyul boys.

Ship(s): Platonic Malleyuu (but can be seen as romantic. I plan to sprinkle in some romance too if I ever continue this) Word count: 1.9k

Summary: You're the most basic human around: A magicless one. This should make you the last choice to be the one to save the life of a queen and peace as you know it, but somehow your fae friend believes you to be just the person for the job. Just what have you gotten yourself into...?

Or: I watched Barbie Mariposa and thought Antonio's and Mariposa's relationship would make for a fun Malleyuu fic so I wrote a one-shot on it Masterlist AO3 Link

The strong winds beat and rattled the windows. As you fight to close the last of the open windows, you're further drenched by the heavy sheet of rain coming through.

"I have not seen a storm as furious as this since my maiden days," says one of the maids as she brings a mop and bucket for the rainwater that had gotten inside.

"Yeah, it's really coming down." Looking out the window, you can't even see the manor's grounds with how heavy the rain is. "Riddle and the others haven't come back yet... do you think they're alright?"

"Oh, there's no need to worry about the young master," the maid laughs as she works the mop over the floor. "You know how he is. He won't let some bad weather get the best of him. Mr. Clover and Mr. Diamond are with him as well, they'll look after him. As for those young lads you're always with, they're more of a hazard than the storm is!"

That gets a laugh out of you. The image of Ace and Deuce chasing each other around in the rain without a problem really seems more possible than them being discouraged by it.

"Now go on and change." The maid holds the mop with one hand and makes a shooing motion with the other as she turns up her nose at your dripping clothes. "You're absolutely drenched! If you do not catch a cold, you will catch the handle of this mop for tracking all that rainwater around!"

"Of course, ma'am." You give her a little wave before leaving her to her work. You cringe at the feeling of your clothes drip, drip, drip ping as you walk back to your room. You'll have to grab a mop too after you're done. You'll be damned if you left everyone else to do all the work. Besides, you'll need it to keep your hands and mind occupied.

You've been working under Riddle for almost a year now since he took you in after you arrived at the Kingdom of Heroes. He'd just freshly inherited his parents' estate and title and so was especially strict, but his soft side was undeniable when he gave in to Ace and Deuce's begging to let you stick around. Since then, you'd made sure to make the decision worth his while and in exchange he was an exceptional boss.

Aside from him, Ace, and Deuce, you'd also gotten close to his aides, Trey and Cater, for their attentiveness and peppiness respectively. You'd really gotten lucky with the Rosehearts estate.

So your worry for them surfaced in no small amount when the sky started to pour right after Riddle had left with the rest of them. Due to the rising tensions between the humans and the nocturnal fae, the king had issued a curfew and patrols after dark. You saw your friends even less now which was a bummer, but the important thing was that they came home safe.

You really hope they never run into any fae... but the reason for this specifically is due to more than concerns for their safety.

Said reason manifests out of the shadows of your room and pulls your back to his chest as soon as you enter. The door slams closed, the sound—along with a gloved hand over your mouth—muffling your startled cries and struggles.

"Hush now. It is only me," a familiar deep voice whispers in your ear. Your nameless friend doesn't seem the slightest bit winded by your relentless struggling in his arms.

Once you realise who it is that has surprised you, you relax and your friend releases you from his hold.

"Tsunotarou, you gave me a heart attack!" you hiss with a smack to his arm that he's completely unfazed by. "What in the world are you—"

Tsunotarou hastily leans down to shush you.

"Lower your voice. My presence must not be alerted to."

You snap your mouth shut, knowing full well why that would be.

"Yeah, no shit." You heave a breath in an effort to rid the tension stiffening your limbs. "Riddle isn't gonna be happy you're here. The king's trying to catch any fae that's wandering around, you know."

"Precisely." Tsunotarou heaves his own sigh, looking weary. It's now that you notice the bags underneath his eyes and you urge him to sit down on the edge of your bed. "Thank you. I... apologize for visiting you uninvited, but there is a matter most urgent I must discuss with you."

"I have a feeling it has something to do with the king doubling down on laws against fae." You move to sit down next to him, but you stop yourself when you remember the current state of your clothes.

"Ah. I apologize for the storm as well. Allow me." Tsunotarou waves his hand. A warm breeze sweeps over you, ruffling your hair and tugging lightly on your clothes. When it disappears you're completely dry from head to toe.

"What I wouldn't give to have a handy trick like that," you joke, but a wistful feeling twists in your chest. You don't let it fester and instead sit down, at attention. Tsunotarou's gaze hardens as he speaks.

"The Briar Queen has been poisoned."

You gasp, sitting up. " What? "

Tsunotarou nods slowly, his expression a mix of anger and despair.

"She fell ill not long ago, but we surmised it was something beyond a simple sickness when it refused to abate despite treatment from our healers." His green eyes seem to burn, his normally calm features twisted into rage. "We have discovered it to be an illness induced by a potent poison. Her condition is worsening by the second. If she does not recover soon..."

Tsunotarou closes his eyes and his lip trembles slightly. You've never seen him cry before and you wouldn't judge him for it, but you hate how wrong it looks on his typically-stoic face. Hate how much this situation is affecting him. You reach out, clasp his shaking hand in yours and give it a gentle squeeze. He looks up at you and you give him a reassuring smile.

"There's gotta be a cure, right?" you say in an attempt to lift his spirits. "You said yourself that Briar Valley's archives are incomparable to anywhere else's. There has to be something in there."

"There is." Despite his words, Tsunotarou still sounds disheartened. "We searched for it and we found it, but..."

He sighs shakily, breathes in deep to recollect his composure.

"But the required ingredients are inaccessible to us."

Tsunotarou straightens up and meets your eyes with a renewed vigor, his own hand squeezing yours almost painfully.

"Which is why I have come to you."

You blink, more gobsmacked than when you'd seen Deuce cry over broken unfertilized chicken eggs.

"Me? Why—"

"The ingredients are all found on human lands," Tsunotarou explains resolutely, "and your king has barred us fae from treading on his kingdom. I would be more than willing to gather them myself despite this, but—"

Tsunotarou suddenly pauses, for once hesitating in the middle of his speech.

"...It is not a risk I have the privilege to take." He looks at you mournfully. "I... not even the crown prince himself, despite being a gifted mage, is allowed to leave the safety of the palace walls, let alone the valley's."

"This... situation is really dire, huh," you say dumbly, unsure what else to say in response that wouldn't sound even more stupid. Just the thought of anything happening to the queen of the nocturnal fae was hard to wrap your mind around. Tsunotarou spoke so highly of her, what could you do against something that's brought the most powerful mage in the world to her knees?

