#some of my screenshots had Very Awkward Lighting

[dotmander]

my art for the #VSArtParty! thanks everyone for showing up - you all have such gorgeous characters ^^

tags/individual portraits under the cut - if you see your oc, let me know and i'll @ you :)

zhao xifeng - @gift-of-astralaria

cinalu - @averagebreadslice

maeve vernirisey - @sunbat-commander

naveen sen (also our host!) - @leafofkudzu

arruins - @salemstag

prima glittergore - ?

saesyll - ?

ookie hart - @joydrawsart

yvette marseilles - @aetherblooms

[siblingshuffle]

Sibling Shuffle: The Darkman Problem

FINALLY FINISHED. WHOOOOOOO!

I’m a bit iffy about some of the dialogue (idk of its awkward or not) but I finished this late at night and don’t want to change it right now

A bit of context: the question this minicomic is based on is right here. For those who don’t know, back in January I posted to my main blog a question I had about Megaman 5: Did Dr. Light know that the Protoman who kidnapped him in the intro was not the actual Protoman?

While it’s hard to say for sure for the original universe (though if you have an opinion / evidence suggesting either way please share in the original post), there is a VERY clear answer for this universe…

…And that answer is yes, yes he did.

No one who actually interacted with Rock before thought Darkman was him lol

Darkman was trying to go for a "without direction / family / a home, turned to crime" kind of thing. And that’s like. Contrary to his function.

Random civilians? Yeah, most of them could believe it. The Robot Master attacks and fact he once worked for Wily weren’t really helping. His family? Absolutely not! Everyone who knows Rock knows he’s a sweet kid who wouldn’t intentionally hurt anyone unless there was no other way.

(Idk if it’s clear but that’s basically what Dr. Light is saying: “your disguise is so bad, you didn’t even grab me or gesture with the correct hand. I doubt literally anyone this was supposed to fool actually fell for it.”)

————

Rock is left-handed! They made him a leftie in the games for readability, I believe - it would look weird if he fired from his right hand; he’d have to turn his body to face away from the audience. I try to keep it so he gestures with the left hand more than his right, but I’m not the best at The Focus Thing™️ and I may have drawn him gesturing with his right accidentally a few times.

To distinguish between Rock and Darkman, I desaturated Darkman’s colors a bit!

I didn’t feel like doing much for backgrounds. The one in this comic is a slightly-edited screenshot from a scene in the game taking place at the very end.

"It was at this moment that Darkman IV knew: he ****ed up"

—————

Next Up: Cave In

As always, please ask any questions you have!

[blazehedgehog]

Would you mind going more into detail on the visual side of Superstars? Some of its shortcomings, inconsistencies, etc. I haven’t had the time to put anything together to discuss it, but had the same feelings about the way it looks that you seem to have, and no one else really seems to see it.

Sure! I actually already broke a lot of this down in my discord for my patreon donors, so I'll just mostly copy and paste what I said out of there. Warning: LOTS of images ahead!

The problem I have with the way the game looks is the lighting. Let's take this screenshot as an example:

I want you to ask yourself: where is the sun positioned in this image?

Let's look at Sonic. On Sonic's body, the sun is above him, to the right, slightly in the background. The top edge of his head has the highlight, which fades in to a shadow closer to the camera.

The shadow on the grass suggests the sun is in the same position, but shining from the foreground. The shadow is being cast going in to the background, away from the camera. This is the opposite of Sonic's body.

This rocky outcropping near the top of the image is receiving very intense edge light from both the left and right sides, but barely from the bottom.

Under the grass at the bottom of the image, we see light shining up from below this rocky arch. You could say that maybe it's light reflecting off the water (caustics), but it lacks the caustic pattern and is pure white light, when the water itself is teal. Caustic reflections also generally don't carry 25+ feet away like this does.

The palm tree fronds are receiving light from the same direction as Sonic is, but the trunk is being lit like the rocks are, which is to say its edges are lit up, even in places that should be in shadow.

This is what's known as "rimlighting." It's an important detail in photography and 3D graphics rendering, because it creates a strong outline for characters and important objects.

The catch being rimlighting is one of those things that works when it makes sense. In photography, getting a good rimlight requires very carefully positioning physical lights in a scene, and that light obeys the properties of reality.

What Sonic Superstars has done is grab a very basic rimlight effect that applies a cheap, colorless halo around objects using a shader. It doesn't obey the properties of real light, it just makes everything look weird and inconsistent, giving it this awkward glowing outline. This type of effect was common in Wii games from the mid-2000's. For example, Super Mario Galaxy uses this type of rimlight quite a lot.

Galaxy gets away with it because it's a game set in space, and these bright glowing rimlights help characters pop out from the dark space backgrounds. And, on brighter levels, the rimlight intensity is reduced considerably:

Sonic Superstars has applied its rimlighting in a very haphazard, cheap, ugly way. Some have called it "Generic Unity Rimlighting" because a lot of low-effort games use it to bad effect. And, as far as we can tell, the game is being made in Unity, because the debug menu uses the default Unity background color.

The whole game's lighting situation just looks muddy and dark and confusing, when I think the ideal should be something like New Super Mario Bros. or Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze.

Lighting is a bit flat, but everything is bright, clear, and consistent. Superstars is very messy and dated looking by comparison. And the above two games are like 9 years old!

[magnoliidae]

Thank you to the EA Creator network for the code to check out the Book Nook Kit. I haven't had the time I want lately to play and build in ts4 that I would like but I really wanted to take some time to do a quick little cc-free set-type build cc-free with this new Kit since I uh very much love building libraries.

Further review of my quick look at the pack under the cut if you're interested - but my main takeaway is that I'm underwhelmed with the color swatches for the bookshelves and I should, as such, note that the colors in my screenshot above have been adjusted.

I really really wanted to like this Kit so much. The initial promo images didn't inspire me (at all) libraries are one of my favorite things to build in ts4, and I was really hoping the items in this pack could replace some of the CC that I use. That will almost definitely not be the case, however.

My main gripe is with the bookshelves. I enjoyed some of the clutter items and will never turn down a good stack of books, though I do have to admit i didn't look too closely at the other large furniture items because they simply don't fit the style in which I tend to build. The shelves, however, came kind of close to being what I had hoped, but ultimately there's just too many small things that bug me about them that I don't see them being worth the cost of the pack.

Those issues with the shelves were: 1) The snapping - I'm really not into this trend of wall items snapping. If you're someone who really likes to finesse positioning I think you'll probably understand how difficult this becomes with snapped items. TOOL alleviates some of these issues but TOOL should not be a necessity for paid packs (and also bugged out when i was trying to move a piece not on the wall, so maybe a moot point, altogether ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ). I've also only just noticed that I kept the book swatches all the same because I kept having to replace them to fix placement issues and obviously forgot to adjust that. Oops! :')

2) No base - The shelves just look, to me, so awkward and off without a base for them to sit on the floor. If you look at most shelves of this type, like Ikea's billy bookcases which these have a very similar vibe to, the bottom shelf does not sit directly on the floor, but is instead slightly elevated off of it:

Like, I understand that removing that element from the equation makes the stacking/snapping effect easier to pull off, but :///

3) The Color Swatches - I didn't check 100%, but I think the swatches do match up to The Immaculate base game display shelf which is nice. But just ughhhhhhhh. I really hated the wood colors on these. They all felt cold and institutional. I really wanted there to be a warm mahogany-esque swatch for good dark academia vibes but, alas. For full transparency this is my image before I photoshopped the colors to be closer to the vibe that I wanted:

Before-> After. It wasn't the absolute worst and got some of the vibes I wanted, but also like. meh.

All in all, this kit was a bit of a disappointment to me. I can see some of my issues being fixed with recolors - but at that point I might as well just be using other CC items?? I'll also recommend some of my current favorite bookshelf items I have in my game > These bookshelves by MLys - these basically never ever leave my game even when I'm going super CC-light. > and this modular library set by SSTS (which admittedly has some of my same issues with snapping items in ts4 - but it's free and has seriously BEAUTIFUL swatches and details and so. I cannot complain even the smallest single bit. It's gorgeous and I can only hope to one day build a library worthy of the set, lol)

[oldworldwidgets]

i have been THINKING about miss ginny lately especially since the new 76 update dropped, so heres a lil doodle my friend did of her!!! + her if she was a worm on a string, of course, and some in-game screenshots.

i am also using this as an opportunity to dump some lore under the cut :3 its a lot of words so prepare urself

ginny lore be upon ye:

Her full name is Virginia May Adler, but you can just call her Ginny. She's a 25ish (who's counting?) Appalachia native. Though she grew up in the Toxic Valley after she and her dad left the Vault, she now resides at her cozy camp in The Mire. She uses big guns, is covered in scars from all her forays into garbage dumps, and loves stuffed animals and Nuka-Cola Quantum more than most things.

Ginny is very bubbly and smiley. Human embodiment of :D. She’s the type of person that smiles at other people the very moment she sees them, just out of instinct. Seriously, she’s smiled at more Blood Eagles than she can count, and not because she can’t count very high. She can (INT 15 mf). Don’t worry – despite his hatred for the Eagles, Beckett still thinks it’s sweet.

Yeah, yeah, she’s dating her bartender. He moved right into her heart when he moved into her camp. He’s for sure very awkward about what he wants (her) and skirts the subject every time she brings it up, but she knows good and well by the way he settled himself into her camp (and the sweet things he says to her cat Krypto when he thinks she isn’t around) that he’s in this for the long haul. Plus, once they finally mow down the top-ranking Blood Eagles and save his brother from his otherwise-certain demise, he finally allows himself to open up to and fall for her.

She and Aries from Blue Ridge Caravan Company are inseparable. They met in Big Bend Tunnel. She and Beckett were hunting Blood Eagles, he was protecting his shipment from them. His dark, existential humor caught her attention immediately and, on the spot, he enlisted her into Blue Ridge.

She’s a scavver by trade, and a damn good one too. She picks up and stashes everything she sees, then determines its value only after she makes it home. She’s always excited and eager to buy, sell, and trade with anyone who asks, especially now that she's with Blue Ridge.

Since Beckett works the bar even when she’s away, he always catches word of the best weapons caches, armor drops, and any other rumors of note that might interest her. Only after a firm but loving warning and a promise that she’ll return to him before the street lights come on will he give her what she’s looking for. Oh, and the information too. WINK.

She’s also craaffttyyyyyy. She can make anything you could possibly need and more, just as long as she has some duct tape, a few loose screws, and a cartoon cloud of smoke.

She is terrified of heights. She also used to be terrified of animals, especially the ones with paws and claws as opposed to the ones with pincers, stingers, or poison glands. This changed after her dad came home with Krypto, her cat. She hated the thing at first, but when she lost her dad... Krypto was all she had left of him. Now, they can't live without each other.

She frankly does not care about radiation damage, diseases, mutations, etc at all. It’s inevitable in the life of a scavver. She’s probably had tetanus more times than she can count, but it’s never been a match for a disease cure or some brahmin milk. Plus, she kinda thinks it’s cool.

She used to be a natural blonde, but all the exposure to all the [gestures widely] in the wasteland (primarily radiation, but no one’s ever seen her in a gas mask or a hazmat suit – even in the ash heap region. The best she can do is pull her neck bandana over her nose when Beckett gives her his best sad eyes) eventually broke down all the melanin in her hair, leaving it white. Aside from all the junk that somehow always finds its way back in there, of course.

Beckett is the ONLY one that’s allowed to call her Gin and she only allows it because he’s a bartender. He also loooooves screaming “WEST VIRGIIIIINNNNNNNNIIAAAAA” to the tune of country roads (obviously) when he needs her attention and they’re not in the same vicinity, hence him sometimes calling her West Virginia.

After her long scavving or traveling days, Ginny likes to sit in Beckett’s lap on their front porch while he takes her hair down out of the updo of the day and picks out all the sticks and leaves. If a leaf falls from the tree above them, even if he has every opportunity to catch it before it lands in her almost-clean hair and ruins his hard work, he won’t. He'll do anything to keep her there just a little longer.

OKAY THANKS FOR READING LOVE U BYE

[cryptid-pet]

Azushin Headcanons That Woke Me Up at 3 AM (Part Three)

Please respect my ship pspsp//TW: Implement of drugs//sexting//light gore convo//Self harm, DO NOT READ IF THESE BOTHER YOU!!!!

🔪Note and just a heads up, this is headcanon revolving around how Azusa and Shin would text BEFORE and DURING their relationship!!

🐺When they first exchanged numbers, the conversations were very dull, not even a lasting talk either

🔪Actually, it was really an exchange of phone numbers, Azusa managed to get Shin’s number through Carla after begging him 18292919119th times

🐺And since the number was unknown, it DID freak Shin the FUCK out, he even thought one of the Sakamakis (Laito) was trying to stalk him, but then realized it was Azusa and knew Carla gave out his number

🔪After a couple weeks, it came to them texting for school reasons, whether it was for homework or simply working on a collaborative project in the same class (Shin never does the work unlike Azusa so he does cheat his way through getting answers from him because Azusa is Azusa, he’s that sweet to tell Shin the answers)

🐺And then Azusa’s phase kicked in after months with talking about organs and whatnot (Yk, the phase that scared Yuma badly if you seen my discord screenshots lol)

🔪Shin would get these LONG ass messages from Azusa talking about the 1800’s and insane surgeries that probably aren’t even real, investing with maggots into human flesh, etc- AND IT DIDN’T REALLY CREEP SHIN OUT AT ALL (But he does bitch about the time)

Note: Sorry if the text looks weird, I tried to fix it for twenty minutes and it did nothing

🐺They got a good bond going with their dark humor, it escalated swimmingly too, they hardly had arguments towards school related issues

Now getting onto the way they text DURING the relationship

🔪It’s awkward, wicked awkward- Shin confesses and tries to play it cool and before he can even finish typing the next message, Azusa goes “Sure…I’ll date you…”

🐺It becomes difficult because neither one have any relationship experience with another person, ESPECIALLY with the SAME gender (Most their convos now are normal with the dark humor)

🔪It was rough and bumpy on road like this for the first few weeks, first couple months too, THEN it became a little flirtatious

🐺Shin made ALL the moves, trying to even start something up such as sexting, but Azusa is that simply minded and asked questions with what the hell Shin was saying

🔪Shin has once asked Azusa if they ever had sex would he give him head, all Azusa responses with was “Give you head of a penny…? A Human Head…? A skull…?”

🐺The funnier thing is that Kou LOVES to eavesdrop with Azusa on his phone, he would peer behind the couch and loom over Azusa’s shoulder going “ARE YOU TALKING TO SHIN-KUN AGAIN? IT’S BEEN FIVE HOURS!” (As Azusa doesn’t see the problem with that)

🔪On Shin’s end, Carla does not understand why he is always on the phone texting with Azusa since he considers such an impure breed to be a lower class to said Founders, it even BOTHERS Carla because he’s thus no into technology such as smartphones or laptops

🐺Azusa is more mentally unstable, sometimes he can’t even go to any of his siblings because it could lead into some heavy conversation that’s not needed, so his best option (other than Yui because they are close) is Shin

🔪For pride of a founder, Shin isn’t that good at comforting anyone other than his brother, so he’s very limited to wording things in a kind yet polite tone to provide emotional support (But he does try to work on it because he does listen to Azusa either way at the end of the day)

🐺Azusa knows this too with the sluggish yet put in effort Shin tries when trying to help him over messaging, he does also say this to Shin in person and thanks him, Shin shrugs it off (flushed at the cheeks) going “I-I only said all that so you could fucking sleep!”

