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samptlay · 23 days

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Could We Be High School Sweethearts? - Out on The Field (Continued)

Damn it. Now you have all eyes on you.

It was by instinct (instinct?), honestly. Everyone knows that if you stopped moving in this cold, you’d freeze to death, literally. (get it?) So the only reasonable explanation to fix that problem would be to move. A lot. So that’s exactly what you did as soon as the couch blew the whistle. Within 30 seconds, you were already halfway around the track while other girls were yards behind you, unable to keep up.

Other students were blown away and anyone can tell by looking around that they were shocked by your speed. No girl had ever been able to run as fast as you that school year and the fact that you were new had everyone off their feet. Especially Childe.

He was surprised, taken aback, and overall impressed. Everyone’s heads were turning as their eyes followed your movements. You were looking straight ahead, oblivious to all the eyes on you. Within less than a minute, you were back in the line you were in originally. You had almost beat Childe’s time himself. Panting and catching your breath while looking down and supporting your upper body with your hands on your knees looking at the ground, though you had just enough oxygen in your brain to take note of the silence around you. You recognized the pairs of shoes and legs striding towards the back of the line, to you.

You were about to ask him for something to drink since we were already on the verge of hyperventilation, but you felt a water bottle tap on your head. Looking up, you see the ginger smiling down at you with the bottle suspended in the air. “That was impressive if I do say so myself. You know it’s been a while since someone as cute as yourself has been able to finish one lap that fast. Good job, comrade.” The beams take a step back and you properly stand on your feet and take the water from him, opening it and chugging it all down.

Then you remember the words he said, and recall him calling you “cute.” It makes your cheeks flush a bit but you’re sure he won’t notice and assume it’s due to your run which is practically true. Observing your surroundings, you see a lot of eyes on you, even as the coach tells everyone to look back to the front so they can continue running. After a few seconds of panting for breath, the other girls come running in, some looking defeated and some down-right pissed. It was smart of you to avoid their glares or else they would have left a vivid picture in your mind for the rest of the day.

Feeling a heavy arm throw itself on your shoulder, you already assume who it is as both of you walk back to the building.

“Girly, what do you say we go out on the track one of these days, hm? Just you and me. We can help each other with improving stamina and endurance! It’ll be fun, you know. And we can get closer~. You’re already fast but we can all improve, what do you say?” “I say that you seem to have no sense of personal space.” You scoff, jokingly rolling your eyes before you go silent to ponder his request. Considering that you are practically the future of the Fatui (as well as everyone else but still) and have those skills that would help you climb up the ladder for a good position in the organization, you don’t see why not.

Of course that wouldn’t be the last time you saw the ginger that day, he was simply infatuated with you.

You silently walk outside of the gymnasium, carrying your school bag since Athletics was the last period of the day, wondering if you could look at a few coffee shops in town so that you can find one to frequent. But you still didn’t know your way around town. Suddenly, all you see is black and you feel a pair of big rough hands over your eyes, and you can only exhale a sigh. “Guess who?” You can only mentally roll your eyes before putting your hands on top of Childe’s.

“A sly ginger with nothing better to do than bother a girl with no interest in him whatsoever?” You reply in mock annoyance, actually quite happy that he’s here so that you could maybe ask for his help and where to go. You can hear him grumbling before whining and giving you back your vision, removing his hands from your face. You turn around and you’re met with a sulking Ajax, pouting, and whatnot. “Hah… Here I am trying to figure you out but it seems like you know so much about me with that sentence alone. What the hell, comrade?” He teases, ruffling your hair while you scowl and push him away, yet it isn’t harsh.

“Whatever… Since you want to bother me so much, you can at least make yourself useful by” You trail off as a deep voice interrupts your thoughts. “Showing you around town?” You pause, looking up at him with wide eyes as you blink in surprise. Maybe you were looking at the road hopelessly for longer than you thought. “Was it that obvious?” He chuckles, grabbing your arm and yanking you at the campus gate. “I have to say I’m surprised you haven’t had someone else do it for you though, it’s already been what, three weeks since you’ve got here?” The way Childe was calling you out made your cheeks flush, after all, it wasn’t your fault you were more focused on adjusting to the Snezhnayan school system and trying to get comfortable with things at home.

You let out a small sigh, realizing that he was right. You had been so preoccupied with trying to get everything in order that you hadn't made time to explore your new home. Maybe it was time to take a break and see what the town had to offer. You turn to him and give him a small smile. "That would be great, actually. I could use a guide."

Childe flashes a wide grin, his eyes sparkling with excitement at the prospect of showing you around town. You can tell that he's pleased with himself for having convinced you to join him. "Alright then," he says, taking your hand in his. "Let's get started. I know all the best spots in town."

When you follow him through the bustling streets, he points out the local shops, restaurants, and cafes, regaling you with stories and insider tips about each one. You can't help but be impressed by his knowledge and enthusiasm. Everywhere you go, people seem to know him and greet him warmly, as if he's a beloved fixture of the community.

As the two of you walk, you can't help but feel grateful for Childe's help. Not only was he showing you around town, but he was also making you feel more at ease in this new environment. You never would have thought that you'd make a friend so quickly after starting at the Academy, but here you were, laughing and joking with someone who had once been a complete stranger.

Eventually, the day draws to a close, you realize that you had a great time with Childe. You had seen so many new things and had learned so much about the town that you now have to call home. And it was all thanks to him. "Thank you so much for showing me around today," you say, turning to him with a smile in front of your dad’s house (you call it that but Childe is sure it's a mansion) since he took it upon himself to walk you the whole way there.

He grins back at you. "Anytime. I'm glad I could be of help. And who knows, maybe we can go shopping next time? I’d buy you anything you put your eyes on." You raise an eyebrow at the statement. Was he trying to get you to swoon? Because you couldn’t tell if you would be able to completely resist him in the future. You’re feeling a sense of warmth in your chest while he walks away. You stand outside until you can no longer see him in the distance, and if you had to be honest you would admit you’re looking forward to spending more time with him, soon.

Since when were freckles that cute on someone?

Taglist: @uhfhfhfhf @xdrin @msun1c0rn @umi-adxhira @lovingnahida @strrawb3rrysh0rtcak3 @ssecylia @skyl8ver @immahuman @meowmeowraven @01234 @markexplanation @esthelily @dawnofazrael @chickenalfredo4life @eccaza @jun-xiu @klemen-time @delulu-val @everi-eve

Borders by @cafekitsune

#fem reader #fanfic #ao3 fanfic #ao3 #genshin impact #genshin x reader #tartaglia x reader #childe x reader #childe #snezhnaya #samptlay

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suffarustuffaru · 2 months

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Do you have any advice for writing in the second person pov as well as advice about writing reinhard? I’m trying to write a second person pov fic from his perspective and I’m a bit lost?

yes i can do my best to give you advice!! :o hah im really flattered you thought to ask me on this? but yes i absolutely love both writing in second person (i havent written a whole finished fic in second person, but ive dabbled in it a few times, ive also started writing poetry on the side) and also of course i love reinhard!! im super super interested in the fact that youre doing a SECOND PERSON POV REINHARD FIC like woaaahhh hes definitely a fun character to choose pov wise and combining it with second person is genius. i really like it and would love to read it if you ever wanna share it when youre done <3

and yes quick disclaimer that im no professional writer but yes ill give my two cents!! and another disclaimer is that creative writing is a very individualized thing i think. theres no like one way to do things, and of course you can take any advice or criticism that youd like if you think itd help <3

ill get into second person pov first then talk more specifically about reinhard 👍

yes anyway tips on second person!! i do kinda recommend to like look at various examples of second person pov being used in various written pieces if thats something youd like to do - poetry and song lyrics use second person a LOT. especially songs, bc once you see it you cant really unsee it, i think? of course writing a narrative story is different from poetry and songwriting but it could help you give a frame of reference, or inspiration, or decide what you want to do and what you dont want to do. most importantly you could also look at other second person fics or published stories that are written in second person!!

and alright so - in general, second person is a very personal pov to choose in a way thats different from first person and third person. in first person and third person, theres still a degree of separation between the reader and the character the story is following. second person almost kind of removes that barrier bc of the use of "you" - the reader is being directly put into the character's shoes. as in, "you're" doing this, "you're" thinking this, etc etc. bc its such a personal pov, different readers might have different feelings about this (second person pov in fics is a pet peeve for some people for one reason or another), and youve committed yourself to writing second pov, you might as well go all in!! as a reader, i would be directly in that character's skin, basically, and i think its good to lean into the character youre writing especially with second person. bc theres even less separation between reader and character!! its kind of like the general pov advice of - who is this character, whats their personality like, what are they thinking, why should i care, etc etc. whats their inner world like? what is this telling me about their character?

another thing - you can choose between writing past or present tense of course, and the choice is up to you there, but i think present tense may fit second person pov more. with second person, youre directly addressing the reader for the entire story. theres a difference in urgency between "You gritted your teeth and fought off the attack" and "You grit your teeth and fight off the attack", i think. youre already putting your reader in such a personal position with the pov character - i think present tense might aid in it a lot more. another disclaimer that this is my opinion of course - but yes, i think that it also may be harder for people to suspend their disbelief with second person pov in certain circumstances. if i read past tense second person i might stop for one second and go "no, i did not grit my teeth and fight off some random attack in my past". in present tense i might be more likely to go "huh, yeah ig im fighting off this attack now. oh snap, hows this gonna go?"

of course, this isnt to say that you cant do past tense second person. as a second person pov fan i would absolutely eat up any second person fic regardless of the tense or not so long as your choice of tense stays consistent throughout the entire story (unless of course you have a good reason to change tenses mid-story). but i think that a good amount of second person works are in present tense, maybe for this very reason, unless the second person is combined with first person in like a song or something (basically every time the narrator of a song addresses the "you", like for example something like this sentence: "you broke up with me last summer"). or maybe the character is thinking about something they did in the past, so in reinhard's case it could look like "Remember when you killed your own grandmother all those months ago?" or something like that.

yeah, so - second person pov is a bit of a bold choice. it's inherently very personal and intimate. and i think theres also like the general advice of like - imo, don't use "you" too much. i know that sounds counterintuitive given this is second person pov hah but its kind of similar with something like first person - don't use "I" too much. and that also combines with the general advice of "vary your sentences". it can be awkward if every sentence has the same length and starts off the same way with the same rhythm, like this - "You go to the grocery store. You open the door. You step inside. You walk into the store."

