#unironically ow the edge

[n1ghttiger]

In honor of Pokemon Day (2/27), who’s your favorite Pokemon?

EMO DOG MY BELOVED!!!!!!!!!!!!

Special special shoutouts to two more pointy pokeys because i think about them all the time

i feel like these being my faves say. a lot about me

[coldgoldlazarus]

One of those truly perception-altering moments in life is when you discover that underneath all the memes and silly copycat OCs and sheer amount of Ow The Edge, Shadow the Hedgehog is genuinely a really compelling and interesting character when done proper justice to.

And then subsequently from that, the realization that yanno what? A black-and-red hedgehog on a motorcycle with a submachine gun (and inexplicably cocking it like a shotgun) is actually, genuinely, unironically awesome as fuck.

[bengiyo]

Comfort Films Tag

Rules: List 7 of your comfort movies, then tag 7 people.

Tagged by @callipigio

1 - Shelter (2007)

I often joke around here about how I’ve been watching queer cinema for over half of my life at this point, and it’s easy to recommend this film. This is a coming of age film about a guy who gave up art school to become the primary breadwinner and caregiver for his family. However, when the older brother of his best friend returns to their town to collect himself, our artist and he reconnect and find something special between them. Great use of a young actor in this shores up the caregiving aspects.

I’m probably going to rewatch it now. Because it was produced by Here! TV, you can only legally watch it via a subscription to their platform. I own it on DVD because I fell in love with it and knew I needed to keep it forever.

2 - Big Eden (2000)

Big Eden. Oh, Big Eden. This is the film equivalent of a warm blanket and a tight hug. It’s about an artist named Henry Hart, who is preparing for a big exhibition in New York when he’s called back home to Montana because his uncle has had a stroke. We are greatest with the most queer-friendly town to ever exist as Henry manages his old angst about his straight best friend as the local general store owner also secretly pursues him. It’s absolutely lovely.

3 - The Blues Brothers (1980)

Luna has great taste, because this is one of the best films ever made. What was originally just an SNL bit turns into a fun road film about getting the band back together so that two brothers can raise enough money to pay the back taxes owed by the orphanage they grew up in. We also run over Illinois nazis in this movie and demolish dozens of cop cars. Cab Calloway, James Brown, Carrie Fisher, Chaka Khan, Paul Reubens, and Aretha Franklin are in it. John Candy orders orange whips. This is the kind of film I would watch with my dad any time it was on.

4 - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

This is one of the most man movies ever made. I don’t know any woman who wants to sit down and watch this film, but me and boys will spend an entire afternoon on this film in a heartbeat. The sexual tension between Russell Crowe’s and Paul Bettany’s characters goes unremarked on this website in a way that lets you know for sure this hellsite is dominated by femmes, because those two have definitely fucked. At least twice. It’s 1805 and oceans have become battlefields!

5 - Clue (1985)

A movie based on the board game of the same name should not have been this good, but it instead goes on to become a camp masterpiece. Many people will end up remembering Tim Curry for Rocky Horror or even Muppet Treasure Island, but this is still one of his favorite performances for me. This film is batshit and I love it. 

6 - Camp (2003)

Speaking of camp films, let’s talk about one of the best of all time. I know we often talk about the bad singing in Thai BL, but I unironically love all of the musical theater in this film. I regularly listen to this soundtrack, and have been for over 15 years. It’s a film about a bunch of weird theater kids who get to escape the bullying and hellishness of their lives for a few weeks during the summer, where they get to put on a bunch of classic plays. It’s so camp. I love this film because it was difficult for me to find queer films that had happy components with them, and this little movie has a wide array of queer kids in it.

7 - Make The Yuletide Gay (2009)

This was the first queer film I ever watched that had a happy ending that was also a comedy. Prior to this, I think I had watched Beautiful Thing (1996), Edge of Seventeen (1998), Get Real (1998), and Bent (1997). Most of those films ended resolved or sad. Yuletide is a silly little gay film of almost nonstop innuendo about a guy who goes back into the closet when he returns home for Christmas, but hijinks ensue when his boyfriend shows up unexpectedly. It’s an annual watch for me around the holidays, and I usually host people for it. 

Also, Adamo Ruggiero is in it! He played Marco on Degrassi: The Next Generation.

This was fun! I think most folks have been tagged that I know, but I’ll tag @warningtothecurious​. If anyone else does this, please tag me back if you do this! I want to know what films you all return to.

[andromedaexile]

Are They a Stoner? DS9 Edition:

Captain Sisko: Being raised in the south means he has most definitely lit up, and I refuse to believe otherwise. However, after his father caught him smoking and he got stuck on clam duty for a month, he learned his lesson.

Jadzia Dax: Let’s be so real, if she played Tongo with a bunch of Ferengi why would she not own a Betazed bong??? She definitely begged Worf to try it but after his experience with Deanna he only fucks with Blood Wine.

Kira Nerys: OH 100% she was a stoner during the occupation. How would you even attempt to relax in that situation WITHOUT weed? Once the occupation ended Kira stopped messing with weed, but Kira would often hangout with Jadzia, who no doubt brought something to share with Nerys on multiple occasions.

Worf: Blood wine and prune juice.

Dr. Bashir: Before knowledge of him being an augment was made public he never touched anything that could potentially make him not in full control of himself (he did drink a little though). After the knowledge was made public Dr. Bashir and O’Brien definitely were lighting up in the holosuites. That’s why they don’t remember the Alamo.

Erzi Dax: She was straight edge through and through before she was joined with Dax. However afterward…Let’s just say Dax would never turn down an edible.

