#i caved and spent real money on it

[taminoarticles]

— Tamino for ODDA Magazine, No. 23 / Fall/Winter 2022-23 / Spring 2023 (x)

TAMINO

"When the heart speaks, the mind finds it indecent to object," says Milan Kundera in his masterpiece, "The Unbearable Lightness of Being," Tamino's favorite novel. And it is that the music of this young Belgian-Egyptian singer cannot come from anywhere other than a heart that harbors feelings as pure as longing or melancholy. At 25 years old, Tamino has turned into a musical reference due to his complex themes and his deep and emotional voice that became known for the acclaimed song "Habibi," instant success in 2018. His first album, "Amir," was not long in coming to confirm his undoubted talent, capable of conquering even musicians like Colin Greenwood, a member of Radiohead and Tamino's frequent collaborator. Now, after taking a break from all this whirlwind of emotions, he returns to the spotlight determined to move us with "Sahar," his sophomore album, released at the end of September 2022, that shows us a more vitalistic and tender side of the singer, who takes us by the hand to guide us through the boulevard of broken hearts. Could there be a better company?

In conversation with JUAN MARTÍ SERRANO Photographer JAIME CABRERA HUIDOBRO Fashion Editor ADRIAN BERNAL Casting Director CHOUAÏB ARIF Edited by EMMELEIA DALIWAN and ALBERTO CALABRESE Dog MOZAR

JUAN MARTI SERRANO. Hello Tamino, it is a pleasure to meet you! I'd like to talk a little about your past. You started in the music industry at a very young age, when you were only 14 years old, creating your own music band. Now, at 25, when you look back, how do you remember those years?

TAMINO. When I was 14, I started out playing in bands very locally in Belgium so I wouldn't call it "the music industry yet," we were performing but not making any money. That period of my life taught me a lot about band dynamics and sound checks, some stuff you have to learn. At 17, I went to study in Amsterdam and I started performing just by myself. Suddenly, when I created my first song in 2017, stuff started happening, I was 19-20 years old. Those years were quite crazy, a rollercoaster, a lot happened in a short amount of time. I was never home, touring all the time...

J.M.S. What was more fun, those old days or just now?

T. I couldn't say. There are aspects of it now that are more fun and there are aspects of before that are also more fun. The weird thing is that I've always taken this very seriously, in that sense nothing has really changed. If I would play in a small cafe show when I was 17 in Amsterdam I would take it as seriously as I am taking the show now. I don’t allow myself to go crazy like drinking the night before or whatever. I'm quite boring in that sense, I'm very dedicated to the shows and what I’m doing, I always want quality. I guess the scale is the only thing that has changed.

"I'm an introvert so that's where I get my energy, when I'm alone, I recharge my batteries." - Tamino

J.M.S. What lessons have you learned during all these years?

T. That I don’t really like traveling! [laughs.] I mean, I love being in other places, I love meeting new people and cultures but I don't like traveling itself. I know some people like flying, but I really hate it, I hate all the waiting around it. At the same time, when you are on tour with the same people all the time, sometimes in close spaces, I concluded, "Yes, I’m an introvert." I need time for myself, I need to read, to have space. That's the main thing that I have learned.

J.M.S. Have you ever thought about a life not linked to music? Have you ever contemplated a future detached from your role as a singer?

T. First, I really loved acting and directing. I was always making these little theater plays and forcing my little brother to participate in them. That was actually my first passion, I really, really loved it. I took it very seriously as well even though I was fucking eight years old or whatever. I acted until I was 15 or 16 along with the music but music eventually took over. The funny thing is that now my brother is an actor and a director. That was basically the only other aspiration I ever had.

J.M.S. Have you ever thought of revisiting your acting passion?

T. If I do anything with it I would really need to take it as seriously as music. It couldn't be a part-time thing, it would require a lot of my time and effort. I should just be able to give it my everything.

J.M.S. You consider yourself a composer before a musician. I would like to know what inspires you the most when creating your sound and your lyrics.

T. I really don’t know! [laughs] I think that’s the beauty of songwriting, you simply don’t know where it comes from. If I think about books or other music, yes. I can tell you about several people that inspire me the most. I really love reading a lot because it’s sort of this in-depth perspective of someone else’s life or whatever which is super inspiring for me. Something about reading a book makes me want to write a song as well. But the biggest thing of course is just living. The main thing behind my songwriting has always been finding a sort of inner world, also to work through things. I don't want to call it therapy because it is an art form and not every song must be autobiographical, it is just a place where I can let my emotions be and refine them in a way.

J.M.S. Now I am very curious to know what your favorite book is...

T. I really love "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" by Milan Kundera.

J.M.S. And tell me, when it comes to composing the narrative of your music, I would like to know if they are based on your own experiences or on the experiences of others. Do you find more inspiration in your life or in the lives of others?

T. I guess it's always a combination. You go through life experiencing whatever comes across your path but you are also an observer. It is always a little bit of both. I have to say that when something impactful happens to me there is of course an inner tension that wants to get out of me. That's the most natural state of being when wanting to create something. If that isn't there, life can be sometimes very still or dynamic, then it’s more a craftsmanship thing. I couldn't say if one stage is better than the other. I don't necessarily think that the best song comes from this struggle and tense state of being or maybe of the observer state of being. Both influence each other, it's like a dance.

J.M.S. Don't you think that many times writing music forces you to constantly immerse yourself in your memories and experiences as if it were an eternal and exhausting spiral of introspection?

T. It's the other way around [laughs.] It's not being a musician that makes me think about all those things all the time; it is just the fact that I always think about those things that probably made me into a musician. That it's just how I am and how I've always been. There is this beautiful song called "I Watched The Film The Song Remains The Same" by Sun Kil Moon. In this song, the singer thinks about his childhood and compares his friends to himself and how he always was drawn to the melancholic aspects of things and how things never leave him. He once had a fight at school and how that event is going to haunt him forever. I really relate to that emotion, to that song. That's probably the main reason why I make stuff.

J.M.S. Being a melancholic and nostalgic person but at the same time young and sensitive, have you ever stopped to think about what the hell you really know about life?

T. Of course! [laughs.] When you are a bit younger you think you know everything, you think you are invincible but of course, that grows out of you quickly normally when you grow into adulthood. I don't think being a songwriter is about knowing things, it’s more about exploring them and accepting the fact that you don’t know anything and you are just figuring it all out. I think that figures out all-out aspects of it that people relate to in a way because at the end if you look at songs from whatever era, you find similar things. Human experiences are not very different from each other.

J.M.S. Are you hoping to figure things out?

T. Yeah! You are always trying to figure things out I guess.

J.M.S. Your single "Habibi" made you reach fame back in 2018, a song that was highly applauded by the public and critics. How do you feel when you listen to that song? Do you still recognize yourself in those lyrics?

T. I recognize the boy who wrote it at the time. I was 18 so I have a lot of love for that younger self. It was a very courageous song to release especially at that age. I'm super happy that I did that at the end. It is still a song that I love performing. The beautiful thing about songs is that they evolve with you. When I'm singing it now,the feeling I get from the  song is different. There are so many memories attached to the song that come back and give me a similar feeling as it did back then, but the song changes a bit with you. It keeps on surprising me.

J.M.S. The same year [2018] you released your first album, "Amir." How do you remember the moment of releasing that first great work?

T. I was definitely nervous but at the same time, I was feeling like I had made something you really believe in and you are fully behind it. You feel that whatever happens to this, whatever opinions it can receive, this is what you wanted to make so it doesn't really matter. Well, it matters but at the same time it doesn't [laughs.] Let’s say hypothetically if I would have made an album that I wasn't proud of and I would release it feeling that it wasn't what I wanted to do, the bad opinions would have made me feel broken because I would be thinking "I knew it wasn’t good!" If I really like the work and someone doesn't like it it’s fine, I'm still going to like it. The curse of writing albums is that the moment you finish it a couple of months later you totally like hearing all the flaws and it’s very motivational because it drives you to start writing again and to try to make a follow-up with fewer flaws [laughs.]

"Right now I'm super focused on music, I really want to make a third album. I want to write a lot of songs in the next few months even though I know that's going to be super busy." - Tamino

J.M.S. But the reception of your album was really great!

T. I know [laughs.] But I can hear all the things I could have done better or just differently. One work drives the other.

J.M.S. In one of her songs, Spanish singer, Rosalia, mentions that fame is a bad lover. Nowadays, being famous entails enduring an intrusion into private life and overexposure to social media. How has your experience with fame been after gaining attention through your songs?

T. Fame is a very subjective term. In some sorts of bubbles, you can be famous, but in others, people don’t know you at all. Before social media, if you were famous, you were really famous. But now it’s like a big group of people know you but then a bigger group of people have never heard anything about you, so I wouldn't be able to call myself “famous.” I have experienced aspects of fame when I’m performing, because a lot of people who know my music have come together and maybe want to meet me in person after the show. And it can be overwhelming because suddenly there are a lot of people who have heard your music and want to express their love. But if I’m just walking on the street there are not enough people who really know me, rather it would be annoying. I feel really happy with my level of fame or whatever you want to call it, because it is really spread or very concentrated when I’m performing. Otherwise, I have a very normal life.

J.M.S. Look, I think if you have your own Wikipedia page, you're famous!

T. Oh, man! Then a lot of people can be considered famous! [laughs]

J.M.S. Singer, Lykke Li, declared that “sadness is a blessing.” Do you think that for artists it is totally true when it comes to finding inspiration?

T. Definitely. I've found many emotions inspirational. I guess sadness and joy are quite connected, they can’t be without each other. You can only be joyful because you know what sadness is like. The same thing goes for sadness. I like the yin-yang of that. That's basically everything. Everything comes down to that.

J.M.S. You say that you don’t like to explain your own songs, you prefer that everyone interprets them. So if we go by that idea there is not just one Tamino, but many versions of you for every person who listens to your songs, right?

T. Yes! I think people do that anyway. Life happens inside our consciousness so everyone has their own perspective. There are many versions of you because in everybody's mind you are somehow a bit different. There would never be one singular vision of a person.

J.M.S. This makes me think a bit about the mystery and how overexposed artists are today because of social media. You have managed to stay out of all that madness and remain very enigmatic. Do you think it’s important for an artist to be somehow untouchable and unreachable?

T. I do like some mystery [laughs.] In the first place as a fan of other artists I like it when they are not too revealing because I don’t want to know everything about them, I just want to experience their work. At the same time, I read for example a biography about Leonard Cohen because I was interested in his life. I do like some mystery and I think it is important for people to be able to experience the work as pure as possible.

J.M.S. After having listened to “Sahar,” I am left with the feeling that one of the main themes is loneliness. I would like to ask you, do you usually feel lonely or do you consider yourself a solitary person? Or otherwise, have you learned how to embrace loneliness and be comfortable with it?

T. Rather a solitary person than lonely. I don’t really feel lonely because I have really good friends. Loneliness is more about a state of being that you can feel from time to time and when you feel it you can dwell in it or call a friend and hang out. I do that when I feel lonely but I'm also very ok with being alone because it’s the only way I'm able to create. I’m an introvert so that’s where I get my energy, when I'm alone, I recharge my batteries.

J.M.S. One of my favorite songs on the album, “The Longing,” talks about letting go. Do you think you are someone who holds on to people or even memories or is it easy for you to let go?

T. I'm still figuring that out. I don’t know yet if I’m a super sentimental person who is very nostalgic and dwells in the past or someone who is quite always moving forward. Maybe I’m someone in between.

J.M.S. In “Sahar” through songs like “The First Disciple,” you talk about love and desire. At 25 years old, do you think our generation correctly understands what love is about?

T. I wouldn't be able to say what love is about, I don’t even know. That's a difficult question to answer. There is something about the whole dating app era that is a bit weird but at the same time, I have a lot of friends who found love, even myself. I would never say that we are a lost generation, we are very capable of love, finding it, and maintaining it. It just takes some work.

J.M.S. In both records, “Sahar” and “Amir,” you can perceive that the great influence of bands like Radiohead is prominent. Actually, a component of the band participated in a single of your first album, “Indigo Night.” I would like to know your personal and musical connection with the band led by Thom Yorke.

T. Colin Greenwood, the bassist of Radiohead, was the one who played with us in that song, then we started touring together a bit, and then I asked him to play again in the new album so he plays in seven songs! We spent a lot of time in the studio and we already did a big concert in Istanbul in June. He is super.

“I guess sadness and joy are quite connected, they can’t be without each other. You can only be joyful because you know what sadness is like. The same thing goes for sadness.” - Tamino

J.M.S. Ok, we spoke about music, your “personality” as an artist… Tell us more about who Tamino is.

T. Well I can tell you that my favorite movie is “Phantom Thread.”

J.M.S. That movie in which the fashion designer lets himself be poisoned by his girlfriend in a kind of psycho-emotional game?

T. Yes! Love that movie! When I was a kid my favorite movies were “The Lord of the Rings” and they still sort of are.

J.M.S. Love “Lord of the Rings”, so homoerotic!

T. Which character makes you think those movies are homoerotic?

J.M.S. Most of them. All those sweaty and dirty men sleeping together in those dark and mysterious forests with voyeuristic trees with eyes spying on them...

T. Maybe I should rewatch them!

J.M.S. And Frodo and Sam, of course! Something between them was going on!

T. Oh yes! I can understand that!

J.M.S. And favorite musician?