Ok I’m done for now- SORRY THAT THIS TOOK 19292929 YEARS FOR ME TO POST [1/3] [2/3]

[pinkandgoldensoul]

(Some) F1 drivers as guys I’ve met in high school

: ̗̀➛ Charles Leclerc - the fattest crush of my life. literally would turn red like a traffic light anytime I saw him enter the classroom and choke on my own saliva whenever he said hi to me. Not helpful, since he’s been my historical deskmate. I honestly don’t know how I survived sitting next to such a positive, fun, confident, trustworthy and shamelessly handsome guy. Brown hair, big green eyes either sparkling with childhood mischief or pure innocence, and the most athletic guy I’ve ever seen in real life (he’s a sportsman). Definitely had any girl lying at his feet - and he was extremely aware of it - but only cared about his girlfriend and never bragged about his charm. Humble af despite his family being quite wealthy and him being such a nice person. I’ve involuntarily been his point of reference for anything school-related and he’d blindly trust me, which always made my heart melt. He’s the type of guy you need to send a “let me just screenshot this so that I discuss it with my bff-lawyer before replying” text when you see a notification from him. And he’s also the one you look from afar, contemplating his senseless perfection. “I’m so lucky to live in the same historical and geological era” “I don’t know if I’m worthy of him” kind of vibe.

: ̗̀➛ Carlos Sainz - a unique type of nerd. At the beginning he deliberately ignored me. Then he started slowly talking to me about things he really enjoyed and, seeing I was okay with it, he began showing me books he liked, getting all excited in passionate perorations, lending them to me and demanding I’d give him my piece of mind. Also bought and gifted me for Christmas  the copy of a novel he was reading ‘cause he thought I’d be interested (the weirdest and most awkward gift-receiving experience of my whole life. I’m not doing it again). Really liked to push all my buttons to see my reaction (but I ultimately gave him a lifetime lesson) and had a few banters. Don’t think we were really that compatible, he was too opinionated for me, but most of the times I enjoyed having conversations with him. Friendly jokes and benevolent banters with Charles; he’s been class representative for five years, once together with Max.

: ̗̀➛ Max Verstappen - the lonely, misunderstood genius. Didn’t give a crap about school and spent his free time riding motorbikes and getting hands dirty with engine oil. Everybody knew he was original (he had a lot of other hobbies and interests) and all my teachers always felt challenged by his way of thinking. Not afraid to speak up, at all. We’d never talked in five years, but during the dinner we had with all the professors before our finals, completely drunk, he sat next to me and started asking me things about my life. He seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say, but I think he struggled following the conversation since I had to repeat myself at times (he didn’t even hear a tipsy friend of his calling his name twice. “UH?! What?!”). It’s one of the deepest conversations I’ve had in my life. I think in another life we would’ve been good friends, at least. Elected class representative and we still don’t know how but ngl, it didn’t feel that wrong because we’ve always known he’s got that… plus.

: ̗̀➛ Lewis Hamilton - the dreamer. Not very focused on studying, but chased his dream of becoming a dancer like crazy. He was insanely good - like, national level - and skipped a lot of school days to attend competitions. Pretty energetic, confident, mr brightside; always blasting music through his wireless speaker whenever we got out and vibing. If he knew you had a dream, a passion or a special hobby, he’d push you and encourage you as much as possible. Incredible motivator and coach. S t y l i s h     a s     h e c k . Could rock anything but chose to beat us all every single day. Really good friend of Charles. Actually chatted with everybody, but wasn’t really that close with a lot of people.

: ̗̀➛ Alex Albon - the surprising kid. A mediocre student throughout the years, but actually a math and physics enthusiast and genius. He started to show signs of his abilities only in the last year and a half. The only one actually knowing what he was doing with formulas lmaooo Surely wasted in the type of high school I was in* and he acknowledged making the wrong decision, but he didn’t know back at the time he liked physics that much. One of the most chilled out and laid back people I’ve met, really pleasant to talk to. Would often find ourselves in bad situations and look at each other as to say: “It’s a mess, but nothing I hadn’t expected to happen anyway”. The defeated-but-we-already-knew-when-we-started resigned duo. * we mainly studied humanities. We also had physics and chemistry classes, but there are other types of high school more “science” oriented, which would’ve been way more suitable for his skills. #badchoices

: ̗̀➛ Valtteri Bottas - i haven’t figured him out. Like, he was pretty basic and easy to talk to, but had so many hidden interests. Currently studying aerospace engineering. Part-time cosplayer. His instagram posts have descriptions we’re still trying to decipher. Sometimes perceived as a low-key genius, others acting like a fool. I honestly don’t know what to think of him, he just confused me a lot lol.

: ̗̀➛ Bonus: Mick Schumacher - first love. From another class, but the same high school. A bit reserved at first, but the ultimate sweetheart. Thoughtful, polite, calm, soft-spoken, kind, just- you get it. Awkward hugs, talking on a bench for three hours as a first “date” and arguing about who’s going to pay for breakfast (‘cause I couldn’t accept him being the one to pay, like, we were just friends). That was the first time I felt the need to shower someone with love without caring about being reciprocated, at all. I’ve been in the friendzone - voluntarily - for 3 years only to get to know from a shared friend that he had got together with a girl four months prior but didn’t want/ didn’t know how to tell me. To this day he doesn’t know a thing. Not in love with him anymore, but unknowingly gave me the best thing I’ve ever felt. 

[survivor-trinidad-and-tobago]

Episode 2: "I want off this tribe right now. Put me somewhere else please god."—Raffy

In this round: Soca wins yet another challenge; Kaylee is medically evacuated (#KayleeWasPushed), leaving her boyfriend Tony behind on the island; four heroes step up to negotiate for a challenge win or an Extra Vote (and in the end, Soca winds up with both); Champ is outvoted when Soca adopts a dog; and some of Zee's lies come to light.

Soca Confessionals

Champ

Haven’t been super active so of course I’m nervous! Feel like I’m definitely lower on the total pole but also chatting enough to be safe a few rounds! I never wanted to seem like a big threatening player right off the bat so at least I’m under the radar! I feel like Zee and Eman are definitely the most well connected! Alex and Steven seem close! I love love love Alex omg I want him to be my number one so bad but I know I’m not his number one. I like everyone so far and feel like if we did go to tribal Nick would most likely be the first one voted off due to his inactivity. Now that I’m home I’ll be able to be much more active and build stronger connections to everyone. I feel good about our tribe keeping our numbers and once swap happens hopefully we have numbers to take out the other tribe

Eman

I was going to be a goat or a GOAT. Instead I'm a mama hen? Here's what's going on and what's on my mind.

1) I am currently closest with Zee and Champ and would die for either of them. Zee reminds me a lot of a young me and I just want to puff her up until she has all the self-confidence I never had at that age and she can fly on her own. Champ is just plain awesome and I trust her - and know her through mutual friends.

2) I am in two alliances - which is very much not anything I expected, but here we are. Which means I have connections with all but three people on the tribe--Lexi, Nick, and Steven. Sadly, I would LIKE to be connected with Lexi, but have gotten nothing from her in the outreach. Steven and I are chatting and I feel good about it - and in fact I feel awkward not being allied with him, but I'm trying (given as I'm doing so much other organizing with the challenges) to let others call the shots on the alliances and since Steven hasn't been suggested, I don't have the social capital to push for it. So if you're reading this later, Steven, it's not hard feelings, it's just the way things played out. And Nick - god only knows. Is he even a tribe member?

3) I don't like that Chris was voted out on the other tribe - of course, who knows what was going on but the first thing I see is age, which makes me feel super nervous about how it's all going down and my own position. And also Zee said it was going to be Tanner, so . . . was she fed misinformation, was she feeding us misinformation, or did things go down differently between the summit and the vote.

4) No seriously, what do we do about Nick - do we put him into a key role and make him an easy sacrifice if we lose, or do we carry him in a sitout position (which would kill me quietly)?

Nick

Sat out the last challenge, all my teammates had my back. Technological difficulties aside, trying to get back into the GAME.

Zee

I am not a primadonna girl, but the primadonna girls think I am, and so I must perform. By this I mean, I woke up at 6:30am and saw that the delegation was locked in, and that apparently, at 3am I have to attend a finish the lyric challenge. I really wanted the TV screenshot, but both Nick and I were offline so at least they didn’t choose to sit me out. I hope we can pull off another win, but a part of me really wants to see where the tribal lines are right now. But then again, I still trust nobody, I don’t think anyone here is loyal to me, and I have no way to know if any info anyone gives me is true. I’m taking everything with so much salt that I’ve got sodium poisoning. I’m keeping a lot of information close to my chest, and we’ve got another excursion coming so my extra vote might come to light, but then again, maybe not. I doubt people would assume that I made up a disadvantage. Also, people are being quiet, almost too quiet. Sure most people are offline for most of my day, but even when they’re not, nobody seems to be talking to me. I’m in two alliances but we’ll see if those hold me through to the merge.

As far as advantages go, I found a DOGGGG. I want to name it Frikki, and I will if he becomes a just me dog. I think he'll become a tribal dog though, I think everyone has to vote. I also don't know what he does but even still he's so cute and I'm glad the callout was for a dog and not for falling off a cliff or something. Right now I've got a Transparency Advantage, and Colin's extra vote, and Frikki(which will forever be his name in my heart.), and I'm putting all my choices into a document so I can remember what was where when the merge comes, so that if it's the same, maybe I'll get lucky and know where to find advantages. Last night I suggested an idol hunt doc to Kaleigh, and she thought it was cool, and this morning I made two idol hunt documents with half fake info. I said that where I got my disadvantage was a Food Vendor Ticket, and I omitted the Nylon Pools bit. Kept the food stand where I found Frikki part though, because everyone knows about the dog anyway. I sent Kaleigh one info doc, and I sent Mother Hen another with some sweet message or another.

MH put some info into the document I sent them, about their hunt, and it seems like they went a route I haven't been, but annoyingly it doesn't tell me much, since they said they got "better bird info" or something along those lines. I'll probably have to do my due diligence along that route at some point in time, but it costs 5TT$ which I can only assume stands for 5 Tribal Tokens or some other fun name, and I don't think I have any tokens yet, so I'm going to stay away from paid options for now. But I'll have to double back that way sometime still. Now that I've got more info on my document, I'm going to go back and take new choices that could earn me tokens and stuff, and maybe I'll get some info from Kaleigh and MH about their hunts too.

Kaleigh just put some info into the document but again, I don’t trust it. It seems awfully incomplete, like it’s hard to imagine she just got NOTHING at all from her hunt, not even any information? At least when MH said they got nothing, they said they got better bird info or something. Tomorrow I think I’ll have to decide where to go after we figure out what happens with the dog, but I’m most interested in taking boat one and talking to people on the beach. That or going back to the food vendors, though I think maybe I’d need to pay for something there, so I should probably figure out how to get money first. Uncle Billy’s Beach necessities makes me think that maybe I can get something better to hike pirate’s bay, but who knows. Not me. Anyway you’ll prolly hear from me more after the challenge ends, so nervoussssss aaa. And Edgic came out? Wtf is ittttt. I must crack it. Like I’m studying the voynich manuscript, how hard could Edgic be? But yeah I kind of want to crack it so I might take a go at seeing who I think fits what vibe and going from there.

Kolby

Lexi

I’ve now mostly talked to everyone on my team. Kolby and I worked together on the Movie Quotes challenge and won, and the tribe as a whole ended up winning the challenge - I’m so relieved because at this point I have no idea how eliminating someone is going to play out!

Kaleigh

okay wow things ARE DEVELOPING! now i think my closest allies are zee still and also steven rly climbed the ranks! we body doubled the other night while we were researching our screenshots INDIVIDUALLY and we got to talking - he’s been doing these games for ELEVEN YEARS SO THAT’S COOL I GUESS.. I WAS LIKE I FIRST HEARD ABOUT IT LAST WEEK!! but we chatted on video which is like obvio0usly a quick way to build trust and now i’m like ok steven and i have talked a lot and we are good. everyone else… god i don’t know. i don’t KNOWWW! steven was actually v helpful bc he pointed out were on day like 3 or 4 or w/e and we have a long way to go and shit is gonna change quick when we gotta go to tribal. so that made me feel good that i don’t necessarily need to be like BUILDING ALLIANCES LEFT AND RIGHT!!! though i wish i was… or i wish other ppl were trying to build alliances w me. istg zee is gonna win this whole thing. i love her and can’t imagine voting her out ever (or even being able to GET the votes) but if we don’t… she’s gonna take home the win i swear. gosh look at me worrying about stuff weeks away! umm anyway i am glad our team won and uhh hopefully we keep winning forever. i swear zee might have the idol.

Steven

Tony

The screenshot challenge PISSED ME OFF only because it took me waaaayyyy too long to guess a Supernatural clip. Eman invited me into an alliance with Alex, Kolby, and Zee! So far it’s going well and I’m feeling very supported by them. I think I made a name for myself in these last two challenges. Hopefully I can keep it up and make it the finale!

Alex

Ahhh I want to get out some pre-challenge thoughts cause I'm all nervous about being on the hero task now. I would have preferred someone else volunteer but given that it was only me and Eman who floated their names, it is what it is. If this is a superhero thing like I suddenly guessed it could be I might be in a little trouble, though. I would have liked to have worked with Champ on the song crew just to build that bond a little more versus already (officially!) being in an alliance with Eman but it didn't seem cool to try and assign a mystery task to Zee or Nick, especially with how sporadic Zee's gaming hours seem to be and how quiet Nick has been in the game so far. Nick is the only person I haven't at least introduced myself to, which I feel like I should do, but also, he hasn't reached out to me, and he feels like an easy potential first boot if it comes down to it.

--

Shit. Well that's certainly a twist. It's kinda hot, though. Like gnarly idea, AJ and Trin, if you came up with it. I guess it's a good thing I'm already working with Eman so we'll hopefully be able to have good talks about what to do. The fact that it's Colin and Tanner def gives me pause though after Zee said Colin made it sound like Tanner was gonna be the first Calypso boot, or at least that Colin was targeting him. So I don't know what changed over there.

--

Well, it pays to be a hero. We'll just see how long I stay one. THAT WAS SO TV SCRIPTED I'M SORRY BUT I DON'T REGRET IT LMAO. WHEN IN T&T. Okay, so I have to recalibrate my entire game so far after that Summit with Eman, Colin, and Tanner. If Colin was telling the truth about him and Zee, and Eman and I think he was, Zee is gaming wayyyy harder than we realized. She's super nice but I fell for her "I'm just here to have fun!" routine hard. I guess I'm glad she's in my corner for now but I definitely have to keep on my toes going forward because if she's playing like this on Day 3 who knows what she'll do come swap or merge. I'm working super well with Eman right now but we both know the other is gaming and I don't know if they've thought about what that means for us down the line but I have. They've admitted they play more heart than head, so maybe I can use that to my advantage if it comes to it. Wow, that does sound villainous. Maybe I am a little more cut-throat than I thought. I've never done an org before, though, but knowing myself I very may well end up playing more heart than head, too. The one question mark I have with them is their relationship with Tony. He's the one member of our five that I haven't really talked to, so I don't know how much they talked for him to feel comfortable becoming a member of our alliance, but that summit I think definitely tied us together pretty strongly for now.

Eman

I'm a facilitator, not a dictator (or so I hope). Which means that I am very glad to have gone to bed and woken up to discover that someone else (someones else) finished the assignments for the pop culture challenge, so I didn't have to be the one organizing everything two games in a row - I just started the process, because I can't stand chaos (I can't stand chaos, WTF am I doing playing the world's most chaotic game??).

Nick is still MIA and I STFG if we lose, I hope he gets the boot. Heck, I'm almost tempted to suggest we throw the challenge so that we can give him the boot, but throwing challenges never ends well, and so I shan't do so.

Meanwhile, Alex and I are here on the hero challenge, and I kinda think we're in a no-lose situation (but that's way too close to a no-win situation).

A) If we give up the point, it's not likely going to cost our team the win . . . but we get an advantage.

B) If we keep the point, we'll look like we did awesome in an incredibly difficult challenge (the heroes challenge, after all). I suggested to him that we make a show of really holding fast to whatever we want and then ultimately letting the other team have it so that we can not only not lose but also earn some good will come merge. He didn't push back, but he didn't exactly jump on the idea either . . .

Also, gotta figure out what to say to the rest of the tribe when it's over. Esp as the other tribe members will be going back to their tribe and we gotta keep stories straight because people WILL compare notes.