(and quick disclaimer that if youre intending to go for that kind of monotonous sound for a part of/a lot of your story for various reasons, definitely go for it if its on purpose! i myself have done it a bit before to show a character kind of going through the motions, so to speak)

and with second person, absolutely utilize sentences or phrases or what have you that dont use "you" at all!! i think its called "implied" second person - stuff like "Look at that wall" or "Hand over that paper". so you can absolutely highlight second person pov without even using the word "you" at all and its also good to switch things up when youre writing to add a more "dynamic" quality to your work (and itll probably be fun for you to do if thats something youre into!!). so while narrative pronouns like this wont usually grate on your reader (bc we gotta use pronouns all the time for a reason, so using it a lot isnt a problem whatsoever and i highly doubt anyones gonna notice how much theyre used), definitely keep in mind not to overdo it at every turn, if that makes sense. its like the word "said" or "says" - hardly anyone is gonna notice it unless youre using it for Every Single Dialogue Line In A Row, but otherwise use it as much as you want.

getting creative with your sentence structure and the way you tell the story is important of course regardless of the pov youve chosen - and also hah sorry if that sounds really obvious but i do think its really important to remember!! :o second person may be different and less commonly used in narrative stories compared to first or third person, but some of the same rules are still gonna apply in a sense -

i think getting creative with sentences and description is even more important in second person. with first person and third person you can still have all these varying degrees of separation, especially with third person - there's like a "distant" third person that doesn't really go as far into the character's heads as much as "close" third person, where the entire third person narration can vaguely mimic the character's inner thoughts and feelings and worldviews.

second person, i think, from the get go, can mimic thoughts even more sometimes, if thats an angle you want to take - i mean have you ever like, had thoughts that were directed towards yourself or have you ever talked to yourself? or seen others do this? im talking about stuff like telling yourself "good job" or going "look what you did" at yourself in disappointment? theres also the "instructional" angle - a lot of instructions are written in second person, and a second person narrative can sound kinda like that just bc youre directly addressing your reader so much. it could definitely be fun to lean into all of this if you wanted - especially since youre writing reinhard (whos unfortunately brainwashed and conditioned to hell and back in every area of his life :<).

and second person is such a specific pov that i think you have to keep in mind why youre using second person. what is your intent in using this specific pov for this specific story? how is the story aided by your choice of pov? and i think its an extremely interesting choice for reinhard, who, as i said and as you definitely know - dudes got issues surrounding being controlled by the literal government and being pushed around!! hes a dog on a leash!! hes spent almost his whole life being ordered around everywhere, and on like, a human level maybe, hes one of the hardest people to understand.

bc yknow - reinhards dps of course give him this really unique perspective of the world. as we know, hes the FURTHEST thing for normal bc of his powers and they affect everything about his life - his relationships with other people of course but also how he perceives the world. hes perfect at Everything, he can do a whole long list of things that almost no one else can, he gets new powers every time he needs one for a given situation, he cant even fuck up telling salt from sugar, he cant lose any board game, etc etc dudes just powerless in Every Other Area of his life except for the long list of powers.

and yknow, bc of this and also trauma hes detached from others no matter how hard he tries to bridge that gap between him and other people. its why he wants to be normal so bad!! he wants friends and he likely wants freedom (why follow FELT of all royal candidates… he's 100% staked his family's redemption on her especially when you remember rom and the astrea's connection to the demihuman war, heinkel being rumored to kidnap a royal family member, reid, etc) but yknow. he cant get freedom so easily :(

which im sure you already knew all of this hah, tumblr user whygodwhy (amazing url btw) (im also saying this bc you seem like a big astrea fan as well and youve been around on rz tumblr from what i can see <3), but definitely great to keep in mind for your writing purposes bc a second person fic with (one of) THE most “inhuman” (heavy emphasis on the quotation marks here) character in rezero??? thats absolutely DIABOLICAL (complimentary) i love it. its an absolutely genius idea - we're really being pushed into understanding reinhard's perspective of having powers that make you kind of like a god. and then it makes everyone around you think youre a monster :(((

but yes like - reinhards character sets up the perfect foundation for a second person pov fic. like you can really get creative with how he experiences the world in ALL SORTS of extremely extremely off putting ways and therefore how we the reader experience REINHARD'S experiences. its super cool!!!

and i definitely think that its up to you on how you want to interpret reinhard - i think that generally even with fic authors who try to stick as closely to canon characterization as possible theres still a bit of variance you know? :o which i think is really fascinating!! especially when you take into account writing styles and all that, and especially when you take into account reinhard as a character.

atm he hasnt had a moment in rezero canon where we actually read from his pov and iirc its bc tappei said that reinhard just kinda knows Spoilery stuff? correct me if im wrong on that of course. and also iirc tappei also said that reinhard is Generally honest about what he says, so the way i see people (including myself...) write reinhard's pov matches pretty similarly with his outward self most of the time? but apart from that yknow interpret reinhard how youd like and if youre writing some sort of au or having him develop in a certain way (that isnt seen in canon), definitely go for it!! theres of course a fine balance between developing a character vs changing them to the point where it doesnt feel like the same character, but once you get to know that Base Characterization you can figure out how to go about developing them while still making them feel like themselves if thats something youre interested in!!

and for example, i think you could get creative with how using his powers looks like from his pov!! (some of which he just. doesnt think about in the sense that it just Happens - like that one dp he has where he just Knows where the exits of the building hes in are or that other dp where things thrown at him just automatically misses him.) or you know depending on what the plot for your fic is - how do you think he sees people like heinkel, wilhelm, subaru, etc, based on how he outwardly acts towards them? bc we havent seen reinhards exact pov yet in canon its kind of free real estate rn HAH and even then its fanfic, you can do what you want.

but yknow if you want to stick closer to canon, theres def the high probability that reinhard is usually honest about what he says (so his thoughts on things likely match up with what he says out loud about that exact thing). and in general if youre willing to and havent done so already i think you could check out more reinhards side stories and reinhards qnas from tappei. of course stuff like qnas you might have to take with a grain of salt (since its word of god and not always in the text yet) but you may see details that youd like to keep in mind or even use in your fic!!

and i think its good in general to make your own interpretation and know how you want to write reinhard based on that interpretation. i also recommend if you want to to maybe check out other reinhard pov fics to maybe find some inspiration or note how youd also want to interpret reinhards pov. you could note stuff like "hey, i like how this author describes how reinhards dp of empathy works" or "i like how matter of fact reinhards internal dialogue sounds here" - that sort of thing. but i definitely do think that if you want to be in character, definitely try to come to your own conclusions as well based on canon!!

as for other general advice, rereading or rewatching reinhard scenes may help you as well. i definitely recommend taking mental or physical (whether youre typing it up or writing it down physically) notes or something if that would help you. something that personally helps me (and you can do this if you want) is that every time im trying to learn a characters dialogue and how they usually speak is that i go to reread/rewatch a scene theyre in. i usually choose english dub if i can since im writing in english and then i just note down stuff like what kind of words they use, what reoccurring words or phrases do they use a lot, etc etc. so if youre struggling with dialogue or something, this is something you could try!!

reinhard does speak a little professionally/formally, with a little emotional distance, if that makes sense (i think the most obvious example is him Sounding too composed after dying and coming back in arc 5?). like the dude sounds like hes in customer service mode Near Constantly, if that also makes sense (....well he IS the sword saint HAH), even if hes actually upset about something. i think one of the biggest cracks in his customer service facade though is when hes either quietly depressed in front of his family or when he gets upset about the arc 3 julisuba duel (like he actually RAISES HIS VOICE A BIT and is obviously upset when talking to subaru after the duel. literally insane). also ofc when hes in serious "damn i guess you gotta die" mode :(

but yes i think that reinhard speaks formally but he tries to be way more casual about it yknow? julius is the one whos more flowery, that pretentious prick!!! (affectionate) (read this line in a subaru voice). reinhard will be like "hello, it's nice to meet you :) oh, please, call me reinhard :)))) no need for honorifics, we are friends here :)))) (pls treat me like a normal person ahahahah im begging you) (we're friends right? pls be my friend. pretty pls. im begging -)" and julius will be like "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." bc hes flowery <33 a slight purple prose thats as purple as his hair (affectionate)

and yep as for internal dialogue, again, you can interpret how reinhard would think in a lot of different ways and its up to you on how you want to explore him and what we know of him from canon so far!!

and you know, a lot of writing is just a lot of practice, and i guarantee you that the more you write a character the more comfortable youll get!! speaking as someone who has done so much writing in private to get comfortable with writing dialogue for people like otto or reinhard or subaru (and even then i still try really hard to adjust if i feel theyre getting out of character hah, theyre still hard to write fr :<). so yeah i def recommend to you know just give your best go at it and have fun while you do!! you can always go back and edit and if you need a betareader or smth you can def ask around. i would be down if you needed one!!

also i did write a small little blurb if you want an example of combining how to write second pov and how to write reinhard :O !! i do think that every writer is different of course but i just wanted to leave an example just in case itd help you!! i Think this is well written enough for example purposes hah:

Remember when you killed your grandmother all those months ago? Fist through her chest, familial blood splattering all over your only family. As her body falls limp, Grandfather catches her right when she’s gasping out her last words and turning to dust like the ash left in the wake of when you first killed her years ago.

The only difference is that it was a necessary evil this time.

yep so - in conclusion, fuck around (research various things if you need to) and find out (practice and have fun) <333 i hope this helps and feel free to reach out if you ever wanna ask more stuff :o !!

#rezero #re:zero #ahhh yes i hope this all makes sense - ty for sending me this ask and best of luck on ur fic!!! again feel free to share if youd like #id really love to see it and im sure other people would enjoy it too <3 #reinhard van astrea #ask

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subskz · 1 year

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Rin.... Rin, I crave violence

I saw these and your girl got the most heinous thoughts bouncing around in the head.

Cabin, Snow, There's Only One Bed, Accidental Confession, & Sex. Are you following?

I hope so.

~~~

Picture it: You, Channie, and Co. have decided to stay at a cabin in the woods for a couple of days in winter (see Channie's outfit up above) and as everyone else goes off to have fun in the snow, (I've grown to dislike the snow after having multiple snow days back to back bc I don't get snow often; Ms. Pink was nawt having it) you two decide to hang back

So you two kinda just shrug it off and try to stay preoccupied while by yourselves

And maybe that involves a game or two here and there, music stuff, cooking and things don't get heated until you two make a bet that you, just so happen to, win.

That bet? The other has to do whatever the other says until the others get back.

And you can't help but notice how eager he is to follow your directions and orders; or how he starts to act cuter around you and pouty when feeling a skosh playful.

So maybe you ask for a kiss to gauge his reaction; ofc Channie is malfunctioning so you're all like "jk jk im totally not-" then BOOM! A big ole smooch is what you get.

And then, he's like "omg oh god im so sorry" then you kiss him and he can't help but moan at it (perv Channie?... oh that's something i will be back abt, mark that down)

N e ways, let's talk abt sex now

Chan and his babyboy-isms seem to just increase tenfold; pouty, whiney, all flushed, wanting physical contact, oral fixation all on 10.

And, him being a service top, he is so hellbent on pleasing you. But he's also been dealing with this huge crush on you, so when he finally enters you, he swears he's entering the 5th dimension.

But also instantly blurts out that he has feelings for you... whoops. Can't help it, unfortunately; another victim of being brain mush as soon as he gets off :(

Give him a kiss on his lips and nose and tell him how you feel and help guide him; poor pup is just too into his subspace to even form coherent sentences anymore and probably too preoccupied with sucking on your fingers or chest 🤷‍♀️

Now, afterglow and post-orgasm clarity is such a real thing (it's happened once to me but i had the munchies like fucking crazy so it didn't last lmao) so Channie is embarrassed when he realized that he involuntarily confessed like that.

~~~

Sorry for the word vomit; currently half past 11pm and I've been sipping on black tea all-day so... :) 3rd eye is just working over time.

