#still tweaking her face in 2023!

[strigital]

back in NC after the latest patch and this time the game is a tad bit more stable so uuuh here, some pics of Jaxie's newest adventure!! again...

[babyjakes]

clear blue water.

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event | kinkmas 2023

prompt | watersports

pairing | soft!dark!daddies!steve rogers and ari levinson x little!reader

warnings | dark ddlg dynamic (soft!dark!daddies of captive!little!reader.) dub/non-con. shower scene. crying kink. moment of nipple play. thigh riding. clit focus <33 + fingering. forced orgasm. watersports (unexpected wetting.) mocking/humiliation. praise and encouragement. aftercare (cleaning off.)

word count | 1,205

an | they have one of those big fancy walk-in showers with the bench in the back, the ones made of marble?? i didn't know how to describe it in-fic so i'm just dropping that info here lol. i don't usually write shower stuff so i hope this turned out okay :')

edit | this is written in the same au as you all over me, with captive!reader and her soft!dark!daddies.

There was no use in squirming or struggling. Any resistance you showed would only make things harder for yourself. And yet as hard as you tried, you couldn't keep your trembling body still. Perched up on Steve's broad thigh, your shoulder blades pressed back against his bare front side, you felt like a cornered animal as Ari crouched down in front of you on the sleek shower floor. A look of mock concern drew across the brunette's face as he reached out to brush dripping strands of hair out of your face.

Steve's arm was steady around your waist holding you in place, but there was little harshness to his grasp. Neither of the men were particularly rough or violent with you, but there were times when you honestly found yourself wishing they would be. There was just something about the way they treated you, with such love and patience- it felt so wrong, given the circumstances. It was maddening.

"P-please, don't make me..." Your begging seemed pathetic even to you as Ari shook his head regretfully, his large hand trailing down to begin toying with one of your tits. His fingertips teased lightly over your already-stiffened nipple, tweaking and tugging at the poor knot of flesh as he shared a steady look with Steve.

"C'mon doll, you're alright. Be a big girl and let your daddies help you," the man holding you encouraged softly. He brought up a hand of his own to begin occupying your other breast as his counterpart shifted his focus lower.

"Gonna take good care of you, sweetheart," Ari promised as he leaned his face down a little, settling his unwanted gaze on your puffy pussy lips as they sat helplessly atop Steve's muscular thigh. Letting out a thoughtful hum, the crouching man mused, "Now, let's see here..."

Steve shifted you up slightly along the length of his leg, placing a hand on either side of your waist to keep you balanced and upright. "Good, that's better," Ari murmured appreciatively as he brought his own prying hands down to gently spread your pussy lips over the surface you were perched on. A feeble whine rose in your throat as your dripping hole and clit came in contact with Steve's damp skin. "There," Ari smiled approvingly, "right up against Daddy's leg. Are you gonna be a good girl and ride Stevie's thigh, baby? Or are we gonna have to help you?"

Big, warm tears of humiliation sprang from your eyes as you tried to glare at the brown-haired man before you. To your dismay, Ari simply seemed to find your little act of defiance endearing. "Poor little girl, what a pretty pout," he crooned as he leaned in to press a kiss against your forehead.

"That's okay, sweetheart," Steve's voice was low and rumbly from behind you, "little babies need their daddies' help. That's what we're here for." Tightening his grip on your waist, he drew a faltering cry from your trembling lips as he began bouncing his leg beneath you, grinding your hips down with his hands at a steady, punishing rhythm.

Ari's expression was full of sympathy as he reached in again to aid in your torment. With just the tips of his fingers, he spread your labia back further, watching as your poor little bundle of nerves was dragged repeatedly over the slippery surface below. "I know, baby. I know," he frowned gently. "Bet your poor little button burns, doesn't it?"

"Poor thing," Steve played right along with his partner's cruel game of faux pity. "How long d'you think she'll last, Ari? Look at her, she's getting worked up already," he pointed out as your shaking legs kicked helplessly beneath you.

"That's our perfect girl," Ari hummed as he and Steve kept up their steady movements. "Shouldn't take long," he stated knowingly, "poor baby's so sensitive, doesn't take much to make her come."

Heat was rising up through your neck and face as your torture dragged on. As always, you were doing everything you could to fight off the inevitable, but very quickly you were finding it all to just be too much. The way they spoke about you as if you weren't even there, the mortifying detail they were discussing your circumstances in. The way forcing you to orgasm seemed to be their favorite pastime, the way they knew the quickest and most efficient ways to bring you right to the edge of those unwanted climaxes they loved so much...

"Getting so wet, doll. You getting close?" Steve murmured against the back of your neck as your broken whimpers and sobs grew louder and more desperate.

Ari could see that familiar look growing on your face, prompting him to bring the pads of his fingers down to rub quickly and harshly against your throbbing button. "C'mon, baby. Give it to us," he commanded, his voice now stronger with an heir of authority.

"Don't fight it, little one," Steve crooned, his voice vibrating against your ear as the horrible feelings swelled up inside of you. As you were sent reeling towards your high, the man behind you brought a firm arm around your lurching body to steady you. Just as your orgasm began tearing through you, the pressure applied to your lower belly proved too much to bear; in a humiliating moment of complete and total helplessness, a surge of warmth shot out from your spasming cunt as you gushed and came simultaneously.

Feeling the forceful spray hit his thigh, Steve couldn't help but beam at the sight of your forfeited control. Ari caught on to what was happening only fractions of a moment later, immediately sharing in his friend's delight. "There, let it all out, sweetheart," he chuckled softly as the unbearable waves of pleasure and relief continued.

"Poor baby, just couldn't hold it, huh?" Steve joined in as your overwhelming climax finally began to wind down. As soon as you left its grips, your poor body slumped uselessly against your captors' holds. Ari removed his fingers from your twitching button as Steve eased you back to lean against his broad chest, gently planting a kiss to your temple as you sat there helplessly, too weak to do anything but struggle for air through your tears.

"Shhh," Ari brought his hands to rub soothingly over the tops of your thighs. As the humiliation of the situation settled in, your cries only worsened, earning concerned yet understanding looks from both of the men as they sat there with you in the humid air. Steve rubbed your tummy gently as Ari stepped away momentarily, retrieving a rag and the bottle of body soap from the front of the shower before returning. You were too weak and exhausted to fight as the man began washing you off, continuing to offer you soft words of praise and reassurance along with Steve.

"You're okay, sweetheart. Just let your daddies take care of you," the blonde told you softly as the warm, soothing cloth was dragged over your ruined body.

"Our little baby. So good for her daddies," Ari kissed your nose, his loving acts and words only feeling like salt in the gaping wound they had once again torn open in you.

[beardedmrbean]

BEIJING (Reuters) - After quitting the education industry last August due to China's crackdown on private tutoring, He Ajun has found an unlikely second life as an unemployment influencer.

The Guangzhou-based vlogger, 32, offers career advice to her 8,400 followers, charting her journey through long-term joblessness. "Unemployed at 31, not a single thing accomplished," she posted last December.

He is now making around 5,000 yuan ($700) per month through ads on her vlogs, content editing, private consultations and selling handicrafts at street stalls.

"I think in future freelancing will be normalised," said He. "Even if you stay in the workplace, you'll still need freelancing abilities. I believe it will become a backup skill, like driving."

China is under instruction to unleash "new productive forces", with government policies targeting narrow areas of science and technology including AI and robotics.

But critics say that has meant weak demand in other sectors and risks leaving behind a generation of highly educated young people, who missed the last boom and graduated too late to retrain for emerging industries.

A record 11.79 million university graduates this year face unprecedented job scarcity amid widespread layoffs in white-collar sectors including finance, while Tesla, IBM and ByteDance have also cut jobs in recent months.

Urban youth unemployment for the roughly 100 million Chinese aged 16-24 spiked to 17.1% in July, a figure analysts say masks millions of rural unemployed.

China suspended releasing youth jobless data after it reached an all-time high of 21.3% in June 2023, later tweaking criteria to exclude current students.

Over 200 million people are currently working in the gig economy and even that once fast-growing sector has its own overcapacity issues. A dozen Chinese cities have warned of ride-hailing oversaturation this year.

Redundancies have even spread to government work, long considered an "iron rice bowl" of lifetime employment.

Last year Beijing announced a 5% headcount reduction and thousands have been laid off since, according to official announcements and news reports. Henan province trimmed 5,600 jobs earlier this year, while Shandong province has cut nearly 10,000 positions since 2022.

Meanwhile, analysts say China's 3.9 million vocational college graduates are mostly equipped for low-end manufacturing and service jobs, and reforms announced in 2022 will take years to fix underinvestment in training long regarded as inferior to universities.

China currently faces a shortage of welders, joiners, elderly caregivers and "highly-skilled digital talent", its human resources minister said in March.

Yao Lu, a sociologist at Columbia University, estimates about 25% of college graduates aged 23-35 are currently in jobs below their academic qualifications.

Many of China's nearly 48 million university students are likely to have poor starting salaries and contribute relatively little in taxes throughout their lifetimes, said one Chinese economist who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue.

"Although they cannot be called a 'lost generation', it is a huge waste of human capital," the person said.

'DOING THREE PEOPLE'S JOBS'

Chinese President Xi Jinping in May urged officials to make job creation for new graduates a top priority. But for younger workers unemployed or recently fired, the mood is bleak, nine people interviewed by Reuters said.

Anna Wang, 23, quit her state bank job in Shenzhen this year due to high pressure and frequent unpaid overtime. For a salary of about 6,000 yuan per month, "I was doing three people's jobs," she said.

Her ex-colleagues complain about widespread pay cuts and transfers to positions with unmanageable workloads, effectively forcing them to resign. Wang now works part-time jobs as a CV editor and mystery shopper.

At a July briefing for foreign diplomats about an agenda-setting economic meeting, policymakers said they have been quietly urging companies to stop layoffs, one attendee told Reuters.

Olivia Lin, 30, left the civil service in July after widespread bonus cuts and bosses hinted at further redundancies. Four district-level bureaus were dissolved in her city of Shenzhen this year, according to public announcements.

"The general impression was that the current environment isn't good and fiscal pressure is really high," she said.

Lin now wants a tech job. She has had no interview offers after a month of searching. "This is completely different from 2021, when I was guaranteed one job interview a day," she said.

REDUCED STIGMA

Shut out of the job market and desperate for an outlet, young Chinese are sharing tips for surviving long-term unemployment. The hashtags "unemployed", "unemployment diary" and "laid off" received a combined 2.1 billion views on the Xiaohongshu platform He uses.

Users describe mundane daily routines, count down the days since being fired, share awkward chat exchanges with managers or dole out advice, sometimes accompanied by crying selfies.

The increasing visibility of jobless young people "increases broader social acceptance and reduces stigma surrounding unemployment", said Columbia's Lu, allowing otherwise isolated youth to connect and "perhaps even redefine what it means to be unemployed in today's economic climate".

Lu said unemployed graduates understood blaming the government for their plight would be both risky and ineffective. Rather, she said, they were more likely to slip into "an internalisation of discontent and blame" or "lying flat".

He, the influencer, thinks graduates should lower their ambitions.

"If we have indeed entered 'garbage time', then I think young people could accumulate skills or do something creative, such as selling things via social media or making handicrafts."

[eljeebee]

OC Evolution Tag - The Beaus and The Asvang

Tagged by @nocturnalazure (thank you for hearing my wishes)! Thank you!!!

Prior to doing The Davis Legacy, back in July 2022, I've written a story about vampires in the modern world, where Lady Lana Beau had just reawakened from her slumber. Valentina had awakened first, and was living quite well, but she had fallen in love with a werewolf and had been hiding her identity. She was looking for a way to "cure" her vampirism. In this "pilot" story, Lady Lana sought to revive her House as well, seeking to turn her family's human descendant, Zed Waylon, which is through a turned-mortal Lenora. Anyway, she ended her life in the end by burning herself, but made sure she casted a powerful spell on Zed that will keep him safe from other vampires, down to his last generation. Lady Lana was kind of sweet in this pilot story, honestly.

I think the only element that I reused in my current story was Lana seeking to rebuild her clan. The looking for a cure part only stayed with Lenora, and not to Val. The rest was removed, though I had character sheets, which I've been basing on for my current story.

