#what makes sense to one kid throws another for a loop

[gottagetshiver]

Honestly u raise a good point with 40k being considered a novel in the industry. See for me i classify the lion the witch and the wardrobe as a novella- for me a novella is anything i can finish in an afternoon and a novel takes me more than one afternoon. but i forgot my reading wpm is insane

I've literally always just gone by the technical definitions of what each length is called as that's how I was taught creative writing in school, but that's so fair to have personal definitions too! I find 80-100k is more of a "default" length for me to consider something a novel since that's a much more standard industry length (at least these days for standalone novels), but as a writer I'm also gonna take my big 40k milestone of calling something novel length just for the dopamine hit LMAO

I also think I've always just called most books novels for most of my life so it's a bit of a default for me to just consider any book that's not like... a children's book series, or something similar, a novel regardless of the actual length. I devoured books when I was younger, like hundreds of thousands of words a day, so it would take something truly massive to really take me more than a day to get through lol. like whether 40 or 400k, it was gone before the sun set (or would rise lmao)

[rin-may-1103]

The Wrong Robin Au (part two?)

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"Alright, kid." Danny sighed as he walked back into the motel. "tell you what, you tell me everything you think you know about me and bats, and I'll be Robin. Deal?"

Tim's eyes widen in surprise, "wait, really?" he asks, dropping the third Oreo he had been trying to balance on Sam's forehead. Sam snored, her nose twitching in agitation for a moment before going back to normal.

Tim leaned back, keeping an eye on her. "do you really mean it? you'll come back and fix him?"

Danny sighed, "I can't promise that I'll be able to fix him, but I can promise to do my best."

Tim nodded his head, "That's all I ask." then the kid stood up, holding his hand out for Danny to shake, "We got a deal, Robin."

Danny smirked, unable to keep a straight face at how cute the kid was being. Reaching out, he shook his hand.

"Right, first things first. Who's Batman, and why do you think so?" Danny asked, making his way over to the table. Tim followed behind him, his face brightening up in excitement.

"Bruce Wayne of course," Tim cheered, plopping down onto the chair across from Danny.

Of course, another rich fruit loop would be Batman. Why not? What's next? Lex Luther was Superman's archnemesis? Oliver Queen cosplayed Katniss Everdeen?

"I thought Dick Grayson, Bruce's ward, was Robin at first. It had made sense, or at least mostly did but I wasn't completely sold on it. I only really thought it was him because Robin was able to do a quadruple backflip, and only Grayson's family was able to do that. but then I saw you! and it makes perfect sense!" Tim smiled excitedly, leaning forward as he continued.

"You were able to do the flip, AND you acted just like Robin did! Dick doesn't act like Robin in public, or ever really. But you do! You did the flip, you make puns! you even bit that one mugger!"

Danny blinked before slowly nodding his head; Well, at least his personality wasn't going to be a problem. "right, makes sense," not. it did not make sense, but who was Danny to crush this kid's hopes. also, how long ago was this? because Danny hadn't done the flip this time... he's definitely bitten a criminal or two over the past two weeks, but the flip? that had to have been back when he first got his powers... he vaguely remembers his parents dragging him around the country on some trip Vlad set up for them.

see, it was totally Vlad's fault.

"and who was the second Robin?" Danny asked, leaning back and crossing his arms.

"Bruce's second kid, Jason Todd," Tim replied, not smiling anymore. "The Joker killed Robin over in Ethiopia. Jason went missing and was declared dead around the same time."

"Right," Danny coughed, glancing away from Tim. "and what else do you know?"

"Well, I know Commissioner Gordon's daughter, Barbara, was batgirl..." Tim trailed off with a wince, obviously not liking the conversation anymore. Danny had to agree, the whole class had been informed about the dangers of Gotham City. Barbara Gordan had been one of the examples they used.

"I know that you're using a fake name!" Tim suddenly added, looking more lively now. Danny blinked before sighing, "Yeah? and why's that?"

"you used your bat training to make a fake identity to throw Bruce off your trail! That way you would have more time to settle in with your new team! and it worked for a while, that is until he caught up to you and your team. it doesn't seem he knows about this identity, so you've been using it ever since Jason's death. because you're mad at him."

"and why am I mad at him?" Danny asked, tilting his head back to stare at the ceiling. Just what had he gotten himself into?

"because he didn't tell you about Jason's death." Danny glanced back at the kid, watching as he looked away and out the window. "just like he didn't tell Dick..."

had he finally connected the dots? had he finally realized he got the wrong person?

"why would he not tell you two?" Tim asked, turning to look up at Danny. Danny shrugged, turning to look back at the ceiling. "grief makes people do things they never would have before." like becoming a billionaire and spending twenty years scheming on how to murder a single man. or it could make them more obsessed with their work.

Danny knows grief; he's had to deal with it for years now. It's the only thing he understands about why Batman has changed so much. Grief, especially for someone you love, changes you. It holds onto your heart and never lets go. It can drive you insane if you let it.

"he was so caught up in his own grief he didn't realize that there were others who needed to grieve with him."

"Oh," Tim replied.

they sat in silence for a moment before Tim spoke up again.

"I know where the Batcave is."

Danny blinked. Right. Batman. Batcave. the bat-themed vigilante had a secret lair and it was a cave. That checked out. At least it wasn't in the basement.

"yeah?" Danny prompted, "And where's that?"

"under the manor," Tim replied, crushing any and all hope Danny had for Bruce Wayne.

It was official. All billionaires were fruitloops. Danny didn't care if they didn't all have secret basements, they were fruitloops.

Next

[edibleashell]

TUA S4 feels

Pretty sure that Umbrella Academy S4 finale left a permanent scar on my psyche. Still one of my favorite shows but I might just end after season 3 in future rewatches. So many issues with S4.

In like episode 1 we got Ben and Jennifer touching and that started a countdown to the end of the world and the whole season was just junk to fill that time. So many good ideas that weren't done properly at all. Shuffling their powers? Alternate timelines? Hargreaves owning pretty much everything? Abigail just being alive? Pointless.

Luther was just a repeating loop of stripper and home decorating jokes.

Diego should have been a martial arts instructor or something not a depressed delivery guy. A bunch of jokes about him getting out of shape only to reveal that he's still jacked. He throws a potted plant and misses. His arc is just Big Sad for no reason and the relationships he built in the first three seasons were apparently irrelevant, if anyone would have been taking care of Safety Klaus it would have been him.

Allison's character was just an accessory to Klaus, after three seasons of her trying to reclaim the family she lost she ended up spending more time as a tool to Klaus's arc than she did with Claire. And Ray just being casually written out was so disrespectful.

Klaus, oh poor Klaus, my favorite character, what did they do to you? He should have been a nurse or something but instead he was paranoid, then pissed off because the writers decided that Klaus would equate marigold with drugs and just fall right off the wagon? And then he goes to some sketchy guy he owes money to even though S1 Klaus is shown just buying drugs from random people? All to justify his prisoner plot, none of which had any real impact. And he can fly for a second for some reason. Okay.

Five working for the CIA was bad. He should have been the retired fun uncle to Claire and Grace. After spending fifty years trying to get back to his family why did he keep leaving them? Why did he hook up with his brother's wife after only six years? And am I supposed to believe that in every timeline he has the same haircut? That none of the other Fives lost their arm? How did he never notice his boss's blatant umbrella tattoo? He just casually strolls through "his" apocalypse as though he doesn't have ptsd, and why were he and Lila living off sewer rats when they had infinite timelines to scavenge?

I was so excited to see Ben witg the family but one episode in he becomes a bomb and fucks off with a girl who can hardly be called a character.

Viktor was the only character I thought got some form of authenticity and justified growth, his arc kind of seemed like a ripoff of S3 Klaus though. And we missed out on what could have been a really beautiful scene of him drawing the upside down umbrella on his arm.

Lila went from "I don't want to be like my mom" to a motherhood cliche. And what was the deal with her family? She just found her parents and they immediately accepted her or something? Was there another Lila in this universe? That made no sense. If anyone would have joined the CIA it would have been her. Her and Diego should have been weird parents teaching their kids how to fight and kill but instead they got some domestic life that those characters never belonged in.

And there's so much more! Abigail is alive? Hardly relevant. Why did she body snatched Gene, it didn't really seem to change anything. The Keepers existed only to be a minor obstacle in the last episode. And are her and Reggie aliens? Why? How? What's the point?

AND DURANGO? THAT'S A CAR! Harland named marigold and for a farm kid that makes sense (though the retconned acceptance of that word into Umbrella vocabulary was irksome) But Durango? Abigail is a scientist and she names The Bad Dust after an SUV? Why?

AND WHY WAS THERE ZERO QUEERNESS? Each of the first three seasons had some sort of queer arc but not this one. I still wonder if some higher-up didn't intentionally assassinate the show as backlash for the immense respect S3 gave Elliot Page.

One last thing, music is a big part of the show, they've always put such thought and care into the soundtrack and it makes sense knowing who the creators are, so why, of all songs, was Baby Damn Shark the first song to be featured in like three episodes? It seems intentionally disrespectful.

I'm done, rant over, I'll never recover from this.

[snwusberry]

pairing: wooyoung x black!reader

genre: fluff

warning(s): communication issues (please don't hate me), drinking, mention of a messy past relationship, food/eating.

wc: 5.7k

note: this shit took me literal months to finish writing, like no kidding. the wooyoung brainrot was so real though so here it is.

reader's pov

02/10/2023

"easy now, wouldn't wanna burn holes into the board with how hard you're staring." i hear a comment at my obvious indecisiveness and i look up at the insanely handsome cashier in front of me.

"huh?" i ask and he smiles. he has an absolutely gorgeous smile, might i add.

"you've been standing here, staring at the board for quite a bit." i tell him.

"oh, my apologies."

"oh no need to apologize, i was just pulling your leg. let me know once you've decided."

i hum for a bit and i take a moment to take in his features quickly. he's got sharp but gentle facial features, if that makes any sense. he has a mole on his cheek and on his bottom lip which just adds on to his attractiveness.

"actually, what would you suggest i get?" i requests and he smiles.

"well the best sellers from our seasonal menu are the pumpkin pie latte, the ginger-cinnamon rooibos tea, and the cinnamon chai latte."

"i'll get..." i trail off and mentally curse myself for my indecisiveness. from now on i'm googling menus.

"you could always choose one and come back and try the others." wooyoung tells me which breaks me away from my train of thought.

"only if i enjoy this one though."

"of course."

"well then for today, i'll have one regular pumpkin pie latte."

"sit in or to go?" he asks, tapping away on the screen in front of him.

okay weigh out your options girl. if i sit in, i get to look all cute and mysterious in front of the extremely handsome cashier but if i go, i can be even more cute and mysterious, completely out of sight. that's a good idea. if i stay, i'll probably embarrass myself anyway.

"hello?"

"to go. sorry" i tell him and he smiles.

"alright." he says more to himself and he hands me a slip woth my order number. "here you go. they're busy with your order at the back, it'll be done shortly."

"thank you."

i go sit nearby the front counter so i can hear my order number when another customer walks in. a girl, probably around my age and i watch his interaction with her. very similar to how he was with me and i immediately snap out of this daydream world i let myself wander into. i need to focus on other things because i do not need a man to throw me off my loop. much less one i don't know.

he calls my order number though and i stand up to go get it.

"enjoy your drink. hope to see you come back." he tells he with a wink. stand up.

"thank you and that is to be decided." i reply which causes a brief chuckle from him.

17/10/2023

is it too late to turn around? i'm quite literally at the door of the café where that extremely attractive man works.

'come on girl, you saw him flirting with another girl, don't let yourself think you're special.'

yeah, i'd rather bellyflop into crocodile infested waters before allowing myself to even let a man have me by the throat like this, there's more to life. even if he's hot and has a nice smile and enchanting eyes...

just as i feel myself turn around i make direct eye contact with him through the glass of the door. now i could either leave and never come by here again, or go in.

'yeah i'll leave.'

i try to turn around when i bump into someone else who's trying to get in which leaves me with no choice but to go in. i mean, logically speaking, i very well could've gotten out of the way and fucked off back home but i didn't really think of that until i felt myself walking towards the counter, letting the man go before me.

as he orders, i stand behind him, fighting the urge to chew my nails right off. i can still leave, honestly...

"hello, what would you like to order?" his smooth voice cuts through the thoughts in my head.

"huh?"

dumbass

"would you like to order anything?" he asks again.

theres a very good chance he doesn't even remember me so, you know what? i should be fine.

"may i please have the ginger-cinnamon rooibos tea please?"

"sit in or to go?"

"sit in." i answer without even thinking about it which is yet another dumbass decision.

"alright, they're working on your order. you can grab a number and it'll be right with you." he instructs and i nod as i'm about to get an order number. "i take that you enjoyed your drink last time."

"hmm?"

"if i recall correctly, you said you'd be back provided that you enjoy your drink, the pumpkin pie latte. how was it?"

okay pause and let me regroup because my ability to think clearly was gone the moment i thought of coming back here. the latte was good though.

"oh... yeah it was delicious."

"i'm glad you liked it. it took a bit of convincing to even get them to add a seasonal menu."

"this whole thing was your doing?" i ask him and he nods

"yeah. they haven't had one since the last manager left long before i started working here."

"when did you start working here?"

"about 2 years ago, i believe. uh... do you live around this area?"

"yeah. i actually work at the call center not too far from here."

"oh? how come i've never seen you around?"

"i could say the same to you, uh..." i look a little closer at his nametag.

"wooyoung. my name is wooyoung." he tells me with a smile.

"i'm y/n."