"Please." Tsunotarou lifts up your hand and clasps it between his larger ones pleadingly. You're a little caught off-guard, unfamiliar with your usually reserved friend being so vulnerable in front of you. "You are the only human I trust. I beg of you... will you help me?"

The raw desperation and sorrow in his eyes tugs at your heart. A lump forms in your throat at the thought of denying him. You're nobody after all; just a magicless human who bit off a bit too much more than you could chew getting involved in all the complexities of magical society. You don't see how you of all people could accomplish such an important task, but... Tsunotarou is your friend. You'd rather die trying to help him than not having tried at all.

You lift up your other hand so that you're also holding his and you meet his gaze resolutely.

"Of course. What do you need?"

Tsunotarou's expression seems to stall on one of shock before being completely overtaken by relief at your words.

"Thank you." He squeezes your hand gratefully before lifting it up to his lips and pressing a long kiss to your knuckles. "You will be rewarded for your efforts, I promise you."

You smile softly as you pat his hand.

"I'd say you don't have to, but who am I to turn down free stuff?" you joke... mostly.

Tsunotarou chuckles. With one of his hands still holding yours, he reaches into his clothes and manifests an envelope out of the dark robes. He places it carefully in your palm as if it was the most precious item in the world, which, considering the subject matter, you have no doubt it is.

"This is a list of all the ingredients required for the antidote." His expression turns serious when he meets your eyes again. "You must not tell a soul about what I have requested of you. If the king discovers this... I do not doubt that he will try to stop you."

You nod firmly as you curl your fingers protectively around the envelope.

"You can count on me."

Tsunotarou smiles and bows his head.

"Thank you again, my friend. No words can convey how grateful I am for your assistance."

He stands up as gracefully as ever, dark, draping robes falling and pooling like liquid on the floor. He bows once more, at the waist this time. 

"Farewell and good luck. I will do my best to contact you as soon as I am able to check on your progress and see if I am able to help you."

You nod and wave to your friend as wisps of green magic begin to focus and swirl in the air around him.

"Be careful, Tsunotarou. I'll see you."

As he is engulfed in licks of fiery green magic, Tsunotarou gives you one last smile and a nod. The magic gathers and then dissipates in a burst of flying green sparks, and where Tsunotarou was is nothing but empty space. You feel the atmosphere lighten as the pressure in the air fades along with his magic, almost as if your entire room is finally releasing a long-held breath.

You can't help but notice that the sound of the rain isn't as deafening. You push your drapes aside and see that though the rain is still heavy, the view out your window isn't completely taken over by the rainfall anymore. When you look closely, you even manage to make out the slightest bit of light escaping through the clouds.

The weather chills the air, but the envelope is warm in your hand. Clasping it tightly in your hands while also being mindful of wrinkling it, you hold it close to your chest. The skies are still shadowed with dark clouds, but there's light peeking through the slightest falter in the shroud—Much like a concerned and disheartened horned fae trusting a giftless human with the life of his queen.

You just hope it wasn't misplaced.

[thegeminisage]

STAR TREK UPDATE TIME I'M SO FUCKING BEHINDDD ok ok monday we did ds9's "trials and tribble-ations" and "let he who is without sin..." then tuesday we did voy's "future's end parts i & ii," and finally wednesday we did voy's "warlord" and ds9's "things past."

trials and tribble-ations (ds9):

ohhh i wish i'd had time to write about this when it was fresher on my mind. what a wonderful experience and episode. i feel like i got spoiled for the concept of it but it was still so amazing because i just genuinely COULD NOT BELIEVE they could do that. like, the entire thing felt like magic to me. it's not as if they could ask william shatner to reshoot - they could only used what they had from back then. and they made it work and they made it look SO GOD, like, not just for the 90s, but for today. the lighting, the resolution, the colors...everything was flawless. o'brien and bashir in that lineup??? like i wouldn't have known if i didn't know. jesus christ

did i spend a lot of time crying because i was so overwhelmed with my deep adoration for spock? yes. maybe i screamed aloud when he came on my screen. who can say. dax being a spock girlie is so fucking correct by the way i bet william shatner wanted to kermit when that aired. also good on her for bagging mccoy although i think it would have been funnier if she hadn't said which body she was in so we could have fun speculating about bones having sex with men <3

THEM THROWING THE TRIBBLES THAT WOUND UP IN KIRK'S CLEAVAGE...............iconique

odo baby talking the tribbles. incredible. also, worf and the klingon head ridge lore which shall never be explained

and of course let's NOT forget kirk making the sex eyes at sisko. they took that footage from the mirrorverse ep when he was ogling our universe's version of marlena. KIRK CANONICALLY DTF SISKO. CANONICALLY INTO MEN. DIE MAD ABOUT IT. it was so cool and heartwarming but also INCREDIBLY fucking funny

also. ABSOLUTELY gratified they brought some back to ds9 and got away with it. sisko is so fucking cool i love when he rule breaks

just an absolutely magical experience. like, it really blew my mind because i didn't think it was something that could be done. one of the greatest examples of trek pushing the limits of possibility

let he who is without sin... (ds9):

man i wanna like worf in ds9 so bad but like...does he feel off to anyone else? from how he was in tng? don't get me wrong i love ds9 and hated tng and worf in ds9 is Fine the way he was also Fine in tng but i just cant see tng worf cooperating with extremists who are also doing a bit of light terrorism. he'd call them dishonorable and send them packing even if he did agree

also, like, he killed a kid in soccer? by headbutting him? that's tragic backstory but like also kind of ridiculous and funny? i can't believe they played that totally straight. he soccered a kid to death.

anyway, everybody's outfits were very good. i loved dax's mermaid look

also SOOO glad leeta and julian are breaking up so she can get with ROM!!!!!!!! my best friend rom...he deserves so much happiness and i hope they stay together forever and ever amen

anyway like it was Fine im glad dax and worf are back on track but also what the hell...it was very baffling to me as well

future's end parts i & ii (voy):

this one was also Fine. like, the plot didn't make a bit of sense - i thought the 90s in trek were supposed to be some kind of hell hole but after watching space seed they may have just barely gotten by - the eugenics wars ended in 96. still, LA did not look like an area recently decimated by eugenics wars. i'm really interested in that era of trek history, where it veers off from our own history, but so much of it seems muddy and in conflict with itself, which is a bummer

that said, i did have fun watching janeway and chakotay have like a little earth date together. also good for the doc for getting to run around freely now, and sarah silverman was v fun even if she could totally do better than tom paris. everybody's outfits were extremely fun even though tuvok's was uh. well.