First we start with Valentina. As I initially intended to share only her evolution.

Valentina Asvang's pilot character design:

This was her first design. Literally different from our Valentina now. Still, her history is just the same. An Asvang that worked hard that her power evolved. This was also the time where my sim-making is just me clicking the face templates in CAS and just tweaking them a little bit.

Valentina Asvang now:

One of my magnum opuses. She was the second character I remade for my story, and I remember messing around in CAS, and then everything just fell into place! Everything clicked. And behold, Valentina Asvang is reborn.

Beau Sisters, pilot and now:

On the first picture, from top to bottom: Lorraine, Lenora, and Lana. On the second picture, from top to bottom: Lenora, Lana, Lorraine. On their first designs, they actually had rounded and chubby faces. On their current and final version, I remade them. Lenora was based on Lana, and Lorraine was based on Lenora.

Lady Lana Beau, and her path to the current design:

Her first design was revolved around that vampire pack hair. I actually had to look for long hair CC to complement it for when her hair is down!

That vampire hair returned in her "back-in-the-day" look:

Anyway, I remade her in February 2023. She actually had a lot of tattoos back then! The first vampire to receive a redesign. Her soft features were replaced with dramatic, angular features. I wanted her to look fierce, but still the same "Enchanting Lady" that will reel you in, make you feel warm in her embrace...before you meet your end.

Fast forward to now!

I removed her tattoos :( perhaps some day she'd have it back?

Lady Lorraine and Lenora:

In the pilot and in the current story, Lorraine had always been a "blank" slate to me. Although I have written something for her, where she the most powerful in her family, that she had to be contained by marriage to Vlad, I still haven't written enough to fully realize her. All I know is that, she bore one son, named Hugo, and from what I remember from the back of my head, this Hugo was weak, like a powerful father and a powerful mother cancelled out, bearing a weak child. I also remember Lorraine being distraught for this, and will not leave her bedchamber, leaving Hugo to Vlad's care.

Lenora is still the same Lenora from before. The same vampire that wanted to love freely, that studied and sought that one thing that will turn her to mortal and live and die with her one true love. In the first iteration of the story, Lenora successfully did it, leaving behind many descendants, up to Zed Waylon. Now, her cure failed, damaging her energy and being, which left her to a state where only a handful of memories were retained in her head. She never bore a child.

The Character Sheets:

These are the sheets that help me rebuild their characters in my current story. Though I don't fully base on it, it's a good reference for me.

I've posted this before here, but I'd love to share it with you again!

If you want to read the initial story: click here. My writing is different from before, so bear with me.

Thank you for reading this far!

[void-kissed]

taken life, given soul (Xenoblade Ship Week 2023 Day 1)

Vanea's work in constructing Face Nemesis requires a suitable pilot to house the soul of Lady Meyneth. After finally acquiring a worthy candidate, she is surprised to learn that the chosen Homs still lives after the procedure, and is even more surprised at her willingness to strike up conversation with a supposed enemy. (2311 words)The second part of this writing replaces the Face Nemesis cutscene from the end of Chapter Six.

This is the first meeting between Vanea and my self-insert, Citri! ..Not the most conventional or romantic of first meetings, but here it is in writing nonetheless! Despite being a couple of days late on the finishing, I decided that hopefully this could be fitted to this year's Xenoblade Chronicles ship week, as set up by a friend of mine - I hope that that's alright ^-^

(Anyone is welcome to comment on or reblog my work if they wish, as long as my DNI is respected! Tag list and document transcript are under the readmore.)

Tag list: @dragonsmooch | @hiraya-rbs | @bugsband | @sunlight-ships | @winds-beloved | @goatfaggot | @starlit-selfships | @stargazer-sims | @sharkyaoi | @detective-with-one-arm | @deepsea-loves | @wexlcr | @artificervaldi | @thatslikesometaldude (To be tagged in (or stop being tagged in) what I make, please see this post!)

Document transcript:

The Central Factory that lay within the chest of the Mechonis was where all Homs were taken after their capture, ready to be repurposed in the bodies of the Faced Mechon and used to assault the titan they had once dwelled upon. The recent attack on Colony 9 had provided the Mechon with some valuable resources, even if some of the initial reports were conveying worrying news about a new wielder of the Monado arising. Within the metal walls of the facility, new Mechon soldiers of all kinds were constantly being manufactured, mass-produced Faces among them. All operations were brilliantly orchestrated by the lone man spearheading the charge against the Bionis, who even now was doubtless deep in thought about how best to proceed in his efforts.

However, in an illuminated chamber that sat above the rest of the vast factory, his sister - a similarly-tall Machina woman with long grey hair - was overseeing the automated construction of a vast white-silver figure. Its parts all towered above her, interlaced with golden details and a doubled red diamond on its helmet-like faceplate. Below the mechanical figure lay an additional array of compatible pieces resembling parts of a human body, ready and waiting for a pilot to be fitted into them. Dozens of individual pieces were being put together by fine machinery, each one being subtly tweaked or modified as the woman carefully adjusted the many glowing controls before her, but the overall structure had yet to be properly assembled.

"Lady Vanea." came a sudden voice from the communication system above the woman. "There is a matter which requires your attention."

"What is it?" Vanea responded, addressing the empty chamber with cautious, distracted uncertainty. "I am still trying to resolve the faults in this Face's digits; can the matter not wait until this is resolved?"

The other voice seemed to pause, but only for a moment, before continuing its announcement. "It is about the pilot for the Face you are currently working on. Two potential candidates have been identified by our preliminary systems."

That was enough to catch Vanea's ear, as her eyes widened slightly before she finally turned her head to face the other voice. "..Very well. Please bring them here immediately, then."

A few robotic chirps could be heard, before further machinery began to whir into action - this time at the other end of the chamber, which Vanea had now turned to face with her back to the silver Face's controls. Its parts continued to be constructed without her direction, aside from what should have eventually become its pilot's fingers, given that they still lacked the proper range of movement to be fitted onto such an important Faced Mechon.

After a few moments, an opening appeared in the dark metal floor of the chamber, and the bodies of two young Homs women were lifted up through it, held up by actuators from the factory. Both looked somewhat similar at the first glance, being the same height and appearing of similar age - they both had golden blonde hair (though one wore it in a long dishevelled plait where the other's only fell to just past her shoulders), and as they were each scanned for further information, Vanea could see on the displays that they both had dark green eyes. One had freckles dotting her shoulders and rounded cheeks, and was littered with a number of scrapes and bruises, while the other's skin was clearer and she appeared to have suffered one particularly significant wound that had clawed at her clavicle.

"..What about these Homs has marked them out as worthy vessels?" Vanea asked, before the continued operations of the myriad machines circling each Homs began to output the pertinent results on the floating screens around her in the chamber. Carefully examining the data that had been gathered, Vanea found the answers lying within each girl's scanned memories, snapshots playing from them like a slideshow - the pair clearly shared a long history with not only each other, but also several other inhabitants of their home colony, and one boy with light blonde hair stood out particularly strongly to the Machina.

"..The Heir of the Monado." she said aloud in recognition.  "They were both friends with him, it would seem.."

She pored over the memories closely, trying to glean what information she could about the two Homs' personalities from them. It seemed like somewhat of an invasion of privacy to do this, but it was of the utmost importance that everything was as perfect as it could be for her current project, so such measures had to be taken to ensure the correct compatibility. Finally, after some time, she had made her decision - it was the freckled Homs with the longer hair who would be used for this purpose, due to the piercing injury sustained by the other one potentially making it difficult for the key component to be added correctly. The glimpses of her many days spent pursuing scientific endeavours with the Monado's newest wielder had also caught Vanea's eye more strongly.

"Please take this girl and prepare her for piloting Nemesis." the Machina stated to her assistant machinery, before turning to look over her shoulder at the unfortunate error still blaring from the screens behind her. "..Adjust the current pilot specifications to her body plan, but- try to preserve her original hands, if possible. That may have to be the workaround for the defects in the current digits, non-ideal though it may be.."

She then sighed, and addressed the chosen girl's companion.

"This other one does still hold promise, though.. Perhaps see whether any of our experimental designs might be compatible with her frame - Azure, for example."

As the machinery around her whirred to action once more according to her choices, and each girl was sent to her fate, Vanea took a moment to compose herself, staring up at the pieces of her dream - the central prism of golden metal standing out above all others.

A vessel had finally been found to hold the soul of her people's goddess, and with her divine revival thus at hand, the time had come for the tides of war to shift.

As long as everything in this experiment proceeded as it was meant to, the end to such ceaseless conflict may have finally begun.

What a shame that the Homs' past would be erased in the process..

==========

Enough time had passed for all the preparations to be made. The Homs girl chosen by Vanea now had most of her body replaced by the mechanical components made beforehand, each piece now individually modified to ensure maximum compatibility with her remaining reconfigured immune and nervous systems. The only parts of her left that still appeared biological were her head above the neck and her hands past the wrists, though even they had received artificial upgrades below the surface to better serve as the Faced Mechon's central nerve unit.

This pilot unit was now being lifted into the central cockpit of the much larger silver Mechon, which had now itself been fully assembled. Its spiked and winged structure hovered high above Vanea like an angel, ready and waiting dutifully for its first activation as the final touches were smoothly made to its surfaces.

“Face Nemesis." Vanea began, addressing the construct above her.

"Your frame is complete.  

As is the integration of your pilot."

Some of the assistant Mechon receded, revealing the pilot's unconscious figure sat in place within Nemesis' torso.

"This Homs..  

She holds memories of the Heir of the Monado.  

She appears to have seen him as a friend.  

..I wonder what she would have been like to know.  

But, that is not important here.  

It only means that her body will be an able vessel for you, my Lady.  

All that remains is the soul transfer..”

All other machines departed as the final Mechon descended, carrying the golden metal prism in its grasp. With exactly-calculated precision, the triangular component was fitted onto the chest of the Homs pilot. There was a moment of silence, before familiar red energy started to flow through the body of Face Nemesis; the soul component then started to glow with power, before settling down again as the armoured plating closed over the cockpit chamber.

"..I have fulfilled my duty." Vanea stated, allowing herself to smile as everything finally fell into place.

"You and only you can bring about a new age on Mechonis -

no, the entire world.

My mistress,

Lady Meyneth."

She waited, and then became all too aware of how empty the chambers around her still felt.

"..Lady Meyneth?"

A feminine voice suddenly rang out through Nemesis' speakers, but it was not the kind and caring tone that the Machina so fondly recalled, even all these centuries since she had last heard it directly.

"Ah.. Where.. W-Where am I..?"

Vanea's own voice caught in her throat from hearing such an unexpected response, and her brow furrowed. "You.. Are you Lady Meyneth?"

"What?" came the other voice, sounding weary and confused from inside the Faced Mechon. "No, my name is Citri. Um.. What *is* all of this..?"

At that moment, all Vanea could do was blink. She had never spoken with a Face pilot directly before, and the concern rising inside of her about what she had done wrong was making it all but impossible for her to properly address the anomaly.

"Something has gone wrong with the soul transfer.." she mumbled to herself, beginning to anxiously flit between the different screens and keyboards in her vicinity. "Yet, the scans themselves seem to be indicating that everything is properly in place.. Her presence is clearly *detectable*, and yet the central core is not showing signs of *activity*-"

A sense of panic flared within her, and her ability to maintain a composed exterior was rapidly deteriorating.

"My dearest goddess, what have I done wrong..?"

As she stifled a sob, the sound of mechanical joints moving rang out through the chamber, before they stopped (having been moved in error) and the torso plating opened back up instead.

"Um.. When you say "central core", do you mean this part?"

A tiny *tap-tap* noise, much quieter than any type of metal hitting metal could produce, prompted Vanea to lift her gaze. The Homs girl - *Citri*, as she had called herself - was tapping her still-organic fingernail on the prism of golden metal that was fitted to the chest of her new body.

"..Yes, that is correct." Vanea admitted, blinking uncertainly again.

"It.. feels as though something is inside of it." she then tried to explain, tilting her head as much as the cockpit would allow her to. "Some*one*, rather, if.. what you were saying before about your goddess is true. But.. I'm not sure whether she can wake up yet?"

The Machina took a moment to consider Citri's words. "That would be unfortunate, but.. it is reassuring to know that you are able to sense her presence."