"i'll keep that in mind." i smile at him and he obviously returns it.

☆★☆

my best friend squeals like a little baby raccoon at my little "confession". that being that i found interest in someone which hasn't happened since my last breakup about a year ago.

she always said, "heal from what? girl you ain't injured, onto the next!!" nevermind the fact that i put my all into a, seemingly, one-sided relationship.

"okay okay, tell me more."

"sarah, i only seen and spoke to him twice. finding interest in someone doesn't mean i'm trying to get emotionally involved with them. i know nothing about this guy.

" yeah but you said it felt like he was flirting with you." she pushes but i shake my head at her.

"yeah and i also said he probably flirts with other customers, maybe that's just how he is."

"okay since you don't wanna be 'emotionally involved' as you say, just fuck him and let off some steam. lord knows you need it."

"immediately no! you know how that shit ends sarah, it always ends in tears and i'm simply not willing to risk it. sorry to disappoint chief."

"but life is about taking risks"

"i'm not gonna sleep with him sarah. what if hes already tied down, first of all and secondly, i've had enough emotional distress this past year. i wanna focus on myself."

03/11/2023

focus on myself was the biggest bullshit i've told myself because what the actual fuck am i doing here again?

i sigh, walking to the café yet again. i've come here another, like seven times since the last time and engaged in a small conversation with the handsome cashier each time. he's got this thing about him that makes me so drawn to him and i know it's probably the dumbest thing i'm letting myself do, especially since i quite literally barely know this guy, but i'm already in too deep to try and get myself out.

"someone's here later than usual." wooyoung says upon my arrival to the counter.

"it's been a long ass day, i don't even wanna talk about it."

"alright, then we won't. rooibos tea?" he asks and i nod. talk about paying attention to detail.

"may i also have a lemon blueberry cheesecake slice please?" i ask and he smiles with a nod.

"sit in or takeout?"

"sit in." i confirm with him and he nods and prints out the slip.

"you know the drill." he smirks which i quickly look away frok for my own sanity.

"thank you." say and i turn to walk to the table.

"hey uh, y/n."

"hmm?"

"i'm actually clocking off in a bit but i need to get something for someone and i kinda need a second opinion on it so would you like to help me out?" he requests but unlike his usual confident behavior, he seems to be a bit nervous.

i smile at him before answering, "sure, why not."

"thank you, i appreciate it."

"no problem."

☆★☆

wooyoung and i walk side by side in the little shopping center nearby and i'm not gonna lie, it's a bit awkward. i'm willing to thug it out though.

"so what are we getting and who for?" i ask him and he hums.

"it's almost my friend's birthday and i wanted to get him something but i'm kinda bad at things like this so i needed a second opinion." he explains and i nod.

"so what's he like?"

"hmm?"

"your friend. what is he like? what does he like?"

he stops in his tracks to think a little which makes me stop too.

"well he's really reliable..." he says, his words trailing off.

"so insightful."

"well he's really into fashion. he experiments and all that cool stuff with his clothes."

"does he sew?" i ask him and he hims before shaking his head. "alright. uhh... make him something."

"do i look like i do arts and crafts?" he asks me with a finger pointed to himself.

"yes?"

"i'm sorry." he apologizes but o shake my head.

"don't worry about it. let's get him his gift." i reassure him and he nods cautiously.

we walk around the shopping center trying to think of something to get for this mystery man and i'm not gonna lie, it's difficult. it's already hard to think of a gift for someone you know, how do you think shopping for a stranger would be any easier?

the part i am enjoying though is spending time and getting to know wooyoung. he's really great company so being around him feels refreshing compared to being around the same 3 people who don't really give a fuck about what i do with my life, other than my best friend, of course, but life got so busy for both of us that we can't just make plans to meet up all willy nilly.

"hey, his birthday party is actually next friday, you should come by." he says to me as we're walking and i stop in my tracks.

"is that a good idea? i don't wanna like, intrude or anything."

"nonsense, i'll tell him you're with me. it's an open invite so..." he trails off and i sigh.

i've been dying to go out and have fun anyway, and meeting new people has never been an issue for me so why the hell not?

"okay fine. but if he looks even the slightest bit uncomfortable with me being there i'm going straight home." i tell him sternly which he smiles at.

"okay deal."

"the party starts at 7pm."

We reach the bus stop where there's a bus approaching in the distance.

"here take my number my number in case you need someone to pick you up for the party." he suggests and i nod, giving him my phone to write down and save his number. "don't hesitate to call."

"got it. thanks." i reply to him and get into the bus and i look at my phone and see what he saved his number as.

'woo 🔥🫦'

he cannot be serious.

all i can say to sum today up is, it was refreshing.

☆★☆

"HE ASKED YOU TO WHAT?!!!" sarah exclaims.

"calm down. he literally just invited me to a party."

"his friend's birthday party! you're locked in already." she says with emphasis on 'friend'. "do you think he invites every customer to his friends' birthday parties?"

"i don't know maybe?"

"babe, you built your walls so high that you can't even see over them. he's interested in you."

"i don't know..."

"i say go. at least let yourself have fun."

"fine." i say, finally giving in, i mean, it's just a party if we really think about it.

10/11/2023

i hesitantly click on call and the dial tone rings loud in my ear as i wait for him to pick up. maybe i should just hang up and just stay home in the comfort of my bed tonight.

"hello?"

too damn late.

"hi, wooyoung? oh, uh this is y/n from the café. you said to call if i need a way to get to the party."

"y/n, hi. i thought i came in too strong that day, you didn't stop by."

"sorry about that. i was just a bit busy, that's all."

LIE!

"that's good to know. uh, just tell me where to pick you up and i'll be there."

"the bus stop we went to last week."

"okay i'll be there in a bit."

"thank you." he hangs up and i sigh into tge cold air, looking down at my outfit. i hope i'm not overdressed... and i hope he likes the gift i got. it's just a necklace because i genuinely don't know what to get for him and i didn't wanna go empty handed.

surely enough though, wooyoung pulls up in a white car and he opens the passenger's window.

"you coming in or what?" he jokingly asks with a smirk on his ridiculously handsome face and i scoff before entering.

"nice ride." i say, looking around the interior the car and then i turn to look at him.

"thanks, it's yunho's." he admits and i nod. i don't even know who that is but sure. "oh he's another friend of mine, you'll meet all of them today, don't worry about it."

"i'm excited." i beam, turning the volume of the radio up when i hear mamacita by chase atlantic playing and start dancing in ny seat, singing along to the song just overall vibing. "come on wooyoung sing!" i exclaim over the loud music and he sings along with a wide smile on his face.

☆★☆

we get out of the car at a club and wooyoung gets something in the car while i walk ahead and wanter off to the entrance without him but the bouncer blocks the way.

"sorry, were closed for tonight. invite only." he says and i stand there not knowing what to do.

"don't worry, she's with me." wooyoung's smooth voice says behind me and i look back at him and take in his entire appearance. he's wearing a black and white patterned shirt which isn't buttoned all the way, showing off his chest with black jeans and black boots and his hair is pulled back by a pair of sunglasses on top of his head.

he looks too good.

"my apologies." the bounced says and opens the door for us to enter.

"look at you, cool guy. 'she's with me.'" i imitate his voice and he rolls his eyes. "you guys rented this place out?"

"yeah, just the vip area. it's one of those nights where we act like we have more money than we actually do." he jokes and i laugh. "here we are."

he opens the door and let's me walk in before him. the lights immediately draw me in and the music hits my bones but i fight the urge to start dancing since i'm yet to meet everyone here.

"come with me to meet the others." he leads me to the upstairs area where there's a red-haired man talking to someone. i'm rendered speechless at how absolutely gorgeous he is.

"joong, i'd like you to meet someone." wooyoung announces, getting their attention. "uh, this is y/n. i mentioned inviting a plus one for tonight."

"hi guys." i greet with a wave.

"you're the one wooyoung begged me to invite." a man with red hair says stepping forward and i nod.

"yeah that would be me. it's nice to meet you."

"nice to meet you too. i'm hongjoong."

"belated happy birthday hongjoong. i hope you like this." i say and hand him the small gift bag i've been holding.

"you didn't have have to bring a gift. thank you." he smiles, taking the bag. "thanks for making it tonight. please enjoy your night."

"thank you."

wooyoung and walk to a group of people who are sitting around a table and chatting it up.

"hi guys."

"woo, you're back." a really tall, insanely handsome, pink haired man yells over the music and his eyes fall on me for a second. "and who might you be?"

"i'm y/n." i respond, stretching my hand out.

"i'm mingi." he smirks, taking my hand for a handshake.

"this is yeosang, those ones over there are san and his girlfriend ari, jongho went to get drinks with seonghwa and that's yunho and his girlfriend, rissa. guys this is y/n." wooyoung cuts between mingi and i to introduce me to everyone else.

"nice to meet you guys."

"you too. care to join us?" ari asks, holding up a shot glass with some clear liquid.

"now we're talking." i breathe out and make my way to the small circle consisting of san, ari and yeosang.

ari hands me a shot glass and pours me some vodka. i take the shot, letting the liquid burn down my throat and i cringe at the bitter taste.

"so what do you do?" san asks, leaning into ari a bit more.

"i'm a call center representative." i respond to her while putting ghe glass down on the table in front of us. "it's really boring though."

"i could never be one, honestly." ari sighs out and i nod in agreement.

"i've been damn near quitting so many times. what do you guys do?" i ask back, trying to keep the conversation going.

"well i just got laid off work at an accounting firm and san and yeosang work together as personal trainers at the gym nearby."

"more like you got fired." san comments and the girl looks at him with a deadpan expression.

two other men return with bottles in hand who im guessing are jongho and seonghwa. now does wooyoung only associate himself with good looking people? because everyone i've met today is insanely hot.

hongjoong returns from wherever he wad and that's when i hear my song boom through the speakers which immediately gets me on my feet. i've spent a good hour mingling with everyone, getting to know them. it's time to shake some ass.

the alcohol is very well in our systems and i feel rissa grab one of my hands and pulls me up to start dancing to the song.

"come join us birthday boy!" i yell to hongjoong who's standing around with everyone else.

i was definitely over thinking coming out here tonight because i'm having so much fun with these people.

☆★☆

we partied into the early hours of the morning until we couldn't. like literally everyone is exhausted and ready to hit the sheets.

"thank you for letting me crash your party hongjoong. i had fun." i thank hongjoong who goes in for a friendly hug.

"it's not a problem. it's always great making new friends. get home safe, alright."

"i will, thanks." we hug one more time and i say my goodbyes to everyone.

"remember what i said girlie." ari yells to me and i salute to her and turn into someone, coming eye to eye with that horrendous patterned shirt that he managed to pull off.

"come on, let's get you home." he offers and i smile shyly.

"i wouldn't wanna be a bother. besides, i can make it there on my own."

"i have no doubt about that but let me earn my gentleman title here. besides, it wouldn't feel right dragging you here then leaving you to find your own way back." he insistently tells me and i fake a shocked gasp.

"not even because you wanna make sure i get home save, that you're worried about me? i'm hurt."

"and dramatic, let's go."

15/11/2023

i walk into the familiar café without a second thought this time and walk straight to the counter where wooyoung is standing but he's looking elsewhere.

"hey." he looks up and stands up straight.

"you know i'm starting to feel like you only come here when it's my shift." he teases with a smirk but i don't let my guard down one bit.

"oh please, i only come here at this time because it's when i clock off from work."

"aww no other reason? not because you like to see my handsome face?" he questions.

"no it's not that..." i trail, pretending to be in thought before i trail my eyes to him and he's looking at me unimpressed.

"just order and get out of here."

i briefly laugh at his mini outburst. just briefly.

"i'll get the usual." i tell him and he nods, taking down my order.

"and you'll sit in because no matter how much you deny it, you're obsessed with me."

"oh i'm so obsessed, i only frequent this café at this exact time just so i can sit and stare at your handsome face. is that what you wanted to hear?"

"yes, here's your order number. you know the drill."

"wooyoung, i didn't say i wanna sit in."

"you did just now. go on."

i shoot him a glare that he returns a brief sarcastic smile at. i just take the next number from the stack and go to my regular seat.

ever since hongjoong's party, my friendship with wooyoung has developed from acquaintances to actual friends. like he even sent a goodnight text the other night and i felt my heart hiccup. i thought my poor lifestyle choices were catching up to me.

"your order madam." i turn to wooyoung who's now in front of me with a tray in hand. him and i both know he's not supposed to be delivering orders so why is he not behind the counter?

"wooyoung?"

"here before the manager catches me out here." he informs me, looking over his shoulder to check if he's been caught.

"i didn't order an apple crumble though."

"it's on the house. look, i like you y/n and, i don't know, i guess this is my way of showing that. i know it's not the best way to tell you all this but can we talk after my shift?" he asks and walks back behind the counter. just in time for the customer who is just now entering. it's the same girl from all those weeks ago, if my sight is as clear as i believe it is, that is, and i feel my heart sink watching the two of them interact.

have i really let my guard down this much already? i don't know what to do...

23/11/2023

i haven't talked to wooyoung in like five days and my left eye is starting to twitch. there is really no reason for me to ghost him so suddenly, especially after things have been going so well, i mean, i'm locked in with his friends now.

i'm being stupid, and i know i am but the fear of getting my heart broken again overpowers the little bit of critical thinking i have.

"y/n, have you spoken to wooyoung? he's been a bit besides himself." rissa asks me while the movie plays ever so softly on the television. i introduced her and ari to sarah and we all decided to crash at ari and san's house and bust out some movies. only thing is, her and sarah literally passed out minutes into the first movie so it's just rissa and i.