HOWEVER. the limited amount of fun i was having was kind of uhhh canceled out by the. random white supremacists??? especially wild choice considering the eugenics wars didn't involve white supremacy because their number one guy was KHAN like what the hell???

i wish i had more to say about it but it was just a genuinely baffling experience. mostly fun, but baffling. the plot was like swiss cheese

warlord (voy):

OKAY THIS ONE WAS FUN. we got off to an extremely rough start (neelix foot massage complete with sex noises) and there was that neelix and kes fight post possession that i hated because it sort of shouted out to my least favorite arc in all of voyager, but AFTER we got into man

man are you ever so tiny and helpless and nice and then you get to go ape shit. good for HER

like yeah fine she was possessed but she got to menace him herself in the end too

her body language was so incredible. she's like so tiny and yet she owned the entire room when she was strutting around like that. i loved her guy voice. i loved watching her murder people in cold blood. i loved whatever lgbt thing they almost did and then pussied out of doing

AND I LOVED. THE SCENE WITH TUVOK. man that dude can ACT. it was so tense and so good and technically he's kissed a man on screen now. i did go back and rewatch that several times because tuvok is my best friend and it was so evil and horrid >:)

anyway absolutely banger of an ep. could ahve stood less neelix but this is true of most voyager episodes

things past (ds9):

OOOOOOH MY BEST FRIEND ODO HAS DONE SOME CRIMES

i really went into this thinking garak was gonna like Learn A Lesson about the occupation because he was gonna be in it without his status as a cardassian to protect him but instead we outed odo as a fuck-up. and you know? good for him

like i felt a little defensive about it at first because it almost seemed like we were just trying to knock odo down a peg when he's already Suffering but the more i think about it the more sense it makes. like, his desire for order is intrinsic to his species, but that desire for order led to something terrible happening, and then by the time he's met kira he has enough self doubt and worry about the consequences of false accusations that he LETS HER GO despite having actually found the correct murderer. it's so delicious

and then the scene at the end where she's like horrified. the way he was horrified when he found out she lied. AUGHGHGHG parallels i can't wait until 1000 years from now when they get together

also, hi, dukat??? like i knew he was a bad person but i thought he was a bad person in like a fun way. sisko's gay little friend who sent him fireworks for his road trip and sat on one of those little spines for kira. but he's like a bAD bad person. was that leeta dax was supposed to have been, in his office? leeta deserves to kill him actually. and like, WHTY is he so into bajoran women. i think we know. like sure siyal's mom was "in love with him" like ok dude. of course he tried to kill ziyal. of COURSE kira was like no she can stay on the station far away from you :)

idk it's like a great reminder that even people who are funny and seem nice and harmless are capable of absolutely unforgiveable acts and all people are layered. everyone is human and everyone has the capacity for being inhumane. etcetc. very good. every time dukat is on screen he gets more interesting

i do kind of wish we had gotten more from garak though...? it feels like he's just There some episodes. i miss when he had more content with bashir go back to queerbaiting us!!!

TONIGHT: voy's "q and the grey" (GROSS) and ds9's "the ascent," or possibly "first contact," or possibly star wars, who knows

[sinners-in-paradise]

Chapter One: A Hero in Paradise

Masterpost

Chapter written by @monsterhatdoodles

–––

The willow tree swung in the wind.

Dero swung with it.

The hero’s stab wounds were deep. Multiple. Fatal. His blood dropped down, watering the tree as it stood alone in the fields of hades. Dero slowly drifted with the wind, tied upside-down up from the tree.

The deformed dark matter’s long, black body was caked in blood. His cape was tattered and torn. His four spider like legs were limp, wrapped in red string.

A pale blue reaper yawned, and snapped his fingers. Dero woke with a snap.

“Ah! You’re up!”

The reaper seemed bored, but chipper.

“I’m Papi, and long story short, you’re dead.”

The only response was sobs. Papi began to feel a little awkward. He fluttered his wings to shake off the feeling.

“So, uh…. Welcome to the underworld, buddy! Your final resting place. Hades, if you will. You’re going to be here for a while. Forever, actually. There’s no escape.”

Dero continued to sob. He began to struggle violently against the red string holding him. Papi looked around before continuing.

“Yeah…so…that’s a bummer. But on the plus side, you never have to eat, drink or sleep again! Or pay rent! Isn’t that great? You won't age either. Time's real funky here.”

Dero began to choke on his own tears and blood. Papi tried to avoid eye contact.

"I’m sure you’ll make plenty of friends here. Probably. I can’t really tell much about you other than that you can cry an awful lot.”

Dero finally was able to choke out some words between his sobs.

“Please…. Help me…”

The light blue reaper fiddled with his hands.

"Yikes... er.. sorry. Can't help you with that, buddy. Boss strung you up like this for a reason. I can't go against its orders. You know how it is."

Dero's sobs became louder, riddled now with helplessness and despair.

"Listen, I gotta go. Lotta more dead people to deal with. But before I go, I feel like I should mention that hades, it, uh... does things to your body. Bad things. You'll see."

Dero shook violently.

".....Bye."

With that, the light blue reaper vanished in a flash, leaving Dero alone, cold, and suffering.

Weeks (or at least, they felt like weeks) passed. Dero spent the time wailing and sobbing. He spent the time thinking of his friends.

He thought of Ades, who's advice he'd always ignored. He thought of Wisp, who just like him, was fooled by her guise. He thought about Dolly, who was now left alone in her grasp. And he thought about her. Even now, that memory was so beautiful to him.

–––

"This place just goes on forever, doesn't it?" Gwen growled indignantly. The purple, round felian fiddled with her ponytail, irritated. The scar across her chest had been itching recently, and she wasn't in the best of moods.

"Well, I think these fields are very pretty." The gentle voice that replied came from a frail but beautiful woman. Dressed in a hospital gown, she looked over the fields and sighed. Her white hair rested above lavender eyes that were firm, but full of kindness. A long tube stretched out from her hand and unraveled into nothingness. Small orbs of spirit flame flickered playfully around her.

"Right, Celeernyx?"

The halcandrian behind Dulciana was slightly startled. Her green hood and dress, stained by the black ooze that covered her face, drifted slightly in the wind as she turned to the woman. Her cat like ears, wrapped in the vines extending from her wretched crown, twitched slightly as she looked at Dulci with perpetually tearful eyes.

"Oh? S-sorry, I was distracted. Yes, t-these fields are beautiful.."