Citri gave a small nod, very tentatively, but her expression was uncertain.

"..What was supposed to have happened?" she then asked.

"That Lady Meyneth's soul would be swiftly transferred into your body, overwriting your own, for her subsequent use as a vessel to pilot Face Nemesis." Vanea stated matter-of-factly. Then she stopped.

"..That was rather callous of me, wasn't it?"

"Somewhat, yes." admitted Citri, who would have mustered a smile if not for how disoriented she still felt. "But if nothing else, you definitely answered me clearly with how you said it, so.. thank you."

An awkward silence then settled in between the two.

"..Could you possibly tell me more about what's happened? What you've done to me, and all?"

The genuine nature of such a question, and the absolute lack of malice that she had expected to permeate through any Homs unwillingly stolen by Mechon, made it impossible for Vanea to simply dismiss the girl's curiosity. Something softened in her expression, and she opened her mouth to try and form an explanation, but the same voice from before piped up through the communication systems as she did so.

"Lady Vanea." it called out. "Master Egil wishes to see you."

This made her pause with some uncertainty. "Understood. Tell him I will see him.. momentarily." she then settled on.

"Acknowledged."

The device whirred away as Vanea's gaze fell back onto Citri, her red eyes meeting her green ones for a moment before neither felt able to hold the gaze further.

"..I apologise for this interruption, but- you may have my word that I shall return to these chambers once I have finished meeting with my brother." she then said. "It may well be that Lady Meyneth has properly awakened by that time, but if not, then.. If you would listen to our story, then I see no harm in sharing it with you."

"I understand." replied Citri. "That means a lot, Vanea."

She smiled at the mention of her name. "You miss little, I see. Very well then. I shall return shortly, Citri."

With nothing more to say for the moment, she then left her alone within Face Nemesis.

Only *after* she had turned to leave the chamber did Vanea realise her own instinctive use of the girl's own name, and she was surprised to have found herself recalling it from one mention. Nevertheless, she persisted in her next objective, doing her utmost to regain her usual composure even as she silently came to the conclusion that it was a name she wished to remember, despite part of her also knowing it was not a name she should have ever had a chance to learn.

Thankfully for both, there would still be many opportunities in the days that followed to converse, and to learn, and to get to know each other more than either could have envisioned beforehand.

[nicnacsnonsense]

Overall, I like the changes made to the Poor Unfortunate Souls sequence in TLM 2023.

The change from Ariel being grabbed by the little green dudes that were Ursula’s past victims trying to protect her to just generic creepy hands with eyes does lose some of the emotional weight of the moment, but I assume it’s related to the change they make to the end confrontation and I can understand and accept that.

They move Ariel’s moment of refusal from when she’s talking to Flotsam and Jetsam before even going to see Ursula to happening at the climax point of the song. Which is probably a stronger choice on its own, but I’m more concerned with how this changes how she is convinced to change her mind and agree to Ursula’s bargain. Animated Ariel has the piece the statue with Eric’s face on it flipped in front of her, whereas live action Ariel has her father’s controlling behavior and words thrown back at her.

This is part of a larger change in this whole section of the story where after animated Ariel saves Eric, a lot of her focus is on him, to the point of flat out stating she loves him to her father. Live action Ariel still very obviously has a crush on him, but her points are more focused on him being a good person as a counterpoint to her father’s bigotry. Ursula is the one who insists to Ariel that Eric is her soulmate and they are meant to be together. This is a great example of doing a good job of addressing criticisms of the first movie. They heard people complaining that Ariel changed her whole life for a man, and said, hey, so obviously the other reasons the movie gives for her making this choice are not getting enough focus, so how do we tweak things so that our intended message is coming across stronger?

I like the change from “this is a legally binding contract” to Ariel being bound by blood to her bargain; it feels more thematically appropriate.

I don’t like the weird thing about Ariel being tricked into not knowing she wouldn’t remember about the kiss condition, but I did think their sneaky little substitution of “Amnesia” for “Larengix” form the original version was clever.

Honestly, Ursula’s “Look at her stupid little feet” line was pretty funny.

[awoken-artist]

{Finished in Feb 13th 2023}

🌈✧{Please Do Not Steal, Trace, use my Art in AI and NFTs and Repost/Resubmit my Works. Thank You.}✧🌈

I wanted to draw out a scene I had in mind forever...I did drew ONE art of Ed and Em [and its in the comic strip. of them starring realizing how close they are] and i sat there thinking of make a quick sketchy doodly comic strip of this.

So- Yeah for context and updates on my ocxcanon pair - Ed and Emmy is that when the two met they never got along and would fight and make snarky comments to eachother and Alphonse being the middle man of the two. voice of reason. so not sure exactly where in the timeline [cause I also will draw art for 2003 series too and 2003 and brotherhood have very different directions BUT the scene of this would be the same.] so this would have to be around where the two of them still fight but not as..often but still was like "great theyre fighting again" kind of thing for Al. So Im gonna guess cause this is a bit of a work in progress where they had a mission, they both kind of dun goofed a bit [but manage to complete it] and they both started to have a fight that started with the comments then to straight out fighting with alchemy in an alley way for some reason. the two started fighting and they were - not minding it cause the two are being too cocky about it.  Emmy takes a step where she causes herself to trip and wasnt expecting this to happen cause shes really great with her footing but today was NOT her day.... So ed tries to catch her, he gets pulled to her as their foreheads SMACKED against eachother pretty hard [but not hard enough it causes them to knock out or such] and they rolled to the end of the alley way. emmy lands with her back as Ed was somewhat on top-ish as they didnt realize what position they were both in cause- they quickly are just trying to recover from the head smack headache and started bickering again- and slowly realize "....oh shit"  they both massively blushed realizing the position they were in as they were just too stunned to continue the fight and they just were very awkward with eachother a bit. Roy happened to be around [they were not far from Central HQ tbh] so Roy sees Al just- stare at the Alley so of course he and Riza went to see wtf is going on and....yeah sees that. Wondering tf they are doing. Ed and Emmy QUICKLY panicked while their faces were red as fire as they both adjust themselves and try to walk away from the whole situation and boy the rest of that day to a week..or two...Edward and Emmy were very awkward and flustered and that memory never left. [not even further into the story it still REMAINED] and its where the start of the crush happens with both of them. Emmy couldnt help remember it as her heart was pounding and racing very much. Winry already can tell shes crushing SO HARD on Edward. Edward [while I havent drawn it here] is probably so frustrated and doesnt know why hes feeling off. he never had a crush on anyone and never blushed this hard ever and Alphonse thought it was kind of cute Ed is getting super flustered anytime he and emmy are in the same room together. Al and Winry being the wingman here for both.  they do eventually not get so awkward with eachother but theres times they do and sometimes hints of maybe theyre kind of realizing they like eachother that much.  Also wanna point out [and I wanna sketch it] where Ed kind of corners her somewhat and they fought and they got into the same position somehow. [thinking Emmy was being super stubborn, Ed corners her to the wall as Emmy gets too flustered she falls slowly down to the floor all very flushed in the face and Ed gets down to her level and just both of them being awkward dorks. [and I think its where the confession comes in.] still got plans for more FMA works just need to do some tweaking and such :3

🌈✧{Credits}✧🌈

✧ Artwork and FMA OC Emmy Rosenthal © by: @awoken-artist

✧  Fullmetal Alchemist and Characters Edward and Aphonse Elric, Roy Mustang and Winry Rockbell owned by:

Hiromu Arakawa

​✧ Programs Used: Clip Studio Paint EX

[clover-midori]

CALM BEFORE THE STORM

When Captain Barnacles first woke up on October 4, 2023, the last thing he expected was a hurricane on the radar.

Of course, this was not the first time for him. He’d have been through many, as did the rest of his team. In fact, it had been only a year and a month since Hurricane Iris, the biggest one he’d have been in since this whole Octonauts thing began.

"That was a low-end Category 4, captain." Peso sighed a little. "This storm looks even worse, and we’ve only got tonight to finish preparations!"

Barnacles nodded rapidly. He’d have been looking at this storm for a while now. In fact, it was all that had been on his mind. In fact, Peso had noted how Barnacles would keep vocalizing the storm’s name—Selma—in his sleep.

Poor Barnacles only got a few hours of sleep last night trying to find a good area to stop in. And he still wasn’t there yet.

Those two weren’t the only ones preparing for this hurricane. Tweak had been doing routine inspections on the Gups, in the event that they could be needed for evacuation, or if they were damaged, and Dashi was insanely busy checking satellite imagery of Selma, which was not looking very good. If anything, the eye of the storm was just looking back. At least, that’s how it felt. Eerie, it was. And it was coming towards her, and the other Octonauts.

~~~~

However, Shellington and Kwazii were not as bothered. If anything, the latter was confident that this wouldn’t be a migraine for anyone. Maybe too confident, but Kwazii knew the Octopod super well, and he knew what to do if things went rotten.

As the seas grew darker and darker, the cat sat in the otter’s laboratory, looking at The Weather Channel on his BlackBerry Bold 9900. He seemed a bit mesmerized. When Iris struck, this was much more sudden. But now, here was Selma.

"Jumping jellyfish… it’s not looking good out there, is it?" Shellington looked at him, curious as he was. "I’ll have to close all this in a moment… Dashi’s told me all about how strong this storm really is and the captain’s going to be sick."

Kwazii didn’t respond. He kept sitting there with a smile on his face. Again, he wasn’t too bothered.

"I oughta head out and check if we’re anchored. Can’t go without a double check… maybe a triple check!" The cat looked back, blinking slowly. "Up to join?”

Shellington went quiet for a second, tilting his head a bit. A little sorrow in his eyes, too. A look that said yes, but also no.

"I have work to do, but thank you…"

Those words made Kwazii’s ears droop a little. But the otter had a point. This could be an awful storm for real. They knew this was no laughing matter.

Like that, the two walked out of the lab, off to get their things done. The sea was getting dark much earlier than normal, and that meant one thing and one thing only: Selma was closing in.

"Of course. We’re running out of time." The otter groaned.

~~~~

While Shellington and Dashi were busy getting data on the hurricane, Kwazii was below the Octopod. Staying in communication with Barnacles, he kept scanning the seabed for any debris. They both knew they were getting somewhere safe, but they’d have to act fast.

"Last time we were here, there were definitely less rocks… WAY LESS THAN what my grandad had to dodge, back in HIS pirate days, ya-har! Ye know that? It was wild!" Kwazii laughed, followed by a gasp. "Avast! We’ve got a clearing nearby. Captain, check you maps! We’re headed for our spot!"

Just as he was about to do so, Barnacles was interrupted by Dashi tapping his shoulder. She looked like she had never seen anything, quite so horrible, in all her life.

And yes, that’s a Michael Rosen reference.

"We’ve got a Category 5 behind us." She huskily groaned, looking at the screen. "Found a safe space?"

"You bet I did!" Kwazii showed up on the screen above, waving to her and Barnacles.