Also, I called a specific Hyunjin look back in 2021, so Pink is just Clairvoyant when it comes to Hyunjin specifically (it's bc we're both Pisces)

the fact that these pics led to this stroke of genius from you…put channie in a sweater n suspenders more often bc i’m actually gonna lose my mind over how much i love this 😵‍💫 him pining after you…simultaneously so shy but so eager…the desperate need to please you…the way he goes dumb the moment he’s inside you…blurting out his confession…it has all the elements of a perfect channie concept

HAHA yes let’s settle for the romantic atmosphere inside the cabin away from the snow…maybe even w a warm fire crackling to really set the mood ♡ channie being his sweet good-natured lil self and listening to everything you say without question…the thought of him getting playful at some point and pretending to disobey you w a cheeky dimpled grin…pure devastation. he’d look so adorably proud of himself it’s almost enough to let it slide, but you don’t even get the chance before he takes it back w a giggle and follows your order anyway 🥰

his heart-shaped lips look extra red and kissable bc of the cold who could resist <3 and god the way he’d just lean completely into that sweet, unbashedly needy side of himself once he sees how much you like it…the epitome of baby boy w the way he clings to you and nuzzles into your chest and starts to whine if he can’t feel your touch for even a moment. and nothing on earth makes me crazier than the idea of channie’s mind going blank the moment he feels you around him…suddenly he’s lost and clueless and needs you to direct him to do every little thing so he can satisfy you properly ❤️‍🔥 he may not be able to think for himself but he still carries out all your orders like a good boy! and ofc when his emotions are running so high and his head is so scrambled from the pleasure, he can’t help but babble on abt how much he loves you in a way that’ll have him absolutely mortified when that giddy haze finally wears off~

no need to apologize as u can see this resonated w me very much hehe ^_^ you and hyune really have some kind of piscean psychic link that no one else can comprehend i’ll look forward to what you predict next 😼

#‘anyways let’s talk abt sex now’ took me OUT 😭#this couldnt have come at a better time too bc the sleepy voice msgs channie has been sending on bbl…#speaking so cutely and giggling and making lil noises and getting shy and talking in third person…he’s such a baby #esp how he said ‘if u have nothing else to do please put channie to sleep’ ㅠㅠ #ask #pink #long post #💌 channie

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warriorend · 7 months

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"There's something wrong with Phoenix." (alt. title: "the only reason this fucker is upright is because they're holding onto the cabin's support beam")

closeups get your closeups here

(also this is one of those cases where the lights may be on but there is very much nobody at home)

rambling & shit under the cut it's the same as usual

yknow how i said my big pieces can easily clear 80 layers. that may have been an understatement.

that one is new though. i just put it in. for effect.

anyways so uhhhh Yeah KBOOM huh. fun fact i tried to draw this three times, it was the third one that took. also here's the Blob

+ first pass of all the sections (background, cabin, phoenix. each of these were at least 4ish hours apart bc i pretty much finished each section before moving on, minus final touches at the end (a lot of the blue & purple effects were added in at the tail end))

i initially planned to put more shit in the cabin like the furniture & whatnot, but it's. really difficult to draw the back of things you can't see & also in perspective. so i didn't. pretend they shoved it all out or something idk

personal hc is that they woke up Just enough to suspend the cabin when Roxana shouted at them, to buy time. wasn't the smartest idea though bc they were already Kinda fucked up from the implant strain &. yeah they were tiptoeing a razor edge for a second there. anyway. phoenix almost breaking themself trying to survive being in this goddamn volcano.

#ieytd #agent phoenix #ieytd 3 #ieytd 3 spoilers #i. guess #i'll keep up that tag for a little longer yknow how it is #my art

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tellthemeerkatsitsfine · 3 months

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My journey through John Oliver's IMDB page that I've been doing in the last few days (summary: his old Cambridge doc got taken off YouTube, I got paranoid about how I'm glad I'd saved that but this is a reminder that nothing stays on the internet forever so you need to save the stuff you want to keep, this escalated too quickly into me buying a new external hard drive just to see how much of his IMDB page I can download and put in one place) has brought me through a documentary about Russell Howard from 2021. I previously knew that documentary existed, but I hadn't watched it because even before Russell doubled down on the Jordan Peterson thing enough for me to be done watching his stuff (I ignored the mild comments for months before he actually invited Peterson onto his show and made ignoring it impossible), I didn't need to see a documentary about how the pandemic made life difficult for an extremely rich and successful touring comedian.

However, I learned today that John Oliver had a credit in the documentary, so obviously I immediately downloaded it. To be honest I haven't watched the whole thing, I just skipped through it in search of the John Oliver bits. Because I have given up on Russell Howard, but his former connection to the Chocolate Milk Gang, and my hobby of cataloguing all Chocolate Milk Gang history, is the only thing that will make me temporarily suspend my closely held principles such as a hard line against all Jordan Peterson apologists. I did the same thing with his recent podcast, rolling my eyes when I first saw it announced because surely he doesn't need another platform and Britcom doesn't need another bland podcast, until I saw that there would be a John Oliver episode and obviously I listened to that one.

Anyway, the point is that there was some fun Chocolate Milk Gang history in the documentary, I've cut out the relevant clip:

The Chocolate Milk Gang goes by many names. Andrew Maxwell apparently called them "the guys with the bags". Stewart Lee has called them "The hanging around gang". In a discussion with Richard Herring they were labeled "the nerds of the circuit". But here we have a new one: the golden generation. A name coined by Russell Howard and then immediately and entirely justifiably ripped apart by John Oliver, what good stuff. I greatly enjoyed that. Someone should make a Chocolate Milk Gang documentary. I could probably cut together a Chocolate Milk Gang documentary from all the media files I've hoarded. See how many names they've been given over the years.

Based on the ten or so minutes I watched, I think I might genuinely be capable of putting together better videos than the person who made this Russell Howard documentary, the editing on it looks surprisingly amateur-ish for a film about such a huge mainstream star. However, it did provide me with very slightly (only very slightly, but still) higher quality versions of a couple of CMG-related images I had seen before, but had only seen in terrible quality, so it's nice to have those a little clearer:

And I hadn't seen this one before, I don't think Andy Zaltzman changed in appearance at all between 2003 and about 2017.

Oh and Steve Hall shows up at the end, which is fun. I like that guy. I like Steve Hall probably too much, given the fact that the main thing I've heard him do is be quite gross on several episodes Daniel Kitson's radio show in 2007-2008. But it was really funny. Those episodes made me laugh almost constantly and I recommend them to absolutely no one, no one should ever hear that. Though it's not the only thing I've heard him do. I have to be the only person in the world who watched the We Are Klang sitcom in 2023 just for one actor, but that actor was not Greg Davies. Oh and Steve Hall was in that Late 'n' Live recording from 2007, but that's not a lot better for making him respectable. He writes on The Russell Howard Hour and on some level I know he was probably involved in bringing in Jordan Peterson and probably if I asked Steve Hall to tell me all his political opinions I wouldn't be able to enjoy his old sitcom anymore, but luckily he doesn't have a big enough platform to tell us all his opinions so I'll just assume it's fine.

@lastweeksshirttonight, tagging you in case you don't happen to see this post because you'll really enjoy that video clip, it is relevant to your interests.

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railingsofsorrow · 2 years

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Birthday Blues

[spencer reid x reader]

summary: the one where reader doesn’t like celebrating their birthday and spencer does just what their need.

pairing: s.r x gn!reader

w.c: 674

warnings/content: no warnings just kissing, the L bomb being dropped, and fluff fluff fluff.

A/N: yesterday was my birthday and I wasn’t feeling great, so I wrote this. it's not thoroughly edited.

➶ ➷

“Thank you, mom.” You thanked for the tenth time that morning, picking on the loose fabric of your sweater. It wasn't yours, it was Spencer's. “Sure, I can pick a day off to go visit you. Just don't know when because there are so many cases…” Your voice died when you noticed your boyfriend walking past your bedroom door and into the living room with nothing less than one of your old enormous t-shirts from college. The image made your lips twist in a smile.

“Hey,” He mumbled, waving at you. You waved back, still watching him as you said goodbye to your mother after she said happy birthday to you again. “I wanted to send her a hug.” Spencer pouted, walking up to you and sneaking a hand around your waist.

“You can send it later.” Rolling your eyes, you turned to him and intertwined your fingers behind his neck. “You look hot in my clothes, by the way.”

Spencer hummed, lowering his nose to your neck. You shivered at the contact because the tip of his nose was cold.

“You look hot in mine, too.”

“I know.” You smirk when he pinches your hip.

Spencer lifted his face to meet your eyes, “Penelope called.” He said. “Screaming at me because I told her we would plan the whole day out of the city and she couldn't make you your surprise party.”

You giggled, shaking your head. “I'm sure she did." Suddenly your chest felt a bit heavy, “I'm gonna tell her I'm sorry, though. I don't like lying to Pen.”

“You don't have to apologize to anyone. It's your birthday. You do what you wish, not what others want.” Spencer retorts, smoothing out the frown on your forehead with his thumb. “If you don't want to have a party, then we won't have a party.”

“I love you.” You said with tear-stricken eyes. Spencer immediately left kisses all around your face, wanting to make you feel better.

“I love you, too.” He said in-between kisses as you smiled little by little. “I'm so happy you're alive, did you know that? And I'm even happier to be able to celebrate today by your side. It's a privilege.” Lastly, he cupped your cheeks and connected your lips.

You hummed, fluttering your eyes shut in contentment.

When you split apart after a few minutes of lazy kisses in the kitchen, he suspended your tights so he could take you to the living room, where the streaming service and popcorn were set.

“I always think you're gonna drop me when you pick me up.” You confess as he puts you down on the couch. Spencer gave you an offended look.

“I'd never drop you!”

“I know, baby. It's just, a warning would be great.”

“Oh, but where's the fun in that?”

He sat down beside you, offering the TV remote. “What's it going to be?”

“Horror.” A snicker left your lips as you chose the usual comfort movie: A Nightmare On Elm Street. “Hope you don't complain about my taste in movies today. I won't take it.” You said, stealing the popcorn bowl from him.

Spencer moistened his lips to prevent himself from laughing. "I don't complain I merely state facts."

“Shut up, Spencer.”

He chuckled, pulling you towards him and almost dropping popcorn all over the living room. “I love you.” He repeats, caressing your face softly. “And happy birthday.” He let out in a whisper as if it was a dark secret. You smiled, leaning your back on his chest to be more comfortable.

“Thank you,” You said, your head hooked under his chin and his arms around you in a comfortable embrace. “And I love you too.”

#spencer x reader #spencer reid fanfic #criminal minds fanfiction #spencer reid x oc #reader insert #blurb #birthday blues #fluff

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bloodymxrie · 10 months

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who, or what are the trinity?

there are a few conflicting viewpoints here. in the LORE video that attempts to explain the game's lore in a minute or less, the trinity are described as "a trinity of euclidean horrors masquerading as beautiful goddesses" that saw that mankind was impure and sought their destruction. surely that must be the answer, right?

well it's been almost a decade since then, and a lot of our information has changed, especially with the release of eliza and skullgirls mobile. allow me to attempt to explain how i've pieced together skullgirls' lore.

in ancient times, there was a kingdom formed around a human woman named lamia and her two daughters, aeon and venus. parasites thrived in this age, being known to the public as "theons" and their hosts as "avatars." notice the language here. the root word "theo" in theons means "god", and representatives of gods in real life were often called avatars. the mysterious substance "theonite" was also responsible for the parasite's immense power. aeon and venus were seemingly bonded to their theons, khronos and abaddon, in life as they are in death. it's no wonder they would be in positions of high power back then with parasites that were able to rend time and space at will. but at this point, importance has not been placed on the girls themselves, only their parasites. the trinitarian religion did not exist until after their deaths, when double was sent down to spread the gospel of her masters. suspiciously, lamia herself is never implied to have had a parasite, but i'll come back to that later.

enter neferu, more commonly known today as eliza.

at the time of the kingdom's apex, neferu was lamia's righthand and governed alongside her. either through sekhmet's doing or her own lust for power, she betrayed her queen, violently killing her daughters and "destroying their kingdom", as double puts it. neferu was branded as the crimson scourge, and theons fell from their place of high importance in society, condemned now as pests or "parasites." i'd assume that would sour just about any person's outlook on humanity, honestly. but it's especially interesting that in lamia in mythology was driven to insanity by the murder of her children. and equally as interesting is the fact that she herself is never stated to have died. it's been mentioned before in lore posts on the official skullgirls forums, but there is no afterlife in the skullgirls universe or at least there wasn't intended to be. corpses are resurrected on command by the skull heart, which is (you guessed it) comprised of theonite. who's to say that when their avatars died, abaddon and khronos didn't resurrect their masters and ensure their continued existence on a higher plane? that's only part of what i think happened though. i believe that, consumed by her grief and desire for revenge, it was lamia's doing that propelled herself and her daughters to the status of divinity. and it was neferu's betrayal and society's contempt for theons following that incident that inspired lamia to go on a crusade against all of mankind. i say lamia instead of implicating aeon or venus because they seem... pretty chill about it overall. in game it's even stated to be their mother's plan, and while they are just as evil, they seem to be having fun with it more than seeking any kind of revenge. but who is lamia's parasite? double, duh.

not only is their physical resemblance uncanny, but the two are often stated to be one and the same, or at least the inverse of a common parasite-host relationship. double is lamia's avatar, her representative on the mortal plane as well as the window for the goddesses to see and operate through. i'm willing to suspend my belief and say that lamia is so powerful of a being on her own either through double's power or in spite of it that she is able to control her remotely, without physically even needing to be present. though it helps that double is made in her image, so to speak. lamia devised the skullheart, which would corrupt any woman who was not pure of heart, and used double to carry it out into the world. since she viewed mankind as vile, "defiling insects," she assumed that none could wield it without being corrupted by it's power, and that humanity's greed, similar to eliza's, would be their undoing. double then founded trinitarianism, bringing us to the present day. to recap, since i know that was a lot: the trinity were once rulers of a now fallen kingdom who derived their power from the theons, or parasites. they were betrayed by eliza and sekhmet, an incident which is said to have caused the prejudice against parasites today. upon the deaths of aeon and venus, their mother resurrected them and set out to avenge them by destroying mankind. and honestly, the girls are only there for the ride, i respect that.