T. So many! Anouar Brahem’s “Blue Maqams” has really inspired me for this album. The typical ones I have mentioned so many times like Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan, Fairuz... I think when I really like something I always go back to it, that’s probably something that is very present in my personality. I have loyalty to those kinds of things. I rarely have anything like this new thing that I’m super into. I like a lot of things but I don’t love a lot of things. If I love something, it is with me forever in a way. There are a couple of books and movies that I would always go back to and I probably always talk about.

J.M.S. Any TV shows?

T. “Better Call Saul!” Just brilliant!

J.M.S. Let's talk about fashion, an industry that has been seduced by you since we all got to discover your music. Some houses such as Missoni included you in their advertising campaign and many others requested your presence in their shows. What is the meaning of fashion for Tamino and how do you go through your style?

T. I like just wearing clothes that make me feel I would say “I like myself,” but it depends on the day. Sometimes I like to wear a suit, sometimes I like to wear a t-shirt. What I'm wearing needs to make me feel aligned with the mood I'm in because then I feel that my interactions with people are better. I think that wearing what makes you feel comfortable that day makes you more connected to yourself.

J.M.S. Do you pay attention to the clothes you wear?

T. I definitely pay attention to what I wear. I love well-made clothes and good fabrics and designs. I really appreciate the quality. There are some brands that I'm really into like Yohji Yamamoto.

J.M.S. Would you like to participate actively and frequently in the world of fashion?

T. It’s funny because it was never an ambition when I was younger. It was something that just happened. It’s super cool but I’m very sober in fashion. It’s not like I’ve ever had a deep desire to make it in fashion, if something comes along and feels right like I really want to do it, then for sure!

J.M.S. Now that you have a well-grounded career in music and the support of specialized critics and your fans, what is the next step for Tamino?

T. First, we have the tour coming so I hope I will be able to enjoy it more this time, to be more at the moment. Right now I’m super focused on music, I really want to make a third album. I want to write a lot of songs in the next few months even though I know that’s going to be super busy. I want to spend some time in New York or anywhere else that can feel inspired. It’s time for something new.

Grooming by BASTIEN ZORZETTO using REDKEN Set Designer PIERGIO GEREMIA Retoucher ALBERTO MARO Fashion Assistant MARTIN BARRÉ Special Thanks to JAOVEN RICOEUR, CLAUDIA MATE, ANDREW SMITH and EMMA BOESCH at VIRGIN RECORDS

#tamino #tamino amir #odda magazine #article #interview #english #2022 #with photoshoot #original text #eyestrain #<- just in case #finally got this :) #i caved and spent real money on it

[cheriladycl01]

No because that hurt me! Lando Norris x Girlfriend! Reader Part 2

Plot: Lando goes one step too far ...

Credit to purplephantomwolf for the GIF

As you'd promised you'd gone straight back to London, you thrown yourself into your work. You spent the days on the construction sight for the new house you were flipping, overseeing the progress. You spent the evenings in the studio working on more plans for the interior of the house.

But you did miss him, of course you missed him.

He was your person ...

Your guy...

The love of your life.

In the time that you'd come home however, videos had surfaced, many videos had surfaced...

The first was of you and Lando in the club, someone from a table across from the one your friends had been sat in showed how Lando had acted towards you and how his friends had tried to back you up. The next was of you running up to Alex, begging for a lift.

Afterwards, videos were leaked of the rest of Lando's night where he celebrated his win, by dancing with his friends and random girls that were being pulled into the big group. Nothing scandalous but enough to upset the fans who really liked you.

Later on, after the first few videos came out a video came out of Max Fewtrell and him arguing before him and Pietra left. Max actually pushed him a little and lots of hand gestures were flying round, but Lando looked just as angry as Max did.

Normally when you were in London, people knew they'd get content on your Instagram stories of you doing what you do best. People had suggested you to start a YouTube because your live's and reels were so funny that they'd definitely spend the time watching.

But you'd been dark since the argument with Lando and people were getting worried including Lando. So when you posted a titkok with your team, in the trend that AstonMartin did where the camera is up high above and you all do funny things, the media went crazy.

You then posted a video on instagram talking about the new house and the progress that was coming on.

"Hey guys! Y/N here! Just wanted to show you how the latest project is coming on. We've torn down the living room and put all new flooring in, which actually has built in underfloor heating which i think here in the UK is a real money move. We're going to hook it all up to a central network from the hallway as you walk in, which we finally finished the painting for that last week" you pan showing the round the areas you'd been talking about.

You showed you and one of the girls tearing down the kitchen.

Captioned 'Best Part of the Job, Free Rage Room', which is how you'd always referred to the demolition phase of house flipping. People on twitter of course took it out of context and rumors started flying that you and Lando had in fact called it splits, even one of those WAG update pages 'confirming' the breakup from close sources.

You'd found it laughable really, but you knew it would be hurting Lando, and no matter how much he hurt you ... you weren't a bitter person. You didn't want him hurting as well.

You were sat in your studio at your desk, sketching for the garden. The pen was currently in your mouth, sat back debating whether you should reach out to Lando or wait for him to come to you.

It had been three weeks at this point with no communication. You'd spoken to Lando's family, who had talked with you about everything that had happened. Cisca and Adam had apologized for their sons behavior.

As you were about to pick up your phone, caving in to messaging Lando first when you swore you wouldn't on knock on your wooden studio door sounds.

You frown, wondering who on earth would be coming to you at this time of the night. You weren't even open, office hours were long over. It was about 11pm, so your clients knew you weren't taking calls even though you were still here and working with a light on.

You open the door, bolt and latch on for added protection.

"Lando?" you ask seeing the curly haired boy, hoodie up and his eyes looking more tired than you'd ever seen them.

"You want to open up and let me in baby?" he asks softly, a slight crack to his voice.

"I was just about to call you" you admit, unlatching the door so it swings open fully. He stops just under the arch of the door observing you. It was like he was having a small inward debate with himself.

"Gonna cave coz you miss me?" he jokes, testing the waters. He didn't know how you were now that you'd have some time apart. He was hopeful that he could talk to you again and fix what had happened.

"Honestly yeah. I hate you and how much of a hold you have on me" you admit, leaning back into your chair directing him to the sofa.

"I came here, to say I'm sorry and that I was horrible to you. And I know it's not excuse but I want to explain what happened. In full... I think you deserve more than an explanation... but I think you need one for if we are ever going to go back to what we were" he sighs. He leans forward and takes your hand into his.

He explains how, after the race people told him you'd said you were leaving the race track. So he went to the hotel to find you, only for you not to be there, Max came round and said you were probably getting ready with the girls as P had told him you were all gonna meet them there.

"I didn't think this was too out of the ordinary for you, your especially close with P and Lily, and it wouldn't shock me if Kelly and Kika would drag you all into a girl pre-club party in their hotel room..." he laughs knowing that normally you and P would do each other's makeup when Max and her came to race weekends. Or you and Lily would switch outfit's loving to venture into each other's styles.

When he got to the club and no-one had seen you, and Pierre and Charles had come up to him with celebratory shots, he hadn't declined.

"The shots were the start of what slowly just went downhill, I don't think i ever want to drink that much again, I was so happy at the start" he laughs flushing red and the thought of him knocking back shots, which was rare considering he didn't like to drink. He wouldn't be doing it anytime soon that was for sure.

"You deserved to celebrate though baby, don't make it seem like you shouldn't have had a fun night" you admit, both of you were being open and mature adults right now. You were so glad you'd both spent some time apart to think before you fought more, now you were both talking and listening to each other and you couldn't help but think it was beautiful and intimate.

After the three hour mark he was fed up that you hadn't bothered to show up at such an important night for him. Talking to Charles and Pierre who were also drunk, weren't the best influences on suggesting places you could be. All of them being ones his drunk mind could picture vividly, his sober mind would have known his girl would never dream of doing that to him.

"Charles said some things and I know sober me would have known you wouldn't do that, but i was already angry thinking you'd just ditched me. I shouldn't have drunk as much and I know its no excuse... but" he starts and you nod.

"The main thing is you know how you would have acted. Yes you upset me, yes your hurt me because you said some horrible things to me..."

"Yeah, I've heard the video and It wasn't my intention to embarrass you the way I did, especially in front of our friends. I'm so so sorry!" he admits.

The other group, had tried to convince him that maybe you'd just got held up and thats where Oscar, Lily, Max and P had all messaged you.

"Baby, I'm so so sorry that i wasn't there for you after what happened!" he says tears in his eyes. This would forever be one of his biggest regrets in life, not being there for you when you needed him.

"How did you find out?" you gulp, not really wanting to think about what could have happened that night if it wasn't for the Mclaren Mechanics.

"Well, after having a scolding from Oscar, and Max, and Alex, and Zac... the mechanics also threatened to botch my pit stops. So i listened to what they did for you"

"Mmmm it was scary. All i wanted was you" you nod, rubbing a thumb across his hand.

"I'm so so sorry, I promised you that i'd protect you always. And I've failed!" he says with a little snivel and tears brimming his eyes.

"You've not failed, you just made a mistake, there's been some miscommunication and Charles and Pierre didn't help with their boyish meddling but ... we'll get there" you smile before pulling closer to him and nuzzling into his neck breathing in his sent.

"Do you think you'll ever forgive me?" he asks softly pulling you back so he can fully look at you.

"I already have, darling" you smile.

"What did i ever do to deserve you, I don't think i do" he smiles.

"Hmmmm, well I think the historians will argue one day its me who didn't deserve you" you sigh, brushing some of his hair back.

"I doubt that" he scoffs, knowing that when you first started dating, even with your lack of status people still thought you were too kind, too sweet and too innocent for someone as jokey and brash as Lando was seen to be.

"I've never had anyone treat me the way you do, I'm so so in love with you. And I don't ever want the feelings I have when i think of you and see you to stop. I feel like i can do anything when i have you by my side. Why do you think the first person i seeked out was you?" you offer, softly leaning in and placing a kiss on the corner of his lips.

You guys, talked more that night. About how you actually had fun helping the Mclaren boys pack up, regardless if you thought Lando had forgotten about you.

A week later and the media had picked up on the sighting the paps had got of both of you. Some fans had seen you both at a restaurant and make posts on it.

The comments bashed you either way, being between saying how silly you were for taking him back or the others saying they were upset you were back. It got to the point where you had to release a statement saying that you and Lando, are grown adults who can talk through the miscommunication and issues you'd experienced and were better for it now.

"I love you so much, and I'm never ever ever acting up like that again" he says as you help him do up his fire suit for the race you were currently at with him.

"I love you too, now go out and get another win for me baby so we can celebrate properly this time" you smile, kissing him before Jon comes forward asking for Lando's presence in the front of the garage.

A/N: I hope you guys think this did the first part justice as so many people requested a Part 2, so I'm really scared that this hasn't done it justice! If you want a rewrite with something better... something longer where its more of a series. Or where it goes the opposite way and it takes her longer to forgive him let me know. I just thought that Y/N and Lando in this one specifically would be the type to maturely talk about things!

Taglist:

@littlesatanicassholebitch @hockey-racing-fubol @laura-naruto-fan1998 @22yuki @simxican @sinofwriting @lewisroscoelove @cmleitora @stupidandunnecessary @clayra-g @daemyratwst @honey-belden @moonypixel @lauralarsen @vader-is-hot @ironcowboycopnickel @itsjustkhaos @the-untamed-soul @beebo86 @happylittlereader @ziejustme @lou-larcher5 @thewulf @purplephantomwolf @chasing-liberosis @chillyleclerc @chanthereader @annoyingmoonballoon @summissss @evieepepi08 @havaneseoger08 @celesteblack08 @gulphulp @fandom1ruined2me @celebstories @starfusionsworld @jspitwall @sierruhh @georgeparisole @dakotatankbig @youcannotcancelquidditch @zzonsbeek @tallbrownhairsarcastic @mellowarcadefun @ourteenagetragedy @otako5811 @countingstacksandpanicattacks @peachiicherries @formulas-bitch @cherry-piee @hopexcroc @mirrorball-6 @spilled-coffee-cup @mehrmonga @bigsimperika @blueberry64857959 @eiraethh @lilypadlover @curseofhecate @alliwantisadonut @the-fem1n1ne-urge @21stcenturytaegi @dark-night-sky-99 @spideybv28 @i-wish-this-was-me @tallrock35 @butterfly-lover @barnestatic @landossainz @darleneslane @barcelonaloverf1life @r0nnsblog @ilove-tswizzle @kapsylia @laneyspaulding19 @lazybot @malynn @cassielikereading @viennakarma @teamnovalak @landosgirlxoxo

People requesting for just this part...