"Righty, captain… WEIGH ANCHOR!"

~~~~

Shellington just stood in the back of the HQ, watching this unfold. As the anchor dropped, he looked down and sighed. Remembering that he was in the path of a hurricane, stronger than ever.

And not just him, but the rest of the Octonauts. In the Octopod. Nowhere to swim. Nowhere to hide. Just wait out the storm.

Ever since Hurricane Iris, Shellington knew something like it was bound to happen again. After all, he was working a LOT underwater.

And now here he was. Standing behind the satellite imagery of Selma. Hoping she would weaken a little before hitting the Octopod.

The thoughts were combating. Whether things would go well or not, was something Shellington couldn’t figure out. Either way, it was better to be safe than sorry.

Between those thoughts, thoughts of the Vegimals, and of Kwazii, the sea otter was deep in thought. Like, seriously. The sounds of outside were drowned out completely by his worries, and his… feelings.

"Shellington! You’ve been spacing out for 4 minutes now. I need you. It’s about Tunip and the others." Peso stood in front of him.

The simple mention of a Vegimal voiced by no other than the dormant half of Meomi immediately got the sea otter’s attention.

"Jumping jellyfish! How could I forget?" The sea otter shook his head. "I can’t, that’s what! Please don’t be anything I’d fear…!" He immediately ran for the Sick Bay, worried about what could’ve happened. Did there have to be another incident just before a hurricane?

Shellington, in panic, rapidly went in, to find nothing wild. It was just the Vegimals standing around, still seeming happy, especially when the otter came in.

"Peso? What’s going on? Why’d you sound so urgent, if…" the sea otter turned to face the penguin, an awkward look in his eyes. "Your mind isn’t existing everywhere in Cyberia again, is it?"

The penguin realized how stupid he went. "Guess you could say I’m a sewer slut." He sighed, now in peace. "Must be my fucked up head… which it’s not…"

You, like Shellington, would think someone was dying a slow death, but it’s just an overreaction. Ultradespair? Hopelessness? Restlessness? Psychosis? Lexapro delirium? Maybe. But hey, things don’t have to leave you in inertia status when Jvnko loves you, even when things have gone down the drain.

Those weren’t good Sewerslvt jokes, were they? Whatever, I figured. Something of value less than that would work way better. I AM Mr. Kill Myself anyways. I might as well die alone.

"I need to think my tone of voice better, if anything… Right. I just wanted to tell you that we’ve moved the Vegimals to the Sick Bay for the time being. Nothing big, sorry… How are the preparations going?"

Shellington shook his head, still a bit unnerved from the false alarm. "Well, I do suppose we’ve reached our stop. We’re gonna be here for a little while, so get cozy."

Peso was still happy to hear this news. "Right-o! The Gups have all been parked, the Octopod has been anchored… We’re getting an idea of just how strong Selma is… I think Phase 1 of this protocol is complete! Now what?"

It already seemed obvious, of course. Shellington knew. Peso knew. Kwazii knew. Dashi knew. Tweak knew.

Everyone knew.

Wait it out.

Wait it out.

Wait it out.

This was the calm, before the storm.

[lilacrespite]

━━━━━ 🔮 Llorona Luna Brings the peculiar to pop at Crescent Festival 2023 .

Llorona Luna’s Crescent Fest performance was as much of a celebration of their career and all the people they attribute their success to, as it was a farewell to the Cry Baby moniker that has been a part of their performance art since her debut album. It’s evident that Luna has evolved into an artist more confident in not only her sound, but in the visuals that go along in the stories they’re telling. Unlike their previous albums, where the oddities were found primarily in their lyrics and the aesthetics were much more pastel and soft with slight alterations that left the viewer feeling unsettled, Portals goes leans into the strange and uncomfortable in every song and video we’ve gotten so far. If the performance at Crescent Fest is any indication, it’s only going to get creepier from here and we’re completely strapped in for the ride.

read more below / listen to the set list here / @nepofminspo

The stage was completely black as the opening vocals for Tunnel Vision came through and Llorona Luna invited us into their world for the next hour and twenty minutes. Once the lights go up timed with the beat kicking in, we’re able to see that instead of just a stage outfit, she has opted to perform in the same faerie creature prosthetics inspired by Guillermo Del Toro films, that we’ve seen in the Death and Void music videos. As cool as the four eyes, exaggerated ears, and scaly details throughout looked on stage, it did raise concerns for how their stage presence would come across as no one could see the upper part of their face behind the mask. But she was quick to quell those worries with the choreography. With the help of the dancers, they were able to use their body to express the energy to the audience just as well as her facial expression during previous eras had done. 

They don’t let up as Tunnel Vision ends and goes straight into Faerie Soirée, Womb, and Spider Web all from the Portals album. Fan favorite Show & Tell from K-12 and though the choreography is some we’ve seen before, she’s able to alter it in a way that better aligns with the more mystical story she’s telling now. Known for the contortions and body bending they’re able to do, she teases the audience with subtle tweaks to the Show & Tell choreo that leads into the intense body contorting they do throughout The Contortionist. Each bend is perfectly timed to the bone snapping effect on the track which was enough to make anyone flinch if you weren’t familiar with them beforehand. The backbending and arm twisting offer a beautiful juxtaposition with the waltzing happening with the back up dancers. When Field Trip rolls around right after we’d getting a stronger picture of the story Luna is stilling. The first part of this performance being about their journey as an artist. They come in strong with Tunnel Vision declaring how sure they are of themselves, and as we get further into the set we’re shown glimpses of her relationship with not only the fans but the execs on their team with songs like Spider Web and The Contortionist. Bringing in Field Trip brings us back to the core of who Luna is as an artist. A song that came out during the lull between K-12 and Portals but never performed until now. 

Finding that renewed confidence in themselves leads us to Lunchbox Friends. Certainly, a metaphor for keeping those who support them and bring out the best in them close against all the noise the industry can bring. An assumption that’s proven near the end of the song when Luna brings out close personal friend, Beena Kapoor, to perform the iconic final dance sequence of the song. There’s no hiding the smile on their faces as Luna let’s the audience sing them out and the two share a loving embrace. It’s the perfect set up for the pair that follows.

Her brother, Sebastán Dominguez Herrera, is introduced along with reggaeton master, Bad Bunny, to perform Otro Atardecer. An inclusion that could feel out of place for casual listeners, but Luna has always taken great pride in being Latine and their culture. Bringing out Bad Bunny on a track they worked on with her brother was just another way to showcase how much they appreciate it. The three of them look like they’re having so much fun you almost forget one of them is in a complete creature costume by the end of it. Once the song ends and Bad Bunny exits with much love given to Luna, Sebastián stays and the pair perform the songs Heavy and Hush and it’s a pleasant surprise to hear just how well the sibling’s voices compliment each other. We’re sure the google search for Llorona Luna’s brother was at an all time high that night.

After discussing their friendships, Luna turns the focus to love with another fan favorite from K-12, High School Sweethearts. This segment leans more into an idea of misfortune in love with Notebook and Detention following but the tragedy of it helps to lead us into a full circle moment back to Cry Baby’s origin with Sippy Cup and Cry Baby following suit. The Cry Baby performance is a powerful goodbye to the story that made them, but also a reminder that the dramatics and leaning into the emotional is what led them to something so magical. 

They take us into the last four songs with a song never heard before; Milk of the Siren ( a hint at a deluxe album to come ? ). A dark track about taking down the men who have caused harm and not feeling bad about it. Its choreography is grounded in more classical/ballet moves which makes for a beautiful scene as lights flash and bodies drop with the vocoder on their vocals adding another disorientating layer. She does a great job in making the audience feel like they are following a siren song. Nymphology brings back the high energy choreography and the interaction with the audience is especially heavy. Being in the audience for the performance was its own treat. You could hardly hear Luna singing over the way everyone was screaming the lyrics at the top of their lungs with seemingly no end in sight. It almost felt like that should have ended the show, and as the dancers exited the stage it seemed like it would. But once Luna was up there alone the instrumental for signature ‘Into the Void’ opening lines started for Void.

It makes sense for them to be the only ones on the stage for Void considering it's the one song on the Portals Album that they wrote and produced by themselves. It’s clear by the stability in their tone and the energy given to the choreography we’ve seen in the video, that Luna wasn’t using any dancer or band member as a crutch for her performances. She could have done that entire set by themselves and it still would have given the same stellar performance. Death is the final song of the set. A way to show that even if they’re still dealing with some of the anxiety discussed in void that they are back, rising from their little deaths every day, and are here to stay. The final line the audience hears from them is ‘ Please don’t ever worry, I know it’s morbid but we all die one day. ’ a reminder that they aren’t scared to kill off parts of themselves and reinvent themselves into something never before seen.

[hockeylvr59]

Here With Me Part 18 || Taylor Makar

Author’s Note: It's silly for Kelsey to go home when she's with Taylor the night before Medical Ethics right? She might as well spend the night. After some convincing she agrees but yet thanks to some snow (6-8 inches worth) it turns into the couple's first snow day instead. FC: Marina Laswick (@marooshk on instagram).

Warnings: cursing, smut // Word Count: 5,690

~~~~

Seventeen

February 22, 2023

“Yes Taylor…right there.” Kelsey moaned softly. 

Taylor’s hands were absolute magic, digging into her internal oblique muscle on her right side. 

It had been a long day for Kelsey, from the annual engage conference at Hampshire which took the place of normal classes to another practice with her girls in which her skate blade had caught the ice funny causing her internal oblique muscle to be tweaked and spasm endlessly. 

Though she’d tried to drive home she’d only made it across campus before the pain was too much and she was pulling into Taylor’s lot before calling her boyfriend. She’d barely been able to explain through the pain but her tone alone caused him to race downstairs. After giving her lower back a cursory massage which eased the pain enough for her to head inside with him, they made their way to his room where he was now being far more thorough, working to help the muscle release so the throbbing pain would stop. 

Leaning her head back against his shoulder as Taylor sat behind her on the bed, Kelsey sighed in relief as slowly the pain receded. 

“What did you even do?” Taylor mumbled as his thumbs slowed and lightened their pressure just stroking over the muscle gently to calm the area.

“Blade caught funny.” Kelsey replied. “Instant pain.” 

Taylor didn’t seem fully convinced that she could be in this much pain from just a tiny tweak alone. 

“Sometimes with hormonal changes the muscles of my lower back get a little more sensitive for a few days a month, I’ll be fine though Tay. Just need to take some pain meds.” 

Kissing her head, Taylor got up and came back with a bottle of Advil, a tube of biofreeze, and a bottle of water. Handing her the former and latter, Taylor moved to use the roll on topical meds over that whole side of her lower back, letting it dry before tugging her shirt back down. 

“Since you’re here, want to stay and watch a movie?” He asked softly.

“Sure.” Kelsey agreed, knowing that she didn’t want to risk driving until the meds had taken effect anyway. So shifting up Taylor’s bed, she moved to get comfortable without jostling her back too much. 

Since she didn’t particularly care what they watched she urged Taylor just to pick something as he snuggled against her, his laptop on his thigh. Though she wasn’t super focused on the movie, she did enjoy the feeling of Taylor’s arm around her, stroking her lower back gently through her shirt. It made her sleepy but she did her best to stay awake. 

She must have dozed off a few times because eventually she felt Taylor kiss her head before he murmured softly. 

“Why don’t you just spend the night? You have class here in the morning anyway.” 

His words woke her up and she groaned before shaking her head. 

“I can’t Tay.” His look spoke the ‘why not’ for him and Kelsey sighed. “I don’t have any clothes for tomorrow nor do I have anything for class.” 

“I’m sure we could find something for you to wear.” Taylor whispered nosing against her head again as if his touch could sucker her into it. 

“Still wouldn’t change the fact that I don’t have books for tomorrow T.” Kelsey sighed. “You know I like spending the night with you, just can’t.” 

This time it was Taylor who sighed and the puppy dog look on his face was too much. 

“Taylor…” 

“Fine.” He pouted softly. “But you know…if you’re going to come over on a Monday or Wednesday night why don’t you just plan on packing what you need to spend the night. Seems silly for you to go home and come back.” 

“It’s not that far T.” Kelsey murmured. 

“Far enough.” 

Kelsey couldn’t help but laugh at how pathetic Taylor was being right now. 

“Also not sure your roommates really want me spending more nights over.” Kelsey added. 

“Honestly doubt they’ll care.” Taylor prodded. 

“Check with your roommates and I’ll think about it.” Kelsey stated firmly before twisting her head to kiss her boyfriend. “But I should get home before I start to doze off again.” 

Scooting her way off of his bed, Kelsey jumped down and moved to grab her phone and keys which were the only things she had brought up. 

“I’ll see you in class tomorrow.” She assured him before stealing a couple more kisses and making her way back to her car. 

She did not in fact see him in class because UMass had a delayed opening which canceled Medical Ethics. 

And boy did she hear about that. 

***

February 24, 2023

Instead the next time she saw him was two days later after his Friday night game. With it being senior night she hadn’t planned on staying through the lengthy postgame ceremony but it had been a good game and so she’d lingered before making her way down to the hallways near the locker room to wait. 

Once again it wasn’t Taylor who spotted her first but Mikey and when Taylor came out of the locker room after being fetched he had taken his jersey and top pads off but was still in his skates, hockey pants, and base layer. The fact that he was still in skates meant that he towered over her more than usual. 

“You came.” Taylor declared, grinning down at her as he leaned a hand on the wall beside her. “And you’re wearing the hat.” 