Also, can I just say that I really wanted to have the no-y-chromosome alliance going, but I'm actually getting better vibes from the unnamed alliance of five. I think I'm probably oversharing with people I trust, letting them into my thinking and gaming out the options with them . . . but I'm not good at dissembling, and better to win people on my side with honesty then have them KNOW that I'm thinking shit through and wonder what I'm keeping from them, right?

--

welp . . . yeah . . . um . . .

First of all - THIS IS WHY I DIDN'T WANT TO RUSH INTO ANY ALLIANCES.

Second of all - THIS IS WHAT I MEANT BY I WAS PROBABLY BEING TOO TRUSTING.

Third of all - THIS IS WHY YOU DON'T LIE. Concealing and keeping information is one thing, but out & out lying is only gonna come back to bite you.

**record scratch** You're probably wondering what the fuck I'm talking about. So lemme back up a bit. As we all remember from my previous confession, Alex & I were in the heroes challenge, which was basically a whole thing where we had to negotiate with the other team on who was going to walk away with the point and who was going to walk away with the advantage. Alex and I strategized and decided we didn't care . . . but we were going to make the other team work for it. And in working for us they gave us dirt. And that dirt wound up being that my confession about being too trusting was prescient. Because Zee is not trustworthy - and even though she's been trying to get close to me and really sucking up (actually to a degree that it made me feel a bit awkward, but I thought she was sweet & naiive, so I wasn't going to say anything bad about her), she was always asking just a bit more than she was giving and, I kept trying to hold her off--gently. Welp, turns out she lied! Completely prevaricated. And not even in a good way where you say something in the main chat and then something else to your allies. Nope. The girl not only got a leap on the idol hunt, she got two votes. Girl's playing fucking hard with no self check.

Now, the upside to all of this. I have information. I'm closer to Alex (and pretty sure I can trust him, though there's one element that I need to figure out and that's with some of the coded messages Steven & I have been sharing). Oh, yeah, that's the other update - Steven and I are continuing to mend our fences and rebuild broken trust and I feel good about it. He's come right out and said he wants to work with me, and told him I was working with others, but that I was open to it . . . and he suggested that he was having conversations as well and that it might be with the same people. So where am I now wondering if maybe some of those other people might be Tony and/or Alex. Which I could get behind. Hmmmm . . . (So glad this isn't gonna come out until after the game and I'll probably laugh myself silly with how off base I was)

Zee

Short confessionals are in girls, get with the programmmmmm. Ok so here's the sitch, we won again by some miracle act of god, but the next challenge is three days long. That's infinitely too long for a challenge. Anyway everyone is so quiet and I'm kinda sus but like if I get voted I get voted, I'm still gonna try to play a spectacular game

Alex

Not me talking to Eman and Tony about how things feel quiet like 30 minutes before the tribe swap. This isn't worst case scenario by any means, I've still got my entire alliance, plus Steven who I've been also talking game with, but I finally got to talk to Champ today and I was SO ready to work with her. We had an awesome video call for like an hour plus and talked game and TV and traveling and she was like, "right away when I saw your bio I knew I wanted to work with you!" Like, being her number one and everything. And I was already thinking of her as my number two after Eman. And now she's swapped over with Lexi and Nick who have been suuuper quiet in game so far so I'm just hella nervous for her. I'm hoping that the three of them will be able to stick together but I have no idea... I'm excited to be a winner pick for now, though! That's super rad! And, like, yeah! I have been playing a good game so far!

Eman

8:41 PM, I chat Alex the following "It's too quiet; I feel like something big is going to happen."

9:01 PM, Tribal swap goes down. I'M FUCKIN' PSYCHIC, YA'LL . . . Now maybe I can manifest a win for myself, too. But I'm sad, Champ had just gotten back online and I was REALLY looking forward to playing with her. Also, one more thing . . . how has no one but Steven, Alex, and me (that I'm aware of) figured out that the disadvantage of the read receipts/reveal vote thing that Zee made up from her excursion didn't come to pass?? In fact, quite the contrary--we didn't even get to see the voting confessions! Anyway, I'm keeping that little nugget in my pocket until I need it.

Calypso Confessionals

Astyn

Raffy

I'm in an alliance with Jack, Drea, Colin, and Astyn. We decided to vote Chris based on a coin flip. All is good. Still want Tanner out

--

So it looks like my alliance was the only reason Tanner stayed in the game which sucks. Cause that just tells me that I should have just pushed for Tanner and things would have been fine. Everyone else was voting him anyways. I just hate how inactive my tribe is. I can’t have any real strategic conversations with anyone except Colin because everyone just says like two things every 8 hours. Like, I can’t talk strategy with anyone at all. But apparently there are all these MOR’s and CP’s and I’m like “Where??” Is the other tribe just having more fun? I just wanna sit down and talk to people about what they think but they’re all too busy or too dry. Like come on y’all. We’re playing a social game. You need to socialize!!!! Whatever. I don’t think we’re gonna win this challenge tbh. My tribe don’t seem like the sharpest tools in the shed. Like no one has even brought up that there were only 9 votes at tribal. So I have no hope that they’ll a) have enough free time or b) be knowledgeable enough to get through the challenge. I want off this tribe right now. Put me somewhere else please god.

Colin

WOOO SURVIVED TRIBAL. EVEN WITHOUT A VOTE. i'm so lucky everything works out for me

putting together a majority alliance really put me in a great position, like... my allies can just do all the work for me. they're the only competent ones on the tribe anyway.

I'm really excited to get to do this hero portion of the challenge. Tanner doing it with me is a nonfactor, I'm excited to get to meet two more people of the other tribe and form bonds there for the swap and merge. I'm already thinking late game here.

I don't want the advantage here. I'd much rather take the point and try and win the challenge. I also have leverage in the form of information for Alex and Eman, who are doing the hero portion for Soca. Advantages are great, but sometimes just having information about who has advantages is just as important. I loved meeting with Zee, but at the end of the day, she did steal my vote and two allies are better than one. I'm sure they'd love to know that someone on their tribe has double voting power.

overall my strategy in this game is just to make it to merge and make it to where everyone wants to keep me around for as long as possible.

Jack

--

Drea

Day 4: well well well, calypso lost another challenge. shocked? no. disappointed? no. I had a feeling some of our tribe members weren’t going to deliver. Jack and I ATE the song lyric challenge. Our target person for next tribal is Tanner, because quite frankly we’re sick of the deliverance of nothing from him. Is that mean? Yes, sorry but not sorry because how are you going to confidently message me with a chip on your shoulder only when we lose a challenge expecting me to vote with you? Good bye Tanner. I’ll be spinning in my desk chair like you did last tribal. My closest allies are currently jack #1 Raffy coming close for #1 and my group alliance the power rangers.

Colin

WE LOST AGAIN FUCK

Kathryn

We're only on challenge two and it already feels like it's been a wild ride! I can't believe we lost two challenges in a row! щ（ﾟДﾟщ)

Well, actually I kind of can because I'm probably dragging the team. I didn't really understand how to play for the first challenge (I mean, I understood, it just took some time to adjust, time that was wasted), and for the second, it relied on me having strong points in pop culture trivia. I do not have this. I'm sort of old school, and most of the music, movies, and even tv shows I like are from back in day (like way back). I would've been a weak player in all categories ( ಥـْـِـِـِـْಥ).

I'm quite proud of the fact that I got any points, seeing as I only recognized "1" screenshot (I was timestamping screenshots of tv shows), and the rest I had to heavily guesstimate. It was not an easy challenge for me, so I'm glad I tried my hardest and actually pulled in some points for the team! ᕦ(ò_óˇ)ᕤ

So, at this point I'm pretty sure my biggest enemy is myself. If I can stop tripping over my innate dumbass nature, I think I can turn my play around (into something way more helpful for the team). Everyone's really nice, so I want to help them get as close to winning as possible! (•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑

Raffy

After losing the challenge by a SHOCKING amount (I’m hard side eyeing you Kathryn and Astyn), my alliance wants to go after Tanner this round. They haven’t really been connecting with him and see him as an intense game player person. So they wanna get him out. The other name out there is Kaylee who Tanner threw out for being inactive. I don’t mind either way, but we’ll see how it goes

Tanner

My strongest ally’s are jack and Colin they feel connected to me

Michael

Right now my strongest allies are probably Jack and Raffy, we really haven't had to make a difficult choice yet so we're still kind of coasting. My target is Tanner! And only because he just makes sense for my game. Andrea and Raffy seem to be pretty vocal but idk if they're "threats, threats" you know. So far my strategy is being nice and chill, trying to get people in my corner, so when it's time I can orchestrate a move. Idols ...No clue! Never cared for idols

Jack

Hero Challenge VOD

[rachelarobinson]

Project #4

Artist Statement:

I honestly don’t know what my thoughts behind this were. If you watch the videos, I was a bit rushed in terms of me not wanting to take an insane amount of time sitting and doing paper mache on myself and I also couldn’t really breathe that well. If I had more time and were able to experiment more then I probably would’ve paid a lot more attention to detail and spent time doing even more and possibly even my whole torso in paper mache. My process behind this piece was I first used the leg of a pair of pantyhose and put it over my head (hence the struggle to breathe). I then had some paper mache already prepared and just started covering my head and chest with it, simultaneously making more when needed. I think had some hair (unbraided hair from two years ago that I got for braids) and just started sticking it to my head. I think I wanted to try to look like some horror girl kind of vibe but it honestly looks kind of goofy still. I put the weird filter stuff over just to add a little more to it because I wanted natural lighting but it didn’t fit the vibe as much so editing was my way to go. I’m sitting and typing this as I am covered in glue still even after trying to scrub it off so I will be trying again. The videos are 12 minutes each (edited and unedited) and I chose to take screenshots from them since the videos showed more of the flaws in this performance (me not covering the back of my head and just sticking to the front, struggling to find stuff since I didn’t remember where I put things/I couldn’t see well, etc) as well and the very random and awkward sounds in the background (my heavy breathing lol, my dog scratching at my door). But the videos do show the short process so I will upload them in a different post. I would want to try more performance art like this though with more time and more materials in the future for sure though!

[lilygreyham]

Fundamentals 1: Week 5

22nd March

We were given a homework task this week to find two images, one that would be selected, cut out, and then superimposed onto the other one. Exactly what we just practiced with the hummingbird but now with the freedom to choose our own images. I really didn't know what to do for a while but then had the idea of finding a realistic dragon image and putting it onto a grassy landscape (game of thrones kind of stuff). Here are the two images I am going to use:

The first thing I do is work on selecting the dragon to create a cut out. I create a copy of the background image of the dragon and get to work. I used the magnetic lasso tool to help me quickly go over the outline of the dragon to create my selection. The magnetic lasso tool really helped me with the awkward edges and it was fairly easy to control and delete points if they went off track. Here's what I ended up with after creating my mask:

I knew it wasn't going to be super tidy so I placed the mask on a layer background that colour matched the mountains in the background landscape image so that I could see which areas I needed to erase/ blur out. Unfortunately I forgot to take a screenshot of what the dragon looked like before I erased all the white ares around the outline but here's what it looked like afterwards:

I'm ready to place the dragon onto the landscape photo so I copy and paste it onto the image:

I feel like it doesn't quite match the lighting of the landscape so I open up my curves palette, ensure that it will only effect the mask, and make slight adjustments to the brightness of the dragon by making the shadows slightly darker and the highlights slightly lighter. This creates some more intense shading on the dragon which suits the shading of the landscape a bit better. I also wanted to adjust the saturation of the dragon as the landscape is quite vibrant and I wanted to see if making the dragon slightly more saturated would help it fit into the picture (even though I'm very aware it's not going to look super realistic because it is a dragon). Here's how the adjustments turned out:

The image below is my final result. I am actually pretty happy with how this turned out. I knew it was going to be hard to make the dragon seem like it was actually flying around in the grassy landscape but I think I've done well given my new experience and skills that I learnt today with Photoshop. I think if I were to add more to this I would want to add a shadow on the grass that is underneath the dragon to make the image a little bit closer to appearing real. I did play around with trying to make a black copy of the dragon which I turned upside down but after fidgeting around too much and not being happy with how it looked I eventually called it a day and gave up. Overall, this was quite a fun homework task and it showed me how I can mess around with Photoshop tools in my own time to improve my skills.

[alexsfictionaddiction]

Review: Influential by Amara Sage

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book other than what I took from the obvious clues on the cover. While it was a fun, insightful book, I don’t think it did anything different, which was perhaps what I really wanted.

Almond Brown has over 3 million followers but very few real life friends. Her mother has been putting her life online since before she was born and now everyone thinks they’re owed a piece of her. When Almond starts getting threatening messages, it only further confirms that the internet isn’t where she wants to be. But a big skincare company want to sign Almond and her mum Eve up for a big partnership and it could bring in a lot of money. Almond must decide what really matters and who she can really depend on.

Almond’s experiences really hammer home the realities of being online. Outwardly, Almond is a charismatic, happy, beautiful influencer but her falling apart has to be done behind closed doors. She goes through some very dark stuff over the course of the book but she doesn’t feel like she has anyone to offload to. I really wanted her to get help for her trolling situation because it escalated into incredibly dangerous territory but she keeps it all to herself. It’s very upsetting and frustrating to watch.

Almond’s mum Eve really irritated me. She is a typical social media mum but she is also wholly invested in curating and controlling her daughter’s career and image. The more power that Eve exerts over Almond’s accounts, the less Almond there really is. I think lots of people can relate to their parents trying to steer their lives in a certain direction, even if they’re not being plastered over the internet without their consent.

Callie is Almond’s ex-best friend but the supposed reason that they fell out was so dumb. I couldn’t believe that Callie had decided to distance herself from Almond because publicly available images of Almond had been screenshotted by a guy that Callie was seeing. It was nothing to do with Almond at all but apparently it was enough for Callie to decide to call it a day on a 17 year friendship. Um... what?

The romance between Almond and a guy called Joss was very cute. It was easily my favourite aspect of the book because they were both so awkward around each other. They really were a great match, so watching their friendship develop into something more was really lovely. 

In many ways, Influential is a exposé on the life of a teenage influencer. It sheds light on the unsavory side of being internet famous, which is perhaps something that young, aspiring social media stars don’t consider. It is also a story of finding your tribe and learning who you really are in the aftermath of a life that hasn’t been chosen for you. While I loved the romance and the side character of Heather, I think I wanted more resolution from the trolling storyline and something a little bit more unique.

[scarlettriot]

Stood Up

You (Y/N) get stood up from a date and Kaminari decides to do something about it.

Pairing: Kaminari/F!Reader

Contains: Fluff, Flirty Denki, Established BakuSquad Friendship

Warnings: 18+ Below the cut, Minors DNI! Swearing, Electro-Stim, Overstimulation, use of pet names (cuddle bug & cutie), oral (F receiving), consensual recording

A/N: Well, here we are with the third in my Stood Up series. There is also Bakugo & Kirishima if you're interested. This one took me way too long and it's also my first time writing Kaminari at length. I hope you all like it :)

Word Count Starting Below: 2,461

You slipped your foot into the silver heels you had picked out. Something a little fancier since this was a first date after all and you wanted to make a lasting impression. Not only that but this was your first first date in a while. Being a Pro Hero made life busy and dating difficult.

Practically the entire day leading up to this very moment revolved around you either getting ready or babbling with excitement to your closest friends.

An alert chimed on your phone with a text from your date, a smile sliding onto your face expecting to read some message about how they were on their way and that they'd see you soon, but that wasn't what you were met with.

Instead, it was a screenshot of your Instagram page, multiple of them actually, all of you and the ridiculous photos you took with your friends but mostly with one Denki Kaminari. The most recent of which was from a tea shop he met you at just earlier that day so you could show him the shoes for your date.

The message below was simple and more than enough to leave a sour taste in your mouth, this isn't what I want to see when I'm supposed to be taking you out tonight. What, one date a day isn't enough? Why are you even dating? Does your blonde boyfriend know?

You giggled at what they were implying, quick to explain how these were all your friends, they had been since high school! They are people you spent what little free time you had with. Especially Denki, your best friend since you were 15!