@christianpulisic10 @ilovechickenwings @basicallyric @runs-with-sciss0rs @dreamerrosie @eviethetheatrefreak @luv4kani @randomgirlnumber-13 @simpingcorner @c3ndr1n3 @bibissparkles @littlehoneyfreak @80sloverry @xjval @de1u1ugyal @meadhbhcavanagh @solphin @devotedleycrookeddonut @gg-trini @urfavnoirette @manuosorioh @angelbunny222 @randaaz @nvi111 @allabouthappiness @loloekie @error1190 @itsprashimusic @goldenharrysworld @glitterf1

#f1 imagine #f1 x reader #formula 1 x you #formula 1 #formula one #formula one fanfiction #lando norris #lando norris imagine #lando imagine #lando x reader #lando norris x y/n #lando norris fanfic #lando norris x reader #ln4 #ln4 x reader #ln4 imagine #ln4 fic #lando norris angst #lando norris fluff

[loveundrwrld]

m yan business owner (owns a rage room) x f customer reader

f reader is a hyper independent eldest daughter who pays for the most expensive package m yan offers.

m yan is scared but also intrigued as f reader destroys the heck out of the room and caves in the selected weapon of choice (metallic base ball bat) while california here we go by the garden blares through the speakers

i have this scene in my mind where f reader looks at m yan through the security camera situated in one of the upper corners of the room, bat pointed at the camera, “turn that song up now” and proceeds to smash everything as the music plays loudly that it leaks into the other hired out rooms (idk how rage rooms work i want to go to one).

yes i am living vicariously through this request

ok ty

i love this request! ur valid, it's totally okay to be self-indulgent here.

i really like how detailed your request is- i did look up some stuff about rage rooms, which was interesting!

i'd never heard of them before. they do sound like they can be a little dangerous though, anon, so if you go to one in real life be careful- smashing electronics for instance is not recommended irl, there's a lot of stuff in computers and such that are not meant to be airborne. not trying to rain on your parade though, ofc, just do make sure to proceed with caution 👍

_____

burnt out female reader x rage room owner male yandere

(cw: dysfunctional family dynamic)

you were fed up with everything. exhausted, burnt out to the core. on the palms of your hands there were crescent marks from clenching your fist tightly all day, and your lip felt raw from biting them.

all day you had to do everything- go to your job, listen to your stupid boss's inane requests, drive your younger siblings to soccer or school, and run errands for your aging parents. and what thanks did you get? only a small acknowledgment if any. you were your parent's most "responsible" child, the eldest, so it was expected of you.

you got a job at an early age, and moved out when you were very young. you were hoping that being successful would make you feel better and would make you help you feel better about yourself. make your life feel more full. you tried your best to do everything by yourself, hoping that would make you look like a better daughter in your parents' eyes. and yet, you felt painfully empty. and you knew exactly why.

it was all criticism for you. no praise. even though you were great at your job and highly accomplished, it didn't matter. to your parents, all that mattered was that you could have done better. even though you were no longer living in their house, you could still feel the stress of their eyes on you weighing you down.

you decided that it was about time you have a little stress relief. punching your pillow could only get you so far. and by coincidence, you found an ad for something local that fit your interests- a "rage room." you could get all your anger out easily, and let your real self out. you could forget the mask of the "perfect daughter," if only for a little bit.

you thought for a second and realized that you couldn’t remember the last time you took a day off just for the sake of it. you could just take one vacation day for fun, and then you’d go back to work the next day feeling much better.

and, besides that, you were so busy being a careful, diligent daughter that you barely spent any money on yourself. you had plenty of money stored up, so why not use it?

you decided to just take a chance and do it. you dipped into your ample savings and reserved a room for yourself, and picked the most expensive option- a room reserved just for you, with someone coming in and giving you even more stuff to destroy so you can spend hours smashing as much stuff as you desire. it was the perfect idea.

when you got to the location, you were surprised at how small the place was. it looked a lot bigger on the website... and a lot cleaner, too.

the person that greeted you was a nervous, mousy-eyed teenager. he was wearing coveralls with a little name tag saying “max.” max spoke to you with a small, nervous voice, constantly darting his eyes.

"so, where's the owner? is it you?" you said with a smile, joking, but max only gave you a pained look in response. a sore subject, you guessed. it seemed you weren't the only person here with a terrible boss.

he silently passed you some forms to fill out, which you skim through and sign. it's just a standard liability form, you figured.

once he led you into your room, he handed you a face shield and some heavy-duty gloves, as well as some coveralls to put over what you were wearing. you put them on while he talked about the safety precautions.

you just nodded, your brain turned off. sure, you didn't catch all he said, but it couldn't be that important, right?

"... so, ma’am, make sure you don't get too distracted, or else you could get hurt, okay?" he said, giving you a nervous smile.

"hm. sure. okay. now, max, is there any way i can play some music here?"

---

"stupid parents, stupid fucking job, stupid fucking responsibilities-"

you yelled, smashing into the third television set with wild abandon with your bat. your favorite song was playing on the speakers too, so loudly you could nearly feel the bass through your feet.

this was a great choice! you were already feeling much better. your throat was a bit raw from yelling over the music that was playing over the speakers, and your arms were feeling the burn of swinging over and over again.

your body was pulsing with energy, and you felt absolutely unstoppable. what a great little vacation! who knew being consumed with rage could feel so good!

---

at that moment, unbeknownst to you, someone was watching you from the security room. rhys, the owner of the place, was settled in his security control room, watching around the feeds idly to make sure that everyone was following the rules as expected.

he was half paying attention while he was scrolling on his phone, bored out of his mind, when one feed happened to catch his attention. it was you.

when you first came in, he thought you looked like a typical prim, proper, well-mannered girl. dressed nicely with a tidy appearance, you paid him in advance for a specialty reservation. he thought you were a typical rich girl having fun with her parent's money. nothing too special.

but now, to his surprise… you were smashing everything in sight like there was no tomorrow. you were becoming almost manic in your efforts, forgetting even that someone was in the room with you. glass and metal shards were flying everywhere, and your metal bat was becoming dented as you kept using it with all your might.

a shiver went down him. part of it was fear, of course. he wouldn't want to get on your bad side. but, another part of him was feeling something else as he watched your sweet little face become almost demented as you swung your bat over and over again.

right now, he was beginning to be grateful that he put down cell phone numbers on the forms he made his customers sign. maybe he could give you a little call and ask if you'd like to become a "loyal customer"... or, better yet, he could give you a job offer for a little side hustle…

the door opened, and max came in, interrupting his precious viewing session. he turned to glare at the young employee.

he was always babbling on about the customers, coming in and complaining about them being rude or scary. it was one of the annoying parts of owning your own business- you had to hire other people to help, and with a minimum wage job like this, only squirrelly little teens looking for extra money were applying for the position.

"s-sir, the lady in our specialty room isn't following proper safety precautions, and the music is already way too loud and it's bothering the other customers but she wants it even louder, but when i tried to talk to her she couldn't even hear me-"

rhys waved his hand dismissively, turning his head back around to continue watching the feed of your security camera. his large fingers tapped quickly on his desk, impatiently.

"yeah yeah, so be it. anyways, see that?" he pointed to you swinging the bat on the monitor. "it looks like her bat is almost done, it's so dented it's nearly caved in. you gotta get her a brand new one."

"... s-sir? you want me to go back in there?"

"yeah. what's the big deal? a little broken glass?" he scoffed. "i don't pay you to just sit around."

on the feed, he could see you stopping for a bit, heaving in large breaths. you turned your head, looking around. your eyes widened.

"see, kid? she needs you in there."

you stepped forward to where the security camera was, staring up at it with fiery eyes. your arm came up and pointed towards it.

for a second, he felt like the two of you had a connection. like you knew exactly who was watching you, and was pointing and staring directly at him.

then, your lips moved, mouthing words. you were saying "music... louder..."

he couldn't help but to smile, amused by your antics. you really were something, weren't you?

and now, he realized he didn't want to send max in there. he had a chance to get even closer to you, be around you physically. he didn't want him to be the one doing tasks for you, getting your attention. he wanted all your fiery passionate anger, all for himself.

the fear and excitement just thinking about it ran shivers through his spine, and a coil of heat down his stomach.

"actually, on second thought. i'll be the one to help her out, 'kay?"

#yandere x reader #male yandere #yandere oc #yandere oc x reader #yandere boy

[rawritzrobin]

The Waynes: Chapter 6

Title: The Waynes

Pairing: Mobster!Jason Todd x Reader

Warnings: None!

Summary: You meet the family again, this time on different terms.

A/N: The adventure continues! Please let me know what you think so far! I have some exciting new chapters planned out. And a few fluffy ones.

Taglist (Please let me know if you want to be added!): @msghostface @khaylin27 @thequeenofbigmacs @escapism-r-us @orighami @neobreakmyback @bubbles-incorrect-yb @hypnobanditprofessorhorse-blog @attllas @comic-cat83 @mommyneytiri @aerangi @thegreawizards @baebeepeach @slitheringss @xoxoyourdoll @portrait-ninja @sunflowertardis @anime-lover-forever-1127 @wrldwidemind @dopedreamobject @jayroytodd

Masterlist | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5

Chapter 6: Trouble

You wasted no time in getting in. You had read enough books in your lifetime to know that going with Dick was a lot safer than dealing with whoever was in that suspicious black van back there. As soon as you closed the door, Dick peeled off. You looked back to see three men step outside the van. They all had ski masks on and had the side of the van open. Your heart was pumping as you realized what just happened.

“Are you okay?” He asked, turning to look at you.

“Y-yeah.” You said, still trying to catch your breath. 

“It’s okay. Charles told me that he was supposed to drive you home tonight, but that he got caught up with something. I was in the neighborhood, and wanted to make sure you made it home safe.” Dick said.

You looked over at him. Confused.

Dick laughed. “I’ve never seen Jason so wound up over a girl. I was curious.”

You just looked at him in disbelief. “Where are we going?” You asked.

“The Cave. You’ll be safe there.”

********

After sitting in silence for about five minutes you finally felt your heart calm down. You turned to look at Dick, who was totally unfazed by what just happened. You took a deep breath, ready to address the elephant in the room.

“Who were those people?” You asked, your voice still a little shaky. You were not 100% sure what they were trying to do, but you had an inkling.

“I have a hunch, but I can’t say for certain. Jason does have many enemies. It could be anyone.”

You turned to look at him fearfully, “Enemies? Why would Jason have enemies?” 

Dick cursed internally. He should not have said that. He wasn’t sure if Jason had told you what his real job was. Your reaction gave that away. “Just some people who don't like us. The Wayne family name isn’t exactly clean. They probably figured a ransom for you would be a big payout.”

You held your breath. You didn’t want to admit to yourself that you just escaped an attempted kidnapping. You had heard stories of kidnappings before around Gotham. Criminals love to take advantage of rich folk. Money was no problem for Bruce Wayne. It was likely Jason shared the same sentiment, being his son and all.

But how did they know? You and Jason kept your relationship pretty low key. In public you two never acted like a couple. It was only behind closed doors and in private locations where you two shared loving touches. But it looked like the tabloids were not the only people you two needed to hide your relationship from.

You spent the rest of the ride in silence.

You took the underground entrance. You noticed the wall to wall fancy cars that were down here. This was definitely a private entrance. You were so enamored by the number of cars down here that you didn’t notice the passenger door was open.

“Y/N?” A voice snapped you out of your trance.

It was Charles. You were actually really excited to see a familiar face. You could see the tension in his face. 

“Don’t worry about it C.” Dick said to him as he got out of the car and shut the door. “I’ll tell J it was my fault. I really don’t want to have another tense night between him and Bruce.”

Charles instantly relaxed. He quickly helped you out of the car and you both followed Dick into the club. Charles was apologizing over and over again to you. You kept telling him it wasn’t his fault. None of you were expecting something like this.

It was a Tuesday night, so the club was not as packed as it usually was. There were a few folk here and there, but it was mostly empty. Dick made his way towards one of the tables in the back. You recognized the group that was sitting there as the group that introduced themselves to you the first day you were here at the Cave.

Dick gestured for you to sit in the seat at the middle of the table. You weren’t sure where else you would go, so you obliged. Dick took a seat on the arm of one of the chairs, next to the redhead in the wheelchair. He bent down to press a soft kiss onto her head, and wrapped his arm around her. Everyone was watching you with interest. You shrank down in your seat to make yourself smaller.  

Dick sensed your nervousness, and cleared his throat to bring the attention of the table to him. “Everyone, this is Y/N. Y/N, this is the family.”

Dick went around pointing at each person. “We have Tim, my third youngest brother, Damian: the youngest in the family. We also have Cass and Steph who are basically our adopted sisters, and this here is Barbara, my fiancée.” 

You recognized Barbara from the newspaper, she was with her father, James Gordon. James Gordon was a detective who had just been promoted to commissioner last month.

“Hi Y/N, its sooo nice to meet you.” Stephanie said excitedly. She could not stop grinning at you.

Cass watched you with interest. She was nursing a martini in one hand. She merely watched you with interest as she took a ship of her drink. 

“So Damian here tells me you run a bakery? Are you the one who makes those amazing croissants Jason keeps bringing in?” Tim asks. 

You nod shyly.

You notice Dick bend down and whisper something into Barbara’s ear. A look of concern instantly washes over her face. She quickly looks down and types something into her phone. 

“I don’t see what Todd sees.” Damian says. Tim shoves him and Damian shoves back. They went back and forth until they are interrupted by a gentle voice.

“Ms. Y/N, can I get you anything? Charles tells me that you have been through quite a night.”

You turn around to see an elderly gentleman in a butler suit. He looked at you with kind eyes. He reminded you of your grandpa. You shook your head. You were too wound up to eat.

“Alfred, do you know when Jason will be back?” Dick asked, somehow sensing the burning question you had on your mind.

“He should be back soon. I’ll give him a ring to let him know we have a guest.” Alfred began walking away from the table. 

“I’ll come with you Alfred. I have something I need to tell B.” Dick quickly got to his feet and followed Alfred to the back room. 

“Oh! Did I tell you all that I was able to snag one of those backpacks from Chanel today?” Stephanie started. You listened to the group talk about how their day went. Stephanie bragged about how she finally managed to buy a backpack from a fancy store she had been hunting down for months. Tim talked about how he was able to secure the deal with the software company that they were looking to take over. You listened as the group recapped their day. It was certainly interesting listening to how a bunch of millionaires spent their day.

“I’m gonna kill him.” A loud voice echoed through the room. You turned around to see Jason stepping in through the front door of the cave. He looked angry and was not wearing one of his usual suits. He had on a pair of slacks and a black tank top. He saw you and instantly made his way towards you. You stood up and ran into his arms. The rest of the crew watched you two with interest. It was odd to see Jason affectionate with another person. Usually he just sat at a corner booth by himself, slamming down drinks.