Kelsey had in fact worn the hat he’d given her Valentine’s day with his number on the side. 

“Yeah well might be my last chance to come support you this season.” Kelsey declared, enjoying the sight of him half dressed. “And I like the hat.” 

Taylor didn’t give her the chance to say anything more as he swooped in for a soft kiss, his lips just caressing over hers gently. 

Moving her fingers to tangle in his sweaty hair, Kelsey kissed him back just enjoying the moment. Neither noticed the freshmen peeking their heads out of the locker room or the seniors coming back down the hall with their parents and Carvy behind them. 

Carvy cleared his throat but neither Taylor nor Kelsey moved to break their tender kiss. 

“Makar…I gave you two rules…” 

Eyes all around them went wide with varying expressions of ‘Taylor is so fucked’ and ‘what the hell is happening.’

Peeking out of the corner of her eye at her uncle, Kelsey proceeded to flip him off while still kissing Taylor lightly. 

It wasn’t like it was a dirty or inappropriate kiss. It was light and soft and Kelsey really didn’t care who saw them. She wasn’t going to get much time with her boyfriend this weekend so she needed this little moment. 

In hushed whispers the seniors rushed to explain to their families that the girl was Carvy’s niece and that was just the kind of relationship they had so her flipping him off wasn’t as offensive as it may have seemed. Her actions even drew small smiles from a few of them because yeah that was just Kelsey for you. 

“Alright, cool it Kelsey.” Carvy stated before laughing. “Taylor needs to go cool down, not get warmed back up.” 

Though she rolled her eyes, Kelsey broke the series of kisses after one more and hugged Taylor softly before letting him retreat to the locker room, a wide smile on his face and a promise that she would text him later following. 

Though she hadn’t planned on it, she was definitely glad she had stayed because that was absolutely worth it. 

****

February 27-28, 2023

Though Taylor’s roommates hadn’t been thrilled about him wanting Kelsey to spend more nights they weren’t going to flat out tell him that he couldn’t have her over. 

So, Monday evening after their usual roommate dinner was finished, Kelsey came over with a bag including clothes and hygiene products as well as her things for class the following morning. As she sat at Taylor’s desk doing homework, Taylor lounged on his bed watching some hockey game, trying but failing at not distracting her. 

“You know you’re not helping your argument for me to come over more during the week.” Kelsey teased as Taylor once again dropped a kiss to her head while passing by after going to the bathroom. 

“Aren’t you done yet?” Taylor pouted, earning a soft glare from his girlfriend. 

“Give me another half hour T.” Kelsey insisted, just wanting to get through her current assignment before putting things away for the night. 

To his credit, Taylor sighed but was relatively well behaved after that in letting her focus on her materials for school. 

Closing her books and computer, Kelsey put them away before standing up to stretch. 

“Thank you.” She murmured softly, smiling at him over her shoulder before stepping toward his bed. Immediately Taylor reached for her, pulling her up onto the bed with him and Kelsey moved to straddle his thigh, carefully pushing the computer with the game on aside a little. 

As his hands moved in exploration over her body, Kelsey leaned in to kiss him softly before pulling back. “Can we talk about something?” She asked softly. 

Taylor’s hands slid along her lower back just above her ass as he nodded, propping himself up against the headboard a bit more. 

“When you get a chance I want you to go get tested for STIs.” Kelsey stated. “And don’t let your mind go nuts on me okay. This is just another one of my precautionary things since we’ve been together awhile now.” 

“Sure Kels.” Taylor agreed, sliding his hands down over her ass. “I’ll check into an appointment or walk-in testing this week.” She couldn’t help but be a bit relieved that he didn’t make a big deal about it. 

Kissing him again, Kelsey relaxed into Taylor’s touch. 

“Don’t you want to finish watching the game?” She asked, breaking the kiss after a few minutes, her forehead resting against Taylor’s. 

“Nah. I’m good.” Taylor declared, pressing forward for another kiss. There really was nothing like just kissing him, enjoying the feeling of his body pressed against her own. 

After what had to be at least a half hour, Kelsey felt the fatigue of the day start to sink in and she broke the kiss yawning. 

“Think it’s time to start getting ready for bed T.” She murmured softly. 

Taylor kissed the side of her head before letting her get up and Kelsey moved to grab pjs from her bag. Moving to the bathroom after changing, Kelsey went through her normal routine before returning to Taylor’s room and flopping down onto his floor with his desk at her back. 

Though Taylor didn’t say anything, she could feel him watching her as she stretched and grabbed her phone to pull up her nightly meditation. 

“You should join me Tay…” She murmured softly, peeking up at him. “I think it would be good for you.” As she patted the spot beside her, Taylor looked at her curiously before shifting those long limbs to sit down. “Just close your eyes and breathe.” Kelsey directed, starting to play the meditation audio to walk them through it. 

Meditation was something that helped Kelsey to reorient herself and put one day behind her while setting herself up for success the next. It wasn’t something she did on the weekends as much so this was the first time she was doing it in front of Taylor. 

Just letting herself relax, Kelsey focused on the monotone voice and the rhythm of her breathing. She could hear Taylor’s breaths beside her and the warmth of his presence only helped her body to settle. 

When the audio stopped, Kelsey just continued with her breathing for a few more minutes before finally opening her eyes. Taylor’s eyes were still closed and Kelsey leaned over to kiss his cheek before slowly standing up. 

“C’mon Tay, let’s get some sleep.” She whispered, offering a hand out to help him up off the floor. 

Slowly Taylor pushed himself up while taking her hand and then hugged her softly, lips grazing her temple. He looked more relaxed and Kelsey could only smile at that hoping that the quiet time meditating had helped him the way it helped her. 

After getting his hug, Taylor lifted her up onto his bed and Kelsey shifted to make room for him as he moved to turn out the light and pull the shirt off over his head. Once he had settled in beside her, Kelsey snuggled into him and rested her head on his bare chest just ready to get a good night’s sleep before class tomorrow. 

“Night Kels.” 

“Night T.” 

***

Kelsey jolted awake not to the sound of her own alarm but to what must have been Taylor’s phone buzzing frantically on his nightstand. 

“Kels it’s fine.” Taylor mumbled, kissing her head as his long arm reached for his phone. “Umass is closed today because of the snow. Go back to sleep.” He reported before setting his phone aside once more. 

“Wait what?” Kelsey insisted, even more awake now as she propped herself up and looked toward the window. She hadn’t checked the weather to have any idea that it was going to snow. 

“It snowed Kels.” Taylor mumbled again, his voice deep with sleep. “So umass is closed. Medical Ethics prof emailed to do the reading for Thursday and we’ll discuss it all then.” Feeling her get more worked up, this time Taylor reached for her phone, handing it to her. 

“Check your emails. Your other classes today are probably canceled too, we were supposed to get like 6-8 inches.” 

Blearily looking at her phone, Kelsey pulled up her email seeing the one Taylor had mentioned regarding medical ethics. There was also one from her other morning class informing them that due to weather and the professor not being local that even though the college wasn’t officially closed, he was canceling class. 

“Now can we go back to sleep?” Taylor questioned softly, his arms wrapping around her tighter. 

Though she was fully awake, Taylor’s bed was warm and now she didn’t have anywhere she needed to be. Turning her alarm off, Kelsey handed her phone back to Taylor and took a deep breath before settling down and ducking her face into his neck to block out the morning light. 

“Sleep.” Taylor mumbled, his chest rumbling under her. Though Kelsey wasn’t sure that she would be able to sleep, she would at least enjoy Taylor’s scent and the way he clung to her. Though she couldn’t describe his scent beyond the slight linger of soap, it smelled good and made her entire body relax. 

Kelsey knew that she could get a little stressed and uptight when it came to school but admittedly it was nice to have a snow day where she could just spend a morning cuddled into her boyfriend’s arms without either of them having any obligations. They really hadn’t had too many mornings like this. 

Certainly none where they could go back to sleep. 

With Taylor’s scent making her calm, his warmth making her feel safe, and the rhythm of his steady breathing under her, Kelsey dozed off despite not thinking she’d be able to. 

When she awoke again, she had no idea what time it was, however, her bladder was screaming at her. Attempting to shift only led to Taylor’s arms tightening around her and Kelsey whimpered softly. 

“T c’mon. Need to pee.” She murmured into the skin of his neck while wiggling slightly. With a sigh he loosened his grip and Kelsey slipped out from under the blankets to make her way across the hall to the bathroom. 

Ensuring she had put the seat down, Kelsey took care of business and then washed her hands before splashing a little bit of water onto her face, rubbing at her eyes. As she stepped out of the bathroom she nearly bumped into another large chest. 

“Wow. Surprised T let you out of bed.” Mercs murmured jokingly. 

“He definitely didn’t want to.” Kelsey replied, moving around him to step back into Taylor’s room.

As soon as Taylor spotted her again, he was reaching for her to come back to bed. He really was like a koala always wanting to cling to her. Complying to his wants, Kelsey moved to climb back into bed letting him wrap his arms back around her. 

“I’m not going to be able to sleep T.” She declared running a palm along the bare skin of his chest. 

“Just cuddle then.” He breathed, yawning softly. 

Kelsey was open to cuddles and let him wrap her up in his arms. But after a few minutes she trailed her hand down to the light grazing of hair along his happy trail just stroking gently. It was a subconscious thing but she loved caressing that spot on his body which led to some of her other favorite parts of his anatomy. 

She’d barely started playing with that patch of skin when Taylor grunted and pulled her body directly on top of his chest cutting off her access. 

Pouting, Kelsey shifted her hips to grind gently against Taylor’s dick. Now that she was awake and all pressed up against her boyfriend’s mostly nude body Kelsey couldn’t deny the itch that lingered under her skin. It had been over two weeks since they’d had sex and though it hadn’t really bothered her before, now she wanted to feel him inside her. 

Though it didn’t take long for Taylor’s dick to pop into a semi, he didn’t get any harder than that. Clearly he wasn’t in the mood for sex for some reason and Kelsey couldn’t help but sigh. 

“Is someone horny?” He chuckled, his hands dropping to her ass. 

“Two weeks T.” Kelsey mumbled. “How are you not horny?” 

“I‘m hungry, Kels.” Taylor’s response made Kelsey sigh again and she started to shift to get up so he could get breakfast only to be stopped by his hands holding her still and then shifting her over just one of his thighs. 

Gently his hands pushed her shorts and underwear down to her knees before helping her kick them off. 

“Taylor. You said you’re hungry.” Kelsey murmured, confused as to why he was undressing her when he was too hungry for sex. 

“Ride my thigh Kels.” Taylor instructed. 

“What?” Kelsey asked, a little confused as her mind raced to process Taylor’s words. She’d never ridden someone’s thigh before but she could imagine how it would be pleasurable. “Are you sure?” 

“Yeah Kels.” 

Biting her lip, Kels lowered herself over his thigh and took his little bit of guidance to grind down on the thick muscles of his quads. It took a minute to find a movement and angle that felt good but once she did she rolled her hips frantically seeking out the pleasure of an orgasm. As she ground against him, her arousal spread, making the glide easier and allowing her to increase her speed. 

“Holy shit Kels, that’s so hot.” Taylor grunted, his eyes heavy as he watched her. “C’mon…get yourself off on me.” 

Taylor’s words only fueled her more and within a few minutes, Kelsey felt an orgasm roll through her just strong enough to take the edge off of the itch. 

As her body weakened, Taylor sat up and hugged her tight, kissing her head and whispering how beautiful she is when she cums. Reaching for the handy box of tissues beside his bed, Taylor gently cleaned her and his thigh up before waiting for her to regain control of her body to get up and get breakfast. 

Once she was strong enough, Taylor guided her off the bed to redress while he moved to get up and throw his own clothes on before going out to where his roommates might be lingering. 

Though she was sure Taylor’s roommates probably sent him some raised eyebrows, no one said anything and she moved to look out the window in the living room as Taylor moved to the kitchen. It had definitely snowed there was no doubt about that. 

“Can I help?” She asked softly as she moved back to the little kitchen area. 

“Crack eggs while I go to the bathroom?” Taylor replied, shifting out of the way to give Kelsey kitchen space when she nodded and asked how many. Following his instruction, Kelsey washed her hands and then got to work and by the time she had finished cracking eggs, Taylor had returned. Working in tandem, they prepped a simple breakfast and then moved to the living room to sit and eat. 