#━━ ⟢ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴇᴅɪᴄɪ ᴡɪʟʟ ғᴀʟʟ ; musings #━━ ⟢ Bʟᴇssᴇᴅ ᴀʀᴇ ᴛʜᴏsᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʀᴇᴠᴇʀᴇ Lᴀᴍɪᴀ ; the trinity #aeon skullgirls #venus skullgirls #lamia skullgirls #double skullgirls #skullgirls #skullgirls headcanons #skullgirls rp #marie skullgirls #marie korbel #i'm writing this on only 4 hours of sleep. fuck maintenance for keeping up all this noise upstairs. at 8 in the morning.#eliza skullgirls #neferu skullgirls #sekhmet skullgirls

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pokidot · 9 months

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MANDELA — eleven

To put it lightly, Hu Tao was overwhelmed by both the pain and emotion to the point where she had collapsed in the car. So other than the fact that it was completely embarrassing, she didn’t have any other complaints about being in the car with her idol of choice.

The idol of choice being you, if you didn’t get the memo.

Last thing she could remember, she was inside the car of two people who could easily be swatted with the way things were going. And now, with her bleary vision and her swollen eyes she kept finding a futile attempt to frantically blink them, Hu Tao realized that there were now more than just the two she was with now.

"Sheesh. You got her good, huh."

"It was self defense."

"That only applies when they actually fight you."

"You can fight me right now."

"You wouldn't survive."

"God, I'm really hungry right now. There's gotta be something in this store that won't give me diabetes."

"Hey! You can't eat that without paying for it."

The communication, albeit not going anywhere, made her dizzy. There wasn't even anything wrong with the rest of her face anymore, but she could still feel the mucus and snot that was emitting from the depths of her nose. All she could do is withstand the consistent wiping every time the pipes leaked.

She figured out she sat on a wooden stool behind a convenience store counter, hands clasping at a tissue as she dabbed at her teary eyes gingerly. She gained her sentience back once she figured out that there were now more than you and Kuni with her.

Seven figures, all hovering over her in hope that she would come to soon stood in a semi-circle. She wasn’t sure whether they were genuinely concerned or if they just wanted to get to their destination quickly, but based on vibes, it was a clusterfuck.

Kazuha, breath suspended in anticipation, finally exhaled. “You came to, good! It was feeling more and more like we kidnapped you the longer I stood here.”

“Close to it; the worker almost called the police on us.” Aether said.

The air was tinged with a mix of emotions on your behalf, a tapestry woven from compassion, remorse, and a profound desire to speed up the process.

The girl sat on a simple wooden stool, her hands clasping a tissue as she gingerly dabbed at her teary eyes. “Ooooh,” Hu Tao sounded out in exhaustion. “That was a doozy. Kind of reminded me of when I got ran over by horses, except this time, I was actually a victim.”

“Excuse me?” Kuni scoffed. "I'm glad you have the energy to be witty. Real comforting. Drop it, I want to know the real reason why you were near their house."

"Haha...what?" Hu Tao brazenly replied.

"Okay, Kuni, relax. I'm sure she's harmless." You held your hands up to him and waved, a wry smile. "I didn't sit her down to grill her, she's exciting, fresh, and fun."

He rolled his eyes immediately. "Please, she sounds like a deodorant. You," He pointed towards the victim in question. "Start talking."

"Okay...he's right. I have a confession." Hu Tao's shoulders dropped in defeat.

"You really are a backstabber? Because (Y/N) still has that hairspray." Heizou warned.

"What? No! I was going to say," Hu Tao took a sharp breath in. "I was at the presentation, yes, but...I may have been more interested in going for my...own advantages? Heh."

"You don't want to look for ghosts?" Aether's eyebrows rose.

"Knew I got creepy vibes from her." Heizou jutted his thumb towards the door. "Let's make a run for it while we still have the chance."

"Rude...let's hear her out." Kazuha murmured.

"I don't want to hear anybody out who willingly fraternizes with ghosts." Xiao added.

"FRATERNIZE is a strong word. And don't call them ghosts, they don't take kindly to that word. You don't want roaming spirits to be pissed off at you." Hu Tao held a finger quickly up to her lips in urgency. "But no, shocker, they aren't my first priority. I want to know what's going on deeper in Mori Grove."

"Isn't that what we're trying to do?" You blinked.

"Maybe! But I've been trying to look for an excuse to go longer than any of you thought of it!" Hu Tao stuck her tongue out teasingly. "Who knew I had to make a college club to get there?"

Her words hung in the air like ethereal wisps, each fact after fact carrying a weight that seemed to ripple throughout all of them. But Venti, out of all of them, was still not convinced.

He held his hand on his thoughtful cheek, his eyes suspicious and curious at the girl. They flickered with intrigue, "Sounds like you know a lot more than you're giving us. What'cha looking for? Some ancient burial ground?"

"I can't...really tell you."

"I know I'm not the best at time management, but shouldn't we hurry?" You suspended the moment of tension, "The highway isn't going to be open for long, there's already construction guys there."

"Fair point. Let's go." Kuni motioned the collective spirit of six towards the convenience store door (to which the cashier was delighted by such news).

But amidst the flow of the group, Hu Tao stood up, and the violet haired man turned back towards her with a squint. "Not you, though. You can stay here."

"What!" Hu Tao's mouth dropped open. "You can't do that! I gave you a reason!"

Kuni's eyes dulled. "You gave me a reason like you were late to class because your dog ate your homework. Hasta la vista."

Aether looked at Kuni. "I didn't know you spoke French."

"That's...not..." Venti couldn't help but smile. "Nevermind~"

"We can't just leave her here." Kazuha sighed in defeat. "We already bothered the worker here enough."

"I'm glad you know." The cashier comically added in a murmur while they kept reading their outdated newspaper.

"If she doesn't want to tell us, then I'm not wasting my time trying to get an answer out of her." Kuni's eyes dulled. "I'd be more than willing to ditch someone who wasted our time, especially when they just want to hitch a ride off us."

"I hitch rides off you all the time, Kuni! She just wants to go to Mori Grove." You looked at Kuni, still stone-faced as ever. "If she doesn't have the same motive, fine, but she never said she would just go her own way."

"That is the point she was trying to make, though." Xiao added lowly.

"I don't care." Kuni said flatly, before looking back at Hu Tao. "You tell us what you think you plan to achieve, and I'll take back what I said, but you're so suspicious it emits fumes off of you."

"I don't-"

"If you believe her so much, then you can stay with her too. Call me when you wake up." Kuni cut you off.

Hu Tao stopped in her tracks, her mouth still open in shock. She found herself so ensnared in a struggle that her thoughts became mush caught in a strong wind. She panicked once Kuni started to walk off. "Okay, fine!"

As he turned towards her, her brows knit, and her eyes became bewildered with uncertainty. "I'll tell you in the car." Her shoulders dropped.

prev | masterlist | next

NOTES || do i plan to make this the slowest burn to ever burn? yes

TAGLIST: @wisteriarain @akagism2 @murderisokayforme @aeongiies @d4y-dr3am3r @truck-kuns-gf @3lysiaa @ayoitsmarie33 @crucnhice @natsuscrustyscarf @dreamsofminnie @astreaa-express @goj0h @cicibao @xirthia @kylexzz @dollpoetwriting @dreamingkace @strawbxrrytiger @k1an4a

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jazzpostsstuff · 9 months

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Chapter: AXL Development Documents, Axl's MMZ Redesign

Make sure to look at the picture descriptions for each of these! They contain more information about the designs and I put them in like this to make the blog post less bloated than it already is.

Fun fact, I did redesign Axl into a MMZ character one and a half years prior to that "life-changing" Halloween art. I didn't know anything about the series yet aside from some basic concepts and I didn't understand its style much yet, but I still wanted to go an do that.

Well, you can certainly say I tried. His character was also altered, with him becoming a pacifistic hermit that lives with a real dog in a forest (it doesn't make much sense but 14 year-old me thought differently at the time). However, you can probably see some design quirks already that ultimately got used again in his look for Chapter: AXL, a scar over the right eye and shorts with suspenders in particular. There's actually a reason for this choice of clothing though since I did see something like this in his original MMX design, and I thought it could make the design more "fresh" while staying true to what was before (even if it does look a little goofy).

Then, a year and almost a half later, I came up with the idea of making a MMZ Halloween Axl drawing as a follow-up to the MMX Halloween Axl one I did a year prior (I will probably post it on Halloween this year on my random blog). This resulted in me coming up with a redesign for Axl, starting from a clean slate.

Something curious that I've noticed while looking into the design of Zero here was that... his silhouette was mostly the same. Despite the entire body overcoming changes, you could still recognize that it was Zero thanks to the hair and the shape of the helmet, mimicking what came before through the silhouette itself. That also was the design philosophy that Keiji Inafune persued and the only advice he gave to the designing team when they were trying to design Axl for X7, and that's... a really great tip to character design/redesign as a whole.

I was trying to follow the 'memorable silhouette' tip while remaking Axl for MMZ universe, but unfortunately I wasn't able to change his helmet much without losing the silhouette so I left it mostly as-is. Some parts of his armor do look strange (like boots for example) or too similar to what came before (the shoulderpads), the wings pack (or whatever it's called) looks really different and blocky, and the jets on his feet are a bit weird too, but I still think I did a good job reimagining this design, to the point of not changing it much in the next revisions.

I was trying to make Axl look sharper and more mature than before. I gave him a serious look, a few new scars (one on the left cheek as a reference to Grey and another over the right side of the face as a reference to Red), a blind right eye and a jacket with high collar (that doesn't close all the way because of the chest crystal). Shorts on suspenders still remained, though... which still kinda makes sense because he was supposed to still be young here, plus they help greatly with retaining the same "silhouette" as before. In addition, they actually have a functionality - Axl keeps his scythe folded behind the back and suspenders keep them safely in one place.

Oh, and yeah, this time Axl was supposed to become a grim reaper much like Red. I saw this as fitting, like he was following his old friend's footsteps, and eventually I realized it would be a great melee/middle-range weapon for him.

However, once I decided to make a full-blown game concept out of "What if Axl was in MMZ?", I chose to redesign him, to make him more in-line with the official designs (You can judge how close I came to that as I am still not sure if I am good at imitating them).

For the longest time, I thought that I perfected his design, but eventually as I started to fool around with the sprite arting, I realized that it was difficult for me to translate all of his details into a sprite while dealing with color and size limitations (which resulted in me never finishing that sprite too *chuckle*). I ended up going around all of the characters I had and giving them redesigns if needed, removing the unnessesary details (or adding on new stuff for some that needed them to fit in better). Axl was one of them... a-a-a-and I never remade his character art. Fortunately, I still have the promo art I did a few months ago and he had that design here.