Jason quickly looked you up and down, scanning for injuries. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?” He asked. You shook your head and buried yourself in his chest. He wrapped his arms around you tightly, afraid to let go.

“Jason. We need to talk.” Said a voice from the back of the bar. You pulled away slightly to see the one and only Bruce Wayne in the doorway of a back room. Jason clenched his fist in anger, but calmed down a bit knowing you were here. He didn’t want to start a fight with Bruce in front of you.

He looked down at you. “Sorry, I'll be right back.” He said, placing a gentle kiss onto your head. 

“Don’t let her out of your sight.” Jason said to the group.

You reluctantly let go, and sat back down in your chair, watching Jason disappear into the doorway.

*********

As soon as the sound proof door slammed behind Jason, he let it all out.

“Why did you have to request for Charles tonight?!” He screamed, walking up to Bruce so that they were face to face. “Out of everyone here, you knew he was MINE tonight.”

Bruce didn’t even flinch. He just watched and waited till Jason was finished. “Tell him.” Bruce said nonchalantly. 

Jason glared at Bruce, but turned to look at Dick, who was looking into a tablet. 

“They made their first move tonight.” Dick said, showing the screen to Jason. On the tablet was a photo of a dead body. Jason knew instantly that it was one of his men. Specifically, the man he had follow Y/N. “That’s how they got the intel.” 

Jason looked at Dick. He calmed himself a little, knowing Dick was the one to save Y/N tonight. “Bastard. I knew I never liked him.” Jason huffed.

“I asked Charles to come because he had intel on where Carl had been all week. He also knew the most about Y/N.”

Jason tensed at the mention of your name. “What do they want with her? She doesn’t know anything.”

“They think she does.” Bruce said, as he poured himself a glass of whiskey. “I told you there would be dangers to dragging her into this life.”

Jason scoffed. “I had it under control. Until you took her security away. Charles would have protected her tonight.” He glanced at Dick. Their eyes met, and Jason bowed his head. Dick knew without any words, it was Jason’s way of thanking him. 

“Keep your head up. It’s clear Carmine knows about you two. The easiest way for them to get to us is through her.” Bruce knew what this girl meant to Jason. He had never seen him act like this with anyone else. Jason may have eyes in most places, but Bruce had eyes everywhere.

Jason scoffs, and turns away from Bruce. He made his way to the door, but paused in front of it. “It’s done. The bastard squealed. Next drop is Friday, down by the docks near Amusement Mile. It’s their last shipment before the holidays.” Jason says without turning around. He opened the door, but before he could slam it shut, Bruce spoke.

“Watch your back. They will stop at nothing to get to us. They are desperate.”

With that, Jason slams the door shut, and makes his way back towards the front of the house. His heart warms up when he sees you laughing at something Barbara said. 

You turn to look at him when the group's attention moves towards him. He quickly takes a few strides towards you. “Ready to go? Alfred told me you didn’t eat anything yet. You must be hungry.” 

Now that you were relaxed, you did feel a pang of hunger. You nodded. “Okay.” You said happily. You turned to face the family as you got up from your seat. “Thanks for having me.”

“Of course! You are welcome any time!” Stephanie half screams. “And next time, could you bring some pastries? I only got to have one because these fools here ate them all.”

You laugh at her statement, and Jason wraps his arms around you, leading you out through the front of the bar. You see the familiar black car up front. Jason opens the door for you to get in, and slides in after you. 

“Going back home Y/N?”

You were about to say yes, when Jason chimed in.

“Not tonight. We’re going to my place.”

#jason todd x reader #gangster waynes #jason todd imagines #jason todd #tim drake #damian wayne #bruce wayne #dick grayson #mobster jason todd #gangerste jason todd #red hood x reader #red hood #AU #Batfamily #Batman #Jason Todd x y/n #Jason todd fanfiction #red hood x you #Jason todd x you #jason x reader #the waynes #Mob au

[topknot32]

Girl Dad (2/2)

Rio/OFC

summary- Rio sees his pregnant ex-girlfriend out one night not long after their breakup. He seizes the opportunity, and tries to persuade her to let him be in his kid's life, and hers, too.

warnings- 18+. Smut below the cut

word count- 3.4K

CAMILA

The smell of cigarette smoke had always been a turn off for Camila, always. Until she met Rio. Now, the smell of menthol and cedar wood cologne were comforts. The combination was entirely Christopher, and she breathed it in as he held her in the middle of the restaurant without a care who saw them.

She could blame it on hormones all she wanted, but in truth, she missed him. The few weeks they spent being consumed by one another were some of the best she ever had. There were several moments in their affair when she believed it could be something real, that he might not be the stereotype she'd originally labeled him as.

But every time she opened her mouth to tell her friends and family, something held her back. It was the lifestyle. The unpredictable and dangerous way he lived his life when they weren't together. Christopher had never involved her in his business, but she wasn't stupid or naive.

Camila understood the money he earned to buy luxury vehicles and expensive jewelry wasn't brought in by honest means. That part didn't bother her, no. The part that did was the danger it posed to him. He'd been shot, he told her so, and she'd seen the scars. She was a nurse, she knew what the three healed wounds on his chest were before he even said the words. Getting attached to someone who could end up getting themselves killed was terrifying no matter how much she enjoyed his company and getting pregnant by him was equally so.

When she looked up as he held her, she forgot all of that. He stared down at her with the kind of intensity that made butterflies take flight in her stomach, and she chanced a glance down at his lips. When Christopher put all his attention on her, no one else existed.

"Sorry for the waterworks. I always thought pregnancy hormones were an over dramatization, but nope. They are, in fact, very real."

"You good?" he asked after brushing away the remaining tears from her cheeks. She nodded just as the waitress came over with her salad.

Camila straightened up, and Chris released her, but he didn't retreat. He stayed on her side of the booth while she ate, an arm thrown up behind her on the back of the seat.

The winds seemed to have shifted between them since his apology. She didn't feel as angry, and he didn't seem as arrogant or confrontational. It didn't feel awkward between the two, and a comfortable kind of silence settled over them.

When Camila was finished, Chris brushed a few fallen strands of hair behind her ear. "Come home with me," he said softly, sending a chill down her spine.

She avoided looking at him because the second she did, she'd cave. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?"

He looks irresistible, she thought. "It's just not."

"Please."

The way that one word left his lips pulled her gaze. She could get lost in his brown eyes, and she nearly did. He gave her one of those up and down glances that made her breathe quicken, the kind he snuck so quickly she wasn't even sure if she really saw it.

"I don't—"

"Don't fight me. We don't have to do anything. That's not what this is." He motioned between them with a silver ringed hand. "Let me take care of you. It's the least I can do."

"I have to work early," she tried, but he brushed that off before she'd barely gotten the words out.

"I'll have you tucked in before midnight. Come on."

Chris pulled out his wallet and threw down a few bills, then pulled out his beanie and slid it on. He was always a good tipper, having sympathy for people in the service industry. She admired him for it. Wealth hadn't made him selfish, at least not in that aspect.

He helped her out of the booth, holding her hand like a gentleman. His black SUV was parked on the street just a block away, and once they were inside, he turned up the heat for her sake, knowing how much she hated to be cold. It was a warm cocoon that smelled like him, enveloping her in a sense of calm and safety she hadn't felt since she ended their relationship.

Rap music played quietly, not too loud to interrupt a conversation if she wanted to start one, and it seemed like he was waiting for just that. His fingers tapped a soft beat on the steering wheel as he drove, and he glanced her way every so often.

"I don't want you to pay for things," she said after a while. Chris looked over, a frown forming. "You said you wanted to help, to pay for stuff for the baby."

“And that’s a problem?”

Camila took in a deep, shaky breath. "I don't want to be a single mom, to do all of this alone." She shifted a little in her seat to see him better. She could tell by the tension in his jawline he didn't like the words coming out of her mouth. "Did you mean what you said, about Beth?"

He laughed, a sarcastic kind of laugh. She hated it. "I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it. I figured you knew that by now."

"If she's nothing to you, then do this with me. I don't want your money, I can do that myself. I want you in it, too. All the way. Like, up all night, no sleep, covered in puke all the way."

The sarcastic humor vanished as he processed. He looked over at her, then back at the road. "You're serious?"

"I'm not saying I want to get back together, but I need you, Christopher."

"You have me," he said softly, reaching over to take her hand. "I promise."

Inside his apartment, Christopher pulled his jacket off, heading for the bedroom. Camila always loved his place. The open concept, the warm touches of wood and leather, the photographs.

"Strip," he said, dragging his sweatshirt off next. With his back to her, she admired the newly exposed tan skin, the muscles rippling as he moved. She loved the way his jeans hung on his hips.

She had to drag her eyes away from the lines of his hip bones. "I'm not sleeping with you."

He looked back over his shoulder, hands reaching for his belt buckle. "I'm a grown man, Camila. I can see you naked and not have to fuck. Do what I said."

He disappeared around the corner into the bathroom where she heard the sound of the shower turning on. Her stomach did a nervous flip, but she was happy to be here. She kicked off her shoes and pulled her own sweatshirt off, leaving her in jeans and a lace bralette in her favorite shade of lavender.

He was already in the shower by the time she came in. It was a massive glass box of smooth, black tile with two shower heads, one on each side. His back was to her as she unfastened her jeans and pushed them down along with her panties, then stripped off the bralette, leaving her naked. Next, Camila pulled the hair tie from her hair and let it fall. The steamy air in the bathroom felt like heaven on her skin, the tense muscles in her neck and shoulders already loosening.

When she stepped into the shower, Christopher glanced at her with heavy eyes, drinking her in slowly, like it was the first time, but he kept his distance. She liked the way he looked at her, like she was something rare and special to behold. He turned so he could see her better, but they stayed beneath their separate sprays.

While Camila washed her hair, she snuck a few glances at his perfectly tan, tattooed body. If he saw, he didn't make it known, or at least he didn't chastise her for it. She could admire him for hours and not get tired of the view. With an internal scolding, she turned so he was out of her line of sight.

She found her thoughts drifting to a very similar scene, but a different time. A series of many different times in this very room when there was no space between them, just skin on skin, his long fingers tangled in her hair, lips exploring every single inch of her body. When desire was the ruler of her emotions.

Fingertips brushing the wet hair off the back of her neck and over her shoulder yanked Camila back to now, and her heart nearly stopped. Christopher was standing beneath the spray just behind her. She'd been so wrapped up in her thoughts she hadn't even noticed him come over.

"Where you at?" he hummed, pressing his lips to the spot where her neck and shoulder connected.

Camila shivered, hyper aware of how close he was behind her, the heat of his body giving her goosebumps. His fingers ran down her arm where he laced them through hers, pulling her hand up to press a kiss to the center of her palm. The other hand slid around her waist, resting right over her abdomen.

"I was just thinking," she said softly, eyes fluttering closed.

"About what?"

The sound of his voice was enough to make her melt into him, and she found all rational thought disappearing.

"Us."

She felt him chuckle—a slow, sleepy sound as he kissed his way across her shoulder blade. "Quit makin' me ask and say what's on your mind."

Camila turned her head to see him better, and he looked down with half lidded eyes. He was irresistible, water dripping down his face, his focus entirely on her. Surprising even herself, she leaned up and connected their lips, answering his question without words.

Christopher didn't deny her. He kissed her back, deep and slow, eliciting feelings only he knew how to. It was a sensation she'd desperately missed. She tried to turn in his arms, but he held firm, keeping her right where she was. Keeping her under his control. When he pulled back, he released her hand and cupped her cheek.

"Stop it," he whispered, and she blushed, but kept eye contact.

It was a battle of wills. She waited to see if he would kiss her again, and he waited to see what she wanted, what she was thinking. She could feel his cock hardening, pressing into the small of her back, but he made no move to push her further.

"Tell me what you want, Camila," he said, ghosting his lips across hers, but pulling back when she tried to kiss him.

"Christopher—"

"No."

She bit her bottom lip, drawing his eyes down to the movement. Wanting him and asking for it were two different things. In her mind, she wanted him to let go of his restraints, for him to devour her like only he could, but she didn't know how to say that out loud.

Christopher waited patiently, holding her body tight to him, but there was that look in his eye that told her he wanted an answer.

"I want you," she finally whispered, feeling the heat of embarrassment spreading up from her chest.

He grinned. "You have me. All wrapped around your pretty finger."

“You know what I mean."

"You should be really clear because what I think you might mean, you told me wasn't gonna happen."

The hand on her abdomen slipped lower, and her heart jumped into her throat. His fingertips drew shapes just above where she wanted them. She shifted back, connecting their lower bodies firmly, making a sharp breath leave his chest. He was hard as a rock now. Heat pooled in her lower body that had nothing to do with the temperature of the shower.

"Please fuck me," she managed to get out, leaning up to kiss him again, the words vibrating against his mouth. He let her have it this time, slipping his tongue between her lips to tangle with her own.

He nudged her forward toward the shower wall just out of the spray. She nearly cried with relief. Christopher took her hand again, raising it to rest against the tile, his covering hers as his other finally dipped between her legs, brushing over her clit, making her shudder.

She pulled away from his lips, dropping her forehead and resting it against the tile. His fingers worked over her dripping pussy, mouth dropping to her shoulder, teeth grazing the skin there. It was everything she'd been daydreaming about, but everything she said she wouldn't do if she came here. And yet she needed it, needed him.