Her voice was sad; scratchy and distorted.

"You're both delusional. The sooner we get out of here the better." Gwen replied before moving onward hastily. Dulciana let out a small sigh and followed.

Gwen liked these two, even if they were a bit too slow paced for her liking. The grey haired woman was far too peppy for the situation she was in, and the Halcandran kind of freaked her out with the whole melting face thing. But the three had been together for a while now, and Gwen would rather suffer a million deaths before she let another family of hers down.

Suddenly, Gwen stopped. She turned to the others with a face of slight discomfort.

"Do you... Do you two hear that?"

Dulciana stopped and listened while Cele tilted her head in confusion. Gwen listened to the sound, and as she was able to slowly distinguish what it was, a chill ran down her spine.

"It... It sounds like sobs."

Dulciana looked around for a moment, before pointing to the distance. "There," she said, her face somber. She was pointing to large willow tree in the distance. Its leaves were blood red and its trunk was stained a starch white.

The trio carefully approached the tree. The sobs got louder. Cele looked around the trunk of the tree for the source, only to find nothing. Suddenly, she felt a drop of liquid hit her newly grown wings. She looked up and let out a small gasp. A slender figure was hanging from the branches, his blood and tears dripping to the floor.

"Dear Nova..." Cele moved swiftly out of the flow of blood. "Who.. who is that?"

Dulciana thought she recognized the shape, but she wasn't to sure at this distance. She prayed her theory was false. "Whoever this is, we need to help him." She looked at Gwen. "Do you think you can climb up there?"

Gwen shuddered. Something about the figure seemed familiar to her too, but in a much different way. She didn't want to get closer to... whoever this was.

"M...Maybe they deserve to be up there..." Gwen tried to think up further excuses, but was cut off by a voice from the figure.

"Please.....H.....Help....M....Me........"

As much as she hated to admit it, Dulciana recognized that voice from her time watching over Pleiades. She shut her eyes, her teeth clamping together.

"Gwen. Get him down. Now."

Gwen groaned. She slowly climbed up the tree. Her claws sunk easily into the bark, allowing her to climb to the figure. They seemed to be sharper as of late.

The closer she got, the more uncomfortable she became. The figure struggled as she approached. The stab wounds he bore seemed all too similar to hers. She felt a sickening feeling in her stomach.

“He….lp…..m……m…..e…….”

The poor creature was crying, slurring over its own words. He must have died horribly. As Gwen got close, she saw that the figure seemed to have several large sewing needles stuck in his back. Gwen’s stomach churned as she cut each red string one by one. She tried her hardest to avoid looking at Dero’s bleeding body.

Eventually, the last string was cut, and Dero fell to the soft blood-soaked grass below. He let out a miserable, pathetic cry as Dulciana went to help him up. Her worse fears were confirmed. It was Dero, after all. He began to whisper a name Dulci was all too familiar with.

“Pleiades….Pleiades you were right… I’m sorry.”

Dero passed out, his blood still flowing onto the grass below.

[pyropsychiccollector]

Harem Deluxe: Night at Okinawa, Part 1

Mahiru: *sitting at a bar near the top of a grand hotel on Okinawa* It's nice to get away from the snow and ice once in a while~ n___n

Yukiko: Oh, was your guys' area hit pretty bad? (✿◠‿◠)

Mikan: N-Not exactly... *at Mahiru's grumpy stare* >w< Um. Not worse than everywhere else...

Mahiru: Mikan-chan, you don't get to say that. @___@*** We couldn't let you shovel because of your slipping and sliding. It was just me, Hajime, Chiaki, and Natsumi busting our rumps out there. And even with numbers like that, it was HEAVY!!!

Mikan: I'm sorryyyyy! DX *bows way too deeply*

Yukiko: Wow... We live on a mountain, so I figured we had it the worst. (✿◠‿◠);;; Four people shoveling... And you still had it rough...

Mahiru: :x Yeah, well. We use this underground parking garage cuz there's so many of us, and we needed to get access to the roads. Not to mention the sidewalks around our house... And we had to get it all cleared out in the early morning, so it's that much colder. :x And there's no way I was gonna let Hajime tackle that all on his own. No sir. *nod nod*

Yukiko: Hajime's the type to tackle everything on his own, huh?

Mahiru and Mikan: EVERYTHING! >:[

Yuzuki: Oh, you guys use a parking garage too, huh? (✿◠‿◠) We know that feeling. Though like Yukiko said, we hafta make our way down the mountain each day to get to our jobs...

Yukiko: Going down's the fun part. :3 Skiing, sledding, or snowboarding~...

Yuzuki: Yeah, it's the journey back up, isn't it? That's the real bummer. @~~@***

Yukiko: (✿◠‿◠) On the bright side, Koro-sensei and Hayate are looking into skii lift options for that part~...

Yuzuki: Mm! (✿◠‿◠)

Mikan: S-S-Skiing s-sounds f-fun... nwn

Mahiru: No, they don't!! No skiing for you. (๑•́ ₃ •̀๑) You remember the last time.

Mikan: (✿ヘᴥヘ) I r-rolled into a b-big snowball...! Hajime had to dig me out~... nwn

Yuzuki: :x ... Big snowball?

Mahiru: (✿◠‿◠)*** Gravity seems to hate Mikan-chan... She'll literally trip and fall over air, but when on a ski slope...? Well. :x Roll enough snow together and it becomes a ball. And she was going REALLY fast...

Mikan: *still giggling to herself despite the compromising state she'd been in at the time... or perhaps BECAUSE of the compromising state* (✿◠‿◠)

Mahiru: >___>

Yukiko: Well, that sounds...

Rio: *walks up all glum* >w<

Yuzuki: What's wrong, Rio-chan? Lose a bit too much at the poker tables? n__n;;;;;;;; *a little anxious to find out*

Rio: DX I lost EVERYTHING! *points back at two separate tables, where a sizeable audience has gathered to watch* I tried two different tables and went bust. (✿◠‿◠);;; Kaede-chan's gonna be pissed...

Yukiko and Yuzuki: Yes, she will be. (✿◠‿◠);;;;;;;;;;;;

Mahiru: :x Excuse me? *raises hand to gather attention* Um. Who did you lose to?

Rio: >w< Some goth chick...

Mahiru: Uh-huh. Dumb of you to challenge that one, but go on? :x

Rio: And some chick calling herself former yakuza. >w<

Mahiru and Mikan: DON'T PLAY HER!!!!!

Yuzuki, Yukiko, and Rio: o___o That bad...?