And actually, there was one more redesign in July I did for the visual novel adaptation of Chapter: AXL (which I decided to put on hiatus for now because doing all that alone would stagnate the main project badly). It just removed the scar on his left cheek. I just thought that it wasn't necessary for now (maybe he will get it back during the story, who knows).

#fanfic #fanproject #megamanzero #mmz #megaman #megamanfanproject #rockman #megamanaxl #mmaxl #axl #ChAZ #Chapter: AXL

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wifelinkmtg · 1 year

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Who’s Hot in New Capenna

Okay! Streets of New Capenna was set in a glitzy 1920s Fritz Lang-style metropolis ruled by a bunch of different criminal syndicates. Its major contribution to Magic is that it introduced jazz to the multiverse, and was otherwise a substandard draft set anchored to, presumably, a story? I’m almost positive there was a story, but I’ve never spoken to anyone who knows what it was. They juice angels to make drugs? Vivien shows up, because where is Ms. Park Ranger more at home than Industrialized Urban Environments? Urabrask is also here?

Anyway the frequent badness of Magic story is tempered by the fact that we mostly encounter it in isolated pieces of cardboard with killer fucking art and are free to derive better ideas about story and characters and setting than you would get if you actually read the story, most of the time. It’s also tempered by the fact that girls!

AND HOW! WE’VE GOT GIRLS IN ALL YOUR FAVORITE JAZZ AGE LOOKS! GIRLS IN SUSPENDERS? YOU BET! WAISTCOATS? DIME A DOZEN, PAL! YOU WANT KISS CURLS? WE COULDN’T FIT MORE POMADE IN THESE COIFS IF WE TRIED! HOW ABOUT ARM MUSCULATURE? BUDDY, WHY DON’T YOU JUST TAKE A PEEK FOR YOURSELF?

Night Clubber (art by Joshua Raphael)

Ask me how I know Moustache here is from Queens. Go on, ask me.

Cause if he was from Brooklyn, he could dodge ‘er!

But seriously, folks: arms like fuckin tree trunks here. That is delectable. And just because you’re heading out for a night of swinging baseball bats at the heads of tourists with expensive wristwatches doesn’t mean you don’t dress to the nines, or at least the eights! Or like realistically maybe just the sevens - the pinstripe trousers are great, the lip color’s great, and I adore the extreme sleevelessness, but it’s clear her clothes have seen better days - which is maybe why she’s out here with the bat.

Also, baseball is canon in the MtG multiverse now! That’s fun. Maybe the Gatewatch could put together a company team, if any of them are left at the end of the current storyline. “Take Me Out to the Holodeck” but it’s our favorite surviving planeswalkers against, like, Freyalise’s supremacist elves. Chandra struggling to swing a bat without immolating it. Kaya getting into an argument with the umpire about whether ghosting through an opposing baseman holding the ball counts as being tagged out. Garruk-as-Worf yelling DEATH TO THE OPPOSITION. This bit was about a specific episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine; I really appreciate you reading my horny Magic blog, and I am not going to be respectful of your time.

Dapper Shieldmate (art by Greg Opalinski)

Okay, on a strict practicality level, having a plate mail waistcoat that leaves your neck and sternum covered only by a starched collar and a tie is basically just a chainmail bikini for lesbians. I can imagine Beige Sonja here thinking “well, I’ve got pauldrons on my pinstripe suit, for safety, but I’m worried I don’t look like enough of a dyke, so I’m going to make sure to roll my sleeves up,” because that’s the sort of thought process that often guides my sartorial choices as well. I also love the “I don’t particularly care about my appearance” messy hair on top combined with the “I really actually desperately care” glossy waves on the side. She’s trying way too hard, and honestly, that’s hot.

Glamorous Outlaw (art by Maria Zolotukhina)

Okay, there’s trying too hard, and there’s “I rented a panther for a date” trying too hard.

Venom Connoisseur (art by Marta Nael)

This isn’t a subtle piece of card art, but sometimes it’s enough to get your tits most of the way out and slap a python on em. Convincing someone to shake a hand with at least two venomous snakes coiled around it probably requires a substantial distraction, so: this cleavage is actually tactical, did you know?

Psionic Snoop (art by Marcela Medeiros)

I’m not going to lead with “oh, you’re psychic? can you tell what i’m thinking?” because I’m sure she’s heard that a hundred times from a hundred different slimeballs, but also she definitely knows it was my first thought, which is pretty embarrassing. Actually it is probably a bad idea for me to try and sleep with any kind of telepath unless she’d be remarkably tolerant of the sort of anxious inner monologue where I can’t ask a pretty barista’s name without first getting sidetracked into a long thought process involving Martin Buber and the alienation of capitalism, culminating in not asking her name and coming back another day, by which point it turns out she’s moving to Colorado and I’ve missed my shot, and all I got out of the whole thing was pretty good music recommendations (Khruangbin, in point of fact.) Hm. What were we talking about?

Jetmir’s Fixer (art by John Thacker)

Rakish, flamboyant, good with explosives: the cat’s hot, sorry.

Caldaia Strongarm (art by Randy Vargas)

Ma’am. Your arms.

Jaxis, the Troublemaker (art by Zoltan Boros)

Look I’m just a simple, honest lesbian, you know? End of the day, I want what we all want: a ripped, sweaty woman in suspenders with the world’s most utterly contemptuous sneer, the kind of sneer that stomps all the way down your spine with cleats, the kind of sneer that’ll slam you against a wall, spit in your face, and leave you bruised for a month. Yes, it has been entirely too long since someone beat the hell out of me, thank you for asking!

NEXT TIME WE GO BACK TO DOMINARIA FOR SOME DISAPPOINTING ITERATIONS OF HOT CHARACTERS, AND AN INTERDIMENSIONAL DOMINATRIX SLIPS INTO SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE COMFORTABLE: A MULTI-STORY STRAP-ON.

We’re almost caught up, folks. New Phyrexia is very, very soon.

#magic the gathering #streets of new capenna

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omg-foreverfilledwithweird-posts · 2 years

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Something Wicked This Way Comes ⚓︎

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Fem! Reader

A/N: okay so the Eddie fic did really well, thank you guys for that!! almost 7k notes T^T, love y’all, now I have the desire to write more so I did this Steve fic because I love momma Harrington, this is enemies to lovers because that’s my fave and I hope y’all enjoy it and leave feedback as always :))

Summary: Maybe if Steve Harrington didn’t pick on you in school, the two of you could have become friends. Maybe if you both weren’t so stubborn, you two could have made up when you worked together at Scoops with Robin. Maybe now that you’ve survived Vecna’s curse, will you and Steve admit that there’s a thin line between love and hate after he almost lost you?

Warnings: SMUT, fluff, slight angst, enemies to lovers, mean! Steve, sub! Steve, thigh riding, handjob, friends being matchmakers, cussing, near death experience, cursed reader, injury, mentions of blood, fucking RAUNCHY

Word Count: 6.3k

You absolutely hated Steve Harrington.

Abhorred. Despised. Loathed. Detested.

Yes, you’ve heard that you shouldn’t let hate into your heart and that it wasn’t worth the effort to put so much emotion into something so trivial and all that bullshit. It was just a boy and if you hated him that much, why bother? But, you got a kick out of fucking with him and vice versa, and the two of you shared a common friend group so interacting was inevitable. Dreaded, but inevitable.

It didn’t have to be completely boring, however. You could have your fun.

The nemesis relationship began in ninth grade when you first moved to Hawkins, Indiana after living in New York with your mother. The entire uproot threw you for a loop and Steve’s friendly welcome certainly didn’t help. Not the teasing, not the arguments in class, not the trips to the principal’s office, not the races on the track field, not the yelling.

One time, in tenth grade, he made fun of your mom for being poor (a way of old, insecure Steve to deter the attention from his own family) and you turned around, cold and collected, and punched him square in the nose.

You were both suspended for a week. But at least you had something to show for it, bruised knuckles and a bloodied Harrington nose.

You became fast friends with Nancy, on the other hand, and would go to her house whenever your mother was working one of her two jobs. So, because you were friends, when Steve started talking to Nancy, he was in your life more as a result. Nancy never wanted to leave anyone out.

So, you and Barb had your thoughts about him, “King” Steve with big hair and a big ego, a big fucking douchebag.

You’d swap insults and evil stares behind Nancy’s back. “Hey, ugly.” “Hey, dumbass. Pass Chemistry yet?” “Kissed a boy yet?” “No, but I found out your mom’s a pretty good one.”

That kind of thing. Then sharing forced, polite smiles and pleasantries when she’d turn around.

And when Barb died, tragedy brought you and Nancy closer than ever. Grief clung to the two of you and wouldn’t let up, but you had each other and eventually it dissipated only to a dull ache every other day. The Wheeler family, as a result, became your own and Mike’s friends kind of inserted themselves into your life soon after, making you an honorary member of the gang.

You would watch on the sidelines with Max while they would play their DND and when Nancy was busy with the newspaper, spending your nights with the kids sometimes. Something you never expected, but weren’t really mad at either. They were kind of awesome, much to your surprise, and not that you would ever tell them. But they never treated you differently like your classmates, you were just let in with no judgement and no ill-will.

Then Nancy and Steve broke up and everything sort of blew up in everyone’s faces. It was messy. Fist fights and broken noses and even more broken hearts. And despite the fact that you thought Nancy was wrong in some things she did, which you expressed to her and she listened, your loyalty lied with her. It was easy to defend your friend and shit talk the ex when you already hated him.

Steve fucked up big time in a few areas, he needed the wake up call, and that was the last time the two of you spoke for months. You were in New York for a visit when the Demodog incident happened, thank god.

You got back at the start of summer and that’s when you got the job at Scoops Ahoy because your neighbor Robin Buckley recommended you for the position. But guess who was also up for it?

Steve fucking Harrington.

Management conceded and thought the third worker would be necessary for the summer wave of sales, and helpful for shift change. But it meant you’d have to work together. It was a summer you’d never forget. What with the endless arguing, Robin’s chastising, and Russian spies and huge flesh-made monsters.

Which brings you to now. Your favorite song, ‘Dreams’ by Fleetwood Mac, playing on repeat in your headphones and trying your best to evade your well-meaning but irritating friends’ (and Steve) stares.

“Hey, guys?” you push down your headphones so they hang on your neck. “I’m not suddenly going to spontaneously combust if you take your eyes off of me. I’m fine. Seriously.” Steve looks away from you.

Nancy frowns, rocking slightly in the cramped canoe that you, Eddie, Robin, Steve, and Nancy have squeezed into, “We’re just worried because we love you.”

“Speak for yourself,” Steve grumbles and earning a smack in the chest from you.

He says this. But he was one of the most worried when you shut down in Nancy’s basement, going stock still and silent before levitating to the ceiling. You managed to escape because of their quick thinking by playing your favorite song.

He had caught you when you fell to the ground, tugging you close and hugging you almost painfully hard as everyone surrounded you. You only allowed it to happen because you almost died and you didn’t have the energy to push him away.

And because, just a little bit, it felt kind of nice.

“I, for one-” Robin glares at Steve before looking at you. “-am glad you’re okay. Who else am I going to ramble to with no judgement? You’re the only person that can keep up with my random trivia.”

You smile softly. Eddie pats your knee, someone you met only a few weeks ago because of Dustin but already have grown fond of, “I haven’t really known you long, but I love you.”

“Shut up, Eddie,” you laugh, your song playing faintly around your neck. “Keep rowing. But I love you, too.”

You guys were following a lead that Dustin thought of with his old, wonky compass in hand, taking you out to the middle of Lover’s Lake and finally stopping when the compass was going haywire.