"what do you mean?"

"yunho said he's been in his head the last couple of days."

"oh... i don't know, i haven't really noticed." i tell her quietly and she deadpans at me.

"oh really?" she asks with an unamused tone in her voice and i shrug. "what's really going on?"

"i'm scared of letting myself fall for someone because i don't wanna get my heart broken again."

she turns in her seat to face me completely and she sighs.

"it's too late for that, don't you think?" she questions and i look at her im confusion.

"what do you mean?"

"i mean that you've already fallen for him. you're distancing yourself because you already have and you don't want it to go any further."

i think to myself for a quick second...

i've found myself enjoying his company to the point where i can't wait for the next awful day at work so i can go see him at the café. i get excited when he texts and smile so wide seeing his name pop up on my screen.

fuck this i'm in too deep now.

"seen the light huh?" she asks anf i sigh frustratedly, burying my face in my hands. "you really think wooyoung would break your heart?"

"i don't know... he doesn't seem like he would, i mean, he's so sweet but i've been blindsided before."

"i understand you're scared but trust me, i've known wooyoung for a good five years now and he's never gone out of his way to hurt anyone's feelings."

"okay well who's that girl wooyoung was flirting with at the café?" i ask her and she shrugs.

"what girl?"

"there's a girl with long, ass-length, blonde hair. she's moderately short."

"no way you're intimidated by her."

"you know her?"

"if the person you're describing is who i have in mind... there aren't a lot of blondes in this area. you're probably talking about yuri."

"yuri?"

"she's like, obsessed with wooyoung. he's a really fun and charismatic man so it's easy to be swayed."

"how lovely." i sarcastically comment.

"sorry. she took everything he said as a hint and she's convinced that he wants her but he doesn't. he's just kind to her, that's all."

"and has he made it clear to her that he's uninterested?"

"many times. she says he's in denial."

"wow."

"yeah. so you have nothing to worry about. that man is probably losing sleep wondering what he did wrong for you to stop texting. in your attempt to preserve your feelings"

"i hurt his..." i finish her sentence and she nods.

"his birthday is coming up but the party is this saturday. he'd like you to come."

"i owe him an explanation."

"yes you do."

25/11/2023

the girls and i are getting ready for wooyoung's birthday party at rissa's apartment and i am stressing out, like my leg is bouncing up and down at such a high speed that it feels like my whole body is vibrating. the past two days i was trying to find the right words and put them together.

"girl this isn't an unprepared speech for school, just apologize and tell him how you feel." sarah tells me but that does not help how i'm feeling right now.

"it's not easy."

"come on. you look too hot to be sulking in the corner. i'm a hundred percent sure he's gonna wanna talk to you and hear you out." ari comments which lifts the mood a bit. i even cracked a teensy smile.

"come let's go ladies." rissa says and we file out of the house.

☆★☆

we just got here and there's already someone throwing up in a bush. this is gonna be fun.

"y/n come!" sarah pulls me with here wherever she's going.

"i need to find wooyoung."

"exactly, you need to take a shot before talking to him!"

"sober babes. i need to talk to him completely sober." she let's go of my hand.

"okay then, go look for your man, i'll be by the drinks."

"right behind you." rissa agrees, walking away with Sarah and i sigh.

"i need to go find san, wanna come with me?" ari asks and i turn to look at her. "where you find san, you find wooyoung, come."

i nod and follow her lead the way to the living room of the house where there's a bunch of people there.

"the life of the party is here!" ari announces and makes her way to san who let's her sit on his lap but there's no sign of wooyoung in here. did bro ditch his own party?

"hi everyone."

"y/n, you look stunning." mingi compliments me while walking my way. he takes my hand and makes me do a little spin.

"why thank you mingi. i guess i could say the same to you."

"hey, don't hurt me like this." he says, putting a hand on his chest on fake offense.

"you'll be alright. has anyone seen wooyoung?" i ask everyone but all i get as a response is murmurs across the room.

"check the backyard." one of the men say and a nod with a little thank you.

"okay thanks."

i make my way to the exit to the back yard where it's a bit emptier than inside. it's quieter with crickets chirping somewhere in the plants wnf a nice breeze cools down my skin. it's easier to breathe out here in comparison to the stuffy air inside but alas, there sits wooyoung on the grass with a can of beer in hand.

i can do this. i owe him an explanation after all so i go and sit right next to him which attracts his attention but his blank expression doesn't leave his face upon seeing me.

"hi." i greet him to break the ice but the tension between us is palpable. i clear my throat before attempting to speak again. "wooyoung, can we talk? please, i'm not here to defend myself..."

all he does is silently take a sip from his can and i let out a breath. this is gonna be difficult.

"wooyoung."

"you know, you could've at least told me you weren't interested instead of making me fall for you and look stupid for it." his words cut deep that i don't think i can even come up with any words to say to him.

"i was wrong, i know, and i'm really sorry for that. it was unfair of me to do that to you, you didn't deserve that and i feel horrible for what i did." i apologetically tell him but my eyes are glued to the grass patch in front of us.

"can you at least tell me why?"

"i'm a coward. running seemed easier than letting myself fall for you. i didn't have the best relationship with my ex and our breakup wasn't pretty either, i was in shambles and left to pick up the pieces and put them back and i thought i had finally done that, but clearly i left some of them behind." i explain to him scoffing at my own words at the end. "i saw you talking with a girl i thought you were flirting with and i put all my defenses back up and ended up doing to you what i was scared would happen to me."

"please, she's been annoying me for years now. i've never been interested in her and i've made that clear, i wouldn't flirt with her if i've been trying to get her off my arm. i like you, y/n. let me be there for you. there's no point in restricting your feelings like this. let yourself fall, i'll catch you."

"will you catch my baggage too?" i question and he shifts so that he's sitting in front of me.

"i'll carry it for you y/n."

"wooyoung i like you too and i won't lie and say i haven't imagined us together a couple of times. i'm willing to let my walls down for you if you're still willing to be in my life like that."

"yes, i'll be your boyfriend." he says confidently and i shake my head in disapproval

"i didn't even ask though."

"okay then ask because i'm getting impatient." i laugh at his excitement.

"will you be my boyfriend?" i finally ask him and he puts a hand over his mouth with a gasp all dramatic like a little schoolgirl who's crush liked her picture on instagram.

"yes, i'd love to be your boyfriend." he beams and i smile back at him.

"oh and before i forget. i got you this. it's not much but it's from my heart." i tell him, handing him the gift i got for him.

"what's this?" he asks, taking the small box in his hands.

"open it." i tell him nervously and he does just that and he takes the metal keychain out, smiling when he reads what's written on it.

"you like it?" i ask him nervously.

"yeah i do." he smiles, looking at it.

it's written 'ginger cinnamon rooibos tea with a little teacup hanging from a different chain.

"a significant part of how our relationship blossomed." he says and i let out a relieved sigh.

"i'm glad you like it."

"thank you y/n. for giving me a chance with you and for this."

"it's a pleasure."

"let's go inside, i wanna tell everybody that the cute girl at the coffee shop is now my girlfriend." he exclaims and i laugh as he helps me up.

"let's go."

we walk into the house with wooyoung telling everyone we pass by, "she's my girlfriend."

"hello everyone, i'm back here with my girlfriend." wooyoung says to everyone in the room.

"so it finally happened huh?" hongjoong asks and we nod rapidly.

"she's a yapper." sarah 'whispers' to everyone in the room.

"great because he does too." san confirms and everyone agrees that there's a lot in their hands with us being a couple now.

"oh it's 12 o'clock." rissa announces and we shout a happy birthday to you wooyoung and i hug him tightly.

"happy birthday boyfriend."

"why thank you girlfriend." he smiles and everyone mumbles a choir of disgusted comments.

[meowsgirldrawing]

I was going thru ur obey me 2nd gen works (I love it!) and I wanted to ask:

How do you think lucifer would react to accidently finding out about Lillie's secret relationship w/ Dia's heir? As someone with an overprotective dad I don't think it would go down very well lmaoo

HA!

Lucifer is more offended that she didn’t tell HIM of all people. Thoughts swing and swirl as he tries to figure out why, just why she felt he couldn’t tell her. He forbids any thoughts of comparing him to his father, forcing a contrastive turn to the idea.

He is nothing close to his father, and while he has his flaws like the rest of his brothers, he doesn’t think she, his daughter, should be scared enough to come to him about her love for Diavolo’s-

Heir. Oh.

It makes sense. Being the lover to an heir could be..challenging.

He eventually confronts her about it, but makes sure she knows she isn’t in trouble. He merely worries.

She dejects, denies, even pulls moves he himself does when her pride won’t allow her to speak. But of course, he sees it loud and clear. With some gentle probing, swallowing down his own pride to show his concerns in spite of what she might think, finally she relents. A little teary eyed, but relents as he feels a worry knaw at his side.

Instead, Lillie throws him for another loop when she lets out that the reason she was scared wasn’t personal towards him, but more the reason of her being half human. Her reasoning is that no one, absolutely not a single demon, soul in devildom would be happy to hear that the future to the throne is with a half human of all things. They already send so much looks, so much insults towards her and her siblings’ way that it’s no question it wouldn’t triple the moment she shows herself as the partner of her favorite demon.

Lucifer bristles. If he wasn’t getting flashbacks to Lilith the 1st the moment his daughter was hiding something, he certainly is now. Besides, MC gets sneers and glares wherever they go when with the boys or kids, so he doesn’t doubt her worries are for nothing.

But everyone knows that the one thing Lucifer Morningstar, once prince of Heaven and now a Lord of Devildom, prides himself the most on is keeping his family safe. And his daughter is the top of his list on that.

In short- Lucifer tells Lillie to “fuck the haters” but in his “Lucifer” way of things. Tells her he’s proud she’s considering things in a responsible light but urges her to not let her relationship ever fall from it. And finally- he AND Diavolo will deal with the people if they decide to get a little too rowdy about it.

As for the Heir. It’s no surprise Diavolo knows, in fact he laughed the moment Lucifer brought it up to him in private and shared how he would love Lilith as a daughter-in-law! Hell, he already considered her so despite his child’s insistence that they aren’t ready for that yet.

As for the protective bit- Yep. Now that he knows, he tends to watch them a little too closely, asks questions that has Lilith scolding him, and of course, glaring at the heir anytime he catches them in the halls of RAD together. He lets Lilith be an adult of course and make her own decisions, she is 21 after all, but he makes it known to the heir that if any harm came to Lilith because of them, or she cries their name in a way that’ll break his heart and have his unworldly powers rearing its head for a bite at them- he won’t care that they will be his future ruler anymore.

He’s also happy to have them as his in law too he supposes.

(I got more excited about writing this than drawing it so I’m sorry But thank you for the question! We love overprotective Lucifer in this household ✨✨)

[galactic-space]

Making a follow up post for my stupid ass MHA X Monster high x Ever after high x fucking Winx club??? Ehhh???

Anyways…

Soooo answering this dude up here ^ @faemagic88 let’s just say I got a few ideas

So basically, for anyone who didn’t see my last post?

Quirk toddler uses quirk on Izuku, bakugo, and denki and sends them to monster high, ever after high, and Winx respectively

Lord explosion god dynamight and his fairy tale adventures

For ever after high I totally want bakugo to be apart of the school purely because he heard how the school has a lot of secrets and magical items that might help with his issue, so he decides to force his way in to get back to his universe ( somehow… he’s working out the kinks of his plan )

While there he’s definitely gonna throw a ton of kids for a loop. Not caring about royal or rebel because A. He’s from another universe and B. He just thinks it’s so dumb to follow the paths of your parents just because of something as silly as “destiny”

He’s the type of person who believes that you chose your life, and he’s not gonna be silent about it.

Is he gonna cause more drama in this school? Yes, but this school is already filled with it so whatever

I don’t know what fairy tail he would pretend to be. I think he might pretend to be the son of “Momotaro” from the story “Momotaro; the story of the son and the peach” where basically this boy is born from a peach, soon taken in by a couple. When the boy turns fifteen, he goes off on a journey with a dog, a monkey, and a pheasant to slay the demons on an island, before returning home to be with his family

It makes the most sense, as Momotaro is fairly popular in Japan- or so I’ve heard

But an alternate story I thought of was of him pretending to be the son of Kintarō, “the golden boy” who is a warrior who goes on many journeys throughout his life, slaying beast and saving towns n what not.

Neither story would explain his weird… “explosion magic” as people call it, but hell it’s the best thing that he gots so.

I was thinking of mimickings ever after highs small story structure and maybe have an “episode” where Apple white realizes that he doesn’t seem to care about her, her status, her story, or even her looks and how that kinda bothers her ( more like gets her all riled up. She’s not used to boys just… not even giving her a second look. )

And then another small “episode” of bakugo deciding to take part in a sport cuz… well… let’s just say daring and his group found out that if you tell Bakugo he can’t do something, he’s gonna do it just to show off

Thing is, cerise is in the sport as well in the opposing team, and maybe bakugos team is like “well most of them are girls maybe we should go easy”

Cue the “equal rights equal fights” from bakugo, and basically forces cerise to show off her wolf abilities if she even wants to try to actually win against him.

And… who knows maybe that’s when people realize she’s haft wolf or something lol

I was also maybe having him be apart of the Dragons games??? Like maybe he wasn’t gonna be apart of it, but when Apple white accidentally releases the evil queen and the evil queen he senses some shit is about to go down and thinks “ugh, god, not more bullshit”

Also maybe he gets his own dragon for the games by literally TACKLING AND SUBMITTING ONE OF THE EVIL QUEENS BAD DRAGONS so he could ride it and use it so he could be apart of it.