He moved his hand lower, slipping a finger inside her, and the groan that came from his lips could've made her come right on the spot. He added a second finger and pumped them slow and torturous. It felt like heaven, but it wasn't enough.

"Please," she begged, resting her other hand on the tile, lips parting when his fingers curled in a way that made her cry out.

"Fuck, Camila." He removed his fingers and used his knee to knock her thighs wider apart. The thought that he was as eager as she was made her body flush even more. He used his free hand to guide his cock to her entrance, and pushed inside.

She tried to pull her hand under his free from the wall, but he held her there, forcing the other one up, caging her in, sinking himself deeper inside her. He stayed like that for what felt like forever, letting her body adjust to him by just barely pulsing in and out of her as he kissed every inch of skin he could reach. After tormenting her for several agonizing moments, his hips moved quicker, body pressing flat against hers.

"Your pussy feels so goddamn good, baby," he whispered in her ear, making her legs turn to jelly as he fucked her. "I missed this, I missed you."

He finally let her hands go, running one up her body to squeeze one of her breasts, brushing over her nipple with his thumb. It sent shocks of electricity straight between her legs, and she gasped, chin dropping to her chest.

Christopher leaned forward and kissed her jaw, teeth nipping at the skin. "Did you miss me, too?"

"Yes." She could barely form words. His cock stroked magic along her walls, his thrusts forceful and fast enough to make her lose her breath.

His hand moved back down between her legs, circling her clit with expert precision. "Tell me."

"Yes, I missed you," she gasped, latching onto his forearm and digging her nails in hard enough to leave indents. A ball of pleasure had begun to form in her lower body.

"I want you to come for me, baby,"

She moaned his name, unable to hold it in at his encouragement, the sound of his hips snapping against hers making her tremble. He took her chin in his other hand and forced her to look up at him, to meet his gaze. She could feel herself falling apart, and by the way he stared down at her, he liked the mess he'd made. Her eyes fluttered closed as she reached the precipice, so close to tipping over the edge into sheer bliss.

"Look at me," he whispered, his own pleasure thick in his voice. She opened her eyes, her lips parting as the hunger in his voice made the ball of pleasure explode.

The orgasm took her breath away, snatching it right from her chest, but Christopher held her tight and fucked her through it, not giving her an inch of space to pull back. It went on for what felt like forever, sapping every ounce of energy from her, and she was grateful for his grip or she would've dropped like a stone.

Just as hers was dissipating, his hit him full force, and she gazed up at him with heavy, satiated eyes. She loved the way his own eyes closed, his mouth dropping open, breath hitching in his chest. When Christopher opened his eyes again, he stole a kiss, his cock softening inside her. He pulled out and rested his forehead against her shoulder to catch his breath.

The water was still running hot, and Camila had to thank whoever installed the water heater in his building. When her legs felt steady enough, she pulled out of his hold and moved back under the spray, washing away the sweat and come from her skin. Christopher watched her with a half smirk, looking satisfied.

He joined her under the spray, pressing a hand to the tiny bump of her abdomen, the other running up from her ass to the cradle back of her neck. "Boy or girl," he asked.

It was a question she'd pondered for hours and hours over the last few weeks. Who would this little life be?

"Girl," she finally said, leaning up to kiss him. "You've got 'girl dad' in your DNA."

Christopher laughed, the smile covering his entire face, and Camila couldn't help but be smitten. "Why would you wish that on me? A lifetime of ass beatings and threats."

"Come on, I'm getting wrinkly."

Camila stepped out of the shower on shaky legs, Christopher right behind. She slipped into a robe on the hook on the wall and brushed her fingers through her hair, looking herself over in the mirror. He came to stand behind her, a towel tied around his waist.

He watched her as she pulled bottles from the cabinets—facial serum and moisturizers she'd stocked here when they were together. It warmed her heart to find them right where she left them, completely untouched like he knew she would be back.

"So, a girl, huh?" he asked, and she met his gaze in the mirror.

"I hope so."

He smiled, but shook his head. "I guess I should start prayin' now. I got a lot of bad karma just waitin' to rain down on my head."

"Hey, it's going to be okay either way."

He took a step forward and hugged her from behind, squeezing her tight and pressing a kiss to her temple. "Yeah, we will."

Finally, while she was putting lotion on her legs, he walked out of the bathroom, leaving her to finish getting ready for bed in a peaceful silence. By the time she was finished, Christopher had changed into sweats and pulled down the covers on the bed. He was putting on deodorant when she came back in.

"Get in bed, mama," he said, turning out the lights, leaving them in near darkness except for the city lights shining in through the enormous windows.

Camila thought the way he demanded nearly everything in life would get under her skin and drive them apart, but after the last few weeks of work without him around, she relished the way she could turn her mind off. It made her feel cozy and warm inside.

She slid between the sheets on her side of the bed, and he followed after adjusting the thermostat and closing the door. They laid beside each other for a while without speaking until he broke the silence.

"See, tucked in before midnight," he said, and she could hear the smirk without even seeing his face.

"I do believe I said coming home with you was a bad idea, though, and I was right."

He laughed. "My intentions were pure, I promise. You were the poor influence."

She reached out and swatted at his chest. Christopher snatched her up by the wrist and dragged her into his chest. She wound her arms around his waist and pressed a kiss to one of the scars on his chest—the bullet wound that'd pierced through to his lung. The one that nearly killed him.

"I want you to fire her," Camila said softly.

"What?"

She sat up a little so she could see his face. "Beth. She almost killed you once. She should never get the chance to try again."

The wheels turned inside his head, she could see it as he held her gaze. "You gonna stick around this time?"

"I'm here aren't I?"

"You gonna keep me a secret?" One of his eyebrows cocked curiously. "I give a little, you give a little, sweetheart." He brushed a finger over her bottom lip.

"No, you won't be a secret."

Christopher kissed her softly. "Good."

#rio good girls #manny mayans #manny montana #beth boland #annie marks #netflix good girls #good girls fic #rio fic #Spotify

[waltwhitmansbeard]

Prom with Vaxleth?

26. Prom setting this in grow with the flow! buckle the FUCK UP

It starts with a social media post—Vex's, to be specific. Vax groans, his phone hovering just a few inches above his face, and Keyleth turns her head away from the business email she's been writing and rewriting for the last half hour to ask, "What is it?"

"Look." And then the phone is shoved in her face, and she's looking at—

"Is that you?"

All limbs and sharp angles, a teenage Vax in an ill-fitting tuxedo, his hair slicked back with what must be an entire container of hair gel, gives a sultry look to the camera. He's back to back with his sister, who's wearing a shimmering blue strapless gown that makes her legs look a million miles long. They each wear a snowdrop, him on his boutonniere and her on her corsage.

"Is this your prom photo?" Keyleth snatches the phone, grinning from ear to ear, to look even closer. "You two look so good!"

"We look so dorky." Vax tries to grab the phone back, but Keyleth keeps it deftly out of reach. "Apparently, today's the tenth anniversary, and Vex decided to air our dirty laundry on social media."

Keyleth scrolls down to read the comments, and since Vax is tagged, the Grow with the Flow audience is having a field day. "Oh yeah, this is fun. It's half bullying you, half asking to have a threesome with you and Vex."

"Disgusting."

Keyleth finally returns the phone. "Did you guys at least have fun?"

"Well, I hooked up with both the prom queen and the theatre teacher, so...yes."

Keyleth's jaw drops. "At the same time?"

"No." That prompts more questions than it answers, but then Vax asks, "What about you? I wanna see sexy prom photos."

She snorts. "Good luck. I didn't have a prom."

Vax sits up in bed. "For real? Why not?"

"I wasn't kidding when I said Zephrah is small. My graduating class had eleven kids in it. We just had a bonfire instead. That was the first time I successfully shotgunned a beer. There may be pictures of that somewhere!"

Vax pouts, hooking his chin on your shoulder. "So you've never gotten to dress up all pretty, make all the boys and girls go oooooh?"

"Um, well, I got a pretty nice dress for my mom's funeral."

"Oh fucking hell." Vax swings his legs out of bed and snags up his phone. He paces a line in the kitchen, dialing someone and pressing the phone to his ear.

"Who are you calling?"

"My sister. We are fixing this."

.

Honestly, Keyleth forgets about it. The podcast is really taking off, and pretty much any time not spent researching and scripting and recording and editing is spent coordinating sponsorships and doing the annoying paperwork that comes with owning a business. Vax has some project that he's working on, but he won't tell her what it is, which is fine, because she has more than enough projects on her own plate right now.

She doesn't think to question it when Vex tells her they're going shopping one weekend. Vex likes to shop—well, no. Vex likes to window-shop. Vex rarely spends actual money. Except this time, they go to a little corner boutique, one that sells gowns for weddings and galas. She doesn't know why, but Vex is insistent that she get this long-sleeved emerald green dress that hugs her curves. She tries to argue that it's a ridiculous expense, but Vex promises her they'll do a photoshoot with it for the podcast, and hey, they've been making some pretty good ad revenue these days, so she caves. It's especially hard to say no when Vex buys a dress herself, a slinky black number that makes her look like danger.

She definitely doesn't connect the dots when Vex and Pike burst in unannounced one afternoon when Vax is out, each laden with bags of makeup and hair products. Keyleth's tugged away from her editing to get dolled up, for fun, they insist. The next thing she knows, they're all dressed up, each in their own beautiful gown—Pike's poofy golden dress makes her look like the sun incarnate—and Keyleth's being shoved out the door.

She probably should have figured it out before Vex pulled her car up in front of the botanical garden, where a red carpet lined with silver and gold balloons leads inside the building, but no, it takes Vax, dressed in a sharp black suit that fits like a glove with a slim green tie that matches her dress perfectly, stepping out holding a homemade sign that reads Will you go to prom with me? that she finally fucking gets it.

Crying, she throws her arms around his neck, chastising him for keeping such a momentous secret from her, but Vex is there to scold her for ruining her hair and makeup. Her friends lead her inside, where she's shocked to find the gardens filled with people, most of whom she does not know. Vax explains that he put the call out for anyone in the city who missed out on their high school prom and wants a second chance, with all profits from ticket sales being donated to Keyleth's favorite conservation organization. Keyleth dissolves into a mess again, but Vex and Pike get her cleaned up enough for the evening to begin.

And oh, what an evening. Scanlan's band plays them through a night of dancing, drinking, and all around fun. Keyleth has never spent so much time on a dance floor in her life, but even though she takes plenty of spins with Percy and Grog and the girls, she is happy to have so many with Vax, who can go from an elegant waltz to a shockingly gymnastic twerk with a simple key change.

Some of the other prom attendees are podcast listeners, and Keyleth is so grateful to get to put faces to the numbers she spends more time than she likes to admit obsessing over. Everyone takes thousands of pictures, and she is so excited to see the #growwiththeflow hashtag come morning. The gardens are filled to the brim with people just loving life and enjoying each other's company, and Keyleth, who had never put much thought into what it meant to miss out on such an adolescent right of passage, is beyond grateful to experience this night with these people.

When the evening is winding down, and most of the revelers have either gone home or gone to another location to continue the party, Vax tugs her by the hand deeper into the gardens, far from the area set aside for the event. He boldly strides past a sign forbidding entry, saying "This is not even in the top ten most interesting places I've trespassed" when she stutters in protest.

He stops when they're surrounded by the most beautiful blossoming cherry trees Keyleth has seen since she left Zephrah. The glass ceilings of the botanical gardens let in the light of the stars above, and the entire scene is so fragrant and beautiful. "Vax...this is lovely."

"So are you." She wrinkles her nose at him, and he kisses it. "Did you have fun?"

"I don't think I've ever had so much fun in my life. I can't believe you kept this a surprise from me for so long."

"I can't believe you didn't catch on. I mean honestly, Keyleth, don't tell me I have to be the brains in this relationship, because if that's the case, we're screwed."

She punches his arm. "Jerk."

"Yeah, well, this jerk has one more surprise for you. Look over there." He points over her shoulder and she turns. She squints in the low light, but she sees nothing beyond the cherry trees except more plants.

"I don't understand, is there supposed to be—" She cuts herself off as she turns around to see Vax on one knee, a small box in hand. Her hands fly to her mouth, her eyes instantly watery.

"Keyleth, I am not a man of the gods." His voice is cracked, strained, like he's choking back tears of his own. "There is little that I have ever had faith in in this life. Until you. Until I fell in love with a girl I'd follow to the ends of the earth. Until I learned that fate did not mean that my life was a cart on a track, hurtling toward an uncertain future I couldn't avoid, but rather a certainty, a knowing that in this life, in any life, I am yours until I die and long after. And now my faith is in how much I love you, in how much I know you love me. And I may be a lovesick fool, but I have every faith that love will carry us through whatever the gods have in store for us." Keyleth is openly weeping, her breaths coming fast and sharp. "So, then, Keyleth..." He opens the ring box, revealing a pair of rings, one with a gorgeous smokey gray stone. "Will you marry me?"

She doesn't answer him, choosing instead to tackle him into a kiss that knocks him pack onto the stone pathway of the gardens. She kisses him until she can't breath, until the crying and the laughing and the hyperventilating has him sitting her upright before she passes out. Her hand trembles as he slides the rings onto her finger, and it isn't until he closes the ring box again that he pauses and asks, "Uh, wait, was that a yes?"

"Oh, you are definitely not the brains in this relationship." And she kisses her fiancé again, beneath the stars and the cherry blossoms and the eyes of the gods.