After only a few moments of deliberation, Steve began taking off his shoes.

“Steve, what are you doing?” you ask.

He sighs. “Someone’s gotta go down there and check this thing out. Unless one of you four can top being a Hawkins high swim co-captain and a certified lifeguard for three years, it’s gotta be me. No complaints, alright?” he says, beginning to stand and tug off his sweater.

You roll your eyes. He always did want to be the hero.

“Hey, I’m not complaining. I do not wanna go down there,” Eddie says, peering suspiciously at the ominous, murky waters. He begins wrapping a plastic bag around a flashlight for Steve to use.

You look over his shirtless form, without much thought and it wasn’t like you could help it. He was just standing in front of you flaunting it, how could you not look at the only distracting thing in a sea of black? He didn’t look terrible either.

“Hey... good luck,” Eddie hands Steve the flashlight.

Steve nods, “Thanks.”

You clench your eyes shut and say his name before you could think about it more, “Steve?”

He turns around, not expecting you to be the one to speak up and say his name. But he knew it would be good. Some insult to spur his pride, or teasing remark to get his adrenaline going, it almost made him smile at the possibility. Always wanting to know what you would say next.

But no, you look at him and say quietly, “Be careful.”

Nancy and Robin stare at you with their jaws dropped to the bottom of the lake. And even Eddie who hasn’t been here for the entirety of the feud, knew enough to have his eyes wider than saucers as he looked between the two of you.

Steve stares back at you, searching you over with softened eyes, and he nods in understanding before diving in with a newfound sense of purpose.

“Um... what the hell was that?” Nancy laughs, dumbfounded.

You pinch your brow and look at your friends, all staring at you again, “Me wishing a friend good luck.”

“He’s your friend now?” Robin grins, looking at Eddie like she can’t believe she just heard you say that.

You pinch yourself, “N-no, sorry, the word slipped out. We... we are not friends. I was just being nice! Can I not be nice?”

“Sure, you’re super nice, sweetheart,” Eddie leans back, amused. “Just not to Harrington. Like ever. I’ve never even seen you smile at him.”

“You guys exaggerate.”

“We’re just saying...” Nancy smirks knowingly, voice laced with ulterior motives. “It’s a nice change of pace. I’m glad you extended an olive branch. I’m proud of you, y/n.”

“Hey, don’t get ahead of yourself here. Nothing was extended. If you guys are going to be like this whenever I’m just bare minimum pleasant to Steve, I won’t do it again,” you threaten your friends with pointed fingers and raised eyebrows.

A voice startles you, “That was bare minimum?”

You jump at the surprise and it rocks the boat a bit, sending all of your friends into fits of laughter. You glare at each of them and move to smack Steve’s head.

He catches your wrist with his large hand, grip tightening with a shit-eating smirk. Your skin tingles under his grasp. He tugs you down slightly, showing how easy it would be to pull you into the water with no effort.

“Watch it, princess, I have the power here.”

You yank your hand back, smacking his head with the other, “Don’t call me princess or I’ll rip your chest hair off.” He runs a hand back through his wet hair and shakes it out like a dog, getting you wet.

“Well, that peace was short-lived,” Robin shakes her head.

“It was nice while it lasted,” Nancy mused with a small smile. “But what did you find down there, Steve? A gate?”

“Oh, yeah. It’s bigger than we thought, though, it’s actually-” He’s interrupted when he’s pulled suddenly beneath the water.

“Steve!” you yell out, looking around the desolate, dark lake for any sign of him as you all scramble around the canoe to the edge.

He comes back up with a gasp, chest heaving, “What the hell was that?”

“Thank god,” Robin laughs with relief.

But before you could all celebrate, he’s pulled back under and going towards the bottom, bubbles coming to the surface as you all scream out for him. Your heart launches in your throat and you don’t know when you do it, but you’re standing up in the canoe and ready to jump.

“Y/n, what are you doing?” Eddie tugs on your blouse from behind you.

“I’m going in after him, you guys just... just stay here,” you get in a dive formation and take a deep breath.

“What about the curse? If you’re in there, what’s stopping Vecna from taking you again?” Eddie says hysterically.

You grab another plastic bag from the boat, wrap your headphones and cassette player in it, and stuff it in your pocket. “I’ll just have to take that chance.”

“Y/n!” Nancy and Robin yell as you dive in and break the surface of the lake.

You’re propelled downward by your dive as you push yourself past the burning of your legs and arms and the popping of your ears, only thinking about getting to that bright red gate at the lake floor. You push through the portal and next thing you know, you’re being flung onto the hard ground of the upside down.

Screaming and being attacked by some demo-bat fucking things, Steve is convulsing on the ground, trying to get free. You scramble up and run after him, realizing you don’t have a weapon until you hear your friends behind you, yelling your name.

“Here!” Eddie throws you an oar and you grab it before hitting the bats off of Steve and freeing him.

The five of you fight off the bats, one by one knocking them out of the sky. Nancy and Robin go after one, chopping off its head, and Eddie stabbing one with the splintered wood of his oar, impaling another. One goes after you, attaching to your shirt and tearing.

You move to hit it with your oar but can’t reach, panicking, but Steve grabs it off of you and throws it up in the air, slamming it on the ground. He steps on one wing as it desperately tries to wriggle its way loose and be free, but he tears it in half when he pulls it back, tossing it aside.

He spits out blood and lifts his chin, looking you in the eye, chest heaving with strenuous breaths.

Wow.

“Jesus H. Christ!” Eddie shrieks and throws down his oar, stomping.

You put your headphones around your neck and play your music so you can hear it quietly. You run up to Steve as the others collect their bearings and inspect his wounds, the gashes on his sides and the red lines around his sore neck. “Are you okay?”

“Obviously not,” he tilts his head up to look at you, but he’s smirking. You flash him a flat expression. “They certainly took their pound of flesh.”

You want to reach out and touch him but immediately think better of it. What good would it do? And why on Earth would he want you to touch him? He hates you and you hate him. But the urge was still there and getting stronger the longer he stares at you like he wants you to.

“Hey guys,” Robin speaks up. “There’s more comin’.”

You guys look up to see a huge swarm in the sky, way more than the five of you could take on by yourselves.

“Guys, the woods!” Nancy yells, pointing in the direction of the forest.

The five of you run that way, retreating into the trees and out of sight from the vicious demo-bats. You guys keep walking, all in deep, contemplative, and fearful silence as you look for a place of shelter. You look at Steve in his disheveled, bloodied state and offer him your arm. You don’t know why you did it it, you didn’t want to help him, but he looked so damn pathetic and you weren’t an asshole. He would reluctantly help you too if roles were reversed, you think.

He looks at you with an eyebrow raised, running through his mind for some witty, smart-ass response, before deciding he’s too tired and lets you wrap your arm around his waist to steady him as he walks.

Nancy, Robin, and Eddie stare at the two of you with narrowed eyes and knowing smiles like a bunch of gossiping schoolgirls.

The five of you find a clearing in the forest, a rock formation that acted as a roof over your heads and a tunnel. Steve stumbles a bit when you let go of him and he grips his side, wincing in pain. You turn around and move him to stand against the wall.

“I-I’m fine,” he leans back, acting very not fine. “Really.”

“No, you’re not. Let me help you,” you begin to unbutton your blouse.

His eyes widen and face reddens, “Y/n-”

“Chill, shirtless. I won’t be naked,” you laugh at his bashful state, taking off your shirt and revealing a black camisole underneath, tucked into your jean shorts.

His eyes inadvertently explore the new skin exposed, collarbone, chest, cleavage, and your wet see-through top. He can’t stop looking at you and he doesn’t know why. He doesn’t know what’s changed, almost losing you has done something to his brain, not like you were even his to begin with. But you’re one of the few constants in his life and now he can’t stop looking at you. Can’t. And how you’re helping him selflessly. Something was different.

“Good,” he looks up, chuckling under his breath. “I would have thrown up.”

“You would have fucking loved it. But if you’re going to see that, it’s not going to be free, that’s for sure,” you smile. His eyes crinkle in the corners.

You rip your blouse in half and tie the ends together, creating a long piece of tight fabric to use to stop Steve’s bleeding. You tighten it in your grasp and look up at his pained expression, lifting his arms to give you easy access. You try not to sit and admire his exposed skin and toned chest and arms. The tension between you two becomes static and thick, frequencies rapidly changing like Dustin’s cerebro.

Something was different.

You look up at him, “Ready?”

He nods and looks away from you, “Yeah, just do it.”

You reach around his back and wrap the white fabric around him, having to be pressed against him as you tighten it and tie it. Your chest just barely meets his when you accidentally look up at him. His eyes are already on you and watching you work. You look away with heat rising to your face and making your skin prickle.

“This... uh, is this good?” you ask, voice quiet and unsteady.

“Yeah,” he says, still looking at you.

You finish off tying him and tuck in the excess, brushing off nonexistent dirt from the makeshift tourniquet. You meet his eyes and flash a small smile.

You tilt your head, “Better?”

“Better. Thank you.”

“Well, I’m not a nurse’s daughter for nothing,” you say and immediately regretting bringing up your mother. The taunting from school ringing in your head like an unwanted alarm.

He looks you over, trying to find the right words, “She’d be proud of you, then. She uh... she must work really hard.”

“Thanks,” you stare at him, a bit dumbfounded. “And yeah, she does.”

The two of you are silent for a beat from his attempt at a compliment before he speaks again, “So, I guess you don’t want me dead then, huh?”

You cock an eyebrow, tying back your hair, “What?”

“S-since you didn’t let me bleed out. Ya know... saved my life and all,” he says, nervously and he gets an almost grin out of you. Why was he acting like this?

“Oh. Well... if anyone’s going to kill you, it’s going to be me,” you smile at him.

Robin and Nancy look at the two of you and smile softly. Eddie gestures a finger going into an hole with his other hand at you. You flip him off when Steve looks away.

You turn around to move your way back to the others when you feel a hand on your back. You turn to look over your shoulder at Steve who’s got his fingers brushing against your back and inspecting something with a furrowed brow.

“You’re hurt,” he frowns, looking down at you. He unconsciously drags his gentle, calloused finger around the edge of the small wound. “You’ve got a cut back here from those bats.”

“Oh, I don’t even feel it,” you turn around to look at him. “I’m okay, really.”

“Are you sure?” he looks at you with those puppy dog, chestnut eyes like he’s really concerned. Your chest tightens at the care in his tone. It almost sounded sincere.

“Yeah, don’t worry,” you say quietly and nod. What was it to him?

“Hey, Romeo and Juliet!” Robin calls over to the two of you, arms folded and her hip jutted with a small, satisfied smile. “Come on already.”

Eddie climbs up on the roof of a small shed in front of you guys, trying to find a clearing through the woods.

“We need a way to get past those bats if we’re ever going to get out of here,” Nancy muses, thinking out loud.

“Isn’t this place just like regular Hawkins except... with scary shit?” Robin turns around and asks.

Steve nods behind you, “Yeah, why?”

Robin behind pacing back and forth and gesturing wildly, as she does, “Then theoretically... we can just go down to the police station and get supplies and... and weapons! Like guns, ammo, and grenades and blow those suckers sky high so we can get outta here.”

“Well, I doubt that the Hawkins police station has grenades, but guns sure,” Steve says. You smiled at that.

“We don’t need to go all the way to the station, I have guns,” you look at the others and Eddie who hops down from the roof with his eyebrows raised incredulously in your direction.

“You...” Eddie smiles widely. “You have guns? Y/n Y/ln... has guns?”

“Yes,” you chuckle softly. “A Russian Makarov and a .22.”

Steve moves to stand beside you and smiles, “You almost shot me with that one once.”

Eleventh grade party. Drinks and Truth and Dare were involved. Feelings were shared, it was a long story. But it made you grin at the unfortunate memory, nonetheless.