That joy you felt started dissipating within the next few messages. You hadn't even had a first date and they were already jealous, and that was something you didn't have room for in your life. So, you slipped the heels off your feet and put them directly back in the box to return when you had the time. Tight black jeans and fitted top were exchanged with a hoodie and sweats although your makeup and hair stayed done, you didn't have the energy to undo your hard work.

Instead, you slid back into your computer chair, your headset snuggly back on your ears and before you notified everyone you were back online, you took a moment listening to the chatter of your friends.

"Shitty Hair! Fuckin' pay attention!"

"Yeah, man! We're getting slaughtered over here!"

"Less yelling at Kiri! More shooty shooty!"

"All of you are hopeless..."

Eijiro chuckled out an apology that was accompanied by a lighter giggle also coming from his mic. "Think this is gonna be my last round for a bit, guys."

"You're so fuckin' whipped." Bakugo scoffed, before screaming profanities.

"Is it whipped if I'm the one who's wanting to get her into bed though?"

You clicked your mic back on then. "Hey, remember last week when Kats forgot his push to talk so we all heard him getting head and we party whipped because someone couldn't focus?"

"You better shut the hell up right fucking now!"

Everyone else roared with laughter. "Yeah! At least I have the decency to mute myself!"

"Hey, wait a sec, why are you online, Y/N!" Denki noted, "You should have already left!"

You screenshot your messages to the group chat because it was far easier than just explaining the ordeal.

"Cute shoes." Eijiro and Kyoka commented at the same time.

There was a lull as their game ended and the messages were read.

"Ya don't need 'em if they're gonna have their head so far up their ass like this."

"I agree." Hanta chimed in. "They're not worth your time."

"Still, sorry they turned out to be a shit." You could hear the frown on Kyoka's face, "I know how excited you were."

"Right, you doin' okay, Y/N? I can stick around and we can all shoot some things!"

"Thanks, Kiri but I'll be just fine! Go spend time with your girl!"

One by one, everyone signed off. You pulled up Spotify and Stardew Valley, something of a comfort for you to get lost in for the rest of the night.

Less than an hour later, you noticed your phone lighting up with your best friend's familiar smiling face. "What's up, Denki?"

"Open your door! I have my hands full and don't wanna put everything down to get my key!"

You sprang from your desk and rushed to your door. Sure enough, on the other side was Denki with bags in both hands and his phone tucked between his ear and shoulder. You grabbed it and a bag before he had a chance to drop anything like the klutz he was. "What's with all this?"

"I feel bad."

"Why? You didn't stand me up?"

He fiddled with the edge of a paper bag. "Yeah, but, we both read those messages and no one said anything but they didn't just call our group out, they called us out.

"Denks, it doesn't matter to me-"

"But, it does to me! You were so excited about this and I got in the way, unknowingly but, still! So, I gotta make it up to you now!"

He pulled out take-out boxes from your favorite restaurant. Two bottles of your favorite wine. Your top three favorite movies and video games, and a board game you both had been meaning to try. "I mean, if they think I'm your boyfriend I kinda gotta live up to the hype, right?"

You really wanted to insist that none of this was necessary. That just because some person that neither of you really knew that well, assumed something about your relationship that didn't mean he had to blame himself for it.

But, you had to admit, this was really sweet. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to you that he knew everything you liked but it was nice. Instead of sitting across from a stranger, making awkward small talk, and trying to learn about one another, you were barefoot in your kitchen, laughing with your best friend while he plated dinner and you poured the wine.

Formalities were out the window. Both you and Denki were eating dinner in your living room, laughing and drinking just as you'd done a million times before. You snapped a photo of the delicious food on paper plates, toasting good times with your cheap wine, ready to post them to your Instagram.

"Gonna make them more jealous..."

"I think they made it pretty clear they don't want to see me so why should I care?"

He shrugged. "I just thought they might, you know, come to their senses that they obviously lost."

"I don't really care either way." You wandered back into your kitchen, putting away the leftovers, "They can forget I exist or they can stalk my page like a creep. If someones' gonna try and tell me I can't be friends with my friends or just not listen to me, then I don't want them in my life. No matter how good-looking they are."

Denki watched you from the sofa, a bit of a lopsided grin on his face that had butterflies taking flight in your stomach. "What?" Laughing to hide the bit of a crush you always had on the man. It was unavoidable you told yourself. His personality was infectious and had 15 year old you head over heels.

He pushed back bright blonde hair back off his forehead and just shook his head. "Nothin'. Uh, what's next? Video game, board game, or movie?"

You peaked on the counter at the options. "Well, we probably should have checked this but the board game needs at least four people to play... guess we'll have to save that for our next game night. Is a movie okay?"

Of course, it was.

You brought over the DVD with a refill of wine and he pulled a blanket down off the back of your sofa.

It really didn't take long, just fifteen minutes or so, and you were curled up into Denki's side. You'd make grabby hands for your wine glass and he'd pass it over with that damn grin again.

And not long after that, he'd pulled out his phone, angling it to take a picture of the two of you. "What are you doing?" You could see him on his own Instagram, tagging you, with the caption, Check out my cute cuddle bug.

"I thought you didn't want to make them more jealous."

"I decided I don't care either. You're mine tonight, their loss. And since you're mine tonight, I get bragging rights." He snapped another quick picture of you rolling your eyes at him, and then he kept snapping them.

"Denki! Why!"

"Because you're cute, cuddle bug! I like having all the pictures of you that I can!"

Even as you tackled him back down on the sofa, pinning him below you, he still managed a photo. "Bet if I post this one, they'll really get the wrong idea."

You could have moved. You were the one on top of him and you had his arms above his head. You had the power here and yet you just lingered above him.

"Y/N? Not that I'm one to complain about having a beautiful person such as yourself pinning me down, like, it's kinda hot, but..." Looking down into half-lidded golden eyes, you wondered why you had to become best friends with such a damn flirt! "Are you gonna take advantage of this situation we're in or are we just gonna keep dancing around this for another decade or so?"

You couldn't have heard him right? No... no this was your brain playing tricks on you because he certainly hadn't had that much wine tonight. You sat upright on his lap. "Another decade then, Y/N?"

"You- ha- you should stop that, Denki."

He leaned up, moving his arms around you, "Gimme a good reason to and I will."

You didn't have one. And not just because you've been in love with him for ten years but also because he was your best friend. The only reason to not go through with it was the possibility of losing your friendship if something bad were to happen but, you really didn't think anything would.

Denki might have been a serial flirt but he was surprisingly loyal in all the relationships he'd been in, not that there had been all that many serious ones.

"I'm not hearing anything." He teased, his face getting closer to yours. You could count each and every one of the faint freckles that littered the balls of his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. "But, I promise, if you tell me no, I'll stop, won't push this any further."

This whole thing seemed like a frickin' whirlwind, happening faster than your brain could really process the situation but you didn't want it to stop either. You wanted to take it further, didn't want to say no.

Which was why you coiled your arms around his neck and kissed him deeply. There was that small little buzz of electricity that tickled your lips when he'd kiss your nose or cheeks that was now playing on his lips, on his tongue when you welcomed him in.

He leaned back again, pulling you with him until you were both a pile of needy hands and breathy pleas. Everywhere his hands roamed you felt that faint trail of shock against your skin, making the little hairs on your body stand on end.

Clothes were shed, tossed haphazardly around your living room, both of you pausing to laugh when Denki managed to land your hoodie over a lamp. His attention was drawn back to you quickly though, still perched on top of him but now he had your chest on full display since you'd forgone a bra when your date canceled.

Electrifying tongue twirled around your nipples, sensitive normally, now it felt like you knew what it was like when he fried his damn brain. He was eager, relentless even, pulling and sucking, another hand giving your other breast a similar treatment. He had you so focused that you let out a broken moan when slender fingers found their way into your panties.

"Fuckin' hell, Denki."

The bastard winked up at you, nipple still between his lips and before you could retort, he sent another small jolt through you.

You were blatantly grinding down on his hand, reaching behind you, you found him completely solid, barely being contained in the tight black boxers he wore. You had enough sense to tug them down and wrap your hand around him making his teeth sink into your soft flesh, whining when you stroked him.

"Y/N..." He whimpered, his hand momentarily distracted from his ministrations gave you enough time to shift in his lap to scoot forward putting his cock in front of you. In one swift motion, you had his length between your slick. "Oh fuck, cutie!" Golden eyes were squeezed shut while you moved along him, feeling that pleasant curve he had, you could only imagine what it was gonna be like to have him inside you.

"You're being a little tease, ma-makes me wanna do all sorts of things to y-you."

He was kissing your neck, your chest, shoulders, and arms, anywhere on you that he could reach. His hips bucking up into you, just trying to hit that perfect angle.

Strength and agility were something most overlooked when it came to Denki Kaminari but when the man wanted something bad enough, he found a way to get it.

He had your ass rising up in the air with a harsh thrust of his hips and a small squeak from you, giving him exactly enough time to scoot down on the sofa so you were sat atop his face. If you complained, he didn't hear you. Denki already had your thighs around his head and his tongue devouring you completely.

Little shockwaves rocked you while you cried out his name, hands fisting blonde locks just trying to stay upright.

One orgasm from you apparently wasn't enough, neither was two but on the third, Denki finally relented, allowing your heartrate to come back down and your gasping breaths to come in more steadily.

You slid back down his body, his erection now smack against your ass. His hair was recked, face completely flush but he had the biggest grin on his face that you'd ever seen.

Denki kissed both your cheeks, "You are so amazing, cutie!" Kissed your lips, "You taste better than anything I've ever had!" And one more on the tip of your nose. "Doin' okay?"

You nodded, starting to really gather yourself again, and by this point, you really just wanted one thing.

"I wanna... Denks... can I take care of you now?"

"Sure, cutie! How do you want me?" The wiggling eyebrows had you rolling your eyes and pushing him on his back again.

It took little effort for you to position yourself above his cock, and with how slick you were, his bright pink head slipped right inside. He held your hands while you scrunched up your face, sliding all the way down him until he was completely sheathed within.

The curve was immaculate. Hitting in just the right way that had you moaning with just a couple thrusts from him. Before long, you were eagerly bouncing on his cock. Riding him hard so he filled you up each and every time.

You barely registered him reaching for the coffee table, his phone now in his hands. "What're you doin'?" You practically slurred, slowing only slightly. He tapped the camera lens with a wicked grin. "Seriously?"

"We could make 'em really jealous now..."

Somewhere in your brain, you knew your date wouldn't give two shits, in fact, this probably would have only validated their thoughts about your's and Denki's relationship but with his cock stuffed so deeply into you, kissing your cervix in the most beautiful way, you really didn't give a damn.

You and Denki put on the best possible show you could think of. You were overstimulated, sore, and completely elated! He balanced the phone against the wine bottle so neither of you had to try to hold it.

This way he could play with your breasts or squeeze your thighs while you dug half-moons into his chest. Shocked with the playful zaps he sent right to your core.

Your makeup you'd didn't feel like taking off now ran down your cheeks with tears. Your hair was a mess thanks to him pulling at it.

Denki had you howling through another two orgasms, telling you how perfect you were, how nice you felt squeezing him so tightly, your nails felt so good against his skin.

It was only when you collapsed against his chest did he hoist your hips up so he could ram into you, pulling out just at the last second with a strangled cry of your name.

He wiggled himself free, grabbing a towel from your bathroom and cleaning you both up before stopping the recording.

"You're, hey you're gonna send that to me right?" You asked when he handed back your hoodie off the lamp.

He dropped a kiss on your lips, plopping down beside you on the sofa again and you noticed your email already up and the video uploading. "Obviously, we share all our videos and photos. Why would this be different?"

[kkusuka]

Haikyuu kinks setter eddition <33

here is the ace eddition 

here is the Middle blocker version

Includes: Kageyama Tobio, Oikawa Tooru, Sugawara Koshi, Atsumu Miya, Semi Eita, Shirabu Kenjiro, Kanji Koganegawa, Akaashi Keji, Kenma Kozume,  Yahaba Shigeru and  Keishin Ukai

Cw: pet play, degradation, humiliation, cock warming, cuckolding, bare baking, public sex, photography,   (those are the more serious one, every thing else should be fine <3) 

and here we go!

oh he is so pretty

Kageyama Tobio

Oral

It goes both ways too

He could append the rest of his life in between your thighs and that’s that

But that would mean missing the slice of heaven you give him when you go down on him

And he doesn't think he could live without that, you're just that good 

Little secret for you : he will literally be putty in your hands if you suck his balls, it will literally send him into outer space 

Vanilla sex

NOT IN THE BAD WAY

HE LIKES IT FOR A GOOD REASON

DON’T KILL ME

He just likes to be in love with you 

It's his awkward version of love making, but he’ll burn up if you call it that

Just looking you in the eyes and softly thrusting in you 

Holding your hand 

Soft kisses and whispers of love 

AWWW he’s so soft for you.

Cockwarming 

This is really only foe when he wants to have sex

But also wants to watch old tapes of volleyball games

Normally tricks you into it, he’ll say he wants to fuck on the couch, y’all start to do it and he just stops gets you on his lap and watches

You don't like that too much

But when he harshly thrusts up everytime you whine telling you he won't let you cu for a week

Then you start to behave

But no worries he’ll eventually let you grind on him like whore, and he’ll play with your nipples until you've came

Your still not moving tho

Sensory deprivation 

This is a control tactic 

He goes all you for this

When he wants control he gets it 

The most common thing when this side of Kags comes out is having you kneel on the floor

Well kneeling with your legs tied in the position, your arms tied behind your back

with earmuffs and a blindfold

With a vibrator torturing your poor hole. 

Oh! And either a spider gag or a ball gag!

It's just you and never ending pleasure until he wants to indulge <3

(look at him walking, he does it so well) 

Oikawa Tooru

Public sex & Humiliation

Specifically riding 

Sitting you on his lap and pretending nothing is going on, while he’s really 8 inches deep

He’ll make you reach down and folder his ball to help HIM get off, for you? Well i guess you’ll just have to bounce a bit now wont you!

Knowing that to everyone else you two just look like a regular couple enjoying a bowl of ramen makes him love defiling you in public even more. 

Aw. Are you embarrassed? You can’t be that ashamed if your fucking yourself on me

You never know how far he will take it either

One time when you were at dinner with Tooru and some of his friends, he had sat you in his lap and spread your legs for them to see

You were so embarrassed, even more when he started cooing in your ear about how much of a show whore you were

You couldn't look his friends in theirs eyes for a few hours

Gangbangs/ Cuckolding 

You already know he believes in sharing is caring!

And he sure knows how to share!

You're just too perfect to not share with Makki, Mattsun, and Iwa!

And have you seen his friends, you’d like to give it a try

And he practically begged you to do it, and you can't deny a pretty boys puppy dog eyes

No one can deny the puppy dog  eyes

He never thought anything could beat the feeling of being on the court, but seeing you trying to fit Mattun in your weeping hole and deepthroating iwa may just do the trick

Watching his friends fuck you may just be his favorite pass time

Cum eating 

H e  i s  a  w h o r e 

He tries to tell you it's to make you “clean” 

Yup, he sucks all of his friends cum out of you to make sure you're all his. 

Oh! Sometimes Iwa will cum in your mouth and make Tooru make out with you until all the cum is gone between the two of you!

Praise 

This is practically in all aspects of life

But when hes fucking you he wants to hear how amazing he’s making you feel

Yeah, his dick hits that perfect spot doesn't it? 

He wants to hear it

He wants to hear EVERYTHING 

His hips feel good against your thighs? Say it and loudly too!

Sugawara Koshi

Slight pet play

He really just wants someone to take care of

And what better way to do that then have his puppy by his side. 

And it keeps him grounded

He’ll be all frustrated then he just looks at you

On your knees looking back up at him

And all of a sudden everything is ok again. 

Body worship 

Mostly from him to you

He just thinks you are so perfect

Sometimes he just wants you to stirp so he can spend hours just exploring your body

He’ll lay you down and just tell you how beautiful you are over and over

When he’s in a caring mood everything he does will be accompanied with a sweet compliment 

Just let him do his thing <3

Caregiver 

We saw this coming 

Suga-momma will do anything for you

Had a bad day, ok he’ll let you use his cock to get off

You’ll feel better. 