Mikan: N-Natsumi-chan is mean at games... >w<

Mahiru: She'll do everything short of cheating because she's THAT passionate about cards. >:[ *huffs* I should have known not to let her go gambling... But it's not like Hajime can say "no" to her, so what was I supposed to do? >___>

Rio: Well. :x I'd say the goth chick cleaned me out more. That Natsumi chick just got the scraps of what I had left. ... Although I think there was a couple girls who wagered more than I did...

Yukiko: (✿◠‿◠);;; Rio-chan, there's a reason we don't let you go gambling... Be happy we gave you spending money at all.

Rio: Oi, I'm a GREAT gambler! Those two were just demons! DX

Yuzuki: Who put in more money than you? It's not like we're millionaires or anything, but we've got, like... Eight incomes between all of us? Counting Nagisa, I mean. o.o

Rio: >w< Some blonde foreigner who wailed about getting cleaned out of food allowance... Kinda weird with that armor cosplay, too. The other chick's right over there. *points a little bit away from them*

Rin: *drunkenly wails* Stupid, *hic* bozo-bitch cheaters...! I knew I shoulda shot for craps! DX *slumps on the bar counter, moaning that she doesn't have enough money to get blackout drunk*

Mahiru: :x Well, you're the idiots who thought betting everything against the Ultimate Gambler and Natsumi was a brilliant idea.

[mxopifex]

So this is Tabea. I remade her in Baldur’s Gate 3 after having played her in a very long running campaign. She is built on spite.

See once upon a time, say 2008, I was dating a guy who asked if I wanted to play D&D with his buddies. I did very much want to do that. I had never played before but I had borrowed the player’s handbook from the library and red them once, but I could never convince folks to play with me.

Now this was the tail end of 3.5 and the book bloat by this point was obscene. So rather than have me flounder around a giant stack of books like a confused baby I was passed off to the guy who was kind of a rules lawyer, but who could be relied upon to make me a character without it taking all night. (A bit of politics I only understood in hindsight)

He asked me what kind of character I wanted to play.

I said an elven ranger with a bow because early 20’s me was skinny and blonde and wanted to be seen as graceful. Plus I knew they had animal companions and that seemed neat.

“Anything a ranger can do, a fighter can do better.” Direct quote.

So my first DnD character was a fighter. I did not enjoy playing her, she was boring. Not an animal companion in sight. But luckily it didn’t sour me on the game.

Skip ahead ten ish years. I’m still friends with most of the people I played with that day, even the guy I am no longer dating. Mr. Fighters offers to GM a 5e game. He wants us to use rolled stats in order with a randomly generated race though. To keep us from just bringing out character types we’ve played before.

I get high a Dex and Wis human. The opportunity to do something very petty arises. See the reason Mr. Fighter liked fighter’s better is he tends to favor highly optimized DPS builds. So I build a ranger with two weapon fighting. I gave her colossus slayer. By the end of the campaign she had two attacks per turn, plus her off hand weapon, (she had a pair of magic scimitars) add in hunter’s mark and colossus slayer and she was regularly pulling in 40+ hp of damage a round. No sneak attack conditions. Only one spell slot expended. Just had to get in melee range, which the GM went to increasingly large and convoluted battle maps to slow her progress. I out fightered Mr. Fighter.

He called her the blender. She is my silly petty vengeance. She’s also a butch cause mid 30s Sharon has different taste now that I’ve embraced fully being queer. Still no animal companion cause 5e rules for that are kind of a bummer, but nothings perfect.

Anyway I sent the above picture of her covered in blood to him with the note “The Blender in her natural habitat.” He laughed. DnD is good.

[oh-no-my-hand-slipped]

I Choose A’TCHIEW! : Part 2

A sequel, anonymous commission

******************************

Fandom: Pokémon (Personal OCs)

Word Count: 2921

Genre: Big Sneezes, Contagion

CW/TW: Mild Pokémon Abuse

********************************

“First try, huh, Asp? I guess you really have been paying attention during my pokéball throwing lessons.”

“I suppose I have.”

Aspen’s chest filled with pride as he looked down at his freshly used pokéball. Instead of being scratched up like the others, this one was fresh from the center. It shone and glittered in his palm as he held it up to admire it. This was the first pokémon he had caught since his journey began – all his other pokémon had either been given to him or had been abandoned by their last trainers, so he was quite out of practice.

Fervia slapped him on the back, almost knocking Aspen over.

“Those things are hard to catch, too, jumpin’ all over the place…”

Aspen smiled, putting the pokéball on his belt. “Hopefully, this is only the first of many.”

“Poetic as always, eh?”

The pair made their way through the underbrush, planning on their next catch. Fervia had her heart set on an Eevee, since she could evolve it into whatever she wanted. And, she admitted, they were pretty cute to boot. Aspen, on the other hand, had always had a soft spot for fairy types, and would be more than happy to add a Chansey to his team. He’d always liked healing pokemon more than battling them, anyway.

Fervia was in the middle of reading which stones caused which evolutions in Eevees when Aspen suddenly stopped in the middle of the path.

“Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?” Fervia asked, not looking up.

“That snapping sou-”

Aspen couldn’t even finish his sentence before his feet were suddenly swept out from under him, and his entire body was yanked into the air. The world spun around him, only coming to a stop when he was thoroughly dizzy. When he could finally open his eyes without feeling sick, Aspen was hanging upside down by the ankles, something hard and cold wrapped around his ankles.

“Now, what’ve we got here?”

Aspen heard a rustling in the bushes, and craned his head as far as he could. All he could see was a pair of steel-toed boots coming out of the foliage.

“Aw, cripes…snf!...another pair of junior scouts.”

Another voice piped up not far behind.

“Like, bummer. You’ll get ‘em next time, babe. Ocean’s full of waves, y’know?”

Just at the edge of his vision, a pair of dirt-covered water shoes sidled beside them. Aspen could suddenly feel Fervia struggling against him.

“Ngh…what’s the big idea?” she groaned, blindly reaching out her arms.

“The big idea, luv,” the first voice replied, “is catchin’ the pokémon that run through this path with my state of the art equipment. But then you muckers had to…snf!...muck it all up!”

Aspen tried to lift himself up, but only got about as far as his waist.

“Well, it is a bit difficult to see your traps. Perhaps you should put up a sign or something?” he strained, wincing as the metal dug into his ankles.

“Oh, yeah, sure, as if pokémon can’t read,” their captor replied. “Tell you this for free – you don’t know the first thing about trapping pokémon.”

Aspen wanted to say that she didn’t seem to know either, but he held his tongue.