“We should go play in the snow after we finish.” Kelsey murmured, nudging Taylor’s leg with her foot as they sat on the couch. 

“You hate the cold…” Taylor trailed off between bites. 

“But I like playing in the snow.” Kelsey insisted, shrugging at Taylor’s look of confusion. “Come on. We should all go out, it’ll be fun.” She declared throwing the roommates into the mix even if Lauts was the only one presently in the room. 

“I’d be down.” Lauts piped up from the small dining room table. 

Sending Taylor a look of ‘see’, Kelsey nudged him again. 

“You really want to go out?” Taylor questioned. 

“Yes.” Kelsey stated emphatically. 

“Okay. If you want to go play in the snow that badly we can go play.” Taylor chuckled. 

Grinning, Kelsey resumed eating her breakfast while Lauts moved to inform Mercs and Mikey to get dressed to go out in the snow. 

Once they were done eating, Taylor took their dishes into the kitchen to wash while Kelsey moved back to his room to grab her toothbrush for her morning hygiene routine before dressing warmly in as many layers as possible. 

When Taylor returned he smiled and rolled his eyes a bit before stepping to kiss her head. 

“You’re something else sometimes, you know that?” He asked, the smile and tone of voice telling her the statement was made in fondness. 

“But you like me.” She replied teasingly, causing Taylor’s eyes to flash that same something they had at the Whales game but that she didn’t understand. 

“Yeah. I do.” He stated simply, kissing her head again before moving to throw on clothes of his own for snow play. 

Though Kelsey was visibly more bundled up than Taylor or any of his roommates she didn’t care and urged them to go out so that they could play in the snow. 

For over an hour they played in the snow, Kelsey making snow angels and roping them into making a snowman with her before it all dissolved into a massive snowball fight with quite a few other umass students joining in on the fun. By the time they headed inside, Kelsey’s hands were numb but she was smiling because that had been exactly the kind of fun she needed. 

Shoes were kicked off in the entry way onto a mat and then Kelsey followed Taylor back to his room to get out of the rest of the wet clothes. Thankfully her inner layers were still relatively dry but she was definitely feeling the cold and shivered as she hung a damp layer over his desk chair. 

“Holy fuck Taylor.” Kelsey murmured as her boyfriend’s cold hands slid around her waist under the edge of her shirt. 

“We should get you out of these clothes too, just to be safe.” He murmured, voice deep and signaling his real interest. 

“Oh so now you want sex.” Kelsey teased as she shivered again. 

“I can’t think of a better way to warm us both up.” He rasped, nipping softly at her neck. 

“Such a boy.” Kelsey mumbled sliding a hand up behind her to tangle in Taylor’s hair as he marked up her neck. 

“Is that a yes?” He mumbled against her skin. 

“When have I ever turned down sex with you Taylor?” 

Kelsey felt him shrug and giggled. 

“Well? Are you going to get me naked or not?” She prompted, only to softly squeal as Taylor quickly pulled her clothes off her body with deft hands before lifting her up onto his bed. 

His clothes were quick to follow and he grabbed a condom from the bedside drawer before leveraging himself up into bed, hovering over her. Immediately she pulled him down for a dirty kiss, her hands resuming their position in his hair. With his body settled over hers, Kelsey groaned, welcoming his weight and the way he grew hard against her stomach showing that unlike this morning he was as needy as she was. 

As they made out, Kelsey felt herself grow damp and she moaned softly into his mouth. “You ready?” He mumbled kissing along her shoulder to give her a chance to breathe and answer. 

“Yeah. Fuck me Tay.” 

With her consent, Taylor shifted to sheathe himself in the condom before parting her legs a little more to settle against her core. Adjusting himself for better alignment, Taylor slowly eased inside her, grunting softly at the tightness of her body around him before pausing to allow her to relax fully. 

Kelsey couldn’t help but gasp at the fullness. Though she should be used to it by now, the way Taylor fit inside her always took her breath away. Even without the added emotional connection that was growing stronger everyday, sex with Taylor was physically the best sex she's ever had, no comparison. 

Wiggling slightly she felt him slide just that little bit deeper and though she tried to keep the moan quiet she didn’t succeed triggering a banging on the adjoining wall. 

“YO T.” Mercs voice called through the wall. “Don’t particularly care if you want to fuck your girl but can you keep it down, some of us are trying to take a nap.” 

“Oh god.” Kelsey mumbled burying her head against Taylor’s shoulder. She knew that the roommates had probably heard her before but they hadn’t called them out on it directly like that. 

But Taylor didn’t let her dwell on it, completely ignoring his roommate as he focused on setting a steady pace with his thrusts, mouth seeking hers to muffle her moans and whimpers. 

“Take me so well.” He mumbled against her lips as he ground his hips into hers between thrusts. Digging her nails along his shoulders, Kelsey drew her legs up farther along Taylor’s side to deepen the angle he was able to thrust at. Kissing her, Taylor took advantage of it, burying himself inside of her even deeper on every instroke. It made Kelsey whimper into the kiss but looking at her and the pleasure on her face Taylor knew it was a good whimper, one that was seeking more. 

“Fuck, you love feeling me as deep inside you as you can get don’t you.” He praised while taking huffing breaths as his groin tightened with an impending orgasm. 

“T. Please.” Kelsey whispered. 

“I got you.” Taylor assured her while pulling out. “Put your legs up over my shoulders.” 

With the adjustment in position settled, Taylor pushed back inside her until his pelvis met hers, settling him as deep inside her as possible. 

“Oh.” She gasped out as softly as she could manage, trying to keep quiet. 

“Yeah? Feel good?” Taylor questioned, needing to be sure that it wasn’t too deep before he resumed any sort of rhythm. 

“Taylor…” Kelsey breathed, because this was exactly what she needed. 

As Taylor resumed his thrusts, Kelsey’s head fell back and her body arched in pleasure. Feeling him this deep was incredible and it wasn’t going to take long for her to cum with him hitting all the right spots. 

Taylor was already holding back his orgasm to make Kelsey cum just focusing on the way her body shook as he fucked her deeply. She was a literal goddess under him. 

Sliding a palm under her head, Taylor tipped her face back toward his and kissed her to quiet her noises as he felt her twitch around him signaling that her orgasm was going to hit hard in a matter of moments. Thrusting even harder to hit those deep spots with a bit more pressure, Taylor felt her body snap and she screamed into his mouth as her body clamped around him like a vice, dragging his own orgasm out of him as she milked him endlessly. 

Though his body felt limp, Taylor kissed Kelsey’s cheek before pulling out to dispose of the full condom. As he got up he gently helped her lower her legs back to the mattress. She was flushed all over and Taylor felt another pang of arousal as he looked at her sprawled across his bed looking thoroughly fucked. 

“Need help getting to the bathroom?” He asked softly, leaning over the bed to kiss her sweaty forehead. 

“Think you could get it up for a round two?” She replied, her voice soft and crackly from her previous pleasure. Even if he wasn’t initially sure, the way his dick had twitched at the suggestion made the decision obvious and he nodded. 

“Yeah, just need a few minutes.” 

“Good then come here.” She called, shifting onto her side to make room for him on the bed. Holding her close they kissed languidly, Taylor’s fingers plucking softly at her nipples to keep her arousal up while he rebounded. 

Every time she thought the sex couldn’t get better, Taylor would go and find some new way to drive her wild. 

After about fifteen minutes of kissing, Kelsey felt Taylor start to stiffen between them and she smirked against his lips. 

“Can I be on top?” She questioned, trailing fingers down his arms. 

“Sure Kels.” Taylor breathed, turning to reach for a condom before settling on the mattress so she could straddle him. Taking the foil package from him, Kelsey carefully tore it open before rolling it onto him and then settling over him, lowering herself onto his dick slowly. 

Feeling a little achy, there was no way she was going to be able to take him as deeply as last time but after finding a comfortable level of penetration she rolled her hips over him in a manner she knew he liked. With both of them having previous orgasms which increased the sensitivity, Kelsey knew it wasn’t going to take long for either of them. 

With Taylor continuing his exploration of her nipples, working them over with his tongue and lips, Kelsey threw a hand over her mouth to quiet herself as first one wave of pleasure rolled through her followed by a second and third which brought her orgasm on in full force. As her body started coming down, Taylor’s hips jolted against her and his mouth bit another mark into the skin of her clavicle, his own orgasm causing him to pulse inside her. 

Fully sated and knowing that she was going to feel their activities for at least a day or two, Kelsey carefully lifted off Taylor and collapsed next to him on the bed just needing a few moments before she cleaned up and redressed to use the bathroom. 

“Think this might be the greatest snow day ever.” Taylor mumbled as he wrapped an arm around her and kissed her head. 

“Yeah, no complaints.” Kelsey agreed, yawning. 

While Kelsey was still working up the strength to get up, there was a knock on Taylor’s door. 

“Dude please tell us you’re done in there. We’re gonna play some COD before practice and your presence is required.” Mercs insisted. 

Taylor’s groan made Kelsey laugh and she kissed his lips softly. 

“Go play with them. I should go home anyway before my roommates think I’m dead.” Taylor hesitated for a moment before sighing. 

“Fine. But let me go clear and warm up your car for you while you put yourself together.” 

Kelsey wasn’t going to argue that and nodded as he slipped out of bed and tossed the condom before throwing on some clothes and grabbing her keys. 

By the time she had cleaned up, thrown clothes on, packed up her overnight bag, and stripped Taylor’s bedding, putting the spare sheets set on, her phone was buzzing with a text from Taylor telling her that her chariot awaited. 

Replying that she would be right down, she moved to put her coat on and headed out to the entryway to throw on her shoes. 

“Kelsey. Catch.” Mikey’s voice called from the kitchen and when she looked up it was just in time to catch a protein bar he was tossing her way. 

“Since Taylor was too busy to feed you lunch and I’m pretty sure you need it.” The smirk on his face told her that he had also witnessed their activities and Kelsey’s cheeks flushed scarlet again. 

Shrugging, she waved the bar in thanks and gathered her things before heading outside to meet Taylor at her car, eating on the way.

After loading her bags up she let Taylor pull her into a hug, stealing a few more kisses. 

“Thanks for cleaning my car off. You’re the best.” She murmured, her thumbs brushing against his cheeks. 

“Thanks for spending the snow day with me.” He replied, squeezing her tight. 

“Anytime. I’ll text you when I get home.” 

With Taylor’s phone buzzing, likely with a text from the roommates telling him to hurry his ass up, he reluctantly released her and moved to open her door for her. 

“Bye Kels.” 

Blowing a kiss to him through the window, Kelsey proceeded back to her apartment where her roommates were all bundled up on the couch watching a rom com. 

“Pour yourself a glass of wine and come join us.” One declared. 

“Yeah and dish. How many times did you get fucked today? Damn girl, he got you good.” Another exclaimed, noticing the slight limp Kelsey walked with and the darkening bruise on her neck. 

Rolling her eyes, Kelsey dropped her bags into her room before grabbing that glass of wine and making them make room for her on the couch. 

She’d dish…but just a little. The rest was between her and Taylor.

[flannelepicurean]

Some ShuriKan headcanons, because YOU MADE ME DO THIS

Seriously, hellsite sweethearts. I did not anticipate spending this much of the first day of this Year of our Blorb 2023 thinking about this, but it turned out to be quite the ride. File this under: Does it count as "Domestic Bliss" if the domicile is actually multiple international palaces and there's a sort of "on land/underwater" element in play?

The kids have Namor absolutely wrapped around their adorable, chubby little fingers. He cannot say no to them, although he likes to pretend he can. 

Okoye also indulges them to an extent, but in a very, "Mm-hm. What does your father say? And what does your mother say?" method. (Winner is often the ruler of whichever nation they're currently in, but the balance naturally tips in Shuri's favor surprisingly often. Okoye and Namora come to be aligned in this, as practical people who realize that Namor has not one lick of goddamn sense when it comes to spoiling those precious babies.)