But, this is everyday life too

He sometimes helps dress you up.

He packs your lunch for work,  always with a little note expressing his love for you

He just loves to know that you are comfortable and that you feel loved by him all the time. 

Slight medical / doctor 

I just feel like he wants you to be “healthy” 

He’ll have a whole set up too

He’ll strap your legs up and “examine” his baby

And once he is sure all is well, 

He’ll just fuck you then and there

if only he were real

Atsumu Miya

Dirty talk / Degradation 

This is literally cannon-

He calls you all the names in to book

The favorite? He can't bring himself to choose 

They all have different tones!

He does like to use “Cocksleve” more than often!

If you didnt know any better you would truly believe that he only thinks of you as a hole to fuck. 

“ yes, clench just like that Cum-rag, you're too good at this”

“God, you’re hole loves my cock, i should just keep you here and fuck you or the rest of your life, leave you dripping in my cum all day and night” 

He just LOVES doing this act

"Are you my slut?"

"Yes"

"Tell me you're my slut"

"I'm your slut"

"Say it again"

"I'm your slut"

He could live just hearing that everyday (not really but he says it to show how happy he is-) 

Overstimulation  

A built in ego boost

He loves seeing you messy and  begging

He doesn't even listen to what you're begging. More? Stop? 

Yeah well he doesn't listen anyway, he’ll do it until he wants to stop

Just hold your legs up, let him see your slutty hole and let him work

He’ll make you feel good, he always does :)

Dacryphilia  

You just look so goddamn pretty

He literally makes you cry to get to comfort you

As in comfort i mean fuck you to sleep

He doesn't do it that often but he always makes it worth it when he does

Is it bad that he likes to have you sob on his dick?

He’s not a monster tho!

Your consent is key!

(we stan a king) 

Pet play 

Puppy

He has a full leash for you

But when he feel especially cold he makes you eat on the floor 

And out of a bowl :(

But only when he’s in a seriously bad mood, but just having you listen to him so weak makes him feel so much better!

Just let him indulge in this, it makes him feel better that he’s in control 

Extra little thing for tsumu

He records you two 

He doesn't even bother to put them in a hidden folder either

They are just in between all the regular pictures

AND he screenshots your  your nudes, prints some of them out and tapes them to his wall

Samu thinks you look very nice :)

he his the meaning of pretty

Akaashi Keji

Toys 

He loves to have you rides dildo in front of him

Or he’ll have a bullet vibrator in you while grocery shopping.

He plugs you up anytime he’s not in you. 

You can bet that if he’s not fucking you you're either fucking yourself, or being fucked by a little machine

And there is a method to his madness

But he will never tell you

He does all of this to see you, he likes to watch you and all your faces

You just look so adorable clenching your eyes shut and blabbering about nothing 

He just like basking in your beauty  

Oh he is so precious (and so are you) 

Light bondage 

He really only does this to show control

He can't let you get too full of yourself now

You’re still all his.

And he’ll put you in your place any second

He gives you control, and you need to play by the rules

If not. He’ll just tie you up and not look at you for as long as he see fits

You should’ve just listened to him

Cockwarming  

Akaashi is constantly working!

Sometimes he just wants you near him when he gets his work done

You’re also a calming factor to him

Sometimes he get so stressed and can only respond to it by thrusting into you a few times and kissing hickeys into your neck

But after the first time, he fell in love with it!

Watching a movie? 

He wants to be in you

But he’ll hug you close and press you against him, and he’ll cuddle into you

You guys have even fallen asleep while doing it

(oh to fall asleep while cockwarming Akaashi) 

Cuckolding  

Again, he works so much

And sometimes he just doesn’t have the energy to fuck you :(

Well thankfully, he has a best friend who is always very pent up and ready to fuck!

He could tell you weren't sure at first but after him reassuring it was fine and being non-stop fucked for 3 hours by a professional volleyball player

He could tell you liked it. 

So, when he feels like he won't make you feel as good as he can, Bokuto is already on the phone walking out of his apartment!

like a little potted plant

Kenma Kozume

Cockwarming 

Gamer boy wants you as close to you for as long as possible. 

Sometimes he resents that he streams because he can't have you on his dick

You also help to manage his game ginger

When you're there he doesn't yell as much or throw is controller 

Instead he places the remote down, he takes a deep breath and hugs you

He’s like a cat when he gets like this

He’ll be nestled in your neck- practically purring

Before continuing his game.. 

Cuckolding 

In simple terms 

He likes watching Kuroo fuck you

Like he REALLY likes seeing Kuroo dick you down

We all know he’s not the confrontational type, so when you’re being bad, his only opinion is to call his best friend

He cat tell you like it too because you take any chance you can to act up

But he always makes sure they you know your all his before the end of the night. 

Photography 

Being someone whose life revolves around social media 

It is absolutely no surprise that he likes to have visal pieces of you to take with him wherever he goes. 

 He specifically likes mirror nudes, with those cat ear thigh highs that he got you.

You remember one time he went on a trip to another city and asked you to send him some stuff

And in return he sent a little video of him jacking off, and thus it became a tradition every time you were away from the other. 

Slight Pet play

Mostly leashes collars and pet names. 

he does not take it that far,but he likes to know his kitten listens to him.  

The worst it got was when he put a dog leash on you and walked you around the apartment when Kuroo was over

You did receive the teasing of your life but good kittens don't speak

And you oh so desperately wanted to be a good Kitten for Kenma. 

tounge

Semi Eita

Under the influence 

You and I both know this man smokes-

And smoking just happens to make him horny

Like really horny

And if you're there next to him he’s not gonna jack off??

You guys have sex almost every time he smoke

And when you smoke? 

Oh he just cant help himself, you look so pretty eyes glazed over 

He’ll make you say so so much better. 

Recording

He has a folder on his computer

And another on his phone

And all saved to his cloud

Of what? 

Videos of you fucking

And a select few of sucking his dick

And what does he do with all of these? 

He watches them, sometimes with you in the room

Like you too are hanging out and suddenly he’s on his computer watching you bounce on his dick. 

Nudes

Clearly he likes to have you naked on a screen somewhere

And when he’s in public he can't exactly start watching homemade porn

so , he has a solution!

Make you send as many nudes as you can before he has to go out!

He has no shame for it either

One of your more “artistic” photos became his lockscreen

Which you begged him to remove considering his bandmates had begun to make comments about it. 

Hair pulling 

He does it all the time

And he does it  so hard too

Every time he hits from behind

His hand is on your head and already pulling 

Or when you suck him off

I'll pull your hair up, then push your whole head back down 

And repeat. 

oh my god i am in love with him

Shirabu Kenjiro

Degradation 

This man has a mouth

And a mean one 

AND a killer attitude

And he spares you none of that. 

He ridicules and demands, dehumanizes, and you love it

“Admit you’re just a whore, getting off on being a hole. Disgusting” 

Over the weekends, why you have nothing to do, he makes you stay around the house completely naked 

“You're flaunting all you have like a prostitute, that's what you want right? O be used like a street whore?” 

He’s just a mean guy :p

Humiliation

It just makes sense at this point

He really likes to makes you take off your panties when you wear skirts in public

Then he likes to have you bend down and grab things for him

Or 

He’ll have you sit, man spreading, but the catch is there is a huge hole in your pants, so anyone at the right angle can see everything. 

Of course none of this goes without witty comments and insults from bang boy. 

Bondage 

He loves having you weak in front of him

It’s a total power trip for him

Like everything the two of you do, it consist of you being a good whore and him being a big ole meanie

He’ll leave you tied up for hours with a fuck machine pounding your poor hole

Or hell have you with a spider gag in and he’ll make you grind into the floor

He’ll laugh at you 

Record you and he’s even sent videos of youtube some of his old teammates

This one time, he had you tied up to your bedpost and just left, he walked out of the room and you didn't even know how long it was until he came back. 

Pet play

You were mouthing off to him? Oh no they won't do

He pretty much uses it as leverage against you

Good pets so mouth off do they? 

No? What I thought.

Its a form of punishment mostly

Keeping you kneeling on the floor below him for hours while he studies

He makes you eat down there

And he’ll pet your head, but if you even think about leaning into it, he’ll stop 

He’s so mean :(

bird boiiiii

Kanji Koganegawa

Pegging 

He’s a baby

A pretty baby, that anyone would like a chance to ruin. 

He probably didn't even know what is was and still agreed, but no he begs for it

And who are you to deny your baby? 

It was kinda hard at first considering he was so big, but you managed, and are very good at making him cum, like really really good. 

Hand kink 

He really just likes to see how much bigger his hands are 

He’ll grab your handd and thread your fingers together, your hands are just so soft, opposite of his

He also likes to stick his fingers in your mouth and likes when he gets to suck on yours. 

Ddlb / Dmlb

There is no explanation other then he’s baby

And he needs to be taken care of, before he dose something stupid 

And you love taking care of your overgrown baby :)

He’s all smiley and cute when you do!

How could you resist? 

his grandpa is hotter but whatever 

you didnt see that.

Keishin Ukai

Public sex

In his store 

On the counter

Five Minutes before closing time 

It cannon

It's the risk factor for him, anyone can just walk in and see you fall apart on his cock

It's actually happened before, Shin wanted to do it and you agreed but didn't expect Takeda to waltz in and look directly at you. 

Yeah he immediately came then shoved you onto the floor to hide you from Ittetsu’s prying eyes

Daichi has also heard the two of you fucking in the gym storage closet, but chose not to say anything. 

Barebacking

It's like a primal urge to him

Condoms are annoying ang time consuming, you guys are gonna be together anyways might as well let him fill you like a good fuck toy

When he cums in you he also doesn't let you clean it out

He makes you stand there, face three inches away from your core, and watches his cum drip from you

Condoms won't let him do that, will they?

Humiliation

I mean he’s into fucking you in public, so this is pretty much a must at this point

He puts you in these positions so you have no choice but to be embarrassed

I mean what kind of slut like getting fucked in plain sight?

When you go out with him he makes you wear all these ridiculous outfits that practically show everything

And he makes fun of you when they look! 

Pornography 

Yes as in homemade porn

Why would he keep you all to himself?

Everyone deserves to experience that

And people love you!

If the thousands of comments and requests say anything about it!

oh to do that to Maddog

Yahaba Shigeru

Choking 

We all saw the scene with Maddog 

Come on, he’ll do that to anyone

I feel like he just likes seeing his hands around your neck. 

He likes how fail you are and how is ands just wrap around your neck

He knows where to squeeze too

He’ll hold your pressure point to the pint you think your gonna pass out

Light BDSM

Nothing to crazy, he likes having you tied up and ready that's all

Maybe eagle spread on the bed?

Or hell have you kneeling next to him, arms tied behind your back mouth ready and opened

The possibilities are endless

Fingering 

He likes his hands- 

But it's mostly about you

Seeing your hole up close

It sucking his fingers, like a good hole should

Plus he has better control with his fingers, so he hits all the good spots over and over until yout crying <3

[wh6res]

dreams come true | yuta

"soulmate or not. i don't shoot blanks." — ny

[ part of the my bloody valentine collection ]

tw. gore, blood, murder, death, killings, mentions of illegal organ trafficking, violence, mentions of stalking, minor character deaths, weapons (a knife and a gun), almost (??) suggestive content but nothing happened

disc. this is rlly fucked up and yuta is unredeemable. i dont condone such acts. this is all a work of fiction and meant to entertain.

wc. 5k

every time you sleep, the void is sickening. it was all you could see, lightyears and lightyears away of pitch black that made your head dizzy and your stomach dry heave. you've always wondered when you'll start dreaming about your soulmate's memories. they were like little secrets, another way for two people to be intimate without even being together. their days were flashing before their soulmate's eyes in the form of a dream. it's as if you spent the day with them!

you loved it, the whole concept of it. it sounded so wholesome and sweet and jesus fucking christ, you've always been such a hopeless romantic.

it was sweet until it turned sour. you loved it until you hated it. it was romantic until it turned downright terrifying.

you wake up covered in cold sweat, panting and gasping as if you've run a whole marathon.

moonlight seeps through your glass window, slightly left ajar for the midnight breeze to pass through – you walk up to it, pull it shut, and draw your thick curtains together. you exhaled, breath shaking as you tried to anchor yourself back to the ground.

with the only source of your light disappearing, darkness envelops you whole. for once, you craved the void. you want that void back if it meant never seeing something like that again – something straight out of your worst nightmare.

"119, what's your emergency?"

"uhm, i think… i think i just witnessed a massacre."

you reiterate everything you saw in the dream – the mahogany door, paint chipping off the drywalls. the doorknob was rusty, so were the hinges, and it made an ominous creak when pushed open. the light switches on, the first you see was a bunch of dirty ice coolers in what should've been the living room, it wasn't even the slightest bit organized. they were everywhere, and the floor looked grimy and disgusting, like there's a stain they can't seem to scrub off. only when your soulmate has stalked closer did you see the labels haphazardly taped on top of the ice coolers.

kidneys. livers. lungs. pancreas. intestines – you nearly vomited on the floor, trying to relay everything you saw to the operator on the other end of the call.

then came the gruesome parts.

their deaths.

they were five people in total. men clad in cheap t-shirts and pants, wearing all these similar leather jackets. some were well-built, ripped in the arms and thighs, but some were skinny, the jackets hanging on their small frames.

they never stood a chance against him.

your soulmate is agile, quick on his feet with outstanding eye-hand coordination. only equipped with a butcher's knife, but it was all he needed to take them down and send them knocking on inferno's gates. he was skilled, knowing when to pounce and where to slash his knife to maim but never to kill. by the time your soulmate was through with them, everything is bloody red. all the victims' eyes widened as they sputtered and choked on their blood – not dead, but dying...

because your soulmate wasn't done yet.

a killer should have a modus operandi, should they not? so he took out a desert eagle, stood before the bleeding bodies, and shot two bullets straight into their eyes. the finishing touch? carving a frown on their faces with his butcher's knife.

the operator only told you one thing after she's made you describe the place for them to track the crime scene down.

"double-check all your windows and doors."

because you couldn't be too sure, not when you have been granted a front seat to the sad face slayer's most recent endeavors.

the detective eyes you with a certain pity. maybe that's why you don't bother meeting his eyes. you sit still on a chair, camera blinking red behind him, the interrogation room is freezing even with the thick jacket you're wearing.

seven billion people in the world and you're soulmate's a ruthless serial killer who took it upon himself to purge the world of evildoers – he was playing god, no wonder the detective is looking at you like that.

"uhh…" he's awkward, fidgeting in his seat. "and you saw this all in a dream?"

"yes."

you've known him only minutes ago. mark lee was his name and he seems to be a subordinate of a higher, more experienced detective named kim doyoung. you don't know whether to feel offended or not for having a doe-eyed newbie taking care of the case, but you pushed it at the back of your mind, knowing his superior is watching on the other side of the two-way mirror.

"did you have, like, other past instances where you dreamt of him? of what he…" mark looked like he was going to throw up. "what he does to his other victims?"

you shook your head. no. "i've mostly just heard of him on the news. i don't think i have the stomach to find out in-depth what the killer does."

mark takes out a folder, features walking the fine white line between looking apologetic or wanting to say me too. "i'm, uhh, really sorry to hear that."

there's a sudden pregnant silence encapsulating the interrogation room. it felt like you were mourning for something, the chains of dread dragging your heart to the ground as it pounded against your ribcage. mark looked like he wanted to say something, but you swore his eyes darted towards the camera in the corner and decided otherwise.

"anyway…" he trails. flipping the folder open in one swift motion. "past sightings have given us the sad face slayer's name."

he slaps down a picture of a man, his hair raven and a permanent scowl etched on his face. the quality was shitty. it looked like it was a screenshot taken from zoomed-in cctv footage.

"nakamoto yuta, twenty-five, japanese, and has slipped one too many times past authorities that at this point, it's practically a talent."

and just like that, it made sense why you're here.

your lips pursed in contemplation, palms quaking as your fingers reach forward to inspect your soulmate's picture. "and… you want to use my soulmate connection –" you glowered. never had a sentence sounded so fucking cursed and utterly wrong. "– to catch him?"

mark can't look you in the eye. "yes. he's very elusive. his killings have been happening cross-country and, as you can see, have garnered national media attention. the police are hanging by a thread here. a month in his case and all we got is his MO, name, and that he has this weird god complex on him. if we can't catch him by the end of next month…" he shrugs. "the feds are going to interfere, sooner or later."