Fervia, however, wasn’t so wise.

“Why don’tcha just battle pokemon like everybody else? Can’t throw a pokéball?”

“‘S more effective,” came the short reply.

“Hah! I betcha can’t catch a Rattata with this thing.”

The ropes above them strained as Fervia fought against their restraints. Metal squealed on metal as Aspen’s stomach dropped.

“I caught you lot, didn’t I?”

Fervia grunted. “Yeah, and if you don’t let us down in three seconds, I’m gonna - ”

CRACK!

The steel ropes snapped in two, sending the pair tumbling to the ground. Luckily, the soil had few rocks, and a bit of moss to cushion his fall. But Aspen still saw stars, the sudden impact knocking the wind out of him. He instinctively laid his hand on the pokéballs on his belt as he laid on the ground.

One. Two. Three. Four.

All there.

“Careful what you wish for there, luv!” their captor guffawed, only pausing to cough from the dust they had kicked up upon landing.

She kept laughing as Fervia helped Aspen to his feet. Though the fall was painful, it at least gave them a chance to get a good look at the pair in front of them.

The steel-toed boots belonged to a tall woman with long, jet-black hair and a pair of dark, shining eyes to match. Aspen recognized her outfit – it was one that would-be explorers often wore when they stopped by their village on their way to reach the top of a nearby mountain. Thin cargo shorts, a charcoal gray shirt, and a flimsy vest, all topped off with a large hat folded and pinned on one side with a steel-gray button. The splattering of freckles on her nose scrunched in her mirth, and she scrubbed it with a gloved finger.

Like a Ducklett next to a Liepard, the other stranger stood, with a large blue backpack to match his shoes. He seemed to be carrying enough for both of them, with odds and ends spilling out of the pockets and between the zippers. But, despite his petite frame, he held the weight well, even leaning nonchalantly against a nearby tree. He was even less dressed for the weather than his partner was – a pair of seafoam green shorts and a white tank top.

More for the beach than a mountain, Aspen thought.

The man fished something out of his pocket, offering it to the woman. It was a pack of tissues, already open and half gone. The woman snatched one out of the packet and blew her nose, then started with a snort.

“Huh-? Hah…HAH-! HYAA’TSHUUUH!”

“Aw, man, did I grab the scented ones?”

The man looked on the back of the package while the woman wiped her nose on her sleeve.

“Run on home, kiddies,” she sniffled, trying to clean up her running nose. “We’ve got Pokemon to catch, and we don’t need ya steppin’ in any more of our traps.”

“You probably scared ‘em all away with that sneeze,” Fervia snapped back. “Besides, if you don’t wanna catch real trainers, maybe you shouldn’t set your traps all over the walking path!”

The woman’s eyes flashed, her cheeks turning as red as her nose. Her partner put a hand on her shoulder.

“Anortha, maybe we should, like, head back to the center. Get you checked out. That Toxicroak-”

“Putta sock in it, Wade,” Anortha growled.

Even though it had been a while since Aspen had seen Toxicroak in the Pokedex, he knew all about both the pokémon’s aggression and their many poison moves. If she had tried to catch it with one of her faulty traps, the Toxicroak probably wouldn't have been too happy about it.

No wonder Anortha felt ill.

With a sudden twinge of compassion, Aspen tried to pull Fervia aside.

“Fervia, I don’t think -”

Fervia jerked away from his touch. Meanwhile, a grin had appeared on Anortha’s face, like an Arbok ready to strike.

“You think I’m not a real trainer, eh? Well…”

Anortha reached into the backpack Wade was holding and pulled out a gray pokéball unlike any Aspen had ever seen. The back of the ball was covered in wires, and dark burn marks surrounded the clasp. Anortha’s grin grew even wider.

“Why don’tcha prove it, then, luv?”

Before Aspen could stop her, Fervia had already stepped up to the clearing, brandishing her own pokéballs.

“I’ll show ya what an adventurer really looks like.”

In the blink of an eye, they threw their pokéballs into the clearing to reveal their pokémon. Anortha’s ball popped, buzzed, and spun before a Magnemite dizzily made its way to the center. Fervia’s Charmeleon joined it, brandishing its claws and fans with a whip of its fiery tail. Despite his concern, Aspen was still proud of Fervia’s strategy in her choice. Fire-types are one of Steel-types primary weaknesses – if she played her cards right, this battle would be over soon enough.

“I’ll give ya a head start,” Fervia said, smirking. “You’re gonna need it.”

Anortha, who seemed a little less confident now, still stood her ground.

“Your funeral, kid- snf! Magnemite! Use Gyro Ball!”

The Magnemite’s magnets began to spin around its body, and it charged towards Charmeleon.

“Charmeleon! Fire Fang!”

With practiced timing, Charmeleon jumped, then brought its red-hot fangs down onto Magnemite’s sensitive screw. Magnemite screeched in pain as part of the screw began to melt.

“Again!” Anortha cried, completely ignoring her pokémon’s distress. “‘N look where you're going this time!”

After a final whirring whimper, Magnemite did as it was told. But, with every charge, Charmeleon met it with a scorching canine or a swinging tail. Fervia was laser-focused, leading attack after attack, until Magnemite was covered with red, pulsing burns and dents. Anortha had turned just as red, barking orders to no avail.

“Oy, turn around! Left! Your other left, you bloody piece of scrap metal!”

As Magnemite tottered towards Charmeleon again, Charmeleon, with a sharp-toothed smile, puffed up its cheeks and blew a cloud of smoke into Magnemite’s face. The smoke blew past the clearing, and surrounded Anortha.

“Koff! Get that - koff! Use…use…!”

Her next order faltered as her nose began to twitch. Anortha jammed a finger under her nose.

“G-Gyro…bah…hah-!”

Her eyes crossed to look at her flaring nostrils as her chest rose and fell with every gasping hitch. Though she tried to tell Magnemite to attack, her desperate gestures were no use.

“B-Blimey-! I…gah-! By…d-dose…hah-! HAH-!”

She leaned back, her quivering nose high in the air. Charmeleon and Magnemite stopped their battle to look at Anortha, then looked at each other.

“GAH-! HAAAH-!”

The pokemon leaped from either side of the clearing, out of the way of Anortha’s powerful nose.

Fervia, however, wasn’t so lucky.

“HYYYA’TCHHHHHUUUUUH!”