Odo:

Elim Garak: After the wire was removed Garak decided to stay relatively sober. However, for harm reduction reasons, and to help him cope with his headaches Dr. Bashir prescribed him some medical gummies. He eventually waned off of them completely once Erzi started helping him (he still some times smokes and sews which is why sometimes your trousers don’t always fit right).

Miles O’ Brien: He swore off the “devils lettuce” when he first came aboard the Enterprise. But once stationed at DS9 he quickly realized he would need some of Keiko’s supply of Cannabis-infused tea to remain sane.

Quark: Being a bar owner (best bar on the promenade btw) he is not a big supporter of weed because his main source of profit is alcohol. However, Nog explained to him what a cart is and how you can make a profit from selling them to hoo-mans so he is looking into that as a possible new business opportunity.

Rom: You can’t be a leftist and not have at least tried weed. Also an engineer, so yeah.

Leeta: Oh 10000%. In fact, she’s the plug for the other dabo girls. She even bags her “merchandise” in handmade baggies she makes from recycled textile/fabrics from Garak’s (he owes her because she gave him boy advice).

Nog: No. He follows the rules of StarFleet academy to a T.

Jake Sisko: Hes going to school for writing so yeah. Definitely an edibles kinda guy. His dad has yet to find out despite how many times Jake has come home and slammed an entire pot of jambalaya in 10 minutes.

Keiko O’Brien: Who do you think on DS9 is growing it in the first place?

Gul Dukat: No, he is a snitch who hates fun.

Weyoun: Yes, he is a snitch who loves fun.

Kai Winn: She gives me cop vibes more than Odo does so I’m saying she is a snitch who also hates fun. She also unironically calls weed the Pah-Wraiths Herb or something like that.

Kasidy Yates: Yes, but stopped after jail.

Ziyal: Art school attendee/ art school drop-out. You tell me.

Damar: He’s only a fiend for Kanar (someone help that dude).

[zhongscara]

rambling about my genshin ocs below UGH I NEED TO DRAW THEM SOON

mikhail - 5* hydro claymore (snezhnaya)

my first real genshin oc lol. i was stuck on what his kit would be for a long time (yes im That kind of genshin oc maker) but since fontaine introduced hp manipulation as a mechanic i think that fits him nicely! the earliest skill i had set for him was a passive actually. like whenever his elemental skill is active, overworld enemy drops within his aoe are automatically collected. he's edgy and shit like unironically Ow The Edge i love him.

nafisa - 5* geo catalyst (sumeru)

tbh her kit is inspired by that part in scara's kit where he gets buffs from elements that react w anemo. but for her it's like. when she collects crystallize shards she receives specific elemental buffs. also i imagine her making geo fists that fight alongside her bc melee catalysts are fun!!! she's a mercenary that gained a vision when she nearly sacrificed herself to go out of her way to protect a customer. i'm toying with the idea of her being blind (toph moment) but i'm not sure if i want to try to factor that into gameplay or not.

antoine - 4* geo catalyst (fontaine)

i wanted a sort of. bennett type but in a different element. also i want more geo catalysts. his thing is he buffs damage overall. the original idea is just pure dmg buff that follows u around based off his def because i want him to be more broken (like the early 4*) but idk... if we're being realistic we can nerf him either by limiting him with an aoe or a mid high burst cost (not faruzan level though please god. maybe like 160% er). he's supposed to be someone you just stack def (and maybe some er) on and go. he's kind off the sickly rich victorian boy trope bc i think that trope is hilarious. he has a meka butler named pascal and i'm considering him having a prosthetic leg.

and yes i know mikhail and antoine are already npc names idgaf. JSHGJKSDHJGKLSDJGKL

[cyberphuck]

give me as much information as you have about sonic the hedgehog lore.

This is kind of cheating because I knew quite a bit about the franchise before social media was even a thing, Seb is aware of it and talks about it sometimes, I watch a lot of Game Grumps, and I used to watch the 90's cartoon as a kid. But... Sonic's birth name (this may have been retconned) was "Sunny." Tails's birth name is Myles Prowler and iirc his family abandoned him for being deformed. Dr. Robotnik is "Dr. Eggman" in Japan (though I think the Japanese and American versions of the game/animated serieses both call him Eggman now). He wants to take over the world/Mobius/the multiverse (???) by collecting the Chaos Emeralds and Sonic and Friends do not want him to do this, so they are enemies. There are seven Chaos Emeralds and not all of them are green. They're kind of like the Infinity Stones from Marvel, each of them gives you powers and you have all of them you can Do Stuff. (Super Saiyan Small Animals exist, Chaos Emeralds make you do it) Sonic could run fast because of his special shoes, but that was also changed/retconned and now he's just fast for Reasons. Shadow the Hedgehog! is a clone of Sonic that was created and trained specifically to kill him. He was in stasis/a coma for like 50 years and temporarily lost his memories, including the one where he had... a...... uhhhhhh a sisterrrrrrr? She looked like she was like five so I don't think it was his love interest. Anyway bad guys shot her to death or something and now Shadow is traumatized. He's pretty much like Vegeta. Seb unironically loves the Ow the Edge video game. Silver the hedgehog is from the future I think Knuckles is an echidna. For being a main character of the franchise, it's remarkable how little I know about him. I watched an entire 45 minute video essay about that one comics dude who was hired to write Sonic comics but then kept making more and more echidna characters in this insane GOT-complexity mess of dramatic storylines, but I still have no idea where Knuckles is from, what he wants, or what his powers are other than punching things. In Sonic Boom they made him a himbo.

Sonic has a huge number of friends besides the characters already listed, including: Girl Hedgehog (Amy), Crocodile, Purple Guy (Bigg the Cat), Bunny (I think her name is Cream?), Little Flying Alien Things That You Can Farm (... Choi?), Sexy Bat (I wanna say Roxy) and various Alternate Reality Versions of Himself. I still have not seen either of the Sonic live action movies, but I heard they're not bad.