"so…" you trail, urging him to continue.

"so, we need as much information about him as we can get and your dreams about him will be able to provide that."

fucking great.

the much newer revelations of precisely who it was on the other end of the soulmate connection put a significant damper on your mood. you'd like to think your new little cop buddy who follows you around gives you the least bit sense of security, but alas, it doesn't. not when you've seen first hand how yuta took down five men all at once without breaking a fucking sweat – you absolutely refuse to call him your soulmate, you'd never accept a person with his nature as a soulmate.

you try to hide the bracelet mark handed you last two weeks ago, during your time spent in the precinct's interrogation room.

"please have this on you at all times until we catch him, okay? this is for extra measures, just in case something happens to the cop assigned to guard you. just press the little button here and we'll be there before you can even finish shouting 'help!' – hey, i was just kidding! what's with the face?"

considering you're now probably being hunted alive for snitching on a serial killer? mark lee, that was not funny at all.

"do you have to get inside the lecture with me?" you whine, shielding your face with your hair when you notice people shooting glances at the rather handsome cop they assigned to you. "it's not like he'll attack in broad daylight! and in a fucking classroom, for that matter."

jaehyun looks just about ready to hurl you out the window. "lower down your voice," he scolds. "serial killers don't pick a time and place, sweetheart. he kills when necessary and if it's fucking necessary to murder everyone in that classroom to get to you? he'll do it in a fucking heartbeat."

you sigh when the chair next to you screeches against the floor, the aforementioned male taking his seat right next to you. jaehyun felt more like a babysitter than a cop, who seems to have a habit of constantly inputting his not-even-needed opinions on the most superficial things.

are witness protection protocols like this?

it was a good thing that overgrown bat doesn't come hanging around in your apartment, but he does have the police car parked right across the building's entrance. judging by how meticulous and thorough he seems to be, he won't miss any face that comes in and out of the building.

you didn't forget exactly why you're under witness protection. for the cops to waste one good officer to follow you around, you needed to be valuable and being valuable meant sleeping through nightmare-induced dreams of what your soulmate does for a living. the scenes are so gruesome, so graphic and utterly gory, that you dart towards the bathroom first thing after waking up in cold sweat, draining all of dinner down the toilet bowl.

after dreaming of him in action a few times, you've now completely understood what detective lee had said regarding yuta's god complex. it was unsightly, yet there was a twisted sense of heroism to it. if there's one thing, he only gutted the bad guys – but that didn't make nakamoto yuta any less of a bad guy, himself.

i need to ask you a favor [sent 2:05am]

JJH: what? [received 2:10am]

often the nightmares were too much. too much that you thought of escaping its horrors by never getting a wink of sleep ever again – until you realized you're a witness and is probably the only chance for the seoul police department to catch that bastard.

buy me sleeping pills? [read 2:08am]

when you peep out of the window, you find an empty spot across the road where jaehyun usually parks the police car. twenty minutes later, you answer the knocking on your door. he used that little "code" he did for you to know it was him. jaehyun was glowering and muttering about how he wasn't some errand boy when he shoved the plastic bottle in your hand yet, you still thanked him nonetheless.

the pills worked like a charm. you managed to stay asleep throughout the whole night, ceasing those episodes of yours where you jolt awake in the middle of dreaming about the sad face slayer's memories.

life continued for you. it became a little bearable, but that didn't mean the horrific murders you see in your dreams are something you can get used to – you don't think you'll ever get used to the sight of him slashing his victims, the blood trickling like a goddamned waterfall.

today the dreams were different. anticlimactic, per se, if you compare it to the violence so utterly present in his memories.

the first you see were black gates, then it shifted to him ordering coffee in a café (amazing what a simple black mask can hide). it switched to him walking on a sidewalk, then he arrives at his destination, an apartment building – it wasn't too rundown, nor was it extravagant.

the serial killer takes the elevator and walks up to a mahogany door –

your room number is a blaring sight.

you couldn't be wrong, not when the 506 with the missing zero in the middle was a sight you saw every day, going and coming home from university.

that was your front door.

he was at your front door.

you jolt awake, ignoring the icky feel of sweat making your clothes cling onto your skin. ice creeps up your spine and freezes you over when you notice with a sinking realization.

those black gates are from the university you attended. that café is your favorite study nook. and that sidewalk is a route you take every day.

you clamp your hands on your mouth as tears roll down your cheeks in rivulets. you pull the comforters up above your head, fear gripping onto you with a vice-like grip as you sob.

it was in the dead of night, moonlight grazing the confines of your room and hours away from dusk. you finally utter those three words in a frightened whisper.

"he's stalking me."

as if having the overgrown bat jaehyun following and annoying you around wasn't enough, you now have another person keeping watch over you. mark lee, unlike jaehyun, may not be as ripped with muscle, but you heard from your cop buddy that the young detective has a few black belts under him. people at the precinct said that if they have to choose one person who can ever come close to the sad face slayer's agility, mark lee's your guy.

"you gotta be shitting me," you mutter, leaning close to jaehyun to whisper like high school girls talking about gossip. "he doesn't look the type!"

jaehyun, in turn, plays along and copies you. "yeah, true. he gets that a lot, i think,"

"guys, i'm literally in the back seat. i can hear everything."

the change hadn't been too drastic. at least mark was there when jaehyun proved to be difficult, pulling him towards the other way when the older male tried waltzing into your class again. "you don't need to sit next to her in her class! are you serious? there's one exit and entrance and we're on the fifth floor. breaking into that classroom will be the end of nakamoto's serial killer career!"

you shoot mark an appreciative smile, one he quickly returned before hauling jaehyun around the hallway. "we'll just be at the canteen, okay? press the 'lil button on your bracelet and we'll be right there!"

shaking your head with a slight smile on your face, you entered the classroom, sat in your usual spot, and did some of your readings from our other class to kill time. you hardly hear the screech of the chair next to you as it was pulled back. not like you cared much for whoever sat down next to you, but you can't deny there's that feeling of missing jaehyun when he used to force his way into the lecture.

"settle down! settle down, people!"

the professor enters and the class begins.

you were meticulous with your note-taking system. it's thorough, leaving no room for information to slip you. having already printed hard copies of the powerpoint presentation and simply jotting down some extra key points mentioned by your professor.

you were just about to raise your hand for a question when you feel something warm graze past your arm. you absentmindedly look down.

the breath is sucked right out of your lungs.

hi, soulmate

there, scribbled with an ominous red crayon on a small piece of paper. it was almost laughable how innocent it looked but when you follow the ring-clad hand, up the black hoodie he's wearing, and finally to his face—

"hi! i'm yuta."

his cheshire smile spikes up your heartbeat. it makes you want to throw up, makes you want to slam your head against the desk. the fight or flight hormone you have is making you restless, eyes pinned on the serial killer sitting next to you, scared that if you avert your gaze, he's going to take out that desert eagle and shoot you until your skull caves in and the bullets in his magazine empties.

"but judging by your reaction, i don't think introductions are needed, hm?" his tone is easy, conversational even and it shoots a freezing jolt of fear right up your spine. it makes you sweat profusely because you don't fucking know what to do, your thoughts in complete and utter disarray.

"just press the little button here and we'll be there before you can even finish shouting 'help!' – hey, i was just kidding! what's with the face?" you swallow, sneakily pressing the button without breaking eye contact with the serial killer sitting in front of you.

"look upfront. now." yuta orders and you nearly snap your neck as you turn your head with lightning speed.

"i thought i was above the soulmate rules, but here we are. my soul is either too tainted or too great to be tied to such trivial things, but oh well, we learn to work with what we have. surprisingly, i learned to like dreaming about how your day went."

you feel something sharp poking at your thigh and when you look down, he has a silver butterfly knife pointed against you. the precision of the angle he held it with doesn't slip your notice. one slice of that knife, no matter how small, and he'll be spilling your guts in this classroom.

a fat tear rolls down your face.

"can you imagine how much my heart broke when i learned you were spying on me? leaking information to that snobby detective? to those incompetent cops? bad baby, that was very bad of you."

"yuta—"

"you think the cops can save you from me?"

his other hand comes in contact with the nape of your neck, holding your head in place as he leaned down to invade your space. he scoffs, and you can picture that terrifying cheshire grin you've seen one too many times in your dreams.

the knife digs through your coat, the tip hardly poking your skin only because he doesn't want to drive it into you yet. how did he even manage to get inside the university? not to mention the weapons he possessed? shouldn't anyone be suspicious when they see a man dressed in all black, clad in jeans and a hoodie, into a university—

he even dressed the part. with that hood drawn up and carrying that one notebook, he looked fairly normal. someone who can easily blend in with the crowd.

you eye your professor, willing him to look at you but your soulmate is having none of that. you squirm when he drives the knife further, at the base of your stomach. with his other hand, he twirls a lock of hair around his finger. "now, now, soulmate. you don't want half the people here to get hurt, do you? unless... that can easily be arranged—"

"no!" you whisper, head jerking to the side to look at him humming in satisfaction. damn. out of all the faces he's seen contorted with fear, yours is his absolute favorite. with those pleading, glassy eyes and parted lips, yuta is tenting in his sweats.

"thought so," he chuckles. "let's get up. we're leaving. that old crook doesn't care if students just up and went in the middle of his lecture."

you don't want to think about how he even knew that because it implied attending the lectures a good amount of times. it's with sinking realization that jaehyun was right. if it weren't for him insisting to sit next to you, nakamoto yuta would've long gotten you in his claws.

you tried gathering your things until he purred into your ear.

"ah, ah, ah. you wouldn't be needing those with where we're going."

the hallways were empty, not that you had much time to scream for help when he had a knife pointed up your back, shoving you into the fire escape stairs. within the tranquil confines of the staircases, the sad face slayer couldn't fucking care less for your personal space.

he disgusts you greatly, he needn't do anything but stand there in front of you but you can already smell the long blood trail from his path. it reeks of rotting flesh and that infuriating god complex he had left a sour aftertaste.

"you know, i genuinely wanted to get to know you," yuta pouts, shaking the hoodie off his head. his hair raven, it's ends kissing the nape of his neck. he looked like he came right out of a shounen manga but the bloodlust in his eyes is something that can never be masked. "i detested the soulmate connection at first, i thought i should just kill you off because you could be my loose end."

his humorless smile is enough to give you nightmares.

"but seeing how sweetly normal and untainted you are made me hold back," the butterfly knife appears before your line of sight, yuta teasingly dragging the tip right down your cheek to trace your tears. "so, why did you snitch, baby?"

you shiver when he noses the side of your neck, inhaling your scent as his other hand hooks underneath your top, freezing fingers making you jolt. when you don't reply, his patience starts to dwindle. then again, he was never a patient man.

"answer me, you bitch. why did you rat me out?" gone is the playful lilt in his voice. the vibrations surge through you as his deep, demanding voice scares you shitless.

you feel, hear, and smell him everywhere. this wasn't like any nightmare. this is real, and you won't magically wake up on your bed, sighing in relief, knowing he isn't there, that it was all just in your head. no, this was very much real and there's absolutely no escape.

"i didn't," your voice cracks. "i didn't mean to—"

"bullshit!" he yells. you wail in pain when he slams you against the wall, head aching as it came in contact with concrete. "because of you betraying me, i nearly fucking got caught, and i never get caught!"

you were full out sobbing at this point, noisy and unsightly as the snot mixes with your tears. your only hope now is he gives you a quick, painless death and that he doesn't carve and mutilate your face like what he always does to his other poor victims. "i'm sorry! please... i'm so sorry. i was scared—"

he coos mockingly, tilting his head to the side as he inched his face closer. "aw, scared? my sweet little soulmate was scared?" he places the blade flat against your neck. as humiliating and degrading as it was, you almost peed on your clothes. "how about now? i'm sure as hell that you're fucking terrified for your useless life right now."

you cringe when his hand abandons the expanse of your stomach, no longer inching higher, finding its purchase on the hair sitting at the crown of your head. he holds you in place like that, forcing your head parallel against the wall, with his whole body pressing up to you that it's nearly suffocating.

"just one quick little slice," he taunts. you hiccuped when you feel the feathery light scrape of the blade moving against your skin. "you won't even have time to scream… but i'm sure we don't want that, do we?"

you forgot how to speak. forgot how to breathe. whenever your mind wanders, you've always thought about how you'll give this killer a piece of your mind, with the amount of fear and sorrow he inflicts upon other people. but you guess realities were a lot more different than expectations. the yuta you dreamed of meeting is in handcuffs, but fate is a fickle little thing.

"do we?" he repeats, slicing ever so slightly at your skin. enough to draw blood in droplets, never a waterfall.

"n – no."

he smiles. "you can make it up to me. do you want to make it up to me?"

the butterfly knife digs even further. a warning. and if you value your useless life, you should be smart enough to know what to answer. drawing a shaky breath, you tried forcing the ends of your lips up to a smile. "of course, yuta."

your voice breaks as your sobbing grips your body whole. the fear consuming your entire being like a parasite consuming the host. you would've shut down altogether if it weren't for the calloused hands gently gripping your face. "i know, i know. i see how regretful you are, baby. don't worry, i won't hurt you. you'll make it up to me."

anyone would be fucking stupid if you believe those words coming from a serial killer.

in your wrecked state, you barely register that he's pushing you down to your knees. skin coming in contact with the freezing linoleum floor as you refuse to look at what his hands are doing. yuta has pocketed his knife. the sound of a belt unbuckling in itself added insult to injury.

you stare blankly at his shoes as he shoves his bottoms down enough for his cock to show. if you squint hard enough, you'll see tiny splatters of blood in the shoelaces. whether or not he feels you're unresponsive, he doesn't show. maybe he doesn't care entirely. he takes one of your hands and used it to wrap around himself. he gasps, sharp, followed by a hiss.

you feel it throbbing and it strengthens the disgust you feel. no way you're going to give him the satisfaction of eye contact when you're already forced to blow this psycho.

"eyes up."

you sniffled, vulnerability present in the tone you speak. "i don't want to. please, don't make me."

if words alone aren't enough for you to follow orders, maybe you'll feel more motivated if held at gunpoint. it's unmistakable, the infamous desert eagle you've only seen in your nightmares. the last thing you ever expected is to be on the side where the bullet comes out.

the barrel is freezing as he digs it into the crown of your head. "soulmate or not. i don't shoot blanks."

your eyes looked up then. glaring as the tears rolled down your face. "you're a monster," you mutter under your breath. where you got the confidence to fight back is unknown.

"i've heard that before, be more creative next time," he holds your hair tight in one grip, shoving you forward, eye-level to his throbbing dick. "now… suck, baby."

"freeze!"

you knew that voice, you've been hearing it for the last two weeks. "jaehyun–!"

yuta cuts you off, shoving the gun into your mouth. the safety clicking off resonating in the tranquil room. it's deafening, and it makes you immobile.

"hands up. step away from the civilian." whether or not mark is nervous as he points the gun at the serial killer, he's doing a damn good job of hiding it.

yuta sighs, exasperated as he throws his head back. his raised arms came down to tuck himself back in his jeans, and the action made jaehyun's calm exterior crack. "i said, hands up, asshole!"

"chill out, motherfucker. i'm just trying to wear my pants." the serial killer hisses, glaring at jaehyun over his shoulder.

"mark, call back up already. what are you doing?" jaehyun mutters, side-eyeing the young detective whose gun shakes as he holds it up. the taller cop takes a step forward, eyes never leaving the notorious killer as he addresses you curtly. "(name), come here."

just as you plant your palms to the ground to push yourself up, one of yuta's hands shoves you down quick as lightning. "no. she stays here, with me."

jaehyun scowls, takes another step forward. "and what makes you think i'm going to let that happen?"