#ask #ravendruid #critical role #critical role fic #cr fic #my fic #vox machina #vox machina fic #grow with the flow au #critical role au #cr au #tlovm au #vox machina au #vaxleth au

[astarfornicks]

The first and only chapter of a fic i never finished -

This was a long time ago and I haven’t written in ages |

When I stepped outside that night, the air carried a hint of rebellion and a taste of freedom that lingered on my tongue. I was begging for a night away—away from my brothers and their square rules. I dig running away. I really do. The nights I'm sleepless or the nights I'm sleepy; it doesn’t matter. It feels the same nonetheless.

“Hey, Dallas.” I said, “Toss me a weed, will you?”

Dallas always hung around the park those days. Probably because I was there about every night.

He sat under the same tree every time, too. It was a routine.

“Ver, man, go home. It’s about the hundredth damn time you’ve been out here. You got people waiting for you on the other side.” Dallas huffed.

“I never heard anybody but me say they liked it on the East side. Not even y’all. It’s like my break, Dal. It’s rough. Everywhere. Not as good as you’d think in the West.” I uttered. “I think it’s time you start believing me when I say I like it here.”

After an eternity, Dallas caved and passed me a smoke. These nights were only two things: disgusting and freeing. Say to tell the two things apart now, and I wouldn’t know what to tell you.

I continued, “It’s almost six. Have you been here this entire time?”

“Got a few minutes of sleep on that very bench you’re on. Damn raccoons can’t keep their hands off me, man.”

I took a puff, chuckling a bit. Dallas was the man. People knew him all over town, and he sure was what he lived up to. Rowdy, criminal, and last of all, charming.

“Now, you better get back, Ronnie. West side is gonna freak when they find out you’re not there, man. Even worse, if you’re here.” Dallas said, “You got school, too.”

“And how come you don’t?” I spat back.

“Hey, you know.”

“Right, you don’t wanna go, is that it? And I'm stuck there.” I said, lifting, then dropping my arm in defeat.

Dallas chuckled, “You don’t wanna be like me, trust me. Now get!”

I laughed, smiling afterwards and turning my back. “Alright, alright, Dallas. I’m going.” Flinging the cigarette behind me, I asked him one more thing.

“Tomorrow, here, late?”

“You’re really something, Ver. See you.”

That meant yes.

I walked back to the West side in the early sun, hoping that the mere shadows of the trees would hide me from the eyes of anyone passing or watching me from some window.

I thought back to Dallas Winston. Before I got to know him, he was just some no-good hoodlum, a real greaser in my eyes. He was no better than any other criminal I’d seen. But as I spent more time with him, I realized there was more to Dallas than met the eye. He had that wild and rebellious spirit, always up to some mischief or another. His past ran deep in him. In some way that I didn’t want to admit, I also admired him in some sort of sense. Sharp and cool; who wouldn’t?

Still half lost in thought, I snuck into my bedroom window through a tree. As I could finally sit on my plush bed, I thought about my future long and hard. I was a girl with all the breaks. Money in the bank, top grades in school, what more could a gal like me ask for? It seemed like my destiny was carved in stone, clear as day for all to see.

I still had my cigarette in my hand and was itching for a smoke. Stepping away, sticking my head out my bedroom window, I took a slow, thoughtful drag from my cigarette. It was a tough life in this town. I had friends, some enemies, some people I loved more than anything.

No one more than Tommy, though. Tommy was my kid brother, only one year younger than me but a whole lot smarter. Both socially and academically, I’d say. He was there for me always, through thick and thin. He was fun, serious mostly, but fun. Tommy kind of grounded me like that—telling me what to do and how to do it, where to go and who to be with. It's just what he’d do, worrying about me and all that stuff. Things that I didn’t usually do on my own.

I had one older brother, but he was busy at college and I only got to see him during breaks. He was the rowdy kind, almost like me—nothing like Tommy—but I never got along with him as well. Opposites attract, people say. I didn’t care about that sort of stuff until Tommy started yapping on about it. Then I believed it, cause that was one of the only times I’d listened.

I closed my eyes and imagined a life; a life that was perfect and the one that was expected of me. It was nice, no doubt about it. I would’ve never got out of my thoughts if I didn’t hear someone holler my name from the street.

“Ver! Veronica!” I heard, with a waving Sherri looking straight at me. I hid my weed, wishing more than anything she hadn’t seen it. I was ashamed of my habit, just ‘cause I was raised not to do stuff like that.

“Hi, Cherry.” I said back, cracking a smile. Cherry was one of my good girl-friends, one I could really talk to sometimes when I needed an ear. She got the types of things I said for the most part—the things about life being tough and the real things out there in the world.

She squinted at me and smiled for a second before walking away. It was finally about time I started to walk to my bathroom to get ready. I curled my hair, did my makeup, and I was off to school—one place I dreaded like a prisoner facing his cell.

………………………..

I sat bothered and bored for most of the school day. Sure, I got good grades, but I didn’t do anything other than what they asked of me. Besides, if my grades slipped, I’d probably die from my parents before anything ever got to me. And I really wasn’t itching to experience any of that. Not one bit.

I stepped out of school with my other girl-friends, which included Cherry and a few other girls. Cherry and I ran tight, even in a crowd. I had my arm around her and she was leaning her head on my shoulder as we walked. She must’ve been real worn.

“Cherry, how would you like to catch a movie with me later?” I asked her.

“Oh, Ver, I’m not sure. I’ve got a whole lot of homework and you know how my parents are. They’re always complainin’ and I can’t stand it anymore.” She went on and on about her parents, as she always did. They were nothing but difficult people, the sort that grated on your nerves and had no business raising children.

“I’ll do it for you, Cherry. It’s time for you to get out. You could use some time out of there. Nothing big.”

“No, no, Ver. I ought to do it myself—really. I’ll ask my parents, too. It’s a Friday anyways.”

I nodded as I hugged her and watched her walk to her car. She was real pretty, a head-turner, a chick that had all the boys trailing behind her. And I would’ve said I was happy for her if I didn’t know she was dating Bob: some stuck up, deranged boy who jumped innocent kids and didn’t even care. I remember how disappointed I was the day she told me about him. I knew his type, his gang, and the kids he beat on.

I strolled towards the back of the school, where I always parked my car. It was a real nice red Thunderbird. My parents got it for me for my 16th birthday, and I’d treasured it ever since.

The moment I was about to drive off, I caught a few footsteps running behind me.

“Hey, baby. Nice car you got there,” the voice called out, dripping with a mischievous charm that I recognized all too well. When you’re all on your lonesome and have nothing to do, you can talk to Dallas—sometimes. Problems start when anything’s different. I glanced over my shoulder, catching a glimpse of him leaning casually against my car, a devilish grin playing on his lips.

“Bye, Dallas.” I replied, rolling my eyes.

“No good Soc.” I heard him mutter. Every time I thought he got past the fact, I was proven wrong.

I drove off, more upset and irritated by the situation than I wanted to be. Dallas Winston was a wild spirit, untamed and unapologetic. The world was his playground, and he played by his own rules. There was something about his reckless abandon, a charm that even I couldn't deny, that pulled me in.

I remembered the first time I met him. Coincidentally, it was also the first time I’d snuck out— and what I thought would’ve been my last. That time, I didn’t travel anywhere off of my turf. It was really Dallas who was out of his territory, trying to vandalize some guy’s car. I sat on our park’s bench; the one on the West side, I mean. Dallas was no one I cared about. He was a nobody to me, a hoodlum, and I would’ve had no idea I’d ever run into him. Hell, I really didn’t even know what he looked like.

Not until I’d been startled by some loud ruckus nearby. It should’ve been my cue to leave, but I don’t listen— not to anyone, not to myself, either. He’d been beaten. I could recall it vividly—the bruises on his face, the casual ease with which he settled down beside me. He asked for a smoke; in return, I had asked him what happened. I sure wished I was spared the details. Boy, were they gruesome.

When he got up, I posed him one last question: his name.

“Dallas. Dallas Winston.”

I sat there, dumbfounded and stunned, like I had just seen a ghost. I felt a surprising mix of curiosity and caution about him from that point on. Some things about Dallas I knew— I didn’t know a lot, but he always striked me as someone that no one really knew anything about. He had a rough past, grew up in New York, first had gotten arrested at ten; I heard that from talking to him. I also knew Dallas Winston always got what he wanted— everyone knew that.

#dally winston #dallas winston #matt dillon #the outsiders 1983 #the outsiders #cherry valance #johnny cade #fluff #steve randle #sodapop curtis #ponyboy curtis #two bit mathews #darry curtis #dallas winston x reader #dallas winston x y/n

[forgiveness-in-the-misery]

I have been thinking about Metalocalypse and Gods/Demons more lately.

The prophecy was always slated to take place, the universe was determined about that and presumably The Whale/Goddess/Queen Alive had some sway in making sure things played out how they needed to.

Which I want to say I think Metalocalypse shows a sort of casual cruelness with Gods and Demons in an almost innocent way? They do things typically using humans as tools or puppets to move along to a greater goal they need to reach with no real concern about the comfort or wellbeing of the human pawns.

So because we know Nathan did indeed have to suffer. A lot to create the song of salvation he was the one to remember Doomstar Requiem which for me makes so much fucking sense.

Nathan can draw from what happened that night to create the SOS, but if Murderface remembered being possessed he would have been fucked up sooner, Toki would have been so fucked up he couldn’t have performed same for Skwisgaar and Pickles. Extra trauma would not have pushed the four of them to create, but Nathan as the voice of the band he as far as She sees it needs it.

But mostly I have thought about how these people got to where we meet them in the show.

Charles surely wouldn’t have wanted to manage a group of rowdy teen boys, but something compelled him and that same thing made him so intensely loyal to them that he killed Melmord to keep his place in their lived, he was a pawn in all of this to die for them and become the Dead Man.

If Skwisgaar had had a good childhood he never would have run away and found his guitar, he wouldn’t have spent all his money on guitar lessons and all his time playing to escape the stress at home.

If Toki hadn’t been abused so intensely he wouldn’t have found his guitars or met Runke, he never would have had that final push that caused him to leave and find a place he belongs.

Nathan had the most normal home life so we know his thing was different. We know he had dreams growing up about a band in shadows and became super obsessed with finding them and then just deciding to start the band in his dreams himself.

Even Murderface’s dad’s breakdown most likely was due to the prophecy, to Her. His parents died horribly before he could ever know them and he was raised by a horribly bitter cruel woman who blamed him for it.

Pickles and Seth if we’re being honest neither had a good childhood. It’s almost like She was okay with either becoming a part of the prophecy but Pickles was the one who won while Seth always mentions his intense violent jealousy of Pickles and this feeling he should be the one where Pickles is, because She never cared. Just so long as one brother played the part but the other would forever be tormented by the feeling of never being whole.

Even Rockzo was picked. It is so fucking weird as a little kid he found Mashed Potato Johnson’s album, that listening to it specifically led to the clown haunting him and tormenting him, driving this literal child insane to the point he tried to slit his own wrists in the bath. Then caves in, devotes himself to being the clown, joining a band, fucking up being in a band and then coincidentally meeting Toki when Toki starts regressing in season one. It is like She knew this kid specifically, that Toki would have suffered so much because he had to but She would have to cause a whole person to essentially become his comfort object to keep him grounded.

Do I think She had anything to do with Magnus being an abusive asshole? That I genuinely am at a toss up for especially because after being kicked out She would have no use for him at all and if She made him crazy temporarily just so he would be kicked out of Dethklok then She wouldn’t have kept him in that state of rage for so long since his future actions nearly killed Toki and ruined the entire prophecy.

Gods don’t seem to do oversights.

Like I really love the dawning realization watching the show again how so many fucking things are deliberate. Even like I have said before how the Tribunal exaggerated shit about Dethklok to make Crozier angry and paranoid about the band. Realizing and noticing post movie they clearly didn’t believe anything they told Crozier, they just said shit and acted scared and angry to get a reaction from him, to keep him compliant.

Like at the end of the day the entire show was basically watching Gods and Demons treat all these human players as Marionette puppets dangling from strings with limited freedoms.

#metalocalypse

[furyxiv]

I caved and spent my remaining NX points on a Halloween outfit the day after Halloween 😞

But it lets me turn into a cat so that makes it worth real money

#mabinogi #ignore that my main has almost no magical ability

[pbs-theundeadmaggot]

first love // before I cave in

🎶 before I cave in by too close to touch

(AU) Steve Harrington x fem!reader

[a/n] so I just found out my mum has cancer so updates will probably be weekly from now on (sorry) but I'm still excited for where this series is going and hopefully you enjoy it!

[warnings?] underage drinking, angst, self doubt, bad parents.

first love masterlist here!

The sticky summer’s heat clung to the cheap fabric of your sweater, the gentle breeze doing nothing to help cool you down and even though you may have been overheating, you’d rather take that chance and feel protected by the comfort of your sweater then to feel the unnerving chill that was bound to be a constant within the small tunnels of the Catacombs. 

Why you were visiting a mass grave you weren’t entirely sure other than the fact that Eddie had insisted on it, saying that it was possibly the most metal thing he’d ever experience in his life. Although, you weren’t sure anything could beat the time Jason Carver swapped Eddie’s clothes out for a cheerleaders uniform during gym. Thankfully leaving a pair of shorts behind so he wasn’t flashing the entirety of Hawkins at once. Much to Jason’s dismay not only did Eddie pull off the awkward fit of the outfit but he also managed to gain a handful of new ‘sheep’ to carry on the legacy of the Hellfire club after he graduated. Which subsequently also turned him into a living legend of the former freak turned rockstar that would continue to live on within the trauma ridden hallways of the school for many years later. 

Yeah, that was once pretty epic day.