And yes, Goldielocks did record this for her mirror channel and a bunch of kids did just see one of their “new students” fucking wrestle a dark dragon just cuz he needed a dragon to be apart of the games

Also maybe bakugo finally talks about his… HIS… FEELINGS?1!1!2??2!2?2 GASP lol

But that’s enough for bakugo

Next up

Dekus freaky experiences

Ok so deku… doesn’t know what the FUCK anything is. He just appeared in like the monster high catacombs, got fucking lost in them til Operetta finds him in there.

She’d probably be like “woah hey aren’t you a normie” and dekus like “wh- huh???”

Course before the two can get more into it maybe the place starts crashing down. Cue deku quickly realizing what’s happening and using his quirk to save operetta, there for showing that he definitely is a lot more then JUST a normie

Operetta concludes that deku might be a hafta like Henry Jekyl, and takes him to monster high to help him

Cue deku realizing that he’s NOT where he’s suppose to be. Maybe he tries to explain it to operetta, but when she simply gives him a weird look and ask if he’s ok, he realizes that no one is gonna believe him. So with a deep breath and shaky smile, he simply goes “maybe I just hit my head to harshly…????”

Which- yes, that’s even weirder, but he isn’t about to explain how he’s a human with a quirk when it’s so obvious that everyone is weary of him because of his human look ( he can always tell when people look at him with pity or fear. Being quirkless for most of your life then suddenly having a terrifying, powerful quirk will teach ya that ) so he does his best to just seem normal

Maybe he’ll pretend he didn’t know how he got here, talks to headmistress blood good and asks if she could PLEASE let him stay cuz “he doesn’t remember anything”

And- she’s nice, so she’ll let him stay just as long as he promises to help around the school anyway he can ( she is letting him stay here for free, it’s the least he can do ) and deku agrees to it

Now deku is… SOMEHOW a student at monster high. Everything is weird, but… here comes Frankie, who totally gets his feeling. She helps him out, teaches him all he needs to know, and helps him out- cuz, she knows what it’s like to be the new ghoul in school, and she can tell he definitely needs the help.

Cue Izuku befriending her, and maybe some of her friends.

Of Course, he still wants a way back home, so he’s gonna do everything in his power to do research into this world and ( hopefully, maybe ) try to find something to help him back home.

He’s probably not gonna tell the ghouls what’s actually happening with him til he literally has no where else to go to.

Cue the ghouls helping him go back to his comic book like world ( and maybe finding a way to get there cuz… heroes???? Villains??? Sounds like a scare-tastic experience! )

And ysaaaa they find a lot of secrets in this school. Like a lot. Oh dear

Also I totally want a scene where toralei just drills it into izukus head that he definitely isn’t gonna be all accepted here just cuz he’s “1/3 of a monster” and that he’s definitely gonna have people having it out for him because he’s mostly Normie in nature.

Idk, maybe Izuku might have some dejavú about feeling excluded because of his apparent lack of something

But it’s ok cuz Frankie would definitely cheer him up by saying “haft normie or not, you’re a great person Izuku. Don’t let someone like Toralei get under your skin, she doesn’t know what she talks about. Me and the ghouls care about you, Freaky flaws n all. And nothings gonna change that.”

And have him feel so… happy, because let’s be honest he was only accepted back into society cuz of his quirk. It would probably heal the poor little quirkless kid within him because she basically just told him that he matters, not because of what he has but because of who he is as a person and UGHHHBBN

But that’s enough of deku. Let’s talk about… denki??? How did you get here-

Denki kamanari and his strange, magical journey

Admittedly, I don’t have a lot of ideas for this one. I seriously need to rewatch Winx club, it’s been ages for me lmao

But the basic idea is that he appears right near “Redfountain School for Specialists”

Naturally, he’s freaking out cuz WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS PLACE

After a while of freaking out, he looks up to see the WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT??? THATS A GIANT ASS PLACE

But as he looks around, realizing that there’s only trees for miles on end, he decides to head into the school to try and find someone to help him. Because… where the fuck is he? He just wanna go back to Izuku and Bakugo :(

So he heads in. I was thinking that it’s probably assembly day, and the kids around him just assumes hes just some poor new kid who’s about to get in trouble cuz he’s not in uniform. It’s an important meeting for the school, so he just gets dragged in with a bunch of boys who are about to be late.

I imagine he’s just trying to ask questions, sees these boys running, and says “what’s going on??” And they turn to him and go “dude, important assembly today! We’re about to be fuckin late, come on”

And they just run off.

And welll- denkis confused and weirded out but… if it means finding someone who can find him, then he’ll just follow behind and play along for now

Long story short, he ends up accidentally becoming a part of the school cuz- just- no one is questioning this yellowed hair boy with a lighting streak on the side. He’s not the weirdest thing they’ve seen. Not to mention- school in the middle of the forest, not really seen by outsiders?

Most people probably wouldn’t think it’s an outsider. I mean… who the fuck would be out in this forest anyways?

And well- it’s probably only haft way though does denki actually tell them what happened to him. And maybe they don’t believe him at first, but once he shows off his “magic” they might start to believe him.

Thing is, the show never really went into this school a lot ( at least what I remember ) sooo I might just make up a bunch of shit for this

I mean the other plan is just to have him be in the fairies school, they quickly realize he’s not suppose to be here, and probably do everything in their power to bring him back to his old world so idk

BUUUTTR the idea of denki learning to fight with a sword is cool and funny at the same time SO-

Also also I’m definitely gonna take some shit from the scrapped monster high x ever after high movie that was suppose to be made but never was, so that’s actually a perfect way to get deku and bakugo back together

Not to mention I’m probably gonna have Cupid ( who actually appears in both shows as an important side character ) to be involved. I mean, dimensional traveling? That’s kinda her thing, I think she would catch wind very quickly that bakugo ISNT from a fairy tale story.

But uhhh yea that’s all of my ideas I guess. Do with them with what you want lmao

[caramsels]

tell me more about this "mono isnt a human" theory thats really interesting

Thanks for asking! A few people have asked for my thoughts on Mono’s identity, and because I will take any opportunity to ramble about Little Nightmares, I wrote up my (hopefully intelligible) interpretation of Mono, and why I think he was always a Resident of The Nowhere, instead of a kidnapped human child like most of the LN kids. This theory is super connected to a few other ones I have, so I’ll rattle descriptions of them at the start for context. Also this post is insanely long I’m sorry

The Nowhere

The Nowhere is its own world that real children get kidnapped to, it feeds off of humanity and kinda functions like your local mall. A weird amount of emphasis is put on jobs in The Nowhere, Residents are often referred to solely by their job titles (The Janitor, The Doctor, The Teacher, etc. etc.)

Besides having a job in The Nowhere, a Resident's proximity to humanity seems to give them a higher status as well. In a LN1 interview, it was said that ALL residents wear masks (as opposed to just the Twin Chefs); we even see in LN2 that The Doctor makes and presumably sells these masks. A humanoid appearance is something that most Residents want. The more humanoid a Resident looks, the more powerful they are perceived to be (not always, because of The Ferryman, but he’s just chill like that.)

Kids and valuable teens/adults (like the circus performers and Otto from the podcast) feed The Nowhere kinda like how animals feed humans. Some Residents are given jobs to maintain this system. Some jobs require more power than others however, typically these are the jobs that require a Resident to keep control over an entire area, which leads me to…

The Cycle

The head honcho Residents like The Thin Man and The Lady are more humanoid and more powerful than the others, this is because they are handpicked and raised from birth to inherit these forms that are passed down over time. This one is super important to most of my points about Mono, so I’m going to spend some time defending it.

The Lady (prior to the Six stuff) had 4 predecessors, each represented by a different mask/hat that you can collect in VLN; This means that The Nowhere (at the time of the first loop in LN2) is on its 5th cycle. The Thin Man is also a mantle that is passed down, we see the previous one interact with Mono before Mono has even entered a time loop in the LN2 comics. This Thin Man, when datamined, notably wears a different hat than Mono’s iteration.

Furthermore, when asked if Thinny Lad is a mantle that is passed on or Mono in a timeloop in an interview, the devs had this to say:

The Pretender (VLN) is a good example of what I think Mono is supposed to be, and what the child forms of the 5th cycle Residents were. The Pretender is a humanoid child with supernatural powers and a strong sense of loneliness. She has her own mansion and Resident servants. The Pretender is the heir to a currently unknown position. She has a portrait of her and five past iterations on her wall, followed by another one of her and her two Resident parents. The Pretender is native to The Nowhere.

But… who is the boss of all the Residents? Who assigns these jobs? Who creates the natural Residents and brings others into The Nowhere?

The Eye

(you could argue its the ferryman but i think he works under the eye too. employee of the year)

I think most fans agree on this one so I won't spend too long on it, but basically I think the Eye is the unseen overall antagonist of Little Nightmares, overseeing everything and everyone in The Nowhere all the time. The Eye feeds off of misery and has a fate planned for everyone, it is not happy when anything throws a wrench into these plans. I don’t think we are meant to know The Eye’s motives, not yet at least, but if I had to guess; they have something to do with an extremely misguided and angry feeling of loneliness, as that is a prevalent theme in an insane amount of Residents. This finally brings me to Mono.

Mono’s Familiarity with The Nowhere

Mono is very familiar with Pale City, he is much more aware of his own fate, abilities, and world than he’s given credit for.

In the door/boat cutscene, Mono watches every TV in the water until it exits the frame. This early in the game, Mono already has an inherent connection to TVs.

Before Pale City comes into frame for both Six and the player, Mono is already standing, he is familiar enough with the route to Pale City that he knows they arrived without even having a clear view of their destination. This is because Mono has been to Pale City before, in the sixth episode of the LN2 comics:

In this comic, Mono met (and wasn't killed by) The Thin Man shown earlier. So to list off the amount of things Mono was already familiar with at the start of LN2: His connection to TVs, his connection to The Thin Man, and how to navigate Pale City. Mono having a lot of experience living in The Nowhere is demonstrated somewhere even more prominent too:

Kickass Character Design

Six’s character design intentionally makes her not fit in with her environment. While the color scheme of The Nowhere and its residents is mostly bland, monochrome, and washed out (sans the lighting), her jacket is highlighter yellow. This represents that Six does not belong in The Nowhere, she’s from the human world.

With this information to ride off of, Mono’s design becomes interesting. Mono’s design is a beige button up, tan trench-coat, and tan pants: A monochrome, muted outfit that fits in perfectly with the aesthetic of The Nowhere. Mono’s outfit including a key ring and a useful color scheme for camouflage further implies familiarity and experience with the way The Nowhere works. If Six’s simple, bright design represents her not belonging there, Mono’s muted, practical design represents the fact that he does.

His Mask

We actually know why Mono wears his mask, we have a direct answer:

You can interpret this as a representation of Mono being shy or insecure or a combination of multiple things, but I think it’s mainly meant to represent, as the description states: Mono hiding from The Nowhere, Mono running away from his fate. The Eye wants Mono to grow up and be the next Thin Man, but he doesn’t want to. Mono’s mask represents his fear, his refusal to use his Thin Man powers, his refusal to do anything that connects him to the world that hates him and wants him to fail; he wants to hide from that world, his future, and the reality of what he is. But ….

(straight up a post of Mono running from his fate)

Unexplained Powers

Mono’s OP reveal was the moment that shook me the most when I first watched my sister play the game; I’ve honestly always been shocked at how little it’s talked about in the community. To me, it was a reveal that told us we Did Not REALLY know much about the character we had been playing the entire time, and that was exciting.

When Mono fights the Thin Man and contorts the structure of Pale City, it is with ease. This is not his first time doing any of this, his body language does not match that of someone who just discovered/unlocked a new ability, him busting out the moves is framed more like a choice that he decided on just before removing his mask. The Thin Man boss battle is easy on purpose; because it's not too hard for Mono in universe, all he does after is wipe off his head nonchalantly and then he proceeds to warp reality. The ominous boss theme that plays during this fight isn’t even for the Thin Man, its MONO’S boss music. The Thin Man is the one who helps control The Signal Tower’s influence, Mono is the one interfering with it, he is the “Signal Interference.” The theme continues even after he’s defeated The Thin Man, further hammering in that it is his.

Mono has his own ominously powerful boss theme and the abilities of one of the most powerful Residents at his disposal; he is not a normal kid.

Mono even shares a power with the established Resident heir that we already know; The Pretender.

When The Pretender sees RCG eavesdropping on her crying, she yells so loud that it physically hurts RCG, causing the screen to glitch. I don’t think this is just a visual effect to show how loud it is to the player; I think this is an in universe ability. You know where else we see a powerful child amplify their voice on purpose to harm an enemy with a screen glitch/distortion effect? Mono in Chapter 5.

Mono and the fifth Thin Man

I think that Mono ran away from wherever it is he’s supposed to be, (probably the Signal Tower) and The Eye/ Thin Man want him back; this is why Mono is not killed by The Thin Man in the comic, just pursued by him

Loneliness

I don’t think I even really need to dissect how loneliness relates to Mono’s character, but he’s not the only character who deals with it. A huge recurrent theme with Residents is loneliness; the sense that they need something, they are missing something. The Lady has a bunch of dolls, The Janitor has.. a bunch of dolls in his own way. The Hunter too. The Pretender runs off to cry when her human doll friend gets messed up at her dinner party. The Resident we meet in Chapter 3 of the podcast is the most direct example so far of intense loneliness in a Resident, and not so coincidentally, it has a ton of parallels to Mono.