The enormous sneeze sprayed across the clearing, covering Fervia in a fine mist. She spluttered and staggered away from the clearing. Meanwhile, through her snot-soaked sleeve, Anortha whispered to Wade through gritted teeth, who reluctantly joined her with a blue pokéball in hand. With Fervia indisposed, Aspen had no choice but to speak up.

“Oh, erm, hold on a moment! I thought this was a one on one match!”

Still wiping her streaming nose, Anortha snickered.

“I don’d - snf! - see a referee, d’you, mate?”

Wade threw his pokéball to the ground, and a Squirtle with blue sunglasses rolled out on its shell. It looked around confusedly, then stared at its owner.

“I know, dude,” Wade said, rubbing the back of his neck. “You’re not a battling pokémon. But, like, you know how Anortha is. Especially when she’s losing. Just a few Water Guns and we can chillax, ‘kay?”

The Squirtle shrugged, did a “right on” gesture with its claws, then put its sunglasses into its shell. Aspen’s heart sank. Charmeleon could deal with one opponent while its trainer was focused, but now with a second Water-type opponent and a distracted Fervia…

“Okay, dude! Show off those rad waves you’ve been practicing!”

Squirtle nodded, retreating into its shell. Suddenly, a beam of water burst out of the shell’s opening, shooting the pokémon high into the air. Without Fervia’s direction, Charmeleon squinted at the sky and went from side to side, trying to dodge whatever attack came its way.

When Squirtle was at the peak of its ascent, it spun towards Charmeleon, took a moment to aim, then spewed a massive wave of water onto the clearing. Even if Charmeleon had seen it coming, there was no way he could dodge it.

By the time the wave passed, Charmeleon was flat on its stomach, its tail only barely flickering.

“Charmeleon!” Fervia cried.

Charmeleon shakily pushed itself up by the claws, only just keeping its balance. Anortha did her signature guffaw, though it was cut off by a rough cough.

“That’s more lige it! Alright, Magnemite, let’s try this again. Use - snf! - Gyro Ball!”

Magnemite bobbed in the air, looking down at Charmeleon. It let out a scraping whine, its magnets slowly circling.

“C’mon, while he’s down! What are you waiding for?!”

Aspen knew that the attack would be enough to not only knock him out of the battle, but do some real damage. With how wet Charmeleon was, the electric attack would fry him.

Even if it was against battle protocol, he had to do something.

While Anortha was distracted with her reluctant Magnemite, he slowly took a pokéball from his belt.

“Wade!” Anortha said, turning to her partner. “Do the - snf! - wave again! Thad’ll take the sucker out!”

The Squirtle was lying on its back, sunbathing. Wade shook his head.

“No can do, babe. That attack took a lot out of him. He’s gotta, like, chill first before he does another battle.”

Anortha growled in frustration, turning back to her own pokémon.

“If you don’t blast that Charbeleon back into its pokéball,” she said, her voice getting dangerously quiet. “I’ll use ya as bait for a real mean Arbok I’ve been trackin’.”

Magnemite squeaked, and its magnets slowly began to turn, picking up speed as it went towards the stumbling Charmeleon. Aspen threw his pokeball into the clearing.

“Gogoat, I choose you!”

Just as Magnemite was about to make contact, one of its magnets was caught on a large horn. Aspen’s Gogoat stood in front of Charmeleon, steam streaming out of its nostrils. Gogoat bucked its head, causing Magnemite to fly backwards.

“No, no!” Anortha cried. “You can’d just…I was about to…you can’d just throw your bleedin’ pokémon into the ring!”

Aspen chuckled, allowing himself a small smile.

“I don’t see a referee, do you?”

Fervia laughed, though still splattered with the remains of their opponent's sneeze. As Anortha sputtered, Aspen nodded to Gogoat, pointing at the dazed Magnemite.

“Use Earthquake!”

Gogoat bleated, and large rocks formed above the clearing. They hurdled towards a still bumbling Magnemite, and made impact with the loud crunch and crackle of stone. As the rocks crumbled, Magnemite was slowly revealed underneath, unmoving.

“YA RUSTY OLD TIN CAN!”

Anortha ran into the cleaning, trying to prop Magnemite up inside the crater. But he only fell down again, completely faint. Wade replaced her in combat, but Aspen had already planned for his Water type attacks.

“Gogoat! Razor Leaf!”

Gogoat pawed its hoof into the earth, charging up his attack.

“Like, do your Water Gun! Hurry!” Wade said, his voice cracking.

Squirtle pursed its lips and filled its cheeks, shooting out short blasts of water. Gogoat easily dodged the weak attacks, then, with a stomp of its hooves, released its attack. Swirls of sharp leaves surrounded Squirtle and Anortha, who was still in the clearing. Squirtle retreated into its shell, but it was no use. By the time the attack ended, Squirtle was flat on its shell, with cracked sunglasses halfway off its face.

“Squirtle! Dude!” Wade cried, putting Squirtle back into its pokéball.

Anortha stood up, nudging the limp Magnemite to the side with her foot.

“I want a rema- a remaaAA’TCHUUUUH!”

The pollen from the Razor Leaf was still heavy in the air. Wade put an arm around her shoulders, offering up the package of tissues.

“Babe, we need to get our pokémon to the center. And you too. You don’t, like, look so good.”

“I want a - snf! - rebatch,” Anortha said, more quietly this time.

“I know, I know. I bet we’ll see them again. Small world, right?”

“HYYAA’TCHUUUUUH!”

“Let’s get you to see Nurse Joy, ‘kay? Just let me get Magnemite, and - ”

“Ndo. Leave thad pile of garbage where he belongs - TCHUUH!”

With a small apologetic look, Wade had no choice but to leave with Anortha, her sneezes still echoing through the forest long after they were gone.

**************************************

“Huh…HRA’KSHIIIIIEW!”

“More tea?”

“Snf…yeah.”

Fervia held out her small metal cup, and Aspen filled it.

“She didn’d even give be the winning fee,” Fervia mumbled. “All she gave be was her stupid cold.”

Aspen chuckled. “Well, that isn’t all she gave you.”

He looked towards Magnemite, who was playing Charmeleon. A few of the bigger dents were taken care of at the center, but it was still covered in scratches and chips.

“I guess so,” Fervia said, sniffling.

Aspen frowned, sipping from his own cup.

“Is something on your mind? You’ve been in a sour mood since the battle – even before you came down with a cold.”

Fervia looked into the campfire for a long time, then sighed.

“I thought I was gedding better. At battling, I bean. I thought I didn’d need you to come and save be anybore. It seems like every time something happens, you have to fix all of it. And it’s by fault.”

“Oh, Fervia…”

Aspen smiled.