[millenniummmbop]

OOH WAH AH AH AH!! [x]

[internet-anarchy]

im not afraid of God because most of my life has been dissasociating from reality so even if i go to hell at least ill finally feel something

[specialsnowflakecentral]

This is also a recreation of a feral heart oc.

Stop making “”””ironic”””” edgy ocs. No one thinks they’re cool.

-Mod Hopper

[hunnybby]

the rivalry

pairing: levi x gn reader

genre: general/fluff? possible e2l

it’s hard being a tea shop when there’s another tea shop trying to take your customers away.

wc: ~1k

a/n: to: @starrysamu! i dont think i can thank u enough for the friendship that u have bestowed upon me. i hope that one day i can give u as much love as u have given me these past few months. i hope u have a wonderful 2021- there is no doubt in my mind that there are great things in store for u. i love u!

it’s not jean, but i think i say his name once!

-

"Armin, do me a favor," you begin to ask (demand) from behind him as he mans the register of your tea shop.

Armin already knows what's coming, but he decides to pry a little bit anyway. "What do you need, Y/N?" He asks, throwing the damp towel he was using to clean the countertop over his shoulder. You wince a bit watching him, imagining that it's your shoulder that the wet towel is draped over. The thought of your sleeve getting just slightly wet makes you recoil.

But you aren't here to think about soggy towels and not-dry uniforms. You're here to enlighten your favorite employee of your next plan. Your next move.

"Go across the street," you . You wait until Armin gives you a nod to continue. "Walk in. Ask for the owner's favorite tea. Y'know, like the house favorite I guess."

"Do I ask for the owner first? Or do I ask anyone if I can't find him? Do I say what's the captain's favorite tea?"

You snort. "They call him the captain?" you say mockingly as you take a swig of water from the hunter green hydroflask that you "borrowed" from your cousins house. It's not the prettiest color, but it's bigger than the one you usually carry. And it keeps the water cool longer! It's hard owning a tea shop on this competitive street.

Even harder when you're losing faithful customers from the loser across the street.

The thought of Levi Ackerman makes you scowl and scrunch your nose up. How dare he move in, with his fancy imported teas and his new tables and chairs and endless supply of cleaning products? This has been your street for two years- two whole years! And some guy who unironically wears a cravat during every single season comes in all willy nilly like he owns the place? You scoff to yourself.

Armin notices, but chooses not to say anything about that. Only responds to your questions with, "Jokingly, yeah. It's kinda cute." He smiles at you sweetly. It's contagious, so you bite your tongue to hold back your own smile.

"It's probably not cute at all," you murmur. It's still loud enough for Armin to hear and suppress a chuckle. "But please just get the tea. I want to know what all the fuss is abo-"

The bell goes off from the front door, and you pause your sentence to turn around to greet your customer. But your retail-smile is soon replaced with a scowl. It's him. "You."

Levi bows his head slightly and bring up a hand for a half-hearted wave. "Me," he says in return to your greeting.

You pout your lips and shoot him a glare. "To what do I owe the displeasure of your intrusion, Captain?"

Levi brings up his other hand and holds up a thermos. He does't even seem bothered that you knew his nickname. "Peace offering," he says simply, walking his way over to the counter and sliding the thermos to you. It doesn't slide far, so you actually have to walk a few steps to actually grab the thing.

When it's in your hold, you stare at it for a few moments. The cogs are turning in your well-oiled machine that you call a brain. Peace offering? Peace offering. Peace... pea... p... poison? "Are you trying to poison me, sir?" you ask, looking up with an eyebrow lifted in confusion.

"Yes," he says, mildly irritated. "I'm trying to poison an innocent woman. No. That's one of my favorite teas. We work the same street, but that doesn't mean we need to be against each other," he explains further to you. There isn't a smile on his face, there isn't an edge to his voice, but there is a tone of finality.

You nod slightly, popping open the thermos and smelling the contents inside it first. "Doesn't smell bad," you observe. You take another whiff. You don't smell almonds, but you can't trust him yet. "It smells like almonds," you lie, remembering that cyanide has a bitter-almond aroma, "why are you putting cyanide in the drink?"

You watch his pinch the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. "If you don't want the tea I can take it ba-"

"No!" you say, almost forcefully. Clearing your throat, you try again. "Don't be silly. Thanks. Cheers," you say to him, raising the thermos up high before setting it down to mouth level. "Bottom's up!" You take a swig.

Then you stop.

You take another swig. Longer this time.

You stop again. Your eyes look back to Levi. He's waiting, but not expectantly. Is he waiting for you to finish the thermos? Afraid you might steal it?

"This is...," you trail off, taking another sip. Lavender. Earl Grey. Black Tea. You want to stick out your tongue and tell him it's the worst tea you've ever tasted. But it's definitely not. "Your tea."

"It is," he repeats.

One more gulp ad you finish up the thermos, and you do so while feigning dislike. But you can't help yourself when you say, "Shit that's good," under your breath.

You hear Armin snicker from behind you as you hand the thermos back to Levi. "Not bad," you tell him. You purposely avoid eye-contact, not wanting to give him any more of your time.

"Not bad?" he muses, taking back the empty thermos and giving it a few shakes near his ear. As if to say Don't lie. You finished it like a champ. "I'll come back tomorrow, then."

"Wha-? Why?!"

He shrugs, already making his way towards the door. "Jean told me you wanted to try my tea so bad. Can't stop until I give you one you like, right?" he says like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

You're speechless. Unbelievable you want to say. I don't want to try your gross ass tea you scream in your head, lying to yourself.

He takes your silence as a positive response, and waves bye. "See you tomorrow then."