Narrative

For the rest of this post, I’m going to focus on how I think this theory fits into the story; because I think factoring in the cutscenes and storytelling beats is important when putting together something’s lore.

A little chatter about Mono

Mono is often characterized as a shy little boy who plays the straight man to Six’s feral goblin who loves eating rats, which is a whole other can of worms, but with this characterization I feel like some fun and interesting parts of his character are neglected, such as: The fact that Mono is an ominous little weirdo. His attempt at trying to save and comfort someone is to hack down her door with an ax with no warning, then proceed to chase her through the house she’s been trapped in; Mono is not too familiar with human interaction. Mono isn’t really a dashing hero who tries to save every kid he comes across either. In the comics, Mono finds an area that is away from the monster killing all the kids, but it’s not like he tells the other kids or tries to bring them with him or anything. I don’t think that this means he is a toxic manipulative character or anything because he is. 9 or 10 years old. I think if anything, this is a trait that experienced characters in The Nowhere have: RCG and Mono both know that indifference is the way to survive in The Nowhere, good deeds usually get you killed. It’s the way things are. I think overall Mono is a well meaning boy who just talks and acts ominously, because that’s what he is used to; he’s an eldritch overpowered being who lives in hell if it had a 1940s aesthetic.

I think that Mono doesn’t start the game a sweet perfect little boy whose ending is sad because he gets betrayed, that’s not a character arc. I think Mono starts off relatively morally gray out of necessity, mostly helping Six out because it was kinda his fault she got captured. He develops into someone who is willing to fight his fate, fight the Nowhere and stop resorting to the escapism his mask provides, only to get crushed to rock bottom in spite of his growth. After all, the villain of Little Nightmares is The Nowhere itself.

How this creates character conflict in the plot

Anytime Mono goes into a weird TV trance, Six is horrified. Her body language tenses and she moves away from him. Six has seen first hand that even the kids like her in The Nowhere cannot always be trusted or relied on (RCG shutting the door on her). Some kids like the Pretender aren't even normal kids, they have powers they use to kill people. The one person Six is starting to trust, and he’s showing signs of possessing supernatural powers? Terrifying. Mono notices these reactions, they give him more cause to hide what he truly is from her. Residents scare and disgust Six, he doesn’t want to lose the only person he has.

This conflict leads me to another point; you know those moments of Six being sadistic and angry towards Residents? How an ominous music cue plays when she kills the bully and breaks the mannequin’s fingers? Earlier in the game, when Six first catches Mono, his part of Togetherness II plays briefly to show his feelings in that moment, which implies that the music cues we hear when a story beat happens are Mono’s reactions. I don’t think these scary music cues are because Mono is scared of Six being creepy, Mono himself likes to beat up Residents. I think that Mono is scared in these moments when he sees the extent of Six’s hatred towards Residents, because even though he doesn’t like them either… Imagine how she’d react if she knew about him.

It is only the Thin Man fight when Mono is finally pushed to the point of using his powers, because in the plan to get Mono to the Signal Tower: The Thin Man took Six as bait. Six was constantly pulling Mono out of his TV trances, Six was supposed to die back at The Nest, Six has been a problem for the Eye since the start and now it’s time to kill two birds with one stone, to sentence Six to her new fate and to crush Mono’s spirit so hard that he finally resigns to his.

The drop is its whole own debate, but whatever you think about it, I think at least one factor in Six’s decision is that from her perspective: Mono has revealed himself to be an entity she cannot trust, he didn't tell her either; he's been hiding it this entire time. Why didn’t he use this power to help them all the previous times they were in danger? What are his motives? What IS he? This, mixed with other factors, causes the drop. (a lot of manipulation on the part of The Nowhere is involved too imo but this isn't a Drop analysis)

Mono is crushed, he loses Six and any true feeling of empowerment that he had before. Rather than The Eye trapping him in the Signal Tower and forcibly transforming him into a resident, I think Mono actually accepts his fate because hes just. That depressed. He actually ages pretty normally for most of the sequence (except for being straight up like 12 feet tall, the podcast confirmed that Residents are just super super big as opposed to the kids being really small, bros got Resident genes) This sequence from the art book leads me to think that Mono knows what the hat entails, Mono chooses to run the Signal Tower like The Lady runs The Maw. The chair sequence is not actually him sitting in a chair for that long, I think it just represents his resignation more than anything.

BUT! Mono is an “uncommonly single minded boy,” who also has control over time, i.e. Mono Thin Man slowing down time in his chase just to fuck with you or the clock sounds in The End of The Hall. Whether you think he goes back for revenge or to stop the downfall of everything, he goes back in time. I think it's on purpose, I think every TV in the background of the first scene implies that Mono has gone back to this point in time over and over again, failing repeatedly, leaving a new TV behind and forgetting the past attempt each time.

This could all be wrong, maybe Mono is just a really badass 4th grader from the human realm who got his abilities like Six, just off screen. But one thing I love about LN is all of the different, creative and interesting interpretations of the fans. So here’s mine regarding Mono lore. Sorry this was so long and I write posts weirdly it is 4 AM. I hope you enjoyed

[art-blogge]

clock out of THIS, idiot

This was a predicament. Dante was used to plans going awry- They had to be. The Sinners were basically allergic to anything even resembling a decent plan. That wasn't the part that was throwing them for a loop.

The part that was confounding them was that they were now stuck in a small room with more children than they were prepared to deal with. To be fair, they hadn't been prepared to even deal with one child. 15 was far too many. Sure, the plan involved fake IDs and being temporary workers in order to close in on a Golden Bough, but no one told Dante they'd be working with children!

What made this worse is that they were doing it alone. If they'd had at least Sinner with them, it would probably be fine!! Heck, even someone who already worked there. But no. The bedraggled babysitter took one look at Dante's fake identification, declared "I'm free!" and ran out the door before Dante could even start to tick out a greeting.

Now Dante was stuck standing there, making figurative eye contact with these children and having no idea what to-- How long had a child been tugging on their pants leg?

"Red, Fanto keeps throwing blocks at me," the blue-haired child stated, remarkably unbothered as a wooden block hit him in the face.

<"You stop that."> Dante ticked, cocking their head to stare at the brunet armed with several more wooden blocks. Fanto stared at Dante for a moment, and then threw a block at Dante's head. Clunk.

<"Did you enjoy that?"> Dante tocked, tilting their head and crossing their arms. Sure, they didn't expect children to understand them, but….

"That was mean, Fanto!" piped up another boy, pushing Fanto and causing him to drop the blocks.

<"D-don't push!">

Dante took a step forward, causing the kids to all recoil. Seeing this, they immediately stopped and backtracked. Scaring them was the last thing they wanted to do!

Well, there was a chalkboard… They could just write on it to communicate! These kids could probably read. Probably.

"Griflet ate the chalk," the blue boy helpfully stated, staring in the direction of a few other kids. One of them was Griflet, Dante supposed. Which one? Completely beyond them.

Spotting a single piece of chalk propped on top of the challboard, Dante tried to reach it, only to roll low and stumble over the blue child. Dante would have furrowed their brow from frustration if they had one.

Ticking slightly faster in annoyance, Dante made a second attempt at reaching the chalk.

<"Come here, you vandal,"> they grumbled, clearly attempting to flip a coin for Wrath. This time they succeeded, managing to wrangle that loathsome vandalous chalk.

Dante was quick to scribble greetings and their name onto the board. Their handwriting wasn't great- Ishmael had been sure to point this out the last time they'd collaborated on paperwork. It was enough though. D-A-N-T-E, in all capitals. At least one child should be able to read that.

"Daaannnn-tea, can we have snacks?" one child piped up and Dante paused. Huh. They'd never considered how their name might be pronounced just based on appearance before, but enough about that.

["LET ME SEE WHAT WE HAVE HERE,"] Dante carefully wrote, taking extra care to not scribble.

"Snacks! Snacks!" the children began chanting, and Dante rather suddenly didn't want to disappoint them. These weren't adults like the Sinners- They were children. They… probably couldn't go as long without food. That made sense. They were still growing, so they needed more. Okay. They had no idea if this reasoning was correct, but they assumed it was. They could ask someone reasonable like Gregor later.

Dante pocketed the chalk and started looking around for where food could be hidden. It didn't take any searching on their part- The kids were more than happy to crowd around Dante and lead them to a different room. Every single appliance and storage device had a lock on it, and Dante had never been given a key. Oh No.

The children crowded around a taller appliance and stared expectantly. Was this what peer pressure felt like? Dante never felt this when the Sinners dragged them into something. (It was usually fear in those cases.)

A thick lock was on the handle. Dante took it in their hand, testing its weight. It was heavier than they'd expected.

Ticking in thought, Dante considered kicking at it until it gave before discarding that thought. They were barely strong enough to hold off Donqui on a good day. Putting their hands in their pockets, Dante thought about it again. Was anything useful in their pockets?

Some lint, a faded business card from who-knew-where, three coins, five paperclips of varying colors, and a lollipop stick. They had no idea where that last one had come from and opted not to worry about it. Instead, they attempted to recall something Rodion had shown them once. Something about jamming a hairpin into a lock to open it if it was an emergency. Was an unfolded paperclip close enough to a hairpin?

No. That check had been fumbled with grace due to Dante dropping the paperclip. Satoru picked it up and bent it more before handing it back. That… Seemed right. Why did a child know… You know what, no. Dante decided to focus at the task at hand instead. Maybe two clips would do the job if one was bent like this.

It went smoother than they expected, the lock popping open after what felt like minimal fiddling. The kids' immediate hoots and hollers would have deafened them instantly if they had normal hearing, Dante reckoned. But they'd done it. They'd gotten the lock open, and they removed it to let the kids get at the contents.

If Dante thought the Sinners getting at food was ravenous, they were wrong. THIS was the definition of "ravenous", the kids tearing into anything they could get their hands on. One child was so desperate they started eating an empty cardboard box before Dante intervened and gave them actual food. Dante had felt pity before, but now it was all they could feel. It was disturbing to see kids like this.

Once the children had their fill, they went back to the other room of their own volition. Dante had the chance to look around, and they immediately regretted it. The other rooms looked like they hadn't been opened for years, and one had an actively rotting corpse. Ah. It'd taken Dante a couple of moments to register that one, and they immediately train-horned on recognition. Three kids peered out to see what the sudden noise was about.

"That's where the first daycare attendant went," Fanto stated with more cheer than needed, and Dante suddenly didn't want to know anymore.

"He wanted to rob the building," Satoru added, no expression across his face, "He was robbed of his life."

Dante DEFINITELY didn't want to know any more and numbly nodded before shutting the door and going back into the first room. That was enough of that. Whether the kids had murdered their caretaker or if someone else had? That mystery could go unsolved for a while. Or maybe forever.

For a while, the kids amused themselves. Dante leaned against the wall by the blackboard and watched them before one tottled up to Dante and tugged their pants leg.

"You're a clock. Do you have a clock wife?"

Dante squeezed their vision shut and suppressed a laugh. Not a question they'd expected!

Before they could answer, another child snapped "Clock husband! Why not a clock husband?!"

Just like that, there was the new discussion topic. "Was Dante clock-married" was the hit new debate topic sweeping across daycare centers, making kids take sides so fast Dante's head almost spun.

Side A firmly insisted that Dante HAD to be clock married- "Every other daycare attendant had been", they argued. What was important was what KIND of clock Dante was married to. There was some in-fighting about that point. A grandfather clock was the popular consensus, but one child was oddly adamant about it being a "cat clock".

Side 2 disagreed, arguing that clocks couldn't get married because they were inanimate. It would just be normal marriage! They didn't, however, disagree about Dante being married (which they weren't, thank you very much!). They seemed more focused on the ideas of clocks not having their own secret society.

Side C was a few kids who didn't care either way or couldn't decide. Dante entertained themselves trying to imagine a clock in wedding clothes. It went in a way of some kind, thoughts immediately shooting off into left field as they wondered what kind of wedding clothes everyone on the Mephistopheles would prefer.

"Danteeeey, can we draw outside?" one of the kids asked, sending the entire debate into a screeching halt. After that kid had asked, all of the other kids wanted to. Most of the other kids jumped up and repeated the question.

"Can we?" "Can we please?" "We can, right?"

Dante couldn't say no to those faces. They nodded and drew a quick checkmark on the chalkboard. All of the kid's faces lit up in excitement, grabbing a few small boxes each and rushing out the front door. Dante was quick to follow, of course- They wouldn't be doing their job if they didn't follow.

The kids spread out across the sidewalk and driveway before pulling out… Chalk. They had access to chalk and Dante had struggled to get a single piece like some kind of fool…

Satoru looked up at Dante as their clock hands ticked up in frustration.

"This chalk is for outside only," Satoru explained, seemingly reading Dante's mind, "It doesn't come off the chalkboard."

With that said, Satoru went back to drawing some kind of creature with a wedding tiara.

Dante watched as most of the kids quickly covered both surfaces with colorful drawings and moved to the edge of the street. Dante also had to stop one of the kids from eating the chalk, but they weren't sure the message got across. Such is life as a clock-headed person.

Some time passed. Hearing a distant rumbling, Dante glanced up from the Peccatulum Morositatis they'd started doodling on the sidewalk. A car.

<"Off the road! Vehicle!"> they blared, and the kids looked up and around for the source of the noise.

"Oh, car!" Fanto exclaimed and jumped onto the sidewalk. The other kids followed, thankfully, so no kids were harmed when the car sped over where they'd just been.

<"Phew,"> Dante whistled, untensing their everything. Before they could fully relax and resume drawing the Pisscatula, there was another rumble. Another vehicle. This one Dante recognized- The Mephistopheles.