“You are getting better. Just because you need help, or make a mistake, doesn’t change that. If Anortha hadn’t cheated, you most likely would have won that battle. But that’s why you must always be prepared.”

Aspen looked down at his tea, swirling it from side to side in his cup.

“Because some just don’t care to play fairly.”

“Aspen?”

Aspen looked up, smiling again.

“Let’s get some rest, shall we? Perhaps we can go to the hot springs tomorrow. That should help your cold.”

Fervia squinted, but her tiredness overcame her curiosity, and she was soon asleep in her sleeping bag. Aspen rolled over on his back, looking up at the stars as he slowly drifted off.

[happyinjection]

♠️♥️High Card Short Story 8 “The ‘Sweet Honey’ of October 4th”♦️♣️

October 4th is Chris’ birthday! He was invited to celebrate at Crazy 8, but apparently someone else had asked him out first?!

Original: https://twitter.com/highcard_pj/status/1577237090269425664?s=20

Author: https://twitter.com/poipheno

As the glass doors through which the morning sun shone opened, a man in a red suit stepped into the branch office.

“Oh, the gang’s all here. Feeling energetic today, aren’t we?”

It was Chris. His gaze fell on the counter beside him.

“Dearest Miss Wendy is also early today.”

“Is that supposed to be sarcasm?! And who’s late today? Good morning!”

At Chris light-hearted jab, Wendy, who was doing clerical work at the counter, immediately got to her feet in anger.

“Come on, take it easy. I’m just saying hi.”

Although Chris was a bit unnerved by the response, it was an exchange that wasn’t at all out of normalcy between these two colleagues.

“The way she returns the greeting even when she’s annoyed is very typical of Wendy.” 

Vijay said while tending to his houseplants.

“Hey, Chris. I wanna ask something...”

I approached Chris, who was sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed.

“This part of the order form, how do you write it?”

“What’s the matter, Finn? Let’s see... show it to your big bro.”

I handed him the documents, then sat down on the floor in a kneeling position, so that my rear was on my heels.

“Watch it, you. Those are bad manners. Your suit’s going to get wrinkled.”

“Gotcha, gotcha.”

Standing back up, I replied to Wendy’s scolding with a reluctant mumble.

Chris finally finished reading over the papers and concluded.

“This is quite difficult, isn’t it. Very well. I’ll take care of it.”

“Really? Lucky me! Then I’ll leave it to you, Chris!”

“Oi.”

Leo, who was sitting on the same sofa and working on his own laptop, interrupted in a cold tone without taking his eyes off the screen.

“Aren’t you supposed to be his mentor. Teach him to write. You can’t keep hand feeding stuff into Finn’s mouth forever.”

“Huuh? If it’s not the waddling boss baby himself—”

I rolled up my sleeves and was just about to pounce on him when Chris grabbed my hand.

“Then so be it, I don’t mind. For next time, an in-depth private lesson with Finn is in order... shall we.”

He traced the back of my palm with his fingertips. I pulled back my hand in cold sweat.

“Back off, that’s disgusting...”

With a smile plastered on his face, Chris shoved the papers into a leather bag.

“Speaking of... isn’t it Chris’ birthday today?”

Chris let out a goofy noise of awe as he sprung to his feet.

“Fi~nn, you sneaky bastard! So you do remember~? The other three, they never congratulated me.”

I blocked his attempt to hug me using my elbow.

“Then let’s go to Crazy 8 after work.”

When I said that, a grimace formed on Chris’ face.

“Sorry. I already have plans for today...”

“What a bummer.”

“Eh. Could it be possible that you have a cake prepared for me!”

“Nah, I don’t.”

“Ah, so it’s supposed to be a surprise... Did I just ruin the fun? Woah, it’s unusual for me to have something on a cosmic level delicacy.”

“No, I seriously have nothing prepared.”

Chris silently gazed at Wendy and Vijay. Wendy looked away apologetically, while Vijay kept on staring at his houseplants then nodded at them in a vague manner.

“Hmph, what an idiot. Finn was just trying to get Chris to buy him a drink on the pretense of his birthday.”

“Oi, Leo, don’t say that. I’ll tell you what, Wendy said she wanted to come along, too.”

“But I didn’t get him anything!”

Wendy was no longer turning her back on Chris.

“Such warm colleagues! I’m deeply moved!”

It followed that Chris straightened up with a sigh, then plopped down next to Leo while sagging his shoulders slightly.

“Say, can I clock out early today?”

Leo’s eyebrows twitched. Chris pressed on.

“Can you believe it, I’ve been working overtime for the last three days.”

Leo tapped around with his touch pad. He must be checking the staff attendance management program.

“...go ahead.”

“Yaay~♪”

Chris sprung back to his feet, then made a dramatic turn on his heels while picking up his bag gracefully.

“Alright then, I’ll go straight home after getting some work done. The surprise cake can wait for tomorrow.”

“What’s the big rush?”

Chris walked over to the door, his hand resting on the doorknob, and looked over his shoulder without turning the rest of his lower body.

“Forgive me, Finn. Sweet Honey is waiting for me. Only for today, I am... all hers.”

He gave me a wink with his lips pursed, then walked out.

“That guy... it seems that he’s always going on different dates everyday, right?”

I thought about it for a moment and it occurred to me.

“Does he have a favorite afterall?!?! No one told me!”

“A favorite, huh... it’s not like what you expect... well, Finn is going to find out sooner or later.”

Wendy furrowed her brows with a troubled look on her face. When I glanced at Leo next, he was silently fiddling with his laptop.

“Sooner or later... should I just ask him? Ah, I see now. He took those order forms from before with him so he can go home early, didn’t he.”

Before I knew it, Vijay, who had been standing behind me for a while, put his hand on my waist.

“Anyway, Finn. A client with a reservation is arriving soon. Are you ready to show him around?”

“You bet! That client, he’s always talking about the latest news.”

“In that case, let’s read the newspapers together beforehand, shall we.”

I got the feeling that I was being swerved from the topic on purpose, but for a rookie like me, dealing with clients on my own was actually a big deal.

Since someone else was keeping Chris all to herself for the time being, let’s keep our spirits up and just get through it.

♠️♥️♦️♣️

TL notes: I am aware that I’m not posting this one in correct chronological order, but I desperately need to put this out quick before episode 7 (for obvious reasons). I’ll post the rest continuing from where I left off. But hey, there you have it. Chris in all his big bro glory. How Massu managed to land all the brocon/siscon roles is completely beyond me. Anyway, as usual, let’s enjoy High Card together~