“And you almost deserved it,” you look at him and he locks eyes with you, cracking a small smile.

“I have guns too,” Nancy pipes up. “We can split up and get all of them and meet back here to kill those shits.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Eddie smiles. He then moves to slip off his jean vest and throws it at an unsuspecting Steve.

He shrugs, “For your modesty, dude.”

Steve smirks softly and slips on the vest, “Thanks.” Dammit, he looked fucking good.

“Me, Nancy, and Eddie can go to Nancy’s while the new best friends, Steve and Y/n can go to her house,” Robin tilts her head and looks in your direction, eyes twinkling conspiratorially. “We’ll reconvene here in an hour.”

You laugh uncomfortably, “Um... I don’t-”

“Sure,” Steve’s hand brushes accidentally against your own and you jump slightly. “Let’s get going.”

You glare at your three friends, all waving goodbye with sickly sweet and innocent smiles.

Ugh.

⚓︎⚓︎⚓︎

Seeing your house in a weird, alien alternate dimension was one of the weirdest things you think you’ve ever come to experience. Moving and swirling dark vines crawl around the walls and ceilings with floating ash and particles coating the atmosphere like dust on old, untouched wood. You and Steve slowly walk around the desolate, abandoned home.

It felt like one big, rude metaphor for the way your hate for Steve has rotted away at your insides, poisoning your interactions and mood like this place. This prison.

Steve stares at you when you’re not looking. Your dirt stained and ripped tank top and shorts, flushed, hot face, frizzy hair in a pony, scuffs up and down your battered arms, and headphones against your ears as you listen for the 200th time to your favorite song that was slowly becoming your least. You looked absolutely beautiful despite your frazzled state.

He wasn’t just now noticing how beautiful you are though, he always noticed. Even if he didn’t want to, it just had a way of making him brutally aware at all times. From the first time he saw you, despite the arguing and the rivalry, you’ve always been beautiful. It was honestly annoying because he shouldn’t be thinking about how good you looked in jeans or how soft your hair always looked when you two were screaming at each other.

Or wondering f you were thinking the same things about him. You were.

“I’ll go look in my room and you can look in my mom’s. She might have some in there, too,” you start to move towards the staircase.

“We shouldn’t split up, let’s just look in yours.”

“I’m sure I won’t need protection in my own house, it’s fine.”

“Vecna could be anywhere and you’re still cursed. You shouldn’t be alone, I’m sticking with you.”

You sigh aloud and look up at him, “Steve, I’m not made of glass.”

He pinches his brow, eyes falling over you like he’s had years of practice, “I didn’t say that-”

“Just go look in my mom’s room,” you plead with him. If one more person looked at you like you were going to fall apart at any moment, you’d scream. “Please, Steve.”

He doesn’t say anything and stalks off towards your mom’s room, memory serving him well from the last time he’s been here from the graduation party senior year. You watch him walk off before turning and running up the stairs, ‘Dream’s by Fleetwood Mac the soundtrack playing as you searched your bedroom upstairs. You begin to look in your closet and the safe your mother got you after letting you have these guns.

After everything with Will, she came to the realization Hawkins was just as, if not more, dangerous than the big bad and vast New York City you grew up in. Scary times called for drastic measures and that meant throwing your morals aside and purchasing some fucking firearms.

You twist in the combination and pull open the door to the safe as you hear footsteps closing in on you and Steve walks through the door. You were only gone for a minute before he’s coming back, you knew immediately he didn’t look very hard.

He leans against the doorway and watches you take out both of your guns. You check the ammo and see they’re fully loaded, twisting the barrels. You look up at Steve and see he’s empty handed.

“Did you not find anything?”

He looks at you with raised eyebrows and a blank stare that says Really?, “No, obviously not, y/n.”

You laugh dryly, stuffing the guns into one of your tote bags on your wall, and slinging it over your shoulder, “Don’t be a dick, Harrington, there’s more at stake here than your need for constant sarcasm.”

“Well, you jumped my ass when I tried to show concern for you, so what’s the alternative? Complete silence? Apathy?” he steps towards you with his arms folded over his bare chest. Thank god, it was so distracting. “Tell me what you want me to do and I’ll do it, y/n, since you seem to have a problem with everything that I choose.”

You roll your eyes with a groan, “For fuck’s sake-”

He interrupts you with a loud wince of pain when he grips his side and his palm comes back up stained with scarlet, blood seeping through the bandage you created for him. Petty argument forgotten, you gently set down your bag and walk over to him to inspect his pulsing wound.

“I need to unwrap and disinfect this or it’ll get worse,” you lay your hand against his stomach and he stiffens at your touch. “Sit down on the bed.”

He breathes a laugh at your bossiness, “Yes, ma'am.”

You help him down and shake your head as you move to find your first aid kit.

You find it on top of your cabinet and stand up on the tips of your toes, sneakers bending to reach up and grab it. He doesn’t know if it’s the blood loss or his impending fear of death, but his eyes are glued to your ass in your small shorts, cinching your waist and making your legs look longer and thighs look grabbable. He wanted to punch himself for it, but you looked so good.

You turn around and are met with his flushed, red face. You brush it off as a result of his injury and sit yourself down next to him.

“Ready?” you brush your fingers against the tourniquet. “I’m going to unwrap you now.”

He nods and you gingerly untie his wrap, watching him stiffen slightly from the friction of the cloth against his wound. You look at the cuts on his sides and the red ring around his neck and frown. Even if you weren’t his biggest fan, you didn’t like seeing him in so much pain, it made your chest ache. While grabbing an antiseptic wipe, Steve’s watches your every move with softened eyes and a small smile.

He liked watching you work and take care of him, it was a nice change of pace from the usual barbed words and insults. He knows he started it. You came into school, so kind and so sweet, and he stomped all over you because he was insecure and cared too much about popularity. After Nancy broke his heart, it changed him and left him without social status, but he wouldn’t trade it for anything. It was the brutal wake up call he needed, and your stubborn ass didn’t want to let go of the old him, but he didn’t blame you. Not when he didn’t want to open up and let you in even now. To extend the olive branch. To apologize.

“This is going to sting a bit,” you hover over his cut. He sighs and nods again. You dab the wipe against his cuts and he tilts his head back, holding his breath.

You needed to get closer to him so you move to swing your leg over his, sitting up on his thick, denim clad thigh. You look in his eyes for what seems like the 1000th time today, memorizing the golden lines and flecks in his brown irises.

“This okay?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry, y/n...” he says all of a sudden, meeting your eyes.

“For what, Steve?” you say softly.

“For everything. For being such a dick to you in high school and an asshole still. You didn’t deserve... don’t deserve it. I’m sorry.”

You sigh, eyes stinging a bit at the surprise apology, and the direness of the situation, with everything going on you wanted to cry. But you don’t and instead force an easy smile and nod.

“I’m sorry that I um... that I never gave you the chance to be better. I shouldn’t hold grudges. You’ve clearly changed a lot.” Your easy smile slips into a more comfortable, genuine one that he returns. “So, we’re okay.”

You scooch closer as you wipe off the dried blood on his skin. He groans at you shimmying on his thigh and has to will his pants not to get tighter. His hands grip your waist and move you closer so you can get your better angle. You chest hits his shoulder and you let out a small ‘oomph’ at the impact. But your skin feels lit like a live wire, curling and coiling and licking your insides.

He speaks with gritted teeth, laughing with his chin tilted up, “Just so you stop shimmying on my leg.”

You lips curve, “What? Is it bothering you?”

“It’s...” his eyes scan over your face. “It’s distracting.”

You grab a better wrap from the kit and begin tying it around his torso. You shimmy a bit again without thinking (or maybe to fluster him) and his grip tightens on your waist, anchoring you in place. The only sounds you hear being the soft music playing from your headphones around your neck and the thundering beat of your heart. Who knew heartfelt apologies could jumpstart feelings so much? Things that laid dormant for five years, now bubbling over the surface.

“Too much?” you ignore his previous confession and ask.

“N-nope... it’s fine.”

You tie it up securely in front of you, feeling his thigh tense between your own, and it send a jolt of energy to your core. You inhale sharply when he accidentally does it again and he notices, cocking an eyebrow at you.

He smirks, mocking, “Too much?”

“You’re an asshole,” you huff, tugging at his bandage.

He grabs your wrist, smirk intensifying, “Are you turned on right now?”

You pinch your brow, back to insults, “No, you weirdo. You’re the one over here getting a boner from me being on your thigh.”

He laughs dryly, “Like I can fucking help that. Why are you looking at my dick anyway?”

“I’m not!”

“You so are.”

“You’re literally a child,” you finish off fixing his bandage and inspect your work. You grin, amused, “Or a horny teenager.”

“Shut up, y/n,” he meets your gaze.

You cock your head to the side, voice low and quiet, “Why don’t you make me?”

Your noses brush from your close proximity to him and you share one heated and bated breath. He smells like smoke and ash and cologne with flushed, pink cheeks and half lidded eyes.

His lips brush against yours, “You won’t like how I’ll do it.”

Before you can disagree, his mouth is crashing against yours, full force and full of passion and years of pent up want and need for the other. You inhale sharply through your nose, finally kissing him back with your hands tangled in Eddie’s jean vest he’s wearing. His large, calloused hand slips to pull you in by the back of your neck, threading his fingers through your hair and tugging out your ponytail, letting your hair spill out. It’s all tongue and teeth and mouths dragging against the other, hate fueled and gasoline lit.

You’re grabbing everything you can on each other. His hands falls to your waist and pull you closer and he’s gripping you so hard it’s almost painful, but the biting sting of his fingernails and the strength in them make you moan aloud into his mouth. He eagerly swallows it and groans in return when your arms wrap around his neck, breast pushed up against his hard chest. Two puzzle pieces trying to fit over and over but realizing you never will, making it more exciting, the challenge of it all. And yet there was a secret stability and peace from finally diving in the deep end instead of dipping a toe in the shallow.

“You actually seem to like it,” he mumbles into your mouth, smiling into the kiss.

“You’re such an asshole,” you kiss under his jaw and down his neck, licking at his hot skin. He moans, his pretty noises in your ear, “You don’t seem to hate it either.” You start moving against his thigh without any thought and he cracks a slow, lazy smile.

“For someone who’s hated me for so long, you sure are making a lot of noises,” he tugs you closer.

“Doesn’t mean I like it,” you kiss the corner of his mouth, his eyelids, his cheeks, his nose. “Cocky little shit.”

He grins. “You gonna ride my thigh, pretty girl,” he begins to rock his leg against your aching cunt, making you whine. “Make yourself cum on my jeans, you’re so fucking sexy. So good for me.”

Fuck, he was so good at dirty talk. He always did know how to match your energy.

You nod eagerly and undo your belt, slipping off your jean shorts to reveal your lace panties. You sit back down gently on his leg, “This okay?”

“More than okay,” he grips you by the waist and helps you move against him. He tucks his head into the crook of your neck and sucks into your sensitive skin, whispering darkly, “Come on and use me, beautiful. I’m all yours, I always have been.”

You grind against his thigh, the denim providing much needed friction against your swollen clit, making you keen against him. One of your hand falls to his lap, palming him through his pants.

“Fuck, angel...” he groans. “Shit, please.”

His hand grabs your neck and presses his fingers into your pulse points as he kisses down your chest. He rips down your top, your tits bouncing out of your tank. He scatters kisses across your chest, a constellation of love bites and marks, making his way to your nipples where he licks and sucks. His tongue swirls around the hard bud as he palms the other, going back and forth. Your slick stains his pants and the thought makes him groan against your neck. The way you were using him to get to your release fired off something inside him; the irredeemable need to please you.

The coil in your gut begins to tighten as you continue to rut against his hard, muscular thigh. He looks up at you from between your breasts and smiles, cat-like and shit eating. Your hand slips into his pants as you pump his cock in your hand, thumb brushing over the tip that was already wet with precum.