The Mephi very suddenly braked nearby, and Dante knew whoever had been inside just got thrown forward several feet barring Charon and Vergilius.

"There you are," stated Ishmael, appearing in the Mephi's doorway. "You're the last one. Can you stop anytime soon?"

Dante shook their head. They were the only one here to watch all these kids! They couldn't just leave now!

After Dante expressed this in words and ticks, Don Quixote pushed her way past Ishmael.

"What cute children! Do they need an escort to their homes?? We can certainly provide such a valiant service!!"

Ishmael made a face of disgust as Dante pondered Don's offer. That… Would make things easier…

"We get to ride a bus instead of walking??" One of the kids excitedly asked, and just like that Dante couldn't say no again.

<"It's safer this way, Ishmael. I don't trust myself walking these kids alone. Could you ask the Sinners in the front seats to sit in the aisles for a while?">

Ishmael's face fell further before sighing and going back inside to relay Dante's request. Dante figured it wasn't actual disgust as much as "Our manager is getting sidetracked again".

"Excellente! We shall be thy escorts, tiny knights!"

The children really liked that and started echoing it. Knights! Knights! Knights!

Dante got a moment of peace as the kids swarmed Don, eager to be knights- Or as she corrected, squires traveling with knights. It didn't matter much.

"Onwards! We shall free up saddles for the upcoming squires!"

Dante was last to get onto the bus, having carefully been making sure every child made it onto the bus. When they did get on, they found most of the Sinners crammed in the back of the Mephistopheles, trying their damnest to not argue.

Dante cast Vergilius a brief glance before plopping into their own seat. Satoru had parked himself next to Vergilius and showed no signs of moving.

"Faust will be taking addresses," Faust stated, unfurling an extra map of the Nest. This was the fourth map today. The kids all started shouting addresses at once and somehow Faust was able to correctly label every address on the map. That was nothing to Faust, Dante figured. They considered saying that aloud, and then didn't.

Before long, Faust had kicked Charon out of the driver's seat, leaving Charon frustrated.

"Charon cannot work in these conditions," she stated, moving her stare from Faust to Satoru.

"When I become the evil overlord of District A, you can be my bus driver," Satoru replied, his own stare meeting Charon's.

"Charon will accept this if Charon gets dental."

She proceeded to seat herself directly on Dante's lap, what with no other seats available. Dante didn't complain. At least she wasn't trying to fight a child with Boingy.

Before long, Faust was expertly navigating the backstreets, her driving far smoother than Charon's.

<"Why don't you just drive all the time?"> Dante piped up- A sentiment echoed by Heathcliff from the far back. Faust ignored the question. earning Dante a net gain of absolutely nothing as per usual. Shucks. They should have expected that.

Behind the pack of children, Sinclair started to translate one of Ryoshu's cryptic mutterings before being cut off.

<"This really is a whole bunch of sheboingery,"> Dante agreed, smoothly avoiding the obvious swear, <"But I'm finishing the job I was given.">

Not that Dante was the one driving the Mephistopheles or anything. They considered the Sinners doing what they'd asked (for once) to be assisting with the job. It was nice to be listened to outside of combat for once. Or listened to in general. Listened to at all for any reason.

"First stop," Faust stated, bringing the Mephistopheles to a slow halt.

"That's us!" Fanto cheerfully announced, grabbing another child's hand and dragging them forward. "Merci beaucoup!"

Before Dante could ask what that meant, Fanto and the other child got off the bus and cheerfully ran to their parents. It was… nice, Dante had to admit. It felt good helping out here. This job had been the right decision.One by one (or occasionally two), the children were dropped off at their homes and brought inside by their parents. Occasionally, Dante would hear them saying things like "Hold my hand until we're inside!". Things that definitely seemed like common sense now that they heard it, but definitely hadn't considered earlier. Working with children needed more instruction than they'd previously thought. This also made sense.

"Okay, say bye now, Satoru!" said Satoru's parent, snapping Dante back out of their thoughts.

"Bye Dante. Bye Mr. Verg," Satoru mumbled, waving once before walking away from the Mephistopheles backwards. Dante very nearly missed Vergil giving a small wave back and all thoughts halted. Cute? Cute? C-

"That is all. Charon may resume driving."

Charon got up off of Dante's lap, allowing Dante to put both hands on their face in a brave attempt to hide what they'd been thinking from themselves. This meant making their emotions clear to anyone looking at them, which Dante didn't consider and probably wouldn't until later that evening.

<"I hereby declare our weekly examination of the Mirror Dungeon!"> Dante announced, forcing themselves back on track, <"Who would like to go this week? Raise your hands.">

They got more feedback than expected with several Sinners raising their hands immediately (and Donqui raising both). Hmmm. If the Sinners responded well to this, then could Dante…?Once the initial team was set and ready, Dante said their necessary lines. At this point, it was more filler than anything, and they knew the Sinners didn't really listen to it either. It was a perfect chance to do something silly.

<"Everyone say bye to Charon!"> Dante gleefully tacked on at the end of their lines.

"Bye, Charon," echoed several Sinners before they all paused. Reindeer Ishmael in particular whipped her head around to stare at Dante, who made a muffled bell chiming noise in an attempt to not laugh. It worked! It worked!

Ignoring all complaints the way Faust usually did, Dante grabbed onto the first wrist they could reach and strolled on in. By whatever might be holy, they were going to have at least a little bit of fun today.

[klausinamarink]

One Kid Gone, Another Up and Vanished (part 15)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 | ao3

not gonna give any excuse for the update delay uhh but massive thanks to @panicatthediaz for helping me out with the adults’ dialogue!

Eddie’s really sick so cw for gross descriptions of vomit, flu-like symptoms, urine, etc.

For the first time in days, Eddie is running hot aside a few spots where the coldness still lingers. He would like it better if his stomach could stop trying to bust itself out of his withered-tasted mouth.

He moans pitifully. His head is pounding fiercely like a pair of hammers banging together inside a pot and it’s getting worse, barely helping with the nausea. Squeezing his eyes just makes the pounding worse but opening them does nothing to make the blurriness vanish.

Somewhere in the house, Will is running around like he’s in the track and field team. Eddie has no idea what the boy might be doing but he wants to yell at him to stop stomping his feet so loudly unless they want to attract another monster and it’s making his headache worse. But he can’t because every time he opens his mouth, his throat constricts painfully and the sickness comes back at full force.

Eddie grips tighter at the blanket around him, but it’s too thin to stop his shivering. Every few seconds, it seems the fever stops just to let the cold sink in before it returns and sweats up his entire body. His bladder feels full too, ready to burst at every violent shudder.

He tries to move his ankle. As expected, it spikes up in agony but doesn’t black him out. He moves it again because he’s always been a masochist while sick, but he doesn’t feel himself trying to wiggle any of his toes. 

A sense of panic suffocates Eddie. If his ankle is bad enough that he can’t feel anything below or above it, then it might have to be amputated. That’s what happens to the really bad injuries, right? And wouldn’t that be a crazy story that Eddie would galvant to the rest of the world once he’s out of this hell? “Oh, this leg? Well, I lost it to a terrifying monster with dozens of teeth that had dragged me into a horrendous landscape!”

Laughter sputters out of his cracked lips. Eddie can’t help it. He laughs and laughs until his throat feels like it’s breaking glass from the inside and then he’s hacking his lungs out. Then he’s throwing up again because his stomach hates him, his body hates him, everything in this fucking Vale of Shadows hates him. And then he’s sobbing because he wants to just get out of this place and take a long hot shower and pretend this is just another realistic nightmare. But then he remembers that if by some miracle he and Will find that precious exit, Eddie’s going to be alone again. 

He’ll be left with nothing to his name anymore except his renewing cycle to fend himself from the world that wants to shred him with its teeth. 

As his sobs start to tighten his chest, Eddie hears (or rather feels, with his face pressed against the floor) Will loudly returning before his footsteps pause.

“Oh, Eddie.” Will says quietly. His tiny arms loop around Eddie’s neck and his fingers start combing through his tangled dirty hair. For the first time, Eddie wants to smack Will, push him away, and tell him to just leave him alone. He doesn’t get why Will still bothers to be so nice despite throwing up on his pants and forcing him to drag Eddie around like a sack of flour. But the pang of guilt strikes him as quickly as that thought. If he really were to tell Will off, then the kid will listen and then die somewhere and Eddie would be the only living human in this world. Another wail burns from his mouth as Eddie further stains the kid’s already-filthy pants with snot and tears. 

After some time, Will carefully moves over to his injured leg. Eddie hears him shuffle the blanket back. “I’m changing the bandages.”

“The mummy cast not good enough, doctor?” Eddie tries to say but all that comes out of his mouth is an unintelligible string of “mmmuuggkaaa…” Apparently it’s funny enough that it makes Will snort.

Eddie winces when Will has to tear off the last layer, the blood sticking painfully to his skin. He thinks he smells something but his sinuses are blocked, which is great. His eyes start drooping, more than ready to fall asleep, only to fling open when Will pours something on the wound. It’s less painful than the first time right after the demogorgon attack, but it still stings badly enough that Eddie shouts. Will cries out, ‘sorry, sorry!’ as he hurriedly wraps it up.

After it’s done, Will returns to Eddie’s side. “You gotta sit up. I’ll help you.” Eddie barely nods back when Will’s hands dig into his shoulders and starts pulling him up. Eddie tries to move on his own but his whole body is sunken lead. He just groans as Will positions him against the wall, nudging him so Eddie wouldn’t fall over. It feels nice not to lay on his back anymore, but his head disagrees. 

A dizzying spell comes over him and Eddie tips forward, but Will catches him in time, hands pressing against his chest, gently shoving him back. Eddie tries to thank him, but the dizziness turns into nausea and he heaves again. Nothing comes out this time. 

If he starts throwing up blood next time, then Eddie will just accept his doom right there and then. 

While he attempts to steady his breathing and ignores how it feels like glass shards, Will asks, “Do you want some soup? I managed to heat up a can with my lighter.”

Soup. Yeah, hot soup always helps when he’s sick. Wayne usually makes chicken and wheat.

Eddie nods gratefully, his eyes drooping shut again. It feels like a decade passes when Will pokes his cheek and then at his chin. Eddie automatically opens his mouth and a warm spoon enters his mouth. It only takes a second to recognize the taste of thick mushroom broth before the texture immediately disgusts him that he spits it out. A bud of vomit catches in his throat and Eddie can’t help but retch again. 

Collapsing on his side, something warm passes right through his groin and- oh. He literally just pissed himself, did he?

Will’s at his side again, his cold small palm cupping the side of his head. “Eddie?!”

Eddie-

Eddie laughs.

Or at least, he makes an intimation of a laugh. It comes out just as broken as he feels. His throat is clogged up and rusty with the muscles scraping at each other like nails on chalkboard. Every part of his body hurts. He definitely smells gross like the trailer trash he is, which is why Will is back to wearing the cloth mask again. He can’t stop vomiting no matter how concave his stomach is. He’s burning and freezing. He-

He wants his uncle Wayne to scoop him up in his arms and hold him tight, murmuring gruff words that are always full of safety and love. 

But Wayne’s not coming for him. All he has is a tiny kid who already has a loving mother and brother waiting on the other side. Even then, Will Byers would leave too. 

When Will tries to lift him up again, Eddie refuses to budge. Even when he starts pleading because what is the point?

Finally, Will stops shaking him. Sighs in clear frustration. Sits down, pulling Eddie’s head onto his dirty jeans again. Eddie wishes to hug the kid but his arms are weak as shit.

Moments pass in loaded silence. Tremors rake through Eddie’s body. He’s getting cold again. The fever momentarily settles, allowing his brain to start crushing itself from the mushy pressure that’s now residing somewhere between his left ear and the top of his head. Bile laps around the middle of his throat.

“We have to go to the hospital.” 

Eddie makes some kind of disbelieving noise because Will starts rambling, his hands flapping in the air just like Eddie does. The motions spark a small warmth in his cramped chest. “I know there won’t be any actual doctors there, but it’s the general hospital! There should be much more medicine than in this house or other places in this neighborhood. Maybe going there will make you feel better!”

That’s… not really a bad idea. It would be fantastic to move to a building that is literally equipped to make sick people better. Eddie’s surprised that he and Little Byers made it this far without thinking of going downtown. 

However, Hawkins General Hospital is over an hour’s walk. And if Eddie had to take more than two steps on his injured leg, he probably wouldn’t move ever again.

“G-gonna bike ‘s there?” Eddie rasps, feeling proud of himself for speaking coherently without throwing up.

“Yep!” Will chirps excitedly.

It takes a few moments for Eddie to register his answer. He slowly turns his head up towards Will. It takes a long time before his mouth finally spits out a flat, “What?”

—

“But the lab is right there!” Joyce says, throwing her hand up to a vague direction. “We could walk inside like you did, Hop-”

“I did that by pure luck and the fact there weren’t any people in the lobby.” Hopper counters back with a tired tone. “Not to mention I was tranquilized.”

“When they took you back home and bugged your house?” Wayne asks, getting a nod of confirmation in response. He bites the inside of his cheek, thinking. If those laboratory folks and their state friends had given Hopper a kinder approach to let him go after seeing their secrets, then would it guarantee they would do the same to Wayne and Joyce? 

His immediate gut instinct says no.

“Which means they’re definitely hiding something!” Joyce insists, “And if it’s our boys they have there, we should go now!” 

Hopper takes a deep breath and presses his hands together, pointing them towards Joyce. “I looked around the basement before I got to the ‘gate’. It was just a few corridors without any doors except for the one that I had walked inside.”