“Ready to go?” The living legend said himself before wrapping his arms around both you and Robin as you followed the tour guide into the ancient passages. 

It was unnerving seeing the thousands of bodies stacked upon each other, simply as if their bones held no meaning and served as a reminder that the world keeps moving even after your death, that one day you would cease to exist in both memory and real life. The only sound to be heard for miles being the echoing crunch of shoes on gravel and the voice of your tour guide leading you around. The air was thick and heavy almost claustrophobic as if there were one too many people in the room yet only 10 silhouettes were reflected under the dark dingy lights, 5 of which belonged to you and your friends. 

“look bats!” You’d excitedly whispered to the group as you pointed them out, the creatures almost hidden away in the far corner of the ruins. For as long as you could remember you’d always preferred animals over humans, being somewhat anti-social and having absent family meant you spent a lot of time alone with nothing but nature to surround you, the peaceful hustle and bustle of the woods bringing you a sense of comfort and relief when you needed it.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

"Both of you sprawled out across your bedroom floor giggling like school girls half drunk and flushed, window wide open and curtains lightly fluttering from the wind. High school was officially over and adulthood was quickly approaching, neither of you feeling like partying but opting to stay at home together, taking in the final moments before you returned to the ‘real world’.  

Although you’d both been forced to grow up long before you were meant to, it didn’t mean the idea of becoming a real adult was any less scary. After all you’d watched your parents fall in and out of love, working 9-5 in a depressingly boring job and become hollow lifeless shells of people they used to be. Where once upon a time they had a love for life, a love for you, until money and status grabbed a hold of them like a disease, outweighing everything else that mattered until they were left with nothing but their greediness to comfort them. 

Perhaps that’s why you and Steve were so close, because you understood each others troubles and both just longed for someone to see you and love you as you are. The sleepless nights spent talking about anything and everything or just being alone together were something you would’t trade even if your life depended on it, just like tonight.

Steve could tell your mind was running rampant with thoughts and fear, the frown on your face evidence enough. He hated how your parents treated you, terms and conditions attached to their love as if you owed them, to him he would happily walk through fire and burn in hell if it meant he got a chance to show you how much he adored you. Nonetheless the dread of being rejected meant he would only ever do so platonically because he’d rather have you as a friend then lose you as a lover. 

“If you could be any animal what would it be?” He’d cleverly lured you away from your darkness hoping it would be enough to keep the pain away a little while longer. 

You on the other hand, turned towards Steve, observing his every move as if you were scared he was a figment of your imagination and would disappear any second. You knew he knew what you were thinking about, and you gladly accepted the distraction.

“Hmm, I think I’d be a bat.” Truth be told this was something you thought of often enough to have a solid answer for.

“what?” Steve had turned towards you now, propping himself up with his arms and stealing a swig from the wine he’d smuggled over. 

“You know what a bat is Steve” It came out as more of a question than a statement but you continued on. “Bats do almost everything upside down and the equivalent of their meals to ours would be like 20 pizzas every night.” 

“You must really like pizza to want to eat 20 every day for the rest of your life.” He teased, running a hand through his soft untamed hair. 

“Well who doesn’t like pizza?” You waited for an answer but thankfully got none. “What would you be?” 

Although you saw him almost every day you couldn’t deny that somehow he got more attractive each time. Wether it was the alcohol or mutual attraction talking you couldn’t take your eyes off his features that were ingrained in your memory like a scar you never wanted to fade. From the light freckles kissing his skin to the gentle curve of his nose and slightly flushed face, every part of him was beautiful like he’d been carved by a god and blessed with holy water. And the way he looked at you sometimes, made you feel like the only girl in the world, his soft eyes gleaming with what you hoped to be love but settled with fondness, perhaps in another lifetime you could be more.

You didn’t realise you’d blanked out until you saw his large hand waving in front of your face. “Anyone there?” It had gone way past midnight by now, waves of sleepiness crashing over you both waiting to pull you under. 

“Sorry what were you saying.” Slightly embarrassed to be caught thinking about your best friend in such a way.

“If you’re a bat I wanna be a bat too.” He’d said so earnestly practically melting you under his stare. The room fell into a comfortable silence both just soaking in the moment before sleep drowned you both." 

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

“ew they’re so ugly.” Rebecca had murmured out, holding tightly onto Steve’s arm as she pulled him away. “Babe I’m bored can we go now?”

You’d arrived no less than 20 minutes ago but of course Steve just let her yap on like a little lap dog, fuck she was making it hard to accept her and it was only two days in.

No.

You wont be that person.

She was probably just having a bad day or maybe she was scared of the dark? 

You didn’t not like her….?

you liked her?

Yeah that wasn’t convincing…

⋆﹥━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━﹤⋆

[a/n] Reblogs and comments are greatly appreciated and encouraged!

other works available here!

taglist: @freezaz123

#stranger things imagine #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things #steve harrington #steve stranger things #joe keery fanfiction #joe kerry #steve x y/n #steve imagine #steve x reader #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington angst #steve harrington imagine #save Harrington #stevie <3 #stranger things fics #stranger things x reader #stranger things imagines #pbs-thedesecrated #pbs-firstlove

[i-love-southpark-milfs69]

Since pip has no parents, I would be interested to know where he lives and some details in general:

- clothing

- accommodation

- money

- medical care

- Toys (he is still a child)

- school supplies

- who looks after him

- his bedroom

And so on

I always assumed he lived at an orphanage and if he wasn't there he was at summer school (s2 ep8 "summer sucks" he says that he can't be left alone so he has to attend summer school every year) so that's what I'm sticking with

• clothing

Possibly his clothes could come from donations to said orphanage or he saves money to buy thrift clothes

• accomodations

I'm not too sure what this means so I'm just going with what Google says: I would say hes not very smart book wise (but then again what 4th grader is) but I would like to think he has a lot of street and common knowledge like he would probably have some difficulty with solving math problems but he knows how to do other stuff pretty well (such as archery, fencing and how to act like a gentlemen)

•money

Ok this one is a bit tricky but I like to think that when he left Britain he was given some money to help him stay on his feet and when that ran out (probably quite fast because knowing children he most likely spent it on stuff he didn't really need like see here) he did some mini day jobs around the neighborhood

He most likely just caved to pier pressure when buying these but he also offered 75$ to buy a starving Marvin for himself

So Its a bit of a mystery to say how he's doing money wise but it looks like he's doing good from what I can tell

•medical care

I would say he was kinda screwed there considering his only kind of healthcare was the school nurse who wasn't very good at her job considering her method for helping a giant open wound on his head was a single bandaid and a shot

He probably had to take a lot of sick days cause really the only thing a school nurse can do is call your parents and tell them to pick you up and pip is an orphan....so that wasn't a option but on the bright side he probably has a very strong immune system

•toys

Kinda the same for the clothes all his toys were most likely donated to the orphanage or he bought them from thrift shops but occasionally he would save up enough money for a brand new toy like for example he has two Chinpokomon figures and I'm assuming that like real life Pokemon merchandise it's pretty expensive

He probably worked random jobs all over town (raking people yards, washing cars etc) to save up for those toys

•school supplies

Growing up being kind of poor we never really could afford School supplies either and usually when the kid or parent can't afford school supplies the school should provide it for you but not all cases are like this, and if that was the case he was on his own

•who looks after him

The teachers at the summer school or the workers at the orphanage I'd assume as he stated he can't be left alone

•his bedroom

Knowing orphanages he probably split a room with like four other kids so not a lot of privacy and he probably just shoved all of his stuff in a bag ethier under or on his bed (if it was on his bed it could've double as pillow as well)

#wow sorry this was so long #i just got really excited #south park #sp pip pirrup #sp pip #south park headcanons #Milfy talks

[ynscrazylife]

Being Robin Buckley’s younger sister (like ages with the other kids) headcannons please if you’re still up for hc’s 🧎🏼‍♀️🧎🏼‍♀️🧎🏼‍♀️🧎🏼‍♀️

Being Robin Buckley’s Younger Sister Would Include . . .

Request to be on a taglist (or multiple) here! (Taglists are at the end of the fic)

Main Masterlist | Stranger Things Masterlist

PSA: Do NOT copy, steal, translate, plagiarize, republish, etc any of my works on Tumblr or any other platform. Also, do NOT claim any of my works as your own. All of these works are either requests I’ve gotten that people have wanted me to write or original ideas I’ve had for works. If you happen to take inspiration from anything I’ve written and want to write something inspired by that, please a) ask me firstand b) IF I say yes, credit me as inspo in your post by tagging me and link whatever work of mine that inspired you. Thanks.

Being Robin’s sister was a blast

She was a mess, but she was a good big sister

You spent a lot of your time at Scoops Ahoy, enjoying discounted ice cream and the air conditioning

It was where you befriended the party

You and Max became quick friends

(She needed someone after El moved away)

You and Dustin too, when he came back from camp

You were probably the only one who thought Suzie was real (you were giving him the benefit of the doubt)

But you definitely collected a whole lot of betting money when it turns out she is real

Since Robin doesn’t have a license, you took it upon yourself to learn how to drive (with Max helping)

Safe to say, Steve does not let either of you drive his car

Although you loved your sister, you often found yourself on different “teams”. While she was off chasing Russians, you were with the Party

And since Robin and Steve are best friends, Steve’s like a brother

So when they hear that Billy broke out of the locker room and nearly got to you? They’re pissed

Dustin and Erica call them down and even then it’s almost not enough

And at the mall, her worried side comes out, and she almost becomes a mother hen

She’ll never live up to Steve being a mother hen, though

When the night is over and you guys reunite, she gives you a hug that almost crushes you

Literally — Steve has to tell Robin that she’s about to crush you

She’s just super relieved that you’re okay, especially since you had gone with Max, El, and Mike and were attacked by Billy

She and Steve are fawning over your head, by the way

“You might have got a concussion?” “Did he knock you out?” “How long were you out?”

They practically interrogate you and you remind them that Steve has to drive you and Robin home

But even that, Steve is instructing Robin on how to take care of your head

She’s a very protective sister and takes her role as one seriously

You’re the only other person besides Steve who knows that Robin is a lesbian

And of course you’re encouraging her to flirt with Vickie

Between you and Steve, it’s all she hears about

You always go to Robin’s band performances

And make funny faces at her

Sometimes it does mess her up

You also hang out at Family Video a lot

And get free movies

But then you take more movies for your friends

Anddd Steve and Robin notice a chunk of their inventory was gone

They were not happy

When Vecna started popping up, Robin sat you down and said that if you ever started to get headaches, nosebleeds, etc to talk to her

You promised her you would

Thankfully, Vecna didn’t come after you

But that didn’t stop Robin from worrying

She was always checking up on you

Robin just really loves you, what can I say? She’s your sister!

She’s the best person to have pillow fights with

And she’s great at cheering people up

If you’re ever sad, she’s there to make your frown turn upside down

Sometimes she’ll even tickle you and pretends to be the tickle monster

The only thing Robin draws the line at is homework, she’s not gonna help with that thank you very much, she did it once

(But she usually caves and ends up helping anyway)

It surprises people how good of a big sister Robin is, because they just don’t imagine it

She’s really on top of it

She’d be the best big sister, I’m certain of it

Permanent Taglist: @natasharomanoffismywife @hehehehannahthings @paulawand @blackbat2020 @cerberus-spectre @snipyloulou @cc13723things @passionswift @drayshadow @amaryllis23 @storysimp @lamieshelmy @galacticstxrdust @a-lil-bit-nuts @marvel-to-infinity @maryseesthings @lovelyy-moonlight @dumb-fawkin-bitch @thewidowsghost @cowboybabyyy @rootbeerfaygo @immathinker @espressopatronum454 @ladyrebel29-blog @1694​ @trashyxxkawa​

Stranger Things Taglist: @ofherscarlettwitchways​ @spongebob-in-the-upsidedown​ @pastel-abyss-x​ @liltimmyst​ @eichenhouseproperty​

#robin buckley x reader #robin buckley x y/n #robin buckley x you #robin x y/n #robin x reader #robin x you #robin buckley #robin imagine #robin headcanon #robin buckley hurt/comfort #robin buckley headcanons #robin buckley hc #robin buckley imagine #robin buckley fanfic #robin buckley fluff #stranger things #stranger things x y/n #stranger things x you #stranger things x reader #stranger things headcanons #stranger things hc #stranger things fic #stranger things fluff #stranger things series #st robin #st season 4 #stranger things season four #fanfiction #stranger things reader insert #robin buckley reader insert

[fruit-salad-ship]

Pirate AU, Plum and Peach are finally at a point where more personal questions can be asked, a quiet night in a port while the crew let loose and enjoy.

She's got to know, what exactly did peach do for 500 odd years? Tales are told sure but how true are they? Did she slay foul beasts and captain ghostly ships? Was she the one who robbed that barron the one time? Has she really travelled to the bottom of the ocean?

Peach laughs, she's heard the stories, they make their way back to her.

But truth be told, with the crew distracted and Plum becoming something she enjoys, if not even trusts a little, she briefly goes over it.