"i don't think. i know."

there's a constant ring in your ear as the gunshot temporarily renders you deaf. you've shut your eyes in utter fright, hands shooting up to cover your ears but it was too late. you refuse to open your eyes, you didn't want to see a dead body lying before you, even if it belonged to a heartless serial killer.

but when your eyes fluttered open, it's not yuta bleeding out on the ground.

"no, this can't be – jaehyun!"

it was a bullet straight to the head, no one could've survived a shot like that. his eyes are empty as he stares at you, unblinking, stoic. the color is yet to drown away from his milky complexion. but you can't even manipulate yourself into thinking that jaehyun's still alive. not when his eyes are empty, not when he just looks so lifeless.

it couldn't have been yuta who pulled the trigger.

his weapons were on the ground and the shot rang too fast. the sad face slayer couldn't have crouched down for his gun to shoot the cop, it would've taken too much time. and among the three men, there's only another person holding a weapon, and that was –

"great shot, mark."

the detective smiles, but with the blood splattered on his face, it looked cold. "told ya i've been practicing."

yuta hauls you up by the arms, addicted to how frail your body feels as it collapses against him. he's finally got his little soulmate in his arms. and he will never, ever let you go.

the cops lost – you've lost.

yuta, with a sense of victory coursing through his veins, took the liberty of trailing little pecks down your neck as he mutters, "mine, mine, mine!" but you couldn't care less about his display of mocked affection. not when the other person meant to protect you, turned out to be everything you think he wasn't.

mark must've felt the gravity of your stare as he crouches before jaehyun's bleeding body. grabbing the fallen cop's gun, he took it upon himself to empty the magazine. the lopsided grin he sends you broke your resolve more than yuta ever could.

"i'm sorry. it's nothing personal."

jenoluck (c) all rights reserved

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

More than just a game

Warnings: dark elements including noncon and rape, oral, fingering, doxxing, stalking, and other explicit content. 

This is dark!Jake Jensen and explicit. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: You find a new gaming buddy but he sees you as more than that.

Note: So this is my first Jake Jensen fic and it was lots of fun so let me know what you think and hope you enjoy. :D

Thank you. Love you guys!

As always, if you can, please leave some feedback, like and reblog <3

Special shout-out to @navybrat817​ for helping me with this idea

After too many nights scrolling through subreddits and searching for something to keep you distracted, you decided to bite the hook. Several other redditors agreed to hop on Minecraft and it had been a while since you logged in. You missed the almost relaxing ritual of mining and building.

You joined the chat, quick to hit the little microphone emblem as you listened to the voices in your headset. You learned long ago to keep your mic muted on the servers, especially with strangers. The last time you dared to speak up as a woman in a game chat, your DMs had become so overwhelmed you deleted and started a new account on Discord and changed your ID on Steam.

You were all given your tasks as players called out coordinates and you kept to chopping up the side of a mountain. You mostly worked alone, chatting through text instead of voice chat. As you placed a crafting table in your little mine, another player, JJ-Smooth, popped up and dropped some iron for you. 

He stayed close but you didn’t mind. A lot of players tried to work together the deeper they got and you were used to it. As you uncovered some lava, he dumped water before you could get burned and helped you hack up the obsidian. 

He thanked you on the voice chat but you knew any courtesy in return would earn you the attention of the entire server. So you dropped some gold for him and went on your way.

“I hear a zombie,” he warned.

You turned to hack up the undead before it could get you, only to be shot by a skeleton hidden on the next level. Another appeared and you died before you could hide, the bony villain killed by your ally as you watched your possession scatter over the death screen.

“Hey, I got your stuff,” he said as you loaded back up, “I’ll find you.”

You typed quickly in the chat, ‘sorry, mic busted, give me your coordinates and I’ll come to you.’

You waited as ‘JJ-Smooth is typing…’ appeared at the bottom and finally he sent the numbers. You hopped over the blocky hills and through the forests until you found the mine again. He was just outside and handed over all your tools and ration. He headed back into the mine and you followed him. This time, you began your own path in the opposite direction.

Before you knew it, you’d lost track of time. You sat back as you realised it was only you and JJ on the server. The silence should have tipped you off earlier. He was the host and you felt super awkward for staying so long. You typed that you were logging off for the night and thanked him. 

You hit the keyboard with your knuckle and yawned as you opened the screen, 

“God, it’s late,” you muttered.

“Hello?” he said.

Your eyes rounded as you looked at the mic symbol and the lack of red line made you cringe. You’d hit an extra button without noticing.

“Um, hi, sorry, I just--”

“Mic busted, huh?” he asked.

“No, I--” you didn’t know what to say, “anyways, I should--”

“So, you’re a chick? Is that why you mute?”

“Uh, well, it’s just… easier, sorry, I--” even if you weren’t trying to hide from gamer dudes, you weren’t the best at conversation.

“A gamer girl, nice,” he said and you sighed, “sorry, that sounded weird, didn’t it?”

“Mhmm,” you touched your bottom lip as you cupped your chin, “it’s late, I have to work tomorrow.”

“You comin’ back?” he asked, almost hopeful.

“I don’t know--”

“I won’t tell anyone,” he said abruptly, “promise, lips sealed.”

“I really don’t know if I can do this too much, I usually work early mornings so… yeah,” you said.

“I get it but you know you’re always welcome, hope you don’t mind if I send you an invite now and then. No pressure,” he offered.

“Uh, sure,” you shrugged, “okay, yeah, good night.”

You left the chat quickly and pulled off your headset. Shit.

‘I’m Jake by the way,’ a pm popped up, ‘gg.’

You typed back, ‘gg, it was fun’ and quickly logged out. You sat back and rubbed your eyes. Well, he didn’t seem like a total creep, maybe just a bit awkward but so were you. You shut down for the night and stretched out as you switched off the lamp. You were going to pay for your session in the morning.

🎮

A few nights later you got an invite to the server. You debated it but as it was Friday, you decided to make good use of the PC you’d saved up forever to build. You spawned in the middle of nowhere and built a bed before you found the half-finished settlement. You joined the chat but you must have been early as you were the only one there.

You headed back to the same mine, some work done since the first night, and laid your torches as you ventured into the depths. You jumped in your seat as a voice broke your peace.

“I don’t think anyone else is gonna join,” JJ-Smooth, or Jensen said, “you think maybe you’ll unmute?”

You stopped your mining and stared at the screen. You hovered over the mic button and re-read his name, he was the only other one there. You clicked and gave a strained smile to the screen.

“So, um, what’s the goal tonight?” you asked.

“Get some materials and go back to the settlement, keep building, oh, maybe we could try a portal, you ever gone to the nether?” he said but before you could reply he kept on, “shit, I shouldn’t assume, you seem like an experienced player.”

“Yeah, a few times, but I’m more a casual miner,” you went back to harvesting stone and ore.

“Ah,” he said, and it was silent for a moment, “so, you work again in the morning?”

“Not tomorrow,” you said as you focused on the game, “daycare isn’t open on the weekends.”

“A daycare, huh? That sounds fun, I love kids… not in a weird way but you know, I… urgh, I have a niece,” he said with a nervous chuckle, “nah, that’s cool though, sounds more fun than my gig.”

“Oh?” you turned and kept your axe moving.

“IT. You know, some people would be like ‘hey Jensen, why do you spend all your free time staring at a screen when that’s what you do at work?’” he scoffed, “well, who says I’m not mining there too.”

You wrinkled your forehead and gave a small laugh. He was rambling and it was kinda odd. You were happy for once not to be the strange one.

“But anyway,” he said, “I found lots of diamond over here. If we get some lapis lazuli we can build an enchanting table and get some sick armour.”

“Awesome,” you pressed your fingertips to your lip as you leaned on your elbow, “should try to head back before dark…”

“Hard to tell down here. How about you mine and I’ll keep an eye out for monsters?” he offered.

“Sure,” you agreed as he came onto your screen, “that works.”

🎮

Another week went by and you ventured back into the server a few times but not for very long as late nights did not mix with young children. The next weekend, you joined again on Saturday night and like the last few times it was just you and Jensen. You wondered why no one else was joining when the subreddit was so popular but you didn’t worry about it for long.

You mostly played in silence, Jensen did most of the talking and it was never about anything more than the game or his niece’s last soccer game. That night when you left the game, he kept typing on Discord.

‘I like playing with you,’ his message blipped up.

‘Same, thx.’

‘Really, you’re awesome.’

‘Thx :) Tired, gotta sleep.’

‘Sweet dreams.’

‘Night.’

You changed your status to offline and dragged yourself to bed. You opened your phone as you laid in the dark and went to the subreddit, you scrolled through the builds and screenshots of other people’s catastrophes. 

You came to Jensen’s last invite post from that night but all the comments complained that the world code was incorrect. Hmm, you should tell him next time.

You blackened your cell and plopped it on your night table. You rolled over and buried your face in the pillow, the light still etched into your vision. You fell asleep quickly and woke the next day to another invite from Jensen.

‘How about some Fortnite? If you’re into it?’

‘Srry, can’t, my mom’s expecting me for lunch.’

‘2 bad, maybe later.’

‘Maybe’.

You got ready to go see your mother for your usual Sunday afternoon visit and it went by like any other. When she asked you what you’d been up to, you didn’t mention the gaming, she was never a fan of it. When you got back home, Jensen was messaging you again. You didn’t open the notification and settled in to catch up on some streaming before another week of work.

Monday hit you like a train and you were glad you hadn’t spent the night mining again. If you had, you doubted you’d even be able to open your eyes. You got to the daycare centre and welcomed in the kids. You got them set up for the morning snack then cleaned up as Sandy took them over to the reading circle.

You wiped the tables and then did some painting before you went out for some play time in the yard. As you watched several of the children on the swings, you glanced around. There was a man across the street. You squinted through the chain link as he seemed to be watching but assured yourself it was nothing as he quickly headed for the corner and disappeared.

Inside, the kids were due for quiet time, some napped and those who didn’t, stared at the ceiling and yawned. You could have joined them but knew that wouldn’t be acceptable. The end of the day came and you helped the kids pack up their paintings and their sweaters. You waited in the yard with them as the parents showed up and handed them off one by one.

You waved to Danika as she clung to her mother and your eye was once more drawn beyond the chain link. The same faded grey jacket, the same glasses, and the hat with the frayed brim. It was a better look at the man. Was he looking at you? Why on earth was he hanging around outside a daycare?

“Sandy,” you turned and lowered your voice as she neared, “see that man?”

She peeked over and shrugged, “which one? The guy crossing the street?”

You looked up again and like before, he was walking away casually as if he hadn’t just been staring through the fence. You shook your head and huffed. “Sorry, never mind.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” she waved her fingers, “come on, let’s clean up.”

With the kids all sorted out, you went back in and tidied up the last of their mess. You and Sandy were friendly but like with any, you weren’t very talkative. You never really knew what to say but you were never unkind.

You pulled on your jacket and checked your purse for your phone and wallet. You checked the time and turned off the lights. You bid Sandy goodbye as she headed for her SUV and you took your usual route down the sidewalk towards your bus stop. 

You stopped short as the man was there. You were paranoid, he must just be waiting for the same route. You approached and he turned to watch you as you sat on the bench. He smiled and the dread sank deep in your chest. 

His rectangular glasses gave light to his blue eyes and a goatee trimmed his jaw. He was tall and well-built, you could tell even under his comic book tee. He was going to talk to you, another weirdo in the city.

“Hey,” his voice was chillingly familiar, “how was your day?”

You stared at him and blinked cluelessly. You looked around, it was only the two of you. You opened your mouth but you had to be wrong. He said your name and you winced.

“Jensen?” you breathed as you stood and squeezed the strap of your bag, “why? How--?”

“You weren’t answering me, I was worried,” he said, “just making sure you’re okay.”

“What the-- I don’t understand how--” He stepped closer and you backed up against the bench. “Don’t, I’ll scream.”

“Scream? Why? I’m just-- You know me, it’s me, Jensen.”

“You doxxed me?” you snapped, “what the hell?”

“No, I didn’t-- I’m just checking on you--”

“I don’t know you,” you said as your heart began to race, “so please, leave me alone,” you edged away from him, “and don’t message me again.”

You sprinted across the street and as you came up on the curb, you looked back at him. He watched you but didn’t follow. You could tell from there he wasn’t happy but the brim of his cap shadowed most of his face so you couldn’t guess if it was hurt or anger. You quickly spun away and continued down the next street to the nearest stop.

You couldn’t believe he’d just shown up like that. You couldn’t believe he would think that was okay. You couldn’t believe he’d think that much about you.

🎮

You blocked Jensen on Discord and left his world on Minecraft. That night you were shaky and nervous, afraid that he would show up at your apartment. Did he know where you lived? He must if he could figure out where you worked.

You didn’t open Steam that night. You paced your small apartment, jumping at every noise. Sleep didn’t come easily but in shallow spurts that left you even more tired. You watched over your shoulder as you walked to your stop and boarded with one eye on the door.

Work was little better as you found yourself distracted in the room full of toddlers. Sandy asked if you were okay as you kneaded play-do violently. You shook yourself out of your paranoia and assured her you were only short on sleep, not a complete lie.

You took out your phone when you stepped out for a small break. Your mom had called but you would have to get back to her when you had two hours to waste. There was another notification, that one from Discord, a friend request from JJ-NoRematch. It wasn’t hard to guess who it was and you declined it right away.

There were several others from Jensen, too. He followed your Insta, blocked; he followed your mostly empty twitter, blocked; and he even commented on your LinkedIn like a weird. You closed your phone and took a breath before you headed back into the kids, their voices rising in their excitement to go outside.

In the yard, you had another look around, expecting to see him there on the other side of the fence. You were slightly relieved when he wasn’t but still on edge. You joined a game of tag then watched several of the kids line up for the slide. You lost yourself in your job as you told yourself he must have gotten the hint, at least not to bother you irl.

Just like the day before, and every day, you left work and headed for your stop. He wasn’t there either and you sat down and phoned your mom, hanging up as the bus pulled up with a promise to call her again when you were home. At home, you felt almost normal again and checked your notifications; no more follows, no more requests, nothing.

Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday passed in a similar fashion. Each saw your anxieties less than the day before. You even resolved to open Steam and start a new world for yourself. You spent hours mining and almost fell asleep in your chair. When you nearly tipped over, you decided it was time for bed.

You slept better than you had all week and woke up before noon. You wanted to log right back on but you had life to deal with; groceries, cleaning, and of course, making that call to your mother you’d delayed the night before. After all that, you felt accomplished and you decided to treat yourself to take out, a rare divulgence.

You called the local Chinese eatery and waited eagerly for your feast as you turned on a new episode of your current binge. You played on your phone until the battery was low and had enough juice to buzz up the delivery man. You dug for your wallet as you went to the door and unlocked it without looking up.

“How much--” you asked as you opened the door.

Your eyes met a familiar pair, two blue gems behind a pair of narrow glasses. Jensen wore the same cap and held the paper bag of take-out with a smile. You grabbed the door and tried to swing it shut but he was too quick as he slapped a large hand against the peeling paint.

“It’s on me,” he said, “I love spare ribs.”

“What the--” you gasped as you pushed on the door helplessly, “please go away.”

“You’re not answering me,” he said as he stepped closer and forced you back as his body brushed against yours, “you blocked me and I can’t even get a hey, Jensen, how are you?”

“I don’t want you here,” you tried to shove him and he shouldered you away easily, “get out!”

He slammed the door and you flinched. He put the bag down on the corner table and reached back to twist the lock without a look. His eyes roved around your entryway and further into your apartment. He smiled as they stilled and focused on you.

“This place is cute… like you,” he said and you heard a slight hesitation in his voice.

You swallowed and backed away from him. You spun on your heel and ran for your couch. You reached over the back to your phone and unlocked it as the battery icon flashed. You had just enough juice to make the call. You dialed as you turned back to him.

“I’m calling the police so you b-better l-leave,” you warned as your voice and hands shook, “I me--”

He was quick and before you could pull away, he swiped your cell out of your hand. He scoffed and tossed it across the room. It hit the wall and landed screen down on the hardwood. You bit down and pressed yourself to the couch. You stared at him and kicked yourself forward as you tried to slip past him. He caught you and wrestled you back into the front room.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked calmly as you struggled in his grasp, “I’ve been nothing but nice to you.”