-

tagging: @wateringlily @tamcitrus

[authorized-trash]

To Tie a Knot: Chapter 5: Important Meetings in a Coffee Shop Bathroom

Ao3

Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four

Content Warnings:

Self harm, self deprecation, making out, stress, emotional turmoil, elusion to character death, (If anything else needs mentioned tell me)

Chapter Summary:

Damian should know better than to walk into coffee shops when he’s the protagonist of a romance fanfiction smh

Word Count:

3,600+

Note: I posted the last chapter on Ao3 a day or two ago, and it got so many comments so fast I was inspired to write another on. So here is nearly 4k words of >:]. Chapter six is halfway done as well, so please, keep the comments up, I’ve never written so much so fast in my life asdf

-

-

By the time noon had come and gone and Logan had left, the others were restless. Patton was stress baking and Roman was practicing his lines a bit louder than normal. Virgil was nowhere to be seen, most likely hiding in their shared room listening to too-loud music.

Patton kneaded dough between his hands, planning on making bread. One would think he would make cookies or something while stressed, but he found the process of homemade bread and the smell of it baking was much better for calming. 

Over the years he had gotten pretty good actually, won a few dumb little neighborhood competitions with his baking. His soulmates all adored his cooking, Roman had stated one of his favorite things to wake up to was the smell of pie or bread.

Patton let his mind wander while he worked, thinking about his new soulmate. He couldn’t help the wave of anticipation and impatience that hit him when he thought about their meeting. He was just so excited! A large smile stretched across his face, and he did a few happy stomps with his feet.

Roman stopped repeating his lines and looked over to him, a soft smile on his face.

“You okay over there, dear? You’re lucky that bread isn’t alive, you’re beating it quite thoroughly,” Roman said with a teasing tone.

Patton looked up at him, blushing a bit at being caught, “Oh! Yeah of course I’m fine! I’m just overwhelmingly giddy, I guess.”

Roman laughed and crossed the room with a few long strides, grabbing Patton around the waist and setting his chin to rest on the other’s head. He gave a kiss to Patton’s scalp, and Patton giggled and swatted playfully at him.

“Ro stop, I’m trying to cook,” Patton whined, placing the kneaded dough into a bread pan. He leaned back into Roman’s hold either way, looking up at him through his eyelashes.

“Sorry Sweetheart, I simply couldn’t resist,” Roman winked, laughing softly. They stood there for a few moments in silence, swaying slightly.

“Do you think they’ll like my bread?” Patton asked quietly.

“What? Of course! If they don’t I will have to fight them,” Roman said dramatically. Patton chuckled.

“No fighting Roman, everyone has their own tastes.”

“If someone’s taste doesn’t like your bread, they’re wrong. Sorry, I don’t make the rules,” Roman spun Patton and gave him a peck to the lips.

The oven beeped a few times behind them, and Patton started to squirm in Roman’s hold.

“Babe, you gotta let me go so I can cook!” Patton said, squealing as Roman held steadfast, unmoving.

“Nuh uh, you are in the Princey Dungeon of snuggles and cuddles, I’m very sorry Padre, but I simply cannot let go unless you pay bail.”

“Which is?”

“Kiss me.”

Patton didn’t protest as he pressed their lips together. Roman hummed and smiled into the kiss, trailing his hands up Patton’s back and threading his fingers into Patton’s hair. After a few long seconds they parted for air, but Roman didn’t seem to want to stop, and at this point neither did Patton.

Before long Patton was up against the counter, kissing back with fervor as Roman picked his legs up and sat him on the counter. Patton made a small noise into the kiss, arms draped around Roman’s shoulders.

Just as Roman was teasing his hand up and under Patton’s shirt, a gagging noise came from the door.

“Eugh, can ya’ll like, not be horny in the kitchen please? I don’t want you contaminating my bread.”

Roman nearly fell to his ass with how fast he jumped off of Patton, and Patton buried his head in his hands and grumbled something under his breath.

Virgil laughed all the way to the kitchen’s island, wheezing and wiping tears from his eyes.

“You two should see your faces, you would think your parent’s just caught you or somethin’. Calm thyselves.”

Patton just stood silently and went to put the bread in the oven.

“Wait, excuse you. Your bread? No, sorry sis, it’s mine,” Roman said as he brushed himself off.

“Oh god, please don’t call me sis, I’m your boyfriend, that’s weird,” Virgil said, moving to sit himself up onto the counter on the other side of the room.

“Oh,” Patton spoke up suddenly, “Roman, I meant to ask, how’s Remus? You haven’t talked about him in awhile.”

Roman’s brother Remus visited them every holiday. It was getting close to thanksgiving at this point, and they were all looking forward to seeing him.

Roman shrugged, “Don’t know, haven’t talked to him in… a little over a month now?”

“How come?” Patton asked.

“Normally I’m not the one who reaches out to talk, I just haven’t thought about it. And since, ya know, I don’t talk to my parents, it’s easy to lose contact for larger periods of time,” Roman explained, slumping into a chair at the kitchen table. Patton nodded in understanding.

They went back to their routines, this time with both Roman and Virgil on their phones while Patton baked a few more things.

Half an hour went by with little words, just a comfortable silence as they all enjoyed the company.

A sharp and hard tug caught their attention.

“Ow, damnit,” Virgil said, shaking his hand roughly as if it were burned. The other two looking down at their hands in confusion, wincing as their yellow strings gave another sharp and painful tug.

“Language,” Patton chided absentmindedly, then, “Do they want something?”

“I don’t think people yank on their strings that hard in order to get someone’s attention, Dearest,” Roman said, flinching as he bent his finger. It was already sore.

“They’re not trying to take the string off or something, right? That’s impossible, they should know that,” Virgil said shakily, curling in on himself and his hoodie.