”But you went to the lab’s basement, Hop! How many floors does that building have? How many rooms are there that they are keeping Will and Eddie for god knows I don’t want to even think about!” Joyce falls back down on her chair, hands anxiously pulling through her hair before stopping herself and letting out a weary sigh.

After Hopper had shaken out of his stupor, he was quick to share what else he had learned about Hawkins Lab and quicker to join the next course of action (though he still looks a bit weary of Wayne and Joyce being now official graverobbers. Too bad because Wayne has no regrets and neither does Joyce). However, he and Joyce have been arguing back and forth about the possibility of just breaking into the lab and making demands with whatever suited devil held Eddie and Will for about a good hour now.

Wayne’s tempted with that idea - his trusty shotgun is in the truck, ready to be used. But with the overwhelming presence of the state folks and the odds that they could just shoot at anyone, tranqs or not, who gets too close. Even to go so far to create dead dummies, one of whom would eventually look exactly like Eddie just to make Wayne grieve- 

Hopper continues, “Even if we just march ourselves in, without weapons, and make peaceful demands, do you really think Brenner would allow that?”

“If we-” Joyce starts, but Hopper cuts her off.

“They’re practically the government, Joyce! They wouldn’t let us live!” 

The room falls silent. Hopper rubs his hands over his face and Joyce stares at him agape. Her gaze turns over to Wayne. For a moment, it almost feels like he’s a child stuck between a nasty parental argument, forced to pick sides. Wayne takes in a deep breath, keeping the nerves that have chanting find Eddie, find Eddie at him all week into a quiet buzz. 

“So we can’t go to the lab because they have something underground that’s worth knocking us out.” Wayne starts slowly, “Even if we pretend that we don’t know anythin’, the best they would do is just ignore us. But we can’t pretend that everything is fine and that the boys will be back home any minute.” He looks at Joyce, “And we’ve seen those lights and heard their phone calls. Wherever they are, they’re not here where we can’t find them easily. And the fact we haven’t heard from them for over a day is concerning.”

Wayne turns back to Hopper and locks eyes with him, spreading his palms out, “So enlighten us, chief. What can we do?”

Hopper chews on his lip, quiet for a moment. Then he says, “There is one lead that I’ve been meaning to check. It might be a stretch and probably a waste of time but-” He stops, waiting for Wayne or Joyce to interject. When neither of them do, he continues, “Terry Ives. She was the one who had a case against Brenner in court and lost. Apparently she still lives somewhere close to Hawkins.”

“Do you think she can help us?” Joyce asks, her face hardened with skepticism. Hopper shrugs. 

“If she hears us out with our story of Eddie and Will being missing, then it’s up to her.”

“Would it be worth a trip even if she may not be somewhere close to Hawkins?” Wayne crosses his arms. 

 Hopper shrugs again, “All I need to do is call a buddy and ask her address. If she’s too far out of state, then maybe a phone call would do. Can’t waste anymore time.” 

“Then we can’t waste it.” Wayne agrees.

“And then after that?” Joyce asks, looking between them. “Whether or not Terry Ives gives us help, how would we even rescue our boys?”

Hopper stands up, “To be honest, I’m starting to agree with your plans, Joyce. But for now, let’s go.”

——

Taglist: @unclewaynemunson @hellion-child @steves-strapcollection @sidekick-hero @penny00dreadful @hbyrde36 @mmmmwaffles94 @princessstevemunson @sirsnacksalot @tartarusknight @lyriclight @kodaik97 @plsdontdrinkmylavalamp @bookbinderbitch @gutterflower77 @soaringornithopter @angeldreamsoffanfic @panicatthediaz @renaissan-vvitch @manda-panda-monium @newtstabber @little-trash-ghost @niniel-karenine @tinyplanet95

[gremlinshatephilosophers]

Some of the earrings I made (ca. 2016)

Most of these look like absolute shit because I was around 11-14 when I made them and kids have zero sense of what looks good at that age, but luckily the fact I didn't care how I looked at the time allowed me to keep working on it and get better in the future.

First, the one pair of earrings from that era I still have and wear, and are almost always a conversation starter:

Did you make them? If you count putting a wire loop on a hook and attaching a key as "making" them, then yes.

Are they real keys? Yes, and quite heavy ones.

Do you take them off to unlock your house? No, they went to an old storage unit my parents used to have 30 years ago.

These came from a kit, with pictures and the right beads included, which is why they don't look like completely awful.

Same with these (I liked the blue ones with the chains because they were the longest earrings I had at the time).

And then we slowly devolve into worse and worse freestyle design choices. They're not all *terrible* but I certainly wouldn't make most of these now.

These two were actually ones I made in group therapy as a kid. The ones on the right I actually really liked and I probably had to throw them out because the cheap metal rusted.

These were also from a kit. The ones on the left are the original design, which I really liked and wore a lot and I don't remember why I got rid of them besides being in a mood to throw things out. The ones on the right are the clashing leftovers from all the other ones from the kit.

I think these got lost in a gym locker room somewhere. I liked them a lot and they were the ones I made alongside the rainbow earrings I mentioned in another post, but the rubber beads really got stuck in my hair and kind of got annoying.

I wish I could tell you more about the rest of these, but I don't have them any more and I guess it wasn't worth remembering.

[cq-studios]

Haven’t posted in a hot sec and the brain rot never left, so how about some UX magic headcannons/theories (def leaning into HCs tho) with some evidence?

Before we get into the meat of this post, a quick disclaimer. I made this post with my own knowledge from playing the game (in 2020 and later) and the KHUX Wiki. I tried my best to check as much as I can but there’s just so much there’s no way every attack animation for every medal level was archived and watched by me. If I get something wrong let me know so I can make addendums.

And with that out of the way…

Have you ever noticed how flashy all the spells (and special attacks in general) in UX are? Like these kids are constantly throwing explosions and other big magical displays around. Almost all of them are akin to endgame spells in other games. Think Trinity Limit, or the BBS room clearer spells.

On top of that, from what it looks like on the KHUX Wiki, out of the levelled (-ra, -ga etc.) spells we see in other games, Cure is the only one that is stated to have different levels. The rest (Blizzard, Fire, Thunder, and Aero) are all in the “-ga” level, even on 1 star medals

^ Source ^

(Raging Blizzard isn’t actually magic, just a physical attack, still flashy tho)

So what point am I trying to make?

Well, all of this seems to point (to me at least) towards the fact that magic during this time was less controlled. And when you take into consideration the fact that it was very unlikely these kids were properly trained it kind of makes sense. It’s very likely that a lot of the magic here is figured out by the wielder themself or by another wielder who had figured it out and showed them how.

(Which is fun, since the longer the game was up the faster you got powerful spells, which in a way kinda makes it like you are learning the more impressive spells faster because other people had been wielders longer and had more time to figure things out)

The flashiness of everything can be explained by that too. I mean, they’re all kids after all. You mean to tell me that they’re not making everything as extra and explosive as possible to show off? Especially in the power centric place of Daybreak Town?

And if you’re thinking “well what about the other high level spells then? The ones in the other games”, I have an answer for you too. I was thrown a loop for a bit with that too because it doesn’t make much sense. Like even in Dark Road, in the same app, has the proper spell progression. But that got me thinking, what if the -ga versions of those 4 spells are the default and the “basic” versions of the spells are ones toned down for training.

Because when you think of it, we’ve never actually seen/played as a wielder who hasn’t had proper training, other than Player of course (and Roxas/Xion, who are exceptions, I’ll get to them). We’ve already touched on DR. The Wayfinder Trio are all trained by Eraqus, Vanitas by Xehanort. Sora is taught by Donald, Riku by Maleficent presumably (Dark Firaga is a tell for me). Roxas and Xion, while technically not being taught magic by anyone, already had some subconscious stuff from Sora.

So, you know, it’s possible.

Anyways that’s my thoughts. Probably not organized well because my brain’s not organized well today lol

I tried

[digitalpineapples]

[Prologue]

It was in the dead of night where I last remembered who I was. Now... I'm stuck, in this eternal loop of child wonder and wild dreams.

It feels so unreal.

It can't be true.

There has to be a way out. Some way to go back to what I once knew and who I was..

[Chapter 1] - POMNI

After I became conscious again, there was this bright array of colors just seemingly bouncing off the walls of everywhere in front of me. It was almost too much to take in. I felt like I was drowning in this satirical sense of nowhere but somewhere- somewhere I couldn't understand. In front of me was these characters. Like I was in a cartoon. They had wacky appearances and looked like kids toys. It was so crazy, had I finally lost my mind.

"WELCOME TO THE AMAZING DIGITAL CIRCUS!", exclaimed a voice sounding like an old school television host for a commercial. This is all so much like a TV show. What is this. Where am I? Who am I? Why am I here? Thinking about everything all at once almost had me going bonkers. I stopped to regain what little sense of self I had and tried to force myself to stop winding down the tunnel of endless questions in my head.

"Who- who are you people?", I asked nervously. My teeth were chattering and my eyes were twitching and my hands...

Nevermind that, I need to know where I am.

"Ugh, Caine your silly prop is gonna make us have to redo everything again. This doesn't happen to be a new character....right?", a lanky purple bunny wearing a bright pair of overalls was smiling from ear to ear but he obviously wasn't happy. He sighed and folded his arms. Ah, this must be a dream. That's why everything is so crazy and colorful and a mess.

"No, this is a new person trapped inside the amazing world of the digital circus and now we have the time to help her determine her new identity here since she has lost her own when she came into our world.", Caine was flying and talking while throwing up gestures like he was presenting in front of an audience. But what audience. I collapsed and threw my hands onto my ears and started to lose my thoughts into the overwhelming abyss that was now my mind. Who am I. Who am I. Who am I. Who am I. Who-

"Now, now, before you mentally collapse we need to make you a new personality. Let's start with your name! Let's see! How about the name XDDCC?"

After pulling out a huge slot machine showing letters and pushing the bar down the letters just came up on their own. How did he- OMG this is bad. This is really bad. I must've overdosed or, or worse collapsed somewhere in a coma or something. I think about how this doesn't make sense, and the name doesn't make sense. Then I turned my head to the ringmaster, Caine, now looking at me with even more enthusiasm.

"Um, I-", I try to talk but then I'm cut off my Cain again.

"Right, so let's choose another one!"

He pushes the bar down again and the letters start to move until it stops at...POMNI.

Is that gonna be my new name. Is that who I am now. While I was thinking I looked at the corner of my eye and saw the same purple bunny. He was looking at me with a smile but also narrowed his eyes like he was trying to figure out what I was thinking.

"This POMNI girl doesn't seem to grasp the fact that she can't leave quite yet.", he stated in an almost sarcastic tone.

"H-hey, I- um.", I tried to say something back but I couldn't think of what.

"It's okay, because in this world anything is possible! Except for escaping that is, you all can never escape and neither can I! We're all trapped here so we might as well forget our very existences before and focus on developing our characters for this new world!"

Caine's eyes grew bigger and bigger between the teeth that was his head. I never thought much about his looks till now because of everything going on, but his head was a chatterbox toy. Creepy....

I turn my head again and notice more characters. One looked concerned but like she was trying to keep a positive outlook on things and gave me a awkward smile while rubbing her arm to comfort herself. She looked like a rag doll with red hair and a tattered purple dress on. Her eye, was a button.

What's going on!?!?!?!?

[To be Continued........................]

[soulgathered]

"I guess if the star fits it fits" siffrin stuck his tongue out at loop with a grin. but then he ushered the others away to gather more firewood and simply open up space around their newest member. knowing them they had a thousand question that they would bombard them with the moment loop would be unable to hear them.

bonnie was the only one staying, focusing on their task of making tea and prepping the dinner. from time to time they give loop a curious glance but there was no hostility, just a kid being intrigued.

"huh? wha-- what?! frin's allergic to pineapple?!" they didn't even doubt the star, kind of made sense that they would know that kind of stuff, they had known how to help siffrin too! bonnie gave the pineapple a glare as if it had just offended everyone, grabbing it and rushing to a nearby edge, throwing the offending fruit as far as possible into the ocean.

...they hesitated for another moment before looking at loop with a guilty face "...fish can't be allergic to pineapple, right?"

"You said that immediately after referring to me, stardust! It only follows to assume you were still doing so!"

Still, they were grateful for stardust working interference when things got to be too much. They would get to have a small break from everyone while they tested whether or not they could actually drink anything.

As they waited for the Kid to finish it, they glanced around their surroundings. Their eyes landed on the Kid's pack of food, and they stilled, staring at the offending piece of fruit poking out of it.

Stars.

How hilariously tragic would it be, for stardust to break out of the loops only to immediately get taken out by some unseen pineapple in their food.

They should. Do something about that. They were trying to avoid interacting with everyone as much as possible, though. Could they remove it themself? They weren't sure if they were still allergic in this body, but they didn't want to risk even so much as touching the thing with how quickly it had killed them in the past. Plus if they were spotted they'd probably be yelled at for throwing food away and would have to explain, anyway, which defeated the purpose of the whole "interact with everyone as little as possible" thing.

Stars. They had to actually talk, didn't they?

Loop nodded their head towards the bag and spoke quietly to the Kid. "You should get rid of that. Stardust's allergic to pineapple."

[nyctx]

#16

Why can't I just be left at peace? Why can't I- for once, just have a quiet life where drama isn't something I'm constantly surrounded by? Why can't I speak up about my discomfort? My dread of messing up?

WHY THE FUCK IS IT SO HARD TO COMMUNICATE?!