“N-no, you’re-- you-- let me go,” you stammered as he angled you around the couch. He pushed you down so you bounced on the cushion. You tried to push yourself up and he pointed his finger in your face and wagged it. 

“No, you stay,” he growled and wiped his other hand on his jeans. He was nervous, even if he was angry.

“Please, why-- what do you want?” you grasped the cushion and hovered at the edge of the couch.

He sighed and sat in the chair. He took his hat off and set it on the table as he ran his fingers through his short hair. 

“Good question,” he said as his jaw squared and his eyes turned to pinpoints, “better one, why did you block me?”

“Are you serious? You-- you--” you struggled to get your words out, your voice even more splintered by your fear, “you doxxed me, you came to-- to my work-- and…”

“I thought we were getting along. I thought you liked me,” he said with a frown, “I really did, you sure acted like it and-- I only wanted to make sure you were safe.”

“But why wouldn’t I be? I--” you shivered and crossed your arms as you withered beneath his gaze, “Jensen, this was only supposed to be online.”

He scoffed and stomped his boot on the floor. He shook his head as he looked to the ceiling and his anger bulged along his temple. He tilted his head and looked at you again.

“You know, for years, I have been a nice guy, I am a nice guy,” he pushed his shoulders to his ears as he threw his hand out, “I’m so patient and caring and you girls, you don’t even give me a second look.”

“Jensen--”

“No, really, I mean look at you, you’re no supermodel and yet it’s the same thing, ‘let’s just be friends’,” he spat, “but I watch guys all the time treat women like shit and they don’t have any trouble at all, they got them hanging off of them and I’m a creep for giving them a compliment or opening the door--”

“I don’t… know you,” you eked out, “you have to understand--”

“I don’t understand,” he stood abruptly, “I’m done trying to understand.”

He pulled his jacket open and slid it down his arms. You watched him sling it over the chair and as he turned back to you, you stood. He caught your shoulders and held you in place. His strength was plain in his grip as he squeezed then slowly moved his hands to cradle your face.

“I just wanna be nice,” he said as he leaned in. You tried to pull away but he moved a hand around the back of your head and forced your lips against his. He poked his tongue inside your mouth roughly as you tried to shove him away. Finally, he parted, his hands still firmly around your head, “wasn’t that nice?”

“Please,” you begged as he ran his thumb over your bottom lip.

His eyes searched your face as you stared back at him in terror. He sighed and dropped his hands back to your shoulders. He pushed you down to the sofa harshly and backed away.

“Fine, I won’t be nice,” he snarled as he took his glasses off and folded them carefully. He put them on the table beside his cap and twined his fingers together, loudly cracking his knuckles.

You blinked at him as your eyes grew glossy. You brought your legs up under you and pressed yourself to the back of the couch. You grasped the upholstery and turned as you launched yourself over to the other side. You stumbled as you landed on your feet and ran for the door.

You were yanked back as he snaked his arms around you and took you off your feet. You kicked out and screamed but it was cut off by his palm as he kept one arm around your middle. You scratched at his hand as he dragged you back to the couch. He pushed you face down onto the cushions and planted his knee in the middle of your back, slipping his hand away as he put enough weight on you to keep your voice suffocated.

“Listen, I know I look like some IT nerd but I’m a lot more than that, now don’t make me hurt you,” he played with your hair as he smiled down at you, “you try that again and I will shut you up and if someone hears you, I can take care of them too.”

You sniffed as tears pricked in your eyes and nodded frantically as it felt as if he would snap your spine. He pushed off of you and you stayed as you were, paralysed with fear. He sat and unlaced his boots one at a time. He looked up as he set them neatly beside the foot of the chair and he bent to catch your eye.

“Well?” he pointed at you and traced the line of your body in the air, “let’s go.”

You stared at him dumbly and he stood to pull his tee over his head. His torso was sculpted perfectly and his chest trimmed with hair that trailed all the way down to his pants. He stepped forward and tugged at the back of your shirt.

“You want me to do it for you, baby?” he purred, “I can help you.”

You swatted him away and sat up. You bent your legs to your chest and hugged them. “Please, I’m scared, just leave me alone--”

His hand rested on his belt and exhaled again. His fingers moved swiftly to unloop the striped belt and unbutton his jeans. He pushed them down, nearly tripping as he stepped out of them. He stood in his boxers, tented with his impatient excitement, and gripped his hips.

“It’s okay, baby, I know you’re shy, I am too,” he neared and you winced as he grabbed your wrist. He tugged on your arm and you resisted until he bent your hand back painfully and you cried out. He tickled your jaw as he looked you in the eye and tutted, “it doesn’t have to be like this, alright?”

You went limp and let him pull your arms apart. Your legs slipped down and your feet dangled above the floor. He got to his knees and pushed between yours. He slowly rolled up the hem of your shirt and bent to kiss your stomach as he bared the flesh. You trembled as he forced your arms up and swooped the fabric over your head. It fluttered through the air and to the floor as he cupped your tits through your bright pink bra.

“Is this so bad?” he asked as he nuzzled your chest and pushed your tits up. 

He glided the straps down your arm and slid your bra lower so that you popped out. He nibbled at your flesh and traced your nipples with his tongue. You sat rigid and let him explore your body, too terrified to move a muscle. He reached around you and struggled with the hooks, frustrated he snapped the clasps and the band came free.

He continued to play with your chest, his fingers crawling up and down your stomach and sides. There was a genuine curiosity to his touch and it sent a chill through you. His fingertips pressed to the top of your pants and he pulled at them as his lips travelled down to your hip.

He tugged on your pants and jerked your entire body. He tore them lower as he pushed you up and you lifted yourself to let him peel away the layer. He added them to the floor and toyed with the elastic of your panties. The little bow in the front drew his attention as he pushed your legs wider and ran his nose along the cotton.

He hummed and rubbed his fingers down your crotch, pushing the fabric to your folds as he teased you through them. You inhaled sharply at the tingle it inspired and he pressed firmer against you, flicking his fingers along your bud as he noticed how it made you squirm.

He gently pulled aside the cotton and you felt his hot breath against you. You pushed on his head before he could delve into you. “Please, don’t--”

“Shhhh,” he threw your hand away from his head and bent over you, “just relax.”

He dragged his tongue along your cunt and lingered around your clit. You clenched as it sent a thrill through you and he moved his lips against you, suckling at you bud as your breaths grew raspy. You pushed yourself against the back of the couch and dug your nails into the cushion.

He slid a finger along your cunt and circled your entrance. He rubbed up and down as he kept his tongue swirling over your clit and you swallowed back as gasp as he poked inside. He felt around and added another finger, stretching you as he carefully pushed them in and out of you in time with his mouth.

He lapped you up and you closed your eyes, desperate to resist the coil winding within you. Your legs tensed against the couch and you tilted your pelvis without thinking. He sped up, the noise of his mouth and your slickness filled the silence. You let out a puff and moaned as you slapped the couch. The waves rolled over your flesh and you came into his mouth with a pathetic mewl.

He stilled his fingers as he lazily teased you with his tongue. He pulled his fingers out and sat back, the heat between your legs cooling in his absence as he licked up your juices. He watched you as he sucked his fingers and stood. Your head lolled and you edged forward on the couch. You tried to stand but he caught you and flung you back.

“We’re not done, baby,” he winked at you as he grasped the top of his boxers, “go on, lay down.”

You murmured your refusal and once more tried to get up. You slipped onto the floor and shakily crawled away as he dropped his boxers to his ankle. He grabbed you before you could get around the side and lifted you easily. He turned you and shoved you down onto your back as he lifted a leg over you.

He straddled you and again his hands roved over your body. You smacked at his fingers weakly but he easily ignored you. He kept one hand moving along your curves as he stroked himself with the other. He groaned and shook as he stroked his dick. Your eyes followed his hand and you gulped, he was thick.

He moved his knees back and pushed them up beneath your thighs as he kept a hand planted on your chest. He ripped your panties down your legs and untangled them from your feet. 

He held you down as he ran his tip along your cunt, wetting himself with your coerced arousal. You groaned and grabbed the arm of the couch above you. You tried to pull away from him.

He pushed against your entrance and you looked at him in shock. You couldn’t stop him. His eyes were set between your legs as he inhaled and slowly eased into you. He gasped as he got his tip inside you and his muscles tensed. He bit his lip as he dove further in and you gasped as he filled you inch by inch.

“Shitttt,” he moaned as he reached his limit and you whined at how full you were, “oh, baby.”

His hand slid from your chest and he gripped your hips as he pulled back and thrust. You exclaimed and he did it again, slowly as he watched himself impale you over and over. You curled your fingers against the couch arm and your feet arch as you pressed your thighs around him. He lifted your pelvis high as he angled his dick even deeper.

“You feel so good,” he rasped, “oh, baby, you’re so good. Ahh-hh-hh,” his voice fizzled as your walls clenched him and you closed your eyes as you felt the heat building. 

He moved his hand along your thigh and stretched it over your pelvis, pushing his thumb to your clit as he kept his pace. He purred as you writhed helplessly against him and you panted through the rising ecstasy.

“Please, please, please…” you chanted, unsure if you were begging him to stop or for more.

He moaned as he sped up and you sucked your lip under your teeth as you neared your peak. You quivered as your orgasm crashed into you and you let out a strangled cry. He snarled and planted his hands beside your head as he leaned over you, his hot breath tickled your face as he pounded into you.

Your legs bent around him as his pelvis rubbed against you and the friction drove you to another climax. You held onto the arm of the couch as he fucked your harder and harder. He kissed you and nibbled at your lip as he groaned and hooked an arm under to hold you close.

“You’re gonna make me cum, baby,” he said against your cheek and you turned your head away from, “ah, here I--”

He spasmed and slammed into you. He took several long thrusts and stilled. He grunted and drew heavy breaths as he rested his weight over you. He grabbed your head and turned your head up as he pressed his forehead to yours. You kept your eyes closed as the flames slowly dwindled.

“Was that so bad?” he stroked your cheek and trailed his finger down to poke between your lips, “No, it’s what you wanted, isn’t it, baby?” he wiggled his hips and you hissed, “yeah, you want me.”

[strangerthings4theories]

Billy Is A Christ Figure, a.k.a. He Will Die And RISE AGAIN

This isn’t a radical statement. Literature and film teem with “Christ figures” who symbolically (or literally) die and rise again. Billy is just one of the Duffers’ additions to a long, venerated tradition.

Let’s dive in, shall we?

>>Billy’s story lines up with the Christ figure concept.

I really like how Christopher Lansdown explains it:

Christ figures in literature are - when done well - characters who relate to the rest of the story as Christ related to the world. [Salient features include...]

1. Saves the world from the effects of the misuse of free will. 2. Has a dual-nature where one of these natures is what allows #1. 3. Bridges the gap, in his person, between the two natures. 4. Sacrifices himself willingly for the sake of the world. 5. In sacrificing himself, takes the problems of the world into him and conquers them, thus saving the world from them. 6. Comes back from the sacrifice because of his other nature.

Billy’s storyline hits several of these notes already. First, he saves the world by sacrificing himself willingly. Second, he’s presented as having two natures: his corrupted monster-self (the bully in S2; the puppet of the Mind Flayer in S3) vs. his innocent child-self. (You could describe him as being human and divine too. I’ll get to that in another post.)

When he stands up to the Mind Flayer at Starcourt, he begins the process of integrating his two natures. That’s why he looks so childlike here: his innocent child-self is coming out for the first time in years.

All that’s left is for him to “come back from his sacrifice.”

>>The Duffers infuse Billy with Christ symbolism.

The most obvious example, imo, is the special necklace they gave him. The genius @aeon-of-neon​ figured out that his necklace is a Lady of the Pillar medallion - i.e., a depiction of Mother Mary with baby Jesus. 

On its own, the necklace tells an incredible story. It suggests Billy is symbolically the Christ child, and at some point his mother - symbolically the Virgin Mary - had the medallion blessed to protect her son. (I think we all recognize Neil wouldn’t give a shit about protecting Billy.)

The show reinforces that reading in subtle yet mind-blowing ways. In his last shot in S2, Billy is pictured in front of a Christmas tree. This associates him with the meaning of Christmas, which is the birth of a child who will save the world.

In the sauna in S3, Billy passes in front of a poster for the Hawkins Fourth of July parade. A lot of people have latched onto the “American” symbolism here (as they should - I’ll address that in another post). I’ve even seen people talk about the stars on the poster giving him a crown of thorns or saintly halo. But I haven’t seen anyone mention that the poster gives him a crown of stars like Mary, Queen of Heaven. 

"A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads." (Revelation 12:1-3)

Combined with the necklace, this small detail suggests his mother, aka the Virgin Mary, is watching over him as he battles the Mind Flayer, aka the Dragon.

Now look at this screenshot again--

See how prominent his necklace is in the frame? That’s not an accident. The Duffers had to direct and light this shot just right to achieve the desired effect. If you look closely, Dacre is standing in an awkward, unnatural position. I can practically hear the Duffers saying, “Shoulders forward, Dacre... a little more... now tuck in your abdomen and push your chest out... that’s it!” All while they’re trying to avoid getting too much light on the necklace. It needs to be well-lit but not washed out.

All that work was for a good cause. The shot suggests Billy’s mother is with him in his moment of sacrifice. He’s just reclaimed her memory, and now he’s honoring it as he lays down his life for the world.

Yeah, it hurts :)))) but there’s more to cover...

...such as Billy’s crucifixion poses.

The crucifixion pose is common enough in film that it gets its own entry on TVTropes. The first sentence of the entry? “It’s very common for a character who just performed a Heroic Sacrifice to be lying with their arms outstretched like the crucified Jesus.” 

We see that with Billy multiple times.

In the sauna, El lifts Billy in the air right before she deals the “death blow.” He hangs there for a moment, arms outstretched. My inner Christian teenager thinks of John 3:14-15: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man [Jesus] be lifted up [on the cross], so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

To really drive the point home, the Duffers put Billy in the crucifixion pose AGAIN, at the moment of his actual death, while he shouts at the Devil. (The Mind Flayer is symbolically the Devil/Satan. Stick a pin in that, we’ll come back to it at another time.)

The Mind Flayer then kills Billy by impaling him (Christ being impaled by the spear, anyone?), and Billy falls to the ground, arms outstretched yet again.

Guess who else dies sacrificially... and gets Christ symbolism at his moment of death?

It’s less obvious with Hopper; he isn’t shown with his arms outstretched. Instead, the Duffers give the crucifixion pose to Joyce right before she deals the “death blow.” She is in the pose on Hopper’s behalf.

Take a screenshot at the right instant, and the beams of electricity shooting out of the “key” machine even form a cross behind her. 

(This scratches the surface of another subject: the STRONG PARALLELS between Hopper and Billy. Stick a pin in that, too... *sigh*)

Well, guess what. We already know Hopper’s coming back. David Harbour even compared his return to the resurrection of Gandalf, the Christ figure of the Lord of the Rings:

"Gandalf the Grey who fights the Balrog and then becomes Gandalf the White. It’s the idea of the resurrection of the character. And mythologically, Hopper, in a sense, had to change. I mean, you couldn’t go on the way he was going on. He has to resurrect in some way. So it was a great opportunity to do that. So we’ll see a very different guy going forwards. The same guy but in a different vein.”

"[He] had to change... [he] couldn’t go on the way he was going on...” Doesn’t that describe Billy exactly?

»»————-　✼　————-««

Ugh, there’s a lot here, guys. I haven’t even touched on all of Billy’s Christ symbolism yet. I’ll have to save the rest for another time.

Until then, I’ll leave you with this very interesting song from Billy’s official Spotify playlist...

Muthafucka I’m back From the dead I’m about To raise hell Out of my coma I’m ready to show ya That season of my life is done...

»»————-　✼　————-««

P.S., all of this explains why Dacre proposed the idea that Billy’s mom was literally a virgin. It’s batshit crazy and makes NO sense... unless he and the Duffers were discussing Christ imagery for Billy.

»»————-　✼　————-««

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