“It is. Maybe they’re not thinking clearly?” Roman said, trying to offer an explanation.

Patton pouted, 

“I hope they’re okay.”

-

Damian was not okay.

You wouldn’t be able to tell it, though, with the way he was carrying himself.

His strides were confident, and he held his head high. He tipped his hat at the people who walked by and offered polite hellos. He looked like every bit of a man who was sure of himself.

But he was far from it, really.

If you knew him personally and were looking closely, you could see the way he sometimes fidgeted with his jacket sleeves. You’d notice the slight tremble in his hands, or the way he seemed to run his fingers through his hair too many times. He honestly probably had his hat off more than he had it on, lifting it off of his head as much as he was.

Damian was a nervous wreck, but a nervous wreck who was good at hiding it.

His classes that day were ridiculously stressful, and it didn’t help when every other person exclaimed suddenly when they noticed the shadows of his soulstrings. He would wave them off, or excuse himself. Hell, a few times he even made up what his soulmates were like. He wove tales of wonderful people who had swept him off his feet, if only to appease the asker and get them to stop bugging him.

He had watched earlier that day as the indigo string seemed to detach from the others, just barely heading in a different direction. It was a very slow process, meaning they were probably decently far, but it still scared him.

Were they going to work? Coming to find him? Oh god, what if indigo left the other three because he couldn’t deal with another string showing up? What if Damian was the reason why they broke up?

No, Damian thought to himself with a shake of his head, no that was ridiculous. Really, he needed to stop letting his head go off in random directions, the self deprecation was getting old.

Damian walked up the steps of his apartment building, entering with a nod towards the doorman. The man smiled and waved.

“Heya, DJ,” He greeted. 

“Hello, Larry. How’s the wife?”

“Oh you know her, same old. She’s missed you, you know. You should really come over for some tea sometime soon,” Larry said, opening the door for Damian.

“Sure thing, how does Thursday sound?”

“That would be awesome, see you then, Damian.”

Damian smiled to himself as he entered the elevator to his floor. He let out a shuddery breath. Small talk came to him easily, he was never really introverted to be honest, but that didn’t stop it from being taxing on the days when he really didn’t want to have to see people.

As soon as he crossed the threshold to his apartment, he checked the time. 

Okay, it was a little past five in the afternoon, cool. He figured Remy would be up to go somewhere, if he wasn’t already out with Emile.

He shot him a text, which he got an immediate reply on.

Girl course i wanna hang. Ill be there in half hour, see ya hot stuff xoxo

Damian chuckled to himself. Of course Remy would be the kind of person to still unironically use X’s and O’s.

He double tapped the message to like it, and took off for the restroom. He needed to freshen up before he left for the outside world.

He went ahead and re-brushed his teeth, combed his hair, and washed his face. He really needed some moisturizer for his burns, they were getting a little scratchy around the edges, the sensitive skin looking a little red and agitated. 

By the time he was done toweling himself off, his eyes fell from his face in the mirror to the strings tied neatly around his fingers. He had spent most of the day ignoring them, other than the occasional check-in on Indigo’s progress.

He looked at them for a long while, feeling how they moved. He always found it so fascinating, how sometimes they would be pulled tight and sensitive to any slight movement, and how other times they seemed to pool onto the floor in piles of color. He figured it depended on some kind of need or something, it was always when someone’s emotions were high that the strings seemed to tighten, maybe as a way to aid communication.

Damian just figured it was some weird magicky shit, and didn’t let it bother him too much. He had gotten over the trying to explain the strings stage back in middle school, back when it was just him and green.

Nausea and guilt ate at his insides even thinking about the green string. It hung loosely to the fingers on the hand opposite the new strings, its once brilliant earthy color now a faded grey.

It was so pale and sad looking in comparison to the other brighter strings, and Damian couldn’t help but want to cry again. It was such a lovely color, and he was sure they would have been such a lovely person.

He didn’t even have a name to mourn, a funeral to attend to. Only a sad little frayed string to cry pitifully over.

And that brings up another question, why frayed? Damian hadn’t met anyone who had a dead soulmate that had a frayed string. Sure, others had their colors dulled, but the end looked clipped with scissors. Damian’s looked as if someone had pulled it apart with their teeth.

It wasn’t fair, Damian thought. It wasn’t fair that he got all these questions. It wasn’t even a simple, “oh no, my soulmate is dead, I’m doomed to be lonely and soulless.” No, he had to deal with all these mysteries. Why frayed? Why four others? Why add him to an already complete group? Why not someone else? Why had it been a month, when the average wait on the reassigning was a week? Were the other’s even able to love him like they loved each other? Damian wasn’t paired with someone equally as heartbroken and lonely, he was paired with an already complete soulmate relationship. Was he doomed to be an outcast?

Damian didn’t want this, he didn’t ask for this. 

His emotions were all over the place, but he steeled himself, and with an angry huffed, he grabbed his four strings, and yanked.

White hot, dizzying pain lanced up his arm, and he gave a shout. His vision blanked, and a throbbing headache pounded behind his eyes.

His vision cleared after a while, stars and dots still dancing across his eyes. The pain was so bad, it was nearly incapacitating. 

And in a mix of morbid curiosity and the horrible feeling of self loathing, he yanked again, harder.

He stumbled to the ground, sweat beginning to drip from his forehead. His heart was pounding in his ears, and what sounded like a dull roar caused his eardrums to hurt. Every bone in his body ached, and his arm hurt to move.

Well, he thought, guess they were pretty authentic then, at the very least.

He heard a knock at the door and tripped over himself to get up. He dabbed his face with the towel once again, wincing at the pain in his arms.

By the time he left the bathroom, Remy was already standing inside.