I fucking hate everything. I'm not finished with October and just started a new grading period. Things would get better, right? No, they fucking don't. I think about shit that doesn't matter. Why can't I just ignore that, for once? I just want the rest of high school to be peaceful. Where I'm not uncomfortable to speak up about how I feel mentally. Yes, I rant about certain things (only two as of late). Yes, I have some courage to be in my own skin. Yes, I love my classes.

But no, my social life is making me feel shitty. It's not even that toxic for once, everything just makes me anxious to fuck up. I get so tense around everyone, it sucks. Most of my friends are ambiverts (leaning towards extrovert) and I'm over here trying to question why I can't just communicate. I've tried, but it's always at a bad time, so it'd be better to not. Everyone has their own drama, and I'd rather just listen. Mine's not that interesting anyway. I'm just a fucking emo kid who's getting shit talked.

Speaking of that...

Today in my CCR class, this group of people were being obnoxious next to me, and just overall, I wanted to tell them to shut the fuck up. But I had my headphones on when two of them started laughing before one of them asked me if I had Instagram. I was hesitant, but I gave them my socials on a slip of paper while they were giggling. I thought nothing of it, but they went quiet and started laughing again. That's when I noticed one of their phones, with one of my posts, and underneath, a text that read "ermmmm.". My heart fucking dropped and they noticed I saw it and started to laugh and make a comment about it. Why? What was the point? What the fuck is the point to talk shit about someone you don't fucking know at all?

My friend had some drama and I tried giving my output before backing out of the conversation. I felt too hesitant to add on anything and in the end, felt shitty about it. But how dare I feel that way. How could I make that about me? It had nothing to do with me. That's shitty of me. I shut up and went to walk around the bus loop to maybe get my mind off things. But my mind kept racing and kept racing, overthinking every single thing I could imagine. I hate it, because it kept reminding me that in the sense, I can't speak up for myself. I'm easy to push around because, by the time I want to do something about it, it's too late. I'm too soft, my friend was right. I'm just a softie. I need to toughen up, but what?

Is this how my friends feel when I open up? Just another fucking sob story? Some bullshit I can just get over? What the fuck is wrong with me? Why couldn't I see this earlier? I'm such an idiot, it was so obvious. Maybe I need to stop fucking talking because why the fuck should I?

I can't keep doing this, it's stupid.

There this guy who has a crush on me and I don't know how to confront it without seeming full of myself or like a narcissist. I'm not all that, and frankly, don't like feeling that way, it makes me feel like a snob. He said this one thing that made me uncomfortable and in general, he's starting to make me uneasy, but I don't wanna be a bitch about it. I left him on read, and I don't wanna respond to him anymore.

I miss riding my bike every day, I didn't have to think and I zoned out for a whole hour due to exhaustion. I biked until my legs ran numb, until I wanted to throw up, until my whole body was shaking. I miss physically exhausting myself until it shuts my brain off and all I could feel was being sore. I miss it, miss that feeling. But we can't always get what we want.

-Dxll Face

[sohannabarberaesque]

Postcards from Snagglepuss

Of Jackalopes and state fair rodeo

DOUGLAS, WYOMING: Having squared away that business in the Colorado Rockies (or close to them) with our camping excursion, not to mention sending back the satellite phones, our motorhome journey (after some effort just having to get the motorhome out from a rather skimpy country road) continued onward, devouring that legendary Western potato chip brand known as Clover Club as we were heading up I-25 towards no less than the storied "jackalope country."

As in a supposed jackrabbit/antelope hybrid said to be in abundance in the high plains of the West heading towards the Rockies, a statue thereof gracing the middle of the main street in Beautiful Downtown Douglas, population some 6,250 people in the heart of the Powder River Basin coal and oil fields.

But such was not our main rationale for being in Douglas to begin with.

Actually, it was the Wyoming State Fair and Rodeo, more specifically the latter. For some reason, Sheriff--bling! bling! bling!--Ricochet Rabbit was able to procure for our company some tickets for one of the evening performances. Which, considering the combination of powerful footlights and Wyoming sunsets off to the west, can get to you. Not to mention Wally Gator, otherwise the sort fond of jet skis, swamp buggies and the SCUBA getup--Florida kid, you know.

Ricochet, for some reason, had been invited to call the evening performances and sensing where we were "on the road" with a slightly larger company and a motorhome as base of adventure, he thought it worthwhile to invite our troupe over. He especially thought much about Augie Doggie and Doggie Daddy, especially from the perspective of a learning experience over the summer vacation on Augie's end.

Not to be outdone, Hokey Wolf and Ding-a-Ling couldn't help but be intrigued by the sight of rodeo by night, particularly since the Barrel Riding event in the evening's performance was going to feature those dude-ranch detective types, Wendy and Rita. In talking with the pair as they were suiting up and preparing for the ride ahead, the glib-talking Rita in particular admitted that "at least she didn't have that pesky Nugget Nose trying to hex our ride for once," which, for a show of horsemanship whose traits are purely Western, can have a graceful side every now and then. Especially trying to circle some repurposed barrels without trying to knock them over.

At least some trail riding experience certainly made things rather easier, though the horse Rita drew was a little on the lively side and almost threw her for a loss looping around the second barrel (Huck hoping privately that the horse wasn't somehow spooked); Rita, for her part, came up impressive in the form department and good enough for fifth place overall. Wendy, for her part, knew the barrel riding routine like an old hand and kept her cool throughout, leaving Ricochet Rabbit to remark "So what exactly has Wendy got for barrel riding bound to leave others in the dust?"

Calf Roping, another competition that evening--now THAT requires much skill, especially as you have two cowboys in on the competition--one to tag the calf by the neck, the other to throw him down and tie down the feet. And it has to be precisely timed, even, because penalty time can be assessed if the ropers leave the chute too early. Ricochet Rabbit explained that the evening's competition in Calf Roping was basically "ranch team" competition, with teams from ranches in Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska being represented. Laff-a-Lympics this wasn't. No wonder the binoculars were getting quite the workout, as much in the judge's stand as in the bleachers, to make sure things were pulled off well as much as professionally. But when it was all over, the Montana and South Dakota delegations were in a dead heat on points, requiring a "sudden death" match to decide the Calf Roping champion ... and when the dust had settled under the bright lights of the Wyoming State Fairgrounds' rodeo arena, the South Dakota team--a small-time dude ranch outside Belle Fourche (whose July 4th rodeo Ricochet Rabbit called previously) being represented--won the title as the Montana entry, from near Miles City, got penalised for leaving the chute too early, meaning a deduction on their score.

"Geez, Hokey," Ding-a-Ling remarked, "just tying down a calf can actually be considered sport!" To which his mentor, Hokey Wolf, noted in response, "Sport, yes, Ding ... but with ranches in outright competition in Rodeo, to begin with!"

And adjourn to an all-night cafe, kept going all night considering the stockmens' trade and the truckers driving cattle to market even, for beefalo burgers so remarkably juicy....

@warnerbrosentertainment @haiyis-dark-void @theweekenddigest @iheartgod175 @archive-archives @thylordshipofbutts @screamingtoosoftly @princessgalaxy505 @themineralyoucrave @thebigdingle @warnerbros-blog1 @xdiver71 @jellystone-enjoyer @joey-gatorman @warnerbrosent-blog

[jae-bummer]

Game Night Gone Awry

Request: Hey!! Loved reading one of your Bang Chan fics/dribbles. Can I request another Bang Chan fic from the prompt list? #6 or #11 please 😀

Prompt:

6) "If you do that one more time, I don't think I'll be able to control myself."

Pairing: Stray Kids Chan x Reader

Genre: Fluff

.

Chan leaned over, bumping his shoulder into yours for what seemed like the hundredth time. "Christopher!"

"Sorry, can't come to the phone right now," Chan chuckled, sticking his tongue between his lips as he concentrated.

"If you win because you cheated, it doesn't mean you actually won!" you gasped, tilting your controller as your character turned another corner.

"I agree, but that would be if I cheated," he hummed.

It was nearly midnight on a Monday, and here you were, cursing and elbowing Chan in the middle of his living room. He had originally invited you over to play video games with the members, but it didn't take long for the guys to start disappearing. After the third round of Chan insisting he needed to challenge you again, even the most hopeful of members were left shuffling down the hall. "Some game night," Seungmin had muttered before slamming his door loud enough to be heard.

"It's okay to accept defeat," you smiled, tossing a red shell in Chan's direction. You weren't an impressive Mario Kart player, but you were somehow better than Chan, and that's what mattered.

"Defeat this!" he gasped, drifting around you and pulling into the lead.

Letting out a hiss, you narrowed your eyes at the screen. If you let him win even one game, that would somehow trump all the previous ones. Without much thought, you rose to your knees. Chan sat cross legged beside you on the floor, so it didn't take much effort to fling yourself in his general direction. Landing with an "umph" in his lap, you quickly regained control and flew past his character.

"Y/N!" he screeched through surprised laughter.

Wrapping his arms around you and pulling you back to his chest, he righted his controller and began to play around you. His breath was warm on your neck as he muttered several curses, attempting to catch up.

With your body relaxed against his, you were surprised at how naturally you fit together. Sure, your heart was beating out of your chest and your senses were on high alert as you analyzed every place your bodies touched, but that was something you were trying not to look too closely at. You had a game to win after all.

"If you do that one more time," he said quietly, his words tickling your ear and sending shivers down your back. "I don't think I'll be able to control myself."

Your eyes widened as you continued to focus on the screen. Aside from the summersault your stomach just did, what could those words possibly mean?

"I-" you began, but immediately halted. Chan was one of your best friends and you had never heard him say anything like that before. "Uh - what?"

"Do I need to repeat myself?" he hummed. His tone could have been stern or mischievous and it was really throwing your brain for a loop.

You sat quietly for a moment as you numbly cycled through the game.

"I said," he whispered. "If you did that one more time..."

He dropped his controller and quickly took yours from your hand. "I don't think I'll be able to control myself!"

His hands shot backwards as they roamed over your ribs, tickling you mercilessly.

"Chris!" you yelled, smacking at his fingers. Launching yourself away from him, you didn't make it very far before he was on top of you again.

"You cheater!" he laughed loudly, continuing to tickle whatever place on your torso that he could. "You dirty little cheater!"

You laughed breathlessly, attempting to ward off his attack. "Hello pot? This is kettle!"

With a wide grin, Chan caught your hands in his. It was obvious that he was lost in the moment as he maneuvered to sit on top of your thighs. Leaning forward, he took both of your wrists in one hand, using his free hand to continue tickling.

You laughed for a few seconds before fully realizing what your current position looked like. You worked on trying to catch your breath, falling silent as you stared up at Chan. His eyes locked on yours, causing him to halt his movements. Breathing heavily as well, you could see the shift of mood reflected in his eyes. It felt like you were both encased in static electricity, waiting for the shock.

His attention flicked to your lips, causing him to lick his own before glancing at your body positioning. Looking from your flushed face and down to where his body was sitting on yours, he gasped as he let go of your wrists. "Oh my god."

Rolling over he plopped on the ground beside you. Letting his face fall into his hands, he whined, "Why Chris? Why are you such a creep?"

Trying to calm your rapid heartbeat, it took you a moment to sit up. "Stop being dramatic, you're not a creep."

"I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable," he groaned. "I just took it too far."

"Chris," you sighed. "It's okay, really. You didn't take it all that far."

"I didn't?" he asked, quirking a brow.

"Nope," you smiled. "Just because you recognized a change in mood, doesn't mean you did something wrong."

"I saw the look on your face," he sighed. "You looked terrified."

"You...may have misinterpreted that expression," you said quietly, cringing.

"Oh?" he asked, tilting his head.

"We were having fun," you nodded. Your thoughts launching back to memories made not even a minute ago had your whole face feeling hot again. "The...tone of that fun just...got a little skewed."

"Right," he nodded. "Friends don't straddle friends."

"Stray Kids are a walking example of that being incorrect," you laughed.

"Friends don't..." he trailed. "Well, if we're using the kids as an example, I don't think there's really any boundaries friends can't cross."

"Not even one?" you teased, poking his bicep. Whether it was intentional or not, Chan bit his lip, causing your insides to go to mush all over again.

"I mean...friends probably shouldn't kiss," he said, his voice almost too soft to hear. "Even if they were really considering it about five minutes ago."

"We don't have to be friends," you blurted. If you could grab the words out of the air and shove them back onto your tongue, you would have. Instead, you placed a hand over your mouth in horror.

Chan smiled, his eyes roaming your face. He reached forward, pulled at your fingers, and took them into his. His expression immediately asked the unspoken question if this is what you wanted to do.

Giving a short nod, you could feel yourself leaning toward him. You weren't even completely sure if your brain was making the decisions at this point or if you really were acting on "no thoughts, just vibes."

Meeting you in the middle, Chan hovered his face only an inch away from yours. Glancing down to your lips and back up to your eyes, he exhaled slowly. "Maybe best friends kiss."

Closing the distance, Chan's lips were gentle on yours. A kiss that tasted more like a question only got deeper as you both seemed to find the answer. Inhaling deeply through his nose as he pressed his mouth more firmly against yours, his entire body exhaled in relief. His shoulders fell and the taut muscles across his torso seemed to stand down. Moving his hands slowly to your wrists, he lifted them to sit on his shoulders before adjusting his own grip to gather the fabric at your sides. Tugging forward, it wasn't long until you were in his lap again, right where this whole thing had started.

Pulling away for only a moment, Chan set his forehead against yours. Holding you tightly, he didn't bother to open his eyes as he relished in the moment the two of you were sharing.

"Maybe best friends should kiss a lot more than they do."