"I spent the first 10 years hunting the people responsible for my wifes death." she takes a drink, proud she got every last one of them and their familes. wiped the entire bloodlines off the face of the earth through sheer rage and fury. "After that I mourned, another 90-100 years just...coming to terms with it all. Once I could bare to leave the sea caves and start to do thing again, I stole a ship, it was 200 odd years of being a nightmare. Those years alone were what racked up the bounty on my head." A bounty with an unfathomable number attached to it. "I slept around, tried to find company in others to feel some small fragment of love or affecton again, but it was all meaningless. Fought things people didnt believe to be real, stole from the richest, killed the nastiest, became something to truly fear... I think looking back I was lashing out, I was angry at being alone. My crew feared me, not because I was stern and strict, but because I would often lose my cool and snap. There was no rationality then, I had no concequences, nothing to die for, nothing to be killed by, it went to my head. I tried to fill the void with anything and everything." She drinks again, the weight of that old tarnished wedding ring around her neck noticable now. "It didnt work. I grew tired of being the meanest thing out there, just...slowed down, stopped taking work until i needed to for money to drink, stopped hunting people, just kept to myself. Ever since then I just wandered around, waiting for...anything to happen that made sense, gaining more of a reputation every day I didnt age, didnt die, every time someone came to kill me and put holes in me, drowed me, tried to end it. But i just kept surviving, it only strengthened the stories told."

Plum was becoming increasingly aware that the worst rumours no doubt stemmed from that more violent period of time in the womans life, bloody, brutal, inhuman rumours, the ones that stuck in the history books.

"Then you showed up, demanded I join your crew, first person in hundreds of years who bothered to approach me with a proposition." The unspoken truth behind that was that Peach followed for the feeling of familiarity, not the money or her captains inspiring words. "Can't really turn down fates call like that."

"Huh. I'd have thought you'd have spent more time causing problems for people." The smaller woman laughed after saying that, imagining Peach in her prime, at the peak of her ferocity, knowing just how potent she could be when needed now, even though she'd become almost dismissive and docile with people according to the locals and tales about her.

"Well. I've always got time. Never know what the years will bring."

#pirate au #fruit salad #brainrot #chatting shit #their little talks always make me pause to think

[mahayanapilgrim]

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

To me isolation was a way to come to terms with who and what we really are when we are not playing roles. Normally we are continually playing many roles in our lives. When you are alone for an extended period of time, it's very boring playing roles for yourself, so you begin to drop it.

Retreat gives us this time and space in which we do it quite organically, not in a harsh way.

And I liked being up in the cave; I had a good time. I was very joyful, I loved to be in there. I couldn't think of anywhere else I would rather be, anything else I would rather be doing.

As for my family, most of them didn't have any say one way or the other. My father had died when I was two. There was only my mother who had any impact on me, and she became a Buddhist about six months after I become a Buddhist in England. Then she spent a year with me in India with my teacher. She took refuge with my lama and was devoted to Tara.

For years she sent money to support me there, which was extremely hard for her.

When we talk about unconditional love I think of my mother because she was all alone. She never said, "Why don't you come home and take care of your old mother?" She never used psychological blackmail even when she was really sick and nearly dead. She didn't write to me because she didn't want my practice to be disturbed. She thought that either she would recover, in which case why bother me, or else she would die, in which case why bother me?

I only learned she was ill from a friend of hers who wrote me an indignant letter, "Your mother is dying, why don't you come home?" I didn't know anything, my mother didn't tell me. She really understood. In fact, she told some friends of mine that she always prayed that in her next rebirth she would come back again as my mother because she was afraid that otherwise I would have parents who didn't understand that I needed to lead a special sort of life. That's love.

She died about fifteen years ago while I was in retreat.

People mistake love as attachment, but real love is thinking of others, not yourself. My mother to me is a shining example of unconditional love.

~ Tenzin Palmo

#buddha #buddhist #buddhism #dharma #sangha #mahayana #zen #milarepa #tibetan buddhism #thich nhat hanh #dhammapada #karma #mindfulness #dakini #four noble truths #pure land #equanimity #avalokitesvara #manjushri #bodhisattva #tsongkhapa #padmasambhava #green tara #atisha #amitaba buddha #shantideva #heart sutra #vajrasattva #meditation #medicine buddha

[helly-watermelonsmellinfellon]

So, I'm at Union 30 in Wuthering Waves.

I've been playing since launch day.

Playlist of Pulls and Fights

Playlist Compilation of Lag Issues

1.) My attention span when it comes to gaming is so bad that I get distracted by every single side question you can imagine. And once again, I started a new game and completely got distracted.

As such, I have not finished the main storyline yet, because I would see a side quest relatively close to me, and I would go start it. And in the middle of that side quest, I would see there's another side quest and I'd be like, 'oh, I could quickly go do that and then I'll come back and finish this one.' But then that one will take me halfway across the map, and then there will be another side quest in that area. And so I'm like, 'okay, all can do that real quick.' And then I've somehow spent 10 hours starting side quests and then never finishing them.

So, then I get to a point where I end up walking into the part of another side quest. And I end up finishing it. And because I finished it, and there's another one nearby, I'm just like, 'I might as well finish that one too.' And so when I say that I have done all of the current available side quests, I'm not lying. I still don't know the ending of the current story because I kept getting distracted!

2.) The lag was absolutely ungodly. I kept a detailed compilation ever since the first day of the game dropping to track if things have been improving with every patch they released. And I can conclude that, yes, there have been several improvements.

I even went so far as to start a second account on the 5th day after release. And I picked the other MC so I could try and experience the game now, versus the game on launch. And yes, it was much better. I was finally able to see all of the cutscenes clearly and hear the dialogue properly. And I was not skipping around as much in battle as I was on my original account.

So yes, they released to an innumerable number of problems, but they have been working every single day to try and address all of those problems. The compensation rewards have been pretty decent.

3.) This leads into another issue though, and it's constantly caving over and over to the playerbase over every little thing. They already changed the dialogue of some of the antagonists to be nicer, and they've even gone so far as to change the physical design of one of the antagonists. Now, I personally don't care because I thought the design was bad to begin with, but the reason it was changed was because men were complaining over on the CN side.

There are real things that need to be fixed, like the fact that the voice directing for the English voices is terrible, and that basically everybody but three characters don't actually sound like they're trying at all. From what I heard, they hired British VAs, but then wanted them to do American accents, all because Britain is closer to China and easier to reach... And those VAs struggled, which is why NPC voices sound like they're from London, Edinburgh, and NYC all in one conversation.

There are localization issues, and they just had to compensate everyone because the fancy weapon on the banner right now wasn't displaying the correct information and people spent money to get it only for it to not do what it claimed it would. A lot of the NPC's in the open world have text hanging above their heads, but the text hasn't been properly inputted and is full of code.

Also, it's very clear that certain things were added after the voice directing was finished, because there are parts in the dialogue that are written out but not actually said by anybody. This happens a lot in the side quests.

Caving to whiny men online is very different from fixing actual issues, and if they continue to cave, it'll undermine their own efforts.

4.) I'm going to be honest. I still don't really understand a majority of the story right now. With all of the problems that everyone was having on the very first day, while trying to just play everything through, it was hard to deal with the performance issues piled on with the very sudden info dump that they threw at everybody.

I have a feeling that at this moment in time, it would be better for me to watch somebody else's playthrough of the game. Someone who had no problems at all, so I can get a better experience and focus more that way.

A lot of the instructions are very unclear on how to do things. I don't know if this is also a localization error, but I do know that a lot of people have been making complaints about how things don't make sense, even when you check the tutorial page.

5.) Outside of the outstanding lg issues, the biggest grievance I actually have with the game is how ridiculous it is when leveling up characters, weapons, and echoes. All of those things are way too expensive. And then farming the materials to be able to do those things is also way too expensive.

6.) I like the combat system when it actually functions. I really like the look of the game when I can actually see what's going on. I am a bit bummed that there isn't much music for things going on in the open world.

When it comes to comparisons, it is not as much like Genshin as haters really want it to be to fuel their whining. To be honest, the first 20 or so minutes made me think of Honkai: Star Rail more than anything, and then everything that came after that just felt very close to Tower Fantasy. But again, this is a Fantasy RPG with a MC who needs to be mysterious. So, what's the best way to make them mysterious? Have them forget who they are and have to find that out themselves while everybody around them seems to really need their help for every little thing.

TOF did not come up with this. HSR did not come up with this. GI did not come up with this. BotW did not come up with this. These are very common tropes, and none of these games, or their predecessors, or related companies came up with these ideas. They're just what's most popular right now in pop culture.

~

Now do I think that Wuthering Waves was released way too early? Yes.

However, I think it was necessary for them to release it now, because, unfortunately, it is very obvious that HoYoVerse/MiHoYo is going to own the summer. Genshin is about to update with a VERY lore important update, and Honkai: Star Rail will be updating like 2 weeks after that. Honkai Impact 3rd P2 is probably updating somewhere in there as well, and then Zenless Zone Zero will be released on July 4th. And soon after would be another Genshin update which will either be the new region or a big summer event with loads of rewards to prepare people to spend in the next update. Kuro literally wouldn't have been able to handle releasing after all of that when people will be so focused on HYV/MHY content.

I'll continue tracking my progress in the game and how I feel going forward.

#wuthering waves #gacha games

[witchhatproductions]

Witch Hat News #4 - Lessons from the Archives

by Tata Calthrop

This is an archived version of our microfiction newsletter! You can read along on our tumblr, or subscribe here.

Which archive, you may ask? Well, it's quite simple.

Our own one.

Yes, like many twenty-somethings in the creative field now, I was forged in a rather specific fire – the classic Internet pipeline of Neopets, Deviantart, Tumblr, Twitter, usually interspaced at some point with either a gender crisis or a formal diagnosis of mental illness.

You see, for a young nerdy preteen in 2010, you have two sexy choices made available to you, neither of which you will perceive until it's too late. You will choose either the path of solitude (voraciously consuming and creating content in incredible loneliness and feeling like the only person in the world who does so), or the path of the internet, where you will learn at an incredibly young age how to receive and handle a death threat. I was raised on a raw, unfiltered diet of fandom. (Sonic the Hedgehog. The world has not been kind to me.)

The fans and the hermits have a lot to teach each other. In fact, as easy as it is to make fun of – well – most people on the internet, there is something valuable to be learned from every subculture of creativity, including the horny ones. 

So let me make a confession to you: I'm a fanfiction writer. I have a shameful record of 155,821 words, none of which will ever give me a scrap of credibility with anyone, including other fanfiction writers. (Heavy is the head that wears the dunce hat of Adventure/Comedy.) Hell, I've spent over a year picking away at a fancomic project. For zero dollars and no publication accolades, I have written at least five full completed novellas, which will never be published, be recognised, or prove anything except my big, fat crush on the uncle from Encanto.

My god, was it freeing.

The social pressure to monetize your art is insane. I took my first art commission before I even had my first bank account. It was my teenage dream: to be paid is to obtain credibility. The label will hang over your head like an execution hood: PROFESSIONAL. Of course, the loop never really stops; start making money and suddenly your eyes are open to how many opportunities you're missing, and how little you make compared to others, and how wide the chasm is between you and full-time creation. 

(That's not to say the money and recognition aren't nice! That part I do recommend.)

But making fan content, and making friends who also make fan content, and building up a small audience of people who just want to be there for fun is incredibly liberating when you're not used to it. Get a bunch of friends who create together, join a community that makes its own memes and creates a bubble of mutual feedback and appreciation, and you start to realise: this is how they made the old tales, the oral ones before the printing press.

Here's two lessons from the archives.

Love characters. Fall in love with their vulnerable moments, their jokes, their relationship dynamics, the little unseen parts of them that you can never put in a real story because there's simply no point. Linger on the details. Develop a little crush. Project all your issues and obsess over nothing. Love your own characters, and you'll find suddenly that creating art about them changes from a chore to an act of affection. Learn what makes you fall in love with other stories, and look for the same aspects in your own.

Making art to impress a large audience will disappoint you; making art to impress a social circle of about ten interested people is how life is supposed to be lived. The early humans who painted mammoths on cave walls had no audience except themselves.

Here's a quote I like, from Prof. Henry Jenkins, Provost Professor of Communication, Journalism and Cinematic Arts at University of Southern California: "Contemporary Web culture is the traditional folk process working at lightning speed on a global scale. The difference is that our core myths now belong to corporations, rather than the folk.”

Here's another quote I like, from twitter user @FarfinFarfin: "the fastest way to improve your art is to become some sort of pervert, doesn't really matter what kind, whatever you're comfortable with". 

Reviews

The Northern Caves by @nostalgebraist. The Northern Caves is a cosmic horror story about unwary scholars who delved too deep into the ancient texts, except the scholars are a group of hardcore nerds on an early 2000s fan forum for a mediocre fantasy series, and the ancient texts are fan theories about the author's baffling final novel. I know almost nothing about original fiction on Archive of Our Own, but I recognise a wonderfully online scary story when I see one. Psychological, terrifying, and twistedly fascinating reading for anyone who's ever watched an online community implode.

Songs for Girls in Love by @phemiec. PhemieC was one of my favourite musicians as a teenager, and when I got into my first relationship I rushed into the familiar arms of their love songs. They also were making, at the time, Homestuck fansongs. But when I was 15, this music made more of an impact on me than any classic musician ever could. Songs for Girls In Love has a number of fansongs mixed in, largely for things I've never consumed, but you'd never know it from their lyrical subtlety and I'm still a huge fan. 

Digital Land Grab: Media corporations are stealing our cultural heritage. Can we take it back? By Henry Jenkins. Okay, okay, this one's not exactly micro or fiction of any sort. But it is the article that I quoted earlier, and Prof. Jenkins could be described as the grandfather of fanwork studies in academia. A good read about the history and creative validity of fanwork, and the ways in which corporations suppress it. I highly recommend it, even if you know nothing about fanfiction.

Your project here. Do you make art of any kind - visual, written, performed? Are you starting a project or recruiting co-creators? We want to hear from you! Email us at [email protected].

That's it for June. See you next month!

#witch hat news #microfiction #newsletter