“What on earth were you doing in there, you look awful,” Remy asked, before going a bit pale, “You know what? Don’t answer that.”

“Oh shut it,” Damian snapped, taking his hat off the counter and fitting it back into place.

“So, wanna head out to that coffee shop you like downtown?”

Damian shrugged, “Why not.”

“Sweet, let’s blow this popsicle stand.”

Damian sighed but laughed at his friend's antics, following him out the door with a fond shake of his head.

The coffee shop was nice. It was small, cozy, and had a nice arrangement of potted plants scattered about. The barista was kind, and pretty cute. They had a cute grungy-emo thing going on. 

Damian had a thing for emos.

He, like normal, had ordered some black coffee with two creams and a sugar, much to Remy’s dismay. Remy had then proceeded to buy some ridiculously over sweetened drink with a stupid name and two muffins to share, much to Damian’s dismay.

“You have got to stop buying food for me Remy, I’m a grown man, I can pay for myself.”

“I offered. Besides, you need your money for your hobbies.”

“What hobbies?” Damian laughed, smiling despite himself.

“I don’t know, your music. You play the clarinet, right?”

“Flute, actually,” Said Damian, rolling his eyes, “And it’s not a hobby. Band was the only reason I managed to get into college. You know this, why are you asking?”

It was Remy’s turn to roll his eyes, “Small talk, babes.”

Damian was so caught up in their conversation he missed as the indigo string tied to his finger moved at a rate much, much faster than earlier that day.

“Mhmm, small talk about something we are both familiar with?”

“I don’t know, you band nerds seem to like to talk about band, despite making sure it is known that it is hell on earth,” Remy laughed, “Why don’t you, I don’t know, tell one of those ‘this one time at band camp-’ stories, babes?”

“Uh huh, and which one haven’t you heard?” Damian did in fact have a lot of stories, as every band kid tended to, but he was almost certain Remy had heard every one three times. It was obviously his best friend was just trying to cheer him up, and honestly? Damian really appreciated it.

“I don’t know, what about the one time you passed out on field and went to the hospital for a broken rib after being stepped on?” Remy’s grin was shit-eating, and Damian felt his face turn a deep crimson.

“We agreed not to talk about that,” he hissed, attempting to hide his face behind his coffee as he took a sip.

Remy shook his head as he laughed, before standing up.

“I’m heading to the restroom babes, try not to miss me too much.”

Damian sighed and sat back in his chair as Remy left, closing his eyes and smiling to himself. He was enjoying himself, this was nice. Remy was an awesome friend and really helped Damian to forget all about his stupid soulmates.

If all went Damian’s way, he wouldn’t have to deal with soulmates for the rest of the day.

Of course, knowing how fate liked to fuck him over, that isn’t what happened.

-

Logan had had an exhausting day, and he was ready to get it over with. He wanted nothing more than to go home to his soulmates and curl up against them, but he knew he couldn’t. He had been sentenced to sleeping in a cold hotel bed, alone.

The day had started well, with breakfast with his beloveds and a few kisses to his cheek, and a few kisses he returned. He had left with a small smile on his face.

But his good mood had slowly disappeared as the day wore on, as no sign of his other soulmate was to be found. The string slowly started to move more and more as he was sure he was getting closer, but the direction it was in was so vague, he could only hope he was going the right way as he drove.

Honestly, he didn’t know why some machine to find them hadn’t been invented yet. Surely there was some way to get some magnetic something or other to pick up on soulstrings, and then lead you there with a convenient little GPS voice.

But nope, the stupid strings were too stubborn to be beat. Everyone had just accepted them as immovable magic and was done with it.

Everyone including Logan, but he still felt like he was allowed to complain about that fact.

It was a little past six in the evening at this point, and the sky was beginning to darken considerably. Logan could feel his body getting heavier, but wasn’t quite tired enough to stop yet. 

He didn’t think his perception skills were too bad, surely he had a few more hours left in him.

That was probably a bad judgement call, as they were apparently bad enough to not notice how fast the string on his finger moved as he turned the corner into coffee shop parking lot.

He locked his car as he stepped away from it, and entered the building. He took a right to the restroom, wanting to wash his hands before doing anything else, not enjoying the feeling of sweaty driving palms. 

He heard the door behind him open, and looked up to see a man wearing sunglasses (indoors?) walk in.

“‘Sup Babes,” the man said, and Logan lifted an eyebrow in confusion.

“Babes? I’m sorry, do I know you?”

The man laughed, “Nope, you just look like someone who would be fun to piss off by calling them babes. For real though, why are you wearing a necktie in a coffee shop?”

“Plenty of people wear neckties in a coffee shop,” Logan answered, fixing his tie with an affronted look. The other man just laughed, running a hand through his hair.

“The name’s Remy,” The man said, offering his hand to shake. Logan took it, if with a little hesitance and confusion.

“Logan.” Logan responded. Remy nodded, going to turn around and leave, probably deterred from using the restroom in what would now be an awkward situation. He stopped suddenly, eyes going wide from behind his sunglasses.

“You have four soulmates?” He said, looking at the slight shadow cast on the tiled floor.

“Yes,” Logan answered, easily. Remy was not the first one to ask that today. There was the woman at the gas station, and the man walking his dog outside of the Ihop. It was a little disorienting hearing four instead of three, but whatever.

“You here with someone? One of your strings seems to be pointing in a weird direction,” Remy commented, nodding down at the shadow heading straight out the bathroom door. Logan looked down hurriedly, just now noticing the yellow string that was pulled tight.

“I- no I’m not. I’ve actually been looking for our fourth soulmate all day,” Logan didn’t take his eyes off the string, “In fact, it only appeared recently. Me and my other soulmates decided it best to find them as soon as possible.