Shuri spends a lot of time outfoxing the entire lot of them. Things still have to get done, it can’t be all, “Oh, sorry ambassador, gotta take a three-hour break from treaty negotiations because the kids have an emergency whale-ride situation…”

She and Namor have a parenting dynamic not unlike that couple from The Emperor’s New Groove. “Oh suuure, you can stay up late! We’ll just be in here telling each other how much we love each other, [exaggerated smoochy face noises].”

But when the kids do run away, declaring them gross, Namor’s like, “...Well, since we’re here…” And then Shuri’s like, “OMG, husband, I have so many things to do.” And he gives her the sad sea-otter eyes, and she’s like, “YOU have so many things to do! We have to do the paperwork for the treaty with the UN! And don’t even get me started on Krakoa!” And he’s all, “Nooooooooo! Cara mia! [Flop] My humidifier…I feel weak…” And she’s already walking away suppressing a giggle like, “Oh, okay, I’ll have Riri take a look, maybe she can tweak the enviro settings in the office for you?” And he’s like, “NO, THAT’S OKAY, THAT’S COOL, GONNA JUST HOP IN THE SHOWER, WORK TO DO, FEELING SO PRODUCTIVE, LOVE YOU…”

Also, Riri is the one who introduced Namor to the term “thirst trap,” and initially he was like, “...thirst???...trap…???...like??? The thing you…put me in????” And of course she’s like, “OMG, no, fool, it’s…you know what, I’ll just show you, it’ll be faster.”

A couple hours and some copious notes later, he’s like, “Okay. I think…Right. I’m gonna need to move some really big mirrors around, but I think…yeah…yes. I can do this.”

He trots back in like 5 minutes later all, “Okay, explain about the selfie stick again–you know what, no. No, I can…we’ve got the spears from last years test models, or…intern! That’s it, I’ll get an intern!”

10 minutes later, “Hey, where do I get the shirts??? That go like???" [Makes a V-shaped gesture from collarbone area to approximately navel]

Namor doesn’t really “do” social media, because he’s still very private, and doesn’t want the greater world to know about his kingdom. So he pretty much only spams Shuri with thirst trap pictures.

Never dick pics, though. He’s classy.

The first time Shuri calls him “mi amor,” he’s like, “Oh. Oh noooooooooooooo! Oh, I did not think this through, ohhhhhhhhhhh…” And that’s when he goes full Gomez. Because she wouldn’t do it lightly. She would really have to have healed, A LOT, and they would both have to have grown significantly, both individually and together, and damn wouldn’t that moment really clobber him? No longer sin amor, but con amor. And still Namor. Hell of a thing.

[get-back-homeward]

the 2023 reissue of the beatles’ red album is out as of midnight last night. the glow up that Love Me Do got has me very excited to hear what this new separation tech can do to their earliest songs. i’ve long been annoyed with the old stereo mixes for their 1963 songs and typically force them to mono to avoid feeling lopsided hearing vocals in one ear and not the other. my father doesn’t even acknowledge that the stereo mixes exist and still clings to his original mono versions. i can’t blame him as i always favor the live versions over these mixes. but i heard they were adding more 1963 songs for this reissue, and in a fit of blind belief from the Love Me Do reveal, i broke down and preordered a copy. will i regret my purchase?

so here’s my first reactions to the 1963 tracks (first 10 after Love Me Do):

Please Please Me 🤔🤔🤔

hmm, my first thought is that it may be a bit too much separation? there was already quite a lot in the 2009 album version, but i don’t care for how much echo is on that one. i think this fixes the echo for me, so along with the stereo fix i’m counting it as an improvement. next to the 2009 mono mix, this one lifts the vocals slightly to hear each part better. i still like the live versions of the song best as it’s just the kind of song (proto garage rock?) that sounds best a bit dirtied up. i love hearing john’s half laugh so clearly at 1:33 after the lyrics flub, but the drums are the highlight for me. man, ringo was a force of nature on this track.

I Saw Her Standing There 🤩🤩🤩

i legit screamed. this is an experience. giles bringing his dad’s initial idea for the first album to life? there’s so much space here, it sounds like you’re in the middle of the cavern! along with the stereo fix, the echo on the handclaps that distracts from rest of the song is gone.

Twist and Shout 🎯🎯🎯

not too much of a change, just the right little tweaks here to elevate the clarity of each part. george’s guitar never sounded better. the clarity of john’s vocals is so wild i swear you can hear him spit. this mix is worthy of the song john ripped his throat out for. excellent addition.

From Me To You ❤️❤️❤️

gosh, john and paul’s vocals are so crystal clear. more dimension than the old mono version. the harmonica ending 😘

She Loves You 🤓🤓🤓

i don’t hear a clear difference on this. it’s still a bit fuzzy and flattened. maybe the drums are a bit clearer with more dimension, and bass slightly more upfront. the vocals sound especially fuzzy though, perhaps because they didn’t have the original master copy to work with. that was also the case with Love Me Do and its quality had me hoping they could CPR this one too but alas. i think the past masters 2009 version is better than this.

I Want To Hold Your Hand 😑😑😑

i’m no expert on this one but sounds unchanged to me. maybe the hand claps have more echo? and paul’s harmony is more distinct?

This Boy 😱😍🫠

immaculate. i am deceased. talk to me from the great beyond.

All My Loving 😘😘😘

it’s incredible how much different the balance sound makes. paul sounds so much clearer now. stereo fix aside, it doesn’t sound too much different until the backing vocals and george’s guitar solo. the last bass note sounds incredible.

Roll Over Beethoven 👏👏👏

this reissue fixes the main problem with the original red album: the lack of george songs. the original didn’t have covers but the additions here make this one feel like it belongs. i hear a bit of fuzz in the opening, but it clears up quick. listen to that guitar go! the 9 yo in me is dancing like a fiend over this. i never heard the handclaps so well. everything sounds more distinct, vocals, bass, drums, in a way you can appreciate each part but without feeling too intrusive. also an excellent last note.

You Really Got A Hold On Me 😍😍😍

vocals in both ears!!! just the biggest dumb grin on my face. crystal clear the whole way through, but especially on the climax. whew. that start-stop ending has never hit harder.

overall, i am delighted. even if all the rest of the mixes are crap, this new version is still worth it for the fixes to the 1963 songs. for me, the glow ups for This Boy and You Really Got A Hold On Me alone are worth the sticker price. it was an excellent decision to include covers. a wonderful way to celebrate 60 years.

[isobel-thorm]

Homecoming 3/3

Summary: After the events of MW3 (2023), Price makes it to Christine's doorstep for a brief reprieve before whatever's to come. They share a First of what they hope is many. Pairing: John Price x OFC (Christine), brief mention of Soap x OMC Notes: Extremely vague spoilers for the campaign, tweaked one plot point.

Christine woke at the sound of a loud, firm knock on her front door. She picked up her phone from the nightstand. 4:23 A.M. Her anxiety was piqued at being woken up at such an hour. A fire? A family emergency? Her father and Kate came to mind, and she threw her covers off and hurried to the door. When she opened it, she went to lean out to ensure the place wasn’t burning and nearly collided with someone. And his energy was so off it took her a couple of seconds to realize it was John. Last she heard, he was an ocean away. She blinked at him blearily. “Hey, what…?” “Jus’ needed to see you.” 

His response was twice as gruff as usual, and the more she took him in, the more worried she got. His eyes were barely focused, he looked years older. She took his face in her hands and was even more confused when he pressed into her touch and visibly relaxed and he all but sagged against her. “John, did you take something? What’s going on?” 

“No, jus’... just…” 

She took his word for it and let go of him, and her heart broke when he sagged further when she dropped him. She took his hand in hers and pulled him inside. She grew even more concerned with how easily he let himself be pulled. She closed and locked the door behind them and guided him to the couch. Her brain started going a mile a minute. Bad mission? Missions? Was he hurt? Was the team hurt? Was someone on the team dead? Soap, Gaz, Dean, Alex, Farah? And then the most reasonable option to get him to react like that came to mind and just about hit her like a truck, and she immediately felt nauseated. “John, is it Kate? Is Kate okay?” her heart fell to her stomach when he visibly flinched, and she felt herself start the stages of grief and landed hard in ‘Anger.’ She stood up. “John, is it Kate? Because if she’s dead, you need to leave because I don’t think I can handle you showing up at my door like this and barely getting a word out and then getting a call from our mother saying you personally delivered a folded flag to her.” She felt awful the second the end of the sentence left her mouth, because while Kate was her sister, she knew John loved her like one. It had been the talk of the barbeque months ago, finding out that they all knew each other, and John and Kate had spent hours talking fondly of each other to her. But it didn’t change the fact that she couldn’t handle the very hypothetical she had spoken about. 

“No, she’s… she’s not fine, but she’s not dead. But she nearly was. She nearly was, we all were. I almost lost her, I had to watch fucking-” he cut himself off, and it took her a moment to realize he had probably nearly said classified information. Still, Kate wasn’t dead. That was a start. She sat back down and took his hands in hers again and waited for him to sort his thoughts out. “There was a brief moment I thought I was watching it happen. I’m sure she doesn’t want to spook you, but… you should call her. Hell, I almost didn’t make it back from this one. And then Soap… Christ, the blood, but he barely made it through, and…” he paused lost in thought, and when she reached up to stroke his cheek again, he leaned in briefly.

"Soap's... okay though?"

John nodded. "Gonna be on medical leave for a while. Dean's gonna look after him. He's in good hands." He sounded like he was trying to convince himself of that.

Christine scooted closer.

John touched her thighs idly, then something clouded his eyes for a moment before he pulled back. He was silent for a moment, then scoffed bitterly.  “I’m not a good person, Chris. I don’t deserve this,” he motioned around. “Don’t deserve you.”

“Well, that’s bullshi-”

“I killed someone.”

Christine went quiet at that briefly as she wondered just what that meant, considering his track record that she was very much aware of. “That… comes with the territory, doesn’t it? Was it a civ-” 

He flinched for a moment, then shook his head. “No. Not a civilian, quite the opposite but… wasn’t exactly an order, wasn’t not an order either.”

She didn’t know how to take that, either. “Am I ever gonna get something that isn’t cryptic about your job?”

“Maybe someday. But today? Not a chance. It’s…” 

“Complicated,” she finished for him.

He nodded after a moment. “We get dirty, the world stays clean,” he added. It sounded hauntingly rehearsed like he had said it many times before. A justification. A coping mechanism. He suddenly looked miles away.

“Anybody gonna come busting in my door looking for you?” 

“Don’t think so. That’s... part of the complication.”

“Are you in the wind or expected somewhere in a few hours?” 

“Also part of the complication.”

She blanched, then sighed. It was Fate who decided to put the handsome spec ops guy who worked with her sister in the coffee shop. She had chosen to continue their Thing when she realized just what the Hell that meant, and all the confusion and secrets that came with it.  “Well, I have absolutely no chance of understanding for now. So…” she trailed off, then let her hands drop to his shoulders and put medium pressure there. He looked confused briefly, but let himself get arranged so he was laying down sideways on the couch, and she laid down flush against him, then maneuvered so one of his arms was locked around her middle. “But it sounds like you need sleep right now. We can talk about it or not, in the morning. The actual morning. When the sun’s up. And I’m coordinated enough to make coffee. And then you’re going to sleep in my actual bed.” She was relieved when she felt him huff out a chuckle in response. That was a start. She cuddled further into him, and he tightened his grip around her in response. “Sleep,” she instructed. 

There was silence for a few minutes, and she herself hadn’t managed to get to sleep, her own mind racing about the man settled in behind her. And she was fairly sure he still wasn’t sleeping yet either, considering his breathing hadn’t slowed at all. She reached down to squeeze his hand, and he adjusted so he was holding hers. 

The silence was suddenly as deafening as it was peaceful. She felt him press a kiss into her hair, and then, he was the first to break it: “I love you.”

Christine froze, unsure if she had even heard him right. That was… new. She turned to look at him, then found him watching her carefully. She opened her mouth and shut it, knowing full well that whatever she said just might break him. Sure, she was fairly certain it was mutual. There were no men like John Price, after all. He had found his way to her heart embarrassingly quickly. But if she said it now? The situation had just gotten ten times more delicate. After mulling it over, she eased herself forward and kissed him gently before pulling back. “Tell me again when you’re in a better headspace.” There. Not an outright rejection, not a confirmation. 

Thankfully, it seemed to work for him too, since after a few moments of silence he smiled weakly, gave her a kiss of his own and settled into the couch again.