“This does something for you?” you whisper, kissing his temple. “Already so close from just pleasuring me...”

His eyes were glued to your lust blown ones, heavy lidded, looking under your lashes with swollen, red lips. He liked the way you spoke to him, praising him.

“You’re doing so good for me,” you run your fingers through his soft, trademark hair. “I’m so close, baby. Fuck.”

His voice is whiny, needy, and it made you realize how much you liked it. His need to please and yours in return. Pleasing each other back and forth until both of you snap.

“Cum for me, angel. Please,” he kisses you hard as the coil finally snaps in your gut, your orgasm washing over you like a tidal wave. So hard, it was almost painful how good it felt.

He comes apart in your hand, his face still nuzzled in your neck, sending goosebumps and thrills down your arms. You take your hand out and lick your fingers, locking with his eyes all the while.

“We should probably get back to the others now,” he mumbles into your skin.

“At least we have something to look forward to,” you run your fingers through his hair, a fantasy of yours finally blossoming into fruition. “Fuck, our friends are going to have a field day with this.”

“Probably so. But when we get out of here, I’m going to take you on a real date... and fuck you properly,” he kisses your throat. “How’s that sound?”

You grin, “Sounds amazing, dumbass.”

He kisses you, “I’m glad, ugly.”

#steve #steve harrington #steve harrington imagine #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington smut #stranger things smut #stranger things #eddie munson x reader #nancy wheeler #robin buckley #dustin henderson #fanfiction #stranger things fanfiction #hopper #smut

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wawamouse · 5 months

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Oz Rewatch 3: S1E04: Capital P

After a week off, we're back with episode 4!

This episode saw Jefferson Keane's execution for the murders in the gym last episode. In our watch through, Sister was also more critical of a lot of what happened, and I find myself agreeing; although I personally love Keane's journey through season 1, and I think a lot of the moments of his in this episode are very touching, when I watched the episode with Sister over my shoulder, it was easier to see how, if you don't buy into the general premise of Oz and suspend your disbelief, you might walk away with a different experience. For that reason, I think I will focus this episode's write up less on the episode itself and more on Sister's thoughts from our post-viewing discussion. It’s been about 5 years since I first watched the show myself, so I don’t remember my first impressions of the characters. Therefore, it’s been more interesting to me during this rewatch to interrogate my sister about what she thinks (even if I don’t agree).

First, though, a few miscellaneous moments:

Sister: So that’s why he’s so strange… because he was bald.

I gotta say, I just love all of Rebadow’s flashbacks, and this scene was great. Weird God-connected Bob is such a delight, and the music was a fun addition for his flashback because we so rarely get non ambient music in Oz. Also, our power surged and almost went out three times earlier this evening.

Sister: I didn’t read that story. Where was he?

Yeah, this is my 3rd time watching the show and I gotta say that my understanding of this line remains strictly vibe-based. I think it's supposed to mean something deep like "everywhere" and by extension "by his son's side" (yes, I'm very smug about how correct this absolute guess sounds, btw) but it also sounds sort of cold-blooded if you don't know the lore. Like, the same place? What, absent? In Heaven or wherever? Is that supposed to be a comfort?? Lmao.

Fun fact! The purchasing power of $100 in 1997 is $191 today. We specifically stopped the episode to look it up.

A Hater’s Perspective (No Survivors)

For the past couple episodes, I’ve been asking Sister for more of her thoughts after the credits rolled. From the very start, Nino Schibetta (alternatively “Mr. Mole”, “the Italian Mouse”, etc) has been a favorite of hers. This episode was no different, though this time she gave a more concrete reason than that he reminds her of a small creature that she would like to put in her pocket. Namely, Nino is her favorite character because he’s in charge of things and he’s running them smoothly.

“It’s less stressful for him to be the kingpin because at least you know he’s going to keep things running in an orderly fashion. If he dies, I’m going to be so stressed because there’s going to be a power vacuum and none of these guys are going to be good enough to fill it. Everyone else so far is too chaotic and too stupid.”

Funnily, I feel like Martin Querns would agree to this point, although I suspect Sister will have lots to say about his tenure once we get to it (if she sticks around that long, lol). Anyway, I asked Sister about Nino at the very end of our discussion, so keep that in mind when you hear what she has to say about some other major players this episode. She has a very Lawful Neutral view of things.

It’s On Sight With Ryan

In our discussions after previous episodes, I glimpsed the laying of a few tracks (so to speak) but after this episode, the Ryan O’Reily hate train was going full steam ahead. My sister does not like Ryan, and for reasons that tickle me to no end. Poor Ryan (“Whispers”, as he would be nicknamed this episode) bore the brunt of Sister’s criticism this episode, and was the primary reason she described her main episode takeaway as “Frustrating”. Ryan’s sins are two-fold in this episode: 1) he inexplicably blabs to Toby about the purpose of the Latinos cornering Keane, and 2) Sister disliked the plot point of his manipulation of Kenny and Adebisi.

When it comes to Ryan slipping up and telling Toby about the Jefferson Keane tapes, I agree—knowing what I know of Ryan’s later season characterisations, this slip up feels like something that he is beyond. But what’s interesting about s1-Ryan is that he’s a lot more fallible. Burrano, the prison investigator, saw through him at once. Nino doesn’t believe his lies. In season 1, people can still see through him and he seems constantly on the verge of being caught. I feel like this is one thing I actually like more about early Ryan. What makes him so interesting to watch during this phase is that he’s clearly brimming with some kind of ambition and desire to make moves in Oz, but at the same time, he seems dangerously close to shooting himself in the foot due to arrogance or carelessness—due to simply… not being as smart as he thinks he is.

When it came to Ryan manipulating the Homeboys, Sister was very unimpressed—she doesn’t like plotlines that involve one guy predictably winding up two dumb lackeys to get them to go out for revenge and drive the plot forward.

Sister: Everyone’s just watching that guy (Ryan) whispering and walking out of people’s cells and somehow they’re still like ‘ah yes, he’s trustworthy!’ …They’re so stupid. He’s a stinkbug, that’s what he is. I thought the Italian mouse was supposed to be smarter than this. Me: A stinkbug? Sister: He looks like he smells bad. He looks like he smells sour, like cheese or something. Is he gonna die? It’s just annoying when there’s a guy who’s got all the strings to pull but then it’s like, why is he pulling them? And why did he already slip up with Glasses Guy?? He’s whispering to everyone, weaving all these lies, but he can’t even keep track of his lies and he just seems like someone who’s going to get trapped in his own web and he’s gonna be stuck in the center like ‘ohh, how did I get here?’ and it’s like, well maybe you shouldn’t have been playing all your reindeer games. I’m just waiting for him to die so I can relax because I feel like the show is trying to make him do too much but he’s just not smart. Me: Have you considered the fact that maybe everyone else in there is stupider than him, though? Sister: (long-suffering sigh) Okay, but then, like, why do I gotta watch them be stupid? Me: Do you find him interesting? Sister: No. He does too much and it makes me tired. Me: But aside from the fact that you wouldn’t do what he does because it makes you tired. Do you find him interesting as a character? Sister: No! Because I don’t get why he’s doing anything he does. That makes it hard to find him interesting. Like he’s just this guy who comes in asking to be in Em City just to kill that one guy because, what? He shot your friend and shot you? Okay, but now he killed the guy and he’s still making all these moves and it’s like why? And he’s like ‘Oh because I’m Mayhem’ and it’s like ‘No, you’re too early with that branding stuff. You’re not there yet. Sit down’.

Miguel, the Real Housewife

Okay I know that sounds strange so hold on a second. As a reminder, this episode saw the death of Miguel’s son. Much like Keane’s death scene, the sequences Miguel has had this episode and last have been really good. Death of child did not spare Miguel from the flames of my Sister’s judgment, though.

Me: Any other characters of note? Sister: The guy with the scar. He’s such a wimp. Watching him is like watching a toddler, like he’s just got no idea what he’s doing. His whole plot line is just ‘I ruined my once beautiful face all for my son—oh God, please do this for me…’ And now his son is dead, so what’s his plotline going to be next? Me: What would you like to see from him? Sister: His backbone. Me: Why don’t you think he has a backbone? Sister: Because he’s just crying about things all the time. And he got in there for cutting a dude just for scratching up his car. He’s just got no sense of responsibility. Like, he only started to grow up with his son [being born] and then he was like ‘I’ve never loved anything else in my life before’ and his baby mama’s probably like ‘thanks, dude. What were we even together for, by the way?’ Me: So when you say ‘backbone’, you mean ‘responsibility’? Sister: More like ‘purpose’. If he doesn’t find some other purpose, he’s gonna get written off this show. Like in a permanent way. I’m actually looking out for him. I’m telling him this for his own good. This is how it is in the Biz... He’s like a Real Housewife—once your plot line ends, you better find a new one to keep it interesting or you’re gonna get written off the show. He needs another secret child or something. I don’t know what he’s going to do. Me: So, you’re looking forward to seeing what his next plotline will be? Sister: He’s gotta do something soon. All he’s had so far is this baby thing. I don’t know anything about him.

Tim, Walking Red Flag

The word of the day when it came to Tim was "gross", lol. Like any reasonable person, Sister has been highly critical of the lax security in Oz and the general lack of oversight by prison administration and by the hacks. This episode, we got comments like "This is just like that scene in Criminal Minds where they showed a baby being born at the same exact moment that a serial killer was getting executed" and "This bald guy doesn't do anything!"

Aside from find Tim useless for his lack of apparent follow up on any of the incidents that have happened in Em City recently, "Bald Guy" continued to sink in Sister's books due to his lack of workplace professionalism—the workplace is not the hunting ground for dates, Tim!

Sister: Red flag. The doctor lady is a red flag, too. Me: How so? Sister: I don't know. Like, when she was being all flirty with Bald Guy earlier. Like, uhh, ma'am, this is a prison jail place. This is not the place to be looking for dates. You are here for your prison job. Red flag.

Sister: Red flag, man. Asking a woman on a date after you made someone else’s execution about you. Red flag. Who looks for dates in a prison? This is weird.

The Takeaways

So, after all that, you may be wondering, as I did, whether Sister even likes the show. I asked her this very question and she was quiet for a few seconds, slumped against the wall by my bed, wearing blanket like a cape and looking exhausted.

“It’s wearing on me,” she told me, “But at the same time, if I was more invested, I would just read the wikipedia pages and get it over with”.

Translation: She will continue watching the show with me because she is just disinterested enough to not jump ahead and find out what happens.

This may sound like strange logic, but she watches everything on 2.0x and listens to podcasts on 3.0x, so watching an hour long HBO episode on normal speed sits on the miracle line of not catching her interest enough to make her speed ahead, but not being so pointless that she doesn't even care to find out what happens.

Sister’s Predictions/Final Thoughts:

More fallout/another clash between the Italians vs Homeboys

“Little Sapling” (Kenny) is going to be a troublemaker due to the ease with which he can be manipulated

"They just executed that guy after he confessed to all those murders? They didn't want to retry him for 39 confessed murders??"

“Why has no one teamed up to take out the Racist Lion (Schillinger)? Like, why is he not on anyone’s radar?? He’s just standing over there with Glasses Guys and all the cops (hacks) are watching, too… It’s like ‘Eating the Other’ (Bell Hooks)… The brown guys and the black guys should be teaming up to kill him but instead they’re fighting each other on film.”

We went on a lengthy side quest through Eric Roberts's wikipedia page. He plays L'Italien in this episode and somehow Sister recognised him from his side profile, despite not really knowing any of his filmography, and I realised I recognised the actor's wikipedia page from when I looked him up after seeing him in the Righteous Gemstones, which I had rewatched literally right before I rewatched Oz in September... but I didn't recognise him in Oz...

#text #oz hbo #oz rewatch #i will edit this for typos... later!

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