After a few more minutes of staring wide eyed at his yellow string, he looked up at Remy. He, once again, looked confused at the wide smile that had spread across Remy’s face. The sunglasses clad man grabbed Logan by the hand and tugged him towards the door.

“Come on, there’s someone you need to meet.”

Logan allowed himself to be pulled back into the main part of the coffee shop and led in the direction of a booth in the back. He opened his mouth to protest, but stopped when he caught sight of the man seated at the table.

“Damian, babes, you will not fucking believe who I just ran into,” Remy exclaimed. The man, Damian, turned around to face them.

The two men locked eyes, and Logan felt his heart hammering in his chest, that familiar yet foreign feeling of something clicking into place in his chest was present for the fourth time in his life, and he was almost certain he had never been happier.

Logan was at a loss for words for one of the few times in his life.

“Uhm, hello?”

-

-

Taglist in reblog

[studiopolistic]

I've been listening to infinite's theme on loop for a day now. Safe to say im...... infinite trash now lmao

[gamerzylo]

People would always joke about Shadow the Hedgehog's game being "ow the edge". Meanwhile Jak X is sitting in a corner with cars blowing up because "combat racing", characters unironically named Cutter, Shiv, and Edje, and modes called Assassin and Death Race.

[jupitermelichios]

Fic Preview: Pretty Boy

Jason has a love hate relationship with his protective cup right now. On the one hand, it stopped that guy from earlier from kicking him in the balls, and right now it’s doing a bang up job of disguising how hard he is from Midnighter. On the other hand, dear god was it not designed to contain raging boners because ow. Owwwwwww.

He wishes Roy was here. Not just because Roy would be at least as attracted to Midnighter as Jason is, if not more (although that too). Mostly he wishes Roy was here because then it wouldn’t just be him and his inappropriate hard-on against a man who people called the god-killer unironically.

“You okay kid?” Midnighter asks, shrugging off his huge leather coat and laying it over the back of one of the chairs in Jason’s second favourite safe-house. It’s one of the few that’s actually fit for company, an abandoned brownstone on the edge of Penguin’s territory that has a working bathroom and some actual furniture, but he won’t be heartbroken if Midnighter being here compromises it.

“I’m good,” Jason says, a little breathlessly. Under the coat, Midnighter’s wearing a stab vest, or something like it, and a black wifebeater. He’s still in wearing the cowl and the gloves, and those combined with his bare arms is doing things to Jason. “That was… impressive. I didn’t even know you could get a spine out whole like that.”

“It’s all in the angle of attack,” Midnighter says with a shrug. His voice is low and kinda rumbling, not as deep as Batman’s, but also not an affectation. “I’d offer to teach you, but then we’d need to go and find more goons, and I want a shower.”

“Yeah, dried brain matter is the worst,” Jason agrees, which is one of those things everyone in his line of work knows, but never says out loud for fear of sounding like a complete psychopath.

Midnighter grins at him. “You know, I expected you to fight more like your brother.”

“Which one?” If there’s one thing Jason isn’t short of, it’s brothers.

“Bouncy. Great ass.”

“Nightwing? I tried to, when I was a kid, but you’ve gotta be an acrobatic freak of nature with no bones and godlike upper body strength to fight like Nightwing. I was always more of a punch them in the face kind of a guy than a backflip over their heads kind of guy.”

“Or shoot them. Didn’t think Bats used guns.”

“I’m the black sheep of the family. Nightwing’s the bouncy one, Red’s the clever one, I’m the one who figured out shooting a guy in the head is kinder than sending him to Arkham.”

“Right now you’re the one covered in drying brains,” Midnighter says, tilting his head in a curious birdlike way that seems out of place on his large frame. “Want to fight me for first shower.”

Yes. Or more correctly, dear God yes. “Nah, I’m good. You’d kick my ass, we both know that. You can have first shower.”

“What a gentleman,” Midnighter says, and pulls off his gloves. With his teeth. It’s possible Jason whimpers a little. This is unfair. It’s like someone took all his least healthy kinks and combined them into one man. “Of course, there’s an alternative.” Please let it be sharing, please let it be sharing… “We could always share.”

Read the complete fic on AO3

[sailorportia]

Take Care of Yourself or Else

Fictlet Valentine for @bittertomato

Roses are red Tree leaves are green For Valentine’s Day Have some Maya x Claudine

Fandom: Shoujo Kageki Revue Starlight Pairing: Tendou Maya x Saijou Claudine

approx. 1,300 words, rated T

In which Claudine pushes herself a little too hard and gets a different reward from the one she was expecting.

Saijou Claudine was determined to make it to the top. She wouldn't let anyone stand in her way, not even that troublesome Tendou Maya. With the conviction of an Olympic athlete, Claudine pushed herself further and further, harder and harder. If she wanted to surpass her rival, she needed to devote every waking minute to her self-improvement. But her relentless training appeared to be catching up with her; she had woken up this morning as tired as she had gone to bed, and even a second cup of coffee had done nothing to energize her aching limbs. It would've been difficult to focus on practice even if her classmates weren't loudly discussing her performance in her earshot.

"Fufufu." Kaoruko watched her with calculating eyes. "Kuro-han is serious today. I'll have to give it my all as well."

Futaba didn't even address that hollow promise. "She seems like she's straining herself."

"Paying a lot of attention to her, aren't you?" Kaoruko said jealously. "You're awfully close with her, right?"

"How do I change the channel on this soap opera?" Junna said dryly.

As much as she loved her friends, Claudine wished they would disappear for at least the next few minutes so she give her undivided attention to her dance practice with Maya.

"You ought to watch your step, Saijou-san," Maya said as they twirled across the floor. "You wouldn't want to make a fool of yourself in front of your rival, now would you?"