She watched him for a few moments, satisfied when his eyes remained shut for a couple of minutes after the exchange. She turned back and waited, and waited, and before long, John’s breathing had evened out, then slowed. She sighed in relief. Good, that was Step 1 in… whatever this was. In a few hours, they’d talk more, she’d hopefully get a little more information to work with, and they’d work through whatever the immediate future held. It was going to be a mixed bag of emotions and fears, most likely.

But that was a problem for sunrise. 

[mordeiswrld]

hey!! if you are taking requests, i wanted to request the tmnt mm! boys having a crush on a fem! reader who’s EXACTLY like raph. she loves fighting, may or may not have anger issues, cursed with resting bitch face, BUT, she’s actually really sweet and outgoing. never afraid to speak her mind, so, she may come across as rude sometimes, but, she never really means to be. (lowkey a biased request but SSSHH, we’re not gonna talk about that)

Absolutely! Lowkey sounds like me😭😭 and sorry if they're a bit OOC I haven't watched the movie yet I was planning to on my birthday (Sept 20th) (didnt end up seeing it since i went to the mall and got scammed 😭😭)

started: Sept 14, 2023

Ended: October 26

LEONARDO

Immediately has a panic attack when he first meets you

He's scared of you for like the first 2 months of meeting you since your RBF gives off mixed signals and he's a big worry wart

But once he gets to know your and sees how much of a sweetheart you are he calms down a bit

But only a bit

Because now he has FEELINGSSSSS

He’s now even more nervous than he was when he met you because now his heart beats faster when he’s around you

Omg what if you dont like him? What if you think he’s UGLY?!?

that makes him panic more and it starts to worry you and when you confront him about it he doesnt respond and blurts out that he’s fine. Not wanting to ruin your friendship

He doesnt like that you fight, he worries a lot and when you get angry he gets scared, whether or not its towards him or someone else

When you speak your mind he sometimes gets surprised by how blunt you are, but also admires it and aspires to be like you and when you apologize for it sounding mean his admiration grows even more

RAPHAEL

He found his soulmate is his first initial reaction even though he may have been a teensy bit scared of you but once he got used to you he saw how nice you are under the surface and immediately wanted to be your best friend

He warms up to you pretty fast since you both are so alike and he starts to wreck havoc on anyone who crosses him with you and vice versa

He didn’t realize he was gaining a crush on you he just thought it was just a strong admiration of you

He loves your bluntness and laughs at everyones surprised faces even if hes surprised himself when you apologize for sounding mean he laughs it off and saying that there's nothing to be sorry for

Your RBF is misleading though, he gets confused whether or not you’re upset or just vibing

When you’re angry, he’s angry monkey see monkey do type shi but when its aimed at him he gets upset and sour because he doesn’t like you being mad at him but will begrudgingly apologize if it is his fault

He’ll end up confessing one day whenever he realizes he has a crush or if his brothers pressure him into it

MICHAELANGELO

He's weary of you but he isn't scared at first

So what if you look like you could beat his head in with a mallet mercilessly?

He's not one to judge and besides he’s got Raph so it's nothing new

He’s just extra cautious if you and Raph are in the same room together

When you speak your mind he doesn't say anything but quietly chuckles in the back but if it sounded really mean then he’d be like “That was a bit rude N/n” and when you apologize he smiles and shrugs it off

He'd be worried sick if you got into a fight but if you were winning he'd root for you but if you were losing he'd pull you away while reprimanding the other person

When you get angry he’d try his best to help you calm down even if it's directed towards him he'd still want to help calm you, not wanting to lose you over something small

He will know he has a crush on you early on but will act normally towards you not wanting you to suspect anything out of the ordinary scoping out if you could actually return his feelings

DONNATELLO

He is the unbothered King on the outside until you and Raph use him as a test dummy then he's gonna tweak the fuck out

Now he's gonna keep any sharp objects away from both of you

But he can tell you’re more sane and caring than Raph so he’s not too worried about you, by yourself

When you fight though he's willing to jump in if it's needed and will also help bandage up any cuts and scrapes

He's like a personal nurse

When you speak your mind he has the most exaggerated surprised face ever stands there with his mouth wide open and his hands on his face like “🙀” and when you apologize he’ll tease you lightheartedly but forgive you nonetheless

Your RBF isn't phasing him he will ask you if you’re alright though just to make sure

He tries to help you calm down when you’re angry just like Mikey but he suggests activities for you to do together that reduces anger and is calming even if you’re mad at him he’ll try to calm you down and will apologize for upsetting you

[laughterisorange]

TICKLETOBER 2023

Prompt Day 15: Tickle Fight

Fandom: Julie and the Phantoms (I freaking love this show)

Platonic, just the boys being boys in 1995, pre-show.

Summary: It’s been a couple weeks since Luke left home. It’s hard.

This is a tickle fic - don’t like, don’t read. Beware some slight angst at the start.

Fic Length: Tangerine

The Only Choice

Luke stumbled into the garage, eyes red and damp from crying. The hoodie he had on was bespeckled with raindrops and streak marks from the bushes behind his parents house. He had watched them for a while today through their large 3-pane window. His mother kept glancing out as if she sensed him there. As if he were a ghost. 

It had only been a couple of weeks.

At first they had tried reaching out to him. Reached out to Reggie, and to his parents - which ended with a black eye for Reggie, as he would not tell his parents where Luke was. Luke didn’t want to be found. Being found meant giving up on the band. And that was a choice Luke wouldn’t make. If leaving home was what would allow Sunset Curve’s dream to be a reality, then that was it. There wasn’t a choice.

But running away… still hurt. 

And it hurt more, when they stopped chasing.

Watching his mom from the bushes… He knew how much it was hurting her.

But he wouldn’t turn back.

He couldn’t do that.

But fuck, if it didn’t rip him apart.

He pulled open the doors, expecting it to be empty, with how early in the morning it was. He had stopped going to school with the boys anyway, as the school would have to contact his parents. Better to just be fully missing. He wasn’t really missing much anyway.

To his surprise, Bobby, Reggie and Alex were all in the garage, Alex pacing around, with Bobby and Reggie sitting on the couch. They looked up as he came in.

“Luke, thank god,” Bobby said, crossing quickly over, and giving Luke a hug. He pulled away, searching the boy’s face. “Where the hell have you been? I woke up this morning and you were gone.”

“We had no way to reach you, man,” Alex said. “Bobby called our landlines, panicking.”

“I’m just glad I picked up, and not my parents.” Reggie said, staring off at some invisible fear across the room.

“Sorry, guys. I didn’t mean to worry anyone.”

Bobby took a better look at Luke, hand still on his shoulder. “Went to your parents' place?”

Luke looked up at him, timid red eyes meeting Bobby’s brown ones before flicking away.

“Luke…”

“I’m fine. It’s fine,” he said, pushing past Bobby and into the center of the room. “You guys should, uh, you should be at school.”

Reggie spoke up from the couch, finally turning to face Luke. “We were worried about you dude.”

“Come on, guys - Bobby, you almost never see me in the mornings, it’s not that uncommon -”

“We’ve been worried about you,” Alex said. “For days.” He stepped closer to Luke. “Talk to us. Please.”

Luke’s eyes flicked over each of them, and he wetted his lips, his eyes burning again. “I’m fine,” He forced with a watery smile. “I-I just…” Tears slipped over the edges of his eyes. “I’m…”

Alex stepped forward, wrapping his arms around him.

Reggie and Bobby were next, joining the group hug as Luke cried.

“...It’s not like we ever got along super well…” Luke said wetly.

“But they're still your parents.” Alex said.

“And she’s still your mom,” Reggie whispered.

“It’s okay to be sad about it,” Bobby said. “None of us would judge you if -”

“No.” He was firm in his reply. “I want to be with you guys. I want to be in the band.” Luke's grip tightened on Alex’s hoodie. “I just wish there wasn’t a choice.” 

“...Hopefully one day our folks can forgive the…choices… we make.” Alex said pointedly.

“I don’t think anyone can forgive Reggie’s choice to wear plaid 24/7, though.” Bobby chuckled.

“Excuse you, my plaid shirts are a staple.”

“Yeah, stapled to you.” Bobby tweaked Reggie’s hip where the shirt was tied, earning a yelp for his efforts. Reggie’s spasm knocked the group off balance, and they stumbled onto a heap on the couch with varying groans.

“Reggie, what the hell.”


“Hey, Bobby tickled me!”

“Not my fault you’re so sensitive,” Bobby said, wiggling his fingers across Reggie’s exposed side.

“Hehehehey! Bohohobbehehey stohohop!” Reggie squirmed trying to get away, elbowing Alex.

“Hey, watch the flailing!”

“Yohohohou’re juhuhust as bahahahahad!” Reggie countered, practically shrieking as Bobby spidered on his stomach.

“Reggie, shhh, you’re gonna wake my parents~” Bobby intoned teasingly, knowing full well his parents had already left for work.

Luke rolled his eyes at their antics, a smile working its way onto his face. Alex noticed, and smirked at him evilly. 

The smile dropped from Luke’s face so fast. “A-alex, I know what you’re thinking -”

“Yeah?” Alex feigned a questioning look “And what, exactly, am I thinking there Luke?”

“Dohohon’t even - dohohn’t -”

“I haven’t even raised my hands yet, Luke.” At that, Alex followed through on his statement, raising his hands up and wiggling them at Luke, who blushed furiously, pushing himself back and into the couch in an effort to get away. But instead of being smart, and getting up to run, he shrunk down until his own hoodie had rode up.

“Trying to become one with the floorboards?” Alex teased, his fingers descending on the poor boy’s ribs. High pitched cackles started from the singer, and Alex tried and failed to resist his own grin.

“AhahahaHAHAHAlehehEheHEx!”

“LuhuUHUHUHke~” He mocked back, beginning to laugh along with him.

Suddenly he felt a pair of hands squeezing at his hips, and he barked out his own laugh which dissolved into giggles, as Bobby and Reggie ganged up on the pair, Luke still at their mercy in addition to Alex.

Reggie tased up and down Alex’s sides, as Bobby squeezed Luke’s thighs, saying some shit about the “7 seas” which only made Luke laugh harder. “Plehehehease! Bohohohob- AH NOHOHAHAHA!” Bobby had hit a sweet spot, it seemed, Luke’s laughter reaching a new height and tears pricking his eyes for another reason entirely. 

Though Luke was lost in his laughter, in the far reaches of his mind he had to admit - this was nice. Nice to let go of all his worries and stress came with upending your life and running away. Nice to remember they were still kids. Kids who could unwind, and be dorks together. Nice, to have a tickle fight, as surprising as that was. It was nice to be here, with his other family.

[97sparks]

new face, who’s this? thank you to everybody who sent in the suggestions, and i’m so sorry that i’m fickle that i decided on somebody who wasn’t even suggested 😭 but here’s an introduction to kang hyesu 2.0! truthfully, nothing much has changed about her personality-wise, but there’s been a few tweaks so here we go! 💕

want to start out by saying that i realize the age change will shift some dynamics and relationships significantly! i will be more deligent with plotting and such now considering this refreshed by muse!! i’m also available on d*scord if that’s more comfortable with you! 

what has changed about her: now born in 1997 and is the middle child of the kang’s. this also means she’s no longer a student, though she did graduate as a korean dance major at snu! at the moment, her main line of work is paid advertisements on her instagram and some modeling gigs here and there. all in all, she’s doing what everybody does after they appear on a dating program - trying hard to remain relevant 

what hasn’t changed about her: still the black sheep of her family, still knows that she’s super gorgeous and will use it to her abilities, still superficial and materialistic, still really determined to remain relevant!

oh, and her secret has been slightly tweaked but the basis is the same! she’s not a great korean dancer, but her parents paid her way into the school and went as far as threatening the girl who got dropped in her place! 

also something that i don’t think i mentioned enough in the hyesu 1.0 intro: hyesu’s still fairly new in the game with the socialities and all that. her first post on the page would have been january, 2023 when gossip girl started up again! 

there’s also been a change in her gg alias! rather than wishing star, i thought firecracker fit more because hyesu’s really unpredictable when it comes to her actions. the word also still conveys the idea of her wanting to rise up and sparkle so!!!