"You wish," Claudine shot back. "I've been working harder and harder, narrowing the gap between us!"

"Try as you might to hide it, I can see that you're at your limit already." Maya gave her a concerned look during a pause in their routine. "Perhaps you should stop practice early."

"Non, non, you're imagining things, Tendou Maya," Claudine said dismissively. "I assure you I'm in perfect shape. Never felt better. In fact, I'm—"

—slipping. She landed on her foot wrong and her misplaced weight sent her tumbling, the floor rushing up to meet her...

Claudine awoke in an unfamiliar bed, staring at an unfamiliar ceiling. She would've wondered why she was what seemed to be the nurse's office, but the splitting headache answered that question well enough.

"Oh mon dieu," she muttered, touching her forehead gingerly. "Ma tête..."

"I was wondering when you'd rejoin the land of the living, mon Orpheus."

"My head hurts too much for mythological references and a non-francophone's accent," Claudine grumbled. She raised her head slightly to see Maya sitting on a chair next to her cot. "What are you doing here, you vexing woman?" Claudine demanded.

"I was worried when you lost consciousness that you had suffered a concussion and had fallen into a coma," Maya said. "As it were, the nurse informed me that you were simply so tired that you fell asleep as soon as you were horizontal."

The words "I was worried" coming from Tendou Maya stuck in Claudine's ears. Her face turned red. "Don't get ahead of yourself! I don't want someone like you worrying over me!"

Maya frowned. "Someone has to worry about you, seeing as you are neglecting yourself and your health. You're pushing yourself too hard."

Claudine scoffed. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you cared about me."

"I do," Maya said without hesitation. "I care for you deeply."

"Wh-what are you saying, y-you shameless woman!?"

Maya eyed Claudine harshly, protectively? "I'm not going to let you neglect your health any longer. No more reckless training. And naturally you'll need a proper diet."

"Of course you found a way to bring up food," Claudine chuckled. Maya's weakness for food was one of her few traits that Claudine found endearing. Not that she kept a list or anything like that.

Claudine sat up on the bed, refusing to look up at Maya for one second more. She raised an eyebrow at what she saw when they were at the same level. "What are you doing with that knife?" Claudine asked.

"Don't worry," Maya said. "I'm quite proficient with blades."

Claudine rolled her eyes. "I'm well aware. That's why I'm apprehensive." She scrutinized Maya with her sleep-bleary eyes. "Are you peeling an apple for me?" Claudine was touched by the gesture.

"Something to that effect." Maya was taking a knife to a large, yellow fruit. She held it up for Claudine and announced in an overly dramatic voice: "This is Tendou papaya."

Claudine stared at the fruit and back to Maya. "Did you... get a papaya just for that pun? You could've been normal and peeled an apple, but you chose a papaya instead for the sake of a terrible joke?"

"Joke?" Maya looked serious as always. Claudine couldn't tell if she was using her poker face or if she was actually being serious. She decided she didn't care. "Does that mean you don't want some of my papaya?"

"You couldn't be more infuriating!" Claudine exclaimed. "At least the lecture made sense."

"I'm glad I got through to you," Maya said unironically, refusing to acknowledge her flopped joke. "I understand that you want to improve yourself. We all do. I still have room to improve myself."

"How so?"

"I regret not being to catch you before you fell. As your partner, it is my duty. And of course, a Top Star should take care of her... bottom star."

Claudine blushed and selectively ignored Maya's comments. "Enjoy it while it lasts, Tendou Maya. Soon I'll be pulling you down from atop your pedestal!"

"You do realize that by putting yourself out of commission, you may end up falling behind?" Maya frowned. "I don't recall giving you permission to fall behind."

"Well, I don't recall needing your permission for anything!"

"And here I thought you were desperate for my approval."

"As if!" Claudine exhaled in exasperation. "I don't know why I'm still sitting here listening to you. I won't achieve anything lying in bed," Claudine said, pouting and crossing her arms.

"Rest is an important part of exercise," Maya replied. "You know this as well as I."

"I can handle being on my feet for the rest of the day." She moved to get out of the bed, but Maya got up from her chair and stood in the way.

Maya stared at her intensely. "I'll make sure you stay in this bed, even if I have to hold you down myself."

"Do you even hear yourself, woman?" At the moment, Claudine wouldn't put it past Maya that she'd make good on her threat. After all, Claudine was already tired, and Maya's considerable muscles would've been difficult to fight against even had she been at full strength...

"Saijou-san, why are you staring at my biceps?"

"Nothing!" Claudine settled back into bed. "Have it your way, Tendou Maya. I'll get my rest."

Maya's eyes glinted like a panther's in the night. "I can have it my way, you say? In that case, I appoint myself as your caretaker for the near future."

"Oui, oui, do whatever you like," Claudine yawned.

"It's time to administer treatment." Maya leaned over the bed, brushed her hair back, and kissed Claudine on the forehead.

As it were, her forehead was the part of her head that hurt the worst.

"OW! That hurt! You did that on purpose!"

"I would never," Maya denied, though the edge in her smile implied that the kiss had been intended as a punishment for Claudine getting herself in this situation. As high-brow as she seemed, Maya couldn't resist teasing Claudine and only Claudine.

"Coquette! If you're going to go ahead and kiss me, kiss me properly, damn it."

"A rather bold request, Saijou-san, but as your caretaker I must oblige.?"

"Casse-toi!"

[gelphie]

holy shit thank you for introducing me to the band tool, this is the exact amount of edge i needed in my life, i've been listening to them for an hour after seeing your post about elphaba's singing voice and i think owe you my life now

aklgsjgk holy fuck ... this is the best ask ive gotten on this blog, i love an unironic passion for tool (which i also have)